A Moo Alert is an important message from me to you.
Try Trader Joe’s new product that is fun and the perfect refreshment for the summer heat.
Try the new BOBA KIT ($5.49) at Trader Joe’s in the store’s frozen section. A package serves four and comes with paper straws. Gluten-Free and Vegan! A win-win!
I added a cold shot of espresso. Let me know what you add to your BOBA.
Sending you love and light.
The first time I had vegan Birria Tacos, they were oh-so-bland and over cheesy, and I almost resolved not to make them. However, I decided to put my stamp on these and make them my way. They are time-consuming but worth the work. They turned out fabulous, and you will love these tacos.
tip: Trader Joe’s has canned Jack Fruit for about half the price.
Empty, rinse, and drain the four cans of Jack Fruit. Add your Jack Fruit with water in a large pan, and boil for an hour. Then, drain. Repeat with fresh water for another hour. Rinse and let the Jack Fruit cool. Then, shred with your fingers, and squeeze the water out. Store the Jack Fruit in your fridge overnight. I added some onion, jalapeño, and a couple of garlic cloves to infuse the Jack Fruit. Take them out before cooking.
In a small saucepan with four cups of water, add two cubes of the Not-Chick’n Bouillon. Heat and stir until dissolved. Then set aside.
Set your oven to 400 degrees, and roast half an onion with garlic. Add some extra virgin olive oil, and wrap in foil to bake for an hour. As the onion and garlic are roasting, prepare the peppers.
Remove the stems and seeds from the chile pods. Use all of the chile pods in the 2 oz. packets of Guajillo and Pasilla-Ancho. Then stem and seed four puma pods that are similar in taste to the Guajillo but a little spicer. Next, Stem and seed six Arbol chile pods. These are spicy, and add the zing to your pepper sauce.
Place the peppers in a large pot, set the stove to high heat, and cook for about 30 minutes until the pods are soft.
In a blender, add your roasted onion and squeezed garlic. Add 1 cup of the chile pod water to the blender. Then add your soft pepper chile pods with oregano, thyme, salt, and pepper, and blend until the sauce is as close to liquid.
In a large pan set on medium with a couple of tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, add the shredded Jack Fruit. Cook for five minutes, and then add the four cups of Not-Chick’n Bouillon sauce that you set aside.
Next, strain your pepper mixture from the blender into your Jackfruit. Turn the heat up, and it should be a soft boil, Add Bay leaves, plus three tablespoons of Jugo by Maggi sauce, and two cups of vegetable broth. Add salt to taste. Reduce heat to simmer and cover for forty-five minutes.
Prepare your grill with some extra virgin olive oil. Warm up your tortillas for about a minute on each side, dip them in Birria Taco sauce (which gives them a red color), and place them back on the grill. Turn over and add cheese, then press some of the Jack Fruit meat in the middle. Cook on each side until the cheese has melted.
Add the red onion and cilantro to your tacos, and use a bowl with the consmme’ of Jack Fruit for dipping.
Enjoy the Best Mexican Street Tacos!
Sending you love and light.
A different way to eat your beyond burgers that is OH-SO-GOOD. First, I cook my Beyond Burger as instructed on the package and then cut it in half. Next, lightly grill your preferred vegan flour tortilla. Grill each side for a couple of minutes. Then, add a tablespoon of Follow Your Heart, 1000 Island Dressing, and spread around tortillas. Add six thinly sliced fresh jalapeños, chopped onion, and lettuce. Finally, add Follow Your Heart, Bleu Cheese Crumbles, and half the burger. Yummy!
I hesitated about combining the vegan blue cheese and jalapeños, but they go great together. The chips are vegan Popcorners Sweet & Salty, and are absolutely out of this world delicious. Below is a list of ingredients, but you can choose how much to add. Enjoy your Burger Taco!
Sending you love and light!
Wow! The food products available to vegans has evolved from when I started my journey as a vegan. The food options were few, and the vegan lifestyle depended on a raw vegetable diet. Plus, you had to get highly creative with your cooking technique at home. However, today there are many options for vegans at the grocery stores. I get more excited daily with the new vegan food choices. Here are some fun options that I would like to share with you from a quick Trader Joe’s run.
The first product should come with a warning label. It is so addictive. I highly recommend Trader Joe’s Peanut Butter Carmel Coated Popcorn.
Next, Trader Joe’s does not carry Miyoko’s butter anymore, but they have their brand. I’m not sure how it will taste, but I’ll let you know if I like it. I also picked up their vegan sour cream and cream cheese because I’m testing new items.
A big thank you to Shandra, who was so helpful at Trader Joe’s. She recommended their vegan banana nut bread. I cannot wait to taste this one, and she said it was not dry like many baked vegan products.
Here are some sauces that I picked up.
Trader Joe’s Gyoza Dipping Sauce, Enchilada Sauce, and Organic Spicy Taco Sauce
Plus, the Dill Pickle Mustard will go great with the Dill Pickle Falafels.
Just a reminder as we approach July 4th. The sounds of firecrackers are dangerous and scary for our four-legged pets. Please be mindful of your behavior around animals as you celebrate July 4th.
Sending you lots of love and compassion.
A dish that will fill you up and keep you warm on a cold evening. *The tortellini is even better on the second day.
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Chop sausages into bite-size portions and place them in a plastic bag with one tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil. Seal bag, and shake to coat all sausage portions.
Place on pan, and cook in the oven for 30 minutes. Then, place sausages in a food processor and pulse the sausages a couple of times. (Note: Sausage should not be too fine). Set aside.
In a large pot, place extra virgin olive oil and onions. Cook for three minutes on medium. Then add garlic for another minute. Stir in sausage and flour and cook for a minute. Cook the flour thoroughly.
Then add vegetable broth and coconut cream and stir. Add both packages of tortellini and cover—Cook for five minutes at medium temperature. Add fresh baby spinach and vegan parmesan cheese. Stir until cheese has melted.
Serve with extra cheese and a sprig of parsley. Enjoy!
Sending you love and light.
Fall is the season for apples, oats, and innofoods Coconut Clusters with Super Seeds. My favorite apple is the Jazz because it reminds me of my favorite childhood candy. Feel free to substitute your favorite apple.
In a bowl, combine the first five ingredients thoroughly. Cover the oat mixture and chill for twelve hours in the refrigerator or overnight.
Stir the oat mixture again before dividing it into equal portions in a glass.
Top with the following:
Divide equally the innofoods Coconut Clusters with Super Seeds, non-dairy coconut yogurt, and apple slices. Jazzy vegan breakfast makes two large or four small portions.
Sending you love and light.
Veggie Rotini Ragu is an easy pasta dish that is a quick dish when your time is limited. I think you will find this meal satisfying for the whole family. Veggie Rotini by Barrilla is pasta made with real spinach and zucchini and panders to the veggie lover.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Cook the meatballs per the package directions, about 16 minutes.
In a food processor, chop the meatballs to resemble course ground meat. Set aside the meatless grounds for now.
Bring pasta water to a boil, and cook pasta until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta water, and then drain pasta in a colander.
In a large skillet on medium heat, add extra virgin olive oil and onions. Cook for three minutes and stir occasionally. Then add garlic and cook another two minutes.
Add tomato paste and the red pepper flakes into the skillet. Stir often for about three minutes until tomato paste begins to darken.
Then add your ground plant-based meat substitute, coconut cream, and tap water to the skillet and combine. Bring to a simmer and let cook, occasionally stirring for twenty minutes. The liquids should reduce during this time.
Next, add the pasta to the skillet and shredded parmesan, with one-half a cup of the pasta water. Combine all, then add more water if too dry. I ended up using three-fourths of the pasta water in total.
To serve top with shredded parmesan and fresh basil leaves.
Note: I did not add salt and pepper. These ingredients are optional.
Sending you love and compassion!
Enjoy a little bit of Italy in July. I’ve reworked this soup several times to find you the tastiest dish near the mediterranean sea. Once you taste Toscana Soup, you will say Ammazza!
Melt Miyoko’s butter on low, and add flour. Turn up the heat to medium and constantly whisk for three minutes. Then add vegetable broth slowly while whisking, and the rue should thicken in about another three minutes. Add salt, pepper and set the vegetable rue aside.
Make the vegetable rue as instructed above and set aside.
In a large soup pot with the stove on medium, sauté plant-based sausage with four tablespoons of Miyoko’s butter while frequently stirring for six minutes. Take the sausage out of the pot and set it aside.
In the same pot, add four more tablespoons of Miyoko’s butter, and add onions. Sauté onions for three minutes and then add garlic for another minute.
Turn up the heat to high, add six cups of vegetable broth, potatoes, and cook on high for eighteen minutes. Stir occasionally and add the vegetable rue, kale, and coconut milk topping. Then add the sausage. Once everything is combined, turn off the heat and allow the soup to sit for ten minutes.
Optional: Top with Follow Your Heart shredded Parmesan cheese.
Sending you love and light.
This pasta sauce is a hearty meal that is perfect for cold weather. Cauliflower is the secret ingredient, which makes this a nutrient rich dish.
Bring 12 cups of water to boil and cook cauliflower for 7 to 8 minutes. Drain and set the cauliflower to the side to cool.
Bring another 10 cups of water to boil. I use the same pot, less to clean up later. Add pasta to the boiling water and cook according to the instructions on the package. Save about a half-a-cup of the pasta water before draining the pasta.
In another pan, fry onion, mushrooms, and garlic in extra virgin olive oil for eight minutes on medium heat. Then place the pan off to the side.
In a food processor, add the cooked and drained cauliflower and half of the almond milk. Blend until smooth. Place into pan with fried ingredients and mix to combine. Then add the other half of the almond milk to the pan, with nutritional yeast, lemon juice, soy sauce, and nutmeg. Place on a medium to low heat and combine.
Drain the cooked pasta and add to the pan with other ingredients. Combine with ¼ cup of the reserved pasta water. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, and add chives.
Sending you love and light.
The bagel originated in Austria during the 17th century, but New Yorkers love their bagels. You will love these delightful bread rings that are fun to cut in half, toast, and spread with your favorite topping.
Place 1 1/3 cups of water in a mixing bowl, add flour, sugar, canola oil. Add the yeast on one side of the bowl and salt on the opposite side of the bowl.
Mix the first six ingredients in a KitchenAid mixer with a dough hook; when combined, add the extra 1/3 cup of water and slowly increase speed to six for five to ten minutes. The dough will be ready when the dough does not stick to the bottom of the mixing bowl.
Place dough in a lightly oiled large bowl and cover to rise for one hour or when dough has doubled in size. Place on a floured surface. Separate in 119 g each and roll into balls. Use your thumb and index finger to make a ball in the form of a balloon. Place the balls on a parchment paper-lined tray. Cover with a towel and let rest for ten minutes. Heat 15 cups of water in a large pot to boiling. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Place a hole in the center of each bagel with the bottom of a round cooking utensil (I use the bottom of a round wooden spoon) and stretch to make a 1.5-inch hole. The Hole will shrink in the boiling water. Place three to four bagels in boiling water and cook on each side for one minute. Use a skimmer to turn over and to drain on a cooling rack.
Then dip each bagel on both sides into the coconut cream and place it back on the rack. Sprinkle lightly with everything bagel seasoning.
Then place bagels on a parchment-lined tray and bake for 25 – 28 minutes.
Makes 8 to 9 bagels.
Sending you love and light
A Cowtown Vegan 