Another food challenge!  This recipe is actually super simple.  As long as you have the ingredients, you really can’t mess it up…  It is great for salads, or you can make it a little thicker for a great dip for vegan buffalo wings!

Ingredients:

• 2 tsp finely chopped onion (Cipollini is best)
• 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 garlic clove, finely minced
• 1/4 tsp salt (kosher is best)
• 1 and 1/4 cup vegenaise
• 1/4 cup vegan sour cream
• 1/4 cup plain (or unsweetened) soymilk
• 1/4 cup vegan parmesan cheese
• 1 heaping Tbs freshly ground pepper (black or rainbow)

Steps:

1.  Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Whisk well until completely combined.  Adjust the amount of soy milk to make your desired thickness.

Enjoy!

-JD

This is such a simple recipe- it takes less than 10 minutes to make.  It is so good, it can also take less than 10 minutes to eat.  I was never a huge fan of regular egg salad, but this tastes pretty great.  Try it on a sandwich, on top of toast, or as a dip with crackers or tortilla chips.  So good!

Ingredients:

• 1lb firm tofu- crushed
• 1 dill pickle spear (1/4 of a whole pickle)- minced with skin removed
• 2 green onion stalks- sliced thin (remove the white portion and the tough green end)
• 1-2 garlic cloves- minced
• 1/2 tsp spicy mustard
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp Braggs
• Pinch of dill
• 1/2 tsp tumeric
• 2 heaping tablespoons Vegenaise (serving spoon size, not the measuring spoon)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Steps:

1. Crush the tofu in a medium sized bowl- a potato masher works great for this.
2. Add the green onion, pickle, and garlic.  You can adjust the amount of garlic to suit your taste- it gives it a sharp taste.  I personally like to remove the skin of the pickle with a paring knife to give the egg salad a smoother consistency, but most people probably won’t care either way.
3. Stir things up well, then add the mustard, dill, tumeric, Braggs, and nutritional yeast.  Stir again.
4. Now add the Vegenaise.  I use two spoons for this- one spoon to scoop the Vegenaise into the tofu mixture, and the other to stir things up.  I add two heaping spoonfuls and then stir it well.  You can add more to help create the consistency that you want- less will make it stiffer, more will make a more watery consistency.
5. Add salt and pepper according to your taste, then crush it!

Enjoy!

-JD

I’ve been getting burned out on the traditional chili recipe.  Even after adding sweet potatoes, chick peas, etc it has still been coming out rather bland…  Here is a really easy chili recipe, made with lentils.  You can add additional veggies or beans to suit your taste.  It has a great chili flavor (heat it up by adding green chilies or jalepenos!), but it is also super nutritious due to all the lentils.

Ingredients:

• 6 and 1/2 cups water
• 2 and 1/2 cups dry lentils (green, red, any variety)
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3T Braggs
• 2T chili powder
• 1 and 1/2 T cumin
• 2tsp basil
• 1 28oz (large can) of diced tomatoes
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• ground pepper to taste
• OPT: add TVP or fake meat crumbles (one package) if desired

Steps:

1. Bring the water to a boil in a large pot.  Add the lentils and onion.  Return to a boil, then cover and simmer over low heat for about 35 minutes.  Stir occasionally
2. Add the spices and diced tomato, stir well.  Simmer for another 20 minutes.
3. If you want, you can add some fake meat or chili peppers here, but it tastes great without!  You can add the frozen crumblers, and let it warm up for another 5 minutes.
4. If you want a more tomato based chili- you can add a small can of tomato paste to thicken things up.

-It tastes even better the next day!  If it gets too thick, you can add some extra water- the lentils will absorb a lot as they cook.

Top with some Daiya cheddar cheese and some toasted crusty bread.  Enjoy!

-JD

One of the best nights I had recently was when my wife and I split a bottle of Virgil’s, made a summer pasta and watched Chocolat.

Here’s the recipe:

2 Zucchini- sliced

2 Yellow Squash- sliced

1 Medium Red Onion- diced

4 Cloves of Garlic- minced

2 Cups Cherry Tomatoes- halved

Handful Fresh Basil and Oregano- shredded

1lb Angel Hair Pasta

Salt & Pepper (Kosher & Freshly Ground)

Steps:

1. Boil the pasta as directed.
2. Heat 2-3 Tbs of olive oil over medium heat in a deep pan.  Add the sliced zucchini and yellow squash.  Cover with a lid and simmer for about 5 minutes.
3. Add the basil, oregano, salt, and pepper.
4. Once the squash start to soften add the diced onion.  Cook for another 5-10 minutes.
5. Add the garlic and tomato and cook for another 5-10 minutes, just until the tomatoes are starting to wilt.  The onions should be soft and the squash should be starting to brown.
6. Put a heaping amount of the veggie mixture over the pasta.  Add some vegan cheese if you want!

Just delightful!

-JD

I’ve never actually eaten eggs benedict.  However, I really love scrambled tofu and english muffins.  The combination of veggies and tofu served over a toasted english muffin sounds great.  Add some vegan hollandaise sauce and a side of roasted potatoes and you’re set.  I’ve never actually tasted real hollandaise sauce either- so who knows if this tastes anything close (probably not- real hollandaise is mostly egg yolks and butter).  Regardless, this is a great tasting breakfast dish.

Ingredients:

2 red bell peppers- minced

1 medium onion- minced

4-5 garlic cloves- crushed and minced

1 lb seasoned tofu- either crushed for a scramble or cubed into small pieces***

2 cups chopped spinach

Olive oil- about 1-2 Tbs to coat the pan

Hollandaise Sauce:

1/2 cup silken tofu

1 heaping Tbs nutritional yeast

2 Tbs lemon juice

1/2 tsp salt

Dash freshly ground pepper

2 Tbs olive oil

few dashes of chili powder

To make the tofu/veggie mixture:

Heat the olive oil in a large deep pan over medium heat (cast iron is best).  Saute the red peppers for about 10-15 minutes.  When they are getting soft add the onion and garlic.  Let this saute for another 5-10 minutes until the onion is cooked well and is becoming translucent.  Add your tofu [***- season your tofu as you would for scrambled tofu.  If you’ve never done this before, here’s my recipe: to the tofu add 2 tsp Braggs, 1 and 1/2 tsp of basil and oregano, 1/2 tsp of curry powder and tumeric, 1 tsp of chili powder, salt and pepper to taste].  Let all of this simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the chopped spinach and let the spinach cook and reduce down.  Add any additional salt and pepper as needed.

To make the vegan hollandaise sauce:

Heat the silken tofu in the microwave for about 30 seconds before blending well in a food processor.  Add the other ingredients and blend very well.

To serve:

Split (with a fork!) and toast an english muffin.  If you want, spread some Earth Balance over it, but this isn’t necessary.  Add a heaping amount of the tofu/veggie mixture.  Spoon some hollandaise sauce over the tofu/veggies.  Serve with a side of roasted potatoes.

So good!

-JD

This recipe was inspired by the fresh fall veggies at the Farmers’ Market.  A simple recipe that can easily be doubled or tripled to serve to guests.

Ingredients:

• 1 acorn squash- cut in half and seeds removed
• 2tsp olive oil
• 2 cups Brussels sprouts- cut in half
• 1 cup turnips (about 3)- diced
• 1 cup parsnips (about 3)- diced
• 2 carrots sliced
• 3 cloves of garlic- minced
• 8oz package of your vegan sausage of choice (Upton’s Naturals Seitan is the best!)
• 1 cup water
• salt and pepper to taste
• splash of Braggs
• 1/2 tsp thyme

Steps:

1. Rub the cut surface of the acorn squash with some olive oil and put face down on a nonstick cooking pan.  Bake in the oven at 350 for 40minutes
2. In a medium sized cookpot heat the olive oil over medium heat.
3. Add the garlic, diced turnips, parsnips, and carrots and cook for about 8 minutes.
4. Add the thyme, salt and pepper, and brags, stir well.
5. Add the Brussels sprouts and seitan.  Continue to cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. Add the cup of water.  Bring to a boil and then simmer until water is mostly reduced- approx. 10 minutes.
7. When the acorn squash is done, fill it with the veggie mixture and serve it up!

A great tasting dish that is pretty filling.  Enjoy!

-JD

It has been a very autumn-like weekend here in Madison.  The weather was perfect for a hardy soup- so I took advantage of my Farmers’ Market produce.

Ingredients:

• 3 T Earth Balance (or other margarine)
• 3 leeks- rinsed well and sliced thin
• 1 medium yellow onion- chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic- minced
• 6-8 potatoes of your choice (Yukon Gold, Russett, Red, etc)- diced
• 3 vegetable broth
• 1 cup plain Soymilk
• fresh gound pepper and kosher salt to taste

Steps:

1. In a large saucepot melt the Earth Balance over medium heat.

2. Add the leeks, onion, and garlic and saute for 5-10 minutes, until the onion starts to sweat and becomes transparent

3. Add the potatoes and stir well- let it cook for additional 5 minutes.

4. Add the ground pepper and vegetable broth- this should just cover everything in the pot.

5.  Let everything simmer over medium heat for 15-20 minutes- just until the potatoes become tender.

6.  Add the soymilk and kosher salt.

7.  Use a stick blender to mix well- leaving the desired amount of chunky potatoes (a potato masher would probably work well too). [If you want to get really fancy- add a few drops of Truffle oil]

Serve with some fresh bread, grilled tofu, or whatever sounds great!

Enjoy!

-JD

A pretty basic soup- adjust the amount of chili powder and ginger to change the spiciness.

Ingredients:

• 1 T Olive Oil
• 1 butternut squash- peeled and diced
• 1 medium onion- diced
• fresh minced ginger- about 1-2Tbs
• chili powder- about 1-2 tsp
• 2 cups water
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1/2 tsp tyme
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

1.  Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat.  Add the butternut squash, chili powder, and tyme and saute for about 10 minutes, turning every few minutes.

2. Add the onion and cook for another 5 minutes or so, just until the onions become translucent.  The squash should be softer now and starting to brown.

3.  Add the water and vegetable broth.  Bring to a boil.

4.  Add the ginger and turn heat down to medium and simmer for about 10 minutes.

5.  Blend thoroughly with an immersion blender and add salt and pepper to taste

-JD

This is a pretty easy recipe and many variations can be made.  Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 4 bell peppers (any color will do)
• 1 tube of beef flavored Gimmie Lean (or crushed up veggie burgers/meatballs)
• 1/2 onion- diced
• 2 cloves of garlic- minced
• 1 16oz can of tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup cornmeal
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1/2 cup long grain rice- cooked according to instructions on bag
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp basil
• salt and pepper to taste
• vegan cheese- Follow Your Heart is the best

Preheat the oven to 375.  Saute the onion and garlic in a saucepan with 2 tsp olive oil over medium heat.  Let this simmer for about 5 mins.  Add the Gimmie Lean and use the end of a spatula to break up.  Cook for another 5-10 minutes.  Add the spices, cornmeal, and nutritional yeast; stirring well.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Cut the tops off the peppers and remove the seeds and fleshy veins.  Add about 1 inch of cooked rice to each pepper and fill the rest with the beef mixture.  Top with shredded vegan cheese.  Cover the bottom of a 9 inch baking dish with tomato sauce.  Put the peppers in the pan.  Add the rest of the sauce around the peppers.  Cover the pan with aluminum foil and cook for 1 hour.  The cheese will melt and mix with the ingredients within the pepper.  When cooked, add some freshly grated vegan cheese and eat up!

-JD