sauteed baby bok choy

 
With just a few ingredients this simple, elegant preparation comes together in just a few minutes.  This side-dish is the perfect way to add some colorful crunch to just about any menu.

Veggie Bibimbap

This is a vegan riff on a korean restaurant favorite of mine.  Bibimbap simply means "mixed rice" and is usually served with chopped raw fish on a bed of assorted veggies, lettuce, and rice which has been seasoned with sesame oil.  The whole pile is then doused with a sauce which is a mixture of red chilli sauce (gojuchang) and vinegar called chogocujang that can found at most asian markets as "spicy cocktail sauce".  The resulting dish is a wild mashup of flavors, textures and spice that is all held together by an unctuous base of sesame seasoned rice.

Vegan Banana Muffins

Most non-vegans - when offered the choice - would not choose a vegan baked good.  They seem to think they are inherently dry, cardboard-like, grainy or otherwise un-satisfying.  At best most tend to think of vegan cooking as a compromise between ideology and deliciousness.  While that attitude may have a bit of truth to it for some recipes, it’s completely wrong when it comes to quickbreads.  These banana muffins are an easy foray into vegan baking needing only to replace egg with ground flax.  The resulting muffins are every bit as moist and delicious as a traditional recipe with butter and egg.  None of the usual negative associations with vegan baking work here, your grandmother would never know the difference!