Casseroles & Fake Meat for Vegetarians
Baked Tofu - Nothing fancy - just an easy, basic way to fix tofu to add to stir fries or other dishes - no deep frying necessary! These will have a nice, chewy texture. Freezing your tofu allow it to develop a firmer consistency. When you get home from the grocery store with your tofu, toss it in the freezer. You can leave it in there for months with no problem. Just make sure you thaw it out before you use it! - Posted February 23, 2016.
Baked Walnut Balls (off-site) - One of my favorite recipes from The Vegetarian Epicure, by Anna Thomas. Ms. Thomas is still keeping herself busy - you can read all about her on her web site.- Posted on "Vegan Made Easy." - Links posted October 22, 2018.
Baked Walnut Balls (a vegan version) - I absolutely LOVE Anna Thomas's "Baked Walnut Balls" from her book, The Vegetarian Epicure. Since going vegan for my health (I had high cholesterol - I went vegan - my cholesterol levels are now healthy and normal!), I've been trying to figure out ways to make vegan versions of some of my old favorites... this adaptation fits the bill! If you don't have a problem with cholesterol, the original is awesome... if you can't find the book, there's a posting of the original recipe here: https://hannahcuttingjones.wordpress.com/2013/04/29/my-mother-pepper-and-those-almost-forgotten-walnut-balls/ - Posted October 24, 2018.
Cashew-Almond Loaf - An excellent recipe from the 1960's - This nut loaf is from The Natural Foods Cookbook by Beatrice Trum Hunter (page 148). An oldie, but most definitely a goodie! :)
General Tso's Tofu (off-site) - A very simple and very delicious version of this Chinese food take-out standard! My non-vegetarian hubby enjoyed the sauce in a chicken version as well. Posted on The Buddhist Chef web site. - Link posted June 20, 2017.
Megaloaf (Vegetarian "Meatloaf") - Definitely too many calories for everyday fare, but a good vegetarian alternative to meat dishes on holidays - my mother-in-law has made this for me every Thanksgiving since I married into the family more than 33 years ago,. The omnivores in my family like it so much that they have it as a side dish - I'm the only vegetarian in the family, but this recipe always somehow disappears!
The New York Times Ultimate Veggie Burger, Personalized Version - The best home-made veggie burger I've tried yet! This version is very slightly modified from the original version (at https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1016668-the-ultimate-veggie-burger?mcubz=2) to suit my perculiar tastes and labor-saving (aka lazy) cooking methodology. There's a fair bit of prep work, but after that, it's a pretty easy road to yummy veggie burgers! - Posted July 17, 2017.
Oil-Free Swedish Lentil "Meatballs" (off-site) - A good, tasty, and easy recipe for non-meat "meatballs." I haven't tried the Swedish sauce, yet, but the lentil balls themselves are excellent! I used them to replace the meat-based balls in the Eating Well magazine's recipe for Tamari-Ginger Meatball & Eggplant Casserole. - Link posted June 26, 2017.
Spaghetti Sauce with Veggie Crumbles (off-site) - Posted on SparkPeople. Morningstar makes a nice fake burger that's fooled some of my omnivorous relatives into thinking it was the "real thing."
Sweet Potato Black Bean Burger (off-site) - From the "Minimalist Baker" site - Link posted August 15, 2015.
Tamari-Ginger Meatball & Eggplant Casserole (off-site) - A tasty and different casserole from page 65 of the July/August edition of Eating Well magazine. I used vegetarian "meatballs," and added the ginger, corn starch (2 tablespoons instead of a quarter cup), red pepper flakes, and dried cilantro directly to the sauce. It made for a great dinner, served with Purple Jasmine Coconut Rice and topped with unsalted peanuts. - Link posted June 25, 2017.
Tofu Crumbles (Vegetarian "Hamburger") - I had to go on an "elimination diet" for IBS recently, so had to give up certain soy products - apparently textured soy protein and soy milk can cause digestive upset, but not tofu. So I had to give up the beloved Morningstar crumbles that I'd used prolifically in casseroles and sauces. I've discovered that tofu makes a nice substitute for use in such dishes as spaghetti sauce, shepherd's pie, and sloppy Joe's. I found the original recipe on the Glow Kitchen site. - Posted December 1, 2016.
Tofu-Nut-Veggie Loaf - A good vegetarian "meatloaf" - modified from the Tofu Loaf on Oprah's web site. Note: Freeze and thaw the tofu before proceeding to produce a better texture. - Posted December 31, 2016.
Tofu Tourtière - I remember my Mémère making this for Christmas in my pre-vegetarian days, but she never cooked with tofu, as far as I know. I wanted to try something special for Christmas dinner this year, so I tried making a vegetarian version. Tourtière is normally prepared with meat. My mother recently confessed to me that she often ate her tourtière with catsup, which Mémère would find quite irritating - I tried it, and catsup actually tastes quite good with this version, too! :) This version is based on the one on the Cookbook Aficionado web site. - Posted January 18, 2017.
Vegetarian Haggis (off-site) - Posted on Google Books. From Venturesome Vegan Cooking: Bold Flavors for Plant-Based Meals, by J.M. Hirsch & Michelle Hirsch.
Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie - A good, basic Shepherd's Pie recipe - it just uses tofu in place of the meat! :) - Posted January 15, 2017.
Vegetarian Tamale Pie - A tasty, healthy, quick casserole, based on recipe posted on "Delightful Repast"
(http://www.delightfulrepast.com/2013/06/tamale-pie-tamales-lazy-way.html). The author, Jean, has a wonderful food blog, full of what she calls "comfort food with flair." I pretty much just "vegified" this recipe, and threw in a few more lazy cook tips (I don't think you'll find Jean using canned creamed corn in any of her recipes). - Posted March 12, 2016.
(http://www.delightfulrepast.com/2013/06/tamale-pie-tamales-lazy-way.html). The author, Jean, has a wonderful food blog, full of what she calls "comfort food with flair." I pretty much just "vegified" this recipe, and threw in a few more lazy cook tips (I don't think you'll find Jean using canned creamed corn in any of her recipes). - Posted March 12, 2016.