Vegan-ize My Recipe Challenge!

I was thinking about what I wanted to share with all of you this evening and came up with a slightly different idea. I want you all to share your recipes with me.

Now you may be thinking that this idea seems a little strange, but just bare with me for a moment.

I’ve seen countless facebook posts about people wanting to get healthier and resolving to eat better in 2014. This gave me an idea.

The recipes that I want you to send to me are you favorite non-vegan recipes from anywhere. I’m going to choose one ever week and recreate it in a healthier vegan friendly way & share it with everyone.

Together, we can inspire each other and of course, eat really delicious food!

You can submit your recipes to me by email at: 

andYESitsVegan@gmail.com

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Meatless Monday: Vegan Stir Fry

It’s Monday, which is not a fun day.

I would guess, your want to try something meatless.

Okay, so maybe I’m not the best at rhymes but I’ll bet you will love this stir-fry recipe.

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Vegan Stir Fry

Ingredients:

Canola Oil

Rice

Assorted Vegetables*

Soy Sauce (or other preferred sauce)

*I recommend using some or all of the following: mushrooms, onions, carrots, bean sprouts, peppers, zucchini, water chestnuts, baby corn, or really any other vegetable that you like. Your options are limitless!!

Directions:

1. Boil rice per the directions on the rice package.

2. Chop the veggies to the desired consistency.

3. Place them in a hot and oiled pan and cook them until as desired.

Frying Tip: I like to add water into my vegetables while they are cooking. I use a squeeze bottle but a cup works too! This extra water adds moisture to you veggies, which helps them from drying out. It also allows you to cut down on the oil that you need to use, which helps cut down on the fat.

4. When the veggies are close to done, mix the rice and soy sauce into the pan and mix together.

Serve & Enjoy!!

What veggies are you using? I’d love to see your spin on this delicious dish!!

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Quick and Easy Vegan "Coke-cakes"!

I'm going out tonight to a birthday celebration for a co-worker and very good friend and I'm bringing cupcakes. (:

I can't wait to share these cupcakes with them and of course you all. (: (: 

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Vegan Coke-cakes!

Ingredients: 

1 box of cake mix

1 8oz can of brown soda 

I'm using Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Fudge Cake Mix & a can of Coca-Cola. 

Directions: 

1. Dump your cake mix into a bowl. 

2. Pour in you can of soda slowly, keeping in mind the carbonation will still cause it to foam up. 

3. Mix until you have reached one solid consistency and dish out into your cupcake tins!

When they come out, decorate them as you wish. I used Duncan Hines Frosting Creations and some colorful sprinkles! 

Enjoy!!

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Meatless Monday: Fried Avocado Tacos

It's Monday, which means it's time for another Meatless Monday recipe! (: 

Today's recipe is a little unconventional, but it's delicious none the less. 

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Fried Avocado Tacos.

You will need: 

A frying pan 

A spatula 

A knife

A cutting board

3 small bowls

Ingredients: 

Small flour tortillas

Black Beans

Onions

Avocados

Flour

Water

Shredded Lettuce 

Salsa 

Directions: 

**Before you start prepping your avocado, I recommend that you begin heating a frying pan with about 1/4 inch of olive oil, so that your oil will be hot when you are ready to start cooking**

1. Using the knife, slice open the avocado and slice it length wise into long slices. 

2. Dip your avocado into water, then roll it in your bowl of flour, and once it is thoroughly covered it is read to fry. 

3. Place these slices into your pan, flipping them over after about 5 minutes.

You want the outside to be crispy, but for the best taste you want to keep the inside soft and creamy. 

4. When they are ready, pull them out of the frying pan (I recommend using tongs) and place your avocado slices on some paper towels to help absorb any extra oil. 

**Since I had the pan and the oil already heated up, I chose to go ahead and sauté my onions as well. This is a completely optional step, depending on how you like your onions. 

Now it's time to build you tacos!

I built this scrumptious taco, by layering black beans and onions on the bottom of my soft taco shell. Then I placed several slices of avocado into my taco and covered that with lettuce, salsa, a little salt, and some pepper. 

I served my tacos with margaritas, and they were a big hit! The avocado slices were the perfect touch to my tacos, they had that extra little crunch on the outside but maintained there smooth creamy rich texture on the inside. They complemented the salsa and other vegetables quite nicely. 

If you give this recipe a try, I would love to know what you think!

Enjoy!

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Meatless Mondays: Mac & Bean Casserole!

Today’s Meatless Monday recipe is a filling and delicious casserole of sorts. It’s simple, quick, and perfect for an on the go dinner.

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Mac & Bean Casserole

Makes 4 large servings.

You will need:

A 2 quart microwaveable safe bowl

A spoon

A large strainer

Ingredients:

1 box of Elbow noodles

1 28 oz can of baked beans*

Directions:

1. Fill your bowl with water and your noodles.

2. Cook your noodles for 3 minutes and then stir. Repeat.

3. Cook for an additional 4 minutes, stir, and strain the noodles.

4. Mix the noodles with the beans, stir thoroughly, and microwave for another minute.

Enjoy!

**I use Bush’s Vegetarian Baked Beans

If you try this recipe, leave me a comment & let me know what you think!

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Halloween Witches Hats!

Today I am going to be sharing a sweet Halloween treat with you all. My mom and I have been making these since I was a little kid, and even as an adult I still think they are cute, delicious, and perfect for Halloween. (:

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Halloween Witches Hats

You will need:

A microwave safe bowl

A spoon, knife, and fork

Wax paper

Ingrediants:

Ritz Crackers

Bugles Original Chips

Ghirardellli Simi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Peanut Butter

Chocolate sprinkles

Directions:

1.  Count out the number of Ritz and Bugles needed. You will need one of each for each treat you are making. Make sure the Bugles are whole and unbroken for a better look.

2. Pour chocolate chips into you microwavable safe bowl ( I like to use a glass measuring cup) and melt them in the microwave until thoroughly melted. I usually try stirring them after ever 30 seconds.

3. Dip you Ritz and you Bugles into the chocolate one by one and use your fork to allow extra chocolate to drip off. Lay them out on wax paper and let them harden.  

4. When the chocolate has hardened, use your knife to put a small dollop of peanut butter on the middle of the Ritz and push a Bugle into the peanut butter.

5. Sprinkle your chocolate sprinkles into the peanut butter.

Enjoy!

If you try these out, leave a comment bellow and let me know what you think!

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Meatless Monday: Spaghetti with Veggie Pasta Sauce

Meatless Mondays are become more and more prevalent; in fact I might even dare to say that they are becoming a trend and I LOVE it. The idea of going meatless for a day (or even just for one meal) is a great way to incorporate creative and delicious vegan meals into a diet.

Monday often gets a bad rap because it brings about the end of the weekend and the return to work, school, and responsibility; and getting back to the routine of the week can be stressful. After a long day (even if it’s not a Monday) the last thing I want to do it come home and cook a big meal.

If you are anything like me, you will love this simple yet delicious meal idea to make your Mondays just a little less manic. (:

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Spaghetti with Veggie Pasta Sauce

You Will Need:

Large pot

Saucepan

Spoon

Colander

Ingredients:

1 box of spaghetti noodles

1 jar of spaghetti sauce

2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 teaspoon of garlic salt

1 ¼ cup spinach

¾ cup mushroom slices

*You can use as little or as much spinach and mushrooms as you like, these measurements are reflective of my preferences.

Directions:

In your large pot, cook the pasta per the directions on the box, keeping in mind the number of people and the serving size.

While the pasta is cooking, sauté your mushroom slices in olive oil.

When the mushrooms are almost done, mix in you spinach and sprinkle the garlic salt over the mixture, stir until thoroughly mixed.

Pour in your sauce.

Continue stirring until both the mushrooms and the spinach are fully cooked and the sauce is warm.

Drain your pasta and serve it with you sauce.

Enjoy!

Note: A quick look at the ingredients list on both the pasta box and the jar of sauce will determine if they are vegan; be on the look out for milk or eggs in your noodles and milk or meat bi-products in your sauce. I like to use Mueller’s Thin Spaghetti and Prego Traditional Sauce.

What is a Vegan!?! & A Little Introduction.

It always seems like the first conversation with someone, after they find out you are vegan, always goes the same. First they want to know what a vegan is. Then they want to know why. Finally they want to know how. These conversations usually end with an "I could never live with out cheese" or an "I could totally be vegan, as long as I could still eat chicken". The focus always seems to be on the short list of things that vegans don't eat, instead of the huge variety of foods that we can eat. 

Just to insure that we all start off on the same foot, I want to answer the what, the why, and the how. 

What does it mean to be vegan? 

To put it quite simply, being vegan simply means abstaining from animal products (meat) and their bi-products (milk, eggs, leather, etc..). 

Why do people go vegan?

There are two main reasons why people choose to be vegan:

1. Ethical Veganism

People who are vegan for ethical reasons object to the treatment of animals who are raised for food and other products, therefore they choose to abstain or boycott animal products and bi-products.

2. Veganism for Heath

People who recognize the heath benefits of cutting out animal products and therefore they abstain from animal products and bi-products. 

How do people go vegan?

What this question really means is: What can vegans eat?

When people think about a vegan diet they think about the few thinks that you have to cut out, instead of thinking about the huge variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, etc... that are available.  

I want to use this blog as a way to show people that eating vegan is easy, fast, convenient, and affordable. Therefore, I plan on posting recipes that are easy to understand with ingredients that would be found in the average household. Cooking doesn’t have to be a challenge, in fact I believe it only has to be as complicated as YOU chose to make it.

To compliment these recipes, I also want to provide my proven methods of label reading. One of the biggest struggles for me personally when I made the switch to a vegetarian diet and then later to a vegan one was figuring out what I could eat. Several years later, I have learned ingredients and I can look at a label and know almost instantly whether or not something is vegan.

I also realize that everyone wants the freedom to go out with their friends and family to a restaurant and be able to sit down and enjoy a meal prepared by someone else; because of this I plan on including a guide to vegan eating out. This will be featured in two parts. The first will include reviews of restaurants both in the Richmond area and national chains that have vegan options. Lastly, it will include a guide to eating out at other restaurants including what questions you should be asking your server to ensure your meal is vegan.

I hope to make this an exciting venture for both of us, whether you are currently making the switch Vegetarianism or Veganism or whether you too are an old pro. Therefore, I welcome your feedback as well as any questions or concerns that you may have.

I’m looking forward to our journey together!

Catherine-Melissa