Tacos Two Ways

Traveling on business for the past two weeks, I was not able to "make and bring my own lunch" (challenge no. 20), and this week I have been stranded in Brooklyn. But I feel very, very lucky to have power and open grocery stores in my neighborhood. So today I made my lunch and "brought" it to work, even if work is my dining table for the time being.

Oh, and I pretty much discovered the best raw vegan BBQ sauce ever (just blend the following ingredients in a food processor or high-speed blender and add some water, if needed, to get the right consistency):

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup tomatoes
3 sun dried tomatoes
3 pitted dates
1/4 clove (or one small clove) of garlic, minced
1/2 tbsp stone ground mustard
1 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/3 tbsp onion granules
pinch of black pepper
pinch of cayenne
pinch of sea salt

With this sauce I made mushroom BBQ tacos: sliced portabella mushrooms, the BBQ sauce, and diced onion wrapped in a lettuce leaf:

I also made balsamic mushroom tacos with guacamole. For this I marinated the mushrooms in balsamic vinegar and soy sauce before placing them in a lettuce leaf and topping with guacamole and diced onion:

No, Really! Soup!

I was a bit nervous when I saw that the title of this soup was "It's Really Soup!", partly because of the infuriating use of an exclamation point but mostly because it does that equally infuriating thing that raw vegan recipes do -- try to cover up the fact that you're eating something raw vegan.

This recipe comes from the only raw food book I own, clearly purchased because of the rave review from Vegetarian Journal:

Despite all of this, onward I went with a basket full of fresh produce. And I have to admit - this was hearty and tasty. Provided a lovely lunch today for challenge no. 20 (make and bring your lunch two out of five days per week).

Once again I forgot to snap a picture, but just imagine the vegetable section of any grocery store and it pretty much looked the same. Just in a bowl. 

A More Appropriate Recipe

Last week (one of the hottest weeks ever in life) I made pot pies, otherwise known as a hot and hearty winter dish. So for my lunch today I thought I'd redeem myself with something a little lighter. And colder.

On today's menu (challenge no. 20) is zucchini pasta with peas and asparagus, tossed in an avocado sauce. To make the noodles, I opted for a vegetable peeler, which made fettuccine-like noodles out of the zucchini. You can also use a spiralizer or whatever fancy schmancy robot noodle maker you happen to have in your kitchen.

  

Pasta: 
1 large zucchini
pinch of salt
1/2 cup peas
1/2 cup asparagus

Sauce:
1 avocado
6 TBSP water
1 TBSP lemon juice
zest of 1 lemon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1 TBSP fresh thyme

Directions:
Peel the zucchini and noodle-ize them to your liking. Sprinkle with salt and set aside.

Throw the sauce ingredients in a blender and...wait for it...blend. Until smooth.

Blanch the asparagus and peas (I actually just poured boiling water over them in a bowl and let it sit for 2 minutes).

Drain the asparagus and peas and combine with zucchini noodles. Add the dressing and toss to coat.

Do a jig (optional).

Stir Fry Try

Another raw vegan lunch recipe for challenge no. 20 (make and bring your lunch two out of five days per week). For this one I went for a stir fry. Mostly stir, not much fry.

BROCCOLI MUSHROOM STIR FRY
(recipe source)

Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp agave or raw honey
1 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1 cup chopped broccoli
1 large parsnip
1 large carrot
1 cup sugar snap peas
Sesame seeds

Directions:
Make a marinade with the olive oil, soy sauce, and agave/honey. Toss in the mushrooms and broccoli and set aside.

Peel and cut parsnip into pieces. Place in a food processor and process until coarsely chopped, when it takes on the appearance of rice.

Julienne the carrots into matchstick size pieces. Chop the peas into 1/2 inch pieces and toss into the parsnip rice with the carrots.

Stir in the entire broccoli and mushroom marinade mix. Toss. Add some sesame seeds. Enjoy!

On the side I made some eggplant chips in my dehydrator to dip into my new obsession: toasted walnut lentil pate. This stuff is heavenly: