Gardein Beefless Burger

Gardein ("garden" + "protein") makes wonderful meat substitutes which you can find in the freezer section at your local grocery store. I was able to find them at Ralph's, Vons, Whole Foods and even Target! I've had several varieties from their line of vegan proteins and this beefless burger is probably one of the best veggie burgers I've ever had. I cooked mine on a charcoal grill and basted it with bbq sauce. The texture is pretty meaty and hamburger- like with a pretty good flavor. Makes a great cheeseburger with a slice of american Tofutti vegan cheese.
Gardein website.

Random Cooking.

Stir fry eggplant and bok choy with szechuan pepper and vegetarian "oyster" sauce.


This was my memorial day food. Portobello sandwich, homemade bbq beans and potatoes.


Panzanella from The Mediterranean Vegan Kitchen.

Scrambled Tofu Sandwich.

Tofu scrambled with mushrooms, red onions and red peppers served on wheat toast with Vegenaise.

Lentil Tacos and Lentil Chilaquiles Casserole.

I made a really good lentil taco filling the other night to which I added chopped veggie sausage and textured vegetable protein. Came out delicious. Here's a good lentil taco recipe.

I had so much lentil filling leftover that I decided to make this chilaquiles casserole. I added scrambled tofu to the filling as well.

Yummy!

I Love Grilled Food!

Backyard grilling again this weekend. I love it. Vegetables taste so much better when they're grilled over open flame. They get all charred and tender and caramelized and so juicy.


The usual suspects: yellow and red bell pepper, mushrooms, onions, zucchini, tomato and baked potatoes. Tofu not pictured.


Pita sandwich wrap with grilled tofu and veggies with lemon-garlic mayo sauce.


Sandwich, mid bite!

Day Off Food.

Got the day off today to babysit my pooch Buster. Buster hasn't been so well lately as he was diagnosed with a hemangiosarcoma lump on his rear area. Vet says he's a good candidate for surgery as the cancer has not spread to any organs yet. He is scheduled for surgery on Thursday. I'm very worried for him as the lump is ulcerated and has been bleeding for days. The worst was on Sunday night and since then my husband and I have been babysitting him in turns. Today I got to spend time with him as well as cooking some good comfort foods. My good friend Cami stopped by to visit Our Buster. While she was here, we cooked!


Comforting curry! I followed a chana masala recipe and added mushrooms and peas. We had corn salad and rice as well as tamarind/ginger/chili chutney and a pickle relish.


For dinner I made this yummy sandwich.


Our Buster.

More Backyard Grilling.

We enjoyed another day of grilling in the backyard. I can't wait until summer when we get some really good produce. I want to grill some corn on the cob and fresh peaches in butterscotch sauce. Today I used what was available.

Eggplant, marinated tofu, baked potatoes, red onions, red peppers and a tomato! I marinated the tofu overnight in a delicious marinade of olive oil, lemon juice, crushed garlic, hot chili flakes and cilantro. For the potatoes, I cooked them in the microwave whole (poke holes in them first) then I split them, brushed with olive oil and grilled til brown and crisp. So delicious.


The ingredients were perfect for this gigantic sandwich!


Now try to sink your teeth into that! It was hard but so worth it.


For dessert I had this idea I got from one of Linda McCartney's books where she splits open a banana, stuffs it with praline, wraps it tightly in foil and cooks it over hot coals. I used chocolate pieces instead. Really yummy.