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Vegan Panda Express Chow Mein


We like to go out to dinner now and then as a family - who doesn't it?  Eating out at a restaurant in Idaho that caters to a plant based diet however isn't the easiest thing.  One of the big restaurants in our area is Panda Express.  My whole family loves it.  However they don't have vegetarian/vegan options.  So while my family eats there now and then - I end up having to get something to eat from somewhere else.  My family loves Chinese/Thai food - so I am always trying to come up with new recipes for us to try.  So I've created a vegan friendly Panda Express "style" chow mein.  Now I can enjoy a little "Panda Express" at home with my family AND - my whole family gobbles it up.  We eat it as a main dish - but you could use it as a side if you'd like.  It is so easy and fast to make too!

I use a well seasoned cast iron skillet for this recipe.  I try to cut out oil when I saute veggies to be a little healthier.  I often don't need the oil and if things start to stick a little I add a little water which works just as great as oil in my opinion. But, feel free to use a little oil to saute the veggies if you feel you need to.

 
Vegan Panda Express Chow Mein
Makes 6-8 servings (depending whether it is a side or main dish)

Ingredients
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp brown sugar
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
ground black pepper, to taste
1(17.76 oz) package refrigerated Yaki Soba noodles (found in the produce section of the grocery store)
1 cup chopped celery (chopped diagonally)
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
2-3 cups chopped cabbage


Directions
In a small bowl combine soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger and black pepper. Set aside.

Remove Yaki Soba from package and discard included flavoring packets. Rinse noodles well, drain, and set aside.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add celery and onion and saute for about 1-2 minutes or until onions start to become soft and transparent. Add cabbage and saute an additional minute or so.

Toss Yaki Soba noodles and soy sauce mixture with the vegetables over medium-high heat for an additional 2-3 minutes or until noodles are heated through.

 


Peppermint Stick with Chocolate Chunks Ice Cream


It is spring but we are already hitting the hot temperatures. And there is nothing better to beat the heat than a cold bowl of ice cream. I had some candy canes left over from Christmas and thought a peppermint ice cream would be very refreshing. I used to love it as a kid when my parents would by Peppermint Stick ice cream at Christmas time. We were very big ice cream eaters back in the day! Anyway, this is what I came up with and it turned out just as delicious as I remembered the dairy version to be. I hope you like it too!

Peppermint Stick with Chocolate Chunks Ice Cream

Ingredients
1 13.5 ounce can organic coconut milk
1 1/4 cups non-dairy milk
1/2 cup organic pure cane sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp peppermint extract
8 candy canes or 25 round peppermint hard candies, divided
½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ tsp olive oil


Directions
In a large bowl, combine coconut milk, non-dairy milk, cane sugar, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract, whisk together well. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
While you are waiting, unwrap candy canes and throw in to a food processor or blender.  Pulse repeatedly until the candies become course pieces.  Set aside.

Once ice cream base is chilled, make according to your ice cream maker‘s instructions.  While it is churning, melt the chocolate chips and oil in a small sauce pan on low heat.  Stir often, until completely melted and smooth; take off heat and set aside.  Add in ½ the candy cane pieces during the last five minutes of churning to incorporate thoroughly.
Transfer spoonfuls of the ice cream into an airtight container and drizzle each addition with a very fine ribbon of the liquid chocolate.  The chocolate will set up almost immediately upon contact.  Also sprinkle each addition with the remaining candy cane pieces.  Once all of the ice cream and chocolate is in the container, give the whole mixture a good stir with the end of a wooden spoon to break up the chocolate ribbon into pieces. 

Stash in your freezer for at least three hours to firm up before serving.

Seitan With Broccoli



 
My kids aren't the best at eating vegetables on their own, so I try to think of ways to throw a variety of veggies together in one meal so they get a good variety in one shot.  Stir-fries are a good way to accomplish this.  My husband used to love Beef and Broccoli so I have created a "plant" version so we can still enjoy it.  He loves this recipe - even the seitan.  My kids aren't big seitan eaters, but they also love this recipe.  I hope your family enjoy it too! 

We serve it over brown rice or quinoa usually but any grain will do.  OR you can just eat it by itself. You will also want to make the baked seitan recipe ahead of time (it takes 90+ minutes). Otherwise this is a pretty quick meal to make.  If you want to go without seitan - just throw in some extra veggies that you like instead.


Seitan with Broccoli
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
3 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
3 Tbsp hoisin sauce
2 Tbsp rice wine
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp cornstarch
½ recipe baked seitan, thinly sliced
1 lb (4-5 cups) broccoli broken into bite-size pieces
1 bell pepper, cored and sliced
1 carrot, sliced on the diagonal
¾ cup onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
¼ tsp Better Than Bouillon, No Beef Base
¼ cup water
Directions
Combine the soy sauce, hoisin, rice wine, brown sugar, and cornstarch in a mixing bowl.  Whisk to combine the liquid with the cornstarch.  Mix in the seitan and let marinate for 30 minutes.
 
Heat a cast iron skillet over medium heat.  Add the broccoli, bell pepper, carrot, onion, garlic and ginger and stir-fry.  Stir the vegetables frequently for about 5 minutes, until the vegetables have softened.  Add the seitan and its marinade and continue cooking, stirring frequently for about 5 minutes. 
 
Whisk together the bouillon and water in a small bowl.  Add it to the vegetables and seitan and cook for another 2 minutes, until the sauce thickens and clings to the seitan and vegetables. 
 
Serve over brown rice or quinoa if you like.