I’m often asked what vegans eat for breakfast, which is kind of a weird question. I guess for most people, breakfast does usually include foods like bacon and eggs, which vegans eschew. Tofu a good stand-in for eggs, and there are plenty of vegan bacon products now on the market.
Read MoreVegan Chocolate Bliss Cups Recipe
Valentine’s Day is almost here, and what better way to celebrate than with some chocolate. This raw cacao mousse is easy to make and it's rather healthy, and absolutely no one will know that it's made with avocados unless they see you make it. If you don't want to splurge on raw cacao, regular cocoa powder can be used, but cacao has so many health benefits that it's probably worth the extra cost, especially since it's a special occasion.
Read MoreMeatless Monday – Easy Weeknight Dinner Cooking Class
Join Dianne Wenz (that’s me!) as she cooks up a quick and easy weeknight meal using easy to find grocery store ingredients. I will be making an Asian-inspired salad, a vegetable noodle stir-fry, and a healthy no-bake dessert. You’ll be able to try everything, and you’ll go home with all of the recipes so you can make them for your family in your own kitchen.
Read MoreMeatless Monday – Temeph Fricassee
It is cold here in New Jersey, and I’ve been craving warming comfort foods, like this Tempeh Fricassee. For those of you unfamiliar with tempeh, it’s a traditional Indonesian food made with soybeans, and it’s perfect for use in recipes that usually call for meat. Since tempeh is fermented, people have told me that the taste is too strong for them, and I usually recommend that the steam it before adding it into the dish that they’re making. Steaming cuts downs on the fermented taste and allows for the tempeh to readily absorb the flavors of what it’s being cooked with.
Read MoreMeatless Monday – Mulled Wine
You would think that all alcohol is vegan, but the truth is that some of it isn’t. Some beers and wines are filtered using gelatin or isinglass, which is the dried swim bladder of a fish. There are many, many beers and wines that are vegan though, and the website Barnivore is a good site to check for info. There are so many different brands in the world that it’s impossible it keep a comprehensive list, so if you’re really worried, the best thing to do is ask the company. I recently met a wine rep who tried to tell me that all wine was non-vegan, so while most winemakers are now savvy to what's vegan and what isn't, there is still a learning curve.
Read MoreMeatless Monday - Chocolate Mousse Pie
Not only is the Christmas season the most wonderful time of the year, it is usually also the most unhealthy. Indulgent dishes and sugary sweets are usually the only foods on the menu at holiday parties and family gatherings. This raw chocolate mousse pie is made with . . .
Read MoreMeatless Monday – Curried Pumpkin Peanut Soup
Last year I created it a Curried Pumpkin Peanut Soup recipe using roasted pumpkin. It was a big hit with people, but some told me that they just didn’t have time to chop and roast a pumpkin. I hear ya – sometimes there just aren’t enough hours in a day. I’ve reworked the recipe so that it uses canned pumpkin puree, rather than roasted pumpkin.
Read MoreMeatless Monday – Savoring the Shore Cookbook
Born in an effort to help with Hurricane Sandy Relief, Savoring the Shore is a community cookbook full of recipes that celebrate the Jersey Shore. Some recipes are signature dishes from local restaurants, some are family recipes that have been passed down for generations and others are fresh twists on classic New Jersey fare.
Read MoreMeatless Monday - Pumpkin Baked Ziti
Thanksgiving can be a tough holiday for those who don’t partake in meat, but with some careful planning, it is possible to get through the day relatively unscathed. Even though pasta isn’t traditionally thought of as a Thanksgiving dish, it’s been showing up on the table more and more throughout recent years and it’s a safe meatless option. The pumpkin and pecans in this recipe give it a fall feel, and the tofu ricotta tastes close enough to the “real” thing that even omnivores will enjoy it.
Read MoreMeatless Monday – Spicy Coconut Kale
It used to be that kale was one of those weird foods that only “health nuts” and vegans ate, like chia and mung bean sprouts. But in the last year or two, kale has really taken over and has become quite the trendy veggie - so much so that my friend Deana thinks it has “jumped the shark."
Read MoreMeatless Monday – Lentil Stuffed Eggplant
This recipe was inspired by a bunch of small eggplants I received in my Purple Dragon Co-op share a few weeks ago. I wanted to something different than the usual grilled eggplant or pasta dishes, so I decided to hollow out the veggies and fill them with a meaty lentil mixture. This recipe will work with larger eggplant as well - just use 2 of them rather than 4.
Read MoreMeatless Monday – Mundo Vegan
Montclair is about to get it's first all-vegan cafe! Mundo Vegan will be going into the space on Church Street that The Stockpot used to occupy.
Read MoreMeatless Monday – Vegan Chocolate
From Mark Bittman’s transition to mostly vegan, to Gwyneth Paltrow’s emphasis on vegan meals in her new family cookbook, more and more people are realizing they can enjoy the benefits and satisfaction of a vegan diet without having to commit to plant-based eating at every meal. Thanks to Fran Costigan’s Vegan Chocolate: Unapologetically Luscious and Decadent Dairy-Free Desserts, either full- or part-time vegan eating can include rich, sinful-tasting, and delicious chocolate desserts.
Read MoreMeatless Monday – Roasted Kabocha Soup
Now that it’s the middle of October, we’re deep in the heart of pumpkin season! For a twist on traditional pumpkin, I used a kabocha squash in this dish. Kabocha is also known as Japanese pumpkin and is one of the more popular members of the squash family due to its strong yet sweet flavor and moist, fluffy texture. This soup is perfect for chilly fall evenings.
Read MoreMeatless Monday – Pumpkin Curry
Autumn is here! The air is crisp, leaves are changing color, and warm and hearty stews are on the menu. This is the time of year that every starts talking about adding pumpkin to just about everything they consume – coffee, oatmeal, soup, hummus, pasta sauce – you name it, you can pumpkinize it. This pumpkin curry recipe combines two of my fall food loves – warming curry and the hearty pumpkin.
Read More
Upcoming Vegan Events
Fall is a good time to be vegan in Montclair, but you don’t need to follow a plant-based diet to enjoy the upcoming events this season.
Read MoreMeatless Monday - Soy Lime Seitan Tacos with Mango and Chipotle Aioli
Over the weekend my friend Jenna and I did a cooking demo at the Bethlehem VegFest in Bethlehem, PA. We made Jenna’s seitan tacos, which the crowd really enjoyed. If you’re not familiar with seitan, it’s a “wheat meat” that can be used in recipes that call for chicken or beef. Packaged seitan can be found in grocery stores near the tofu, or you can make your own.
Read MoreBroccoli Slaw
Cole slaw is quintessentially Jersey to me, as it always conjures up images of late night trips to the diner for a club sandwich with a side of fries. This broccoli slaw is a healthy twist on the diner classic, and is the perfect side dish for your summer time cookout.
Read More