Carrot & Chickpea Soup

Please don't call me "A Copy Cat"!!!
I made this soup based on what I read from those food blogs I've been so inspired by. Last Friday, I didn't feel like eating anything at all after seeing my dentist. When I was hungry, all I wanted was only SOUP, SOUP, SOUP!!!

After searching my fridge and cupboard, I came up with an easy and delicious soup. This was how I made it:

~ Saute diced onion and garlic in olive oil until soft.
~ Add grated carrots (1 cup) and chickpeas (15 oz can), cook for 4-5 minutes.
~ Stir in about 3 cups of unsweetened rice milk and bring to a boil.
~ Reduce heat to medium low and cook for 10-15 minutes.
~ Transfer soup mixture to a blender and puree until smooth.
~ Return the mixture to the pan and cook until steaming hot.
~ Season to taste with salt and pepper.

And voila ~ very delightful carrot & chickpea soup!

I had this bowl of great tasting soup for lunch at work the next day. It was "Sweet Potato Bisque" from Trader Joe's, Kim's favorite store!

Short but sweet ending with this Thai style dessert.

Just mix vanilla rice milk(we usually use coconut milk), sugar and a little salt in a sauce pan and bring to a boil, add a can each of white beans and black beans (drained and rinsed)and cook for 10-15 minutes. I served mine over sweet cooked tapioca, mostly we eat this kind of dessert with sweet sticky rice.

I hope you will enjoy this lovely dessert!!!

Spicy Tofu Salad

This one is for those who love spicy food. It's an authentic Thai dish called "Laab", you can easily find this menu at any Thai restaurants but mostly they cook with your choice of meats. I got Laab Seasoning Mix from Thai market. Its taste is tangy and spicy.

I started by squeezing liquid out of tofu with paper towel and crumble it into small pieces, heat 1/4 cup of water in a pan, add tofu and stir for 4-5 minutes, stir in the seasoning mix and diced shallots, add soy sauce to taste, mix well. Garnish with mint leaves and serve with fresh veggies.

How easy is that!!

Note: You can make your own mix by using 2 tbsp roasted ground rice, 2 tsp chili powder, 3 tbs soy sauce and 2-3 tbs lime juice.

Ginger Tofu

I made this simple dish for the tofu lovers (including me) on my "Tofu Day". I L-O-V-E tofu and ginger so much. It's such a great combination of healthy food for me. As you can see from the above picture, you just need only 4 ingredients excluding oil and sauces to taste.

Here is the easiest way to make it:

Saute minced garlic in olive oil until soft. Put tofu into the pan, cook tofu about 5 minutes until lightly brown. Stir in carrots, ginger, water as needed, vegetarian oyster sauce, mushroom soy sauce. Carefully stir all ingredients together and you're all set!

I hope you will love this dish as much as I do!!!

Easy Veggie Tofu

Oh dear! I think I'm running out of ideas what to cook for my family. I only have a package of soft tofu, fresh carrots and a bag of frozen green beans. What should I cook for them?

I came up with this quick & easy idea:

Saute minced garlic in olive oil until soft, cut tofu into 9 pieces and put into the pan. Add vegetarian oyster sauce, mushroom soy sauce and black pepper to taste, pour in 1/4 cup of water and bring it to a boil. Cover the pan, turn the stove down and let it simmer for 5-10 minutes. (The longer you simmer, the tastier tofu you will get). Add carrots and green beans, cover for another 5 minutes and done!!

I served it over steamed rice. It's very healthy and delicious!!

Tofu Day!

Pan Fried Tofu With BBQ Sauce

I made this dish as requested by my son about a week ago.

I didn't post it as I thought it was similar to
Pan Fried Tofu with Orange Marmalade Glaze I posted before.

I changed my mind because today is my "Tofu Day".

After cooking tofu with oil about 4-5 minutes each side until golden brown, add BBQ sauce to the pan and bring to bubbling. Cook about 5 more minutes until sauce coats the tofu well.

I had this tasty tofu with calrose rice, steamed broccoli & mushroom. It was soooooo yummy in my tummy!!!

Mushroom & Onion Salad # 2

This is how it looks the next day after I add some red bell pepper and parsley. The color of mushroom is a little bit darker but the best thing of all is ...." IT TASTES EVEN BETTER ". I love it!!!!

Mushroom & Onion Salad

As you can tell, I still don't have enough of mushrooms. After I read "eat'n veg'n blog" last night, I told myself "THIS IS IT". I just love quick and easy recipe.

I asked Diann (aTxVegn) for permission to post this recipe and she kindly gave the okay. Yeah!!!

This salad is SUPER easy to make. Please go to
eat'n veg'n vegan food and recipes for the recipe.

I took this picture before I put it in the fridge. And after 4 hours of chilling, I just couldn't stop eating it. I had to pinch my arm to make sure that I was not dreaming. Wow! I thought I was in heaven!! It's not gonna get any better than this. Believe me!!!

Mushroom Noodle Miso Soup

I created this noodle soup last Thursday for lunch. I knew that I wanted to eat some more mushrooms. After searching my fridge, I came up with this quick & easy idea.

Heat a pot of 2-3 cups water to a boil. Stir in 1 tbsp white miso paste, mix well and then add portabella mushrooms, white button mushrooms, green cabbage and baby spinach, cook for 5 minutes. Add soy sauce or salt & pepper to taste. Serve over cooked rice noodle, drizzle some Sriracha Chili Sauce if you like it spicy. I loved it so much, I wished I could have made more.

Mushroom Time!

"Thai Style Vegetable Soup

I have been so much in love with "mushrooms" lately. I read from a Thai book that "eating mushrooms can help detoxify the body".Especially cooking together at least 3 kinds of mushroom at a time will give the body more protein than eating meats.

I found an authentic Thai soup mix called "Kaang Lieng" at an Asian market. This soup is a versatile soup for budget-conscious family, you can use any kind of vegetables you have.

The mix contains of salt, dried shrimp (sorry for those who don't eat shrimp), shallot powder, wild ginger powder, pepper powder, sugar, shrimp paste powder (sorry again)and chili powder.

It is very easy to make. You just boil 3 cups of water, add the soup mix and then the vegetables. For me, I put portabella mushroom, white button mushroom, abalone mushroom (canned), dried mushroom, carrots and green papaya. That's all. I don't really need to add anything else, the soup was soooo good. I thought I was eating it in Thailand!!

Cashew Dip

I made this easy and delightful Cashew Dip a couple days ago. My cousin gave me this recipe, she calls it "Black pepper cheeze". I love it so much and have made it so many times until I can remember the recipe by heart.



Ingredients: 2 cups raw cashews

4 tbsp lemon juice

3 cloves garlic

1/2 tsp sea salt & black pepper

1/4 cup water

Process cashews, lemon juice, garlic, salt & pepper until smooth, adding only enough water as needed. Will keep 4 days in fridge.



Isn't it so quick and easy to make? I love to have this yummy dip with crackers or fresh vegetables. This time I had it with Wheat Thins and top with grape tomatoes and sprinkled with olive oil and fresh parsley. How beautiful!!

Gluten Free Birthday Cake

This heart shape cake was beautifully decorated with lovely pink frosting and raspberry sauce on top. It was gluten free!!! YES, gluten free and so delicious. It was the first time I have ever tasted gluten free cake, it was moist and amazingly tasty. Anyone interested in the recipe, let me know, I can get it for you. I was really touched by this nice birthday surprise from the wonderful Musante family . Bless their hearts!!!

Roasted Veggies Wrap

Last Saturday night, I was in a mood of "Roasted Veggies" while my family enjoyed pizza for dinner. I had asparagus, red bell pepper and grape tomatoes (cut in half), seasoned them with salt & pepper and drizzled with olive oil. Put in the oven at 400 degree F for 20 minutes. Spread "lemon cilantro hummus" over a whole wheat flour tortillas, put roasted veggies on top, add some fresh parsley and carefully roll up. Cut in half just like in the picture and enjoy! This is so easy to make and of course, very delicious.

Pan Fried Tofu with Orange Marmalade Glaze

I got the idea of making this easy and tasty Pan Fried Tofu from The Vegan Mouse which is based on the recipe from V e g a n D a d.

Instead of plum sauce, I used 2 tbsp of orange marmalade mix well with 1/4 cup water. It came out really good. I served it with steamed rice and green beans. My husband and my son loved it so much and asked for some more. Sorry, that's all I have!! My son suggested that next time I make this dish again but with BBQ sauce.

First Time Vegetarian!

I have been so inspired by many vegetarian food blogs since the New Year. Deciding to become a vegetarian is such a pleasure that I did not need to think twice. I am really excited to present my first post with my easy veggie comfort food. ~~~ I looove to have boiled rice and veggie stir fry for breakfast. It is so easy and delicious. What you need to do is:Saute diced onion and minced garlic in olive oil until soft. Throw in whatever kinds of vegetables you have in the fridge (I use asparagus, zucchini, yellow squash, cauliflower, mushroom and ginger), stir in cornstarch+ water mixture. Add vegetarian oyster sauce, soy sauce, and black pepper to taste.

Tomato Smoothie

I started my morning with this refreshing tomato smoothie. I just need 1 cup of sliced tomatoes; I love cherry tomatoes the best but I have only beef steak tomatoes, 1 cup of vanilla yogurt, 1 cup of vanilla soy milk and some honey to taste. Mix all ingredients in blender until smooth and... voila ~ a super easy and tasty smoothie!!

Tofu & Veggie Stir Fry Noodles

This stir fry noodle dish is my all time favorite quick and easy dinner. I just need a package of rice noodle and a package of firm tofu and I can use any kind of vegetables I have on hand. This time, I have asparagus, broccoli, shredded carrots and green cabbage.

Heat a pot of water to a boil. Add rice noodle and cook for few minutes, then drain and rinse well. Heat a pan over medium high with a little oil , cut tofu into small pieces; season with Season All and fry for 5 minutes each side, set aside. Add 1 tbsp oil into the same pan, stir in minced garlic and all veggie ingredients. Add mushroom soy sauce, vegetarian oyster sauce and pepper to taste. Stir in cooked noodles, mix well with other ingredients and top with the fried tofu.

This is how it looks in my plate. I also drizzled some Sriracha Chili Sauce on top. It was absolutely easy and yummy!!!