Vegan "Tuna" Casserole

There are two steps to a Vegan "Tuna" Mornay/Casserole. First you need to make the vegan tuna. I find when I make Vegan Tuna Melt I always have so much of the "tuna" mix left so this was a great way to incorporate it into another dish. You can also add 1/2 cup corn if desired.

Vegan "Tuna" Casserole

Ingredients

"Tuna"
1 (15.5-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (or 1 1/2 cups cooked from dried)
1/4 cup vegan mayonnaise (I used Veganaise)
1 Tbls whole grain or djion mustard
1 Tbls umeboshi vinegar*
2 tps celery seeds (I used celery salt)
1/4 cup chopped celery, from about one rib
2 tablespoons sliced scallions, from about about two scallions
Pinch cayenne pepper, optional
Freshly ground black pepper
Dulse flakes (optional)

Casserole
350g GFpenne pasta (or other short pasta)
3 tbsp vegan butter
3 garlic cloves , finely minced
4 tbsp GF flour (I used rice flour)
2 cups non-dairy milk
2 tsp Vegeta, or veg stock powder/granulated bouillon
1/2 cup vegan Parmesan, or can sub for shredded vegan cheese (I used Follow Your Heart)
1/2 tsp each mustard powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Topping
2 tbsp vegan butter, melted
1/2 cup GF panko breadcrumbs (I just used regular GF bread crumbs)
1/4 cup vegan Parmesan
1/4 tsp salt
Chives or parsley, optional garnish


Method

Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F.
Cook pasta per packet directions till al dente.

Tuna Mix
If using chickpeas, pulse in a food processor until mushed.
Whisk mayonnaise, celery, onion, mustard, parsley, lemon juice and pepper.
Stir chickpeas through. You can add a sprinkle of dulse flakes for a fishy taste.

Topping 
Mix together ingredients for the topping, rubbing between your fingers to resemble crumble, set aside.

White sauce 
To make the vegan white sauce melt butter in a large pot over medium heat.
Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
Add flour and stir into melted butter.
Gradually pour in about 1/3 of the milk and whisk through.
Add Vegeta, mustard, onion and garlic powder, whisk.
When the milk starts to heat up, whisk constantly to make sure the white sauce doesn’t catch on the base.
After 4 - 5 minutes, the sauce should be thickened, then remove from stove and stir in parmesan.

Assembly
Add "tuna" mix into pasta.
Pour over sauce, then gently stir.

Scrape into baking dish, top with Crunchy Topping.

Bake 25 minutes until top is golden and edges are bubbling. Sprinkle with chives if desired then serve!

*NOTE:

Umeboshi (Plum) vinegar is available online or from Asian supermarkets. It has a very sea water saltiness to it which makes it great when replicating seafoods.

Vegan Tuna Melt

Vegan Tuna Melt
Serves 2

Ingredients

2 cans Sophie's Kitchen Toona, drained or 1 can chickpeas, drained
1/3 cup vegan mayonnaise
2 celery sticks, minced
2 Tbls red onion, minced
1 Tbls grain mustard
1 tspn parsley, finely chopped
lemon juice to taste
black pepper to taste

4 pieces of toast
1 cup vegan cheddar, shredded
Dill pickles to serve


Method

Preheat broiler/griller on a high setting.
If using chickpeas, pulse in a food processor until mushed.
Whisk mayonnaise, celery, onion, mustard, parsley, lemon juice and pepper.
Stir Toona or chickpeas through. If using chickpeas you can add a sprinkle of dulse flakes for a fishy taste.
On a baking tray place a layer of aluminum foil and place the toast, a layer of the tuna mixture and a layer of vegan cheddar.
Broil/grill until cheese is melted.
Serve with dill pickle slices.

Chickpea "Tuna" Melt

This original recipe comes from The Kitchn. It was really good. The umeboshi vinegar really gave it a salt water sea taste, found mine in a health store. I feel like dulse flakes might work here too! I got around 4 servings (where two pieces of toast is one serving).

Chickpea "Tuna" Melt

Ingredients

1 (15.5-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (or 1 1/2 cups cooked from dried)
1/4 cup vegan mayonnaise (I used Veganaise)
1 Tbls whole grain or djion mustard
1 1/2 Tbls umeboshi vinegar
2 tps celery seeds (I used celery salt)
1/4 cup chopped celery, from about one rib
2 tablespoons sliced scallions, from about about two scallions
Pinch cayenne pepper, optional
Freshly ground black pepper
GF vegan bread slices
Vegan cheese slices or shreds (I used Follow Your Heart slices)
Dill pickles for serving


Method

Place chickpeas in the food processor and pulse two or three times to roughly chop.
Add remaining ingredients and pulse two or three times more to incorporate.
Toast bread and turn on grill/broiler.
Spoon on the chickpea mixture and top with the cheese.
Broil for a few minutes until cheese is melted or heated through.
Serve with dill pickle.

Dry Beans & Lentils 101

Many people buy canned beans & lentils because they are convenient and honestly these days the only time I buy canned is chickpeas for the aquafaba - fresh doesn't doesn't seem to work! Dry beans are only a bit of work and honestly it works out SO much cheaper plus their shelf life is practically infinite! Here are the dried beans I use, the uses and how much I really get out of each batch.

Dry beans are easy to prep and full of protein. Basically just soak in water for a day or so then cook in fresh water till tender, over night soaking is the easiest prep. Sometimes I use a slow cooker, especially for pinto beans since I want them very soft anyway and don't have to keep testing them. I can just let them go all day and the worst case is that they still need longer so I start it up again. Then I drain them, rinse well and put them to good use or freeze!

"Beans, beans, the musical fruit. The more you eat the more you toot!" We've all heard the kid's rhyme and maybe have stayed away but most of this comes down to two things, prep and tolerance. If beans are not cooked all the way they will play some havoc on your system, similarly if you're new to eating beans some people might need an adjustment period

Black Beans

A 1lb bag of black beans will set you back about $2 and from just that one pound I can make the following;

Black Bean Brownies

Black Bean Hummus

Black Bean Burgers

Chickpeas (Garbanzo beans)

Chickpeas (Garbanzo beans) are a stable for me because I love hummus and I love falafel. Now for good falafel you need soaked, but not cooked chickpeas which you won't find in a can.

Simple Hummus

Fried Falafel

Vegan Tuna Melt

Crispy Spiced Chickpeas

Vegetable & Past "Chicken" Soup

Pinto Beans

Pinto beans are a staple in our house mainly for refried beans. We eat tacos or nachos and then quesadillas with the left overs at least once a week. 1lb of dry pinto beans will make 2 batches of my refried beans and each batch will feed my family of 5 twice (usually for taco night and then leftovers for nachos or quesadillas). I usually take a full bag of pinto beans to make the refried beans but easily freeze half of it.

Refried Beans

Nachos

Tacos

Homemade Baked Beans

Kidney Beans

Great for Latin dishes and adding into mixed bean dishes!

Spaghetti Bol with Beans

Bean Burritos

Nacho Bean Bowl

Chilli Non Carne

White Beans

White beans come in a four different forms;

• Great Northern Beans which are nutty and hold their shape so used in stews and casseroles
• Cannellini beans (also called white kidney beans) which have a nutty/meaty texture and are used in a lot of Mediterranean dishes such as Minestrone.
• Navy (Yankee or Pea) beans which are round and small and very popular in Boston & Louisiana dishes.
• Baby Lima Beans (Butter beans) which also come in green color are smooth and creamy and used in a variety of dishes, great to mash with potato or avocado!

White Bean & Chickpea Chilli

White Bean & Pepper Jack Quesadilla

Lima Bean Ragout with Tomato and Thyme

Mixed Beans

Mixed Bean Chilli

Mega Burrito Bowl

Bean & Tomato Stew

LENTILS

Red lentils are your friend, they are a great go to as they are the only lentil that you don't need to soak! They cook so quickly they can go straight into your soups and stews!

Red Lentil Dal

Lentil Meat Loaf

 Turkish Lentil Soup

Brown Lentils you do need to soak and are much meatier than red lentils which tend to get mushy quickly and lose their form.

Lentil & Rice Meatballs

Warm Pumpkin & Brown Lentil Salad

Simple Lentil Soup

This is a great one if you're on a budget, it's hearty, filling and healthy but cheap as chips!

Split Peas are in the lentil family but different to green lentils. They are a variety of field pea which is grown specifically for drying. They tend to cook very fast too which eliminates the needs for soaking.

Split Pea Soup

Split Pea, Rice & Vegetable Pancakes

Green Lentils are fairly similar to brown lentils in terms of cooking times and keeping their form. Flavor will vary slightly but they are fairly interchangeable in recipes.

Lentil Patties

Lentil Stuffed Peppers

French lentils are a variety of green lentils (Puy lentils are French lentils but have a slightly different flavor due to the region they are grown). They are smaller than standard green lentils and they hold their shape extremely well so ideal for salads as well as light soups and taste a bit nutty and peppery. I have personally never made anything with these lentils but as I love French cuisine I will have to find some recipes to make!!

Pura Vida Vegan Cafe - Las Vegas

If you're a vegan in Las Vegas the Pura Vida is a must to stop by, it's in a bit of an obscure area though so I recommend driving or cabbing. The owner and chef was an eccentric Cuban woman who was so full of life and compassion about being vegan. The cafe had an amazing vibe to it and the food was incredible. It's hard to describe but most of the dishes were Latin based but completely experimental and fused with other cultures. It was the most unique place. We went back three times and every time had some something different but equally as inventive and delicious - and sooo filling. I recommend sharing an appetizer and a main between two people cause the servings are big. Quite a lot of the menu was gluten free and if you want gluten free pancakes or waffles just call a day in advance.

Chili Cheese Potatoes

 "Tuna" Melt

 Rooibos Iced Tea

 Chai Latte

 Chili Cheese Potatoes (OMG sooo good)

Tres Amigos

Quesadilla

 Melted Cheese Puffs

Breakfast Quesadilla