Enchilada Casserole & Date-Raisin Muffins.

My go to enchilada casserole. I normally use quinoa but goddamn, is quinoa getting expensive or what? I used couscous instead today. Came out great! Pretty much just sauteed onions, celery, peppers and garlic with herbs and spices (cumin, oregano, chili powder, cayenne), then added a can of diced tomatoes, 1 can of black beans, chopped zucchini and asparagus. After the veggies were tender, I added cooked couscous (1/2 cup dry) and mixed it all together. Then I layered the mixture with flour tortillas and tomato sauce in a baking dish, then topped with more tomato sauce, Daiya cheese and vegenaise. I used El Pato tomato sauce which is spicy. Then I baked it at 350 F for 45 minutes.

Topped with guacamole and fresh salsa.

Date and Raisin muffins. The raisins are in there somewhere. The dates are in the puree. I used this no sugar, fruit sweeteened muffin recipe. I chickened out and added a little bit of sugar to the batter. I also added a handful of 10 grain cereal, a bit of blackstrap molasses and sultanas. I'm still on the lookout for a vegan sticky bran muffin recipe. I wanted something like that today but didn't have any bran lying around.

Tacos!

I made delicious tacos last night. The filling is made with Helen's Kitchen veggie ground with sauteed onions, tomatoes and spices like cumin, paprika, oregano, garlic powder and chili powder. I pan fried the corn tortillas in oil. Mmm.

Topped with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, guacamole, fresh salsa and Sriracha Just Mayo! I forgot to squeeze some lime juice on it but they were delicious!

Sweet Potato Samosa and Cinco de Mayo food.

Today is my day off and I didn't want to waste a chance to cook. I had a large sweet potato to use up so I made baked samosas which were a recipe from 'Vegan Planet'. They are stuffed with mashed sweet potato, peas, onions and seasoned with curry powder and cayenne. I know this is not very "Cinco de Mayo" so I made up for it by making fresh guacamole and chipotle refried bean dip with grilled peppers and onions topped with lettuce, tomato and cool ranch sauce. The ranch is from 'You Won't Believe It's Vegan'. It has pureed tofu in it which I was very wary of at first but after adding some seasonings like taco spices, lemon juice and garlic powder it didn't taste half bad.

Here are the pics. All this food was gobbled up while watching Dodger baseball!


Samosa in a variety of sizes. They were delicious.


Yummy bean dip. Only things missing were jalapeno and olives.


Creamy guacamole made from 2 large avocados.


Oh and I did make something healthy. A mango, orange banana salad.

Tamale Pie and Mock Guacamole.

This was my first time making tamale pie and I'm so glad I did. I found a recipe posted at the PPK forums by 'sneaky' and it was quick, easy and consisted of things I already had in my kitchen. I wanted to make guacamole but didn't have any avocados so I made a mock guac with frozen peas. Came out pretty good! Recipes are below the pics.


Out of the oven. That is polenta on top.


Plated with mock guac.

Tamale Pie

Bean Filling:
1 onions, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 (15 oz) can refried beans
1 (15 oz) diced tomatoes w/liquid
1 (15 oz) black beans (you can also use garbanzo, pinto or kidney beans)
2 TB chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
salt and pepper to taste

Polenta topping

3 cups water
1 cup polenta
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 350`
In a medium pot on medium heat, add the vegetables and cook until soft. Add the rest of the bean filling and cook while you get the polenta going.
Boil the water, add the polenta and cook until quite firm, but not stiff.
In a large square dish, place the bean mixture and spread evenly. Top with the polenta and spread to cover. Bake for 25-30 minutes.




Mock Guacamole

2 cups frozen peas, thawed
1 large clove garlic
juice of 1-1/2 limes
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 small tomato, chopped
1/4 cup cilantro chopped
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cumin
dash of hot sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Puree peas in a blender with the lime juice and garlic. Pour into bowl and add the rest of ingredients. Stir to combine and chill.