There is something magical about the combination of butter and soy sauce. I didn’t even make this up – the New York Times agrees with me. It’s kind of an East-West flavor bomb. So when I found a recipe in Heidi Swanson’s Near and Far cookbook featuring butter, soy, and tempeh, I had to try it! Crispy shredded brussels sprouts finish the dish. You can serve it over rice or just eat it up! I prefer the strong flavor of tamari in this dish instead of soy sauce, but you can try it and decide for yourself. Did I mention that this is an extremely quick dish to make? Perfect for your Meatless Monday.
tempeh
vegan buffalo ranch salad with tempeh and garlic croutons
One of our favorite restaurants, Sweet Grass Grill in Tarrytown, New York, serves buffalo tempeh “wings” as an appetizer. THEY ARE SO GOOD. Each time we order them, our server reminds us that they don’t contain chicken. We don’t care! We love them! Give us more! So imagine my intense curiosity when I saw this buffalo ranch salad recipe featuring buffalo-ized tempeh or tofu in Salad Samurai: 100 Cutting-Edge, Ultra-Hearty, Easy-to-Make Salads You Don’t Have to Be Vegan to Love. You know, sometimes I just like to try things to see if they work. This works! It totally delivers the spicy, vinegary buffalo flavor, as well as a creamy pesto ranch dressing, without any animal products. And there’s the question of that creamy pesto ranch dressing. How is this achieved without dairy, you ask? Raw cashews soaked until soft and blended with all kinds of good stuff. That’s how. I know, it’s crazy. But in fact it’s a fairly common practice to use cashews for creamy stuff in the vegan world (which I only dabble in). OK with me! Continue reading