Kiss of Death Garlic Salad Dressing

Don't plan any hot dates after eating this salad dressing!

For best results, you will need a mortar and pestle to beat the crap out of your garlic. Because there are only a few ingredients, it's important that you use decent quality garlic, balsamic vinegar and olive oil.  

Ingredients

• 5 cloves of garlic (more, if you can handle it. Buy fresh and organic if you can and not the tasteless elephant garlic. It will make a difference)
• 2 t kosher salt
• 3 T balsamic vinegar
• 1-2 T olive oil
• 2 t honey

Instructions

1. Cut the hard ends off from your garlic and peel the cloves. Beat the garlic with your mortar and pestle.
2. Add the salt. Beat a little more.
3. It should look creamy. If it does not, put in a tad more salt.
4. Add the vinegar and stir for about thirty seconds while your garlic continues to break down.
5. Add the oil and honey and stir for about a minute.
6. Taste and alter. Garlic too strong? Add a bit of mustard powder and/or more honey. Too salty? Add more vinegar.
7. Now, add to your favorite salad, but sparingly, and toss. This stuff is pretty strong.

Mandarin Almond Salad

This delicious mandarin almond salad from Food.com is great for serving guests- it's a little different, it's yummy and so easy to make. My family loves it too. The hardest part is finding unsweetened, organic mandarins, NOT made in China that come in a BPA-free can!

It's a small batch, serves 4.

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons maple syrup, divided  
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds 
• 1/8 cup vegetable oil 
• 1/8 cup mandarin juice (this replaces 1/4 cup oil)          
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon hot pepper sauce or dry cayenne pepper                   
• 1 bunch romaine lettuce, torn                            
• 1 (11 ounce) can organic, mandarin oranges 
• 1-2 green onions, sliced
• Optional ingredients: sesame oil, sesame seeds, Dijon mustard.

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan, heat 3 tablespoons maple syrup on low heat.
2. Add almonds; stir until coated.
3. Cool almonds, break into small pieces and set aside.
4. In a jar with tight lid, mix oil, mandarin juice, vinegar, salt, pepper, hot pepper sauce and remaining 1 tablespoon maple syrup. Add a drizzle of sesame oil and a teaspoon of Dijon mustard if you want.
5. Shake well. Combine lettuce, oranges, onion and almonds in salad bowl.
6. Shake dressing; pour over salad and toss. Sprinkle salad with sesame seeds (optional)

General Tao Sauce

My favourite food has to be Szechuan cuisine. Fried, sweet, spicy, salty... what's not to love??? Ok, so it's not that good for you... but it's soooooooooo delicious!

I have slightly modified a General Tao Sauce from Foodista.com and serve it on baked tofu nuggets that I usually have in my freezer. The sauce can also be used on veggies like broccoli, snow peas and eggplant.

I have tried a whole bunch of General Tao recipes over the years that were much more complicated and time consuming. This one tastes just as good and is super easy to prepare.

Ingredients

• Olive oil for frying
• 3 garlic gloves finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh ginger finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon chili sauce like sambal oelek or Sriracha (try to find a brand without preservatives)
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons gluten-free tamari
• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1/4-1/2 cup maple syrup (depending on how sweet you want it)
• 2 thinly sliced green onions for garnish
• 1/2 thinly sliced organic red pepper (optional)

Preparation

1. In a bowl, whisk the cornstarch, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, 3 tablespoons water, fresh ginger, garlic, sambal oelek and paprika. Set aside.
2. In a saucepan, bring 3 tablespoons of water and maple syrup to a boil. Turn heat down to low-medium and pour the prepared mixture into the saucepan. Stir and simmer until it becomes a syrupy consistency.
3. Cover your tofu (or veggies) with the sauce.

   Serve with rice/quinoa and garnish with sliced green onions.

 

Notes

Choose organic tofu/non-GMO. Red pepper is on the Dirty Dozen list so organic is better too.

 

Vegan Caesar Salad Dressing

I don't know where this recipe originates. I've had it scribbled on an index card for several years. What I do know is that I have made it several times and it's always fantastic. I highly recommend it on crunchy romaine lettuce leaves.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons dijon mustard
3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons blanched, ground almonds
3 cloves garlic
1/4 cup water
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons gluten-free tamari
1 tablespoon olive oil (optional)

Instructions
Blend all of your ingredients in a food processor or high-powered blender.

Smoky Bean Quesadillas

In my opinion, beans need lots of stuff in them to make them taste good. This bean recipe from Veg Web passes the test. It doesn't take long to prepare and can easily be served as a main dish or as a side.

Ingredients

• 1 cup white beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup tomatoes, chopped
• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast
• few drops liquid smoke
• garlic powder, to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• pepper or cayenne pepper, to taste
• 4 gluten-free tortillas
• cilantro, to garnish

Instructions
 

1. Blend together the white beans and tomatoes until very smooth. Add nutritional yeast, liquid smoke, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Blend again until well combined and smooth.
2. Heat a dry nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Put a tortilla into skillet, and spread 1/2 the bean mixture on the tortilla, then top with another tortilla.
3. Cook over medium heat until crisp on one side, then flip and repeat on the other side.
4. Once it is cooked and the bean mixture is warm and gooey, remove from pan, slice into 6-8 wedges. Repeat with the other tortillas. Serve with cilantro and/or fresh salsa.

Notes:

• I'm a little suspicious of liquid smoke's "natural" flavour but I think a few drops on occasion is fine. If you aren't comfortable with it, you can always try to replace it with something else such vegan, gluten-free Worcestershire sauce, molasses or chipotle peppers.  
•  Look for beans packaged in cans that are BPA free like Eden Organic.
• If your tortillas are corn-based, I highly recommend using an organic brand to avoid GMOs.

 

Spicy Garlic Buffalo Wing Sauce (Vegan)

I love spicy wing sauce, I just don't like the wings.

Authentic wing sauce is made with butter so I tried a simple substitution: unsweetened organic applesauce. It worked! I put this on anything but it goes especially well with "breaded" tofu nuggets.

Ingredients

• 1 cup Frank's hot sauce
• 1 cup organic unsweetened applesauce
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder (or more!)
• 1/2 teaspoon Sriracha sauce (I like Organicville brand but not widely available in Canada)
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/2 teaspoon tapioca flour (mixed with a couple of tablespoons of hot water)
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (gluten-free, vegan)
• Optional: 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper for extra heat

Directions

Mix hot sauce, applesauce, olive oil in a saucepan on low-medium heat. Add garlic power and stir for at least 2 minutes. Turn up to medium heat and add Sriracha, honey and Worcestershire sauce and stir occasionally for a few more minutes. Add the tapioca flour (mixed with hot water) for another 2 minutes to thicken.

Red Thai Curry Peanut Sauce

This thai peanut sauce from Kalyn's Kitchen is meant for chicken but I've made it with gluten-free pasta, sliced red pepper and onions. I've also added tofu. It's excellent.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 tablespoons peeled and minced fresh ginger
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh garlic
• 1/2 cup smooth natural peanut butter (without added sugar) at room temperature
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons gluten-free tamari

• 2 tablespoons maple syrup 
• 2-3 tsp. red Thai Curry Paste (I like Thai Kitchen brand)
• 3 tablespoons veggie stock
• fresh ground black pepper to taste
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
• 4 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro (or more), plus more for garnish if desired
• Dried red chilis or garlic-chili paste, to taste (I like Organicville Sriracha since many other brands have preservatives. I can't seem to find this anywhere in Canada though).

 

Instructions

1. Finely mince the ginger and garlic. In food processor, combine ginger, garlic, peanut butter, rice vinegar, tamari, maple syrup, curry paste, and veggie stock. Add chilis (optional)

2. Heat the oil on low in a large pan. Add 1 cup coconut milk. Stir in peanut/curry/ginger paste mixture and heat through, about 2-3 minutes. Add more spice, if needed.

3. Turn off heat and mix in chopped cilantro.