Dinner Archives - High Vibe Lifestyle

Yay Fall! ! I love Fall, and all that it means! It’s time for yummy Holiday food and family traditions. Unfortunately, it’s also the time of the year a lot of colds and viruses start going around. Obviously, we can’t avoid everything that comes our way, but we can minimize our susceptibility. In this post, I’m going to share some Immunity Boosting Recipes, and some of my favorite Wellness Tips!

My family of four rarely gets sick, and when we do, it doesn’t last long. I believe that’s because we are very proactive with our health. We are all vegan, 2 of us are gluten free, and we try to eat as healthfully as possible. My older son is 15, and he has had antibiotics only one time in his life, and my youngest son (8), has never had them. We don’t get the flu shot, and we don’t get the flu. So I’ve compiled a list of some of the things that we do to keep ourselves well naturally, and some delicious, immunity boosting vegan recipes from some fellow food bloggers. So let’s jump right in!

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What is Nutritional Yeast, Why it is Good For You, and How to Use it

by Angel McNall

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What Is Nutritional Yeast?

If you have been vegan for any length of time, or if you’ve looked through a vegan cookbook or recipe blog, you’ve probably heard the term “nutritional yeast”. Vegans love it (even affectionately nicknaming it “nooch”) and use it in all kinds of recipes. I personally use it on toast, on potatoes and popcorn, in sauces, soups, gravy, tofu, etc.! In this post I will give you recipes for over 30 ways to use it, and I will also tell you what nutritional yeast is, and why you might want to incorporate it into your diet.

Best Vegan Gravy Ever (GF)

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47 of the Most Popular Vegan Recipes of 2016

by Angel McNall

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As the year winds to a close, and we look forward to the fresh start that the New Year brings, I thought it would be fun to look back at some of the most popular vegan recipes of 2016! So I asked my fellow Vegan Food Bloggers what their top posts of the year were, and the recipes and photos they sent me were so incredible, it’s not hard to see why these were their most popular posts of 2016! So grab a cup (or glass!) of something yummy and enjoy! Here are 47 Incredible Breakfast, Lunch and Dinners, followed by delicious dips, spreads, desserts and drinks. Enjoy! These are the recipes that our readers loved the most in 2016.

Part I – Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Recipes

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Vegan Turkey Roll

by Angel McNall

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Whaaat?! Yeah, you read that right… this is a Vegan Turkey Roll, and it’s gluten free too! This is one of my absolute favorite recipes, and I’ve been making this Vegan Turkey Roll for my family, friends, students, and clients for over 20 years! Many people prefer this to store bought tofu or seitan ‘turkey’, as the texture is more pleasing (it’s not chewy or spongy). When I went gluten-free in 2012, I filled this with gluten free stuffing, and it’s still just as good (no one even noticed!) If you aren’t gluten free, you can stuff this with any vegan stuffing. So what is this? What we’re talking about here is well seasoned, firm tofu rolled around stuffing (gluten free if needed), baked till firm, sliced and served with gravy. This vegan turkey roll makes a beautiful centerpiece for a main course, and no one will miss the bird! You can also make this in advance and refrigerate or even freeze it and just warm it up when it’s time. It’s a hit with vegans and non-vegans alike, and it is the prefect main course for any holiday meal! Just in case you are looking for the Best Vegan Gravy Ever, I have you covered! Click here for the must have recipe for the Best Vegan Gravy Ever (with gluten free option), to serve with this Vegan Turkey Roll. It’s a match made in heaven!…

Parmesan Polenta Bowl w/ Roasted Tomatoes, Greens and Beans

by Angel McNall

Yum

Hi guys! How’s your week going? Did you happen to check in here last week? I added my first travel post to this blog! If you haven’t seen it yet, check it out here. I travel with my family in an RV, and we like to camp, so sometimes it’s a quick trip and sometimes it’s an epic journey. Either way, I wanted a space to share my adventures with you, and of course every post will have great vegan/GF food, travel/camping tips, and lots of photography! In this first installment, we visited a mineral springs resort in a little beach town on the Central California Coast. If you get a chance to check it out, leave a comment to say HI! 🙂 Okay, so I’ve probably (hopefully) made you really hungry with that photo above and you would probably like to know more… so let’s talk about that! This, my friends, is my Parmesan Polenta Bowl w/ Roasted Tomatoes, Greens, and Beans, and it is absolutely everything that is wonderful about food. It’s not difficult to prepare, it’s super healthy, it’s beautiful and it’s absolutely delicious!

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Vegan Stuffed Summer Squash

by Angel McNall

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Hi everyone! I have the yummiest recipe for you today! First of all, don’t let the fancy presentation in the photo above fool you. While this stuffed summer squash is extremely photogenic, (and I got a little carried away when I was displaying it… I’m talking about the sour cream being piped out of a bag and onto the plate…. I mean, who does that?!), it is nothing short of tummy filling, any night of the week, comfort food! Seriously, you can dress it up fancy and serve it to company, bring it to a potluck, or you can serve it straight out of the skillet to your hubby and kids on TV trays, and it doesn’t take long at all to make (piping the sour cream is very optional!). When I say any night of the week, I really mean it… you don’t even need to break out a single spice for this recipe! Not one. It doesn’t get any better than that! So let’s dive right in and get you cooking!! So what exactly are we talking about here? The three sisters. Squash, corn, and beans.

The ‘three sisters’ concept was invented by the Native Americans, thousands of years ago, and I learned about it from a master gardener when I was turning my front yard into a garden. Basically, these three plants are very beneficial to each other, and work together in a concept called companion planting. The corn grows straight up, and beans need a trellis, so they wrap around the corn. Squash grows low to the ground with giant leaves, and has spiny stems. The giant squash leaves spread out and shade the roots of the other plants, retaining moisture in the soil, and the spiny stems help prevent pests from climbing onto the other plants. The beans put nitrogen back into the soil, where most crops pull it out, so they literally feed the other plants. So you can grow these three crops together with great success! When you are ready to harvest them, they are delicious together in all sorts of dishes. So, that’s the Three Sister concept, and even if you don’t garden, you can still enjoy this amazing trio, because they rock in many recipes together! (Click here for a fantastic salad recipe that features the three sisters!) Did I mention that you can make this Vegan Stuffed Summer Squash in under 45 minutes? Here’s what you need to do….

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25 Creative Ways to Prepare Tofu

by Angel McNall

Tofu is definitely gaining more respect in the court of public opinion these days. Most people don’t cringe when you say ‘tofu’ anymore, or tell you that they ate it once, and they hated those slippery little white cubes, floating in their Japanese soup. It’s so mainstream that you can even order is right off the menu at Chipolte! (Yes, Sofritas is tofu! It’s amazing btw, in case you haven’t tried it! Spoiler Alert: This post contains a link to a sofritas copycat recipe! ) Besides it’s super high protein content, one of the best things about it is that it will soak up the flavors of anything you cook it with, marinate it in, or blend it with, making it a really versatile food! So enjoy this list of 25 creative ways to prepare tofu, including recipes from my blog, and from other talented food bloggers! Enjoy!

****Update – Bonus Links!! I prepared this list for you a while ago, and in the meantime I’ve posted a couple of really great tofu recipes to my blog, so be sure to check out my Simple Sesame Garlic Buddha Bowl, My BBQ Tofu Bowl, and my favorite Weeknight Tofu for more amazing tofu recipes!*******

1. Crispy Tofu Bacon

25 Creative Ways to Prepare Tofu - Crispy Tofu Bacon

Cheftographer / Via cheftographer.com

Recipe Here

2. Chocolate Ganache Raspberry Cream Cake

25 Creative Ways to Prepare Tofu - Chocolate Ganache Raspberry Cream Cake

Radiant Rachels / Via radiantrachels.com

Recipe Here

3. Tofu Fries

25 Creative Ways to Prepare Tofu - Tofu Fries

White on Rice Couple / Via whiteonricecouple.com

Recipe Here

4. Homemade Tofu Hot dogs

25 Creative Ways to Prepare Tofu - Homemade Tofu Hot dogs

Connoisseurus Veg / Via connoisseurusveg.com

Recipe Here

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Low-fat Vegan Tamales

by Angel McNall

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So, it appears that I’ve attracted Vegan Tamales in my life! Weird, right? I know. Let me explain. For years, I’ve been wanting to learn how to make tamales, but I always had this idea that tamales are hard to make. I don’t know why I thought this, I didn’t really research it, I just didn’t know what to do. I’ve picked up the wrappers at the store, looked at them, and put them down. I had a mental block! Around Christmas time I really started thinking about them a lot. We live in Southern California, and all during December, you see signs on restaurants that say ‘order your Christmas tamales’, and there’s even a tamale factory that gets a line around the block for the whole week before Christmas. I know that, because one year, a very pregnant, tamale craving me, sent my husband down there to get some, only to find out later that they don’t sell vegan tamales, but that’s a whole other story… (Tamales are traditionally made with lard, butter, and chicken stock, and filled with other, mostly, non-vegan ingredients). Anyway, I was thinking about tamales a lot, when I was presented with an awesome opportunity! A fellow vegan food blogger, Dora, from Dora’s Table, asked me if I was interested in reviewing her new book, Vegan Tamales Unwrapped. What?! Perfect timing! So of course, I said YES! I’m so glad I did too, because this book is awesome! Oh, and it’s only $7.99 There are detailed, step by step instructions for assembling the tamales, with lots pictures, and a whole variety of fantastic recipes to choose from. I knew that tamales came in savory varieties, usually stuffed with vegetables or meat, and sweet tamales (my favorite), but I had no idea that you could make CHOCOLATE TAMALES, or fruit flavored ones, like Dora’s recipe for blackberry tamales! (That one is next for me!) The best part, is that this book really demystified the whole process, and now I know that, not only are tamales actually very EASY to make, they are really fun too! Seriously, I really wish that I had this book years ago! I’m definitely going to be making up for lost time!

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Vegan Pizza Snacks

by Angel McNall

Yum

December 14 – only NINE days until Christmas! I’m trying super hard to get everything done, like a week ahead of time, so I can spend that week before Christmas, baking cookies with my kids, reading stories, watching ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’, and sitting by the fire, drinking something warm and yummy. Or maybe something cold and sparkly, and enjoying a short stack of these crispy vegan pizza snacks, otherwise known as Pizzadillas! That’s what it looks like in my mind anyway! We’ll see what happens in real life.

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BBQ Tofu and Braised Garlic Kale Bowl with 5-Minute Ranch

by Angel McNall

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BBQ Tofu and Braised Garlic Kale Bowl with Ranch Dressing and a Pomegranate KeVita!

I’m so excited about today’s post! I’m having a bit of a moment with this recipe right now. I got the inspiration for this recipe from a restaurant that we went to on our recent cross country trip. Have you ever eaten something so yummy, so satisfying, and so beautiful that you just. can’t. stop. thinking about it? I guess that’s what they call a ‘foodie crush’, right? So, this happened to me, when I went to the Wild Cow Café in Nashville, TN. (Nashville is the town seen in the photo in the last post…did you guess?) I love country music, and so of course, Nashville is a pretty awesome place to visit! We camped at a beautiful lake. We went to the Johnny Cash Museum – is there anyone cooler than Johnny Cash?!! We ate at the Wild Cow Café, and the Hard Rock Café, both of which made super yummy vegan food for us. And I took LOTS of photos (do I even need to say that? It’s what I DO!), and while I was taking photos, in downtown Nashville, great music was pouring out of every neon lit bar and restaurant up and down the street. Seriously. How could I even leave this place? Music + Photography + Great Food = Lovin’ me some Nashville!!