Lentil Stew

`

The Chef: Anna

The Menu: Lentil stew with carrots, tomatoes, and potatoes, a few olive chips from Food Should Taste Good, and a nectarine for dessert.

The Dish: After a birthday week filled with cake, burritos, deep-dish pizza, and more cake, I was ready for a simple, healthy meal. The recipe for this tasty, hearty stew comes from vegan actress, mom, and superhero Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Diet, which is one of my favorite vegan-friendly books. Come to think of it, Clueless was one my favorite movies when I was a teenager (hello, freeway scene). Coincidence? I think not. Speaking of the teenage years, check out some veg organizations around the country that are just for kids—like Trix, but with real rabbits instead of a cartoon one who tries to steal your breakfast.

Carb-Crazy Feast

The Chef: Anna, Elizabeth, and Jennifer

The Menu: A heaping dish full of VegNews' Macaroni and Cheese, Abby's biscuits from the VN Savvy Vegan blog with honee and caramel agave on top, Alicia Silverstone's Crispy Peanut Butter Treats with Chocolate Chips, Oreos, and Nutter Butters

The Goods: I'm finished with Kris Carr's 21-day cleanse, so it's only natural that I relish in a meal made from nothing but wheat and sugar, right? Right. While I do worry that green-juice fans everywhere feel a pain in their souls today, I was so happy with this spread that I could have face-planted into the dish of mac and cheese. After finishing off my lunch with a Frankencookie (trademark Elizabeth), an Oreo sandwiched between a Nutter Butter, the office played a game of Head1Liners, which quickly digressed as a carbo-haze clouded our brains. [Insert clever quip about carb-induced comas here].

Caesar Salad, Creative Croutons

The Chef: Liz

The Menu: Today Liz took a page from Alicia Silverstone's book The Kind Diet by preparing us Alicia's signature Caesar salad. This rich, tangy salad combines romaine lettuce with homemade Caesar dressing made of almonds, tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, soy sauce, garlic, Dijon mustard, and water, and freshly baked croutons. Since the VN kitchen is fresh out of bread, Liz improvised by popping seasoned and slightly warmed tortilla squares into the mix and finished off the meal with roasted eggplant, carrot, bell pepper, and tomato.

The Goods: We're big fans of this Caesar salad recipe, which calls for clean, whole ingredients that leave us feeling completely full and satisfied. The only thing more fun than cooking by the book might be the opportunity to look through a new book, and if your summer reading list is as sorely neglected as ours, we recommend you check out the fabulous, brand new VegNews Book Club. Whether you love discussing literature or simply need a new veg-friendly book to devour, the VN Book Club is the place to be. Currently, readers are hotly debating Mad Cowboy by Howard Lyman. Have some opinions about this bestseller? Join the conversation today!

Raw Cones!

The Chef: James Hall of Raw Daddy Foods

The Menu: Raw cones! James offered to cater our lunch today, and when have you ever known us to turn down free food? His concept is simple: take cones of raw flax crackers and fill them. We sampled the Spicy Thai Salad Cone (the filling you see on the right above) and the Forest and Earth Mushroom Polenta Cone, along with chocolate-coconut haystacks and a refreshing glass of sparkling ginger lemonade. The cones were crisp and the fillings were quite flavorful; the majority vote on the meal was a thumbs up!

The Goods: Though today's meal certainly filled us up, but since it was raw there wasn't much warmth to be had. So, we're warming our hearts (if not our stomachs) on this cold, stormy day in SF by giving away our final copy of The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone! Congrats to [melissa] from yesterday's comments! [melissa], send us an email, and we'll mail your book right out!

Cookbook Week: Sweet Potato-Lentil Stew

The Chef: Abby

The Menu: A light, lovely soup with lentils and sweet potatoes, as you might have assumed from the title. Sides of red quinoa and steamed broccoli continued the warm, homey trend, and a fresh spinach salad with orange sections and sunflowers added a little color to the plate. For dunking, where would we be without bread?

The Goods: The end of Cookbook Week is upon us, and we have just one more copy of Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Diet to give away. First, a hearty congratulations to Tanya from yesterday's comments! Tanya, send us an email, and we'll send your book right out. So now that we are at the end of the week, let's talk weekend plans. For the last copy of the book, tell us in the comments: how are you going to be kind this weekend?

Cookbook Week: Mushroom Pizza & Caesar Salad

The Chef: Abigail

The Menu: Crispy, doughy Thin Mushroom "Pizzas" paired with a light, tangy, classic Caesar Salad from The Kind Diet. Yes, the recipe does substitute whole-wheat tortillas for pizza dough, and no, we're not complaining. These scrumptious tortillas were covered in Tofu Cream—another recipe from The Kind Diet—and topped with button and shiitake mushrooms, onions, garlic, and black olives. To accompany our meal, Abigail whipped up one of the best Caesar salads we've ever had. Full of flavor, the greens and homemade whole-wheat croutons were covered in a to-die-for salad dressing that included puréed almonds, Dijon mustard, tahini, and fresh lemon juice. 

The Goods: First, congrats to Abigail on her first day in the VN kitchen! With not a leftover in sight, we can safely say that Abigail did an amazing job. Second, another congrats to SSheilah, who won yesterday's copy of The Kind Diet! Ssheilah, we agree about the dried fruit—it can liven up any meal! Simply send us an email with your full name and mailing address, and your winnings will be on their way. Finally, for tomorrow's copy of the book, tell us in the comments: From classic to creative, what's your favorite recipe substitution (like today's tortillas standing in for pizza dough)?

Cookbook Week: Risotto and Collards

The Chef: Liz

The Menu: A savory meal that was bursting with greens! Liz made a double serving of Risotto with Oyster Mushrooms, Leeks, and Peas, and a lovely side of Sicilian Collard Greens with Pine Nuts and Raisins. Both of these recipes were from The Kind Diet, and both dishes have completely disappeared. The huge, beautiful kale salad you see was one of Liz's own recipes, and featured avocado, black sesame seeds, and Parma! Everything was scrumptious and promptly devoured.

The Goods: From the looks of the responses to yesterday's post, you all love some salad! We couldn't agree more—you might have noticed that just about every single post on this blog features some sort of leafy mixture. Speaking of things you might have noticed on this blog, we're giving away Alicia Silverstone's book! Congrats to GreyShore, who is the winner from yesterday's comments! GreyShore, send us an email, and we'll mail out your copy! To be entered to win today's copy, leave a comment with your answer to this question: Do you like raisins in savory food (such as in today's lovely collards?)

Cookbook Week: Seitan Piccata and Sexy Salad

The Chef: Kristen

The Menu: The super-saucy Seitan Piccata with White Wine and Capers and Alicia's Sexy Inspired Salad from The Kind Diet. The piccata was cooked to perfection, and the savory, rich onion- and caper-infused sauce was an indulgent lunchtime treat! If there's anything VN staffers love, it's a caper. Our side salad today had a fresh, lemony dressing that perfectly balanced the luxurious sauce.

The Goods: First, a huge congratulations to Kristen on her first turn in the VN kitchen! This meal was beyond critique, and we can't wait to sample more of her stellar cooking. Second, another gigantic congratulations to Vegyogini, who won yesterday's copy of The Kind Diet! Vegyogini, send us an email with your full name and mailing address, and your winnings will be on their way! Finally, for tomorrow's copy of the book, tell us in the comments: what goes into your go-to salad?

Cookbook Week: Eggplant Chana Masala

The Chef: Lyndsay

The Menu: Hearty, spicy Eggplant Chana Masala courtesy of The Kind Diet by our very own January+February cover girl Alicia Silverstone! This take on a classic Indian vegetable dish calls for eggplant, onion, garlic, chickpeas, tomatoes, and a can of vegetarian chili—Lyndsay chose Pinto Beans and Spelt Chili by Eden Organic. Lyndsay seasoned the chana masala with cumin, curry powder, and fresh cilantro, and served the stewy mixture over piping-hot white basmati rice. Paired with a lovely green salad, this filling meal was the perfect perk-up for our particularly overcast Monday afternoon.

The Goods: Today kicks off our cookbook week for The Kind Diet, which is good news for VN staffers and readers alike. For the staff, it means having a recipe to follow instead of our usual flying-blind approach to lunchtime meal-making. For our readers, it means the chance to win a copy of Alicia's kind cookbook! To win today's copy, simply tell us in the comments: What is your favorite veg Indian dish?

Shepherd's Pie

The Chef: Lyndsay

The Menu: A savory shepherd's pie, made with seasoned Match Meats, carrots, celery, and a colorful mashed potato topping. Alongside, the signature VN salad (aka mixed greens, red cabbage, and carrots) was delicious with its vegan Thousand Island dressing.

The Goods: It's Friday, and we are appropriately fried. Today's meal was definitely of the "inspired by what's left in the kitchen at the end of the week" variety, and Lyndsay rose nobly to the challenge. Next week, however, we'll be making recipes out of Alicia Silverstone's new book, The Kind Diet. Maybe you've seen the lovely lady gracing our current cover. If not, you might want to go ahead and check out our interview with her! Be sure to check back next week for our kind culinary adventures, and to win yourself a copy of the book, which we'll be giving away each day!

Milestone Meatless Ribs

The Chefs: Abby and Frankie

The Menu: Yes, those are Frankie's Falsies ribs. Yes, they are just as delicious as we remembered them. Abby roasted these babies up and doused them in Frankie's barbecue sauce, which was absolutely perfect. She also made her signature biscuits—Abby can whip these up in about 10 minutes flat, and they are so, so good right out of the oven—with the surprise addition today of Daiya and an absolutely incredible cashew gravy. Oh heck yes. Also, there was a salad. But really, Daiya biscuits!!

The Goods: In case you were wondering what milestone we're celebrating today, it's the 500th post on Café VegNews! Yes, our first-ever blog is still running strong, and we're so happy to be able to share our weekday meals with everyone on these here interwebs. In honor of the event, Colleen made a fantastic apple crisp and Frankie made a delicious peanut-butter-chocolate pie from Alicia Silverstone's new book, The Kind Diet. Since we couldn't share the pie with everyone, we made a crazy, one-day giveaway for you! Just leave a comment with your favorite Café VegNews post by midnight tonight, and we'll randomly draw one winner, who will receive an enormous tub of Sjaak's Peanut Butter cups. They are, in a word, incredible, as you can see below.