Sunday Snack Attack- SESAME SEAWEED RICE BALLS GIVEAWAY!!!

Hello and Happy Sunday! I hope you are all enjoying your Sunday with friends, family and loved ones. As you get ready for the work week, I wanted to introduce you to one of my recent and favorite snack discoveries! Trader Joe's Sesame Seaweed Rice Balls!



They remind me a bit of cheetos brand, but when you eat these you don't end up with mysterious orange goop all over your fingers. If you are looking for another comparison, they are quite similar to Pirate's Booty snacks, they are light and airy but i have to say that these rice balls are superior!! Did i mention the super, spectacular, space packaging that is super fun?
I have to admit, the packing steered my eyes in their direction, it's totally wacky!



So you have your reservations about eating Seaweed? Rice? You don't consider yourself fan of seaweed iIn my humble opinion, you can't say you don't like something until you've tried it!

These puffy, crunchy, morsel-sized snacks are absolutely delicious! Did I mention they were Vegan and Gluten-FREE!! Isn't that amazing??

These rice balls ROCK MY SOCKS and I stock up on them on my monthly trip to Trader Joe's, at only 120 Calories per 1 1/2 cup serving with 40 Calories from fat, I can eat these and not feel guilty about it the next morning.


I like these so much, that I am GIVING AWAY ONE bag of the Sesame Seaweed Rice Balls! There are a few ways to enter the contest!

To make this a little easier for everyone you can copy, paste & fill-in-the-blankscomment on my blog telling me:

What is your favorite snack:
Why you want to try the Sesame Seaweed Rice Balls?:
Your Email address, so we can reach you if you win:

Contest ends Friday, April 2nd at 6pm EST - winner will be chosen randomly & announced on Saturday, April 3rd.

Bonus Entries:

If you do any of the following let me know by leaving a separate comment for each one you do. If you do any of the following already, let me know in an extra comment. Please, please make a separate comment for each of the bonus things that you do or your comment won't count. The separate comments help me to stay organized & makes choosing a winner so much easier...& it also ups your chances of winning! If you have any questions please e-mail me!

1. Follow my blog.
2. Follow VeganMsAdventur on Twitter & Tweet about this giveaway.


Good Luck to everyone!!!

Happy Cooking!

Cake Decorating 101- The Miss Adventures Begin!

So if there is anything you need to know about me is that I love cakes and cupcakes!! I wish I could eat cupcakes all day, it would be great, but then I'd probably been in pretty bad shape both physically and mentally. I am also obsessed with Ace of Cakes, Cake Boss and any other cake show on television. If I could marry anyone, it would be Duff, from Ace of Cakes!! A man who is talented enough to make cakes with a blow torch, is my kind of guy!

In my quest to make every recipe I come across a vegan version, I decided to sign up for the Wilton Cake Basic cake decorating class. Yesterday was my first attempt ever to decorate a cake!

First off, my first attempt did not go off without it's glitches... I am definitely not Martha Stewart! So my cakes, in order to keep it somewhat vegan, I resisted the instruction on the cake mix box and did not add the eggs... This was a big mistake!! My cakes were too moist and so fragile that they almost split in half when I tried to transfer them to my decorating wheel. Oh my!

What is a girl supposed to do when everyone else in class has 2 perfectly round solid cakes to work with? The lessons learned from this assignment was: 1. Add the eggs (I am not eating the cake anyway!) 2. Make your cake ahead of time, not the same day of the class! This will allow for the cake to settle and be sturdier for decorating.

Although the cakes were a miss, my homemade buttercreme frosting was the right consistency! Yeah for me, 1 out of 2 is not terribly bad :) So the things I am learning, I will put to use and learn how to make vegan versions of everything!

Here are some photographs of my cake. The design was supposed to be a rainbow, but we ran out of time and they were hurrying us up to leave, so they could close the store. Therefore, I only used the orange frosting I had.




Happy Cooking!!!

Meatless Monday- CHUNKY POTATO AND SPINACH CURRY

Happy Meatless Monday! Today, I am in the mood for some good Thai food and this dish does not disappoint.  It is a wonderful dish to serve with white rice or basmati rice as your main dish. 

I love the spicy quality of the red curry paste mixed with the garlic and spinach leaves, it will leave you wanting more. 

(Serves 4)

INGREDIENTS 

4 tomatoes 

2 tbsp vegetable oil 

2 onions, cut into thick wedges

1 inch gingerroot, peeled and finely chopped 

1 garlic clove, chopped 

2 tbsp ground coriander 

1lb. peeled potatoes, cut into chunks

2 1/2 cups vegetable stock (I use vegan stock cubes) 

1 tbsp red curry paste

8 oz spinach leaves

cooked rice, to serve 

DIRECTIONS

Put the tomatoes in a heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water. Leave for 2-3 minutes, then plunge into cold water and peel off the skins.

Cut each tomato into quarters and remove and discard the seeds and central core. Set aside. 

Heat the oil in a preheated wok. Add the onions, ginger, and garlic and stir-fry over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes, or until starting to soften.  Add the coriander and potatoes and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the stock and curry paste and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat and simmer gently for 10-15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. 

Add the spinach and the tomato quarters and cook, stirring, for 1 minute, or until the spinach has wilted. Serve with rice of your choice. 

Happy Cooking!

Freebie Fridays- Vaska Herbatergent Sample

I am always on the lookout for new, eco-friendly products, whether they be for household cleaning, laundry, cooking, design, furniture, clothing and beyond. So I have decided to begin a "Freebie Fridays" post and here I will share with you how to get free samples of great, eco-friendly products. It's a win-win situation for everyone. 

I just discovered Vaska, a Herbatergent liquid laundry detergent which uses real lavender and potent botanical cleaning agents to clean your clothing and linens effectively, without harmful chemicals. The liquid detergent is available in Light Lavender or Scent Free and only uses natural herbal cleaning agents to fight germs and remove soap residue that damages fabrics and causes skin irritation.

There are many benefits to using plant based laundry detergent vs. commercially chemical based detergents:

• Hypoallergenic 
  
• Extends fabric life
  
• Biodegradable
  
• Safe on colors and all natural and synthetic washable fabrics
  
• Not tested on animals
  

So, where do you get your hands on this amazing, laundry detergent? Become a Fan of Vaska on Facebook and get a FREE SAMPLE of Vaska Herbatergent- look for the free sample link (4th post) on their Facebook page. 

Have a Fantastic Friday and a Brilliant Weekend! 

MEATLESS MONDAY- Vegan Sloppy Joe's

Spring is in the air, the flowers are beginning to bud and the days are getting warmer. Since I have grown a bit tired of consuming so much soup in the winter, I was craving a Veggie burger today, but decided to make these Sloppy Joe's instead. They are so delicious, you may want to make an extra batch for these are a sure crowd pleaser!

VEGAN SLOPPY JOE'S


Ingredients:

1 lb firm tofu
2 Tbsp oil
2 Tbsp minced green pepper
1 Tbsp minced fresh garlic OR 1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 Tbsp minced onion OR 1 tsp onion powder
1 Tbsp minced jalapeño pepper (omit this if you don't like spicy food)
Pinch dried cayenne or chipotle pepper
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 cup water
1/4 cup ketchup (I used the Spicy Wholemato Organic Agave Ketchup)
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp minced parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Mash tofu and mince the veggies
Heat oil on medium in a large frying pan, fry onion & garlic 5 min
Add tofu, jalapeno & green pepper, fry 5 minutes, on high
Add dry spices and fry for 2 minutes
Add ketchup, water, soy sauce, br sugar, parsley and simmer 10 minutes
Tofu moisture content varies, so add more ketchup and water as needed if the mixture seems too dry
Serve over buns with a salad, oven fries, mashed potatoes or whatever you like!

Happy Cooking !! 

MEATLESS MONDAY- Spicy Rice and Black Eyed Peas

Welcome to Meatless Monday! I hope you all had a fantastic weekend and are ready to take on another amazing week. I decided to spice things up this week (as I love spicy food) and give you a "hot" dish to melt those Winter Blues away. The recipe is simple, quick and easy. Hope you enjoy making it as much as I enjoyed eating it!


SPICY RICE AND BLACK EYED PEAS

3/4 cup uncooked white rice*
1/4 cup green pepper, chopped.
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. red cayenne pepper
1 tsp. oregano
2 cloves of garlic
1 (15 oz) can stewed tomatoes
1 (15 oz) can black eyed peas, drained.
1/2 cup water

Mix all ingredients in a 10 inch skillet and bring to a boil. Cover, turn the heat down to low and let simmer for 25 minutes or until the sauce is incorporated. Serve.

*MWL Option: Substitute brown rice for the white and increase the water to 3/4 cups and the cooking time to 45 minutes. Or, use 1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice and add it during the last 10 minutes of cooking (25 minutes total).

Happy Cooking!!

Meatless Monday- Potato Leek Soup and Caesar Salad

It's Meatless Monday once again!! It's March 1st and we are going to get snow here tomorrow, so I wanted to share a nice, warm soup recipe with you. It's nice to have this soup while dreaming on Spring and the beauty it will bring!



Potato Leek Soup


4 leeks (white part only), sliced
6 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, diced
3 vegetable bouillon cubes
2 spring (green) onions, chopped, for garnish

• Place the leeks and potatoes in a large pot. Add water to cover. Bring to a boil. Add the bouillon cubes and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.
• Remove from the heat. Transfer to a blender or food processor and process until thick and smooth.
• Divide the soup evenly among five bowls and garnish with onions.

Makes 5 servings



Caesar Salad

2 Tbsp. margarine, melted
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 large loaf rustic Italian bread, crusts removed, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
2 tsp. salt, divided
1 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, divided
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 cloves garlic
1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp. vegan Worcestershire sauce (available from veganstore.com)
1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 heads romaine lettuce, washed, dried, and chopped into 1-inch pieces
1-2 Tbsp. nondairy parmesan “cheese” (ttry Soyco’s Soymage brand— at www.galaxyfoods.com)
• Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
• Combine the margarine and olive oil in a large bowl. Add the bread cubes and toss until coated. Sprinkle them with 1 tsp. of the salt, 1/2 tsp. of the black pepper, and the cayenne pepper, and then toss again until evenly coated.
• Spread the bread cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake until croutons are golden—, about 10 minutes.
Allow them to cool completely cool on the tray.
• Meanwhile, for the salad dressing, place the remaining 1 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. black pepper, garlic, lemon juice, Worchestershire sauce, mustard, and olive oil into a food processor and process until smooth.
• Place the lettuce and croutons into a large bowl, add the salad dressing and non-dairy soy parmesan, and toss well to coat.
• Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings

Keep Warm and Happy Cooking!!!