When we came back from Iceland early Sunday morning, we found zucchini and yellow squashes the length of our arms and the width of our lower legs waiting for us on our counter. Six or seven of them. What were we going to do with all of them?? We found the answer in zoodles: zucchini noodles that are made with vegetable spiralizers and can be paired with a wide variety of sauces. The zucchini and squash were so big that we only needed ONE to feed FIVE people! We ate zoodles Sunday and Monday nights, and we are planning on eating the rest in chocolate zucchini cake, yellow squash muffins, zucchini bread, and simple roasted vegetable dishes. Enjoy the following two recipes for zoodles. If you don't have a vegetable spiralizer, you can substitute regular noodles, but spiralizers can be pretty cheap (we got ours for $25) and are wonderful devices that make eating vegetables easy and fun. I don't much like yellow squash, but I love it in the form of "noodles." Zoodles in a Light "Cheesy" Sauce: Serves 5 Ingredients:
Zoodles in a Heavy Almond Butter Sauce: Serves 5 Ingredients:
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On my 18th birthday last November, my brother’s girlfriend gifted me with one of the best presents I have ever received: the Isa Does It vegan cookbook. While I was not yet vegan, it was a commitment that I knew was on my imminent horizon; for several months, I had foreseen myself trying out veganism in college. That night, after opening up the rest of my presents and eating cake, I flipped through every single page in that cookbook. I fell in love with it on the spot.
As you have followed this blog, you have probably figured out that vegetarianism and veganism are actually quite feasible if you have access to quality recipes that guide you to regularly creating tasty dishes. I find many recipes online (thanks, Pinterest!), but the majority of the dishes my family cooks are based off of a few well-loved cookbooks. In this post, I want to introduce you to a few of them. Cookbook #1: The High-Protein Vegetarian Cookbook by Katie Parker and Kristen Smith Review: I bought this book for my father as a birthday present last year. He used to ask me what I wanted for dinner each night (back when we did not use a weekly calendar to plan our meals), and I found myself always requesting something high in protein. My family is extremely athletic, and we need that protein in every meal! This is an excellent cookbook with both vegetarian and vegan recipes. Katie Parker is the blogger behind Veggie and the Beast, and she collaborated with dietitian Kristen Smith to create this cookbook full of nourishing recipes, each with corresponding nutritional information (and mouth-watering photos). I highly recommend this cookbook for all you athletes out there! Favorite Recipe: Without a doubt, my favorite recipe from this cookbook is the Sesame Soy Lettuce Wraps. The crispy lettuce “tacos” combined with coconut lime rice, mushrooms, red peppers, and sesame soy-soaked tempeh is to die for. This might actually be my favorite recipe from any cookbook! Cookbook #2: Fresh & Fast Vegan Pleasures by Amanda Grant Review: Before I became vegan, we hardly ever used this cookbook. Now, we pull recipes from it once or twice a week. Most of the recipes call for ten or less ingredients, and international dishes abound. The book provides instructions to create a plethora of desserts, as well as starters, snacks, entrees, and sandwiches. It even includes an informative section on how to incorporate important nutrients into a vegan diet! Favorite Recipe: The Moroccan Spiced Couscous with Fruit is absolutely delicious. I love the sweetness of the apricots, dates, and raisins paired with the flavors of cilantro, almonds, mint, and saffron. Of course, I’m a sucker for chickpeas as well, and they are integral to this dish. Cookbook #3: The New Vegetarian Epicure by Anna Thomas Review: Packed with 325 recipes, this cookbook is a follow-up to Thomas’s The Vegetarian Epicure. Her original cookbook was published in 1972, and hippies loved it (so of course, we own it, too). The New Vegetarian Epicure was published in 1996. The recipes are arranged into meals, and typically each meal consists of four or five recipes. Although we have never cooked a meal from this book, we use the recipes quite often. It is usually pretty easy to substitute vegan alternatives for ingredients like milk and butter (by using almond milk and olive oil), so you should look into buying it even if you are vegan. Favorite Recipe: The Butternut Squash and Pear Soup is fantastic. The sweet cinnamon and pear is balanced out by creamy, heartwarming butternut squash. This is the perfect winter soup. I have tried many butternut squash soups, and this has been my favorite by far. Cookbook #4: Vegetarian Planet by Didi Emmons Review: Planet, indeed. From Caribbean to Thai to American to Syrian fare, this cookbook takes you on a trip around the world by showing you how to cook delicious vegetarian meals. Breads, chutneys, soups, dumplings, crepes, rice, and more...this is the cookbook with perhaps the most variety on this list. It is perfect for anyone who likes to let their taste buds explore! Favorite Recipe: The Black Rice Cakes with Zucchini and Lemongrass are very, very tasty and flavorful. I love black rice, and the pairing of black rice patties with sweet sauce was quite different from any rice dish I had ever before tasted. Cookbook #5: Isa Does It by Isa Chandra Moskowitz Review: Of course, I had to include this one. It is my vegan bible. No question. My goal is to cook every single recipe in this book by the end of 2018 (there are a lot of recipes!). Packed with tips on how to chop, char, and stock your kitchen, this book will teach you how to refine your cuisine in a time-efficient manner. Each recipe has an estimated “active time” and “total time” to allow you to better plan your time in the kitchen. Chapters include your basics (soups, salads, pastas, breakfasts, and desserts), as well as more intriguing collections like stir-fries & sautés (Asian food with Isa’s own Jewish-American twist), bowls (each of which consist of grains, veggies, protein, and sauce), and Sunday night suppers (comfort food!!). I could go on forever about this book...but why don’t you just go buy one for yourself? Even my German friend Anna is buying one, despite the fact that she will have to convert the measurements to metric measurements, because it is so amazing! Favorite Recipe: OK, that is just not a fair question. I love everything in this book. If I had to choose one, it would probably be the Tempeh Meatballs & Spaghetti. Even though marinara sauce gives me dreadful heartburn, a little sickness is a price I am willing to pay for eating this dish. As I’ve mentioned before, I love tempeh, and the “meatballs” are perfectly chewy and bursting with flavor. That’s a wrap! I encourage you to go out and buy one of these cookbooks and fall in love yourself. If you do not want to pay for a cookbook, you might even be able to check one out at your local library (and if you’re like me, you will never, ever return it). |
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