First off I want to thank Angela for featuring my meat(less)balls in her Recipe Link Love for today! I love that she features vegan recipes from tons of bloggers.. but it makes my recipe pile start to teeter a bit!
My mom still raves about my “really yummy meatballs” whenever she talks about my switch to vegan eating. I think she likes them more than I did!
I’m so glad to have such a proud mama! =)
She would probably like what I whipped up for dinner last night, too. I know I was pretty pleased!
I give you: Spicy Okra Mole!
If you’ve never tried okra, I suggest you give it a whirl. The flavor and the crunch even after it cooks makes the fact that it looks a little sticky while cooking bearable. =)
I’ve been wanting to make the tofu mole out of the Moosewood Restaurant: Cooking for Health cookbook for a while now. I checked the book back out of the library just so I could get the recipe. My only reservation was that I didn’t want to eat tofu. I ate a lot of it over the weekend. I decided that the best substitute for the day was the okra I had hanging out in the freezer!
I’m so glad I made the substitution! Yum!
Here’s my adaption of the recipe from the Moosewood cookbook!
Spicy Okra Mole (adapted from Moosewood Restaurant: Cooking for Health)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, diced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cumin
2 chipotle peppers from a can, diced
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
2 cups sliced okra (I used frozen)
1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
1/2 can water (using the can from the tomatoes)
In a medium pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Toss in onions and cook until they start to turn clear. Add in garlic, salt, thyme, cinnamon and cumin. Cook another 2 minutes, then add in okra and chipotle peppers. After about 5 minutes, the okra starts to turn tender. At this point, add in the tomatoes, cocoa powder and water. Bring the mixture to a slow boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
I served my mole sauce over some brown rice and topped it with 1/4 of an avocado, sliced and the juice of half a lime. Nomnomnom. Lunch was fantastic, I tell you!
*****
In other news:
I’m finally getting around to posting the awesomely wonderous “Pudgy Cake” my supervisor, Tami, made for a co-worker’s birthday a few weeks ago. She used the recipe she found over at Cookies and Cups to create this 3 layered humongo cake! She switched it up and used a whipped cream frosting instead of a canned frosting.
Unfortunately the cake was not vegan, but Tami was nice enough to bring me in a small package of Oreos so I could have a sugar rush, too!
My co-workers are so sweet. No pun intended. =)
This bad boy was GONE by the end of the day. We were floored. Sweets + office = demolished!
