Vegan Adventures

I’ve had so many adventures lately, I haven’t even had time to write!

…Or maybe that’s the two jobs.

First off, I made some delicious vodka sauce pasta the other night with the most gorgeous spinach penne I got at Whole Foods.  It was basically just garlic, canned tomatoes with herbs & vodka, and then fresh basil stirred in.  We also had some vegan meatballs on the side, they were the best ones I’ve had yet.

Next I whipped up this soup for absolutely no reason.  I wanted hearty soup because although the rest of the country is sweating in early September, in Berkeley we are chilled!

My last two adventures weren’t made by me, but I think they’re worth sharing.

First off, I have never been a fan of Tofurky.  Maybe it was the name, maybe it was the fact Lorelai Gilmore hates it… not sure, it always just creeped me out.  However, Tofurky makes an absolutely delicious frozen pizza, so I guess I’m a convert.  It was light on the soy cheese, which was a good idea, and heavy on soy sausage and grilled veggies.  Might have to make my own version soon.

Lastly, if you find yourself in the Oakland area, you MUST go to Souley Vegan.  It is absolutely amazing.  As the boyfriend and our friend from Tacoma both said, it’s some of the best Southern food you can get, and it’s vegan!  Who would have guessed.  I recommend the everything plate, but my especial favorites were the mac and cheese (I wonder what their secret is!) and the bbq tofu.  Mmmm.  Thank goodness someone opened this place. I am grateful.

Recipes…

Vodka Penne Pasta (Losely adapted from Veganomicon and Smittenkitchen)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup vodka
1 can crushed tomatoes (32 ounces)
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
16 ounces pasta, such as penne rigate (extra good with spinach penne)
20 leaves fresh basil, shredded or torn (I might have used more…)

Bring water to boil, adding pasta when boiling, and boil for 7 minutes (or a little more for whole wheat and spinach).

Saute garlic until soft, then add tomatoes, thyme, oregano, vodka, and season with salt and pepper.  When cooked down a bit and you think it’s ready, add basil and combine with penne.

Seitan and Rigatoni Soup with Chickpeas

1 onion

Seitan cubed or strips chopped

1 can chickpeas (kidney or white would work too)

1/4 teaspoon herbes de provence

1/4 teaspoon marjoram

1/4 teaspoon basil

1/4 teaspoon oregano

Vegetable Broth

1 box rigatoni (or other pasta)

Fresh Spinach, chopped (frozen and drained would work too)

This is basically just a base, you could tweak it however you want.  More vegetables would be excellent, lentils, other pasta or rice, other kinds of beans or spices.  But here’s how I did it.  Saute onion until well done, carmelly and starting to brown.  Then add seitan and brown that some, until looking pretty tasty.  Deglaze pan with chickpeas and add spices.  Next put in pasta and vegetable broth, enough to cover everything.  Simmer for at least seven minutes, so the pasta cooks, then stir in spinach and serve, in big helpings, with some nice crusty bread.

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