Smoothies, Sammichs, and Sausage (the fake kind)

Tonight at our monthly Food Awareness vegetarian meeting, Lee demonstrated how to make a green smoothie:


Lee's a cool guy. He'd been experimenting with raw foods a lot lately, and he swears when he eats blueberries, he sees colors more vividly. The grass was definitely greener after this yummy smoothie of frozen bananas, kale, strawberries, and blueberries. I don't have any photos of the finished product, but trust me, it was delicious.

Last night, I veganized a simple Paula Deen recipe for Tomato Sandwiches with Basil:


These were a perfect way to enjoy ripe, juicy summer tomatoes. And it's super easy. Here's the veganized recipe:

2 slices tomato, drained on paper towels for 10 minutes
4 slices whole grain bread (I used Ezekiel Sprouted Grain bread)
Handful of basil leaves
1/3 cup Veganaise
1/8 tsp. onion powder
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. seasoned salt
1/8 tsp. dried dill
black pepper to taste

Mix the spices and mayo together. Spread on bread and place one slice of tomato and a few basil leaves between 2 slices. Cut the bread into a circle around the tomato slice. Repeat. Refrigerate, covered with a damp towel, unless ready to use.

On the side, I made Vegan Sweet Potato Sausage Balls with a Cheezy Dipping Sauce:


These are going in the cookbook, but they're basically a veganized version of traditional sausage balls made with real sausage, cheese, and Bisquick. My mom used to make them all the time, and I loved them before I gave up meat in '94. This is the first time I've attempted to make them vegan (or even vegetarian), so I was pretty impressed. Note: Though it is vegan, I did not cheat with Bisquick for these. I used good old-fashioned whole wheat pastry flour.

The dipping sauce (not pictured) is basically a traditional noochy cheeze sauce.