"vegan reset" + giveaway

Bet you didn't think I'd post again this soon, did ya? I didn't think so, either, but I wanted to let you know about a cookbook coming out this week that is pretty amazing, as a matter of fact. Vegan Reset (Amazon) was written by Kim-Julie Hansen of Brussels Vegan (though now the site is KimJulieHansen.com).

Kim-Julie explains that "reset" is just like it sounds; think of restarting a machine that's been malfunctioning or not working the way it should and pressing the magic button to send it back to the reset stage. 

She explains that the book is about giving your body the love and attention it needs to survive and thrive. 

There are a few things I love about the book. 

She does a reset section, which is roughly half of the book, that covers 28 days (4 weeks) of menus, breakfast, lunch, dinner and a snack, and she gives you the menus, the shopping lists and the bulk cooking strategies (along with all the recipes for everything!) of each week. Now reread this paragraph because it is packed.

Did you get that? She is basically holding your hand and walking you through each day of each week, for a month. The menus are there, the shopping lists are provided and the methods and process of bulk cooking twice a week is spelled out. All the recipes are with the weeks and everything has a photo. Each meal and each menu item.

Great, you say, but I don't want a reset. I just want to cook and eat. In addition to all the recipes and menu ideas for the weeks, for each meal, she also provides regular menu items that help you along, either after the reset, or just as a regular dinner or lunch or breakfast dish.

Let me be clear. Although this book can be used as a "reset," complete with 84 meal dishes and their recipes, it can also be used just as a regular cookbook of great meals, including drinks and desserts. Or you can choose a few days in a row that sound good to you and cook those meals. The reset part of the book is a bonus; the entire book is a gem.

Here is a sampling:

This is a Beet Salad with Miso-Ginger Tempeh and Red Quinoa.  This salad bowl is a composition of other parts of the meal of the week, on Day 22. The other meals this day are: Oatmeal with Papaya & Brazil Nuts for breakfast and Creamy Butternut Noodles for dinner.  

This Spinach Pasta with Zucchini-Nut Sauce is a recipe out of the fourth part of the book, named "Beyond Reset: Additional Recipes." This was a perfect summer dinner.

This Zucchini Bake was an ideal addition to our lunchbox. Because the potatoes were creamy, there was no harm done to the texture as it sat in the fridge the night before, and in the lunch box all day. Cashews are the base to this cream sauce. The other meals on this day, Day 26, are, for breakfast, Sunflower Seed & Berry Toast and for lunch, Heart of Palm & Kale Salad.

I doubled these recipes because, while the book is great for 1 person resetting, the recipes are made for 2 servings (or so) and we are a family of 5.

Now, you know the drill: test the recipe below and enter the contest to win a copy of the book Vegan Reset, US residents only, please. The contest ends on September 17, 2018. Good luck!

Excerpted from VEGAN RESET © 2018 by Best of Vegan LLC. Photography © 2018 by Best of Vegan LLC. Reproduced by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.

CHERRY PANCAKES
MAKES 2 SERVINGS

¼ cup regular or gluten-free all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of sea salt
¾ cup soy milk
3 tablespoons maple syrup,  plus more for serving
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 tablespoon unsweetened shredded coconut, for serving
Fresh cherries or other fruit,  for serving

1. Mix the flour, cornstarch, flaxseed, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl.

2. In a separate bowl, mix the soy milk, maple syrup, coconut oil, vinegar, and vanilla.

3. Combine the wet and dry mixtures and whisk together thoroughly.

4. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat, then scoop 2 to 3 tablespoons of batter per pancake into the skillet. Cook on each side until brown.

5. Serve with the coconut, cherries, and additional maple syrup.




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"the china study cookbook" + giveaway

I am so excited to share with you the revised and expanded edition of Leanne Campbell's The China Study Cookbook [Amazon].  This whole foods, plant-based cookbook is just fantastic! The photos are brand-new, the recipes have been revised, the format is simple and clean, the food tastes great and the recipes are easy and fast!

Basically, the perfect WFPB cookbook (Whole Foods, Plant-Based eating is eating whole foods exclusively, that are only plant-based. This means no oil or any processed ingredients)! I love it and I know that it would be a great asset to a lot of people.

As usual, don't take my word for it - let's look at some pictures and then I'll share a recipe with you to try for yourself - one that is a favorite of Leanne's kids (who are now adults, but they were kids once, too). I know that if you make that dish, it will show you just how terrific the recipes in the book are.

I'm not kidding when I tell you that I really love this book;  I had to try something in almost every category!

Let's start with this salad: Ensalada Azteca. It reminded me of Native Food's salad by the same name, but this one uses no oil and I love that! The flavors are perfect and the salad was very filling. This is a main dish salad that won't leave you feeling hungry.  I roasted the corn for the salad (I had a few extra minutes, and it's worth it), but otherwise, the recipe is pictured as written.

I then moved on to salad's complement: soup. This is the Peanut Kale Soup, and while the flavors were great and the recipe was quick and easy (and I used PB2 instead of peanut butter), my version doesn't look like the photo in the book. Regardless, we loved it and ate it all.

The next logical place to go is to a sandwich! To not disappoint,  I prepared this Roasted Veggie Sub. The sub features any of a number of Savory Sandwich Spreads (Golden Garden Mayonnaise, Aioli Sauce, Chipotle Sauce), here I have chosen the Aioli Sauce.

Since school has started again for the kids and me (we are all in college), this Asian Ginger Cabbage Salad was the perfect lunchbox meal. It was great at room temperature and it is full of good carbs, vegetables and protein. I loved this one for multiple reasons.

Baking WFPB means that the flour is whole grain and there is no added processed fat, like vegan butter or oil. These Potato Rolls, made with whole wheat pastry flour, were fabulous. They were fluffy, tender and delicious. I served them with the pasta that I made next...

For the family pasta meal, I opted for the Spaghetti with Tomato Coconut Sauce, and I am so glad I did. We've been a little burned out on regular tomato sauce here, so the spin with the coconut-cilantro was just what we needed.

Finally, I couldn't not make a sweet dish! I chose something that my daughter likes: Lemon Poppy Muffins. These had just the right amount of sweetness - not too much, not too little - and they were beautifully tart from the lemons. We enjoyed these with a cup of tea. So good!

As you can see, the recipes are varied and, even if you don't believe me when I say they tasted terrific, you can at least see that they look terrific! How about you try the following recipe from The China Study Cookbook - Revised and Expanded Edition?

I chose the Dominican Rice and Beans (p 207) to share with you? Why? Because Leanne says that this was one of her kids' favorite meals! Whatever kids say they love, has to be good all around, especially when one of those favorites is healthy, to boot! The recipe is from The China Study Cookbook - Revised and Expanded Edition by Leanne Campbell, and the recipe is shared with permission. Photo is by Nicole Axworthy.

After you peruse the recipe, make sure to enter the contest to win a copy of the book! US residents only, please. Contest ends Monday at midnight, September 10, 2018. Good luck!

DOMINICAN RICE AND BEANS

MAKES 6–8 SERVINGS

My sons, now 24 and 23, were raised on a plant-based diet, and if you ask them what their favorite meal is, they both immediately respond Dominican Rice and Beans, topped with fresh salad. The secret to this meal is to top the rice and beans with fresh salad and avocados, then drizzle with lemon juice and/or rice vinegar.

Rice and Beans

¼ cup diced onions

4 garlic cloves, minced

½ cup chopped green bell peppers

¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

2 tablespoons vegetable broth

2 cups water

2 (15-ounce) cans beans of your choice (pinto, black, red, etc.), rinsed and drained

½ cup grated butternut squash

1½ tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon salt

4 cups cooked brown rice, for serving

Salad

2 cups sliced lettuce

2 cups sliced cabbage

¾ cup sliced cucumber

¾ cup sliced beets

1 tomato, sliced

1 large avocado, pitted and sliced

3 tablespoons rice vinegar

3 tablespoons water

¼ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste

1. In a large saucepan, sauté onions, garlic, bell peppers, and cilantro in vegetable broth over medium-high heat until onions brown.

2. Add water, beans, and squash. Bring to a low simmer and cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

3. While the beans are cooking, prepare the salad. In a large salad bowl, toss together all ingredients. Set aside.

4. Once the beans cook, add tomato paste and salt. Taste and add more salt if needed. Cook for 2–3 more minutes. Remove from heat.

5. Serve beans over rice and top with salad.

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easy baked vegan mac and cheese

Cat - age 4

The other day my oldest daughter and I were remembering back a few decades, when we first went vegan, when the most important thing to her was to re-create her beloved mac and cheese dish.

She and I began experimenting with what was available to us (nutritional yeast, red peppers, vegan cheese slices (you know, the waxy substance parading as cheese between two thin strips of plastic) and came up with a really simple recipe that has been lost these past decades.

Well, I dug it up from the recesses of the web and she and I fixed it up by

• removing the oil and processed stuff, 
• adding more flavor and 
• making it easier to prepare - no roux or slurry. 

This is what we came up with. It is creamy and cheesy and really easy to make.

As an aside, she loves dill with mac and cheese, so it is an option in the recipe below.

Enjoy!

"Jazzy Vegetarian's Deliciously Vegan" + giveaway

Hello web-land!

I have exciting news for all of you!

I am one of the final folks reviewing Laura's newest cookbook, Jazzy Vegetarian's Deliciously Vegan [AMAZON] and am hosting a giveaway for a copy of the book to one lucky US resident!

For those not able to take part in the giveaway, I am sharing an exclusive recipe - one that hasn't been posted yet (that Google and I can find, anyway - please don't tell me if you do find it elsewhere; let me live in my bubble).

This will be the third time I am reviewing Laura's books. HERE is the first one and HERE is the second one. They both come with their own special recipes, so are definitely worth a look.

More in the great news department: The Jazzy Vegetarian Season Six will start on May 28th! Catch it on Create TV or on Laura's station: HERE.

The newest book in Laura's collection of offerings is Jazzy Vegetarian's Deliciously Vegan.

This is Laura's fourth cookbook and I could hardly wait to see what she came up with this time! I find something new in Laura's book with regular frequency, so for me, this was really exciting!

This book comes with a collection of Laura's Top Ten lists for things such as egg substitutions, two-ingredient recipes, cheese substitutes, etc...

And of course, my favorite thing in all of her books: the menus!

I am such a sucker for menus! I love to serve 'complete' meals and a menu is a great way to make sure of that -- all headache-free.

So that's where I started, the Menus. And this is what I found:

Yeah, I am  a brunch-aholic. I love reviewing brunch items because, frankly, brunch is hard to make vegan, with all the cheese and eggs that are usually involved. Laura seems to have made it with perfection.

And then I looked at the ingredients in the recipes and the ingredients in my fridge. We get CSA so we don't always have just exactly what is called for, so a bit of editing of the menu brought me to this...

So, "Wow! Weekend Brunch 2" was born.

And then I realized I didn't get blueberries this week, but I did get strawberries, so the cake turned into Strawberry Tea Cakes. Since dessert usually has to be made well beforehand, the cake came out of the oven first -- smelling amazing, by the way.

Next on the game plan was the Fabulous French Toast Bake. I bake all our bread (except pita and other large flatbreads) so this mal-formed 50%-whole wheat loaf was destined to become toast.

(Why bake bread at home: store bought has its own legacy of troubles, but for me the biggest is the plastic bag they come in. I can buy great, organic, wholesome, delicious bread, but they come in plastic bags. To save the plastic, I bake our bread.)

Unfortunately, I don't have a photo for the French Toast Bake due to cook's error.

Simply put, I messed up the directions (my fault, 100%) and the bake didn't look like it should have and I didn't want to taint Laura's recipe. In any case, it came out tasting great and disappeared as soon as I put it on the table.

The other main dish on the menu is a quiche cup. Zucchini season is already on us here, in San Diego, so these miniature quiches, Zucchini Quiche Cups with Rustic Bread Crusts, were destined to be. 

This is a really simple recipe but supremely tasty. My eldest daughter couldn't keep her hands off them! Nicely done, Laura. She is extremely discerning!

How about, instead of a fruit salad, confetti fries? See how my brain works? Not very logically, I'm afraid. 

The recipe, Colorful Confetti Fries, calls for sweet potatoes and russets, and ... (you can probably see where I'm going with this) ... my CSA brought me kholrabi and sweet potatoes, not russets. 

Nevertheless, Laura's recipes are pretty flexible and this one was no exception. Any root vegetable would be great here so don't be shy.   

In addition to the root vegetables being air-fried and the zucchini in the quiche, I wanted to serve another vegetable.

I saw this recipe in the book: Green Beans and Tomatoes. I happen to have both in spades right now, and the recipe was so easy, and looked so good, that onto the "Wow! Weekend Brunch 2" it went!

Isn't it a pretty color combination? Pretty food also happens to taste good!

To round off the menu, a drink is always appropriate. 

In fact, when I told my daughter that we were having the brunch, her first question was what kind of drink will we be having with it. Her usual go-to is a big batch of some kind of iced tea, but she was very happy with Laura's Green Julius Smoothie. 

To make up for the lack of a photo of the French Toast Bake, I offer you a photo of the complete Strawberry Tea Cakes. They are both spectacular dishes. 

As always, first I want to share a recipe with you from the book. This time I wanted to pick something that was not shared already and something that shows you that this isn't just a brunch book, it's also a lunch, dinner, snack, dessert book! 

It is full of healthy and delicious recipes that are easy and pretty fast to make. And each one has Laura's unique Jazzy spin. 

Take the recipe below for a spin, or have a look at some of the other recipes being shared on this tour:

Tex-Mex Salad Bowl  shared by Veggies Save the Day

Miso Parsley Humus  shared by Veggies Inspired 

Root Vegetable Lentil Trio Stew  by V Nutrition and Wellness

Lemon Maple-Cranberry Muffins shared by Veganification

Banana Pecan Coffee Cake shared by Vegan Nook

Fusilli-Brocolli Bowls with Walnut “Cream" Sauce shared by Carob Cherub

Potato Spinach Fritatta shared by Heal, Grow, Blossom

Sensational Stuffed Manicotti shared Finding Happy in Healthy

I am sharing this amazing-sounding Gingered Portobellos dish. After you get the recipe, make sure to enter the giveaway for a copy of Jazzy Vegetarian's Deliciously Vegan [AMAZON]  :

Details:

Win: Jazzy Vegetarian's Deliciously Vegan [AMAZON]

When: April 29 - May 7, 2018

What: Giveaway on Zsu's Vegan Pantry. [LINK TO HERE]

Who: US Residents only

How: Enter in the Rafflecopter below

Gingered Portobello Steaks

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

These delicious mushroom steaks taste and look much like a conventional steak, making a great substitute for a meat entrée. I like to serve this snazzy dish for dinner parties, but it is easy enough to make for a weeknight meal, too!

3 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more as needed

6 large (or 8 medium) portobello mushrooms, washed and stems removed

2 tablespoons tamari

1 tablespoon finely minced fresh ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon maple syrup

1/16 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Line a rimmed baking sheet, large enough to accommodate a single layer of the mushrooms, with unbleached parchment paper. Brush about 1/2 teaspoon olive oil (in a thin layer) on each mushroom cap, then flip the mushrooms over and arrange them gill-side up on the prepared baking sheet.

To make the marinade, put 21/2 tablespoons of olive oil and the tamari into a small bowl and briskly whisk to combine. Add the ginger, garlic, maple syrup and cayenne pepper and whisk to combine. Spoon an equal amount (about 2 teaspoons or so) of the marinade evenly over the gills of each mushroom. Cover with foil and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour to let the flavors marry.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the mushrooms for 35 to 50 minutes (see note) or until they are almost soft. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 10 to 12 minutes, or until the mushrooms are golden and becoming caramelized.

Let the mushrooms rest at room temperature for 5 minutes. Transfer each mushroom onto a cutting board and cut into thick slices, on the bias. Serve 1 to 2 mushrooms per person, with rice, quinoa, or potatoes and a green veggie on the side.

CHEF’S NOTE: Baking time will vary depending upon the thickness of your mushrooms. Thinner mushrooms will require a shorter baking time, while thicker mushrooms will need to bake longer.

Recipe by Laura Theodore, from JazzyVegetarian's Deliciously Vegan. Published by Scribe Publishing, ©2018, reprinted by permission. 

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"kitchen creativity" + giveaway

Greetings to you, the reader! I hope that all has been well with you and your loved ones; it's been a tumultuous past year, no matter what part of the world you call home, so I wish you all the best.

About Me

In case you are interested, a bit of catch up, in the next few sentences, and then I want to share a very special book with you - that is, if you are even the slightest bit interested in cooking the food you eat.

Current Events

My girls and I are in the middle of the Fall 2017 mid-terms at the community college, and it is intense. My son has been off this semester, having graduated with a bachelor's from UC Berkeley in Spring of 2017 and is awaiting the start of his graduate degree-career in film at USC in the coming spring. My husband is currently working from home (about a year now) and I am pursuing a computer science degree. That's about it - in a nutshell.

Future Events

I'll begin posting more in the coming weeks, as I am testing out a few things in the kitchen. Since going back to school, I just simply do not have the time to spend in the kitchen that I used to; there is just so much that needs to get done!

I preach balance all the time and part of that compromise involved pulling time away from the kitchen. There is family to be with in the midst of all of the chaos and that is more important than how fancy a meal can be. Occasionally, yes, all the time, no.

I *had* been cooking two meals a day (all by myself for the most part), but now, with this plan, the meals are divvied up more evenly among the family members. I thought the plan might be of interest to some folks.

Review - Kitchen Creativity* by Karen Page

As I teased above, if you are interested in cooking the food you eat, I want to share with you Karen Page's new book, Kitchen Creativity. You might remember that I reviewed Karen's last book, The Vegetarian Flavor Bible, and I absolutely adore it! Happily, I can't recommend her newest book enough.

Very briefly, the book is:

"..Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg's latest book [is] an exploration of the culinary creativity of the world's best chefs, and profiles Chefs Tal Ronnen and Scot Jones of LA's Crossroads alongside award-winning chefs from the world's best restaurants like NYC's Blue Hill, Daniel, and Le Bernardin"

It is about being creative in the kitchen, in both small and significant ways. This is a very simplistic description, but extremely accurate. The best part of the book is that the authors explore all the dimensions and paths to becoming more creative in the kitchen, but they do it in such a way that you can choose how intensely you want to pursue this creativity.

Karen and Andrew break it down, step by step, and give you the tools you need to accomplish the goals you set yourself. You can either learn bits and pieces - such as how to season food or how to pair flavors, or you can follow their plan from Stage 1 (Mastery), to Stage 2 (Alchemy), to Stage 3 (Creativity), on your way to becoming a chef.

The book is divided into two parts, Part I: The Creative Process in the Kitchen and  Part II: A World of Infinite Culinary Possibilities: The Lists. Let's explore these a bit.

Part I: The Creative Process in the Kitchen 

This is the part where you learn how the creative process works and how to implement it. Based on the three stages I mentioned above, you are given the map from novice to expert. Along the way you learn how to master the fundamentals of cooking, how dishes we call classics today, were avant garde yesterday.  You will learn how flavors play well together and what makes a  proper flavor profile. Finally, you will learn how to cook with all your senses and how to create dishes yourself.

Part II: A World of Infinite Culinary Possibilities: The Lists

The second part consists of lists. But the lists aren't just lists; they are recordings of changes the world has seen, with ideas and opportunities to explore them or just delve deeper into a rabbit hole.

Within this part you will find lists of seasonal ingredients, seasonal dishes, mocktails, sensitivities and aversions, trash-to-treasure dishes, holiday dishes, nostalgia foods, salt-baked foods and even super bowl foods!

Giveaway

I fear that I really am not doing justice to how amazing this book is!

*Kitchen Creativity, (although not vegan or vegetarian), is one of those books that contains such important information, that to ignore it because it is not exclusively vegan would be a shame. Note that the book is not animal-centered and while there are featured quotes from non-veg chefs, there are no in-your-face animal ingredients. For example, I searched the list for "chicken" and, while there is "chickpea water", there is no list for the former. Karen is newly vegetarian and you can tell that is so by the content of the book.

How about owning a copy yourself? Karen and Andrew are offering to give a copy to one lucky US resident. The book is a beautiful, hefty, hard cover volume, reminiscent of The Vegetarian Flavor Bible.

Enter for your chance to win! Good luck!

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blta grilled cheese

Since we love grilled cheese in this house, we decided to add "grilled cheese" to the bi-weekly menu rotation. This also means that we will be coming up with unique grilled cheeses in the future since there is no way we could stand making grilled cheese every other week and be happy with the lack of variety.

As you may know, three of the five people in the family are back to college now (the fourth is heading to USC in the spring) and that means fast, easy and tasty meals are on the menu - and that also means everyone helps out with the cooking (at least one person, once a week - besides me).

This past week we had BLTA Grilled Cheese sandwiches. Bacon, lettuce, tomato, avocado - all on a grilled cheese sandwich. Really, this can only be good.

I used my bacon recipe from Everyday Vegan Eats (AMAZON) because it is STILL my most favorite bacon recipe hands down and it freezes really well so I make a huge batch and pull out what I need when I need it. Toss it in the air-fryer and have crisp, crunchy, amazing vegan bacon.

Use commercial cheese or make your own, but if using commercial block cheeses, use a mix of different brands to get a melty, gooey vegan cheese that isn't over-powering in flavor.

Have at it - make grille cheese a regular addition to your menu and you can customize it and have lunch on the table in record time.

BLTA Grilled Cheese
Makes 4 sandwiches

8 slices bread
Vegan butter
Vegan mayonnaise or 1 small mashed avocado
4 slices vegan swiss cheese or other vegan cheese
12 slices vegan bacon
Lettuce
Tomato

1. Butter one side of each bread slice. Spread mayo or avocado on the top slice of each sandwich.
2. Heat a skillet over medium-low heat, add the slices of buttered bread, top with cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato and add the top slice of mayo-ed (or avocado-ed) bread (butter side up). Cover with a lid and cook until the bottom slice of bread is golden, about 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Flip the sandwich and cook, uncovered, until golden brown. Reduce heat if the bread is cooking too fast.
4. If the cheese is not melted, add a tablespoon of water to the skillet, tip the skillet to avoid making the bread soggy, cover with a lid and cook until the cheese is melted. Serve.



© 2017 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

cordon bleu

Chicken Cordon Bleu is a popular dish of ham and swiss cheese wrapped inside a chicken breast, which is then breaded and fried. We can do better than that, though, so here is an easier (and kinder) Cordon Bleu.

This sandwich is presented on a homemade bun with a slice of seitan that has been seared. The seitan is topped with smoky seitan that is thinly sliced and then is topped with vegan Swiss cheese. The final addition is a maple-mustard sauce that is as delicious as it is easy to make.

While this sandwich comes together in as little as 15 minutes, including the sauce, there is no denying that most of the work is done beforehand: seitan, bread and cheese, if making it homemade. However, once you have all the components, it is a snap.

This is one of those sandwiches whose total is so much better than the parts. In fact, as you are making your various kinds of seitan, keep this sandwich in mind to use up any leftovers.

Cordon Bleu Sandwich

Makes 4 sandwiches

Sauce:

2 tablespoons dijon mustard

2 tablespoons olive oil or vegan mayonnaise

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon maple syrup

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Sea salt and black pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

12 thin slices vegan ham

4 vegan scallopini or seitan slices (about 1/2-inch thick)

4 slices vegan swiss cheese or other vegan cheese

4 kaiser rolls or burger buns, split and toasted 

1. Sauce: Combine the mustard, oil, vinegar, maple, lemon juice and salt and pepper, to taste, in a small bowl. Mix well and set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ham slices and cook until golden brown. Set aside. Add the vegan scallopini and season with salt and pepper. Cook until golden brown and flip. Add the reserved slices of ham, three to a scallopini and a slice of cheese. Add a teaspoon of water to the pan and cover with a lid. Cook until the cheese melts. 

3. Spread some sauce on the bottom of the buns. Add a cordon bleu stack and top with more sauce. Add the top of the roll and serve immediately. 

© 2017 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

vegan meatball sub

I've always had a soft spot for a terrific meatball hoagie. Native Foods has a great vegan meatball sub that at least one family member gets whenever we go, but I only get to snag a bite of. I decided it is time to make one at home.

We have at least one sandwich for lunch during the week and since sandwiches are supposed to be on the faster side, I just used store-bought vegan meatballs, but you can, of course, make your own. I've been making so many different components of meals that I just wanted a bit of a break.

As it is, I made the rolls at home and you can, too, if you have a Fridge Dough.

This sandwich has two sauces, but you can pick one or the other to do if you don't feel like making two different ones. If you make the red pepper sauce only, double or triple it for 4 sandwiches.

I added oven-roasted tomatoes to this sandwich and I have to tell you, I was eating them right off the baking tray; they are good! If yours cools by the time the sandwich assembly comes, heat them a bit in the oven or make sure your sauce is pipping hot - it will warm the tomatoes, too.

I'm getting the family ready for the fall, since I am going back to school, too, so I've streamlined the menu and we now have two week rotations of lunch and dinner ideas that can be customized so we don't get bored.

For example, for lunch on week 1 we have:

Sunday- Tofu Scramble
Monday- Cup of soup and simple sandwich
Tuesday- Salad
Wednesday- Sandwich
Thursday- Mom's pick
Friday- Leftovers
Saturday- Veggie Dogs

As you can see, for example, the tofu scramble can be further customized into Migas, Hungarian Scramble, Benedict, Frittata, etc. The Veggie Dogs can be California Dogs, Chicago Dogs, Potato Dogs, etc. You get the idea.

Next order of business is to announce the winner of The China Study Family Cookbook giveaway! The winner is: RunLonger45! Congratulations! Contact me so I can get you a copy of the book!!

Vegan Meatball Sub
Makes 4 subs

Tomatoes:
2 large tomatoes
1 tablespoon garlic oil*
1 teaspoon dried basil
Sea salt

Red Pepper Sauce:
3 large roasted red peppers (jarred is fine, but freshly roasted is better)
1 cup vegetable broth
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
Sea salt
1 tablespoon garlic oil*

Tomato Sauce:
1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 tablespoon garlic oil*
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon sugar, or to taste
Sea salt and black pepper

Other: 
4 (5-inch) crusty rolls, split and toasted
20 vegan meatballs, semi-thawed, if frozen
1 tablespoon garlic oil*
1 cup shredded vegan cheese 

1. Tomatoes: Preheat the oven to 350-degrees F (or air-fryer to 335-degrees F). Cut the tomatoes into 1/2-inch wedges and place them in a single layer on a baking sheet. Drizzle with the oil, sprinkle with the basil and sea salt and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the sheet pan and set aside. Add the meatballs and another tablespoon of garlic oil and bake the meatballs until golden on one side. Flip the meatballs, add the cheese, cover the meatballs with a cake pan and bake until the cheese melts. Add the bread to the baking sheet to toast while the cheese melts, about 8 to 10 minutes. Do not burn the bread.
2. Red Pepper Sauce: Add the peppers, broth, herbs, salt (to taste) and oil to a medium saucepan. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Use an immersion blender to blend the sauce until smooth. Continue to cook for another 10 to 15 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. If you don’t have an immersion blender, blend the sauce ingredients in a standard blender before heating.
3. Tomato Sauce: Add the tomato sauce, oil, herbs, sugar and salt and black pepper (to taste) to a small saucepan. Bring to boil and reduce to simmer. Cook until the flavors meld, about 15 minutes. Season to taste. 
4. Assemble the sandwich: add the meatballs to the split rolls (with the melted cheese), top with the tomato sauce, add a few slices of roasted tomatoes and add a few tablespoons of the red pepper sauce. Serve immediately. 

* If you don’t have garlic oil, use 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 garlic clove, minced, for each tablespoon of garlic oil. 

© 2017 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

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smothered burritos

Smothered Burritos, wet burritos and enchilada-style burritos are all about the same thing: large enchiladas that are covered with red, green or white sauce. The filling can be varied, and they can include roasted vegetables, potatoes, vegan meats, vegan grounds, etc - limited only by your taste and imagination.

These burritos are just a springing board for you. Take this idea and run with it!

My burritos are filled with vegan chicken (I used Tofurkey slow roasted, this time), cumin rice, vegan cheese, cilantro and scallions. Traditionally, refried beans are also an addition.

In my mind, the appeal with smothered enchiladas versus traditional enchiladas is the speed: it is faster to roll up four burritos than to roll up a dozen small tortillas. In addition, enchiladas are still baked for about 30 minutes, but these are just broiled to melt the cheese.

In order to keep things easy and fast, you can use canned enchilada sauce, or you can make the one in the recipe, since you have to make the rice anyway.

Use the Instant Pot or a rice cooker to cook your rice, making it a hands-free affair.

Again, with my son having IBS I opted for brown rice tortillas, no beans, green parts of the scallions, and rice that is fresh and warm. The sauce is also pretty mild because I ground dried California chiles for the chili powder, but you can always up your spice.

The family was quite happy with these and I was happy because it was ready in about 35 minutes, including the broiling.

And...

Today is the last day to enter the giveaway for The China Study Family Cookbook! Enter HERE.

Smothered Burrito
Makes 4 burritos

Cumin Rice:
1 cup dry long grain rice
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Sea salt and black pepper
Water, as needed

Red Sauce (or use a 20-ounce can vegan enchilada sauce):
1 tablespoon neutral oil
2 tablespoons whole wheat pastry or all-purpose flour
1/4 cup tomato paste (not concentrate)
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 cups vegetable broth
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Filling:
2 tablespoons garlic oil or olive oil (optional)
2 cups chopped seitan, or vegan chicken strips (Tofurkey or Beyond Meat)

Other:
4 large fajita tortillas (or even bigger)
1 cup refried beans (optional)
1/4 cup chopped scallions
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 cup shredded vegan cheese
Vegan sour cream thinned with a few tablespoons of water
Shredded lettuce
Sliced black olives

1. Rice: Add the rice, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper, to taste, to a rice cooker. Add the required amount of water. Cook the rice according to appliance directions. Keep warm.

2. Red Sauce: Heat the oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the flour and cook for 2 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook until the paste darkens, about 3 minutes. Add the chili and cumin. Mix well and add the broth slowly, whisking with a whisk to prevent lumps. Add the salt, bring to boil and reduce to simmer. Cook for 5 minutes and remove from heat.

3. Filling: Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the seitan or vegan chicken until golden, about 5 to 10 minutes. Season to taste.

4. Warm the tortilla directly over the stove, about 10 seconds. Do not burn. Warm them so that they don’t crack when folded.

5. Place the tortilla on a work surface. Add 1/4 of: the seitan, the beans (if using), the scallions, and the cilantro. Add a large scoop of the rice (about 1/4) and a tablespoon of cheese to each burrito. Fold up the bottom flap, then fold the right and left flaps and roll up the burrito. Add them to a broiler-safe pan. Smother with 3/4 of the sauce and add the remaining shredded cheese. Broil until the cheese melts.

6. Place each burrito on a plate and garnish with lettuce, olives and sour cream sauce. 



© 2017 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.