spinach | Turning Veganese

May 10 2013

Tunaless Melt!

This could have made an amazing sandwich but it made an awesome wrap. I’ve been missing tuna melts, not for the fishy tinned tuna but for the melty goodness and crunchy celery. To make the filling I combined the following:

1 32oz tin of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 tbsp vegan mayo

1 cup of chopped celery

1/2 chopped onion

a generous pinch each of tarragon and thyme

1 tbsp marmite or vegemite

salt and flake red pepper to taste

I started by adding the celery and onion and microwaving it until the onion was soft.

I actually used a fork to mush the chickpeas. I liked the texture it provided since it reminded me more of real tuna that way. Once it was all mixed together, I microwaved it until it was hot and then adjusted the seasoning.

We combined this on a wrap with some Daiya cheddar which we melted by microwaving and then topped with some spinach and tomato. It hit the spot, EXACTLY!

This is Christie, signing off!

Tagged beans, celery, cheddar, chick pea, chickpea, chickpeas, dairy-free, daiya, easy, egg-free, flake red pepper, garbanzo, gluten-free, marmite, nut-free, onion, quick, salt, soy-free, spinach, tomato, vegan, vegemite, vegetarian

Apr 25 2013

4 Comments

Main Dishes

Chickenless Salad Wraps

This was an inappropriately easy dinner. We’ve been busy trying to find a friend for our bunny so we haven’t had a lot of time to make anything elaborate. All we did was combine the following:

2 cups soy curls

1 cube bouillon

1/2 tsp herbes de Provence

We covered them in water and microwaved one minute at a time until the water was absorbed. Then I added 2 tbsp vegan mayonnaise and a generous squeeze of lemon juice.

We added it to a wrap with some spinach (I added that after I took this picture), home-grown sprouts, tomato and bell pepper.

It was sweet, savory, crispy, chewy, and satisfying.

This is Christie, signing off!

Tagged bell pepper, dairy-free, easy, egg-free, gluten-free, herbes de provence, mayonnaise, nut-free, quick, soy curls, spinach, sprouts, tomato, vegan, veganaise, vegetarian

Feb 22 2013

1 Comment

Main Dishes

Italian Wraps!

We had some awesome looking sausage from Pure Market Express and we decided to make something simple with it so we could really appreciate the flavor.

This was crazy easy, all we did was pile up some Muir Glen fire-roasted tomato, black olives, and sausage on a lightly greased foil-lined baking sheet and topped it with some oregano and some Follow Your Heart mozzarella. I toasted it under our broiler until the cheese was melty and bubbly and then we scooped it onto a spinach lined wrap. I added some extra oregano and some flake red pepper. Brent added some vegan parmesan.

It was as tasty as it looks. The sausage was a little sweet but I think I can balance it in the future with some garlic salt. This might make a better sub sandwich if you’re not sensitive to gluten or have easy access to gluten-free rolls but we’re using wraps since it’s what we’ve got.

This is Christie, signing off!

Tagged black olives, dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, meatball sub, mozzarella, muir glen, oregano, parmesan, pure market express, sandwich, sausage, spinach, tomato, tortilla factory, vegan, vegetarian, wrap

Jan 22 2013

4 Comments

Main Dishes

Spinach Pesto!

Brent and I have been pretty lazy lately and that’s mostly burrito kick since we found gluten-free wraps made from teff. This wasn’t one of those nights.

All you need is the following in your blender.

1 cube of veggie bouillon

juice from a lemon

1/4 cup of hemp hearts (pine nuts work too but hemp is cheaper and more sustainable)

5-6 cloves of garlic (more if you like it spicy)

1 large bunch of spinach (frozen is fine)

1 tsp flake red pepper

1 tbsp nutritional yeast

1 block of silken tofu (use a cup of dry cashews, soaked overnight if you’ve got a soy allergy)

BLEND! We served ours with pasta that we tossed with chickpeas, sun dried tomato and porcini mushrooms.

It was definitely a worth while experiment because it was tasty and loaded with nutrients.

This is Brent and Christie, signing off!

Tagged bouillon, cashews, chickpeas, dairy-free, egg-free, flake red pepper, garlic, gluten-free, hemp hearts, nut-free, pasta, porcini mushrooms, silken tofu, soy-free, spinach, sundried tomato, vegan, vegetarian

Dec 16 2012

Sunday Bunday!

Okay… so we’re exploiting our bunnies for their cuteness but it’s a victimless crime… right?

They love kale, spinach, Brussel’s sprouts and everything else green and leafy. Clearly they’re smarter than most of us were at the age of 4.

This is Christie and Brent, signing off!

Tagged adopt, Brussels sprouts, bunnies, kale, rabbits, rescue, spinach, vegan

Nov 09 2012

Piccata revisited

Melissa is the author of the best piccata vegan or not. We decided we wanted some so we changed up a couple of the elements and were pleasantly surprised. We started by preparing some tempeh according to Melissa’s recipe and setting it on low to simmer.

We sauteed some spinach with garlic and flake red pepper.

Next we sauteed some polenta.

I served it all up hot with extra lemon caper awesomeness poured over the top and a sprinkle of paprika.

It was delicious and did not last long. I ended up having to make another batch immediately after this one disappeared. What this really translates to is a recipe that’s robust and reproducible. A huge “THANKS!” goes out to co-author Melissa. She’s pretty rad.

This is Brent and Christie, signing off!

Tagged basil, capers, corn, dairy-free, egg-free, flake red pepper, garlic, gluten-free, lemon, paprika, polenta, sautee, soy, spinach, tempeh

Nov 02 2012

4 Comments

Snacks

Cucumber, olive and hummus sammiches!

I made a loaf of bread and decided we needed to make some awesome sammies. This is inspired by a local restaurant that started serving a similar option with ham… we are skipping that and going straight for the good stuff.

This is as amazing as it is simple. Cucumber, pitted kalamata olives, spinach and your favorite hummus. Slice the cucumber and peel it if you like.

We spread hummus on the bread, put the olives on it (slice them in half if you like), add the spinach and then use the cucumber to moosh it down. Add some more hummus to the top piece of bread if you like.

NOM!

This was an awesome snack that was crisp and cooling from the cucumber and spinach with a savory element from the olives and hummus. It is an excellent option for a hot afternoon or just as a midnight snack.

This is Brent and Christie, signing off!

Tagged bread, cucumber, dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, hummus, kalamata olives, nut-free, sammie, sandwich, spinach, vegan, vegetarian

Sep 14 2012

5 Comments

Uncategorized

Spinach Artichoke Dip 2

I made a spinach artichoke dip a while ago that’s based on soy which is my favorite source of creaminess. In this particular recipe I’m using white beans for the people that I love who cannot eat soy. The nutritional profile is similar: iron, fiber, no cholesterol, low fat, rich in protein, vitamins and minerals and the flavor is just as awesome. We started with the following:

1 tin of white beans, drained OR 1 cup of white beans, soaked and [pressure] cooked

1 tin or jar of artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

1 10 ounce package of frozen spinach

1 small onion, diced

6 cloves of garlic, minced (more if you love garlic as much as I do)

1 tbsp onion powder

1 tbsp garlic powder

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

2 tbsp vegan parmesan (optional)

1 cube of veggie bouillon (we used Rapunzel)

1 tsp of flaked red pepper

1 dash of cayenne

1/2 tsp of paprika

juice from 1/4 of a lemon

2 tbsp vegan mayonnaise

1/4 cup of Daiya (optional)

Okay, so that seems like a lot of ingredients. It was really simple to make. Preheat your oven to 350F/175C… this won’t take long.

I put all of the ingredients into a bowl while my expert moosher went to work mooshing everything into oblivion. If you’re interested in something that’s creamier, I’d recommend putting the white beans into your blender or food processer first and blending until smooth but I like a little texture and Brent’s muscles are a sight to see mooshing those beans. We had to microwave it a few times to thaw the spinach.

Once it was all mixed I put everything into a loaf shaped baking tin and put it into my oven for 25 minutes. It came out smelling divine and tasting even better. I burned my mouth being so enthused about getting some of our creation into our mouths.

The Daiya and parmesan do make this richer but it wasn’t missing anything when we made it with one or the other or neither. It was still creamy, rich, delightful spinach artichoke dip, perfect for parties or snacking.

This is Brent and Christie, signing off.

Tagged artichoke, cayenne, cheesy, dairy-free, daiya, dip, easy, egg-free, garlic, garlic powder, gluten-free, mayonnaise, nut-free, nutritional yeast, onion, onion powder, paprika, parmesan, parties, quick, red pepper, soy-free, spinach, spinach artichoke dip, vegan, vegetable bouillon, vegetarian, white beans

Aug 17 2012

1 Comment

Raw

Figs and Cashews, another Dynamic Duo!

I was a big fan of the tart savory of zing of goat cheese paired with the sweet honeyed flavors of figs but goat cheese is no longer in my repertoire so what’s a girl to do? Well, fortunately there’s Punk Rawk Labs and their delicious cashew cheese. We started with some simple ingredients:

mixed greens with spinach

arugula

figs (fresh or dried)

cashew cheese (make your own or try Punk Rawk Labs’)

marinated tofu (optional)

balsamic vinegar

I started by putting a handful of greens on each plate.

Then I added another handful of arugula.

And then tastefully arranged (I just threw it on there…) some sliced figs, cashew cheese and tofu if you’re into tofu.

This is one version (above) with smoked tofu and dried figs. The more intense sweetness in the dried figs complemented both the savory smoky tofu and savory creamy tartness in the cashew cheese. We drizzled this one with raspberry dressing that really brought out the spicy and herbal flavors in the arugula. I’m a sucker for arugula. I liked the sienna of the figs next to the white tofu and the rich green but preferred the scene in the fresh fig salad. Salmon, ebony, white and emerald green kind of does it for me.

The second version (above) is more cashew cheese with fresh sliced fig. We drizzled it with balsamic vinegar and lots of cracked black pepper. The fig flavors were subtler in the fresh fruit: more fruity and less sweet and honey-like. I preferred it to the dried fig salad which was Brent’ favorite. These are salads that would impress company because they taste decadent and look beautiful. I hope you get to try some!

This is Christie, signing off!

Tagged arugula, balsamic vinegar, cashew cheese, cracked black pepper, dairy-free, dried figs, easy, fancy, fig, gluten-free, goat cheese, quick, raspberry, roquette, salad mix, smoke, spinach, tofu

Aug 13 2012

4 Comments

Raw

Raw Vegan Crackers 2.0

Brent and I manage to juice more often and that’s fine with me. I’m writing this because our cracker recipe has gotten more complicated and more delicious! Our juice varies but usually involves some combination of spinach, kale, parsley, mint, basil, apples, oranges, lemon, ginger root, carrots, celery, mango, beets and cucumber. When we don’t have time to make crackers, we just throw the pulp into a baggie and freeze it.

The ratios don’t matter much, but you’ll find the stronger flavors will come out (celery in particular) in the crackers and will complement the spices well. If you’re not using any sweet fruits or vegetables, you might consider adding a little molasses. Typically we juice everything that we can make into crackers (which is just about everything except for cucumber) and then empty the pulp into our blender. If you’ve made enough juice for one person you’ll add the following (and this doubles nicely)
1/3 cup of flax meal
2-4 teaspoons of soy sauce or suitable substitute
2-3 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp onion powder
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp flake red pepper
water as needed
We blend this up until the consistency is uniform and somewhere between a batter and a dough. Taste it and adjust the seasonings. It took me a while to get used to the idea of eating this raw or dehydrated so I understand if you’re wary. We use a spatula to spread it into the non-stick trays that go with our dehydrator and let it go overnight.

Sometimes I sprinkle sesame seeds on top but this isn’t necessary. You’ll have to put some pressure on each seed to make sure they don’t fall off once the crackers are dry. It’ll take some time adjusting the thickness of the dough when you spread it out in your dehydrator but you’ll end up with light crispy crackers that are great for you and awesome with hummus, bean dip or spinach artichoke dip. We store them in a giant plastic bag to keep the Miami humidity from softening them.

This is Brent and Christie, signing off!

Tagged basil, budget, carrots, celery, crackers, dairy-free, dipping, easy, flax meal, garlic, ginger, gluten-free, juice, kale, left over, leftovers, lemon, nut-free, onion, paprika, parsley, pulp, quick, red pepper, sesame seeds, soy-free, spinach, tahini, vegan, vegetarian

Turning Veganese

I think I'm turning veganese, I really think so.

Tag Archives: spinach

Tunaless Melt!

Chickenless Salad Wraps

Italian Wraps!

Spinach Pesto!

Sunday Bunday!

Piccata revisited

Cucumber, olive and hummus sammiches!

Spinach Artichoke Dip 2

Figs and Cashews, another Dynamic Duo!

Raw Vegan Crackers 2.0

Follow “Turning Veganese”

I think I'm turning veganese, I really think so.

Tag Archives: spinach

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