little red radish » snacks

seapoint farms dry roasted edamame

admin — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 05:26:54 +0000

I like a savory midmorning snack. Not necessarily out of hunger, I just want a little handful of something along with my tea. Usually some peanuts or cashews will do, but this is a nice low-fat alternative. The package reads one 1/4 cup serving has “70% less fat and 40% more protein than peanuts.” Not bad! Top that off with 8g of fiber. But…I can’t remember where I bought them! Whole Foods? Valencia Whole Foods?? Hopefully I’ll run across them again soon. I really liked the lightly salted, but there is also a wasabi flavor!

Online they can be purchased here.

Image: Seapoint Farms

carrot salad w peanut ginger dressing

admin — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 19:47:19 +0000

I played around with the dressing from the previous post and came up with this simplified version.

Ingredients:
4 carrots
2 medium zucchini

Dressing:
1/3 cup rice vinegar
1 Tbsp light spy sauce or Bragg’s Liquid Amino

1-2″ peeled fresh ginger
1 Tbsp peanut butter
1 clove garlic (optional)

Directions:
Shred zucchini and carrots. Blend dressing ingredients and pour over vegetables to taste (this should make enough dressing for 2 salads).

kung pao baked tofu

admin — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 19:37:01 +0000

Flipping through my Jan/Feb Vegetarian Times, I stopped on user submitted Kung Pao Sliders. I’ve made this so many times now, the magazine stays open to this page. The intent here was to serve the baked tofu squares as “sliders” with the cole slaw on a small bun, but I’ve been putting it in salads or eating the tofu straight as a snack. I tried the slaw dressing that was to go with this and it just didn’t work. Possibly because I thought adding lemon would be a good idea.

Ingredients:
One tub of extra firm tofu, patted dry and cut into 16 pieces (cut legnthwise once, eight cuts across)
4 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce (I prefer Bragg’s Liquid Amino for its lower sodium content)
2 Tbsp cane sugar (or less)
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp corn starch

Directions:
Layer tofu in a shallow pan (I use two 8×8 pans). Whisk together remaining ingredients and pour evenly over the tofu. Flip tofu squares so the they are completely coated. Refrigerate for an hour, flipping tofu once or twice during that time. Preheat oven to 325. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Lay tofu on sheet and bake 25 minutes. Flip the tofu and cook for another 20-25 minutes.

thin mint cookies

admin — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 05:17:44 +0000

nom nom...

So… file this under “spurge.” Or “what-to-bring-to-a-potluck-to-demonstrate-vegan-doesn’t-just-mean-cardboard-tasting-tofu-and-wheatgrass-smoothies” a.k.a. “vegangelicalism.” These really taste like the real deal! Chef Chloe’s blog, is a must-read, I will be back to sample more recipes, I’m sure! This is simple in nature, but makes SO many cookies it is time consuming (no complaints on that front though!).

Cookie Ingredients:
1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
½ cup cocoa powder
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ tsp baking soda
¾ cup vegan margarine, softened
3 Tbsp soy or almond milk
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
½ tsp pure peppermint extract

Cookie Directions:
In a food processor, pulse together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt. Add softened margarine, milk, vanilla and peppermint extract. Pulse a few times until well blended. I had to add about another tablespoon of soy milk. Transfer to a bowl and knead for about a minute. Form into a ball and refrigerate for one hour. Preheat oven to 350. Roll dough into small balls (reallly for the thin mint look they need to be about 1 tsp in size). Space on a cookie sheet about 2″ apart and flatten with fingertips until 1/4″ flat. Bake approximately 11 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack.

Coating Ingredients:
2 cups vegan semi sweet chocolate chips
1 Tbsp vegan margarine
1/2 tsp peppermint extract

Coating Directions:
Melt ingredients together in a double boiler. Seriously, a double boiler. I tried just over a low heat and it didn’t work. I may have messed up by adding a little soymilk (didn’t seem like it was going to get liquid enough?). I ended up double boiling and adding almost 1/2 C soymilk. When it’s nice and runny, dip in each cookie and scrape off excess. This was a bit of a challenge because it was sort of finger-burny. Frosting top/bottom/sides also worked well. Place each coated cookie on wax paper and place in fridge to cool. Store frozen cookies between wax paper layers.

basil garlic dip

admin — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 04:44:54 +0000

Kind of like a creamy pesto dip. I’ve made this a few times, a bit different each time but always yummy! Great with fresh veggies for dipping – cucumbers, sliced red/orange peppers, carrots, or blue corn tortilla chips.

Blend the following until smoth:

The leaves of one bunch of basil – rinsed and dried
3/4 of the small container of silken tofu (8 oz)
One clove of garlic, pressed
Juice of half a lemon
1 Tablespoon vegan mayonnaise

black bean dip

admin — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 20:45:47 +0000

Delicious, even if not necessarily photogenic. Eating this right now with sliced cucumber. Aaaahhh….

Blend the following until you reach a hummus-like consistency. Serve with sliced vegetables – cucumbers, red peppers, etc.

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed or 1 1/2 cup cooked black beans
1 Tbs peanut butter
1 clove of garlic, pressed
Juice of 1 lime
a little hot water if it’s not getting to hummus consistency

chocolate cereal bars

admin — Mon, 10 May 2010 01:18:32 +0000

A variation on trail mix bars. With a deep chocolate flavor this time.

In a small saucepan, heat 1/2 cup rice syrup, 1/4 cup almond butter, 1/4 cup chocolate chips and 3 Tablespoons cocoa powder. Stir over medium/low heat until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla. Pour 3 1/2 cup puffed cereal (I found puffed kamut at my Safeway) into a large bowl and mix with syrup/chocolate mixture. Add more cereal as needed to make a good bar consistency. Spray a 8 inch square pan with cooking spray. Press bar mixture into pan and let cool before cutting into 9 squares.

spicy chipotle baked tofu

admin — Sun, 09 May 2010 23:36:36 +0000

This is my first experiment with baking tofu. It’s a nice change in texture from raw or stir frying, a bit chewy and the seasoning give it some kick. I used Penzy’s Medium Hot Chili Powder, which I love love love, and got the chipotle powder from Rainbow Grocery which has great bulk spices.

Ingredients:
1/2 block firm tofu
1 teaspoon chipotle powder, or to taste
1/8 teaspoon medium chili powder, or to taste

Directions:
Cube tofu into about half inch squares, toss with spices. Taste and add more seasoning if you like. Cook at 400 for 40 minutes tossing every 10 minutes or so.

“turkey” “cream cheese”…”rolls”

admin — Sun, 09 May 2010 22:55:51 +0000

Fake meat….can be hit or miss. I struggle with vegan “turkey” slices, but with some vegan “cream cheese” and dijon mustard, this can be quite a nice little treat. And it’s cute in that 50′s appetizer kind of way.

Ingredients:
vegan turkey slices
vegan cream cheese
dijon mustard

Directions:
Spread each turkey slice with cream cheese. Squeeze dijon mustard in a line down the middle of each slice. Roll up the slices and pin together with a toothpick. Enjoy!

super rich chocolate cake

admin — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 04:44:28 +0000

Yum. I can’t stop making this. Another vegan winner from Vegetarian Times. Total Eclipse Chocolate Cake. I keep telling myself I just need one more sample to figure out how this combination of ingredients could possibly turn out so rich. So chocolaty. Love. Can you see where I ate the corner off before I took the photo? : ) This is half the recipe which fits into a 8″x8″ pan. Double and you can use two 9″ round pans and make a more traditional birthday like stacked cake.

Cake Ingredients:
3/4 C white flour
1/4 C + 2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp flax seeds, ground very fine (a coffee grinder works well)
1/4 C pitted dates (about 5 dates)
3 oz silken tofu
1 1/2 tsp vegetable or corn oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 C maple syrup

Cake Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Soak dates in half a cup of hot water for 30 minutes. Spray a 8″x8″ pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle in a little bit of cocoa powder and shake pan to distribute/coat sides. In a large bowl whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda.

In a small blender mix the ground flax seeds with half a cup water for about 30 seconds until frothy. Add dates, their soaking water, oil and vanilla and continue to blend until smooth. Add to dry mixture with the maple syrup. Stir until just combined. Pour into pan and bake for 20-25 minutes or until springs back to touch on top or a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in pan for about 5-10 minutes then turn out onto a rack to cool further.

Recipe for frosting to follow!