Hummus

Image and recipe taken from AllRecipes.com.

Sometimes, even the best recipes fall short simply because of the quality of the ingredients.  I've noticed this especially with store-bought hummus.  If you want to save yourself from boring flavor (and a high price tag!), then try out this hummus recipe!

Yields: 24 servings
Ingredients:

• 3 cans of garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained
• 1/2 cup tahini (sesame paste)
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 1/4 tablespoons olive oil
• Pinch of paprika
• Parsley leaves (for garnish)

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in food processor, and blend until well mixed.
Sprinkle paprika on finished product, plate, and serve with a parsley garnish.

Pairs well with pita bread or chips, or with your favorite vegetable.  Also works as a great spread for sandwiches!

Pineapple-Chile Tofu with Craisin Quinoa Salad

Hello everyone, this is going to be the first delicious contribution to the Vehement Vegetarian portion of Aimless Omnivores. This dish was experimental for me, and has taken a couple tries to turn into this amazing vegan delight that it is today. It's very easy to make, and I sincerely hope you enjoy it!



First of all, I didn't measure anything. I just threw a bunch of stuff together. If I tried to give you measurements I don't know that it would turn out deliciously.

Without further ado, here's the recipe:
Start with extra firm tofu, pressed for about a half hour. For those who haven't pressed tofu, I wrap mine in a bunch of paper towels and place something about the weight of a frying pan on it, and let it sit there for 30 minutes. Then quarter the tofu and marinate it using the following:

Marinade:

* Chili sauce (you will find it in the Asian section at the grocery store, I got a honey chili sauce)
* Crushed Pineapples
* Lemon Juice
* Lime Juice
* Chopped Garlic
* Soy Sauce
* Sherry (optional)-very little
* Mirin (optional)-found in the Asian section at the grocery store


After you've marinated your tofu (or Chicken, honestly that's fine, I won't tell anyone) for about an hour, pan fry it really quick to let it simmer in the juices and then grill it (I used the George Foreman). Throw some sesame seeds on top for extra aesthetic and taste. I threw the remaining marinade on top of my tofu, but you can also save it for future marinating extravaganzas.

Quinoa Salad:

* Cooked quinoa (1 cup uncooked quinoa)
* cilantro
* jalapeños
* onion
* craisins
* chopped walnuts
* lime/lemon juice


Use your taste buds to find out which amounts work for you. I like a LOT of cilantro, but you might prefer more craisins. ONLY the quinoa is cooked, everything else is fresh (and amazing). Happy eating!

Broiled Mediterranean Salmon

Image and recipe taken from AllRecipes.com.

Tender, aromatic, and flavorful, this broiled salmon recipe brings out the best flavors of Mediterranean cooking. I have detailed some instruction on broiling, since it's easy to burn your food in some ovens. As an alternative, you could probably get away with cooking the salmon for 30 minutes at 375 degrees.

For side dishes, we made tabulleh, hummus, and pita bread.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup olive oil
  
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
  
• 4 cloves of garlic (pressed or minced)
  
• 1 pound of salmon, skin on preferred
  
• 1 tablespoon cilantro
  
• 1 tablespoon basil
  

Directions:

Preheat your oven's broiler (or set to 500 degrees if it does not broil). Make sure your oven rack is AT LEAST 6 inches from the top.

Mix together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and garlic in a baking dish.

Place your salmon fillet(s) in the olive oil, being sure to coat both sides.

Rub cilantro and basil on the meat side of the salmon and place back in the baking dish, skin side up. Allow this to marinate while your oven preheats, or for at least 10 minutes.

Now we broil the meat, keeping the skin side up. Depending on your oven, the salmon should stay in for roughly 15 minutes. Use a kitchen timer set for 3 minute intervals. This will help you monitor the fish and keep it from burning. After each interval, be sure to rotate the baking dish, and flip the salmon skin side down after your second or third interval. In my case, the fish was flaky and delicious after about 12 minutes.

Zesty Chicken

Image taken by me (hence the poor quality), recipe taken from MyRecipes.com.

This one was one of my favorites. I know there is a lot of chicken on the tables of America, so it was very nice to find a recipe that brought some variety to our mundane routines!

Sautéed green beans with red bell pepper strips make a colorful accompaniment to this dish.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 4 skinned and boned chicken breast halves
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• Hot cooked couscous
• Garnish: chopped green onions

Directions:

Combine first 10 ingredients in a shallow dish or large heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag; add chicken. Cover or seal, and chill 30 minutes, turning chicken occasionally.

Remove chicken from marinade, discarding marinade.

Cook chicken in hot oil in a large skillet over high heat 4 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low; turn, and cook 10 minutes or until done. Serve with hot cooked couscous. Garnish, if desired.

Perfect Potstickers

Image and recipe taken from Food Network.

Very special thanks to Alton Brown, from Food Network's Good Eats, for providing the basis of this recipe, Perfect Pot Stickers. His instructions for cooking the potstickers are flawless. If I had the time to follow his instructions to the 'T', I would have. So what, I made some modification.. Where Alton says 'Combine the first 11 ingredients', I say 'Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage'!

Yes. Breakfast sausage. I stole that idea from a friend's mom. Although, next time I'll stay true to the ingredients.

If you want to feel like a pro while you cook, this is a fun recipe. It's very high maintenance, and isn't too hard to follow.

We served this one with white rice and a frozen Asian vegetable bag.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound ground pork
• 1/4 cup finely chopped scallions
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped red bell pepper
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 teaspoons ketchup
• 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon light brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 35 to 40 small wonton wrappers
• Water, for sealing wontons
• 3 to 4 tablespoons vegetable oil, for frying
• 1 1/3 cups chicken stock, divided

Directions:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.

Combine the first 11 ingredients in a medium-size mixing bowl (pork through cayenne). Set aside.

To form the dumplings, remove 1 wonton wrapper from the package, covering the others with a damp cloth. Brush 2 of the edges of the wrapper lightly with water. Place 1/2 rounded teaspoon of the pork mixture in the center of the wrapper. Fold over, seal edges, and shape as desired. Set on a sheet pan and cover with a damp cloth. Repeat procedure until all of the filling is gone.

Heat a 12-inch saute pan over medium heat. Brush with vegetable oil once hot. Add 8 to 10 potstickers at a time to the pan and cook for 2 minutes, without touching. Once the 2 minutes are up, gently add 1/3 cup chicken stock to the pan, turn the heat down to low, cover, and cook for another 2 minutes. Remove wontons to a heatproof platter and place in the warm oven. Clean the pan in between batches by pouring in water and allowing the pan to deglaze. Repeat until all the wontons are cooked. Serve immediately.