Garlicky Broccoli Cashew Fried Rice

This 7 ingredient fried rice is incredibly easy.

I'm a huge garlic fan, but if you're not as much, feel free to cut down on the garlic. This recipe also uses a fair amount of olive oil, so be sure to use fresh oil that was sourced close to home.

Garlicky Broccoli Cashew Fried Rice by Mr. Peasy

Ingredients
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3 + 1 Tbsp olive oil (3 Tbsp to start, one set aside)
- 2 cups broccoli florets
- 3/4 cup raw cashews
- 3 cups cooked rice
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1/4 tsp salt

For the rice, I used a medium grain Japanese rice, but I generally use that for everything. I'm not picky if you're not picky. Leftovers that have been sitting in the refrigerator for a day or so would probably work great.

1. Chop the garlic roughly. I like larger pieces of garlic, so I made sure to keep a good portion of the pieces pretty sizable.

2. Over medium heat, saute the garlic in a large skillet or wok in 3 Tbsp olive oil. After a minute or so, add broccoli and cashews and saute for 3-4 minutes. Add another 1 Tbsp olive oil and then dump in the rice, 2 Tbsp soy sauce and 1/4 tsp salt. Continue to saute, using the spatula to get everything mixed together, then remove from heat and serve.

Olive Oil: Fresh and Local is Best

Unlike certain wines, olive oil most definitely does not get better with age, and in fact loses many of its nutrients over time. The best olive oils to consume are those which are fresh (and made with organic/non-GMO olives, of course).

There was a story on NPR back in September about this which I've been sharing with all my friends and family. One of the things it mentions is that it's best to buy olive oil that's sourced closer to where you live:

By the time imported olive oil reaches us, it has often been shipped from place to place and sometimes not stored well. Even if it's not noticeably rancid, many of the heart-healthy compounds have degraded and fizzled (Read More)

It might be helpful to think of olive oil like juice, since that's basically what it is. As with juice, the fresher the better.

Along those lines, you should also avoid keeping olive oil for a long time. Buy smaller bottles and use it faster:

As soon as you open the bottle and expose the oil to oxygen and light, it will slowly start to degrade (Read More)

Read the whole story or listen to the audio as it was originally broadcast on NPR here:

To Get The Benefits Of Olive Oil, Fresh May Be Best by Allison Aubrey on NPR.org

Vegan Mac Attack Burger

I made the best worst thing ever today (deliciously unhealthy). Billy Dec from Rockit Burger Bar in Chicago recently came up with this burger that uses deep fried mac and cheese instead of a bun, so I decided to give a vegan version a go.

Please be forewarned that this recipe could use some major tweaking--it's not even nearly perfect. What I did was use this fantastic vegan baked mac and cheese recipe from To Live and Eat in LA, but omitted the vegan ham, the paprika, the red chili flakes and the panko (I used panko later, though, so it was good to have on hand!). I assembled it, minus the omitted ingredients, and baked it according to the recipe directions, except that I spread it out a little and tried to make a bit less thick in the pan.

After baking it, I just let it cool to room temperature, BUT when it came to making it into bun shapes and frying it, most of the mac and cheese fell apart--some of it when being dipped into the liquid. Out of this whole recipe, I only got four usable mac and cheese buns. The rest of it became a pile that will now be lunch (most fell apart before I even got to dredging it, so it's still good... phew). What I would probably do differently next time would be to compress the mac and cheese for a few hours and/or put it in the refrigerator for a couple hours to allow it to firm up more before coating and frying it AND/OR use more daiya cheese in the recipe to make it hold together more.

Once I had the mac and cheese, I cut it into burger-ish shapes (mainly squares, as the edges of mine started to fall off as I coated them in flour, etc, anyway), then I coated them in flour, submerged them in almond milk (you could use soy or rice milk, as in the mac and cheese recipe), and coated them liberally with panko bread crumbs, then dipped* each into hot oil, in turn, and let them deep fry until golden brown.

*In order to better hold their shape, I used one of those big strainer spoon things and carefully lowered each bun into the oil, letting it fry for a moment or so before letting it go completely. If I'd just dropped them in, they might have broken apart more.

While my four mac and cheese buns drained, I heated up a couple of Hilary's brand veggie burgers over the stove, sliced tomatoes, chopped green onions and washed some lettuce, then prepared the mandatory sriracha ketchup by mixing 2 Tbsp Ketchup with 1/2 tsp Sriracha. When the burgers were cooked, I assembled everything--

A mac and cheese "bun" went on the bottom, a piece of lettuce on top, a slice of tomato on top of that, then the veggie burger patty. I slathered some sriracha ketchup onto the veggie patty, piled on the green onions, topped it with another "bun" and staked it with a toothpick.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Vegan Mac Attack Burger:

If you have any ideas for improvements, please share! This was a fun experiment. The burger was an absolute mess to eat, and mine were a bit oily, but overall it was pretty epic.

Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge 2013 - Desserts! (Too Many and Not Enough)

I love desserts, but I try not to eat too many of them. So when I do eat them, I want them to be spectacular.

While I was in Sacramento for Vegan Chef Challenge 2013 last weekend, I didn't eat one dessert that was any less than amazing.

If you get a chance, you need to go to these places and try everything on this page, heh... and also the delicious sounding desserts I didn't get to.

Desserts

Magpie's vegan dessert is on the menu year-round, as far as I know, and it gets rave reviews from vegans and non-vegans alike. It's a chocolate avocado mousse. We got one and split it between four people. It was rich, creamy, chocolatey, and more words than I can think of. Photogenic, too!

Vegan Chocolate Avocado Mousse at Magpie in Sacramento

Tower Bridge Bistro's challenge desserts were perfect. They were just indulgent enough--not so sweet to give you a headache, but sweet enough to make you savor every bite. We got both desserts and split them.

Italian Pear Tart with Apricot Essence from Tower Bridge Bistro, Vegan Chef Challenge 2013

Cappuccino Mousse with Almond Milk Foam from Tower Bridge Bistro

The Porch had some great desserts, as always. I ordered the ice cream for brunch and put it on top of my vegan banana waffle (seen in the previous post on Vegan Chef Challenge Brunches), but not before I grabbed a shot of it:

Coconut-Almond Milk Cinnamon Sage Ice Cream from The Porch

Of all the desserts I tried, my favorite by far was another one from The Porch. I ended Saturday night with this one. I felt like my stomach was going to explode with every bite I took, I was so full, but I just couldn't stop. I even ordered an extra for my mom to try at home.

It was a Banana Pudding with fresh fruit and cookies (the cookies were inside, too... SO SO GOOD)--

Banana Pudding with Vanilla Cookies and Fresh Strawberries and Bananas from The Porch

I wish I was able to try everything. Other participating restaurants had items on the menu that looked too good to be true. Michelangelo's had pumpkin bars with bourban caramel sauce that I didn't have the opportunity to try. The Press had Port wine poached french butter pears with pear sorbet & candied walnuts. Capitol Garage, which ALWAYS has great desserts, had vanilla banana cake with spiced persimmon compote and lemon pomegranate drizzle.

I'm tempted to hop back in the car and do the 6 hour drive up north again right now just for these desserts! (Who needs a job and responsibilities when you can just pig out on yummy vegan sweets??)

If you find yourself in or near Sacramento while the Vegan Chef Challenge is going on, definitely check it out. And if you are reading this after October 20th, when the 2013 challenge concludes, then I guess I'll just see you there next year!

Vegan Chef Challenge is an annual event in Sacramento that runs through the month of October. Learn more at the Vegan Chef Challenge website and Facebook page.

Check out my other 2013 Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge Posts:

- Brunch Roundup!
- Appetizers and Entrees

Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge 2013 - Appetizers and Entrees

When I went up to Sacramento last weekend for the 3rd annual Vegan Chef Challenge, I knew I was going to be eating a LOT of food. What I didn't expect was for all the food to be so freaking good, though. I was planning to go everywhere with at least one other person so that we could split appetizers and entrees, but I found myself selfishly wishing I could have all of it to myself.

A lot of things were shared, however, and I'm glad, because it meant that I got to stuff a wider variety of foods into my face.

Below are the appetizers and entrees I indulged in over the course of a day and a half.

Appetizers and Entrees

We tried a couple places for lunch, but very few were serving challenge items at lunchtime (be sure to call ahead before you show up somewhere, because in the past I've also encountered places that have run out of their vegan foods in addition to those who just weren't serving it at that time or that day).

Magpie was one of the locations that wasn't serving a challenge lunch, but we decided to eat there anyway. Our vegan waitress suggested a couple things which ended up tasting great--a vegan sandwich and a veganizable sandwich. Pictured below is the banh mi with avocado subbed for beef (left) and the vegan mushroom panini (right), which includes a tasty white bean paste. Both were excellent.

Avocado Banh Mi (left), Vegan Mushroom Panini with White Bean Paste (right)

Tower Bridge Bistro is a MUST DINE. I'd never been before, but this time we made our reservations based on all the buzz from previous years and had the full course.

It's required that you get the full course, but it's only $28 for an appetizer, entree and dessert, and it's more than worth it to try all three.

I had the Purple Peruvian Potato Bisque for my appetizer. My friend tried the Moroccan Style Carrot and Parsnip Salad.

Purple Peruvian Potato Bisque with Leeks and Smokey Chipotle - Tower Bridge Bistro

Moroccan Style Carrot and Parsnip Salad with Buckwheat Crepes - Tower Bridge Bistro

We met the organizer of Vegan Chef Challenge here, who was such a sweetheart (and who I appreciate  immensely for organizing this!), as well as the chef, Chef Clay Purcell, who was very generous to come over and chat with us and who does unbelievable things with vegan food.

My friend and I decided to have the same entree--Thai Coconut Curry with Tofu, Roasted Cauliflower, Jasmine Rice, Spaghetti Squash and Sunflower Seeds. This was my favorite entree from the challenge.

Thai Coconut Curry from Tower Bridge Bistro - Sac Vegan Chef Challenge 2013

One of the places we had to try was 58 Degrees & Holding Co., a wine bar in Midtown. They had a GREAT challenge appetizer--Spinach and Mushroom Fritters. If there were a huge pile of these, I think we could have just kept on eating them forever.

Spinach and Mushroom Fritters from 58 Degrees & Holding Co.

For their entree, they did some really fun things with butternut squash, including a puree, a galette (the miniature pizza looking thing--this one was my favorite from the plate! The flavor of the compote was a bit sweet and provided a great balance) and butternut squash jerkey with arugula, lolla, and a maple tofu-bacon vinaigrette.

Butternut Squash 3 Ways from 58 Degrees & Holding Co. - Veg Chef Challenge 2013

And we cannot forget The Porch! After having brunch here, I came back for appetizers and I'm so glad I did. You know how people always somehow seem to bring up beets when talking about why they could never eat vegan? The Porch just gave all those people a big middle finger. These deep fried beets with Cajun seasoning and veganaise remoulade were way too good to be appropriate.

Deep fried beets from The Porch's 2013 Vegan Chef Challenge menu

We thought those were good, but when the herb and pecan grilled tomatoes over grits came out, we just about died. Absolutely fantastic.

Herb & Pecan Grilled Tomatoes – served over grits with roasted green chili sauce

We ate at The Porch early in the evening, so we were trying to keep it relatively light. As such, we didn't get to try the Black Eyed Peas burger. However, I'm sure it was dangerously delicious. Hopefully it ends up on the year-round menu, like I believe some of their brunch items did from last year, because I really would love to try it next time I'm in town!

Vegan Chef Challenge is an annual event in Sacramento that runs through the month of October. Learn more at the Vegan Chef Challenge website and Facebook page.

Check out my other 2013 Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge Posts:

- Brunch Roundup!
- Desserts (Too Many and Not Enough)