Salads

Bowls, International vegan cuisine, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Salads, Vegan

Vegan Horiatiki Salad Recipe ~ Easy & Tasty Vegan Greek Salad

Posted on May. 2024May. 2024 by writinstuff

Happy Hump Day friends, foodies and lovers of all things vegan!

Today was my cover reveal for my latest contemporary romance novel, Make Me Want To Love You and as such, this post is late because things have been–still–hectic lately. If you’re curious to know more check out the cover reveal or just go ahead and pre-order it TODAY!!!

Things have been busy, sure, but then again things are always busy aren’t they? I have too many jobs to count–ghostwriter, author, blogger, traveler and more–which means there’s no such thing as down time and even though a proper salad can be time-consuming, I think it’s totally worth the effort because my hunger will be satisfied longer which means I won’t have to stop for food (or snack) breaks.

Salads are my jam and I’ll fight anyone who wants to argue about it, but most days I don’t have to because if you like salad, you can appreciate the beauty and wonder of such a colorful and nutritious (pssst…and low calorie) meal. And if you think it’s rabbit food, well you’ll earn soon enough.

This vegan salad recipe is actually a vegan version of Horiatiki Salad which is just another way of saying Greek Salad. except this isn’t the one you get at those big chain restaurants that have entirely too much red onion and not enough cucumber and tomato.

Oh no, this one has other goodies like capers, bell peppers and vegan feta because…well because I was eager to test out this new vegan feta cheese and built a salad around it. Okay?

Do as much prep work first as you can and this will be the tastiest and fastest vegan salad you’ve made this month! (Ha, see what I did there?)

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Asian Food, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Salads, Sides, Vegan

Vegan Salad Season Has Arrived!!!

Posted on April. 2024April. 2024 by writinstuff

If you know just one thing about me then you know how much I love salad. And that’s not just what you think a healthy girl should say, it’s the truth. I’m not talking about those tired ass side salads you get as an option at your favorite chain restaurant, oh no, I’m talking about a grown folks’ salad that runneth over with colors, veggies and nutrients.

It can be a big salad or a small one, the main feature or simply the co-star to a whole vegan dinner. I’m not picky…okay I’m not too picky.

Today I’m keeping it short and simple because…author reasons.

Just in case you’re curious about AUTHOR REASONS…

I have two salads to share with you and they’re both incredibly simple in both preparation and taste. They contain mostly seasonal ingredients that you can find at just about any grocery store and all the rest should be in your pantry.

Now, lets get on with a few great ways to add more healthy salad recipes to your diet!

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Bowls, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Potatoes, Salads, Vegan

Easy Vegan Salad Recipe! ~ Spring Veggie Salad

Posted on April. 2024April. 2024 by writinstuff

You all know that I am a big, big fan of salads. Toss’em with noodles, rice, bulgur, couscous, mushrooms or your favorite vegan meat alternative. Add a vinaigrette or a creamy vegan yogurt salad dressing and I am a happy camper.

After a couple hours spent playing tennis, I wanted something nutritious and satisfying, but substantial enough to maintain all the calories burnt while channeling my inner Serena Williams. This salad totally fit the bill!

Recently I came across this gorgeous looking recipe when I was scrolling on Pinterest (yes people still do that) and I knew that I was going to find a way to veganize it. It was so gorgeous with bright, vibrant spring colors, lots of veggies which means lots of nutrients and so simple it was irresistible.

I know that salads, particularly vegan salads, often get a bad rap but the truth is that salads are healthy pizza. What did I just say? You heard me. People always say that pizza is the perfect food because it combines all the food groups but…have you ever heard of a salad? You get tons of vegetables either raw or cooked, or raw and cooked, grains, beans or vegan meat alternatives, fruit and vegan salad dressing! That’s like everything except dessert.

And this one is wonderful so let’s stop talking about and just get to making this vegan Spring Salad. No fancy name, just simple vegan goodness.

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Bar Food, Bowls, Grains, one pot recipes, Pizza, Plant Based, Salads, Vegan

Vegan Summer Recipes!! ~ Spicy Chickpea Pasta Salad

Posted on April. 2024April. 2024 by writinstuff

Are you one of those people who sometimes think that certain foods just don’t go together? Not in a food snob kind of way, just that you’ve never thought about it or they don’t seem as if they should go together? Well I have and it’s one of my biggest weaknesses as a vegan home chef and I’ve been working hard to correct. My Hubs? He is the master at putting together weird ingredients and making them work.

We all have our things…right?

Anyway I saw this recipe when I was scrolling social media and it was buffalo spiced chickpeas and pasta salad…put together!

My first reaction was, “Beans and pasta salad? Weird.” But the photos really looked delicious and honestly I was sold right then and there. So, short story long that is how we arrived at today’s recipe.

A few notes:

*You can omit the spice and opt for a mixture of herbs and other not-spicy spices.
*Make sure the chickpeas are dry prior to seasoning them. Drain and rinse and then rub with a kitchen towel.
*If you’re not a fan of spiral pasta shapes, get one with the little ridges because they hang on to flavor and sauces better.

Strap on your favorite kitschy apron and let’s do this!

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Bowls, Grains, Herbs, oil free vegan recipes, one pot recipes, Plant Based, Salads, Vegan

No Ordinary Vegan Salad

Posted on January. 2024January. 2024 by writinstuff

I don’t know about you but I’m not big on making New Year’s resolutions. I did it for years and found that, like most people, my success was short-lived. These days I just make goals when I think of something I need to improve and the success rate is so much better. Just a little tip from one vegan to another.

BUT if you are a resolution maker and you’re looking for ways to stick to’em well past January or February, may I offer a bit of help.

How?

Most people think of salads as boring & bland & tasteless, and that could not be further from the truth…at least not if you do it right. Sure lettuce and cucumber and tomatoes are part of the mix but they shouldn’t be the only parts. Oh no, you need to get creative and re-think what you think a salad should be. Therein lies the secret to your success.

Today’s vegan salad recipe isn’t a recipe but more like vegan salad recipe tips. So take notes or come back time and again for success in 2024 whether your goal is to lose weight or simply eat better.

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International vegan cuisine, Plant Based, Salads, Snacks, Vegan

Vegan Sauerkraut Kimchi Recipe

Posted on January. 2024January. 2024 by writinstuff

If you were brave enough to click on this vegan recipe, congratulations! And Welcome to the land of weirdness.

Or maybe it’s not weird and maybe I’m just late to the odd, salty, vegan goodness that is vegan sauerkraut kimchi. Who knows?

Anyway I stumbled upon this recipe quite recently because for the holidays my Hubs decided he wanted to make sarmale, which is a Romanian dish of picked cabbage filled with rice, herbs & spices and vegan mince. But he ended up buying entirely too much pickled cabbage which was the first problem. The second? It was too thick to roll and he ended up cutting it into thin ribbons to make a sarmale casserole instead.

Annnnd, then there was almost a kilogram of pickled cabbage remaining. Never one to waste food, I dug into the recesses of my mind to think of different ways to enjoy pickled cabbage. There’s the Oktoberfest staple of kraut, potatoes and onions with vegan sausage. Always a favorite in our house. I figured we could add some carrot matchsticks or ribbons and let them absorb some of the pickled deliciousness.

And then I wondered if I could kimchi it so, of course, I consulted the ol’ Google machine and guess what? Totally possible. So I got down to work and if you’re feeling adventurous, you can too!

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Bowls, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Salads, Vegan

Crispy Oven “Fried” Curry Oyster Mushroom Salad

Posted on December. 2023December. 2023 by writinstuff

Happy Wednesday, my dear vegans and food lovers alike. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday that was as chill or as chaotic as you wanted it to be. I spent some time with my family in Romania and missed my family back home in the US. The weather was nice and I got to wear a (not) ugly holiday sweater dress.

It was a nice day spent with family which is fine by me and it did include some vegan dishes, mostly made by the hubs.

**A glimpse of Ploiesti during the holidays!**

So after all the overeating you may or may not have done on Monday, it’s time to get back on track or reverse the damage or however you want to call it, with a healthier vegan meal option. And we all know that one of my favorite dishes that allows you to eat a lot of food without a ton of calories is…SALAD.

Is there anything better than a colorful nutrient-filled vegan meal?

I think not.

So let’s get to it because you gotta get in the healthy meals before New Year’s Eve rolls around, right?

Right?

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oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Salads, Sides, Vegan

Vegan “Carpaccio” Style Salad

Posted on September. 2023September. 2023 by writinstuff

You know how sometimes you get something in your mind and you don’t know where it came from, if you’re just making it up or you heard it somewhere but it just sounds right to you? Well that happened to me recently and my mind wouldn’t let go of it so I decided to bring it to life, come what may.

Back in the days when using animals for food and toiletries was the norm for me, I wasn’t a big fan of carpaccio. I mean I had it a few times but it wasn’t as ooh-la-la as I imagined it to be in my mind and, well that was that.

But recently I kept thinking about making a veggie carpaccio or should I say a carpaccio style salad. I wasn’t trying to take a vegetable and turn it into some type of seafood and I had no plans to use any type of vegan meat alternative so that it was as authentic as vegan carpaccio could be.

So what was in my mind?

Basically it was thinly sliced vegetables with a nice citrus (or not) dressing drizzled on top.

Weird, right?

I know, I know. But when you spend most of each day deep in the writing cave, this is the weird stuff you come up with. If you’ll bear with me, we can all think of this as my first draft. The bones are there but it needs a lot of work before I can fully flesh it out, or in this case make it at least look more appetizing.

If you have any tips–that do NOT require me using my mandolin–I’m happy to hear them!

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Bowls, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Salads, Vegan

Hot & Cold Kitchen Sink Vegan Salad

Posted on August. 2023August. 2023 by writinstuff

So you all know that I’m obsessed with salad and making them bigger and better and weirder than ever. Whether you want a noodle salad, a cabbage salad, fancy carrot salad or vegan sushi salad, you can find it here at The Spicy Spatula.

Today’s easy vegan salad recipe is what I liked to call a hot and cold salad because it combines raw vegan ingredients along with cooked ones but I don’t mix them together piping hot–of course–because the lettuce would wilt and the vegan salad dressing would become too watery, but hot & cold sounds better don’t you think?

Anyway this salad came about as more of a kitchen sink salad because I had a few florets of broccoli that needed to be used, a half of a cucumber and about 1/3 of a head of green cabbage that I wanted to use up before hitting up the grocery store so I said, “let’s make it into a salad” and I don’t tell you this so you can fawn over my vegan prowess but just so you can see how easy it is to whip up a salad–healthy and calorie friendly–without going crazy.

People always say that eating healthy is expensive but whole foods are more filling and they cost less because your hunger is satisfied for a longer period of time than other foods. So remember this kitchen sink vegan salad the next time you’re in the mood for something healthy but you don’t know where to start.

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Bowls, oil free vegan recipes, one pot recipes, Plant Based, Salads, Vegan

Healthy Vegan Salads ~ Tofu Veggie Salad Recipe

Posted on August. 2023August. 2023 by writinstuff

I love salad. Yeah sure, I’m a little picky about the types of lettuce I like to eat–Romaine is at the top of the list for me–but this summer there has been a bit of a lettuce (except for iceberg which…yuck) shortage around her which means I have had to get creative.

My favorite alternative lettuce is cabbage, of course. It’s super crunchy which allows me to experiment with heavier, creamy vegan salad dressings. And it’s so satisfying without adding a ton of calories to your budget. Plus, hello fiber???

This salad was refreshing and delicious, satisfied my hunger after a cardio kickboxing workout, and left me with plenty of energy to get started on my next novel!