Tag Archives: italian

Vegan Zombie

We enjoy watching the Vegan Zombie on Youtube and recently purchased the Vegan Zombie cook book. So far I’ve made 3 of the recipes and they were all pretty good.


Lasagna rolls. Before going in the oven here.


A vegan omelette with a side of hash-browns. I need to perfect the cooking of it. I stuffed it with red bell pepper, red onion, jalapeno and Daiya cheddar shreds. The batter contains chopped baby spinach.


Something Brushetta-like. It was based off a recipe in the book. Bread topped with a roasted garlic paste, tomato, red onion, basil and topped with Daiya mozzarella shreds.

Zoodles With Roasted Tomatoes, Mushroom And Basil

Notes: We both like this. Pictured topped with sauteed mushrooms.

Ingredients:
1/8 cup olive oil
1 small onion diced
6 garlic cloves smashed & peeled
18 fresh basil leaves, plus 1.4 cup cut into small stips
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 container cherry tomatoes
3 large zucchini spiralized
1/2 container diced mushrooms

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 200
Stir pepper flakes in to olive oil. Toss tomatoes, basil leaves and diced onion in olive oil. Place the mix in a roasting pan and roast in oven for 3 hours. Gently stir halfway through.
In a large pan saute the mushrooms.
Add and heat the zoodles.
Add the tomato & onion mix and basil strips. Heat through.

Spicy Italian Wheat Balls

The recipe called these “Eat Balls” but I’m calling them “Wheat Balls” as they are mostly wheat gluten. The recipe is from a new book we just purchased “My Beef With Meat” by Rip Esselstyn the Engine 2 guy. The flavor was good but they were extremely rubbery. I don’t know if that’s they way they are supposed to be or not. I served them with whole wheat fettuccine, pizza sauce and frozen peas.

Raise-The-Roof Sweet Potato Vegetable Lasagna

Our Notes: I thought this was really good. Nova didn’t care for it. She doesn’t like the canned spinach. We cut the recipe (approx) in half.

Recipe Notes: If you’re starting this from scratch, begin by baking two sweet potatoes and start layering the lasagna once they’re done. If you sauce dry noodles, generously when layering the lasagna, it’s not necessary to boil the pasta. Use a sauce with little or no added oil (Muri Glen’s Mushroom Marinara or Portobello Marinara; whole foods brand 365 roasted red pepper, light Ragu tomato basil, Trader Joe’s organic spaghetti with mushrooms).
Adapted from “The Engine 2 Diet”.
Number of Servings: 12.

Ingredients:
1 onion chopped
1 small head garlic, cloves chopped
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1 head broccoli, chopeed
2 carrots, chopped
2 red bell peppers, seeded and chopped
1 pound silken tofu
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
2 jars (about 25 ounces each) prepared pasta sauce
1 pound whole grain lasagna noodles (uncooked)
1 pound frozen spinach, thawed and drained
2 sweet potatoes, cooked and mashed
6 roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 cup raw cashews, ground

Directions:
1. Set the oven at 400 degrees, Have on hand a 9×13 inch baking dish.
2. In a large skillet over high heat, cook the onion and garlic, stirring constantly, for 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes or until they release their liquid.
3. With a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetables to a large bowl, reserving the liquid in the pan.
4. In the same skillet, cook the broccoli and carrots, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Ad them to the mushroom mixture
5. Add the bell peppers to the pan and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes or until they soften; transfer to the bowl of vegetables.
6. Drain the tofu by wrapping it in paper towels. Break it into pieces. Add the tofu to the vegetables with the cayenne, oregano, basil and rosemary. Mix well.
7. Cover the bottom of the baking dish with a layer of sauce. Add a layer of noodles. Cover the noodles generously with sauce. Spread all the vegetables on top. Add another layer of noodles, then another layer of sauce.
8. Distribute all the spinach evenly on top. Use all the sweet potatoes to make another layer. Add sauce, then noodles, and finally more sauce. Lay the tomatoes on top.
9. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes.
10. Remove the foil. Sprinkle with cashews and return to the oven. Continue to bake for 15 minutes. (total baking time 1 hour). Let rest 15 minutes before serving.

Source:: Sparkrecipes

Linguine and Creamy Alfredo Sauce

Notes: We both liked this. I used a little less nutritional least. We served it along side spinach and artichoke hearts.

Ingredients:
1 package Silken Lite firm tofu
2 cups unsweetened soy milk
¼ cup nutritional yeast flakes
¼ cup raw cashews
1 tablespoon onion powder
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¾ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon white pepper
1 white onion, diced
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
¼ cup water
¼ cup white cooking wine
¼ cup whole wheat flour
16 ounces whole grain linguine, cooked

Directions:
Blend all the ingredients from the tofu to the pepper until smooth. Sauté the onion with the herbs and water in a saucepan over medium heat until translucent and all the liquid has evaporated. Be careful not to brown the onion during this step”

Pour in the wine, swirling it around in the pan to absorb the heat until it begins to sizzle. Add the blended ingredients to the wine and onions, continuously whisking the sauce.
When a gentle bubbling starts, gradually add the flour and continue to whisk until the sauce has thickened. Remove from heat. The sauce will be frothy at this point. Continue whisking for 1 minute, or until the sauce has settled and is smooth and thick. Ladle over the pasta.
Variation:
Add artichoke hearts and mushrooms to the sauce.

Source: The Engine 2 Diet book

Vegan Italian Sausages

Notes:

Ingredients:
½ cup pinto beans
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp onion powder
2 tbsp italian seasoning
½ cup textured vegetable protein (TVP)
½ cup vital wheat gluten
1 tbsp fennel seeds
¼ tsp black pepper
a dash of red pepper flakes
1 tsp paprika
¾ cup water
2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce

Directions:
Crush fennel seeds into a powder using mortar and pestle, set aside. Pulse beans a few times in a food processor or mash manually with a fork until no whole beans are left. Combine beans with all dry ingredients (add red pepper flakes to taste, a little goes a long way) and soy sauce in a large bowl. Mix with your hands to ensure even distribution. Add water and then knead dough about 10 times and set aside. Grab 5 rectangular shapes of foil and prepare your steamer (turn it on and get it ready). Divide dough into 5 equal parts and, using your hands, shape it into a log on the tin foil. Wrap each piece tightly in tin foil, twisting the ends to close. Steam for 40 minutes.

Source: The Happy Herbivore Cookbook

Instant Vegan Alfredo

Notes: I used whole wheat pasta shells we had on hand. Served it with steamed broccoli and a toasted whole wheat “skinny” bun. Nova didn’t care for this. I thought it was ok.
Edit: We both like this alfredo sauce better.

Ingredients:
12 ounces silken tofu
1 cup plant-based milk
¼ tsp nutmeg
⅛ tsp garlic powder
⅛ tsp onion powder
½ cup nutritional yeast
2 tbsp whole wheat pastry flour
2 cups whole wheat pasta, cooked

Instructions:
Blend tofu with non-dairy milk, nutmeg, garlic, onion and a light dash of cayenne pepper (optional, or alternatively, add a drop or two of hot sauce) until smooth and creamy. Transfer mixture to a saucepan and whisk in nutritional yeast, flour and 1 tbsp vegan Parmesan. Cook over medium heat and allow to thicken. Taste, adding salt and black pepper to taste and adjusting other seasonings (more Parmesan, more garlic, etc) as desired. Toss with 2-3 cups of cooked whole wheat or brown rice pasta and vegetables if using. Serve immediately.

Source: The Happy Herbivore Cookbook