Back in the saddle again…

I think most bloggers will agree with me – have you ever had a post that attracted a lot of buzz, the most hits, the most comments, yada, yada, yada… So you decide to leave it up for a while. Then as the days pass you wonder, I am ever gonna be able to replicate that? All of  a sudden nothing seems “blogworthy” and well, you all probably know the rest of the story. So I decided that today is the day I finally post something, anything, and as it might not be as exciting as Daiya cheese here is what I’ve been up to in the kitchen lately…

Testing, testing, testing and then some more testing. I have to admit, I love testing recipes for upcoming cookbooks! Here are some pictures for Julie Hasson’s  upcoming Vegan Diner book:

Dark Chocolate Cherry Cake

Slice o Cake!

Chocolate, cherries, and rum = yum!

Chocolate chip cookies, also from Julie:

Cookies!

Next up is Vegan Latina food porn, Terry Hope Romero’s  upcoming book. Check out these seitan and potato tacos – one of my favorite taco recipes:

Seitan & Potato Tacos

Roasted Corn

Roasted corn like the kind you get from street vendors with cashew cream and ancho chili powder. I could eat this everyday! Oh and look at this lovely horchata:

Horchata!

I almost died when I had this – VEGAN CUBAN SANDWICH – that’s right! Terry is a genious:

Cuban Sandwich!

And finally some bread pudding with mango and guava – delicious!

Mango Guava Bread Pudding

So I guess that’s it for now. Leave a comment and say Hi! if you want, my feelings won’t get hurt if you don’t…

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Baja Style Tofu Tacos!

So I’m not sure of it’s a Cali thing but on a hot, sunny day all I want is some cervezas and Baja Style Fish Tacos! I have been missing these immensely so I decided to take matters into my own hands! First, get your hands on some good mexican beer – I prefer Pacifico Clara – light, crisp, and delicious. Side note: if you wanna know if your alcohol is vegan check out Barnivore.  Take a pound of extra firm tofu (I use Wildwood brand)  and press it for about half an hour, pat it dry and cut roughly into “fish stick” sized pieces. Marinate it in 1 1/2 cups of beer for about another half an hour. In the meantime, mix together 1 cup of flour, 1/2 cup of cornmeal, 1 tsp. of cumin and oregano, 1/2 tsp. of onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne or some other type of chili powder, or cheat and use your favorite cajun style spice mix, and salt & pepper to taste. Once your tofu has sat in the beer for awhile go ahead and pour that beer into the dry mixture. Mix well until it has a thick pancake like consistency. You might need to add a little more beer to get the right consistency (if you still have any left at this point). Coat your tofu pieces in the batter and in a cast iron skillet or deep frying pan add enough of your favorite oil ( I use canola) to completely submerge the tofu pieces and fry them until golden brown. They should look like this:

Beer Battered Tofu

I used shredded cabbage and carrots, avocado, and I made some “cheater” sauces. I took a cup of Tofutti Sour Cream   and added about a cup of chopped cilantro and 1 tbs. of lime juice. Then I took another cup of the sour cream and added 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (seeded and finely minced) and a bit of the sauce until it was just the right amount of spicy. Assemble your tacos on corn tortillas, add some limes and your favorite hot sauce and you’re set!

Baja Style Tacos

If I may say so myself, these tacos turned out fantasic! Just like the fish tacos I remember but cruelty-free!

Beer Battered Tofu Tacos

So get your cervezas ready amigos and have yourself a feast!