Spicy Vegan Chicken Salad - EASY Lunch Recipe

I swear vegans eat more than salads (lol)

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been loving this simple, delicious vegan chicken salad. It’s full of fresh, healthy ingredients and makes a great quick and easy vegan lunch–the ‘hardest’ part is just chopping up the veggies.

Having quick and light meal options that you can throw together, especially during the summer, is essential to making living a vegan lifestyle accessible and sustainable long term.

You can make all sorts of variations on this salad by switching out the dressing, adding different seasoning, and using a different brand of vegan chicken. Use this recipe as a template and customize it to your liking!

In this recipe, I’m using Gardein Nashville Hot Chick’n Tenders which are made out of pea and wheat protein. Gardein products are some of my absolute favorites and I always suggest Gardein to new vegans since they are so great for replacing animal products with a similar taste and texture while being a healthier, more ethical option.

Want to see a visual for this recipe? Head on over to my YouTube channel to watch the video. 

Vegan Chicken Salad

• Red & green leaf lettuce

• Spring mix greens

• 1 Red bell pepper, chopped

• 1 Green bell pepper, chopped

• Can of black beans. drained and rinsed

• 1/4 Red onion, chopped

• Gardein Nashville Hot Chick’n Tenders

• Cilantro

• Tomato

• Avocado

• Dressing of choice, I used Chipotle Bitchin’ Sauce

Optional additions:

• Garlic salt

• Imperfect Foods Seasoning For All the Things
  

Instructions:

1. Cook the vegan chick’n tenders in the oven or air fryer for about 10 mins.

2. In a large bowl, throw together your greens. I used spring mix & red and green leaf lettuce.

3. Drain and rinse your canned black beans, add to the bowl with the greens

4. Chop your bell pepper, onion, avocado, and tomato to your preference and add to the bowl

5. Remove the vegan chicken tenders from the oven and cut into bite-sized pieces; add to the bowl

6. Top with fresh cilantro, and optional garlic salt and All The Things Seasoning

7. Plate your portion and add dressing of choice

If you are looking for more ways to make veganism fun and accessible, be sure to subscribe to my newsletter below!

Alfredo Zoodles Recipe

My kids have this love/hate thing going on with zoodles. Sometimes my oldest 2 boys love them and other times they look at me sideways when I serve it.

Zoodles are just zucchini used as noodles in a recipe. It's perfect for people who are interested in eating more gluten-free meals and for those (like me) who want to make a quick lunch.

I really like this spiraler from Amazon

This recipe is definitely one that doesn't require that you turn on the stove. All you need is a spiraler (or vegetable peeler like I used in the other recipe), your blender and other ingredients for the sauce.

Our experience with zoodles:

*I've tried making the zoodles by steaming and sauteing them a few times before and they come too watery. We prefer them uncooked/raw.

*My kids seem to like zoodles with marinara sauce more than with alfredo and avocado sauce (I made a vegan version using avocado from FitMenCook).

*We usually eat our zoodles without the skin, so I don't know whether or not there's a difference in flavor/texture with the skin on.

Eric and I love the flavor of this recipe and it didn't take much time at all for me to get this on the table for lunch.

Here it is! Try it and let me know whether or not your family likes it. :-)

Alfredo Zoodles

by Brown Vegan

Keywords: raw entree vegan vegetarian

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 5 large zucchini
• 1 cup cashews, soaked in water for at least 2 hours
• 1/2 cup water (add more water if the sauce is too thick)
• 1 garlic clove
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tablespoon tahini
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
• 1 cup spring mix lettuce

Instructions

Using a spiraler, vegetable peeler or knife and cut the zucchini into strips.

To make the sauce: In a blender add in all the remaining ingredients (except the spring mix) and process until smooth.

In a large bowl, cover the zucchini with the alfredo sauce and use tongs to combine the sauce and zucchini evenly.

Mix in spring mix and enjoy!

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Vegan Brunch & Making Decisions

I'm not a shy person, but I have a hard time putting myself out there to meet new people...especially in a group setting.  My palms get sweaty, my heart starts to pound, and I talk faster than normal (is that even possible? lol).

Anilia, Tambira,  Rosetta, Wilma, Me

A couple of weeks ago, Rosetta invited me to her place for brunch with her and three other ladies. Instead of talking myself out of the invite (like I usually do when invited anywhere) I pushed passed my anxiety and accepted.

We had an amazing time! Lots of food, music, wine, and discussions about business and life. I'm sooo glad I didn't miss out on this opportunity to hang with Rosetta again and meet some other amazing women.

Let's talk about the food! I never expect people to cater to my vegan diet but it warms my heart when they do.

We started off with a cheese platter, but Rosetta made sure to put almonds, grapes and  dates on it for me.  

Then we cooked (mostly Rosetta lol) fried potatoes, greens and grits. Yummers! The other ladies also had salmon and Rosetta added cheese to their grits after serving mine.

We had a vegan apple pie from Whole Foods and So Delicious ice cream for dessert. OMG!

No one thought it was vegan! :-) 

It's funny how making the decision to get uncomfortable is helping me come out of this self-imposed anxiety bubble. I've been saying I want to change for a long time, but making the decision is what led me to actually stepping out there and doing it.

I know we're talking about anxiety in this post, but this same decision principle applies to everything else in life, too. With food, if you really want to be a vegan make the decision.  Then spend some time researching vegansim, cooking and experimenting. :-)

Thanks for reading! Don't forget to subscribe below to get more updates about our family's vegan journey, recipes, videos and tips. 

Pink Monster Smoothie Recipe & Tips

Smoothies rock!

Smoothie Tips:

*When using green leafy veggies, blend them with your liquid(s) first, and then blend the frozen fruit.

*Use a banana or avocado to get the "smooth" consistency (and extra vitamins).

*If you struggle with having chunks of fruits after blending, consider adding one fruit at a time until well blended.  

*Smoothies are great for picky eaters because you can "hide" the vegetables (spinach and green chard are perfect choices because you don't taste them at all).  You can even make it fun for kids by adding a straw or putting it in a fun cup. 

Bottom line: Load up on those fruit & veggies, and don't give up :-)

Fast cleaning tip: After enjoying your smoothie, put some water with a few drops of dish detergent in the blender and mix for a few seconds.  This will prevent difficult cleaning later.  

I'm still getting the hang of making Youtube videos....

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I got this recipe from A Dash of Soul's blog.

Pink Monster Smoothie

by A Dash of Soul

Ingredients (Serve 1)

• 1 cup frozen strawberries
• 11 oz mandarin oranges
• 1 banana (I used a frozen one)
• 1/2 cup almond milk

Instructions

Blend and enjoy!

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Chocolate Smoothie for Breakfast? Why Not?

My oldest son has been avoiding breakfast each morning since school started last week.  I think he’s probably adjusting to the new schedule and using that time to fully wake up.  I don’t like sending him to school on an empty stomach, so I decided to serve him a chocolate smoothie.  Chocolate for breakfast? Maybe I should feel guilty, but I don’t. :-)

Ingredients:

3 handfuls of fresh spinach

1 cup of soy or almond milk

2 tablespoons of cacao powder

1 frozen banana

1 teaspoon of cacao nibs (optional)

1-2 tablespoons of natural peanut butter (optional)

1 tablespoon of agave nectar (optional; for sweetness)

Blend all ingredients except the cacao nibs. Pour into a glass and top with cacao nibs

Cacao powder & nibs are raw chocolate and an excellent source of fiber and magnesium.

After Hurricane Irene, Simon wrote a poem while we sat in the dark.

Moonlight

Moonlight moonlight;

Shining so bright;

Shining so bright that it makes me want to write

He enjoyed his smoothie