Vegetarian

Spring is toddling into summer with faltering steps this year, but the respites of warm sunny weather along the way bring to mind the comforts and pleasures of summer eating. Soups and hearty meals give way to salads and light fare that can be transported to the patio, warming foods give way to refreshing plates, and dried and canned goods give way to fresh herbs and produce. This simple salad of steamed baby potatoes, green peas and fresh herbs tossed in a creamy and vibrant Dijon mustard dressing is just the thing to give you a taste of summer comfort food — especially if you can get your hands of fresh garden peas, although frozen peas will also make for a lovely salad. The occasion for serving this dish was an opportunity to try some Nasoya vegan Nayonaise that was sent to me to sample. Now I tend to stay away from unfermented soya products generally, but I've never been overly fond of "traditional" jarred mayonnaise and, considering how rarely I use mayo anyways, I figured it was worth a try. First, I tried it with my famous Vegetarian Caesar Salad as it's a classic that I figured would be a fair assessment of the spread. Next, I wanted a potato salad and used it in the dressing with good results. Though it smelled a little odd when I opened the jar, the taste was mellow and pairs well with stronger flavors for a seamless taste experience. My verdict is that is stands up well to store-bought canola-based mayo and it's vegan-friendly and gluten-free too, made from expeller-pressed oil and fortified with Omega 3. I received the vegan nayonaise spread and the nayo whipped spread. You can learn more about Nasoya by visiting their webpage, facebook page or twitter feed. I am also offering a giveaway to my readers so they can access this mayo alternative. A randomly chosen winner will receive the same products that I tried. All you need to do is leave a comment on this post and mention a dish you would like to try with these spreads. The contest is open to residents of the US and Canada. I will hold a random draw in two weeks. If you don't have a blog or email address associated with your profile, please include your email so I contact you should you win. Note: I received complimentary samples of the Nayonaise for consideration. The opinions expressed here are my own and I am receiving no compensation for writing this post. Creamy Herbed Potato and Green Pea Salad 1 1/2 pounds baby potatoes, scrubbed 1 cup green peas, frozen or fresh, boiled for about 5 minutes and drained 1 tablespoon fresh mint, finely chopped 1 tablespoon fresh chives, finely chopped 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped 1/2 cup vegan mayo or other mayo of your choice 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (preferably coarse grained) juice from one small lemon freshly cracked black pepper and sea salt to taste a few sprinkles of fresh or dried dill Begin by preparing the potatoes. Steam or boil them until they are tender, roughly 20 minutes. Set aside. To prepare the dressing, whisk together the mayonnaise, lemon juice and black pepper and salt to taste. Cut the unpeeled potatoes in half and transfer to a medium bowl along with the peas and chopped herbs. Pour the dressing over the potatoes and peas and gently toss. Test for seasoning, and serve sprinkled with a bit of dried dill. Serves 4. More potato salads you are sure to enjoy from Lisa's Kitchen: Warm Baby Potato and Asparagus Salad Potato Radish Salad Mexican-Style Potato Salad with Avocado and Jalapeño Potato Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing On the top of the reading stack: various stacks Audio Accompaniment: the ceiling fan and street noise© Copyright 2007—2013 Lisa's Kitchen. For personal use only.If you are seeing this post on a site other than foodandspice.blogspot.com, it is being stolen.

I‘ve always loved Vietnamese Salad rolls (g?i cu?n), and I’ve been making them off and on for decades, so I don’t know why I haven’t shared them with you guys before. If you haven’t had them, they are cool and refreshing, with a tender but slightly chewy rice paper wrapper surrounding thin rice noodles, lettuce, herbs, and your choice of other ingredients. For today’s version, I used shiso instead of lettuce for a more pronounced and complex herbal flavor. If this is your first time making salad rolls, allow yourself a fair amount of time to prep all the ingredients and make the rolls. This isn’t a weeknight dinner for a busy family with young kids kind of thing. It will probably take you a few tries to get the hang of rolling them up neatly, but don’t worry, even your failures will still be delicious. This YouTube video is worth watching to see the right moves – you can skip to about 2:00 in to skip the cooking of the meat she’s using. You could also try her more traditional peanut and hoisin dipping sauce instead of the sweet chili version below. Two of these rolls per person is a good sized appetizer; three and you are up into light lunch territory. Oh: the kind of rice paper you want is like this. It should say bánh tráng on the package and not be flavored with anything like sesame. Vietnamese Salad Rolls with Shiso and Tofu (G?i cu?n) – Recipe Prep Time: 1 hourCook Time: 20 minutesTotal Time: 1 hour, 20 minutes Yield: 12 rolls2 or 3 rolls Vegan, vegetarian, gluten free and kosherFor the dipping sauce Juice of 3 limes 1-inch piece of fresh ginger, grated 1 clove garlic, minced 1 stalk lemongrass, bottom 3" only, crushed and minced 1 green onion, thinly sliced 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup sweet chili sauce For the rolls 12 rice paper wrappers 24 shiso leaves 1 bunch fresh mint, leaves only 1 bunch cilantro sprigs (leaves and tender stems) 1/4 pound rice vermicelli, cooked according to package directions and cooled 1 cucumber peeled, halved, and thinly sliced lengthwise, trimmed to 4" lengths 1 large carrot, peeled and julienned 1 pound tofu, pan fried as in this recipe, cooled, and cut into 24 pieces For the dipping sauce Whisk all ingredients together. Taste and adjust seasoning. Reserve. For the salad rolls Arrange all of the ingredients near your work surface. Fill a pie plate or other shallow pan large enough to hold one of the rice paper wrappers with very hot water. To make one roll, submerge a rice paper wrapper in the hot water for just a few seconds. It will still be fairly firm when you remove it. Don't worry, it will continue to hydrate while you arrange the ingredients. Place the wrapper on a flat surface. Near the edge closest to you, arrange 2 shiso leaves so they cover about 2/3rds of the width of the edge. Top with a few mint leaves and cilantro sprigs. Top with a small amount of rice noodles - this is hard to measure, but less than you think you should use. Now, in a line parallel to the first, but close to the center, place a slice of cucumber and a few pieces of carrot. Finally, parallel and close to the far edge, arrange two pieces of tofu. Begin by rolling completely around the herbs and noodles, slightly tucking under. Then fold in the edges like for a burrito, and then continue rolling to enclose the cucumber, carrot, and tofu. You want to use reasonably firm pressure but not enough to burst the wrapper. Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it in just a few tries! Schema/Recipe SEO Data Markup by ZipList Recipe Plugin2.2http://herbivoracious.com/2013/05/vietnamese-salad-rolls-goi-cuon-recipe.htmlCopyright 2007-2013 / Michael Natkin / Herbivoracious.com. Related posts: Crispy Yuba (Tofu Skin) Rolls – Recipe Recipe: Vietnamese Sandwiches with Tofu (Banh Mi Chay) Vietnamese Vermicelli (Bun) with Ginger-Grapefruit Sauce – Recipe Review: Tamarind

Last year we reported on Beyond Meat™, a meat analog company founded by Ethan Brown and based in Cumberland, Maryland. According to Beyond Meat, their product will be offered at Tropical Smoothie as a substitute for chicken in salads and sandwiches in 338 locations across 36 states starting May 21. Beyond Meat Chicken-Free Strips are made with a blend of pea and soy protein. Let us know if you see this product in your local Tropical Smoothie!

The health and fitness magazine interviewed Beyond Meat’s founder and CEO Ethan Brown.

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Other than vegetarian chicken and veggie burgers, another popular mock meat you can find in most grocery stores are "steak strips" or vegetarian ground beef crumbles. You won't believe ...Read Full Post

A creamy ricotta-style cheese made from cashews and tofu, perfect for rollatini and lasagna.

I love cookbooks, especially when they are more than just cookbooks. Veganomicon offers not only 250 vegan recipes, but also menus for different occasions, advice on essential cooking equipment, pantry staples, and basic cooking techniques.