Before I sign off, I have some food photos that I want to share. Enjoy!
This is a recipe that I tested for Melody. Far East Spicy Tofu and Green Beans. My, this was delicious! The sauce was a complex balance between sweet, spicy, and savory, and the texture of the tofu paired well with the crisp green beans. Melody is quite a fabulous chef!
It was so lovely that I thought it deserved another shot...
I finally sucked up my fears and made seitan, using the Faux Chicken recipe in La Dolce Vegan. I was really amazed and intrigued by the whole process of making the seitan--a dough of wheat gluten and water is the stickiest substance I have ever encountered--and boiling it, watching it expand in the pot as it soaked up the broth. But it really was easy, and I don't know why I have been so reluctant to try it. It was very tasty--Bob thought so too, and he had never tasted seitan before. We just cut it up and cooked it like little "nuggets" and ate it with quinoa and a green salad. Next time perhaps I will try something a little more elaborate with it.
We had a fellowship lunch after church on Sunday, and I decided to contribute Red Bean Coleslaw from LDV. I used Sarah's "mayonnaise" recipe as well since I was almost out of Vegenaise... This dish was delicious and substantial. Since the theme of the lunch was a cookout, we took Boca burgers and Lightlife veggie dogs for ourselves. It was really nice, for a change, to be able to eat "normal" looking food along with everyone else (instead of just eating chips and salsa and a green salad with no dressing, as is often the case).
We took a trip to Bombay Cafe, our favorite restaurant. I didn't have my camera, but no worries--there were plenty of leftovers.
Bob got chana masala--hot and spicy and delicious, as always.
Mine was a dhal comprised of red and black lentils--I can't remember what it was called but it was quite spicy and heavy on the cardamom!
Guacamole, mmm. Modeled by Bob on a Trader Joe's veggie flax tortilla chip. Also yum.
More-ish Brownies from TEV. Dee-licious. Although I must say, being a fudgey brownie fan myself, I might prefer her brownies from Vive... but I don't know. Who can complain about brownies anyway?
With that, my friends, I bid you adieu. Just remember the Red River Valley... And I shall look forward to catching up with you all again soon!
16 comments:
Wishing you a most productive week. I just love calzones. Why-o why-o don't I make them more often?
I LOVE ALL THE FOOD!! Nice what you tested for Melody there. That's a great plate, too. Love yer chopstix! NICE!!! Good job on the seitan. Love it with the greenery there on the gorgeous plate! And no, no complaints EVER about brownies, Laura. :o)
And i know what you mean about eating "normal" food with the masses... It's cool to do that, too.
Bombay Cafe looks like "da bomb" with all that groovy food!
I'm missing you already, Laura. Hope your studies go very well and that you get everything that you need to get done... done!
Bye till next time...
Good luck with all your studying!
I've got some La Dolce Vegan Chicken Seitan in my fridge too. It's fun to make, isn't it? It's super weird how the dough just gets all sticky instantly! And then the whole poofing and shriveling action is pretty wild too. It's amazing though, how easy it is to make - especially considering how expensive it is to buy. I almost never buy it anymore.
:)
Good luck on your week off! I might have to do that sometime soon. That's right, my name is Bazu and I'm a blogging addict. =)
All your food looks excellent. I can feel the itch- the more I see fellow bloggers making seitan, the more I know that I will be trying it for the first time very very soon!
Everyone with their brownies is killing me!!! I made choc chip cookies yesterday hoping that would satisfy my craving for a brownie and it didn't help - even though I ate 6 (YES SIX) cookies. Yikes! Glad you made seitan. Recipes have always been a hit or miss. You should really try the Seitan O'Greatness recipe I blogged about. It's one of my favorites. Your guacamole looks delicious on those veggie flax tortilla chips. I used to love the flax tortilla chips when we had access to a TJ's. Atlanta is the closest TJ to me and I just might have to make a trek out there.
Homemade seitan is the best! I'm glad you decided to make a batch for yourself. I was also surprised at how easy it is after getting over the initial trepidation. You should try baking it next time - it's even easier than the boiling method! Mmm that flax tortilla chip looks yummy, too (and of course I don't think I have to tell you that the brownies look delicious...).
P.S. Good luck with your studying. =)
best of luck with the studies!
how great is that seitan recipe?! you really gotta try the j.lo recipe right in LDV with it. it's addictive, for sure ;)
and what a round up!!! have a lovely break, and enjoy the sun while it's still here. It keeps tricking us, so soak it up while you still can.
that tofu stirfry (1st photo) looks amazing... i think i need to start cutting my tofu into triangles. it makes me want to eat it more ;)
So glad you liked the dish...
the indian food looks amazing.. and I love the quac and chip photo.. lovely colors.
Yay for making seitan! It does open up another door in the vegan culinary world..
I loved Melody’s tofu recipe too…in fact so much I made it again the other day! Seitan is very weird isn’t it?! I think it looks pretty unappealing when it’s boiling, but once it’s cut up it’s much better! Your brownies look awesome! I’ve only made the ones from Vive! as I don’t have TEV but I can tell you that the ones from Vive! are fantastic and you should try them if you can! Hope your studying goes well…don’t forget to take a wee break every now and then!
For a busy lady you sure found time to make some awesome food! I made the LDV seitan for the first time recently too and I was shocked the first time I took off the lid to see how much it had "grown"! I need to give those brownies a try.
Way to go making the seitan, Laura! It all looks fabulous, especially Mel's spicy tofu.
Here's wishing you a most productive week of studying. :o)
all the food looks fantastic!!
wishing you a good weeks!
P.S. I think we have the exact same chopsticks!
I hope your studies are going well. Hang in there!
The food looks so good! (I'm visiting near my supper time so I could practically eat the food right off the screen.
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