Vegan Zucchini Quinoa Lasagna

In my opinion, this lasagna is much better than a "real" lasagna... And, my husband told me this is one of his favorites and that I should make it weekly!!

If you eat dairy, just substitute dairy items for the non-dairy cheese and cream cheese.

Vegan Zucchini Quinoa Lasagna
* 3 medium zucchinis, cut lengthwise into 15 slices
* 1 tsp. sea salt
* 2 cups vegetable broth
* 1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
* 1/2 cup tomato sauce
* 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
* 1 tsp. dried oregano
* 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil
* 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
* 2 tbsp. Tofutti Better than Cream Cheese
* 1 - 24. oz. jar Spicy Red Pepper pasta sauce
* 1/2 cup shredded soy mozzarella flavored cheese

Preheat oven to 400F.

Place zucchini slices on paper towels, sprinkle with salt, cover with paper towels and let stand while you cook the quinoa.

Bring broth, quinoa, tomato sauce, onion, and dried oregano to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and let simmer 25 - 30 minutes, or until all liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and stir in basil, parsley and cream cheese.

Spoon a thin layer of the pasta sauce over the bottom of a 8x8 baking pan (about 1/2 cup). Dry the zucchini with the paper towels and lay 5 slices over the sauce(4 lengthwise, and 1 across the bottom). Spoon half of the quinoa mixture over the zucchini and cover with another layer of sauce (about 1/2 cup). Repeat with 5 more zucchini slices, remaining quinoa mixture about 1/2 cup sauce. Top with the last 5 zucchini slices, remaining pasta sauce and shredded cheese.

Bake 30 - 35 minutes, or until zucchini is tenter and top is bubbly. Let it sit for a few minutes before digging in.

Serves 4-6.

Blueberry Crisp

Blueberry Crisp

Filling:
* 3 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed and lightly dried
* 1 & 1/2 tsp. cornstarch
* 2 tbsp. sugar
* Pinch of salt

Topping:
* 1/4 cup flour
* 1/4 cup quick cooking oats
* 2 tbsp. light brown sugar
* 2 tbsp. sugar
* 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
* 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
* 1/3 cup chopped pecans
* 2 tbsp. Earth Balance, room temperature, crumbled into pieces

Preheat Oven to 375 F.

Toss blueberries, cornstarch, sugar and salt together in a bowl.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, oats, brown & white sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg and pecans. Add Earth Balance and mix until it is crumbly.

Pour the blueberries into a 8x8 baking dish. Top evenly with the crumb mixture. Bake for 40 minutes.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

ENJOY!

Spaghetti Squash with Black Beans & Corn

• 1 spaghetti squash (3 – 3 ½ lbs)
• Olive oil
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, minced
• 1 cup black beans, rinsed & drained
• 1/2 cup corn
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1/3 cup minced fresh parsley
• 1 tbsp. lime juice
• 1 tsp. sea salt

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise. Scrape out the seeds and pulp as you would with any squash or pumpkin. Roast squash facing down (skin side up) on a baking sheet for 50 minutes. When cool enough to handle, separate “spaghetti” strands by running a fork through it.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large pan and sauté the red onion, jalapeno and red bell pepper, until getting soft, 4-5 minutes. Add the beans, corn and chili powder and cook another minute. Add the cooked squash strands, parsley, lime juice and salt and cook another few minutes, stirring it all together.

Enjoy!

Shrimp & Rice

Shrimp & Rice

• 1 tablespoon Earth Balance
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• 2 teaspoons Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning
• 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 4 Roma tomatoes, chopped
• 2 bunches green onions, chopped
• 2 cups cooked brown rice
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Heat the Earth Balance, olive oil and garlic in a large skillet over medium high heat until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the Cajun seasoning and shrimp and cook, stirring, until the shrimp begin to curl, about 1 minute.

Add the tomatoes and scallions to the skillet and cook, stirring, about 1 minute.

Add the cooked rice and 1/4 cup of water and continue to cook until the rice is warmed through and the shrimp are opaque, about 3 more minutes.

Stir in the parsley and serve.

Salmon Cakes

These were really yummy... They aren't super easy to make, but worth the time & effort. I think they'd be really good made into smaller cakes (15-16) to use as an appetizer. Enjoy!

Salmon Cakes

• 3 tablespoons plus 3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoons Vegan mayonnaise (use Best Foods Light if you eat dairy)
• 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 green onion, thinly sliced
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• Pinch of Cayenne pepper
• 1 – 1 &1/4 pound skinless salmon fillet, cut into 1-inch pieces (if you buy skinned salmon, get 1 1/3 pounds of fish and remove the skin)
• Vegetable oil, for cooking

Combine 3 tablespoons bread crumbs, parsley, mayo, lemon juice, green onion, shallot, garlic, mustard, salt, pepper and cayenne in a bowl and set aside.

Working in batches, pulse the salmon in a food processor until coarsely chopped. Don’t over pulse. Transfer each batch into the bowl with bread crumb mixture. Gently mix until well combined.

Place remaining 3/4 cup of bread crumbs in a pie plate and set aside.

Using a 1/3 cup measure, scoop a level amount of salmon mixture and transfer to a baking sheet. Continue this to make 6-8 cakes depending on how level you are.

Carefully coat each cake with bread crumbs in the pie plate, gently patting them to make round cakes. Return coated cakes to the baking sheet.

Pour enough vegetable oil in a large skillet to lightly cover it and heat over medium-high heat. Place the salmon cakes in the skillet and cook without moving until golden brown, about 4-5 minutes. Turn cakes and cook until the second side is golden brown, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer cakes to a paper towel to drain for a minute and serve.

Cumin-Lime Coleslaw

• 1 – 16oz. package Fresh Express 3-color deli coleslaw
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into matchstick-size strips
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
• 2 teaspoons Tapatio hot sauce
• 1/2 cup olive oil

Combine coleslaw, bell pepper, onion and parsley in a large bowl.

Whisk lime juice, cumin, garlic and hot pepper sauce in medium bowl. Gradually whisk in oil. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Toss salad and refrigerate.

Vegan Frittata

This is by far the best Vegan "egg" dish I have ever made. It is super light, low calorie, very low fat, and it really does taste like a frittata! I think it's easier to get everything prepped, chopped, measured, etc before starting the actual cooking and I have shown this through the photos. I hope you enjoy this as much as I do!


Vegan Frittata
• 2 shallots, minced
• 1/2 14-ounce package extra-firm tofu (not silken), drained well and coarsely crumbled
• Salt & fresh ground pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 small zucchini, grated

• 1 12-ounce package lite, extra-firm silken tofu
• 1/4 cup rice milk
• 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1 tablespoon & 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon tahini
• 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
• 1/4 cup finely shredded rice cheese, cheddar flavored
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Fresh ground black pepper

Spray a 9-inch non-stick pie pan with cooking spray.

Preheat oven to 400.

Heat a non-stick saute pan over medium heat and spray it with cooking spray. Add the shallots and cook, stirring, until they begin to soften but not brown, about 2 minutes. Add the crumbled tofu and a sprinkle of salt and freshly ground pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tofu begins to brown in places, about 5 minutes. Add oregano and zucchini and continue to cook until zucchini softens, about 5 minutes.

While the zucchini cooks, blend all remaining ingredients well in a food processor. When the zucchini has softened, remove the pan from the heat and pour in the contents of the food processor over it. Quickly stir well and pour into the prepared pie pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until center is set and top is not yet browned.

Loosen the frittata around the edges. Place a serving plate on top of the pie pan, and using pot holders, carefully invert the pan so that the frittata falls onto the plate.

Serves 6.

Spicy Baked Shrimp over Quinoa

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 & 1/2 teaspoons Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1 pound uncooked large shrimp, shelled, deveined

Whisk together first 7 ingredients. Put shrimp in a 9x13-inch baking dish and toss with dressing to coat. Refrigerate 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 450°F. Bake until shrimp are cooked through, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.

Serve over Quinoa with a vegetable.