Archive for the 'Vegetarian Entrees' Category

Fab Frugal Friday: Inspired by State Fair Cuisine (no, really) – Chili & Polenta Savory Parfait

Published on August 27, 2010 in Entrees, Frugal Tips and Vegetarian Entrees. 8 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

Chili Parfait With Text

Many of us foodies, in our low-brow moments, are fans of State Fair fare. C’mon. Who doesn’t love funnel cakes, or corn dogs or deep fried Coca Cola? If you don’t know if you’re a State Fair food junkie, take this fab quiz and find out. Did you know that the Iowa State Fair’s claim to fame is an annual life-size butter sculpture of a cow? But, I digress. Fair food is unabashedly uber UNhealthy, but intensely fun. Food should always be FUN, shouldn’t it?

Anyway, this month’s Food Network Magazine features a State Fair savory parfait of pulled pork and mashed potatoes. I laughed out loud! Then, I decided a veggie version was in order. If you whip up some chili and polenta and spoon it into fancy parfait glasses and eat it on your porch swing, you’ll have just as much fun as you would at the State Fair. Maybe even more, depending on who is sitting next to you!

(SHAMELESS PLUG: Come and watch my Demo at the Utah State Fair on Saturday, September 11, 2010 at 4:00. I’ll be doing quesadillas and promoting my new book – Quesadillas! )

– posted by Donna

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Panini-Grilled Ratatouille Salad

Published on August 4, 2010 in Gluten Free, Healthy Fare, Vegan Recipes and Vegetarian Entrees. 4 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

This time of year, a lot of fellow food bloggers have me shamefully coveting their outdoor grills. From the old-fashioned round kettle-style charcoal barbecues of yore to handy little Hibachis to the swanky flattop Weber grills of today and everything in between, I covet them all. It’s the one major appliance I don’t have. But a truly fabulously frugal person is a resourceful person.

I realized that, thanks to a lovely gift from Santa, I DO have something like a close, indoor cousin to the grill – a panini press (quite a nice one, too, a Breville). This was the perfect solution, really – I loved how it cut the time in half by grilling both sides at once! Continue reading ‘Panini-Grilled Ratatouille Salad’

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Meatless Monday: A Light, Cool, Refreshing Summer Salad – Crispy Tofu Cubes with Mango and Avocado in Sweet Chili Sauce

Published on August 2, 2010 in Appetizers, Entrees, Gluten Free, Healthy Fare, Vegan Recipes and Vegetarian Entrees. 14 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

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I make a cold shrimp salad with avocado and mango in an Asian sweet chili sauce. It is a great go-to quick main dish salad for the summer – cool, refreshing and so flavorful.  Crispy tofu cubes in place of the shrimp is a wonderful switch up – added at the last minute, of course, to preserve their crispiness.

Anne and I have been huge tofu fans since writing 101 Things to do with Tofu a few years ago. It’s a fab frugal source of protein – and has a mild flavor that plays well with pretty much any other flavors. And, this sweet chili dressing is bright and flavorful with a touch of heat. If I wasn’t in mixed company when I ate this salad last night, I would have licked my plate. No, really.

Perfect for a summer Meatless Monday!

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California Rainbow Chard Wraps

Published on July 21, 2010 in Gluten Free, Healthy Fare, Vegan Recipes and Vegetarian Entrees. 4 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , .

I do believe I’ve finally hit the summer wrap jackpot. I love wraps of all kinds, and have lately been infatuated with the Alchemy Wrap using teff, but as the days get hotter and the produce gets more plentiful, I’ve been craving something lighter still. I think I’ve devised a winning combination: my California Rainbow Chard Wrap, using hummus made with avocado and a touch of coconut oil, sprouts, grated carrot, marinated artichoke hearts, and topped with toasted pine nuts. Continue reading ‘California Rainbow Chard Wraps’

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Daring Cooks July "Nut Butters" Challenge: Roasted Hazelnut Sauce and African Peanut Soup

Published on July 14, 2010 in Appetizers, Entrees, Gluten Free and Vegetarian Entrees. 39 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .
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Roasted Hazelnut Sauce with Scattered Mushrooms and Hazelnut Pieces

The Daring Cooks July challenge was to use nut butters in a savory recipe, sponsored by Margie of More Please and Natashya of Living in the Kitchen with Puppies. As of a week ago, there were already so many amazing dishes posted (many Asian themed) that I knew I couldn’t compete with them.The most impressive was a dish posted by Australian food blogger Audax Artifex: Crisp Waterchestnut Sardines Stuffed with pinenut and macadamia nut butter, served with Green Thai cashew butter AND with homemade seaweed noodles. Incredible! So, I decided to stay away from competing in Asian flavors and use nut butters in a Mediterranean sauce and an African style soup.

First, I made a roasted hazelnut cream sauce for pasta (seen above on cheese ravioli). I thought the earthiness of mushrooms went well with hazelnuts, so I blended half of the mushrooms into the sauce and scattered the rest on top. The sauce was deep and rich and savory. There really is nothing like the taste of roasted hazelnuts, is there?

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A Kelly Family Favorite: African Peanut Soup

Then, I reworked a family favorite of ours: African Peanut Soup. This is a hearty, rich vegetarian soup that fills you up with just a small bowlful. I made my own peanut butter for this, and was amazed at how intense the flavor was compared to store-bought peanut butters. I just roasted the peanuts first then whirled then with some EVOO and sea salt.

Thanks, Daring Cooks Margie and Natashya for a fabulous challenge!

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Meatless Monday: A Meatless Loaf Even June Cleaver Would Envy (Secret Ingredient: A-1 sauce!)

Published on June 21, 2010 in Healthy Fare, Uncategorized and Vegetarian Entrees. 10 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .
Who-Needs-Hamburger Amazing Meatless Loaf recipe

Who needs hamburger? Try our amazing Meatless Loaf recipe!

For the ultimate Meatless Monday challenge, we here at FFF decided to take on the iconic American comfort food recipe: meatloaf.

June Cleaver made meatloaf, as did all women who dared to call themselves housewives in the 1950s. Each woman’s meatloaf was a yardstick to measure her skill as a home cook. Meatloaf has been made in various versions for centuries, but it was the Americans during the Great Depression who added bread and eggs to the dish to stretch their pennies and added ketchup as a topping.

Like almost everyone growing up in America in the 50′s, 60′s or 70′s, I ate my weight in meatloaf as a child. To this day, when anyone says “meatloaf,” the smell, taste and texture of this comfort food fills my senses.

So, we said to ourselves, “Could we remake this comfort food classic without meat but with as much flavor and comfort as the original hamburger dish?” Our answer: “Absolutely.”

I made about a dozen versions of this dish and there are two secrets to our final fabulous dish. First, add diced cooked dates. The dates add a rich taste and sticky texture that are necessary to replace hamburger. Second, use the American classic A-1 steak sauce. When I made previous versions of this, everyone wanted A-1 to drizzle on top of their slices. So == light bulb goes on == why not add this raisin-y, flavor-packed sauce right in with the loaf mixture?!

The combination of ingredients and flavors in this final version are astounding. The texture is rich, moist and firm and holds together while cooking and slicing.  This is one of my favorite veggie makeover dishes of all time. Truly remarkable. Please try it – with or without your June Cleaver apron on!

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Meatless Monday: Zucchini Crudo with Lemon Vinaigrette, Dill and Feta (with inspiration from Iron Chef Michael Symon)

Published on June 7, 2010 in Appetizers, Gluten Free, Healthy Fare, Side Dishes and Vegetarian Entrees. 10 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .
Zucchini Crudo Salad Inspired by Iron Chef Michael Symon

Zucchini Crudo Salad Inspired by Iron Chef Michael Symon

Iron Chef Michael Symon is known for his love affair with meats, especially pork. In his new cookbook, Live to Cook, he even has a recipe for fried pig’s ears!  Yikes. So, it was ironic that the recipe that caught my eye while I was thumbing through his book at a bookstore recently was a Zucchini Crudo Salad. Chef Symon himself described it as “jaw-dropping good.” If the King of Pork says that about raw zucchini, you simply must sit up and take notice. I hurried home and made a fab frugal version. Only the best for Meatless Monday, I say!

Turns out Chef Symon is right. This raw zucchini and yellow squash ( think extra healthy!) salad is truly speechless good. The only thing it needed for my taste buds was a salty element, so I added crumbled feta. Result: summery deliciousness on a plate! You must eat it right away to get the full crispness of the squashes – it does not keep at all in the fridge. Put this on your “Must-Try” list in the height of zucchini madness season this summer!

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Meatless Monday: Wholegrain Confetti Zucchini Cakes

Published on May 31, 2010 in Entrees, Side Dishes and Vegetarian Entrees. 11 Comments Tags: , , , , .

I have been trying for about a year now to come up with a vegetarian version of crab cakes, a perfect task for Meatless Mondays. My family members can testify if need be: at least two dozen attempts.

Then my neighbor Joyce,  who owns the on-line business Dr. Grandma’s specializing in healthy and convenient products, decided to host a recipe contest using her products. My favorites are her whole-grain muffin and pancake mixes. ( If you can’t find Dr Grandmas where you live, you can buy Dr G’s online or  just use any multigrain pancake mix that requires the addition of an egg.) I decided to toy with making a veggie pancake using veggies with just a bit of pancake mix as a binder to hold the veggies in a patty while cooking.

Since zucchini season is coming, I went heavy on the zuks, but you can try any grated veggie you like. These are so tasty and make perfect sides for your main course, or three of them make a fine vegetarian entree. They take only about 20 minutes to make – a great healthy weeknight meal! I like them drizzled with a Greek yogurt sauce mixed with a little Frank’s Red Hot Sauce and some cumin. Yum.

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Meatless Monday: An American Classic Goes Healthy – Lentil Sloppy Joes

Published on May 24, 2010 in Entrees, Gluten Free, Healthy Fare, Vegan Recipes and Vegetarian Entrees. 14 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

For Meatless Monday, I decided to attempt a re-do of an American classic recipe – Sloppy Joes. I tried a version with a variety of beans, but the beans turned out too starchy for this – not at all resembling ground meat. So then I thought of lentils. These little high-protein gems are packed with nutrients and they are so much easier and handier than using dried beans – no pre-soaking required! Turns out they are similar to the texture I was looking for to replace ground meat.

I used the ingredients I would have used 25 years ago to make Sloppy Joes for one of my kid-friendly desperation dinners – onions, peppers, tomato paste, brown sugar, spices and just a touch of mustard. Takes me back to the big-hair and florescent-fashion 80′s.

Sometimes a vegetarian re-do of a recipe is a distant second to the original in taste. Not so here. I was shocked to find out that this is a BETTER dish than if I had used hamburger. Seriously – much better. Bye, bye ground beef - Hello lentils!

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S.O.S. Challenge: Wilted Spinach Salad with Thai Peanut Vinaigrette

Published on May 19, 2010 in Entrees, Gluten Free, Healthy Fare, Side Dishes, Vegan Recipes and Vegetarian Entrees. 7 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

It’s strange. I don’t like peanut butter, but a good spicy Thai peanut sauce is one of my favorite things. I love it drizzled on just about everything and I discovered that it is a fabulous flavor pair with spinach. This recipe is re-worked to make it low-glycemic and vegan this time around and for the May vegan recipe challenge – SOS (a.k.a Sweet or Savory) - by Ricki of Diet, Dessert and Dogs and Kim of Affairs of Living. We agree with these two fabulous food bloggers: spinach is one of the healthiest things you can put in your mouth – calorie for calorie dark greens have the most nutrients of any food! We should all eat it every day!

I always had trouble making good peanut sauce until it finally dawned on me: to have really good Thai peanut sauce, you must start with really good peanut butter. It was one of those “Duh” moments for me!  It is a little more expensive, but you only use a little and it is well worth it. I like the all-natural “dark roasted” style with only two ingredients: salt and peanuts. I made this recipe with the idea of serving it cold on salads, so it is more like a vinaigrette than a sauce you would serve warm with chicken. I must admit that I tried to mimic Trader Joe’s Peanut Vinaigrette, which is also good BUT mine turned out even better – fresher tasting and more of a flavor punch!

I very lightly and briefly sauteed some rough chopped spinach for less than a minute until it just barely started to wilt. You could also blanch it quickly in boiling water. I then drained it and drizzled it with peanut vinaigrette, and sprinkled it with some diced roasted peanuts. Wow! Such an explosion of flavors!

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