Scraps and Snippets ~ Vegan Classic Burger Sloppy Joes

Classic Burger Sloppy Joes (Serves 8 ish)

2 Cups hamburger replacement (Gardein or Beyond Meat or homemade)

⅓ Cup ketchup

3 TBSP yellow mustard

2-3 TBSP dill pickle relish (or a mix of dill and sweet, or if you like your sloppies sweeter, go with all sweet) (I used 3 TBSP but I love pickles so use your taste buds as a guide.)

1 TBSP apple cider vinegar

1-2 TBSP finely diced onion (again, to taste)

Mix all the ingredients together and heat until warmed through. Or put it in a crock pot on low for 2-3 hours. Serve with buns. Add vegan bacon, lettuce, tomatoes, onion or vegan cheese slices, pickles and ketchup and mustard.

Scraps and Snippets ~ "Tuna" Ring

Tuna Ring

1 can of young green Jackfruit in brine

1 TBSP of seaweed of choice

1 Cup of water

Dump these three things in a pan and simmer for 20 minutes. 

Remove the chunks of jackfruit into a bowl and shred/chop into tuna looking bits. (I removed the chunks of jackfruit and left the seaweed behind since I don't love super fishy taste and this was just the right amount of sea flavor since the jackfruit absorbed the taste while simmering.)

Add 1/2 of vegan cream cheese container. (4 oz)

1/2 TBSP dill pickle relish

1/2 TBSP sweet pickle relish (or 1 TBSP of whichever you have)

1 TBSP finely chopped onion

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 TBSP nutritional yeast

Mix all together very well

Crescent rolls (1 can, make sure it's vegan) You could also use your favorite pizza dough and make this a pocket or calzone. 

To make a crescent roll ring separate the 8 triangles of dough. Lay each of the  longest pointiest ends over the rim of a large pie plate or round baker. The shorter two point ends will over lap and there will be a hole in the center. It's going to look kind of like a stick drawing of a sun. Press the overlapped edges in the pan together. 

Scoop the "tuna" mixture onto the flat inner circle of dough. Then take each outside point and pull it over the mixture and tuck it slightly under the inner ring of dough. 

Bake at the temperature called for on the can (or in your pizza dough recipe) Bake approximately 6 minutes longer to make sure everything is cooked through. 

Serve.  

Scraps and Snippets ~ BBQ Sauce and Vegan BBQ Beets and Franks...

Natural Grocers is a new chain grocery store in our area. It's small. Kinda like a cross between a Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, a local mom and pop store and a traditional hippie health food store. In the past few visits I've scored some great organic past-their-prime fruits and veggies for various and assorted uses. The bargain produce bin is really a great deal. Last week we made the discovery that the freezer and refrigerated section have clearance, too. 

I scored $.50 non-dairy yogurt and 1/2 price tempeh, vegan hot dogs, and seitan. 

Now I needed a use for vegan hot dogs that doesn't involve a bun, mustard and ketchup. 

Rob likes BBQ sauce and keeps asking me to make BBQ for him. I had a sweet potato to use and a golden beet. 

BBQ Beets and Franks for dinner.

I sautéed the chunked sweet potato with small dice onions and leeks and the beet. I chopped two vegan hot dogs into slices and added them to the sauté. 

BBQ Sauce

5 TBSP tomato paste (I used frozen TBSP chunks from a previous can I opened. This was a great idea I saw somewhere.)

5 TBSP water

1 1/2 TBSP vinegar (I used red wine)

1 1/2 TBSP soy sauce

1 1/2 TBSP agave, brown sugar or maple syrup

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon smoke seasoning (I used Trader Joe's smoke blend grinder)

two pinches salt

We dolloped BBQ sauce over the sauté and ate up. 

This is a hint of sweet, smoky, rich, garlicky BBQ sauce. It's thick and makes about 1/2 cup. Rob and I both liked the flavor. So I think I'll use it for various assorted BBQ needs in the future. Pulled Jack sandwiches, roasted BBQ cauliflower tenders. 

Scraps and Snippets ~ Clean the Crisper Drawer Roasted Cabbage Potato Soup

 Uhhh. I had a problem. Potatoes in my pantry growing eyes, limp celery and a chunk of purple cabbage needing to be put out of it's misery. 

So I said. "Self, let's make soup." So I did. 

Crisper Drawer Roasted Veggie Soup

2 stalks celery diced or minced 

1 small or 1/2 a medium/large onion diced

2 cloves garlic

3 potatoes (eyes removed) diced

1/2 medium cabbage sliced/chunked

mushrooms

chopped shaved broccoli stem etc.

5 cups vegetable broth

1/2 to 1 TBSP vinegar or lemon juice (I used balsamic)

2-3 TBSPs of nutritional yeast. 

Preheat the oven to 425. Drizzle grape seed or other oil on cookie sheet. Roll potato and cabbage thru so each is coated with a bit of oil. Grind several grinds of sea salt over the potatoes and cabbage. Roast for 25 or so minutes till there's some goldening going on and potatoes are getting tender. 

In a large saucepan dump a wee bit of oil in bottom of hot pan then add the garlic, onion and celery. Cook until browned and beginning to grow translucent. Dump in brocc stem bits or mushrooms or both. Add the veggie broth, vinegar/lemon juice. Bring to simmer. Add the roasted veggies. Simmer until everything is tender. Add nutritional yeast. Serve.