Recipe Round-Up: Vegan For Her

Vegan For Her isn't a cookbook as such. It is a guide to healthy vegan eating for women by vegan nutritionist Ginny Messina, but also has a recipe section created by JL Fields. The recipes are all fairly straight forward, and include breakfasts, salads and sides, dressings and sauces, pizzas, sandwiches, mains, dessert, and more. I've been working through a few recipes in the book that have caught my eye, with some still tagged to make. Results have been variable, as you will see, but there is some good stuff in it. And the main part, the nutrition part, is an interesting read as well.

Cinnamon Tofu with Garlic Almond 'Collards': I love cinnamon, so I was pretty excited to make this. Unfortunately, it wasn't what I hoped for. I could barely taste any cinnamon, and it had a very strong vinegar taste. Meh. I drizzled it with some tahini and BBQ sauce for serving, as it was also quite dry. I baked this, rather than grilling, and served it over one of the recipes for greens from the book. Of course, I can't get collars here, I ended up just using baby spinach. This recipe is so quick and easy, sauteed with garlic and seasonings and then mixed with slivered almonds. It didn't specify in the recipe, but I toasted my almonds for extra flavour. My dad, who eats his spinach under protest, loved this enough to ask for more!
Rating: Tofu :|, Greens :)



Quinoa Millet Veggie Bowl with Cheesy Dressing with Cashews and Capers: The quinoa also fell a bit flat in the flavour department, so I was glad I also made a sauce recipe to go with it. Even cooking the quinoa with stock rather than water didn't do too much. I halved the amount of quinoa, but used all the vegetables (zucchini, celery, onion) and still could have done with loads more vegetables. I served it over spinach, and with the cheesy sauce. This is a cashew based sauce that is lovely and tangy from a good hit of lemon juice as well as the capers. It also has some chopped tomatoes in it, and was meant to have a chopped yellow capsicum but I used some celery instead. I also used onion powder rather than raw onion, and I didn't need to add any salt. I made a half recipe of this, which was great for topping these bowls with. I also sprinkled some toasted almonds on top.
Rating: Quinoa: :|, Cheesy Dressing: :)



Coconut-Mango-Avocado Smoothie: The coconut from this comes from coconut water, so I made it one morning after a sweaty hot yoga class. The ingredients are pretty much as advertised, with some hemp seeds and dates added. It also called for some ice, but I just increased the amount of frozen mango instead. Flavour wise, this was just a bit meh, though OK.
Rating : :|



Silky Strawberry Smoothie: This is based on silken tofu for a protein boost! Instead of using fresh strawberries, banana, and ice, I used frozen strawberries and bananas and left out the ice, it just dilutes the flavour. I did need to add a little oatmilk to blend, as it was very thick, but it was lovely. I didn't need to add the optional agave, as it was sweet enough as it was with the fruit. Topped with some fresh raspberries, because why not!
Rating: :)



Chopped Salad with Creamy 'Chipotle' Dressing: Yeah, no chipotle in my dressing. I used smoke paprika instead and it was lovely. The dressing is made creamy with cashews, and I also decreased the amount of red wine vinegar a bit because my dad is sensitive to vinegar. I doubled the dressing recipe so I could make a really big salad. As well as the required cos, kidney beans (I used a whole tin rather than just one cup), corn, and cucumber, I also added some celery for crunch. A great dinner for a hot day.
Rating: :)



Apple Slaw with Goji Berry Dressing: I made this one night to serve alongside some burgers. The slaw has apple, carrots, celery, and kale - all to be shredded. I used baby spinach instead of kale, and just chopped it before mixing it through everything. The dressing is a mustardy dressing with goji berries (or you can use other dried fruit). I soaked my gojis overnight to make them nice and plump for easier blending, and I also decreased the amount of ACV a bit for my dad.
Rating: :)



Cute Kitty Photo of the Post



We got some more results back, which looks like maybe there is a urine infection now. My odd little results girl! She's going to be on antibiotics for the next few weeks, which will hopefully kick it well and truly in the butt and let us be done with it. She continues to be her happy little self.