Tag: vegan recipe

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Kung Wow Vegan “Meat” Balls

Sweet, spicy, vegan and satisfying, this entree packs a protein punch.

Plant based eating might be the best gift to yourself and the planet right now. This entree was a feast for my senses and provided complexity of flavour.

If you’d like to ditch meat for even just this meal, I promise you’ll be full and nourished with these “meat” balls.

The secret? Eggplant! A vegetable that I don’t enjoy on its own that much but am just understanding its versatility.

You can form the balls earlier, even freeze them, and bake while you’re preparing the sauce.

Recipe:

Step 1:

1 large eggplant, cut into 1″ cubes (don’t even peel)

Place in oiled skillet with 1/4 cup water. Bring to a boil, remove lid. Let cook over medium heat for about 10 – 20 minutes until eggplant is very tender and maybe a bit browned. Set aside and cool.

Step 2:

Mix 1 T ground flax seed with 3 T water. Mix well and set aside. This will be the egg substitute.

Step 3:

In the bowl of a large food processor, mash 1 can drained and rinsed black beans. Add cooled eggplant, 1/2 cup bread crumbs, 1 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp garlic powder and salt/pepper to taste. Process just until the eggplant is lumpy. Too much action creates a “gummy” ball texture.

Form into uniform balls and place on oiled parchment paper. Balls can be frozen like this (packaged into containers after they are solid) or baked now at 400 degrees for about 15 – 20 minutes or until browned and firm.

Step 4:

Using food processor for efficiency, chop one cooking onion, 3 cloves garlic and 1 1″ piece of peeled ginger. Heat skillet over medium high heat and add 1 T coconut oil. Saute aromatic vegetables until fragrant and a little browned. Add 1 red pepper (seeded and chopped into bite sized pieces) and 2 cups broccoli (again, diced into bite sized pieces). Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until veggies are tender-crisp.

Step 5:

In the same bowl of the food processor, mix 1 cup salsa, 1/4 cup sugar or agave, 1 T chili paste (samba oelek or sriracha – go easy and add more to taste), 1/4 cup soy sauce. Blend well then add to pan. Simmer for a few minutes until sauce gets glossy and thickened. Gently tossed in cooked balls.

Step 6:

Serve over jasmine rice.

This reminded me of Korean bbq but vegan style.

Try these other healthy recipes: make vegan bacon, vegan mayonnaise, vegetarian breakfast sausage or a delicious holiday casserole.

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Don’t Throw Out the Carrot Tops

In yoga philosophy, there are several suggestions for living a happier and simpler life.  We are encouraged to practice non-greediness (aparigraha) or santosha (contentment).  I was raised on a farm and those pioneer ideals of always using everything fully and embracing what nature gifted us are already ingrained.

So it’s harvest time in my garden.  When you are done admiring my special gardening hat, you may note the lush greenery.  Everywhere.  And my farm roots and my yoga training insist that I find a use for it all!

                Take carrots for instance.  <!–more–> We traditionally only focus on the root, but the lacy green tops are quite edible.  I chop them into salads, whip them up in my greens smoothies and I still have tons more.  So today I got creative.

Vegan Carrot Top Pesto

  After cutting the greens from the carrots, and removing the larger, tougher stems (little ones are fine), I rough chopped the greens until I had about 3 cups.

This is the seeds and garlic ready to be chopped finely.

   Out came my trusty food processor.  This is one of the hardest working tools in my kitchen and I’m always surprised that so many cooks don’t invest in one.  It’s invaluable for making hummus, muffins, lentil burgers, grinding nuts and chopping veggies.  Mine is a $150 model and it’s worth the extra to get the precise cutting.  Here you see the 1/3 cup raw sunflower seeds and one peeled clove of garlic ready to go for a whirl.

  Now add the carrot tops.  As you can see, there are a lot of greens in that bowl.  Add ¼ cup balsamic vinegar, ½ cup good extra virgin olive oil and generous amounts of salt and freshly ground pepper.  You can adjust the seasoning later so use less than you think at first.

  This is what the mixture looks like after spinning, and scraping the sides of the bowl down, and spinning again and again.  Adjust the olive oil and seasonings as you go.

  Pour into a glass storage container and cover with a thin layer of olive oil to keep the colour bright.  It will store covered in the fridge for a month or in the freezer for up to 3.

                What do you do with all that pesto?  Add it to cooked pasta (1/4 cup at a time, then taste); flavor salad dressings; use it on cooked veggies or meat or make …..

Smoked Tofu Panini Sandwiches

  1.  Prepare bbq tofu:  Slice one block smoked tofu (extra firm; available at any grocery store) into ¼” pieces and marinate in barbecue sauce for a few minutes.  Broil or bbq slices until browned (the tofu is all ready to eat so you’re just adding flavor here).
  2. Using a hearty multi grain bread, slice two pieces for each sandwich.  Spread generously with the pesto. 
  3. Thinly slice a garden ripe tomato and layer over the pesto, followed by a single layer of tofu.  Top with second slice of bread.
  4. Using a panini press, grill the sandwiches until heated through.  Alternatively, keep the bbq hot and use a sheet pan on the grill.  Make sure it’s well oiled and place sandwich on pan.  Push down with metal flipper to compress sandwich a bit.  Flip after the bottom gets nicely browned and repeat technique.
  5. Serve with basil aioli (blend chopped fresh basil with mayo or vegan mayonnaise) for dipping.