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Join @peace_n_loaf for a Slice of Hope

October 9, 2012 by Leave a Comment

The ladies at @Peace_n_loaf are teaming up with an industry magazine called, Pizza Today, in a charity  event called Slice of Hope. Slice of Hope is dedicated to raising money for breast cancer awareness and is counting with the donations made at participating pizzerias in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Look for participating stores near you.

I spoke to Stephanie and Vanessa at the Organic Markert, (Isa was home sick with a cold)  regarding the Slice of Hope charity event for this coming Friday, October 12. They will be open from 3-9 p.m. (their usual hours) and will be donating 15% of their sales to the Karen Mullen Breast Cancer Foundation.

You will be able to purchase your regular sized pies and if you don’t want an entire pie, you can purchase a nice sized piece of pizza with a drink for $5.00. I have eaten at @Peace_n_loaf on several occassions and their slices are not small at all.

Besides who wants to cook on Friday after a long day of work?

 

If you need further details, you can contact Stephanie or Isa regarding this event on Facebook , via Twitter, or Website.

Filed Under: Lifestyle, News, Pizza, Vegan, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , ,

VegLatino Recipes for SuperBowl Sunday!

February 2, 2012 by 3 Comments

This year we are going to watch the SuperBowl because Raul @rj_c and our great friend @Julito77 have a bet going on to see who will win. Since we are related to Raul, Daniela and I will be cheering for the Giants as I am sure Julio’s wife and children will be cheering for the Patriots. You can follow all the banter by following the hashtag #PapaRebelde as well.

While we cheer on the Giants, we are going to be munching on some vegan and vegetarian friendly dishes. Below are several recipes already on the site that you can make for your families as you cheer on your favorite team.

Lately we have been fascinated with making Black Bean Burgers. I found this recipe in the Good House Keeping @GoodHouseMag Vegetarian Meals recipe book. I modified the recipe and ommitted the mayo. I incorporated salsa into the mix. You can use  vegan mayo if you wish or use regular mayo.

I have been able to get seven slider sized burgers but the recipe says it is good for 4 sandwiches. We use burger buns instead of the whole wheat pitas. Do as you like, but you won’t be disappointed with the outcome.

SouthWestern Black Bean Burgers

Recipe as written in the @GoodHouseMag Vegetarian Meals.

Prep 10 minutes

Cook: 6 minutes

1 can of Black Beans rinsed and drained

2 tablespoons of light mayonnaise

1/4 cup packed fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

1 tablespoon plain dried bread crumbs

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

nonstick cooking spray

1 cup loosely packed sliced lettuce

4 mini (4-inch) whole wheat pitas, warmed

1/2 cup mild salsa (for topping)

1. In a large bowl, mash beans with mayonnaise until almost smooth. Stir in cilantro, bread crumbs, cumin, and pepper sauce until combined. With lightly floured hands, shape bean mixture into four 3-inch round patties. Spray both sides of each patty lightly with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Heat 10- inch skillet over medium heat until hot. Add patties and cook until lightly browned about 3 minutes. With pancake turner, turn patties ove and cook until heated through, 3 minutes longer.

3. Arrange lettuce on pitas; top with burgers then salsa.

Recipes on Veglatino

Quick Vegetarian Pizza You can cut the tortilla into slices and serve.

Vegetarian Piñon This can be your entree for the evening.

El Ruben (Rueben) Sandwiches You can make individual sandwiches or serve on a baguette and cut pieces for all to enjoy.

Gardein or Vegetables Pinchos You can use a faux protein product or just do the vegetables.

Old-Fashioned Onion Rings You can deep-fry pickles as well. For those who are vegan omit the egg and use your favorite vegan beer instead of water.

What other recipes are you going to use for Sunday?

Filed Under: Appetizers, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , ,

Brazilian Vegetable Feijoada

December 7, 2011 by Leave a Comment

This is a guest post from one of our friends in our Veglatino Facebook group. Thanks for the recipe Cynthia Marin-Soria.

Feijoada was originally made with leftover meats, feel free to replace or add different types of veggie meats of your choice. I have made this dish with left over faux hotdogs or Gardein meats. You can experiment with different types of veggie meats and make it your own.

Vegetarian Feijoada

3 Cups Black Beans previously soaked in water for at least 24 hours or canned beans
2 Large Oranges
3 Bay leaves
1 large white onion finely chopped
3 garlic cloves finely chopped
2 Boca Burger patties thawed
2 Chicken boca patties thawed
4  oz Soyrizo
1 or 2 Tofurky Kielbasa sausages

2 Tablespoons finely chopped spicy red peppers for topping (optional)

You can use canned beans, but for best taste I recommend cooking beans from scratch.

Cook beans in plenty of water, 1 garlic clove 2 bay leaves and 2 oranges with peel cut in half. When beans are tender but still in one piece, saute in a separate pan:
Onion, remaining garlic and soyrizo. You can use more or less depending on your preference.
Cut Boca patties in quarters and slice sausages in large chunks add to saute, when onion is tender add to beans add 1 bay leaf.
Season to taste and let simmer in low heat for about 30 -45 minutes. You can add to a crock pot and simmer for 1 to 1/12 hour if desired, the flavors blend well.
Serve with white rice and top with spicy pepper if desired,  fresh orange slices on the side and yucca frita.

Filed Under: Entrées, Recipes, Soups and Stews, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , ,

Our ThanksGiving Meal @VegLatino

November 28, 2011 by Leave a Comment

 

 

When I woke up on Thursday morning, I knew I had lots of cutting and preparing to do. Thankfully Raul took care of the baby when she woke up and I was able to proceed with our meal. Our meal was a mixture of vegan and vegetarian recipes.

For breakfast I made Orange Cranberry Muffins. I prepared them the night before so I could eat and work quickly. When you have an 11 month old who is speed crawling, every second is precious.

 

I also made some Rosemary Olive Oil Potato Wedges. There are three of us so I cut two potatos. Cut potatos into wedges. Drizzle with olive oil and make sure you coat them all. Add sprinkle dried or fresh rosemary over potatos. Season with Salt and Pepper. Depending on the type of potato, some might take longer than others. I put them in the oven for about forty minutes or until fork tender and golden brown. These were great for the baby because they were big enough for her to hold herself.

I also made Cranberry Chutney the day before. Raul did not like it much but I just can’t live without cranberries. They help me when I pass kidney stones, which hasn’t been for awhile this year.

I wanted some stuffing so I made a Quinoa Stuffing, modified the quantities for three people, and put them into muffin cups. These came in pretty handy when feeding our daughter and good for on-the-go food during our outings this weekend.

I knew I wanted to make a pie or tart, so I think I made a mixture of both. I wanted to eat something with pears that was going to be refreshing. So I borrowed some ideas from a recipe and added granola on top.

I made some yellow squash and zucchini circles with onions. And some Sweet Potatoe circles sprinkled with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and clove for our daughter. She is used to all of these flavors because I have been exposing her to them since she was six months old.

Eventhough we were all getting over a cold, and my tastebuds were not all that great, our meal was a healthy one. We bought a soy dinner roast and I topped that off with a mushroom gravy that included chanterelles, baby bellas, and shiitake mushrooms. To give us an extra boost of protein, I added chia seeds to the gravy.

The good thing about all the cooking was seeing my daughter eating everything on her tray. I have include some of the links to the recipes that I used. I did modify recipes because I was cooking for three. One of us only had two teeth.

What was on your ThanksGiving Menu? 

 

Filed Under: Holiday, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , ,

Lentil Shepherd’s Pie

November 23, 2011 by 3 Comments

Thanks to one of our followers on Facebook Cynthia Marin-Soria for this recipe.

If you don’t know what to cook for ThanksGiving, this will cover all of your basis tomorrow or anyday of the week.  

Lentil Shepherd’s Pie


1 1/2 C GARDEIN HOME STYLE BEEFLES TIPS previously prepared optional * see below
2 CUPS LENTILS COOKED IN WATER WITH ONION AND GARLIC
6-7 MD RUSSET POTATOES COOKED AND PEELED
1/2 Cup Unsweetened Soy Milk
2 T Vegan Butter or Vegetable spread
MD WHITE ONION CHOPPED
2 GARLIC CLOVES CHOPPED
4 MD CARROTS PEELED AND CHOPPED FINE SQUARES
Pinch of fresh Rosemary
1 tsp of Fresh Thyme
1 Cup chopped tomato
1/2 C frozen or fresh peas
1/2 C frozen or fresh corn

Some of these things such as the cooked lentils, gardein can be prepared the day before.
POTATOES:
Mash potatoes or beat in electric beater until fluffy with 2 Tbls of Vegan Buttery spread, 1/2 cup hot unsweetened soy milk, season with garlic salt, salt & pepper (optional)  to taste, Set aside

FILLING:
*the Gardein was left overs from the day before, I had marinated them in a sofrito style with a little white vinegar marinade and slow cooked.

Saute onion, garlic, Rosemary, Thyme and carrots until tender in medium heat
add tomato, mashed up gardein & drained lentils, season to taste, let simmer over medium heat, add corn and peas, cover and cook until dry.

Take a glass 15×10″ oven safe baking dish and brush with olive oil or cooking spray.
Pour saute mixture and cover bottom of dish, spreading evenly to form a layer about 1″ thick
Scoop mashed potatoes with icecream scooper through out the dish, with plastic spatula spread evenly over the top forming an even layer.
Brush top of mashed potatoes with olive oil bake at 350 for about 40 minutes or until top has formed a crispy light golden crust.

These are approximate measurements per Cynthia.

Photo Credits by Cynthia Marin Soria

Filed Under: Entrées, Holiday, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , ,

ThanksGiving Veggie Feast!

November 16, 2011 by 3 Comments

Since I started cooking vegetarian meals for Raul @rj_c , holiday menus always stumped me. Our first ThanksGiving, I made him an eggplant lasagna. As we started expanding our vegetarian menu, I found a soy based dinner roll and a mycoprotein dinner roll, with several side dishes.

 

Photo by hapatxn

This year Raul is trying to avoid cheese and heading towards veganism. So our menu will not include too many dishes with dairy products. One reference that I will use as I did last year was the New York Times Well Blog to give me fresh ideas to cook delicious dishes.

With the birth of our daughter Daniela, we will be having our first family ThanksGiving dinner. I am excited to eat with her and cook some Sweet Potato Circles with cinnamon, making some type of legume, and making her favorite Banana Bread Muffins. I will be using Chia Seeds in our food since it will give us an extra boost of calcium and protein.

The only thing I wish I could get my hands on are collard greens! We can’t get them anywhere in Puerto Rico unless you grow them but I don’t even think they sell the seeds here. I have tried unsuccessfully to have someone send them to me from the states but they would have to be frozen and by the time they get here, they might not be edible.

I asked a couple of our friends what vegetable sides/dishes they would be making for ThanksGiving and they said:

Ivan: Mashed cauliflower, buttered corn with garlic, pecan pie and one of those tofurky deals.

Ana: Yo hice Butternut Squash soup unos dias atras, creo que la voy a hacer para thanksgiving porque quedo super rica. (I made Butternut Squash soup a couple of days ago, and I think I am making it for Thanksgiving because it came out super yummy.)

When I finalize my menu, I hope that we all eat healthy and hearty. I’ll also include some recipes with a post-Thanksgiving picture and update.

Thanks to those who have written for us on Veglatino such as contributors: Ana, Ivan, Deborah, Sandra, Chenille, and Pamela. Along with Raul we want to thank you for taking the time to write for us on Veglatino.

Happy ThanksGiving!


Filed Under: Holiday, Vegan, Vegetarian Tagged With: , ,

Healthy Treats for Halloween

October 31, 2011 by Leave a Comment

As one of the oldest of about forty or more first cousins yet the last ones to have a baby, I decided to create a group on Facebook to reconnect with all of my cousins. In this group I posted a question about what their kids would be for Halloween and stated that I wouldn’t be giving Daniela any candy. I also stated I would probably give her some type of healthy snack like a homemade muffin using organic ingredients and a vegan recipe.

Well I got all types of responses one went so far as to say I was depriving her and that one little candy wouldn’t harm her. I told them that sugar is not something I am giving her and that it is not recommended to be giving a child that young sweets. She gets her sweets from the fruits we give her and the purees that I make with all types of fruits. I also modify recipes that state to use sugar and will add an alternative like applesauce or more fruit.

I found a post that provides healthier snacks for Halloween and are probably best to give if you were having a party your house. With some modifications to the recipes (omit dairy if vegan or use substitutes for dairy) the only recipe I wouldn’t make is the jello one. Take a look at the recipes and adjust them according to your family.

I also went to my favorite holistic nutritional blog by Diane Schnier called, Real Food Tastes Good, and found a recipe inspired by the fall yummy caramel apples! I wish Daniela had more teeth to dig into this caramel apple recipe. But she will soon enough.

Whatever you decided to do with your children on Halloween, make sure that you do what is best for your family. Besides I want to protect Daniela’s teeth as much as possible.

Have a Happy and Safe Halloween!

At what age did your child have his or her first candy? Will you be providing healthy alternatives to your trick-or-treaters?

Thanks to Diane Schnier for the photo.

Filed Under: Holiday, Lifestyle, Snacks Tagged With: , ,

Adventures with Watermelon

August 27, 2011 by 3 Comments

Watermelon salad

A coworker was going to bring me homemade food from her house. Given her family is from India and she likes to cook spicy, I was expecting nothing but the hottest food in the world -I was not disappointed-. So then I thought, what would be a good complement to a spicy dish? Something cold? Or at least fresh? That is when I remember this “salsa” I tried some time ago. May be I could turn it into a salad. And I did.

Watermelon salad

Ingredients

  • 3 cups of chopped, fresh and firm watermelon
  • 1 cup of seeded and peeled cucumbers
  • 1/2 cup of finely chopped red onions
  • 1 cup of finely chopped cilantro
  • 1 seeded and finely chopped jalapeño
  • 1 seeded and diced green or yellow pepper
  • the juice of two limes
  • salt

Instructions

This is an assembly dish. Combine all ingredients and enjoy. This salad is very fresh and the watermelon is very susceptible to the taste of the onion. I don’t suggest leaving any leftovers.

Enjoy!

PS If you chop and dice all the ingredients very small, this makes one of the greatest salsa for chips recipe in the world!

Filed Under: Diabetic Friendly, Recipes, Vegan

Mofongo with Quorn Cutlets or Vegetables

August 8, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Living in Puerto Rico on a day-to-day basis can be a culinary challenge if you are a vegetarian. Some of my family members like my father, think that cooking vegetarian means cooking without any flavor. A few years ago as I started to cook vegetarian meals, I decided I wanted to make more Puerto Rican inspired dishes with a vegetarian twist.

Mofongo is usually made by deep frying pieces of plantain, putting them in a large mortar and pistel with a pork rinds, garlic, salt, pepper, and bacon oil or olive oil. You mash the mixture until all pieces are combined.

Puerto Rican Pilon given to me by my Grandmother

 

Since this is VegLatino, I of course decided to make an alternative to frying. I boiled the plantain which some would consider closer to making Domincan Mangu.

Here is my recipe for Mofongo with Quorn Cutlet Veggie Mojo. This recipe is for two people.

Ingredients:

One large White Onion in slices

1 small garlic clove. (Too much garlic in the mofongo might be a bit much so add to your taste)

2 Large plantains

1 8 oz can of tomato sauce

1 tablespoon of Sofrito (homemade is the best because store bought might contain animal by-product.)

Sea Salt and Pepper to taste

2 Quorn Cutlets or a bag of mixed of Vegetables. Basically any veggies you have in the refrigerator fresh or frozen.

Olive Oil

Oregano

1 packet of Sazon (any brand w/w/out annatto coloring and free of animal by product)

Mofongo:

Peel the plantains, cut into pieces, and put them to boil in a quart-pot filled water. Add a pinch of sea salt. You will boil these until fork tender.

Once fork tender put them in a mortar, tupperware, or glassbowl. Add salt, pepper, olive oil and the ½ clove of garlic that you will mince. Start mashing the mixture incorporating more olive oil as the plantain will soak up the olive oil you started with. I usually take a measuring cup, fill it with mofongo, as it molds to the cup, flip it on to a plate, and tap it out. You can also buy individual small mortars, mash the mofongo individually, and fill with mojo.

Taste for more sea salt and pepper if needed. Serve with your veggie mojo!

Mojo:

Add olive oil to the pan on medium heat. Add sofrito and cook for about a minute. Add the onion slices and cook those until they become translucent. Add sea salt, pepper, oregano, and sazon packet. Add in the mixed veggies or the Quorn cutlets and sautee. Incorporate the tomato sauce and let it simmer. Check veggies or Quorn cutlets until they are fork tender.

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You can serve the mojo on the side of your mofongo or mold out the mofongo and insert into the mofong0.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Puerto Rican, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , ,

Making Nutrition Tasty

July 9, 2011 by 2 Comments

Quinoa is very foreign to many people. I hear people mispronounce it all the time, even though it sounds just as it’s spelled (KEE-noh-ah). I wonder why people put accents in the wrong places, or change the sounds of the vowels.

Back in the late 1990s, living as a vegetarian in Quito, Ecuador, one of quinoa’s “homelands,” I was aware that this grain is a super food and complete protein. Although I’d eat it periodically, I did not master cooking it, nor did I have an affinity to it. I still preferred tofu that I had to purchase from Chinese vendors in the mercado, or my comfort food – peanut butter – which I could buy at the tienda de naturistas.

Most commonly, in Ecuador, I saw quinoa as a flavorless ingredient in soups that was usually added to provide extra nourishment.  I was taught to put it in the blender with water to open up the grain and release some of the bitterness.

Fast forward almost 25 years to the U.S. and quinoa is sold in most all grocery stores and in many forms in the deli section of some grocers, and is frequently on the menu at vegetarian restaurants. But I found few really tasty quinoa dishes.  Most seemed dry and mediocre. More of a nourishment than a treat to eat.

Well, finally, I’ve found a recipe that satisfies my quench for spices, and a desire for healthy, high protein, vegan dishes. Most importantly, it’s super simple to make, and can be eaten hot or cold. Try it, and play with it by adding other spices or ingredients. Buen provecho.

Transatlantic Quinoa

Ingredients

1 T. oil

1 chopped onion

3 cloves minced garlic

¾ c. dry quinoa

1 ½ t. curry power

½ t. each of salt, pepper and cumin

¼ t. cinnamon

1 ½ c. vegetable stock

¾ c. canned or cooked garbanzo beans

½ c. pine nuts

¼ c. raisins

Preparation

In a large pot, heat the oil and sauté the onion and garlic until golden. Pour the quinoa and spices with stock into the pot. Cook on high until liquid begins to boil. Add in raisins, cover and reduce heat. Simmer for 20 minutes. When done, mix in the garbanzos and pine nuts and serve.

Filed Under: Diabetic Friendly, Entrées, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian
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