Vegan Loaded Baked Potato Dip

OMFG. This Vegan Loaded Baked Potato Dip will make your eyes roll back in your head. It’ll make you run around outside in the snow without your shoes on screaming about how good it is. More than anything, it’ll remind you that you gave up nothing in the food-flavor department by going vegan. Nada. Zilch. Zero.

It’s so good.

Let me put it to you this way: After seeing how popular the original is on Pinterest and deciding to veganize it, I figured it would be good. Really good, even.

But. I was blown away by how delicious it actually turned out to be. It’s creamy, bacony, and when combined with a hearty potato chip it tastes just like a loaded baked potato- vegan style.

And let me just tell you that I needed some decadent yumminess in my life right now. We sold the house (again… the first buyers fell through) and we closed on it at the beginning of January. After having those first buyers flake on us though, I was understandably skittish about the whole process. When you think about it, sellers take a lot of risk by entering into another contract or lease in order to be out of the house before closing. I knew the next house would be a rental for now, but I was terrified of signing a lease on the new place, paying movers to take all the furniture there, moving the pets, etc… then having the buyers back out the morning of closing. The thought of being stuck with both a mortgage and a lease freaked me out. Worrying about this unlikely situation was literally keeping me up at night.

So we did what many people do when faced with a problem: we threw money at it. We negotiated with the buyers to rent the house back from them for a month after closing. It was expensive but it also meant I didn’t have to sign a lease or hire movers until after the whole thing was a done deal. Money well spent, in my opinion. But it also had an unintended consequence: without an actual “move date” it has allowed me to become the world’s worst procrastinator. We’ve already moved, and the majority of our stuff is either with us or in storage, but there are still about a million things left at the house. Things I definitely don’t need, probably don’t want, and certainly don’t know what to do with. And guess what? It’s stressing me out! And the end of the month is rapidly approaching. And even after we get all the stuff out, we still have to clean. But I can’t clean until after I get rid of the stuff… and I can’t seem to rally myself to deal with the stuff… so I can’t clean. Do you see my dilemma?

You know what? I’m just not going to think about it right now. I’m just going to eat my loaded baked potato dip and pretend everything is alright. I think that’s an okay plan for now.

Vegan Loaded Baked Potato Dip (makes about 2 cups)

Adapted from non-vegan/vegetarian recipe. Note: The original recipe states this dip will last up to a week if refrigerated in an airtight container. Mine only lasted a day, so I can’t attest to that

Ingredients:

8 slices tempeh bacon (I used smoked maple by tofurky)
a couple pinches of smoked applewood sea salt
8 ounces vegan sour cream
1 cup Daiya shreds (I mixed cheddar and pepper jack)
scant 1/4 cup sliced scallions
Potato chips for serving (I used Ruffles- they’re accidentally vegan and very hearty!)

Directions:

Fry tempeh bacon in a pan according to package instructions, adding a pinch or two of the smoked sea salt for extra bacony flavor. When it’s done, slice into slivers.
While that’s cooking, mix the cheese, sour cream and scallions. Add the bacon and another pinch of the smoked sea salt, then cover and refrigerate for an hour. Serve with chips of your choice!

Enjoy!

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Layered Sweet Potato Enchilada Casserole

I made this casserole last Sunday, and it fed us for nearly a week. Not every meal, of course, but we had it for dinner twice and for lunch three times. That’s the beauty of casseroles; besides being (generally) easy and economical to make, they provide multiple meals which can really free up some time for you during the week. I have a pretty crazy work-week schedule and there are plenty of nights when I absolutely do not want/have time to make dinner so I really appreciate recipes like this. As an added bonus, this heats up really well in the microwave, making it perfect for a packed lunch too!

The inspiration came from a casserole recipe over at Healthy Girl’s Kitchen. I saw it and thought it looked delicious, although in the end I changed it up a bit. I really didn’t have the energy to make cashew cheese, I’m sure you understand. I made a few other changes… overall I don’t think I made it any less healthy, really. I did make it a little more SPICY though… and of course added some Daiya!

If you’re a fan of the whole sweet potato/black bean/corn mexican combo, you should really give this casserole a try! It’s not the quickest recipe, but most of the time you’re able to multi-task… Boil the taters while prepping the other ingredients, bake the casserole while cleaning everything up… you know how it goes. While I was multi-tasking, ~~Santa~~ Jason came home from a trip to Albuquerque with the goods from Trader Joe’s!

We’re getting our very own TJ’s in Colorado next year, but until then I have to continue to stock up when I get the chance!

Layered Sweet Potato Enchilada Casserole (8 hearty servings)

Adapted from Healthy Girl’s Kitchen Recipe

Ingredients:

3 large sweet potatoes (or about 3 cups smashed- but if you end up with more you can pad that a little)
15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
10 oz can Rotel w/ green chilies, drained
15 oz can sweet corn kernels, drained
1 bunch scallions, sliced thin with white parts and top parts kept separate
1/2 cup Taco sauce (medium or hot, depending on taste), plus a couple Tablespoons
Juice and zest of 2 limes
Sea salt
Chili powder, to taste (I used 1/2 T)
12-14 taco or fajita sized flour tortillas, all sliced in half
1.5 cups salsa
Daiya cheddar, or vegan cheese of choice, to sprinkle on top

Directions:

Peel and chop the sweet potatoes, then boil until tender.
In a large bowl, combine beans, Rotel, corn, scallions (the white parts only) and taco sauce, mixing well.
When the sweet potatoes are cooked, mash them, then add lime juice, sea salt and chili powder (if using), and set aside.
Drizzle bottom of 9×13 casserole or baking dish with 2-3 T taco sauce, making sure the entire bottom is covered. Arrange tortilla halves across bottom of pan.
Cover tortillas with half of the sweet potato mixture, gently spreading to get maximum coverage. Next add a layer of the bean/corn mix (half of what you have), followed by a layer of tortillas.
Repeat once, ending with a layer of tortillas on top (this makes 3 layers of tortillas). Cover with salsa, cheese and the rest of your sliced scallions.
Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 20 minutes, remove foil and bake for another 5-8 until cheese if fully melted.

Enjoy!

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Scallion Pancakes (Pa Jun, Pajeon) with a Sweet & Spicy Dipping Sauce

Scallion Cakes (Pa Jun, Pajeon)

My Great Korean Food Adventure continues… Last week I brought you Japchae, delicious sweet potato noodles with seitan and fresh veggies. Today I bring you Scallion Pancakes, also known as Pa Jun or Pajeon. These are incredibly simple, created with ingredients you probably already have (especially if you’re re-growing your scallions!), and most importantly: DELICIOUS!

These only take a few minutes to prepare and cook- the longest part is the 10 minutes that the batter has to rest. And they’re great! Simple yet flavorful- by not adding a ton of spices you can really taste the fresh bite of the scallions, and the little bit of chili paste gives it a little extra *pop*. You can add other vegetables too! Mushrooms, carrots, onions, zucchini… I could go on and on! When I was first collecting ideas for MGKFA, I looked at a couple different recipes for these cakes… some used eggs, some didn’t… but other than that they were all pretty much the same- except for a few that got funky with their veggies! Me, I chose to get funky with the chili paste

Then you can serve them as an appetizer with my Sweet and Spicy Dipping Sauce (recipe below), or as a side dish. If you have extras, wrap them in foil and throw them in the fridge- then reheat them in a frying pan for your next meal.

There is some oil required for frying them, but if your pan is hot enough they wont absorb too much. I also placed mine on paper towels after cooking to get rid of the excess oil. There’s not so much that you’ll feel heavy afterwards.

Scallion Pancakes (Serves 5-6 as an appetizer or side dish)

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1.5 cups cold water (to start, you might add more)
2 t chili paste (Korean or Thai will work, they’re pretty similar)
Pinch of Turmeric
2 t salt
1 bunch scallions, halved lengthwise then sliced into 2 inch pieces
Oil for frying

Directions:

Mix everything together but the scallions, and let sit for about 10 minutes. The batter should be thinner than if you were making pancakes, but not watery. If it’s thicker than your usual pancake batter, mix in water a T at a time. Then add your scallions and give it one last stir. (If you want to get fancy, you can add the scallions directly to the pan, then pour the batter over them!)
Heat a frying pan over medium-high heat with a VERY THIN layer of oil (I used canola). You just want the thinnest of coatings- we’re not deep frying these suckers! Pour about 1/4 of your batter into the pan, creating a thin pancake.
Cook for 4-5 minutes, flip and give it another 2-3 minutes on the other side. You want it to be golden brown but not burnt. Keep a close eye, especially on your first batch, to make sure you get the timing right. The amount of oil you started with, along with the power of you stove will effect the required cooking time.
As the batches are finish, place on a paper towel to absorb any excess oil, then slice them with a knife or pizza cutter into any shape you’d like.
Serve hot with Sweet & Spicy Dipping Sauce!

Sweet & Spicy (Asian) Dipping Sauce (Plenty for dipping one batch of Scallion Pancakes)

Ingredients:

1/4 cup Bragg’s liquid aminos
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1.5 T agave
1 t sugar
1 T sesame oil
1 T plus 1 t chili paste (or more if you want to up the spiciness!)
1 T scallions, sliced thin
1 t garlic powder

Directions:

Mix everything together and serve cold or at room temperature.

Enjoy!

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Make Those Scallions Last Forever!

Well, okay, maybe not forever, but longer than it takes to use up that bunch you have sitting in your fridge!

You’ll have to forgive me this non-food post, but I saw a picture of this method for regrowing scallions/green onions on Pinterest a while back. It was one of those horribly annoying pins that has no link… Gah! Those bug me! Anyway, I had no real background or information to go on, but the picture was pretty self-explanatory… put the white parts of your scallions in water (after you’ve used the greens) and they will grow back.

Look at that little peeper peeping out!

I took these pictures just 3 or 4 days after placing the root ends in water. I like seeing results right away, it lets you know you’re on the right course! Since then they’ve grown another couple of inches, and are ready to harvest should I need some! I added a second bunch over the weekend (not pictured), and those have already grown nearly an inch! With the 2nd bunch, I left the rubber band on to let them grow more neatly in the glass.

I’ll be back on Monday with another AHHMAZING Korean recipe that uses an entire bunch of scallions- so you can buy a bunch, use em’ up, then plant the ends in a glass of water on your counter!

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That Was Vegan?

Recipes so delicious you'll never think twice!

Tag Archives: scallions

Vegan Loaded Baked Potato Dip

Layered Sweet Potato Enchilada Casserole

Scallion Pancakes (Pa Jun, Pajeon) with a Sweet & Spicy Dipping Sauce

Make Those Scallions Last Forever!