Jerk Kabobs

Summer's here and the time is right for...grilling. Gosh how my family loves to grill! They often go for the tried and true, but every now and then I can convince them to try something new or different. Like these kabobs...

Jerk Kabobs

One red onion, cut into chunks
One yellow, green, or red bell pepper (or all!), cut into chunks
One zucchini, sliced into thick coins
Whole mushrooms
Cherry or grape tomatoes
1 t. thyme
1 t. sugar
1 t. salt
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. onion powder
1/2 t. cayenne
1/2 t. ground allspice
1/2 t. smoked paprika
1/4 t. ground nutmeg
1/4 t. black pepper

Mix all the spices together. Thread the vegetables on skewers. If you are using wooden skewers, like we do, soak them in water first. Once all the skewers are threaded, brush the kabobs with olive oil, then sprinkle on the spices, being sure to to coat well. Cook over a hot, oiled grill, about five minutes per side, or until done. Serve. Enjoy!

Fruit and Pasta Salad

My husband Loves. The. Beach. If we owned a beach house, I'd probably never see him for most of the year. When we go, we spend the day, so naturally food is an issue. We like to pack picnic type foods, and plenty of them. This one was particularly tasty.

Fruit and Pasta Salad

One package noodles (I used seaside shaped pasta)
2 c. cooked chick'n (I just used one package of Delight Soy Nuggets), cut into bite sized pieces
1 c. sliced celery
1 c. grapes, halved
1/4 c. red onion, chopped
1 11-oz can mandarin oranges, drained
1 8-oz can diced water chestnuts, drained
1/4 c. vegan ranch dressing
1/4 c. vegan mayonnaise
1 t. Beau Monde seasoning

Cook the noodles according to the package, drain and rinse. Mix the pasta in a large bowl with the remaining ingredients and mix well to coat. Cover and chill overnight. Stir again before serving. Enjoy!

Cauliflower and Pea Salad

Holidays are the perfect time for potlucks and picnics. And salad dishes are well suited to hot weather get togethers. This one was a big hit with my family recently.

Cauliflower and Pea Salad

One head of cauliflower
One package of frozen green peas
Onion, to taste (I took a red onion and chopped it up, then divided into thirds)
1 t. dill
1 c. vegan mayonnaise
Salt and pepper, to taste

Cut the cauliflower into bite sized pieces. Cook the peas in boiling water, briefly (about one minute), drain, and rinse in cold water, drain again. Mix the cauliflower, onion, dill, mayonnaise, and salt and pepper. Gently stir in the peas until well coated. Chill several hours or overnight. Enjoy!

Healthful Salad

Continuing our walks, I am continuing with the salad experiments. And with the weather getting progressively warmer, I am totally okay with this!

Healthful Salad

Choice of dark green lettuce
One cucumber, peeled and cubed
Handful of grape tomatoes, halved
One bell pepper, diced
One avocado, diced
5 radishes, sliced
One peach, cubed
3 pineapple slices, cubed
One small can of mandarin oranges, drained
Handful of strawberries, sliced
Half of a red onion, chopped

Mix all of the above in a large bowl, and pour on the dressing:

2 t. mustard
6 T. lemon juice
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. white pepper
3 T. canola oil
1 T. parsley
1/2 t. dill
1/4 t. tarragon
1/4 t. basil

Mix well and pour over salad.

Mix the dressing into the salad until well coated. Cover and chill under serving time. Serve. Enjoy.

Got mixed reviews. Hubby didn't care for it, son loved it. Next time I would leave out the cucumber and cut back on the lemon juice. Otherwise, I liked it, too.

Asian Spinach Salad

Hubby and I have started going for walks every day we can. I've noticed that after every walk, he really wants a salad. This usually means we go to the grocery store and take advantage of the salad bar. So, to save some time, and get to try out new recipes, I've decided to make different salads at home.

Asian Spinach Salad

1/2 c. dry roasted peanuts
Fresh spinach leaves (I used the prepackaged, prewashed kind)
10 grape tomatoes, halved
Thinly sliced red onion (as much or as little as you like)
2 T.  rice vinegar
1 T. soy sauce
1/8 t. cayenne
6 T. canola or peanut oil

Mix the rice vinegar, soy sauce, cayenne and oil together. Shake well. Assemble remaining ingredients in a bowl, and pour on the dressing. Mix gently but well, to coat everything evenly. Serve. Enjoy!

Spaghetti Salad

For the second year in a row, we've attended the lovely holiday get together at the home of our friend, Kristin. Everyone brings a dish to share and Kristin grills up a feast. It is a relaxed event and the company is always fascinating.

My offering this year was a pasta salad. I'm partial to them for summer get togethers because they are not only easy, but tasty, and most importantly, cool. When the temps hit three digits like they do here, cool is what you want.

Spaghetti Salad

One package spaghetti, broken in half
One bunch of broccoli florets (or one package frozen)
3 T. olive oil
3 T. red wine vinegar
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper
2 cans diced tomatoes
1/4 of a red onion, chopped

Cook the spaghetti and broccoli together, according to pasta package instructions, drain. Drain the tomatoes on top of the spaghetti and broccoli. In a large bowl, add the drained pasta and veggie and the chopped red onion. Mix together the olive oil, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper and poor over the pasta and vegetables. Mix well and chill. Serve. Enjoy!

Phyllo Pie

I am in love with phyllo. It adds such a delightful flavorful crunch to dishes. Admittedly, it can be a little difficult to work with at times, but even then it is still worth it.

Phyllo Pie

Olive oil
One red onion, diced
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. black pepper
1 t. oregano
1/4 t. mustard
2 c. chopped broccoli
2 c. chopped mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 T. soy sauce
3 T. non dairy milk
1 T. apple cider vinegar
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/2 c. breadcrumbs
1 c. walnuts
12 sheets phyllo pastry

Saute the onion, salt, pepper, oregano and mustard until onion is softened. Add the broccoli, mushrooms, garlic and soy sauce and saute until broccoli is a bright green. Place broccoli mixture, milk, vinegar, nutmeg, breadcrumbs and walnuts into a food processor and whir until vegetables are are chopped fine, but not obliterated.

Remove phyllo sheets from package and cut in half lengthwise. Lay out one sheet of phyllo and brush with olive oil. Lay a second sheet on top of that and brush again with olive oil. Do this for a total of five sheets, but do not brush olive oil on the top sheet. Place these sheets in a baking dish and top with 1/3 of the broccoli mixture. Repeat with a second layer and a third layer of five sheets of phyllo and broccoli mixture. Add one last layer of five phyllo sheets on top of the last layer.

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

You can easily change up the vegetables to suit your own preferences.

National Junk Food Day

July 21 is National Junk Food Day. Because the next day was my son's birthday, and he loves the occasional night of snack food dining, I decided to wait. Okay, so we didn't celebrate Junk Food Day on Junk Food Day, but doesn't every day hold the honor of being a junk food day? Well, at least in some form? ;)

The good news is my birthday boy loved the snacks, and that's the most important thing!

I can't count how many potlucks or get togethers I've gone to where someone brought tortilla rollups. Such a simple and pretty thing, but I've never made them before. This offered me the perfect opportunity to correct that.

Tortilla Rollups

One container vegan cream cheese
5 green onions, chopped
2 small cans of chopped black olives
1/4 fake bacon bits
2 T. black bean salsa (see below)
1 t. cumin
2 garlic cloves, chopped
Hot pepper sauce, to taste
Flour tortillas

Soften the cream cheese in a bowl. Add the remaining ingredients, except for the flour tortillas, and blend well. Spoon some of the mixture on a flour tortilla and roll up. Place seam side down on a plate, and stack them on top of each other. Cover and chill. Before serving, slice into rounds.

Black Bean Salsa

2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 c. red onion, diced
One green pepper, chopped
1/2 a jalapeno, seeded and chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
Handful of cilantro, chopped
3 T. lime juice
2 T. vegetable oil
1-1/2 t. hot pepper sauce
1/2 t. salt

Mix all of the ingredients in a large bowl, stirring to mix well. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Serve with tortilla chips.

Don't buy the canned stuff. This bean dip rocks!

Tex Mex Dip

3 green onions, chopped
One can vegetarian refried beans
One can corn, drained
One package Daiya Pepperjack
1/2 c. beer
One package taco seasoning mix

Mix all the ingredients in a medium sized pot on medium heat. Stir occasionally until everything is mixed well and heated through. Serve with tortilla chips.

Spicy Cheese Crisps

1/2 c. vegan butter, softened
One package Daiya Pepperjack
2 c. whole wheat flour
Pecan halves

Beat butter, cheese and flour together until well mixed. Cover and chill overnight. Shape into balls and place on a cookie sheet. Use a glass to smash the balls into flat rounds. Top with a pecan half. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, or until browned slightly. Let cool. Enjoy!

Tuscan Panzanella

Panzanella is a Italian type of salad based on bread and tomatoes, often with onions and basil, and dressed with oil and vinegar. It is very simple to put together and gave me an opportunity to make croutons for the first time.

Tuscan Panzanella

4 slices of bread, crusts removed
Olive oil
Basil leaves, chopped
1/2 c. sliced red onion (I chopped mine)
One can small black olives, drained
One pint of grape tomatoes, cut in half
2 cans white beans, drained
1 T. water
1 T. olive oil
3 T. red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 t. black pepper

Cut the crustless bread into one inch cubes and arrange in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Spray or brush lightly with olive oil. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Combine the basil, onion, olives, tomatoes, and beans in a bowl and mix gently. Mix the water, olive oil, vinegar, garlic and black pepper together and whisk until well blended. Pour over the vegetables and mix gently, but well.

Dish the salad into a bowl and top with some of the croutons.

Enjoy!

I loved this salad, but might play around with the croutons. They were on the plain side. I think adding some herbs to the olive oil before brushing it on will liven things up a bit.

Crunchy Wraps

My kids and I went to the Vegfest earlier this month. It was the first time for us, and only the second year for the festival. We loved it! Seeing so many veg-friendly people gathered in one place was very exciting! There were numerous booths and displays to check out, and several places offered samples. We watched a demonstration on making kale chips. Note to self - make those chips tonight! Afterward we tried a new-for-us vegan restaurant and then hit a grocery store to pick up healthy goodies!

Getting home late I wanted to make something quick and easy. This definitely fit the bill!

Crunchy Wraps

Vegan cream cheese
Flour tortillas (we used spinach)
Shredded spinach
Shredded red cabbage
Sliced avocados
Chopped tomatoes
Diced cucumbers
Diced red onion

Spread the cream cheese on the tortilla and top with a sprinkle of the each vegetable. Roll up the tortilla and enjoy!

Even my non-vegan hubby loved these! Win!