Fried Rice

Only the vegetable loving vegans in our house like this, but we do like it!

https://runningonrealfood.com/healthy-vegan-cauliflower-fried-rice/

I food processed the cauliflower.  I started chopping the small head by hand, but my arms were really sore from body pump so I got out the food processor.  I'm glad I did.  It took less than 14 seconds to make the rice (my food processor has a timer on it).  If I'd chopped by hand, I'd probably still be standing there chopping instead of having already devoured this.

I did pretty much what she suggested at the above link, heated the pan with the sesame oil, poured in peas and carrots (I didn't measure, but about 1/3 of a bag -- mine were frozen and the carrots are match strip cuts so they cooked super quickly).

I stuck the corn in (probably also about 1/3 of a small bag of roasted corn), some garlic 1 teaspoon of chopped dried, and the cauliflower with 3/8ths of a cup of soy sauce. I also put in some onion powder 'cause I didn't have green or regular onions, and the red pepper flakes.  I added a few shakes of Bragg's Amino Acids -- I didn't count, but quite a few with some squirts... probably about 1/2 - 1 teaspoon.

We ate it as soon as it had cooked for about 6 minutes and we love it!  File under another recipe we'll make again!

I was going to make this, but I didn't have all the ingredients.  Hopefully I'll make this next weekend, but I don't know.  It's going to be hard to NOT make this fried rice.

(And I forgot to take a picture.  We devoured quickly!  Next time!)

Just barely: Zucchini Hummus

May was an incredibly busy month.  I'm titling this post "just barely" 'cause it feels like I just barely survived.  Last January, I learned just how crazy it was going to be, and I worked hard to pace myself. The crazy lasted through the beginning of June.  I'm resting and recovering this weekend after two weekends of dance shows and a trip to the east coast.

Even though I barely survived, our garden is going crazy! 

 

 

Last year, we had a lot of zucchini, and it's the same story this year.  Tonight, Nick and I are making zucchini bread (and may I just say that my new food processor is a dream!).  It shredded zucchini almost instantly, for the bread, and we made zucchini hummus.

What's in zucchini hummus you may ask...

Zucchini (1 large-ish one and I peeled it, but will try it next time without peeling)

2 cloves of garlic

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 cup tahini

3/4 cup cashews

2 teaspoons chili powder

1/3-1/2 cup lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon (or more) cayenne pepper

1/2 - 1 teaspoon cumin

It tastes "fresh and light" according to Nick.  I'll put it on some lovely broccoli (alas, not from my garden) and enjoy it for dinner.  It'll pair well with tomatoes (when they come next month), and it's a nice change!  We'll see if the vegan kid who likes vegetables likes zucchini hummus.  I'm not sure the other two are going to like it, but that's okay.

Red Pepper Spread

Inspired by Oh She Glows, again, I made this delightful, delicious red pepper spread.  Hers was more of a muhammara than mine, 'cause I left the bread out, didn't toast the walnuts, and I used sweet red peppers. You know I can't follow directions and I like doing mash ups of recipes (pun intended).

What did I do?

I roasted about 8 red peppers, with olive oil.  I just put a little olive oil on each pepper and broiled for about 20 minutes at 450, then I flipped them over and watched them (probably about another 15-ish minutes.) I only used 4 in this recipe. The others will be used when I make this for our Saturday get together.


Put all the ingredients in your food processor:

4 roasted red peppers
1 cup walnuts
2 cloves of garlic
2 teaspoons smoked paprika (my new favorite spice!)
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons of tomato paste

Process until mostly smooth and serve with bread.

 

So delicious! I didn't toast the walnuts, but it was still excellent.  Next time I may toast the walnuts, just for fun. For the record, it was delicious with raw walnuts.  

We think it will be excellent on wraps, (vegan) burgers, and just as a dip. This was Nick and my favorite part of Thanksgiving dinner.  (Natalie kind of liked it, Kira wouldn't try it, and Tia said it was okay.) (I don't care if the girls eat it or not--more for us!) 

P.S. See the pictures at Oh She Glows!

White Bean Hummus

2 (15-ounce) cans cannellini beans (drained)
2 lemons, juiced (usually 1/4-1/3 a cup)
1-2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 garlic cloves
2-3 tablespoons tahini paste
1-2 teaspoons salt (unless your beans are already salted, if so, salt to taste and you probably won't need too much)
1-2 teaspoons olive oil

Place ingredients in the food processor and process until smooth.  Chill in the refrigerator, it always tastes better to me cold.  Eat with veggies, bread, tortillas, or a spoon (heh).  I love to put it in wraps!  I should take a picture of it before it's gone, but not right now.  (Maybe in the morning.)

Super fast black bean dip

When you're in a hurry for something filling, with protein, and tasty, we recommend our super fast black bean dip!

3 cans of Black Beans (BPA-free if possible)
1-2 cloves of garlic
1-2 tablespoons cumin
1.5 teaspoons of salt
~8-12 ounces of fresh salsa (like pico de gallo) but use very little of the juice.
Optional: Chili Powder, Onion Powder

Directions:

Put 1/2 a can of black beans (drained and rinsed), the salsa (without the juice), and the garlic in the food processor and process until smooth (you want to make sure the garlic is all chopped up).

Next, add the spices (cumin and salt) pulse a few times to mix them in.  Then add the remaining cans of drained and rinsed beans and process until mostly smooth.

Serve with veggies, rice, tortillas, tortilla chips, or whatever else you like.  I also love to add it to wraps.  This amount will usually last for (no more than) 2 days in our house with our family of 5.  We all love it.  It makes a super easy and fun dish to take to parties, too.

Roasted veggies

I've always loved roasted veggies, and I used to make roasted cauliflower and broccoli sometimes, but then I got out of the habit.  We visited a friend and she made some for us for dinner.  She reminded me how easy and delicious roasted veggies are.

 

Cauliflower, broccoli, brussel sprouts, and asparagus in a little olive oil and salt waiting for their turn in the oven.  I tried to go fairly sparingly on the oil, but this is not a low-fat dish!  It's very tasty, and great for the holidays.  I need to keep this on my list for special occasions.
 

 
 Here I am checking on the veggies.  I broiled them for about 10 minutes without checking and then checked every few minutes until 20-25 minutes.  Super easy, just make sure they don't burn.

(Note, I did pull the rack out sometimes--not sure why I was sticking my arm in the oven this time.) 

I didn't get an "after" the oven picture of the veggies; I was too busy eating the yummy roasted veggies.