Pesto Pasta, Veggies, & Bread
On the menu today: *Best-O Pesto from The Everyday Vegan over whole wheat pasta
*Corn cut off of the cob after roasting it in the oven
*Broccoli steamed to perfection
*My favorite bread w/ Earth Balance
Everything was very yummy! The pesto was a nice change from the oily pestos I am use to. I don’t have a food processor, so I had to blend all of the pesto ingredients in my blender–which was a little bit difficult. I ended up adding some water & some extra olive oil to smooth things out and for better blending. Other than that–no complaints. I am going to use the leftover pesto to put on a ready-made pizza crust for tomorrow’s dinner.
I do have a question for everyone: How do you usually cook your corn on the cob?
"Lightened-Up" Falafel and Quinoa
Tonight I made Dreena’s “Lightened-Up” Falafels from The Everyday Vegan. I served the falafels in whole wheat pita pockets with romaine lettuce and homemade cilantro hummus. This was my first time making falafels and I must say–I was pretty proud of the way they turned out. They were a little mushy inside due to the fact that I cooked them at too high of a temperature for too short of a time, but other than that, they were pretty good. Next time, though, I think I will deep fry them…they may no longer be “lightened-up”–but, boy they will be tasty!
On the side of these pockets, we had quinoa and apples.
House Warming Par-tay Food!
Matt & I had a little House Warming Party this past weekend and it was a lot of fun! I, ofcourse took the party as an opportunity to test out a lot of new recipes I have been meaning to try.
First up-Catherine’s Hummus recipe from her new up and coming book. What a hit! Everyone loved the garlicy taste and the smooth texture of this hummus. I did stick to the recipe–however, I must admit I added some roasted red peppers to half of the hummus to mix it up a little bit.
Next, Dreena’s Coconut Rasberry Squares (from The Everyday Vegan) ..well, actually I made triangles! I didn’t have the suggested 8 x 8 square pan, so I made them in a round dish. They are soo cute as triangles…and oh my goodness…the taste! They were beyond delicious and were gone within 30 minutes of the party’s start time (although, Matt admits he ate three of the triangles!).
Then we have Ben’s Black Bean Salsa from How it all Vegan. Mmmm, another hit! One person even asked for the recipe–not for him, but for his wife–so she can make it for him! haha.
Lastly, we have the Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars from How it all Vegan. Sadly, not a hit. They were just not what you would expect from a recipe called “cookie bars”–they were more like pieces of dry cake. They also were very bland–no sweetness at all. Oh, well. Can’t win them all!
Grilled Veggie Sandwiches & Vegan Potato Salad
On the menu for tonight was grilled veggie sandwiches, vegan potato salad, cantelope and chocolate pudding for dessert.
The veggie sandwiches contain: grilled summer squash, grilled onions, grilled peppers, roasted red peppers, veganaise, and stone ground mustard. I stacked the veggies on my absolute favorite bread–French Meadow Bakery Flax & Sunflower Seed. This bread is delicious, organic, and has 4 grams of protein per slice!
The salad is Vegan Planet’s “Close to Mom’s Potato Salad”. See a link to Vegan Planet in the previous post. I have never made potato salad before, let alone vegan potato salad and I must say–it was AWESOME! So fresh and definitely picnic-worthy!
I picked up the cantaloupe today (no pic) and it was perfectly ripe and sweet. I do think cantaloupe is my favorite fruit. Yum.
The chocolate pudding is good ‘ol Mori-Nu Mates Pudding Mix.
Cuban Style Black Beans w/ Corn Bread
Tonight I made my hunny & I the Cuban Style Black Beans from Vegan Planet. MmMmMm… The recipe worked out well and was actually the 1st one I’ve made from this gigantic book. For the black beans, I actually used a combo of black beans and corn that was left-over from a previous nights dinner. Does anyone have any “must-try” recipes from this cookbook? There are sooo many recipes, it’s hard to know where to begin!
I paired these yummy beans with some cornbread (Matt’s fav). Sorry, no recipe! This was from a box purchased at Trader Joe’s. Instead of the added egg suggested on the box, I just used some Ener-G Egg Replacer and it worked out brilliantly!
