3 Vegan-Friendly Meat-Alternatives

Hi friends. So, I've been vegan for almost a week, and I've tried out some meat alternatives that I'd like to share with you, along with my reviews and recipes. Enjoy!

 Tofu: made with home-made red sauce and served over noodles

First I cubed the tofu and dipped it in egg substitute. If you're just a straight up vegetarian, use egg. then I sprinkled a small amount of corn starch on the tofu to fry it, because that's what the internet told me to do. I bet you could use flour or corn flour if you wanted to.

The recipe for how to make this red sauce is here. (click on the word "here").

I made tri-color noodles because they look prettier than your average noodle. We got that strainer for free when we moved into our apartment.

This is an attempt at being artsy. It's just the noodles inside the box.

Here's the final product. Sorry that it looks disgusting, the lighting in our kitchen is terrible.

I mixed the tofu into the red sauce and let it simmer for about 2 minutes to help the tofu soak up the flavor, which it did very well. My overall review for tofu is as follows. I think it's pretty good. It has a slightly beany taste, but it absorbs flavor well, and it's a decent source of protein. Be aware that up to 50% of the calories can be fat, and that there are different levels of firmness, so you should check your recipe before buying. I didn't know that, and so James just bought medium firmness, mainly because it seemed like the safest choice. If you're going to use it as a chicken replacer, get firm or extra firm, and to get the right texture, leave it in the freezer for a bit after cutting it into the desired shape.

Veggie-Burger: with Mango Salsa!

Here's all the ingredients (plus jalapeno, but that was an ugly pic) for mango salsa. Chop cilantro, a little onion, a little jalapeno and a full mango up into small bits. mix and let settle. Yum.

My veggie-burger is on the left, James' turkey burger is on the right. Mine has a bunch of veggies and sunflower seeds, his is ground turkey, which is healthier than beef, and it's more cost-effective.

Here's my mango salsa over the veggie burger. My review: the salsa was delicious, the veggie burger was good, but together, it was weird. The burger was too savory for a fresh mango salsa, it needed other veggies, tomato, lettuce, typical burger veggies. Maybe the salsa would work with a Boca Burger. I got these veggie-burgers at Cosco. Decent price, and good tasting with the right toppings.

This is the chickpea-spinach patty. It's amazing. With a little curry to make it savory and a little spicy, these vegan treats are an absolute delight. I had them with broccoli, which is a good source of protein, and with the chickpeas, so are these patties. I also got these at Cosco. Super yum. Love love love.

It's negative temps here in sunny Minnesota, and our dogs have settled in to a long winter's nap. Hope you're all safe and warm wherever you are.