Baked Leek and Sweet Potato Gratin

I must be craving sweet potatoes because it seems like I've made a lot of recipes lately using them. I found this one here at vegetariantimes.com. I did a few minor adjustments to the recipe after reading some of the comments.* 

 I love the sweetness of cooked leeks. *I used six leeks instead of three. 

 Lots of fresh rosemary and garlic-yum! *I added 3 cups chopped spinach to the sauteed leeks and let the spinach wilt. 

 Thinly sliced sweet potatoes.

 Instead of Italian seasoned bread crumbs and Romano cheese *I used Panko bread crumbs (6 instead of 3 Tbsp), 1 tsp. of Italian seasoning, fresh chopped rosemary and 2 Tbsp. vegan parmesan. It smelled and tasted heavenly. 

 The recipe calls for using a 10" round pan; *I used a 2 qt. dish and it worked just fine. 

~ Baked Leek and Sweet Potato Gratin ~ 

I served the gratin with a green salad and some Gardein Crispy Tenders. The hubby really liked this. 

I made a long time favorite this week ~ Spinach Artichoke Pasta and served it with another favorite ~ Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Toasted Garlic from Vegan With a Vengeance.

I made a quick and easy meal last night of Lentil & Black Bean Soup which I had previously frozen and Wolffie's "Buttermilk" Cornbread from La Dolce Vegan. 

Rosemary Potatoes & Collard Greens with Vegan Sausage

I'm so glad I had a couple of Tofurky Italian sausages in the freezer so I could make this dish. I found the recipe in Wild About Greens and it has my favorite greens in it-collard! 

I pre-cooked my potatoes a little too much and they started falling apart. 

Fresh rosemary, paprika and red pepper flakes give this a just right spicy seasoning. 

 ~ Rosemary Potatoes & Collard Greens with Vegan Sausage ~

My big cup of rosemary! I just transplanted it into this giant teacup; it had outgrown the little container it was in. 

We went to a neighborhood potluck this weekend and my friend made a vegan dish just for me! A curried butternut squash and brown rice casserole. So sweet! I knew there wouldn't be much else in the way of veggie food so I made a huge green salad with lots of veggies. I also brought containers of walnuts and dried cranberries to toss in the salad. I wanted something sweet to bring so I made a double batch of "Raspberry Apple Crisp" from La Dolce Vegan. Instead of just raspberries I used frozen mixed berries. Everybody loved the crisp (crumble). All of the other desserts were heavy, rich and sugary so it was nice to have a lighter dessert to offer.

Organic apples washed and ready for the crisp! 

TVP Tostadas

I love spicy food and this TVP Taco Meat Mix from Vegan Food Gifts satisfies that spiciness. 

The TVP is so easy to mix up with a little oil and hot water. 

Instead of tacos I made tostadas. 

I toast the corn tortillas in the oven for about 15 minutes until they are golden brown instead of frying them in oil. I topped the tortillas with some refried beans and some of the TVP Taco Mix and then layered on the veggies-cabbage, cucumber, green onions, tomatoes, cilantro and some Daiya shredded cheddar; all topped off with some El Pato Jalapeno sauce. A messy but yummy meal! 

Broccoli Cheese Soup and Still on the Veg Wagon!

Yay! I'm still on the veggie wagon and I feel fantastic! I've been drinking my green juice and getting my Pilates in this week, too. I found this yummy soup recipe in Zsu Dever's cookbook:

The recipe uses 2 Tbsp of her Savory Broth Mix for flavoring. This seasoning has nutritional yeast and about thirteen different herbs and spices. It's nice to have on hand in the pantry instead of dragging out every spice in the cupboard! 

This soup is so creamy, 'cheesy' and delicious. I would have liked my broccoli a little more cooked but it was still tasty. The leftover soup really thickened up in the fridge. It would be good spooned over some baked potatoes. 

~ Broccoli Cheese Soup ~ 

Hoisin-Glazed Bok Choy w/Tofu & Soba Noodles plus Two Favorites

Another delicious recipe from Wild About Greens.

I used a tub of water-packed extra firm tofu so it would cube and brown nicely. 

Bok choy (love!), carrots, green onions, ginger, and a sauce made with hoisin and orange juice topped with some toasted slivered almonds. Yum! 

My favorite of all time noodles-Soba buckwheat. 

~Hoisin-Glazed Bok Choy with Tofu & Soba Noodles~

Of course I like mine hotter so I added some Sambal Oelek and also a couple dashes of Bragg's. 

I made a couple of long-time favorite recipes this week. I had a bag of frozen cranberries hanging out in the freezer from the holidays (!) so I made this Cranberry Apple Crisp recipe from La Dolce Vegan. I doubled the recipe and used the whole bag of cranberries. 

I have made this before using rehydrated dried cranberries. They just don't give it the extra tartness that using fresh cranberries does. 

~Cranberry Apple Crisp~
So yummy warmed up for breakfast with a glass of soymilk.

Bar-B-Q Chicken Sandwich & Coleslaw
from Give Them Something Better
My hubby and I could eat this BBQ and coleslaw once a week!

Chard with Brussels Sprouts & Red Peppers

Mmm! Two of my favorite veggies-

Brussels Sprouts and Swiss chard in one dish from Wild About Greens. 

So easy to to saute everything in one pot. I had an orange bell pepper so I used that instead of a red one. I sprinkled some toasted pine nuts on top for a little crunch. 

I had some of my favorite vegan tamales in the freezer so I served them with the chard and Brussels sprouts for a quick meal. 

 ~Chard with Brussels Sprouts & Red Peppers~

Another "so easy" meal to make:

Fireplace Chili Mac from Kathy Hester

This recipe uses a half cup of fire-roasted salsa so this time I portioned out the salsa into 1/2 cup sizes and froze them. The next time I want to make this I just need to thaw the salsa out and it's ready to go. I keep all of the other ingredients on hand to make a quick dinner when I don't feel like cooking. 

5-Spice Fried Rice with Sweet Potatoes

 I love the flavors in Chinese 5-spice powder and this recipe from Thug Kitchen looked so good I had to try it. First I made a batch of their recipe for "Basic Big Pot of Brown Rice." You saute the dry rice in a little oil until it smells nutty. I've never done that before with brown rice. It does smell nutty! This makes four cups of rice which is what you need for the Fried Rice recipe. 

The fried rice has sweet potatoes, carrots, peas, green onions, and some arugula. 

We needed a little 'meaty' addition so I added some cooked Beyond Meat Chicken-Free Strips.

~5-Spice Fried Rice with Sweet Potatoes~

I loved the flavor of this fried rice but I guess I really tested myself and my brown rice allergy. A little while after eating a big bowl I started the usual allergic itching! Ugh!!! Disgusting! What's the deal? I can tolerate gluten but not yeast. I can tolerate bulgur wheat but not barley or brown rice. *Sigh*

Fishless Tacos with Lime-Cilantro Crema and Kale Salad

I was so excited to see this package of organic kale salad at Fry's. There is even a simple dressing recipe on the back; sweet and sour with rice vinegar and sugar. I added extra lemon to make it more tangy. 

Oooh, Gardein fishless filets! Target store carries a lot of meatless products. I knew I had to make some 'fish' tacos. So easy. 

I adapted a non-vegan recipe I found for a tasty Lime-Cilantro crema to top my fishless tacos. 

LIME-CILANTRO CREMA;

1/4 C thinly sliced green onions

1/4 C chopped fresh cilantro

3 Tbsp Vegenaise

3 Tbsp vegan sour cream

1 tsp grated lime peel

1 1/2 tsp fresh lime juice

1/4 tsp salt

1 garlic clove, minced

***combine all ingredients and use as topping for fishless tacos. 

I used a plain old white flour tortilla as my wrapper; layered two fishless filets, shredded cabbage, sliced mini peppers and some Lime-Cilantro Crema. I also added a few dashes of chipotle pepper sauce to mine.

~ Fishless Tacos with Lime-Cilantro Crema and Kale Salad ~ 

Yum!! The hubby really liked these; he said I could make this again. 

Lentil and Black Bean Soup

My fridge stocked with lots of veggies, fruit and grains! It was looking pretty bad for a few months there. Oh, how easy it is to slip back into the old ways and bad habits of eating. I'm back on track now! I wish I could eat all the yummy veg foods out there but I'm allergic to quite a few things; sesame seeds (tahini), brown rice, barley, tempeh, miso (any fermented foods), bananas, melons, yeast-ugh! it just goes on and on! At least soy (unfermented) doesn't bother me. Still lots to choose from though. 

I found this delicious soup recipe here at avegangoddess.com . Lots of veggies, lentils, black beans and greens. I also added some optional corn to the soup and instead of kale I used spinach. This makes a huge pot; I should have used my largest stockpot! It made enough for three freezer containers of leftovers. 

~ Lentil and Black Bean Soup ~