Category Archives: Salads & Oil-Free Dressings

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Happy Thanksgiving to you and your loved ones!

Here’s a quick shot of my Thanksgiving meal… it was a short menu this year – just made enough for my hubby’s on-shift dinner (he didn’t want to eat turkey this year!) and my daughter and I. It was delicious! Recipes and details to follow.

Tempeh & Sage Loaf (Vegan Slow Cooker Recipe)

Raw Collard Green & Apple Salad with Pomegranates (Melomeals: Vegan For $3.33 A Day Recipe)

Mock Meatloaf with Brown Gravy (Happy Herbivore Recipe)

Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Caramelized Onions (My Recipe 🙂

Dill Potatoes (Josh’s favorite!)

Baked Acorn Squash with Apples (The Global Vegan)

Butter Bean Chocolate Chip Cookies for dessert (Happy Herbivore Recipe)

Thanksgiving Meal 2011

Josh's Firehouse Meal (with leftover gravy)

Butter Bean Chocolate Chip Cookies - Happy Herbivore Recipe

Dig in!

Goaty Cashew Cheeze

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It’s crazy how much this tastes like goat cheese! I’m always amazed at how you can make “cheese” out of cashews and sauerkraut… sounds gross but it’s really good! You can use this cheeze on anything – pizza, salads, sandwiches, etc. I added this to my BBQ Tempeh Wrap with Goaty Cheeze today and it was awesome!

Ingredients

This recipe is from… again, Melomeals: Vegan For $3.33 A Day.

Goaty Cashew

  1. 1 c cashews or almonds
  2. 1 c sauerkraut
  3. 2 T miso
  4. 2 t Dijon
  5. 1 t Umeboshi vinegar or apple cider vinegar
  6. Pinch salt (optional)


Method:

  1. Blend very well in either a high power blender or food processor
  2. If you have a yogurt maker, culture overnight
  3. If you don’t have a yogurt maker, let sit covered for 2 days – ON THE COUNTER! You can put it in the fridge if you are worried but I didn’t and it came out great!

Goaty Cheeze

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TVP “Meat” With Hidden Greens

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After discovering the best Chipotle Dressing/Sauce recipe (from Melomeals: Vegan For $3.33 A Day), I decided to make Taco Salad! I know, I’ve been on a chipotle kick lately but I’ve made all these things with ONE can of chipotle peppers in adobo and I’m really excited about it.

You can use this “meat” to make anything that calls for taco meat. We love this filling in tacos!

This isn’t my usual loaded Taco Salad but it’s a really delicious one with minimal ingredients, great if you don’t have much time but you need something healthy. I can think of a bunch of additional toppings I could add but this is my quick version.

The “meat” ingredient is TVP – Textured Vegetable Protein.

Texture vegetable protein is a high-fiber, high-protein meat substitute made from soy flour and available in a variety of flavored and unflavored varieties, as well as different sizes, from large chunks to small flakes. It has a shredded chicken texture when cooked.
I like the Bob’s Red Mill brand, you can buy it at Sprouts for about $3 a bag – makes about 2 meals (4 servings each) with lots of leftovers.
** Here’s my Taco Salad “Meat” recipe, you can also use this “meat” for tacos or burritos.
  • 2 cups TVP
  • 2 cups water
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp olive or vegetable oil (optional)
  • 1 package taco seasoning or homemade taco seasoning (link to homemade taco seasoning recipe!)
  • 1 bunch of chard – washed and chopped
  • 1.2 – 1 bunch of kale – washed and chopped
  • 1/4 – 1/2 cup salsa (I like Costco Kirkland brand the best!)

Preparation:

* In a large skillet, heat the water over medium heat, and add the TVP, stirring well. Allow the TVP to reconstitute for 2-3 minutes.

* Add oil (if you are not using oil, add a few Tbsp of broth) and soy sauce, combine and cook for 30 seconds

* Add chard, kale and taco seasoning, stirring well. Cover and allow to cook for another 3-5 minutes, stirring as needed.

* Mix in salsa and remove from heat.

–  My Quick Taco Salad Toppings

I like to use romaine lettuce for my taco salad base, it has a nice crunch to it!

I top most of my mexican dishes with Follow Your Heart cheese – I like the Nacho Cheese flavor the best! It shreds and melts well and tastes awesome!

I also like to use Tofutti brand Sour Supreme – tastes just like real sour cream but much better for you!

Shred the nacho cheese, add to meat and romaine lettuce, top with guacamole and sour cream. Finish it off with Chipotle Dressing/Sauce (the sauce is A MUST!), chips (if you wish, not necessary) and a little salsa (if you like it spicy!) and you have a VERY tasty meal!

My husband and daughter both loved this! This is a great way to hide a few leafy greens for those who refuse to eat them!

** Leftover Alert!

We had the TVP “meat” with all the same toppings in Napa Cabbage Tacos tonight for dinner and it was delicious!

Sushi Roll Edamame Salad with Green Onion Miso Vinaigrette

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We’ve been craving sushi lately but haven’t had much extra time so I made this sushi’ish salad instead. It turned out really good! The dressing is fabulous and I plan on using it for many things in the future – veggie sandwiches, kale salads and veggie kabob marinade!

I found this recipe in one of my favorite cookbooks “Appetite For Reduction: 125 Fast And Filling Low-Fat Vegan Recipes” By Isa Moskowitz. (Buy Here)

This recipe is super healthy, refreshing and so much faster than chopping up sushi toppings!

Ingredients:

* 1 cup shelled frozen edamame, thawed

* 1 Tbsp rice vinegar

* 1 tsp agave nectar

* 8 cups chopped romaine lettuce

* 2 cups cooked and cooled short-grain brown rice

* 1 small cucumber, cut into matchsticks (I cheated and just sliced them thin)

* 1 medium-size carrot, cut into matchsticks (again, cheated and just sliced them thin)

* 1 cup thinly sliced green onions

* 4 tsp sesame seeds (I used rice seasoning from the asian market – a mix of nori, sesame seeds and dried kelp)

* 1 sheet nori (seaweed paper) – cut into strips or tear into small pieces

* Sliced avocado

* Green Onion – Miso Vinaigrette (recipe)

– 1/4 cup red miso (Sprouts has it)

– 1-2 cups roughly chopped green onions, white and green parts

– 3 Tbsp rice vinegar

– 2 tsp chopped fresh ginger

– 1 clove garlic

– 2 tsp agave nectar

– 2 tsp toasted sesame oil (Trader Joe’s has it and it’s cheap)

– 1/2 to 3/4 cup water

Dressing Directions:

Blend in a blender until smooth, adding 1/2 cup water first and additional 1/4 cup as needed. Chill until ready to use.

Salad Directions:

– Prepare dressing first

– Mix together the edamame, rice vinegar and agave in a small bowl

– Assemble salad – romaine lettuce first, then rice, cucumber, edamame, carrot, green onion and sesame seeds

– Sprinkle with the nori and avocado

– Serve with vinaigrette

AMAZING Kale Salad topped with Smoky Maple Tempeh Crumbles

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We eat a ton of kale salad but this one is the absolute best! I highly recommend this one, you WILL NOT be disappointed. I’ve added the Smoky Maple Tempeh Crumbles to make it more of a meal-type salad and it’s awesome! You can make this without the tempeh too, it’s so good either way! Plus, this salad keeps well in the fridge for a few days so it makes awesome leftovers!!

AMAZING Kale Salad topped with Smoky Maple Tempeh Crumbles

This salad recipe is from food blog Melomeals: VEGAN FOR $3.33 A DAY, one of my favorites!

Here is her recipe:

Ingredients:

  • 4 cups kale, destemmed and cut in a chiffonade – I use Black Kale/Lacinato or also called Elephant Kale
  • 1/2 – 1 teaspoon best quality sea salt (smoked salt would be fabulous here!) – I use Alderwood Smoked Salt from World Spice Merchants but you can use regular salt if that’s all you have (Smoked salt is best though!!)
  • 2 Tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar – I add a little extra
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon orange zest
  • 2 cups shredded carrots
  • 1 cup chopped red cabbage
  • ½ cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
  • 2 Tablespoons minced red onion
  • ½ cup chopped green olives – make sure you mince them well
  • 1 cup toasted sunflower seeds
  • ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
  • Pinch nutmeg
  • ½ cup raisins
  • 1 cup cilantro, chopped
  • 1 Tablespoon soy sauce
  • Salt/pepper to taste if needed
Directions:
– In a large mixing bowl, add the kale, salt, orange juice, vinegar and garlic powder. Massage well with
your hands for several minutes.
– Add the rest of the ingredients and massage well
Let salad sit for 10 minutes; taste and adjust seasonings and enjoy!
For the Smoky Maple Tempeh Crumbles – you can use these in a lot of other dishes too, they are great in breakfast burritos, other salads and just by themselves! You can also keep them in cubes instead of mashing them.
* 2-4 blocks Organic Tempeh – from Trader Joe’s
* 2-4 tsp Liquid Smoke (depending on how smoky you like it!)
* 2-4 Tbsp Pure Maple Syrup (depending on how sweet you like it!)
– I use 4 blocks of tempeh (from Trader Joe’s) so I have enough for leftovers (I always double this salad recipe for leftovers) – you can use 2 for a single batch of this salad
** Note: I used to cook these in oil but I’ve since removed oil from our diet. You can bake these crumbles on parchment paper at 350 degrees for about 20-30 minutes. Stir every 10 minutes or so.
– Slice tempeh into cubes
– Boil tempeh in salted water for about 15 minutes
– Drain tempeh and transfer to mixing bowl
– Mash tempeh into crumbles
– Heat Safflower oil until hot and add crumbled tempeh
– Brown tempeh crumbles a bit then add Maple Syrup and Liquid Smoke – taste and add more if you like.
Top salad with crumbles once they’ve cooled… YUMMY!!!

Toddler Approved Loaded Kale Salad

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Our toddler couldn’t get enough of this salad, she ate two plates worth! It’s called Kathy’s Fully Loaded Kale Salad and it’s from one of my absolute favorite food blogs Healthy Happy Life. It’s got tons of goodies in it and it keeps very well for leftovers.

Here’s a picture of her devouring Kathy’s salad!

Toddler Approved!

I used Black/Lacinato Kale for this salad. I rip the leaves off of the thick ribs/stems and wash them in one of my favorite kitchen tools – The Pampered Chef Salad Spinner . I use this almost daily and I love it! It’s $60 but it’s totally worth it, especially if you use it as much as I do.

Pampered Chef Salad Spinner – MUST HAVE TOOL!!

After washing and spinning my kale dry, I roll the leaves together and slice them into strips.

Chopped Black/Lacinato Kale

Now you are ready to assemble your salad!

Here’s her recipe, you can also access it by clicking on the name of her salad above.

Kathy’s Fully Loaded Kale Salad
vegan, served 2-3 entrée portions

1 large bunch of kale (any variety) – remove thick stems/shred leaves by hand

Toppings (as shown – but you can add your faves):
2-3 Tbsp hemp seeds (Found in bulk section of Sprouts)
2-3 Tbsp raw sunflower seeds
1/2 cup apple, sliced
1/2 avocado, diced/tossed in lemon juice
handful of cherry tomatoes, diced
1/2 cup juice-packed mandarin oranges
1 small sweet onion, thinly sliced
fine black pepper

Dressing:
2 1/2 Tbsp tahini – (Found by the peanut butter – it’s sesame seed nut butter)
3 Tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp grade B maple syrup (optional – if you need extra sweetness to balance the bitterness of tahini)

To make:

1.Wash your kale, dry well. Pull tender leaves from thick lower stems. Shred leaves by hand. Add to large mixing bowl. Discard thick stems.
2. Briskly mix together the dressing ingredients. Do a taste test and adjust as desired for your tastes. You can always add in more maple syrup if your tahini is too bitter. I also like to add in an extra splash of apple cider vinegar when I’m craving a very zesty salad.
3. Toss your kale salad in your dressing. I use salad tongs instead of my hands (some will massage the kale) I actually like my kale a tad al dente (not overly marinated with dressing) so I simply toss with tongs until the dressing is evenly distributed.
4. Fold in the hemp seeds and sunflower seeds.
5. Add the remaining toppings in a lovely pattern on top.
Serve!

This salad will also do well in the fridge for a few hours – or even set out at a party or potluck. If not eating right away I’d use a tad less dressing – or add another 1/2 bunch of kale.

Here’s what mine looks like.

All toppings aboard – time to mix!

Yum!!

This salad calls for hemp seeds, you can find them whole in the bulk section at Sprouts or shelled for a great price on Amazon. I’ll be getting more into detail about hemp seeds, they are really good for you! Thanks again Kathy!