Moosewood Summer Vegetable Curry

I must admit that I was drawn to making this because it had the word “summer” in its title. With frozen corn, canned tomatoes and fresh produce available even now (zucchini, spinach, red bell peppers and cilantro), you could almost imagine was made in the summer. This is probably one of most colourful curries, due in part, to all the rainbow of colours from the vegetables.

Rob and I (very briefly) considered taking our bikes out this weekend (we skipped right over snowshoeing) but while the temperatures are nice, the roads are littered with salt, sand and even some small snowbanks.

I am kind of hoping that once we return from our trip, spring will be here for real. Especially since I am already planning/imaging what I want to plant in my garden pots for the summer. I have missed my forest of fresh herbs.

I am sharing this with Vegetable Palette, Cooking with Herbs, and In My Veg Box (zucchini).

Sweet Potato and Broccoli Bowl with a Miso-Sesame Sauce

Love does not consist of gazing at each other, but in looking outward together in the same direction.
~Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Even when you think everything is ready to go for the wedding, little things keep popping up. Rob needs to buy a belt; maybe I should get my nails done before we leave; we should pick some readings for the ceremony; we each need to write our vows. So while I have been silent on the blog, life has been anything but.

Rob and I want a short and sweet ceremony. We didn’t even discuss readings until I sat down to write my own vows.  I was inspired by some absolutely fabulous quotes. So much so that I wanted them a part of my ceremony. So now we have readings.

I kind of want to tell you all about our choices (I am that excited about them) but I don’t want to ruin the surprise for my guests who also read my blog. So, you will have to wait (sorry for the tease). If you want some vegan wedding porn, this one looked super cute (eco friendly on a farm!).

Otherwise, as we try to eat the remainder of our perishables before we leave, this is a perfect way to chow down. I consider these as almost non-recipes since it is basically roasted vegetables, beans, rice and a sauce. Here I returned to our staples, sweet potatoes, broccoli, chickpeas and brown rice. We love steamed broccoli but since I was roasting the sweet potatoes, in went the broccoli as well. The sauce is a lovely pantry-friendly creation (ignoring the ginger and garlic) with a heavy dose of miso and toasted sesame oil with a tahini base (although certainly not overpowering). Humble or not, this is a great meal to have on hand.

Miso and/or tahini dishes shared here previously:

Buddha Veggie Bowl with Ginger-Miso-Lime Dressing

Braised Tempeh and Green Beans in a Sesame Sauce

Macro Veggie and Tempeh Bowl with Miso Tahini Sauce

Simple Sesame-Miso Soba Noodles with Kale & Red Pepper

Wild Rice and Edamame Salad with a Lemon-Miso Dressing

Yam, Zucchini and Chickpea Salad

I am sharing this with Bookmarked Recipes.

Tofu and Kale Bowl with a Curried Peanut Sauce

You guys are too kind. Based on the responses from my last post (and my post earlier this year about non-recipes), here’s to sharing some of my simpler eats. I will have a blog sabbatical during my honeymoon and hopefully come back rejuvenated. This is actually an easy recipe to make and I could not wait to share it with you.

I have made this two weeks in a row. Its first debut was when my parents came down last weekend and I threw it together for a late Sunday meal. Everyone devoured it, returning for seconds soon after polishing off their first bowl. After one bite, my Mom declared she loved it and proclaimed I could serve it for her anytime. Big win! YEAH!

 

While there have been glimmers of sun before and after work, I decided to continue to deliciousness into this week. It is rather a humble bowl of vegan goodness (brown rice, pan-fried tofu and kale) but the star of the bowl is the glorious peanut sauce. Sweet, spicy and saucy with a hint of curry powder. Mix it all up for a delicious meal.

Our veg staple in the fridge is broccoli and our protein of choice is chickpeas, which I contemplated for my second iteration. Worried it would be a tad repetitive (broccoli + chickpeas + peanut sauce is a common occurrence on this blog), I stuck with kale and tofu. To be honest, I don’t think I have ever made simple steamed kale and I was surprised how sweet it was. It was also ridiculously easy to make, so I definitely consider this meal a kitchen success.

What is your go-to simple meal?

Peanut sauces and dressings spotted here previously:

Broccoli and Pineapple Udon Bowl with Pineapple-Peanut Sauce

Broccoli and Spaghetti Squash Noodle Bowl with a Peanut-Miso-Sesame Sauce

Chickpea and Broccoli Quinoa Bowl with a Peanut-Miso Sauce

Mango and Snap Pea Noodle Salad with a Tangy Peanut Dressing

Noodles, Baby Bok Choy, Broccoli and Red Pepper with a Coconut-Peanut Sauce

Spicy Peanut Udon Noodles with Tofu and Broccoli

Thai Chickpea & Kale Salad Rolls with Peanut Dressing

Tess’ Ultimate Peanut Sauce

I am sharing this with My Legume Love Affair, Bookmarked Recipes and ExtraVeg.

Smoky Tofu and Pomegranate Arugula Salad

With less interest in writing on my blog, I wonder whether it has become boring. Have I reached a point where things are so similar they are not worth sharing? With a new set of colleagues since moving back to Toronto, I receive curious questions about what I eat, so even the most humble meals may still be blog-worthy. However, in this case, I dare you to tell me you’ve tried something like this. Sweet and tart pomegranate arils. Smoky onion tofu bits. Crisp and cooling cucumber on a bed of baby arugula drizzled with an apple-infused creamy dressing.

I was inspired by a sandwich in Vegan Sandwiches Save the Day! but opted for a salad version instead. A winter salad which will propel us into the springtime salads. Those plants will be growing soon enough, right? They are covered by a foot of snow, but I hope it is only melting form here on out. In all honesty, Rob and I are winding down in the kitchen, working on last minute details before the wedding. Can you believe it was 2 weeks before my wedding before I thought to ask my Dad to walk me down the aisle? Oh dear, eh? (He said YES! hahaha)

What kind of unusual combinations have you cobbled together in a salad?

I am sharing this with No Croutons Required and Souper Sundays.

Sesame-Sriracha Roasted Vegetable Chickpea Bowl

I have been lucky to be able to cook from so many fabulous cookbooks. I always try to share my favourite recipe for you to try as well, but sometimes there are so many good recipes. This dish was simplified, slightly from the Buddha Parcels in Keep It Vegan (as reviewed originally here).

Instead of making parcels (cute but not too practical), I put all the vegetables in a big glass tray and roasted them with a sheet of aluminum foil overtop. The sauce from toasted sesame oil and sriracha was spot on perfect, and I wonder whether the vinegar was the best part. Not that I tasted it, but it was a lovely marinade.

I used sweet potatoes and sweet red bell peppers and it complemented the spicy sauce. Because of the lid, the kale gets steamed from the juicy vegetables. Not that kale chips would be bad, because I think they were fabulous on this roasted vegetable and kale chip pizza.

There is a nice (albeit small) side of cardamom-lemon infused rice in the cookbook, but I ended up tossing the vegetables with chickpeas and brown rice. Enjoy it with your favourite protein.

I am sharing this with Shaheen’s Eat Your Greens.