Mini Tostadas

A great alternative to the big tostada salads - like my Big Soy Tostadas or my Big Bean Tostadas - are mini tostadas.  I like to buy several kinds of toppings, and we all just build our own.  At this point, I offer classic Mexican toppings, but I may branch out into adventurous kinds.  When I do, I'll let you know.  You can buy these flat, small shells near the traditional tortillas in most stores or in Mexican markets. This makes an easy and fun lunch or dinner for adults and kids alike.

Mini Tostadas

Ingredients:

Small, flat, crunchy tostada shells
Vegetarian refried beans
Chopped Romaine lettuce
Chopped tomatoes
Sliced black olives
Hot sauce

Directions:

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Place several tostada shells on a baking sheet and warm them up in the oven for ten minutes.  Meanwhile, heat the beans in a pot over medium heat until warm.  Remove shells from oven, and top them with the beans and the other toppings.  Measurements are to your personal liking.  Just pick up and crunch away!  Feeds five hungry vegans in our home.

Pizza for Grown-Ups

Recently I made pizza for the G, the Blessings and I again.  I used my typical pizza crust from my Quick Veggie Pizza recipe. I divided the dough in five balls, as usual, but this time for mine and G's pizzas, I decided to go for toppings that the sweet Blessings would not find appealing at all.  Not only could we indulge in spicy goodness, but it also assured us that our leftovers would be untouched by grubby, greedy littler hands.  I usually have a variety of toppings for us all to choose from, but I decided to pull out red onions and jalapenos, which I knew only G and I would have.  Whereas the Blessings top their own crusts, G just trusts my topping instincts to have me make his own.  He was delighted with the finished product.   With onions and hot peppers, at least in our home, this is definitely pizza for grown-ups!

Here's a shot of Pizza for Grown-Ups still on the baking pan after coming out of the oven.

A close up of all those delicious goodies.

Pizza for Grown-Ups

Ingredients:

Crust:

2 pkgs. or 1 and 1/2 Tbs. of active dry yeast
2 cups of warm water
4 cups of flour
1 and 1/2 Tbs. olive oil
2 tsp. salt
1 and 1/2 Tbs. vegan or raw sugar

Grown-Up Toppings:

We used:
Organic pizza sauce
Daiya cheddar shreds
Daiya mozzarella shreds
Red onion, chopped coarsely
Sliced black olives
Mushrooms, sliced
Artichoke hearts, chopped coarsely
Pickled jalapenos, chopped small
Vegan pepperoni slices

Directions:

In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Let rest for ten minutes. Combine the remaining crust ingredients in a large bowl, along with the yeast mixture, and mix well. Cover bowl with a damp towel, and let rise for 30 minutes. Punch dough down and divide into five sections. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a floured surface, roll out one section of dough to about the size of a plate. Pick up and gently toss with your hands, until it's at least one and a half times its original size. Put on your baking sheet or pizza pan, and load with toppings. Bake for 20 minutes. While baking, make your next pizza. I can bake two pizzas at a time side by side; a bit of one baking sheet rests on the edge of the other, but it doesn't affect the end result. Remove from oven and let rest for five minutes before slicing. So good and easy! Feeds five hungry vegans or two vegan grown-ups and kid-friendly toppings for the rest of the gang.

Bountiful Pasta Salad with Beans

In our home, pasta salads can be a side dish or, if they're full of enough goodies, be the main dish.  There are two main beans that I think go well in green and pasta salads: garbanzos and kidneys - although any kind of bean can be the basis for a good salad.  Sometimes in my pasta salads, I'll kick up the protein a bit by adding one of these beans.  In this salad, I used garbanzos.  I also love to fill my salads chock full of a variety of crunchy, flavorful ingredients.  This salad is no different.  Don't forget, when you add the raw veggies to hot pasta, they blanch just enough to be tender.  Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Bountiful Pasta Salad with Beans

Ingredients:

1 lb. small pasta (this time I used two seven oz. bags of small stars)
2 cups broccoli, chopped small
2 green onions, sliced
1 cup red cabbage, chopped small
1 can of quartered artichoke hearts, in water, halved lengthwise
1 15oz. can black whole olives, drained
1 15 oz. can garbanzo beans, drained
1 cup of  salad dressing - I like to use Italian style for this
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Cook pasta according to package directions.  While pasta is cooking, prepare your vegetables and beans.  Drain the pasta and put in a large bowl immediately along with the veggies and beans.  Stir well.  Add the dressing and stir again.  Season to taste and stir.  Chill for at least two hours before serving, or if you're in a rush, you can serve this warm.  Be sure to chill in a non-breakable bowl.  Feeds five hungry vegans.

Royal Platter (with soy)

When my girls were much littler, I loved to make snacks for them on divided plates that were full of a variety of goodies. (And, I still do!)  What I quickly found out was that G appreciated these snacks as much as they did.  So, one night I was struck by a unique idea for dinner: to have a large platter of a variety of foods requiring no utensils, save for a couple of toothpicks for spearing.  Dipping sauces and plenty of napkins were always nearby.  Because at that time we only had daughters, I named these dinners Princess Platters.  And, they were a huge hit with all of us.  The combination of foods were endless.  Just like when we have nachos family-style, I put the platter on a tray or ottoman, and we would watch a movie in the living room.  What was also nice was that the girls would eat things that they normally would turn their noses up at because it was in the fun presentation of the Princess Platter.  So, I could sneak in healthy foods that way, too.  When JK came along, I changed the name to the Royal Platter.  This version is called "with soy" because sometimes I use baked tofu for the main protein.  I love making the platters as much as they love eating from them, and no two are ever the same.  Here is just our latest version.

Royal Platter (with soy)

Ingredients:

Possibilities are limited only to what you can think of.  This is what we had one night:

Gimme Lean, sausage style, cut into rounds and sauteed
8 - 10 red potatoes, quartered and roasted, seasoned with salt and pepper
Celery, sliced into strips
Carrots, cut into sticks
Marinated artichoke hearts
Pickles
Olives with peppers and garlic
Walnuts
Chocolate Chunks
Ketchup, BBQ sauce, and vegan Worcestershire sauce for dipping

Directions:

Once all the food has been prepared, put it into a large divided dish.  Pair up similar foods with each other, or ones that will go well with a partner or two.  Skewer a few items with toothpicks.  Keep dipping sauces and napkins handy. Feeds five hungry vegans.

Classic Bean Tacos

One of my dad's signature dishes was tacos.  We had taco night about once a month or so, and he was always in charge of it.  This version of the taco was the first one I made when I stopped eating meat, and I use all the traditional toppings that we used at home.  It hits the spot and the heart.

Classic Bean Tacos

Ingredients:

At least one 29oz. can vegetarian refried beans
Canola oil
20 or more corn tortillas
Hot sauce
Ketchup
3 green onions, sliced
Romaine lettuce, chopped
Tomatoes, diced
At least one medium can of sliced black olives
1 pkg. Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet cheese, cheddar style, finely shredded

Directions:

Heat the refried beans in a medium pot until warmed through.  Heat one teaspoon of the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat.  When hot, add one tortilla.  When it starts to change shape or bubble (just in ten seconds or so), flip over.  Add a large spoonful of beans down one side of the tortilla.  Fold the other side over the beans.  Place on a paper towel lined cookie sheet.  Follow suit with at least one more tortilla before adding a bit more oil to the pan.  Finish with the remaining tortillas and beans.  Have the toppings ready at the table.  I like to add the hot sauce and ketchup on the beans, so they stay put, instead of falling to the plate.  Have fun, enjoy the food, eat to your heart's content.  Feeds five hungry vegans.

Radical Rice Salad

I like to jazz up different ways to make salads, so they're not boring.  This is one way to do that, that I make several times a year.  The more goodies tossed in this particular salad, the better, in my opinion!  I threw together a veggie dish on the side that tasted way better than I anticipated, so I will post that easy recipe next.  Enjoy!

Radical Rice Salad

Ingredients:

1 cup of uncooked brown rice, prepared according to package directions
3 cups fresh veggies - we used: broccoli florets, chopped small; carrot, grated; green onions, sliced; tomato, chopped
1 small can sliced black olives, drained
1/2 can quartered artichoke hearts in water
1/2 can garbanzos, drained
1/2 cup of your favorite salad dressing - I used a tangy French dressing
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper

Directions:

Once rice is cooked, add it and all the rest of the ingredients into a large bowl and mix well.  Best served chilled but can be served at room temperature in a pinch.  If chilling, use non-breakable bowl before putting in refrigerator.  Stir before serving.  Serve with a side of sauteed veggies.  Feeds five hungry vegans well. 

Calzones

Calzones, mmm. The last time I had one, I was definitely not vegan. Maybe I was vegetarian, but I just can't remember. Anyhow, ever since I've been vegan (15 years now), I haven't had a calzone, and that just had to change. So, since I'm such a whiz at making my own pizzas now :-), I decided to go head-first in trying my hand at calzones. Now, I have yet to actually look at any recipes for calzones. I thought, Pizzas, I can make pizzas, therefore, I can make calzones. So, that's what I did. I have no idea if my recipe is authentic or not, but it sure worked for me, and for my children, who've never had calzones, loved them, and that's good enough for me. I started with my pizza dough, added some fillings, and voila, five calzones! Yay for us! Easy as pizza pie - give it a try.

A hot, steamy calzone, cut in half, and ready to be consumed

A ball of soft dough on a floured surface

Dough rolled out just larger than a dinner plate

Filling up the calzone with goodies

Calzone ready for the oven

Just out of the oven, resting before being cut in half

Calzones

Ingredients:

Your favorite pizza dough, or you can use my recipe (link above) - If you use mine, it's large enough to divide into five balls of dough
Extra flour for rolling dough
Your favorite toppings - we used:
Organic pizza sauce
Follow Your Heart Vegan Cheese - cheddar style, finely grated
Gimme Lean Sausage, made into small meatballs and sauteed
Kale, torn into pieces
Fresh pineapple, diced small
Black olives, sliced into thirds

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Divide dough into five sections. Shape a section into a ball. On a floured surface, roll out each section into a circle a little larger than a dinner plate. Do NOT toss the dough, as you would for an actual pizza. To ensure a round shape, start at the center of the dough, and roll to the edge, all around. Turn the dough as needed to keep it as uniform as possible. Spread your pizza sauce all over the rolled out dough, keeping the edges clear of sauce about one inch. Sprinkle your cheese on sauce. Add your other toppings on one half of the sauce and cheese. Fold the half of the dough over that doesn't have all the extra toppings on it. Pinch the edges together to seal it shut. Press fork all across the sealed edge to further crimp and seal it, and it gives it a nice look, too. Make four short slits on top to release some of the steam while baking. Bake each calzone for 20 minutes. Let rest for five minutes before eating or cutting in half. Makes huge calzones that you can eat alone for dinner, and maybe have some left over for lunch the next day. Feeds five hungry vegans.

Quick Veggie Pizza

This was my first time making pizza dough from scratch, and I really liked it! I found a recipe on allrecipes, changed it slightly and doubled it for my family. Even though it uses yeast, the rising time is only thirty minutes, which was fantastic for a weeknight meal. The only flour my recipe uses is all purpose, and I thought the crust came out great. The dough was incredibly soft to work with and a cinch to roll out. The girls really wanted to see if I could toss the dough, so I did, and to my amazement, it stretched out amazingly. The dough stayed uniformly round when I rolled it, but changed into interesting shapes when I tossed it three or four times. So, that was a fun twist. Some shapes fit on my pizza pan, and some had to be baked on a large cookie sheet. I thought by doubling the dough recipe that I'd have just enough for five mini pizzas, but instead, I ended up with five full-size pizzas, yum! It was the tossing that did it. After the short rise time, the dough already had a sourdough-y fragrance, and I found that very appealing. One thing I will do differently next time is to not make all the crusts ahead of time: even with plenty of flour in between layers of uncooked crusts, they all stuck together, and I had to re-roll and start over. But, it was so quick, it wasn't that big of a deal. There is sugar in this recipe, and some sort of sweetener in all the recipes I searched, so I just decided to put it in. I think I'll give it a try without the sweetener next time, and see if there's a marked difference. With the simplicity of ingredients and the quickness of the meal, I can definitely see me making homemade pizza frequently in our home!

A close-up of Quick Veggie Pizza

What my dough looked like after rolling.

How big it got after a few tosses!

Its fun, quirky shape straight from the oven! What was fun for the Blessings, is that everyone's pizza had a unique shape.

Quick Veggie Pizza

Ingredients:

Crust:

2 pkgs. or 1 and 1/2 Tbs. of active dry yeast
2 cups of warm water
4 cups of flour
1 and 1/2 Tbs. olive oil
2 tsp. salt
1 and 1/2 Tbs. vegan or raw sugar

Your Favorite Veggie Toppings:

We used:
Organic pizza sauce
Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet cheese, cheddar style, finely shredded
Tomatoes, halved and sliced
Can of black olives, sliced in thirds
Dino kale, stripped from stems and torn or coarsely chopped
Mushrooms, sliced

Directions:

In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Let rest for ten minutes. Combine the remaining crust ingredients in a large bowl, along with the yeast mixture, and mix well. Cover bowl with a damp towel, and let rise for 30 minutes. Punch dough down and divide into five sections. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a floured surface, roll out one section of dough to about the size of a plate. Pick up and gently toss with your hands, until it's at least one and a half times its original size. Put on your baking sheet or pizza pan, and load with toppings. Bake for 20 minutes. While baking, make your next pizza. (I did not try to bake more than one pizza at a time because I thought they may stay undercooked, and I wanted this first time to be a success. However, I may do that the next time I make these to test my theory.) Remove from oven and let rest for five minutes before slicing. So good and easy! Feeds five hungry vegans, with leftovers for lunch the next day!

Traditional Nachos

So, we finally had another nacho night. It's been too long since the last one. For those new to my nacho experiences, I make a big platter of nachos, put it on the ottoman in the living room, and we all sit on the floor and watch a movie while munching. It's fun, it's messy, and it tastes good! This time we watched an episode of NCIS off of one of SR's DVDs, her fave show. I like to make variations of nachos, but I stuck to the traditional kind for this batch. It was gobbled up very quickly.

Traditional Nachos
Ingredients:

Big bag of corn tortilla chips
1 - 29 oz. can of vegetarian refried beans (or homemade)
1 pkg. of Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet cheese, cheddar style, finely shredded
Pickled jalapeno slices
1 15 oz. can of black olives, sliced in thirds
2 fresh tomatoes, diced
3 green onions, sliced
Guacamole
Vegan sour cream
Salsa

Directions:

Preheat the top broiler, making sure the rack is in the second position from the top. Heat up the refried beans in a small pot. In a large platter, cover the bottom with a few big handfuls of chips. Spread the beans over the chips, and sprinkle the cheese on top of the beans. Broil for three to five minutes, until the cheese melts. Bring out of the oven, and add the rest of the ingredients, amount to your liking. Surround the inside of the platter with chips, in a ring, and a few in the center as garnish. Tote along a second bowl of chips, and dig in! The ones on the bottom become deliciously soaked with the full flavor of the nachos, and are fun to eat, despite them being firm-challenged. Feeds five hungry, grabby, selfish vegans.

Beginner's Soy Enchiladas

I call this dish Beginner's Soy Enchiladas because I'm nowhere near an expert enchilada maker. As a matter of fact, I can't remember the last time I made them, but I've been wanting to make them for years. For my first time in at least a decade, I decided to stick to the familiar tastes of the past. For me that meant using soy ground, vegan cheese, and yummy toppings. By the way, the cheese melted really nicely here - I did not have to use the broiler. I also used canned enchilada sauce because I've never dipped my toes in the territory of homemade enchilada sauce before, and I wanted this meal to be as successful as possible for my family without any of Mom's usual fiddling with ingredients. I had trouble with the corn tortillas cracking when I rolled them; I found that microwaving softened them a bit, or coating them in the enchilada sauce helped, although the latter made for a mess. When I can come up with a sure-fire way to fold corn tortillas without cracking them, I'll let you know. My family really loved these, and even though I made a lasagna-sized pan and a half, there were only two enchiladas left by the end of the night! G mumbled something about how lettuce doesn't taste as good the next day, mm-hmm. I think at the end, they were being polite in not taking the last of them. By the way, I only had two, so it wasn't me. Since these were so easy to make and required so few ingredients, I will be making these more often. If I come up with more creative recipes for enchiladas, I'll let you know. In the meantime, here's my super simple version.

Beginner's Soy Enchiladas (in the pan)

Beginner's Soy Enchiladas with a side salad (my plate)

Beginner's Soy Enchiladas
Ingredients:

Corn Tortillas
1 - 28oz. can enchilada sauce, or your favorite homemade version
1 Tbs. canola oil
2 pkgs. Soy Ground, Mexican style
1 block of Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet cheese, mozzarella style, finely grated

Toppings:

Romaine lettuce, chopped small
1 - 15oz. can olives, sliced in thirds
Vegan Sour Cream

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large pan, heat oil. Add the soy ground, and cook over medium heat until browned, about five minutes or so. Add 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce and stir into the soy ground. Put half of the finely grated cheese in with the soy ground and sauce, and mix well. Turn heat down to medium low, and cook for a few minutes, until cheese blends in. Set aside. Put a thin layer of enchilada sauce down in the bottom of a lasagna-type pan, about 1/2 cup. To soften corn tortillas, try microwaving a handful at a time for fifteen seconds. Put two to three tablespoons of soy ground mixture in the middle of each tortilla and roll the tortilla up the best as you can. Place seam down in pan. If it cracks, don't worry, it will still taste good. Do the same with as many tortillas as it takes to use up the remaining soy ground. I got about fifteen or so enchiladas out of this and had to get a second pan, which I partially filled. Once all the enchiladas are placed in their pan(s), pour the remaining sauce evenly over them. Sprinkle the second half of the cheese on top of the sauce. Cover the pan(s) with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Take out of the oven and cover with the toppings. So good. Feeds five hungry vegans.

Big Soy Tostadas

Oh, I love easy meals; I love Mexican food; I love a lot of food; and, I love comfort food, so this meal is always a hit with me. What I like about build-it-your-own-way dishes is that everyone ends up eating exactly what they want. This is a very basic recipe, one that you can build on or take away according to your tastes. Have fun with this, and I hope you enjoy it!

Big Soy Tostadas

Ingredients:

5 Del Oro Tostada Crowns (each box has four crowns)
1 Tbs. canola oil
2 pkgs. Smart Ground, Mexican Style (you can add beans or not)
Our toppings:
Romaine lettuce
Sliced black olives
Finely grated vegan cheese - we used Vegan Gourmet, Cheddar Style
Toffuti Better than Sour Cream
Your favorite salsa - we used Herdez medium
Diced tomatoes

Directions:

Preheat the tostada crowns according to package directions. In a medium skillet, heat the oil. Add the Smart Ground and cook until heated through and slightly browned, about five minutes. When the crowns come out of the oven, scoop some of the Smart Ground onto its bottom and then add the rest of the ingredients. Chew, swallow, smile. Feeds five hungry vegans.

Seitan Pasta Sauce Over Angel Hair

Here is a very hearty pasta sauce that goes a long way. I used homemade seitan, but feel free to use your favorite store bought brand. If you've never added fennel seed to one of your pasta sauces, I highly recommend it. The heavy sauce is balanced out by the light angel hair pasta. I served it alongside my Summertime Corn Salad for another light addition.




Seitan Pasta Sauce Over Angel Hair
Ingredients:

2 Tbs. olive oil
3 and 1/2 cups of seitan, chopped small
1 green bell pepper, chopped small
4 cups mushrooms, sliced
2 - 29 oz. cans tomato sauce
1 - 28 oz. can petite diced tomatoes
1 - 6 oz. can tomato paste
1 - 4.25 oz. can chopped olives
1 - 7 oz can diced mild green chiles
1 and 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. fennel seed
1 lb. pound angel hair pasta

Directions:

In a large pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the seitan, green bell pepper and mushrooms. Saute for several minutes until the bell pepper softens and the mushrooms release their liquid. Add the remaining ingredients, except for the noodles, and turn the heat down to medium low. Cook for at least another two hours, stirring occasionally. A few minutes before the sauce is ready, prepare the pasta according to package directions. Serve the sauce over the pasta. I recommend a light pasta and a light side dish to offset the heartiness of the sauce. Makes a big pot of sauce, definitely enough to feed five hungry vegans!

Broken-Lasagna Casserole

About a year ago, I was at a discount store when I saw something unique, something I've never seen before in the way of pasta: a bag of purposely broken lasagna noodle pieces! I stared at that, amazed that the simple act of breaking those long noodles into chunks could inspire a new dish spinning through my head. Being strictly a budget-minded girl, though, I couldn't buy them that day - they didn't fit in that day's wad of cash. And then I never bought them, I don't know why. But, oh broken noodles, I've never forgotten you! So, I recently went out and bought a box of lasagna noodles and broke them up all by myself. It was fun being destructive like that. Thus, the Broken-Lasagna Casserole was born. He may not be the most handsome boy in the room, but he is sure is nice and smooth talkin'! See if you don't like him too.

Broken-Lasagna Casserole right out of the oven.

A chunk of him on my plate next to some steamed asparagus.

Broken-Lasagna Casserole

Ingredients:

1 pkg. lasagna noodles, broken in chunks
1 Tbs. canola oil
1 pkg. Smart Ground, original
1 pkg. extra-firm tofu, drained and diced small
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 green bell pepper, diced small
5 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 - 28oz. can petite diced tomatoes
1 - 15oz. can tomato sauce
1 - 4.25 oz. can chopped olives
1 cup of frozen corn
1 - 6oz. can tomato paste
15-20 fresh basil leaves cut into thirds or halves, depending on their size (if extra small, leave whole)
1 - 10oz. pkg. Vegan Gourmet Monterey Jack cheese, finely grated, divided

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the broken noodles according to package directions. In a large pot, heat the oil on medium heat. Saute the Smart Ground and tofu until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the seasonings, bell pepper and garlic and continue cooking for another five minutes, being careful not to burn. You can add a touch more oil or a little water, if the food starts to stick. Add the canned tomato products, olives and corn. Turn heat down to medium low and let simmer for 30 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the fresh basil. Add the noodles to the pot and stir. Set aside one cup of the cheese and thoroughly mix the rest in the pot. Pour the ingredients into a large casserole dish. Sprinkle the remaining one cup of cheese on top. Bake for 30 minutes. Turn broiler on high, and broil for about five minutes to finish melting the cheese. Check to make sure the casserole doesn't burn. This was a fun variation to lasagna or an ordinary pasta dish. Everyone liked it - hope you do too. Feeds five hungry vegans for a couple of days.

Bean Tortilla Salad with Greens

I've been making variations of a tortilla salad for a long time, but usually I throw lettuce in at the end before serving. This time I started with greens since we have an abundance in our garden, and we get them delivered from a farm on a weekly basis (along with other produce). I must say it turned out great. I love greens, I mean really love them, so this adds more health to a meal that I normally would eat just for the Mexican flavor of it. Some of you may already know my passion for heat! This dish is very mild, though, but you can spice it up any way you like. Enjoy!






Bean Tortilla Salad with Greens

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. olive oil
3 big bunches of greens (I used green chard and two different kinds of kale), removed from stems and chopped coarsely
1 - 15 oz. can of small red beans, undrained
1 can of black olives, drained and sliced in thirds
2 tomatoes, diced
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 Tbs. garlic powder
Corn tortilla chips

Directions:

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. (For those who are stumped on how to separate greens from their stems, excluding spinach, it's actually a very simple method. Hold each green stem-side up, then gently grab the leaves and pull down towards the top. This should remove the green leafy part from the stem. If the stem is very small, I just cook it up. Sometimes, if the green is stubbornly attached, just pulling it gently away from the stem at that part will be enough to release it the rest of the way.) Once the oil is heated, add the greens and stir quickly for two to five minutes, until they brighten up. Because of the large amount of greens, be sure you stir so the bottom leaves rotate with the top. Once they have wilted somewhat and brightened, add the rest of the ingredients, and cook until heated through, about two or three minutes more. The moisture from the canned bean liquid will help further wilt the greens and prevent burning. Take three big handfuls of chips and crunch them in your hands into various sizes of chunks, as you drop them in the skillet. Stir until all is mixed together, then serve. Feeds five hungry vegans.

Baked Potato Skins

I haven't had baked potato skins for a very, very long time. So, I thought that I could probably come up with a yummy vegan version. These turned out great; everyone loved them. I hope you do, too.

Baked Potato Skins:

Ingredients:

5 russet potatoes
1 and 1/2 cups of your favorite vegan cheese, finely grated (we mixed Vegan Gourmet's cheddar and Monterey Jack styles)
2 tomatoes, diced small
3 green onions, sliced
1 can black olives, drained and sliced into thirds
Your favorite salsa

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Prick each potato several times with a fork, and wrap in aluminum foil. Place directly on oven grill and bake for one hour or until fork-tender. Remove, unwrap and let cool for about fifteen minutes. Turn on top oven broiler. Cut each potato in half, and scoop out most of the potato flesh, leaving a thin layer behind. Reserve the removed potato flesh for another meal, like mashed potatoes. Lay all the potato halves on a large cookie sheet, cut side up. Sprinkle each half with cheese and all the toppings, except the salsa. Place the cookie sheet under the broiler for about two or three minutes until the cheese is melted. Be careful not to burn the potato skins. Remove from oven and top with salsa. (My photo is before I slathered on the salsa.) I liked my other toppings baked into the cheese, but you can hold off topping the potatoes with them until the skins and cheese are broiled, if you wish. Keeps well for the next day's lunch. Delicious! Feeds five hungry vegans.

Super Easy Soy Burritos

Here is an easy dinner that we like to have every couple of months. It satisfies my need for Mexican food! Have fun with it.






Super Easy Soy Burritos

Ingredients:

2 pkgs. Smart Ground, Mexican Style
1 Tbs. Canola oil
Romaine lettuce, sliced thin
2 tomatoes, diced
1 cup of cheddar style vegan cheese, grated
1 can of black olives, sliced in thirds
1 container of Tofutti Better than Sour Cream
Your favorite salsa (we used Herdez medium)
1 package of burrito-style flour tortillas

Directions:
In a medium skillet heat the oil on medium heat. Take a potato masher and smash up the Smart Ground in the oil. Cook for about five minutes, until heated through, stirring occasionally. I like to put the other ingredients, except for the tortillas, in a divided party tray, so everyone can take what they want. To easily fold a burrito up - I'm going to add these simple directions because there are some people that actually would like help in this area - put your burrito filling towards one side of the tortilla, fold that side over the filling, fold up the bottom, and finish rolling the first side over. If necessary, keep tucking the bottom end up to make sure the filling doesn't fall out. Open wide! Feeds five hungry vegans.

Big Bean Tostadas

Yum! I love Mexican food, so we have some form of it about once a week in our home. This is a really easy and tasty dish to make. I like to put the various toppings in a sectioned party tray, so people can tailor their tostadas to their tastes. The only things I put in the shells for everyone are the beans and lettuce. This is always a great success in our home.

Big Bean Tostadas

Ingredients:

5 big pre-made tostada shells - We use Del Oro Tostada Crowns (4 in a box, 2 boxes)
2 16oz. cans or 1 30oz. can vegetarian refried beans
5 packed cups red leaf lettuce, sliced thin
1 container of Tofutti Better than Sour Cream
1 jar of your favorite salsa - we use Herdez
Your favorite vegan cheese - we finely grate 1 cup of Vegan Gourmet, cheddar style
3 avocados, sliced
1 can of black olives, sliced in thirds
3 tomatoes, diced
4 green onions, sliced

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Warm the tostada shells in the oven for three minutes. Heat the refried beans over medium heat until warmed through, about five minutes. Stir occasionally. Divide the beans between the shells by how much a person will eat. In our family, that may not be equal since we have very little people, medium people and big people. Divide the lettuce the same way. Separate the toppings into a divided party tray, and supply spoons and forks for getting the toppings out. Mound your shell until it looks good enough to eat. Then eat it! (You will have a few extra shells leftover for another meal.) Feeds five hungry vegans.

Casarecce Pasta with Tofu Marinara Sauce

Well, today was my birthday, so I thought I'd give you a small snapshot of the day. First of all, my family completely surprised me with a new camera, and these are the very first pictures with it (including some that aren't posted). Anyhow, we went downtown to have a precious photo restored, and while we were there, we went to our favorite Ethiopian restaurant for a birthday lunch. When we came home, we went for a walk, and the family dog joined us as usual. I made a pasta dish for dinner, and my children pitched in to make me a cake. My nine-year old daughter basically made the whole cake with my supervision. She wants you to know that she is the one that wanted a double-layer cake. I picked chocolate with chocolate frosting; I wanted chocolate chips, as well, but we were out. My three-year old son helped big sister by pouring the soy milk into the mixing bowl, and my twelve-year old daughter created a specific design with the candles. I liked the pasta dish, but in the recipe directions I've made some notes as to some possible variations. I hope you like the pictures and the recipe!

Casarecce Pasta with Tofu Marinara Sauce

My birthday Ethiopian lunch (salad is out of frame)

Earl (with the two youngest blessings behind him) on our walk

My birthday cake!

Casarecce Pasta with Tofu Marinara Sauce

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
5 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1 pkg. of extra firm tofu, drained
3 14.5 oz. cans of diced tomatoes
1 can of black olives, 1/2 of the olives chopped fine and 1/2 kept whole
1 4oz. can of diced mild green chiles
2 carrots, grated
1/2 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. fennel seed
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 pkg. of Casarecce pasta (or other medium pasta)

Directions:

In a large pot, heat olive oil on medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook until translucent, about ten minutes. Break up the tofu into large squares in the pot, and mash with a potato masher. Cook for another ten minutes, until tofu begins to really blend in with the onion and garlic. Add the rest of the ingredients. When it comes to a boil, lower heat to medium low and simmer for 30 minutes. While the sauce is simmering, prepare the pasta according to the package directions. Ladle the sauce out over individual portions. We served this with a big green salad. My children have an aversion to chunky sauces or salsas, so I blended some sauce for them, and it tasted just fine. That actually gave me an idea for a future sauce recipe. I made this particularly mild, so it would be appealing for my children, but you can spice it up if you wish. Red pepper flakes or more fennel seed or salt would be tasty. Also, you can omit one can of diced tomatoes and add tomato sauce for less chunks or tomato paste to thicken it. Feeds five hungry vegans.

Tofu Nachos

Tonight's dinner is a big, goopy, sloppy, messy, high-calorie, kid-friendly pig-out. I make no apologies for the shortcuts or fat content of this meal. Every once in a while, I make my family a big platter of nachos, and we sit around the ottoman on the living room floor and eat together while we watch a favorite family movie. Tonight, we're back from soccer tournaments, and we watched "Bibleman vs. The Cheater" - oooh, watch out! Also, an entry on my nachos would not be complete without one of my family's favorite food stories. About a year and a half ago, before I really mastered how to melt vegan cheese, I made a platter of nachos. I turned on the broiler and put the platter on the top rack. In a few moments, smoke was billowing out of the oven, and my girls were shouting, "The nachos are on fire!" Thinking they were exaggerating, I opened the oven door and real, live flames came bursting out! Completely surprised, I hollered for my husband who came into the kitchen staring at flames licking out of the oven. He quickly pulled out the dish, set it on the stove and put a large lid on it to smother the flames. When we took off the lid, everything was burned, the chips were completely black, but our "meltable" cheese was wholly unchanged. The orange-colored shavings just leered back at us, challenging us to try and melt them in any dish of our choosing. Since then, I have learned to conquer this valiant opponent, and once again, I will share my way with you. Also, if you notice in the picture that the back of the nachos looks different from the front, that's because one of my daughters doesn't like cheese, tomatoes or chunky salsa. Soon, I will learn my lesson and create a kids' platter and an adults' platter where I can really spice it up. (For my gluten-free friends, this is a treat you can enjoy, as well.)

Tofu Nachos

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. canola oil
1 package extra firm tofu, drained
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1 30oz. can vegetarian refried beans
Corn tortilla chips: 5 handfuls, 3 handfuls, 1 small handful, 1 large bowl-ful
1 and 1/2 cups Vegan Gourmet cheese, cheddar style, finely grated
1 can olives, drained and sliced in thirds
1 tomato, diced
1 package Tofutti Better than Sour Cream
1 package guacamole
1 cup of your favorite salsa (we used Herdez, medium)
Sliced peperoncini - the amount is your choice (we used Mezzetta brand)

Directions:

Make sure your oven rack is set from the second position from the top, and turn the broiler on. Heat the oil on medium-high heat in a non-stick pan. When hot, add the tofu and mash with a potato masher into pretty small chunks. Cook the tofu until it begins to brown, stirring frequently, about five minutes. Turn the heat down to medium and add the onion powder, ground cumin and garlic salt. Stir well, and continue cooking for another five minutes; then turn it off. In a small saucepan heat the refried beans. In a large platter, take the five handfuls of chips and cover the bottom. Add the beans then the tofu on top. Sprinkle the cheese over this. Broil for four minutes to melt the cheese. Take out of the oven and add the olives, tomato, vegan sour cream, guacamole and salsa. Sprinkle the peppers over all. Take the three handfuls of chips and line the outer edge of the platter with them. Take the small handful of chips and garnish the center of the nachos with them. Take the spare bowl of chips and the platter of nachos and dig in. We start with the outer chips and the garnishment then work our way down to the soggy delight beneath. The chips in the bowl are to assist you with your digging efforts. Feeds five hungry vegans. Enjoy!

Lasagna with Soy

This is a delicious child-friendly lasagna! I've used some shortcuts to save money and time, but feel free to do everything from scratch, if you desire. The olives I bought whole and sliced myself to save money, and the sauce is store-bought to save time since making lasagna is time-consuming enough. The brand I chose does not have corn syrup. (My husband is hypoglycemic, so we need to watch that closely. Now, our whole family does not eat or drink anything with corn syrup for health reasons.) I made it on Saturday night, and my two older blessings have been eating up the leftovers for breakfast and lunch ever since!

This is a picture of the whole lasagna.

This is a picture of a square of the lasagna. Notice all the goodies inside.

Lasagna with Soy

Ingredients:

1 box of lasagna noodles
1 tsp. canola oil
1 package of SmartGround, original style
2 - 12 oz. boxes of silken firm tofu
2 Tbs. chopped fresh parsley (we used flat style from our garden)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 bunch spinach
1 can of whole olives
2 jars of Classico Fire Roasted Tomato spaghetti sauce
1 cup of Vegan Gourmet cheese, cheddar style, grated finely

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and put your top rack into the second position from the top. Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water until you can handle them with your hands. While the water for the noodles is heating to boil, prepare the rest of the lasagna fixings. Heat the oil in a small saucepan and add the SmartGround when ready. Cook until it browns, then set aside. In a medium bowl, mash the tofu with a fork and stir in the parsley, salt, pepper, onion powder and oregano. Set aside. Wash the spinach thoroughly and tear the leaves into bite size pieces. Discard stems (or put them in your compost like us). Drain and slice the olives into thirds. In a 9x12 baking pan, pour 1/2 cup of the sauce on the bottom and spread around. You are now going to make three identical layers with the noodles and other ingredients. Start off with three rows of noodles to cover the sauce. If you are using a more narrow noodle, you will have to adjust the rest of the amounts accordingly. Spread 2 Tbs. of soy on each noodle, followed by three Tbs. of the tofu mixture on each noodle. Layer a blanket of the torn spinach leaves on the tofu, followed by a 1/4 cup of the olives spread over the spinach. Pour one cup of sauce on top of that. Follow with two more layers exactly like this one. On top of the third layer, add one more layer of noodles. Cover this with 1 and 1/2 cups of sauce, making sure all the noodles are covered (or else you'll get dried out noodles). Sprinkle with 1 cup of cheese and top with the rest of the olives. (You will have leftover sauce and noodles for another meal.) Bake for 40 minutes, then turn on the broiler for five more minutes to melt the cheese. Let set for five minutes or so before cutting. Feeds at least five hungry vegans. Enjoy!