Crispy Fried Tofu

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 block of organic extra firm tofu

• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour

• 3 tablespoons tapioca starch, organic corn starch, or arrow root powder

• 1 teaspoon of salt

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Wrap tofu in a clean kitchen towel or some paper towels and place a few books, heavy plate, or cans on top for 5 - 15 minutes to remove excess moisture.

2. Cut the tofu into one inch cubes.

3. Mix the flour, starch, and salt in a bowl big enough to also hold the tofu.

4. Add the tofu to the bowl and toss with your hands or a large spoon until all pieces are evenly coated.

5. In a large skillet, heat a quarter inch of oil until sizzling.

6. Add the tofu pieces, being careful they don’t touch, or the starch will cause the pieces to stick together.

7. Fry on each side for several minutes or until all sides are nice and crispy.

8. Place tofu on a cooling rack with some paper towels underneath for a few minutes before serving.

SERVING IDEAS

Cover in you favorite sauce and add it to stir fry.

Add some garlic powder, and paprika (or any other spice you may like) to the flour mix before coating and serve as "chicken" nuggets.

Cover in buffalo sauce for vegan wings.

Use to top salads or add to sandwiches and wraps.

Vegan "Meaty" Cheddar Queso

In college I waited tables at popular casual dinning restaurant. Not naming names, but one of our jingles involved baby baby ribs, and customers thought it was hilarious to ask us to sing it.

But hey, the job got me through college!

One of our most popular appetizers was a chili queso dip in a skillet, and I probably ate my weight in this dip before I was vegan. I have not eaten that dip in forever, but I think of it often and knew I needed to try and create a vegan version.

This one did not disappoint, and I can still eat my weight in it! You can use any store bought meatless crumble, vegan sausage, or you could even use your own vegan crumble recipe.

I love to roll up warm flour tortillas and dip them into this cheesy, spicy, magic! It also makes a delicious enchilada or quesadilla filling!

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INGREDIENTS:

Cashew Queso:

• 1 bag of frozen spicy meatless crumbles or vegan sausage (we like Beyond Meat brand, but use your favorite) or one package of vegan chorizo ( I like Trader Joe’s soy chorizo)

• 1 cup cashews soaked in hot water for one hour or microwaved for 3 minutes

• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast

• 2 teaspoons of miso paste or 2 tablespoons sauerkraut with out the juice

• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1 teaspoon of turmeric

• 1 - 2 teaspoons smoked paprika

• 1/4 cup of tapioca/corn starch or arrow root powder

• 2 cups of water

• 1 small can of chili peppers

• a few shakes of favorite hot sauce

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COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Add all ingredients except the, crumbles, chilis and hot sauce to a high speed blender or food processor.

2. Process and blend on high until the mixture is completely smooth (no lumps at all).

3. Transfer the mixture to a medium size pot and cook on medium heat, stirring with a whisk continually until the mixture thickens.

4. Once the queso gets to a pudding like texture remove it from the heat and mix in the chilis and hot sauce.

5. Heat the crumbles in a pan until cooked.

6. In a baking dish or smalls cast iron skillet, combine the queso and cooked crumbles. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

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Serve with chips, rolled tortillas, or veggies. Add to burritos or enchiladas. 

My favorite vegan cookbook is “Veganize It!” by Robin Robertson. I adapted her recipe for cashew “cheese” sauce and created this queso. If you omit the hot sauce and chiles, and meat you will be left with a very versatile cheddar “cheese” sauce.

Brown Bag "Chicken" Fried Seitan

In the south we fry all the things. Chicken being a big one, but we don’t eat meat, so what are we to do??!?!

Easy y’all, make and fry up some delicious and easy homemade seitan!!

I used to fry my chicken by dumping all the ingredients into a brown paper bag and giving it a big shake. Then I would put in a pan of hot oil, fry it up super crispy, and normally, put it on a fluffy homemade biscuit!

So, once we went vegan, I do the exact same thing, but I use easy homemade seitan instead.

Seitan freezes really well, so you can double the batch, freeze half, and have an easy meat substitute on hand when you need it. You can do so much with seitan. You can obviously bread and fry it, you can slice it and use it in stir fry or fajitas, you can use it in soups and stews…so many ways to use this easy and healthy homemade vegan meat substitute!!!

Vegan biscuits are also a breeze and linked them down in the recipe! My grandmother taught us all how to make biscuits when we were kids, and it’s a skill I have passed on to my kids. I hadto make the recipe vegan, and if she were alive she would probably not be happy with me. But I also like to think if I could convince her to eat one, she might be impressed. Southern women are normally pretty set in their ways, speaking from experience of being a stubborn southern woman, myself.

Anyways, save your brown grocery bags and get to shakin! Crispy brown bag fried seitan is a game changer, and even better on a fluffy biscuit!! I like it with sweet mustard sauce and pickles, but you can put whatever you like not it!!!

Also if you need more instruction on making basic seitan, I have linked a pretty quick video tutorial at the bottom of the page as well. I will give you an idea of the process, and texture if you are new to seitan making! It’s easy y’all, and so, so, so good!!

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NGREDIENTS:

• half batch of seitan

• 1/2 cup of all purpose four

• 2 tablespoons of corn starch or tapioca starch

• 1 teaspoon each of garlic powder, salt, onion powder, paprika, and turmeric

• 1/2 teaspoon each of cinnamon, pepper, and ground mustard

• 1/2 cup grapeseed oil

• a paper grocery store bag (you can use a plastic trash bag or a large zip lock as well)

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COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Add the flour, starch, and all the seasoning to the bag. Give it a good shake to mix it up!

2. You should have 2 seitan pieces from your batch. With a very sharp knife CAREFULLY cut the pieces horizontally into 3 - 4 cutlets.

3. Drop the seitan cutlets into the bag and shake, shake, shake, giving a peek to make sure all sides of the cutlets are coated super well.

4. In a deep skillet heat the oil on medium/high.

5. Begin adding the cutlets in batches, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. Cook several minutes per side or until they are crispy.

6. Place cooked seitan on a cooling rack with some paper towels underneath to catch the excess oil and allow to cool for a few minutes before serving.

7. We use these cutlets on our fluffy southern biscuits, but they are just as amazing slathered with mushroom gravy, and a side of mashed potatoes!

Seitan Buffalo "Wings"

INGREDIENTS:

• half a batch of seitan

• one bottle of buffalo sauce (Check the back for ingredients to make sure there is not dairy. Most brands are fine, though.)

• 3 tablespoons tapioca or organic corn starch

• 3 tablespoons all purpose four

• salt

• 4 - 5 tablespoons of grapeseed oil

• 1 teaspoon of vegan butter (like earth balance)

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Cut the seitan in 1 inch cubes.

2. Mix the tapioca (or corn) starch, flour and a few dashes of salt in a bowl.

3. Add the cubed seitan and mix to coat.

4. Heat the oil in a medium skillet and add in the cubes in batches, cooking for a few minutes on each side. You want each side to slightly brown and be crispy. You may need to turn them a few times. Place cooked wings on a cooling rack with some paper towels underneath.

5. In a small sauce pan, heat half the bottle of sauce and butter, just until the butter melts.

6. Combine the cooked sietan and buffalo sauce in a bowl until the wings are well coated.

Seitan Philly "Cheese Steak"

INGREDIENTS:

• half batch of seitan (refer to recipe or video)

• 1 package sliced mushrooms, white or baby portabello are fine

• 1 red or orange bell pepper

• 1 medium onion

• 1 teaspoon garlic

• 2 tablespoons coconut aminos

• 1 batch of vegan cheddar cheese sauce or any vegan cheese you like (optional)

• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

• 1 teaspoon onion powder

• salt and pepper to taste

Vegan Cheddar Cheese Sauce:

• 1/2 cups cashews soaked overnight, or covered in water and microwaved for 3 minutes then drained

• 1 cup water

• 2 tablespoons corn starch or tapioca starch

• 1 teaspoon light miso paste

• 1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric

• 1 teaspoon smoke paprika

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Cut seitan and vegetables into thin strips.

2. Next heat a few teaspoons of oil over medium heat adding the onions once the oil is hot. Sauté for several minutes.

3. Next heat a few teaspoons of oil over medium heat adding the onions once the oil is hot. Sauté for several minutes.

4. Now add the rest of the vegetables and a dash of salt and let those cook for 3 to 4 minutes.

5. Add in the seitan, garlic, coconut aminos, and seasoning and saute until all of the vegetables are cooked though and the seitan begins to brown, around 5 minutes.

6. TO MAKE THE CHEESE SAUCE add all of the ingredients to a high speed blender or food processor, and blend until completely smooth.

   Transfer the cheese mixture to a medium pot and heat on medium/ low heat, whisking continuously until the cheese begins to thicken to a queso consistency. If it gets too thick, you can add a little more water to thin it back out.

7. Use any kind of sandwich/hoggie bun or bread you like. I often buy french bread baguettes and cut them. French bread should be plant based and often the other options in the grocery store bakery are not.

8. Add the philly mixture to the buns and top with cheese sauce.

Seitan Fajitas

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/4 batch of seitan cut into thin strips

• 1 red bell pepper

• 1 yellow onion

• 1 small carton sliced mushrooms

• 1/4 cup cilantro

• 1 lime

• 1-2 teaspoons of cumin and chili powder

• salt and pepper to taste

• sliced jalapeños (optional)

• corn or flour tortillas

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat a few teaspoons of oil  on medium heat in a large skillet. Add the onions, peppers and mushrooms and sauté for a few minutes.

2. Add the seitan and the seasoning along with the juice from the lime.

3. If you are adding jalapeños add now and continue cooking for 5 minutes or  until all of the vegetable are cooked through.

4. Chop cliantro and sprinkle on top. Serve with tortillas and toppings.

TOPPINGS:

• pico or salsa

• guacamole 

• vegan sour cream

• lettuce

• vegan cheddar shreds like Follow your Heart brand

• thinly slice onions, peppers, and seitan

Seitan

Ingredients:

• 1 cup vital wheat gluten

• 1/4 cup coconut aminos

• 1/4 cup of water

• 1/2 cup of vegetable broth

• 1 tablespoon minced garlic

• 1/2 of a small onion

• 1/4 cup of all purpose or whole flour

• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast

• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

• 1 teaspoon turmeric

• 1 teaspoon of salt

• 1 teaspoon mustard powder

Cooking liquid:

• 4 cups of water

• 4 cups vegetable broth

• 1/4 cup coconut aminos

• 3 teaspoons liquid smoke (optional)

Cooking Instructions:

Refer to our seitan video for further instruction and to watch the process

1. Add all of the seitan ingredients in a food processor and mix until it forms a ball of dough. This normally takes a few minutes. You want a dough you can pick up and handle. Once it is all incorporated and has formed a dough, remove and kneed (you may have to sprinkle some additional flour on your work surface if it seems extra sticky) for several minutes.

2. Cut the ball of dough into 4 pieces, flattening each piece into a disc shape.

3. Bring the cooking liquid ingredients to a boil in a large pot.

4. Add the seitan and let it simmer on medium/low heat for one hour, flipping the pieces once or twice while cooking.

5. Once its done remove and let it cool before storing it in the fridge.

Seitan will stay good in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 10 days or it can be frozen for up to 6 months.

Carrot Dogs

INGREDIENTS:

• 6 - 8 peeled carrots

• 1/4 cup coconut aminos

• 1 table spoon maple syrup

• 1 teaspoon of the following: garlic powder, salt, mustard powder, smoked paprika, turmeric

• 3 teaspoons liquid smoke

• 1 tablespoon grape seed oil

• 2 tablespoons water

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Boil the peeled carrots until they are soft enough to pierce with a fork, but be careful not to overcook them.

2. Remove from water and cool.

3. Mix the rest of the ingredients in a large zip lock bag, then add the cooled carrots.

4. Let the carrot marinade in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours. I normally prepare the carrots in the morning and they are ready by dinner. The longer they marinate, the more flavorful they will be. You can let them marinate for a day or 2 as well.

5. Once the carrots have marinated, they are ready to grill! If you can not grill them, you could alternatively heat them in a skillet for several minutes until cooked through.