The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet (39 page)

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Tofu Cream (page
225
)

Warm the tortilla in a dry skillet until pliable, or wrap it in a dampened dish towel and heat in a 300°F oven for 5 or 6 minutes.

Place the rice in the center of the warmed tortilla, and mound the beans on top of the rice. Add the vegetables, sprinkle with cilantro, and top with the Tofu Cream (make sure not to overload the tortilla, or it will be hard to fold properly).

Fold the two sides of the tortilla in over the filling, then flip up the bottom edge and roll as tightly as possible. Enjoy!

Tostadas (Kinda)

With a healthy portion of both grains and beans, this is a colorful, complete meal and yet another great way to use leftovers. I know that “tostada” means toasted, but I prefer my tortilla to remain warm and only lightly dry-roasted in this dish. That’s the “kinda” part. If you want to toast your tortilla more, go for it. I find that tostadas are a great vehicle for Tofu Cream (page
225
), which is an awesome, versatile condiment. If there are non-Superheros at the table, they may want to add vegan cheese, tomatoes, or hot sauce, but these are delicious either way.

SERVES 2

2 teaspoons olive oil

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cup half-moon onion slices

2 pinches of fine sea salt

1 carrot, julienned

1 celery stalk, thinly sliced

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cup corn kernels, fresh or thawed frozen

2 whole wheat tortillas

1 cup cooked brown rice

1 cup cooked beans (such as pinto, black, kidney, or azuki)

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cup alfalfa sprouts

1 small cucumber, chopped (peel only if the cucumber is not organic)

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avocado, peeled and cubed or sliced

A few large dollops of Tofu Cream (page
225
) per serving

1 radish, thinly sliced (optional)

1 teaspoon arugula, chopped (optional)

1–2 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro or 1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley

1 teaspoon toasted sunflower seeds (page
215
) or Gomashio (page
232
)

Heat the olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and a pinch of sea salt and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the carrot, celery, and corn with another pinch of salt and stir until just tender for 5 to 6 minutes. If the vegetables start to stick or become too brown before they are tender, add 1 to 2 tablespoons water.

Heat the tortillas in a dry skillet over high heat. Layer each tortilla in this order: rice, beans, sautéed veggies, sprouts, cucumber, Tofu Cream, and avocado.

It’s always nice to have some sort of garnish, so sprinkle with radish and arugula as desired. If you like cilantro, you should definitely add a bunch. If not, try a little chopped parsley. Top it all off with sunflower seeds or gomashio.

Toasted Nori Burritos

My friend Renée taught me to make these nori rolls when we were driving to a concert called “Reggae on the River” in Northern California. In the car, she had brought along romaine lettuce, basil, cilantro, avocado, apple, and hummus; and we wrapped them all up in the nori and ate them as we traveled. It was a delicious, refreshing, crunchy snack that kept us going for 2 days! Below is a variation on that nori burrito, but know that you can make one out of almost anything.

SERVES 2

1 umeboshi plum

1 cup cooked brown rice (leftover is great)

2 sheets toasted nori

2 romaine lettuce leaves

1 avocado, sliced

1 apple, sliced

4 fresh basil leaves

Leaves from 6 cilantro sprigs

Leftover cooked kale or salad greens

Tear the umeboshi plum into little pieces and discard the pit. Place half the rice on each sheet of nori and top with the remaining ingredients. Roll the nori into a cone shape around the filling; if it’s rolled tightly, you can seal the edges by wetting your finger to dampen the edges of the nori.

Note:
Serve a half sheet of nori at dinner to use as a wrapper for any leftovers or food that might need refreshing. Nori makes everything taste great!

Thin Mushroom “Pizzas”

Pretty, fancy, and totally delicious, these things are freaking amazing. Even you Flirts will love them.

SERVES 8

12 dried shiitake mushrooms

1 cup dried porcini mushrooms

1 tablespoon olive oil plus more for drizzling over the tortillas

1 onion, halved and cut in half-moon slices

3 garlic cloves

2 pinches of fine sea salt

2 cups fresh button mushrooms, sliced

A few drops of shoyu to taste

8 whole wheat tortillas (Ezekiel brand is my favorite for this)

1 cup Tofu Cream (page
225
)

8 to 10 black olives, sliced

Chopped fresh basil for garnish

Preheat the broiler.

Soak the shiitake and porcini mushrooms in water to cover for 30 minutes in a small bowl. Remove the mushrooms from the water. Cut out and discard the tough shiitake stems.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and a pinch of salt and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the onion and garlic begin to soften. Add the shiitake and porcini mushrooms and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender. Add the button mushrooms with a pinch of salt and the shoyu. Cook for 2 minutes and set aside.

Drizzle the tortillas lightly with olive oil and toast under the broiler until almost crisp, being careful not to burn. Spread a thin but generous layer of Tofu Cream on each tortilla and top with the cooked mushrooms and olives. Drizzle with a little more olive oil and broil again until the tortillas are just crisp. Garnish with chopped basil before serving.

Rice Waffle with Vegetable Mélange

Mina Dobic is an amazing woman who used a macrobiotic diet to combat her cancer. Her book,
My Beautiful Life
, is truly inspiring reading for anyone. Mina is responsible for guiding me to full Superhero status, and she inspired this recipe.

This dish reminds me of a Chinese mu shu dish—so yummy—and it’s a complete meal, with grains, protein, and veggies all in one. If you don’t have a waffle iron, you can cook the batter like pancakes in a skillet.

SERVES 2 TO 4

Waffles

2 cups cooked brown rice

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 tablespoon mellow miso mixed with 3 tablespoons water

Vegetable Mélange

2 teaspoons dark sesame oil

1 cup half-moon onion slices

1 cup seitan, thinly sliced

1 cup carrots, sliced

1 teaspoon shoyu

2 cups broccoli florets

Sliced black olives (optional)

Stir together the rice, flour, miso, and 1 cup of water in a large mixing bowl. Heat a waffle iron, and coat lightly with oil. Pour in about
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/
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cup of batter, depending on the size of your waffle iron, and cook until browned. Transfer the cooked waffle to a plate to keep warm, and repeat with the remaining batter.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the seitan to the skillet, and sauté for 1 minute longer. Arrange the carrots on top of the seitan and onions, and add 3 tablespoons of water to the pan. Cover the pan and simmer for 7 minutes, adding more water if the pan gets too dry. Add the shoyu and broccoli to the pan, and simmer 3 minutes longer. Stir to combine the ingredients and remove the pan from the heat.

Arrange a waffle on each serving plate, and top each waffle with a heap of sautéed veggies and seitan. Sprinkle with olives, if using, and serve warm.

Polenta Casserole with Seitan

This dish is elegant, delicious, and satisfying—great for brunch. Because it incorporates a grain, vegetables, and seitan, it’s a complete meal. A nice side of greens would make it absolutely perfect.

SERVES 6

1
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/
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cups polenta or cornmeal or 1 cup millet

1 medium-size head cauliflower, cut in large pieces

1 cup peas, fresh or frozen and thawed

2 pinches fine sea salt

1 (8-ounce) package seitan, sliced

Kernels from 2 ears of corn or 1 cup thawed frozen kernels

6 asparagus spears, cut into 1" pieces

1
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teaspoons roasted sesame tahini

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cup soy milk

1
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tablespoons shoyu plus more for sprinkling on top

2 teaspoons umeboshi vinegar

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cup chopped fresh parsley

Fresh basil leaves for garnish

Place the polenta or millet in a large heavy pot. Add the cauliflower, peas (if using fresh), salt, and 5 cups of water (add just 3 cups if using the millet). Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer the polenta for 30 minutes (cook for 25 minutes if using the millet). Polenta must be stirred frequently as it cooks to prevent it from sticking or becoming lumpy, but you don’t need to stir millet.