Omni Dinner Pleasers #2

Another successful dinner party where omnis eat delicious vegan food without even realizing it!
Hopefully this will be many in a continuing series that will inspire you when you need to impress!

Menu:
Mexican Herb Biscuits
Salad with sesame dressing
Taco Casserole
Mexican Rice
Flan


I started with a spin on the two big winners (biscuits & croutons) of the last Omni Dinner series.

*Appetizer*


Mexican Herb Biscuits (Ronin Recipe)
I altered the spices to include oregano, garlic, cumin, and paprika.
Awesome.

*Salad*


Fresh salad with croutons
Lettuce with avocado, tomato, onion, homemade sesame dressing (Ronin Recipe) and homemade garlic-rosemary croutons.
Croutons:
Bread, olive oil, garlic powder, rosemary
Lightly rub bread with oil, shake on garlic powder and rosemary. Rub into the bread. Cut into squares, place in toaster oven oil side up. Toast until light brown.

*Main 1*


Taco Casserole (Ronin Recipe)

I cannot tell you how many times I have made this for all sorts of occasions, and it always goes down so well. It really is a staple in my recipe repertoire because it is so EASY and FLEXIBLE!
This time I used kidney beans, onion, peppers, stewed tomatoes, and corn plus one packet of taco seasoning and some hot sauce (baked in 2 small pans).
Served on the side:
Salsa, Avocados, Onions, Tomatoes, Lettuce, and hot sauce of course!

*Main 2*
Mexican Rice
(not pictured)

Prepare and start cooking rice as you normally would. Half way through the cooking process, stir in:
Stewed tomatoes, mince onion, garlic powder, salt, dash of paprika, dash of turmeric, and mixed chopped vegetables (corn, carrot, peas...). Add more spice as desired.
Finish cooking as usual. Give it a good stir before you serve. MMMM!

*Dessert*
Flan


A.K.A.: Creme Caramel or Custard.

Vegan box mixes of flan are actually fairly easy to find. Try checking the Latin food section (Goya brand is vegan). Just follow the box directions and use soymilk!

Here is a recipe for Vegan Caramel Flan by VegCooking Blog. I have not tried this to know how good it is.


Sit back and enjoy the compliments!

Sesame Dressing

Zomg hrksjfkdsjfdkdhhd drrooooooooooool



1/2 C Mayonnaise (Vegan Ronin recipe!)
2 Tbsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp golden sesame seeds

Put them all together and stir!
Refrigerate and store in an airtight container.

Oh man this is SO GOOD on salads. Boring lame salads no more!

Ronin's fav: lettuce, tomato, onion, avocado, sesame dressing and garlic/rosemary croûtons.

Vegan cooking for the omni family

Yes you too can wow your omni family! Bold flavors will erase any doubts they ever had!
Use this as a template to pump up your own hearty meal.


Menu:
Sage biscuits
Fresh salad and croûtons
Polenta with roasted red peppers
Homemade ravioli
Garlic Brussels sprouts
Fresh fruit in phyllo cups

*Appetizer*
Sage Biscuits



Recipe here
Fast and easy and a crowd pleaser!

*Salad*
Fresh salad & croutons



Use any combo of veggies for the salad. The croûtons are what really make this!
Croutons:
Bread (fresh is best!), olive oil, garlic powder, rosemary
Lightly rub bread with oil, shake on garlic powder and rosemary. Rub into the bread. Cut into squares, place in toaster oven oil side up. Toast until light brown.

*Side*
Garlic Brussels Sprouts

How to clean & cook Brussels Sprouts:
Rinse them well. Chop off the stem and peel off the outside layer of dirty leaves. Make an X with your knife in the bottom of the stem (to cook evenly). Steam for about 5-8 minutes (until they are bright green). You could also boil them for a little less time.
While sprouts are cooking, prepare a skillet with a splash of oil and minced, fresh garlic over medium heat. When sprouts are done, add them to the skillet. Roll around in the hot garlic for about one minute. Serve immediately.

*Main 1*
Polenta with roasted red peppers



Make polenta according to box (if using cornmeal, use corn mush recipe and let it rest & cool). Use a boullion cube/broth for extra flavor. I chopped pre-bought roasted red peppers and mixed them into the much before it set. I used decorative cookie cutters to cut out designs from the peppers for the top.

*Main 2*
Handmade Ravioli



Dough: Recipe here. I added chopped basil to this. Maybe because I only had regular unbleached flour, but I needed a lot of extra flour to roll it out in my machine.

Filling: Basil, soy chorizo, roasted red pepper. (I really wanted a faux-meat free dinner. Ideally, I would have used a mushroom/artichoke filling, but my aunt is allergic to mushrooms.)

Assembly: Pass a piece of dough a few times through a pasta roller, setting the dough to get thinner one or two times, until you have a long piece of dough. Repeat. Place 1.5-2 tsps of filling on top of one strip of dough, every few inches. Brush water around the edge of the filling. Place second dough strip on top, pressing down around the filling, sealing it in while pressing the air out. Take a ravioli stamper (or cookie cutter) and cut out ravioli.
When finished, boil only a couple minutes until they float to the top.
Refrigerate or freeze any extra non-cooked ones.

Sauce: I make a 4+ hour sauce that is totally worth the time. For basic instruction, watch it here. (I will have a post completely about it soon.)

*Dessert*
Fruit filled phyllo cups



Prepare phyllo (thaw & layer) according to box directions. To make cups, press into a muffin pan.
Fruit mix: Blueberries, raspberries, strawberries (chopped), apples (chopped). Toss with lemon juice (to prevent browning and to add flavor). Sprinkle with cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg.
Opt- add brown sugar or agave nectar (suitable for diabetics) for some sweetness.

Spoon into baked cups right before serving.



Let the feast begin!