Book of Yum

Some time ago I bought the Vegan Lunchbox cookbook by the author of the Vegan Lunch Box Blog. Apparently there is exciting news- her book has been picked up by a major publisher and will be redesigned and released in March 2008, so it should be available all over the country in bookstores soon. I’ve enjoyed her book as is, with its creative, healthy recipes and fun menu ideas, but I’m sure the new version will be great as well, and hopefully reach a wider audience. The other day I was trying to find something new to do with tofu, and I found myself flipping through Jennifer McCann’s book- until I was inspired by a recipe for Tofu Fish Sticks. Basically, you take tofu, slice it, cut it out in fish shapes with cookie cutters (or into boring ol’ sticks), dip in soymilk mixed with lemon and then coat it in a combination of cornmeal, nuts (i used almond and sesame), aonori (blue nori kelp sprinkles), and seasoning. You bake just like regular ol’ boring fish sticks in the oven, and enjoy! They got a thumbs up from DH, and I enjoyed them as well. They’re not quite as addicting as the nutritional yeast southern fried tofu or even baked nutritional yeast tofu, but they are tasty, fun, and something different that would probably appeal to kids. The first night we enjoyed them with roasted sweet potatoes and Slow Cooked Southern Greens in Cashew Macadamia Sauce. The next day for lunch, we had them with leftover GF corn pasta (DH is really into Mrs. Leepers corn pasta) mixed with fresh diced tomatoes, and roasted brussel sprouts, and roasted sweet potatoes. The right tartar sauce would be perfect with these darling fishie sticks- we had ours with a dill mustard sauce ’cause we didn’t have any tarter. So, whether you hunt down Jennifer’s book or just start improvising your own fishie stick recipe following her method- hopefully now you will be inspired to take fish sticks to the next gluten-free, vegan level- ’cause they’re yummy that way! I would give them a 7 or 8 out of 10, and would definitely make them again.

Interested in other reviews of recipes from this cookbook? Here’s
My Review of her Apple Spring Rolls

Or, how about
A list of all my tofu recipes, including one to make your own tofu from scratch

Also, if you’re interested in packed lunches, but don’t need strictly vegan recipes try this fantastic site I came across
Lunch In a Box
It’s one of my favorite new sites for bento ideas. :)

Today I’d like to blog about a meal we had last night that came from a fellow blogger’s recently published cookbook- Jennifershmoo’s Vegan Lunch Box. I’ve read Jennifer’s blog for ages now, and I was always impressed by the creative vegan lunches she made for her son. Her lunches were not only visually appealing and fun, but looked delicious as well. After she came out with a cookbook, I was curious, but didn’t know how applicable it would be to my gluten free life. When I broke down and purchased a copy, I was really glad I did. The book is much thicker than it looks in the photos, and has tons of great recipes that you can put together into a delicious vegan lunch. Perhaps the best part is the Allergen-Free index where she lists all the gluten free recipes, as well as nut free, soy free recipes. I was inspired by her recipe for broccoli Calzones to create the Calzones in my last post, but the first full recipe I tried from the book was the “Tofu Apple Spring Roll” on page 226. The recipe intrigued me because it called for marinated, baked tofu, crisp sliced green apples, and shredded napa cabbage. I always put seasoned tofu in my spring rolls- but I had never thought of adding any fruit besides avocado. I also made the accompanying peanut sauce, which is easy to make and absolutely delicious! She has selected recipes from the cookbook available online, but the recipe I used can only be found in the cookbook. I used mint leaves instead of cilantro and added rice noodles to make the dish more filling, as I didn’t plan to add any side dishes to the meal. DH gave a huge thumbs up- and his only request was- MORE APPLES! Oh, that and he’d really rather I leave the mint out. (Not that he’d rather have cilantro, heaven forbid.) He also really enjoyed the peanut sauce. I think it was the sesame oil that won him over… shhh… Now it must be admitted, there are some recipes in this book that do not work for the gluten free diet, such as Cornish Pastries, which call for seitan “meat” and vegemite, and some of the baked goods. But in my opinion, there are plenty of gluten free recipes in the book that make it very valuable- especially to a gluten free vegetarian, or just to someone who wants to pack a healthy interesting lunch for themselves or their family.