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The holidays are always nuts but I never realized how much they tear you away from your regular routine. This year, my boyfriend and I visited his family in Anaheim, and our entire schedules are completely switched around.
We’ve had a great past couple days – on Saturday we ate veggie sandwiches and went to Newport Beach. We walked on the pier and enjoyed people watching. On Monday, hit up The Broad museum which if you haven’t been, I strongly suggest you stop by.
After the museum, we were famished, and we ended up at Modern Times Brewing Co. I figured they would have some kind of veggie option for me since it’s LA, but what I didn’t realize was that the whole menu is vegan! Wow. That was hands down some of the best bar food I’ve ever had. I got the Double Burger which came with two beyond burger patties, Follow Your Heart cheese, grilled mushrooms, lettuce, tomato, pickle, and thousand island sauce. We also split some pickled onion rings.
Not to mention the beer! I tried a couple different kinds – a double barrel aged stout and a mild sour. I’m not sure what it is, but I love stouts and sours. Very opposite on the taste spectrum but I guess neither of them are super hoppy. I have a feeling at some point in my life I’ll like IPAs, but I have to be honest with you, at the ripe age of twenty-nine, I think they taste like soap.
Anyways, our vacation is over, we’re back at home, and back to reality. My stomach has expanded so much on this trip and I’m trying to get my routine back together. The holidays are never good for my health – I either don’t have anything to eat or I have way too much to indulge in. Either way, I’ve gotta get back on track which is why I wanted to share my simple recipe for vegan crab salad.
Crab salad is great. It’s creamy, lemony, breaks apart in your mouth, and takes minimal effort to make. I love how versatile crab salad is – I like serving it cold with a baguette or crackers as an hors d’oeuvre, but you can use it as a base for sandwiches, tacos, rolls, or (you’ll definitely see this in an upcoming recipe) pasta.
I’ve tried a couple different fishy substitutes and found that kelp granules (affiliate link) are the best out there. They’re a must-have for all things vegan fish related and are packed full of calcium.
Assembling crab salad is easy – just drain and pulse a can of hearts of palm and combine with cashew cream, chopped veggies, a couple of spices, and it’s ready to serve. If you remember to soak the cashews ahead of time, you can prepare this simple appetizer in 5 minutes or less.
If you try this recipe, let me know! Leave a comment or tag me at #hellyesitsvegan on Instagram. Cheers!
Vegan Crab Salad
Equipment
- blender
- mixing bowl
- food processor
Ingredients
- ¼ cup raw cashews
- 2 Tbsp water
- 1 can hearts of palm
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 stalk celery, finely chopped
- 1 scallion, sliced
- 2 rings red bell pepper, finely chopped
- 1 tsp old bay seasoning
- ½ tsp kelp granules
- sea salt to taste
- baguette, optional
Instructions
- Soak cashews in water for 1 hour
- Drain the cashews and add to a blender with 2 Tbsp water. Blend until smooth and creamy.
- Pulse the hearts of palm in a food processor until coarsely chopped
- In a small mixing bowl, combine the cashew cream, hearts of palm, lemon zest, lemon juice, celery, scallion, red bell pepper, old bay, kelp, and sea salt. Mixture can be served hot or cold depending on preference.