Weekend Glow Kale Salad

I love all the components of this salad - kale, onion, red bell pepper, carrot, cucumber, avocado, grape tomatoes, dried cranberries, hemp seeds and walnuts. Such a fun mix of stuff. (Though I forgot to add the avocado when I made it. Salad tragedy!) The dressing was too lemony for me, so in the recipe below I've put the amount of lemon juice I'd recommend using. Always better to use less, and you can add more if you want! (I love these giant white serving bowls. We got them as a wedding gift from Eric's coworkers.)

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Everyday Chickpea-Quinoa Salad with Baslamic Vinaigrette
Asian Kale Salad
Wheat Berry Salad with Zucchini and Mozzarella
Know Your Roots Salad

Weekend Glow Kale Salad
Adapted from Oh She Glows

Serves 4

I always eat the kale stems but I know some people prefer just the leaves, so if you want you can only use the leaves (and save the stems for another use like sauteed with other vegetables).

1 head of kale (about 6 cups), chopped
1 cup red onion, finely chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1/2 of an English cucumber, chopped (about 2 cups)
1 avocado, chopped
1 1/2 cups grape tomatoes, sliced in half
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup hemp seeds
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
Lightened Up Tahini-Lemon Dressing (see below)

In a large salad bowl, mix all the ingredients. Add the dressing and toss to combine. Allow to marinate for at least 15 minutes.

Lightened Up Tahini-Lemon Dressing
Adapted from Oh She Glows

Makes a little under 1 cup

1/4 cup tahini
2 garlic cloves
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (1-2 lemons)
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
3 tbsp water, or as needed

In a blender, process all ingredients until smooth. If desired, add more water to thin the dressing.

Dal Makhni

I love easy and simple lentil dishes like this. They're great for healthy and filling weeknight meals. E wasn't a huge fan of these lentils, but I liked the flavour from the cloves, cinnamon, bay leaf, cardamom, garlic and ginger. Paired with rice or quinoa and some steamed broccoli and cauliflower, or roasted beets and carrots, it's a perfect meal for me.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Pumpkin Lentil Curry
Pink Beans with Cardamom Yogurt Sauce
Spicy Indian Chickpeas/Chana Masala
Indian Stir Fried Cabbage

Dal Makhni
Adapted from Vegan Yum Yum

Serves 4 (with rice and vegetables)

1 cup green lentils
2 cups water
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves
1" piece of cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf
2 green cardamom pods
2 tsp minced ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/4 cups tomatoes, diced
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup cashews
2/3 cup water

In a pot, bring the lentils and 2 cups water to a boil. Simmer until tender, about 40 minutes.

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, cooking until caramelized, being careful not to burn. Add the cloves, cinnamon stick, bay leaf and cardamom pods and fry for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the ginger and garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and salt and cook until slightly reduced, about 5 minutes. Stir in the lentils.

Blend the cashews in a blender, slowly adding the 2/3 cup water until a rich cream forms. Stir this cream into the lentils. If you want to be fancy, reserve some of the sauce to drizzle over top for serving.

Baked BBQ Beer Tofu made with Rebarbecue Sauce

Tofu marinated in BBQ and beer sounded delicious to me so you can understand why I had it stuck in my head for months. Why for months? Well I wanted to make the barbecue sauce from my favourite cookbook, and while the sauce is easy to make it just took me some time to get around to doing it. Sometimes I buy bottled sauces but I use them once or twice then forget about them (except ketchup and mustard mmm). So homemade BBQ sauce it was!

There's a step in the barbecue sauce making process where you boil spices in vinegar, and that was the most amazing step because it made my apartment smell like A&W, minus the grease, if that makes any sense. Okay maybe that sounds gross but it wasn't. The barbecue sauce was really good but too spicy for me to be able to fully taste everything. I've adjusted the chipotle puree in the recipe to reflect how I'll make it next time.

As for the tofu, I was sadly disappointed. It didn't taste strongly of beer or bbq sauce. Admittedly I did not press my tofu first (I never do). I love the idea of this tofu so I will have to try it again.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Apple-Miso Tofu
Honey-Mustard Marinated Tofu
Salt & Pepper Tofu
Cumin Lime Tofu

Baked BBQ Beer Tofu
Adapted from The Edible Perspective

1/2 bottle beer
1/3 cup Rebarbecue Sauce (see below)
1 block extra firm tofu, cut into cubes

Whisk together the beer and rebarbecue sauce. Marinate the tofu for at least 1 hour, but overnight is better. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400F. Drain the sauce from the tofu, and place tofu on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve with extra barbecue sauce.

Rebarbecue Sauce
Adapted from Rebar: Modern Food Cookbook

Makes about 2 cups

Add more chipotle puree if you like it spicy.

1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 1/2 tsp whole cloves
4 allspice berries
4 cardamom pods
1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
2 tbsp molasses
2 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp chipotle puree (from a pureed can of chipotle chiles in adobo sauce)
5.5 oz can tomato paste
1 bottle dark beer

1. In a small pot, bring vinegar and whole spices to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, which will take about 15 minutes. Strain out the solids and cool to room temperature.

2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a skillet to medium and saute the onion until golden, adding garlic halfway through. Sprinkle sugar into the pan and when it melts, add all of the remaining ingredients including the vinegar. Bring mixture to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes, or until the sauce is thick and glossy.

3. Puree the sauce until smooth, cool and refrigerate.

Shredded Seitan and Mushroom Empanadas with Raisins and Olives

One of the first things that caught my eye in Viva Vegan! was the empanadas. I don't even remember the last time I ate them if ever because they're usually filled with meat. But this cookbook offers up so many delicious versions and my first choice was the shredded seitan and mushrooms empanadas with raisins and olives. How flavourful does that sound? I don't usually like raisins in baked goods but love what they add to savoury dishes.

And the dough was easy enough to make, roll out and work with. When baked, the pastry was crispy and a bit flakey. They could look more perfect if I cut out circles in the dough with a bowl but it's always my preference to avoid re-rolling dough and to simplify things. So I just divided my dough and rolled each piece into a circle. I can't wait to try out the other filling variations like corn crusted pumpkin potato, and beans rice and sweet plantain.

The recipe is time consuming, because you have to make the seitan, the filling, and the dough. But if you take it one part at a time it's not so bad.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Seitan Black Bean Corn Burgers
Vegan Pot Roast and Gravy
Udon Noodles with Peanut Sauce and Seitan
Baked Seitan

Shredded Seitan and Mushroom Empanadas with Raisins and Olives
Adapted from Viva Vegan!

Makes 12

1 recipe Empanada Dough (see below)
1/2 recipe Steamed Red Seitan (2 loaves), chilled and grated (see below)
1/2 lb button mushrooms, very finely minced
2 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 lb onion, finely minced
2 tbsp red wine
1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
Salt & pepper
1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted and sliced in half
1/3 cup dark raisins
1/3 cup nondairy milk

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the olive oil and garlic until the garlic starts to sizzle and becomes fragrant. Add in the onion and fry until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add in the mushrooms and cook until they darken and release their juices, another 5 minutes. Add the red wine, paprika, oregano, cumin and cinnamon, stirring occasionally and bring to a simmer. Stir in the grated seitan and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring constantly. Use a spoon or silicone spatula to press the seitan into the liquid and vegetables to help the seitan absorb all the seasonings. Remove from the heat, let cool for a few minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the olives and raisins. Set aside to cool.

When ready to assemble the empanadas, preheat oven to 400F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Have ready the prepared dough rounds, nondairy milk (for brushing) and pastry brush.

Take a dough round and lightly brush it with nondairy milk. Scoop a generous 1/3 cup of filling, making sure to get a few raisins and olive slices with each scoop. Place the filling into the center of the round and spread it over half of the round; leave about 1/2 inch of space along the edge of the dough. Make sure the filling doesn't spill over the edge otherwise crimping the edges will be difficult.

Fold the dough over the filling, stretching and pulling it just enough to completely encase everything. (You will now have a semicircular patty.) With your fingers, firmly press down the edges of the dough, then seal by firmly pressing with the tines of a fork into the edges of the empanada. Carefully lift and place on a prepared baking sheet and brush with nondairy milk. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.

Bake the empanadas for 24 to 26 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the edges begin to brown. Allow them to cool for 5 minutes before serving, as the filling will be extremely hot out of the oven.

To reheat, either wrap bake at 350F for 8 to 10 minutes or microwave on high for 30 seconds.

Empanada Dough

Makes enough for 12 large empanadas

3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
4 tbsp chilled vegan shortening, cut into 1/2" pieces
4 tbsp chilled vegan margarine, cut into 1/2" pieces
3/4 cup cold water, or more as needed

In a food processor, pulse together the flour, salt and baking powder for a few seconds. Add the shortening and margarine, and pulse until everything resembles fine, sandlike crumbs.

Pour the flour mixture into a large bowl and stream in the cold water while mixing the dough with your fingers or a fork. Continue adding just enough cold water that you can press the mixture together to form a soft and stretchy dough. Briefly knead a few times, divide into 2 balls, flatten each into a round about an inch thick, and wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Minimize handling of the dough to keep it from getting tough. Chill overnight or for at least 4 hours.

Tear about 12 pieces of waxed paper or parchment paper to about 7 inches squares. Cut one of the dough rounds into 6 pieces (two dough rounds make 12 pieces). On a lightly floured surface, roll one of the cut pieces into a circle of 3/8" thickness, stretching and pulling the dough a little if necessary. To keep the dough from getting tough, use long rolling motions, occasionally lifting the dough by the edges and turning it a little to ensure an even thickness throughout.

Stack the circles of dough on top of one another, separating them with the waxed or parchment paper (to keep them from sticking). Repeat with the remaining 11 pieces of dough to make 12 dough rounds.

Chill the finished dough circles, the entire stack well wrapped in plastic wrap until ready to use.

Steamed Red Seitan

Makes 4 loaves

1 1/2 cups cold vegetable broth
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
4 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cups vital wheat gluten
1/4 cup chickpea flour
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp ground cumin

In a measuring cup, whisk together the broth, garlic, soy sauce, tomato paste and olive oil. In a large bowl, whisk the wheat gluten, chickpea flour, nutritional yeast, oregano and cumin. Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and pour the liquid ingredients into the well, stirring with a rubber spatula until the dough leaves the sides of the bowl. Knead the dough for 2 to 3 minutes to develop the gluten. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes; knead again for 30 seconds. Cut the dough into 4 equal pieces and lightly knead each piece a few times, shaping each piece into a roughly oblong loaf shape.

Tear off four 12" square pieces of aluminum foil. Place a piece of dough in the center of a piece of foil. Fold the foil around the dough so that the foil is secure but there is some space around the dough to let it expand while steaming. Repeat with the rest of the dough. Place the wrapped dough in a steamer and steam for 30 minutes. Allow the dough to cool to the touch before chilling in the fridge for at least an hour, or overnight.

Carrot Chia Spelt Muffins

This was the view from my office on Monday! I left work early and didn't go to work yesterday. I think the snow has mostly stopped for now, but it's going to be really cold (-13C, feels like -23C).

I love Angela's baked goods. She's always coming up with delicious new healthy snacks like these muffins. And it's no easy feat to create yummy AND healthy muffins. These ones have carrot, chia seeds, cacao nibs, spelt flour and raisins.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Blueberry Spice Spelt Muffins
Pineapple Carrot Ginger Muffins
Double Chocolate Avocado Muffins
Coconut Banana Muffins

Carrot Chia Spelt Muffins
Adapted from Oh She Glows

Makes 12 muffins

Dry:
2 cups spelt flour
3 tbsp raw cane sugar
1 1/2 tsp pumpkin spice
1/4 tsp sea salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp cacao nibs
3 tbsp raisins

Wet:
2 tbsp chia seeds
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp non-dairy milk (I used unsweetened plain soy)
1 cup grated/shredded carrot
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 c maple syrup
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 375F. Prepare 12 cup muffin tin with oil or liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together wet ingredients. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and mix until combined (don't overmix). Divide batter evenly among the muffin cups.

Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.