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Posts Tagged ‘salad’

White Bean and Tomato Salad

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , on April 23, 2014| 1 Comment »

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My April vacation has come to an end and I’m back to the daily grind. I will get more into what I did in my Travel Tuesday spots but I spent about a week at the Sunshine Coast, two days on a tour of Fraser Island and 4 days on the Gold Coast. The Gold Coast was a surprise addition to my travels and I am so glad I seized the opportunity to go when it was presented. Sometimes the best things in life are the ones that aren’t planned!

Anyway, with all of my traveling I haven’t had a ton of opportunities to cook. I did have a chance to help out at Easter dinner on the Gold Coast, though. I spent dinner with one of my boss’s business partners, Sharon, who opened her home to me and made me feel like family. Her family was so welcoming!

On Easter, I was put on veggie duty and helped make some homemade salsa and this super yummy salad. I was surprised how much I loved it! The ingredients are so simple but it is just so delicious. The first thing I did when I got back to Toowoomba was make a big batch for myself.

Of course, my second attempt at this salad didn’t come out as good as the one I made at East. Apparently, searching Youtube for Taking Back Sunday music videos instead of stirring the pine nuts is a big no-no. So you know, I wouldn’t recommend doing that.

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White Bean and Tomato Salad

  • 1/2 c. pine nuts
  • 550g or about 3 cups of mixed tomatoes, sliced (I used 350g of mixed grape tomatoes and 200g of yellow perino tomatoes. I like the smaller tomatoes but any kind will work)
  • 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 c. basil, thinly sliced
  • 1 can cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed
  • slightly less then 1/4 cup olive oil
  • salt and pepper, to taste

Place pine nuts in a small skillet and heat over medium-low heat. Stir continuously until the pines nuts begin to turn golden. Remove from heat and set aside.

Combine tomatoes, red onion, basil beans and toasted pine nuts.

Right before serving, add olive oil, salt and pepper to the tomato mix and tossed until well combined.

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I opted for the mixed grape tomatoes and the yellow perino because they tend to be sweeter and because they were just so gosh darn pretty! I mean, the deep red ones are practically purple so clearly I had to purchase them.

Plus, You tube distractions aside, this was such an easy dish to make. I love it because it comes together in minutes and it will last me a few days. It’s pretty and it comes together easily. What more could you ask for??

 

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Fourth of July Recipe Round Up and Southwestern Potato Salad

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , on July 4, 2013| 1 Comment »

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Leave it to me to wait until the last minute to give you a 4th of July recipes. So, to make it up to you, I’m giving you a recipe round up of the last years recipes that would be appropriate for todays festivities. If you want even more recipes, click on the July 4th Popsicle recipe below for last years round up.

Appetizer:

Buffalo Hummus Courtesy of my friend, Amelia. It’s hands down my all-time favorite hummus

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blueberry salsa The best salsa. Ever.

Main Dish:

Blueberry BBQ sauce I made this with baked tofu but it would be great with grilled tofu and veggies also.

Sloppy Chicks: This was consumed at a Game of Thrones Season 1 viewing party. My friend’s boyfriend, Ben, went back for seconds and thirds and he is usually a carnivore!

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Sweet Potato Black Bean Burgers You can make extra of these and freeze them for later. These are also carnivore-approved. My parents and Grandma gave them thumbs up all around

Side dishes: Because warm mayo potato salad is so overrated!

Peanutty Noodles and Veggies Part 1 These were non-vegan crowd tested at a pot luck and there was absolutely no left overs for me to enjoy! Big hit and no one took notice that they were vegan

Corn, Tomato and Avocado Salad A light alternative to potato or pasta salad that is fresh and in season

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Dessert:

Strawberry Macaroons You could also try these with freeze dried blueberries.

Grapefruit Sorbet Skip the pies and cake drenched in vanilla ice cream and make this insanely refreshing sorbet. Top with fresh fruit, granola and or honey. This will be great on a hot day.

S’more Truffles Bite-sized s’mores delicious-ness without the mess…or bon fire…or the hunt for vegan marshmellows

July 4th Popsicles  The dessert that is currently blowing up on pinterest! There is also my 2012 recipe round-up in this link so take a look at those recipes, too!

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Beverages:

Lemon Lime Margarita There is nothing patriotic about this. It’s just delicious.

Pomagranite Margarita It’s Red. It’s Tequila. What more could you want? Maybe throw some blueberries in it?

and here’s a new recipe for you,  a vegan-friendly potato salad, sans the mayo. I brought this to a cook out a few weeks ago and then like a ditz, I forgot to put it out when we were eating. This means I’ve been eating this whole potato salad, by myself, for about a week. Trust me. I will not be eating potato salad today at any fourth of July parties. oi

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Southwestern Potato Salad
from: Edibleperspective.com

For the salad:

  • 2 lbs sweet potatoes, chopped into 1-inch cubes
  • 1 3/4 cups cooked black beans, rinsed + drained
  • 2 bell peppers, chopped
  • 1 1/2 cups chopped red onion
  • 1 1/2 cups sweet corn (about 2 or 3 ears of corn on the cobb)
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 tablespoon safflower oil
  • salt + pepper
  • lime wedges + fresh parsley/oregano/cilantro, to top, optional (I didn’t have any so I skipped this step)

For the dressing:

  • 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 3-4 teaspoons chipotle adobo sauce (found in the mexican food section in a little can. I only had whole chipotle peppers in adobe sauce, so I just pureed them in my nut chopper and they worked great)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons lime zest
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons pure maple syrup, or honey
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • scant 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt + pepper
  1. Add dressing ingredients to a jar and shake vigorously until fully combined.  Set aside.
  2. Add water to a large pot and bring to a boil.
  3. Add chopped potatoes to the pot of boiling water and boil for about 8-12 minutes until just tender.  Do not overcook.  Taste-test a few cubes for doneness.  
  4. Pour potatoes into a large colander and rinse with cold water for ~1 minute to stop the cooking.
  5. While the potatoes are cooking, heat a medium pan over medium heat with 1/2 tablespoon oil.
  6. Once hot, add the onion and a large pinch of salt to the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently.
  7. Add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds then add the corn and cook for about 6-8 minutes, stirring frequently, until the corn starts to slightly brown and the onion is soft.
  8. Remove from heat and pour onto a plate to cook for a few minutes.
  9. Empty the sweet potatoes, black beans, bell peppers, and corn mixture into a large bowl.
  10. Pour about 3/4 of the dressing overtop and gently toss to coat.
  11. Place in the fridge [uncovered] until fully chilled and then cover until ready to serve.
  12. Gently stir the mixture, then taste and add more dressing, salt, and pepper if needed and stir again to distribute.
  13. Place in individual bowls or in a large serving dish and top with fresh parsley, oregano, and/or cilantro.  Serve with lime wedges on the side.
  14. This lasts upwards of 1 week.

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Even though I’ve been eating this for over a week, I have to say, it’s still pretty delicious! I love, love, LOVE the lime chipotle dressing and actually only used about half for this recipe and used the other half on a different salad I will be sharing with you later. It’s super light and flavorful, perfect for summer. I think this recipe will be a great change for your picnics or cook outs and will keep things vegan without people even noticing!

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Ironically, I have been going non-stop all week and have plans all weekend but today is looking pretty quiet! I’m hoping to lounge around all day and do a whole lot of nothin’! Maybe I’ll go purchase some sparklers to keep in the spirit but other then that, relaxation is the word of the day. Hope everyone has a great 4th and stay safe!!

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Roasted Veggie Salad with Herb Quinoa Oat Bread

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , , , , on April 11, 2013| Leave a Comment »

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This week has been rough. On Tuesday, our dog Ace, died really unexpectantly. The vet thinks it was cancer in his chest. He was still pretty young at 8 and it hit us all really hard. He was a super good dog, even though he was mildly neurotic. He didn’t like red rugs. He had a nightly routine which involved giving his blanky a tour of the house before settling down. And overall, he really didn’t like change. But, don’t we all have quirks? I can’t eat m&ms or skittles without sorting them into groups by color. Is that any less weird then avoiding red rugs? Needless to say, he fit into our family pretty well and it’s been hard losing him.

So, I’ve been trying to stay busy all week. Tuesday night, despite the news, I went to ballet class, swollen red poofy eyes and all. Last night, I went on a bit of a shopping spree with my friend, Rachel. Container store, Lush, Barnes and Noble, fro-yo with soy yogurt AND Whole Foods. It was kind of epic. And perfectly fun and distracting.

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Thankfully and completely by coincidence,  I managed to get my act together on Sunday evening and make food for the whole week. So, despite my running around and blurred vision, I have still been eating well.

This salad seems like it may be boatloads of work, but you can make everything in advance and it makes several servings so you can have it for lunch or dinner throughout the week. Check out some substitutions all the way at the bottom if you want to save some time.

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To roast the zucchini, summer squash and asparagus, I used the new baking sheet my Grandma gave me. Look how much bigger it is compared to my old ones!

Roasted Veggie Salad with Herb Quinoa Oat Bread

Roasted Veggie Salad:

  • 2 small zucchini
  • 2 small summer squash
  • 1 large bunch of asparagus (skinny stalks are the best! But that may be personal preference…)
  • 1/2 butternut squash
  • baby spinach or arugala (Whichever you prefer. I have had both and both were delicious. I tend to have baby spinach on hand more frequently though because I also use it in smoothies)
  • coconut oil
  • salt and pepper to taste (optional)
  • pepita seeds

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Dice your butternut squash into cubes and place on a baking sheet. Drizzle with coconut oil (I didnt measure but I would estimate 1 TBSP) and toss until well coated. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste if you are using.

Dice your zucchini and summer squash. Remove the tough ends from the asparagus and cut into thirds. Put the zucchini, summer squash and asparagus on a large baking sheet. Drizzle with coconut oil (again, around 1TBSP) and toss until well coated. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Place the butternut squash in the oven for 30 minutes. At the 15 minute mark, put the other tray of veggies in.

When the 30 minute are up, remove the veggies from the oven. Veggies can be hot or cold when served, both are delicious so it’s a matter of preference. To serve, place a slice of toasted Herb Quinoa Oat Bread down (recipe below), top with a bed of spinach or arugala, then your roasted veggies, drizzle with apple cider vinaigrette (recipe below) and sprinkle with pepita seeds. Dig in!!

Apple Cider Vinaigrette
from Food Network

3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Put in a jar, shake it up and serve.

Herb Quinoa Oat Bread
recipe from Edible Perspective
2-3 servings (I cut mine into 6 servings to get me through the week)

  • 1/2c GF oat flour*
  • 3/4c quinoa flour
  • 1/4c almond flour
  • 1c water
  • 1.5T ground chia seeds or ground flax seeds
  • 1.5T coconut oil
  • 1T unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/4t salt
  • 1/4t garlic powder
  • 1t parsley
  • 1t oregano
  • 1t thyme
  • 5-8 grinds of black pepper

  1. Preheat your oven to 375.

  2. Add 1/2T coconut oil to a 9” round/square pan and place in the oven.  A cast iron pan works really well.  Or line a 9” round/square pan with parchment paper.

  3. Mix all dry ingredients together in a large bowl.

  4. Pour in the water, applesauce, and 1T of melted coconut oil.

  5. Stir until just combined and let sit for 5min.  Batter should be thick, but pourable after sitting.

  6. While the batter is sitting, place the pan in the oven with 1/2T coconut oil for 5min.  Remove from the oven and spread the oil around the sides + bottom of the pan.  *If using parchment paper, skip this step.

  7. Pour the batter into the pan, spread to the edges, then shake lightly to even out.

  8. Bake for 38-42min, until the bread is cracked on top, pulled away from the sides, and edges are golden brown.  I always bake mine for 40min.

  9. Let cool to fully firm up, then remove from the pan + slice.

  10. Store in a sealed container for 3-4 days.

* notes from Wicked Vegan: Don’t be intimidated by the list of unusual flours. I currently have at least 5 different flours in my pantry, none of which are the ones listed above and I was determined not to buy another. So I made these flours with the oats, quinoa and almonds that I already had. Just put the oats, quinoa and almonds in a food processor or magic bullet, separately, and blend until they have broken down into a flour consistency.  The oat flour and quinoa flour were very easy to turn to flour. I had a bit of trouble with the almonds, which resulted in a corn-bread texture to my bread. It was still delicious, it just didn’t look like the pictures from Edible Perspective but I was ok with that.

notes from Edible Perspective: I have found coconut oil to be the best to prevent sticking.  Feel free to sub another high-heat safe oil.  This recipe would be great as a base for pizza.  Remove the bread from the pan, pile on toppings, then bake for 5-10min.  Feel free to sub buckwheat, millet, amaranth, or corn flour for the oat or quinoa flour but not the almond meal.  You can easily make these gluten free flours at home in your blender or food processor.  For GF oat flour, use rolled oats, oat groats, or steel cut oats.  Process until turned into a fine flour.  You can make almond meal by processing almonds until turned into a soft meal with no almond pieces.
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You can roast any veggies that you want for this salad. California Pizza Kitchen has a salad similar to this and they use eggplant. You could also throw in mushrooms, green beans, bell peppers or onions. I really think whatever you like would work in here.
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Store bought Naan can be subbed in for the quinoa bread. I had originally bought roasted garlic naan for this recipe but holy crap was that stuff delicious! I ended up eating the four pieces before I even began to make this recipe so I decided that maybe I didn’t need more of that deliciousness in the house! After all, oatmeal with a side of roasted garlic naan for breakfast, soup with roasted garlic naan for lunch and just warm roasted garlic naan dipped in hummus for dinner doesn’t exactly make a well rounded day of food.
Balsamic vinaigrette, bottled or homemade, can be subbed for the apple cider vinaigrette dress.
ok, I promise no more sad stuff tomorrow on WV. I’ll try and bring you some fun Friday Favorites complete with some upbeat music.

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Wheat berry Waldorf Salad

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , on January 15, 2013| Leave a Comment »

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So, this post is going to be short and sweet, my friends. After spending 4 straight days in bed watching Law and Order: SVU (with four straight nights of nightmares. Seriously, what is wrong with me?), I went back to work today and decided it was time to get that New Years Resolution thing in full swing (yes, I know it’s 2 weeks into the New Years. What’s your point?). So, I ran at the gym at lunch. Then, Melinda asked me if I wanted to go do hot yoga with her tonight. I’d never done it before but I was all, sure.Why not?

Oh man…I’m running on fumes right now. Fumes I tell you! I tried to shower after hot yoga (eew! So. Much. Sweat.) and I could barely muster up the energy to scrub the shampoo in my hair. I’m seriously going to have the worst hair day ever tomorrow!

So here is what I am eating for lunch this week. It’s super yummy. I’m a fan of wheat berries. I thought Waldorf salads typically had a creamy dressing but the dressing with this recipe was actually extremely similar to the dressing that I posted with the Strawberry Chickpea Salad, except not quite as good. When I realized that, I just made the dressing from that recipe and called it a day.

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Wheat berry Waldorf Salad with Cinnamond Dijon Dressing
Salad from Midwest Living; Dressing from Peas and Thank you

Salad:

  • 2 1/2 cups water
  • 3/4 cup wheat berries, rinsed
  • 1 large Granny Smith apple, unpeeled, cored and chopped (1-1/2 cups)
  • 1 large Braeburn, Jonagold or Rome Beauty apple, unpeeled, cored and chopped (1-1/4 cups)
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries, dried tart cherries and/or golden raisins
  • 1/2 cup seedless green and/or red grapes, halved
  • 6 -8 Bibb or Boston lettuce leaves (or lettuce of choice. For a more filling lunch, I did 2 cups of romaine)
  • almonds or peanuts, I preferred salted

Cinnamon Dijon Dressing:

  • 1 t. Dijon mustard
  • 3 T. apple cider vinegar
  • 3 T. lemon juice
  • 1/3 c. agave nectar or pure maple syrup
  • 1 t. cinnamon
  • ½ t. ground ginger
  • ½ t. salt
  • 1/4 c. olive oil

Directions:

  1. For wheat berries: In a small bowl, combine the water and wheat berries. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 6 o 24 hours. Do not drain; transfer to a medium saucepan. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, about 30 minutes or until tender with a firm, chewy texture. Drain; transfer to bowl to cool. (I soaked mine for as little as 4 hours and cooked them for 50 minutes and they came out fine)
  2. For dressing: In a screw-top jar, combine all the dressing ingredients. Cover and shake well to combine. Drizzle dressing over warm wheat berries and toss until covered. You should have about half the jar left. Put aside and drizzle extra over salad when your eating it if needed.
  3. In a large bowl, combine apples, celery, cranberries and grapes. Stir in wheat berry mixture; mix well. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for up to 4 hours if not serving immediately.
  4. To serve, arrange lettuce cups on a large platter or divide them among individual salad plates. Spoon salad into the lettuce. Sprinkle with nuts. Makes 6 to 8 side salads. For lunches, I chopped 2 cups of lettuce up and placed it in a separate container. In the morning, I added about 1/2 – 2/3 cup of the wheat berry mixture to the lettuce and just took it to work like that. It made about 4 lunch servings.

You can’t go wrong with this salad- it has the crispy apples, the crunchy celery and almonds, the chewy craisins and wheat berries and the sweet cinnamon dressing. It’s a nice change up from the usual veggie salad

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yeah…your lucky there’s pictures with this. I think I sleep-typed most of that entry…

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Honey Coconut Citrus Salad

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , , , , on January 8, 2013| Leave a Comment »

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Happy 2013, everyone! I hope you had a great holiday season. I know I promised you cookies and such during December but I sort of fell off the radar. I spent most of December crafting my brains out. I think I mentioned that I decided to make most of my Christmas gifts this year?

yeah…I bit off a little more then I could chew and I’m still working on Christmas gifts! I’m in the home stretch though and I’m excited to get back to normal.

The month of December was by far the worst month I’ve had since going vegan over a year ago. I fell off the wagon…a lot. I like, fell off the wagon and then clung on by my finger tips as the wagon sped off going full speed and I was dragged along.

You totally get me, right? Right.

Anyway, I’m pretty sure this was 100% due to the fact I rarely cooked. I did a lot of delievery and take-out food. Pair that will the almost endless supply of cookies I had and my nightly drink of Lake Champlain Mountain Mint Hot chocolate (this is delicious!) with mint chocolate baileys aaaand eating healthy was quickly thrown out the window.

But that’s life and no one is perfect and it’s the beginning of a new year! So let’s kick it off with some super yummy food.

Let’s start things off on a good note, eh? Save the chocolate stuff for later in the week? Pretend for 4 whole days that we have made some sort of resolution about eating healthy and that we’re sticking to it? Cool? Cool.

This citrus salad came about for two reasons: 1. I, like every single person in Boston, have been sick on and off with a cold. Nothing serious. Nothing that gets me out of work. Just kinda blah. Stuffy nose, sore throat, sporadic coughing and sneezing fits and just an overall sense of feeling under the weather. (My friend, Melissa,who is one of those weird people that knows grammar rules, probably just fell into an uncontrollable amount of twitching with all those incomplete sentences! ha!) I wanted something that packed some nutritional punch. Hence, the vitamin C mother-load. And 2. I’ve been eating so much sugar lately that I was actually craving something healthy and light for breakfast.

This salad is a win/win

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Honey Coconut Citrus Salad
mash up of Whole Living and Edible Perspective
serves 1-3

  • 1 Red Grapefruit (peeled and sliced, I sliced mine into wedges)
  • 1 Cara Cara Orange (or any orange if you can’t find Cara Cara. Peeled and sliced into wedges)
  • 2 clementines
  • Seeds from 1/2 a pomegranate
  • drizzle of honey or agave nectar (optional. If your grapefruit is super sweet, you may find the sweetener unnecessary.)
  • sprinkling of coconut (sweetened or unsweetened, both work)
  • zest from half a lime and juice from half a lime

Toss the grapefruit, orange, clementines and pom seeds together. Top with honey/agave nectar, lime zest, lime juice and coconut and toss. Eat and feel awesome!

You could also top with toasted coconut or a cinnamon-y granola. I did both and they were delicious. Edible perspective put a scoop of this on yogurt and topped with pistachios which seems super interesting and I may have to try next!

This makes approximately 3 cups of salad. I found most mornings I could eat this over the period of an hour or so. It may be too much to just sit down and eat, though.

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I have to say, this definitely has hit the spot this winter. I have been all about the comfort food so it’s nice to start my morning with something bright and refreshing. So yummy!

PS. I totally bought the Whole Living magazine this recipe is featured in for the vegan chocolate truffles on the cover, not the citrus salad. oh yeah! Hopefully, I’ll be making those soon.

PPS. What is your New Year’s resolution? Leave me a comment below. I still haven’t really figured mine out yet

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Cripsy Kale Salad with Sweet Potatoes, Apple and Pomegranate

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , on December 13, 2012| Leave a Comment »

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Oh, December. The month where it’s sort of ok to start your morning off with peppermint hot chocolate, have three desserts during the day, go to a Christmas party for dinner and then come home and have a candy cane as your watching TV at night.

It’s a little insane. I mean, I love it, but it’s a little insane.

So, to help balance out the complete excess of sugar, I tried to prep something health for dinner this week. I mean, I still wanted it to be sorta festive because, hello, it’s December. I would be the uncool blog on the block if I didn’t provide you with something festive each and every post, but seriously. There is more to life then cookies.

I mean, not much else because cookies rock but a bit more.

So here is a kale salad. It has green stuff and it has red stuff so you know, when you combine it, it’s festive. This totally counts as a holiday post now, right? I have holiday colors… How about you  turn on some holiday tunes while your reading the rest to make up for the fact that there is no sugar in this.

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Crispy Kale Salad with Sweet Potatoes, Apples and Pomagranite
slightly modified from How Sweet Eats
serves 2

ingredients:

1 large bunch of kale, torn from stems and torn into pieces
2 teaspoons coconut oil, melted, or olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh apple cider
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 Field Roast vegan sausage, Smoked Apple Sage
1 shallot, diced
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 small sweet potato, diced small
1 honeycrisp apple, diced small
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup toasted pecans
1/4 cup pomegranate arils

directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place kale in a large bowl and massage oil, apple cider, nutmeg, pepper and 1/8 teaspoon salt  for 1-2 minutes. Spread on a baking sheet in a single layer and roast for 10 minutes. Toss well and roast for 5-10 minutes more, until slightly crispy but not golden.

While kale is roasting, heat a skillet over medium heat and add sausage. Cook until heated through and turning golden. Set aside. Add the shallot, garlic, sweet potatoes and apples to the skillet, tossing with remaining salt and cinnamon. You want the sweet potato and apple finely diced, only slightly larger than the pom arils. Cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft.

In a small saucepan, add pecans and toast over low heat for 5-6 minutes, until golden and fragrant. Set aside.

Combine kale with apples and sweet potatoes, pecans, sausage and pom arils. Jessica at How Sweet Eats was correct when she said you don’t need dressing for this salad. The sauteed sweet potato and apple, combined with the oil/vinegar mix on the kale makes it plenty flavorful.

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Now that I have given you a healthy recipe, I feel less guilty about planning on giving you a cookie recipe for tomorrow. It will be chocolate-y and peppermint-y and booze-y and you will love it. I promise. I will then most likely follow that up with about 800 other chocolate peppermint recipes because, seriously, I’m obsessed with that flavor combo this season. More on that tomorrow, though.

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Chipotle Lime Salad Bowl

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , on August 3, 2012| 1 Comment »

Happy Friday, Everyone!

I wish I could say I was looking forward to this weekend but I am working Saturday and Sunday so I’m not going to get too much of a break! I will be getting to try a new vegan restaurant with my book club, though, which I’m super excited for. Our book this month was Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. It is a really well-written fantasy novel. But not like campy fantasy with dragons.  Not that I don’t love a campy fantasy  novel every now and than! This just isn’t one of them. Anyway, now that I have given hands down one of the most vague reviews ever, go check it out.

Know what else you should check out? This music video:

I’ve been meaning to post this video forever because I cannot get enough of this song but it just hasn’t happened. So here! Check them out!

And last but not least, you should not only check out this salad, you should definitely make it! The ingredients and steps sound complicated but you can take short-cuts. For instance, instead of dried beans you could used canned  and in place of corn on the cob, you could used canned or frozen. Or, you can make all the components (rice, black beans, and corn-on-the-cob) a head of time so that when you are ready to make the salad, everything comes together quickly.

Chipotle Lime Salad Bowl
adapted from Tasty Kitchen; measurements based off RFFMBT pyramid
serves 4

1 c. uncooked brown basmati rice
1 c. dried black beans (if you use canned, you want 2 cups)
4 c. romaine lettuce (3-4 hearts of romaine)
4 ears of corn (or 2 cups of frozen)
2 c. cherry tomatoes
2 avocadoes
1 pinch of salt
1 pinch of pepper
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder

If you are using dried black beans, cover the beans with hot water, put a cover on the pot and bring to boil. Let boil for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit for 1 hour. Do not remove the cover.

Once you have let the beans ‘fast soak’, drain and refill with water and let the beans simmer for about 1  hour and 45 minutes. Drain remaining liquid and set beans aside.

While the beans are cooking, start the basmati rice.  Follow the packages instructions.

While the rice and beans are cooking, start the corn on the cob. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Place the corn on the cob in the water and boil for about 8 minutes. Let cool.

Once your corn is cool, remove the corn from the cob. Place your corn and 2 cups of beans in a hot skillet with your cumin and chili powder. Cook until warm and well mixed.

To assemble your salad, combine lettuce, rice, beans and corn mixture, tomatoes and avocado and drizzle with dressing.

If you are bringing this for lunch or on the go, chop up 1 cup of lettuce, 1/2 c. tomatoes and 1/4 avocado in one container. Place 1/2 cup of rice and 1 cup of the bean/corn mixture into a smaller, separate container so you can warm it before eating.

Dressing
from CDKitchen.com

  • 1/2 c olive oil
  • 1/4 c fresh lime juice
  • 1 tsp minced garlic
  • 1 TBSP minced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
  • 1/4 c roughlychopped fresh cilantro
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • salt and pepper to taste

Whisk all the ingredients together. Can be used right away but tastes best when allowed to sit over night.

Like I said, it’s a bit of a process. I made the rice, beans, corn and dressing on Sunday afternoon. Then, the night before work, I place all my veggies together and all my warm ingredients together. It comes together pretty quickly! It’s a super yummy and filling salad so definitely give it a try!

I also made this by ditching the dressing, mixing the rice and beans with chipotle salsa (found in the mexican food section of your grocery store, next to the chipotle in adobo sauce) instead of the cumin and chili powder, and using the juice of half a lime for my dressing and it was delicious! Since you already have a healthy fat on the salad (avocado), it gets rid of all the olive oil in the dressing but keeps the chipotle lime flavor. Either way, this salad is delicious!

ok, everyone, I hope you have a great weekend!

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Corn, Tomato and Avocado Salad with Honey Lime Dressing

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , , , on July 10, 2012| 1 Comment »

ahh yes. Another week as arrived. I spent the weekend moonlighting as Minnie Mouse at my niece’s Disney Carnival Birthday party (It was a bazillion degrees out!), working, and brunching it up with some friends at Fiori’s bakery (bagel sandwich with tempeh, avocado and spicy veganaise…so good!). I was hoping to catch up on some much needed sleep but that was the one thing I didn’t manage to fit in! There never seems to be enough hours in the day during the summer.

Anyway, due to the fact that it is, as a mentioned, a bazillion degrees out (and usually humid), my oven has officially been retired for the next few months (with the exception of roasted chickpeas…cause I’m obsessed!). I’ve been eating lots of salads, fruits and lighter meals which is why Wicked Vegan has been light on posts lately. Strawberries and blueberries drizzled with agave and shredded coconut (aka, my breakfast last week) is delicious but not super exciting! How many more weeks ’til fall? I miss the cool weather and comfort food!

Until then, here is one of the many salads I’ve been eating with yummy summer veggies.  Perfect for when you buy a crap load of corn on the cobb because they are 50 cents a piece…

Corn, Avocado and Tomato Salad with Honey Lime Dressing
salad was adapted from For The Love of Cooking;
serves 1-2  

  • 1 cooked corn on the cob (can be cooked however you like- grilled, boiled, etc)
  • a handful of cherry tomatoes, approximately 6, quartered
  • 1/2 an avocado
  • 1/8 c chickpeas (preferably roasted with a little salt and pepper)*
  • 5 strawberries, sliced
  • quinao (optional, about 1/2 cup per person)
Cut the cooked corn kernels off the cob. Toss with the tomatoes, avocado, chickpeas and strawberries. Drizzle Honey Lime Dressing (recipe below) over the corn mixture and let it sit for 10-15 minutes so the flavors mingle  and the avocado breaks down a bit (makes the dish creamier. yum!). Eat as is or mix with quinoa for a heartier dish.
*To roast chickpeas for this recipe, toss one 14 oz can with 2 TBSP of olive oil and salt and pepper (to taste). Roast for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees. You can also use this cinnamon chickpea recipe with the cinnamon dressing for this salad and it also tastes delicious!

Honey Lime Dressing:

  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 3 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • Dash of cayenne pepper
Add all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.

I know this recipe seems to have a lot of ‘approximates’ and vague ingredient amount. It’s because I make it a little different each time. I may have found a really good deal on tomatoes that day but am running short on chickpeas, or I’m having this as a small lunch or I’m throwing quinoa in for dinner. I love it because I almost always have these ingredients in the house during the summer so I can make this  quickly for almost any meal/snack. It’s light for summer, requires minimal stove work (I always make the chickpeas in the evenings when it’s cooler and make one big batch at a time) and it tastes fresh- all the things I require from a summer meal!

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Strawberry Chickpea Salad with Cinnamon Dijon Dressing

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , , , on June 26, 2012| 3 Comments »

With my oodles of strawberries that I purchased at the Farmer’s Market on Sunday, I’ve been putting strawberries in everying! Water, oatmeal, margaritas (but that’s nothing new) and most importantly, this salad! It’s almost as addicting as the cookie dough truffles but without the guilt!

When I googled ‘strawberries salads’ at the beginning of the week, I was seriously disppointed with my options! Spinach + strawberries + pecans + balsalmic vinegar may equal a yummy salad but it also equals a boring salad! Where’s the ingredients that are going to hold me over from lunch to dinner?? A pile of spinach ain’t gonna cut it, People!

One of my favorite blogs, Peas and Thank You, came to the rescue, though! The chickpeas and dressing are directly from her website and I tweaked the salad a bit to make it a little more hearty for lunch.

Strawberry Chickpea Salad with Cinnamon Dijon Dressing

Pumpkin Spice Roasted Chickpeas
from Peasandthankyou.com
possibly serves 4 if you don’t eat half of them when they come out of the oven

  • 1 can of chickpeas (approximately 14 oz), drained, rinsed and dried*
  • 2 T. maple syrup (you can also use Agave here in a pinch but the maple syrup provides a much nicer flavor)
  • 1 t. canola oil (or oil of your choice)
  • 1 t. apple cider vinegar
  • 1/8 t. salt
  • 1/4 t. nutmeg
  • 1/4 t. ginger
  • 3/4 t. cinnamon

Instructions:

* if you are using dried chickpeas, soak about a cup of chickpeas in water over night. Drain the chickpeas and cover with clean water in a medium size pot. Simmer for 45-1 1/2 (depending on your desired firmness and how long the beans soaked for) with the lid half on. Once they are done, drain and let the beans cool a bit. Once they are cool enough to handle, measure out 14 oz and dry them off a bit. Continue with the steps below.

  • Preheat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl until evenly coated.
  • Spread chickpeas on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
  • Bake for 25-30 minutes. Stir chickpeas every ten minutes to ensure even crisping.

Cinnamon Dijon Dressing
from Peasandthankyou.com

  • 1 t. Dijon mustard
  • 3 T. apple cider vinegar
  • 3 T. lemon juice
  • 1/3 c. agave nectar or pure maple syrup
  • 1 t. cinnamon
  • ½ t. ground ginger
  • ½ t. salt
  • 1/4 c. canola oil

Instructions:
Whisk all the ingredients together. Or, if you are taking this salad with you somewhere, just place all the ingredients in a jar with a tight seal (mason jar, etc) and then shake it up and throw it in your lunch bag/picnic basket/etc!

For the Salad
one meal sized salad

  • 1 heart of romain lettuce, finely chopped
  • 1/2 cucumber
  • 1 carrot, sliced
  • 1/4 cup strawberries, sliced
  • 1/4 cup pineapples
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 1/4 of the batch of Pumpkin Spice chickpeas
  • sprinkle of craisins
  • sprinkle of pecans
  • cinnamon dijon dressing

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and top with the cinnamon dijon dressing.

The avocado and cinnamon dressing are sort of to die for in this salad. They make the best combo! But the best part of this salad? Minimal stove time. The chickpeas take about 30 minutes in the oven but if you make up a big batch at the beginning of the week, they can last you all week! That sounds good to me because my apartment gets hot in the summer!

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Veggy Salad with Quinoa

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , , on May 24, 2012| 2 Comments »

Ahh…May 24. Today is my friend Sean’s birthday. Normally, I wouldn’t blast my friends’ birthdays on my blog but Sean’s having a bit of difficulty admitting that 1. Birthdays are the shit! (seriously, it’s a whole day for people to celebrate how awesome you are. What’s there not to love) and 2. he’s a year older than he was last year (26 isn’t old, thankyouverymuch!!). So to help him deal with his unhappiness over this particular day, I’m doing what any good friend would do…I’m sharing his birthday with the entire internet world.

(Don’t worry… I don’t get that many hits on this blog)

((He’s still going to kill me and possibly never talk to me again))

So, in celebration of Sean’s birthday, I’m sharing with you today… drum roll please….

A Salad!!

Wait..what? I know, it’s weird BUT the ice cream cookie cups I made in his honor will be way better to share with you tomorrow, as in Friday, as in the end of the week. I started the week off with a smoothie, I can’t end it with a salad!

I wasn’t even going to post this on my blog cause I didn’t want to bore you but my roomie, Bonnie, said it sounded pretty good and was interested so I figured I’d give it a shot. After all, this blog was designed to share with you my vegan meals and this is what I’ve been having for dinner all week

Veggy Salad with Quinoa
from Lauren Conrad.com 

  • a big handful of mixed greens, lettuce and/or baby spinach (I used baby spinach)
  • 1/2 an avocado, cubed
  • a handful of cherry tomatoes (I slice mine in half, which is sort of weird but the only way I can eat them)
  • 1/2 a cucumber
  • 1/4 cup slivered almonds
  • 1/2 cup cooked quinoa
  • balsamic vinegar, olive oil and lemon,lime or orange juice
  • salt and pepper to taste

Combine greens to quinoa together in a big bowl. Mix together the vinegar, olive oil and juice. Pour over salad and top with salt and pepper.

I didn’t put measurements for the dressing because honestly, I never measure this out. I always do a few glugs of balsamic vinegar, a splash of oil because I really don’t like a ton, and a little more lime juice than oil. Not very scientific.

The addition of the quinoa is great because it makes the salad really filling. I feel like, though salads can be really good for you, they often don’t hold you over. This one actually makes you feel full and satisfied so I’m a big fan! Thank you pinterest for introducing me to Lauren Conrad’s website. I’m kind of a fan now!

So in conclusion, Happy Birthday, Sean! As my present to you, I won’t make you eat this salad because  I know it’s not up your alley. And I hope you still speak to me at work. =D

 

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