Not Chocolate Mousse

Yeah. It’s Valentine’s Day. Fun times. Didn’t make the Sweet Melissa Sundays recipe selection for the week–Easy Chocolate Mousse. And it’s easy! I’m leaving for Mexican beaches at the end of the week and I wasn’t going to eat it (I’m going to be living in a bathing suit for a week!).Cookies I can bake and stash in the freezer; mousse not so much.

Instead, this is a yummy and healthy vegan recipe. Stir-Fried Sesame Asparagus with Tofu and Ramen. So easy, so delicious. The recipe for the asparagus comes from 1,000 Vegan Recipes–an awesome cookbook of almost every imaginable vegan recipe. Everything I’ve made from it has been delicious. I added tofu, which I baked in the oven at 350° F for 20 minutes and served it over ramen noodles.  I also upped the garlic and ginger in the recipe. It would be tasty over brown rice or any whole grain as well.

Stir-Fried Sesame Asparagus

Adapted from 1,000 Vegan Recipes

• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 pound asparagus, tough ends trimmed and cut diagonally into 1-inch pieces
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

1. Heat canola oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add asparagus and stir-fry for twominutes. Add garlic and ginger and stir for one more minute.
2. Add soy sauce and sesame oil. Stir and cover for 3 minutes or until asparagus is tender. Sitr in sesame seeds.
3. Serve immediately.

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my typical vegan tuesday

Now that I’ve been doing Vegan Tuesdays for awhile, it has become a bit of a routine. I figure out what I ‘m going to make by looking through my cookbooks or searching through recipes I’ve ripped out of magazines. I make the dish or dishes on Monday night. Sometimes I eat some then, but most of the time I box up a portion for work lunch and plate a portion for pictures the next day.Yes, pictures for the blog.

It’s become a little bit funny this new hobby of mine. My days start off as usual. I get up at 5 am and rush to the gym, eating a homemade powerbar on the way. I do my workout and stop off at Coffee Bean on the way home.  They know me at the Coffee Bean. They have my nonfat milk ready to dump into my coffee before I’m done paying. And on Tuesdays they know I get soy milk.

I get home about 7 am, jump in the shower, and get dressed for work. All the while I’m looking out the window hoping for the sun to come out so I can take some semi-decent food pictures. Once dressed, I run downstairs finish packing my lunch. Grab the picture food and run back upstairs. Yes, the room with the best natural light for pictures is upstairs in my office, or what I now call my “studio”.  I take a few pictures, hoping I get a good one. I need a better camera. Because I’m usually rushing, I don’t have time to set-up a good shot.

Once I’m done taking pictures, I run back downstairs and put the plate back in the refrigerator for dinner that night. I’m out the door on the way to work by 8 am or 8:15 am. I start work at 9 am  and leave work at 6 pm. Home by 7 pm, rinse and repeat. Weekends are a bit different obviously, but with errands and things to do the days (and daylight) can and do slip away.

Now that I’ve said all that, here are these week’s selections.

I made a Corn & Edamame-Sesame Salad with a recipe from Veganomicon. The recipe calls for frozen shelled edamame. I only had the kind still in its shell. I tried to peel them while still frozen, which was nearly impossible. I steamed them as usual and then peeled them. Much better.  Once I got past the whole peeling thing, the recipe was quick and easy. It’s so light and fresh tasting. I can see myself eating it all summer long. I can’t wait to make it again using kernels from summer fresh corn.

I also made a Chickpea-Quinoa Pilaf, also from Veganomicon. You can find the recipe here. I didn’t make any changes to the recipe. It’s warmly spiced and reminds me of chili–it’s got cumin and coriander and tomato paste. It’s very satisfying.

It was especially great because I had all the ingredients on-hand to make both of these dishes. Everything was either in my pantry or in my freezer.

Corn & Edamame-Sesame Salad

Adapted from Veganomicon

Note: The original recipe calls for tamari or soy sauce. I’ve been loving shoyu, which is an unpastuerized soy sauce that is very delicious. Feel free to sub if you don’t have it.

• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons shoyu
• Fresh squeezed lime juice, to taste
• 2 cups frozen, shelled edamame
• 1 cup fresh corn, or partially-thawed frozen corn
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
• Generous pinch of salt

Add edamame to boiling water and cook for 3 minutes. Add the corn and boil for another 2 minutes. Strain into a colander and run under cold water until cool enough to touch. Set aside.

Whisk together seasame oil, rice vinegar, shoyu, and lime juice in a medium size bowl. Mix in edamame and corn and then stir in toasted sesame seeds. Salt to taste. Let sit in refrigerator for at least 15 minutes before serving to allow flavors to meld.