Looking at these pictures, I cannot tell you how much this dinner hit the spot. It was so delicious and had all of the flavor and textural elements: crispy, creamy, crunchy, tangy, spicy, salty. Yum. It seems like such a hodge podge of items, which usually means that the hubby has made several strange requests, but this time he hit it right on the head. We had several avocados and since I hadn't made guacamole in quite a while, he suggested that, along with the tostones to dip in it of course. Then we naturally needed a salad, which was my contribution. And of course the main course of the rice and beans. That was damn tasty! Once I make something, write down the recipe and type it up, I don't usually revisit the recipes, because I am always thinking of more and more things to make, but I may just revisit this recipe. Yum.
For the salad, I was looking to replicate a kind of Greek-ish salad with the feta. I used to love feta so much. I would put it in salads, on pizzas, even eat small slices as is for the salty tanginess. I made this feta with super pressed tofu. It was easily pressing for a couple of hours. I have made several different kinds of mock feta, most unfortunately being pretty hideous. This was pretty good, almost there, especially texture-wise. I am not going to post the recipe because it still needs a little tweaking, but I marinated it in olive oil, a couple vinegars, a few dried herbs, quite a bit of sea salt
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| Chopped Salad with Vegan Feta, Tostones, Guacamole, Rice & Bean Saute |
Tostones, Prepared
Yellow Rice & Bean Saute:
2 tablespoons garlic olive oil (minced garlic sauteed in olive oil)
2 small carrots, small diced, about 1/2 cup
1/2 orange pepper, small diced, about 1/2 cup
1/2 small green pepper, small diced, about 1/4 cup
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced, about 1/2 cup
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
1 cup snow peas, tough ends removed
2 cups cooked yellow rice (white rice cooked with 2 tablespoons annatto oil)
1 cup cooked pinto beans
2 teaspoons vegetable boullion powder
1 1/2 teaspoons tamari
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Chopped Vegetable Salad:
1/2 cup medium diced green bell pepper
1/2 cup medium diced orange bell pepper
1/4 cup medium diced red onion
1/2 cup mock feta, small diced
1/4 cup medium diced Roma tomato
1 1/2 tablespoons prepared Italian Dressing
Pinch black pepper
Guacamole:
1 extra large avocado, seeded and mashed
2 tablespoon minced red onion
2 tablespoons minced tomato
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 1/2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 + 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 pinches cayenne pepper
1. Prepare the chopped veggie salad first - the flavors are much better after marinating for a while. Place all the chopped veggies and the feta in a medium mixing bowl. Stir well. Add the Italian Dressing and black pepper and toss to coat. Cover and place in the refrigerator while preparing the rest of the meal.
2. Begin the Rice, Bean and Veggie Saute. Place a large wok on the stove over medium-high heat and add the garlic olive oil. Allow it to become hot and add the carrots, orange, green and jalapeno peppers, onion and snow peas. Saute for several minutes, stirring frequently, until veggies are crisp-tender. Add the cooked rice and beans and stir to coat with the veggies. Add the boullion powder, black pepper and tamari and toss to coat with all ingredients. Season to taste. Turn off the heat and cover.
3. Prepare the guacamole: in a medium bowl, add the mashed avocado and the remaining ingredients. Stir well until ingredients are well mixed. Season to taste.
4. To serve, portion amount of each the sauteed rice, beans and veggies, chopped salad, tostones and guacamole.
Enjoy!
Koko
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