GIMME VEGAN PANDA EXPRESS

Whose life isnt crazy. But I think sticking to a cruelty free diet...genuinely makes your life more crazy. And I truly wouldn't have it any other way.  But, day to day prep or scouring for vegan eats, online or out, can be tough, time consuming, or monotonous. Lucky for me, I live in Los Angeles. Los Feliz to be exact..its like the shire of LA. Men ride bikes and drive old Subarus. There's a giant park and lovely spots for brunch to see more bearded men. Fine coffee and compliments is a form of currency here. And everyone, I'm sure, has a pretty lovely life. The Priuses run on fine film graduate farts and just recently the veggie burger became the new California state bird.

It's a great place for me. (And I wish my partner in vegan crime, Angel, was here) because...

There are soooo many amazing restaurant options!!!

But, at the same time...im a poor ass twenty something (ok, i have one year left to ride out that term) whose got rent, bills, car shopping, and trying to save in this crazy city. And although I love it's food out, I cant rely on it.  My day job is spent home assisting a celebrity. My nights are usually pursuing what I want. (Acting, Rehearsing, Voiceover, workshops, classes, producing, blah blah blah). Its the LA dream. Bring in the standards of this town...and we got a whole other blog post. (whimper)

But....more and more people are buying fancy shmancy vegan products helping quinoa, flax, goji, tempeh, almond milk, and hemp seeds get to main store status. And I'm really lucky to have a Trader Joes and my favorite community little heath food store nearby! 

So i'll be here, trucking along, and sharing how I do vegan + health tips that help me while I'm on the go, for 12hr weekdays!

Vegan Vigilantes to the rescue!

I FEEL LIKE PANDA EXPRESS TEMPEH

Eaten at 10:30pm last night after a class and put in tupperwear for my next day. (I have a friend who has an amazing story about he calculated that he spent over $700 at Panda Express in less than 6 months)

KUNG PAO TEMPEH

Boil Trader Joes' Tempeh ($1.99 kids!!!) just so it softens up for about 5 minutes. Sauté in about 4T of Kung Pao sauce (eh, sorry not homemade). Cook until the tempeh has absorbed all the flavors.

SESAME BOK CHOY WITH SNAP PEAS

Heat 2 T of sesame oil (TJs as well) in a wide sauté pan. Put a sprinkle of sesame seeds in, until they brown. Stir in 1/4 chopped yellow onion and let that cook down. Chop up 3 baby bok choys and half a bag of sugar snap peas. Plop that in. Add a little big more sesame oil, a capful of apple cider vinegar. A sprinkle of low-sodium soy sauce (or tamari), and lastly a couple tablespoons of raw agave syrup.

QUINOA

I just cooked it. Quinoa has a 2:1 ratio of quinoa to water/broth. I goofed and didnt cook it right, and just drained out some of the water water. I kinda like for this meal to make it simple in salted water because the greens and tempeh have SO much flavor. You end up chopping and mixing everything up like a fried rice dish...But in general when I'm making a quinoa side...cooking it in vegetable broth makes it 100000000x better.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED

• tempeh
• kung pao sauce
• quinoa
• sesame seed oil
• onion
• sesame seeds
• baby bok choy
• sugar snap peas
• low sodium soy sauce (or tamari)
• sea salt
• raw agave syrup (also at trader joes)

Thanks for reading!

Your other V V,

RACHEL