Happy 4th of July...and some tasty treats to share

Remember the crispy tofu I made the other day? I decided to make a sandwich out of some of the leftovers. I heated the tofu in the oven so it crisped up again. Then I smeared a sourdough sub roll with Veganaise, mustard, and bbq sauce, added the tofu and some sliced tomatoes. It was delicious!

My mother-in-law's birthday day was this weekend and I made Indian food for her special meal. It all turned out pretty well. The Curried Chickpeas the Greens were quite flavorful. The Cabbage and Pea Curry was yummy, though not bursting with flavor. The Biryani was not my favorite - there was nothing wrong with it but it didn't have much flavor for what was in it!I will post the recipe for the Chickpea and Greens Curry as it was the best from the meal. All of these Indian recipes can be found in Appetite for Reduction. I also made a coconut banana cream pie for dessert which was delicious but soupy - I would modify the recipe next time but the taste was fabulous! I forgot to take a picture and then when I served it up, it was so soupy that it wasn't worthy of a pic! I modified the recipe quite a bit - the original recipe for the vanilla coconut pudding is from 500 Vegan Recipes.

Curried Chickpeas and Greens (modified from Appetite for Reduction)
2 t oil
2 t mustard seeds
1 onion, diced
4 cloves minced garlic
2 T minced fresh ginger
1/2 t red pepper flakes
1 T curry powder
2 t ground cumin
1 t ground coriander
1 t garam masala
1 t salt
1 (12 oz) can crushed tomatoes
2 1/2 cups torn kale, removed from stalk
1 1/2 cups chickpeas, drained and rinsed

Preheat 4-quart pot over medium heat and add 1 t oil. Add mustard seeds and cover. Heat until seeds pop. Add remaining oil, ginger, garlic and onion. Cook until onion is lightly browned. Add tomatoes to deglaze the pot. Add spices. Add kale and stir. Add beans. Simmer for about 10 min or until heated through and kale has cooked down. I don't like wilty kale so I cooked it until the kale was cooked but still had a crunch to it. Serve over rice.

Coconut Banana Cream Pie
1 single pie crust, baked
1 recipe filling (recipe below)
1/2 cup coconut
2 bananas

Heat a small skillet over medium heat and add coconut. Toast until lightly browned. Removed from heat and set aside. Slice bananas and place in the bottom of the baked pie crust. Prepare filling. Once filling is done, pour over sliced bananas in pie crust. Top with toasted coconut and chill until set. Serve.

Filling:
1/4 cup plus 2 heaping T cornstarch
1 1/4 cups vanilla almond milk, divided
1 (14oz) can coconut milk
3/4 cup plus 2 T sugar
1 T vanilla

Combine cornstarch and 1/2 cup almond milk and whisk until smooth. Set aside. Heat remaining almond milk, coconut milk and sugar in a pan until it begins to boil, stirring constantly to prevent scalding. Remove from heat and stir in cornstarch mixture. Stir until thickened.


I wanted to make something patriotic-looking for the festivities today so I made this creamy lemon pie. We of course haven't eaten it yet since it is 6am but I did taste the pudding filling last night and it's yummy! We will be enjoying a bbq today with family - we will be feasting on veggie burgers and homemade vegan hot dogs, along with corn on the cob, baked beans, potato fries, veggie sticks, and fruit salad! Then we will finish out he extravaganza with this yummy red, white and blue pie. Happy 4th of July everyone!

Lemon Vanilla Pie with Berries(original recipe from 500 Vegan Recipes, modified a bit)
1 single pie crust, baked
Strawberries and Blueberries for garnish
1 recipe Lemon Vanilla Pudding - recipe below

Pudding:
3 cups almond milk
3/4 cup plus 2 T sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 T cornstarch
1/2 cup plus 2 T lemon juice
1 T vanilla
1 T lemon zest

In a saucepan, heat 2 cups almond milk, sugar and lemon juice. Meanwhile, combine remaining 1 cup almond milk and cornstarch and stir until smooth. Add cornstarch mixture to heated milk and continue to cook and stir until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla and lemon zest. Pour filling into prepared pie crust. When cooled, top with sliced strawberries and blueberries. Chill until set. Serve.