Crustless Tofu Quiche with Mushrooms & Herbs

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp oil (Olive, avocado, sunflower, flax, etc.)
• 1 ½ cups chopped onion
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 8 ounces cremini or baby bella mushrooms, sliced
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
• 1 to 2 tbsp chopped fresh herbs of your choice (try a mixture of stronger-flavored herbs such as thyme, tarragon, &/or rosemary )
• 1 pound medium-firm tofu, drained well and coarsely crumbled
• 2 tsp curry powder
• freshly ground pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup fresh bread crumbs
• Sliced tomatoes (1 small tomato or 6 ounces of cherry tomatoes)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Heat the oil in a skillet. Add the onion & garlic & sauté until the onion is just beginning to brown. Remove from the skillet & set aside.

In the same skillet, cook the mushrooms over medium heat, covered, until they are slightly wilted and beginning to give off liquid. Stir in the fresh herbs & remove from the heat.

Transfer half of the onion mixture to the container of a food processor along with the tofu & process until smooth.

In a mixing bowl, combine the blended tofu, the remaining onion mixture & the mushroom-herb mixture. Mix thoroughly.

Oil a 9-inch quiche pan or tart pan. Sprinkle the bottom with half of the bread crumbs. Pour in the tofu-mushroom mixture and pat in. Top with concentric circles of thinly sliced tomatoes, then with the remaining bread crumbs.

Bake for 40 minutes, or until firmly set. Let stand for 10 to 15 minutes. Cut into wedges to serve.




Recipe adapted from, http://www.vegkitchen.com/recipes/tofu-tempeh-and-seitan/versatile-tofu/crustless-tofu-quiche-with-mushrooms-and-herbs/

Asparagus Pasta Salad

Serves 8 -10 (as a side dish)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups bowtie, shell or macaroni whole wheat pasta, cooked
• ½ pound asparagus, diced
• 3 Large carrots, diced
• 1 yellow bell pepper, diced (optional)
• 3 small tomatoes, diced
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tbsp oil (olive, avocado, sunflower, etc.)
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp dried basil
• pepper to taste

Directions:

Steam the asparagus, carrots and bell pepper separately in a bit of water just until cooked. In a large bowl, combine the asparagus, carrots, bell peppers, tomatoes, pasta and parsley.
In a small bowl or blender, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, mustard, basil and pepper. Pour this dressing over the pasta, stirring well to coat. I chilled mine before serving it. 
Viola! Super easy. I made this for Easter & it was a huge success, even among the anti-health foodies.




Recipe adapted from http://vegetarian.about.com/od/soupssalads/r/asparaguspasta.htm

Tomato Bisque & Spaghetti Squash

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 3 cups carrot juice
• 1 ½ pounds tomatoes, diced or 1 (28 oz) can whole tomatoes, no-salt-added or low sodium 
• ¼ cup (no salt added) sun-dried tomatoes, diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1  Leek , chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 tbsp no salt seasoning (e.g. Mrs. Dash No salt seasonings)
• ½ cup raw cashews or ¼ cup raw cashew butter
• ¼ cup chopped fresh basil (or more, if you really like basil)
• 5 ounces organic baby spinach

Directions:
In a large saucepan, add all ingredients except the cashews, basil and spinach. Simmer for 30 minutes.

Remove 2 cups of the vegetables with a slotted spoon & set aside. Puree the remaining soup with the cashews in a food processor or high powered blender until smooth. Return the pureed soup along with the reserved vegetables to the pot. Stir in the basil and spinach and heat until spinach is wilted.

This soup is too good! I had to stop myself from scarfing it down! It has such a versatile flavor. After we ate our fill of soup, we saved the rest for the next day. I remembered that we had a Spaghetti Squash that needed to be eaten soon, so I sautéed 2/3 cup of halved cherry (or grape) tomatoes & 6 diced baby bella mushrooms in a large frying pan. I added the left over bisque & stirred until heated through.  Then I poured it over the spaghetti squash for a delicious, gluten free, vegan, & nutritarian spaghetti! Yummm. I was thinking that if you wanted to prepare it only as a spaghetti sauce, you could add the cherry tomatoes & mushrooms in at the beginning & use about ½ a cup less carrot juice. Never cooked spaghetti squash before? Click Here

Tomato Bisque recipe adapted from Dr. Fuhrman's 'Eat to Live'