Gỏi cuốn

 Summer Rolls (aka Gỏi cuốn)

Made some mostly raw summer rolls for lunch today. Filled them with shredded daikon, shredded carrot, fresh basil, fresh mint, julienned red bell pepper, and spinach. Rolled them in rice paper wrappers and some white sesame seeds. It was messy, but delicious. I think I'll try wrapping them in collards, chard, lettuce, or cabbage, too, for a totally raw option.

I finally found a dipping sauce that I like! Woo!

Spicy Raw Almond Butter Dipping Sauce 

(Recipe adapted from von Euw, Emily. The Rawsome Vegan Cookbook. Page Street Publishing Co, 2015, p.40.)

6 tablespoons water

4 tablespoons fresh lime juice

2 tablespoons fresh mint leaves

2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves

1 tablespoon red miso paste (*it's what I had on hand instead of other miso)

3 tablespoons raw almond butter

Cayenne pepper (to taste)

Tofu and Peanut Stir Fry

Tofu and Peanut Stir Fry
(recipe adapted from a Food Network magazine recipe)

6 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons Chinese rice wine or dry sherry (I found some Shaoxing rice wine in Chinatown)
1/3 cup oyster sauce (vegan version available here: http://importfood.com/sayw2405.html )
1 (14oz) block firm tofu, drained
1 cup unsalted peanuts, preferably raw
1/4 cup peanut oil
2 teaspoons minced ginger
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 whole dried arbol chiles
1 can sliced water chestnuts
sugar snap peas, strings removed

1. Make the marinade: Whisk 2 tablespoons cornstarch, the rice wine, oyster sauce, ad 2 tablespoons water in a large bowl. Cut the tofu in half horizontally to make 2 large
rectangles, then cut each rectangle into 4 squares. Add tofu to the marinade and turn to coat.
2. Cook the peanuts in the oil in a large skillet over heat, stirring, until golden brown. (4-5 mins) Remove skillet from heat and transfer nuts to a bowl with a slotted spoon.
3. Drain the tofu, reserving the marinade. Sprinkle both sides of the tofu with the remaining cornstarch . Return the skillet to medium heat and add the tofu. Cook about 3 mins each side. Remove tofu to a plate. Add the ginger, garlic, chiles, and stir fry for 30 seconds. Add the snap peas and water chestnuts. Whisk the marinade with 1 cup water, and add that to the skillet as well. Stir until thick. Add the tofu and nuts back in and heat through.
Voila!
Here it is cooking ... Mmmm.

 

I had a tempeh salad for lunch today that was quite pretty. ;) I just sautéed the tempeh cubes in a non-stick skillet with some cooking spray and sprinkled it with some hot paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder. yum.

  

Things I've made this week ... Mmmm

I made the Asian Noodles with Black Vinaigrette from Crazy Sexy Kitchen tonight. It's amazing! I love this cookbook! I made it for my husband and I to take for lunches for the next couple days. I also made it with organic kale and an organic red pepper from our CSA, a sautéed leek, and chickpeas since that's what I had on hand. I topped it with some raw sesame seeds, but I forgot to do that before I took the picture. ;p

We had an abundance of organic kale this week from our CSA (lucky us!), so I also made some tabbouleh with kale instead of parsley(pictured below). Yum!

Our CSA also got us an enormous yellow watermelon. What a difference an organic locally grown watermelon makes when it comes to taste!

Vegan Summer Rolls

I finally made summer rolls! They were far easier than I thought they'd be! I thought I'd be wrestling with broken rice paper wrappers and unable to actually make a neat roll. Not shabby for my first attempt ...

The lovely filling stuffs ... some avocado, sprouts, basil, julienned orange pepper, sliced cucumber ... I also put some shredded carrots and cellophane noodles in these rolls.


To make cellophane noodles: The package should have the instructions, but all you do is drop them in boiling water, turn off the heat, let them sit for about 10 minutes, and drain.
To make summer rolls: Just dip rice paper wrapper quickly in room temperature water until it becomes pliable. Lay on a cutting board and put in some of the ingredients you've chosen to stuff them with. Roll wrapper over ingredients, tuck ends in (like a burrito), and finish rolling up.
Voila! So healthy ... so delicious! 

I like to dip these in peanut sauce or sweet and sour sauce (both of which you can buy over the counter).

Vegan Tofu-Broccoli Stir-Fry

Tofu-Broccoli Stir-Fry*
*Adapted from a recipe on p. 108 of Food Network Magazine

3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Asian chile sauce (such as Sriracha)
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons sesame oil
4 scallions, sliced (white and green parts separated)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 one-inch piece of ginger, peeled and minced
1 head broccoli, cut into florets (or your fave veggie)
1 package firm tofu, drained and cut into 1/2 inch cubes

Whisk the soy sauce, hoisin, vinegar, chile sauce, cornstarch, and 1 cup water in a small bowl and set aside.
Heat sesame oil in a large skillet (with sides) and stir-fry the white parts of the scallion, garlic, and ginger for about 30 seconds.
Throw in the broccoli, tofu, and reserved soy sauce mixture. Bring to a simmer (you might want to throw a lid on the saucepan so that the broccoli steams). Make sure to remove lid once broccoli is steamed and simmer for a bit until the sauce thickens a bit.
Serve over rice and sprinkle with remaining green parts of the scallion.
Mmm mmm mmm.

My basmati rice recipe is here.

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Quick and Easy Thai Red Curry

Ingredients:
2 - 3 tablespoons Thai Kitchen brand red curry paste (it's vegan)
1 small head cauliflower, cut into small florets
1 cup (or more) fresh green beans, ends removed and cut in half
1 red bell pepper, sliced into thin strips
1 (14oz) can lite coconut milk
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
10 fresh basil leaves (Thai basil would be best, but I used Italian basil and it was fine)
canola oil
1/2 cup water

Method:
Boil water in a large pot and blanch cauliflower and string beans for 4 mins. While that is happening, heat some canola oil in a large skillet with high sides. Throw in the bell pepper and saute until it's softened a bit. Add coconut milk, water, curry paste, sugar, and soy sauce. Add cauliflower, green beans, and basil. Stir and simmer 10 mins to let the flavors combine.
Serve over basmati or jasmine rice. Serves 4 hungry people.

My recipe for basmati rice is here.

Not so healthy, but ... Easy Sweet and Sour Crockpot Seitan (vegan)

photo from here.
(I ate it up before I remembered to take a pic! It looked just like this though!)

Ingredients:
1 lb seitan, cut into chunks (I bought two 8oz packages)
6 carrots, peeled and sliced into rounds
1 large onion, chopped
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3-4 large garlic cloves, minced
1-2 teaspoons red pepper flakes (I like it spicy; decrease amount if you don't.)
1 (20oz) can pineapple chunks, drained and juice reserved
3 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons cold water
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

How to:
1. Place seitan, carrots, and onion in crockpot.
2. In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, soy sauce, garlic, red pepper flakes, and pineapple juice until sugar is dissolved. Pour into crockpot.
3. Cook on low 8 hours.
4. 30 minutes before serving, dissolve the cornstarch in the water and add the mixture to the crockpot along with the bell peppers and pineapple chunks.
5. Turn crockpot up to high and cook for 30 minutes, until peppers are crisp-tender.
6. Serve over rice or couscous. Enjoy!

recipe adapted from:
http://www.recipezaar.com/recipe/Sweet-and-Sour-Crockpot-Seitan-350753