Italian Rice and Beans

Another Vegan Yum Yum iPhone app recipe, a great easy recipe full of flavour.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup brown rice ( pre cooked or uncooked)
1-2 tsp italian herbs (oregano, basil, marjoram etc)
1/2 can cannelini beans
1/4 cup oil packed sundried tomatoes cut into strips
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 large handful baby spinach
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
Zest of 1/2 lemon

Method

Start your rice, I use a rice cooker. When nearly finished (or actually finished), heat 3 Tbs of olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add herbs, tomatoes, and pine nuts. When pine nuts start to turn golden brown, add the beans. Toss gently, trying your best to keep the beans whole. Add salt and vinegar, stir gently. Turn down heat to low.

Place spinach in one layer on top of the beans. Place hot, steaming rice over spinach and leave for 30 seconds or so, until you see the spinach start to wilt. Mix gently and plate.

Grate lemon zest on top of rice and beans, and finish with a sprinkle of almond cheesy sprinkles if desired. I ate lunch alone today, so I only made enough for me. I'll test the recipe in bigger portions sometime soon, but if you want to double it before then, keep an eye on the vinegar and salt levels - they may not double exactly.

Sweet Chilli Lime Tofu with Asian Vegetables and Quinoa.

I have recently discovered the amazing vegan yum yum app for iPhone which is full of great easy recipes!

I've also gone a bit tofu obsessed at the moment! This is a great sweet chilli tofu with an awesome lime twist!

Ingredients:
I block extra firm tofu

Sweet Chilli Lime Sauce

3 Tbsp sugar
3 Tbsp soy sauce
1 1/4 fresh lime juice
1/2 zest of a lime
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
1 clove of garlic, pressed
1/4 tsp salt
4 mint leaves chopped

Quinoa
3/4 cup quinoa
Half a lime zest
2 cardamon pods, bruised
1 tiny cinnamon stick
1/4 tsp salt
1 3/4 cup water

Steamed Chinese Vegetables
2 bunches Chinese broccoli
2-3 tbs water
1 tsp lime juice

Method:

Combine all the ingredients for the quinoa in a pot that has a tight fitting lid. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes, then turn off heat. Do not open lid. Let steam for 10 minutes before serving

Prepare the sweet chili lime sauce by whisking all of the ingredients together until the sugar and salt is dissolved

Prepare the sweet chili lime sauce by whisking all of the ingredients together until the sugar and salt is dissolved

Heat a well-seasoned cast iron or non-stick frypan over medium heat. A 10" frypan will fit all the tofu, so if you're using a smaller frypan, you'll need to do this in batches. In order to properly "dry fry" the tofu, you'll need a pan the tofu won't stick to even without any oil.

Spread the tofu out in one layer in the pan. Using a spatula, press the tofu. The liquid will squeeze out and boil away, and the tofu will begin to turn golden. The more water that evaporates, the sturdier the tofu will be, so be gentle at first to prevent the tofu from breaking up. After several minutes, flip the tofu over and press the other side. After about 10 minutes of dry frying, you can turn off the heat and set the tofu aside for finishing later, or proceed to adding the sauce. (You might want to set the tofu aside before finishing in order to to prepare the Chinese vegetables below.)

To finish the tofu, bring the pan back up to temperature if it's not already very hot. You want to heat the pan and the tofu over high heat, making sure the tofu is hot all the way through. Add the sauce and stir to coat the tofu. Turn off the heat. The sauce will bubble up, reduce, and form a glaze. If it isn't bubbling up and forming a glaze, turn the heat back on high and cook until the glaze is.. well.. glaze-y.

Chop the Chinese broccoli leaves into small pieces, then add them to a wok with the water, lime juice and salt. Cover with any lid that will contain the collards and cook over high heat for 3-4 minutes until the collards are steamed and tender

For plating, arrange the Chinese broccoli atop of a bed of quinoa. Add tofu over the top, drizzling any leftover sauce over the dish. Garnish with lime slices and mint leaves. Serve