It’s Hockey Season and that means I’m feeding snacks to a bunch of hungry guys during our weekly game night.
Impressing the male species with vegan food is one of the biggest challenges of all. It’s not so much the taste of the food that I’m worried about; it’s more the stereotype of what vegan means to them. Often, the word vegan doesn’t evoke warm and fuzzy feelings like….beer or pizza….or nachos.
So I make nachos, spiced bar nuts, pizza, and beer fries.
Now they think vegan is just some weird code for really awesome food.
Score.
The other night I was trying to think of some “guy-friendly” snacks (oh, now I’m stereotyping!) and I came across some delicious looking snack recipes in The Happy Herbivore Cookbook by Lindsay Nixon. The publisher sent me this cookbook to check out and I’ve been meaning to try it for a while now. There are all kinds of dips and appetizer recipes to choose from, in addition to breakfast, sides, entrees, appetizers, sauces/dressings, and dessert recipes. Most recipes also have a full colour photograph which is always a nice feature if you are a visual person like myself.
Lindsay specializes in fat-free and low-fat vegan recipes and you can find over 175 recipes in her cookbook. There are also a lot of tofu, tempeh, and seitan based recipes such as her Seitan Pot Roast and Fettuccine Alfredo. If you are a soy fan, you will find a lot of unique options.
For game night, I made Lindsay’s Spicy Mexican Dip (above) made up of cannellini & black beans, nutritional yeast, spices & seasonings, and a hint of lime. I was feeling feisty so I made the Nacho Cheese Sauce and swirled it into the dip before baking it for about 35-40 minutes. Amazing. The only thing I regret was not putting a layer of Daiya Cheese on top!
I served the dip with Lindsay’s Chili-Lime Corn Chips. They are very easy to make and the flavours went perfectly with the dip.
First things first, the boys thought it was actually a real cheese dip.
Secondly, the dip was gone in 10 minutes.
I forgot all about the fact that the Leafs were losing.
I also made the Fruity Cereal Bars (it’s a good thing because the dip didn’t last long) which are fat-free knock offs of those commercial cereal breakfast bars that we all know and love. I wasn’t expecting much from a fat-free cereal bar, but these were good. The oatmeal base is soft and light (a common outcome when using applesauce as a fat replacer) and the gooey jam topping made me want to eat the entire pan.
Sadly, I had to share.
I even thought about trying the the, ‘You don’t want this, trust me! It’s healthy, it’s VEGAN!’ line, but it didn’t work. My cover was already blown.
Vegan food is just a code for really awesome food, remember?
The Happy Herbivore Giveaway!
[Giveaway Finished]
If you’d like a chance to win The Happy Herbivore Cookbook leave a comment below. I’ll pick the winner on Monday and ship you a copy of this book. Open to anyone, anywhere.
Thanks for the giveaway entry!!
I am a big fan of vegan cooking and convincing my husband to be a fan of vegan cooking! Vegan right now is code for experimentation… not awesomeness in my house :) Maybe some of these recipes can change that!
Looks like an awesome cookbook! I’ve been experimenting with vegan cooking lately and I’m sure this would help!
That dip looks like perfect tailgate food! Whenever I make something vegan I wait until after the bf is halfway done and gives his approval before cluing him in. I would love to have a few more meat free cookbooks to reference for new ideas!
I found your website the other day on pinterest and I keep finding more and more awesome recipes on it! I love how easy all this food seems to make. I recently went to a food rally in D.C. and have been studying food justice in school lately and getting involved with local food in my community, Harrisonburg, VA. I’ve showed your website to a couple of my friends who are also really into eating foods that are good for you but still taste amazing. I’m definitely the one who is the most adventurous with cooking in the group so it’d be awesome to get this cookbook and be able to have baking adventures with them.
I am somewhat of a newbie vegan and I had never expected to find such enjoyable dishes until I tried some of Lindsay’s recipes. Not only were they delicious, but they were fast and easy to prepare. I’d love to try some more of the recipes. I really liked the pics of the dishes you created and would like to try making some of these myself. They look so appetizing!
I’d love to win a copy of The Happy Herbivore to keep on my shelf as my ‘go to’ vegan recipe book!
Ah! I just ate one of “those commercial cereal breakfast bars that we all know and love” and was wondering how to make one at home! :-) perfect.
Angela, this book looks amazing! I still often cook two dinners and am trying to find more accessible vegan food that will please the masses. Your blog helps, but this book looks like it would find a home on my counter!
Yummy! the chips look so good, I think I could use some in my life:) Fun giveaway, Thanks dear!
those recipes look amazing! I would love to win this cookbook so I can try some of those for myself! …and maybe guests…if i’m willing to share ;)
The dip sounds great and I’d lOve to see more of her recipes!
Ah-ha! You have found the secret to your husband’s friends’ hearts! I will have to make those nachos next time we have a bunch of guys over!
Mmm vegan nachos? I may be in love. I love feeding boys cupcakes/food and then when they finish and are amazed I pull the…oh and it was VEGAN! Hah! take that. Although they often then feel better/eat more b/c they assume it’s healthier, which it often is, but not always.
This cook book looks great! I would love to try those corn chips!!
Thanks for the opportunity!!!! I love your blog; I come here for fabulous vegan recipes and fabulous food photography!! :)
WOW! Those snacks really look amazing!!!!
And, I would love to win a copy of the book. :)
This book looks fantastic! I’m trying to transition into eating a little less meat, and am trying to figure out how to do this while remaining healthy. This book would definitely be a great resource!
Sounds so good! I’m trying to do more vegetarian/vegan meals so this would be a great help in this venture.
That Mexican dip looks fantastic!! I was trying to decide what to make for dinner tonight and you just gave me the idea….thankyou :)
I love your blog. Every recipe I make turns out so well. When I’ve got some vegetables or fruits that I don’t know what to do with – I always just search your blog for the ingredient – and POW!…an awesome meal is the result! I’d love to be entered to win this cookbook!!
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM looks delicious!!! I love mexican food :)