Veggie Teens

Culinary Techniques: How to Break an Egg

2012-02-16T12:59:28-08:00

Post by Elyse May (aka Veggie Teen) from Veggie Teens: A Cookbook and Guide for Vegetarian Teenagers.

In addition to hundreds of recipes, there are 21 "Veggie Teens Culinary How To" instructions in Veggie Teens Cookbook and Guide for Vegetarian Teenagers, each with three-step photos.

Here's how to crack an egg:

Tap the side of the egg on a flat surface.

Hold the egg over a bowl as you separate the two halves.

Allow the egg to drop gently into the bowl. If any egg shell falls in, scoop it out with a clean spoon.

Meatless Monday: Get out of the box

2012-02-11T13:45:43-08:00

My family signed up to pick up a box of fresh, local produce from the farmers' market each week. We get whatever comes in the box so it challenges us to get out of our box and try new recipes! (Check out our recipe at the bottom of this post. It might sound too healthy or even too strange to taste good - but it does!)

Here's what we got in our first box:

8 assorted citrus
Head of purple and speckled leaf romaine lettuce
2 baby fennel
3 bulbs of spring garlic
Bunch of bright lights swiss chard
2 small sweet potatoes
Tuscano kale
Spaghetti squash

Recipe: Winter Veg Korma

This is a vegan Indian dish made with garam masala - a fragrant mixture of up to 12 spices like black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin, cardamom, dried chiles, fennel, ginger, mace, or nutmeg. It is a lot easier to buy a mixture than measuring out a bunch of different spices.

Culinary Technique: Keep fresh ginger root in the freezer. Just peel it and store it in an airtight plastic bag in the freezer. Cut off pieces as needed; grate, slice, or finely dice.

Sauce:

1/2 onion, diced
1 small tomato, diced
1 inch of fresh ginger, finely diced
1/4 cup water
1 1/2 teaspoons of garam masala
1/2 teaspoon salt

Winter Veg:

1 1/2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
2 small sweet potatoes (1 pound)
1/2 small butternut squash (3/4 pound)
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups of water
1/2 bunch of kale; remove leaves from stem and chop
1 can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained
1/2 cup of light coconut milk

Directions

Combine first six sauce ingredients (onion, tomato, ginger, water, garam masala, salt) in a small food processor or blender and puree until smooth. Set aside.
Heat large sauté pan then add 1 tablespoon of the oil. When oil is hot, add diced sweet potato and butternut squash. Cook until vegetables start to soften then move them to the edge of the pan.
Add another tablespoon of oil to the center of the pan, and when hot, add sliced red onion and sauté, combining vegetables when onion is soft.
Remove vegetables to a plate.
Add 1/2 tablespoon of oil to pan; add sauce and cook until thickened, approximately 5 to 6 minutes.
Return vegetables to the pan and add 1 1/2 cups of water.
When mixture is simmering, stir in kale and chickpeas.
Cook until sauce is thickened then add cocunut milk and heat through.
Serve over brown rice.

Super Bowl Sunday Seven Layer Vegetarian Dip

2012-02-05T11:55:51-08:00

This meatless version of the popular Seven Layer Dip is so good that everyone will love it!

By Elyse May (aka Veggie Teen), author of Veggie Teens: A Cookbook and Guide for Vegetarian Teenagers.

Super Bowl Sunday
Seven Layer Vegetarian Dip

Serves 12

Ingredients
2 cans of refried black beans with jalepenos
8 ounces of light sour cream
1 package of taco seasoning
2 small cans of sliced olives, drained
2 avocados, diced
1/2 lemon for juice
1 can of white corn, drained
1 red pepper, diced
1 head of romaine lettuce, shredded
1 cups of salsa (we used our Salsa Fresca recipe from page 39 of Veggie Teens)
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

Spread black beans in the bottom of clear bowl.
Stir together sour cream and taco mix. Spread layer on top of beans.
Put diced avocado in next; squeeze lemon juice over avocados.
Stir together corn and diced red pepper. Pour over avacado.
Top with shredded lettuce.
Pour salsa or Salsa Fresca over lettuce.
Finish with shredded cheese.

Serve with tortilla chips.

Save the Arctic Cupcakes

2012-02-01T21:33:31-08:00

Arctic Ocean Cupcake Diorama

This cupcake diorama features all my favorite arctic animals. It was a huge project - you might want to try making just one animal at a time instead!

Walrus looking for his mate

Penguins fishing in an ice hole

Polar bear lounging in the sun

Humpback whales frolicking in the waves

Harp seal playing on the ice

Look out!

Meatless Monday: Easy Enchilada Casserole

2012-01-29T21:27:29-08:00

For more vegetarian recipes for teens, check out Veggie Teens: A Cookbook and Guide for Vegetarian Teenagers by Elyse May (aka Veggie Teen).

Easy Enchilada Casserole

Ingredients

1 28 ounce can of enchilada sauce
18 corn tortillas, each cut into 8 wedges
1 can black olives, sliced
1 pound of shredded cheese (reserve 1/4 pound for the top)
1/2 medium onion, diced (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350^O.
Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl.
Transfer to a baking dish.
Bake for 40 minutes.
Remove from the oven and top with remaining cheese.
Return to oven and bake for 5-10 minutes, or until the cheese starts to bubble and brown.

Rosemary Focaccia with Red Onion and Olives

2012-01-10T20:47:41-08:00

This is an easy recipe that is great as an appetizer or with soup or beans. Experiment with other toppings too. For more vegetarian recipes, check out Veggie Teens: A Cookbook and Guide for Vegetarian Teenagers by Elyse May (aka Veggie Teen).

Rosemary Focaccia with Red Onion and Olives

Ingredients

1 tube of refrigerated pizza crust
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup green or black olives, sliced
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, removed from stems and chopped (see How to Strip the Leaves from Fresh Rosemary below)
Pinch of kosher salt

Directions

Unroll pizza crust on baking sheet sprayed with nonstick spray.
Poke crust all over with your fingers to make shallow dimples.
Brush with olive oil.
Top with olives and red onion.
Sprinkle with chopped rosemary then salt to taste.
Bake according to packaged directions until crust is golden.

Culinary Technique:

How to Strip the Leaves from Fresh Rosemary

Pinch the top of the rosemary stem with one hand and run the fingers of your other hand from top to bottom, pulling the leaves off the woody stem. Use whole leaves or coarsely chop.

Monster Cupcakes

2011-10-30T20:16:35-07:00

Happy Halloween!

Make Your Own Halloween Treats

2011-10-12T15:29:54-07:00

For more Kids Cook Monday and vegetarian recipes, check out Veggie Teens: A Cookbook and Guide for Vegetarian Teenagers by Elyse May (aka Veggie Teen).

These Halloween Treats are unique and fun to make - AND they are crunchy and taste great!

They're meringue cookies made with egg whites so they are for ovo-vegetarians. The recipe also calls for mini-chocolate chips so if you don't do dairy, leave them out or buy chocolate chips that don't have "milk" or "milk fat" on the ingredient label.

To get these cool halloween colors, look for "neon" food coloring. If you don't want to use food coloring, leave them white and make ghosts with chocolate chips for eyes.

You'll find the recipe on page 100 of your Veggie Teens Cookbook or download the complete recipe for these Halloween Treats (aka Meringue Cloud Cookies) from the link below.

Download www.VeggieTeensCookbook.com_Halloween_Cookies.pdf

Meatless Monday: Vegetarian School Lunch Ideas

2011-08-07T22:56:34-07:00

There are limited vegetarian lunch options at most high schools. You don't have to settle for cheese pizzas, cheese crisps, and salad bar everyday - take your own lunch instead. Here are a few make ahead vegetarian recipes from prior posts that you might want to try:

Vegetarian Lunch Wrap - Easy idea for any of your favorite fillings
Veggie Taco Salad - The secret is keeping all of the ingredients fresh
Mediterranean Pasta Salad - One version of my favorite food: pasta salad!
Oriental Salad - Fresh ingredients and bottled dressing make this easy one great
Bulgar Edamame Salad - A great variation on Tabbouleh (or Tabouli)

For more vegetarian school lunch ideas and recipes, check out Veggie Teens: A Cookbook and Guide for Vegetarian Teenagers by Elyse May (aka Veggie Teen).

Meatless Monday: Oriental Salad with Mandarin, Edamame, and Almonds

2011-07-24T12:35:00-07:00

For more Meatless Monday and vegetarian recipes, check out Veggie Teens: A Cookbook and Guide for Vegetarian Teenagers by Elyse May (aka Veggie Teen).

Oriental Salad with Mandarin, Edamame, and Almonds

This colorful, delicious, and nutritious salad is easy to make with whatever ingredients you have on hand!

Red leaf lettuce
Red pepper, sliced (see Culinary Techniques: How to Cut a Red Pepper)
Carrots, sliced
Cucumbers, cut in matchsticks
Green onions, sliced
Snow peas, chopped
Edamame, shelled
Mandarin oranges, drained
Slivered almonds (or peanuts)
Seasame dressing (bottled or homemade from Veggie Teens: A Cookbook and Guide for Vegetarian Teenagers)

Assemble the ingredients on a plate or create a salad bar and let each person assemble their own.

Veggie Teens

Culinary Techniques: How to Break an Egg

Here's how to crack an egg:

Meatless Monday: Get out of the box

Recipe: Winter Veg Korma

Sauce:

Winter Veg:﻿

Directions

Super Bowl Sunday Seven Layer Vegetarian Dip

Save the Arctic Cupcakes

Arctic Ocean Cupcake Diorama

Walrus looking for his mate

Penguins fishing in an ice hole

Polar bear lounging in the sun

Humpback whales frolicking in the waves

Harp seal playing on the ice

Look out!

Meatless Monday: Easy Enchilada Casserole

Easy Enchilada Casserole

Rosemary Focaccia with Red Onion and Olives

Rosemary Focaccia with Red Onion and Olives

Culinary Technique:

How to Strip the Leaves from Fresh Rosemary

Monster Cupcakes

Make Your Own Halloween Treats

Meatless Monday: Vegetarian School Lunch Ideas

Meatless Monday: Oriental Salad with Mandarin, Edamame, and Almonds

Oriental Salad with Mandarin, Edamame, and Almonds

Winter Veg: