I kind of suck at meal planning. I just never know what I want to eat, but I do know that I don’t want to eat the same dish for more than two days in a row. I have no problems eating sandwiches for breakfast and salad for lunch any day, but when it comes to dinner I want a little more variety. So I’m currently putting together a collection of my favorite dishes to choose from every night.

The dishes, that I want to add to my go-to list, have to be plant-based, balanced (containing complex carbs, protein, and vegetables), and prepared in under 30 minutes. And they need to be delicious, of course.

Here are a few dishes that have earned a spot on my list already.

Vegan jjigae = vegetable stew with tofu

I’d call that a classic kitchen sink dish. Just chop up all the leftover vegetables in your fridge, throw them into a pot, add a spicy miso broth and tofu, and serve it all with rice. This dish is usually made with meat and a lot of red pepper paste, but I adjust it to my taste, and make a separate pot for my husband.

Bibimbap = a bowl of rice with various toppings

This is my husband’s favorite dish at the moment. I like to use brown rice instead of white, and prepare several different toppings in advance, like pan-fried tofu, black soy beans, roasted vegetables, etc.

Carrot lentil soup (from the book More Peas, Thank You)

Blended vegetables soups are awesome! I always make a big batch and store the leftover servings in my fridge of freezer. Adding beans or lentils to the soup before blending provides an extra dose of protein.

Whole grain pasta with tomato sauce

Friday night is pasta night. That decision was made quite a while ago. I usually make a batch of vegetable-laden tomato sauce, but sometimes I go for a creamy white sauce instead. Americans call that ‘alfredo’, right? Nutritional yeast is a great substitute for grated Parmesan cheese, if you want to go that way.

Roasted asparagus and sweet potato

My favorite way of preparing vegetables is roasting them in the oven. This method works well for sweet or white potatoes, broccoli, carrots, squash, asparagus, bell peppers, etc. I like to pair them with a simple dip made of soy yogurt, mustard, honey, dried herbs, and salt and pepper to taste. And ketchup. Always.

This list is far from complete, of course.

What dishes are on your list of favorite quick dinners?

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Confession: I love coffee and have about two cups per day, but I don’t own any kind of coffee maker and I haven’t been to a coffee shop in ages. What?!

I usually get my coffee fix in the form of instant espresso, which is incredibly convenient and surprisingly delicious. But whenever I feel fancy, I brew a cup or two of Turkish coffee. This special kind of drink is not only available in Turkey, but also in many other countries along the Eastern Mediterranean coast, ranging from Croatia to Egypt.

My husband has been a fan of Turkish coffee for a very long time, and I fell in love with it during our last trip to Croatia and Bosnia two years ago. When we returned from that trip, I immediately jumped into the next Turkish grocery store (thankfully, there are quite a few around here), and bought everything I needed to make Turkish coffee at home, which is just a small boiling pot with a long handle and a can of ground coffee.

The term Turkish coffee refers to the method of preparation, not a special kind of coffee bean. The beans are roasted as usual and then ground to a very fine powder, finer than for any other way of preparation. To make the coffee you simply fill the pot with cold water and heat it on the stove. When the water is hot, but not boiling, stir in the coffee powder and as much sugar as you like. Those coffee pots come in different sizes, mine holds three servings, and you usually need one teaspoon of coffee powder per serving. Bring the mixture to a boil again, but watch out, it might boil over. Don’t stir the coffee at this point, as the foam on top is considered the best part of it. Remove the coffee from the heat and let it cool down a little. You can reheat the pot one or two more times. Be sure that the coffee doesn’t boil too long, because that will result in an unpleasant burnt taste.

Pour the Turkish coffee into small cups, espresso cups or shot glasses will do, and serve immediately. This kind of coffee is not filtered, so you need to wait a little to let the coffee grounds sink to the bottom of the cup or glass. But don’t wait too long, as Turkish coffee is best when it’s really hot.

This drink is traditionally served throughout the day, from before breakfast to after dinner.

I love the mild, smooth taste of Turkish coffee, but I also love that it’s relatively easy to prepare, and you don’t need any fancy, expensive equipment. The #strangebutgood part is the fact that you don’t filter the coffee, so a thick layer of sludgy grounds is left behind at the bottom of the cup.

Have you ever tried Turkish/Greek/Arabian coffee?

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May is full of public holidays, which is just awesome. I love sleeping in! The weather is still nasty and cold, but I’m still hopeful that it will warm up soon.

What I love the most about spring is the return of local produce. Especially tomatoes and cucumbers are so gross during the winter months. Those Spanish or African greenhouse vegetables are just no good, sorry. But now my favorite plant foods are finally delicious and affordable again. I even found local strawberries this week! *happy dance*

Without a doubt, the star of German spring vegetables is asparagus, especially the white variety. Its season is very short, lasting only from early May to late June this year, so the people around here have been hoarding the precious white spears like crazy. I personally prefer green asparagus, but decided to give the white ones another chance, because my husband loves them. Well, I’m still not a fan. They are just too stringy and a little bland.

Asparagus is traditionally served with Hollandaise sauce, which is basically just egg yolk and butter. I decided to use this cheesy cauliflower sauce instead, to lighten things up. It was quite good, but very different from the original, of course.

This is a classic clean-out-the-fridge meal. I found some button mushrooms that were already starting to get mushy, so I fried them up, and put them on a pile of brown rice. I also added a scoop of black soy beans and chopped green onions. Oh the randomness!

I’ve also enjoyed a lot of smoothies lately. Most of the time, I add frozen kale and cocoa powder, which results in a very ugly brown color. I swear it tastes better than it looks. Usually.

Any tips on how to make a green/brown smoothie look more appealing?

What is your favorite spring vegetable or fruit?

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No, there’s nothing wrong with my calendar. German Labor Day (Tag der Arbeit) is on May 1st, and it’s a public holiday. I took a few more days off to enjoy an extra long weekend. Yay!

Most of my meals were quite boring, as I’ve been feeling a little uninspired about my cooking lately. But there were a few ‘highlights’ that I want to share with you today.

Keeping it simple on a lazy morning. Finally, local tomatoes and cucumbers are back! And they are delicious! I get way too excited about produce, I know.

Confession: When I was a little girl, I loved ground meat on my pizza. Yes, I was a strange kid. I’m still strange, but that’s a story for another day. So when I saw Laura’s recipe for vegan bacon bits, I thought that they would be great on my Mexican style pizza. And they were indeed!

Scrambled tofu is my second favorite breakfast dish, after my savory sandwiches, of course. I hardly ever use a whole block of tofu at once, so I often have a leftover chunk in my fridge. (Note: Tofu can be stored in a tub of water in your fridge for 2-3 days.) Perfect for a single serving of scrambled tofu! Obviously, I’m the only person in my family who like to eat that dish. My version of scrambled tofu is based on a recipe from the book Peas and Thank You.

Actually, we don’t celebrate Cinco de Mayo around here, especially not in my European/Asian household. But I was in the mood for chili sin carne, and it was as good as I had hoped. Even my husband ate some of it. Success! I don’t really have a recipe for that dish, I just toss chopped onions, garlic, and bell peppers into a pot, add kidney beans, sweet corn, canned tomatoes, and a squirt of barbecue ketchup, and season to taste. That’s it!

Did you celebrate Cinco de Mayo last weekend? Or something else?

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Oh yeah, I’m still doing that Foodie Penpals thing. I just couldn’t find the time to write about my recent boxes. Ehem.

Enough excuses, let’s begin!

My Foodie Penpals box for March was a little late. Not a big surprise, though, as it came all the way from Turkey! The non-Europeans among you may not know that Turkey is not (yet) part of the EU, so customs regulations are very strict! According to my penpal Vildan, he even had to send a second box because the first one got lost! But eventually, the box arrived save and sound at my place!

Inside the box I found:

• a bag of Turkish coffee (my husband and I love it!)
• a sachet of hot chocolate mix (haven’t tried that one yet)
• chocolate filled wafers (gone in a flash)
• a huge box of Turkish Delight, a famous confection based on a gel of starch and sugar
• a beautiful card from Vildan’s home town Amasya

My husband immediately claimed the Turkish Delight for himself. He loves that stuff. But he did let me try a few. Those sugary cubes are definitely something different. They were flavored with rosewater and pistachios and quite delicious, but extremely sweet and very chewy. It took me at least one minute to eat one small cube.

My next parcel came from England again, sent to me by the very kind Emma. It was filled to the brim with so many amazing things:

• several different nakd bars (raw, vegan, and amazing)
• a flapjack/granola bar (buttery and sweet)
• a bag of sweet and salty popcorn (for the undecided, I guess)
• a tube of umami paste (bold flavor, great with pasta)
• a box of tea cakes (husband and I inhaled those)
• a handful of green candy (tangy and sweet)
• a giant pack of English tea (80 bags!)
• a lovely card of Big Ben (food for my travel bug *sigh*)

The nakd bars vanished first. Oh my goodness, they are so flipping good! I liked the berry flavor the most, and the ginger bread one was mighty spicy. The tea cakes were amazing, too. Chocolate covered marshmallows with a cookie bottom. I have no words.

I’ve received so much tea in my last few boxes that I’ll have enough for the rest of the year. At least. Thankfully, my husband also likes tea, so I can share with him.

Thanks again, Vildan and Emma, for your lovely parcels!

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Most of my meals have been very random and boring, lately. Thankfully, I recently received a new cookbook, More Peas, Thank You by Sarah Matheny, also know as Mama Pea on her blog Peas and Thank You. This is her second book, and as I already own and love the first one, I simply had to get the new book as soon as possible.

So far, I’ve only tried a few of the recipes, but there are many more that look incredibly tasty.

My love for blended soups is still burning strong, and this red lentil soup was exactly what I needed on a particularly chilly night. Lentils, carrots, and onions can be found in my kitchen any given day, but it was that splash of orange juice that took this soup from good to amazing.

Among the first recipes I wanted to try was this simple quinoa tabouleh. I always have some quinoa, tomatoes, cucumbers, and frozen herbs in my kitchen, so I didn’t even have to go shopping for this one. I packed one serving for lunch, adding chickpeas, pine nuts, and, after taking the picture, some chopped romaine lettuce. Delicious!

Next up was my slightly modified version of chickpea melts. I haven’t found a vegan mayo that I really like, so I usually replace it with soy yogurt. I added a little tahini, mustard, pickle brine, and spices to the sauce, and the taste came pretty close to traditional mayonnaise. I also omitted the cheese, for the same reason. Despite my modifications, it was still a tasty, quick, and light pre-Zumba dinner.

I love roasting sweet potatoes in my oven, and coating them in a mix of coconut oil and curry powder is just a brilliant idea. Why didn’t I think of that?! Those taters were so good that I went back for seconds and wolfed down an entire sweet potato all by myself. What can I say, I love carbs. I also had some scrambled tofu, to get some protein in.

Speaking of carbs, there is also dessert section in the book. Of course there is. It was quite hard to decide which recipe I should try first, but I finally settled on these oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. I only had a small piece of vegan butter left, so I also added about a tablespoon of peanut butter. Oh my peas! That tiny hint of peanut flavor was incredible, but I’m sure the original recipe would be equally delicious.

Needless to say, I’m already totally in love with this book, and I’m going to try many more recipes from it.

What’s your favorite cookbook?

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During the past few years, my eating habits have changed in more than one way. Not only have I switched to a more plant-based diet, I’ve also been eating more Asian or Asian inspired dishes than ever. I totally blame that on my Korean husband.

The only meal that will always be typically German is breakfast. My love for bread is probably hardwired in my genetic code. You may wonder what Asians traditionally eat for breakfast. Well, the same things they’d eat for lunch and dinner, like rice, soups, stews, pickled vegetables, etc. That’s not my thing, though.

Last Saturday night I was too lazy to make dinner (happens to all of us, right?), so I we decided to go to our favorite local sushi restaurant. Their miso soup is the best I have had so far! It’s filled to the brim with sea weed, mushrooms, and tofu, not too salty, and quite filling.

They also offer lots of fish-free sushi variations. I wasn’t very hungry, so I only ordered two of my favorite rolls, one with cucumber, and the other one with avocado. And one inari sushi, that’s a pocket of fried, seasoned tofu filled with rice.  So freaking delicious!

Of course, I frequently make Asian meals at home, too, not only because my husband asks for them. One of my favorite Korean dishes is bibimbap. This is basically just a bowl of steamed rice, topped with all kinds of different raw or cooked vegetables and proteins. What I love about this dish is that it’s so incredibly versatile. You can add anything you like, and even make it vegan by using tofu instead of meat, fish, and eggs.

There is also a variation of this dish, called dolsot bibimbap. First, you heat up a stone pot, then you add sesame oil and cooked rice, and later all of your toppings. The rice gets a little crispy on the bottom of the pot, which adds another layer of awesomeness, in my opinion.

Leftover bibimbap can also be eaten cold. I enjoyed this one during Monday’s lunch break.

What are your favorite rice bowl toppings?

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Actually, this is not really a recipe, and it’s not even my idea, I just can’t remember where I saw it first. But I wanted to share this delicious creation with you anyway.

I’ve been craving eggplants lately, probably due to a certain beautiful curry recipe.

This cute side dish is very versatile. You can add all of your favorite toppings, and you could even use zucchini as the base instead of eggplant.

Eggplant Pizza Minis

Ingredients:

• 1 medium eggplant
• tomato sauce or ajvar (I used the latter)
• a few fresh basil leaves, cut into thin stripes
• salt and pepper
• veggie deli slices, optional
• nutritional yeast or cheese

Cut the eggplant into slices, about 1/2 inch thick. Heat a large frying pan to medium-high heat. Pour a little oil into the pan and fry the eggplant slices on both sides for a few minutes until they are soft and slightly browned. Sprinkle on some salt and pepper.

Place the eggplant slices on a plate and top them with sauce, basil, and nutritional yeast. Add some extra toppings, if you like, and put the plate under a broiler, if you like your pizza minis extra hot.

Wednesday night I ate the whole batch with my dinner, so I’d say the recipe yields one serving. What can I say, I love vegetables.

Have a great weekend!

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The sun has finally decided to come out to play in good old Bavaria, so I’ve been feeling the strong urge to get outside. I’m not fighting it.

Last Friday, my hometown’s annual Spring Fair started, and it still runs until next Sunday. Of course, I had to go! This fair is quite similar to the Oktoberfest, just a lot smaller. But even more fun, because it’s less crowded. Usually.

A day at the fair has to start with the right kind of fuel. I seriously can’t understand people who skip breakfast. I get so cranky when I don’t get regular meals!

There’s so much delicious food at the fair! Most of those treats are far from healthy, but not all of them are that bad. This time I focused on my absolute favorites, to avoid feeling overly stuffed. Corn on the cob is definitely a must-have for me, whenever it’s available.

Special thanks go out to my handsome hand model.

Must-have food item #2 is a thin crepe with apple sauce and cinnamon. It almost burned my hands! That’s why I only have an ‘almost done’ photo for you. Next time I have to ask them to use the galette batter, which is made with buckwheat flour, instead of the standard white wheat batter. Why didn’t I think of this sooner!?

The spice booth is my favorite one at the entire fair, I guess. They have so many amazing teas, herbs, and spices. I want to buy everything! But I mustered up some restraint, and only bought a few fun mixes, that I’m going to share with my Foodie Penpals.

The preparations for the Landshut Wedding are already in full force. This is a really big deal, people! This royal wedding from the year 1475 is re-enacted every four years. It’s on again this summer, from June 28th to July 21st. Come over if you like! It’s fun!

Dinner was a quick one. I was busy preparing some food for the work week, so I wasn’t in the mood to cook an elaborate dinner. I had udon noodles in black been sauce, with a side of roasted broccoli and carrots. Not very pretty, but quite tasty, and incredibly filling! I shared some with my husband because I couldn’t finish that plate.

What is your hometown famous for?

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Class dismissed

Last fall I started teaching an evening class. Computer basics for elderly people, to be exact. A teacher, me!? I never thought I’d see the day. Last Monday was our last class, and while I’m thrilled to have some more free time, I’m a little bit sad, too. I loved my class! But seriously, this was way more time-consuming than I had expected! Kudos to all the full-time teachers out there!

Shake it out

My current workout routine is … heck, I don’t really have a workout routine. I’m doing Zumba every Thursday night, we go horseback riding every other weekend or so, the rest is totally random. I’d love to get back into running regularly, now that spring is finally here, and I’d love to do some strength training, too. Could someone please come over and kick my butt?

Sherlock

When it comes to discovering TV series I’m always unfashionably late. I blame it on the fact that I live in Germany, where the free TV programming sucks. There’s no other way to say it. Thankfully, I’ve finally had the chance to experience the awesomeness that is Sherlock, “a British television crime drama that presents a contemporary update of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes detective stories” (source: Wikipedia). Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman are the best on-screen duo I’ve seen in a while! And I can’t wait to see Mr. Cumberbatch again in the upcoming Star Trek movie. So excited!

Be safe!

Last Saturday I went to a moral courage and self-defense seminar, held by a group of police officers. While some of the info was already familiar to me, I did learn lots of new stuff, too. I think it’s very important to know how to deal with emergency situations in a way that goes beyond first aid or martial arts techniques. The best part was when I got to shout at one of the officers. At the top of my voice! Only a few people know that I do have a rather loud voice, I just hardly ever use it. It’s a gift. Thanks, mom!

And the popcorn goes to …

I’m actually quite a movie freak. I have about half of the IMDB memorized already. That’s a pretty neat party trick. I’ve been a science fiction fan since early childhood, and lately I’ve been so excited about all the Marvel movies, especially The Avengers. That was my favorite movie of 2012, and it was nominated for several MTV Movie Awards. Sadly, I didn’t get to watch any life coverage, but I did my best to follow what was going on via Twitter. At 4 am local time. Damn you, CET! So, I’m running on very little sleep today, but it was absolutely worth it. The Avengers won Best Movie, Best Fight, and Best Villain! It’s just sad that I don’t have anyone to share my excitement with, because the people around me don’t care about those things at all. Thank the heavens for Twitter, Tumblr, and co!

What’s been going on in your life lately?

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