Recipe Difficulty: Easy

Recipe Tags:

• Fried Rice
• Curry
• Vegan
• Tofu
• Kala Namak
• Cabbage
• Vegan Egg

Curry Fried Rice Recipes Notes

This is a simple curry fried rice recipe that is like the one my mum made growing up. (minus the egg)
Once your rice is cooked and cooled this meal comes together in no time. I chose to use brown rice for it's health benefits instead of white rice. If you haven't tried brown rice, you definitely should. Sometimes I want white rice, but most of the time I opt for brown, it has a nutty flavour that I am a big fan of. I think technically white rice might be "more ideal" for fried rice as far as texture goes. You do want the rice to be dry before adding it to the pan and brown rice tends to have a bit more moisture...but I'm choosing the health benefits over any improvement in texture from using white rice. 

I included tofu not only for the added protein, but because it simulates the egg that would typically be stirred into a non vegan fried rice dish. The texture is convincing and it's YUM. I also use Kala Namak, a black sulpheric salt that gives the dish an eggy taste, I have linked the exact product I buy below. While I can totally understand tofu isn't everyone's thing, I do think in this recipe it's accessible for even non tofu fans. Tofu takes on the flavour of whatever you put with it and because it's broken into such small pieces I don't think it's so recognizable compared to just searing off a chunk of it and taking a big ol bite. So if you fall into the "I hate tofu" category -  give this a whirl, you might just surprise yourself. 

​Ingredients:

• Olive Oil as needed
•  1 1/2 cups brown rice, cooked and cooled

•  1 block firm tofu, pressed and cut into 1/4 inch slices
•  1 onion, small dice
•  2 celery stalks, small dice
•  1 whole head garlic, chopped
•  1 inch piece ginger, minced
•  2 cups shredded cabbage or slaw mix
•  2 tbsp soy sauce
•  1 tbsp curry powder 
•  3/4 - 1 cup raisins
• 2 tbsp maple syrup (or more to taste)
•  green onions to garnish
•  chopped cilantro to garnish (or chopped and stirred in - optional)
• grated carrot (I don't always add it, but my mum always does! Probably 1 carrot grated would do it)
• Kala Namak (optional, a black sulpher based salt that tastes like egg, if you have it sub some of the regular salt, to taste. A little goes a long way I find)

Method:

1.  Heat a few drizzles of olive oil in a wok. Sautee onion, celery, garlic & ginger until softened.        Season with salt and pepper.
2. Transfer the onion mixture into a bowl so you can sear the tofu. Heat a bit more olive oil in the   wok, and place tofu pieces in an even layer. Just brown on each side, you'll have to rearrange   a bit as the pieces in the middle will brown first. 
3. Once browned, add onion mixture back into the wok, add in the slaw mix & curry powder. Break up the tofu into small pieces with your spatula. Continue cooking everything until slaw is mostly cooked through (I like it to have a bit of texture) You will want to hit the pan with a bit of water to help the process along. Just a bit at a time as needed. You want it to be all evaporated for the next step. 
4. Add in a bit more oil and add in your cooked rice. Stir around to fry the rice for a few minutes. 
5. Add in soy sauce, maple syrup & raisins to heat through. Taste and adjust seasonings. 
6. You could add in some fresh chopped cilantro or grated carrot towards the end too if you wish!
7.  Garnish with chopped green onion and a wedge of lime. 

Recipe Difficulty: Easy

Recipe Tags:

• Pasta with Meat Sauce
• Vegan Bolognese
  
• Beyond Meat, Lentils & Mushrooms
  
• Sundried Tomato
  

My Bolognese Recipe Notes
Vegan Bolognese. When I take a taste of this sauce bubbling away on the stove, the flavours immediately remind me of the meat sauce my mum made growing up. I like lots of sauce with my noodles for best flavour. Calling this dish "Bolognese" is admittedly a bit of a stretch, as are many recipes you find out there vegan or otherwise, but I think of this dish as being inspired by Bolognese, and it is not intended to replicate an authentic version. It's delicious, and using a searchable word when veganizing a recipe allows other people to more easily find said recipe. 

Beyond Meat, Lentils & Mushrooms
I use beyond meat burger in this recipe. It's not something I cook with very often, but I like that it adds texture and flavour to the sauce. My approach with this product in my Bolognese recipe, is to use it as an accent  in the sauce, not the main event. I also add lentils, mushrooms, tons of mirepoix (onion, celery, carrot), tomato & sundried tomato to amp up the whole foods factor of my sauce. One package of the beyond meat is all I use to make a large pot of Bolognese. If you wanted it to be meatier, I think you could leave out the mushrooms and lentils and use another package of  beyond meat. I haven't tried it, but it crossed my mind as something some people might like.  

Garnish
To garnish my pasta dish, I make simple garlicky panko crumbs, they are a delicious substitute to parmesan here. They are garlicky and add a little crunch. You could also buy your fav vegan  shredded cheese and use that sprinkled about. I also like to add a pinch of chili flakes and some fresh chopped parsley before serving. Basil might be nice too. 

Other Serving Suggestions
Roasted Cabbage
Try serving the sauce over roasted green cabbage. It's kind of like deconstructed cabbage rolls. It's something I have done for as long as I can remember. I love pasta but sometimes I'm in the mood for less carbs and more veg. It's really delicious! Try cutting the cabbage into wedges, drizzling with olive oil and roasting in the oven until browned and softened. Arrange the wedges on a plate and top with sauce and garnish. 

Corn Chips
How about serve this sauce along side cheesy nachos? I would definitely serve this sauce, sour cream, even guacamole all along side a bowl of corn chips, or corn chips with cheese melted on top. A fun way to use up leftovers of the sauce if you have had a couple meals with pasta. 

Ingredients: 

•  1 cup panko crumbs
•  3 tbsp good fruity olive oil
•  1-2 cloves minced garlic​

Method:

1.  In a non stick pan add all ingredients. 
2.  Over medium heat stir it all around for 3 - 5 minutes until golden. 
3.  Store in a Tupperware container in the fridge. 

​

Yield: 4 - 6 sandwiches (depending on size of bun)

I had a lot of fun making this sandwich! Roasted Portobello Mushrooms shredded and mixed with sautéed onions and a smoky homemade BBQ sauce. All piled on a toasty bun with a simple kale cabbage slaw. The BBQ sauce recipe is one I've been tweaking and using for years in restaurant kitchens, it's a crowd pleaser. 

If you have a grill or smoker at home, I would definitely use that instead of an oven to give your mushrooms some extra smoke flavour. I live in an apartment and have neither of those things, but I do have something called a smoke gun. Kind of a fancy kitchen gadget that most home cooks probably wouldn't have. Don't worry though, this was still delicious without any added wood smoke. The BBQ sauce has smoked paprika and liquid smoke to fill that void. 

The only other thing I would say about this sandwich, is make sure you make it saucy! I'll warn you though, it was very messy to eat. I personally don't mind that, especially when I'm eating alone. I'll lick my plate clean. A fork and knife wouldn't go astray though. Lastly, treat yourself to some kettle chips! Something about crunchy salty potato chips beside a sandwich like this - it's perfection. Oh and pour a pint of your favourite brew to have with too! It's the middle of March, so still cold and wintery out there in PEI, but this kind of food has me thinking about warmer days, and the type of fun food to cook up and enjoy on a sunny summer evening. 

BBQ Sauce

Ingredients:

• 2 cups ketchup
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup yellow mustard
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup steak sauce
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 tbsp chile powder
• 2 tbsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp cracked pepper
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp liquid smoke

Method:

1. ​Combine all ingredients in a large pot. 
2. Whisk together and bring to a simmer for a few minutes
3. Remove from heat, cool and store in the fridge. 

 

​​Portobello Mushrooms + Onions

Ingredients:

• 8 whole Portobello mushrooms (black gills scraped out & stems removed if large and set aside)
• 1 large onion, thinly sliced + 4 cloves minced garlic. 

Method:

1. ​Preheat oven to 425 F (if you have a bbq or grill to give these some smoke flavour do that instead!)
2. Place mushrooms stem side up and roast for about 35 minutes, flipping them over after 25. The idea is to dry them out, no oil necessary. 
3. While mushrooms are in the oven, sauté onions in veg oil until softened completely. Adding in 4 cloves of minced garlic part way through. Place in a bowl big enough to mix in mushrooms later.
4. Remove from the oven, let cool a bit, then use two forks to pull them apart into rough strands. It wasn't the easiest task, slightly tedious but it get's the job done. I wanted a more shredded texture so stuck with the process even though slicing would be easier. 
5. Mix pulled mushrooms with the onions. If you have any mushroom stems set aside just pull them apart and add them into the bowl. 
6. When you are ready to make your sandwiches, simply combine mushroom onion mixture with BBQ sauce and a splash of water in a pan. You want these to be SAUCY. I let it heat up and reduce but the final consistency is a bit looser than if I just tossed the BBQ sauce with mushrooms and didn't add water. 
7. To assemble just toast buns in the oven, top with saucy mushrooms and slaw. 

Slaw
For this I just bought a bag of pre made kale crunch slaw, then mixed in some shredded cabbage. I also think some julienned apple would be nice tossed in here too. I used about 1/2 cup of slaw on my sandwich, but the buns were big so you might use more or less depending on size of your sandwich. 

I whipped up a very simple dressing, just whisk together the following ingredients. Taste and you can add another splash or so of vinegar/sugar to balance it out perfectly if needed. It should taste zippy but the BBQ sauce is sweet enough that it doesn't need lots of sugar. 

Ingredients: 

• 1 cup vegan mayo
• 4 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp sugar
• salt and pepper

** The 2nd time I made these I used my smoke gun to add smoke to the cooked mushrooms and onions. A super fun kitchen gadget if you are so inclined. It just burns mini wood chips, I used hickory. 

I will never look for another Lemon Cake recipe again. It is moist, lemony & one of the best cakes I've made vegan or otherwise. I love the sugared lemon peel as a garnish. It's super simple but really adds to the finished cake.

I adapted this from a recipe by Nora Cooks. I  used a different method in order to get a 6 inch  cake with 3 layers (method below). It requires an extra few steps but it is simple. If you can't be bothered with all of that, just use 2 x 8 inch cake rounds and call it a day. I like the 3 layer cake because it looks impressive. You will need one 6 inch high sided spring form cake pan and a sheet of acetate paper (available at craft, baking or office supply stores)

**This recipe calls for Aquafaba. It's an ingredient you might not be familiar with unless you do a lot of vegan baking. Don't let it stop you from trying this cake because it's so easy. Just open a can of chickpeas, strain and reserve the liquid. (the liquid is called Aquafaba!) It whips up just like egg whites, and is also the base of many vegan mayo recipes. I will usually just whip up a batch of hummus with the chickpeas. 

Ingredients:

Lemon Cake 

• 1/2 cup vegan butter (room temp) (I use earth balance)
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• zest from 1 lemon
• 2 tsp lemon extract
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cup oat milk
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup whipped aquafaba (see method below for details)
• 2 3/4 cup AP flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp baking powder

Lemon Buttercream

• 1 cup vegan butter (room temp)
• 4 cups icing sugar
• 3 T lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla

Sugared Lemon

• 2 lemons
• a couple tablespoons of white sugar

Method:
Lemon Cake

1. Mix oat milk with apple cider vinegar in small bowl & let sit.
2. Cream together vegan butter and sugar in a large bowl 
3. Mix in lemon zest, lemon extract & vanilla
4. Mix in Oat milk & cider vinegar mixture
5. Mix in 1/2 cup of whipped aquafaba (just use a hand mixer to whip the strained liquid from can of chickpeas until it looks like whipped egg whites. Measure 1/2 cup and discard the rest.  You could always make meringues as a fun garnish for the cake to use up the rest)
6. Add flour, baking powder & salt to the bowl. Mix until just combined. 
7.  Line a 9 x 13 inch cake pan with parchement paper. Brush with vegetable oil. Pour batter in and bake at 350F for about 30 minutes. 

Lemon Buttercream

1.  Mix icing sugar 1 cup at a time into vegan butter. 
2.  Mix in vanilla, and add lemon juice 1 tbsp at a time until icing is a spreadable consistency

Sugared Lemon

1. Using a vegetable peeler, peel strips from 2 lemons. (avoid the white pith)
2. Using a chefs knife, cut peels into thin julienne strips.
3. Place in a small bowl, and massage in a couple tablespoons of white sugar. Let sit for an hour  or so, the sugar will dissolve and the lemons will be slightly candied and ready to garnish the cake. 

The inspiration for this salad simply came from a bag of bean sprouts kicking around my fridge. I used them as garnish for one meal & needed to come up with a way to use the other 95%. My brain immediately went to some kind of Asian inspired slaw. Bean sprouts, red pepper, julienned carrot, scallion, water chestnuts, roasted peanuts, cilantro and a tasty dressing made with soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, ginger, garlic & a little sugar. 

I definitely think this bright slaw would be perfect beside something crispy and fried. Fried tofu, crispy spring rolls, a batch of my Okara Cakes, or tempura. This recipe makes a big batch, (enough for a crowd) but regardless, leftovers are awesome and it gets better after hanging in the fridge awhile anyway...

This did require a bit of knife skills. I happen to love perfectly cut veggies and enjoy the process of julienning carrots etc. If you don't enjoy it or don't have the time, just pick up a bag of slaw mix at the store and call it a day. I wouldn't hesitate to mix up the type of veggies in this at all. Just needs to be crunchy & fresh. I made another version subbing approximate volume of veg in the recipe with red cabbage & carrot, and kept the rest the same. 

My Fava Bean Stew Recipe Notes
I dated an Egyptian guy for a total of 5 minutes back in 2020, and while that didn't last long, this dish he made me was a keeper! It is a staple breakfast dish in Egypt, and in Arabic it is called "ful medames" A stew of mashed fava beans, tomato, onion, garlic & cumin. There are variations to the recipe, but this is how it was prepared for me, and what I recreated at home.

Garnish
He used straight up tahini drizzled over the stew, but I often have my tahini dressing on hand, and it's what I like. I drizzle lots over the fava beans  before serving. A sprinkle of parsley and lemon wedges along side are nice. 

Accompaniments 
This is best served with lots of fresh pita bread for scooping up the stew.

I also really like to make a fresh tomato salad. I typically make Salata Baladi. (recipe below) An Egyptian tomato and cucumber salad with herbs, garlic, onion and carrot.  


Ful Medames History & Customs
Ful medames is a versatile dish that can be served in many different ways, depending on local customs and personal preference. Some people like to eat it as a simple and hearty breakfast, while others prefer to dress it up with additional ingredients like tomatoes, onions, and parsley.

The history of ful medames likely dates back many centuries, and it is widely associated with ancient Egypt, where fava beans were a common and important food. While the exact origins of ful medames as it is prepared today are not fully documented, the dish is believed to have developed in the region over time. Ful medames eventually spread throughout the Middle East and became a staple food for many cultures, where it remains a popular dish to this day.



Fava Beans Nutrition
Fava beans (also known as broad beans) are a type of legume that are a good source of various nutrients, including:

• Protein: Fava beans are high in protein, with approximately 7.5 grams of protein per 100 grams (3.5 ounces) of cooked beans.
• Fiber: Fava beans are also a good source of fiber, with approximately 5.5 grams of fiber per 100 grams (3.5 ounces) of cooked beans.
• Vitamins and minerals: Fava beans are a good source of various vitamins and minerals, including folate, iron, and potassium.
• Fat and carbohydrates: Fava beans are relatively low in fat, with only about 0.3 grams of fat per 100 grams (3.5 ounces) of cooked beans. They are also a good source of carbohydrates, with approximately 20 grams of carbohydrates per 100 grams (3.5 ounces) of cooked beans.

Tahini Dressing Notes
This dressing shared in the recipe is one I use in my chickpea shawarma pita wraps, and on my falafel, but it definitely deviates slightly from what is authentic. If you don't want to make the dressing, you can easily just use straight up tahini spooned over the fava bean dish. Easy to have some lemon wedges, and olive oil along side for drizzling if you feel like it needs it. This dressing takes the guess work out of it if you aren't comfortable just going at it without some guide lines!

And while maple syrup definitely isn't traditional, I use a bit in my dressing and I find it brings balance to the over all dish. Not enough to be sweet, but to soften bitter notes. 

About Salata Baladi
When I was doing a bit of quick research for this salad, I noticed some recipes approach it differently. The most complicated version: grating tomatoes along with the chopped tomatoes, then adding ice cubes to get it super cold. I forget what else-- but I can't lie it made my brain hurt.

The concept of  adding grated tomato, I learned, is to create more juice in the salad. The liquid that accumulates at the at the bottom of the bowl is actually a coveted component called the "whiskey". (not THAT kind of whiskey). It's served at Kebab restaurants in Egypt, and the idea is you eat the salad, and drink the delicious marinade. (the whiskey). So, with that being said, from experience I know without adding extra grated tomato, a chopped salad like this will release lots of juices by itself. I saw some recipes that were the same as I am sharing, so I am not certain which is more authentic. What I can say is, it's a really delicious simple accompaniment to the fava bean stew, and obviously would be great along other Middle Eastern inspired foods. 

Also it should be noted the ingredients listed below aren't the only ones I saw in other recipes. Some use different peppers like jalapeno or chili peppers for heat, some add bell peppers along with cucumber & tomato and not all of recipes included carrot.

Recipe Tips
The amounts are a rough guide. You can add more or less to your taste, but ideally you are using two large tomatoes, or several smaller ones. 

Add garlic, lemon, olive oil to taste. 

Serves 4
​
Ingredients:

• 2 tomatoes, small dice
• 1 whole cucumber, small dice
• 1/2 red onion, minced
• 1 small carrot or 1/2 a carrot, julienned
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• a handful of fresh herbs (cilantro and parsley)
• extra virgin olive oil for drizzling
• the juice from about 1/2 a lemon
• a pinch or 2 of cumin
• a pinch of cayenne pepper
• s & p to taste

Method:

1. Add tomato, cucumber, red onion, carrot, garlic & fresh herbs to a bowl.
2. Season with s & p, toss
3. Add a pinch of cumin and cayenne (probably a bit more cumin than cayenne), toss.
4. Drizzle in some olive oil until everything is coated. Just give it a taste, you should taste the olive oil and it will be obvious if the veggies are well coated.
5. Now squeeze in some lemon juice to taste. 
6. Season with additional salt and pepper and more cumin and cayenne if you think it needs it. 
7. Refrigerate until ready to serve.