THE WINNER of the MISO MAYO giveaway is....

The winner of the MISO MAYO giveaway is...... Lauren at Ginger is the New Pink! Congrats!!!
(I used Random.org to pick the winner)
Thanks to every who visited my blog and entered. I also hope you will all go out and grab one of the three great flavors of MISO MAYO and give it a taste!

Happy Earth Day! Stainless Steel Bottles

THE MISO MAYO GIVEAWAY WILL BE ENDING SOON! CHECK IT OUT A COUPLE OF POSTS BELOW!!

Happy Earth Day to all! Isn't it nice to know that every day just with our food choices we make effects the earth. It's nice to know I can feel good about that.

On another note, I'm in a very small group at my son's school, Go Green, there are only 4 of us. Our goal is to try to educate the kids about the environment and about recycling, reusing, etc. Last month we had a plastic bottle cap drive. Did you know that Aveda can recycle plastic caps and will use them for their packaging? It was such an easy drive and we collected thousands of caps. Aveda will send pre-paid ups shipping labels to send the caps back to them. Plastic bottle caps also don't take up much room. I have a bag hanging right out my door leading to the garage and everytime i'm done with laundry soap, shampoo, etc. I just throw my cap in the bag.

Today being Earth Day, Go Green purchased over 120 recycled stainless steel water bottles and had the schools logo printd on it. The school PTO backed us up with the money which was nice because our monies weren't that much. It's been a slow process as far as selling these but today being Earth Day, hopefully we can get more of these sold after school. Anyways this is just a small part in implementing green choices at the school. We are only selling them for $12.50 which is alot less than buying them at the store. Now if we could only get them to serve a vegan food option at the school! hee hee

Quinoa, basil and tofu / ALSO DON'T FORGET THE GIVEAWAY ONE POST DOWN FROM THIS!!!

This is so easy to make. Seriously. The original recipe is on the box of a

Trader Joe's Quinoa box that I saw years ago. Here's my version.

Quinoa, basil & tofu

1 C. Quinoa , dry

2 C. vegetable broth

1 bunch of basil, chiffanade

2 bell peppers, yellow, orange, red (your choice)

2 C. yellow onion, sliced

5 cloves garlic, sliced

8 oz. extra firm tofu

1 tsp. oregano

s & p

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp garlic, minced

In a small saucepan bring 2 C. water to boil then add 1 C. Quinoa. Cover and turn down heat to low and cook for about 25 min. Once done turn off heat.

Rinse, drain and dry tofu. Dice tofu and coat with a bit of olive oil, 1 tsp minced garlic, 1/2 tsp. thyme and a bit of salt to taste. Broil on low in oven just until slightly brown. Set aside once done.

Heat up a large pan and add 1 T. olive oil. Then add the onions,bell pepper & garlic, cook until just starting to get soft. Add about 1 tsp oregano cook for another 1 minute. Next add the Quinoa, basil and tofu mix thoroughly and turn off heat. Add salt and pepper to taste. I drizzled a bit of basil olive oil on top.

Enjoy!

GIVEAWAY!!! MISO MAYO!!!

My first giveaway, how exciting!

It has come to my attention that the responses to one of my previous posts were that quite a few of you out there who have never tried Miso Mayo ! Shocked as I was, I am now very pleased that I have been given the opportunity to offer you a chance to win a bottle of Miso Mayo!

Miso Mayo is a great vegan soy based condiment that is so versatile and is a great alternative to mayonnaise and other high fat dressings. It comes in three great flavors: Spicy Red Pepper, Original, & Garlic 'N' Dill. It is also dairy, gluten, egg, cholesterol & sugar free. You can find Miso Mayo in the refrigerated area of your local Wholefoods, Wild Oats or health food store. If you can't find a store that carries it you can order MISO MAYO at http://www.misomayo.com/.

My favorite flavor is the Spicy Red Pepper, it has a nice kick to it. All three flavors are very tasty and I will use any of them I have on hand. Just so you all know I'm not a big mayonnaise fan and Miso Mayo is so much better and I'm sure you will enjoy it as much as our family does. We use it in our veggie sushi, on veggie burgers and sandwiches; just about anything that needs a squirt of sauce on it. You must try it for yourself!

HOW TO ENTER:

One Entry:

Visit Miso Mayo then post a comment back here on my blog with the flavor miso mayo you would like to try and how you would use it.

If you already have tried Miso Mayo post how you like to use it.

Extra Entry:

If you have a blog, you can earn an extra entry by linking to this contest on your blog.

This contest is only open to U.S. residents. Contest will end on April 24th, 2009.

One winner will be selected randomly, and I’ll post the name on April 25th, 2009.

Soba Noodles with Peanut Sauce

Not much to really say just Soba Noodles, peanut butter, oh yum! This was a treat because I haven't made it in so long. The recipe is taken from The Candle Cafe Cookbook. It makes so much sauce that I have to down size it and change it up a bit.

Here our my changes:

Peanut sauce

1 C. organic smooth peanut butter

1/4 C. brown rice vinegar

1 small red onion, finely chopped

1/3 C. cilantro, chopped

1 1/2Tbsp. fresh ginger, finely chopped

1 Lg. garlic clove, chopped

1/2 tsp. crushed red chili flakes

1 T. Ketchup

1/4 C. Braggs Liquid Aminos, soy sauce, or shoyu

1 tsp. hot sauce or more to your liking.

1/4 C. agave or maple syrup or brown rice syrup

1 T. sesame oil

Vegetables:

8 oz. firm tofu, diced andbroiled just to get a bit brown or not /or tempeh

1 Tbsp. Olive oil

2 tsp. minced garlic

2 tsp. minced fresh ginger

1 1/2 C. shredded green cabbage

1 C. Bok Choy, , sliced

1 C. sugar snap peas

1 LG. Red bell pepper, thinly sliced

1 1/2 C. chopped brocolli

8 oz. shitake mushrooms, sliced

1/2 C. green onions

2 tsp toasted sesame oil

Prepare soba noodles according to packaging. Once cooked, rinse in cool water to stop cooking and set aside. In a blender, blend all of the sauce ingredients together and set aside. In a small casserole dish I put the diced tofu in and coat with olive oil, then broil on low just until slightly brown. Set aside. In large saute pan heat olive oil then add garlic, ginger and bell peppers for about 2 minutes. Next add the rest of the vegetables and only cook for a couple more minutes, you want the vegetables to still be a bit crisp. Add the tofu or tempeh and peanut sauce and continue to saute for a few more minutes. Next stir in the noodles and take off heat. This is where you can add more soy and sesame oil and serve.

Green Curry with Vegetables

For those busy days and not alot of time to make dinner, sometimes a jar of sauce on hand does the trick. You can still lightly saute fresh vegetables and then pour in the sauce. I'm really not into premade sauces and I have to say I only have this one in the pantry every once in a while. It's Trader Joes Thai Green Curry Sauce. It's actually pretty good and has a nice kick to it. The veggies I used were sweet potato, russet potato, red bell pepper, snow peas & brocolli. A half block of tofu and the brown rice is under there somewhere. Enjoy!

Vegetable Nori Rolls

After days of my son asking me to make Vegetable Nori Rolls, he was very pleased and satisfied when I did. I don't know why I put these off so much, they are really so easy to make. The fillings are endless when it comes to these. Sometimes instead of sushi rice I will use short brown rice. These ones are filled cucumber, carrot, avocado and green onion. I got to tell you, I ran out of Miso Mayo (Spicy Red Pepper)! I love that stuff so much! I usually squirt a line of that stuff on the rice then add the veggies onto that. If you've never tried Miso Mayo you've got to! Taste good on just about everything!

Mac n' cheeze with peas

Yesterday it was a long day, didn't feel like cooking much and it was getting quite chilly out, so I decided to make an old comfort food Easy macaroni and "cheeze" from Fatfree Vegan Kitchen. Again I changed a few ingredients and then added peas and served with a side of brocolli. Satisfies everyone in the house!