Fourth of July Feast!

I went home to NJ last weekend and we ended up having a 4th feast although we hadn't originally planned on it. Here are the components of a very good meal:

-Hot Sauce Glazed Tempeh: Another great tempeh dish coming from Veganomicon. While the rest of my family had burgers and hot dogs, I marinated some tempeh and panfried it up. It got slightly crispy and had some bite from the hot sauce. It was perfect for the barbecue mood.

-Grilled zucchini and squashed: This side was made by my mom. I actually have never cooked on a grill. It's so simple yet so tasty with a little bit of herbed olive oil brushed on prior to grilling.

-Baked "fries," two ways: Crispy delicious fries can be created by baking! One need not ruin potatoes in a deep fryer. We made these by slicing thin potato wedges and tossing them in some olive oil in a large bowl. Some were then covered with a Cajun seasoning (pictured) and others with Herbes de Provence. They are then placed on baking sheets and put in the oven or about an hour.

All-veggies-left-in-the-fridge Pasta

I do my grocery shopping on Sundays so for dinner last night, I wanted to make sure I used up any veggies left over from the past week that could soon go bad. I had some leftover broccoli from last Sunday's stir-fry and some zucchini and red pepper I had planned on using for a recipe I didn't have the energy to make yesterday. I chopped up all of these and threw them in a large pan along with a can of chickpeas to sautee in a little bi of olive oil, garlic, herbs, salt, and pepper. I covered the pan to make sure everything cooked thoroughly while I boiled some rotini. Tossing the cooked rotini with a splash of olive oil and salt and pepper gave it a bit of flavor but the star of this dish was the veggies. As soon as the zucchini was cooked through, I served the veggies atop the pasta for a light, easy, and delicious dish.

Tuscan White Beans with Sun-dried Tomatoes

This is such a hearty delicious dish. I decided to throw in some spaghetti but once I tried it, I realized that the vegetables are great enough to stand on their own. The recipe comes from The Vegan Table and the author says that this dish and variations of it can be found in restaurants in and around Florence. Now I don't remember seeing anything similar to this dish when I was in Tuscany last summer, but we didn't look at a lot of menus, I suppose.

Veggies not included in the title but also in the dish are zucchini and spinach. Sauteeing all the vegetables with some herbs in olive oil fills them with so much flavor. This recipe feels so summery, perfect for ushering in the new season and the not-so-welcome humid heat that comes with it.