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You may already be eating TVP and just haven’t realized it. Did you know that you can buy TVP Bacon Bits? These vegan nibbles aren’t wholesome enough to consume regularly (partially hydrogenated soybean oil, anyone?), but they can be a fun, occasional treat — especially for the aspiring vegan who struggles with giving up meat.

Bean and grain mash-ups

Countless cultures around the globe use native varieties of beans and whole grains as dietary staples. In the southwest United States and Central America, beans and corn have always been a part of the culinary tradition. Eastern European and Russian cultures include rye, spelt, and barley along with local beans to create hearty meals and complete proteins. Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, and other Asian cultures have used many varieties of rice along with soybeans, lentils, and adzuki beans as the base for diets that many experts believe to be among the healthiest in the world.

Mixing different grains and beans together can be a wholesome technique for creating hearty meals. As you experiment with different combinations, you’ll discover the wide world of bean and grain mash-ups. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination. Here are some ideas to get you started:

Cooked kidney beans and brown rice can be mashed together with onions, celery, sunflower seeds, and herbs to create tasty veggie patties for burgers or to serve alongside breakfast.

Lentils and quinoa can be mixed with mushrooms and sage for morning “sausages” to be baked or lightly fried.

Refried beans and corn can be mixed with chilies and other vegetables to create delicious chili stews or layered dips.

Any combination of grain and bean can be combined to form a loaf with whole-grain breadcrumbs, chopped nuts, and sautéed vegetables and mushrooms to bake a veggie loaf. Drizzle some naturally sweetened ketchup on top and bake for an old-fashioned presentation that will remind you of Grandma’s meatloaf!

Egg-cellent Egg-Free Cooking and Baking

When nonvegans bite into my egg-free cookies and cakes, their eyes light up with delight, but they inevitably ask, “How did you make this without eggs?” Luckily, there are many ways to bake delicious creations without cracking eggs.

Traditional recipes for baked goods rely on eggs for specific functions. In these recipes, eggs

Act as a binder to keep the ingredients and flour all working together in harmony

Contain specific chemicals that react with other ingredients to create the leavening, or lifting, that happens during baking

Thicken recipes

All three of these results can be obtained without eggs; you just need to understand what effect the recipe needs the egg for. If you’re making a muffin recipe, the eggs would have been used as a binder. Mashed banana or flaxseeds will work well in that case. If you need to thicken a custard or quiche recipe, tofu will work well. Leavening is often created with baking powder or baking soda instead of eggs.

Tofu as ovo

Tofu comes to the rescue again; this time, instead of standing in for meat (as described earlier in the chapter), it becomes an egg replacer. Not only does tofu work well as a binder in baked recipes, but it also can actually look like eggs in other recipes. Full of protein without the cholesterol or bad karma of eating a baby chicken, tofu eggs are easy to prepare and delicious.

If you’re looking for some ways to use tofu as a stand-in for eggs, try these tasty options:

Crumble drained soft or silken tofu to make a scramble. To spice up your scramble, mix the tofu with sautéed onions, garlic, a pinch of turmeric, and a little nutritional yeast. The flavors and colors all combine to create a very real-looking breakfast dish.

Slabs of pressed tofu can be cut into rounds with a biscuit cutter and sautéed in olive oil, garlic and onion powders, and salt and pepper to make fake fried eggs. These “eggs” work nicely on toasted English muffins with Tofu Sour Cream for a nice brunch dish. (See the