Lasagna

     When my husband saw the lasagna my daughter and I made he said, "Wow, that looks good.  We can eat that?"  Then he proceeded to eat multiple helpings of this guilt-free lasagna.

• Build the lasagna in layers. Start each layer with lasagna noodles then top with sauce, tofu filling, and Tofu Crumbles. 

• The sauce is made with no-salt-added diced tomatoes, low sodium tomato puree, tomato paste, chopped onion, chopped roasted red peppers, Italian seasoning, hot sauce, chopped basil,and  parsley. Sometimes I add mushrooms, green pepper, or spinach.

• I use TVP, or Tofu crumbles--which can be found in the refrigerated natural food section of the grocery store.

• Lasagna filling:  Mash tofu with a fork, then add chopped parsley, basil, garlic, and nutritional yeast.

• Bake the lasagna for about 50 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

Top photo:  spinach lasagna

Bottom photo:  mushroom lasagna

TVP, Texturized Vegetable Protein

     TVP, texturized vegetable protein, is made from soy and looks like coarse bread crumbs. It takes on the flavors of other ingredients in a recipe.  I use unflavored TVP because it contains no fat, it's low sodium, high fiber, and high protein.  I incorporate it into a variety of recipes including soups and stews.  It rehydrates and adds body to a recipe.  I usually find TVP in the self-serve bulk bins of a health food store, or prepackaged in the natural food section of the grocery store.

The Planet Vegan

     Sometimes I feel like Dorothy as she follows the yellow brick road in the foreign land called Oz.  Just when I think I'm getting the hang of this new approach to eating, I have a setback reminding me that "I'm not in Kansas anymore."  Eating low fat, low sodium, low glycemic index, high fiber,vegan is not just a foreign land it's a whole other planet. Yes, I've landed on the planet vegan and am now in the process of trying to master new cooking skills, a new vocabulary, and deal with foods that are unfamiliar to me. 
     For example, I mixed chick peas with roasted red peppers and parsley to make hummus in a little food chopper. Unfortunately, the chopper didn't have enough power to really blend the chick peas until completely smooth. I was dejected. After all, how difficult is it to make hummus? As I started to transfer the failed mixture into a bowl I realized how much it looked like ground beef.  I got excited, but not because I wanted meat or missed meat. The thing is, I know what to do with beef, and I know lots of ways to prepare and cook it. With a renewed sense of hope and competence I scooped up a handful of the chick pea mixture and formed a perfect patty. I threw that  "burger" in a hot skillet and proceeded to, well, scorch the outside. It may have looked like beef, but it wasn't and needed a different cooking temperature.
    I realize that eating low fat, low sodium, low glycemic index, high fiber, vegan is a mouthful.  Someone, please, come up with a short easy name for this way of eating.  And I want new names for the recipes I'm trying--names that don't include "faux" or "mock."
I used to make pizza with puffy yeasty dough, olive oil, meat, and cheese toppings.  Now, I make "pizza" with a crisped sprouted grain tortilla "crust" topped with thinly sliced fresh tomato, chopped mushroom, and onion. Is this still pizza, or is it something else?  And if so, what is it called? What do they call this on the planet vegan?