Clean the Fridge Noodle Bowls

I had lots of fresh veggies I needed to use including a big bunch of bok choy and I found this Teriyaki Noodle Bowl recipe here. 

My favorite noodles-soba! I mainly used this recipe because it had a good teriyaki sauce directions with ingredients I had on hand. I did leave out the toasted sesame oil (allergic) and it was sweet and spicy. The recipe calls for a pound of frozen stir fry vegetables but I wanted to use all of my fresh veggies. I started cooking my carrots and broccoli first and then added yellow squash, green onions, bok choy, frozen green beans, and frozen edamame. 

I topped the cooked soba noodles with the stir fry and added some sliced mini peppers on the top. Of course I gave my bowl a good helping of Bragg's and Sambal Oelek HOT sauce! Delish! 

Black and Red Lentil Chili & a Few Favs

Time to do some posting! The dreaded bronchitis/laryngitis paid me an annual visit and I'm finally on the downhill side of it. Ugh! It just wipes me out every year; and no matter what preventatives I try it still gets me. Lots of catching up to do now. 

I've been seeing a few recipes lately using black beluga lentils which I have always wanted to try. I can't find them at any of the stores I shop at so I ordered some online. 

I found this chili recipe here at fatfreevegan.com. 

Look how tiny the black lentils are compared to the red. They're so cute! 

The black lentils turn brown after cooking. Lots of spices, and fire-roasted tomatoes in this chili. I added some chopped fresh spinach at the end of cooking just until it wilted. Yummy garnished with some chopped cilantro. I made a pan of Wolffie's 'Buttermilk' Cornbread from La Dolce Vegan to eat with this hearty chili. 

Black Beluga Lentils in a jar! 

Can't wait to try some more recipes using them. 

I made a few easy favorites including:

Vegan "Sausage" Hash from La Dolce Vegan

using Field Roast Breakfast Sausage (which my local Sprouts now carries. Yay!) served with Smoky Collard Greens with Veg Bacon from Betty Goes Vegan. 

BBQ Chicken Sandwiches and Coleslaw from Give Them Something Better. 

And I made this pizza using canned pizza crust, pizza sauce; topped with crumbled veggie meatballs, sauteed zucchini and red onion, and Daiya mozzarella shreds.  

I messed up and didn't pre-cook my crust a little so I never could get the bottom of the pizza totally done. Lesson learned for next time! 

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!