Puttanesca Tofu Scramble

Sooo if you are new to tofu, or think that it's not your thing... think again. This is absolutely delicious, and incidentally it looks actually very much like scrambled eggs so YAY for a great substitute for breakfast. I first found this recipe in one of Isa Chandra Moskowitz's books... I think maybe Vegan with a Vengeance? Either way, the recipe is available on her website: NOM! 

Whip this up with a side of toast, fruit salad and a big, big cup of coffee. Hallelujah! 

Vegan, Gluten Free Pizza Dough

I cannot tell you what a saving grace this has been for me, it's so quick and delicious that I sometimes can't believe that I'm able to eat it and not get sick! It's also my solution to when I have a leftover can or portion of coconut milk that I didn't need for a recipe (I haaaate wasting canned coconut milk). 

I first was using a paleo Naan recipe from MyHeartBeets but I've really went wild with it to make it fit whatever my purpose is. I don't follow the portions of tapioca and almond flour anymore, I just add some of each until I get the density that I want. For pizza crusts, I add A TON more almond flour and tapioca so that I get a thick, dense batter. 

Essentially the recipe is:

Coconut Milk + Tapioca Flour + Almond Flour + Salt 

You can modify from there: Add some garlic, Thyme, Rosemary, Parsley, Cajun Spice, whatever floats your boat! 

I cook it same as in the original directions (So basically like a pancake) and then let them cool before storing in the fridge (or freezer) until I need them. Then you just reheat in the microwave (The hotter you get it, the more floppy it will be) and then use it as a wrap or gyro bread, personal pan pizza crust, etc. 

The crust was pretty floppy but I could still pick up the slices easily, or eat with a fork (but that's how I like my crust anyways). 

Here I added some Earth Balance and garlic powder, sprinkled some Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese on top and microwaved for 2 minutes to make a "white pizza" - YUM! And also a good way to use up the last of my shredded cheese. I'm sure it would be just as delicious with vegan cheese as well - and I'm definitely going to experiment with that in the future. 

The Best Buff Tofu Wings

I've been using this recipe for ages but I wanted to give it the lime light for a second for two reasons:

One, it was one of the first recipes that I tried way back when that made me realize how possible and enjoyable it would be to be vegan.

Two, recently, it was the catalyst to some hardcore bullying that I received that rather took me off guard.

First off, if anyone is interested in having their minds blown and is digging some buffalo sauce: Here ya go. Now mind you, this recipe is in no way a healthy example of a vegan diet but damn, does it hit the spot! If you need some greasy, hot wing goodness - this is your jam.

Look at this majestic pile of battered and fried, hot sauced deliciousness. I cannot even begin to describe how much this satisfied my craving. This recipe is definitely a keeper for life. 

Here I made a salad out of cabbage, carrots, the Toffalo wings and, if I had had time I would have made some sort of mock bleu cheese dressing. Instead I just put a wee dab of Veganaise for a dip and called it a day. It was really great! I'd love to revisit this and make this buff salad fancier in the future. 

Joni Mari is a vegan goddess and I have loved all the recipes created by her that I've made. If you're new to veganism and/or just want some decadent, delish vegan noms - please check out her blog at http://www.justthefood.com/

Remember! Cheekans are for snuggling, not snacking! UNTIL NEXT TIME, MY VEGERINOS! 

Increase Wisdom, Decrease Gluten

I was going back through my blog from 2012 and, while it was an incredible trip down memory lane, there was plenty of cringe-worthy stuff to go through.

First off, I didn't realize HOW MUCH GLUTEN I was consuming on the daily... breads, pasta, seitan (hello pure gluten), veggie burgers, pretzels, bagels, oh my god. No wonder I would wake up feeling fine and by the end of the day I looked like I was 6 months pregnant. I would literally cry on the way home from work because I was so bloated and miserable (and in pain!) without any understanding of why I was feeling that way! It wouldn't be until November of 2014 and a trip to the emergency department before I discovered that gluten and I just weren't meant to be. Looking back it makes sense, I was tired all the time, I slept A LOT, I was depressed, and I had the GI habits of a donkey.

After discovering my pretty significant gluten intolerance (I have never been formally tested for Celiac's Disease and honestly, I don't have any of the hallmark signs), I took a hiatus from my veggie ways and went back to meat, meat and more meat. It was my crutch.. eggs were my only binder for breads.. dairy was safe. But that too made me feel like shit.

It wasn't until I took a step back and breathed, got myself aligned mentally and spiritually, that I could look outwardly at what I was doing with my diet and health and truly improve upon it.

I discovered my love for all things hippie, natural, and pagan. I discovered my keen interest in astrology, yoga, crystals, meditation. Oh my god, meditation - it is the purest and best thing you can do for yourself. Once I took on a more simplistic way of life, it seemed second nature to apply that to my eating habits. Another cringe-worthy moment from my past was how much processed vegan products I was using, trying to mimic a meat-eaters diet with vegan junk.

Sure it was animal free, but it was still highly processed and not real food.

Then it dawned on me... the simpler the better. Some of my favorite foods are naturally vegan/vegetarian.

• Chips and Guacamole 
• Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches
• Lentil Soup
• Rice and Beans 
• Cheese Nachos 
• Popcorn
• Oatmeal
• Baked Potatoes (any type of potatoes for that matter)
• Salads

I could go on and on...

Not only are these things veg in their natural state, but they're so much more affordable than all of the vegan fake-meats that I was buying. And they sure as hell taste a lot better!

I will always be curious to try new products and will buy them, even if they're a major fail (hello vegan nacho cheese- I'm looking at you!), but time and time again I'm realizing that homemade and simple is the way to go.

For dinner I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, some Brussels sprouts dipped in hummus. I'm completely satisfied, I feel good, no animals were harmed in the making of my dinner, and I am not farting myself into the next galaxy. All wins in my opinion.

So through my time, I hope to collaborate an arsenal of simple, affordable, and gluten-free vegan recipes to keep me satisfied and my conscience clear, and hopefully I will have the time to share my recipes here with all you lovelies! (If anyone's listening, that is).

New Veg Cookbooks!!

So... a very good friend of mine and I have had this running joke that she's going to just deliver me this gigantic box of goodies one day because she's been holding onto not only my Christmas present, but my birthday present as well. She's unfortunately never having the opportunity to actually give me said gifts. This is 100% my fault because during the winter months I become this secluded, unsocial hermit where I just lay around my house in squalor and hibernate all day but, I digress.



Well she finally found the golden, opportunistic moment to bequeath me with my much appreciated loot and WOW does the woman KNOW ME!!

Check this out- vegan/vegetarian cookbooks! The way to this gal's heart for sure.

Now, I am a major dunce at times and thought that the cookbook meant spirited by "Yay! Feisty Vegetarian!" but NO!

NO.... NO... NO...

It's spirited because every recipe has BOOZE IN IT!! BOOZE! I am so jazzed because I'm a firm believer that things are automatically made fancier simply by sploshing a bit of wine into it.

Upon realizing this, I immediately scoured the recipes looking for something that I had all the ingredients for and boom.

It was go time.

 I cannot tell you how many times I've been bummed about vegan/vegetarian cooking simply because it makes some of my beloved kitchen utensils obsolete. Like my gigantic Le Creuset stew pot. When will I utilize such a thing that clearly calls for large stew-making endeavors?  And what stew would I make that would take that long? Or what about braising? I know that there's tons of veggie recipes that call for that but guess what- I didn't have a cookbook to tell me how. 

Until now <3

So...Freaking...Good....

With a yummy side salad 

Happy B-day to me!

So last week was my birthday, I have finally hit that age where I'm no longer excited and spouting the number out like some willy nilly P.Y.T. That's alright though, with age comes wisdom and I'm happy to say I'm finally growing confident and comfortable with who I am as a person- and I dig it.

I celebrated my b-day by going home to visit the family and taking a long overdue trip to Columbus, OH.

Now, some of you are probably thinking that Ohio is just this vast land of cows, Amish people, and factories with NOTHING to do unless you enjoy cow tipping, porch sitting, and pie? (I don't even know what others think of Ohio, I'm sorry that was lame) But you are WRONG people! Dead wrong! Columbus is an amazing, trendy place to be- there's something for everybody. There are tons of fantastic restaurants, awesome shopping centers, college football, we have the arena district, German village, short north (artsy cultural area), a wide variety of club scenes, etc. And most importantly for me, there are plenty of vegetarian/vegan foodies who with them bring along their amazing foodie products into the stores.

They just re-opened the Whole Foods on Lane Ave. and wow is it big and awesome. I was rather indulgent while I was there and I got an entire pound of their vegan general tso's 'chicken', a whole grain baguette  truffle butter, a brick of Italian flavored tofu, 2 chunks of Kerrygold cheddar cheese, some vegan mozzarella teese, and a wedge of Daiya's new(er) chedder style cheese.....

Have you had this? It's awesome! I feel like a few years ago it wasn't even a thing to dare to dream of, a palatable cheese substitute. I eat this crap on everything! Crackers, fruit, sammies, whatever! Now it does say that it melts but... I prefer the shreds for melting purposes, this is great just cold. It's super, super potent in taste though so a little bit goes a long way- same with real cheddar cheese actually. 

After Whole Foods, we attempted to go to the Cabela's store that just opened up, but it was so utterly packed I couldn't handle it. Afterwards we went to dinner and then back to my brother and sister-in-law's to chill and have drinks.

I think it's safe to say that I have this all consuming addiction to cookbooks. I just have to look at them, read through them, and OWN them. It's a sick, sick obsession and I just can't stop. Luckily, my sister-in-law let me borrow one of her vegan cookbooks that she had, otherwise I would have bought it on Amazon by now. 

I let this cookbook fall open in my lap and I was immediately hooked. The recipes are so simple and incredibly cute. The author is a stay at home mom and it's clear that she really loves her kids. I think the book has such a good vibe, she's really devoted to only giving her little girls clean and healthy food, it's refreshing to see parents so interested in their kids nutrition and health. 

Also, there's a recipe in there for something called a crack wrap. Yup. I wanted to try it just because of the name alone. 

It's basically a tortilla smeared with hummus, sprinkled with vegan cheese, and melted into ooey gooey perfection. I can definitely see why she named it as such, it is addicting. Also only 6 WW points! Woo woo! Next time I eat it, I'll take a photo- I was just too dang excited to eat it the first time. Oops. 

Dinner tonight: Chana Masala, an oldie but a goodie in my meat-free recipe bank. 

I'm convinced that no Indian food really is that photogenic, it's just a saucy mess of awesome. Oh well, I apologize for that. 

If you would like to get your chana's on, here's the recipe.

I sub the lemon juice with a can of lite coconut milk to really give it that full, rich curry flavor I so desperately love. Oh, I also let the said coconut milk reduce for 10-15 minutes on high.

If you split that recipe into 4 servings, it's 7 WW points incidentally. 

That's also lunch tomorrow- yay for not having to strain myself packing! 

Excuses, Excuses, Excuses

So... it was kindly brought to my attention by a dear (and encouraging) friend that I hadn't blogged in over a month!! Feeling sheepish, I posted a quick snippet of my review of October's Yumvelope, but that was weak in comparison to my typical posts. I.. am.. a slacker..

I do this, I do this and then I berate myself (clearly). I get in a good rhythm, do something diligently, then I take a break (such as vacation) and never get back on the wagon. I did it with flossing too! I flossed for like 6 months straight, went on vacation, and then forgot to start flossing again. Now now, I started back up so don't get all "ew" on me.. According to dentists, no one flosses anyways.

But, I digress, now back to the topic at hand. I'm back to wanting to blog again but I have some new things I need to add to my regime.

I recently saw some alarming pictures of myself on facebook and realized that I needed to drop some lbs post-haste before this got anymore out of control. So I joined (re-joined) my trusty weight loss plan- Weight Watchers!!

It is seriously the only commercial program I've found where people consistently and efficiently lost weight and I highly recommend it. They take the effort out of tracking your food intake and I have to admit- it's so fun adding the food and exercise to my list!*

One snafoo about this whole thing is, I swear that they penalize carbohydrate intake and reward lean proteins (ei. boneless skinless chicken breast). This makes for a tough, tough time for a vegan or vegetarian. Now some of you might think I'm crazy because the fruits and vegetables are free, but I swear that the nuts, beans, seeds etc. are higher points than their meat equivalents in protein (due to higher fat and carbohydrate I'm sure) so it's tricky meeting your protein needs.

So anyways, my point is, I'm going to valiantly search for WW friendly vegetarian/vegan products and also come up with some decent meals that don't blow your WW budget and are also vegan (or just about).

I'm sure some of you could argue that simply switching to a vegan diet helped you with weight loss instantly but, unfortunately for me, I'm a big snacker and I need to work on portion control- ergo, I use weight watchers.

Anyways.. wish me luck!

Liven' on the Veg

So by the way, if you're ever vacationing in Long Beach Island, NJ, they have the most amazing vegan restaurant right there. In fact, it's the only vegan restaurant on the island- good thing it's so good! 

It's called Living on the Veg which I have to say, being an Aerosmith fan, I totally dig the name! 

It's located on 2613 Long Beach Blvd in Beach Haven.  

It's kind of small, not much seating (especially if it's raining, then you might just want to get it to go). The menu is absolutely impressive however, they have fresh smoothies, fresh pressed juices, wraps, burritos, blue plate specials, salads, sammies, and other hearty entries to satisfy that raging appetite you'll have worked up after laying on the beach all day! 

The menu was a long board above the cash register so I did my best to take a picture of it in two parts... 

My mouth is watering reading over the menu again, I wish I had a place like this in Pittsburgh!!

 

Daily specials..

This sounded so delicious!! I wanted to get it, alas we went around lunchtime, no worries though I had tons and tons to pick from still! I wanted to eat it all!

Also- I would like to point out that any restaurant sporting Bragg's as a condiment is immediately a four star place to eat in my book. 

After much deliberation, Mike and I decided on the Smooth Operator smoothie to split. It was so fruity and sweet and the soy milk added gave it a delicious creaminess, we were sucking this down in minutes!

I ordered the Buffalo Caesar wrap which was in a word, divine. I have dreams about this dish sometimes. The tofu soaked up all the delicious hot sauce and the caesar dressing on it was just perfect. That, mixed with crunchy, fresh romaine lettuce this wrap was perfection in itself. 

And don't even get me started on the potato salad.... I'm broken-hearted that I can't have that everyday. I don't know what they use for dressing on it, but it is literately of the gods. I have half a mind to call them and beg them for the recipe. 

Mikey got the Southwest burrito with a side of coleslaw.  I really dug the coleslaw also but I think he liked my potato salad better, it just had that extra zing of flavor. 

The seitan was very flavorful and cut into bite size pieces so that it was evenly distributed throughout the burrito, and the rice on it was delicious. I took a bite or two but it was so spicy, I couldn't take anymore. Mike, who could eat a jalapeno whole without blinking an eye, thought it was perfect. I liked that it also had black beans in it- love me some beans. 

Take out items, I still kick myself for not grabbing a pint of that amazing potato salad. Sorry for the crappy photo, I was in a hurry.. boo! 

So if you're into healthy food, vegetarian/vegan food, or heck just freaken' good food and you're in the LBI area- you have to stop by Living on the Veg or you will forever regret it and I will put a voodoo hex on you. Don't think that I wont, I actually have a voodoo doll.. 

Ina Garten - Veggie Style

I've been trying recently to incorporate more protein into my diet (especially for breakfast) so I made a frittata to take to work last week.  Now, as my family is fully aware of, I am absolutely obsessed with Ina Garten.  I want to be her best friend, her neighbor, heck I want to be her.  She is such a classy lady, has fantastic taste, and has an impeccable talent for entertaining.  It's my life dream to one day meet her but I'm afraid if it happened, I would just stand there sobbing like the idiot that I am. 

Alas, moving on. 

I decided to "tweak" her Smoked Salmon Frittata recipe which is, by the way, to die for and I highly recommend it  for when you have family staying the night over.  But for everyday eating, I wanted to "healthify" it so I:

1. Omitted the salmon and added crumbled soy breakfast patties (if you are a meat-eater, leave the salmon in for a nice boost of omega-3 fatty acids) 

2. Added a brick of spinach (thawed and squeezed of water) 

3. Switched goat cheese for low-fat mozzarella shreds

4. Swapped a dozen eggs for egg beaters equivalent

5. Swapped cream for skim milk 

6. Swapped butter for Brummel & Brown 

Now you're probably thinking, "What the heck Lindsey? You dismantled her recipe!" Okay well fine so I did- gigantic tweakage. But it was Ina's technique of sauteing the onions, pouring the mixture over top, and baking the frittata for almost an hour that really makes this dish what it is.  Also the addition of a cup of fluid makes this dish fluffy and moist.. So, so good. 

Breakfast fit for a king (and queen)

Also- this frittata (made in a 10'' pan) made enough for me and my husband for a week! Yum! Not to mention- who isn't jazzed when they fit vegetables into their breakfast? 

Disclaimer: Please ignore that my foot is in the photo and that the photo is clearly cock-eyed, I was in a gigantic rush to eat it!!