Seaweed Salad

I didn't make this, but it's a vegetarian staple for me. Seaweed salad. Yum!

This is not a recipe but rather some vegetarian eating out ideas for the Virginia peninsula. Tropical Smoothie now has a hummus bowl. I order it ahead and pick it up on the way to work. The Tropical Smoothie on 17 in Yorktown opens at 630 a.m. Also, Vegan Cooking Today has just opened on Turnberry in Newport News. I tasted some desserts. They were scrumptious. Meals can be ordered online and picked up. There will be an eating area soon.

I don't have a pic but it was so easy and delish! Fried riced cauliflower with cenimeter sized chopped veggies, carrots, green and purple cabbage. Make it like fried rice, cook onions in oil, add riced cauliflower, cook veggies in a separate pan the same way. Mix in the biggest pan keep over medium high heat stirring constantly. Make a well in the middle, add eggs and cook, while mixing into the veggies. Add soy sauce for the last minute. Yum!

Breakfast Lettuce Wraps

Use large leaf green leaf lettuce. Wash and dry and keep in your fridge in a green produce bag. Cook an egg, add salt and pepper. Then add anything you want? Need it simple? Add cheese. Have some time? Sauté some onions, zucchini, walnuts. Add goat cheese (chevre). Place egg on flat lettuce leaf. Add cheese or add zucchini sauté. Wrap up the lettuce like a burrito. Then eat with 8 oz skim milk or water or coffee.

Ingredients:
Green leaf lettuce, see picture
Eggs
Olive oil
Zucchini
Walnuts
Chevre cheese
OR just greenleaf lettuce and eggs and salt and pepper
OR just green leaf lettuce, eggs, smoked gouda cheese

Parsnip and Black Bean Fritters

Parsnip and black bean fritters Boiled parsnips, mashed Minced red onion Finely chopped fresh kale Turmeric Cumin seed Mash together, fold in black beans, drained, 1 egg (skip to make vegan) Salt, pepper Make small flat patties Pan fry in hot oil Or oil spray

Satchidananda Ashram, Yogaville, Virginia One weekend at this lovely, kind ashram is a weekend of great yoga, friendly people, and scrumptious vegan fare at every meal.

Easy Crispy Kale

Easy Crispy Kale Buy kale in a bag or by the leaf. Remove large stems. Preheat oven to 400°. Spread on a cookie sheet. Spray with spray oil, your favorite brand and sprinkle with seasoning if you like. I don't personnally. I like it plain. Bake for 5 minutes, remove and toss a little. Bake for five more minutes. Check if it is crisp enough for you. Put it in for a little longer if it isn't. Keep checking. It is easy to burn. Let cool. Put in a bowl and eat like chips!

Veggie pizza. Use trader joes fresh pizza dough in their deli. Spread corn meal and some oil on pizza pan, let dough rise a bit, flattened on pan under cloth, add water to tomato paste and stir, spray oil on pizza dough spread tomato paste, and herbs. Use fresh mozzarella (lots), spread half of grated fresh mozzarella (freeze to help with grating), add fresh baby spinach, halved cherry tomatoes, halved black olives. Bake for 20 minutes. Yummm!!!!

Tempah for the Masses

Pan fried tempeh in olive oil has mass appeal. Slice the tempeh block along the short way in 1/4 inch pieces. Heat a quarter inch of olive oil in a frying pan. Keep a watch. Olive oil gets hot fast. Cook each side of the tempeh slices for about a minute. Then drain on a paper towel. Salt if desired. Or use a seasoned salt. Or low sodium salt. Or just eat straight. It will go quickly so why not cook two blocks? This same technique can be used with the tempeh cut in blocks and added to curries. Delicious!!

Won Ton Variations

Ingredients:

won ton wrappers

Filling One:

herbed chevre

mushrooms

pesto sauce

Topping Two:

mushrooms

fresh ginger

soy sauce

Filling Three:

mushrooms

fresh ginger

indian style sauted okra (recipe included)

Fill won ton squares with layers of the toppings to equal about one tablespoon.

Dip fingers in water or use brush and coat the edges of won ton and close up at top (see picture).

The fresh ginger should be finely grated ginger--use just a pinch.

For the okra, cook some butter in a skillet, grill cumin seeds, turmeric, ground coriander in the butter. Add fresh okra cut in inch sized pieces and saute. Very yummy plain, but also nice in this recipe.

The master chef continues the exploratory journey across the human palate--Sarah Winkowski

Stuffed Pears from Barefoot Contessa

Cut pears in half and take seeds out with a spoon. Mix bleu cheese, dried cranberries, and walnuts together. Spoon evenly into pears. Mix port wine, brown sugar, lemon juice and pour over pears. Bake for half hour at 350. Very yummy.

Stuffed Greek Tomatoes

Start with big fresh home grown tomatoes or vine ripened.
Slice tops off and reserve. Dig pulp out and simmer with salt, pepper and sugar.
Saute onion, garlic, in olive oil.
Add cooked short or medium grain rice.
Add roasted pine nuts, fresh mint, rice, raisins, fresh parsley salt and pepper.
Strain sauce made from pulp.
Stuff tomatoes with rice mixture and put tops back on.
Place in casserole dish. Add dry white wine to pulp sauce and pour over tomatoes.
Bake for 45 minutes at 375.

Yum

Spicy Tofu Basil (Asian Style)

A quick, popular dish. Serve with udon noodles.

Ingredients:

package of tofu cut in small flat blocks
fresh basil
sesame oil
red pepper flakes
soy sauce
rice vinegar

Directions:
heat iron skillet
add sesame oil or sesame oil/veg oil mix
grill basil on medium pan
raise heat
add tofu
grill until roasting brown
Add soy sauce, pepper flakes
Cook for several minutes
Add rice vinegar
Cook a minute or two more.
Voila!

Zucchini Galore.

Sarah's Zucchini Roll Ups

Very thinly sliced zucchini (VERY THIN--use a peeler) sprinkled with garlic salt, grilled in skillet with pam. Spread Chevre (goat cheese on one end and roll up Use toothpicks.
A very elegant and delicious appetizer.
We added Roasted Pepper spread from Trader Joe's to some of those. They were also yummy.

Plum Pie

Oh my goodness do we have a lot of plums this year!
Sarah and I made plum pie right off.
Standard crust layered with pecan/brown sugar mixture. Then topped with halved plums mixed with cinnamon, lemon juice and then a lattice top--beautiful!!

PBJ

I had peanut butter and jelly tonight. It was pretty good. with milk.

Fresh Italian Skillet Dinner

Fingerling potatoes (cut in half), grape tomatoes, broccoli heads, zucchini (cut in half moons), aragula, garlic, onions, soy italian sausage, fresh or dried oregano and basil.
microwave potatoes briefly, saute onions and garlic in olive oil add cut up soy sausage (trader joes is a good brand), cook on high for several minutes, set sausage aside, leave some onion and garlic in pan. Add some oil, heat, add potatoes and zucchini, stir on high, lower heat somewhat add broccoli and grape tomatoes (make sure grape tomatoes are directly on skillet (you can do them before the first set of veggies if you like them really roasted, good this for several minutes stirring constantly. Add aragula (on top) let steam down, add herbs, stir on high for a couple of minutes.
DONE.
Serve with feta and parmesan.

Quinoa and veggies

Cook quinoa according to package. Stir fry garlic, onion, chopped carrots in an iron skillet. Add black beans. Add quinoa. Add salt and pepper to taste. Voila.

Nothing could be simpler vegan fare

Red lentils from the bulk section (they actually look orange), Knorr vegetable bouillion, Comet brown rice. Rinse cup lentils, put in pan, add half cube Knorr veg bouillion and two cups water. You might have to add more. Boil for 15 minutes. Keep a watch. Stir. You can double or triple this.
2 cups Comet brown rice, 4 cups water, cook in microwave on rice setting or for 10 minutes on high and 20 minutes at 50 per cent. Very healthy. Very yummy. Put the lentils on rice. Eat.

crisp romaine apple walnut salad

I think I got this one from Martha Stewart years ago but I am not sure.
Use crisp, clean, cold romaine leaves, walnut pieces or halves, honeycrisp or fuj apples sliced thin, and other stuff--like carrots, cherry tomato halves, celery, etc. Toss together, add some olive oil, cider vinegar, a little sugar, garlic salt, salt and pepper to taste. Toss again.