hot mustard asparagus

my mom is a pretty cool chick. she is super supportive of my vegan lifestyle, and that's saying a lot considering we live in the heart of meat and potatoes land. she's always willing to go out for a vegetarian or vegan meal, and even requested veggie sushi for mother's day. this year she went to ireland and managed to bring back some vegan hot irish mustard from avoca pantry - which rocks because i love mustard and i love spicy foods. so hats off to my mom and all her rockin'ness.

• 1 pound asparagus
• 2 tablespoons hot irish mustard*
• 2 tablespoons hot scottish mustard*
  

i saved a few pounds of the asparagus that my brother gave me, so i this made from thawed asparagus (notice they are less stiff). however, i can say that i'm mighty impressed with how well they taste after a month or two of being frozen. cut the woody ends off your asparagus and coat with at least three tablespoons of hot mustard (*work with what you have, but make it spicy)! i also had some hot scottish mustard from arran, and the two worked very well together. if you are using fresh asparagus, you may need to add a little olive oil if necessary or reduce baking time.

if using frozen (and thawed) asparagus, bake for 25 minutes on 375°f, flipping once. kick the broiler on high for about 5 minutes and spread a little additional mustard on top before serving.

grilled pizza

this was a fun foodie experiment that turned out awesome! i had heard of grilled pizza sometime in the past year, and was determined to make it this summer. i was not disappointed. nice crispy pizza with a wonderful grill flavour - you can't beat it! the timing on the grill is the most difficult part, and i've typed up detailed instructions below.

• 1 batch of pizza dough
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• yellow squash
• zucchini
• green bell peppers
• red bell peppers
• marinated artichoke hearts
• mushrooms
• black olives
• banana peppers
• vegan cheese (optional)

for the pizza sauce (makes two):

• 2 small cans tomato paste
• 1/3 cup water
• onion powder
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• pinch of salt

make your sauce and dough first. the sauce is super easy and thick. for the dough... well, i'm not going to lie. i used a package mix, which is usually not my style. however, my kitchen was torn up because i'm getting new counter tops and a new sink, so there wasn't any working room and everything was covered in dust.

while your dough is resting, prep your toppings by chopping them into pizza-sized bits. put them in a vegetable grill tray and cook over medium-high heat for about 4-5 minutes. if you don't have a grill pan, you can create a pouch out of foil and cook them in there, but they won't have as much of the "grilled" flavour.

when your toppings are done cooking, roll out your dough into a circle or square, about 9 inches in diameter and about 1/4 inch thick. if your tough gets too thin, it will tear on the grill. put some flour on a plate and lay your dough on top. coat the top with a thin layer of olive oil - about one tablespoons worth. keep your grill on medium high heat and spray with olive oil or another nonstick spray. in one quick motion, flip your plate over so the crust lands oil-side down. while it's cooking, coat the top side with the other tablespoon of olive oil. check the bottom often for burning and flip as needed. you will likely only need to cook the crust for 1-1½ minutes on either side.


once crust has cooked, remove from grill. spread sauce, toppings and whatever cheese substitute you are using. i opted to forgo the cheese during this test run since i typically have a hard time getting it to melt. once pizzas have been assembled, carefully place them back on the grill on low heat this time. to really accentuate the grill flavor (and melt any cheese you are using), close the lid. continue to cook on low until they start to brown a little on the outside of the crust, approximately 4-5 minutes.

it may seem a little complicated for pizza, but the flavour is so worth it.

vegan explosion: the diablo dog

as a child, i always had an aversion to the taste of hot dogs. and a kids in the hall skit confirmed my distaste when they claimed that hot dogs were composed of yucky animal parts, mixed with old phone books and wieeeeener flavour. (i still firmly believe this is the original recipe for hot dogs). and truth be told, i've never liked the vegan hot dogs all that much either. then behold, the diablo dog. ms. jewbacca and ms. crunk both had me intrigued, then salivating, and then running to the store. i snatched up the jumbo dogs and some seriously awesome vegan hoagie buns. i kid you not, this is a little (er, huge) piece of sinful heaven.


my diablo dog consisted of:

• huge hoagie buns
• jumbo vegan hot dogs
• jalapenos
• chopped tomatoes
• regular mustard
  
• hot scottish mustard
• chopped pickles
• chopped green peppers
• vegan queso
• chili beans
• hot sauce
• ketchup
• sauerkraut
  

first get your prep out of the way, because when those dogs are done, you aren't going to want to be cutting tomatoes and pickles.

split the hot dogs down the center and pop them on the grill (about medium heat). then split the hoagies and grill them for a minute or two as well so they are nice and crunchy. pile all the fixins on, smush everything together and do your best to get it in your mouth.

definitely a three or four napkin dish.

vegan mock meatloaf

jen of that pain in the ass vegan and i must have been on the same mock meat vibe, because we both came up meatloaf recipes around the same time (i just took a little longer to get mine posted). i've had a couple of tries at mock meatloaves since becoming vegetarian, but i always forget to write down what i put in it. i finally remembered this time, and luckily, the meatloaf was tasty! it seems really wet in the beginning, but once cooked it firms up nicely and you can easily cut it into pieces.

• 1/2 cup cooked lentils
• 1/2 cup cooked yellow split peas
• 1/2 cup cooked green peas
• 1 can kidney beans, drained
• 2/3 cups short grain brown rice
• 2 pieces of whole wheat toast
• 1/4 cup ground flax seed
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1/2 tablespoon liquid smoke
• 1/2 tablespoon vegan worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 ½ tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 jalapeno, minced
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 3/4 teaspoon ground sage
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 cup hickory bbq sauce

cook lentils, peas and rice according to directions. after the lentils and peas have cooled considerably, pour them into a food processor along with the drained kidney beans and jalapenos. after blending, put the mixture into a large mixing bowl, and add the rest of ingredients (crumble your toast) except for the rice and barbecue sauce. mix thoroughly, and finally add in the rice and bbq sauce as desired. i found the bbq flavour really enriched the flavour, so be sure to add your favourite sauce.

preheat the oven to 375°f. if you like a crispy crust, divide the mixture into to loaf pans. cook both pans for approximately 30 minutes. the result will be less thick, but you'll have a nice proportion of crispy exterior and soft inside. i haven't tried cooking it all in one pan, but i imagine you'll have to extend the cooking time.

i like to serve mine with a trio of dipping condiments (see background of picture). i put one dollop of ketchup, one dollop of mustard, and one dollop of bbq sauce side by side. plus this gives it fancy-pants presentation.

pulp pasta (raw)

i love zucchini pasta in the summer. not only is it nice not to have a big pot of boiling pasta on your stove, but it's lighter in calories. and who doesn't have a ton of zucchini right about now? this recipe uses tomato-veggie juice pulp, because i'm always looking for creative ways to use it up. waste not, want not, right? of course, if you don't make juice, you could just as easily sub marinara.

• 1 zucchini, spiralized
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 2 clove garlic
• 1/4 whole onion
• 1/3 cup fresh basil
• 1 dash sea salt
• 1 dash fresh ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup water
• pulp from tomato fusion juice

use a spiralizer to make noodles from your zucchini. combine tomato juice pulp (or something similar) and rest of the sauce ingredients into a food processor and pulse a few times. i like my sauce a little on the chunky side, but you could add more water or olive oil for a smoother sauce.

pour over noodles and serve. it doesn't need to be heated up unless you want to - i like mine at room temperature in the hot summer.

fire roasted soyrizo burrito (breakfast burrito #3)

breakfast burritos. good for those ravenous mornings when fruit or pastries just won't cut it. i never had 'real' chorizo when i was an omnivore, so i'm not sure how soyrizo compares. i really like the spicy flavour of the soyrizo - both the homemade and pre-packaged. add in some fire roasted tomatoes, and you have a big sloppy delicious breakfast. :)

• 1 soyrizo link
• 1 can fire roasted tomatoes (14.5oz)
• 1 small can mexi-style corn (11 oz.)
• 1/2 small zucchini, diced
• 1 tablespoons cumin
• 10 inch flour tortillas
• tofutti sour cream (optional)

roughly chop soyrizo in large non-stick skillet on medium heat. i find that soyrizo tends to crumble by itself, so larger chunks are fine. drain the corn, and add it in along with the cumin. saute for about 2 minutes, and then add in slightly drained fire roasted tomatoes. to slightly drain, open the can but keep the lid on with your hand. turn over once in the sink, but don't compress or try to force liquid out. once you added in everything, continue cooking mixture for approximately 5 minutes, or until tomato liquid has mostly evaporated. serve on heated flour tortillas. if you want to cool the spiciness down, you can add a big dollop of tofutti sour cream.

makes about 3 or 4, depending on size.

fruit salad green smoothie

being the only veggie in my office, i always get offered the remains of the fruit trays from pot lucks and parties (which i totally love). leftover fruit salad is great - if you can eat it quickly. sometimes it may be a few days before i can polish it off, and a bowl of mushy fruit doesn't sound that great. here is the solution, my friends. if the fruit is still good, maybe just not in peak form, throw it in a blender with a some greens. it's delicious, nutritious and you won't let anything go to waste!

• 1 1/2 cups fruit salad
• 1 cup spinach
• 1/3 cup water
• 4 ice cubes

this was a bit of fruit salad leftover from my belated birthday party (i ate most of it before it started to get mushy). thanks to the true family for making it with tons of fresh fruit - just how i like it. it was a delicious combination of cantaloupe, bananas, strawberries, green grapes, and peaches.

put all ingredients in a regular blender for about 30-45 seconds. if you have a lot of watery fruits, you may not need a full 1/3 cup water... just start with a little and add enough to get it blending.