Sunday, January 24, 2010

Yummy Lazy Fajitas

Bonjour! I hope everyone (Michele) has had a great week! I have been busy working out and trying to get healthy… and I have more or less neglected the blog. My apologies for this.

So, today's recipe is for delicious vegan fajitas! They are extremely easy and I am quite sure they will make its way into your usual culinary repertoire. Enjoy!

Vegan Fajitas [Serves 4, or 2 really hungry people]

Ingredients:
4-6 Four Tortillas
1 tbsp Canola oil
3 Bell peppers (assorted colours), sliced
1/4 lb Mushrooms (your favourite kind), sliced
2 Onions, sliced
2 cloves Garlic, diced
1 Can Refried Beans
1 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp onion powder
1-2 tbsp chilli powder
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp pepper
1/2 tsp coriander (optional)
1/4 cup water

Lettuce, chopped, for topping
Salsa, for topping
Guacamole, for topping

Preparation:

Heat oil in a pan over med-high heat. Add bell peppers and sauté until they become soft, about 5 minutes. Add onions and mushrooms and continue sautéing until onions are translucent; add garlic and continue cooking for 5 minutes longer or until vegetables have caramelized to your taste.

Add spices and continue cooking for about 2 minutes. Add the water to deglaze the pan and add refried beans. It will be slightly difficult to mix the beans into the mix, but as it warms it will incorporate into the vegetables.

Your filling is now complete. Warm the tortillas and spoon filling onto them, along with chopped lettuce, salsa and guacamole. Roll up and serve. Enjoy!

VARIATIONS:

- Add a can of corn (drained and rinsed) for extra flavour

- Add Seitan or Tofu to up the protein (although there is a good quantity as is)

- To make these into Enchiladas, roll up each tortilla (without lettuce) and place into a deep baking pan. Pour over enchilada sauce (most are Vegan) and sprinkle Vegan cheese over top. Bake at 375 until the cheese is browned and bubbly.


PS -I have figured out how to add pictures - so they will be coming soon! :)

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Herbed Pasta Salad

Happy Sunday!

This Herbed Pasta Salad is a variation of a pasta salad in Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's book "The Vegan Table". I hope you enjoy it!

Herbed Pasta Salad [Makes 6 servings].

Ingredients:
16 oz vegan penne (or similar)*
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup fresh basil
1/2 cup fresh Italian parsley
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cucumber, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
2 bell peppers, chopped
1 can artichokes, drained and chopped
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup pine nuts

Optional: 1 block tofu, squared and fried

Preparation:

Begin with cooking pasta according to instructions.

Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine oil, vinegar, lemon juice, fresh herbs, salt, pepper and sugar. Blend until the herbs look finely chopped and ingredients are well incorporated.

When pasta is cooked, allow to cool and combine all ingredients (including tofu, if using). Mix thoroughly and serve.



* Dried pasta is usually Vegan, but check the ingredients just to make sure. Rice pasta is almost always Vegan.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Black Bean Quesadillas with Pico De Gallo

Happy New Year to all! I went grocery shopping at Whole Foods down in West Vancouver - such a nice store, but far and expensive. Decided I would try it out and compare the purchase price to that at the normal grocery next time I shop for the same ingredients. I will let you know.

Today I made some super easy quesadillas and Pico de Gallo, which is a rustic salsa. The entire meal took less than an hour to make and clean. It was absolutely delicious! I came up with this recipe a while ago actually - and if it's of any value, Dan said he'll be happy eating Vegan if all meals are as yummy as this one! I served the quesadillas with some home made coleslaw.

Black Bean Quesadillas w/ PDG & [Makes 4 Servings]

2 cans black beans, drained
2 small onions, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, diced
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1.5 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
Cayenne, to taste
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup shredded Vegan cheese (optional)

4 flour tortillas

3 medium tomatoes, quartered
1 small red onion, quartered
1 garlic clove, finely diced
2-3 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
Juice of 1/2 a lime (and more to taste)

Preparation:

Heat a pan on medium-high heat. Add ½ the oil, and sauté onions until translucent then add garlic, continuing to sauté until the onions caramelize slightly. Add the black beans and sauté together until heated through. Add water and stir in the cumin, pepper, salt, and cayenne. Bring to a boil and cook until most of the water has evaporated (this allows the beans to break down a little).

In a large pan (large enough to hold one tortilla), heat remaining oil on med-high heat. Place one flour tortilla in the pan and sprinkle vegan cheese on half (if using). Spoon ¼ of black beans onto the same half and fold over, allowing the bottom to brown, about 4 minutes. Flip over to brown the other side, another 4 minutes. Follow the same directions for the 3 remaining tortillas, adding more oil if needed. Place each complete quesadilla onto a plate.

Meanwhile, add in the red onion, tomatoes, garlic, cilantro, and lime juice in a food processor. Pulse until the contents are evenly chopped and begin to look like fresh, delicious salsa.
Serve immediately with prepared quesadillas.