Vegan MOFO: Monday Mash-up–JL's Soy Curls Salad

 I met JL Fields at the first ever Vida Vegan Bloggers Con in Portland in 2011, lounging by the pool (although she had her laptop with her, so I'm not convinced she was doing much lounging).

Since then she has really taken off with veganism not only as her lifestyle, but her life's work. Please visit her blog...she has co-authored a book, writes daily about food and for Vegan MOFO 2013, is video-blogging nearly every day. (JL Goes Vegan: Food and Fitness with a Side of Kale)

Last week I watched her prepare Soy Curls Salad, and was inspired to make it since I had all the ingredients in the fridge and pantry, and I always take that as a I sign I should make the recipe!

Please visit her post to see the recipe and watch her make this very easy and (for some) comfort food salad.

My experience:
JL's Soy Curl salad couldn't be easier to prepare! Simple chopping or pulsing in a food processor gets your main ingredients chopped nicely (rehydrated soy curls, grapes and nuts.)

I substituted walnuts for her pecans since that's what I had on hand.

"Chicken" salad was never big in my family, so I didn't have any kind of family recipe to fall back on, or even a memory. I did remember that in my 20s (when still eating chicken), I had made a chopped chicken dish with curry....so I added about 1/2 tsp curry to this after I added the mayo and I really liked the added zing.

You can serve this on a bed of greens, in a sandwich or wrap as JL demonstrates or just eat plain.

I enjoyed this use of Soy Curls. I was also introduced to them in Portland at the same time as JL. They are a simple product (non-GMO) full of protein that you can put your own touch on in a number of ways.

Visit Butler Foods to discover where you can buy them in your area or online. I still like to order mine from Food Fight Grocery in Portland.