Artichoke & Chickpea Salad

Thank you for voting this recipe as the best side dish in the
May 2013 Virtual Vegan Potluck!







Welcome Virtual Vegan Potluckers! I hope you'll enjoy your stay here at Vegan Fling.
I am very excited to be participating in this event for the 3rd time. It's always so much fun!

I know, I know... I am in the Side Dish category but my post title says "Salad". This is not your typical salad dish though, and it works wonderfully alongside almost anything. It can be two things at once because it's just that tasty!

I loved that this dish was quick and easy to make. After spending a huge part of my day baking up a double batch of my Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Cookies for an event this weekend, I needed something uncomplicated, fast, and filling. This dish delivers on all three!

Artichoke & Chickpea Salad
serves 4-6, adapted from vegan yum yum

1 Tbsp oil
1 15 oz can Chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 clove garlic, chopped
5-7 large artichoke hearts, drained and sliced
1/3 C sliced almonds
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

In a skillet over medium-high, heat the oil. Add the chickpeas and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and set in a serving bowl. Add the garlic to the pan and saute for a minute, then add the sliced artichokes. Cook until slightly browned. Remove from the pan and add to the chickpeas. Toast the almonds until just slightly browned, and add them in with the chickpeas and artichokes. Add the lemon juice, salt, and parsley, and toss well. Serve warm.

I enjoyed this side dish next to some roasted cauliflower with brussels sprouts, and some simple vegetable risotto, but it would be delicious with so many different other meals and flavors. You could always change up the spices to suit your other dishes too - it's super versatile!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and don't forget to check out the rest of the Virtual Vegan Potluck!

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Mango Black Bean Salad

This fresh and delicious salad is a favorite of mine to bring to parties and potlucks. It's great for a side dish, but is also filling enough on it's own. I can never get enough mangoes, and this is a great way to use them! My mom found this recipe in a magazine years ago, and my family has made it a lot since then. The original recipe called for olive oil, but it doesn't need any - just add in some more of the salsa if you need to! We've tried this with wild rice in place of the brown rice, which is fun as well.

Mango Black Bean Salad
serves 4-6 as a side dish

1 large mango, peeled and chopped
1 C green onion - thinly sliced
3 Tbsp cilantro - finely chopped 
4 Tbsp fresh salsa
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 15oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 C brown rice, cooked


Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
Toss gently to mix, refrigerate until serving.

This dish is getting me excited for summer cookouts! What's your favorite potluck dish?

Thanks for stopping by!

Popcorn Tofu Caesar Salad

I'm always looking for new ways to jazz up my salads, and when I saw this recipe for Tofu Popcorn Chick'n from The Vedge, I remembered an old favorite dish of mine with crispy chicken on top of a fresh caesar salad. I decided a vegan version of this meal would taste just as good (better!), and set about making it for an easy weeknight dinner.

Popcorn Tofu Caesar Salad
serves 2-3

1 head romaine lettuce, chopped
1 C broccoli, chopped
1 recipe Tofu Popcorn Chick'n from the Vedge

optional: vegan bacon bits


Caesar Dressing
2 Tbsp cashew butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp dijon mustard
3 Tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
2 Tbsp soy sauce
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 C water
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Add all ingredients for dressing to a food processor and mix until well blended.

Chop the broccoli and steam until softened.
Place chopped lettuce, broccoli, and bacon bits into a bowl. Top with the dressing and toss to coat.
Top with the prepared tofu popcorn chick'n pieces and serve.

The flavor of the Popcorn Tofu Chick'n is amazing! They are tasty all on their own, but I really enjoyed them paired with this Caesar salad for a more complete meal. I'll definitely be making this recipe again. It was great as leftovers too.

We were snowed in this past weekend, and I finally had the opportunity to spend some good quality time in the kitchen, which I've been missing lately. Looking forward to sharing some fun recipes with you all soon!

Thanks for stopping by!

Berry Quinoa Spinach Salad with Maple Vinagrette

We've been getting tons of snow here in Colorado recently, and I've decided that even though I know it's great for our dry summers, I'm totally over it. I have started listening to reggae music and pretending I'm on a tropical vacation. The other day for lunch I was craving something fresh and summery. I had all these berries in my fridge, and so this salad was born.

Berry Quinoa Spinach Salad
Fresh baby spinach
cooked quinoa
edamame
corn kernals
stawberries, or other berry of your choice

Maple Vinagrette Dressing
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1/4 C extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
squeeze of lemon juice


This is more of a "salad idea" than a real recipe - so feel free to mix in whatever you'd like! I started with a bed of baby spianch, and topped with it cooked quinoa mixed with edamame and corn, and then some sliced berries. To make the vinagrette, whisk together all the ingredients and chill until ready to serve.

Any one else ready for spring to arrive?

Thanks for stopping by!

Strawberry Poppy Seed Salad

As a part of Vegan MoFo I decided to dedicate my Thursday posts to recreating my family's favorite recipes - vegan style. My hope is that no one would be able to taste the difference!

Time for another family favorite recipe! This is a simple strawberry romaine salad with a sweet poppy seed dressing. My Mom used to make this salad all the time, and we all still love it. The dressing stayed the same but we'd sometimes mix up the toppings: blueberries and walnuts was another favorite combination. Feel free to make it your own, too.

Strawberry Poppy Seed Salad
This recipe makes a large batch of the dressing.
Cut in half if you are feeding less than 4 people.

1 C vegan mayonnaise
1/4 C apple cider vinegar
2/3 C sugar
1/2 C almond milk
2 T poppy seeds

1 head romaine lettuce
1 pt. strawberries, sliced
almond slivers

Whisk the vegan mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, sugar, almond milk and poppy seeds together in a bowl, transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate until ready to use.

Chop up the romaine and arrange on plates. Add sliced strawberries and slivered almonds on, then top with the dressing.

I know fall is officially here and pumpkin and apple recipes are everywhere, but I just had to stick to my original favorite of strawberries in this salad! I'd bet some fall fruits would be great in here too though.
What fruit would you add to your salad?

Thanks for stopping by!

Caesar Salad Tofu Wraps

As a part of Vegan MoFo I decided to dedicate my Tuesday posts to easy weeknight recipes. We can't be fancy all the time, so these recipes are quick to put together!

Starting us off right we have these delicious caesar salad wraps with tofu. Ok, so it may look like there are a lot of ingredients, but you could make the dressing ahead of time and make these wraps quickly throughout the week.

Feel free to add in whatever other vegetables you like. I think next time mine will have some tomatoes added in. These were great as leftovers too (just don't add the salad dressing on until you are ready to eat)!

Caesar Salad Tofu Wraps
4-6 large tortillas or wraps
1 head of broccoli, chopped into spears
1 large head romaine lettuce, torn into bite sized pieces
Caesar Dressing (recipe follows)
Baked Tofu (recipe follows)

optional: veggie bacon bits, vegan parmesan

Steam the broccoli spears until tender. Toss the caesar dressing with the lettuce and broccoli.
Add some of the salad to the center of you wrap and top with a few tofu pieces. Wrap and enjoy!

Baked Tofu
1 block extra firm tofu, pressed and cut into cubes
3 Tbsp cashew or other nut butter
1-2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 Tbsp sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 C panko breadcrumbs
1/4 C nutritional yeast
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Whisk together the cashew butter, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil and garlic. Add the tofu cubes and toss to coat. Let marinate for as much time as you have.
Mix together the panko crumbs, nutritional yeast, garlic powder and salt in another small bowl. Press the tofu cubes into this mixture to get a crumb coating, then place on a foil lined cookie sheet. Bake Tofu for 15 minutes or until crispy.

Caesar Dressing
2 Tbsp cashew butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp dijon mustard
3 Tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
2 Tbsp soy sauce
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 C water
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Add all ingredients to a food processor and mix until well blended.

I have to say that this caesar dressing tasted pretty close to the "real thing" from what I remember. This was a great light meal! Of course it would be great just as a salad too.

Do you ever put salads into wraps? I just love the portability.

Thanks for stopping by!

Recipe sources:
Wraps adapted from big girls small kitchen
Baked tofu adapted from char's kitchen
Dressing adapted from vegetarian times

Purple Cabbage & Carrot Sweet Slaw

I made this colorful slaw for a family get together. I loved the crunchy vegetables in a slightly sweet dressing.

Purple Cabbage & Carrot Sweet Slaw 
 serves 6-8, adapted from amee's savory dish

1/2 head purple cabbage, shredded
1/3 C scallions, chopped
1/3 C pine nuts 
3 carrots, julienned
2 10-oz cans mandarin oranges (save the juice)
2 handfuls dried cranberries 
4 Tbsp brown sugar 
1/2 tsp pepper 
1/4 tsp salt 
4 Tbsp apple cider vinegar 
1 Tbsp mandarin orange juice 
1/4 C vegetable oil
1 vegetable bouillon cube
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Combine the shredded cabbage, chopped carrots, pine nuts, scallions, cranberries, and mandarin oranges in a large bowl.

In a smaller bowl combine the brown sugar, pepper, salt, vinegar, mandarin orange juice, vegetable oil, vegetable bouillon cube and garlic powder. Whisk until well combined.

Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.

This is a great dish to bring to an event because it makes A LOT! I had more cabbage slaw than I knew what to do with. Good thing it was tasty!

I just signed up for Vegan MoFo! Anyone else participating and do you have any tips for me? This is my first year and I feel like I might be a little in over my head... :) 

Thanks for stopping by!