Side of Rice with your Taco??

Since my post for National Taco Day was such a big hit, I thought I'd share my favorite dish for eating alongside of tacos:



Behold, the best gosh-darn, Mexican Rice you will ever have!  When I am not making the Cilantro-Lime rice from Viva Vegan, and have a little extra prep time on my hands, THIS is the rice I make for chomping alongside tacos.

Now, the original recipe can be found here, on the site formerly know as Recipe*zaar. (It has now been taken over by Food Network, and is a bit too corporate, and full of non-vegan ads for my taste... Now, I have Pinterest, which is a whole other addiction)! And the best part is: you only need to do one simple thing to make this recipe vegan: substitute the chicken broth to VEGETABLE.

This fantastic recipe was posted by Chef Pot Scrubber, a most colorful and vibrant member of the site.  Check out his profile page here, and see what I mean!

"Are you craving that great Mexican rice from your favorite taco stand? Here it is. This is just like a good Mexican restaurant rice. Many recipes taste good... but the texture just isn't right. You know how it is... you have prepared scores of Mexican rice recipes but always have been disappointed. It may be delicious but kinda "gloopy and wet." Try this. Everything is pureed and cooked in. There are no chunks of anything... just dry fluffy rice with all the seasonings and just the tiniest hint of a tomato flavor. I will throw away all of my Mexican rice recipes- this is the one I have been looking for for years! ... Proceed at your own peril if you stray. Enjoy". ~Chef Pot Scrubber

When you click on the link above, you will be brought to the most THOROUGH recipe instructions that I think I have ever read... or followed, for that matter.  Follow them to a "tee", and you will be enjoying some might fine Mexican rice in no time.

Happy National Taco Day!

Just because I'm vegan, doesn't mean I can't ROCK THE TACOS!

I plan to read far and wide, through all the Vegan Mofo posts, in search of some of your favorite taco fillings during this whole month of vegan food - so be on the lookout!

Here are a few of mine:


Seitan "Fake Steak" and Green Pepper Tacos (see my review here) served with home made Flour Tortillas


Gallo Pinto (Rice and Bean) Tacos!
Recipe from Viva Vegan, one of my favorite cookbooks.


Home Style Refried Bean Tacos!
Recipe (again) from Viva Vegan


Spicy hummus, taco crumbles, Daiya and XTRA jalapeños!


I'm embarrassed that I have no vegetables whatsoever on this one, but...
The Old Standby: Taco flavored TVP crumbles, Daiya and Tofutti (totally fake, but totally good)


Here, I at least added lettuce and tomato!
Spicy canned vegan refried beans, lettuce, tomato and Daiya - Sprinkled with chili spices


Big, Fat, Taco Salad - from Appetite for Reduction (one of my favorites)  If you have never made Guacamame before, what are you waiting for?!


Sweet & Savory Jackfruit Carnitas Tacos!
Recipe Test from Terry Hope Romero's upcoming book: Vegan Eats World - which is going to be AWESOME and you should all get it!



No cheese of sour cream on my tacos!  It's GUACAMOLE all the way...

Quick & Simple Basic Guacamole
2 avocados
4 scallions or 1/2 a red onion, minced
Juice of 1 lime
1 jalapeño, minced (seeded or not, your choice)
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
3/4 tsp sea salt, or to taste
*combine and mash



Seitan Chorizo Crumble Tacos - from 500 Vegan Recipes.  These crumbles are great, especially if you are pressed for time and can't make a full batch of seitan chorizo sausages.


And, last but not least: a WTF TACO
We have all been guilty of making one of these, I'm sure.  This was actually cubed up Seitan O'Greatness, sautéed with baby spinach and some Teese... not one of my better creations, but still satisfying.

If you've made it to the bottom of this monstrous post, please feel free share with me YOUR favorite taco creations ^_^

Not Your Average Chopped Taco Salad

Today we have time for a quickie (and by "quickie" I mean a quick and simple, no-fuss weeknight meal).

"NOT Your Average Chopped Taco Salad"
Aptly named by my better-half 

Sometimes I try and challenge myself to make a meal from only the things I have on hand, or leftovers in the fridge or pantry.

Here we have:

• Shredded Romaine lettuce (from the Farmer's Market at work) 
• 1 can of black beans, seasoned with garlic, chili powder, and a wee bit of chipotle powder, 
• 1/2 cup of quinoa, cooked in 1 cup of vegetable broth, with 2 tsp of taco spice and some seasoned salt
• chopped tomato and red onion, salt and pepper

1 avocado cubed with 3/4 cup of shelled edamame (leftovers) tossed with salt, pepper and lime juice*I had steamed up some edamame, which I would take to work as a snack.  These last few pods were the leftovers so I thought I'd toss them in with the avocado cubes, in the style of "Guacamame" from Appetite for Reduction.

Dressing was the juice of 1/2 a lime, 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar, 1 tbsp olive oil and agave to taste!

Ugly phone pic, sorry

Of course, we had to go and crumble tortilla chips all over our individual bowls, just for added crunch. However, I tried to keep the "food porn" healthy looking.  When will we ever learn... ^_^

Gearing Up for Vegan MOFO

One simple post before the crazy-fun of Vegan MOFO begins!

Now what is Vegan MOFO, you may ask?

It's the Vegan Month of Food!  During the month of October, food bloggers from all over the WORLD will be taking the pledge to write about Vegan Food each and every day, for the entire month (or for at least 20 posts)!  Some folks have themes, and some fools, like me, are just gonna "wing it".

But, I will promise you this:

• Fun posts
• LOTS of food porn
• Vegan make-overs of some of my family's favorites
• New juicing combos 
• Quick and simple weeknight meals
• Vegan cookbook reviews and 
• a once a week, a "Veganization" of a Food Network Magazine recipe...  

Whew!  That should keep me quite busy...

Tonight we are celebrating with my nephew for his 15th birthday at Friendly's, so for breakfast / lunch, we decided on a simple snack of apples and peanut butter:



I admit, this entire past week has flown by, and I have done a real lousy job of preparing and packing lunches.  Since the apples around these parts are really coming into season, I've been stocking up on some deliciously crisp, New England apples for both juicing and snacking.  So now, when I am running out the door, instead of skipping breakfast or forgetting lunch, I'll grab an apple, and scoop a tablespoon or two of natural peanut butter into a tiny to-go plastic container, and have a quick and simple meal on the go.



Perfect to eat right at your desk at work.  You know what they say:  An apple a day, smothered in peanut butter... (well, close enough) ^_^