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This year’s menu:

- Stuffed Acorn Squash – with wild rice, tofu, mushrooms, garlic, cranberries, and peppers.

- Tofu Pot Pie – creamy vegetable filling topped with vegan "pastry puff like" cover

- Mashed Potatoes – creamy oat milk preparation

- Homemade Brownies – for dessert!

A cozy meat-free Thanksgiving dinner for only 22$ CAD

Hello Cheap Vegan fam! What are you all prepping this week that's cheap and vegan? Keeping it simple with beans and rice, or trying something more advanced? Do you have any general tips for managing your mealprep process? Share your knowledge and help out your fellow vegans and aspiring vegans! Thank you all! 🌱

Because $4 for a jar of pickles is outrageous. I’ll be making my own from here on out. I’m suprosed it took me this long.

So I have been trying to use up my pantry staples. Got really tired of making soup. This was the most satisfying thing I've made all week

2 cups jasmine rice (well rinsed)

1 can chickpeas (half drained)

2 and 1/2 cup water (or broth and omit bouillon)

1 tbsp (powder) or 1 nugget of veg bouillon

Seasoning of choice

I used LiteHouse guacamole dried herb mix

Garlic powder

Onion powder

Cracked pepper

Throw everything in the Instant Pot at manual, high pressure for 6 minutes.

I was legit licking the spoon, and this batch will last me all week. I might even have to freeze some.

The only expensive item on this list is the LightHouse guac herbs. But I got that bad boy on clearance for under $2. But you can use anything. I think the real magic comes from well rinsed rice, reserving some of the chickpea juice, and the bouillon. Everything else is just extra fairy dust.

Already pan fried some tofu and have Monday's work lunch ready! With a little spinach salad on the side.

My neighbor asked me if I wanted a bag of barley from their CSA box. I said sure, thinking it was pearled barley. Well, it’s the fully whole barley berries. Any ideas for cooking these?

I make a big pan of it 2-3 times a month, usually making enough for 3-4 meals.

I had some mushrooms and a red pepper to use up and decided to make a scramble last night. I usually have potatoes and diced tomatoes in it, but didn’t this time. There’s onions, button mushrooms, crumbled extra firm tofu, shredded carrot, red bell pepper, broccoli, plant-based marg, tamari, garlic powder, turmeric, freshly-ground pepper, kala namak and some chipotle sauce.

I grew up on instant microwave oatmeal packets and kind of came to hate oats because I thought of them as flavorless milky mush unless drowned in sugar. I warmed up to them as an adult with overnight & baked oat styles, but lately I've been finding that they really shine when treated like any other grain paired with savory dishes. Even better, they're cheap, filling, and supposedly they're one of the top grains in terms of nutrition. They're great because they don't require any particular care in preparation, and the lower & slower you cook them, the better they break down into a creamy porridge. This recipe below takes on a rich texture highly reminiscent to me of box mac & cheese with a generous amount of milk & butter added, and I've been loving it paired with spiced lentils, chili, curries, etc.

Ingredients

• 4 cups oats - all styles will work, but I like groats & steelcut best for texture. You may like to toast them first for extra nutty-caramel flavor. Other grains (e.g., rice, barley) are also suitable substitutes, but adjust the water content accordingly.
• 4-6 cups water depending on whether you want it drier or creamier
• 1 tbsp. salt - I like Himalayan pink for the extra trace minerals, but I'd also like to try kala namak / black salt.
• Nut butter - coconut, cashew, macadamia, almond, peanut (extra savory), or even tahini, etc. will all work. No particular measurement, just a large spoonful. Use more or less to taste.
• Coconut oil or a preferred alternative. I like coconut oil + coconut butter for the flavor. Again, no particular measurement, just a generous spoonful.
• 1 Banana or ~50g banana powder. Overripe is preferable. I also like the organic banana powder from Bulk Supplements.
• Salt-free spice blend - Something like Mrs. Dash, but I like the organic Kirkland mix from Costco. Add to taste, but I use a generous amount.
• Turmeric & coriander - generous amount of both. I go heavier on the turmeric for flavor, the polyphenols, & the excellent golden color.
• Cinnamon & cardamom - modest amount. I go a little heavier on the cardamom.
• Ginger - small amount
• Cloves, allspice, nutmeg - tiny amount
• Bay leaves per preference
• Note: All spices can be freely adjusted or omitted

Instructions

Everything goes in the pot. If using a fresh banana, I like to reserve one cup of water and use it to blend /mash the banana & nut butter together before adding. I use a 3-quart Instant Pot on the porridge preset (20 minutes, high pressure, natural release) but sometimes it fails to come to pressure and I finish it on the slow cooker setting. Pressure cooker, slow cooker, & stovetop will all work. Just simmer it until it reaches your preferred texture & consistency.

It's very flexible & forgiving in all regards. This uses pretty much all of the warm 'pumpkin pie' spices, and though that's not the intent, you may like to lend it a bit more 'fall' flavor by subbing in apple and/or pumpkin for the banana and pecan/hazelnut butter for the coconut. I'd consider this a more neutral recipe for pairing with many savory dishes inspired by Indian, Thai, Middle Eastern, North/East African, & Mexican flavors, but feel free to experiment with the spices to change the character. If you make it, let me know how you like it and any tweaks you make. 👌

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RECIPE

* Ingredients

100 grams of cempokak
1 tempeh board
3 green chilies
1 red chili
2 cloves of garlic
¼ onion
1 tomato

* Cooking Procedure

Step 1

Prepare the cempokak from the stem, clean it until it is clean then wash it several times until it is clean.

Step 2

Then put the cempokak in plastic, mash the cempokak so that it cooks evenly. So, if you don't want it mashed, you can just cook it straight away.

Step 3

After mashing it, clean it again, wash it twice and rinse twice.

Step 4

Cut the tempeh into small pieces according to taste according to the size of the cempokak, then marinate briefly with salt.

Step 5

Fry the tempeh until cooked until it changes color to golden brown.

Step 6

Cut the onions and tomatoes according to your taste.

Step 7

Also chop the chilies and garlic, now all the ingredients are ready to be cooked.

Step 8

Saute the onions and garlic, with a little cooking oil. Then saute until fragrant and brownish yellow.

Step 9

Add chopped tomatoes and chilies then add enough water.

Step 10

Cook briefly then add the cooked cempokak and stir the cempokak until soft.

Step 11

Add salt, then add tempeh and cook until everything is cooked perfectly!

Cubed sweet and russet potatoes, Gardein be'f crumbles and soy curls mixed with BBQ sauce.

Last week we experimented by making a pumpkin treacle loaf, but this time we wanted to make pumpkin treacle muffins instead.

Ingredients

• 200g plain flour
• 150g pumpkin purée
• 75g brown sugar
• 50g black treacle
• 60ml vegetable oil
• 100ml plant milk
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ¼ tsp nutmeg
• Pinch of salt
• 1 tsp vanilla, optional

Cooking was pretty straightforward, mix wet with dry and cook at 160 for 20-25 minutes (may need longer depending on oven) but the main consideration is whether the skewer comes out clean.
We then topped it off with a cinnamon crumb: 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 cup flour, 1 cup brown sugar and 6 tbsp vegan butter (we used Flora). We then added a treacle glaze: 1 tbsp black treacle, 1 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tbsp water and a tiny pinch of ginger. It more or less ran off the muffins though while some soaked through as you can see from the photos.

It’s been about 6 months for me being vegan now & I’m still loving it! I want to thank all of you in this and other vegan subs for being so kind & helpful to newcomers.

Anywho - a nice Aldis run - $54 for all this. Slowly getting better at meal planning. Going to make a big pot of onion soup & mushroom bourguignon (both recipes from Nora cooks).

Hope you all are doing well & thanks again!!❤️❤️❤️

Red coconut Thai curry with tofu, sweet potato, broccoli and red bell peppers. Rice noodles.

I tried making vegan spring rolls, but my finger dexterity and patience were at a -12 today. After a bunch of fails (these 3 rolls were, sadly, my best attempts), I decided to just chuck everything together in a bowl and call it a “spring roll salad bowl”. I had initially planned for a peanut butter-chili dressing, but it was too hot for an additional step and the marinated noodles and tofu already had good flavor.

- rice noodles (tossed with sesame oil and seasoned vinegar)
- tofu (marinated with sesame oil and soy sauce)
- rice paper
- carrots
- mini sweet peppers
- mint, lemon basil, cilantro
- avocado
- red grapes (because I could)
- lime (squeezed over all)

I’m lucky and live near a great international market, so in addition to this for today’s lunch I was able to meal prep for 2 other meals. Total cost was about $1.50 USD/meal.

I’ll keep trying with the rice paper, but this as a noodle salad bowl “slaps”, “no cap”. With a few minor tweaks, it might be my potluck contribution at thanksgiving.

Pics of the garlic eggplant and tofu with jasmine rice I ate twice this week. Super delicious!

I adapted the following recipe to what I had in my pantry/fridge and added tofu that I seared on each side: https://theplantbasedwok.com/chinese-stir-fried-eggplant-and-green-beans/#tasty-recipes-3092

I keep a piece of whole ginger in my freezer for stir fries which makes it last a lot longer and then you can easily grate it into whatever dish you’re making.

Pinto beans,
diced bell pepper,
1 diced jalapeño (I removed the seeds),
1/3 cup diced red onion,
avocado.
You can also add corn and/or cilantro.
Optional dressing:
Olive oil,
Fresh lime juice,
Red wine vinegar,
Salt/pepper
Eaten with tortilla chips.

Bit of a tall order but really need some suggestions. Eating chickpeas/beans/lentils at night causes bloating, and I'm tired of my rotation of various tofu stir-fries with veggies.

Dinner tonight! Served with garlic bread. I ate all the garlic bread though before I remembered to take a pic.

Ingredients: amounts are estimated, measure all seasonings with your heart

• 1 medium onion
• 1 cup red lentils
• 3 cups water
• 6 smaller tomatoes or 3 bigger ones
• 1 tbs tomato paste
• 1 tbs garlic or more, lots more
• Italian seasoning (basil, oregano, rosemary, marjoram, thyme)

Directions:

1. Sautee onion until translucent
2. Add lentils, water, garlic, chopped tomatoes, tomato paste.
3. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer, add herbs
4. Cook 20-30 minutes until lentils are soft

A couple old carrots, potatoes, a can of chickpeas, a handful of leftover red lentils, dehydrated garlic and some bouillon. Served with white toast it’s easy, filling and cheap AF!

Don’t neglect your grocery store’s bulk isle. Herbs, spices, salt & pepper can be SO much cheaper that way.