I love pasta because it is quick and easy to make, with flexible variations.
Sometimes I make my pasta sauce sweet, others spicy.
For this recipe I chose the more spicy option, using chopped jalapeños in the sauce. I also pureed a small red pepper to use in the sauce, and added fresh local purple broccoli I bought from the Farmer’s Market.
Pasta with Spicy Bell Pepper Marinara and Broccoli
🍝 1 small/med sized Bell Pepper (I used red) pureed
🍝 Bunch of fresh Broccoli or other fresh vegetable
🍝 1 Tbsp Oregano
🍝 1/2 Red Onion
🍝 1 Tbsp Basil (Or 3~4 fresh chopped leaves)
🍝 Salt and Pepper to taste
🍝 1 can Chopped Tomatoes or 3~4 fresh chopped tomatoes
🍝 1~2 cans Tomato Paste (Depending on how thick you want the sauce)
🍝 1 small, chopped Jalapeño *optional
🍝 1 tsp garlic powder/ 1~2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
🍝 Package of noodles (Whole Wheat, Spinach, I used egg-free mixed noodles)
🍝 Can of mushrooms or 3~4 Fresh
🍝 1 Tbsp Agave *Optional
🍝 Water for boiling
Bring around 4 cups water to a boil in a medium size saucepan. Add in noodles and cook for about 10 minutes, or al dente. Set aside.
Sautee garlic and and onion until golden. Add tomatoes, tom paste, chopped jalapeño, pureed bell peppers, spices.
Add salt and pepper to taste along with mushrooms. Add agave.
Cook sauce for about 8 minutes, or until everything settles.
Top noodles with sauce and garnish with Vegan and fresh basil.
Bon Appétit!
Yesterday morning I woke up early so that I could make myself some yummy puffy pancakes for breakfast. It’s been a pretty packed summer- I haven’t had too much time to cook or bake, and if I do, it’s late at night when I am tired.
I always feel super awesome after eating these. This is one of my favorite vegan pancakes recipes, the pancakes turn out light and fluffy, and you can add any fruit and they’ll turn out delicious. They’re not very sweet themselves, but with added agave/maple syrup, or just plain with the added fruit, these are phenomenal.
Blueberry Fluffy, Puffy Pancakes:
Ingredients:
⛅ 1 1/2 cups Whole Wheat Flour
⛅ 3 1/2 tsp baking powder
⛅ 2 Tbsp vegan sugar
⛅ 1 tsp salt
⛅ 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
⛅ 1 cup alternative milk
⛅ 1 Tbsp ground flaxseeds
⛅ 1/2 cup water
⛅ 3 Tbsp canola/ coconut oil
⛅ 1 tsp vanilla
⛅ 1~2 cups blueberries or other seasonal fruit (raspberries, blackberries, bananas)
*Optional: Can add nuts, or oats. If you do, just add a little more alt milk to batter.
El Instrucciones:
In a large bowl sift together flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder. Make a well in center of mixture.
Measure milk into cup and add vinegar and ground flaxseed, using a fork to whisk the ingredients until foamy.
Pour the milk mixture into the center of dry ingredients. Add water, vanilla, canola oil, using a fork until the mixture forms a thick, lumpy batter. Don’t over mix. Fold in berries, nuts, or oats.
Preheat your pan or skillet over medium-low heat. Spray, and pour about 1/4 cup size batter onto skillet. Cook until bubbles start to form. Flip, and then once more, until pancake is cooked through.
Enjoi!
Most every Saturday this summer, (I intern for a Vegan Business, Kat’s Hot Cakes) I work the KHC’s booth at the local Farmer’s Market. It’s pretty fun, some days being busier than others. This weekend, my friend gave me a bag of Swiss Chard that I was completely excited to use. I have never cooked with Chard before, but I’ve eaten it plenty, and I really like it, plus it’s super healthy for you! So, today I got out my leftover grilled Tempeh, and made myself a fresh and nutritious lunch.
Grilled Tempeh and Swiss Chard with Veggies
Ingredients:
🍅 1 block (6~8oz?) of Tempeh (cut into squares, or triangles, grilled or sautéed)
🍅 3~4 Grape Tomatoes
🍅 2~3 leaves of Swiss Chard
🍅 3~5 small mushrooms
🍅 Garlic Powder *to taste
🍅 Sea Salt and Black Pepper * to taste
🍅 1 sliced Jalapeño * Optional
🍅 Sesame seeds
Directions:
🍅 In a medium skillet, sauté mushrooms first, add garlic powder. Sauté for about 8 minutes, or until mushrooms are tender/browned. Add in grilled tempeh to warm it.
🍅 Slice tomatoes and chard and add to skillet.(If using jalapeño, slice into small chunks and add in as well)
🍅 Sauté for about a minute or less, letting chard wrinkle up. Season with salt and pepper, top with sesame seeds. Finished!
🍅 Additional Condiments: Tabasco, or a side of ketchup actually tastes pretty good with this.
I never used to like Bananas… or Banana Bread, Muffins, anything Banana. Since becoming Vegan however, I seem to have taken a liking to Bananas. Only on certain days. I love freezing Bananas and making Vegan ice cream out of them or blending them in smoothies. I know they are healthy and are good for the mood, so I try to eat ’em as much as I can.
Some days though, I just really crave Bananas… it’s the weirdest thing. Like the other day.
I just really wanted some Bananas, but one look at the bunch in my kitchen, and I knew they were simply going to be baked in something– they were pretty much brown all over.
So, I tried a new Banana Muffin recipe– I like to make the same things using different recipes and finding out which I like the best, or what I like to add/change myself– and it turned out pretty well.
The frosting I mixed up was a little- well, not exactly the most tastiest ever, so I am not going to include that exact frosting recipe in this post, but instead include a delicious, tasty one, perfect for these muffins. The muffins,by themselves, were light, moist, and delicious, and Non-vegan mom approved. ;)
Banana-rama Muffins and Simple Vanilla-Agave Frosting
Ingredients:
🍌 1 cup Whole Wheat Flour
🍌 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
🍌 1 tsp Baking Powder
🍌 Pinch of Salt
🍌 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar (Vegan)
🍌 2~3 medium over ripe/ brown Bananas
🍌 2~3 Tbsp Veg Oil/ Coconut Oil
🍌 1 tsp Vinegar
🍌 1/4 cup Alternative Milk (I used Almond)
🍌 1 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
🍌 1 tsp Cardamom/ Cinnamon/ Nutmeg (I used Nutmeg, was out of Cardamom)
🍌 Walnuts/ Pecans * optional
Directions:
🍌 In mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients (Flour ~ Salt) and whisk together ( I just use a fork)
🍌 In separate bowl, or in a blender, combine bananas and add in the milk, oil, vinegar and sugar.
🍌 Gradually combine banana mixture to dry ingredients. Can add a little water to remove lumps.
🍌 Preheat oven to 350F and spray muffin liners/ or use papers
< I made mini muffins, and I filled up one tray of mini’s. I believe there were 24>
🍌 Pour into liners, top with nuts (Or you can combine the nuts in the batter like I did)
🍌 Bake for about 15 minutes, or when an inserted toothpick comes out clean (Bake for about 22 minutes if making reg size muffins)
🍌 Let cool, then frost, or enjoy plain!
For Vanilla-Agave Frosting:
I never measure ingredients when I make frosting, sorry.
For this recipe, I just use a half to a whole stick of vegan butter, depending on how much frosting I want, a tablespoon of vanilla, a few dumps of vegan powdered sugar (until I reach frosting consistency) a teaspoon or two of Alternative Milk, and a tsp of Agave for a flavor twist.
Top frosted muffies with sprinkles of nutmeg/cinnamon.
This morning I woke up a little sore– I have been really pushing myself to finally exercise daily, and it’s been kind of brutal.
Eating healthy is in no way a problem, as my plant-based diet pretty much keeps me in check, but I had really neglected exercising my body. I would stretch and do a few yoga positions here and there, but it wasn’t doing much. So at the beginning of this month I started biking a few miles around my neighborhood, which is actually pretty relaxing since I live out in the beautiful countryside. Then, I started doing crunches, sit-ups, stretches, and a little yoga every night with 5 lb weights on my arms, then my legs. I have definitely noticed an improvement- I feel great, more energized, and certainly more toned!
Well, then this morning I popped in my Fabio’s Fitness VHS (yes, VHS, it was a golden thrift store find) and stretched a little with him and then had my breakfast.
I didn’t really want to make a huge breakfast or have to wait for something to cook very long, because I was starving, so I boiled some water, made some bulgur and fried up some fresh tomatoes and plantains, making a sort of breakfast scramble I suppose.
Bulgur Breakfast Scramble
Ingredients:
❦ 2 cups boiling water
❦1 cup uncooked Quinoa/Bulgur (I used Bulgur here)
❦2 tomatillos (small green tomatoes)
❦1-2 fresh red tomatoes
❦~1-2 tsp sea salt
❦~1-2 tsp black pepper
❦1 large plantain
❦1 small cucumber
❦ *optional 1 small, sliced jalapeño for a kick
❦ Coconut Oil
Cooking Instructions
❋In a medium sized fry pan, heat up about two tsp Coconut oil. When hot, slice plantain and sauté until bottom is golden, flip, repeat. Pour water and Bulgur in a small sauce pan and bring to boil. Turn down heat and let simmer for about 15 minutes or until water is absorbed.
❋When both sides of the plantain are golden, empty onto plate and pat with paper towel to remove excess oil. Cut up tomatoes into cubes and place in skillet. Salt and pepper to taste. Fry for about five minutes.
❋Remove from heat, set aside. Plate bulgur and top with sautéed veggies and plantains. Cut up the small cucumber into cubes and fold into mixture.
Ready to eat! A filling, nutritious breakfast to start your day!
I’m off for a morning walk with the dog, cheerio!
–ÀlaVegan
Hullo, everyone!
I am pretty excited, as this is my first post on here- I’m stepping out past solely posting on Tumblr, although I will continue with that as well. Through this blog, I hope to post more recipes, more pictures, and actually post some rants along with them–whether my rants will be appreciated or not, eh I suppose it won’t matter too much.
Hope you like the new blog, and I will transfer some posts from my Tumblr account on here also.
Enjoy!
–ÀlaVegan
Find me on Tumblr! : >ÀlaVegan<
Oo, so this is definitely one of my favorite dishes that I have made.
I didn’t really plan for it, but a friend came over, and we were both famished, so I scrounged around for some ingredients and found some things to make a sort of stir fry, so I made what I like to simply call, “Korean-meets-Thai Stir Fry Noodles”.
*With a side of Thai vegan spring rolls*
Basically, you take and boil a couple handful of noodles, I used Thai rice noodles, then top it with sweet-spicy fried veggies.
The “Recipe”:
*Rice noodles
*Korean pepper paste (Gochujang; 고추장)
*Veggies of your choosing (I used courgettes, carrots, spinach, tomato)
*Agave/ other Vegan Sweetener
*Crushed teaspoon of peanuts
*Few squirts lime juice
Procedure:
1.Chop up those veggies
2.Heat up your skillet with some canola oil
3.Fry up the veggies about ten minutes (You want them to still be a bit crunchy and vibrant)
4.Make sauce by using about 1 Tbsp pepper paste mixed with a small amount of sweetener
5.Dump sauce into skillet and mix into veggies (the Pepper paste will “melt” in with the veggies, it does not stay clumped like it appears at first)
6.Fry for a minute or so, take off heat. Now you’re ready to plate your dish!
Garnish with crushed peanuts and lime juice and a sprig of cilantro.
잘 먹겠습니다!! ( chal mok gett sumnida : Kind of like, “Let’s Eat”, in Korean)
A joy of being a woman is certainly the love I possess for some good chocolate. Today I decided to embrace my femininity and make myself some cute and yummy vegan truffles. Again, they were so simple, quick, and super fun to create!
After I finished these babies, I looked down at my creation and was so proud of myself. These turned out practically perfect, a rarity for my first tries of any recipe, and tasted downright delicious.
Either way, give these cuties a shot. Quick and simple, cute and delicious, you’re bound to enjoy them.
Recipe:
*One bag of your favorite vegan chocolate chips
*One eight oz. tub of vegan cream cheese ( I use tofutti)
*About a cup of your preferred sweetener
*Garnishes of your choosing ( I used cocoa powder, coconut flakes, and chopped pecans)
Procedure:
In a double boiler ( Or stick a metal bowl on top of a pot of boiling water like I do) melt the bag of chocolate chips.
In a small bowl, mix with a blender, your cream cheese and sweetener. Once the chocolate chips are melted, let them cool for about two minutes, and add them to your cream cheese mixture.
After everything is blending, stick the bowl in the fridge and let cool for about an hour. After an hour has passed, take the bowl out of the fridge and roll the dough into mini-sized balls and place on parchment paper or cookie tray.
Lastly, assemble your toppings on the tray or paper. I separated three sections, one for cocoa, one for coconut, and one for the nuts. Then roll your dough-balls into whichever topping and set them on a tray to put back in the fridge to set.
I let mine set overnight because I made them in the evening and went to bed. They turned out really well, but you could probably leave them for a few hours be good to go–Ya know, if you just couldn’t wait to get your chocolate fill. :)
Bon Appétit!
The. Best. Vegan. Chocolate. Chip. Cookie. Recipe. Ever.
Well, at least that I have attempted. This recipe actually came off the can of my egg replacers. Pretty cool, huh? Unlike some other recipes, these cookies actually rise pretty high, and are still moist inside. Other recipes I have tried and tasted were either too dry, too thick, or too cardboard tasting. Needless to say, I am super happy to have stumbled upon this recipe, because it’s a keeper for sure.
Here’s the recipe just for you. ^.^
These also contain half the fat of a regular recipe. Bonus.
Ingredients~
*1/2 cup vegan butter
*3/4 cup sugar
*3/4 cup brown sugar
*1/2 cup applesauce
*1 tsp. vanilla
*2 1/4 cup flour (I always use whole wheat)
*2 1/4 tsp egg replacer (I used Instead of Eggs)
*1 tsp baking soda
*1 tsp salt
*1 cup chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli’s 60% premium cacao baking chips)
*1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
The How-To:
Preheat oven to 375 F.
Mix butter and sugars. Add applesauce and vanilla.
Stir dry ingredients well and add all at once to mixture.
Stir well, and add chips and nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes or when tooth pick inserted comes out clean.
Yield about 5 dozen (small sized)
Variation: Can also add 1/2 cup oat bran to dry ingredients and 2 extra Tbsp. of applesauce. (:
Enjoy! Really, these are fantastic!
À la Vegan 