I'm going to start off with a creamy polenta (kind of similar to grits, but about 284024027 times better because grits are just gross), then move on to fresh and flavorful grilled vegetable and tempeh fajitas, and after that it's a hearty pasta primavera, and to finish, we've got spicy tofu with peppers and cashews.
Creamy Polenta
Ingedients
8 cups water, divided
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups polenta or cornmeal
3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons vegan margarine
Directions
In a large saucepan, bring 4 cups of the water to a boil. Add the salt and reduce the heat to medium. In a bowl, whisk together the remaining water and polenta. Slowly add the polenta mixture to the saucepan while whisking constantly to avoid lumps, and continue to cook while whisking 2-3 minutes. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer, stirring occasionaly, 30-40 minutes until very thick and smooth. Add the yeast and margarine and stir to combine. Taste and add additional salt if needed. Transfer to a platter or bowl for service.
This is just a basic recipe for creamy polenta, but the best part is that you can add all kinds of stuff to make it different. You could chop up some green peppers, drain some corn, and a small can of Ro-Tel and make it fiesta-style. Or you could add spinach and vegan mozzarella cheese. If you're not vegan or vegetarian, you could add chopped bacon some cooked diced potatoes, and cheese. Or you can just eat it plain. But polenta is a pretty great for a warm, hearty, soul food-type of dinner.
Grilled Vegetable & Tempeh Fajitas
Ingredients
2 - 8oz packages tempeh
1 jalapeno, destemmed, deseeded, and minced
1/3 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons brown rice syrup (this might be a little harder to find)
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
zest of 1 lime
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Bragg liquid aminos (can be found at most grocery stores)
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
3 cups zucchini, diagonally sliced, 1/2 inch thick
3 cups squash, diagonally sliced, 1/2 inch thick
3 cups red onion, sliced 1/2 inch thick
2 cups green pepper, cut into strips
2 cups orange pepper, cut into strips
2 cups red pepper, cut into strips
8 - 8inch flour tortillas
Garnishes, including vegan shredded cheese, salsa, guacamole (I'll give you my damn good recipe for it, so feel special), Mexican rice, lettuce, tomatoes, and cilantro-tofu cream (a vegan sour cream replacement I'll give you the recipe for, too)
Directions
In a steamer basket, steam the whole blocks of tempeh for 10 minutes and set aside. In a bowl, combine the orange juice, cilantro, olive oil, brown rice syrup, lime juice, lime zest, red wine vinegar, liquid aminos, oregano, thyme, garlic, cumin, cinnamon, and black pepper, and whisk well to blend. Place the steamed blocks of tempeh in a small casserole dish and place the zucchini, squash, red onion, and peppers in a large casserole dish. Drizzle 1/3 of the marinade over the tempeh and 1/3 over the vegetables; cover and put in refrigerator for several hours to marinate.
Using a grilling basket or tray (remember that great basket from Pampered Chef I mentioned a few months back? Order one from my BFF Shelby Ferguson ASAP), put the tempeh and vegetables on the grill and brush with the remaining marinade. Grill the tempeh until well-browned, about 5-7 minutes per side, and grill the vegetable until tender, about 3-4 minutes per side. Once removed, cut the blocks of tempeh into strips. Then, pile up the tortillas with the tempeh, vegetables, and garnishes of your choice.
Cilantro-Tofu Cream
Ingredients
1 - 12.3oz package Mori-Nu silken style tofu, firm
1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1/3 cup soy milk
3 tablespoons lemon juic
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
Directions
In your Ninja (or if you're still a lame-ass, food processor or blender), combine all of the ingredients until smooth. Transfer to a glass bowl, cover, and chill for 1 hour to let the flavors blend. Use as you would regular sour cream.
Brittany's Guacamole
Ingredients
3 avocados, peeled, pitted, and mashed (I like to leave some decent-sized chunks in mine)
1 lime, juiced
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup red onion, diced
3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
2 roma tomatoes, diced
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1 pinch ground cayenne pepper
1 pinch white pepper
Directions
In a bowl, mash together the avocados, lime juice, and salt. Mix in onion, cilantro, tomatoes, garlic, cayenne pepper, and white pepper. Refrigerate covered for 1 hour. Serve as a garnish for fajitas or just eat with tortilla chips (yum!)
Just in case you are a dumbass who doesn't know how to properly peel an avocado.
YUM!
Pasta Primavera
Ingredients
1 pound fettucine or other pasta of choice
1/3 cup shallots, finely diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
6oz asparagus, tough ends trimmed
1 cup carrot, julienned
3/4 cup red pepper, diced
2 tablespoons garlic, minced
1 cup zucchini, cut into quarters lengthwise and diced
3/4 cup fresh or frozen peas
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, cut into small pieces
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons unbleached flour
1 tablespoon onion powder
2 1/2 cups non-dairy milk of choice (I prefer soy for savory dishes)
1/3 cup nutritional yeast flakes
3/4 teaspoons sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
4 cups spinach, triple-washed, destemmed and roughly chopped
1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
Directions
In a large pot of water, boil the pasta 8-10 minutes or until al dente. Drain well, return the cooked pasta to the pot, and set aside. Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet, saute the shallots in the olive oil for 2 minutes to soften. Cut the spears of asparagus diagonally into 1-inch spears, separating the stems and tips, and set aside the tips for later use. Add the asparagus stems, carrot, and red pepper to the shallots and saute 2 minutes. Add garlic and saute an additional 2 minutes. Add the zucchini, peas, and sun-dried tomatoes and continue to saute until the vegetables are tender.
Add the Dijon mustard, flour, and onion powder to the pan, stir well to combine, and cook for 1 minute while stirring constantly. Add the non-dairy milk, yeast flakes, salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper to the mix and cook an additional 2-3 minutes or until thickened. Add the spinach, parsley, and dill, cover, and remove from heat, letting sit for 2-3 minutes for the spinach to wilt. Add the vegetable mixture to the cooked pasta and mix well to combine. Serves 8 approximately.
Tofu with Peppers and Cashews
Ingredients
1lb firm tofu
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons Sucanat (this is basically natural cane sugar that isn't refined to have the molasses removed from it - it can be difficult to find, so if you MUST substitute it, use brown sugar)
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup raw cashews
2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 cups red pepper, julienned
1 cup orange or yellow pepper, julienned
1 cup green pepper, julienned
1 cup green onion, thinly sliced
2 jalapenos, destemmed, deseeded, and diced
Directions
Cut the block of tofu in half lengthwise. Turn each half cut-side down on the board, and cut through the outer edge of the block of tofu 3 times to yield 4 tofu cutlets from each half. This means that the block of tofu will yield 8 tofu cutlets. On a large cookie sheet, place a clean, lint-free towel, or a layer of natural, unbleached paper towels, then all of the tofu cutlets in a single layer, followed by another layer of toweling, and finally place another large cookie sheet on top. Place several large cans or something very heavy on top of the cookie sheet and leave tofu to sit for 1 hour. This process is known as cutting tofu into cutlets and pressing. I use this technique a lot as it makes the texture of the tofu much firmer.
In a small bowl, place the cumin, coriander, Sucanat, salt, garlic powder, paprika, and cayenne pepper; stir well to combine and then set aside. Cut the pressed tofu into 1/2-inch cubes and transfer them to a bowl. Sprinkle the tofu with the reserved spice blend, toss well to evenly coat the tofu cubes, and set aside. In a dry wok or large non-stick skillet, place the cashews and cook for 3-4 minutes or until lightly toasted and fragrant. Remove the cashews from the wok and set them aside to cool. In the same wok, heat the peanut oil, add the cubes of tofu, and stir-fry for 5-7 minute or until crispy and lightly browned on all sides. Remove the tofu cubes from the wok with a slotted spoon and set them aside. In the same wok, stir-fry the red, orange, and green peppers for 2 minutes. Add the green onion and jalapenos and stir-fry an additional 2 minutes. Roughly chop the toasted cashews, add them and the cooked tofu to the wok, and stir fry an additional 1 minute. Transfer to a large platter or bowl for service.
If you're not vegetarian, you're probably wondering what in the hell tempeh is. It's an Indonesian whole-soybean product that's caked together like tofu, but it has a very different texture and different nutritional benefits. Because it retains the whole bean, it has higher protein, fiber, and all those good vitamins your body needs. It looks pretty gross and has a strong flavor that takes a little getting used to, but I actually really like it better than tofu usually.
Uncooked tempeh cake - see the whole soybeans in it? Like I said, looks gross but it's pretty good.
Alright, so I think I touched on all the important food nationalities, because we've got a little Southern good-cookin', some Mexican, Italian, and Chinese. No reason to limit ourselves to boring shit for dinner! And in closing, I'm leaving you with the "Carryout" video (from where I got the lame title to this blog post) because A) it's a good song with a great beat, and B) Justin Timberlake still rocks my world to no end.
