The day I made this slaw for the first time, I woke up with the echo of a dream and a lingering wisdom: “Don’t let your boat turn into Charlie Brown.” What does it mean? I have no idea. But I do know that this salad is a quick lunch that has sunny mandarin oranges and crunchy ramen bits and is salty and sweet all at the same time. In less than 15 minutes you can be eating this slaw and enjoying ramen in a whole new way.
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 cups vegan chicken, defrosted, diced (we suggest using Gardein Chick’n Scallopini)
2 tablespoons margarine
1 (3-ounce) package oriental-flavored ramen (read your label to make sure your brand is vegan)
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
¼ cup agave nectar
¼ cup rice vinegar
½ teaspoon tamari
1 teaspoon ginger paste
¼ teaspoon crushed black peppercorns
¼ cup dry-roasted peanuts
4 green onions, chopped
2 cups broccoli slaw mix
1 (10-ounce) can mandarin orange segments, drained
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
4 to 8 lime wedges
In your favorite cast-iron skillet or frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the sesame oil over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, toss in the vegan chicken and cook until the edges are browned and slightly crispy. Remove from heat.
In the same skillet, melt the margarine into any leftover sesame oil over medium heat. Once the margarine is melted, whisk in the ramen flavor packet. Then break the ramen noodles over the skillet into bite-size pieces. Use a metal spatula to blend the noodles into the melted margarine. Cook the noodles for no longer than a minute; then mix in the sesame seeds. Toss and cook for another minute. Don’t let the noodles burn or brown too much—you want to remove them from the heat once they are slightly golden.
In a large bowl, whisk together the agave nectar, rice vinegar, tamari, ginger paste, remaining 1 tablespoon sesame oil, and black pepper. Add the cooked noodles, vegan chicken, peanuts, green onions, broccoli slaw mix, mandarin oranges, and cilantro and toss. Serve immediately with the lime wedges on the side.
Salads are a great and easy way to add raw vegetables to your life, but most of us don’t enjoy a naked salad. Unfortunately, it can be hard to find a prepackaged salad dressing that doesn’t use a lot of sugar, corn syrup, or unhealthy oils. That’s why we suggest investing in a five-dollar glass salad dressing bottle with a cap that seals so you can shake it. That one bottle is one of the most popular items in our whole kitchen—always out on a counter, encouraging us to snack on some baby carrots or add a side salad to our dinner.
We tried to make dressings that had both unique flavors and good ingredients. That’s why we use olive oil instead of soybean and canola oil like most store-bought dressings. Olive oil has more monounsaturated fats (the good ones) and fewer omega-6 fats (the bad ones)—and if all those studies of the Mediterranean diet can be believed, that’s why there’s an association between olive oil intake and a decreased risk of heart disease. It also means that you can’t store your homemade dressing in the fridge, because olive oil becomes a solid when it gets cold. We store ours on the counter next to the knives, but we do our best to finish a bottle in 24 to 36 hours so it doesn’t sit there for long.
In this section you’ll find the dressings that go with our classic salads, but these recipes can do much more than just complement—they can encourage you to make your own signature salads and hopefully eat more vegetables.
This is one of my favorite salad dressings ever. In fact, it has convinced us to never again buy a bottle of salad dressing. Sorry, Paul Newman. We had a nice run, but this was what we’ve been searching for in your cleverly labeled bottles all these years. Don’t worry; we can still be friends. Until we find a way to make our own Newman-O’s.
1 clove garlic, minced
cup olive oil
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vegan Worcestershire sauce
¼ teaspoon Bragg’s liquid aminos
2 pinches of ground mustard seeds
½ teaspoon lemon pepper
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
Toss all the ingredients in a tight container, shake, and drizzle over a bed of your favorite salad stuff. Our Kinder and Gentler Caesar Salad can be found here if you want to be proper and serve this with the expected fixings.
If avocado had a soul mate, it would be this dressing.
cup raw walnuts, crushed
cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
¼ teaspoon capers, drained
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ teaspoon vegan Parmesan
¼ teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
Dash of crushed black peppercorns
Toast the walnuts in a cast-iron skillet or frying pan over medium heat for around 5 minutes, until golden brown. Put all the ingredients, including the toasted walnuts, in an airtight container and shake. Shake before each time you use it.
Tomatoes and limes—not just for Mexican food anymore! This dressing works for just about any veggie combination.
½ cup spicy tomato and vegetable juice cocktail
¼ cup olive oil
¼ teaspoon hot sauce
¼ cup lime juice
3 tablespoons Bragg’s liquid aminos
2 teaspoon crushed black peppercorns
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cumin
Put all your dressing ingredients in an airtight container and shake until blended.
I’m not sure I’d put this dressing on a salad, personally, but you need it for a proper Tofurky Reuben sandwich (here). Sometimes it’s the details that really matter. When it comes to Reubens, this is very true; without the Thousand Island Dressing, you’re just eating a sandwich. But with this dressing, you’re part of delicatessen history!
1 cup Vegenaise
1 tablespoon diced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
2 tablespoons Texas Pete Hot Sauce
1 teaspoon diced red onion
½ teaspoon paprika
2 tablespoon nutritional yeast
In a small bowl, mix all ingredients. Store tightly covered in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
Χόβερκράφτ μου είναι γεμάο χέλια!*
¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ teaspoon sugar
1½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon Bragg’s liquid aminos
¼ teaspoon lemon pepper
Put all the ingredients in a tightly covered container and shake well.
Dan makes the best Agave Dijon Dressing in the world. It’s great on salads and over vegan chicken. Just typing this up is making me fall in love with him a little bit more.
½ cup olive oil
cup agave nectar
cup lemon juice
¼ teaspoon grated lemon peel
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon dark beer
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon chopped fresh chives
In a mixing bowl, blend all the ingredients with an electric handheld mixer until smooth. This is a thick salad dressing, so you’ll want to serve it with a soup ladle rather than pouring it into your salad dressing bottle.
No matter how fancy you like your salads, everyone needs a fresh herb vinaigrette recipe.
cup olive oil
¼ cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon Bragg’s liquid aminos
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ teaspoon crushed black peppercorns
Place all the vinaigrette ingredients in a tight container and shake well.
When Dan and I lived in Norfolk, we used to go to a Japanese restaurant named Kotobuki for vegan lobster and avocado rolls that came with unremarkable salads topped with an exceptional sesame salad dressing. I mean, that dressing is so good I’ve seen people drink it. We loved it so much that we once bribed our waitress to sell us a jelly jar of the stuff to take home. That was before we came up with our own recipe. We live in New York now but can revisit those early years whenever we want with some homemade sushi and this salad dressing recipe.
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons raw sesame seeds
cup rice vinegar
¼ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil
3 tablespoons Bragg’s liquid aminos
2 tablespoons apple juice
1 teaspoon ginger paste
Dash of hot sauce
Toast the sesame seeds in a cast-iron skillet or frying pan over medium heat. Using a metal spatula, continually mix the seeds while they are being toasted so that they heat evenly and don’t burn. It shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes to get them to a soft golden brown.
Put all the ingredients in an airtight container and shake to mix. Shake your dressing before each time you serve to keep your sesame seeds from clumping together.
This dressing goes great with a fancy Cobb Salad (here), some baby carrots, and everything in between. I love it drizzled over steamed asparagus.
5 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
4 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
3 teaspoons Dijon mustard
3 teaspoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Bragg’s liquid aminos
1 teaspoon crushed black peppercorns
teaspoon agave nectar
½ teaspoon celery seed
½ teaspoon mustard seed, crushed
Put all the ingredients in a tightly covered container and shake well.
I was never a big ranch-dressing lover before I went vegan. I didn’t grow up dipping my pizza or hot wings in it. There were no ranch-dressing fountains at parties I went to. Then one day I discovered Nasoya vegan dressings—and I may have gone a little ranch-crazy. I made dips, sandwiches, and fancy mashed potatoes. I was the most popular gal in town at potlucks and parties. People I knew (vegan or not) were always trying to scam a few bites of my lunches, and hinting at ranch-dressing dips they wanted me to bring on road trips. I thought those days were over when Nasoya discontinued that line of products. But then I started the Betty Crocker Project. This recipe won me over to the Cult of Ranch. I would sign over all my financial wealth to this dressing if it asked. We’ve made amazing mashed potatoes with it and dipped vegan hot wings and pizzas in it. I think the only thing wrong with this dressing is that I don’t have enough things to dip in it and drizzle it over.
½ cup Vegenaise
½ cup vegan sour cream
¼ cup firm tofu
1 teaspoon fresh parsley, diced
1 ½ teaspoons dried minced onions
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon tahini
2 teaspoons nutritional yeast
1 ½ teaspoons Bragg’s liquid aminos
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon onion powder
Pinch of celery seed
1 teaspoon fresh dill weed
¼ teaspoon crushed black peppercorns
Pinch of ground mustard seeds
Put all your ingredients in your favorite food processor and blend until smooth.
French dressing is one of those culinary terms that could mean a number of different things. Some store-bought brands taste like ketchup, in my opinion. But there’s also a more savory version that reminds me of a mystery sauce we had over falafels in Budapest. Hungarians know their paprika, and I think it was our visit to this country that developed my healthy respect for this seasoning, which is often either skipped or just used for color. I recommend investing in good smoked paprika for this dressing because it will make a difference.
1 cup olive oil
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
¼ cup lemon juice
2 teaspoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
teaspoon liquid smoke
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon celery seed
½ teaspoon agave nectar
Put all the ingredients in a tightly covered container and shake well.
Many classic salads of this kind are already vegan, and many more are nearly there. But just because this genre of recipes is traditionally vegan-friendly, that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy them. Since they’re generally served cold and are easy to prepare at home, transport, and serve, these recipes make good lunches to bring to work. They also make large quantities, so you can make a big batch on Sunday and have lunch for a few days. They’re also great for potlucks!
This is a really nice recipe. There’s no scorching spiciness, no rich and creamy fake cheese, no hot kitchen afterward—nothing to put a dent in a perfect summer afternoon. This recipe just makes you feel good about spending your Saturday with loved ones and gets along with everyone: Triscuits, iced tea, whatever.
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
3 cups cooked whole wheat penne
2 to 3 cups vegan chicken, cooked and diced
2 cups red grapes, cut in half
3 stalks celery, sliced
cup diced red onion
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh thyme
1¼ cups Vegenaise
1 tablespoon agave nectar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons Bragg’s liquid aminos
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
Pinch of celery seed
¼ teaspoon crushed black peppercorns
1 cup raw walnuts, crushed
Vegan Parmesan to sprinkle over the top
Put your cooked penne and vegan chicken in separate covered bowls in the fridge to chill for 2 hours.
In a huge bowl, mix the penne, vegan chicken, grapes, celery, and onion.
In a much smaller bowl, mix the olive oil and thyme. Let that sit for about 15 minutes. Once you can get a faint herbal scent from the oil mixture, pour it over your pasta mixture and toss until completely blended.
In a medium bowl, mix the Vegenaise, agave nectar, Dijon mustard, Bragg’s, nutritional yeast, celery seed, and black pepper with an electric handheld mixer until smooth. Pour over your pasta mix and toss until completely blended. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours. Right before you serve the salad, mix in your walnuts, and sprinkle each bowl with some vegan Parmesan.
Doesn’t that sound nice?
Is there anything more fun than a Shannon road trip? Really, who doesn’t like sing-alongs to the Beastie Boys in the family truckster and hitting the road with your best friend? We attended a coed baby shower near Lexington, Virginia, one weekend in 2010, and we made the most of it and paid a visit to Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello. So when we were planning the food for our trip, it seemed only right to bring some traditional American favorites. Of course, the Betty Crocker Cookbook has more of these than you can imagine. Pages and pages of them actually… and then eureka!—3-Bean Salad! Who doesn’t love that? So we hit the road with Tofurky sandwiches, brownies, potato chips, and 3-Bean Salad!
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
1 cup Fresh Herb Vinaigrette (here)
1 (14-ounce) can green beans, drained
1 (14-ounce) can wax beans, drained
1 (14-ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
4 medium green onions, chopped
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
5 stalks celery, chopped
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
3 cloves garlic, minced
Make your Fresh Herb Vinaigrette.
In a bowl, mix all of your ingredients with your Fresh Herb Vinaigrette gently with a large slotted spoon until completely blended. Cover and place in the fridge for 3 hours. Visit your salad to stir a few times while it chills out. Once your sugar dissolves, you’re ready to pack up your salad and hit the road!
Gazpacho is a classic Iberian vegetable soup traditionally served cold in the summertime. We’ve taken those classic tomato, onion, and garlic flavors and made them into a pasta salad—also traditionally served cold in the summertime. It’s like these two dishes have been secret soul mates this whole time without realizing it… just like Dan and me.*
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
1 package rotelli or wheel pasta
3 large Roma tomatoes, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 large cucumber, sliced into coins
6 green onions, chopped
½ red onion, diced
¼ cup Spanish olives, pitted and drained
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
½ cup raw baby spinach leaves
2 celery stalks, diced
2 tablespoons roasted sunflower seeds
1 ripe avocado, peeled, pitted, and diced
1 green Anaheim chili, seeded and diced
1 batch Tomato-Lime Vinaigrette (here)
Cook and drain the pasta as directed on the package. Then put your pasta in a mixing bowl, cover with foil, and put in the fridge to chill out for 15 minutes.
Once your pasta is cool, add all the remaining salad ingredients except your Tomato-Lime Vinaigrette and toss until completely blended. Pour the desired amount of Tomato-Lime Vinaigrette over the top and toss again. Serve immediately with Easy Olive Oil Garlic Toast (here).
The Waldorf salad was unsurprisingly created at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York City. It seems a little questionable when you look at the ingredients list—apples and mayonnaise? really?—but is actually quite flavorful and delicious.
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
½ cup vegan plain yogurt
2 tablespoons Vegenaise
4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons agave nectar
2 tablespoons grated lemon peel
2 pinches of celery seed
1 teaspoon crushed black peppercorns
½ cup raw walnuts, chopped
2 large firm Gala apples, cored and sliced thin
3 celery stalks, chopped
2 tablespoons dried cranberries
1 cup seedless red grapes, cut in half
3 tablespoons lemon juice
4 cups fresh baby spinach leaves
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together your yogurt, Vegenaise, parsley, agave nectar, lemon peel, celery seed, and black pepper.
In another, much larger bowl, toss the walnuts, apples, celery, cranberries, grapes, and lemon juice. Once your fruit is mixed, use a slotted spoon to mix in your yogurt dressing. Cover your bowl with foil and refrigerate for not longer than 10 minutes.
Serve chilled and tossed with your spinach. Sadly, this salad doesn’t really keep, so you might want to share with friends.
This is a classic Italian salad recipe made fancier by using heirloom tomatoes—the fancy-pants indie rock stars of the vegetable world that provide a wide variety of color, texture, and flavor to any recipe.
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
5 to 8 heirloom tomatoes in a variety of colors and sizes (around 3 pounds)
1 (8-ounce) package smoked cheddar Sheese
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon brown sugar
¾ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon Bragg’s liquid aminos
2 teaspoons crushed black peppercorns
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
¼ cup fresh basil leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Cut the tomatoes into ½-inch slices or thin wedges. Slice your Sheese into ½-inch slices also.
In your always-handy mixing bowl, whisk together the vinegar, brown sugar, and olive oil until thoroughly blended. Then whisk in the Bragg’s, black pepper, garlic, and lemon juice.
Now it’s time to build your salad! On a pretty serving platter, layer your different colored tomato slices with your Sheese. Sprinkle with basil leaves and parsley, and drizzle with the olive oil dressing. Serve immediately and keep chilled if you can.
Everyone should have a deli-style potato salad recipe—for BBQs and potlucks and to enjoy with your Baked Black Pepper Tofu Reubens (here).
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
6 medium-size red potatoes
3 to 4 stalks celery, chopped
½ red onion, diced
1¼ cups Vegenaise
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
2 tablespoons yellow mustard
1 teaspoon Bragg’s liquid aminos
¼ teaspoon lemon pepper
¼ teaspoon lemon juice
Pinch of celery seed
¼ teaspoon dried dill weed
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
Place the potatoes in a 3-quart pot. Add enough water to cover your potatoes. Cover the pot and heat to boiling. Cook covered for around half an hour. With a slotted spoon, check on the potatoes regularly. Remove your potatoes when they’re soft and tender, but before they get mushy.
Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut them into cubes. Toss them in a bowl with your celery and red onions. Let cool.
In a large bowl, mix the Vegenaise, vinegar, mustard, Bragg’s, lemon pepper, lemon juice, celery seed, dill weed, parsley, and nutritional yeast. Use a whisk to make sure the mixture is smooth. Once your potatoes and vegetables reach room temperature, mix in the Vegenaise mixture and toss.
Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours. Make sure you serve it chilled… Vegenaise is awesome until it gets warm.
I’m not German, but I love Oktoberfests! What’s not to love? Polka dancing, pretzels, cheap random imported beers, sauerkraut, beer brats (vegan, of course), and all kinds of other awesomeness. When we were in Budapest, we hid out from a biblical thunderstorm in a German-fest tent (not an Oktoberfest, but it had the same vibe) and watched some pretty amazing accordion-accompanied karaoke. Of course, in Budapest around May Day, festivals aren’t hard to find, but it was one of the best nights we had there during one of the best weeks ever. In America, we’re used to our potato salad chilled and with more mayo than potato, but in Germany there is a very popular dish called Kartoffelsalat that is actually a potato salad served warm and with bacon. Ours is of course pig-free, but it was intended to capture the spirit of that original dish. Are you ready to start Deutsching it up? Can I get a “Hölle ja!” right now?
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
8 to 10 small red potatoes, quartered
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 dashes of liquid smoke
½ large red onion, diced
1 tablespoon whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon sugar
½ teaspoon onion powder
1 tablespoon Bragg’s liquid aminos
½ teaspoon celery seed
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard (if you want it spicy)
1 teaspoon nutritional yeast
¼ cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon water
½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
cup raw baby spinach leaves
¼ cup vegan bacon bits
Crushed pink Himalayan salt and crushed black peppercorns
Boil your potatoes till they are tender. Drain and let cool a bit while you make the rest of the dish. It will help firm them up a little before they go in the salad.
Heat the olive oil and liquid smoke in your geliebt cast-iron skillet or frying pan over medium heat. Once your oil is hot, toss in the onions and cook until they begin to get tender. Then add the flour, sugar, onion powder, Bragg’s, celery seed, Dijon mustard, and nutritional yeast and mix with a spatula until blended.
Add the potatoes and cook, while flipping and mixing occasionally. You want to get an even coating on your potatoes. Be careful so your potatoes don’t fall apart.
Add the wine, water, vinegar, thyme, and spinach. Continue to cook while flipping and mixing occasionally. When your liquid is about halfway cooked off, add your vegan bacon bits. Continue to cook until the liquid cooks away enough to make a light sauce.
Give your salad a taste test and toss in a little salt and pepper to your liking!
If this salad were in the Olympics, it would be the triple axel, triple toe loop that would have brought the 1980s Eastern European judge to tears. We combined two summertime favorites, chicken salad and potato salad, and added a warm seasoning twist to these classic and often overlooked chilled dishes. We’re taking this “side” out of the shadow of those showy pies and veggie burger headliners; just like how Star Trek: The Next Generation began as a spin-off of a wildly popular cult classic, but with some tweaks here and there came into its own, and some would argue is superior to the original. You know what I mean… Don’t act like you’re too cool for Star Trek.
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
2 cups vegan chicken, defrosted (we recommend Gardein Chick’n Scallopini)
1½ pounds small new potatoes, cubed
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1¾ cups Vegenaise
3 stalks celery, diced
½ cup diced red onion
½ cup frozen peas
cup julienned carrots
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 teaspoons curry powder
¼ teaspoon cayenne chili powder
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon crushed pink Himalayan salt
½ teaspoon poultry seasoning (there are many brands that are vegan; you just need to read some labels)
¼ teaspoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon crushed black peppercorns
1 (14-ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
Smoked paprika to sprinkle over the top
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
In a shallow glass baking dish, toss your vegan chicken, potatoes, and olive oil until the vegan chicken and the potatoes are evenly coated. Bake for 20 minutes, or until your vegan chicken and potatoes are a light golden brown and have a light, crispy crust. Cover with foil and put in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.
While your vegan chicken and potatoes are chilling, mix the garlic, Vegenaise, celery, onion, peas, carrots, cilantro, curry powder chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, poultry seasoning, lemon juice, cumin, black pepper, and garbanzo beans in a large bowl, and let them chill for 10 minutes to help blend the flavors.
Then toss your vegan chicken and potatoes into your Vegenaise–garbanzo beans mixture and put it back into the fridge for another 30 minutes.
Sprinkle some smoked paprika over the top and enjoy!
You can serve this summertime favorite hot or cold, at a barbecue or around the dinner table. It’s the little black dress of quick and classy dishes.
MAKES 4 SERVINGS
1 batch Toasted Sesame Dressing (here)
1 (9-ounce) package Gardein beefless tips or beef seitan, defrosted
Olive oil cooking spray
½ teaspoon onion powder
1 (12-ounce) package whole wheat soba noodles (if you can’t find any that are vegan, you can also use angel hair pasta)
2 cups broccoli slaw
1 cup raw snap pea pods
1 (14-ounce) can baby corn, drained
1 (8-ounce) can bamboo shoots, drained
1 (8-ounce) can sliced water chestnuts, drained
2 medium green onions, chopped
1 tablespoon raw sesame seeds
Make your Toasted Sesame Dressing first.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place your vegan beef in a glass baking dish. Spray on a light, even coating of olive oil and sprinkle with the onion powder. With a spoon, turn your vegan beef a few times to makes sure it gets a nice coating. Bake uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes and remove from the oven when your vegan beef is browned and a little crispy on the edges.
Cook your soba noodles per the instructions on the package. Just remember—they cook really fast, so keep an eye on them. When your noodles are cooked and drained but still hot, put them in a large mixing bowl and add the broccoli slaw, snap pea pods, baby corn, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, and vegan beef, and toss. Then mix in your Toasted Sesame Dressing and gently toss with two forks. The hot noodles will heat the vegetables and dressing a little and help the flavors mix. Now, if you want to serve it cold, cover your salad and put it in the fridge for 15 to 20 minutes. Be sure to revisit your salad a few times and remix it to keep your dressing from sitting at the bottom.
Before you serve, mix in the green onions and sesame seeds.
Dan brought this recipe in for a spontaneous Squirrel Appreciation Day potluck at Peta2 while he was the director there. As always, there was a pretty impressive spread ranging from spring rolls to chocolate cake from Peta’s Vegan College Cookbook. Now, this had started as a veganized version of Betty’s Macaroni Salad for the Betty Crocker Project, but as it progressed, it became more Annie Dream Lunch than anything else.
MAKES 8 TO 10 SERVINGS
1 teaspoon crushed black peppercorns
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons lemon juice
Dash of liquid smoke
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon Bragg’s liquid aminos
1 package extrafirm tofu, drained
1 package elbow macaroni
¾ cup frozen peas
1 red onion, diced
½ cup shredded Daiya vegan cheddar cheese or your favorite vegan cheese
4 stalks celery, diced
¼ cup sweet pickle relish
1 cup Vegenaise
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon celery seed
2 tablespoons Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic powder
In a shallow dish, combine the black pepper, olive oil, 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice, the liquid smoke, garlic, and Bragg’s. Cut your tofu into pieces that are as even as possible—so they all bake evenly. Then marinate your tofu in the oil-pepper mix for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Cover a cookie sheet with foil and place your marinated tofu slices on there about an inch apart. Keep your leftover marinade. Bake your tofu for 20 minutes, then flip and bake for another 20 minutes. You want the tofu to be crispy and golden brown.
Cook the macaroni per the instructions on the package. Once you drain your cooked macaroni, gently mix in your frozen peas with the hot pasta. The steam will heat your peas. Put your macaroni and peas in a large mixing bowl, cover, and put in the fridge.
After your tofu has been baking for 20 minutes, take your macaroni and peas from the fridge and gently stir in your red onion, vegan cheese, celery, pickle relish, and leftover marinade. Once that is mixed, cover your bowl and return it to the fridge. Once your tofu is done baking, let it cool for around 10 minutes and then cut into bite-size pieces.
Then take your macaroni mixture from the fridge and gently stir in your tofu pieces. In a small bowl, whisk together the Vegenaise, the remaining 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and the nutritional yeast, celery seed, Creole seasoning, and garlic powder. Then mix the macaroni and tofu mix with your seasoned Vegenaise, cover with foil, and chill in the fridge for 45 minutes. Then you’re good to go kick ass and appreciate some squirrels.
When I saw the first ingredient in this recipe I admit I was immediately suspicious. Adding sugar to fruit seemed unnecessary. Fruit is sugar. But I have to admit the dressing was tasty… in particular on the mangoes and berries. It added just a touch more sweetness and a little spike of sour. The sugar and lime juice also work some kind of chemistry magic that keeps this salad fresh for hours!
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup water
¼ cup key lime juice
2 tablespoons tequila
1 cup cut pineapple
2 Red Delicious apples, sliced
1 orange, peeled and sectioned
1 mango, sliced
Handful of fresh raspberries
Handful of fresh blueberries
Handful of fresh blackberries
1 teaspoon grated lime peel
Heat the sugar and water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat. Simmer uncovered for 2 minutes, stirring continually until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and add the lime juice and tequila. Let the lime juice dressing sit until it reaches room temperature. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours—or if you are in a hurry, just until it’s cool.
Mix all your fruit in a large serving bowl.
Stir the lime peel into the cooled lime juice dressing.
Pour your lime juice dressing over your fruit mix and carefully toss the fruit till it is evenly covered with dressing.
One of my very favorite souvenirs from our trips to Los Angeles came from a trip to the farmers’ market with my friend and fellow food blogger Anjali. They were adorable little jars of sugar-free pomegranate jam from the Sherrill Orchards booth. I had planned on using this jam to combine two of my very favorite things: pomegranates and toast (the perfect fruit and the perfect vehicle for delicious sauces and spreads). But when I came home, I found a recipe that was waiting for the perfect jam* to come around.
MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS
3 fresh plums, sliced and pitted
3 fresh peaches, sliced and pitted
Seeds from 1 pomegranate
½ cup raw walnuts, crushed
¼ cup of your favorite jam (pomegranate or raspberry or even apple butter)
1 tablespoon apple juice
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
In a large bowl, mix the plums, peaches, pomegranate seeds, and walnuts with salad tongs. In a small bowl, whisk together the jam, apple juice, lime juice, and olive oil, and drizzle it over the top of the fruit. Then toss the fruit and dressing.