Speak Vegan To Me: July 2011

Sunday, July 31, 2011

Ladies Card Night - Vegan Style

My buddies came over for our monthly card night. They brought some great vegan goodies.

Patty brought this fantastic corn and avocado salsa from Weight Watchers. Seriously good!

Grilled Corn and Avocado Salsa

Ingredients

3 medium corn on the cob, grilled, cooled to room temperature*
1/2 cup(s) scallion(s), white and green parts, chopped
1 medium jalapeno pepper(s), cored, seeded and minced**
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, optional
1 clove(s) garlic clove(s), minced
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp table salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 medium avocado, ripe, peeled, pitted and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 Tbsp fresh lime juice, from 1 medium lime
2 Tbsp cilantro, fresh, minced

Instructions

Break each ear of corn in half; place flat end on cutting board and using a sharp paring knife, slice kernels off cob (to watch a video of this technique, click here). Place kernels in a medium bowl; add scallion, jalapeno, red pepper flakes, garlic, cumin, salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate if not using right away.
Just before serving, stir in avocado, lime juice and cilantro. Yields about 1/4 cup per serving.

Notes

*To grill corn, remove husks and silk and coat with cooking spray. Grill over medium heat, turning occasionally, until browned in spots.

**Don't touch seeds with bare hands.

You can make this recipe with 1 1/2 cups of frozen, boiled or steamed corn that has been well-drained.

If you want more info on Weight Watchers, here is a link: http://www.weightwatchers.com/plan/www/index.aspx

Leslie made a fantastic salad of sliced cucumbers, carrots and vegan salad dressing.

Danielle brought great vegan cookies from Whole Foods.

Monday, July 25, 2011

Tofu Lettuce Wraps are Vegan

I love the Tofu Lettuce Wraps at P.F. Changs. Vegetarian Times had a recipe in their January 2009 issue. I changed it a little to make it easier and to my taste. The recipe calls for low-sodium soy sauce. This is important. I used regular soy sauce once and had quite the headache. Here is my version.

Tofu Lettuce Wraps

1 T. sesame or vegetable oil
1 T. minced ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. extra-firm tofu
1 8-oz an water chestnuts
3 T. low-sodium soy sauce
3 T. hoisin sauce
2 t. sriracha or red chile sauce
1 large carrot, chopped
4 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup peanuts, finely chopped
2 heads of butter lettuce or iceberg

Drain the tofu and pat dry. Slice and chop into very small pieces about at 1/4" or smaller. Set aside on a paper towel to drain a little more more. Drain and chop the water chestnuts to the same size as the tofu.

In a large skillet, add the oil and then saute the ginger, garlic, tofu, and water chestnuts for about 5 minutes. Add the soy sauce, hoisin and sriracha. Stir to coat the tofu and cook a couple more minutes. Remove skillet from heat and add the carrot, green onions, cilantro, and peanuts. Stir and transfer to serving bowl.

Fill a lettuce leaf with a couple spoons full of tofu mixture. Eat.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Easy Vegan "Chick'n Piccata"

It's so easy to have a quick meal thanks to Gardein.

"Chick'n" Piccata

2 pieces of Gardein's Chick'n Scallopini
2 T. olive oil
1/4 cup white wine or vegetable broth
1 T. capers
1 t. minced garlic
2 T. lemon juice
salt
pepper

In a frying pan, saute Chick'n in olive oil for 2 minutes per side. Remove the Chick'n to plates. To the pan add white wine, capers, garlic and lemon juice. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until sauce reduces to half it's original volume. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pour over Chick'n.

Serves 2

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

"Rice" Restaurant in Ventura

I really like Rice Thai Cuisine in Ventura. It has quite a few dishes which can be veganized but I couldn't resist the Drunken Noodles for a second time. Tofu and veggies - Yum! And only $8.

My meal also came with soup and salad. The only disturbing part was that it is vegetarian soup but the cook on this day used chicken broth. I tasted it and had to question the staff. They asked the cook and he admitted it but I was still sad about the whole thing. Hopefully, they will be more vigilant in the future.

My friend had a great eggplant dish.

Here is a link to their website: http://www.riceonmain.com/. They are located at 387 East Main Street, Ventura, CA 93001.