Recipe Improv: Asian Tofu Salad

To recap the Recipe Improv Challenge: I asked 3 friends to name the first non-meat ingredient that came to their minds. The challenge? I have to create a delicious meal using those ingredients. I definitely won this one - this salad was tasty, healthy, incredibly flavorful and packed with protein! (Of course, I am the only judge.) The ingredients I used were avocado, capers, and lemongrass paste.

I got the idea for this salad from a tofu salad that I recently tried, so this was a take off that. It was totally awesome, if I do say so myself. And extremely healthy. I love eating salads, but the problem is that I never feel full afterward. The protein in this salad definitely gets rid of that problem. Give it a try - I think you'll be impressed!!

And now a call for another recipe improv! The first 5 people to list the first VEGAN ingredient that comes to mind will be the winners! (Sorry, but you only win your name mentioned in my blog). So thanks to April and Jess for suggesting these awesome ingredients!

From Food pics

Recipe Improv: Bella Burgers with Beet-Slaw

Another recipe improv! This was was definitely more tricky than the last one. Just to recap: The recipe improv is where I ask 5 friends to name the first ingredient that comes to their mind, and I have to make a meal using those 5 ingredients. This time, my ingredients were beets, mushrooms, bacon, cheddar cheese and greek yogurt. There was  a little bit of a problem here, because I didn't specify in the rules that I wouldn't use meat as an ingredient. My friend Seth suggested bacon, but I cheated and used fake bacon (a.k.a. fakin').

I was also having a hard time thinking of something decent to cook with these ingredients. My top two choices were sushi and an omelette, but my friend Alisa suggested the burger. After she suggested it, I couldn't think of anything else! So thanks, Alisa, this was a really good idea. Honestly, I wasn't sure how tasty it was going to be, but it was really good! The sweetness of the beets went well with the saltiness of the cheese and bacon. All in all, I'd call this a win!

Now I need your help again - another call for ingredients! Please keep them all vegetarian this time. Instead of 5 ingredients, I think I'm going to cut it down to 3 and see what that's like. So, the first 3 ingredients named (from 3 different people) will be used. Annnnd...go!

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Recipe Improv: Vegetable tempura with quinoa and arugula

Last week I asked 5 friends to name the first ingredient that came to their mind. The ingredients were: quinoa, potatoes, zucchini, peas, and arugula. The challenge? I have to make a meal out of it. This was fun, and I got to be a little creative with what I made. Obviously there are a million combinations, but I settled on vegetable tempura over quinoa with an arugula salad. Totally awesome, if I do say so myself.

So check out the pics and the recipe below. I'd like to do this more often, and I need your help. The first 5 comments with ingredients will be my next meal! (ok, not my next meal, but you know what I mean).

From Food pics