Friday, August 19, 2011

Breakfast Banana Split


Here's a super easy idea for breakfast that I found in The Vegan Table!  You could make this entirely raw if you use cashew cheese and raw granola.  I found the Wildwood Unsweetened Soy Yogurt on sale at Chamberlains this week for .99, plus I had coupons for $1.00 off 2 yogurts.  Blueberries were also on sale for $2.99/pint.   So not only was this a healthy and fun breakfast, it was affordable too!

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Vegan Table Tofu Spinach Lasagna


This week I am trying out more recipes from The Vegan Table.   The Vegan Table is a great recipe book for people who are transitioning to a vegan diet.  It is also a great place to find recipes for entertaining or when you are craving "comfort foods", but don't want all the extra fat that normally comes with them. 

I have made more elaborate versions of vegan lasagna but I wanted to try this one because it doesn't require chopping a massive quantity of veggies.  It's almost a dump and bake kind of recipe!  It took less than 10 minutes to assemble after the noodles were boiled.  Then it's 45 minutes in the oven.  Pair it with a big green salad and you have more than enough food to serve 8-10 people.  You can also make this into a "Stuffed Shells" recipe!


Here's the Tofu Ricotta. So simple to make. I ALWAYS use SproutTofu by WildWood. It has a creamy, mild flavor that works really well as a ricotta substitute. You can also blend in cashew nuts for more flavor, though it adds extra fat. I noticed recently that Nasoya has come out with a Sprouted Tofu, but I haven't tried it yet.


I used Daiya Vegan Cheese shreds on top. When I entertain, I like to use cheese substitutes so that friends and family can see how easy it is to substitute. Daiya and Follow Your Heart make some of the best cheese substitutes. 



Here it is on the plate!   

And here is the recipe straight from the book!

SERVINGS
8 to 10

INGREDIENTS
1/2 to 1 pound (225 to 455 g) lasagna noodles
2 packages (10 ounces, or 280 g, each) frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 package (16 ounces, or 455 g) firm tofu (not silken)
1 tablespoon (13 g) granulated sugar (optional)
1/4 cup (60 ml) nondairy milk (such as rice, oat, soy, almond, or hazelnut), or as needed
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder or 2 peeled garlic cloves
Juice from 1/2 lemon (about 2 tablespoons [30 ml])
2 tablespoons (5 g) minced fresh basil (about 20 leaves)
1 teaspoon (6 g) salt (or to taste)
4 to 6 cups (980 to 1470 g) tomato or pasta sauce of your choice
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F; (180 degrees C, or gas mark 4).
Cook lasagna noodles according to package directions or use "no-boil" lasagna noodles. Drain and set aside.
Squeeze as much water from spinach as possible and set aside. (If using fresh spinach, blanch first.)
Place tofu, sugar (if using), milk, garlic powder, lemon juice, basil and salt in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. The tofu "ricotta" should be creamy but still have body.
Transfer to large-size bowl, and stir in spinach. Continue tasting until you get amount of salt just right.
Cover bottom of 9 x 13-inch (23 x 33 cm) baking dish with a thin layer of tomato sauce, then a layer of noodles (use about one-third of noodles). Follow with half the tofu filling. Continue in the same order, using half the remaining tomato sauce and noodles, and all remaining tofu filling. End with remaining noodles, covered by remaining tomato sauce. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until hot and bubbling.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS AND VARIATIONS
Add meatless meat crumbles to your tomato sauce for more texture and body. For more cheesiness, add shredded nondairy mozzarella cheese to each layer.

This recipe is also great for making stuffed shells. To do so, stuff pasta shells with the tofu ricotta from this recipe, place them in a baking dish, pour on tomato sauce and bake in a 350 degrees F (180 degrees C, or gas mark 4) oven for 20 to 30 minutes.

Monday, August 1, 2011

Gluten Free Low Fat Vegan Meal Plan #2

I hope you find these meal plans helpful and time saving!  Here is another one that is Gluten Free and actually, moving forward I plan to have only Gluten Free Vegan meal plans on my site.   Though we have not completely eliminated gluten from our diets, I am trying to be diligent about minimizing it to the best of my ability :-)  I really believe it is harmful to our intestinal tract, and with myself having an autoimmune disease, it doesn't make sense to make it a regular part of my diet.

Breakfasts
Overnight Organic Oat Groats (2 days)
Chia Seed Porridge (2 days)
Blueberry Kale Green Smoothies (3 days)

Lunches
Romaine salad, cucumbers, tomatoes, shredded carrots and beets with Creamy Avocado Cumin Dressing
Quinoa Tabouleh
Thai Inspired Chickpea Salad
Salad Collard Wrap with Spicy Peanut Dressing (2 days)

Dinners
All served with a first course of mixed green salad or a raw veggie plate.
African Pineapple Peanut Stew with Brown Basmati
Perfect Peanut Sauce with Sauteed Shredded Veggies and Tempeh
Refreshing Summer Salad with Ginger Lime Edamame Sweet Potato Burgers
Pesto White Bean Bowl
Masoor Dal

Snacks/Desserts
Carrot Juice
Cantaloupe
Carrots
Sabra Hummus (Another one of my occasional short cuts)
Raw Chocolate Avocado Pudding
Coconut Milk Frozen Dessert (On sale at Chamberlains this month)