Category: Food

When people think about Vegans, the first thing that comes to their mind is eating salads all day like if Vegans are in perpetual state  of dieting (lol).

However, let’s not become salad haters either 😉 .  I don’t know about you but I LOVE salads.

As a matter of fact, I have one with every meal I eat. It is so refreshing and nutritious that I absolutely adore eating it!

So for today, I thought about giving you 3 quick salad ideas that are so incredibly nutritious, and filling that if you have no time to cook, this can do the trick and keep you going while on the road.

They are also very affordable. 🙂

Shall we start? 😉

CHICKPEAS AND WATERCREST SALAD

Ingredients:

2 cans of chickpeas, washed and drained

1 ½ or 2 cups of watercress

2 tomatoes, chopped

1 large peeled and deseeded cucumber, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped finely

Purple cabbage (up to you how much you want to add, but chopped VERY finely)

1 red sweet pepper (optional)

Method: Mix everything in a large bowl. Add a little salt and black pepper.  Add the juice of two limes and mix everything up. You can also add a teaspoon of Vegan mayo if you prefer or some Italian salad dressing.

BLACK BEAN SALAD

Ingredients:

2 cans of black beans (washed and drained)

1 can of sweet, yellow corn (washed and drained)

1 red sweet pepper, chopped

2 tomatoes, chopped

1 avocado (chopped, optional)

½ cup fresh cilantro (optional)

1 purple onion (chopped)

1/3 cup of lime juice

A little olive oil (to mix with the lime juice)

Salt to taste

Green onion to garnish

Method:  In a small bowl, mix the olive oil with the lime juice; add a little salt for taste.

In a bowl combine the black beans, corn, sweet pepper, tomatoes, onion, cilantro and avocado. Pour the dressing on top and serve immediately.

VEGGIE SALAD

Ingredients:

1 large cucumber, peeled, deseeded and chopped

1 large red sweet pepper (chopped)

1 medium onion (chopped)

1 large tomato (chopped)

1 medium carrot (shredded)

1 or two radishes

Lettuce (to your preference)

Purple cabbage (to your preference)

Method: Mix everything and add your favorite Vegan salad dressing!

These are three super quick ideas for salads! For leftovers, a super quick idea is to get a pack of corn hard taco shells. Then stuff them with the salad leftovers for a super-duper scrumptious, Speedy Gonzalez Vegan tacos!

If you like these recipes, don’t forget to “like” it and leave a comment below.

Happy Eating!

Christmas is in the air! And I am super excited because it is definitely my favorite time of the year. Perhaps this will be your first Christmas as a Vegan or you might want to try to be a little different and see what is like to enjoy a full, healthy and delicious Christmas lunch/dinner cruelty-free!

So yes, you get the potato salad every year (using Vegan mayo), the usual rice dishes (bo-ring), and dairy-free mashed potatoes etc. But what about creating a menu that is also a little different than what you are used to eat every year? After all, it is Christmas!

Let’s fancy up a little bit. Shall we? 😉

APPETIZERS

To be very honest, I am the kind of woman who goes straight to main course (hahaha) why waste any time? But perhaps you have guests for lunch/dinner so we want to do things nice and proper.

VEGGIES WITH HUMMUS

One idea is to have a nice platter full of veggies such as cucumbers, baby carrots, etc. with a gorgeous hummus on the center. It is so easy to prepare!  If you have never made hummus at home, you could try the following:

Ingredients:

• 2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1⁄2 teaspoon paprika
• Water (around 1⁄4 – 1⁄2 cup, depending on how thick you want it to be)
• Salt to taste.

Add all ingredients minus the water to a food processor. Blend until super smooth. Then little by little add water, approximately a tablespoon at a time until it reaches the consistency you are looking for.

WALDORF SALAD

Another great idea for an appetizer as well as a side dish is a Waldorf salad. Super delicious! I used to eat this salad very often when I used to live in Argentina. It is very simple to make and I am quite sure you will love it, don’t think too much in the combo just give it a try!

Ingredients:

• 2 medium-large apples, cored and diced
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 large celery stalks, diced
• 1/2 cup dark raisins
• 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts (I know they are pricey but it is a once a year treat!)
• 1/3 cup vegan mayonnaise
• Pinch of nutmeg
• 3 to 4 of greens such as lettuce or baby spinach

In a bowl, mix the apples and lemon and toss together. Add the rest of ingredients except the greens, and toss well.

Then line up your salad plates and add the greens. Then add the mixture of the apples, raisings etc on top of the greens and serve immediately.

MAIN DISHES

For the main menu, it has to be something healthy and super comforting. What about a mouth-watering Shepherd’s pie? My goodness, just thinking about it makes me hungry hahaha.

SHEPHERD’S PIE

Ingredients:

FILLING:

• 1 medium onion, diced finely
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups uncooked, rinsed and drained
• 4 cups vegetable stock (or water if you prefer)
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 can of corn
• 2 cans of peas and carrots

MASHED POTATOES

• 3 pounds of potatoes, thoroughly washed and cooked
• vegan butter
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Once potatoes are cooked and drained transfer them to a mixing bowl. Just mash them like if you are making mashed potatoes (well, that’s what you are doing lol) Add a little bit of vegan butter and season with salt and pepper to taste.
2. In a large saucepan over medium heat, sauté onions and garlic, you don’t even have to  use oil, you can do it using a couple of tablespoons of water (same effect!) until lightly browned and caramelized – about 5 minutes.
3. Add a pinch each salt and pepper. Then add lentils, stock/water, and thyme and stir. Bring to a low boil. Then reduce heat to simmer. Then let the lentils continue cooking until tender (35-40 minutes).
4. In the last 5 minutes of cooking, add the peas and carrots/corn, stir, and cover to meld the flavors together.
5. If you want the mixture to be thick, make sure to let it cook for long or thicken the mixture adding 2-3 Tbsp of mashed potatoes and stir.
6. Taking a Pyrex dish put a little mashed potato as a base. Then add the mixture and very carefully top with mashed potatoes. It can be tricky so take your time. Smooth down with a spoon or fork. You can add a little black pepper again.
7. Place on a baking sheet so your oven doesn’t mess up and bake for 15 minutes or until the top is lightly browned.

LASAGNA

I must admit, I am a serious pastaholic. I absolutely love ALL kinds of pastas. It is in my blood! So yes, another great idea as a main dish has to be lasagna! This one guys is one of my favorite dishes ever. I shared this recipe before but I will share it again for those who didn’t see it:

Ingredients and Preparation:

Start by cooking your lasagna noodles until they are very tender. Drain and set aside until they are very cool and manageable to the touch.

In a pot, put boy choy leaves only (I regularly use two bundles) and cook them until they are super soft. When they are done, drain until they are completely cool.

Squeeze all the water from the spinach/bok choy and chopped very finely. In a pan, add a little water and put a chopped onion to sauté, when the onion starts to get a little brown, add one small grated carrot, mix everything up and add your chopped spinach.

Mix thoroughly and set aside. In a medium pan, we will make a béchamel sauce that will go perfectly with these veggies. The key for a perfect béchamel sauce is to use a whisk instead of a spoon and don’t let your sauce unattended.

In a medium low heat, add three tablespoons of vegan margarine until completely melted, then add three tablespoons of flour and mix with your whisk until you form a paste.

Then add your plant-based milk slowly and keep mixing until you have a nice sauce, not to runny not to thick. When you reach the desire consistency, turn off.

Add all your vegetables to the sauce and mix. Season with salt and pepper.

In a square dish pan, put a little pasta sauce and spread. Then add your lasagna noodles, spread some pasta sauce and then add your spinach and sauce mixture. Keep doing this until it finishes. The top has to be the filling. Bake until golden brown. You can serve it with a nice salad.

DESSERT

I eat so much during Christmas that I hardly have “room” for dessert. I also don’t have a sweet tooth so dessert at home will normally be chocolate cake (using any recipe, just substituting the eggs for egg replacement) as well as brownies. Also, you can buy already made apple pie which it is delicious and affordable.

So I hope you like these ideas and you can have a safe, enjoyable Christmas with your family. And most of all cruelty-free!

Oh and don’t forget… Santa is coming to town and he is Vegan (don’t be fooled by the belly, too many cookies! hahaha)…so don’t forget the soy milk, Vegan cookies and the carrot for the reindeer of course. 😉

Have a fantastic Vegan Christmas everyone! 🙂

Please let me know some of your Vegan ideas! Post your ideas below.

Time is always a factor for most of us who work full time! Going Vegan shouldn’t be a reason why we cannot prepare wholesome, delicious foods that are simple and easy to make.

I am going to show you a few of my most favorite dishes that can be eaten by itself or complement the rest of the meal you are preparing.

These are my unique recipes!

Shall we start?

GREEN FIG SALAD A LA MARIA

I absolutely love green figs, they are so rich and delicious! They contain a lot of fiber and potassium which is great because it helps you with digestion and bowel movement (too much information? Haha)

But really, they are great for you. For this salad you will need the following:

• 8-10 green figs (or whatever amount you want depending how big the salad will be)
• One (1) chopped onion
• 1 shredded carrot
• 1 large deseeded cucumber
• The juice of one lime
• Salt and black pepper
• 1 teaspoon of eggless mayo (optional)

Method: Boil the figs until they are tender. Put them aside to cool down. When they are manageable to the touch, peel them off and cut them in slices of your preference.

Put them inside a bowl. Add the chopped onion, carrot and cucumber. Mix everything up. Add 1 teaspoon of eggless mayo and the juice of one lime. Season with salt and pepper and voila!

STEWED POTATOES

When you think about stew, we automatically think of oil and sugar. But these stew potatoes have none of that.  This is one of the easiest dishes to make when you have no idea what to make. For these yummy potatoes you will need:

• Potatoes
• Sweet potatoes
• 1 big chopped onion
• 2 or 3 green and red sweet peppers
• Corn (optional)
• 1 sliced carrot (optional)
• Water
• Salt and black pepper
• Pizza seasoning (optional)

Method: This has to be one of the laziest of recipes out there! Just peel the potatoes and sweet potatoes. Cut them in slices (not too thin or thick). Put them aside.

Chop the onion roughly and the green peppers. In a pan (do not add any oil or water) add the onion and green peppers. Start stirring constantly so it doesn’t stick to the pan. Let it cook for a few minutes until the onions are tender and brownish and the green peppers are soft.

At this point you want to add a little water that will help caramelize the onions and create a little “sauce”. Now, add the potatoes and sweet potatoes. Add enough water to semi-cover the potatoes. You can add salt and black pepper at this point. I also like to add a little pizza seasoning. Stir gently and let it cook covered until the veggies are cooked and the water reduced.  Enjoy!

GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE

This is definitely a classic at home during the holidays.  It is ridiculously creamy and super delicious! You will need the following:

• 2 or 3 cans of green beans
• Flour
• Any plant-based milk
• Vegan spread
• Salt and black pepper
• 1 large onion

Method: Drain the green beans and set aside. In a medium saucepan (on medium heat), make a white sauce. Basically, add two tablespoons of the vegan spread and let it melt.

Then, add two tablespoons of flour. Using a whisk stir everything to ensure everything is cooking right. Let it cook for a couple of minutes and then add the milk very slowly while whisking the sauce.

Add as much milk as you want depending on the consistency of the sauce. You want the sauce to be medium, not too thick and definitely not too thin. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add the green beans and mix everything. You can top it off with onion rings. Bake it until is hot and bubbling.

SWEET POTATO FRIES

When you think of fries, the first thing that comes to your mind is: Potatoes and oil. But what about if I told you that you can make jumbo sweet potato fries without oil and without compromising on taste? 😉 Check it out, you will need:

• Sweet potatoes
• Salt
• Paprika
• Italian seasoning
• Cayenne pepper

Method: Just peel the sweet potatoes, cut them into shaped fries and season them with a little salt, paprika, Italian seasoning, cayenne pepper and whatever else you like! Bake it for around 15 minutes, then turn them so the other side cooks as well for another 10-15 minutes and you have delicious healthy fries!

Hope you enjoy the recipes I had for you today. If you want more recipes, please let me know in your comments below.