Chipotle Sofritas & Tofu Tacos

After doing a walk through of the local Earth Day celebration as we chatted up some people/friends and I held a snake we headed out to Chipotle to try the new sofritas tofu concoction on the menu. I used to love me some Chipotle but I always felt shy (and I am not a shy person!) about asking them to wipe down the line and change their gloves due to contamination issues. I put my anxiety behind me and we ordered some food!

I got a salad bowl (minus the dressing of course! it is not vegan FYI) and had the corn salsa and fresh tomato salsa all up in the mix!

Matt got a burrito bowl with a flour tortilla on the side! He asked for extra tomato salsa and brown rice.

Verdict: it is good! The taste of the sofritas is something like a cross between a tofu scramble and soyrizo. Nice kick and texture. I hope this option stays around. A few years ago Chipotle tried out another vegan meat sub and it was very limited in release and did not stay long. I did not get to try it, but even if I could - it was Gardein so chances are I was allergic.
I know some people are complaining about not getting guacamole for free now on the veg burrito, this whole argument is dumb and kinda makes me mad. People stop being cheap, or simply do not eat out at places if you only can complain. If you are getting the tofu you are getting the good stuff, not some unknown GMO block  but Hodo tofu from Oakland. I heard on the news that the development for the sofritas took awhile to perfect and I hope it does stay around - another option.

 

Inspired by Chipotle I made  crumbled tofu tacos on Monday night for dinner. One block of the high protein extra firm stuff, crumbled and sauteed with a diced red bell pepper and one packet of taco seasoning prepared as directed from the package. I added salsa from the neighbor's garden, hand smashed guacamole and a side of rice! Not the same but a nice meal that was easy to make and not to pricey!

Vegan Carne Asada Frichos

To keep on the PMS food wagon this week I was craving salty and something Mexican inspired. I decided on vegan carne asada strips (seitan steak strips marinated in spices & citrus) but when I went to get tortillas my mind was like funk that! I walked over to the freezer section and grabbed a bag of thick cut steak fries. I believe I was inspired by something I saw online but made it vegan of course and added more fresh stuff. 

Fries topped with vegan carne asada strips fried with red bell peppers, 2 different types of salsa (hot red and verde), fresh smashed chunky guacamole, cheeze sauce and hot sauce! You needed to use a fork to eat this bad boy up! Dig in!

PMS Peanut Butter Comfort Bowl

Vanilla coconut yogurt, topped with a sliced banana, sprinkled with peanut butter granola and drizzled with a peanut butter - agave reduction is what went into my mouth for dinner last night. PMS has me craving the sweet and salty stuff, and this did the trick and was healthy to boot!

Pumpkin Mac, Baked Tofu And Broccoli

 

I have had the pumpkin cheeze sauce from Oh She Glows in my to do recipe pile for awhile now. I finally got around to it and was not let down! It is really creamy and satisfying. I did not really get a pumpkin taste, the nutritional yeast does come into play though. I was hesitant to give it to Matt because well, it's pumpkin based and he is often odd about things like this. He liked it though and he said it went well with the broccoli. I also made baked tofu from Appetite For Reduction - since I am trying to cook along with the cook book challenge over on the PPK.

The broccoli is easy. Take a few cups of broccoli heads, steam in a pan with a lid and a few drops of water, till the water is gone ( a few minutes) on low heat. Add a bit of lemon olive oil to the pan, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, a pinch of S&P and a nice sized pinch of red pepper flakes. Toss and cook for 2-3 minutes and serve!

This is a pretty fast meal - one of those 30 minute meals, if you do not count the tofu marinating for a hour. However that is down time and does that really count?

Sweet & Spicy Stir Fried Noodles

Fast Sunday night dinner...Basically it is a package of baked tofu (Teriyaki flavored), some left over frozen veggies and fresh pineapple with fresh rice noodles. I cooked the veggies with tofu while boiling the water/noodles. I added the noodles to the oan, the pineapple and the sauce. Sauce: a dash of Sriracha, a tablespoon of fresh pineapple juice from the pineapple chunks, a squirt of Braggs and about a teaspoon of rice vinegar. Dump it over the mix and let it heat up and serve. 

Note: The fresh rice noodles from TJ's are hard to work with. They turn into a huge clump once cooked. I tried my hardest to break them up with no luck!

Power Greens & Tempeh Tacos

Power Greens & Tempeh Mix

1 package of tempeh

1 bag of Power To The Greens Trader Joe's salad blend (kale, spinach, chard)

1 package of taco seasoning mix

a squeeze of lime juice

1/4 cup water

oil

Crumble the tempeh into bite side chunks. Brown the tempeh in a bit of oil for a few minutes in a frying pan, add greens (I got most of the bag in my frying pan), sprinkle on taco seasoning, add water and stir. Don't worry if the seasoning packet asks for more water - the greens will let off water so no worries. Turn the heat to a low-medium, cover pan and cook for 10 minutes. Remove lid, the greens should be cooked down now, add a squeeze of lime juice, stir. Serve with salsa (we used green) and in your fave tortilla or taco shell. Easy and fast, healthy & cheap!

Pacifica Products

As you know - I love Target! I could easily spend $$$ left alone for a few hours in there! Target recently started carrying the new Pacifica skin care and and makeup line along with a few of their body lotions. So you know I had to buy a few things.

The Radiant Shimmer collection is really pretty, it is has multiple uses but I like using it on my cheeks for a dewy glow. I like the lighter color as a highlighter on the tops of my cheekbones and the two other colors as blush. It blends very well, has a faint tropical scent and is not greasy.

I bought the Purify Coconut Water Cleansing Wipes for our gym bag, I was hesitant to pass one to Matt because of his dislike of coconut. However he likes the smell! It is light, fruity and reminiscent of a tropical drink. They refresh without being to soapy. They leave a light sent behind along with a refreshed feeling. Even though they are scented my sensitive skin does not freak out or turn blotchy.

I will be buying a few more things shortly! I am hoping they are just as good as these two products!