I’m sharing some of the best vegan grilled cheese recipes from the blog and have a new recipe for a spicy and savory jalapeño popper grilled cheese down below. Oh yes! It’s like my popular jalapeño poppers smashed together between bread. Drool! But before we get to that taste explosion let’s get to the bottom of something. How do you cut your grilled cheese sandwiches?

If you’ve been around a while you might remember the old debate from this video. Do you cut it in half straight down the middle or diagonally?

According to y’all diagonal is the only way and I was labelled a psycho for slicing it the other way. I’ll admit, I have since come over to your side. However, to make this more nuanced, the slice actually depends on the type of bread you’re using and typically I don’t use classic sandwich slices to make grilled cheese. I usually use a loaf of sour dough and as such the slices are oval and the sandwich ends up being cut in half as no diagonal exists. Complicated, I know. Well you decide and leave your well articulated points in the comments below!

jackfruit kimchi melts

Before we talk about jalapeños, let’s get into some kimchi! If spicy is your style then you gotta add my jackfruit kimchi melts to your “to do” list asap! Jackfruit is one of my fave meatless meats because it’s full of fibre and is freaking fruit for gosh sakes. It can take on any flavor and seasoning and the texture will surely satisfy. Like I mention in the recipe post, jackfruit seems to be well stocked during this covid pandemic. Likely because no one knows what the heck to do with it. Now that you’re in the know, stock up while you can because I have plenty of yummy jackfruit recipes on this blog.

Kimchi and cheese go together like peanut butter and chocolate. In fact, kimchi pretty much goes with everything so it’s about time I put it on a grilled cheese sandwich. Plus it’s fermented so it’s hella good for us. Get this recipe and make it now!

spicy vegan grilled cheese & beef sandwich

Of course, beef means vegan ground round people! I don’t know why some people still don’t know that this product exists. It’s one of my fave things to use. If you follow hot for food you will see it A LOT and it’s the perfect thing to add into a warm gooey grilled cheese sandwich. This recipe even has some pickled jalapeños in the mix to turn up the heat. As you can tell, I like my grilled cheese sandwiches nice and spicy.

If your comfort food cravings are really hitting hard, you could try this grilled cheese burger. Which is exactly what it sounds like. Two grilled cheese sandwiches on the outside of a hamburger patty! Crazier things are out there.

jalapeño popper grilled cheese

Now onto the main event! My new recipe for a vegan jalapeño popper grilled cheese sandwich. There are two cheeses in here for extra yumminess and you can definitely use whatever products you have available if you can’t find the ones I’ve listed in the recipe. But the key here is the bacon! I’ve used my coconut fakin’ bacon as I like the crunchiness over a meatier texture for this sandwich, but you could easily use tofu or tempeh bacon crumbles or slices, mushroom bacon or a store-bought vegan bacon product. Whatever your bacony pleasure be sure you don’t skimp on this element.

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jalapeño popper grilled cheese

this smokey and spicy jalapeño popper grilled cheese sandwich is decadent and delicious and will have you craving more!

Servings 2 sandwiches

Author Lauren Toyota

Ingredients

• 2 small jalapeños, seeded & thinly sliced
• 4 slices sourdough loaf
• 4 tbsp vegan butter
• 6 slices vegan smoked gouda style slices
• 6 tbsp soft spreadable vegan herb & garlic style cream cheese or cashew cheese
• 1/2 C coconut fakin’ bacon

Instructions

• Heat a large nonstick or cast iron pan over low heat.
• I find it's best to make one sandwich at a time. Butter one side of 2 slices of bread. Then add 3 tablespoons of the spreadable cheese to the other side of one of those slices. Place 1 slice butter side down in the pan. Top with 3 slices of smoked gouda per sandwich and jalapeño slices.
• You can add the coconut fakin’ bacon now if you want, but I prefer adding into the sandwich after it's grilled as this will prevent the coconut bacon from getting too soggy. If using another kind of bacon you can add it in on top of the jalapeño slices. Then add the other slice of bread butter side up on top.
• Cover the pan with a lid and heat for about 5 to 6 minutes or until an even golden brown is achieved on the bottom of the sandwich. Carefully flip the sandwich and leave covered for another 5 to 6 minutes until crispy and golden brown on the other side. Then turn off heat and leave the lid on for about 5 more minutes to get the cheese really melted. The key to get the cheese slices to melt well is to heat the sandwiches over low heat for a longer amount of time and trap the heat in the pan with the lid.
• Gently lift the top piece of bread to add a handful of coconut fakin’ bacon to the sandwich. Slice in half and eat immediately! Make the other sandwich the same way as above.

The post jalapeño popper grilled cheese appeared first on hot for food by Lauren Toyota.

Dalgona coffee as I’m sure you already know is from South Korea and since all the shops are closed for quarantine, leave it to a YouTuber to set things off and start this DIY trend.

what’s the deal with dalgona?

Personally, I don’t know that faming your coffee into fluff for dalgona is really worth the trouble. If you don’t have a hand mixer don’t even bother. You’ll get carpel tunnel trying to whip it by hand! But people love cute round boys (me included) and this pleases the senses in the same way. So I (kinda) get it!

But why is no one talking about how this coffee fluff loses its mojo within a couple of minutes?! Is it the reality of dalgona coffee no one is talking about? Maybe it’s this particular brand of instant espresso I used? A lot of articles/recipes say you HAVE to use Nescafe Gold, but I took what I have in my cupboard so I wouldn’t have to make an unnecessary trip or purchase. Or maybe it was the fact that I used coconut sugar instead of the classic refined white stuff? Again, science. I have no idea. But I’m not about to whip it 5 different ways to see the difference.

Let’s face it. I’m not 100% full-blooded cute asian girl and I my dalgona coffee reflects that!

As you can see in the above photos, my fluff is a little deflated, but still glossy and kind of beautiful. I thought maybe the deflation is because I made this a hot dalgona and it messed with the fluff. But I previously tested whipping instant espresso serving it over iced milk and same deal. Oh well! I still think this was worth posting about because I took one of my fave things, pumpkin spice, and decided to smash it into this viral dalgona coffee thing. Genius, right?

I ended up mixing the milk and espresso from both servings in a jar and put it in the fridge. It was like having my own PSL concentrate at the ready. I mixed it into more hot water each morning for about 4 more days and it was delicious!

In my latest What I Ate In A Day vlog I tried this trend without all the PSL stuff as well as some other trendy quarantine cooking trends. Check my recipe below for the pumpkin spice dalgona coffee and if you try this trend let me know how the foaming and fluffing goes!

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pumpkin spice dalgona coffee

you can whip up the coffee of your dreams and have your pumpkin spice life too with this dalgona coffee idea!

Course Breakfast, Drinks

Cuisine Asian

Keyword coffee, dalgona coffee, espresso, nondairy milk

Servings 2 small or 1 large

Author Lauren Toyota

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp instant espresso
• 2 tbsp hot water
• 1 1/2 tbsp coconut sugar
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp each ground cloves, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom
• 1 C non-dairy milk

Instructions

• In a large mixing bowl combine instant espresso, water, sugar, and spices. Whip with a hand mixer for until foamy, thick and glossy. It could take up to 10 minutes or more.
• You can either steam the milk or place it in a glass with crushed ice for a cold version. Once the coffee is foamy and fluffy dollop it on top of the milk and serve immediately.

The post pumpkin spice dalgona coffee appeared first on hot for food by Lauren Toyota.

Ooooh boy! This RECIPE?! is a good one and something I’ve been wanting to make for a while. But with the state of the world right now, it couldn’t be a better time to snuggle up to this vegan french onion chicken casserole.

Yes, you heard that right! It’s like my gooey french onion soup from Vegan Comfort Classics meets a chicken pasta casserole thing. It’s the ultimate comfort food and I can’t wait for you to try it. Watch my latest video to see how it all comes together!

I was inspired by a photo of french onion chicken lasagna roll ups I saw on How Sweet Eats instagram. I’ve been scrolling the gram a little MORE than usual. So much I’m noticing a real pain in my neck. Ack! And on the subject of quarantine confessions, I’ve also only wanted to eat pasta, like ALL the time! So if you’re feeling THAT vibe you gotta make this recipe.

If the idea of lasagna rolls ups perked up your taste buds you can make that recipe here. I suppose you could also take what I do in this vegan french onion chicken casserole recipe and just make it into a lasagna roll up. But I didn’t have lasagna noods handy!

The whole thing is pretty basic in terms of ingredients. You obviously need onions and elbow macaroni, but a rotini or penne would be suitable as well. Kale could be swapped with spinach and if you don’t have the garlic croutons that I added on top (which kinda made the whole dish) I would use bread crumbs mixed with granulated garlic powder and nutritional yeast OR just make your own garlicky croutons too.

I LOVED the Sweet Earth mindful chik’n pieces I used too. This was my first time trying them and they are the MOST like real chicken… seriously! Also this casserole reminded me of one my Mom used to make when I was a kid. It was macaroni, chicken pieces, buffalo mozzarella, basil and a can of Campbell’s tomato soup. It was my fave thing ever!

If you have my cookbook you could also follow the recipe for the mozza and use that in OR on the casserole instead of the store-bought vegan shredded mozzarella. Experiment and let me know how it goes!

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vegan french onion chicken casserole

This casserole is all things cozy. Imagine classic french onion soup combined with chicken, cheese, and pasta!

Course dinner, pasta

Cuisine American

Keyword caramelized onions, casserole, french onion soup, macaroni, vegan cheese, vegan chicken

Servings 4 to 6

Author Lauren Toyota

Ingredients

• 8 oz / 227g vegan chicken pieces
• 1 to 2 tbsp avocado oil or vegetable oil
• 2 white or yellow onions, sliced (about 4 cups sliced)
• 3 tbsp vegan butter, divided
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ½ tsp ground black pepper
• 1 ½ C elbow macaroni
• 1 ¼ C reserved pasta water
• 3 C mozzarella style shreds, divided
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• ½ tsp onion powder
• ½ tsp vegan beef flavored bouillon paste or vegan worcestershire
• 2 C finely chopped lacinato or leafy kale, stems removed
• 1 C garlic croutons (optional) * see note

Instructions

• Heat a cast iron or nonstick pan over medium with 1 tablespoon of avocado oil and brown chicken pieces for about 5 to 6 minutes or until browned and cooked. Add more oil mid way through browning if it’s looking dry. Remove chicken pieces from the pan and lower heat to medium low.
• Add 2 tablespoons vegan butter, onions, thyme, sea salt and ground pepper to the pan and caramelize onions, only tossing occasionally for about 16 to 20 minutes or until evenly darker brown, caramelized, and soft.
• Meanwhile bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook macaroni to al dente. Remember to reserve pasta water before draining.
• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Remove caramelized onions from the pan and add the reserved pasta water to this pan bringing it to a simmer. Once simmering stir to get all the remaining onion bits off from the bottom of the pan. Pour this onion water into a blender. To the blender add ¼ cup of the caramelized onion mixture. Also add 1 cup mozzarella style shreds, minced garlic, cornstarch, white wine vinegar, dijon mustard, onion powder, and bouillon or worcestershire and blend until very smooth.
• Use remaining 1 tablespoon of vegan butter to grease the bottom and sides of your cast iron pan or another oven safe casserole dish. Combine macaroni, chicken pieces, remaining caramelized onions, kale, the blended sauce, and 1 cup mozzarella shreds in the cast iron pan or casserole dish until well mixed. Top with croutons and remaining cup of mozzarella shreds on top.
• Bake for 15 minutes at 400°F and then broil for 5 minutes to get the top melted and browned if needed. Serve immediately.

The post vegan french onion chicken casserole appeared first on hot for food by Lauren Toyota.

Zucchini bread or cake is quite an old school tradition, but I can’t seem to figure out who originally invented it. I remember when I was a kid my mom made a chocolate zucchini cake for one of my birthday parties. I thought she was nuts. But then I loved the caked so much I never questioned her again!

I thought for my own version I would omit chocolate but fold in ground up pistachios into the cake batter. I’ve recently become passionate about doing this because I really like the texture and end result. I did something similar with hazelnuts for pancakes and a 4-layer cake.

Now, I’m not sure if Easter is cancelled because of our shelter at home mandate?! I hope not. We can still eat Eastery / Spring-like creations and share them digitally with our friends and fam over house-party right? Might I suggest crepes, carrot cake doughnuts or this trifle. But I also think this vegan zucchini pistachio cake is a necessary part of the menu too. I think you could even swap the zucchini for shredded carrots if you want to make a carrot cake. I’d also then swap the lime for lemon in the frosting!

A week ago I ordered a produce box from Farmbox Direct as I wanted to try getting my organic veg delivered cause… #selfiso! I got some beautiful zucchini in my delivery that I used in this exact recipe as well as carrots, potatoes, brussels, apples, kiwis, and some juicy pears I gobbled up pretty quick. If you want to try out this service they deliver across the entire United States. Check it out.

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vegan zucchini pistachio cake

This cake is lightly spiced and super moist. Get ready to dig in!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword baked goods, cake, frosting, pistachio, zucchini

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 55 minutes

Servings 8 pieces

Author Lauren Toyota

Ingredients

• ¼ C shelled salted pistachios (ground into a flour or meal in a spice grinder)
• 1 tbsp golden flax meal
• 2 tbsp water
• 1 C all purpose flour
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
• ½ C vegan butter, melted (1 stick)
• ½ C granulated cane sugar
• ¼ C packed light brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 zucchini (about 7-inches long x 1 ½-inches wide)

lime frosting

• ¼ C vegan cream cheese
• 1 ½ C sifted organic confectioners sugar
• zest of 1 lime (about 2 tsp)
• a few drops, lime juice
• 1 tbsp shelled salted pistachios, finely chopped as garnish

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Line the bottom of a 6-inch springform pan with parchment paper and grease the sides with vegan butter.
• Combine flax and water and set aside to thicken.
• In a large mixing bowl combine flour, ground pistachios, baking powder, baking soda, sea salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
• In another bowl or in the sauce pot you melted the butter in, combine butter, sugars, vanilla, and thickened flax and whisk until very well combined.
• Shred the zucchini on a box grater. You should have about 1 ¼ cup shredded. Using a nut milk bag or fine mesh seive, strain and squeeze the zucchini of excess water. Once strained it’s about ¾ cup of shredded zucchini.
• Add shredded zucchini to the flour mixture and break it up, tossing it around in the flour to coat. Add the butter and sugar mixture to this and fold together with a spatula until well combined and no dry ingredients are visible, but do not over mix the batter.
• Pour the cake batter into the springform pan. Spread evenly out to the edges. Place in the middle rack of the oven and bake for 55 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
• Allow the cake to cool completely before frosting.
• To make the frosting, combine cream cheese, confectioners sugar, and lime zest until smooth using a hand mixture. You can add a few drops of lime juice if desired as well, but not too much that it affects the thickness of the icing. Spread onto the top of the cooled cake. Sprinkle chopped pistachios on top.

Notes

Cake freezes well too! I cut into individual slices and wrapped in plastic. Then placed pieces into a freezer bag. 

The post vegan zucchini pistachio cake appeared first on hot for food by Lauren Toyota.

Thanks to a lovely person on YouTube that left a comment asking me to make hazelnut pancakes from my extra ground hazelnuts! It was this video where I took some of my ground hazelnuts (I ground too much for my hazelnut torte recipe) and turned them into a savory parmesan topping. But I still had plenty left and chocolate hazelnut butter just seemed too… basic.

Pancakes are a much better mood booster in these times of peril. And these vegan hazelnut pancakes aren’t any ‘ol pancakes. Oh no, they’re light and super nutty from the hazelnut meal incorporated into the mix with whole wheat flour and a dash of cinnamon to take it over the top. In fact, I don’t think I’ll ever go back to eating pancakes made with JUST flour!

If hazelnuts aren’t your thing or you can’t find them already roasted (which makes this a lot easier) then roasted pecans, almonds, or even pistachios would be good too. YUM!

If you’re making the ground hazelnut meal yourself, check to see if your package of hazelnuts are raw or roasted. If the nuts are raw you’ll need to follow the directions in this recipe for roasting and de-skinning! I don’t recommend using the raw nut because it just doesn’t have the same flavor.

Of course, the candied hazelnuts on top are just for fun and not entirely necessary. You could also top your stack with some sliced bananas instead. That would be tasty!

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vegan hazelnut pancakes

these vegan pancakes are extra special with ground hazelnuts in the mix, giving them a perfect texture and bite.

Course Breakfast, brunch

Cuisine American

Keyword hazelnut, pancakes, vegan pancakes

Servings 7 to 8 pancakes

Author Lauren Toyota

Ingredients

pancake batter

• 1 ½ C nondairy milk
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp golden flax meal (or ground whole flax or chia)
• 1 C ground hazelnut meal
• 1 C whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp granulated sugar
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp sea salt
• vegan butter, for frying

candied hazelnut topping

• ½ cup whole roasted hazelnuts
• 1 tbsp vegan butter
• 1 tbsp maple syrup

Instructions

• Set a baking tray in the oven and heat over warming setting or 200°F. You will place cooked pancakes in here to stay warm while you finish all the pancakes.
• In a mixing bowl combine nondairy milk, apple cider vinegar and the ground flax. Set it aside to thicken and curdle slightly, about 5 minutes.
• Once this mixture is thicker you can add remaining ingredients and mix until well combined.
• Heat a nonstick skillet or cast iron pan over medium low. Once hot coat the middle of the pan with some vegan butter. It should be lightly sizzling. Use 1/3 cup of batter per pancake and pour the patter into the center of the pan. If it needs some shaping to be more circular spread it out gently with the bottom of the measuring cup or with a spatula. I recommend cooking one pancake at a time to get them even and so you have enough room in your pan to flip etc. If you're using a flat top griddle and have more room, go nuts!
• Fry each pancake on the first side for about 4 to 6 minutes or until the batter on top is slightly bubbling and the edges are looking a bit more cooked. If the pan starts to smoke at any point turn the heat down. Gently flip the pancake with a large flat spatula and cook on the other side another 4 to 5 minutes or until very golden brown. Transfer each cooked pancake onto the baking tray warming in the oven. Keep pancakes in one layer and do not stack while keeping warm.
• While pancakes are cooking you can make the candied hazelnuts in another smaller pan. Add whole hazelnuts, vegan butter, and maple syrup to the pan and heat over medium, bringing to a simmer. Heat for about 5 to 6 minutes only stirring occasionally. Then immediately remove the mixture onto a parchment lined baking sheet and separate the nuts so they don’t stick together too much. Let cool at room temperature and then roughly chop once cooled.
• Serve pancakes with more vegan butter and maple syrup and top with rough chopped candied hazelnuts.

The post vegan hazelnut pancakes appeared first on hot for food by Lauren Toyota.

Hello jackfruit! Could you be any more versatile and tasty? Yes, yes you could. Tasty is an understatement for these vegan jackfruit kimchi melts that will have you wiping up the corners of your mouth and phone screen.

As suggested from my jackfruit laksa recipe, make a double batch of that seasoned jackfruit! Then you can have as many melts as you want… well at least 2 of them.

There’s two types of vegan cheese in these sammies making them extra. And the key is to get a good even crisp on that bread so every bite has that crunchy cheesy goodness you crave!

The chili garlic aioli in the recipe is also optional for the sandwich. It gives it an extra kick and I liked the use of tangy coconut yogurt for the base of the aioli, but you could easily put a schmear of vegan mayonnaise on the sandwiches as well and that would be tasty too!

K, I can’t wait any longer… just get to making this recipe.

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vegan jackfruit kimchi melts

These melts are crunchy, cheesy, spicy, tangy and filling with all that jackfruit stuffed in 'em!

Course sandwiches

Cuisine American, Asian

Keyword grilled cheese, jackfruit, kimchi, sandwiches, vegan cheese

Servings 2 large sandwiches

Author Lauren Toyota

Ingredients

chili garlic aioli (makes about 3/4 cup)

• 1/2 C plain unsweetened coconut yogurt
• 2 tbsp vegan mayonnaise
• 1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp chiu chow chili oil

vegan jackfruit kimchi melts

• ¾ C vegan cheddar shreds
• ¾ C vegan parmesan shreds
• 1 C leftover seasoned jackfruit
• ¾ C rough chopped vegan friendly kimchi
• 2 tbsp roughly chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
• 4 large pieces sour dough bread
• ¼ C vegan butter, divided
• ½ C packed arugula, divided

Instructions

• To make the chili garlic aioli to spread on the sandwiches, combine all the ingredients in a bowl or jar until well combined. Ensure when you use the chiu chow chili oil you get more of the thick chili mixture and less of the oil that sits on top. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Combine the cheese shreds together in another bowl.
• In another bowl combine the seasoned jackfruit with kimchi and cilantro, if using.
• Heat a large non-stick or cast iron pan over medium-low heat.
• Butter one side of each slice of bread. On the other side of each slice spread the chili garlic aioli.
• I prefer to assemble the sandwich in the pan to prevent too much spillage transferring it from the cutting board into the pan. Lay 1 slice of bread, butter side down, in the pan. Add the cheese shreds so it covers the entire surface. Top with half the jackfruit mixture. Sprinkle more cheese shreds on top, but less than the first portion you put down. Top with half the arugula and then the other slice of bread butter side up. Place a lid over the pan and reduce heat to low. You'll cook it on the first side for about 6 minutes. But watch it closely as you don't want it to burn. The key is to have the heat low so that it cooks slowly, melting the cheese and warming the entire middle of the sandwich but not cooking the outside of the bread too quickly.
• Gently flip the sandwich using a large flat spatula, cover with the lid, and cook the other side for about 4 to 5 minutes or until nice and golden brown. Remove the sandwich to a cutting board and let is rest about 5 to 10 minutes before slicing in half. Assemble and cook the other sandwich.

The post vegan jackfruit kimchi melts appeared first on hot for food by Lauren Toyota.

I’m so excited to share this jackfruit laksa recipe with you! This is comin’ in hot from my recent episode of RECIPE?! that I posted today on my YouTube channel. Since self-isolation has been in full effect, I’ve been cooking up a storm in my kitchen. How about you?

I thought it was the perfect time to bring back RECIPE?! because y’all need some inspo and entertainment… err distraction, from the news, right?! Last week I posted the first new episode where I improved frozen pizza, made a side salad with a dressing made from sauerkraut brine, and washed it all down with a glass of red.

This week I was inspired by Nina of Nourish Atelier. She recently posted a beautiful photo of jackfruit laksa, from her cookbook Bowls of Goodness, and the photo was so vibrant and wonderful, I DROOLED! It also reminded me that I had a shit ton of jackfruit in the fridge prepped from my jackfruit and roasted poblano taco recipe! I needed to freeze some of it and come up with new and inventive jackfruit recipes for ya. So I winged this one and it turned out incredibly flavorful and scrumptious.

RECIPE?! reminders

The broth contains warming, fragrant spices like turmeric, coriander, and cumin. You can definitely use some or all of what I use in the recipe. Note that garam masala is a mixture of cumin, coriander, cinnamon, and black pepper so if you only have that and turmeric you’re good to go!

We round it out with 1 can of coconut milk and lotsa veggies like shitake mushrooms, lacinato kale, and roasted poblanos. Of course, this is what was in my fridge, but you can definitely use whatever vegetables you need to use up in this spicy soup.

If you don’t have jackfruit you could also swap it with tofu, tempeh, or vegan chicken pieces too. I suggest cooking up the jackfruit or aforementioned swap the same way I do it for the tacos and I’ve listed the recipe this way. It makes the jackfruit extra flavorful and you can just toss it in the soup at the end so it doesn’t get soggy.

That’s also a reminder to cook your noodles separately and add those in to each serving. You can store leftovers separately and just heat up the noods and soup on their own and then mix them together in your bowl.

more jackfruit ideas

Since I myself had SO much of this leftover seasoned jackfruit, I also have a recipe for a jackfruit kimchi melt using the same seasoned jackfruit from the recipe below. So if you have more than 1 can of jackfruit I suggest doubling that part of the recipe. You can easily freeze the mixture too if you want to just thaw it for later when you’re craving this sandwich! HELLO…

You can also try MORE of my jackfruit recipes:

jackfruit tinga tacos

jackfruit “fish” cakes

Let’s get to this RECIPE?! shall we!

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jackfruit laksa

this spicy soup is full of immune boosting goodness, warm spices, and made extra hearty with jackfruit to make it totally vegan friendly!

Course dinner, Main Course, Soup

Cuisine Asian

Keyword asian, jackfruit, soups

Prep Time 50 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Servings 4 to 6

Author Lauren Toyota

Ingredients

seasoned jackfruit

• 1 x 20oz / 565g can young green jackfruit in water or brine
• 2 tbsp avocado oil or neutral vegetable oil
• 1 C finely sliced onion
• 1 tbsp minced garlic (about 2 large cloves)
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp ground sage
• 1 tbsp vegan worcestershire

laksa

• 2 tbsp avocado oil or neutral vegetable oil
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp chili flakes
• 2 tbsp minced garlic (about 4 to 5 large cloves)
• 1 tbsp finely minced or grated ginger
• 3/4 C medium diced celery
• 3/4 C medium diced carrot
• 1 C sliced shitake mushrooms
• 1/2 C halved cherry tomatoes (or use canned fire roasted tomatoes or diced vine tomato)
• 1 C canned pumpkin puree
• 4 C low-sodium vegetable stock
• 1 x 13.5oz / 400ml can full-fat coconut milk
• 16oz / 450g thai style rice noodles
• 1 1/2 C rough chopped lacinato kale, tough stems removed
• 1 1/2 to 2 tbsp lime juice (adjust to your taste)
• 2 tbsp gluten-free tamari or low-sodium soy sauce
• sea salt, to taste
• chiu chow chili oil, for serving
• 1/2 C roughly chopped fresh cilantro, as garnish

Instructions

• Drain and rinse the jackfruit from the can in a fine mesh sieve. Squeeze jackfruit of excess water and pat dry with a clean tea towel. Trim any woody tough core from the pieces of the jackfruit if necessary, then break it up into a bowl with your hands until it looks shredded.
• Heat a stock pot or large dutch oven over medium heat with vegetable oil. Add sliced onions and sauté for 8 to 9 minutes until they start to get slightly brown and caramelized. In this version I caramelized the onions until they were a light caramel color, which I don't normally do in the taco recipe, but I liked this better.
• Add garlic and jackfruit and continue to sauté for 4 to 5 minutes, browning the jackfruit and breaking up more as necessary. Reduce heat to prevent garlic from burning, if needed. Add salt, chili powder, cumin, sage, and worcestershire and cook for about another 3 to 4 minutes. Once this looks cooked down and browned up remove it from pot into a dish and set it aside while you finish the soup.
• Keep the stock pot or dutch oven over medium to medium-low heat – adjust so that it's hot but won't burn the spices. Add 2 more tablespoons oil and ground cumin, turmeric, coriander, garam masala, and chili flakes. Stir with a wooden spoon to combine into the oil and toast the spices for about 2 minutes. If the pot starts to smoke turn the heat down.
• Add garlic, ginger, celery, carrot, mushrooms, and tomatoes at this stage. Also if you're using other harder veggies like bell pepper add them at this point as well. Cook for about 3 to 4 minutes stirring occasionally. If the pan starts to get a little dry you can add a bit of vegetable stock to this to help lift any brown stuck bits on the bottom of the pot.
• Stir in pumpkin puree, vegetable stock, and coconut milk and bring to a low simmer. Once bubbling turn the heat down so it's not boiling or bubbling.
• Meanwhile fill a large pot with salted water and bring to a boil to cook rice noodles as directed, until al dente. Drain and rinse noodles, if needed. Set them aside until you're ready to serve.
• Once the soup has come to a simmer and you've reduced the heat so it's not bubbling, you can now add kale, lime juice, tamari or soy sauce and sea salt, to taste, last. You can add jackfruit back in just before serving if it's still warm, or add it in with the kale to get it warmed through. If using something like tofu or tempeh you might want to add it in just at serving so it doesn't get too soggy, but it's your preference.
• Add a portion of cooked rice noodles to a serving bowl, ladle the laksa over top and garnish with cilantro and chiu chow chili oil or another hot sauce to your taste.

Notes

The amount of rice noodles listed is 2 packs of lotus foods brown rice noodles that I used. Only cook 1 pack or hald the amount if you’re eating 2 to 3 portions and then freezing the remaining laksa.

The leftover soup (without noodles) can be jarred and frozen for up to 4 months. 

The post jackfruit laksa appeared first on hot for food by Lauren Toyota.

EVERYONE is getting into some major procastibaking with this “shelter at home” mandate! Who wants to work from home anyway? There’s WAY too many distractions. I’ve been working from home (successfully) for about 6 years straight now, but I get how difficult an adjustment it can be. I’m with ya and here to provide you with more ideas, entertainment, and distraction!

Everything in the recipe for easy vegan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies is pretty common, at least if you’re accustomed to my recipes and vegan baking, in general. I’m sure you can find a bag of flax seeds or ground flax at the store, since this ingredient isn’t on most people’s radar. If you find whole seeds you can grind them in a spice grinder or high-powered blender to make flax meal too! I always use golden flax meal for a neutral taste and unaffected color of the final baked goods, but that’s more preference than anything. Keep your flax seeds or flax meal in the fridge or freezer for a much longer shelf life!

I’m eating these cookies nonstop since I made them. Luckily it’s just me and Snickles here holed up at home… and he can’t have any cookies!

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easy vegan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies

make these easy cookies with common vegan baking staples and in 1 bowl!

Course Dessert, Snacks

Cuisine American

Keyword baking, banana, bananas, cookies, rolled oats

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Servings 18 to 20 cookies

Author Lauren Toyota

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp golden flax meal
• 4 tbsp water
• 2 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/2 C natural unsalted peanut butter (or other nut butter)
• 2 tbsp neutral vegetable oil or melted coconut oil
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (can omit if you don't have)
• 2 C old fashioned gluten-free rolled oats
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 C vegan chocolate chips
• 1/2 C rough chopped pecans (optional)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375°F and line a large baking sheet with a silpat mat or parchment paper.
• In a large mixing bowl combine golden flax meal and water and set aside to thicken.
• Once flax mixture is thickened add mashed bananas, peanut butter, oil, maple syrup, and vanilla extract if using. Use a whisk to combine this really well.
• To the bowl add rolled oats, sea salt, baking powder, cinnamon, chocolate chips, and pecans. Use a spatula to fold the mixture together until well combined.
• Take a heaping tablespoon, nearly 2 tablespoons of batter and form it into a ball. Place these spaced an inch apart on the baking sheet. Slightly flatten the cookies with your hand and shape into circles or leave them as mounds if you prefer. They will not spread much during baking.
• Continue baking in batches, one baking sheet at time on the middle rack for about 12 to 14 minutes per batch or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean from the center.
• Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for about 10 minutes before removing with a spatula onto wire racks to cool.
• Store in a container that's not air tight at room temperature or in the fridge.

Notes

Rolled oats are only certified gluten-free if it’s marked on the package! AND thanks to some readers who have tested using quick cooking rolled oats, they said it worked but probably has a slightly softer texture. I usually advise against quick cooking rolled oats just in case they get mushy, but if it’s all you have I think it’ll be ok for this recipe.

The bake time may vary depending on the moisture that was in your bananas. In the 2 batches they were quite different. The first took 12 minutes and another batch I made a different day took almost 16 minutes. They should not appear raw at all on the inside. They will have a soft baked texture once cooled. 

The post easy vegan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies appeared first on hot for food by Lauren Toyota.

Everyone has canned chickpeas and pumpkin lying around… at least if you’ve been following hot for food for a while! Canned pumpkin is one of the most versatile ingredients. It adds nutrition and fiber in a sneaky way you wouldn’t even notice.

I use it in my alt version of my cheese sauce, as well as this pumpkin spice latte pie. The latter may be a little extravagant for these times of self isolation and limited trips to the grocery store. But it’s also useful in these simple pumpkin spice muffins!

Don’t forget to save the liquid when you drain you can of chickpeas. You can use that for aqua faba and it can even be frozen for use later. I use it to make these easy banana pancakes (scroll down!)

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pumpkin hummus

this is a twist on your usual hummus, using one of the best pantry staples… canned pumpkin!

Course Appetizer, dip

Cuisine American

Keyword dips, hummus, pumpkin

Prep Time 10 minutes

Author Lauren Toyota

Ingredients

• 1 x 14oz can chickpeas (about 1 ½ cups)
• ¾ cup pure pumpkin puree
• 1 garlic clove
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 3 tbsp tahini
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ¾ tsp sea salt
• ¼ tsp ground pepper

toppings

• ¼ tsp smoked paprika
• 1 to 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp pumpkin seeds
• handful fresh chopped chives, as garnish

Instructions

• In a food processor combine the hummus ingredients until very smooth. Adjust sea salt, ground pepper, or lemon juice to taste if desired. This is even better made a day ahead of serving to really develop the flavor.
• Add hummus to a shallow serving bowl and top with smoked paprika, olive oil, pumpkin seeds, and chives.
• Refrigerate leftovers and consume within 2 to 3 days.

The post easy pumpkin hummus appeared first on hot for food by Lauren Toyota.

Hey ya’ll! Happy New Year! I hope things are off to a stellar start for you. If you have a second I would love if you would VOTE for hot for food for BEST VEGAN BLOG in the 2020 Veggie Awards here. By voting you’ll be entered to win some amazing vegan prize packs that include trips and catered dinners! More on that excitement, momentarily.

You’ve noticed I updated the look and feel of hotforfoodblog.com and for gosh sakes, I hope you find it faster? That was the whole point of optimizing the site. But it certainly hasn’t come without a slew of headaches. I’ve spent the first days back to work cleaning up a lot of things around here. And my work is still not done!

I started this blog in 2010 on WordPress and it was janky as hell. I had photos on it that were taken on a blackberry! A blackberry… do you even know what that is?! I also wasn’t even vegan when I started blogging under the pseudonym hot for food. None of that is visible anymore, but when things started to evolve (and I finally got a smart phone) I was growing the @hotforfood IG account and decided to relaunch the blog in 2014. I designed it myself on squarespace. It was pretty easy and straight forward. Then I started YouTube in 2015 and quickly out grew the limitations of that website and started to get hip to the words SEO and metadata! So I thought moving it back to WordPress would be a smart move. And it was, but it’s been a huge learning curve for me.

On top of getting hacked in 2019, I’ve now redesigned the site twice in about a year and a half and spent a shit ton of money getting technical help with all of it. It’s ALL good and goes with the territory, but I can tell you the last thing I enjoy doing is sitting in front of the computer scrolling hundreds of posts for html errors and broken image links

Anyway, all this to give context to the fact that I was SHOCKED to see the blog was nominated in the 2020 Veggie Awards from VegNews magazine! I have a BEST VEGAN BLOG nomination and it’s nice to be recognized amongst all the chaos I feel this blog has been going through in the back end. So I would love and appreciate your vote if you’re a regular visitor to the site and while you’re filling out the survey (which only takes about 2 minutes) you’ll have your say on the best in vegan food products, snacks, beauty, fashion brands and more.

Thanks so much to VegNews for always supporting hot for food too. I’ve been mentioned in the magazine a few times now and you might recall the 2018 Veggie Awards where I won best cookbook… THANKS TO YOU GUYS!

If you didn’t know I’ll be off the YouTube channel for a while as I’m planning a new series for you that will come out sometime this year. This bit of info and more was announced in my last video of 2019, but keep your eyes on my instagram accounts @laurentoyota and @hotforfood for any updates and news in my life!

The post veg news 2020 veggie awards nominee appeared first on hot for food by Lauren Toyota.