Happy Halloween & Samhain greetings!!!

My family and I celebrate Samhain after the last of the trick-or-treaters have filled their bags with goodies and gone home to gorge. Simple Samhain activities include things like telling stories about ancestors and looking at old family photos, playing with tarot cards & other forms of "divination" by candlelite, or reminiscing about shared experiences thru the past year and talking about hopes for the year to come.

But for the Hallowen part of it, we are pretty typical -- dressing up and going out together as a family, decorating our front porch complete with a carved "Jackie-Lantern". We give out candy to the little goblins & ghosts that dare to ring our bell...speaking of which, here's a list of vegan treats any little monster would be happy to have!

Samhain is a day long feast for us, simple as it may be. We started this morning with Ghoul Gruel -- I just made our regular oatmeal and instead of mixing the dried fruit in I used it to make a ghastly face on top. Pistachios would be a nice touch for there great color.

Here's the very un-vegan sounding (but definitely still vegan) menu for lunch:

Bloody Brains
Monster Eyeballs
Swamp Sludge
Ghostie Toasties

To make the "Bloody Brains" I use udon noodles and a jar of tomato sauce. Simply place the noodles into a serving platter in two swirled & mounded up piles side by side to look like the two lobes of a brain, and then cover lightly with the sauce, making sure to suround it in a gory puddle.

I then stud the perimeter of the "Brains" with pairs of extra large pimento stuffed green olives to become the "Monster Eyeballs". Make sure there are enough olives so that each person can have a pair sitting atop their serving of noodles staring straight up at them from the plate.

The "Swamp Sludge" is my effort to get in some green veggies and is simply a plop of sauted greens: collard, kale & baby spinach with a bit of garlic (to keep you-know-who away)

And for the "Ghostie Toasties" cut out ghostly shapes from sliced bread and cover them with soy mozzarella style cheese. For each ghost's eery face take a pitted Kalamata olive, slice off the two ends for the eyes and for a wailing, moaning mouth use the middle slice with the hole in it. Simply broil till the cheese melts.

I have to say this was a BIG hit with my 6yo DD...and I especially liked it because it took hardly any effort at all!

And finally, this is what's for a late dinner after trick-or-treating (and before any candy consumption):


"Jack-O-Lantern Pie"

You could probably do this with any stew, and it would be very cute done in individual serving bowls. This is adapted from a WeightWatcher's shepherd's pie recipe that originally used the sweet potato with an "unvegan" sausage, I just got a bit creative with the finishing touches to turn it Halloween-ish.

I estimate approximately 3 WeightWatchers points each @ 6 servings

1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 onion(s), chopped
2 medium garlic clove(s), minced
2 medium carrots, chopped
1 lg stalk of celery, chopped
14 oz Gimme Lean sausage style
1 14oz can lentils, rinsed & drained
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
8oz tomato sauce
2 TBS tomato paste
Veggie broth, grapeseed oil, salt & pepper as needed
1 baby zucchini (for "pumpkin" stem)
black olives, some cut long ways into strips, some roughtly chopped (optional, for face)


Preheat oven to 400ºF.

Place potatoes in a covered microwave dish, nuke till fork-tender, about 10 minutes. Mash potatoes with veggie broth until smooth; season to taste with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet brushed w/grapeseed oil over medium/low heat saute onion, carrots, celery and garlic until tender. Remove vegetables from skillet; set aside. Add more grapeseed oil to skillet; sauté sausage until browned, breaking it up as it cooks with a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes. Return vegetables to skillet; stir to combine. Add oregano, thyme and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper; cook 1 minute. Add tomato sauce & lentils; simmer till mixture is thick, about 2 minutes.

Remove skillet from heat and spoon mixture into a pie plate. Spoon the mashed sweet potatoes over sausage/lentil/vegetable mixture and spread into an even layer using the back of a wooden spoon. Using a butter knife or rubber spatula, lightly make lines in the potatoes to imitate the ridges of a pumkin.

Bake until filling is bubbly, about 25 minutes.

Take the baby zucchini and lay it at the edge of the plate sticking out of the sweet potatoes to look like a pumpkin stem. To create the the face use the black olive strips to shape triangle eyes and a toothy grin on the orangey sweet potato back ground, filling in with as many olive pieces as you need -- and voila -- you've got yourself a Jackie-Lantern!

Have a spooktacular howliday everyone!!!!!

Harvest Home

Hard to believe it's been well over a month since my last entry. Time flies when you let it.

Next Sunday is the Autumnal Equinox, the first official day of fall – known to some as the holiday of Mabon. Our family is celebrating by going to a local farm for some lovely outdoor festivities to honor the harvest season as it reaches full swing. There’s a “maize maze” – a labyrinth maze created in the cornfield that DD is quite keen on having us try to find our way thru. They also have pumpkin picking, hayrides and several other lovely bucolic activities. We are going to choose the pumpkin for our official Halloween/Samhain “Jackie Lantern”…we’ll also probably get some chrysanthemums, gourds, native corn & ornamental cabbages, too, so we can start decorating our home in earnest for autumn.

Later we’ll sit down to a nice family meal – some of it simple to prepare produce bought right from the farm that day, plus a couple things I will make ahead of time. No doubt we’ll all be ravenous after our rural excursion so the plan is to be able to come home and just pop a few things in the oven and/or microwave to make an easy but oh-so-luscious feast celebrating autumn’s glorious bounty, all the while giving thanks for our abundant harvest of blessings.

Here’s the menu as it stands now:

-acorn squashes with brown rice stuffing
-corn on the cob, bought fresh from the farm
-whatever-veggies-look-good…again, right from the farm
-apple cider for a beverage, maybe some local wine for Mama & Daddy
-and for dessert: pumpkin chocolate chip cupcakes w/cinnamon frosting

The stuffed squash recipe is an original concoction. The cupcake recipe is my tweaked version of one from Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s delightful cookbook, “Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World”. The book was a recent B-day gift from DD…hmmmm, or was it a gift TO her, lol?

STUFFED ACORN SQUASH

This sweet & savory dish serves 8 and is ultra-easy to make ahead. Arrange these beauties on a large platter decorated w/fresh greens, colorful gourds and whole nuts for a truly grand and impressive seasonal centerpiece.

4 acorn squash halved & seeded w/ bottoms sliced to sit flat as needed
1 c short grain brown rice cooked in 1.5 c veggie broth + ½ c apple juice
4-6 Yves meatless breakfast patties, diced, depending on how savory you’d like it
1-15oz can brown lentils, drained & rinsed
1 Granny Smith apple, cored, peeled & diced
2 ribs celery, diced
1 small carrot, diced
1 onion, diced
½ c minced white mushrooms
8 apricot halves, chopped
1 good handful dried cranberries
1 good handful chopped walnuts
1-2 tsp garam masala
1 ½ tsp apple cider vinegar
veggie broth for cooking
margarine & salt to taste & desire

To roast the squash: set the halves in 1 large or two smaller baking dishes w/a few TBS of water in the bottom. Cover with foil & bake @350 degrees for about an hour, or until they are very soft.

To make the stuffing: in a skillet brushed with grapeseed oil, sauté the onion, carrot, celery & mushrooms till softened. Add the apricots, cranberries & walnuts and continue to simmer, adding enough veggie broth to keep moist. When all the veggies are totally tender, add the cooked rice, lentils, vinegar & garam masala. Finish with soy margarine & salt to taste.

Fill each squash with the stuffing mixture & either serve immediately, or wait until cool, wrap tightly to store in the fridge and then reheat later in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes.

(Without any margarine these come out to about 5 WeightWatchers points each.)



PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP CUPCAKES

This recipe has been halved and makes 8 cupcakes. For the frosting I cheated and used store-bought icing (often vegan, surprisingly!) The cupcakes in the cookbook are glazed with a delicious-sounding cinnamon icing, but since I had the stuff waaaaay back in the cupboard I just went ahead & added a heaping teaspoon of cinnamon to 1/2 cup of plain vanilla frosting and thinned it a bit with soymilk.

½ cup canned pumpkin
1 ½ TBS grapeseed oil
1 ½ TBS applesauce
½ cup sugar
2 TBS fresh orange juice
½ tsp vanilla
½ tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
2/3 cup all purpose flour
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp baking powder
1/3 cup vegan chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 and line muffin pan with cupcake papers. In a mixing bowl, combine the pumpkin, oil, applesauce, sugar, juice, vanilla, cinnamon & salt and whisk together well. Add the flour, baking soda & powder and combine. Fold in the chocolate chips. Fill the cups about 2/3 full. Bake about 20-24 minutes, testing for doneness with a toothpick coming out clean. Place on a wire wrack and frost when totally cool.

(Without the frosting the cupcakes are 3 WeightWatchers points each. If you figure about a tablespoon of frosting per cupcake, then you should add about 1-2 more points.)


May your own harvest of blessings be plentiful and joyous today & always!!!

picadillo

Approximate WeightWatchers points value: 3, Serving size: 6


For our family Lammas feast this year I have veganized a recipe from my husband's childhood. He has fond memories of his Cuban grandfather making this delicious dish for the whole family. We are serving our version of picadillo with brown rice, fried plantains and mango sorbet for dessert. I am also making American corn bread to honor a local native food that's coming into harvest time, as well as keeping the Lammas tradition of baking bread from the first grain crop as is typical for this festival of loaves.

Ingredients:

1 onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
4 garlic cloves, smashed & minced
24oz (2pkg) Lightlife Smartground
4 plum tomatoes, chopped
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/2 cup small green olives, halved
1/3 cup raisins
Salt and pepper to taste


Sauté onion, green pepper, and garlic in a large frying pan brushed lightly w/grapeseed oil. Fry about 5 minutes, until the onions are softened, using vegetable broth to deglaze as needed. Then add the tomatoes and saute till they soften. Next add the Smartground & spices: cumin, cinnamon, cloves, and oregano -- and also add the olives & raisins. Cover & reduce heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

smokey red beans with 'taters & corn

This makes 6 servings @ approximately 4 WeightWatchers POINTS® each.

Spuds and corn are a new twist in this recipe reminiscent of the classic red beans & rice. I always think something sweet rounds out smokey flavors nicely, so a side of fruit such as applesauce or perhaps grilled summer peaches would be a fitting addition. And of course what are red beans without serving up a mess 'a greens? Saute up a batch of your fave ones to go along with this dinner inspired by southern hospitality :)

Ingredients

3 cups yellow corn

3 cups baby potatoes, quartered

3 cups cooked small red beans

2 onions, diced

2 bell peppers, diced

2-3 cloves garlic, smashed & diced

1/2 - 1 tsp liquid smoke

Instructions

Steam, boil or nuke the potatoes till cooked. Set aside.

In a skillet brushed lightly w/grapeseed oil, saute onions & peppers over medium heat till veggies are softened. Add the corn along with a couple cloves garlic. Saute till corn gets some color. Next add the potatoes & red beans plus liquid smoke to taste. Season well w/salt.

very berry cobbler

4 servings, 4 points each.

What's summer without fresh, seasonal fruit? Berries of all kinds are prolific now, so what better way to take advantage than a little sweet treat. This is actually a WeightWatcher's recipe that I've veganized. The original called for blackberries & strawberries, but I've made it with an assortment of various berries, including sour cherries from my own little tree. If the fruit is particularly tart you can adjust the sugar a bit. I think you could also use a combination of apples with berries as well -- lovely for an autumn treat. The point is to eat in season, and eat local.

By the way, there are two kinds of cobblers, those with a pastry crust, and those with a biscuit topping. This is the latter.

For the fruit:

4 cups berries
1/4 tsp table salt
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup sugar

For the topping:

2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp table salt
1/8 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 cup unsweetened soymilk
1 1/2 teasp white vinegar


Add the vinegar to the soymilk and set aside (this is a buttermilk replacement, incidentally -- works great!)

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Directly into a pie plate or 8"X 8" baking dish, stir together the fruit, 1/4 tsp salt, cornstarch and 1/4 cup of sugar. Place in the oven and bake until hot, about 5 minutes.

Next, prepare the topping: In a bowl, stir together flour, 1 teaspoon of sugar, baking powder, baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and the cardamom. Stir in the soured soymilk to form a sticky dough.

Remove fruit from oven. Drop the dough by heaping spoonfuls onto fruit to form 4 biscuits. Bake until biscuits are golden and the fruit is bubbling, about 25 minutes. Allow cobbler to sit for at least 5 minutes for fruit to firm up before serving.

I found this to be especially good warm, and individual servings reheated well in the microwave the next day. Of course it goes without saying that a scoop of vanilla soy ice cream would be a decadent addition!

tomato vegetable casserole with chickpeas

This makes 6 servings approximately 2 WeightWatchers points each, or 4 servings @ around 3 points each.

A one dish wonder with an overload of veggie goodness. Put this together beforehand and just leave the topping off till you're ready to bake. Nice served with a fresh crunchy salad or some steamed greens and maybe a side of pasta or bread to sop up the juices.


for the bread crumb topping:

2 slice whole-wheat bread
4 TBS Nutritional Yeast
1 tsp dried basil
1/8 tsp garlic powder
salt to taste

for the casserole:

1 15oz can of chickpeas, rinsed & drained
1 eggplant, peeled & cubed
1 zucchini, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
a handful of baby carrots, halved
a couple handfuls of broccoli florets
4 small vine-ripened tomatoes, cut into chunks
tomato sauce

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450.

Make the breadcrumbs by first toasting the bread and then adding it to a food processor with the other ingredients and blending till it becomes a crumb consistancy. Make sure to salt to taste, proper salting is key when using nutritional yeast so you have to check it for taste.

Place all the veggies & the chickpeas in an oil-sprayed baking dish and mist them with a bit more oil, too.

Spoon a very thin layer of your favorite tomato sauce over the top and then sprinkle w/the breadcrumb mixture, mist lightly one more time w/oil, and cover with foil. Bake for approximately 1/2 hour, remove foil and continue to bake 1/2 hour more.

summer solstice breakfast

This year we’re having an easy morning feast for Litha so we can get out and enjoy the rest of the beautiful sunshiney day:


Menu for a Golden Breakfast Buffet
(Servings: 4)


Sunshine Yogurt Parfaits

Ingredients:

4 or 5 6oz containers lemon soy yogurt, emptied into a bowl
2-3 cups granola
¼ cup or so of sunflower seeds
½ cup or so of golden raisins
2-3 cups pineapple, peach & cantaloupe chunks

Instructions:

Spread out all the different ingredients in various bowls and let everyone layer their own parfaits buffet-style.

Toast-point Sun Wheels – trim crusts off 4 slices whole grain toast, spread w/almond butter & top w/orange marmalade. Cut each slice into 4 triangles and arrange pinwheel fashion on small plates. You can even make it look cuter by placing a cherry or strawberry in the center :)

Sparkling Solar Punch – in a large bowl or pitcher, mix equal parts white cranberry & pineapple juices. Add a splash or two of seltzer (perhaps champagne for the grown-ups).

For more summer solstice ideas click here.

Pasta with Alfredo Sauce

WeightWatchers POINTS® per serving -- 5
Servings -- 6

My adapted version of a recipe from "The Vegetarian Family Cookbook" by Nava Atlas. What a great book! I've used zucchini & peppers to add a few veggies in, you could certainly use other ones -- broccoli would be especially delish. To round this out and make it a hearty meal try serving with a nice big salad and some good bread.

Ingredients

12 oz uncooked whole-wheat pasta

1 small zucchini

1 small red pepper

2 Tbsp soy margarine

2 cloves garlic

12 oz silken tofu

1/2 cup unsweetened plain soymilk

1 tsp table salt

2 Tbsp nutritional yeast

Instructions

Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Saute zucchini & pepper until tender but not mushy. Combine the pasta and vegetables, set aside.

In a small skillet, heat the margarine over low heat and saute the smashed,diced garlic until just starting to get some color, about 2-3 minutes. Combine the garlic & margarine with the tofu, soymilk, nutritional yeast and salt in a food processor and blend till smooth and creamy.Toss the pasta w/vegetables and sauce together in a large bowl, season w/pepper to taste. If the sauce needs to be thinner, add a bit more soymilk.

Edamame Succotash

WeightWatchers POINTS® value -- 2
Servings -- 5

Loaded with extra veggies, edamame replaced the traditional lima bean for a new twist that reminds me summer is on the way. This is one of my daughter's favorite recipes. You can replace the fresh tomatoes with diced canned. Delish with a side of cornbread.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup edamame (shelled)

1 1/2 cup yellow corn

1 small stalk celery

1 medium onion

1 medium sweet red pepper

3 tomatoes

1 zucchini

1 clove garlic (or more to taste)

a splash of plain soymilk

Instructions

When using frozen edamame, boil according to package directions and set aside.

In a large skillet brushed w/grapeseed oil, saute the onion, pepper, zucchini, & celery until softened. Add seeded & diced tomatoes, cook till they begin to break down. Add corn, garlic and edamame, saute until heated thru. Finish with a splash of soymilk and salt to taste.

Easy Red Beans & Rice

WeightWatchers POINTS® value -- 5
Servings -- 4


This easy recipe is also great served at room temp or cold as a rice & bean salad. When served hot I like to complete this simple meal by serving with a side of sauted collard greens and some unsweetened applesauce.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup small red beans
1 cup uncooked brown rice
1 medium green pepper
1 medium onion
1 small stalk celery
1 clove garlic (or more to taste)
1/4 tsp maple syrup
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp liquid smoke
2 1/2 cup water

Instructions

Place water, rice & chili powder in covered microwave dish, nuke for 5min on high, then 40 minutes on 50% power.

Meanwhile, saute finely diced veggies in a pan brushed w/grapeseed oil, using veggie broth to deglaze as needed and adding garlic near the end. If using canned beans, drain and rinse them.

When the rice is done, carefully remove the cover and add the cooked veggies, beans, liquid smoke & maple syrup to the dish, stir...salt to taste.

marvelous microwaved grains

As summer approaches finding ways NOT to heat up the house while having a nicely balanced meal can be a challenge. Plus, who wants to spend time watching over a simmering pot of rice? My answer -- microwave your grains.

To do all of these I use a Pyrex covered casserole dish. I personally don’t add any salt, margarine or oil and tend to season after the grains are done depending on what I’m using them for. I have substituted veggie broth for water and it’s worked fine.

While in some cases using the microwave doesn’t really save any time, it does prevent burning or over/under doing the grains, as well as make for easier clean-up since you are cooking, serving and storing the grains in the same container.


QUINOA

1 c quinoa, 2 c water, salt/margarine/oil to taste
Nuke uncovered 15min. Cover immediately until water is absorbed

MILLET

1 ½ c millet, 3 c water, salt/margarine/oil to taste
Cover, nuke 20 min. Stir, recover, let stand till water is absorbed.

BARLEY

¾ c regular pearled barley, 3 cups water, salt/margarine/oil to taste
Cover and nuke 5min, then reduce power to 50% and nuke 30-40min.
Stir gentle, recover and let stand till water is absorbed

BROWN RICE -- works for basmati, short or long grained varieties

1 c brown rice, 2 1/4 c water, salt/margarine/oil to taste
Cover and nuke for 5 min, reduce to 50% power and nuke 40 min.
Let stand till water is absorbed

Happy Beltane!

Beltane is May 1st. Here's what's cooking at our house this May Day:

Beltaine Sorrel Soup

WeightWatchers POINTS® Value: 2, Servings: 7

This is a May Day tradition in my family. Our daughter and I pick the sorrel right from our garden in the morning, after washing our faces in morning dew -- supposedly doing so will give you lifelong youthful beauty. Of course eating this soup is so deliciously good for you it will surely contribute to true beauty...the kind that radiates from within as a result of good health!

The lemony taste of sorrel is distinctive, but any green could be substituted to make a delicious brew.

Ingredients:

1 pound potatoes

1 medium onion

8 oz asparagus

1/2 pound baby carrots

2 1/2 cup cooked lentils
2-3 cups chopped sorrel

Instructions:

In the bottom of a large heavy pot lightly coated w/grapeseed oil, saute the onion till softened. Add 4-6 cups veggie broth, the diced carrots & potatoes. Simmer till nearly tender. Add lentils & chopped asparagus, simmer till all veggies are soft. Add the sorrel, waiting just a minute or so for the sorrel to wilt. Salt & black pepper to taste.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I am serving this soup with a salad of spring greens and a May Day basket of bread twists -- braids, knots & weaving are symbolic of the season. I'm purchasing the dough this year and baking them off myself.

After lunch we'll be hanging May baskets on some of our neighbor's doors -- a sweet old custom. We've made our baskets out of decorated recycled soymilk containers and have filled them with pansies. Read my Earth Day blog entry for more about these.

When we get back home, for dessert we are having these wonderful cupcakes, dusted with powdered sugar and topped with a strawberry slice:

Easy Chocolate Cupcakes

WeightWatchers POINTS® Value: 3, Servings: 12

These cupcakes are the yummiest I've tried -- moist, light and soooo easy! I halved the recipe from the original, so double it to make a traditional sized cake. Aside from my substitution of applesauce for some oil, the recipe is exact as gotten from: http://www.boutell.com/vegetarian/cake.html

Ingredients

1/2 tsp table salt
1 Tbsp vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup water
1 tsp baking soda
3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Instructions

Mix the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients. Stir until smooth. Bake in papered muffin pan at 350 degrees for 15-17 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Happy spring!!!!

chunky tomato & zucchini soup

Another simple soup with zero WeightWatchers points -- perhaps since the cold weather is pretty much behind us I'm getting all my last "soup hurrah's" out till autumn. Actually, this would make a lovely summer soup when the zucchini is prolific and fresh tomatoes could sub for the canned.

1 lb zucchini (2 average sized)
1 medium onion
3 (or more) cloves garlic
2 14oz cans diced tomatoes, flavored ok
1 qt vegetable broth

In the bottom of a soup kettle brushed w/grapeseed oil, saute the onion & zucchini till softened. Add smashed & minced garlic till it releases it's fragrance. Add the broth & tomatoes, simmer till veggies are nice & tender.

golden cauliflower soup

This delicious recipe came by way my mother's friend. It is amazingly delicious and too easy to be this good. The golden color is beautiful and the lesser amount of curry powder is not too overpowering for kids. Speaking of which, next time I'm going to try this recipe with purple cauliflower -- maybe I'll call it, "purple-people-eater soup"...now that should tickle the fancy of any kid :)

I am calculating it as zero WeightWatchers points. The recipe makes about 5 servings.

1 head cauliflower, roughly chopped small
2 small onions
2 (or more) cloves garlic
2 (or more) teaspoons curry powder
1 quart of vegetable broth
1 cup water

In the bottom of a soup pot brushed w/grapeseed oil, saute the onion till translucent. Add the smashed & minced garlic clove and saute long enough to release its fragrance. Add the cauliflower, broth, water & curry powder. Simmer till cauliflower is soft & tender. Using either an immersion blender (my choice) or by small batches in a blender, puree soup to desired consistancy.

This was great seved with a vegan "cheese" sandwich on toasty wheat bread.

Stir-fried tofu 101

Tofu seems to mystify alot of people -- even many vegetarians. This is one of the ways we prepare tofu at our house.

When you purchase tofu make sure it is organic. For stirfrying, firm or extra firm is best and it should be water-packed -- usually you can find it in the produce department. As soon as you get it home, throw it in the freezer, right in the package. Freezing and thawing tofu gives it a firmer texture and keeps it from crumbling, particularly great for stirfrying. Defrost the tofu in the package as well, best done in the fridge.

Gently squeeze as much water out of the tofu as you can with your hands. Wrap it up in a clean kitchen towel, place it on a plate, place another plate over it, and then put something heavy like a can or jar on top. The longer you leave it, the more water you get out -- but 15 minutes is sufficient.

Now, you can slice it or dice it in any way you choose. I prefer rectangular chunks that are about 1/2 inch thick -- easier to turn while cooking.

At this point some people marinate the tofu -- but I don't. I lightly fry it first and then put it in the marinade. I just set it aside to hang out and soak up the sauce flavors while the veggies are stir fried. At the end I add the tofu & marinade back in to the skillet for the last few minutes to heat thru and flavor the dish. I find this way it is easier to control the oil and the "doneness" of the tofu, plus it doesn't fall apart from too much abuse with a spatula :)

The more oil you use, the crispier the tofu. But it also adds ALOT of fat to the dish. I simply use 1 or 2 teaspoons brushed in the bottom of my handy AllClad skillet and lay the tofu out evenly in the pan. I keep testing one piece to see when it "gives" freely -- meaning that the bottom is golden and the tofu can be flipped without tearing. Then I flip each piece and do the same again.

After the tofu is removed and sitting in the marinade I stir fry the veggies and then combine it all for a simple supper. Oh, and this make great leftovers. You can serve it over brown rice for dinner and then for lunch the next day wrap it in wheat tortillas for an asian inspired fahita.

For marinades you can make your own or use store-bought -- the sky's the limit. Often I do a very simple one of a splash of soy sauce and a splash of mirin (rice vinegar), a tablespoon or so of hoisin sauce, a dash of toasted sesame oil, a minced garlic clove and about 2 tablespoons of grated fresh ginger. Thin this out with some veggie broth. That's it.

Hope this inspires you to try tofu if you haven't -- and if you already enjoy this soy wonder food I hope I've given you some new ideas on how to cook up an old favorite!

Posole

WeighWatchers POINTS® per serving: 2

Makes 5 servings

This is slightly adapted from the original WeightWatchers recipe. I'd never had hominy before and now I even add it to chili. It adds a hearty and chewy element that is unique.

Ingredients

1/4 tsp table salt

2 cup Swiss chard, leaves & stems seperated

2 or more cloves garlic , smashed and diced

1 large onion

1 1/2 cup canned diced tomatoes

4 cup vegetable broth

1/2 tsp liquid smoke

1 small green pepper

1 1/2 cup Red Beans

1 1/2 cup canned hominy

1/2 - 1 seeded jalepeno pepper, minced

Instructions

Brush the bottom of a large pot w/grapeseed oil. Over medium-low heat saute onion, green bell pepper & swiss chard stems for 3 to 4 minutes, using extra veggie broth to deglaze as needed. Add smashed diced garlic, jalepeno pepper & salt, cook 1 minute more.

Add veggie broth & tomatoes with juice, bring to a boil and then reduce heat. Add liquid smoke and simmer 5 minutes. Add hominy and beans, simmer for just 2-3 minutes more. Turn off heat, add chopped Swiss chard leaves and they will wilt while the soup is still hot.

Garnish with cilantro or parsley, chopped tomato and lime slices, or some avocado (tho that would add points)...maybe even some soy sour cream (more points). Crumbled tortilla chips would be nice too.

Cabbage, Potatoes & Bacon

Servings: 4
WeightWatchers points: 4

An easy supper to be sure. If you have some pierogies you can replace the potatoes with them for something more interesting, but I like the basic simplicity of this meal. You can also replace the brand of bacon with smokey tempeh, or even just a dash of liquid smoke.

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 small onion
2 large potato, diced, not peeled
6 strips Lightlife Smart Bacon, sliced into long thin strips
1/2 medium or 1 small head green cabbage

Instructions:

Place diced 'taters in a coverd microwave bowl with a splash of water and nuke for 5min, stir, nuke 3 more minutes, keep covered and set aside.

Saute onion and shredded cabbage over medium heat in a large skillet brushed w/grapeseed oil. When softened, add bacon. Saute till veggies are tender. Toss potatoes with olive oil; salt & pepper to taste.

Crock-pot Vindaloo Vegetable Stew

7 servings
WeightWatchers POINTS® value per serving : 4

My version of a dish based on the Vindaloo Vegetables recipe from Robin Robertson's "Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker".

Spices:

1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp dry mustard
4 clove garlic cloves
1 Tbsp ginger root

Ingredients:

1 lb cauliflower florets
2 medium onions
2 medium bell peppers
2 large zucchini
1 pound baby carrots, halved
3 cups cooked chickpeas
1/2 cup frozen peas
6 oz canned tomato paste
1 1/2 cup vegetable broth

Instructions

Drain and lightly rinse beans if using canned.

Heat a large skillet brushed lightly w/grapeseed oil over medium-low heat. Add the onions & peppers, cooking till softened. Use veggie broth or water to deglaze as needed.

Add all ingredients except frozen peas to the crock pot along with about 1 1/2 cups broth. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Add the frozen green peas at the end, stir gently to combine.

I'm baaaaaack!

Well, it's sure been a while! Towards the end of my pregnancy I got busy, and certainly since my DS was born back in October I've been busier still! But I thought I'd start reposting recipes here again, even if I can't do it with the frequency I intended.