Curried Noodles with Green Peas topped with Roasted Butternut Squash

INGREDIENTS

6 oz Pasta ( serves 3) cooked al dente and set aside.

1/2 small onion, very fine dice

2 tsp. olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced to a paste
1 1/2  tsp curry powder

1/2 tsp. garam masala

1 to 2 tsp. sugar or more to taste

1/2 small Thai chili pepper

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 cup cashew cream ( recipe below)

1/4 cup of water  or more to reach the desired consistency

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup frozen peas

4-5 broccoli florets 

3-4 leaves Thai basil, chopped

For the Squash

2 cups Butternut squash, cut into small dice

1/4 onion, small dice

1-2 cloves garlic fine dice

1-2 tsp sugar

2 tsp. olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Place squash, onion and garlic onto a sheet pan and add the olive oil, sugar, salt and pepper to taste. mix well and bake at 425 degrees for 30 minutes until the edges are brown and crispy and squash is cooked thru. Set aside

Heat olive oil in a skillet and add onions and cook for several minutes until translucent, add the broccoli cook for a couple minutes, stirring to not letting onion get too brown.

Add the garlic and Thai pepper and cook for another minutes or so, don't let it brown.

Add the 1/2 cup of cashew cream and cook for another minute or so, 

 ( it will get very thick). Add water

to dilute and make a creamy consistency. Add sugar, soy sauce, garlic powder, curry powder, salt and pepper to taste and sugar if your using. 

( Adjust the salt, pepper, and sweet to taste to your liking )

Continue to cook until thick and bubbly, adding water as it gets too thick to make a nice saucy consistency, to your taste. Add frozen peas and cook until heated through.  To serve, place warm pasta in bowls topped with creamy curry sauce, mix well, top with butternut squash and Thai basil.

Creamy Thai Cabbage Noodles

Creamy, Thai Cabbage Noodles

Serves: 3

Ingredients

• 1 small head of white cabbage (about 2 pounds)
• 1 large carrot, shredded or finely julienned
• 2 green onion stalks, chopped
• 2 Tbsp. cilantro chopped fine
• 1/4 Medium onion thinly sliced
• Udon noodles, cooked from package directions and set aside
~ for the sauce
• 1/3 cup smooth peanut butter ( 83 g)
• 1 can light coconut milk (14 oz.)
• juice of ½ lime
• 1"  fresh ginger, rough chopped
• 2 clove garlic
• 2 Tbsp. Sugar( more or less to taste, I like it sweet)
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• 1 Thai chili, 
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp tamari 
~ for garnish
• chopped peanuts and sliced green onion

Method

1. Start by making your sauce. Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. Transfer to a sauce pan and heat on LOW until warm, stirring occasionally. The sauce will thicken a bit as it heats. 
2. Remove the core of the cabbage and slice it into "noodles" about ½" thick. Rinse well after slicing. Transfer to a pot, with the carrots and COVER and heat on medium-low, stirring often. Add water by the Tbsp. if need to prevent browning. You don't need to add too much water, as the cabbage will leak its own juices.
3. While the cabbage and carrots are cooking, cut your onions, scallions.
4. When the cabbage is tender, drain off as much water as you can and add the carrots and onions. Remove from heat, add the onion and let sit with the lid on for a few minutes.
5. Add the sauce to the cabbage and toss with the noodles
6. Serve with chopped peanuts and some extra green onion slices and the cilantro.

Bami Goreng

Delicious Indonesian Bami Goreng

Ingredients:

1 lb. Asian noodles of your choice, cooked to package directions and set     aside ( I used Udon)

1 Tbsp. Refined coconut oil

1/2 large onion, sliced

3 cloves minced garlic

1 inch piece of ginger, grated or finely chopped

6 scallions, cut into 1" pieces

2 cups veggies of your choice ( I used broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots, 1    Thai   chili, sliced

1-2 Tbsp. cilantro chopped

3 Tbsp. Ketjap Manis

2 Tbsp. Sambal Olek

1-2 tsp. soy sauce

Prepare the noodles according to the package directions; drain and set aside.

In a wok or large skillet, heat the oil and add the onion, garlic, and ginger; stir fry until the onion is soft

Stir in the scallions,  and veggies

Then stir in the noodles, ketjap manis, soy sauce, and sambal.

Mix thoroughly until heated through (about 5 minutes) then add the cilantro and stir.

Serve hot.

 

A New Year......Some New Recipes....

Creamy Garlic-Mushroom Noodles with 
Green Peas

Ingredients

1/2 Tbsp. Olive oil

1 Pound baby Bella mushrooms, sliced

1/2 medium onion, diced

3 Cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 Jalapeno, chopped (optional)

1 cup fresh or frozen green peas (defrosted)

2 Tbsp. Nutritional yeast

1 Tbsp. Flour, to make a roux

1/2 Tbsp. fresh thyme

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. Goya Adobo

1 tsp. sugar or to taste (optional)

Salt and Pepper, to taste

1/2 cup ( approx.) coconut milk ( canned)

1/2 small package udon noodles or your choice of pasta, cooked al dente.

serves about 3

Saute onion and jalapeno, if using, for about 3 minutes or so, add mushrooms and saute for another 3 or 4 minutes or until they soften. 

Season with salt and pepper, then add garlic, garlic powder, thyme, and adobo.

cook for another couple minutes, without burning the garlic. 

Set mushroom mixture aside in another bowl.

In the same pot, add flour and nutritional yeast and just enough of the coconut milk to make a roux, add the remaining coconut milk and continue to cook with stirring constantly until, it's a thick creamy sauce, adding more milk if necessary.

Add the green peas and the mushroom mixture, add the sugar if you're using and adjust the other seasonings as necessary according to your taste.

Top your cooked noodles with the mixture and stir!

Oodles of Noodles

Shiitake & Baby Bok Choy, Brown rice Noodle Bowl

4 cups, washed and thinly sliced shiitake mushrooms

8 baby  bok choy, divided in to 4 lengthwise pieces each

5  Tbsp soy sauce, divided

2 Tbsp water

1 small onion, diced

2-3 tsp agave or 1/4 cup of mirin

1 tsp earth balance

1 tsp olive oil

2  Tbsp minced fresh ginger

3 medium cloves of garlic, crushed

1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil

2 tsp Sambal oelek 

Brown rice noodles for one, cooked according to package

Prepare mushrooms, sauce and bok choy.

–  In a large non stick pan heat earth balance and olive oil and cook onion for about 3-4 minutes. Add the   4 tablespoons soy sauce and add mushrooms.  Give a quick stir to coat and then cook on high heat for 6 minutes then give them another stir and cook an additional two minutes.  The should be brown, slightly crispy and a little caramelized, remove from pan and set aside

In the same pan, add the  agave or mirin, garlic, ginger, water, sesame oil, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and sambal oelek, cook until combined, about 2 minutes. Add the noodles,  bok choy and mushrooms.  Cook over medium high heat until bok choy is wilted.  Serve immediately.

Spicy Kimchi Noodles

SPICY VEGAN KIMCHI NOODLES

1 cup homemade ( or store bought )Vegan  kimchi

½ cup vegan kimchi juice

3 cloves garlic minced

2 teaspoon agave

1 tablespoon gochujang

1 1/2tablespoon soy sauce

1 1/2 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 1/2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 tsp chili powder-more or less to taste

1 package brown rice noodles

Homemade or store bought pickled cucumber and beets for side condiments

In a large bowl add kimchi, kimchi juice, minced garlic, agave, gochujang, chili powder, sesame oil,

  and vinegar Mix until all combines. Set aside.

Cook noodles according to instructions and drain well, rinsing with cold water well.

In a large pot, add sauce mix and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the noodles in the sauce until noodles are evenly coated with sauce.

Serve slightly warm or even better at room temperature

 top with condiments

Avocado Love

Creamy Avocado Noodles

This is amazingly simple but soo incredibly delicious!

2 ripe Avocados

1/4 small onion diced

1 garlic clove minced

2 Tbsp Lemon juice

 1 small jalapeno diced (or less to taste)

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 small box of brown rice noodles, cooked according to directions on box.

Add first 6 ingredients in a Magic bullet or small blender. Blend to smooth, adjusting consistency with lemon juice , this should be smooth and creamy. Let sit in fridge for 3 or more hours if you can, if not just use it now.

Add mixture to hot brown rice noodles and blend. Sprinkly with a little black pepper. That's it! It's amazing

Amazing Pasta

Brown Rice Noodles with Creamy Mushroom Sauce

1 pound of brown rice noodles
1 cup reserved pasta cooking water

1 Tbsp olive oil, divided
4 cups chopped cremini or mixed mushrooms
1 Tbsp minced fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme
pinch of red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons shoyu
salt and pepper to taste

2 Tbsp vegan butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 small onion, minced 

3 Tablespoons all purpose flour

1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast
4 Tablespoons white wine
1 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut milk
salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook the pasta according to package directions reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.

2. Heat 1/2 Tbdsp of olive oil over medium heat in a large saute pan. Saute the mushroom until they are nice and brown with a bit of a crisp (10 minutes).  Add the rosemary, thyme, red pepper flakes and saute 1 minute. Then mix in the shoyu and salt and pepper to taste. Cook 3 minutes. Remove from pan.

3. Place pan back over the flame and add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil along with the margarine. When the margarine is melted add the garlic and onions and saute until the onions are fully cooked (5-7 minutes). Add the nutritional yeast and all purpose flour and mix to create a roux. Stir continuously for 2 minutes. If it’s too dry feel free to add another teaspoon or two of olive oil. Deglaze the pan with white wine while constantly stirring. Pour the almond milk into the pan. Stir until thick. Add the sauteed mushrooms back into the pan and thin out with the reserved pasta water. (You probably won’t use all the water). Season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

4. Combine the mushroom sauce and pasta and serve!

Pad Kee Mao

Spicy Drunken Noodles

aka Pad Kee Mao

You may have to hit the Asian Supermarket to pick up a few of these specialty sauces but believe me, this recipe will be worth it..

Drunken Noodle Sauce

2 Tbsp. Chinese Vegetarian stir fry sauce ( vegan option for Oyster sauce

2 Tbsp. Thai thin soy sauce ( vegan option for shrimp paste)

3 tsp. Agave

2 Tbsp. Thai Golden Mountain sauce

2 Tbsp. Thai black soy sauce

2 tsp. rice wine vinegar

2 tsp. fresh lime juice

3 tsp. Asian Chili garlic sauce

Ingredients:

12 ounces Dried ho fun or super wide rice noodles

1/2 onion thinly sliced

5 cloves garlic, minced

1 jalapeno sliced into thin rings( more or less to your taste)

4-5 baby bok choy sliced

2 cups Chinese cabbage

6 or 7 broccoli florets

1 carrot, sliced into thin julienne

3 scallions, thinly sliced

1 Tbsp. bottled Thai basil or 1/2 cup fresh Thai basil

Cook rice noodles according to package and set aside.

Wish together all ingredients for Drunken noodle sauce and set aside.

Heat a large pan over medium heat and cook the onion,  jalapeno, and garlic until soft, adding water by the teaspoon to prevent sticking.

Add remaining ingredients except for the Thai basil. Cook until veggies are al dente.

Add the cooked noodles, half the sauce, and the Thai basil and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add remaining sauce and cook until most of the liquid has absorbed and everything is coated in sauce and noodles are gently seared in some places.

Serve with a wedge of lime!

Recipe adapted from Vegan Eats World

Creamy Vegan Mushroom & Spinach Gratin

 Creamy Vegan Mushroom & Spinach Gratin

Recipe adapted from One Green Planet

Ingredients:

• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small onion diced
• 1 lb. mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 container fresh baby spinach 
• 1/4 cup vegetable stock
• 1 cup heavy cashew cream, recipe included
• 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Cashew Cream

• 1 cup cashews, soaked overnight or 8 hours
• 1/2 cup water, slightly more as needed
• dash of sea salt

 Place drained cashews in blender, add dash of salt. Add water and blend until smooth and creamy. (The magic bullet is a perfect size blender for this job.) Add water two teaspoons at a time as needed to create desired thickness/thinness. Set aside.

1. Heat heavy pan over medium heat add onion, garlic and mushrooms and saute, stirring occasionally until some of mushroom liquid cooks away and they start to brown ( about 8 minutes ) Add water by the teaspoon initially if vegetables begin to stick. Add the vegetable stock and boil for a couple minutes. Then add cashew cream and coconut milk, let simmer for several more minutes. Turn off heat and let sit for about 5 minutes.
2. Add spinach and more stock if needed, depending on the consistency you prefer.  Season with salt and pepper to taste

I served it over whole wheat udon noodles.



It's just a noodle kind of day..

Spicy Udon Noodles with Bok Choy

Something about these cold raining days, that makes me feel like a bowl of spicy, chewy udon noodles...

Ingredients:
1/2 package udon noodles, cooked according to package directions
1 small onion
1 Bunch of Bokchoy,  stems sliced, and leaves chopped
1 small carrot julienned

1/4 to 1/2 jalepeno, mince to taste

8-10 Shitake mushrooms, sliced

8-10 broccoli, florets

3 cloves garlic, minced

For the sauce

1 heaped tsp Sambal Oelek (Indonesian chilli sauce)
juice of 1 lime
1 tsp agave nectar
1 tsp white wine or rice wine vinegar
3 tbsp soy or tamari sauce and 1 Tbsp Mirin
1.5 tsp fresh ginger

1 tsp. organic cornstarch

Method:

1. Heat a large pot and cook onions, stirring to keep from sticking about 2-3 minutes
2. Add the bokchoy, carrots, broccoli, mushrooms and garlic and cook till al dente ( if they start to stick, add water by the teaspoon full and stir)
3. Combine all ingredients for the sauce in a small pot and cook for just over a minute and slightly thickened.
4. Add the noodles and sauce to the vegetables and toss to coat well.

Happy New Year 2014!!!

This year I'm making a few small changes in my diet...I am eliminating all oils from my diet... Yes all oils, including coconut and olive oil ! and believe me YOU won't miss them, but your arteries will!

I no longer think of it as  a Vegan diet..

But  a " Whole Foods, Plant Based Diet"

so to start off the New Year with an all new recipe....Here goes...

12/30/2013

Udon Noodle Stir-Fry

Ingredients:

1 Medium onion, peeled and sliced into 1/4 " slices

1/2 small head of cabbage, sliced into 1/4" slices

1 large carrot, shredded

1/2 cup Asian sauce ** recipe 

1 pound package of Udon noodles-cooked according to package directions, drained 

2 cups shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and sliced

6 scallions, sliced into 1/2 " pieces

Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add the onion and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes, the onion will begin to carmelize. Add water 1-2 Tbsp of water to prevent from sticking. Add the cabbage and carrot and stir fry till tender, adding water 1-2 Tbsp at a time, as not to steam the veggies. Add the cooked noodles and Asian Sauce and stir to coat. Add scallions and serve.

Asian Sauce

1/4 cup Tamari

1/4 cup vegetable stock

2 tsp minced ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup Raw Agave

2 tsp, organic cornstarh

1 Jalepeno pepper, minced

Combine all ingredients in a medium pan and cook over medium heat until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stores for approx 1 week.

This recipe is adapted from Forks over Knives, The Cookbook

Day 94

Pad Kee Mao...a.k.a  Drunken Noodles

2 tablespoons coconut oil
1/2 package rice noodles-cooked and set aside

1 small head broccoli seperated into floredts

2 large carrots

1 small red onion sliced

1/2 organic zucchini sliced

1/2 small head cauliflower

2 tablespoons chopped garlic
1 tablespoon smashed small thai chilies
1 tsp red chili paste

12-15 basil leaves chopped

2 tbsp. thai basil

Combine the remaining ingredients

1 1/2 tablespoons vegan oyster sauce
1 teaspoon black soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons golden mountain soy sauce
2 teaspoons agave

about 4 tablespoons water
1/4 teaspoon vinegar
Directions

Separate the noodles by peeling them apart one at a time. Set aside.
Steam your vegetable until aldente and get remaining ingredients togethether. Heat oil and fry onion then add garlic and keep stirring so it doesn’t burn.
When the garlic turns light brown, chili paste, chili's add the veggies . Keep stirring and cook until finished, about a minute. You may need to add a few tablespoons of water to help things not stick.
 Add the basil.   After frying for a minute or two, add the remaining combined ingredients. Stir well to mix.

Day 42

Today's Menu

Vegan Pad Thai

Stir Fried Broccoli with Garlic

Vegan Pad Thai Ingredients:
•4 green onions, white parts sliced and kept separate from green
•4 cloves garlic, minced
•1 tsp.  ginger
•1 fresh habanero pepper
•3-4 "heads" of baby bok choy, or other Chinese cabbage, roughly chopped
•2-3 cups bean sprouts
•1/3 cup fresh coriander/cilantro
•1/4 cup chopped unsalted dry-roasted peanuts

•PAD THAI SAUCE:
1.5 Tbsp. tamarind paste, to taste •
1/4 cup vegetable stock•3+1/2 Tbsp. Tamari
•1 tsp. Sambal Oelek

•3 Tbsp. brown sugar, or more to taste
•1/8 tsp. black pepper

•OTHER:
•3-4 Tbsp. oil for stir-frying
•2-3 Tbsp. vegetable stock
•lime wedges

.Bring a pot of water to a boil and switch off heat. Soak noodles in the hot water for 4-6 minutes, or until limp but still too firm to eat. Drain and rinse with cold water. Tip: Noodles must be under-cooked at this stage in order to come out right (they will finish cooking later when they are stir-fried).
.Combine 'pad Thai sauce' ingredients in a cup, stirring well to dissolve the paste and sugar Set aside.
.Warm a wok or large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add 1-2 Tbsp. oil plus the white parts of the green onion (reserve the rest for serving), garlic, ginger, and chili. Stir-fry 1 minute to release the fragrance.
.Add the bok choy plus stock. Stir-fry 2 minutes, or until bok choy is bright green and slightly softened.
If pan is dry, push ingredients aside and add a little more oil to the middle. Add the drained noodles and 1/3 of the sauce. Stir-fry everything together 1-2 minutes using 2 utensils and a gently tossing motion (like tossing a salad). Keep heat between medium-high and high, reducing if noodles begin to stick or burn. Keep adding sauce and continue stir-frying in this way 3-6 more minutes, or until sauce is gone and noodles are soft but still chewy ('al dente') and a little sticky.
Switch off heat and add the bean sprouts, folding them into the hot noodles. Taste-test, adding more soy sauce for more salt/flavor. If too salty or sweet for your taste, add a good squeeze of lime juice. If too sour, sprinkle over a little more sugar.
 Sprinkle with reserved green onion, coriander, and ground nuts. Add wedges of fresh-cut lime on the side.

Day 9

Asian Inspired....

Feeling like a little bit of Asia tonight...Something simple yet full of flavor..Easy to put together after a long day at work...

Tonight's Menu

Warm Mushroom & Eggplant Soba Noodle Salad

1 Pkg. 100% buckwheat Soba Noodles

1 red onion, sliced

2 Tbsp. Ginger/ Garlic paste

1 small package button mushrooms, sliced

15-20 shitake mushrooms, sliced

1 small Eggplant, thinly sliced

2 Tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar

1 tsp. Sesame Oil

3 Tbsp. Soy Sauce ( I use Tamari ) mixed with 1 tsp Sugar

1 tsp. Chili powder

1 Tbsp. Asian chili sauce

1 tsp. Coconut oil

Cook the Soba noodles for approx 3 minutes or until al dente, drain and set aside.
Heat coconut oil and add onions, mushrooms, and eggplants and stir fry until eggplants are tender, add ginger/ garlic paste and stir fry about 2-3 minutes. Add noodles, Tamari, Chili powder, sesame oil,  Chili paste and vinegar. Stir fry 3 minutes and combine well. Serve warm

** I use so much ginger and garlic, that i make my own ginger garlic paste, by crushing heads of garlic and 1 large piece of fresh ginger, and pulsing in a food processor until paste-like consistency.