Meal Planning

Time to detox a bit from our Christmas vacation.  We had dining reservations for most meals though, so Disney World yielded more salads and less cheese this time than last, so that was nice.

Almost Instant Ramen (TNMA pg. 116)
I ran across this recipe for healthy vegan ramen in The No Meat Athlete Cookbook (pg. 116) and wanted to try it, so I'm going to try that this week.  It also uses a lot of random things I have on hand right now like adzuki beans, tofu (currently cubed up in my freezer), and wakame and nori.  I think I'll throw in some of my dried mushrooms too.  It just calls for "vegetable broth" so I think I'll make the broth from the Vedge cookbook to start so I have a good base, and also because I want to make another recipe this week that calls for it.  I also have an ice cube tray of "umami sauce" from The How Not to Die Cookbook in my freezer that I can throw into the ramen for flavor modification as necessary.

Refried Black Eyed Peas and Turnip Greens
I'm going to make this for New Years Day.  I heard about these recipes on NPR and they sound good, and they're easy to make vegetarian, particularly since I have homemade vegan chorizo in my freezer.

Portobello Frites and Kohlrabi Salad with White Beans and Horseradish (Vedge, pg. 38)
This one is from the Vedge cookbook (pg. 150) Sameer got for Christmas.  It's a vegan take on the typical French bistro dish steak frites.  It has the added bonus of only using ingredients I don't have to Google to know what they are or order special.  This whole cookbook sounds appealing because it's a combination of vegan and so fancy and high end it's served in a restaurant, but it has some ingredients I'll have to try to hunt down and some cooking techniques that are new to me, so I'll be working my way through this book slowly.

Chilli-Garlic Noodles
Because the vegetable stock recipe called for a few green cabbage leaves and now I have an entire head of green cabbage in my fridge.  I'm not sure what I'll do with the remainder.  Maybe vegetable manchow soup.  That would be a good way to use up more of the homemade vegetable stock too since the recipe yields five quarts.

Enchiladas and Red Cabbage Slaw
Because the ramen calls for a small amount of shredded red cabbage and this seemed a good way to use up the rest of the head of red cabbage.

Edited 1/1/2018:  I couldn't find kohlrabi or turnip greens at the store, so I ended up replacing the kohlrabi dish with a different vegetable side from the Vedge cookbook: shaved brussels sprouts with whole-grain mustard sauce.  It was phenomenal and unpredictably my favorite part of the entire meal.  There were no leftovers because Sameer and I both went back for seconds.  I'd never had brussels sprouts I liked before, but I could eat these every day.  They're also quick and easy to make.  They're supposed to be thinly shaved, and I was delighted to learn one of the blades for my salad shooter worked very well for this.  The portobello frites was also very good.  Simran liked the fries best.  No leftovers of those either.  They were good, but they were still my least favorite part of the meal.  She ate everything without complaining.  She even deemed the mushrooms "not bad," which is high praise from her when talking about something that isn't specifically pizza or ice cream.  In place of the turnip greens for tonight, I bought mustard greens and will just cook them as I had planned to cook the turnip greens.  I think they're both dark leafy greens found in southern food so hopefully I can swap them out this way without ruining anything.  I'm also using last night's portobello mushroom stems to make a small batch of portobello stem anticuchos, from page 39 of the Vedge cookbook.  It's a sort of Latin-spiced kebab.

Meal Planning

I'm aiming to use some things up before Christmas.  Here is what I'm making this week.

Vegan Irish Sausages and Colcannon
I didn't end up making this one last week, and I still have the head of green lettuce, so I'm making it today.  All the other ingredients are ones I keep on hand.

Vegetarian Reuben Sandwiches and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
I had to buy Swiss cheese, but otherwise I have all the ingredients on hand for this.  I made a batch of soup a few days ago and want to finish it off.

Spaghetti with Meatless Balls and Green Salad
This will use up the Trader Joe's vegetarian meatballs in the freezer, a box of whole wheat spaghetti in my pantry, and the tomatoes and lettuce I have for the salad.

Brinner
I have four eggs that are good for one more week.  I'm going to use two to make pancakes (which will also use up some of the plain yogurt in the fridge) and scramble the other two.  I also have two kinds of vegetarian breakfast sausages, hashbrown patties, and three kinds of bread for toasting.  I haven't listed any vegetables here.  Maybe I'll make the eggs into a veggie omelet.

Gardein Veggie Burgers and Chik'n Tenders and Crudites with Homemade Ranch Dressing
I mostly want to make veggie burgers to use up the buns.  I already have carrots, celery, and broccoli to go with them, and I made fresh ranch dip a couple days ago.

Meal Planning

Penne alla Vodka

Avocado Grilled Enchilada with Red Chile Pesto

Vegan Irish Sausages and Colcannon (The No Meat Athlete Cookbook, pg. 164)

Gardein Turkey Cutlets and Mashed Potatoes and Green Bean Casserole

DIY Sandwiches and Soup

Meal Planning

Vegan Pad Thai
I'm going to make this Monday.  It's the only thing I really need to buy more than a couple of ingredients to make.

Portobello Mushroom Stroganoff
Maybe I'll make this Thursday.  I'm making this to use up my lite sour cream and half package of egg noodles.  I think I might use the bag of frozen wild mushrooms in the freezer on this too.  I can't remember if those came from Trader Joe's or Whole Foods, but I hadn't seen such a thing in the freezer section before so I bought it.

Vegetarian Club Sandwiches and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
Tuesday dinner.

Enchiladas Verdes and Red Cabbage Slaw and Black Beans
Wednesday night dinner.  I need to make a post of my enchiladas verdes recipe.  I left out at least one ingredient last time I made it from memory.  The slaw should use up the last of my yogurt and the enchiladas should use up most of my corn tortillas and some of the spinach and cottage cheese in my fridge.

Spaghetti & Meatless Balls and Green Salad
Saturday night dinner.

Gardein Veggie Burgers and Cheese Fries with Homemade Ranch Dressing and Green Salad
Friday night dinner.

Meal Planning

Since we're between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I'm doing what I usually do this month and trying to use up as much stuff from my fridge, freezer, and pantry as possible.  Here is what I'm making now through Friday:

Field Roast brand Veggie Frankfurters and Vegan Mac 'n Cheese and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
I only have a small amount of chickpea shell noodles left, so I'm using those up by making them into vegan mac 'n cheese.

Crispy Breaded Tofu Strips and Mashed Potatoes and Random Vegetable Sides 

Spaghetti & Meatless Balls

Red Chile Enchiladas and Red Cabbage Slaw and Spanish Rice

Meal Planning

Pistachio-Crusted Tofu and Asparagus & Artichokes in Vermouth Brown Butter Sauce
I'm making this tonight.

Vegetarian Club Sandwiches and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
Easy Tuesday night dinner.

Tortilla Pie
I didn't end up making this the last time I included it in my meal plan, so I still have the ingredients.  This will be our Wednesday meal.

Various Leftovers, including from the freezer
I think I might have some vegetarian lasagna in my freezer.  There are definitely some kind of soy or black bean burgers in there.  This will be our Thursday dinner while Sameer fasts.

Thanksgiving 2018

I'm pretty much doing a replica of last year's holiday meals.  It exclusively contains dishes of which I want to eat all the leftovers.

Crudites and Pumpernickel Bread with Homemade Ranch Dressing
For lunch and noshing on till dinner time.

Gardein Vegetarian Turk'y Cutlets
I love these things so much.  They are better than any vegetarian meat I've ever made from scratch, and they take little time and next to no effort.
Boxed Mashed Potatoes

Green Bean Casserole 

Stuffed Mushrooms with Horseradish Cream Sauce
I forgot I made these last year.  They are so good, even though I'm the only person in the house who eats them.
Candied Pears 

Pumpkin Pie
I want to try this recipe because 1) I love gingersnaps and was specifically seeking out a pumpkin pie with a gingersnap crust, and 2) Alton Brown recipes tend to be very reliably good.

Cherry Chocolate Chia Pudding

This is probably my favorite healthy dessert.  The original recipe, which I've barely personalized, comes from Dr. Michael Greger's How Not to Die Cookbook.  The link above includes an error in the amount of berries.  The version in the book calls for 500% more berries and, as I've made this many times now, I am confident the book version is correct.  Sometimes I double this recipe to use a whole avocado (and because I can eat a lot of this), but it's hard to fit that much in a Vitamix blender or any container I own.

Ingredients
1/2 ripe Haas avocado
1 1/4 cup pitted sweet dark cherries (I get them from the freezer section)
3 tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tbs almond butter
1/2 cup date syrup (This syrup is another HNTD recipe -- 1 cup pitted dates soaked in 1 cup hot water for 1 hour, then blend on high speed with 1 tsp pureed lemon.)
1 1/2 cup unsweetened soy milk (or other non-dairy milk)
1/4 cup chia seeds

Directions 

1) Combine everything but chia seeds in high speed blender and blend smooth.

2) Stir in chia seeds by hand.

3) Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours before serving.


To Make Fudgsicles:

1) Omit chia seeds.  Combine everything in high speed blender until smooth.

2) Pour into popsicle molds and freeze.

Meal Planning

Pav Bhaji

Crispy Breaded Tofu Strips and Crudites and Hummus

Tortilla Pie

Brinner

Enchiladas Verdes and Black Beans and Red Cabbage Slaw

[Edited 11/6/2018:  Today (the day for crispy breaded tofu strips etc.) I also made vegan cream of broccoli soup (because it's getting cold out and its an easy veggie side I can dole out for up to a week) and cherry chocolate chia pudding (to help me wean off of Halloween candy).]

Meal Planning

This week I am making: 

Seven Layer Tortilla Pie

DIY Sandwiches and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
We have a lot of random sandwich/burger fixins I plan to use up on Tuesday night.

Dum Aloo and Dal Makhani

Beefless Stew

Cheese Ravioli with Arugula
Because I have cheese ravioli leftover from making this last week.

Meal Planning

Spaghetti & Meatless Balls and Artichokes & Asparagus in Vermouth Brown Butter

Chilaquiles Casserole
I'm making this Wednesday because I can prep it in advance.  It'll use up lots of random stuff I have on hand, like canned tomatoes with green chiles and frozen corn and corn tortillas.

Vegetarian Reuben Sandwiches and Crudites
I'm making this today (Tuesday) because it's easy and quick and Sameer won't care that he's missing it.

Chile Rellenos with Rice and Beans

Meal Planning

My BFF Jackie is coming to visit tomorrow, and Sameer has taken to essentially fasting on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, so he no longer eats what I cook on those days.  Here is what I'm planning to make this week:

Tofu Parmigiana and Ratatouille and possibly Herbed Dinner Rolls
This will be Monday night's dinner because it reheats well and I'm not certain what time Jackie will arrive.  I really need to write down my version of the ratatouille and tofu recipes.  I know I've altered them from the originals over the years, so some of my cooking tomorrow will be from memory.

Pumpkin Cake Roll and Cinnamon Ice Cream
I'm making this tomorrow partly because Jackie's birthday will be happening while she is here and partly just because I really want to make and eat a pumpkin cake roll and cinnamon ice cream.  I've never made a cake roll before.  I made the ice cream base today and will run it through the ice cream maker tomorrow around dinner time so it's fresh. 

Garden Pretzel Sandwiches with Crudites and Ranch Dip
This is Tuesday's dinner because it's quick and easy to throw together after Simran finishes at gymnastics.

Enchiladas Verdes and Black Beans and Red Cabbage Slaw
This is a tasty, fairly healthy, easy dinner for Wednesday.

Ravioli with Arugula and Green Salad
This is an easy Thursday night dinner. 

Meal Planning

Vegan Po'Boy Sandwich

Leftover Crispy Breaded Tofu Strips and Crudites with Buffalo Hummus and Collard Greens with Almonds

Tortilla Pie
This will use up some of the corn tortillas in my fridge and the corn in the freezer.

Vegetarian Turkey Club and Salad

Quesadillas

Meal Planning

I'm mostly using up things we have on hand right now.

Gardein Veggie Burgers and Crudites

Brinner

I'm going to buy some buttermilk and make a large batch of pancakes to freeze as well as some buttermilk biscuits with which to make breakfast sandwiches.

Tofu & Vegetable Stirfry with Brown Rice

Quesadillas

Spaghetti & Meatless Balls

Meal Planning

General Tso's Chickpeas and Brown Rice
Still haven't made this one yet.

Spaghetti & Meatless Balls

Garden Pretzel Sandwiches & Crudites

Easy Cheese Enchiladas

Brinner

Chik Tenders & Crudites & Various Leftovers

Meal Planning

Ravioli with Arugula & Pecorino Romano
I have half a package of ravioli in the fridge that I just saw yesterday, so I'm making this again.  I only need to buy arugula.

General Tso's Chickpeas and Brown Rice
I skipped this last week, so I still have all the ingredients.  I'm not sure if the green onions are still fresh.  I need to check.

Brinner
I still have eggs, homemade pancakes in the freezer, and various veggie bacon and sausages.  I also have a few random ingredients I could use up in omelets like a tomato, avocado, and leftover havarti cheese from the California wraps.  

Gardein Veggie Burgers & Cheese Fries with Homemade Ranch Dressing & Green Salad
I really want to eat cheese fries, and this is the most reasonable way to do that.  I just get the seasoned ones from the freezer section and put shredded cheese on them and pop them back in the oven for a couple minutes after they're cooked.  This will be a Friday or Saturday junk food dinner (to prevent me from saying "I don't want to make that" when the time comes and making something even unhealthier or going out to dinner, which is inevitably worse).

Portobello Mushroom Stroganoff
I have some lite sour cream in the fridge to use up, and I've been craving this meal.  I just need to buy egg noodles and mushrooms.  I'm making this tonight on account of the looming expiration date on the sour cream.

Meal Planning

Today is Labor Day.  Here is what I'm planning to make for dinners this week.

Vegetarian Frankfurters & Pasta Salad & Corn on the Cob & Crudites with Homemade Ranch Dressing

Easy Healthy Veggie Pizza
Haven't made this yet so it's getting carried over from last week's meal plan.

California Wraps
Haven't made this yet so it's getting carried over from last week's meal plan.  I just started soaking the broccoli seeds to sprout this morning.

Brinner
I made a batch of pancakes last week and stashed them in the freezer.  I'll probably just add eggs or omelets, toast, and vegetarian sausages and bacon to make this a meal.  The only thing I need to buy is eggs.

Ravioli with Arugula & Pecorino Romano
I made this yesterday, so I have half the package of ravioli leftover to use up.  I also still have shallots in the pantry, so I only have to buy arugula when I decide to make this.  I usually use Parmesan in place of the Romano these days.

General Tso's Chickpeas and Brown Rice

Now that fall is upon us, I also want to make -- maybe next weekend since we tend to have a weekend dessert -- Baker, Baker and Cinnamon Ice Cream.

Healthy Dinners to Make Soon

Despite having this blog, it's hard to browse all my recipes (this is probably not the best format for a collection of recipes), which makes meal planning harder and makes recipes easier to forget about, so as I'm running across them, here are the vegan, mostly no-oil recipes I'm looking forward to making for dinner now that school is back in session.

Red Beans & Rice
I need to write up my own version of this with the times and amounts for brown rice just so I don't have to look it up and estimate all over again every time I make this.

Nut-Crusted Tofu
This is good with any vegetable side, from plain steamed broccoli with Mrs. Dash on it to Broiled Asparagus & Artichokes in Vermouth Brown Butter.  I make the asparagus and artichoke dish vegan now but not oil free by replacing the butter with cultured vegan butter from Miyoko's Creamery, sold at Whole Foods.

Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup

Pasta Salad
I might make pasta salad this week just to have something different to put in Simran's lunches. 

Dum Aloo and Dal Makhani and Brown Basmati Rice
The dum aloo isn't vegan when I make it because I use plain non-fat yogurt.  I am the only one in the house who likes it for some reason.  I also use ghee because I have a jar on hand to use up, though vegan butter or vegetable oil would also work.  The dal makhani is a magically delicious vegan and no-oil masterpiece if you ask me.  It does have coconut milk in it though.  It's fine without but much spicier and not quite as creamy.  

Pinto Bean & Greens Enchilada Casserole (No Meat Athlete Cookbook, pg 97)
I need to copy this one onto this site so I don't have to keep getting the cookbook out.  It's a good, hot, vegan, no oil dinner.  It's also filling, and the middle of that Venn diagram doesn't contain a lot of recipes.

Vegan Mac 'n Cheese
I like this sauce on elbow macaroni, but it's also good over steamed broccoli or with pumpernickel bread dipped in it (I often end up doing that for lunch right after I make it -- it's really good with bread dipped in it like fondue).

Crispy Breaded Tofu

Beefless Stew

Meal Planning

I want to use up everything I have on hand that I can right now.  Here is my plan:

Chilaquiles Casserole
I have some corn tortillas that won't be good much longer.  I also have a little homemade enchilada sauce from when I made red chile enchilada sauce a couple days ago, so I can mix that in.  I can also use up the last of the low fat sour cream on these.  I haven't made this in ages.

Easy Healthy Veggie Pizza
I bought some sprouted whole grain wraps, and I have to make at least a couple things like this in order use them up.

California Wraps
My attempt to use up more of those whole grain wraps.  The dressing will also use up most of the non-fat yogurt in the fridge.  I'm going to try sprouting the broccoli seeds I bought.  I can't remember how many days that takes.  I didn't rinse them enough the last time I tried and they molded. 

Brinner
I'm not sure if we'll end up doing brinner this week, but I do have two eggs and some non-fat yogurt that could be made into pancakes and thrown in the freezer for whenever it does happen.

Penne alla Vodka
I already have the vegetarian Italian sausages and multiple open boxes of whole wheat pasta I could throw into this, as well as some julienne cut green bell pepper, broccoli, and peas in the freezer.  Mostly I need vodka sauce and zucchini and yellow squash.  This is such an easy, reasonably healthy meal.

Vegetarian Reuben Sandwiches and Crudites

Meal Planning

Red Chile Cheese Enchiladas and Red Cabbage Slaw

Pita Pizzas and Crudites

Gnocchi with Spinach and White Beans

Avocado Grilled Enchilada with Red Chile Pesto

DIY Wraps & Salads
This will allow me to use up the baked chipotle tofu in my fridge that has a looming expiration date, as well as the whole grain wraps I'll get for the grilled enchiladas and the leftover pesto.

Meal Planning

It's supposed to be hot this week -- in the 90s -- so I want to make some easy dinners that don't involve heating up the whole oven.  I also want to use up as much stuff I have on hand as possible.

Portobello Mushroom Stroganoff
I have some egg noodles and sour cream I can use up on this recipe.  I think the only thing I need to buy is mushrooms.

Red Beans & Rice
This is healthy and easy.  I have chopped green bell pepper in my freezer I can use up here.

Smoky Potato Salad over Greens and Baked Beans and Corn on the Cob
I'm not sure if the russet potatoes I have are still good, so I have to check.  As for the corn, I like it best boiled and then lemon juice squeezed on top.  I already have at least one can of beans.  We still have leftover pasta salad I made a few days ago in the fridge, so I might do all this for dinner tonight.

I think this is all I'm going to plan for now.  This will get me through Wednesday, and I have spare ingredients for things like brinner or macaroni and cheese that I might do starting Thursday.

Meal Planning

Nut-Crusted Tofu and Steamed Broccoli

DIY Sandwiches and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup

Brinner with Scrambled Eggs and Veg Sausages and Toast

Stir-fry Vegetarian Beef & Broccoli with Brown Rice

Meal Planning

Penne alla Vodka
I'm making this tonight because 1) it doesn't take much effort, 2) it's reasonably healthy, and 3) I have veg Italian sausages with an expiration date of this upcoming Friday.

Brinner with Mexican Omelets and Veg Sausages and Toast
An easy Saturday night dinner.  Sim also wants to make blueberry muffins after school Friday, so they can go along with this.

Taco Night
I still have homemade vegan chorizo in the freezer.  I will probably make my own guacamole unless I go to Whole Foods that day.  This will be Friday night.

Nut-Crusted Tofu and Broiled Asparagus & Artichokes in Vermouth Brown Butter 

Stir-fry Vegetarian Beef & Broccoli with Brown Rice
The veggie beef and sauce are a frozen Gardein product, and I just add some frozen broccoli florets and diced red bell pepper to it in the skillet.

Pasta Salad
Tuesday night dinner.  The lunch cold packs I ordered should be arriving Tuesday, which means I should be able to put some leftovers in Simran's lunch Wednesday.

Leftover Soup and Easy Vegetarian Reuben Sandwiches
Thursday night dinner.

Meal Planning

Spaghetti & Meatless Balls and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
Because I've been making this practically every week.

Dum Aloo and Dal Makhani and Brown Basmati Rice
Because I still haven't made this yet.  The last of the russet potatoes.

Cheese & Bean Enchiladas
Because I have so much enchilada sauce in my pantry and cheese in my refrigerator.  An easy-to-prep-in-advance Friday night dinner.

Nut-Crusted Tofu and Broiled Asparagus & Artichokes in Vermouth Brown Butter 

Soup & Sandwiches

Meal Planning

Spaghetti & Meatless Balls and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup

Dum Aloo and Dal Makhani and Brown Basmati Rice

Pav Bhaji
I have so many potatoes.

Smoky Potato Salad over Greens and Baked Beans and Chik'n Tenders

Pinto Bean & Greens Enchilada Casserole (No Meat Athlete Cookbook, pg 97)

Meal Planning

Vegan Pizza with Whole Wheat Crust and Green Salad
I picked up some vegan mozzarella by Miyoko's Creamery the last time I was at Whole Foods.  It's the best vegan cheese brand, but I haven't tried the mozzarella before.  It supposedly can be shredded and melted, so I'm going to try making a normal pepperoni/cheese/black olive pizza (making my own vegan pepperoni since it's hard to find in stores near me lately) and see what my daughter thinks.  I have zero intention of telling her or my husband that it's vegan cheese, and I have no idea if it will be obvious.  This is my plan for Friday night.

Red Beans & Rice
I haven't made this in awhile, and if I recall correctly, it's healthy, easy, and good.

Taco Night
I have plenty of homemade vegan chorizo in the freezer, and Sim has been requesting a taco night for awhile now.  This will probably be our Saturday night dinner.

Nut-Crusted Tofu and Broiled Asparagus & Artichokes in Vermouth Brown Butter 

Stuffed Sweet Potatoes with Balsamic-Date Glaze (The How Not to Die Cookbook, pg. 176) and Leftover Soup / Sides

Vegan Mac 'n Cheese and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
Easy Thursday night meal.

Pinto Bean & Greens Enchilada Casserole (No Meat Athlete Cookbook, pg 97)
One of the richest tasting healthy vegan meals I've found.  It's a good weekday meal.

Vegan Cheese Sauce

I got the original recipe from Vegan Yumminess's recipe for vegan grilled cheese.  It's good for that but thin, so I've been using it for vegan macaroni & cheese.  I've made so many adjustments at this point that I need to document them so I don't forget between the times I make this.  Here is my version, which is enough for two nights of our family of three eating macaroni & cheese.

Ingredients
1 2/3 cups scrubbed, diced potatoes (I prefer Yukon gold; russet is my second choice; I always buy organic and don't bother peeling them)
1/4 cup peeled or scrubbed, diced carrot
1/3 cup peeled and diced yellow onion
2/3 cup water from cooked veggies
1/2 cup raw cashews (soak for a few hours if you aren't using a high-speed blender; I prep the cashews first and just let them soak while I prepare everything else)
1/4 coconut milk (full-fat or lite variety; full-fat tastes best)
2 tbs nutritional yeast flakes
1 tbs lemon juice
1 tbs Dijon mustard
1 tbs miso
1/4 tsp garlic powder
fresh ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Soak cashews.

2. Wash and chop vegetables. Cover with water in a large pot and bring to a boil.  Cook until potatoes and carrots are tender, about ten minutes.

3. Fill blender with remaining ingredients.  Add vegetables and 2/3 cup water retained from the vegetable pot.  Blend until smooth.

4. Serve over cooked pasta of your choice.  I like normal semolina macaroni noodles best, though Banza brand makes good chickpea macaroni too.  I like my vegan macaroni best with pickled jalapenos all over it.

Meal Planning

I need to detox from our spring break trip and its sugary cheesiness.  I want to keep making warm, heavy comfort foods while it's cold out.  Here is what I'm making starting tonight:

Yellow Rice & Black Beans with Broccoli (The How Not to Die Cookbook, pg. 152)

Vegetable Unfried Rice (THNTDC, pg. 144)

Red Quinoa Loaf with Golden Gravy (THNTDC, pg. 156) and Garlic Greens Saute (THNTDC, pg. 178)

DIY Sandwiches and Leftover Soup

Spaghetti & Meatless Balls and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup

Meal Planning

I want to use up some of the things open in my fridge.  Here goes.

Tofu Provencal and Brown Basmati Rice Pilaf and Broiled Asparagus & Artichokes in Vermouth Brown Butter 
I haven't made this awhile, and I think the Tofu Provencal will use up the small jar of capers in my fridge, as well as the extra firm tofu I just bought.  The rice pilaf will use up the remainder of the vegetable broth I made last week.  I just bought a bag each of frozen asparagus and artichoke hearts at Trader Joe's, so this will help clear out my freezer too.

Quesadillas 
Because I have flour and corn tortillas, a bag of shredded cheese, and the better part of a can of refried black beans.  I still have at least one night's worth of the Taco Bell copycat quesadilla sauce too, probably two dinners worth.

Brinner with Mexican Omelets and Leftover Pancakes
I think there are still pancakes in my freezer from the big batch I made last week when I bought buttermilk.  There are a few eggs in the fridge and some diced tomatoes and a sealed container of guacamole (which never tastes as good as the freshly made kind even if it looks fresh, but I already have it and it needs to be used).

Spaghetti & Meatless Balls

Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup and DIY Sandwiches

Mexican Omelet

This is a knock-off of the omelet I like best at French Roast NYC.  All amounts are poorly estimated from memory.  It tastes dramatically better with Gruyere than with any other cheese.  I'm not sure why, but I've tried it with whatever I had on hand (frequently cheddar) and it wasn't as good.

Ingredients
3 eggs
1/3 cup Gruyere, shredded (is that a normal amount of cheese for an omelet? you just want a normal amount.)
1/4 cup tomato, diced
2 tbs guacamole
salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

1) Whisk the eggs, salt, and pepper in a mixing cup.  Heat the skillet, and lightly oil.  I like to spray it with Pam and then melt a pat of butter onto it.  Keep the heat medium or lower so the eggs don't brown.

2) Pour the eggs into the skillet and allow to cook for about fifteen seconds.  Add shredded Gruyere, tomatoes, and guacamole on one half.  Then fold the other half of the eggs over the filling.  Cook just long enough for cheese to melt and eggs inside to finish cooking.  Serve immediately.

Nut-Crusted Tofu

This recipe comes from The No Meat Athlete Cookbook.  The ingredients are the same, but I've simplified the directions to make it less messy.  This is one of my favorite protein-rich dishes.  It's so good.

Ingredients
1/2 cup roasted, shelled pistachios (if salted, don't add salt to the bread crumb mixture)
1/4 cup whole wheat bread crumbs (I like Panko)
1 shallot, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1/2 tsp dried tarragon
Salt and black pepper
One 16-oz package extra-firm tofu, drained and sliced lengthwise into 8 pieces
1 tbs Dijon mustard
1 tbs lemon juice

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Chop pistachios in food processor until they are roughly the size of bread crumbs. On a plate, combine them with bread crumbs, tarragon, lemon zest, salt and fresh ground pepper.

3. In a tall glass or measuring cup, combine lemon juice, Dijon mustard, shallot, and garlic.

4. Use a pastry brush to coat the tofu all over with the wet mixture.  Then press each side into the breadcrumb mixture.

5. Place the tofu slices on the baking sheet.  Bake for about 20 minutes, gently flipping the tofu slices over once at the halfway point.  They are done when slightly browned. 

Copycat Taco Bell Quesadilla Sauce

I merged a few different copycat recipes to come up with the one below.  The primary one I worked from was this one from centslessdeals.com.  Now I make superior versions of the quesadillas from Taco Bell at home.  It's a great addition to a weekend "junk food dinner."

Ingredients

1 cup sour cream (I use low-fat because that's what I buy)

1/4 cup mayonnaise

3 tbs chopped mild pickled jalapenos 

2 tbs adobo sauce (from can of chipotles in adobo) or chipotle salsa

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp salt

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients and stir well.  Will keep in sealed container in the refrigerator until the sour cream's best buy date, which is frequently upwards of a month.  This is why I keep this big batch on hand.

Meal Planning

Our weather went from warm and springlike to wintry again, so I'm taking advantage and making a few new cold weather recipes that I know I'd wish were appropriate to try once summer comes.  Stews and roasted things.

Chickpea & Vegetable Tagine over Quinoa (The How Not to Die Cookbook, pg. 124)

Spaghetti Squash Arrabiata (THNTDC, pg. 108) and Vegan Cream of Broccoli 

Nut-Crusted Tofu (No Meat Athlete Cookbook, pg. 111) and  Broiled Asparagus & Artichokes in Vermouth Brown Butter and French Onion Stew with Mushrooms (NMAC, pg. 126)

Soup & Sandwiches

Quesadillas (with copycat Taco Bell cheese quesadilla sauce recipe)

Meal Planning

Vegan Mac 'n Cheese and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup

Vegan Irish Sausages and Colcannon (The No Meat Athlete Cookbook, pg. 164)
This was really good the last time I made it, both the sausages and the colcannon.  

Leftover Soup and DIY Sandwiches
Standard Thursday night fare.

Chilli-Garlic Noodles

Spaghetti & Meatless Balls and Super Salad with Garlic Caesar Dressing & Hemp Hearts (The How Not to Die Cookbook, pg. 83)

Taco Night

Meal Planning

Time for weekly meal planning and grocery shopping.  I don't have a lot of leftover ingredients anymore, so I'm just doing some easy, tasty stuff.  Two of the days this week have to be really quick and easy or premade, so I'm doing burgers (premade) and sandwiches with soup.

Black Bean Burgers (How Not to Die Cookbook, pg. 88) and Vegan Cream of Broccoli 

Spaghetti & Meatless Balls and Leftover Soup/Vegetable Side

Leftover Soup and Vegetarian Reuben Sandwiches

Homemade Pizza and Chopped Vegetable Salad (HNTD, pg. 79)

Homemade Taco Bell Night
This is our newest incarnation of "junk food dinner."  I basically make vegetarian versions of the Taco Bell chicken and cheese quesadilla for Sameer and me and a bean/cheese/black olive quesadilla on corn tortillas for Sim.  It isn't healthy per se, but I'm pretty sure it's healthier than actual Taco Bell and it's better tasting.