The NFL season is heating up in the race for playoff slots. Thanksgiving is just a few days away. Whether you eat it on a football Sunday or with your family while anxiously awaiting the holiday's main feast, the season is ripe for snack foods that warm the eater against the dropping temperatures outside. Chicken wings don't comply with our vegan diet, but this Buffalo Tempeh Dip has all the same fiery qualities that I love so dearly.
Yum!
Ingredients:
1 lb. tempeh
4 oz. Daiya Brand Sheddar Style Shreds
4 oz. Daiya Cream Cheese Style Spread
6 oz. Tofutti Better Than Sour Cream
3/4 C. Frank's Red Hot Sauce
Preheat oven to 350.
Place tempeh into a pot and cover with water to cover. Over medium heat, bring the water to a simmer. Reduce heat and maintain a low simmer for 10-15 minutes.
Remove the tempeh from the pot and allow to cool enough to handle. Once cooled, dice the tempeh into small 1/4" cubes and place them into a large mixing bowl.
Crumble the Cream Cheese Style Spread into the bowl, then add all remaining ingredients. Stir the mixture until everything is thoroughly combined.
Transfer the mix into a 8" x 8" casserole dish and level with a spoon. Cover the casserole dish with foil.
Bake for 40-45 minutes, removing the foil after 30 minutes. After removing the dip from the oven, allow it to cool for 10 minutes or more.
Jess and I enjoyed this Buffalo Tempeh Dip while we watched football with Reis this past weekend. We ate it with celery sticks and water crackers, but you could use any of your favorite dippers: tortilla chips, pita chips, any variety of cracker, or most any veggie you could think of. Cauliflower strikes me as a particularly promising option! Enjoy!
I’ve always had an tenuous relationship with this holiday. Maybe that started the year of my discovery of what turkey really is. Aside from the fact that the entire holiday revolves around a dead bird that never lived a natural life, I just don’t care for the food. Even if it’s vegan, it’s just too heavy for my taste.
When I first started my current job, the woman who was training me found this joke as she was cleaning out her desk:
A young many named John received a parrot as a gift. The parrot had a bad attitude and an even worse vocabulary. Every word out of the bird’s mouth was rude, obnoxious and laced with profanity. John tried and tried to change the bird’s attitude by consistently saying only polite words, playing soft music, and anything else he could think of to “clean up” the bird’s vocabulary. Finally, John was fed up and he yelled at the parrot. The parrot yelled back. John shook the parrot and the parrot got angrier and even ruder. John, in desperation, threw up his hand, grabbed the bird, and put him in the freezer. For a few minutes the parrot squawked, kicked, and screamed. Then suddenly there was total quiet. Not a peep was heard for over a minute. Fearing that he’d hurt the parrot, John quickly opened the door to the freezer. The parrot calmly stepped out onto John’s outstretched arms and said “I believe I may have offended you with my rude language and actions. I’m sincerely remorseful for my inappropriate transgressions and I fully intend to do everything I can to correct my rude and unforgivable behavior.” John was stunned at the change in the bird’s attitude. As he was about to ask the parrot what had made such a dramatic change in his behavior, the bird continued, “May I ask what the turkey did?”
I chuckled after reading it, but interpreted it on an additional level that I’m sure did not cross my co-worker’s minds. I didn’t share my thoughts with my co-worker at the time, either. She lives on a dairy farm and didn’t strike me as being particularly open to what I would have had to say. Poor activism, I know.
I read the joke to Josiah when I got home and asked him why it would be considered abusive to put a parrot in a freezer, but it’s common to do the same to a turkey. He said “Easy. Because a parrot can talk.” It’s obvious that as a society, we can justify hurting and killing animals as long as we don’t relate to them or they don’t offer us companionship. I try not to be too much of a “bleeding heart” because being to aggressive can harden people from the message. It’s easy to brush away someone's message if they are always crying over something. I also try to have a good sense of humor about my lifestyle. I don’t get upset when people criticise or question it. I just thought that this joke highlighted a bit of our cultural hypocrisy and would make people think about why some animals are “food” while others aren't.
If you are interested in saving a turkey from the same fate as the one in this joke, please consider adopting a turkey for Farm Sanctuary’s Adopt a Turkey Project. They can’t talk, but it would still give them something to be thankful for!
Okay, now that I’ve ranted, I’m going to end on a positive note. I’m thankful for this past year being the best one of my life. I married an amazing man which made me a part of his wonderful family. I’m also thankful for any friends and family who may be reading this. I love you all!
