Spicy Soba Salad and a Favorite Taco Salad

Love soba noodles so I knew I wanted to try this recipe from One-Dish Vegan. 

 Edamame, cucumbers, and green onions.

 This has a spicy, sweet dressing made with tamari (Bragg's), rice vinegar, sweet Asian chili sauce, sriracha, and agave. I left out the sesame oil and sesame seeds because of my allergies. I replaced the sesame oil with a little flax oil (it's only used to toss the soba noodles in after cooking.) 

I wanted to serve this for supper so I cooked up some Gardein Chik'n Scallopini and sliced it over the top of the salad. Yum! This tastes even better the next day after it has chilled. 

~ Spicy Soba Salad with Edamame and Cucumber ~

I was craving this old stand-by taco salad we always used to eat which had hamburger and cheese in it so I just made a vegan version. 

I sauteed a bag of veggie crumbles with a little oil and some taco seasoning. That gets tossed with a head of chopped iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, green onions, sliced black olives, a can of kidney beans, and some Daiya cheddar shreds. 

Then, you crumble about a half a big bag of original Doritos corn tortilla chips and mix it in and top that with some good old Catalina dressing. Toss everything together and dig in. I even like it the next day after everything gets a little bit soggy. 

~ Catalina Taco Salad ~ 

Chili & Cornbread

What??!! It's the last two weeks in May?! I blinked and where did the month go? I've been enjoying the cool mornings we've been having; not looking forward to the scorching summer I know is quickly approaching. 

I found these chili and cornbread recipes in Vegan Diner. Lots of yummy looking recipes I need to try out of here. 

2 cans of beans; I used a can of tri-bean (kidney, pinto, and black) and a can of pinto. 

The chili recipe calls for dark cocoa powder. I had some black cocoa (it smells like oreo cookies.) The "meat" is some TVP granules. The chili only simmers for 15 minutes. I didn't think that it had enough time to develop the flavors. It was not the best chili I have made but it will do. 

~ Quick and Hearty Chili ~

The cornbread recipe has whole corn and sliced green onions in it. I've made cornbread with green chilis but never green onions. I also bought some chipotle powder; I'm not too fond of chipotle peppers which I've tried before but I think I can handle the powder. The cornbread was a little "wet" for me and I didn't really care for the green onions in it either. 

 ~ Chipotle Scallion Double Cornbread ~

Chili & Cornbread 

I garnished the chili with some chopped cilantro and topped my cornbread with Earth Balance margarine and some BeeFree Honee. 

Baked Rotini & Arugula Puttanesca

I'm still finding recipes to make out of One-Dish Vegan. This one was in the section "oven to table" which I didn't realize. It takes a little more effort to put this together. A lot of in and out of the oven adding stuff. The pasta is cooked with hot water in a covered dish in the oven and cooked for 10 minutes (that's an accident waiting to happen!) then you add tomato and arugula mix and cook for 10 minutes and then you add the bean sauce mix and olives and cook another 10 minutes. Hmmm~ would have been easier on the stove-top. 

Lots of easy pantry items for the puttanesca. 

Chopped arugula and six cloves of garlic. Yum!

Fresh chopped basil, kalamata olives, capers, and green olives. 

This makes a big pan of pasta! Before I added the bean mix I had to dump it into my big lasagna pan (another pot to wash!) 

 ~ Baked Rotini & Arugula Puttanesca ~

~The finished product~ 

tangy and spicy puttanesca. 

For the second night of leftovers with the puttanesca I made my favorite broccoli salad to go with the pasta. Broccoli Salad from Give Them Something Better. This is reminiscent of the bacon-laden broccoli salad my grandma made when I was growing up.

Time to get some more Bac-Uns! These are so much better tasting and looking than the red-dyed bits you find in the grocery store. I buy these at my Sprouts market. 

~ Broccoli Salad ~ 

French Lentils with Sweet Potatoes and Chard

Second recipe from One-Dish Vegan! The only thing I don't like about this cookbook is that there are no pictures. I like to get a finished look before I dive in and make something. So far, two out of two recipes have been winners. I love making dishes that incorporate some kind of greens in them; this one has Swiss chard. 

Simmering the lentils and sweet potatoes in some vegetable broth and white wine. It smells wonderful with the garlic, onion, thyme, and wine. 

I usually never keep wine at home because I'm allergic to the sulfites. This recipe calls for 1/2 cup of white wine so I bought some Frey wine which has no added sulfites. I tried drinking a glass while I was cooking and even one glass causes me to flush and get hot! Ugh! At least I wasn't sneezing and itching. Anyway, the wine gave this dish a rich, sweet flavor that it needed. 

~ French Lentils with Sweet Potatoes and Chard ~

My Vitajuwel pitcher soaking up some sun! I have the Wellness vial which has amethyst, rose quartz, and rock quartz in it. Love drinking my water after it has been vitalized with the crystals. 

Oven Baked Fajitas

I think I saw this recipe on Facebook and wanted to try it using Beyond Meat Chicken-Free Strips. 

Chicken-free strips, red and green bell pepper, some red onion, and seasonings. 

A good old-fashioned white flour tortilla to hold all the goodies. 

I served the chicken-free fajitas with some homemade spanish rice. 

So yummy! The hubby said "make this again"! 

Here's the recipe:

Oven Baked Fajitas

2 pkg. (11 oz.) veg chiken strips (I used Beyond Meat Chicken-Free Strips; grilled or seasoned)

-I put the pkgs. in the fridge in the morning and they were slightly thawed when ready to cook. 

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 tsp chili powder

1 1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp oregano

1/4 tsp seasoned salt

1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes

1 md. onion, sliced (yellow or red onion)

1/2 red bell pepper, sliced

1/2 green bell pepper, sliced

-Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place chiken strips in greased 9x13 pan. In small bowl, combine oil, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, oregano, and salt. Drizzle spice mixture over chiken and stir to coat. Add tomatoes, peppers, and onions. Stir to combine. Bake, uncovered 20-25 minutes or until vegetables are done. Serve in flour tortillas. 

Almond Bulgur w/Black Beans, Tomatoes, & Kale

Hmm ~ I've had this cookbook for quite awhile now and this is the first recipe I have made out of it. Could I possibly have too many cookbooks?! Never! I have a list of recipes to try now out of this one. Have I mentioned I love one dish meals?!  The only ingredient I needed to buy was some almond butter. I try to keep peanut butter out of my pantry; too tempting with some jam and bread. 

The sauteing onion and spices smell heavenly ~ smoked paprika, black pepper, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, and nutmeg. I love all those "c" spices! 

Black beans, kale, green onions, tomatoes, and bulgur soaked in vegetable broth. 

A mixture of almond butter and lemon juice is stirred in after cooking. 

Don't forget the toasted almonds on top. The dish needs their crunchiness. Yum!

Grandma's Goulash

This isn't quite how my grandma made goulash but it was still pretty good! I found the recipe here and adapted it to a vegan version. 

The Beyond Beef Beefy Crumbles are the best veg crumbles I have tasted so far! Lots of flavor. 

Sauteing the veg crumbles with onion, garlic, and a little oil.  

Pre-cooked pasta, crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, a little sugar, Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper. 

I sprinkled some vegan parmesan on top and served the goulash with some mixed veggies. Easy and delicious. I think it needs to be a little saucier next time!