Vegan 'Puppy Chow'

Super easy to make, cheap, and delicious. Plus, it makes a ton! You can't go wrong with this stuff. It's a finger food, it's a kid food, it's an ice cream topping, it's a popcorn add-in, it's a pretzel mate, it's everything you dream of and more. There's no baking involved so feel free to let your kiddos get in on the preparation.

Here's what you'll need:

1 cup vegan semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup nut or seed butter of choice (I used sunflower seed butter)
1/4 cup vegan butter
1 12.8-ounce box of rice chex or crispix-style cereal
1 cup powdered sugar

• In a double boiler, or in a metal or ceramic bowl placed over an inch or so of water, melt the chocolate chips, nut or seed butter, and vegan butter. Stir gently until smooth and well-mixed. 
• Pour over cereal and gently stir, folding chocolate into the cereal, coating each piece. If you have a large Tupperware container with a tight-fitting lid, you can gently shake the mixture until everything is evenly coated. 
• Once the chocolate has cooled slightly, go ahead and toss in the powdered sugar. Gently stir or shake again.
• That's all there is to it. Enjoy!

P.S. We're experimenting with a hybrid of the gluten-free and Feingold diets to try to curb my daughter's ADHD symptoms before school starts back up. So, you'll be seeing lots and lots of gluten-free and low-salicylate recipes over the summer. If it works, you'll be seeing them indefinitely! Wish us luck. 

Fresh No-Cook Spaghetti Sauce

In the mood for something fresh, light, easy and breezy? You have to try this amazing, no-cook spaghetti sauce! A few days ago, a friend of a friend on Facebook posted a video from Food & Wine magazine that I saved immediately because I just knew I had to try it. You just use a box grater to grate tomatoes into a bowl, add a few other ingredients, mix it with cooked pasta and you're good to go. I thought it must be too good to be true, but I tried it for dinner tonight and I'll be danged if it isn't delicious! Here's the video:

And here's my take on it:

16 ounces spaghetti noodles, cooked

6 to 8 large, ripe beefsteak tomatoes, cut in half

3 tablespoons olive oil (optional)

1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt, to taste

1/2 to 1 teaspoon garlic powder, to taste

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Handful fresh basil leaves, chopped

• Grate the tomatoes into a large bowl with a box grater.
• Add remaining ingredients, to taste, and stir. 
• Toss with your spaghetti and serve.
• Seriously, it's that freakin' easy.
• Enjoy!

Sleepaway Camp Surprise

If you have ever seen the fabulously awful movie, Sleepaway Camp (1983), you already know the "surprise." I shall reveal said surprise after the recipe, so if you haven't seen the film and don't want the surprise ruined, don't scroll down past the recipe.

Sleepaway Camp (1983)

Sleepaway Camp is a film that defies explanation or definition. It's just terribly, terribly bad. But it's so much fun to watch (seriously, it is!) it has a cult following almost on par with the Evil Dead trilogy. The original film (along with it's equally terrible predecessors) has it's own website. And the star of the film, Felissa Rose, is a frequent guest of honor at horror conventions all over the world. A Sleepaway Camp Reunion in 2001 pulled hundreds of fans who came to get a glimpse of the cast and have their t-shirts and memorabilia autographed.

In honor of Sleepaway Camp, and just good ol' summer camp food in general, I am posting a very simple, but delicious broccoli and rice casserole that is reminiscent of camp cafeteria food, but way tastier.

The recipe comes from the cookbook, The Compassionate Cook: Or, Please Don't Eat the Animals, which I was fortunate to find on the Half Price clearance rack for two dollars. Woo hoo!

BROCCOLI AND RICE CASSEROLE
from The Compassionate Cook: Or, Please Don't Eat the Animals!

"The nutritional yeast gives this casserole a 'cheesy' quality, the broccoli gives it color, and the spices give it pizzazz."

1 10-ounce package frozen broccoli florets, or 1 bunch fresh, cut into pieces
2 cups white rice (I used long-grain brown rice)
1/2 cup (1 stick) margarine (I used Earth Balance buttery spread)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
Pinch of turmeric
I cup of nutritional yeast flakes
Salt and pepper, to taste
Pinch of paprika

• Steam the broccoli, about six minutes.
• Prepare the rice according to package directions.
• Spread the cooked rice evenly over the bottom of a 9x13" baking dish.
• Sprinkle the broccoli over the rice and set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Melt the margarine in a medium frying pan over low heat.
• Beat in the flour with a whisk over medium heat until the mixture is smooth and bubbly, then whisk in the boiling water, salt soy sauce, garlic and onion powders, and turmeric. 
• Cook the sauce until it thickens and bubbles, then whip in the yeast. 
• Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Pour the sauce over the broccoli and rice, sprinkle the top with paprika, and bake for 15 minutes. 
• If desired place pan under broiler for a few minutes until the sauce is browned and crusty.

Okay, are you ready for the surprise?

Are you sure you're ready?!

Don't scroll down if you haven't seen the movie and don't want to ruin the ending!

That's your warning!

SPOILER ALERT!!!!!

Here it comes...

Surprise! It's a weenie!
(A vegan one, of course.)

In the final scene of Sleepaway Camp, a twist is revealed. Angela, our heroine, has killed a boy and is crouched over the body. When she is approached by two camp counselers, she stands up, stark naked, to reveal that she has a dong, is a boy, and has been a boy from the get-go. She is also, naturally, the murderer. It's nonsensical gender-bending horror hi jinx like only the 80s can produce!

And, as a very special treat to my readers, I give you this...

Homemade Flour Tortillas

Welcome Vegan Potluckers!

As part of the Virtual Vegan Potluck blog tour this year, I am happy to be a part of the "Bread Course." At first I was going to make the huge loaves of bread that I put into my Thanksgiving meal a couple of years ago, but then I would be forced to butter and consume said loaves, which might not do flattering things to my arse. So, since avocados were on sale at three for a dollar last week, and I have a ton of them to eat, I thought to myself, "Tortillas! Yes, tortillas!" They are perfect for dipping into AwesomeSauce (we have seriously made a meal of this), or slathering with guacamole (again, a full meal of just this), or my favorite thing of all - a wrap consisting of guacamole, alfalfa sprouts, and halved cherry tomatoes. It doesn't sound like much, but it's seriously amazing. And, between you and me, you will BM like a soldier for the rest of the day after you eat it. Woo hoo!

HOMEMADE FLOUR TORTILLAS
4 cups whole wheat pastry flour (can sub all-purpose flour)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup oil
1 1/2 cups cold water

Place all dry ingredients into a large bowl and whisk until mixed. Add oil and stir. Add water in 1/2 cup increments, stirring or mixing with hands after each addition. Knead gently in the bowl, for just a minute or so, until dough resembles photo above. Allow dough to rest at room temperature for 10 minutes.

Pinch off a piece of dough no larger than the cup of your palm,
and roll it into a ball.

Lightly flour your rolling surface, as well as your rolling pin.
Roll out your dough ball, getting it as thin as possible.

Place rolled dough onto a hot ungreased cast iron griddle. 

Allow to lightly brown on both sides. 

I like to roll out my next dough ball while the first is cooking. 

Repeat until all your balls are rolled flat and cooked up right.

Enjoy!

www.passtheveggies.com

www.themisfitbaker.com

Happy Thanksgiving!

These little guys decorated my windowsill.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Thanksgiving! We are all finished over here at Manriquez Manor, bellies puffed out pathetically like the zombie that ate Lori Grimes.

Oh, snap! Good one, Mom! Wait, I'm not allowed to watch Walking Dead...

I spent two days cleaning and cooking, and the food was gobbled up in about ten minutes flat. Oh well... Isn't that the plight of all home cooks on Thanksgiving?

Blessed and thankful, indeed.

This was my second all-vegan, 100% cooked-by-me Thanksgiving meal. My mom isn't vegan, but she went with the flow. However, she admitted that she didn't like the Tofurkey. It seemed like she enjoyed everything else though.

Today is also my mom's 64th birthday. Happy birthday, Mom!

Here's what we feasted upon...

Tofurky with Roasted Veggies in Wild Mushroom Gravy

"This Ain't Grandma's Sweet Potato Casserole" from Oh She Glows

Green Bean Casserole from Vegan Celebrations by Alicia Simpson

Oven Roasted Corn on the Cob

Chocolate Mousse Pie from The Cancer Project

Easy Vegan Pumpkin Pie from About.com

 We also had mashed potatoes with brown gravy, whole cranberry sauce, jellied cranberry sauce, and ciabatta rolls (which got a little bit burnt - my bad).

Who burned these dang biscuits?! Mom!!

Here's what Jason and I looked like before we started stuffing our gullets...

Out 9th anniversary is on December 17th. Yay, us! And yay love!

And here's what we looked like after we gorged ourselves on Thanksgiving fare...

Insatiable! We've got the hunger for tofu-flesh. We can't be stopped!!

After dinner we walked to the park and tried to make my Star Wars X-Wing fighter kite fly, but it was a dud.
I got a great workout, though! I need to (attempt to) fly kites more often. Running after this thing 800 times really got my heart rate up.

Fly, dammit. FLY!!!

This is the most air I got out of the thing.

Look how disappointed Jason looks, holding the dud kite. Poor fella.

We didn't have turkey, but I sure ate "a bird" this Thanksgiving!

I hope you all had a wonderful day! I am thankful for compassionate vegans, amazing vegan food, a fabulous family who loves me, beautiful North Texas, and YOU! Thanks for reading. You are appreciated.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Southwestern Black Bean Soup

I have my usual Autumn head-and-chest cold. I'll get another one sometime in January or February. It happens every single year, like clockwork. If the world ever goes to hell, and we lose our calendars, we can always tell the general month by when I get sick. Just remember that.
Needless to say, I haven't posted in a while. It's also needless to say "needless to say" but I like to say it. And I'm sick. So there.
The past few days have been a whirlwind of Tofurkey pizza, Amy's No-Chicken Noodle Soup with a side of vegan-buttered baguette, and hummus with chips and a side of kalamata olives. All of my favorite vegan comfort foods. The only thing missing is tabbouleh, dolmas, and candy. I need some sweets, people! And I'm too sick, and way too snotty and phlemmy and gross, to go anywhere near the kitchen and bake.
Can someone please send me a bucket of GoMaxGo bars??? I will put up a picture of you in my kitchen and pay homage to it daily. No, seriously, I will. *nods emphatically*

Needless to say (ha!), I didn't actually make this soup recently. I made it several days ago, when I was just starting to feel the ache in my sinuses. And I took one crappy picture (see photo above for evidence of craptastisity), then called it a day. But now I sure wish I had another big bowl of this stuff. It's so yummy! Very hearty, a bit spicy, with a stick-to-your-ribs quality that would really perk me up right now.

Go forth and make. Think of me while you're cooking. Think of where, in your city, you can purchase GoMaxGo bars at a decent price. Think of poor, sick, snotty Jen and how much she would enjoy some sweets. Email Jen for her mailing address. Stamp and send. Don't forget to include your picture! A drawing will suffice. Really, anything that I can pay daily homage to will suffice.
Oh wait! I can sweeten the deal. (I really, REALLY need some candy, dammit!) Any vegan bloggers who send me a GoMaxGo bar (or two or three...) will have a special feature right here on Bankrupt Vegan about their blog. I might even make a recipe or two and post the photos. You got it? Candy bars equal blog-love.

Now, go make this soup. It's totally bad ass.

1 large onion, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed and chopped
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons Homemade Taco Seasoning
4 cups vegetable broth
1 15 ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-ounce can of whole kernel corn, drained and rinsed
1 15-ounce can of diced tomatoes, undrained
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 bay leaf
1 bunch fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped
1 package Tofurkey Italian Sausage links, sliced and cooked (optional)
Salt and pepper, to taste
First, chop your vegetables and have them ready to go.

• Preheat a large pot or Dutch oven. Add oil and allow it to heat up for a minute or so. 
• Add vegetables and gently saute until they are cooked through. 
• Add taco seasoning and stir to coat vegetables. 
• Add broth, beans, corn, tomatoes, and tomato paste. Stir well. Add bay leaf and stir again. 
• Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer, stirring occasionally, for about half an hour.
• Add cilantro leaves and allow to simmer a few more minutes.
• If you're using the Italian Sausage, go ahead and slice it and cook it while you're soup is simmering. I just cook the slices in a little oil on a cast iron skillet until the edges are brown. Add it into the soup at the same time you add your cilantro.
• Add salt and pepper, to taste.
• Enjoy with a side of warmed and buttered corn tortillas.

Cranberry-Almond Kale Salad

I am always searching for more ways to cram kale into my diet. I love the stuff! And I always feel so great after I eat it - energized and... uh.. well, you know... "rollin' in the colon" and stuff. Hey, I just made up a new phrase! Rollin' in the colon. I like that.

1 bunch fresh kale, stalks removed and coarsely chopped
1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons maple syrup, agave nectar, or sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce or liquid aminos
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 to 2 teaspoons fresh ginger, very finely grated (I use the little frozen squares)
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup dried cranberries

• First, whisk together the following items in a large bowl: orange juice, apple cider vinegar, sweetener of your choice, soy sauce, and sesame oil. 
• Add the ginger and whisk again, until very well incorporated.
• Add the kale and use salad tongs or hands, or whatever you've got, to gently toss the kale in the dressing until every leaf if covered and dripping with good stuff.
• Now add your almonds and cranberries. Toss again.
• Enjoy!

And now I have a strange request for my readers...

PLEASE IDENTIFY THIS FRUIT FOR ME!!

I have a mystery tree growing my backyard. We've only lived here for a year, and all year long I've watched these weird little pink balls growing on the tree behind my bedroom window. Now they are falling off and I'm like, "Should I be roasting these or what?" I have no clue what they are. The little black thing on top reminds me of a persimmon, but I saw some persimmons at the grocery story recently and they were way bigger than what I have. So, I am flummoxed. Can anybody shed some light on this??

And, if you know what it is, can you also throw a recipe or two my way? The Bankrupt Vegan title is not just a clever moniker. If I have food growing in my backyard, I need to eat it!

Hep Halloween Hummus

What makes this hummus special for Halloween, you ask? There's a rubber finger in the bottom of the bowl! Mwa-hah-hahhhhh!!!

Can you tell we are big fans of Halloween at my house? Uhhh, yeah. That's an understatement. We *lurve* Halloween super hard! It's always been my favorite holiday, and I think that's partially because it comes at the advent of my favorite season, autumn. I just love everything about autumn! The colors, the pumpkin pastries, the smells, the lowering temperatures after another ass-hot Texas summer. It's great! Behold my current fireplace mantel decorations, a shrine to all things autumn.

Make this hummus for your next Halloween party, and don't forget the rubber finger!

2 cups cooked garbanzo beans
1/4 cup tahini paste
1 clove garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/8 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves, minced
1/8 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon soy sauce or liquid aminos
Dash of cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper, to taste

• Throw everything into a food processor and whirl until smooth and creamy. 
• Enjoy!

P.S. For an even cheaper version of classic hummus, click HERE.

YummyEarth Organic Lollipops

Skeleton Hiccups

The Night Before Halloween

Pico De Gallo with Zucchini

Well, it's time to use up the last of the summer zucchini, and I don't know about you guys but I cannot eat another bite of zucchini bread. I love the stuff, but there's only so much you can make and eat in one summer... 

Oh, who am I kidding? I can always eat another bite of zucchini bread! 

Really, I was just looking for a creative way to get my "zuke vites." That's what I call the vitamins from zucchini. This is a throwback from ten years ago when I worked at Starbucks and the button on the cash register for zucchini bread said simply, "ZUKE LOAF." So, my coworkers and I would quip, in a thick Italian accent, "You look thin! Come inta the kitchen and have some ah ya mutha's zuke loaf." It still makes me chuckle to say it. 

Anyway, try out this pico de gallo recipe. I literally never measure my ingredients when I make pico de gallo. I just start throwing stuff in and then I adjust the ingredients to taste. So, this recipe is really just a starting point. You will need to taste it a lot as you make it, and adjust as you go. If you're going to be eating it with tortilla chips (is there any other way??) then you will want to taste it with a chip as you make it. The salt from the chip is more than adequate to salt your pico, in my opinion. If you don't intend to eat it with chips, you might need a bit more salt.

8 to 12 Roma tomatoes, chopped

Half a white onion, chopped

1 medium zucchini, chopped

1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely minced

2 cloves of garlic, finely minced

A generous handful of fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped

Lime juice, to taste

Salt and pepper, to taste

• Toss everything into a bowl and stir. Easy peasy.
• I recommend covering with and airtight lid and allowing it to chill in the fridge for a few hours before eating. You don't have to do this, but I find that after it sits a while and the flavors mingle together, it tastes even more fantastic.
• Enjoy!

Grilling Vegan Style: 125 Fired-Up Recipes

PETA's Vegan College Cookbook

Vegan Planet: 400 Irresistible Recipes