Texas Hash

I love those easy dinners I can pretty much just throw together, and that use leftovers. I always seem to make more rice than we need for a given meal. So finding ways to use it make me happy. I really, really, really don't like having to throw food away because it sat in the fridge forgotten, and takes on an alien life form all of its own.

Texas Hash

2 large onions, sliced

2 green peppers, sliced

1 package vegan ground beef

2 cans diced tomatoes

1 c. cooked rice

1 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

1 t. chili powder

1/2 c. breadcrumbs

Saute the onion and green pepper in oil until soft. Add remaining ingredients, except bread crumbs. Stir to mix well. Pour mixture into greased baking dish, and sprinkle the bread crumbs over the top. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Serve. Enjoy!

Southern Skillet Dish

I was looking through my mom's collection of old Southern cookbooks, and came across a recipe for barbecue corn. This was amusing, because there was nothing barbecue-y about the recipe. It sounded pretty good, though, so I decided to adapt it.

Southern Skillet Dish (because I didn't know what else to call it!)

One bag of vegan beef crumbles
One green bell pepper, chopped
One stalk celery, chopped
One onion, chopped
1 t. salt
1 t. chili powder
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. black pepper
Dash of Tabasco sauce
One can of corn, drained
1/2 c. vegetable juice

Saute the bell pepper, celery and onion in a small amount of olive oil, under tender. Add the remaining ingredients and stir to mix well. Reduce heat and let simmer for 10-15 minutes. Serve. Enjoy!

Homestyle Barbecue Sandwiches

I live in Texas, and here, barbecue is just a thing. A big thing. There's probably something wrong with you if you don't eat it or cook it or, well, yeah. Not vegan friendly, to be sure.

Before I was vegan, my husband and I used to go out for barbecue sandwiches. Now he goes for the barbecue and I get fried okra. I needed to remedy this.

So I did.

Homestyle Barbecue Sandwiches

One can tomato puree
1 c. water
1 c. barbecue sauce

Heat everything in a frying pan. Add either vegan beef strips or vegan ground beef and heat through. Serve on buns with your favorite toppings. We like sliced onion.

I made this two different times, using either the beef strips or the ground beef. The beef strips were from Trader Joe's, and the ground beef was Gardein. I gotta say I much preferred the ground beef to the strips. It seemed to absorb the sauce better and stretch further.

Serve with chips, or French fries, or fried okra!

Warning - they are messy! Keep lots of napkins close by!

Needless to say, I am happy to resume my place amongst the barbecue lovers, vegan and cruelty free style!

Not Really Texas Chili

On an episode of The Big Bang Theory, this scene took place:

Priya: Would you like some homemade chili?
Sheldon Cooper: Are there beans in it?
Priya: Yes?
Sheldon Cooper: Then it's not chili. Real chili has no beans in it, but you're from a foreign land, so your ignorance is forgiven.
Priya: [Sheldon tries some of Priya's chili]
Sheldon Cooper: Mmmm, this is good... whatever it is.

According to Sheldon, this chili would not qualify as chili, but it is darn good!

Not Really Texas Chili

One package vegan beef crumbles
One onion, chopped
2 cans pinto beans, drained
1 can tomato paste
3 c. water
1-1/2 t. chili powder
1/2 t. garlic salt

Saute the onion in a Dutch oven until softened. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Serve. Enjoy!

My family likes to eat their chili on top of fritos.

Hamburger Helper, Vegan Style

When I told my daughter I was making a vegan style of Hamburger Helper for supper, she informed me that at least some of the Hamburger Helper mixes were already vegan. Even though I haven't verified this myself, I know mine will still be better - no weird stuff!

Okay, okay, some vegan stuff is considered weird by non-vegans, but we know better!

Hamburger Helper, Vegan Style

One package of vegan ground beef
One onion, chopped
One clove garlic, chopped
4 c. vegetable broth
One package penne pasta
One can diced tomatoes
2 cans green beans, drained
One small can tomato paste
2 t. oregano
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/4 t. ground cinnamon

In a skillet, saute the vegan ground beef, onion and garlic until just softened. Add the vegetable broth and penne pasta and bring to a boil. Once boiling, cover and reduce to simmer for about 10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and bring back to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Serve. Enjoy!

National Cheese Day

June 4 is National Cheese Day. As a vegan, I don't eat anything made with or from animals, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy cheesy goodness! There are so many varieties and brands on the market now for vegans, it's hard not to want to try them all!

Cheeseburger Rice

One package vegan grounds
One onion, chopped
2/3 c. catsup
2 T. mustard
1/2 t. salt
Daiya shredded cheddar
Cooked rice

Saute the grounds and onion until onion is softened. Stir in the rice, catsup, mustard and salt and mix well. Sprinkle the cheese on top and let start to melt, then stir and mix it well. Serve. Enjoy!

This was such a simple dish and really quite yummy. Reminded me of a dish I made as a young Girl Scout when we were working on our cooking badge. I remember coming home and cooking it for my parents and siblings with success. I wonder if I can find that recipe somewhere and compare?

Crumbles Pie

Is there anything really simpler than throwing ingredients into a pie shell and baking it? The answer would be no, there isn't anything simpler. It's just a matter of combining the right ingredients to make a tasty dish. And, let's face it, even that isn't hard!

Crumbles Pie

One package vegan beef crumbles
One onion, chopped
2 t. chili powder
1 t. oregano leaves
One can tomato soup
One can sliced carrots, drained
One can kernel corn, drained

And here is the truly difficult part - mix everything together and pour into a pie shell. I actually threw some leftover veggies from the fridge into the mix, too. You can make a topping if you'd like, but I went for quick and simple. Bake in a 400 oven for about 15 minutes, or until piecrust in nicely golden.

Now wasn't that hard? No? I didn't think so, either. Now enjoy!