Caramelized Onion Buffalo Bites

yellow onion
hot sauce
white beans
celery
dill
garlic powder

Slice one medium onion and saute in a small amount of olive oil. As they soften, add hot sauce until the onions are coated. Turn down the heat and let them simmer in sauce. Put one can of rinsed beans into a food processor and blend with dill and garlic powder (or smash with a fork if you don't have a food processor or you have one but don't feel like washing it later). Cut celery into bite sized pieces. Spread bean mixture into each piece of celery and top with onions.

California Roll Salad

brown rice
avocado
carrots
cucumber
nori (seaweed)
tamari or soy sauce or liquid aminos
rice vinegar
wasabi

While the rice is cooking, dice two carrots and half a cucumber and chop the avocado into slightly larger chunks. Add them to the cooked rice. Crumble several sheets of Nori (I used Trader Joe's Wasabi Seaweed Snack) into the rice. Add a few dashes of soy sauce and rice vinegar to a small bowl and add in wasabi to taste. Add to rice.

Tea Soaked Soy Curls with Ginger Plum Sauce

Butler Foods Soy Curls
Black tea
Onion
Garlic
Ginger
Plum Sauce
Soy sauce (or tamari or liquid aminos)
Rice vinegar
Sesame oil
Cabbage
Carrots
Brown rice

Steep one teabag in a bowl of boiling water. After a few minutes, add about 3/4 cup of soy curls and let them soak, along with the teabag, for at least 10 minutes. While the soy curls are soaking, slice the onion in strips and saute in sesame oil over medium heat. After a few minutes, add about a Tbsp of grated ginger, 2 cloves of minced garlic, and the soy curls (after strained through a sieve). Add in about 1 Tbsp of plum sauce, a few dashes of soy sauce and vinegar and about 2 cups of chopped cabbage and carrots (I used pre-bagged coleslaw mix). Cook a few more minutes until heated through. Serve over rice.

White Bean Chili

white beans
yellow bell pepper
onion
oregano
white wine or vegetable broth
garlic
smoked sea salt
cayenne pepper
salt and pepper

Saute a minced onion in olive oil. Add a chopped bell pepper and let it all get soft. Add two cloves of garlic and some black pepper and cook for about a minute, while stirring.  Add a can of white beans, well rinsed. Add about half a cup of liquid - either broth or wine. Add in the remaining ingredients, to taste, and simmer until the beans have created a thick liquid around themselves. Serve with sliced avocado. I also served this with a side of steamed green beans, topped with peach salsa from Trader Joe's.

Sweet Potato Fries with Sriracha Mayo

sweet potatoes
corn starch
olive oil
vegan mayonnaise
sriracha

Cut up a few sweet potatoes into the size you want. Put them in a bowl and sprinkle a little cornstarch on them. Make sure all of the fries are coated and then drizzle olive oil and mix to coat. Spread the fries on a cookie sheet and bake at 425 for 15-20 minutes. Flip the fries and bake for a few minutes longer until they are the right amount of crispiness. Mix vegan mayo with sriracha, to taste.

Blueberry Corn Salsa

blueberries
corn
shallot or red onion
olive oil
fresh basil
balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper
portobello mushrooms

Blanch 2 ears of corn (or put them on a plate in the microwave covered with a wet paper towel for 3 minutes).  Cut the corn off of the cob.  Mix in an equal amount of blueberries, one diced shallot, 6 chopped basil leaves and one tablespoon each of the oil and vinegar.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  This is best if you let it marinate in the refrigerator for a while but you can use it right away if you're in a hurry.  You can serve this over a variety of things but my favorite is to grill portobello mushrooms with the stems removed and then spoon the salsa into the mushroom caps.

Lentil Coconut Curry

red lentils
tomatoes
coconut milk
onion
olive oil
garam masala
ginger
garlic
brown basmati rice
salt and pepper

Dice and saute the onion in olive oil until soft over medium heat.  Add one cup of rinsed lentils and cook for about a minute. Add a can of stewed tomatoes (or tomato sauce) and a can of coconut milk.  Add garam masala, garlic and ginger to taste. Turn heat to low and let it simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until lentils are soft. Meanwhile, cook one cup of rice. When the lentils are cooked and the sauce thickens, add salt and pepper and serve over rice. This is how I make it for my little daughter but if you prefer it spicy, add cayenne at the end of cooking.