Early Bird Scrambled Tofu + Protein Ninja cookbook GIVEAWAY

Tofu scrambles. We’ve made them plenty of times – dillicious, chili masala, curried dill, tahini chickpea, and mighty migas. And then there was the Revolutionary Savoury Egg Mix just waiting for a tofu scramble. They are all good but we make dillicious the most often, since we love it so. However, I have to tell you. We’ve found the chickpea scramble that rules them all. The BEST tofu scramble is right here. And it is deliciously doused in nutritional yeast and also sneaks in chickpeas.

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Slow Cooker Black Bean and Plantain Chili

Who else is a fan of plantains? They might seem like an exotic ingredient, but even here in Toronto, they are usually very reasonably priced and less expensive than sweet potatoes. However, unlike sweet potatoes, their shelf life is not as stable, as they can only last a few weeks until they turn all brown. I never buy them with a plan, other than panfry in coconut oil, but this recipe was excellent, and I’ll probably buy more plantains just to make it again, it was that good.

Chickpea Chile Verde

Our tomato consumption is still going strong but I would hate to bore you with so many consecutive tomato recipes. Another garden winner this year were the boisterous tomatillo plants. I have given away more tomatillos than I have eaten myself. Most of my friends have made and canned salsa verde. I don’t have the time or equipment to can this year, so I looked for less traditional ways to use tomatillos. When I spotted Alissa’s chickpea chile verde, I knew we had a winner!

Slow Cooker Veggie Enchilada Soup + Easy. Whole. Vegan GIVEAWAY

I forgot to mention in my last food post, but roasted tomatoes freeze incredibly well. They last a while in your fridge but if you want to savour some summer bounty during the winter, batch cook them up and stockpile them in your freezer. Last year, I bought a bushel of red bell peppers, chopped them up and froze them, and we are still eating through them!

If you need any ideas what to do with all this frozen (or fresh, if you have some made already) roasted tomatoes and bell peppers, I urge you to try this soup.

Easy Chana Masala

In the past few months, and last few weeks especially, Rob has had to do a lot more around the house. And when Rob does the cooking, it means the kitchen is filled with curry.

More of a creature of habit than me, Rob has been cooking through our favourites, Dal Bhat, Tamarind Lentils and innumerable batches of Creamy Broccoli Dal.

He must have become bored, because one day he opened up his favourite cookbook, 660 Curries, and made chana masala.

Curry Rhubarb Barbecue Sauce

Every year, I pay particular attention to the weather. Usually it is because I cycle to work but this year it is because of the garden. It still blows my mind that 2 weeks ago, we were worried about frost and snow (it snowed in May, I saw it) and now, the highs are a humid 30°C a with a humidex of 33°C. No wonder the plants are confused; our magnolia tree bloomed but the city’s cherry trees opted out. The mild spring was short-lived and will likely herald a warmer than normal summer.

Pumpkin Hummus + Easy Vegan Cookbook GIVEAWAY

You have probably noticed I have been struggling with the blog lately. I am barely eking out a post per week. It is a combination of a few things: less time spent cooking and less time to blog about it. It certainly isn’t that I have stopped eating (HA!) but I found myself nodding when I read Ginny’s latest post about Vegan Food for People Who Don’t Cook. Combined with quite a few batches of my Easy Vegan Lasagna, and incessant snacking on hummus and crackers, it feels like I have been eating hummus non-stop. And no, I wasn’t even making it myself, the bulk of it came from store-bought varieties. Not sorry.

Soldadera Beans + Decolonize Your Diet cookbook GIVEAWAY

While I may end up apologizing for too many cabbage recipes, I shall not apologize for too many bean recipes! With the United Nations declaring 2016 The Year of the Pulse, it is exciting to see people discovering (or re-discovering) their love of such a humble nutritious super star.

Slow Cooker Chana Masala (Oil-free, Vegan)

I hope you don’t mind me sharing recipes from my newest favourite kitchen gadget. Rob bought me an Instapot and we’ve been slowly exploring it – both with the slow cooker and pressure cooker functions (I will be waiting a while to try the yogurt function unless someone can point me in the right direction for something easy).

Mighty Migas + Taco Cleanse GIVEAWAY!

 

If you are trying to pick a January cleanse, I finally found one I fully endorse: The Taco Cleanse. Created and then executed by Wes Allison, Stephanie Bogdanich, Molly R. Frisinger, and Jessica Morris, The Taco Cleanse celebrates delicious vegan tacos and is anything but a deprivation diet.

Instead, you are instructed how to eat a taco for breakfast, lunch and dinner. You are acquainted with the newest superfoods (corn tortillas AND flour tortillas!) and learn how to integrate them into delicious meals.

Black Eyed Pea Coconut Curry

Please forgive me for being slightly misleading with my title.

There are no black eyed peas in this dish.

There should have been but in Rob’s enthusiasm to clean out the freezer, we swapped cooked flageolet beans. Considering the beans are completely smothered in the coconut curry sauce (true to the title of the recipe), one may not be the wiser.

Quick & Easy Pantry Black Bean Chili + Cook the Pantry cookbook GIVEAWAY

I don’t know about you, but have you felt more busy since September? There is something about the sun-filled evenings that relaxes me in the summer. Between weekend commitments, a shorter evening and the cooler weather, fall lends well to becoming more productive and prioritizing the important things in life.

Green and White Chili Bowl + Vegan Bowls cookbook GIVEAWAY

While I have never eaten a white chili, this definitely reminded me of my time in Houston.

This chili has no red in sight. No tomatoes. No red chiles. No red kidney beans.

Instead, we use all the white and green counterparts: green Anaheim peppers. White kidney beans and even some chickpeas. Spinach adds another punch of green. And corn, technically yellow, is almost white. The original recipe called for hominy, which is actually white, so I was the one deviating from the white/green template.

Middle Eastern Cauliflower and Hummus Tacos with a Tahini-Cumin Dressing

It is much more obvious in these photos that I like to overstuff my wraps.

With so many different parts, I wouldn’t want each bite to miss out.

Mango Tofu Curry + Vegan Richa’s Indian Kitchen Giveaway

Guys, I am super excited to share this cookbook review with you. It is Richa Hingle’s first cookbook: Vegan Richa’s Indian Kitchen. I am sure she needs no introduction, her blog focuses on drool-worthy vegan eats but her heart is in making vegan versions of Indian dishes. Her photography is nothing short of stunning (see above and below, both of the mango tofu curry) and her recipes are excellent. Many of her testers have been gushing over her book for some time, so I was thrilled to receive an advanced copy for my review.

Richa’s book is an excellent foray into Indian cuisine. In all honesty, I usually skip over the beginner introductions in cookbooks but I always found them incredibly important when learning how to cook Indian food. As an example, the names of beans can be so confusing with different names in different locations. With Richa’s slant to the North American kitchen, you can figure out that urad dal is also known as split and skinned black lentils, which is different than mung dal which is split and skinned petite yellow lentils. There are recipes with more easier to find to find ingredients but she relies heavily of traditional procedures and ingredients for authentic taste (tempering, fermenting, spice blends, etc). However, she also uses ingredients like tofu and tempeh to substitute the sometimes meat-laden classics.

The recipes never seem to end. Richa has structured her cookbook to cover breakfast (Chickpea Flour Pancakes and Savory Oats Hash), Small Plates and Snacks (Savory Lentil Pastries [Baked Dal Kachori] and Spiced Roasted Tofu and Vegetables [Tandoori Tikka]), Sides and Dry Vegetable Curries  (Cauliflower Potatoes [Gobi Aloo], Cauliflower and Peas in Spicy Curry [Gobi Mutter Masala]), Lentils and Beans (Butternut Coconut Red Lentil Curry, Restaurant-Style Masoor Dal Tadka), One-Pot Meals and Casseroles (Mung Dal Kitchari, Quinoa Cauliflower Biryani), Main Dishes (Restaurant-Style Navratan Korma, Whole Roasted Cauliflower with Makhani Gravy, Malai Kofta, Chicken-Free Balti), Flatbreads (Avocado Naan, Spicy Chickpea Flour Flatbread), Desserts (Pistachio Almond Ice Cream, Gluten-Free Gulab Jamun) and a chapter for chutneys, spice blends and other basics.

I have made a few recipes and they have all been fantastic. The one I wanted to share with you was especially enjoyed by Rob. Mango Tofu Curry. I looked through my archives and I had no idea how many mango curries I have shared previously:

Green Mango Curry

Mango Curry with Toor Dal (Cumin-Scented Pigeon Peas with Mango) — probably my favourite of the bunch

Mango Chana Masala

Spicy Thai Mango Tofu Curry with Vegetables

Mango Curry Chickpea Salad Wraps

This is definitely different than the others.

I used frozen mango which I pureed which leant subtle sweetness to the savoury backdrop. It was a very saucy curry amongst the tofu and we enjoyed it with some parathas. Rice or another type of bread could also work.

Thankfully, the publisher allowed me to giveaway a Vegan Richa’s Indian Kitchen cookbook to a reader living in the United States. My international readers are eligible to win a copy of the Bonus Recipe Bundle pdf (15 more recipes!). To be entered in the random draw for the book or ebook, please leave a comment below telling me which Indian dish you like the most (and please let me know if you are not from the US). The winners will be selected at random on June 5, 2015. Good luck!

Recipes from Vegan Richa’s Indian Kitchen spotted elsewhere:

Fudgy Cardamom Squares

Masala Lentils (Sabut Masoor)

Mom’s Chickpea Flour Pancakes

Savory Breakfast Oat Hash

Spicy Baked Cauliflower Florets

PS. There is still time to enter giveaways for Plant-Powered Families and Crave. Eat. Heal.

PPS. I am sharing this with Bookmarked Recipes.