Tamari Roasted Chickpeas

From Dreena Burton's Eat, Drink & Be Vegan. A book I've made a few things from, but should really break out for more often! The broccoli burritos have been calling me for too long.

I've made this a few times now, and I like how simple it is.
Roasted chickpeas were one of the first easy recipes I tried as a new vegan, years ago. I remember dumping Emeril's spice mixs, sea salt and oil onto them and hoping for the best.

I added a little nutritional yeast this time around, and tend to bake them for an additional 15 minutes because I like them really crispy. I used a bit of misted olive oil instead of the called for oil.

Great on their own as as snack, or over salad greens. Cheap bulk chickpeas, cheap spices, you're set.

All American Meals and Stuff

So vegan ham log isn't quite the typical definition of a star in an All American meal, but I suppose it is to my boyfriend, especially with a side of mashed potatoes and green beans (from the freezer!). Here's a recent dinner of Thomas', featuring pan fried 'ham'.

Perhaps this is my All American meal: Baked Chickpea Cutlets, Roasted Noochy Cauliflower, mashed potatoes with whipped Earth Balance and Backyard BBQ Sauce for dippin.
Very Veganomiconommy.



Tofu baked in the Teriyaki Stir Fry Sauce (minus the cornstarch) from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan! over a quinoa fried rice type concoction.



A tofu scramble plate from Jam on Hawthorne with roasted garlic, mushrooms, spinach and spices. Oh, and the best hash browns EVER.



And a bit more of the Joy of Vegan Baking Caramel Corn. This was a smaller, peanut buttered version I played with. Excellent results!

Entertaining...

Thomas and I ended up hosting a PPK New Year's Eve Party last week, and it was a blast. We maybe had 9 or 10 people at most, which included Susie of Parsnip Parsimony, Webly of Fueled by Popcorn, Maeve of StrawberryRock, Rory of the PPK and more.

Here are some food pics..

The full spread, featuring Susie's (and her hands and camera) Boozilicious Rummy Booze Cake, and the excellent Chestnut Pate from Nomicon that Webly brought.

Baked gyozas. I bought pre-made wrappers at fubonn, and the filling is mixture of sauteed nomicon baked seitan (with asian flavors), garlic, ginger, yellow squash, carrots, maiitake mushrooms, veg. mushroom oyster sauce, hoisin, tamari and crushed red pepper, lightly sprayed with oil and baked for 15-20 on each side at 375F.

Miso Grilled Tofu and Seitan - based on the The Artful Vegan recipe for miso broiled eggplant

Tofu Dill Sour Cream - based on the Voluptuous Vegan recipe available here
It was alright, but I added some garlic and more spices, and I still think it needed more, but I also knew I was out of touch on what sour cream should taste like
(I was aiming for more of a dip, though sour cream was appropriate for what it went on).

Baked Potato Skins - scooped, brushed with a garlic butter (obviously Earth Balance), baked for 15 minutes, plopped on some zestied nomicon cheezy sauce, smoky crumbled tempeh and black olives, baked another 15 minutes.

Coconut Red Curry Peanut Sauce

Eggplant Caviar served over fresh chard - the The Artful Vegan. I wasn't too crazy about this, but it was pretty.

Tamari Roasted Chickpeas - Eat, Drink & Be Vegan.
So easy, and at least the 4th time I've made them.

Thomas made some Hunch Punch, aka Jungle Juice, aka Booze Juice.

VWAV Chocolate Chip Cookies - with butterscotch chips and chocolate lentils.
I picked up a ton of pastel chocolate, mint and coffee lentils in NYC and Brooklyn.....
(The .... meaning more to come!)

Eating at work.

I try to specifically make enough food for leftovers, and/or grab greens with me for steaming or salads to eat at work during the week. Fortunately, we have a spacious fridge, kitchen table, toaster oven, microwave and plates to work with. Ever notice blue plates here? Totally not mine.
Today I ate instant wild mushroom cous cous (Mmmm Near East!) and round two of the salad mixture below for lunch. I do dine out on a regular basis, particularly when a meal can last me more than one lunch's worth of food or I can share it. Sometimes I'm just not in the mood for leftovers, and sometimes I remember I left my lunch at home while on my way to work - that 'oh mannnnnnnnnnn' moment (especially when I recall something great like chickpea cutlets, just sitting.in.the.fridge). My lunch staple is definitely soups - particularly this time of year. I like to make a batch on Sunday evening, and then enjoy it's savory warmth for the next 3+ days. The Creamy Tomato soup from Veganomicon is certainly in store soon.

So far this week, my lunches have featured this salad with romaine lettuce, purple cauliflower, tamari roasted chickpeas and green bell pepper :

On Monday I dined on Saturday night's leftovers: chickpea cutlets and mushroom gravy:

A surprise on my work kitchen table!

Ow, ow! Field Roast sent me some goods! More on them to come.

White truffle pate, lentil sage loaf and celebration roast.

Chickpeas EVERYWHERE.

Behold! I mentioned making two dishes on my last couple posts and they actually came to fruition! Or roasting. When does that ever happen?

Tamari Roasted Chickpeas, from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan! Easy and tangy and salty. 3 big points for that! The lemon flavor is equal to the tamari in these, and I enjoyed them in a salad today as well as warm from the oven, yesterday.



Thomas made this panini for me at his new coffeeshop in NW Portland - ciabatta roll, kalamata olives, mustard, spinach, tomato, pear, walnuts and balsamic vinegarette. Vanilla soy latte, too.


My work lunch on Friday: sliced apple with sea salt, romaine lettuce with raspberry vinagarette (TJ's) and Smokey Baked tempeh from nomicon. nom nom.



Saturday night's dinner: we relaxed, started watching Best in Show (watched Waiting for Guffman the evening before) and dined on chickpea cutlets, mushroom gravy (made with maittakes and creminis), grits, roasted purple cauliflower and yukon golds.
A lovely post-farmer's market feast~



Yesterday's lunch from Taqueria Los Gorditos Vegan Sunday: Mulita with rice and beans (minus the cilantro and onions...just saying!)



Tonight, I've got more purple caulifower and a newly soaked batch of chickpeas on the brain....what's on yours?