Miss Lexy's Top 15 Vegan Miss Recipes (To Date)

I've been blogging Vegan Miss since 2009 and while I wish I posted more frequently with recipes (real life interferes, blast!), I do have some of my favorite gems. Here is a list of recipes that I think back to fondly (in no particular order):

1. Homemade Grilled Potato, Onion, & Cheeze Pierogies: These babies are well, bad ass. I have yet to find frozen vegan pierogies for sale in store. If you make a huge batch of this, it'll freeze and keep nicely for later use. Pair with some Polish braised red cabbage and sour cream for a very tasty Polish delight.
2. Balsamic Sage Butter Tortellini: I have yet to find vegan tortellini's anywhere as well. Someone should really just make tortellini's and pierogies in the frozen vegan variety. And cheese sticks. They would be a huge hit, I think! If you are feeling adventurous, these little guys will definitely rock your world. As with the pierogies, you can make a big batch and freeze them for later use. I would serve this with raw kale salad for a perfect meal!
3. Pumpkin Curry Soup: This soup is magnificent. Perfect fall weather soup. Even my mother who declared she hated pumpkin before trying this was converted. She had me make another batch just for her and my dad and again at Thanksgiving dinner. Serve with fresh brown bread.
4. Tiramisu: One of the desserts I crave still is tiramisu. I made a regular version for Valentine's Day 2011 and then a raspberry version for this past Valentine's Day. It's kind of like crack. Really delicious crack. Warning: you may want to eat way more than one serving.
5. Balsamic Baked Tofu Caprese Sandwich: One of my first recipes for Vegan Miss. The trick to this is to let the tofu marinate for preferably 24 hours. It'll really take in that flavor (tofu being like a sponge and all).
6. Deep Dish Pizza: Ah, vegan deep dish pizza. Living in Chicago for almost 7 years now, I've never had the traditional deep dish. This is my solution. It's an awesome, awesome solution. It was even my competition dish for the Chicago Vegan Chef Showdown. nom nom nom!
7. Italian "Beef" Sandwiches: Once again, in all my years in Chicago, I have never eaten an Italian beef sandwich. And trust me, they are mighty popular, originating here and all. This would be my vegan version which has been a hit with vegans, vegetarians, and omnivores a like. Don't forget the giardiniera!
8. Ginger, Carrot, Beet, & Sweet Potato Soup: This is the best winter soup. If you don't like beets, you will now. It is just the right combination of different root vegetables to have only a hint of that earthy beet taste. Don't blame me if you go back for seconds!
9. Vegan Horseshoe Sandwich: Most people don't know what a horseshoe is, so basically it is Texas toast with whatever meat you want on top and then cheese fries on top of that. Not healthy. The cheese sauce I came up with for this is still my go-to cheese sauce when I need to make nachos or anything cheezy like that. Even my omni, cheese loving friends liked it.
10.Chick'n Divan: Ah, 1950s food. This is recreated from the book, Dishes Men Like. I've been told this tastes a lot like the real thing sans all that gross meat and dairy. Serve with Caesar salad.
11. Chick'n Scallopini with Wild Mushroom Risotto: This one of my favorite romantic dinner recipes on my blog. It would be perfect for Valentine's Day or an anniversary. Gardein is such an amazing mock meat product that is ever expanding on the markets. I keep a package of their chick'n scallopini's in my freezer at all times! Serve with a bowl of French onion soup.
12. Chick'n Katsu: Did I not tell you that I keep those Gardein scallopini's in my freezer at all times or what?! I really adore Japanese culture and cuisine. I did my undergraduate minor in Japanese and studied in Japan as well. ♥ One of the nation's favorite dishes is katsu. Serve with some veggie miso soup.
13. Spinach & Mushroom Fettuccine Alfredo: Several of my followers have remade this dish and all have fallen in love with it like I have. This is another one of those romantic dishes I enjoy. Serve with a heaping bowl of Italian wedding soup!
14. Vegan Fried Rice: This is an oldie recipe, but a goodie. It has something like 12,000 hits on VegWeb. It is a great recipe to whip up during the week and have plenty of leftovers.
15. Southern Food Gone Vegan: Country fried seitan steaks? Check. Mashed potatoes? Check. Southern greens? Check. Biscuits and gravy? Check! If you want a simple gravy, you can dumb down what I have to a black pepper gravy. This is one of Vegan Miss' most popular entries over the course of the last three years. Another southern favorite is my chick'n & buckwheat waffles with preserves recipe. No one ever said southern food was healthy for you! ;]

Well, there you have it. My original intent was to have 5-10 recipes, but I just couldn't stop at 10! If you ever decide to recreate any Vegan Miss recipes, please email the pictures at veganmiss@gmail.com or post pictures on VM's Facebook and post a review of the recipe on VegWeb for me! 

Shrimp Scampi & Balsamic Sage Butter Tortellini

I subscribe to the Food Network Magazine monthly and despite it is 95% not vegan, I still enjoy it because I learn new techniques for various things (such as pasta's or mixology). Usually, there are ways to veganize many of their dishes and their side dishes are generally vegan. This month's issue was pasta. After reading it, I was inspired to make a vegan tortellini (which I've never had before). Vegan shrimp scampi has been running through my head for a while now as an idea, so I made it with the tortellini.

 

Shrimp Scampi

* Prep Time: 5 minutes

* Cook Time: 10 minutes

* Ingredients:  

• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 1/4th small white onion, sliced fine
• 2 stalks green onion, sliced fine
• 3 tbsp soy butter*
• 1/2 jar (7.5 oz.) artichoke hearts, medium slice
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/4 cup white wine*
• 3/4 package (5 oz.) vegan shrimp*
• 1/8 tsp lemon zest
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste
• vegan Parmesan, to taste, top (optional)*

* Recipe:  

1. Heat a medium sized pan with 2 tbsp of the soy butter. Add in the onion and when it starts to become translucent, add the garlic and green onion.
2. Next, add the lemon juice, white wine, artichoke hearts, and vegan shrimp. Cook for a few minutes until the shrimp become tender.
3. Add the lemon zest, fresh parsley, the remaining 1 tbsp of soy butter, salt, and pepper. Cook for a few more minutes until the butter melts and the shrimp are completely cooked.
4. Top the dish with vegan Parmesan, if desired.

* Note: For soy butter, I used Bestlife brand. I found it at my local Jewel Osco (Albertson's, Lucky's, Cub Foods, County Market, Shop 'n Save, Save-a-Lot to some - same company). Make sure your wine is vegan on Barnivore. I found the vegan shrimp at a local Thai/Chinese grocery store. The brand I used was Verisoy which coincidentally is owned by Vegetarian Plus. So use either brand! Vegan Parmesan brand I use is Galaxy topping.

Balsamic Sage Butter Tortellini

The sauce in this recipe was modified from the "Sage-Walnut Butter" tortellini sauce in the Food Network Magazine March 2011 edition. I veganized it and halved the recipe. The tortellini and dough are my recipes, though.


* Prep Time: 30 minutes
* Cook Time: 20 minutes
* Ingredients (for tortellini filling):

• 1/2 package (4 oz.) vegan cream cheese*
• 1/4 tsp oregano
• 1/4 tsp basil
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp dried parsley
• 2-3 tsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp vegan Parmesan*
• 1/2 cup Teese vegan mozzarella cheese*
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste 

* Ingredients (for dough):

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup semolina flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/3 cup water (plus extra water to fold tortellini)
• pinch of salt, for boiling water
• 1 tsp olive oil, for boiling water

* Ingredients (for balsamic sage butter sauce): 

• 1/8 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp agave nectar*
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 tbsp soy butter*
• 1/4 cup sage leaves*
• 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
• 1/2 cup pasta-cooking water
• salt, to taste
• vegan Parmesan, to top  

* Recipe (for tortellini filling):

1. Combine the cream cheese with the oregano, basil, garlic powder, parsley, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Mix well.
2. Mashed the Parmesan and the mozzarella cheese.
3. Combine the cream cheese mixture with the cheese mixture. Mix well. 

* Recipe (for tortellini dough):

1. Mix the all-purpose flour, the semolina flour, and salt well in a medium bowl.
2. On a clean counter space, create a mound with the flour mixture. In the center, create a well.
3. In this well, put in the olive oil and water. 
4. Slowly start to mix and then knead dough until smooth.
5. Using a floured rolling pin, roll out the dough until slightly thin.
6. With either a small round cookie cutter or the opening of a glass, create circles in your dough.
7. Place 1 tsp of the tortellini mixture in the center of each of the circles.
8. Fold over and seal with water. Take the stuffed side of the tortellini and place it against the back of your finger. Push down to create a ring around your finger to get that distinct tortellini shape.
9. In a medium pot of boiling water, add the salt and olive oil, then cook the tortellini until the float (only a few minutes). Let cook for one minute after they start to float. Do not overcrowd the pot with tortellini or else they will stick together.

* Recipe (for balsamic sage butter sauce):

1. In a medium pan, combine the balsamic vinegar, agave nectar, and the bay leaf. Cook until syrupy.
2. Melt the soy butter in a medium pan and add the sage leaves and walnuts. Cook for 3 minutes.
3. Add 1/2 cup pasta cooking water and let cook until reduced by half.
4. Toss in the tortellini and add the salt. Mix well.

* Recipe (for building tortellini dish):

1. Place the tortellini and the reduced water mixture in a bowl followed by the balsamic glaze.
2. Top with vegan Parmesan.

* Note:  For vegan cream cheese, I used Tofutti brand. Again, with this recipe I used Galaxy topping for vegan Parmesan. The mozzarella cheese I used is a local Chicago vegan cheese company, Chicago Soydairy. Feel free to use another vegan mozarella brand (such as Soy Kaas or Follow Your Heart). I used this brand because it is easy to mash. Agave nectar is a natural sweetener often used to replace honey (which it did for this recipe). You can find it in the health/green food section of your grocer near the honey. For soy butter, again I used Bestlife. Lastly, I did not have fresh sage leaves, so I used dried rugged sage instead.




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