The low-carb craze that possessed our country a few years back caused many people to try anything and everything they could to replace carbs in a dish—while still trying to maintain flavor and satisfaction, of course. This led to many highly processed, and sometimes downright bizarre, carb-free foods. But one easy and healthy way to reduce carbs is by using spaghetti squash in place of spaghetti made from flour.

If cooked properly, the "noodles" of spaghetti squash are slightly firm and are great vehicles for many sauces—much like spaghetti made from flour. The key here is cooking the squash properly, though. It's easy to overcook or to separate the noodles while too hot, both of which result in mushy squash.

The recipe below is for your basic roasted spaghetti squash, which you can then dress up with fresh herbs, a light tomato sauce, or even a pesto. My only recommendation is not to overdo it with the sauce. These noodles are a little more delicate than spaghetti and won't hold up under anything too heavy.

Enjoy!

Some chili enthusiasts would say that chili should never contain any type of bean—ever—but I say that chili should always contain at least one type of bean, if not more!

Many chili cookoffs don't even include beans on the list of approved ingredients, but for vegetarian chili they are necessary, in my opinion, because they bring a heartiness that cannot be achieved with veggie and faux meats alone. When slow-cooked with vegetable stock, diced tomatoes, herbs, and spices, they absorb the spicy, flavorful broth like little sponges.

The recipe here is a simple hearty chili that puts beans front and center. You can always spice it up a bit by adding more chili powder, hot sauce, or jalapeños, and you can make it even more nutritious by tossing in veggies like squash, zucchini, bell peppers, and carrots. Enjoy!

Breakfast parfaits almost don't even count as recipes because they're so incredibly easy to make. Take soy yogurt, granola, and fruit, then layer away—that's it. Yes, it's super-easy, but that doesn't mean the end result is boring.

The crunchy granola and cool creamy yogurt offer a wonderful contrast. The variety of fruits—you can use almost any type of fruit you like—results in sweet bursts of flavor and healthy vitamins.

I know—"parfait" and "healthy" are two words that you don't always find together. Dessert parfaits are typically made by layering ice cream, not yogurt, with other not-so-healthy ingredients. But when you replace the ice cream with soy yogurt and opt for fruits and a little granola, you're left with a delicious and healthy breakfast treat.

Remember yesterday's post about cheap vegan eats? One suggestion was sticking to staples, like dried beans, so today I'm featuring a bean not commonly used in American cuisine—the adzuki bean.

The adzuki is a small red bean popular in Japan. In the U.S., it's most commonly found in macrobiotic cuisine, which is exactly why I was first introduced to it. A few years ago, I worked at the L.A. vegan eatery Real Food Daily, which features macrobiotic meals, and the adzuki was often the "bean of the day." I can't say I fell in love with it, but I definitely like it.

It's a great option if you are someone who normally sticks to just black beans and chickpeas but are looking to shake things up a bit. It's also a very inexpensive meal option, and with money tight for just about everyone right now, that's definitely not a bad thing.

Here is a simple preparation for adzuki beans, but you'll definitely need to add some seasoning before eating. Enjoy!

There are many people who aren't too fond of onions, but when deep-fried with an unhealthy amount of batter on them, they are transformed into a completely different food that few can resist.

In my opinion, sweet onions like Vidalia work best when cut into thick slices, about 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch wide. There are actually many options when it comes to batter, but for my main dry ingredient I prefer to use flour rather than cornmeal or breadcrumbs so that the finished product is light and almost melts in your mouth.

There are options for the liquid in the batter too. My recipe below calls for beer, for a little extra flavor, or you can skip that and just use soda water. Regardless of which you choose, the onion rings will end up as oily, crispy goodness.

I highly recommend these when you're in the mood for cheap comfort food or if you're whipping up vegan game-day treats. Enjoy!

Working away from PETA's headquarters can be both a blessing and a curse, and on my last trip back to our main office I realized it was more of the latter.

On my second day back in the office, I was urged by a coworker to take a little trip up to the kitchen. There I found a spread of corn tortillas, beans, and salsa for a morning treat—all fresh and all homemade.

The delicious snack was prepared by another coworker, Eloisa, who wanted nothing more than to do something nice for all of us. Isn't that sweet? On that morning, I realized that this was probably just one of many delicious meals I was missing out on.

To thank Eloisa for the meal, I'd like to share one of her recipes here with all of you! Corn tortillas have long been on my list of recipes to master, and after tasting Eloisa's, I decided to give it a shot.

The recipe is very, very easy, but be sure to use corn flour, not corn meal, or the results might not be pleasing. Enjoy!

To stick with my theme of cheap vegan eats, I've decided to feature a recipe for a homemade veggie burger using black beans as the base.

By making your own burgers, you can stretch your dollar pretty far and you can completely control the flavor. For black bean veggie burgers, the only real requirement is, well, black beans. (By the way, bean-based burgers are a great alternative for people who have a soy allergy.) After mashing the beans, you can throw in just about any spices and veggies you like to create a tasty mix for your patty. I highly recommend trying these with the onion rings that I featured a couple of days ago. Enjoy!

Pudding is a food term with many meanings, but in the U.S. we often use it to describe the custard-like dessert that is commonly flavored with chocolate and vanilla.

Creamy chocolate pudding is by far one of the easiest vegan desserts you can make, and the vegan version is much simpler than any version with eggs or dairy. In fact, most recipes require only three or four ingredients and a blender!

The recipe is very plain and simple, so if you're looking to jazz it up, try using a higher-quality cocoa powder or adding additional flavors. Raspberry or cherry flavoring can be used in place of vanilla, or you can throw fresh fruit into the mix. Just keep in mind that too much will change the consistency of the finished product.

Enjoy!

My favorite recipes are those that you create at home on the fly, with whatever ingredients happen to be left over in your fridge. Sure, sometimes it is a complete disaster, but other times the results are amazing.

My most recent "recipe on the fly" was a Thai-inspired tofu salad. I reduced a handful of leftover veggies in soy sauce and the spicy Thai sauce known as Sriracha and then threw in a little basil for freshness. Like usual with my Asian at-home dishes, I served it with tofu that is cooked until golden brown and chewy and then coated with a splash of soy.

I would venture to say that one of the most common mistakes made by people trying to prepare tofu is not cooking it properly. Many people aren't sure how to handle it, and so it often ends up in not-too-pleasing crumbles. But if you pan-fry small tofu cubes in a healthy dose of oil for about 15 minutes, while stirring often to prevent sticking, you will be left with tofu that is chewy and delicious. All the mushiness and bland flavor will be gone, and it becomes the perfect canvas for Asian ingredients. Enjoy!

Epicurious.com currently has one of the handiest tools on its site. Just today, I found this Seasonal Ingredient Map, which lets you click on any state and it will tell you what's in season locally.

After clicking on Georgia, I saw a list of several of my favorite veggies, including sweet potatoes. According to this map, sweep potatoes are in season here now, so I decided to use them in a simple dish that has definite fall flavors—maple-glazed sweet potatoes with toasted pecans.

I went sort of light on the brown sugar, but you can make this sweeter by adding another tablespoon if you'd like. Enjoy!

Maple-Glazed Sweet Potatoes

2 sweet potatoes, diced
1 Tbsp. vegan margarine
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/3 cup chopped pecans

•Place the diced sweet potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and drain.

•Preheat the oven to 375°F. Prepare a casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray or margarine.

•Place the margarine, syrup, and sugar in a small bowl and microwave for about 35 seconds, or until the margarine is melted.

•In a medium mixing bowl, toss the sweet potatoes, margarine mixture, and pecans, then pour into the casserole dish.

•Bake for 10 minutes.