Monday 8 September 2014

Vegan MoFo 2014 #6: Robin Robertson Rocks - Vegan On The Cheap



I hope everyone had a great weekend. I had an amazing time at OzComicCon. I had photos and autographs with Colin Ferguson (Eureka) and Jason Dohring (Veronica Mars) as well as Emma Caulfield and Nicholas Brendon, who are from my favourite show ever - Buffy! I also had so much fun working the convention as a guest handler, I have just arranged to have time off for OCC Brisbane in 2015, as well as the following weekend so I can go and work down in Sydney. Bring it on!

Okay... so... food. Or something. Time to pop back to Vegan On The Cheap, for another look at some cheap and tasty recipes.

Skillet Chili Mac uses leftover Stovetop Cheezee Mac (see previous VOTC post) and prepared chili, and salsa, so comes together in an absolute snap!
Rating: :)

Skillet Chili Mac


Salsa Rice and Red Beans is made particularly delicious by the addition of some Cheezee Sauce (recipe included in the book) and fresh tomato and onions. I would have loved to top this with some avocado, but tragically I was all out at home (it happens sometimes).
Rating: :)

Salsa Rice and Red Beans


Curried Red Bean Pilaf with Walnuts and Raisins made me happy because I didn't have to cook the rice for longer than the recipe stated, hurrah! I served this with broccoli for extra greens.
Rating: :)

Curried Red Bean Pilaf with Walnuts and Raisins


Coconut Curry Rice was a lovely rice dish, I love coconut based sauces. It did take me twice as long as the recipe said to cook the rice, even though I only used 3/4 cup rather than 1 cup of rice. I also didn't drain the tomatoes because I like the tomato/coconut combination, and I put in extra peas as well. I served it with some roasted eggplant slices and salad greens.
Rating: :)

Coconut Curry Rice


Moroccan Chickpeas and Couscous is a colourful dish with lots of colour and texture. The almonds add a great crunch. I ony got 3 serves out of this, with my big appetites. I added some extra vegetables - zucchini and peas. I only used one cup or couscous instead of a 10oz box, that would have made far too much couscous for me for the amount of vegetables.
Rating: :)

Moroccan Chickpeas and Couscous


Polenta with Pan-Seared Mushrooms and Tomatoes is a delicious, satisfying dish. There is something a little magic about polenta. I added a tin of kidney beans for some extra bulk and protein, as well as 1/4 cup tomato juice to keep things juicy.
Rating: :)

Polenta with Pan-Seared Mushrooms and Tomatoes


Indian-Spiced Lentil Ragu was full of lentils, spinach, onions and tomatoes, with a dollop of yoghurt on top. I used Kinglands plain soy yoghurt, which is the only vegan plain yoghurt available to me (that isn't coconut based, coconut yoghurt = death for me).
Rating: :)

Indian-Spiced Lentil Ragu


Penny-Pinching Pinto Picadillo is nice with the sweet raisins and salty olives. We don't have diced tomatoes with chiles here, so I just used regular diced tomato and added some chopped green chile.
Rating: :)

Penny-Pinching Pinto Picadillo


Savory Sausage and Peppers became Savory sausage with zucchini and extra carrots, because capsicum is gross. It gives the 'splurge' option of using packaged sausages, but I made the Close to Mom's Sausage Links recipe in the book. There is something fun about making your own sausages!
Rating: :)

Savoury Sausage and Peppers


Better-Than-Takeout Tofu Stir-Fry is quick and delicious, and saves you the cost of getting takeaway. I only gave the tofu a sprinkle in cornflour rather than using the whole 1/3 of cornflour to coat. This is very saucy, so is great to serve over lots of rice.
Rating: :)

Better-Than-Takeout Tofu Stir-Fry


Cute Kitty Photo of the Post

Petunia


Petunia came to our clinic at Christmas, she was skinny, her fur was patchy, and she was hungry. She has been at the clinic since that time, and has blossomed into a gorgeous little lady. Despite being so cute, Petunia is yet to find her forever home. She is 7 years old, and a lot of people aren't interested in looking at older cats. If you live in Brisbane and might be interested bringing Petunia into your life, please call on 07 3361 0011. If you aren't in Brisbane, but are looking for a feline friend, please consider an older kitty as well!

4 comments:

  1. {\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252
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    \f0\fs26 \cf2 \cb3 \expnd0\expndtw0\kerning0
    \outl0\strokewidth0 \strokec2 It's just after breakfast here and your post is making me feel hungry! Glad to hear you had such a fun weekend. And what a beautiful cat, I hope someone adopts her soon.}

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  2. This is a great post! I'm always looking for easy lunches with lots of leftovers for the week. I may need to check out this book. Thanks!

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  3. Older kitties are the sweetest! Hope Petunia finds a nice home! :)

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  4. Guess what cookbook I have sitting on my desk as we speak? Vegan On The Cheap! It finally was my turn to check it out of the library! Your pictures help me know what the dishes are supposed to look like, which is always nice. The polenta dish needs to get in mah belleh! That one might be the first one I try. Although I might want to make the sausages first too. Sausage-making is definitely fun. I made the Italian Feast Sausages from Vegan Brunch yesterday and it was definitely more fun than just opening a packet of store-bought sausages.

    Petunia! Oh how I wish I could adopt her! Sweet kitteh. Hopefully somebody local will be able to adopt her very soon.

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