National Cucumber Day

Today is National Cucumber Day. I like cucumbers. I find them refreshing and summery. They are a common feature of tea sandwiches. You can find a couple of nice cucumber tea sandwiches here and here. Heck, you can even use them on your face, like this very lovely rinse for the face. My son likes to add cucumber slices to water during the hot summer months.

Some people just can't abide them, though. Makes them gassy. Those poor, unfortunate souls!

If you aren't a fan, but don't hate cucumbers, here's a nice little finger food to enjoy them.

Tortilla Bites with Sesame Soy Sauce

One container vegan cream cheese
One package whole wheat flour tortillas
1-3 c. cold, cooked long grain brown rice
1 cucumber, peeled and cut into strips
1 avocado, thinly sliced
One bunch organic spinach leaves
1 carrot, cut into strips
One can vegan tuna
1/4 c. soy sauce
1/2 t. crushed red pepper
1/4 t. ground ginger
1 T. sesame oil

Spread the cream cheese over one tortilla. I lightly sprinkled granulated garlic on top of this, but you can leave out if you want. Close to one edge of the tortilla, layer some rice, cucumber, avocado, carrot, spinach, and tuna. Roll up and tightly as possible, then slice the tortilla into one inch or so rounds.

Mix the soy sauce, red pepper, ginger, and sesame oil in a bowl. Serve this alongside the tortilla bites to dip in. Enjoy!

Tuno Casserole

The challenge for Day 9 of Vegan Mofo is: Most retro recipe. Man, I had to wrack my brain a bit for this one. I didn't want anything to freaking weird. Any glance at old cookbooks is enough to make you grimace.

The first time I ever heard the word tuno was in a vegan cookbook I have. I thought it was so clever! So, naturally, when thinking of a retro recipe, tuna casserole eventually came to mind. But now, cruelty-free!

Tuno Casserole

2-1/2 c. vegan milk
1/2 c. raw cashews
1 t. minced onion
1/2 t. black pepper
3 t. kelp powder
2 c. cooked pasta (I used whole wheat rotini)
One onion, chopped
Small handful of mushrooms, sliced or chopped
1 c. or more of green peas (I used frozen)
2 cans of garbanzo beans, drained

Saute the the onion and mushrooms until the onion is softened. Stir in the peas.

While the vegetables are cooking, add the milk, cashews, onion, black pepper, and kelp powder to a blender and blend.

In a casserole dish, add the cooked vegetables, the cooked pasta, and the garbanzo beans. Pour on the sauce, and stir to mix and coat well.

Bake, uncovered, at 375 for 35 minutes.

Note: when you blend the cashews, you will probably still see chopped bits. This is okay. When you pour the sauce into the casserole dish and mix, you will notice it seems the sauce has all sunk to the bottom. This, too, is okay. When it is done baking, you will see it has all been soaked up into the pasta.

Serve. Enjoy!

Nicoise Salad with Spring Vegetables

Nicoise salads always sound so posh. But really, they are just a salad with a little extra. More like a cold side dish than a salad. But pretty tasty!

Nicoise Salad with Spring Vegetables

12 small red potatoes, quartered
2 c. green beans, trimmed and cut in half
1 container vegan plain yogurt
1 T. basil
1 onion, sliced
1 can vegan tuna
Black olives
Romaine lettuce

Boil the potatoes about 10 minutes, or until tender but not mushy. Add the green beans and cook about 5 minutes more. In a food processor, add the yogurt and basil and whir to blend. Set aside.

In a large bowl, place the romaine leaves on the bottom. Add the potatoes and green beans, the onion, tuna, and black olives. Dollop the yogurt mixture on top.

Before serving, mix it all together, to make sure the salad is coated with the yogurt dressing.

Serve. Enjoy!