Caramel Pecan Bars

Sweet treats for the week. My excuse for making these was the brown rice syrup in my pantry that I needed to use! This recipe is from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar. 

Lots of brown rice syrup and brown sugar along with a cookie type crust. The top is layered with 2 cups of chopped pecans. This is like eating pecan pie in bar form! Definitely a once in awhile treat. 

~Caramel Pecan Bars ~

This week I also made a few other favorite recipes:

Rise 'n' Shine Granola
from How It All Vegan

Vegan Ranch Dressing
from Veganize This!


Emira's Speedy Gourmet Kale & Tofu Delight
from La Dolce Vegan! 

Brownies & Pasta

Trying a few more new recipes the past few days. I did make a favorite Brussels sprouts recipe from Chloe's Kitchen, "Maple-Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Hazelnuts (pine nuts)". I love the crispy bits of Brussels sprouts! 

~ Espresso Brownies ~

The Espresso Brownies from La Dolce Vegan were scrumptious! The recipe calls for a shot of espresso and since I don't have an espresso machine I just mixed up some instant with 1 1/2 oz. hot water and 2 tsp. of the espresso powder. It gave these brownies a deep, rich chocolate mocha flavor. I frosted them with the Chocolate Cake Glaze recipe from LDV. They were even better with some So Delicious Coconut Milk Vanilla Bean ice cream! 

~ Pasta with Greens, Chickpeas & Olives ~

This pasta dish is from Wild About Greens, by Nava Atlas. So many ways to use all kinds of greens in this cookbook. I used Swiss chard along with garlic, red bell pepper, tomatoes, chickpeas and kalamata olives to make a hearty dish. A sprinkle of some red pepper flakes gives it a nice spicy taste. It is garnished with some toasted pine nuts and chopped fresh basil. 

Tater Tot Casserole

This is the first new cookbook I've bought this year! I'm so proud of myself but I couldn't hold out any longer. I love the recipes in here. Easy, recognizable ingredients and lots of photos. 

I knew the first recipe I had to try was the Tater Tot Casserole. I grew up on those little processed spuds! I did buy organic Cascadian Farms Spud Puppies for this; so they're a little healthier. There are a few steps to this recipe before you can put it all together and get it in the oven. First, I had to make my Savory Broth Mix which will be used in future dishes. 

The Savory Broth Mix has 1 cup nutritional yeast flakes and thirteen other spices and seasonings in it! You whirl it all up in the blender and it makes about a cup. 

The next step is preparing the soy curls. They simmer in the Savory Broth, drained and then are browned in a little oil. 

A sauce is made with onions, soymilk and a tablespoon of the Savory Broth Mix. Then it all gets mixed together with the soy curls and some peas and topped with the tater tots. This makes a big 9x13 pan so we have plenty of leftovers. 

Mmm! mmm! A yummy, meaty down-home casserole. The hubby loved it. 

Lentil Soup with Greens & Tiny Pasta

Another great recipe from Wild About Greens.

This recipe doesn't use vegetable broth; just water. The oregano, basil and thyme along with some fire-roasted tomatoes and red wine gave it lots of flavor though. I used a bunch of chopped lacinato kale for the greens. This made a big pot so I froze the leftovers for a quick supper later. 

Lentil Soup with Greens & Tiny Pasta

I served the soup with some garlic bread made with sourdough bread, Earth Balance margarine, garlic powder and nutritional yeast sprinkled on top and broiled. 

White Chocolate Almond Bark & Pimiento Cheese Sandwiches

I've been revisiting some of my favorite recipes from  La Dolce Vegan by Sarah Kramer; one of the cookbooks I use the most. I made my hubby's favorite Veggie Pot Pie and Cranberry Apple Crisp. I have used dried and fresh cranberries when making this crisp, and both are delicious. One of the few recipes I hadn't tried yet is White Chocolate Almond Bark. It's so easy to make with just three ingredients-vegan white chocolate chips, toasted almonds and raisins. A yummy sweet treat. 

White Chocolate Almond Bark

La Dolce Vegan

I have only tried one other recipe so far from Cookin' Crunk. The Vegan Ranch Dressing wasn't a success.  I had the Pimiento Cheese Sandwich recipe tagged for awhile so I thought I would give it a go. I have always loved pimiento cheese with tortilla chips. Yeah, I could eat the whole tub of it in one sitting! So I thought, great! now I can have a vegan version. 

Ingredients for the pimiento cheese. 

The consistency is rather like hummus. 

I ate my Pimiento Cheese on a sandwich like she suggested. It kind of squished out the sides. My verdict is that this tastes nothing like pimiento cheese! It is just a roasted red pepper hummus. Why did she have to tease me so?! Now I want to go out and get a tub of real pimiento cheese and some tortilla chips. hehe! I've been eating it like hummus using some naan bread, cucumbers and sweet peppers. *sigh*

Hoisin-Glazed Collard Greens & Sweet Potatoes

A new favorite collard greens recipe! 

Wild About Greens has lots of inventive ways to use greens. 

The hoisin-glazed sweet potatoes offset the bitterness of the collard greens. I spiced it up a little with some dried red pepper flakes. 

I served the collard greens and sweet potatoes with a Gardein Turk'y Cutlet and some sliced mini peppers. 

Fast & Fresh Tomato Sauce & My Favorite Kale Salad

I try to keep kale, cherry tomatoes, avocado, carrots and onions in my fridge so I can always make my favorite kale salad when the mood strikes me! It also has a 1/2 cup of cooked quinoa mixed in. 

The recipe is in Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's Vegan's Daily Companion. It tastes even better the next day.

I had these six ripe organic tomatoes that were begging to be eaten so I went to my trusty La Dolce Vegan cookbook for an easy recipe. The Fast & Fresh Tomato Sauce is simply that-"fast and fresh."

Chopped tomatoes, onion, garlic and some spices simmered for about 20 minutes.

My basil plant taking over my kitchen window.

My rosemary taking over the other side of the window.

These Gardein meatless meatballs are the best veggie meatballs I have tried so far. They're really meaty, spicy and hold together well and they are huge! You only need two meatballs per person. 

I served the Tomato Sauce over some fettuccine and topped it with fresh basil and some vegan parmesan. 

Szechwan-Style Chicken with Asian Salad

Love the recipes in this cookbook! They are all so easy to prepare with familiar ingredients. 

This recipe uses my favorite faux meat-Soy Curls. The meaty texture holds up even after cooking and simmering. The szechwan sauce is a mixture of tomato paste, lemon juice, Braggs, sugar, ginger and cayenne. It could have used a little more cayenne for my taste. 

The Soy Curls with snow peas, water chestnuts and green onions. 

Szechwan-Style Chicken and Asian Salad

I served the chiken over brown rice and added a little Sambal Oelek to mine for some hotness.

I had a lovely photo of my Asian Salad but somehow it got deleted. Anyway, the salad has romaine, cabbage, cilantro, green onions, cucumbers, carrots, edamame and chow mein noodles. It is served with a dressing made with sugar, lemon juice, Braggs and oil; kind of a sweet and sour taste.  This recipe made so much we had leftovers for three days! 

Pasta with Asparagus, Arugula & Sun-Dried Tomatoes

This pasta dish is from Wild About Greens.

The recipe calls for arugula but you can substitute spinach, which I had. I had a bunch of asparagus that needed using and this was perfect. So easy to make and so tasty. I thought it needed a little more seasoning and spice so I added some crushed red pepper flakes on top of mine. I served it with some mixed veggies for a quick meal. 

I had one Gardein Chik'n Scalloppini that I chopped up for the hubby to add to his to give it a little more "meat!"