Super Bowl 50

I enjoy a reason to cook all day. Not only does the Super Bowl offer that opportunity, it allows the menu to be gluttonous finger foods. This year I also took the opportunity to do some pantry turnover. I based my menu on what had spent too much time in the pantry and fridge without being touched, starting with the perishable veggies in the crisper. Here’s vegan Super Bowl spread…

Two delicious marinades for the tempeh… I have to start writing these down! The top had tamarind paste, tamari soy sauce, olive oil, liquid smoke, minced ginger, smoked salt, hot sauce, vegan worcestershire sauce, apple cider vinegar, and maple syrup. The bottom had the leftover pineapple minced, a ton of minced ginger, 3 huge microplaned garlic cloves, maple syrup, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, Braggs liquid aminos, and some water. I’m sure I’m leaving something out here…

I’ve had a container of coconut flakes in the pantry since I did the boozy Brunch. So, coconut bacon to garnish various dishes. I added soy sauce, liquid smoke and maple syrup to organic flakes of coconut and toasted in the oven. So good.

Try not to start snacking on this in the meantime.

Also needing immediate use, the bag of sweet peppers that were on sale. I piped with leftover ground Field Roast sausage and tofu I had laying around then slow-roasted them for a couple of hours. After, a drizzle of the tahini I had leftover from getting falafel a few days back. Quadruple turnover score!

These were the first two plates up. The hummus on the right–pureed marinated artichoke hearts, chickpeas, the rest of the horseradish, and the rest of some imported artichoke olive pate that I thought was a good idea a while back.

Then… you need nachos.

These were heavenly: FSTG multigrain chips topped with the nut-based Heidi Ho creamy chia cheeze, which I picked up recently to check out as I do with vegan products on occasion; The Electrician‘s rainbow quinoa; my leftover chili from last week’s lunch; pico de gallo; a tofu sour cream I whipped up; avocado chunks; some coconut bacon and scallion. Magical… 

Potato skins. I pureed the tato’s innards with a nooch cheese sauce and the grill bell pepper. I think I over-processed as it got quite gummy. Add some cheeze, coconut bacon and scallions and boom! 

I roasted the marinaded tempeh and then pan-fried them with the rest of the marinade. On the side, the rest of that tofu sour cream.

Aerial shots. And we were ready for the game! 

Ok, wait. Dessert. Peyton Manning chocolate cupcakes with a new-to-me store-bought frosting option.

But first–the cake, In my search for the best cocoa choice for baking, I tried these out with a Dutch-processed cocoa with a striking color. But it didn’t pack as chocolatey a punch as I wanted.

I found this Dollop frosting last time I was at Whole Foods. I wanted to check it out in the case I ever needed a convenient option. It did the trick, but, as with most things, made from scratch takes the cake.