Shyamatara Das

In the Service of the Divine Mother

Vegan Bolognese Sauce with Impossible Burger

April 9, 2022 By Brian Leave a Comment

Vegan Bolognese Sauce With PastaPlant based meats have come a long way over the past few years, from the mushy crumbles of yore to something that truly approximates the texture and flavor of beef.

I recently picked up a copy of Cooking With Plant Based Meat from America’s Test Kitchen, and decided to give this dish a try for a weeknight meal. It turned out to be as delicious as the book promised, like a comforting “hug from an Italian grandmother.”

After finely chopping a carrot, a stalk of celery and an onion in the food processor, all three went into a cast iron Dutch Oven to sauté with olive oil and salt and pepper until soft and well browned. Then I added some chopped garlic and 3 tablespoons of tomato paste, and stirred that around until caramelized, then deglazed with half a cup of red wine. A 12 ounce package of the Impossible Burger went in next and cooked with the veggie mixture for a few minutes before adding two cups of veggie stock. I let that simmer for 15 minutes while cooking the noodles.

Finally, I added the noodles to the post of sauce, and let it all cook together for a few minutes before serving.

I truly believe that if you served this to even a discriminating carnivore, they would not know that it’s plant based. The textures and flavors were a perfect mimic.

I used egg white noodles, and Parmesan shreds, so the dish wasn’t strictly vegan, but one could easily use any wide eggless pasta noodle of some sort and vegan cheese (or just leave the cheese out).

It should be noted that although Impossible Burger is probably not less healthy than beef, if you are abstaining from meat for health reasons it isn’t really an improvement. If, like our family, the reason for eating a plant based diet is more a matter of ethics and spirituality, then using this product from time to time should be fine. It *does* contain some GMO material if that is a concern.

My wife has a recipe for a Bolognese Sauce made entirely from fresh vegetables that is also delicious. I’ll do my best to prevail on her for a copy to post in comments here.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Plant Based Meals, Vegan, Vegetarian Cooking

Vegan Pad Thai

February 15, 2022 By Brian Leave a Comment

Vegan Pad ThaiI’ve been wanting to try cooking Pad Thai for a long time, and finally got around to it last week. I had already researched recipes, but when I told my wife I was planning to make it, she scared up one more that was helpful in pulling together the dish.

Since my version does not include the shrimp and the fish sauce that are typical in Thailand, it’s not “authentic” Pad Thai, so I’m going to call it “Pad Bri.” 🙂

If you want, you could leave out the tofu. You could also add whatever other veggies you would like for the sauté. For a gluten-free version, use Tamari in place of the soy sauce.

For the Sauce

Combine these ingredients slowly one at a time, and when fully combined boil together for three or four minutes.

  • 4 T tamarind paste
  • 4T soy sauce
  • 3 T garlic chili sauce
  • 2 T maple syrup
  • 1/4 c powdered peanuts
  • maybe some peanut butter
  • 1 c veggie stock

Prepare the Tofu

Saute tofu cubes in a little sesame oil, then add soy sauce, some spoons of peanut butter, and a little of the garlic chili sauce. Reserve this.

For the Veggie Sauté

Cook the onion first, then add the garlic and ginger until fragrant, then the other veggies of your choosing. Finally. add the bean sprouts and a squeeze of lime. I used sesame oil in the wok for this.

  • 1 chopped onion
  • 3 cloves of garlic, pressed
  • some grated fresh ginger
  • chopped red and yellow bell peppers
  • 1 can of bean sprouts, drained
  • a squeeze or two of lime

Once these items are done, add a little peanut butter and soy sauce, the white part of some scallions, and then the sauce and prepared tofu. Finally, add a package of Thai rice noodles that you have already prepared by soaking in a bowl of hot (fresh from boiling) water for five minutes or so.

Toss all of this around in the wok to warm through, and serve with cilantro, scallions, crushed peanuts, lime wedges and Sriracha or other hot sauce.

This served our family of three, and there was enough left over for a nice lunch for one of us later in the week.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Healthy Foods, Plant Based Meals, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian Cooking

Potato Curry

November 17, 2021 By Brian Leave a Comment

Potato CurryThis makes a tasty and hearty weeknight meal, with lots of nutrition and not a lot of fuss. I use a 5 quart stockpot from beginning to end, so there’s not a lot to cleanup. The most time consuming part is peeling and chopping the potatoes.

Here’s the recipe.

Sauté two big onions, rough chopped, in olive oil with salt and pepper.

Add several cloves of garlic and a couple pieces of fresh ginger, minced, and cook until fragrant.

Add these spices and toast until fragrant and well distributed.

  • 2 t Garam Masala
  • 2 t Curry Powder
  • 1 t Mustard Seed
  • 1 t Ground Coriander
  • 1/2 t Chili Powder
  • 1/2 t Turmeric
  • 1/2 t Paprika
  • Red Pepper Flakes (go easy – you can always add more at table)

Add 1 Can diced tomatoes.

Add 1 package frozen mixed vegetables (this is optional, but adds some color and nutrition).

Add 2-3 pounds of potatoes, peeled and cubed.

Add 2 cups of vegetable stock.

Cover and cook on low simmer until potatoes are tender.

Make a slurry with one can of coconut milk and 3 T cornstarch, add it to the pot and cook uncovered until the curry thickens.

I made some rice to go under this. You could also make puris, or serve with naan bread, or even biscuits out of a can, if you’d like. Tonight this served four of us, and there was plenty leftover for lunches the rest of the week.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Vegetarian Cooking

Chili Con Tres Frijoles

November 9, 2021 By Brian Leave a Comment

Vegetariam Chili

I found this recipe somewhere online years ago, and it’s become one of our very favorites. We still eat some dairy in our household, so as pictured here it’s not a vegan dish, but you could certainly use plant based cheese crumbles and cashew nut sour cream (or just leave those toppings off altogether) if you wish to forego the dairy.

Ingredients:
2 coarsely chopped large onions
several cloves minced garlic
vegetable oil

2 15oz cans dark red kidney beans
1 15oz can black beans
1 15oz can pinto beans
2 28 oz cans diced tomatoes
1 large green pepper, coarsely chopped
1 cup picante sauce
2 T unsweetened cocoa
1 package chili seasoning (we use the ones from Aldi)
1 can beer
a couple of dried Cayennes, or some red pepper flakes
kosher salt
ground black pepper
liquid smoke seasoning
1/2 cup old fashioned oats

Start by cooking the onions and garlic in oil, with a little salt and pepper. Deglaze the pan with a little beer, and put it all in a slow cooker with all of the other ingredients except the oats. I drain the pinto beans and one of the cans of red beans, but usually add the liquid from the rest.

After it cooks for three or four hours, check for seasoning and doneness and adjust as needed. I will sometimes move the setting on the cooker to low if it’s roiling too vigorously. Sometimes I’ll add Crystal or Tabasco sauce to kick up the flavor a little if it needs it. You could also include Habanero peppers or whatever else you would like instead of the Cayennes if you prefer.

About half an hour or so before you’re ready to serve,  stir in the oats.

We usually serve this over cornbread, with some cheese shreds, cilantro, avocado chunks, sour cream and such for toppings. I like to make a double batch, so we have plenty of leftovers for chili mac, chili cheese fries (or our favorite chili cheeseburgers – we love to use Field Roast veggie burgers for that).

The longer this chili  cooks, the better it seems to taste. Rich, savory, hearty and healthy, we actually find it tastier and more satisfying than the greasy ground beef variety. Long before I became a more conscious eater, this was my favorite chili. I prepare it several times a year, and we always look forward to it whenever “chili weekend” rolls around.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Crock Pot, Healthy Foods, Plant Based Meals, Recipes, Slow Cooker, Vegetarian Cooking

ༀ་ཏཱ་རེ་ཏུཏྟཱ་རེ་ཏུ་རེ་སྭཱ་ཧཱ།

Oṃ Tāre Tuttāre Ture Svāhā

Mother of Liberation, Guide and Protect Us

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