Spicy Crusted Tempeh Bake

No post yesterday- I forgot to take a pic of my dinner before class because I cooked it and ate it while I was talking to my mom on the phone! But- it was delicious and simple enough to cook and eat while chatting, so I will definitely post about it soon. It is something I eat regularly.

But tonight, I finally made the Spicy Crusted Tempeh Bake I've been wanting to make for a while. It was good, too. I got a new stove top griddle/grill (it's reversible!), so I made it on that. Here's a photo of the potatoes and the crusted tempeh on the griddle:

I used chile powder, ground thyme and salt as the seasoning for the potatoes and the tempeh. For the tempeh I made some breadcrumbs and mixed in the spices before wetting the slices with water and then coating and placing on the griddle. I sprayed the slices with some olive oil cooking spray to help the crumbs crisp up a little.

The potatoes came out delicious, but the tempeh needed to be finished off in the oven (that is how it was supposed to be cooked- but I wanted to use the griddle so bad!). The tempeh was a little dry, but the flavor was nice. I dipped both the potatoes and the tempeh in BBQ sauce.

Next time I'll probably steam the tempeh first and then follow the recipe more closely, but all in all, for a quick dinner when I was starving after the gym, it was good. I should have had some veggies too, but I forgot till I was already eating it... :)

The Dinner I *Almost* Made

I was totally going to make a dish called Spicy Crusted Tempeh tonight for dinner that I found on the Weight Watchers website! How awesome is that? They actually have a ton of vegan and vegetarian recipes for WW members. I can't wait to try some of them...

But, I didn't make it because after another long day at work (but I met my tradeshow deadline! yay) and then a banking near-miss with my husband's paycheck (crisis averted- phew!), I decided to go to the gym with my husband to blow off some steam and also because he asked me if I wanted to join him so how could I say no? So I was still planning to make the crusted tempeh, but then David said, "I'm just gonna grab a sub sandwich for dinner" and I was like, "me too, then". :)

So I had a nice big sub on a wheat roll with spinach, lettuce, cucumbers, bell peppers and lots of pepperocinis (how do you spell that?), and spicy Russian mustard (I added that at home). It was nice to just come home, doctor up my sammy, and sit on the couch and stuff my face!

So another less-than-stellar Mofo post... but I feel way less stressed than yesterday and I think I'm going to shower and then enjoy a glass of champagne while I read the new Lucky magazine and chill on the couch! (and I'll probably make that tempeh recipe on Thursday...)

Coming Up...

This week I plan to post some pics of a yummy cheese-less pizza I made, my first experience with seitan, and I'll probably rave some more about tofu, tempeh, and Sweet & Sara's Peanut Butter S'mores. :)

BBQ Tempeh & Roasted Veggies!

MMMMMMMM- I adapted this recipe from Vegan Express to fit what I had on hand.

I took 1/2 of an 8oz block of regular flavor tempeh and sliced it into inch long strips. I sliced a green bell pepper that had turned red (from my friend's garden), a little jalapeno (from the same garden), a handful of tiny yukon taters, and a big chunk of zucchini (also from said garden). I mixed it all up with some BBQ sauce and roasted it for about 30 minutes. Isn't summer produce the best? I don't think I can handle a garden myself- but I sure love indulging in the fruits (or veggies) of my friends' labors!

I ate it with the Fruitful Slaw for dinner and for lunch the next day. I cannot say it enough- I love tempeh! Maybe I should be the Tempeh Lush??

You may have noticed that I mention Vegan Express A LOT. That's because I use it A LOT. It has a ton of recipes that all use beautiful fresh produce and take less than 30 minutes from start to finish. In fact, this recipe isn't even supposed to take 30 minutes to roast- but I bumped the time up because I added potatoes that aren't included in the original recipe. I highly recommend Vegan Express to anyone that likes to cook, but also likes to get the goods on the table with little to no fuss. Another cool thing about this book is that every recipe has "menu suggestions" for sides, salads, etc. that are either also in the book or simple add ons, like a hot cooked grain, fresh veggie platter, simple salad, what have you. I ALWAYS feel healthier after eating a Vegan Express meal. :)

Meal Menus for the upcoming week

I like to write up what I'm planning to eat for the week, helps me get a grocery list going, use up stuff I have on hand that needs using, make sure I'm getting balanced nutrition... etc.

I go to the regular grocery store with my husband on Sunday evenings and then I go to Lassen's (small chain of health food stores in Cali) to get whatever else I need (and some treats like Sweet & Sara's choc/peanut butter S'mores!!) on my lunch hour on Mondays (they are closed on Sundays... boo for me- yay for them).

Breakfasts: Tonight I will make the zucchini/raisin muffins from Skinny Bitch in the Kitch and will eat them all week for breakfast slathered with almond butter and also some fruit (most likely a banana and whatever else is lookin' good at the market). (I got a beautiful, giant, variegated zuke from my friend's garden for the muffins!)

Lunches: For two days I will eat some whole wheat pasta with veggie marinara I need to use up, but I'll add some Tofurky for a protein boost. I'll probably make a little garlic baguette to go along with it.

For the other two work days I'll eat some veggie chili with the Gardein Good Stuff Santa Fe Chik'n breasts chopped up in it and a tortilla. I was intrigued by Gardein and they started carrying this at my local Vons. I don't love it because it is toooo "chicken-y", it freaks me out a little, but I think chopped up in some yummy chili it will be fine and I can use it up, rather than waste it and then never buy it again. :) For folks who love and miss chicken breasts- I'm sure it is a delightful option- but for those of us that don't it is just too authentic- texture, taste, everything.

Dinner: My favorite meal!

• One night I will make a cheese-less grilled veggie pizza.


• One night I will finish up the veggie potstickers I got from the frozen section at the market. I'll make a spicy dipping sauce with sweet/hot mustard and teriyaki sauce. (had this for lunch today- mmmm) I'll eat those with a huge bowlful of Fruitful Red Slaw- recipe from Vegan Express.


• One night (and I am REALLY looking forward to this meal) I'll make BBQ Roasted Tempeh with Veggies (Vegan Express recipe), and I'll have the slaw with this, too.


• One night I will have tofu and yukon homefries with fresh buscuits!


• And then Friday night I will go to dinner with David on Date Night!

I'm going to try, try, try to remember to take pics of my meals BEFORE I eat them! :)

Tempeh Fries... where ya been all my life?

ho-lee-schnikees! Tempeh fries are the bomb!

I adapted this recipe from Vegan Express and it was one of the most wonderful things I've ever done!

I took 1/2 of an 8oz package of plain tempeh and sliced it into to 'fry' sized sticks. I heated 2 T safflower oil and 1 T soy sauce in a skillet (this spattered a bit, so be careful) and fried em up till crispy and brown- then drained on a paper towel.

Meanwhile I made this mouthwatering dipping sauce- also adapted from Vegan Express's Wasabi-Dill Mayonnaise. I don't have any wasabi on hand so I did this instead:

In a tiny food processor- 1 garlic clove, half of a small jalapeno (seeded and de-veined), 2 T soy milk, 1/4ish cup of veganaise (I eyeballed this), 1/2 T lime juice, several pinches of dried dill, and several pinches of course salt.

Oh my gosh, it was so good. I had made a little bowl of pasta as my main dish, but this was so satisfying and yum that I only ate a couple bites of the pasta. I'm going to start making this sauce for everything!

Sheesh- I keep forgetting to take pictures of my stuff! But here is a pic of the kind of tempeh I used: