Gardien Chik’n Pulled BBQ Style with Homemade Slaw

I was craving BBQ after having some Vegan Riblets the other day.  I just wanted more BBQ.  Enter the healthy Pulled Chicken Sandwich.  This was plate lick’en good.  I used Gardien’s Filets to make the pulled chik’n  I slightly defrosted them, the thinly sliced them into rough strips.  I tossed them into a heated pan with a Tbsp. of olive oil already heated.  I stirred them around for a few minutes until they started to brown.  Then, I turned down the heat to simmer and added my semi-homemade BBQ Sauce.  I let it simmer about 10 minutes.  I also grilled my whole wheat sandwich thins.  These are great (100 calories, 5 grams protein, 4 grams fiber) I love them.  I topped the thins with a smidge of vegan mayo, baby greens, tomato, sprouts, and a some thin sliced sweet onions.  Perfect!
The slaw a great side, full of great nutrition and lots of color.
Green cabbage, red cabbage, a little onion, shredded carrots, beans sprouts, and a sweet and spicy blend of apple cider vinegar, vegan mayo, agave nectar, pinch of sea salt, pepper and celery seed.  Perfectly crunchy, sweet and sour.  This goes great as a side or right on the sandwich. 

Happy Valentine’s Day

Nothing says I love you like Vegan not-Jell-o and Not-Chocolate Candy.  Let me explain. 
My daughters class is having a Valentine Celebration today featuring a treat of JELL-O.  Her teacher sent home permission a slip.  While many of you know Gelatin is not vegan, I am sure many of you do not.  If you do not, I will spare you the gruesome details and let you Google it yourself.  Anyway, Marshmallow and Jell-o are two things that Mya does not eat.  We have the marshmallows covered thanks to Dandies and Rice-Mellow Crème, but Jell-o I have not had a request for, until now.  I did know there was a sea vegetable call AGAR that I could try.  And it worked like a charm.  2 cups 100% juice, 2 tablespoons of Agar Flakes, whisk together on low heat until it boils.  Bring down to a simmer, continue whisking  about 5 minutes until completely dissolved.  Pour into bowl and let cool in fridge.  It only takes about 45 minutes or less.  I then used a mini heart shaped cookie cutter to make little not-Jell-o hearts for school.  Did you notice?  I said 2 cups 100% juice.  NO SUGAR. NO FOOD DYE.  They were naturally sweet and red.  You can also add fruit to these. 
Now, for Not-Chocolate Candy.  Since I found out what a delicious super food real cacao is, I have been making a lot of natural chocolate recipes.  And, although my husband LOVES chocolate, he really is not supposed to eat it too often because of the caffeine. Even with all it’s health benefits, sometimes people should just eat it way more infrequently than others.  A few years ago, I made this recipe by Kelly Keough of Sweet Truth. She called them Cupid Candies.  They are made from coconut oil, almond meal, hemp seeds, coconut, stevia, agave, and for the chocolate taste, carob.  This recipe is genius.  She has a real winner.  It has so many efa’s it could be a supplement.  They are RICH, DARK, SWEET, and CRISP.  Sugar free.  Caffeine Free. Crash Free. A much better afternoon treat.  It is made from fat, but good fat.  Essential Fatty Acids. These are so decadent one or two will do. 

Vegan “Dippy” Eggs Over Easy

Ask almost 8 year old Mya about being vegan, and she will give a detailed explanation as well as a 30 year old could.  Ask her if there is any food she misses, and she will say, “NO MEAT, NO DAIRY, but sometimes a “Dippy Egg”.  So, until now I have only been able to replicated scrambled tofu and tofu for egg sandwiches and egg salad.  But, I came up with a gooey center that is deliciously like yolk, but without the cholesterol or hurt chicken.  She is CRAZY for it.  I made some for her Saturday and some today for a Valentine breakfast.  I severed it with fried potatoes (left from last night’s baked potatoes), and coconut bacon (left from yesterday’s fresh young Thai coconut water).

Mama Maria… It’s Portabella Spinach Lasagna Rolls!

Better, easier and tastier than traditional lasagna.  I saw Giada make rolls before, and I thought, “I could veganize that”.  And I did.  My family went crazy over it.
To keep this light and healthy, I used a lasagna noodle made from Jerusalem Artichoke Flour.  This is found in the organic section.  It is a tender noodle that holds up well.  It really is a much better choice than  regular pasta.
For the filling, I made a decadent ricotta substitute from tofu.  It was drained well, seasoned with Italian seasoning and garlic,shred in 1/4 cup of vegan mozzarella, stir in a tablespoon of olive oil, and two tablespoons of coconut milk for added richness.  I let this sit in the fridge while I made the rest of the filling.
Next, I added 1 tbsp. olive oil and 1 tbsp. butter, get bubbling and add a few diced shallots.  Cook one minute, then add small diced portabella mushrooms. Sautee portabella mushrooms until tender, sprinkle with a dash of salt and pepper.  Then add two cups baby spinach.  Put lid on, cook until wilted.  Turn off heat.  Let cool a few minutes.  Mix the portabella and tofu ricotta together.  I let the mixture sit in the fridge until I was ready to make the pasta. 
1 hour before I wanted to serve dinner, I heated the oven to 375, got the pasta water boiling and heated my tomato sauce.  Once the pasta was cooked according to package, I drained it and hung it around the pan to cool.  I layered the bottom of a casserole dish with sauce.  Then took one noodle at a time, filling the end with a large scoop of filling, then rolled it up and placed it seam side down in the pan.  The continued to do this until I was all out of noodles and filling.  I topped the entire dish with sauce and then with vegan mozzarella.   I cover and baked 30 minutes.  I removed cover turned it up to 400 and baked 15 more minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool 5 to 10 minutes before serving.  The little rolls come out of the pan with no mess and look elegant.  Top with vegan parmesan and some fresh parsley and basil. Serve with large salad and a warm roll. YUM!
Hope you enjoy this some time.  Ciao!

Party Leftovers Reinvented

After the Super Bowl, I had some left over cut up veggies, a few hot “wings” and some of the sour cream ranch dip.  So instead of just having dipped veggies again, I made an awesome Hot Wing Veggie Wrap. 
I used a huge whole wheat tortilla, spread my left over dip all over, then layered lots of cooling veggies to contrast the super heat of the “wings”.  I put on cucumber slices, baby spinach leaves, radish rounds, carrots, some sprouts, and chopped grape tomatoes.  Then I heated the chopped up wings in my skillet.  When they were almost crisp, I topped them on the bed of veggies and rolled it up.  This was big enough for two of us.  We had it with a left over potato skin and a few left over chips.

Super Bowl Spread

 

The Vegan Line up…

Warm Potato Skins stuffed with Broccoli, Daiya Cheddar, and Bake’n Bits (severed topped with sour cream and chives).

 

Homemade Roasted Red Pepper Hummus.

Spinach Dip made with Butterbean base instead of sour cream. Plenty of spices and over 2 full cups of baby spinach blended in.

 

Both dips served with a full tray of fresh veggies and some light rye crisp crackers.

HOT and SPICY Gardien Wings served with Creamy Italian Sour Cream Dressing/Dip.

7 Layer Dip: Chili Lime Refried Beans, Taco Seasoning spiked Sour Cream, Lime coated Avocado slices, Mild Salsa, Shredded Romaine/Baby Spinach, Diced Grape Tomatoes, Several Dollops of Corn Salsa. Served with Organic Blue Tortilla Chips.

My Specialty… 18” Philly Italian Shad Hoagies with layers of sinful goodness. Served with baked kettle chips on the side. 

Dessert Line Up…

Chocolate Moose Heaven Pie in Chocolate Cookie Crust (If heaven has a taste, this is it!)

Chocolate Heart Shaped Cupcakes.

Homemade Dark Chocolate Clusters filled with Slivered Almonds, Cashew Pieces, Walnuts, Cacao Nibs, Gogi Berries, Coconut and Love.

The Drinks…

Italian Blood Orange and Tangerine Spritzers, Coffee,Tea & Beer of course!

Super Snacks

 

I have been experimenting with Super Bowl snacks for the weekend.  I think this dip is a winner.  Not only is it creamy and delicious, but it is super nutritious.  Instead of a sour cream base,  I used a drained can of butter beans.  These beans blend to a creamy luscious texture.  I added seasonings that make ranch dressing, a tablespoon of vegan cream cheese, clove of garlic, and finished it off  with fresh parsley and 1 1/2 cups baby spinach blended in.  This is full of phytonutrients, fiber, and protein.  To keep the nutrition points going…serve it with fresh veggies and light crisp rye crackers.  We will see if everyone agrees Sunday.

 

Along with this great dip, I also made this roasted asparagus with a lemon cashew creamy vinaigrette dipping sauce.  The dipping sauce blew me away.  I put it on anything I could until it was gone and then I scraped the bowl clean.  It was incredible.  Even my 7 year old ate all her asparagus with this sauce.

 

Breakfast, the most important meal of the day…

Tofu scramble is one great way to start the day.  This packs lots of vitamins and minerals with all these great veggies.  This is my daughter’s favorite, she even has me pack it in a thermos for lunch.  My version is tofu, peppers, onions, sweet potato, kale, tofu-dog.  Cooked to perfection.  It actually tastes like my Grandmother’s Italian hotdog, potato, egg scramble we had growing up.  Top it with a little organic ketchup just like you would eggs. I like to top mine with fresh tomato, onion and avocado. No cholesterol in this breakfast.  Enjoy.