Vegan Super Bowl Foods

The Super Bowl is almost upon us. What better way to celebrate than a list of easy pre-prepared vegan food, and a list of recipes.

Easy Pre-prepared Vegan Food

1) Gardein Sweet and Tangy Barbeque Wings, Chipotle Lime Crispy Fingers or Classic Buffalo Wings

    

2) Trader Joe's Vegetable Bird's Nests (ie tempura shredded vegetables)

3) Gardein Beefless Sliders

4) Annie Chun's Spicy Vegetable Wontons

5) Veggie Meatballs (Trader Joe's, Nate's Meatless Meatballs)

If you are willing to put a little more work into preparing your Super Bowl food, below is a list of delectable options. Or check VegWeb to search over 15,000 recipes.

List of Vegan Recipes for the Super Bowl

1) Vegan Cream Cheese Wontons

2) Chunkamole Dip

3) Basil Fritters (Foglie Di Basilico Fritte)

4) Roasted Kale Chips

5) Breaded Crispy Tofu Fingers

6) Easily Veganized Brownie Mix

Banana Nut Butter Flax Muffins (No added fat)

Like many folks do at the beginning the year, I am trying to focus on healthier foods. While I still like a treat every now and then, I hoped to make one with solely healthy fats.

Before anyone gets all up in arms, I am aware nut butters and flax seeds have fat in them. When I say "no added fat," I mean there is no vegetable oil or margarine.

Bananas offer so much in the way of moisture, I decided to try "Banana Peanut Butter Sandwich Muffins." You could use any nut butter here, but may need to adjust if you are using the non-separating kinds. Sun butter would work for those with allergies.

An important note is the nut/sun butter is a substitute for an oil, therefore it isn't as discernible in the taste. Banana is pretty overpowering. Just wanted you to be forewarned.

I'd like to try adjusting the baking temperature to 375 degrees with a shorter baking time. If you try it out, please share the results. Regardless, the combination I used worked well too.

Banana Flax Nut Butter Muffins


1 cup unbleached flour
1/2 cup natural cane sugar
2 mashed bananas (mine were frozen)
2 Tbsp. ground flax (optional)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup nut butter (I used natural peanut butter)
3/4 cup almond, hemp, soy, or coconut milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line muffin tin with liners or lightly spray with oil.

In a mixing bowl add dry ingredients and mix well. Add in all wet ingredients, and mashed banana. If using a frozen banana, thaw in advance or heat in microwave for 30 seconds to soften them.

Mix on slowest speed until just combined. Fill muffin liners or pan 3/4 full. Bake for 20-23 minutes or until golden brown with a toothpick coming out clean.

Allow the muffins to cool 5 minutes and remove from the pan. Once completely cooled, store in am airtight container until ready to serve.

Simple Avocado Sandwich

Before becoming vegan, I had a deep, dark secret. I'd never eaten an avocado. Sad, I know. When my then boyfriend (now spouse) would eat one, I always thought they looked squishy and gross.

Once I finally tasted one, it was ridiculous. I.simply.could.not.get.enough. What followed was my preparing Chunkamole dip more than I care to admit. When we went on our honeymoon, I had my first avocado sandwich. It was pure heaven in my mouth.

When I was pregnant with our first, I probably ate one of these every other day. It wasn't until recently I found out they were rich in omegas. I always take a supplement, but prefer to go to the source, such as flax seed, walnuts or hemp seeds. Sometimes our body just knows what we need.

Avocado Sandwich


1/2 medium sized avocado
3-4 slices of tomato
4-6 slices of onion
2 slices of whole grain bread
spinach or lettuce
Vegenaise or Nayonaise (optional)
1/2 Tbsp. nutritional yeast (optional)
pepper to taste
salt to taste

If you prefer a warm sandwich, toast the bread prior to assembling. First spread on vegan mayo and then sprinkle with yeast flakes if desired. Next add a layer of sliced avocados, then tomato, and onions. Sprinkle with pepper and salt to taste. Lastly add any greens you desire. Press gently down onto the sandwich to help it stay together. Enjoy!

Top Five Vegan Peanut Desserts

In celebration of National Peanut Butter Day, here are my top five favorite peanut butter desserts.

1) Peanut Buttercup Cupcakes

2) Peanut Butter Blossoms

3) Tiger Chocolate Peanut Butter Brittle

4) Easy Microwave Peanut Brittle

5) Classic Chocolate Chip and Peanut Butter Chip Cookies

In case you haven't noticed, I have a slight affliction with chocolate and peanut butter. Happy Peanut Butter Day!

A Tea Party with Valentine's Day Strawberry Powdered or Iced Donuts

A couple weeks ago I promised a recipe for some delectable doughnuts, and oh man, these were worth the wait! I needed to tweak the recipe, and apparently the third time was a charm. These would make a nice Valentine's Day treat.

They have a nice fluffy and delicate texture. My kids are always eager samplers. We decided to make a little tea party out of it. They had raspberry herbal tea and a strawberry powdered doughnut.

Can you tell what they were thinking? Mom, please hurry up and take the picture already, so I can eat my doughnut!

Baked Doughnuts (Powdered, Strawberry Powdered or Strawberry Iced)


2 cups cake flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
 2 tsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. tapioca starch or corn starch
1 Tbsp. vinegar
1/4 cup melted Earth Balance Buttery Sticks.
1 cup coconut milk beverage (not from a can)
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Measure out coconut milk and add vinegar. Lightly grease the doughnut pan with oil.

Sift all of the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl. Add coconut milk mixture, melted margarine, lemon juice and vanilla. Mix on low setting until smooth, stopping to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.

Bake 8 - 10 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool five minutes before removing them from the pan.

Makes 1 dozen doughnuts.

Note: the amounts listed below are for a dozen, adjust accordingly if making multiple kinds.

Powdered Donuts: In a bowl or zip lock bag gently place doughnut to coat it with powdered sugar, and then flip to coat the other side. DO NOT shake it in the bag, they are delicate doughnuts. I was able to shake with previous recipes, but they weren't the correct texture.

Tip: Double coat if serving right away, by allowing them to sit 5 minutes and then coating them again. If serving later, only apply one coating, and add second right before serving.

Strawberry Powdered Donuts: 
1/2 cup strawberry powder (make using freeze dried strawberries and rubbing them on a fine mesh strainer)
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Sift together strawberry powder and sugar, then follow directions above for powdered donuts.

Strawberry Iced Donuts
1/2 cup strawberry powder
1 cup powdered sugar
1 -2 Tbsp. vanilla coconut milk beverage

Whisk together all ingredients until completely mixed. The frosting should be thick and not runny (similar to molasses). Using a pastry brush paint on icing. Allow to dry before storing in an air tight container until serving.

Ridiculously Easy Homemade Two Ingredient Baked Tofu

Our family simply can't get enough baked tofu. It tastes fantastic on salads, on a wrap, or simply as a main dish. Yesterday when I was at Trader Joe's, I noticed something new (to me at least).

My discovery was Soyaki marinade with soy sauce, garlic, ginger and sesame seeds.. I've always wanted to take a stab at homemade tofu, but had been a little lazy about until that moment. Into the cart it went to try at home.

When I explained the idea to my hubby, he warned that I better not waste a whole block of tofu. After trying it, he started to sprout ideas on other types of baked tofu.

Homemade Teriyaki Baked Tofu

1 package of firm tofu (the kind which comes in a plastic tub)
vegan marinade (I used Trader Joe's Soyaki Sauce)

Drain the tofu, and press out the water. Since I don't have a press, I put it between two plates and put a cookbook on top (not too heavy). It sat for a couple minutes, and I drained off the water.

Next I sliced the tofu into four large squares, and then again into rectangles. It should equal eight slices of baked tofu.

In a 9 x 13 glass dish I placed the tofu, and added 1/2 cup marinade. It should be about 1/2 centimeter deep. I covered and left it overnight, flipping it over in the morning.

Lastly, I baked it in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes, flipping it once after 15 minutes of baking. Serve hot or store refrigerated in container before use.

Strawberry Powdered Donuts

No artificial coloring here, just delicious strawberry powdered donuts, traditional powdered donuts, and strawberry iced donuts. 

It is the perfect Valentine treat to bake for your true love and/or kids. Mine gobbled these down right quick. The donut recipe requires a bit of tweaking, but I should have it up shortly.

In the meantime, I'm tempting you with this teaser. What are your plans for Valentine's Day?