Desperately need vegan or vegetarian Lunch ideas

[W I S N E R !]

Don't know where you can get dehydrated hummus or baba ganoush but my wife is Armenian so I could send you some good recipes when you get a dehydrator.

As for the veggie patties keeping, I've gone up to 5 days with Morning Star "breakfast sausage" patties and about the same on vegan grillers. I think 5 might be pushing it a bit, but I'd feel very safe for 3.

[Sharon J.]

also check the bulk food section

[HeathP]

I'm getting hooked up with a dehydrator from someone in the forums! So I'd love the recipes. I'll have to check at the store. We don't usually buy pre made foods so I am never in those aisles of the grocery store.

[BER —]

Hummus is super easy to make. Basically just chick peas, garlic, and tahini as a base. Throw it in a food processor and grind until smooth. If eating at home then you add olive oil, but if dehydrating, don't add this (dehydrates better without) and bring some on the trail for when you mix it up. To the base you can add a variety of things to your taste: roasted red peppers, chili peppers, cilantro, green onion, lemon or lime, salt, pepper.

One recipe from Laurie Ann March's A Fork in the Trail book that we particularly like:
1x 19 oz can of chickpeas, rinsed
1/4c orange juice
1/2t lime juice
2 cloves garlic
1 heaping T orange zest
2T tahini
pinch of salt
1/4t ground black pepper

We tend to add a bit more orange and lime to brighten it up and add some olive oil in camp to add silky smoothness, but we tend not to follow recipes too closely in general…

If the citrus in this one will cause you stomach issues, then using 1/3-1/2c roasted red peppers to the base is an alternative that is also in Laurie's book. You don't have to add the olive oil if that will give you problems or if you don't want to carry the weight. It good without as well.

I recommend her book. I think there are quite a few recipes there that could be used or modified to your particular dietary needs. Its definitely worth checking out

[HeathP]

Thanks for the recipe. We make Hummus all the time. As I said previously we don't eat pre made foods and we try and make everything from scratch with the exception of breads and pastas if we can; whether it be Middle Eastern, Indian, or any number of other Asian foods. I will check out that book. I haven't used a dehydrator since I was a kid so it will be an interesting experiment. I do like the option of a pre made dehydrated hummus or other foods as its already packaged and ready to go. I have a very demanding job(50+hrs a week) and sometimes I don't have the time to make time intensive foods and then dehydrate them.

That book title sounded familiar to me I added to my Amazon wishlist a few months back. I will have to pick it up.

[Bob Gross]

"We make Hummus all the time."

Normally, you just serve it in a plate or bowl, and you dig in with pita bread or chips. However, it is kind of bland-looking, isn't it?

As I serve it, I decorate it with one circle of green dried dill and a concentric circle of red paprika. Visually, it makes it more interesting, and those flavors work with the blandness of the beans.

–B.G.–

[BER —]

There is a black bean salsa dip in Laurie's book that is also very good (and easy) that might work for you if the acidity in salsa isnt't too much for your belly.

These Quinoa Black Bean Burgers are very good. They are fairly crumbly to begin with, so after cooking you would be able to crumble and dehydrate pretty easily. Rehydrate the crumble and eat on a pita… Haven't tried this, but it seems feasible. Maybe bake instead of frying to decrease the oil. If you are anti-egg, it could be left out of the recipe as you'd be crumbling the burger for dehydrating.

http://www.preventionrd.com/2012/12/black-bean-quinoa-veggie-burgers/

Pinterest is your friend.

[Gary Dunckel]

And then you could slice and dehydrate some stuffed Spanish olives (they rehydrate very quickly) and add that to the bland hummus, sprinkle BG's concentric circle stuff, and you'll be the most sought-after lunch prep cook in the forest.

[Bob Gross]

"sprinkle BG's concentric circle stuff"

It was all part of a scheme to reduce gear weight. Where have we heard of that?

Back in the old days, I would be leading some 8-12-person group trip in Yosemite. First of all, if you try to do a one-pot meal for that many mouths, you end up with an extremely large cook pot which is hard to pack. I found that if I broke up a group meal into several small no-heat courses, I could get it done with smaller pots and less hassle. So, I went with appetizers of hummus with celery sticks and carrot sticks and olives. Then a cooked main course, or sometimes one vegetarian main course and one carnivore main course. Then a fruit dessert. Since pots can get reused within one meal, it all saved weight.

Hummus is a good source of protein, and if backpackers are hungry enough, they will eat a lot of it. The red and green garnish just made sure, but it weighs almost zero.

–B.G.–

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

You don't need a dehydrator to make dried hummus.

Make whatever hummus you like, but leave out the oil. SPread on parchment lined baking sheets, dry in your oven on the lowest setting till dry. Powder. Store.

Easy peasy…..

Btw, I'll have a new recipe going live tomorrow on my blog for a paleo/vegan/allergy friendly "cookie" that is made with pumpkin/banana/coconut flour/dates, etc. No nuts, no added oils. No seeds. I did these for my youngest. I'll post a link tomorrow :-)

[HeathP]

Thanks everyone for the ideas

Sarah I'd never heard of your website until yesterday. Please post the link when it's ready. That sounds great for my youngest daughter as well.

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

Hey Heath,

Here you go :-)

http://blog.trailcooking.com/2013/10/10/new-recipe-allergy-friendly-hearty-cookies/

The recipe is up on the blog, I am currently building a new version of the website, will match the blog :-) About a week or two away till launch time!

Also, I blog on http://www.gazingin.com/ – which is my personal blog, and is focused on allergy friendly/vegan/plant based diet – my youngest is severely allergic to nuts, PB and eggs…so yeah, it has been "fun"

[HeathP]

Sarah, thank you so much. My youngest daughter has a life threatening allergy to nuts, has a kidney disease and we just had to get her glasses(all at 3 years old) but she takes it all so well. I will definitely check out that website.

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

Ah I feel for you! :-( Hate knowing other parents whose kids are hurting but at the same time, it is good to know others!

[Delmar O’Donnell]

Heath, when you get a chance, check out onepanwonders.com for recipes that would work for you.

[Laurie Ann March]

Hi everyone… thanks for the kind mention of my first book. Heath my second book was geared more to special diets (vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free). If you'd like I can post a few recipes for you to try. There are probably a few in the archives as well. Feel free to send me a private message too. I'd be more than happy to help you out.

Laurie Ann

[HeathP]

Laurie,
I sent you an email I can't wait to hear back from you.

[Laurie Ann March]

Heath,

Sorry I've been swamped but I will sit down in the morning and write you a long note back with a couple recipes.

[HeathP]

No worries.

[Author]

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