Inari

(aka Inarizushi)

Ok, I admit I didn't make these, but they are becoming one of my favorite lunch items! Never had or heard of inari? It's on the menus of many Japanese restaurants, or can often be found in the prepared sushi sections of grocery stores. Basically, inarizushi is a fried tofu/bean curd wrapper, stuffed with white sushi rice. It's simple but surprisingly good because the wrapper tastes slightly sweet since it's cooked in a sweet soy-sauce base. And it's still pretty healthy: only 2 grams of fat and about 130 calories per pouch, and each has 5 grams of protein. I like them because they are tasty, filling, but still light.

Check out this page for information about how to make your own inarizushi.

Coo-Coo for Kale

Not too long ago I posted a kale salad I found while exploring some vegan blogs. Here it is again, featured on its own. I used the original kale salad recipe, along with some leftovers of Kathy from Health.Happy.Life's mushroom recipe from trio of bruschettas. The result is a really filling salad with a lot of flavor. The dressing (a miso sesame) has that Asian peanuty flavor, the kale is just the right amount of crisp, vine ripe tomatoes provide the color pop, and the truffle salt thyme mushrooms add that extra flavor that really complements the salad and dressing! I think this salad could also work with some tempeh added in.

After loving this delicious raw kale salad, my eyes popped at this yummy version with beets, apples, and avocado from The Happy Go Lucky Vegan. So I had to make that too! I changed things up a bit by using golden beets (they are so pretty and have such a great flavor!) and pomegranate seeds instead. Whereas the first kale salad listed above has a rich creamy dressing and Asian flavor, this second kale salad has a really bright, light, citrusy flavor to it, which I loved. It works really well with the pomegranate seeds too! And I LOVE that avocado is the primary ingredient in the dressing.


Ingredients (for the beet version pictured directly above):

• 1 bunch of kale, de-stemmed, washed, and coarsely chopped
• 1 ripe avocado, chopped
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 and 1/2 Tbsp olive oil (I used only 1 Tbsp)
  
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 tsp brown rice syrup (I subbed about 1/2 tsp agave syrup instead)
  
• 5-6 small beets sliced (I used golden beets, and steamed them... but roasted beets would be great too!)
  
• 1 cucumber, chopped
• 1 Granny Smith apple, chopped
• 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds (I used pomegranate seeds instead)
  

Steps:

1. Whisk together the olive oil, salt, and brown rice syrup in a large bowl. Add the chopped avocado.
2. Add in the raw, cleaned and chopped kale and massage it with the dressing and avocado mix (ie, just take your hands and mush it all together for about 3 minutes or so! This helps break down the kale, and, admit it- it's kind of fun too).
   
3. Add the rest of the ingredients and toss gently. Add pepper to taste, and chill in the fridge prior to serving.
   

Notes: As mentioned by Gena, kale salads are great because you can make them a few hours in advance and take them to a picnic or dinner party later on and they won't wilt and get mushy. Actually, I even have it the next day and it still is nice and crunchy- no soppy salad leftovers with these kale salads! Plus, kale is a super green- it's got tons of fiber, vitamin A, C, K, and lots of other healthy nutrients, all while weighing in at a measly 33 calories per cup. Who wouldn't be coo coo for kale when it tastes so good in these salads?

Edamame Hummus

Recently my husband and I discovered Trader Joe's edamame hummus. In a word, yum. When he asked me to pick some up from the store, I sneakily said I would, but, flying high off of my recent triumph of making my own batch of hummus for the first time, I just got the ingredients instead. This is what I whipped up:


I used the recipe base from Gena from Choosing Raw's high protein hemp hummus, and simply switched out the chic peas for about 2 cups of cooked shelled edamame. I also added a few other things (a little onion, a little olive oil, and some pepper).

Ingredients:

• 2-2.5 cups of cooked shelled edamame
  
• 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
• Pepper to taste
  
• 3 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 small clove garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp chopped onion
  
• 1 Tbsp tahini
  
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
  
• Water

Steps:

1. Add all ingredients but the water and oil and begin to process. (You may want to start with about 3/4 of the edamame and add the rest after breaking it down a bit).
   
2. Add water and olive oil (stopping to scrape the bowl a few times) until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
3. Garnish with some left over edamame beans and chill prior to serving.

For the sandwich above, I used multigrain spelt bread, a solid helping of the edamame hummus, and a nice big avocado slice. Yum!

Mint Lime Summer Fruit Salad

I saw this gorgeous salad on Finding Vegan the other day, and just had to try it. I have to admit, I actually don't like papaya all that much- I think it's kind of tasteless and doesn't have the best texture. BUT, this salad changed my impression.... mint, lime, and maple syrup to the rescue! (Ok, actually, I used agave syrup rather than the original recipe's maple syrup, but the taste is very similar). Here's my take:

Recipe adapted from The Family Kitchen's post.
Makes approximately 5-6 cups.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium papaya cubed (remove the skin & seeds)
• 1 sliced banana
• 1 sliced yellow peach
• 1 cup sliced strawberries
• 2 limes
  
• 2-3 Tbsp fined chopped fresh mint
• 2 Tbsp agave (or maple) syrup

Steps:

1. Chop all the fruit and the mint. Zest 1 or both limes.
   
2. Place the papaya in a bowl and toss in the agave syrup. Juice the limes and add that to the papaya mix.
   
3. Add the rest of the fruit, the mint, and most of the lime zest, and toss gently.
4. Garnish with the rest of the zest!

Note: I also added mango to this salad, because I love it so much and I had one. It's a nice addition! I think you could easily switch out the papaya for mango, and omit the syrup altogether. But if you're using papaya, the syrup is a must. I changed the steps a bit to allow the syrup to mainly soak into the papaya.