Pasta – The Spicy Spatula

Vegan Chicken Alfredo

January. 2022January. 2022Cheese, International vegan cuisine, Italian, Pasta, Sauces & Creams, VeganLeave a Comment

Have I mentioned lately how much I love pasta and noodles? That I could eat it at least four times a week without getting sick of it even though I very easily and quickly get sick of dishes if I have them too often? Of course I have, it’s me we’re talking about!

I’ve already made a couple of different vegan alfredo sauces, one with lots of garlic and mushrooms and another with peas, chickpea alfredo sauce and vegan parmesan. Despite my love of pasta and alfredo sauce, I’ve made this dish again because I feel as if my vegan alfredo sauce gets better with every go round.

At first it was too think and clunky, then it was too watery. Whether I used a roux, processed tofu or early versions of mediocre vegan cheese, it was good but it wasn’t quite right. Thus began my Goldilocks method of perfecting my vegan alfredo sauce.

Today I kept it simple with this vegan chicken alfredo made with Naturli brand breaded schnitzel, which includes this particular dish in the easy vegan recipes column. Pop the schnitzel in the oven until crispy and sizzling, let it rest while you take care of everything else.

If you think making vegan alfredo sauce from scratch couldn’t possibly qualify as ‘easy’, think again. Even the recipe list on this bad boy is fairly simple.

Track Your Nutrition & Health Data with cronometer.com

Continue reading ➞ Vegan Chicken Alfredo

Vegan Sides Great for Any Holiday Dinner

December. 2021December. 2021International vegan cuisine, Pasta, Plant Based, Potatoes, Sides, VeganLeave a Comment

With the holidays right around the corner, many vegans will have a tough choice to make. Should I make a side diesh to bring to family dinner and risk that no one will eat it, or should I just show up and hope for something more to eat than salad and dinner rolls?

Not gonna lie, it can be a difficult choice, made much easier by everything else that’s going on. You could opt to stay home and still make enough food to feel a small army and thereby negating your need to cook for a few days.

Either way, I have a few options that are mostly easy, totally delicious and not too time consuming to make.

Continue reading ➞ Vegan Sides Great for Any Holiday Dinner

Vegan Seafood Pasta ~ King Oyster Scallops & Creamy Garlic Wine Pasta

November. 2021October. 2021Bowls, International vegan cuisine, Pasta, Sauces & Creams, Sides, Vegan3 Comments

Well I’ve finally done it. I have jumped on the bandwagon to try a dish that I have REALLY been looking forward to trying on my own, while all the vegan bloggers in the world have been able to try this dish. I’m not jealous or bitter, not at all, but I have to tell you that I was seriously stoked when my partner and I were strolling the produce section at Metro (Romania’s version of Costco) and what did I happen upon but King Oyster mushrooms!

Instantly I knew that this was my moment. My chance to see if these King Oyster vegan scallops were as tasty and amazing as they seemed.

They are. No, they’re not. They are better, but only if you’re not expecting for a mushroom to taste like a creature that lives in the sea.

But I did it. Yay, I frickin’ did it y’all!

There are two schools of thought–apparently–when it comes to making these vegan scallops. Some have advised slicing the mushrooms and marinating them overnight while others say that thirty minutes or more will suffice.

Continue reading ➞ Vegan Seafood Pasta ~ King Oyster Scallops & Creamy Garlic Wine Pasta

Spicy Vegan Tuna Puttanesca with Orecchiette

September. 2021September. 2021International vegan cuisine, Italian, Pasta, Plant Based, VeganLeave a Comment

When it comes to pasta, my motto is, the more the better. That’s right. Despite my efforts to eat healthier over the years, the one thing I refuse to give up is carbs. I love spaghetti, mac & cheese, ramen, bread…all of it. But I’m also not afraid to add any of them to a bowl of raw veggies to balance it all out.

But I’ve recently discovered a brand of vegan tuna called Unfished, and you know that meant I needed a do over from my last vegan puttanesca dish!

There are a lot of variations on what it means to make a true puttanesca but this is a vegan food blog so we already know there won’t be any anchovies or other formerly living critters in this recipe, and that’s all right because that’s where the vegan tuna comes in.

This dish was pretty easy to make, especially if you already know the basics of building a good red sauce. Even if you don’t, you’ll find it easy…with a bit of prep work.

Continue reading ➞ Spicy Vegan Tuna Puttanesca with Orecchiette

My Vegan Junk Food Haul

August. 2021August. 2021International vegan cuisine, Italian, Pasta, Plant Based, Snacks, Vegan2 Comments

I’ve made no secret on this blog about my attempt to eat healthier. I started a vegan lifestyle in May 2017 and since then I’ve lost more than 45kg, I have increased my muscle mass and have almost no jiggly skin remaining. Yay me.

But I’m not telling you this just to brag or clap myself on the back, I’m telling you because I have worked really hard to maintain a healthy diet at all times without going overboard. But, a person with more than 45 kilograms to lose has a clear love and/or addiction to food, right?

Soooo right.

But that doesn’t mean that I don’t enjoy a little bit of junk every once in a while. And whenever there are new vegan products that hit the market, I try them out to see if they’re worth breaking the calorie bank. Newsflash: They usually aren’t.

But let’s dig in and see, shall we?

Before I get into my vegan junk food haul, let me tell you a little bit about the healthy things I do to keep the weight off and stay healthy & fit.

Continue reading ➞ My Vegan Junk Food Haul

Vegan Chicken & Penne Arrabiata

July. 2021July. 2021Chicken, Grains, International vegan cuisine, Italian, Pasta, Plant Based, Sauces & Creams, VeganLeave a Comment

When I’m not in the mood to spend a lot of time in the kitchen, I go for something that’s simple and tasty. Not necessarily comfort food, but delicious home-cooked food that’s easy to make. Something that always satisfies.

Like pasta.

Whether you just like pasta or you want to try something new, enjoy this easy vegan fried chicken and penne Arrabiata.

If you love pasta, quick cooking times and delicious vegan tomato sauce, this is a dish you’ll love and add to your roster of old faithfuls.

Continue reading ➞ Vegan Chicken & Penne Arrabiata

Spicy Buffalo Vegan Tacos w/Corn & Tomato Salsa

June. 2021June. 2021Grains, International vegan cuisine, Mexican Dishes, Pasta, Sauces & Creams, VeganLeave a Comment

In our house, any night is taco night. Whether is taco bowls or taco nachos or even something as simple as a taco salad, we LOVE tacos.

My personal favorite is hard shell tacos but for some reason they have been pretty difficult to come by recently so I had to settle for my second favorite, corn tortilla taco shells. Poor me, right?

Anyway the Hubs requested buffalo soya tacos and that was my starting point for what I called our taco bonanza!

Continue reading ➞ Spicy Buffalo Vegan Tacos w/Corn & Tomato Salsa

Quatro Vegan Formaggio ~ Vegan Shells & Cheese

June. 2021June. 2021Cheese, Drinks, International vegan cuisine, Pasta, Plant Based, Sauces & Creams, Sides, Vegan1 Comment

I’ll tell you up front that I was so excited about how well, and by well I mean cheesy this dish came out, that I dug right in and finished it all before I remembered the small matter of taking photos. Oops.

Forgive me?

Since the Hubs and I still do the Midnight Tokyo Diner dinner choices, our meal choices are at the mercy of that on any given night, which means some nights we have more not-so-healthy meals than others.

This is one of those nights.

He requested cheesy mac & cheese and I may have gone a little overboard, but here we are.

The truth is that I like to experiment with different vegan foods when they hit the market and well, my most recent haul included several different types of vegan cheese and since my husband LOVES mac & cheese, I knew this request would come, sooner or later.

So when he made his request, I had my marching orders.

Continue reading ➞ Quatro Vegan Formaggio ~ Vegan Shells & Cheese

Vegan Pancake Lasagna ~ Easy Vegan Meals for One

May. 2021May. 2021Cheese, Grains, International vegan cuisine, Italian, Pasta, Plant Based, Vegan2 Comments

Do you guys watch a lot of YouTube or is it just me? I use it for many of my workout videos, my crime documentaries and most of all, recipes. I subscribe to vegan and non-vegan channels alike because sometimes non-vegan cooks have some really good ideas too.

One of my favorites is Chef John from Food Wishes. I love his corny dad jokes and even though there is always meat or dairy in his recipes, I love to veganize so many of them that it’s worth it. During one of my recent YouTube sessions, which its pretty difficult to call it a single session since it pretty much goes on and on for most of the day, especially since I pay for premium which means…no ads!

Sorry, Chef John and the Pancake Lasagna (recipe here and video here). So my partner and I watched this video together and we both pretty much had the same reaction. “Let’s make this. ASAP.”

So, that’s what we did.

The idea behind this vegan lasagna is pretty simple. Make the lasagna you love, only replace the pasta with thin, homemade pancakes. This idea appealed to me immediately because ever since moving to Europe, I have had a difficult time finding the long lasagna noodles that you boil so they’re nice and malleable no matter what size/shape baking dish you use.

Continue reading ➞ Vegan Pancake Lasagna ~ Easy Vegan Meals for One

Childhood Favorites Gone Vegan ~ Spaghetti & Meatballs

April. 2021April. 2021Grains, International vegan cuisine, Italian, Pasta, Plant Based, Sauces & Creams, VeganLeave a Comment

When I was a kid one of my favorite canned meals was spaghetti and meatballs. As a latch-key kid, there was nothign better than racing home from school to crack open a can of ravioli, spaghetti-o’s or spaghetti and meatballs. All of that tomato-y goodness that, in hindsight, wasn’t all that good, waiting to stain your lips and your microwave safe bowl!

Who could resist?

Not me, that’s for sure!

So, when I was walking the aisles of Lidl last week and noted that here in Romania they have started to up their vegan food choices game. I found Verdino brand meatballs and you know what I did, grabbed up the last package with a giddy smile. I knew then what I wanted.

What is that?

Well, let’s see. Combine my love of carbs, noodles and pasta with these vegan meatballs and what do you have? One of my childhood favorites, re-done for the fancy, grown-up vegan I am today.

This is one of those vegan dinner recipes that you can do the easy way or the tasty way. Just kidding, I’m sure your jarred pasta is super delicious, it’s just a little too sweet for my taste. But if anyone knows of any no sugar added options, I’m game to give it a try.

Continue reading ➞ Childhood Favorites Gone Vegan ~ Spaghetti & Meatballs