Pad Thai

I'm a big fan of Pad Thai and it was a long time before I attempted to make this very popular Thai noodle dish at home.  Eventually I did end up trying a handful of vegan renditions, but the "Pad Thai" (page 236) from this book is the most authentic presentation I've made so far.  I didn't use the rice noodles as called for in the recipe, the ones that you just soak in hot water, as these are not my most favorite.  Instead, I used Japanese somen style noodles (and only half the amount called for); I think any Asian noodle would work here, including lo mein, udon, or ramen.  The sauce is really what makes this dish happen, a mixture of soy sauce, lime juice, sugar, tamarind, tomato paste, and crushed red pepper.  I did not use any oil to sauté the diced tofu, or the onion, instead just relying on my non-stick skillet to handle the job without.  The cooked noodles are tossed with the sauce, onion, and tofu, piled onto a serving platter, and topped with chopped peanuts, cilantro, and bean sprouts.  Don't forget the lime!

Penne With Creamy Asparagus Sauce

If you look carefully at my photo, you will see right away that I didn't use penne in the "Penne with Creamy Asparagus Sauce" (page 207).  I tend to be very flexible when it comes to what pasta to use in any given recipe, and usually try to use up whatever I have on hand.  In this case, I had rainbow rotini left over so that is what I used.  In this dish, a rich and creamy sauce made of blended white beans, asparagus, onion, garlic, and seasonings is mixed with cooked pasta for a green and delicious treat.  I only used about 8 ounces of pasta instead of the one pound called for, because, as you might know by now, I prefer a saucier presentation than most recipes call for.  I also omitted the oil when sautéing the onion to keep this dish oil free.

Portobello Po'Boys

Summer just keeps hanging on, and another great meal for a hot evening is the "Portobello Po'Boys" (page 107).  These sandwiches are so simple to put together; just a matter of sautéing the portobello mushroom caps until soft (I used a splash of soy sauce instead of the oil called for), seasoning with fiery Cajun seasoning, and piling everything (lettuce, tomato, vegan mayo, mushrooms) onto a crusty sandwich roll.  Yum!!  I used fat free homemade tofu mayo and seeded ciabatta bread for the rolls.  I will definitely be making this dish on a regular basis.

Chopped Salad

This is the season for salads, and the "Chopped Salad" (page 56) makes the perfect light summer dinner, especially if you add any or all of the optional ingredients.  Not that there isn't enough going on without any additions, my goodness, this salad is brimming over with fresh vegetables!  The recipe starts with a combination of romaine and iceberg lettuce, but I opted to go with all romaine. To this you add chickpeas, tomatoes, cucumber, celery, carrot, olives, radishes, parsley, and avocado - just to get started!  If you go for the optional ingredients, you continue with bell peppers, artichoke hearts, baked tofu, and anything else that sounds good to you.  The salad is tossed together, and dressed with an Italian style vinaigrette, where I substituted light vegetable broth for the olive oil, with a smidge of guar gum to give it some body.

Orange-Glazed Tofu & Asparagus

"Orange-Glazed Tofu and Asparagus" (page 285) is a stir-fry style dish that is perfect served over a bed of rice or Asian noodles.  Strips of tofu are marinated in mirin, then sautéed in a wok or big skillet with fresh garlic, ginger, and asparagus.  A delightful sauce made from fresh orange juice, soy sauce, and hot chili paste is added to the sauté, and cooked just briefly to blend all the ingredients.  The recipe calls for two tablespoons of oil for sautéing the tofu, but I used my non-stick skillet and didn't need to add any at all.  The sauce portion of the recipe calls for a teaspoon of sesame oil, which I'm sure adds a richer flavor, but sticking to my oil-free approach, I left it out as well.  I didn't feel like anything was missing!

Country-Fried Tofu with Golden Gravy

The recipe for "Country-Fried Tofu with Golden Gravy" (page 285) includes, as one would expect, frying (cornstarch coated) pieces of tofu in oil until crisp and golden brown.  I put off making this delicious sounding recipe for quite some time, thinking there would be no way around using oil in the preparation.  But eventually I decided to give it a go in my non-stick skillet, without the oil, and even if it didn't crisp up, I was pretty confident it would still taste good, especially with the Golden Gravy spooned over it.  The experiment was a success!  Although I realize that frying the tofu would have yielded a crispy texture, the cutlets did manage to brown in my non-stick skillet and were quite delicious.  The Golden Gravy is more like a sauce than a gravy, a blended mixture of sautéed onion (leave out the oil here, too), garbanzo beans, flour, and seasonings.  I had to thin the sauce down quite a bit, as initially it was very thick.  There was plenty left over, too, which I served over boiled new potatoes on the side.

Chickpea "Tuna" Salad in Avocados

"Chickpea 'Tuna' Salad in Avocados" (page 82) is another wonderful meal for a hot summer day.  No ovens, stoves, microwaves, crock pots, grills, or toaster ovens required.  The 'tuna' part of this dish consists of a mixture of chopped garbanzo beans combined with minced fresh veggies and a sprinkle of spices, and moistened with vegan mayo (choose an oil free variety to keep this McDougall friendly).  Mound this into a fresh avocado half, lay it atop a bed of fresh chopped lettuce, and you've got yourself light summer fare.  Watermelon makes a nice thirst quenching dessert!

Eight Treasure Barley Salad

"Eight Treasure Barley Salad" (page 85) makes a great one-dish meal for a hot summer day.  With the heat wave of 2011 that just won't seem to quit, turning on the stove or oven, especially in a 5th wheel trailer, is a horrid thought.  As it was, I pre-cooked the barley in my pressure cooker first thing in the morning before the mercury got completely out of hand, so putting the rest of the salad together later required no cooking whatsoever.  The eight treasures in this delicious salad include navy beans, celery, carrot, green onion, kalamata olives, dried cranberries, pecans, and parsley.  The dressing as written consists of a seasoned oil and vinegar mix; I replaced the oil with a light broth, increasing the volume as the barley tends to soak up the liquid as it sits.  Per my usual, I decreased the amount of barley called for by about 1/3 to bring the ratio of starch to other ingredients more to my liking.

Radiatore With Aurora Sauce

According to the recipe notes, the "aurora" in "Radiatore with Aurora Sauce" (page 196) is the name given to a tomato sauce that has been lightened with cream to a pink blush.  In this vegan version you are given the option of using vegan cream cheese or soft tofu in place of the traditional cream.  I chose to use soft tofu, which is puréed in the blender with a portion of the sauce.  The sauce consists of a can of crushed tomatoes seasoned with Italian spices.  To keep the sauce oil free, I did not sauté the green onion and garlic in oil, in fact, I just added them uncooked to the sauce prior to puréeing to keep the flavor more intense.  Even with that, I found this preparation a little plain.  The tofu mellowed out the tomato sauce to the point of almost being bland, but I was able to remedy that with the addition of red pepper flakes sprinkled on at the table.  As is usually the case, I cut back on the amount of pasta the recipe called for, from one pound to about 12 ounces, as I find that quantity of pasta too much for the amount of sauce.

Chinese "Chicken" Salad

"Chinese "Chicken" Salad" (page 83) is a great dish on a hot summer day when the last thing you want to do is turn on the stove or oven. You can almost make a meal of this alone, or add some whole grain bread and fruit to round things out. Baked marinated tofu stands in for the chicken in this preparation, and is tossed into a mixture of lettuce, carrot, green onion, and cilantro, then moistened with a peanut butter based dressing. I skipped the sesame oil in the dressing and didn't miss it at all with plenty of flavor from everything else. My husband and I polished this off in one sitting (recipe says it serves 4, but I used just half the amount of tofu called for).

Cashew Chocolate Pudding

The "Cashew Chocolate Pudding" (page 474) is by far the richest, most decadent chocolate pudding I've ever had, vegan or otherwise.  It is dangerously delicious, and I say "dangerously" because it would be just too easy to eat the entire batch, alone, in one sitting.  Since the recipe includes one cup of chocolate chips and ½ cup cashews that probably wouldn't be a good idea.  Add to this soymilk, tofu, maple syrup, and vanilla extract, you end up with a creamy pudding that almost has the consistency of a chocolate mousse.  I'm quite certain this dessert would not pass muster with Dr. McDougall, at least not on a regular basis. The solid fat in the chocolate chips are the biggest culprit (from cocoa butter, natural, but not necessarily healthful).  But maybe I can squeeze this in every once in a while, for a very special occasion like a birthday or Valentine's Day.

Classic Tofu Lasagna

"Classic Tofu Lasagna" (page 215) is one of eight separate lasagna recipes in this cookbook.  As the name suggests, this particular recipe is straightforward, incorporating layers of noodles, seasoned tofu, and marinara sauce, all baked in the oven until done.  As a matter of personal preference, I used the no-boil lasagna noodles, along with jarred marinara, as it makes preparation almost effortless.  The only problem is, so far, I have not found whole grain no-boil noodles, so I failed in keeping this within my "whole grains" guidelines.  I was, however, able to keep the dish oil free, without any changes to the recipe required.  Bonus!  One adjustment I did make was to add garlic powder and Italian seasoning to the tofu mix to jazz it up a little.  Red pepper flakes added at the table is also very tasty for those who like a little spice.

Blazing Sunset Salad

Nothing tastes better than fresh sweet fruit, and you really can't go wrong no matter what combination of fruits you throw together.  "Blazing Sunset Salad" (page 96) utilizes fruits of many colors - golden delicious apple, orange, banana, peach, and cherries - to create a colorful mix of pure delicious.  Dressed lightly with lemon juice and agave nectar (I used pure maple syrup) is an option, I think, as the fruit all by itself is sweet and flavorful enough to stand on its own.

Orange & Cinnamon-Spiced Coffee

"Orange & Cinnamon-Spiced Coffee" (page 539) combines cinnamon stick, orange zest (from a fresh orange), and ground coffee and brews them up for a cup of café au cheer.  If you are a coffee lover like me, you will appreciate this variation on the basic cuppa joe.  I didn't really notice too much orange flavor, so maybe next time I'll add more.  The cinnamon flavor seemed to intensify as the coffee cooled down some.  A nice way to serve coffee for a festive occasion.