Thanksgiving Round-Up

Each Thanksgiving, our family extends an invitation for our family to participate in a vegan meal with us. Thus far, it has centered around the traditional type meal. Last year the Tofurky was a big hit, so it will be making an appearance again.

It was not always so revered, until I discovered a fool-proof way to cook it. This my friends, included an important ingredient:

We roasted our Tofurky in the oven, half-submersed in Imagine Vegetarian Wild Mushroom Gravy. In a 1.5 quart (1.5 L) glass round pyrex bowl, we emptied two packages of the gravy, pouring some over the top of the roast. Then we baked it for 30 minutes, completely flipped it over, and roasted another 30 minutes. We basted the Tofurky half-way through the second round of roasting.

Viola! No spongy, chewy texture here, just nice and juicy Tofurky! Seconds please...

Below are some of our tried and true recipes, which would be a delicious addition to any Thanksgiving meal. There are also a couple non-traditional ones like Irish Stew, Pecan Pie Truffles, and Tofu Fingers, but they'd make an excellent option for anyone looking for dishes that are "off the beaten path."

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Green Bean Casserole

Squash Casserole

 Kale Chips

Breaded Crispy Tofu Fingers

Irish "Root" Stew

Pecan Pie Truffles

Pumpkin Pie Bars with Biscoff Crust

Easy Pumpkin Pie Bites with Pecan Butter Creme Topping

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.

Vegan Spaghettios with Veggie Dogs (Gluten free option)

Back in college, my boyfriend (now hubby) and I went on a month long road trip out east. There was a lot of camping, or sleeping in the bed of my truck to keep costs down. One of our easy go to meals was vegan spaghettios. When you are just using a small camping stove for each meal, it is all about simplicity.

Sadly, they no longer make those tasty spaghettios, which is too bad for vegan kiddos everywhere. For that reason, I decided to try making some at home. It is a pretty simple meal, but had the kids asking for seconds.

It would be very simple to make this recipe gluten free, by simply using quinoa or rice pasta. This version is much healthier than what you'd find in a can. It has carrots and nutritional yeast, along with whole wheat pasta.

Vegan Spaghettios


1 large 24 oz. jar of tomato sauce with no salt
1 1/4 cup whole wheat alphabet pasta
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. salt (optional, only if your tomato sauce is no salt)
1/2 cup pureed carrots or 1 jar of pureed carrot baby food
3-4 veggie dogs sliced into chunks (Soy Boy makes a gluten free veggie dog)

First bring a large sauce pan half full of water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package. While the pasta is cooking, heat the tomato sauce with the remaining ingredients (except veggie dog slices) until it just starts to bubble.

Turn down the heat to a simmer. You will need to wisk the sauce intermittently to incorporate all the seasonings. Add veggie dogs a couple minutes before the pasta is cooked. Drain the pasta and mix with sauce. Yum!

Crispy Seitan Bites and Rainbow Chard Mushroom Stir Fry

I wish that I could take credit for these, but this meal was completely prepared by my hubby while I baked 5 dozens cupcakes. It was so darn good, I wish there was more left. None of it lasted long.

Since I'm pretty sure most people can handle grapes and rolls, the recipes for the crispy seitan bites and rainbow chard mushroom stir fry is bekow.

Crispy Seitan Bites

1/4 cup corn starch
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup  corn meal
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 c water (approx.)
canola oil (1/4-1/3 cup for frying)
1 package (8 oz) seitan

Add the oil to a small pan to a depth of 1/4-1/2" and heat on medium.

Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl then whisk in the water, adding more as necessary to make a thick batter.

Cut the seitan into small strips or cubes, then dip in the batter and place in the heated oil. Fry for a few minutes until golden brown, then flip and cook a few more minutes on the other side. Remove the seitan from the oil and dry on a paper towel-lined plate and serve hot.

If  you have any batter left over, slice up some dill pickles and fry them the same way.

Rainbow Chard Mushroom Stir Fry

1 bunch rainbow chard, chopped
2 medium onions, diced
8 oz crimini mushrooms, sliced
2 Tbsp. oil

Heat the oil in a large frying pan or wok over medium-high heat, then add all ingredients. Cook covered for about 10 minutes stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft. Remove the cover and cook a few more minutes until most of the liquid has cooked off. Salt to taste and serve hot.

Vegan Black Bean Juicy Lucy

Yep, I dared to bastardize the carnivore version of a juicy lucy. Guess what, it was pretty darn tasty too. The thing is I didn't stop eating meat, dairy, and eggs because it tasted bad. On the contrary, it tastes good, but I refuse to accept all that comes with it for the simple pleasure of my taste buds.

That being said, when I saw an advertisement for a juicy lucy, I knew there needed to be a vegan version of it. Sometimes a thing so wrong, is just oh so right. It wasn't my first foray in re-creating an healthier version of a animal product laden food. Just check out the Vegan Sausage Bacon Tofu Biscuit with Cheese.

Below you'll find a recipe for a much healthier version of the standard juicy lucy without sacrificing the taste.

Vegan Black Bean Juicy Lucy Buger


1 meduim size onion
1 Tbsp. canola oil
1 cup carrots
2 cans of black beans drain and rinsed well
1 package of seitan ( I used West Soy 8 oz. pkg)
3 tsp. garlic powder or 5-6 minced cloves of garlic
2 tsp. sage
2 tsp. onion powder
1 1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 1/2 Tbsp. liquid hickory smoke
1 1/2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp. corn starch
1 cup corn meal
1 bag Daiya cheese or package of Cheddar Cheezly

Burger Toppings: 
tomato, onion and lettuce

Preheat oil in skillet while chopping the onion, then add and saute. While that is cooking, chop up the seitan and add it to the pan.

In a food processor add remaining ingredients with the exception of the Daiya cheese and toppings. Run until all the components are mixed and combined well.

Remove onions and seitan and allow it to cool (in the meantime prepare your tomato, lettuce or any other toppings). Add the onions and seitan and process until smooth.

Heat 2-3 Tbsp. of oil in pan to fry up black bean patty. While it is warming up, line a 4 1/2" glass bowl with saran wrap and lightly spray with oil. Add a bottom layer to shape patty, then add 2-3 Tbsp. of Daiya or Cheezly cheese.

Press cheese into patty, then cover with more black bean patty, and press down firmly on the top.

Flip out patty into your hand, and then into the pan.

Here is what a black bean patty looks like after it is flipped out.

Cook until golden on one side, and then flip and repeat on the other one. Don't forget to lightly spray the glass bowl between patties, or then won't flip out as easily. Here is what they look like done:

We also added other condiments like ketchup, vegenaise, mustard, or hot sauce. My hubby puts hot sauce on EVERYTHING! Then voila' 

Don't forget to enter the two Mofo giveaways I've got going now. The first is for a $25 gift certificate at Vegan Essentials (ends Saturday October 8th). The second is for 18 Eli's Earth Bars (2 winners) and a copy of Vegan Lunch Box (1 winner), which ends next Wednesday, October 12th.

Garden Salad with Lettuce Fresh from the Garden

Last year there was a lot of trial and error with our raised bed garden. It has been a lot more rewarding with a little experience to guide us. So far, we've gotten strawberries, onions, and red leaf lettuce from the garden this spring.

Here is a salad I made tonight with the lettuce fresh from our garden. It had lettuce, tomatoes, red onions, and walnuts. I simply love just walking out to the garden to harvest the food we'll be eating. Gardening is addictive! I've already been scheming on where to do more beds this fall.

There will be more to come as the season progresses. Stay tuned!

Vegan Naan Bread

This was my first time making naan bread. It turned out pretty darn good if I do say so myself. My family gobbled it up in no time, so I know this recipe will be a definite repeat in our household.

Naan Bread

2/3 cup soy, almond, rice, or hemp milk
2 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. rapid yeast
4 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
2 Tbsp. canola oil
2/3 cup plain soy yogurt

In a mixing bowl, add sugar, milk, and yeast and stir well. Let it sit until it starts to activate and becomes frothy looking. In a separate bowl mix in all of the dry ingredients, then add milk mixture, oil, and soy yogurt. Mix until it is formed into a dough ball and knead for about 5 to 7 minutes. Put dough ball into a dry bowl, cover with a cloth and allow it to rise for 1-2 hours.

Preheat oven to broiling temperature. Knead the dough another minute and then divide it into two parts. Oil a baking sheet and roll out one of the parts into an oval shat about 1/4"-1/2" thick. place in the oven for 2 to 3 minutes until it puffs up and appears golden brown. Watch it closely so it does not burn. Once it puffs up, take it out, flip it, then return it to the oven for another minute. Remove and serve warm. 

Breaded Crispy Tofu Strip Fingers

We had some leftover tofu in the fridge, which was calling to be made before spoiling. Hence, tofu fingers were born. They were an instant success, and my son could not get enough of them. They are pretty straightforward to make.

Breaded Crispy Tofu Fingers

3 Tbsp. bread crumbs

1 Tbsp. flour

1 Tbsp. nutritional yeast flakes

2 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

2-3 Tbsp. cooking oil

16 oz. fresh firm tofu (not Silken)

First press water out of tofu by putting it onto a plate and stacking another on top of the tofu upside down. Leave for 3-5 minutes for water to drain out, and pour off water when done. Cut the tofu into slabs about 1/4-1/2 inch thick. Next slice into three parts (see picture below). 

Add 1-2 Tablespoons of oil into the pan and turn onto medium heat. Next, mix all of the dry ingredients into a container, which tofu fits into easily, one tofu finger at a time. Lay the strip down on top of the breading mix. Do not shake it up, but cover it fully using a spoon (see below).

Once you have it covered, gently lift it out of the breading, letting the excess fall off. Lay it into heated pan, and then repeat until all tofu fingers are breaded. Fry on medium until golden brown on each side (about 4-5 minutes per side). I lightly sprayed them with oil before flipping the first time.

Remove from pan and serve hot. It pairs nicely with sweet and sour sauce. Enjoy!

Vegan Sausage Bacon Tofu Sandwich with Cheese

If you find yourself missing the non-vegan version of a sausage, egg, bacon and cheese biscuit, I think this will quell any cravings for it. It is all the better for being cruelty-free.

Now we aren't big proponents of eating a lot of highly processed vegan substitutes. That being said, on rare occasions we may make something like this. My son enjoyed it quite a bit, but preferred eating the components separately. 

My hubby joking said he is going to make the vegan version of a "double down." If you have no idea what that is, imagine a fast food creation which eliminates buns made of bread and replaces them with fried chicken patties. Even a vegan version sounds over the top to me. 

The biscuit sandwich was made pretty easy by frying 1/4 inch thick slabs of tofu on both sides in canola oil for about 5 minutes  on medium heat. The vegan sausage here is made by Lite Life and is called Gimmie Lean Sausage. The vegan bacon was made by the same company, and is called Smart Bacon. They were prepared following the instructions on the package.

The cheese is made by Bute Island and is the Sheese Smoked Cheddar variety. To make the biscuits, we use a Bisquick Heart Start mix, since we're often short on time with two young kids. If you decide to try it, just be sure to get the Heart Start kind of Bisquick, as the regular kind has trans fat in it.

Vegan Fondue Part Deux

Last year we decided to try fondue out with the kids on New Year's Eve. After enjoying ourselves so plentifully, we elected to make a tradition out of it.

This year we tried a few new things. We did broccoli, tofu, bread, bananas, and marshmallows again, but added seitan, black eyed pea fritters, and polenta.

We learned a couple of things. Seitan cooks much faster than tofu, so we'll skip the tofu next year. Little kids don't have a whole lot of patience for waiting. Polenta was more finicky and just crumbled with the first batch we made. It was best to cut it into larger chunks and fry it on a higher setting separate from the other food. In the future, I'd save it for last or single it our for its own pot.

To keep it more simple, we had three fondue pots going verses four (thanks to Auntie Camille for the loan). One pot contained Baker's Semi-Sweet chocolate, another had Leahy's Vegan Cheese Sauce, and the last was canola oil. We did bread and broccoli in the vegan "cheese." The oil worked well for the fritters, tofu, seitan, and polenta (you can do broccoli too).

Lastly, we dipped bananas and Dandies vegan marshmallows into the chocolate. This was by far the kids favorite, which was no surprise. You can see by the look on Elliott's face, he is pretty darn happy about the chocolate covered banana.

To celebrate the New Year's, we set a clock ahead and rang in the New Year with the kids at 7:45. They really got into the toasting part of tapping your cups/glasses together. It is always the small things.

If you are interested in making the Black-eyed Pea Fritters, I'll be posting the recipe soon. Happy New Year!

Vegan BBQ Wings

Sometimes you just need a quick meal. Despite your desire to turn to take out, there is probably a quick healthy option available at home. For us it was this one. It took less than 15 minutes to have it ready and on the table. We tried both Gardein's BBQ Wings and Alexia's Red Potatoes & Italian Vegetables for the first time.

The potato medley was pretty darn good considering it was frozen food. We'll definitely have these in the freezer for a night we need something really quick. We also had a wild rice pilaf (already cooked earlier in the day) which we re-heated. To top it off, we had pineapple which seemed like a nice compliment to the BBQ "Wings."

Chick Pea Loaf

Something about winter makes me wish for a nice chickpea loaf. It was one of my son's favorite foods when he was a baby. It had been awhile since we had made it, so I wasn't sure of the reception it would receive.

Luckily it was a success! Once they tried that first bite, they both ate it all up. We adapted this recipe from, "The New Soul Vegetarian Cookbook."

Chickpea Loaf

2 cans of chickpeas (also called garbanzo beans) drained

3/4 to 1 1/2 cup croutons, bread crumbs or stuffing mix

1/3 cup canola oil

1 small onion

2 tsp. garlic powder

2 tsp. sage

1 Tbsp. parsley

1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 Tbsp. soy sauce

1/2 jar pasta sauce

Preheat oven to 325 F

Mix all ingredients excluding the pasta sauce in a food processor or grinder. Start out with less croutons/bread crumbs/stuffing mix, and add more to obtain a thick consistency, where it has to be spooned into the pan (it should stick to the spoon and have to be shaken off). Once it is well mixed, put it into a lightly greased 8 x 8 pan. Cook it for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and add 1/2 a jar of pasta sauce on top of the loaf. Return to oven for 10-15 minutes, until the water cooks off the pasta sauce.

Savory Seitan Pot Pie

Every year, I make this for my husband's birthday. It is his favorite dish. Since this year was Thanksgiving, I shelved it for this weekend. It is one the recipes I used to make my way into his heart. As a man with a high metabolism, he loves good ole classic comfort food.

Since it takes a little more time to make, I've doubled the recipe. We always freeze the second one for a rainy day. You can cut in half to make only one pot pie. To simplify things, I buy store made crusts and only make the tops myself. You could certainly double the crust recipe and make the bottom crust yourself.

Pot Pie

1 lb. seitan
2 cups potatoes
1 bag frozen peas, carrots, and corn
1 medium onion chopped
1 3/4 cup water1
3/4 cup soy milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. sage
1 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 ready-made pie crusts

Pie covering
2-3 cups flour
1/3 cup shortening
1 tsp salt
1/4- 1/2 cup water as needed

Boil cubed potatoes and save cooking water.

In a separate large stew pot, on medium low, saute onions in oil until they are tender. Next add the flour, and yeast. Whisk until creamy. Add 1 3/4 cup of cooking water and soy milk and simmer for 10 minutes. Add spices, potatoes, tofu or seitan, and frozen vegetables and continue to simmer. Simmer until the consistency desired is achieved (thicker pot pie sauce), then pour mix into the two ready-made crusts. Cover with pie crust dough (see preparation instructions below).

In bowl mix margarine into flour using a fork to press it down. Do this until the margarine is well mixed and starts to become doughy. Add water as needed to get mix to stick together, but use only a small amount (1/4 cup at most). Knead into a ball, then separate it to make two balls. Roll out with rolling pin, then cover pie. Slit a few lines in top crust and bake in oven at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Vegan Mofo: Last Day, Simply Spaghetti

Well today I'm wrapping up my last post for vegan Mofo. While I didn't get in my five posts a week, I still feel that I did pretty well.

I will do my best to continue providing information about the cost of each meal I post. It illustrates how easy it is to feed your family vegan. Check out the USDA's four different meal plans, for an idea of the average cost to feed a family. In October this year, the low-cost to moderate plans ranged from spending $148.80 to $183.70 per week for meals. Our family easily falls into this range.

Many of the meals I made this month, would be great options for public school system's cafeteria food, which is often unhealthy. There is a great campaign led by PCRM to revolutionize the lunch program to provide more healthy options to our children. Fresh fruits and vegetables, healthy fats, and protein variety, what a concept!

Items Used for Meal:

1) Organic Spaghetti ($1.00, Trader Joe's)

2) Pre-made Falafel ($2.00, Costco)

3) Organic Marinara Sauce ($2.00, Trader Joe's))

4) 1/3 Package Organic Steamed Broccoli ($1.00, Trader Joe's)

5) 2 Organic Apples, ($1.00, Trader Joe's)

Total Time Spent Making Meal: 20 minutes

Total Cost of Meal for Family of Four: $7.00, or $1.75 per person

Vegan Mofo: Hearty Irish Stew

My son has been requesting this stew for awhile. Yesterday we finally got around to making it, or I should say my husband made it. He is always the one who makes it, because it is his recipe. We originally came up with the idea in the first place while looking for ideas of what to serve at our rehearsal dinner at The Local.

It is my favorite stew, and fits perfectly with the current brisk weather we've been having lately. Another possible name for it could be Irish Root Stew with rutabaga, sweet potatoes, carrots, and potatoes.

Hearty Irish Stew:

2 medium onions chopped
4 garlic cloves minced
1/4 cup unbleached flour
4 c. water
One package (8 oz or more) seitan
1 cup carrot, sliced into rounds
1 cup rutabagas, peeled and diced
1 cup potatoes, diced
1 cup sweet potatoes
1/2 cup split red lentils
1 Tbsp. parsley
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 vegetarian or soy bouillon cubes
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1 tsp. EACH parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme (the hubbu insisted I type it this way)
salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:

In a large, lightly oiled, heavy pot, steam-fry the onion and garlic until it begins to soften. Add the flour and water, then stir around thoroughly. Add the remaining ingredients, mix well, and bring to a boil. Cover, turn down to low, and simmer for about 30 minutes, or until the vegetables are done.

Items Used for Meal:
1) Seitan ($3.79, Whole Foods)
2) 1 cup rutabaga & organic: potato, sweet potato, carrots ($4.00, Trader Joes & Whole Foods)
3) Lentils ($.25, Whole Foods)
4) Spices, flour, vegetable bouillion, soy sauce ($2.00, Whole Foods)
5) Organic Onions & Garlic ($0.50, Trader Joe's)
6) Nutrional Yeast ($0.25, The Wedge Co-op)

Total Time Spent Making Meal: 15 minutes preparation & 30 minutes to cook


Total Cost of Meal for Family of Four: $10.79, or about $1.79 per person (Note two bowls of soup make leftovers, so I divided the total cost by 6

Vegan Mofo: Vegan Pigs in a Blanket

Remember those vegan pigs in a blanket I mentioned yesterday? Well we decided tonight we would have to take a shot at making them. The kids have never had them before, but were really excited to prepare them.

First and foremost though, Elliott had to confirm it wasn't really made out of pigs. Yep that is right, doing his mama and papa proud. I think compassion for ALL animals comes naturally to children if you allow it to develop on its own. That got me to thinking of a better name for the vegan version of pigs in a blanet. If you've got a good idea, please pass it along.

As you can see, the kids loved helping out again. They brushed the veggie dogs with some olive oil to help prevent them from drying out in the oven. We added a little vegan cheese in them, and wrapped them up. They were pretty tasty dipped in ketchup or mustard. Next time, we'll roll the dough out a little thinner, but other than that I wouldn't change anything.



Items Used for Meal:
1) Pre-made dough ($1.00, Trader Joe's),
2) 1 package of Smart life veggie dogs ($2.39 Trader Joes)
3) 1/4 block Cheezly Soy Free Cheese ($1.33, Vegan Essentials)
4) 1/3 Package Organic Steamed Broccoli ($1.00, Trader Joe's)
5) 1 pint Organic Raspberries, ($3.29, Trader Joe's)

Total Time Spent Making Meal: 20 minutes, without kids it would have taken about 10-15 minutes


Total Cost of Meal for Family of Four: $9.01, or $2.25 per person



Vegan Mofo: Vegan Calzones

After the power was out for 3 1/2 days, we lost a lot of food. Yesterday a trip to the store to stock up was in order. When I saw vegan pre-made dough for only $1.00, I bought two of them as all the things we need to catch up swirled around in my mind. My poor hubby has been shouldering the brunt of the work, as I've been ordered by my doctor to really take it easy. A chance to make life easier on him was a no-brainer.

At first, I was going to make "pigs in a blanket" without the pigs of course, but then the idea of calzones popped into my head. Once that seed was planted, it had to be germinated. Instead of whipping it together really fast, we let the kids help out. They absolutely loved it, which reminded me to get them involved in dinner preparation more often.



I've never made calzones before, and just winged it. They turned out delicious, and we'll definitely be making them again. One thing I did learn was to make sure the crust pinched together is a little thicker next time. It made six large calzones (9" x 4"). My husband and I were circling the last one like hungry vultures, while waiting to see if the kids needed more. We democratically split it.

Items Used for Meal:
1) Pre-made dough ($1.00, Trader Joe's),
2) 1/3 Jar Organic Marinara Sauce ($0.67, Trader Joes)
3) 1/2 block Cheezly ($2.65, Vegan Essentials)
4) Yves Veggie Pepperoni ($2.69, Whole Foods)
5) 1/3 Package of Veggie Sausage ($0.67, Trader Joe's)
6) 1 pint Organic Raspberries, ($3.29, Trader Joe's)
7) 2 Organic Bell Peppers, one red and the other green ($3.18, Super Target)

Total Time Spent Making Meal: 30 minutes, without kids it would have taken about 20 minutes
Total Cost of Meal for Family of Four: $12.15, or a little more than $3.00 per person

Vegan Mofo: Lunch Leftovers

You may have noticed I fell off the planet for a week. Please accept my apologies, as my neck was out, and then we had no power or access to the Internet from the winter snow storm last week. This is a post I started last week and didn't get to share.

Whenever I open the fridge and discover enough leftovers to piece together a tasty meal, it always a pleasant surprise. Today was one of those days. We had leftover Chick'n Scallopini, watermelon, butternut squash, avocado, and pita pockets with hummus.



Items Used for Meal:


1) Leftover Chick'n Scallopini ($ $1.31, Super Target)
2) Avocado ($1.00, Trader Joes)
3) Roasted Butternut Squash ($.50, Trader Joe's)
4) Whole Wheat Pita Pockets & Garlic Hummus ($0.50, Trader Joes)
5) 1/6 small Watermelon ($0.50, Trader Joe's)

Total Time Spent Making Meal: 5 minutes

Total Cost of Meal for Family of Three: $3.81, or $1.27 per person

Tofu Spinach Quiche

Back in the spring we received an issue of VegNews, and there was a quiche recipe. I'd been thinking about trying one out, but been a little lazy about tracking down a recipe. My husband and I can hardly ever make something without altering the recipe, and while this one was good we spiced it up a bit. The original recipe was sans cheese, but we decided it would be a good idea to add some Cheezly.

Once it was done, we put it to the toddler test. My youngest chowed down, and our oldest was a little more reluctant with all that "green stuff" in there. In the end he picked the spinach and liked it pretty good. The leftovers were heavily coveted and it was a show down to see who would get the leftovers for lunch. Brian won.

The next time we made this, Brian pulvarized the spinach in the food processor. When we mixed it in the quiche looked like something out of Dr. Suess's "Green Eggs, and Ham." It was a scary electric green and didn't look appetizing. Ironically, Elliott had no problem eating it, since it had no "chunks of green stuff" in it. Go figure.

Breakfast for Dinner: French Toast & Hash Browns

 

Tonight we had the fun combination of daddy being sick and momma's neck issues flaring up. Since I was on my own, I didn't want to make anything too complicated. So tonight, we had vegan french toast, fresh hash browns, avocados, and veggie bacon.



It wasn't until about three years ago that I started making hash browns from scratch. After doing it though, I don't know why you'd ever buy frozen. All you need to do is wash the potatoes and then shred them in a food processor. It only takes 2-3 minutes total.

The french toast is so easy to make, and the kids love it.

French Toast Recipe

1 cup soy or almond milk
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 Tbsp. canola or vegetable oil

Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl large enough to dip the toast into. Heat a skillet to medium heat with a very light coat of oil. dip toast into mix on both sides and then brown in pan on both sides (2-3 minutes each side). Makes 6-8 pieces of french toast.

Items Used for Meal:

1) 8 pieces of whole grain bread ($1.60, Cost-co)
2) French Toast Mix (~$0.50, Various)
3) Avocado ($1.00, Trader Joe's)
4) 4 Medium/Large Organic Red Potatoes ($1.00, Trader Joe's)

5) Veggie Bacon ($2.00, Whole Foods)
Total Time Spent Making Meal: 25 minutes


Total Cost of Meal for Family of Four: $6.10 or $1.53 per person