Sunday, March 20, 2011

Speed Vegan Spring Giveaway!

So spring has finally sprung! It was 81 degrees in Memphis today, and I suddenly noticed my yard is in major need of mowing. I hate, hate, hate winter, so I'm super-duper excited for spring. I celebrated the equinox with some serious spring cleaning (baseboards, closets, dusting in hidden places I've never even thought to dust). And I also enjoyed this light spring meal of Navy Bean & Swiss Chard Soup from Speed Vegan:

Nothing says "early growing season" like fresh greens, and Swiss chard is one of my faves. I'm also a big fan of white beans, so this soup was the perfect combination. As with all the recipes in Alan Roettinger's Speed Vegan, this dish came together in a matter of minutes.

Lucky for one of y'all, the Book Publishing Company (publisher of Speed Vegan) is letting me give away a copy of Speed Vegan to one lucky reader! See the bottom of this post for details on how to enter. Read my review of Speed Vegan here.

You can't have soup without bread! So this was the perfect opportunity to make Sarah Kramer's Sassy Sandwich Bread, the March recipe in her Go Vegan! 2011 Wall Calendar:

The recipe is accompanied by an adorable parody album cover of the Beastie Boys' "Check Your Head." Instead of Ad-Rock, Mike D, and MCA, the picture features three gansta Sarah Kramer's in toboggans, sneakers, and shades with the words "Yeastie Boys" and "Check Your Bread." Cute, right? The bread, by the way, is absolutely delish! Soft and chewy and perfect topped with a little melted Daiya vegan cheese.

Ok, now for the giveaway details. Leave me a comment about your favorite quick, gourmet-ish meal ideas.

For an extra chance to win, tweet about the giveaway and leave an additional comment letting me know you did. For an extra, extra chance, link back to the contest from Facebook and leave yet another comment to let me know. And finally, for a fourth chance, link back to this contest on your blog (if you have one), and leave yet another comment to fill me in. That's four chances to win!

If you don't have a Blogger account with a listed email, please leave your email address so I can contact you if you win. Good luck! I'll randomly select one winner on Wednesday night (March 23rd).

49 comments:

Emily said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Emily said...

My favorite quick and gourmet meal would have to be Mofongo. Mofongo is lightly fried plantains with garlic, olive oil, and chicharrones. I replace the chicharrones with tempeh bacon, and then it's topped with a typically fried Caribbean meat, I never top it with the same thing twice. It seems gourmet when eaten in the states, because it's Puerto Rican.

My mother always makes it fancy and serves it in the mortar, but it doesn't really take that long. It was one of the first things I veganized.

Email= Ministryofmagic_emily@yahoo.com

MeloMeals said...

That soup looks so good! I love the bread too.

Jacinta said...

Love your blog, the soup looks delicious. Togo speedy meal, gotta be a veggie sandwich, spread the veganaise, add the veggies, chow down. Top it off with soup, I always keep a variety of single serves available in the freezer to grab and go for lunch.

Radish said...

For a quick meal, I like simple tempeh tacos with cilantro and lime. They can be jazzed up with additional ingredients or left in all their simple glory. Also, rice, beans and kale are all nice on the side.

Hannah said...

I don't know if this is gourmet-ish, but I love frying chickpeas for a garnish on salads, to up the tasty and pretty factor of a speedy dinner :)

Kris said...

Ooh, that soup looks good. I was dreaming of a white bean and kale soup today, that's close enough.

My favorite quick meal is a giant, fancy salad. It is considered fancy because it has nuts sprinkled on top, when all the veggie/dressing goodness is said and done.

Annalee said...

I don't know if it is gourmet-ish but it is speedy and great to use up leftovers. I always have left over hummus lurking in the fridge. So I add the hummus to a pot and add water and any seasoning (bouillon cube, spices, garlic,salt and pepper,etc)

Heat and stir over medium-low to medium high heat until heated through. Sometimes, left over veggies are added to the sauce. Sometimes, nooch is added for a cheesy sauce.The sauce is poured over pasta. Optional is cilantro or parsley. Voila, dinner!

Email: thesundaybaker@yahoo.ca

Katie said...

I love making quick, chunky marinara with spinach and nooch in a flash to go over pasta! Would love to see what this cookbook has to offer. :)

Lauren Lowe said...

VeganDad's Sweet and Sour chickpeas are fast, cheap, and amazing!

laurenlowe7@hotmail.com

Meg said...

I find adding curry powder to ketchup dresses up a dull veggie burger.

Rachel said...

One of my favorite quick and gourmet meals is Chloe Coscarelli's avocado pesto pasta. If you have the ingredients it's merely boiling the pasta and turning on the blender but it looks and tastes like so much more!

Jessica Crossfield said...

My favorite quick, gourmet-ish meal is gnocchi with cashew cream sauce and sauteed greens. It always pleases omnivores and is a snap to make!

Dianne said...

Quick, gourmet-ish meals are my favorite! When in doubt, I usually go for a selection of dips with crudites and good bread.

Nichole said...

I love making veggie enchiladas, rice, and black beans for a quick great meal for company.

Leah said...

My favorite speedy gourmet dishes use the pressure cooker (you should REALLY read Great Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure by Lorna Sass!). I'd have to call it a tie between risotto with winter squash vs porcini muchrooms. Both can be on the table in less than 30 minutes with very little interactive time!

Leslie Richman said...

I love to sautee veggies and cook them on a piece of flatbread for a fancy pizza. Sun dried tomatoes, spinach, and olives really raise the rent on a quick meal like that! :)

Anonymous said...

My favorite gourmet meal is to make an indian style pizza on frozen naan; using crushed tomatoes+panang curry; and topping it with rosted chickpeas and cilantro.

Anonymous said...

Oh; I tweeted. For some reason that makes me giggle like the song "Somebody Farted". Yep; I'm 12.

Anonymous said...

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaand I facebooked. I'll blog about it later :)

Molly said...

I like to quickly steam collard greens, coat them in balsamic or rice vinegar, and toss in sunflower seeds and dried cranberries. Exceptionally nutritious, fast, and delicious.

Anonymous said...

My favorite speedy gourmet meal is anything with pesto. I always have some pesto ready to go in the freezer- all it needs is a fresh pot of pasta or some tofu and veggies to coat. Easy-peasy!

Anonymous said...

Spring was lousy in Southern California, a huge downpour!

Anonymous said...

I love to make Chana Masala with basmati rice for a quick and simple weeknight meal that tastes like it took forever.

Unknown said...

I'm more of a homestyle cook so as far as gourmet dishes this is kinda tough.

I guess I'd have to say spinach and cashew cheese roll-ups servied on top of a tomato ragu. Sounds fancy! lol it's like sliced lasagna roll-ups with a homemade chunky sauce. So yummy!

Just Us said...

quick gourmet meal...hmmm I would have to say a veggie pasta. I normally go more quick than gourmet. :o)

Carrie said...

My favourite super quick 'gourmet-ish' meal is a quick-cooking soup. I'll throw in some already cooked beans, a tin of tomatoes, and some quick-cooking veggies (whatever I have on hand). Season and voila, there you have it.

Taylor said...

Best quick, semi- gourmet meal has gotta be opening up a can of chickpease and simmering them and some baby spinach in a sauce of lemon, butter, dijon mustard spices and water while the pasta cooks.

Kelsey Ann said...

definitely would have to be STUFFED FRENCH TOAST!! <3 mmmmm <3

kmm22 said...

not very gourmet, but my go to is always a big salad, especially w/ a tahini based dressing.

Kara Hadley said...

Anything eaten with a knife and a fork feels gourmet to me. So...I leave the top slice of bread off my sandwiches. Instant class, right?

Katelyn (new kid on the vegan block) said...

Might not be that gourmet, but sauteed veggies with lentils is certainly quick and delicious. Adding lots of garlic, cumin and paprika gives it a ton of flavor.

Jennifer said...

I like to make a "fancy" appetizer by toasting sourdough bread with olive oil. I then top it with a mixture of capers, green olives, artichokes and lemon zest. Yum!

jennylovesjeff (at) hotmail (dot) com

Tofu Mom (AKA Tofu-n-Sprouts) said...

Mmmmm, anything with capers seems "gourmet" to me, hahahah, so I put them in soups, salads, whatever I want to make seem fancy and all...

Tofu Mom (AKA Tofu-n-Sprouts) said...

Oh - and I Twittered...

Maria said...

if it has ridges like a panini that I make sounds gourmet... but maybe someone will not think that

my favourite thing to make for the last 3 weeks is:

ROCKIN' REUBEN from Julie Hasson's new book, `Vegan Diner'

I recommend it to anyone!

Bianca: I recently `discovered' your blog :) very nice

Anonymous said...

Quick Gourmet teriyaki tempeh with onions, green peppers and sesame seeds. Just throw some olive oil in a wok, dump your ingredients, stir fry to a crisp and season to taste.

and_i_say said...

For a quick gourmet style meal, I almost always turn to tofu with homemade Asian inspired sauces, fresh veggies, and rice.

Email: CuteDemocrat (at) gmail (dot) com

and_i_say said...

I mentioned your contest on my blog here:
http://andisay0214.blogspot.com/2011/03/la-bamba-jupiter-fl_22.html

Email: CuteDemocrat (at) gmail (dot) com

and_i_say said...

I linked to your contest on my fb.

Email: CuteDemocrat (at) gmail (dot) com

VeganCraftastic said...

Thanks for the chance to win! My favorite quick gourmet-ish thing to make is enchiladas, making them from scratch makes me feel fancy! :)

Jennifer said...

My favorite gourmet meal is sauteed spinach and garlic that I put on crusty bread.

Jennifer said...

I have linked your contest to my blog. It gave me something to mention on this otherwise boring food sick day.

http://whatisjennifereatingnow.blogspot.com/2011/03/sick-day-2.html

Serafina said...

I don't really do "gourmet," but in about thirty minutes I can create a pretty amazing smoked tofu sandwich with pickled carrots and onions and garlic veganaise on homemade sea-salt topped wheat rolls. A sandwich may not be gourmet by most peoples standards, but when you're used to eating a good ol' pb&j, this sandwich ranks pretty high on the gourmet scale.

serafinac(at)gmail(dot)com

Ali - YumVeggieBurger said...

stir-fry is my favorite speedy dinner. quick, easy, and so versatile!

Mel Def said...

Fav quick meal is pinto beans mixed with salsa slathered on a corn tortilla with a bit of Daiya cheeze sprinkled on it then thrown in the toaster over to heat and melt!

HA said...

My favorite "Gourmet" meal is anything homemade seitan-based! Especially if the recipe is coming from Jenn Shaggy.

Anonymous said...

I love a big salad for a quick meal...I make it "gourmet" and special by chopping the veggies on the bias and making my own dressing etc. Fancy, healthy, AND quick!

Courtney

moonsword said...

My favorite quickie is to cook quinoa or couscous with a can of lentil soup instead of just water...so yummy! I only just discovered this so I must try other soups and grains together...then maybe top them with breadcrumbs, Daiya, crumbled tortilla chips, etc and bake them as casseroles. Lots of experimenting to do!