What do vegans eat?

Ok so here is my first attempt at the new format.... my attempt to answer the question:

What do vegans eat?

Of course the answer is "normal food" but still non-vegans have a hard time envisioning a vegan meal without a gaping hole where their meat would be. Now bear in mind that I am visiting my in-laws for the holidays so my meals are slightly different than they are at home but not much.

Here is what I have eaten (so far) today:

Breakfast:
Toaster Waffles
Whole Soy yogurt

While I don't like to rely heavily on packaged, processed food; when I travel it often makes life easier for the people I am staying with. So my breakfast toaster waffles were a nice treat, supplied by my inlaws. I eat them without syrup but my (non-vegan) husband likes them with the works maple syrup, cinnamon, sugar and butter....

The whole soy brand yogurt is the best vegan yogurt (in my humble opinion) and unlike some brands it is totally vegan. Many of the soy yogurts are made with dairy cultures.

Snack:
A starfruit


Lunch:
A Garden Salad topped with chicken-style tofu salad (recipe below)

I am a salad freak and as such I have found the easiest thing to do is to make a big salad and keep it in the fridge. That way it is always available and easy as a side dish or snack. I can add additional stuff to it like a scoop of tofu salad or some kidney beans as well for a heartier lunch. Having a salad always available also boosts my overall nutrition for the day. I find that when the salads and veggies are easily available everyone is more likely to eat them instead of chips or cookies when hunger strikes. As weird as it seems to non-vegans, it is possible to be an unhealthy, junk-food vegan.


Snack:
Olives

Dinner:
Garden salad with edamame and a ginger-orange vinaigrette (recipe below)
Pasta with sauce

When visiting family, I feel like it is a service to both veganism and my hosts to attempt to eat as much "normal" food as possible. So when my mother in law suggested pasta with sauce, I was thrilled. There are so many commercial jarred sauces that are available at the market which are "accidentally" vegan. So tonight's dinner was pasta with Francesco Rinaldi sauce and everyone was pleased. Check the jars though, not every marinara is vegan. Many contain cheeses or meats.


Now for the recipes:

Tofu salad- "chicken style"

In a bowl, combine the following ingredients:

• Tofu, cubed (Bryanna's chicken style is especially good)
• celery, chopped
• onion or scallions, chopped
• sweet red bell pepper, chopped
• carrots, finely cubed
• pickles or a seeded cucumber cubed
• vegan maynaise
• crunchy mustard
• Thyme, rosemary, sage, to taste
• salt and pepper

Mix to taste and mash a bit. I like this with crackers, on bread, on a salad. Just about anywhere.

Ginger-Orange Vinaigrette

In a jar combine and shake well:

• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
• 3 TBS sesame oil
• 1/4 cup (or less... I like less) peanut oil
• 2-3 TBS minced ginger
• 1 tsp agave nectar
• 2-3 TBS low sodium soy sauce
  

Russian Salad

I recently picked up two books on raw veganism at a thrift store. I should point out that I am NOT a raw vegan and I am not even sure that a purely raw diet is the best choice. However, I do think that it is good to include a lot of raw foods into your regular (vegan) diet.

These two books provided lots of information about raw techniques and nutrition. They also proved to me that I do not have the will power to be a raw vegan. However I can include raw food as much as possible, and since I love salads, this salad was a good jumping off point. Please note though: that it is not 100% raw.

The dressing/marinade was inspired by a few of the lemony vinaigrettes in the raw books. The vegetables were inspired by what happened to be in my fridge. The final product reminded me of salad I remembered from Red Square, a local Russian bar.

Insalata Russa

Lemon-Garlic Marinade:

Ingredients
6 tbs fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 tbs olive oil
2 cloves garlic, put through a press
1 tsp dry mustard
2 tsp paprika
4 squirts liquid aminos or soy sauce
Salt and Pepper to taste

Method

1. Mix all ingredients in a jar and shake well.

Salad:

Ingredients
1 cup diced potato
1 large carrot
5 radishes
1/2 red bell pepper
1 cup peas
Lemon-Garlic Marinade
vegan mayonnaise (optional*)
mixed greens

Method:

1. Boil potato until slightly tender, rinse and set aside to cool.
2. Dice all vegetables into equal size cubes (nearly the size of peas)
3. Place all vegetables (including potatoes) in a bowl and stir in the marinade. Allow to marinade for at least one hour.
4. If desired, strain veggies and combine with vegan mayonnaise to taste.
5. Serve over mixed greens.

* The mayonnaise was what I remembered from the Russian restaurant. It makes a creamier salad and is quite tasty BUT it ups the fat content considerably.

I packed this salad for our lunches the next day. Both my husband and I both enjoyed the salad immensely. The starchy potatoes, carrots and peas provided a filling lunch while the crunch of the radishes was a satisfying contrast to the creaminess of the potatoes, and yes the fatty mayonnaise dressing.

A healthier greener goddess...

The Baltimore Urbanite this month ran an entire article on salad bars and specifically "Green Goddess" Salad dressing. Although the original dressing is decidedly unvegan with its mayonnaise, sour cream and anchovies, I was inspired to try to create my own Veganized version of this green monster. Both my husband and I found the dressing below to be delicious but bear in mind neither of us has any idea what the real "Green Goddess" is all about. To go with the dressing, I created a salad based on my own salad bar favorites from when I was a kid. I would eat so much salad that my dinner had to go home in a little Styrofoam container. This salad was so tasty that I ate two bowlfuls.. I almost had to pack up the rest of my lunch again! (My husband also had two bowls... there really is something magical about this salad!)

Magical 70's Salad with Greener Goddess Dressing
(By eschewing animal products, this dressing is both healthier and more eco-friendly than the original)

Greener Goddess Dressing

Mix the following in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy:

1/2 cup fresh parsley
1 clove of raw garlic
1 small handful of chives
3 TBS rice wine vinegar
2 TBS dijon mustard
1 caper berry, stem removed
1 TBS caper brine
2 TBS dried tarragon
1 large sheet roasted laver
1/3 cup vegan Mayonaise
6 ounces silken tofu (1/2 vacuum- sealed block)

Magical 70's Salad:

Put all of the following in a large bowl, chopped (if necessary) into equal small pieces:

Leaf Lettuce
Romaine Lettuce
Carrot
Cucumber
Mushrooms
Red Pepper
Scallions
Extra Firm Tofu (water pressed out)
Black Olives
Tiny green peas (from freezer, defrosted)
Sunflower seeds

Mix chopped veggies in a bowl with a small amount of dressing until every bite is covered. Sprinkle with freshly grated black or red pepper.

(NOTE: As an afterthought I realized that croutons and fake bacon bits would probably be awsome in this salad)


To go with the salad, I fixed a quick and simple tomato bisque that truly cooked itself. This is so simple that I am almost embarrased to call it a "recipe".

Lazy-Girl's Tomato Bisque (LOW-FAT)

Ingredients:
3-4 cloves garlic, whole
2 cans tomatos (stewed if you like it sweeter, plain if not)
fresh or dried basil to taste
almond milk, unsweetened
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Method:

Place garlic, tomatoes (including liquid) and basil in an oven safe pan. Roast at 450 for about 1 hour or until garlic cloves are soft and fragrant.

Remove from oven and puree using blender or imersion blender.

Once tomatoes are smooth, add almond milk to thin the tomato puree. Season with pepper and salt (if necessary).

Yep... that's it. Embarrasingly simple. Its even tastier if you start with fresh tomatoes, but using canned saves ALOT of time. (If you start from fresh, you will need to add more S&P)



And finally for dinner I had vegan lasagna. I tried a trick from Jessica Seinfeld and hid carrots, spinach and mushrooms into the sauce before pureeing everything. The lasagna was pretty good, but if I did it again, I'd probably skip the spinach.


The basic outlines of the lasagna components were:

Sauce: Cook 1/2 onion, 3 cloves garlic, 1 stalk celery, 1 carrot, lots of red pepper and braggs liquid aminos (or just salt...) in a little red wine. When veggies are soft add two cans italian tomatoes, fresh basil and parsley. Bring to a boil and cook to combine. (this was where I added the spinach but leave it out... just trust me on this one.) Puree everything until smooth and add small can tomato paste. Taste sauce and adjust flavors if necessary. (If you didn't listen and added the spinach anyway you will need to add agave syrup.) Heat through and set aside until you are ready to assemble your lasagna.

Tofu Riccota: In a food proccesor combine equal parts silken tofu and extra firm tofu, some basil, a few cloves raw garlic, some chives, a few squirts lemon juice, nutritional yeast, Bragg's (or salt) and pepper. (It is also good if you add a tiny amount of EVOO or some vegan parmesan). Set this aside until you are ready to assemble as well.

I am going to assume you know how to assemble your lasagna. I followed the box directions for the oven temperature and noodle preparation.

Vegan lasagna is one of my favorite dinners. I seem to make it differently every time, but I always love it. There is just something about all of those noodles and the garlicky tofu-ricotta that I just love. Although my DH has tried this in the past and announced it "ok", it is not his favorite. I don't take it personally, he didn't even like it when I got a restaurant version that was out of this world. Vegan lasagna is a hard sell to non-vegans. As an Italian and non-vegan he is never going to accept a lasagna that is not dripping with cheese and meat. He ate something else tonight. That's fine....more for me.