Walnut crusted tofu cutlets.

CHEF'S NOTE - I put more tamari and salt in here for taste...basically, stick your finger in it and make sure it tastes delicious of its own accord before you put it on the tofu...salt, my friends, salt!

Ingredients

• Tofu marinade:
• 2 tablespoons tamari
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon water
• 2 medium/large cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• 1 (14-ounce) package extra-firm tofu, drained well
• Tahini spread:
• ¼ cup tahini (sesame paste)
• 2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon tamari
• 
  
• Coconut-walnut crust:
• ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
• 3 tablespoon dried, unsweetened shredded coconut
• 2 tablespoon minced Italian parsley (or basil, dill, cilantro or another herb)
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin or chili powder, optional
• ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ⅛ teaspoon sea salt, or to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. To marinate the tofu, place 2 tablespoons of tamari, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of water and the garlic in a 9-inch by 13-inch casserole dish and stir well. Slice the tofu lengthwise to form 4 cutlets. Slice each cutlet in half diagonally to make 8 triangles. Place the cutlets in the casserole dish to marinate for 5 minutes, flipping occasionally.
3. Place the casserole dish in the oven and bake the cutlets in the marinade for 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, make the tahini sauce: in a small bowl, combine the tahini, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of water and 1 teaspoon of tamari and mix well. Depending upon the consistency of the tahini, you may need to add some more water for a smooth consistency. Set aside.
5. To make the crust: in another small bowl, combine the walnuts, coconut, parsley, ground cumin, red pepper flakes, black pepper and salt and stir well.
6. Remove the tofu from the oven. Spread a thin layer of tahini sauce on each cutlet and top with the walnut crust. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 10–15 minutes, until the crust is golden-brown, before serving.
   
   

Zucchini, carrot and walnut loaf.

ingredients
2 cups of self raising flour
1 tsp of bicarb soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp of cinnamon
1 cup of sugar
3/4 cup of roughly chopped walnuts
3 eggs lightly beaten (I used egg replacer, you could use a small mashed banana or half a cup of mashed tofu)
1/2 cup of oil (your choice)
1 cup of grated carrot
1 cup of grated zucchini (squeezed to the remove the juice)
1/2 cup of grated apple (squeezed to remove the juice)

method
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Grease and line a deep loaf pan. 

2. Sift flour and bicarb soda, salt and cinnamon into a large bowl. Stir in sugar and walnuts.

3. Combine egg replacement and oil in a jug. Mix egg mixture, carrot, apple and zucchini into flour mixture until well combined. Spoon mixture into prepared loaf pan. Smooth top. Bake for 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes then turn onto a wire rack to cool. Ice!

cream cheese icing
I read quite a few recipes on the web, which calls for a tub of toffutti cream cheese (I use the Kingland stuff where possible I think its much nicer) and 1 cup of icing sugar. I just added icing sugar until it was a consistency I liked (I think about 3 cups). It was a BUTTLOAD of icing and iced 3 cakes so beware!

Broccoli carrot salad with lime maple dressing.

Blanch head of broccoli, rinse with cold water.  Grate carrot.


Dressing:

 

1 tablespoon dark sesame oil

 

1 tablespoon soy sauce

 

2 teaspoons maple syrup

 

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice (about 1 lime)

 

Dalt and ground black pepper to taste

I also add sunflower seeds or chopped almonds to this.  It needs little else. x

Hoisin rice paper roll dipping sauce.

The bomb:

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon oil for stir-frying
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon chopped ginger
6 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons water 
1/4 teaspoon salt
a few drops sesame oil
1 1/2 teaspoons chile paste, or to taste
1 tablespoon chopped peanuts
Preparation:
Heat the oil in a wok over medium-high to high heat. Add the garlic and ginger. Stir-fry briefly until aromatic. Turn the heat down to medium and stir in the other ingredients. Heat through and remove from the stove. Cool.

Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator. 

Broccoli cheese pasta bake.

CHEF'S NOTE: I put grated Cheezly on top of this.  Because, GODDAMNIT I CAN.

From Vogue Vegetarian.

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb whole wheat or brown rice pasta (shells, elbow, rotini, or other substantial shape)
• 2 cups broccoli, cut into small florets
• 1 1/4 cup non dairy milk
• 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
• 2 tbsp yellow or chickpea miso
• 1 tsp prepared yellow mustard
• 1 tbsp onion flakes
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 1 – 12 oz package firm tofu, drained
• salt and pepper to taste
• a few dashes of cayenne (optional)
• 2 or 3 cooked black bean or other veggie burgers (they don’t have to be warm-I use leftovers I stashed in the refrigerator) see footnote for other alterations
• prepared or homemade breadcrumbs (see recipe below)

Directions

1. Cook pasta according to package directions for al dente and then immediately rinse with cold water and drain.   Set aside.
2. Steam 2 cups of broccoli until crisp tender and set aside.
3. In a medium saucepan, whisk non-dairy milk, nutritional yeast, miso, mustard, onion flakes, garlic powder, paprika and turmeric together and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently.
4. Meanwhile, place tofu and 2-4 tbsp water in blender and puree until smooth. (Start with 2 tbsp and add more as needed).  Set aside.
5. Once the non dairy milk mixture is boiling, turn off heat and add in the pureed tofu and a few dashes of cayene if using. Mix thoroughly and taste for salt and pepper.
6. Place the drained pasta in a casserole dish and mix in the “cheese” sauce, broccoli and crumbled black bean or veggie burgers (I like the taste of black bean burgers in this dish).  Stir to combine then top with bread crumbs.
7. Place in preheated 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until heated through.

Easy homemade breadcrumbs

I never buy breadcrumbs as I usually have bread around.  I typically store mine in the freezer so I just take 2-4 slices out, break them into large pieces and thrown them in the blender until they are small crumbs.  Spread them onto a large baking sheet and splash a few dashes of olive oil.  Sprinkle on your herbs of choice (I like basil, oregano and garlic powder for this recipe) and stir to evenly coat.  Bake at 350 until crunchy, about 5-10 minutes.  These are way yummier than store bought, guaranteed!

Footnotes

You can use any vegetarian “meat” you like.  I love the taste of the black bean burgers and its a nice way to use leftovers from the night before when I had black bean burgers for a lunch or dinner.  Other suggestions would be chopped vegan sausage links such as Tofurky or Gimme Lean sausage-style veggie protein.  If you are using veggie burgers that you just cooked, you may want to crumble them then place them back on a cookie sheet and bake a few minutes. Otherwise they may be too moist.

Don’t be afraid of this being too saucy. It dries out in the oven so the extra sauce really helps.  When you pull it out of the oven, it will be perfect.

I like to add some cauliflower to this too.   The mix of broccoli and cauliflower also add some nice texture.

Eggplant moussaka, pumpkin quinoa salad, roasted brussel sprouts with tahini and maple.

Made for a feast in Reykjavik, Iceland.



Eggplant Moussaka with pine-nut cream (from http://www.theppk.com):

For the vegetable layer:
1 lb eggplant
1 lb zucchini
1 1/2 lbs russet-type baking potatoes (using large, long potatoes works perfectly in this recipe)
1/4 cup olive oil

For the sauce:
1/4 cup olive oil
4 large shallots, sliced thin
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup vegetable broth or red wine
2, 15 oz. cans crushed tomatoes, with juice
2 teaspoons oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 bay leaf
salt to taste

Pine Nut Topping:
1 lb. soft tofu
1/2 cup pine nuts
3 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon arrowroot powder
1 clove garlic
pinch nutmeg
1 1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste
white pepper to taste

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

Extra pine nuts for garnish (optional)

Preheat oven to 400. Lightly oil three baking sheets or shallow pans.

Wash and trim stem from eggplant and zucchini. Scrub and peel potato. Slice the eggplant, zucchini and potato, lengthwise, into approximately 1/4 inch thick slices. Rub eggplant slices with a little salt and set aside in a colander in the sink or in a big bowl for about 15 minutes to soften, briefly rinsing with cold water and squeezing out any excess liquid water.

Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper and place each vegetable on a separate baking sheet. Distribute 1/4 cup oil between the three sheets and sprinkle vegetables with salt (except eggplant if salted already). Toss to coat, making sure each piece is completely coated with oil. Spread vegetables out with minimal overlapping. Roast the zucchini and eggplant for 15 minutes or until tender. Roast the potatoes for about 22 minutes, until edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven and let cool.

While vegetables are cooking prepare the tomato sauce. Add remaining 1/4 cup olive oil and minced garlic to a large heavy bottom sauce pot. Bring to medium heat and let garlic sizzle for about 30 seconds, then add shallots and cook until soft and translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Add wine and simmer until slightly reduced, another 3 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes, oregano, ground cinnamon and bay leaf. Partially cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 12 to 14 minutes, stirring occasionally. Sauce should reduce slightly. Turn off the heat, remove bay leaf and adjust salt.

Make the pine nut topping:
In a food processor blend together pine nuts and lemon juice, scrapping the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula until a creamy paste forms. Add tofu, garlic, arrowroot, nutmeg, salt and white pepper. Blend until creamy and smooth.

Lightly oil a 9 x 13 pan and pre-heat oven again to 400 F. Spread 1/4 cup of sauce in the pan, then add a layer of the following; eggplant, potatoes, sauce, and half of the breadcrumbs. Spread all of the zucchini on top of this. Top with a final layer of eggplant, potatoes, sauce and breadcrumbs. Use a rubber spatula to evenly spread the pine nut topping over the entire top, smoothing out any uneven spots. Scatter a few pine nuts on top if desired. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until top is lightly browned and a few cracks have formed in the topping. Allow to cool 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Roast Pumpkin salad with bulgur (we used quinoa) - (via Jesus)



ingredients
1/4 cup of bulghur
1/4 medium pumpkin, cut small and roasted
2 tbsp of sunflower seeds
1/4 cup of toasted pine nuts
1/4 cup of chopped, dried cranberries
1/4 cup of cooked lentils
1/4 cup of chopped fresh herbs... I used parsley but mint on its own or with parley would be good too
Squeeze of lemon juice and a glug of olive oil for dressing

method
1. Cook the bulghur just like you would white rice, 1:2 bulghur to water in a small pot over medium heat with the lid on. It took about 20 minutes, just stir and test at the 15 minute mark to see how its going. 

2. In the meantime toast the pinenuts and roast the pumpkin, chop up the dried cranberries and fresh herbs. 

3. When everything is ready toss in a large bowl with the dressing and serve immediately. 




Roasted Brussel Sprouts with tahini and maple (also via Jesus): (p.s. please note these are about the BEST FUCKING BRUSSEL SPROUTS YOU WILL EVER EAT IN YOUR LIFE)

ingredients
500 gms of brussel sprouts, ends trimmed and yellow leaves removed
1 tbsp of olive oil
sea salt and pepper
1 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp of maple syrup (or rice syrup - liquid sweetner of choice)
1 tbsp of sunflower seeds (optional)
1 tsp sesame seeds (optional)

method
1. Preheat oven to 205 degrees celcius. Toss the brussel sprouts in the olive oil and sprinkles of salt and pepper (I love loads of salt but do it to your taste) and roast for about half an hour, shaking the pan every 5-10 minutes to get even coverage. The brussel sprouts are done when they look like a roast potato (see picture). 

2. Remove sprouts from the oven and put into a heat proof bowl. Drizzle the tahini and maple syrup over them, toss to cover sprouts evenly then sprinkle with sunflower seeds and serve.