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Vegan version of King Ranch Chicken Casserole

There's a category of recipe that lives less on a card and more in memory — the smell of it baking, the specific pan it always showed up in, the way everyone reached for the corner pieces first. For me, that recipe is my mom's King Ranch chicken casserole, made her way: tortilla chips instead of soft tortillas, so every bite had that crunch holding up under the creamy, spiced filling. I set out to rebuild it — plant-based, a little lighter, and tuned to the specific tastes around our table (no cilantro here; more on that below). What came out of the oven still has that same crackly-chip, creamy-sauce, savory-spiced identity. It just happens to be entirely vegan. What Changed (and Why It Still Works) The original leans on a few things that are easy to swap without losing the character of the dish: Chicken → TVP. Textured vegetable protein rehydrates into something with real bite, soaks up the chili and cumin beautifully, and keeps the protein count high without the saturated fat...
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Spaghetti Verde

 # Vegan Spaghetti Verde with Parsley, Broccoli & White Bean Cream There's a reason so many "spaghetti verde" recipes lean on cilantro — it's punchy, it's classic, and it photographs beautifully. But in my house, cilantro is a non-starter. My husband and kids all get that soapy, metallic taste from it (turns out that's a real genetic quirk, not pickiness), so I've spent years finding ways to get that same vibrant, herb-forward green sauce without it. This version swaps in flat leaf parsley, which brings a cleaner, grassier flavor that nobody in my family objects to. And instead of the usual spinach for color, I went with steamed broccoli — spinach (like beets and mushrooms) carries compounds that read as "dirty" or "earthy" to some palates, thanks to a naturally occurring compound called geosmin. Steaming the broccoli briefly, rather than boiling it, keeps that clean, bright flavor intact. ## Why this sauce works The base is a simpl...
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 I promised a Savory muffin recipe and that is what you shall have. These muffins are wonderful with breakfast, potato soup, or with a salad. I hope you love them as much as I do.    Savory Muffins 1 cup Unbleached All-Purpose Flour (Plain Flour for my Kiwi friends) 1/2 cup Spelt Flour (Can use wheat flour if you can't find spelt) 1/2 cup Gentle Chef Hard Parmesano (or your favorite vegan parmesan) 1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder 1 tsp Fine Sea Salt 1/8 tsp Cayenne 1 Tbsp Dried Chives 2 Tbsp Coconut Sugar 2 Flax Eggs ( 2 Tbsp Flax Meal + 6 Tbsp Hot Water) 1 cup Unsweetened Plain Soy Milk 1/2 cup Extra Light Olive Oil 1/2 cup Chopped Pecan Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 Celsius) Prepare flax eggs and set aside. In a medium mixing bowl whisk together flours, parmesan, baking powder, salt, coconut sugar, cayenne, and chives. In a liquid measuring cup whisk together flax eggs, soy milk, and olive oil.  Stir wet ingredients into dry. Fold in pecans. Spray 12-cup muff...
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Oatmeal Muffins

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 Hi, I need to make some unsweetened soy milk today. So the savory muffins and Parmesan biscuits will have to wait for tomorrow or the next day.  I made the oatmeal muffins with Silk Original Soy Milk. You are free to use whichever non-dairy milk you like. I usually use unsweetened because these are already sweeter than I prefer, but the family loves them. Without further ado, I present:   Oatmeal Muffins  Ingredients 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats 1 cup non-dairy milk 1/2 cup pure maple syrup 1/3 cup extra light olive oil 1 teaspoon vanilla ½ cup coconut sugar 2  flax eggs  (2 Tbsp Flax meal + 6 Tbsp hot water) 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt 1/2 cup nuts (pecan, walnut, macadamia.. Etc optional) Instructions Preheat the oven to 400 F. Spray 12-cup muffin tin with Pam or other cooking spray. Prepare flax eggs.  Combine the oats and non-dairy milk in ...
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 Long time no post, lots of things have changed but I am still making delicious vegan food. Mostly baking, I do enjoy my breads. Highly recommend Skye Michael Conroy "The Gentle Chef" his vegan hard parmesano recipe is excellent and I use it in savory muffins and black pepper parmesan biscuits that are excellent with soups or to top a deconstructed chickpea pot pie. Planning to post all three of these recipes soon so have your Hard Parmesano or preferred vegan parmesan substitute ready sometime in the next week.  Will be posting recipes here and there. I just cannot commit to a schedule right now. I am in the middle of writing three novels at once. So keep baking vegan and I'll see you when I see you.   I also want to let you know I am not going to monetize the blog. I hate going to a blog for a recipe and dealing with pop up ads.I wouldn't do that to you. I also highly recommend the Jason Asano's Lemonade recipe you can find that in Shirtaloon's He Who Fights...
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My husband wanted me to post possible substitutes for egg in adapting non vegan recipes. I found a good guide on another vegan blog. http://www.holycowvegan.net/p/vegan-substitutes.html She has some awesome recipes. The crescent rolls and challah recipes are very delicious.
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Asian Fusion Quinoa and Tofu

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I had tofu already marinated according to my usual method .   I made quinoa in the rice cooker and seasoned it with gochujang (Korean Red Pepper Paste) soy sauce, and sesame oil.  The spinach was blanched in boiling water with a teaspoon of salt for 30 seconds drained and rinsed with cold water.  I added 2 cloves of minced garlic,  1 tablespoon soy sauce, 2 teaspoons of sesame oil and tossed the spinach in and let it sit in the refrigerator for a few hours to absorb the flavor. The carrots were chopped matchstick size and quick pickled with 3 tablespoons of vinegar, 1 tablespoon of water, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 teaspoon of agave.  Combine and store in refrigerator until dinner is ready. The scallion pancakes were made with one alteration to this recipe .  I substituted 1/2 cup spelt flour for the same amount of all purpose flour. 
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