I may have scaled back on my blogging but I just couldn’t scale back on The Secret Recipe Club, you know because clubbing is so much fun 
It had to happen, at some point, I was going to be assigned a Vegan blog. I was pretty sure that I wouldn’t have an issue, but the family…well, as along as I didn’t get weird on them they probably would be okay.
Actually I’ve had a vegetarian blog, Thrifty Veggie Mama and made bean burgers that McGyver and the I really enjoyed. So the leap to a Vegan meal I thought would be easy enough…my only rule was that I wasn’t going to buy anything that I most likely wouldn’t use again.
Which Vegan blog did I get? The wonderful We Heart Vegan. In the “About” section, Brittany and Julie started the blog so that everyone would have access to cheap and wonderful vegan foods. They believe that you should
live life to the fullest by treating our bodies with respect, love and care
Brittany goes on to share her journey into the world of Veganism, it wasn’t a choice made because of animals, she made the choice to be healthy and to prevent disease. Living the vegan lifestyle is simply applying the things that she is learning in college (food & nutrition). I love that, educated decisions are the best.
Although this is a “we” blog, I suspect that Brittany is the main force behind it???
After scouring their site, I landed upon a recipe that I knew from the moment I read it, would be the perfect recipe for this non-vegan family! It was spicy, noodle-y and called for grilling! I decided to make their Noodle Bowl with Grilled Baby Bok Choy.
Like any blogger worth their salt, I made some minor modifications. First off I went all out and made homemade veggie broth (did I make y’all proud?), then I upped the grilling ante and grilled bok choy (not baby), red peppers (for color), the onions, garlic and a serrano pepper (to replace the red curry paste).
I did skip the addition of the nutritional yeast since I didn’t see that as a big part of my culinary future and I substituted the bean noodles for some rice sticks I had on hand…sticking with the vegan thing though. And to complete my meal I made veggie spring rolls with a soy dipping sauce. Kind of a soup and salad meal.
The verdict? Didn’t miss meat, dairy, nothing. We didn’t feel deprived at ALL. As a matter of fact, this spicy noodle dish was so good that McGyver took it to work and got rave reviews! At the end of their post they mentioned that 1. they should have made the bok choy smaller, so I cut mine up smaller and 2. that they wanted to make it again, but as a soup.
Brittany and Julie, I made the noodle bowl and served the hot veggie broth on the side for the diner to make their choice. Girls, you were right, super good as a soup. We’ll probably never convert to veganism, but I don’t think we’ll ever turn our nose up at vegan food if it’s this good!
Spice warning! Wow was our Serrano pepper spicy!!!! Make sure you test your pepper before you use it. I actually didn’t even eat one because it spiced up the noodles just right for me without biting into one….
Ingredients
- Olive oil
- 1 pound (or more) bok choy, washed and dried, ribs seperated
- 2 small red peppers
- 1 onion, halved and peeled
- 1/2 head garlic (cut cross wise, use the "non-pointy" half)
- 1 Serrano pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon curry powder
- 1/4 teaspoon. turmeric powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- Fresh ground black pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoon. soy sauce
- 6 cups + 1/3 cup vegetable broth, divided
- 1 package (13.2 ounce) rice sticks, soaked for in warm water for 45 minutes and drained
- regular and black sesame seeds for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Heat a grill or grilling pan on high. Light coat the veggies with olive oil, grill the veggies until lightly charred, let cool. Once cool enough to handle, chop the bok choy and garlic, slice the peppers and onions.
- In a wok or large pan toast all the dry spices over medium high heat until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Add the soy sauce and 1/3 of the vegetable broth. Add the noodles, add more broth 1/3 cup at a time once absorbed until noodles are done (about 1 cup). Add all the veggies at once, stirring frequently until until heated through. Garnish with regular and black sesame seeds and extra broth on side if desired.
Thanks Angie from Big Bear’s Wife for being the wonderful hostess of Group C. Also Amanda of Amanda’s Cookin’ for cookin’ up the idea you’ve built a great community! A little SRC news, Amanda is passing the torch on to April of Angel’s Homesteading, yay for Angel, it’s great to have you at the helm. For more SRC reviews check out the linky below.
this recipe looks amazing! Love the grilling/soup combo
Thanks Amanda, I loved the grilling soup combo also….just goes to prove you can grill anything, even soup.
We (yes, we are also a “we” blog) are always looking for recipes for Meatless Monday. This one seems like the perfect pick. Thanks for sharing!
You two wouldn’t regret making this for a Meatless Monday, it’s so satisfying!
Love the changes you made – and the spring rolls! Nice job on this one!
Thanks Karen, sometimes change is good.
Looks ah-mazing!
Thanks, taste ah-mazing too!
Oh, I LOVE noodle bowls…and this dish looks fantastic! Great SRC pick~
I even the word ‘noodle bowl’ it sounds fun, noodle bowl, noodle bowl, noodle bowl…
This is enough to make me become a vegan!!!!! So glad to be in the SRC club and to meet great foodie bloggers like you!
Lots of yummy love,
Alex aka Ma What’s For Dinner
Yeah me too, but my hubbies a hunter and I live in the middle of some serious cattle country….probably never going to happen.
This looks fantastic, and the spring rolls were a great addition!
Food that you dip is wonderful, make it healthy too…what could be better?
Gosh your dish looks so vibrant and pretty. I love spring rolls too.
Thanks Veronica, if it’s pretty they won’t miss the meat, right?
Wow! First off… we had each others blog!!! (:
Second! Thank you for an amazing post!! I’m so glad you enjoyed the blog and the recipe! I most definitely had a fun time flipping through all the pages of your site and am so happy with the recipe I chose (hummus)!
<3 Brittany
Brittany, I’m so glad that you were able to find something on my blog you could make
How funny that we’ve been lurking after each other all month!
I know LOL!! So funny!! I’m so glad I had you! You’re blog is fantastic! (:
** I most definitely spelled my name wrong in my last comment… LOL
BrittANy <3
Your photos are just getting ridiculously good Rhonda. Seriously, what are they gonna even have to teach you? Great pick for SRC – I’m not vegan either, but I could totally dig into a bowl of this…
Blushing…you are too kind!
This sounds insane!! I love the addition of the serrano pepper and that you made your own broth (hats off for the extra effort!!). The photos are fantastic. Wonderful recipe choice for this months assignment! YUM!
Thanks Lacy, this was my first time making veggie broth, it was surprisingly flavorful.
WoW Rhonda! Beauty in a bowl! This looks amazing! And I am super impressed with the home made veggie broth! Boy…when you go for it….you go for it! : )
Thanks Anne…when I get a challenge I like to jump in with both feet, then I’m fully lazy in between challenges…Not sure if that’s a good character trait or a flaw
Way to go! Its’ sometimes good to step outside the box for a moment. This looks like one yummy meal. I’m a soup lady so I can see it being a hit. Hubby just eats what ever I feed him.
23 year old Farrier son claims he needs meat. So he would eat the soup and then cook an elk steak (that he hunted and dressed). So yes, we could be happy with this meal!
Great SRC pick.
I agree it’s good to step out of the box. I just gotta say that I LOVE elk & given a choice I’d still take that.
I love the way you approached this challenge, and the recipe looks great! Well done
Thanks Tandy, sometimes it’s good to step it up a notch.
Vegan cooking is new to me too and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how delicious the recipes are. This looks like a great way to use the wonderful veggies that will be available at the farmers’ market this summer. Great recipe choice for this month’s SRC.
Cathy, funny that you mentioned the Farmer’s market veggies, I get Bountiful Baskets and part of my reason for choosing this recipe was the extra Asian veggies I got. Perfect timing.
I totally understand why you didn’t get the nutritional yeast but I wish you could have tried it. It’s so different and adds complex flavors to food. It kind of tastes cheese-y like.
Hmmm, cheese-y like? I love cheese…I may have to reconsider buying it.
LOVE nutritional yeast! This noodle dish looks tre yummy
I haven’t had any in awhile but I recently ordered some and it should be here in a couple of days. As soon as it arrives, I’m going to make one of my favorite vegan dishes … broccoli cheez-y rice casserole. I’ll post about it and you may want to try it
I’ll have to keep my eyes peeled for it. While I’m going to school in Missoula I’ll be living practically next door to their big organic market, I bet they have it stocked.
If you decide to get some, make certain to get Red Star “Nutritional Yeast: Vegetarian Support Formula” because there are several types out there and they are not all intended to be used as food. This particular strain of yeast is specifically bred for consumption and nutritional benefits.
Beautiful photos! I have yet to get assigned a Vegan blog for SRC, but I’m sure it’s only a matter of time. With dishes like this, I think I can handle it!
Now that I’ve made a vegan dish, I won’t be so intimidated next time, I might even get more adventurous.
What a great experience for you and your family!! Its so incredible how this club challenges us to cook outside of our ordinary style and comfort zone. I felt the same way when I was assigned Thrifty Veggie Mama’s blog – nervous and a bit apprehensive, but it was delicious (though not all Vegan like the one you were assigned this month). Great job showcasing some delicious fare to promote vegan dishes to the rest of us scardey cats!!
Thrifty Veggie Mama was my baby steps, and now that you’ve had her I am sure that you’ll be more than ready for a vegan dish.
Looks amazing! Being in Thailand, spicy dishes are one of our favourites, gotta try this
I was so bad during SRC postings. I think this is the only blog I have commented on (with the exception of the person who got me). I have baby bok choy in the garden so I am going to try this out!