Grandmom's homemade chicken dinner VEGANIZED!

It was 4pm and I was watching a marathon of vegan and non-vegan cooking shows and had a flash of inspiration. A meal was being prepared with a roasted chicken carcass ,gravy and all the unhealthful fixings. It did bring me back to the romance of my childhood Sunday dinners. So, i decided to re-create this memorable meal and make it vegan and more healthful. Oh and did I memtion we wanted to eat by 5:00pm.

Okay the race is on. The challenge, roasted "chik'n" in gravy, garlicky "potato/cauliflower" mash, corn bread, peas and baked cinnamon apples in 45 minutes.

In record time everything came together. And better than I remembered. I made by far the best vegan gravy I ever had using no recipe but my instincts. It was pour-able, rich, low in sodium, low in fat, and had superb flavor.

The Gardein chick'n was tender and coated with gravy.

The garlicky potato/cauliflower mash was creamy, thick, luscious, and held the gravy with ease.

Baked apples added just the right sweetness to this dish.

Peas were perfect, not much to say except I always need something green on my plate.

And finally the corn bread. Outstanding. Although I cannot take all the credit for this. I did use a premixed corn bread base and used coconut oil and egg replacer with the addition of real corn kernels. It was baked to perfection and the whole dish was devoured.

The meal was a total success and I plan on making it the next time I have guests over.

Oh and yes, it was done right on time!

Straight from the pages of Veg Times...

Lemon Cream Angel Hair Pasta (my addition is topping with yellow tomatoes from my garden and a sprinkle of vegan Parmesan)

Add a side of Grilled Yellow Crooked Neck Squash

and Tempeh "Crab" Cake

You have a whole new level of summer pasta that is too good. Just right for lunch or dinner.

It's HOT!!! And I am still in the mood for pizza...

Okay, so it is hot and humid in the Philly area. It's so hot I probably could have left this pizza outside and it would have baked and had melted cheese.

Although I still am craving pizza, being in the kitchen long enough to make dough, let it rise, and punch it out just sounds too hot and exhausting. But, my mind can only think of using my tomatoes and basil for a fresh sauce. So I compromised, I used Traders Joe's whole wheat Mediterranean Flat Bread for crust. This only needs to go in oven for about 8 minutes to be crisp and perfect. I put it right on the rack while my Vitamix made the "sauce". I tossed cherry tomatoes, wedge of onion, clove of garlic, a few basil leaves, some olive oil, Himalayan Sea Salt, black pepper and Italian seasoning in the Vitamix and used the variable speed until it was just blended but still chunky. I pulled out the crispy flat bread and topped it with a little bit of Daiya Mozzarella and then the tomato mixture. I baked it just long enough for the cheese to start to melt. My second pizza's (not pictured) were in a little longer so the cheese was completely melted. I just was so hungry I couldn't bear the extra minute.

I served these along side a perfect salad that was 75% from my garden. And to begin and finish out Friday night feast was a cool and refreshing organic Chardonnay spritzer with fresh wedges and lemon and lime.

Vegan Chik'n Salad Sandwich

Trader Joe's High Protein Spouted Bread toasted with a thin spread of Nayonaise piled high with my own garden fresh red and yellow tomatoes, onions, organic spring mix, and my totally chicken free chik'n salad make this lunch a star. If I would have had "Facon" and sprouts I would have had that on here too.

My vegan chik'n salad could definitely fool omni's, it is incredible.

I'm in the mood for... Pizza

Okay, it's summer and pizza is not exactly bathing suit friendly, but sometimes an Italian girl has to have her fix, Gabi-sh?

To keep it healthy and light I try to always make my crust from whole wheat flour and spread it thin. On these two I only had enough left over sauce for 1 pie. So what to do? Oh yeah, I will go to my garden overflowing with Basil and make a creamy pesto sauce instead. Top it with grilled squash from my garden, roasted peppers and olives. My other pizza was a little more traditional with sauce, vegan mozzarella, olives, mushrooms and caramelized onions.

Both baked up crisp on the bottom and perfectly melted on top.

They were so good that I serve them with a huge salad just to not over eat.

Which one's your favorite?

This post is making me hungry for pizza again.....back to the garden......

Vegan Grilled Chick'n and Veggies on Crusty Bread

I know I am way behind on posting. I will catch up over the next few days. It has been a little crazy around here for a few weeks. Anyway, back to the sandwich...

I started with a crusty baguette drizzled with garlic seasoned olive oil and toasted slightly. Then I grilled eggplant, red and green peppers, red onions, and zucchini in a tiny bit of olive oil and seasoned with a pinch of pink Himalayan salt and fresh ground pepper. When the veggies were perfect, I cooked Gardein Chick'n in the veggie pan along with some reduced imported balsamic vinegar. I layer all of these on the bread with some halved marinated artichokes, fresh vegan sliced mozzarella, garden ripe tomatoes and fresh picked basil. PERFECTION! My husband also likes chopped Greek olives mixed in. These flavors are wonderful together. Try it, you will not be disappointed.