Soft Tacos!

I get home from a two hour drive and a full day of movin' and shootin' in the sun only to realize. . .I have not eaten all day!  I mean sure I had a hand full of granola here and a few almonds there but really not nearly the calorie count I need to be as active as I am!  Solution, Soft Tacos from heaven!  These bad boys are made with rice and beans, peach salsa and wilted chard.  The extra body comes from braised bell peppers and zucchini.  Lets break it down a little bit more.

The beans were a quick job.  After cooking two cups of beans in a pressure cooker for almost an hour, I took a few spoon fulls (probably a cup cooked beans) and simmered them with garlic powder, cumin, salt, pepper, and coconut oil (though olive or safflower would have been fine).  After they simmered enough that they began to mush I tossed in a hand full of corn kernels (cut off the cob by a lovely housemate) and turned off the heat.  

The rice was brown and delicious! 2.5 cups of rice with 5 cups of water, a healthy pinch of salt and a few tomatoes diced up small.  I salted the rice but left it relatively plain so I could use it as a flavor gradient [that is if the beans are on one side and the salsa is on the other the rice takes on the flavor at each end and provides a balance in the way they mix]  

For the wilted chard we will have to ask Emily but she 'over slated' them and I thought they were perfect

the zucchini was a seat of my pants braising!  Get your cast iron SUPER hot with just a bit of oil, toss in your zucchini so it sizzles then add a dash of balsamic, a squeeze of braggs and a hint of vegan Worcestershire suace.  All that wet cooks away fast so turn down the heat and let it 'burn' onto the zucchini to give a quick-grill-feel.  

Peach salsa was a bit of a sham since I forgot the lime AND the Cilantro (which davey will be happy about).  Diced tomatoes, sliced onions, minced garlic, minced jalapeno, a dash of apple cider vinegar (in an attempt to make up for missing lime) and one average peach diced up.  Mix and let it sit long enough that the flavors really mix together (10 minutes minimum).  

Putting all this in a little tortilla is hard but that is why I have six tacos!  And look at that, I got to top it with a lovely slice of avocado!  

Early Summer Pasta

This was quite possibly the best thing I ate in the last month!  

The kale salad was made with fresh corn, thin sliced red onion and avocado; it was dressed in a lemon vinaigrette made with coconut oil.   The balancing of flavor s was exquisite and the acidity was a bit high whit I really loved when it mixed with the creamy mellow of the avocado or the sweet crisp of the corn.  

The broccoli was a simple light steam dressed with olive oil,salt and pepper.  It was left simple and a bit firm.  The natural flavor was the key component but if a bit of that lemon vinaigrette splashed on it it added a bit of a lip smacking zing to it that I really enjoyed

The main was an angle hair pasta dressed in a garlic butter dressing.  The 'butter' in this case was the earth balance coconut spread (making the whole meal soy free) blended with minced fresh garlic a pinch of salt and a dash of olive oil.  For flavor and color there is also diced parsley, chopped green onions and chunks of heirloom tomatoes.  

What surprised me about this meal, what I wish I planned, is how the flavors all blended so well.  Each item could be mixed with one of the others to make a new flavor combination (though mixing all three was just too much flavor). the kale added some awesome body to the pasta.  The pasta with the broccoli gave a tootyness and a freshness that was like spring time!  Some day I hope I am better at planning flavor combinations like this.. . for now I am happy with the coincidental discoveries! 

salad sandwich

Simple filling and delicious.  What we have here is massaged kale with shredded carrots and beets, a home made almond 'mayo' (which is my experimenting with vegan/paleo/raw foods) and a smattering of Dijon mustard.  The bread is a store bough sourdough which is lightly toasted. I think what made this sandwich a winner was the fact that I used carrots from the garden; they were sweeter and more flavorful than any other carrots I have had!  you cannot tell from this picture but it was also a combination of standard orange carrots and some purple carrots.  they taste different but I cannot tell you exactly how  :)  

Full meal posts are gonna be off for a bit . . . my cook nights are double booked and getting food to my house is more important than the blog.  Maybe tomorrow I will make a 'full meal' lunch for my day off!

Two Weeks in the Appalachia Hills of NC

So I really do mean to do this on a more regular basis but life does not always slow down enough for me to show off my meals the way I want to.  So after two weeks of INCREDIBLE meals all you get is a quick report on the foods and only the scantest of clues on how to make it.  If I were not leaving tomorrow for another trip I would honestly try to be more detailed in my meal preparation and thought process.  

Two Weeks of Tasty Food

Kale Salad

Kale salad with an avocado lemon vinaigrette with fresh corn, grated beets and carrots.  The body is hefted up with a bit of shredded cabbage and topped with crushed walnuts and a few more slices of avocado

Buffalo Fries

It seemed abnormal to go to the south without having buffalo wings but the next best thing is buffalo fires with home made 'wing' sauce.  I used a lot of extra pepper and pinch of salt and so much garlic that I ahrdly tasted the spicy delicious wing sauce

 Buckwheat Pancakes
I was visiting a wheat free friend but that did not deter us from pancakes with maple syrup.  The amazing thing about the east coast is blueberries grow wild!  the bananas are still imported but a morning walk to harvest blueberries made these things so much more worth it!

Shredded salad and mushroom risotto 

One of the many amazing dinners consisted of carrot/beet/cabbage salad with almonds, raisins and, sesame seeds.  The salad was dressed in balsamic vinegar and olive oil.  The risotto was rich and delicious and could have used more mushrooms but was a nice compliment to the salad.

Indian Dinner
One lovely night we threw a dinner party with Red Dhal soup, turmeric rice (didnt have any saffron so did our best), pumpkin curry and a green salad.

more salad

massaged kale with romaine lettuce.  The tomatoes and peppers came from the small garden on site and the diced almonds came with me from Cali!

 Simple Dinner
Steamed carrots and purple cabbage topped with sauteed potatoes and bell peppers.

Hash brown Breakfast
shred potatoes, shred yams, garlic and onions!  I am always a fan of hash browns but for some reason these were extra good.  Top potatoes with avocado and Chihuly hot sauce and you are always on the right track.

potato stew

I was not thrilled with my first go at buckwheat biscuits but they added a nice body to the stew as they melted in.  The stew was a slow roast with potato carrot cabbage in a tomato base with a lot of garlic and some onion.  

Mexican Dinner
Turns out North Carolina does not offer a lot of Mexican food.  This was the last night as a going away treat to remind my friend what is waiting for her in California.  Salsa fresca Mexican spiced black beans with a side of Spanish rice. Fresh corn and guacamole to make tacos with corn tortillas was like heaven!

Salad once more

On the night I met Debra Frasier, Liz and I shared kale salads.  Shredded carrots, shredded beats, tomatoes from the garden, fresh corn, bell peppers and a lemon vinaigrette.  I ate it and wanted more and more and more!  I dont thing there is anything I like as much as a well made salad!  

I have no idea what I am going to eat for the next two weeks but once I am back we will all know! 

Summer time and the lunching's easy

It is beginning to be a challenge. . .cooking zucchini in new ways but brazed is usually a good idea.  By using a VERY hot skillet with a minimal amount of oil you can get the natural sugars in zucchini to brown . . .of course take it too far and you are just burning it.  To help you can splash a bit of soy sauce or balsamic vinegar ti give the appearance of browning while kicking in some extra flavor.  Above is zucchini brazed in balsamic vinegar with garlic to accompany my side of rainbow chard sauteed in lemon juice garlic and butter (earth balance but do I really need to say it every time?  just assume it is some vegan butter, even better assume it is earth balance). with tomato and green beans.  The quinoa is tossed with tomato and oregano and dashed with olive oil and topped with avocado and pepper.  Yeah I can keep eating Zucchini.

Speedy Lunch

I know I know. . .I need to do a full meal and get back to explaining how to make plant based living seem simple and fun! Time keeps getting away but at least I keep lunch coming :)  

This one is a bit of a cheat.  I used the re-fried beans Johnny made earlier in the week with the Barley I made tuesday night (easier than making rice and damn barley is good! ) to make somethign like an open faced taco . . .no not a tostada, the tortilla is not fried and there is not tomato or lettuce for it to be a tostada.  I did dress the tortilla with a bit of oil, garlic powder and nutritional yeast.  I also topped the barley/bean mix with fresh avocado and cilantro.  It was really yummy so I had seconds (and thirds .. .i eat a lot)