International vegan cuisine

Bar Food, International vegan cuisine, oil free vegan recipes, one pot recipes, Plant Based, Potatoes, Soup, Vegan

Irish Potato Stew with Vegan Sausage

Posted on April. 2023April. 2023 by writinstuff

I don’t know about where you are in the world but the weather here in Romania has been erratic, at best. The past week the temperature has been as high as 20 Celsius and as low as about 5 degrees, which makes it hard to plan an outing or a meal.

But when you wake up and sky is gray and releasing nothing but nonstop rain, it’s a pretty good bet that a good vegan stew will be on the menu.

I love soups and stews, the heartier the better. But I am NOT one of those people who can eat a vegan soup when it’s warm outside. My dad can do it. My husband. Many of my friends, too.

Not me.

Luckily Mother Nature is cooperating with my desire to eat more soup, though I wish she would switch so I can just eat a dry soup, also known as a delicious vegan salad.

Anyway I took advantage of the cold weather and whipped a vegan version of Irish Coddle Stew. And I say a version because there’s always that one person eager to say, “oh it’s not a true coddle if there’s no, insert animal flesh here.” Well I know that, which is why I said a VERSION of it.

If you like a hearty Irish stew and you’re keen to try more ways to use vegan meat alternatives, check out this easy vegan stew.

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Asian Food, Bowls, International vegan cuisine, Noodles, Plant Based, Vegan

Loaded Vegan Ramen Salad Recipe

Posted on April. 2023April. 2023 by writinstuff

Is there anything better than a noodle salad? I mean, it feeds my body’s need to have lots of fresh, raw veggies in a variety of colors while also feeding my belly’s desire for Asian noodles. To me, it is the perfect healthy splurge salad.

Healthy splurge. It’s kind of an oxymoron isn’t it? Yes and no.

A healthy splurge meal is when you’re doing your best to eat healthy and feed your body the fuel it needs to get through each day without malfunctioning or succumbing to exhaustion or other crap diet related feelings. But you get to have a bit of a splurge in something you love, like Ramen noodles. And to be fair, ramen are fairly calorie friendly depending on which ones you use. For example, the ones I have are 60 calories per 100 grams of cooked noodles. And since I toss the seasoning packets I don’t have to worry about what’s in there.

But I’m not deluding myself that these noodles are actually ‘healthy’ but you could do a lot worse.

Still this is one of my favorite ways to have a salad and I have salads a lot. So let’s get into what ‘s in this baby and how to assemble it.

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Asian Food, Bowls, Grains, International vegan cuisine, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Vegan

Spicy Tofu Stir Fry Recipes

Posted on March. 2023March. 2023 by writinstuff

Stir Fry is one of my favorite lazy vegan meals because you can make it with pretty much anything left over in the fridge before grocery day, and it doesn’t require a lot of extra planning. If you have half a carrot that you want to use before it goes bad, grab some bell peppers and onions and you’re halfway to a good vegan stir fry.

And when it comes to protein? The vegan world is your oyster, or your oyster mushroom (see what I did there?).

Vegan Stir Fry Protein Options:

*Nuts
*Tofu
*Vegan meat alternatives
*Beans
*Seeds

Pick your favorite or leave it out together and opt for a tahini or peanut butter based sauce if you prefer. Add a grain and you’ve got a delicious vegan stir fry recipe you can call on at anytime.

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Asian Food, International vegan cuisine, Noodles, oil free vegan recipes, Soup, Vegan

Cauliflower & Hokkaido Squash Ramen Stew

Posted on March. 2023March. 2023 by writinstuff

Happy Friday & DOUBLE Happy St. Patrick’s Day, folks!

Today’s post isn’t so much a recipe just me sharing a delicious recipe I made recently and I wanted to share. This was one of those off the cuff recipes that could have gone either way and though it might not look great, it was hearty and delicious and oh so satisfying.

I love to experiment with soups and this one turned out better than I expected which means we can ALL expect a repeat recipe sometime soon.

If you’re curious about how to make this soup, think of it like this: hokkaido squash soup with Ramen noodles and oven roasted curry cauliflower.

This week has been crazy hectic for me and I hope my weekend includes writing and relaxing, and of course a delicious celebratory St. Patrick’s day vegan feast!

International vegan cuisine, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Vegan, Vegan Food Products

Creamy Greek Style Vegan Polenta & Greens

Posted on March. 2023March. 2023 by writinstuff

Have I ever told you how much I enjoy polenta? I’ll let you in on a little secret, as much as I love it, my husband has a fanatical love of polenta.

Well, in Romania it’s called Mămăligă and it’s a little stiffer than polenta but they are basically the same. His favorite is mămăligă cu branza which translates to polenta with cheese, and I have to admit that it is super delicious. And I happened upon some vegan Greek white which is an excellent version of vegan feta cheese, and a perfect ingredient to mix into your favorite version of polenta.

I’ve talked a lot here and here about what makes a really good and creamy polenta, so check it out for tips on getting the best polenta you can.

I paired this polenta with a Beyond “steak” patty and kohlrabi greens with garlic and grilled onions because, well because it is wicked delicious.

What’s your favorite thing to pair with polenta?

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Bar Food, Beans, Bowls, International vegan cuisine, Mexican Dishes, Plant Based, Vegan

Jackfruit Recipes! ~ Jackfruit & Black Bean Nacho Bowl

Posted on March. 2023March. 2023 by writinstuff

If you’ve been a vegan for at least the past 5 minutes then you know what jackfruit is. Maybe you’ve had it before or maybe you’re looking to try it. I don’t know.

I had jackfruit for the first time when I lived in Germany. The hubs and I went out for our first anniversary meal as vegans to a really nice restaurant called Grüner Michel and they served this amazing Brazilian spiced jackfruit and I fell in love with it on the spot. And then, of course, we left Germany.

Recently I was at my local Lidl and found a can of jackfruit and I thought to myself, it’s been a long time since that disastrous attempt in which I bought the wrong, sweet version so it was time to try it again.

Right?

I decided to start simple with a nacho bowl. It turned out delicious and flavorful, and I’m thinking I’ll try it again as some kind of shredded barbecue sandwiches.

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Breads, Cheese, International vegan cuisine, Plant Based, Vegan

Vegan Cheese (& other goodies) Tray ~ Vegan Charcuterie Board

Posted on March. 2023March. 2023 by writinstuff

Let’s just start this post by me letting you know that yes, I know that charcuterie is a type of butchery and also yes, I am fully well aware that’s not technically the case with todays’ vegan food showcase. I concede all that if you promise not to take everything so literal.

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk about what we’ve got going on here today.

My hubs came across this vegan food brand, Rawckers, and because it was mostly vegan cheese products, he was, of course, intrigued. You see, he loves cheese. Unlike me who kind of lost my taste for it after going vegan, The Hubs is still going strong with his cheese love, so give him an option for cashew cheese and he’s all aboard the cheese train.

And best of all? He even had a plan for it. A plan that only required a little input on my part, which in Wife Land we call the best plan of all!

So he made a vegan charcuterie board which we enjoyed a few weeks back while watching UFC. Is that weird? Everyone thinks it’s strange that we were eating vegan food while watching professional combat athletes battle it out in the octagon.

Personally? I felt both fancy and savage, thank you very much.

Since there’s no cooking required there’s no actual recipe, but we’ll talk about…something.

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Asian Food, International vegan cuisine, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Salads, Vegan

Easy Vegan Quick Pickled Wood Ear Mushrooms

Posted on February. 2023February. 2023 by writinstuff

Today’s recipe is one that I have grown totally obsessed with over the past two years and now whenever I find wood ear mushrooms, I have to get at least one package.

Have you ever had these or even heard of them? They are delicious and earthy with this beautiful deep brown color that makes them seem like they’re from another planet. I have had them at an Asian restaurant here or there but most of what I learned about how to prepare these came from good ol’ YouTube University.

If you’re looking for a quick and easy vegan salad, look no further than this pickled wood ear mushroom salad. It’s super refreshing and incredibly flavorful, and best of all? It goes on the side of pretty much anything and especially Asian style dishes.

The good thing about todays’ quick pickled vegan salad is that it is pretty dang easy and only requires a wee bit of patience. And other than the mushrooms, shouldn’t require you to venture outside of pantry and fridge staples.

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Bar Food, International vegan cuisine, Plant Based, Sauces & Creams, Vegan

Oyster Mushroom Barbacoa Recipe

Posted on February. 2023February. 2023 by writinstuff

Hi, my name is Natasha and I am a vegan foodie.

This is where you say, “Hi, Natasha!”

As such, this means that I spend time on YouTube, online and pretty much any other venue scrounging around for other other vegan bloggers who have come up with delicious creations for me to sample. Today’s recipe is no different and it’s from one of my favorites, Yeung Man Cooking.

That’s right folks, this sort of simplistic vegan blogger with a specialty in Asian cuisine is one of my favorites because he has a magical ability to take one Asian recipe and turning into 47 different recipes, which is great for me because I just can’t get enough.

Today’s vegan recipe is mushroom barbacoa. Mushroom Barbacoa, y’all!

Will used King Oystery mushrooms but not only are those suckers expensive but they aren’t widely available at all the grocery stores here in Romania. However my favorites, oyster mushrooms, can be found anywhere barring any food shortages so I did what every good vegan has to do once in a while (or more frequently), I improvised.

So let’s get to it!

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International vegan cuisine, Plant Based, Soup, Travel, Vegan, Vegan Food Products

Vegan Soup Recipes ~ Ciorba de Burta vegana (Vegan Romanian Soup recipes)

Posted on February. 2023February. 2023 by writinstuff

So there’s this Romanian soup and it’s called Ciorba de Burta, and my husband used to love it. When we lived in Los Angeles there was one Romanian restaurant and they served it every single day. I used to (and still do) call it brain soup, but it’s not made of brains.

…Or so he says.

Anyway I won’t bore you with the details of Ciorba de Burta, only to say that recently we went to Bucharest and decided to enjoy a vegan lunch before we headed back home.

We’ve been to this place, Vyro, before and it is fantastic. It is a completely vegan restaurant and they also serve raw vegan food, which is pretty damn good too.

My point, and I’m getting to it right now, is that this place served a full on vegan ciorba de burta and it was fantastic.

How do I know?

I don’t, not really. There was a creamy mushroom soup on the menu and I was like, “Yum, that sounds delicious. I’ll have that.” When it arrived at the table, my Hubs recognized the scent, the look and everything else, as Ciorba de burta.

We shared it, because of course we did.

It was fantastic.