Edamame and sun-dried tomato couscous

Just a quick, easy recipe to share. I always pick up a bag of Trader Joe's frozen edamame and then don't know what to do with it, besides throw it in a stir-fry in place of tofu. I'm low on handy proteins this week so I cooked it according to the package, then tossed it in my pasta and red sauce. The result was serviceable but not great.

This, however, turned out well. I had half of the package leftover and a very old box of couscous, so voila!

Edamame and Sun-dried Tomato Couscous

Half a package of cooked edamame (about one cup)
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, sliced or chopped
1/4 cup pine nuts
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
One cup dry couscous
Garlic salt
Black pepper
Nutritional yeast (optional)

1. Bring one cup of water to a boil
2. Add the first five ingredients, stir, and return to a boil.
3. Add the couscous, stir, remove from heat and cover with a lid.
4. Let sit five minutes.
5. Add salt, pepper and nooch to taste. If it seems a bit dry, add a splash of water.

Enjoy!

Vegan Thanksgiving recipe rundown

Last night was a Thanksgiving success, which is amazing considering my oven BROKE with an hour left on the turkey and five dishes uncooked. The nice thing about Thanksgiving with friends who live nearby is you can scatter to two different kitchens with working ovens and reassemble into a Thanksgiving Voltron of Deliciousness. This year I am thankful for friends, planning ahead and alcohol.

We also played a hilarious game: everyone gets a sheet of paper and a pen. You start by writing down a phrase on the top of the paper (I chose "bitches ain't shit but hos and tricks"), then pass it to the person next to you. That person draws a picture illustrating the phrase. Then they fold the paper so the phrase is hidden, and all that is showing is the drawing. Then they pass that to the person next to them, who writes a phrase that describes what they think is going on in the picture. Then they fold to cover the picture and pass their phrase on, etc. Continue until the page is filled up and then pile them all in the center of the room. When all the pages are done, everyone grabs one at random, unfolds it, and passes them around to read.

It's basically like visual telephone, and depending on people's creativity and drawing skills (or lack thereof) you can get some pretty hilarious results. We were laughing so hard that a couple of people felt sick. I think the winners were Ganja Santas and Steaming Choirs of Shit, plus the squirrel-raping tree stump.

Now, the recipes!

For breakfast the day of, while watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Purina Dog Show:  Pumpkin Waffles (G Free and Vegan) from Girl Makes Food (this is a great blog by the way).

Cranberry Sherbert and Praline-Topped Sweet Potatoes from my earlier post.

Apple Fauxsage Pecan Stuffing

• 2 lb Field Roast Apple Sage sausages, sliced into 1/4" - 1/2" rounds
• 2 carrots, peeled & finely cubed (1/8") *
• 1 Tablespoon sage
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 teaspoon marjoram
• 10 cups cubed stale bread/unseasoned stuffing mix
• 2 onions, sliced*
• 2 apples, cored & cut into small cubes 
• 1 1/4 cups veggie stock
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped (optional)*
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans
• salt and pepper

1. Cook sausage in 1 TBSP oil, about 5 min, stirring often.
2. Add onions and carrots, cook another 3 minutes.
3. Stir in apples, sage, thyme, and marjoram, cook another 5 minutes.
4. Add 1 cup of stock, and bring to a boil.
5. Remove from heat, stir in bread, pecans, parsley, salt and pepper.
6. Spoon into a lightly greased casserole dish.
7. (This recipe can be made ahead to this point, it will keep in the fridge for 2 days or in the freezer for 2 weeks. If frozen, thaw in fridge before baking).
8. Bake, covered, in 325°F oven for about 40 minutes. Halfway through cooking time, drizzle with the remaining stock.
9. Remove the lid and bake 10 more minutes, until the stuffing has a crusty top and is heated through.

*I hate celery so I swapped carrots in for it, but if you like that kind of thing feel free to swap it back out, or have both. I liked the color the carrots added.  I used 1 1/2 large onions and used the leftover half for the gravy. I also didn't have any fresh parsley so I didn't add it. It was fine without, but would be tasty with. 

Adapted from: roxanne's recipe at Food.com

Vegan Gravy*

• half a large onion, minced
• 1/4 cup Earth Balance
• 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• Pacific Foods mushroom broth (or 2 cups veggie broth)
• 1 tsp rosemary
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp sage 
• salt & pepper

1. Sautee onion in Earth Balance on medium-low heat for 10 minutes. 
2. Mix in flour to make a roux and stir constantly for 5 minutes, or longer as desired, until it's well combined into a smooth paste/thick sauce
3. Slowly add 2 cups broth while stirring (whisk recommended) 
4. Add spices and salt & pepper to taste
5. Simmer on medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Reduce heat if it's really boiling, a low simmer is ideal. 
6. Reduce heat to lowest heat and let sit until ready to serve, stirring occasionally. Add water if it's thickened too much. Serve hot! 

*this is an approximation of what I made up on the fly without measuring. You can cook the onions longer to caramelize them more. Also, you can do a white roux in five minutes, or you can keep cooking/stirring to get a golden or darker roux. Just add the broth when it starts to stick or seems like it will burn. As for cooking time, with the Voltron Thanksgiving it ended up sitting on low heat for an hour, and was fine, though I did have to thin it.

'via Blog this'

Christmas Eve hors d'oeuvres

My family tradition is a dinner of hors d'oeuvres on Christmas Eve. All the rich, heavy, trashy things you have to moderate at parties are suddenly unlimited and in excess. It's a great celebration and it keeps you full until late the next morning when either the cinnamon rolls or breakfast casserole are done.

The past several years I've been making vegan equivalents of a few dips so I can have something, as the usual offerings are heavy on the meat, cheese and sour cream. My standards are: 1) hot cheeze dip: Follow-your-heart cheddar mixed with half a can of Rotel (chopped tomatoes + jalapenos/green chiles) and melted on the stove, to be eaten with tortilla chips; and 2) onion dip: instant onion soup/dip mix with a container of sour supreme. I'm usually fighting for a corner of the kitchen and begging for rides to the 'hippie' store so my options are generally limited.

This is the first year ever I haven't been with my family for Christmas, so to keep me from getting too sad about it I decided to host my own Christmas Eve hors d'oeuvres party with friends.

It was a great success! As the only vegan I was only concerned with feeding myself, and everyone else was welcome to bring their favorites. Friends brought veggie plates, fruit plates, cheese plates, crackers, spiced nuts, walnut spread, baguettes, cookies, beer, wine and bourbon to spike the rice nog. It ended up being an impressive spread and a lot of fun, as we sat down to watch Die Hard and munched on Chex Mix.

Grace made My New Roots' Warm Cabbage Salad (the goat cheese was in a bowl on the side). It was delicious and I'm having the leftovers alongside some wonton-wrapper-perogi and caramelized onions for dinner this week.

In addition to all of the above, I made a hot spinach artichoke spread/dip. I tend to make variations on this often, usually without the dip mix and cream cheeze, but added both for the special occasion. Half a can of coconut milk instead of the cashew cream will still add a nice creamy, smooth consistency without actually tasting of coconut.

Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip/Spread

• 1/4 cup raw cashews
  
• 2 garlic cloves
  
• 1 can cannellini beans (white beans), drained & rinsed
  
• 1 tsp miso paste mixed into 2 Tbsp water
  
• 1 tsp lemon juice
  
• 1 package Simply Organic spinach dip mix
  
• 1 tsp basil flakes
  
• 1 can artichoke hearts, drained
  
• 1 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed & squeezed (optional)
  
• black pepper
  
• 1 package Tofutti Cream Cheeze
  
• 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)

1. Soak the cashews in enough warm water to cover them, at least 30 mins but several hours/overnight is better.
   
2. Preheat the oven to 350F. Put cashews and the soaking water, plus garlic cloves, in food processor and liquefy until it resembles (stinky) heavy cream. This may take 5-10 minutes of processing and pauses to scrape the sides and the paste off the bottom. A little 'grit' is fine.
   
3. Add beans, miso and juice and process. Add water as needed to thin enough for beans to process (hummus consistency).
   
4. Add dip mix, basil flakes, artichoke hearts, and thawed/squeezed spinach. Process until mixed.
   
5. Add the cream cheeze, nutritional yeast, and black pepper to taste. Puree until smooth. If the mixture is too thick for the processor, dribble in water.
   
6. Pour dip into a shallow baking dish (oval or 8x8") and bake until the edges begin to brown, about 20 minutes.
   

Vegan Gluten Free Chex Mix

• 1/2 cup of margarine
  
• 4 1/2 tsp of Worcestershire sauce (see recipe below)
  
• 1 1/4 tsp of season salt
  
• 2 2/3 cup of Rice Chex
  
• 2 2/3 cup of Corn Chex
  
• 2 2/3 cup of Honey Nut Chex
  
• 1 cup salted mixed nuts

1. Preheat oven to 250F.
   
2. Pour the cereals and nuts into a clean paper grocery bag, fold over the top and shake well until mixed.
   
3. In a large baking pan (8x13 is usually tight, a roasting pan is great), melt the margarine either in the preheating oven or on two stove burners on low heat.
   
4. Mix sauce and salt into margarine and stir.
   
5. Pour cereal/nut mix into baking dish and mix with the margarine, flipping and stirring to coat as much as possible.
   
6. Bake for 60 minutes, stirring every 10 or 15 minutes.
   
7. Store in paper grocery bag in the freezer.
   

Vegan Gluten Free Worcestershire Sauce
adapted from this recipe

• 6 Tablespoons water
  
• 4 Tablespoons wheat-free tamari or soy sauce
  
• 2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  
• 4 TBSP of regular molasses + 1 TBSP water (or 6 TBSP brown rice syrup)
  
• 1 teaspoon blackstrap molasses
  
• 1/4 tsp tamarind paste (optional)
  
• 1 teaspoon powdered ginger
  
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
  
• a pinch of onion powder
  
• a pinch of powdered cloves or pumpkin pie spice

1. Pour all ingredients in a jar with a tight lid and shake well until mixed. Store in fridge and use measure-for-measure to sub for regular Worcestershire sauce, or add a little extra of this. Shake well before using.

Happy Festivus!

Wild Rice Pilaf (Hunger Games)

So I'm in this Book Club that my friend Grace started. It's all girls and we have had some pretty excellent discussions, both about books and Big Important Things. Mostly I joined to get me reading again, which in a sort of post-traumatic way I stopped doing after grad school.

ANYHOO we've been doing potluck book discussions and since the Hunger Games, as you can infer from the title, deals a LOT with food, it was themed around the hearty foraged foods in the book. The party was a feast - leek and potato soup, two hearty veggie stews with mushrooms, root veggies, kale, peas, carrots, etc. Several rounds of goat cheese, some wrapped in herbs, with crackers. Venison meatballs (these last two, I did not partake, obvs). Homemade tomato jam, homemade berry jam on fresh home-baked wheat bread, red cabbage and apple slaw, wild greens salad with edible flowers, caramel corn with pepitas, and mulled wine. My contribution was wild rice pilaf - I tried to base it off of one recipe but I kind of messed it up and didn't have some of the ingredients, so I added a bunch of white jasmine rice that I made just in case and it came out perfectly.

I'm also going for low salt due to my blood pressure so you might need to add more salt, especially if you use no-salt broth or water.

3/4 cup (6 oz) wild rice
4 scallions
1 tablespoon oil
2 cups or more broth (I used imitation chicken flavoring + water)
1 cup white jasmine rice
2 cups frozen baby peas
8 mushrooms (6 large, 8 med or 12 small)
2 tablespoons oil
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped or sliced almonds, toasted (see step 4)

Directions

1. Wash the rice thoroughly, changing the water several times. Cut off the green parts of the scallions and set aside. Chop the white part of the scallions fine.
   
2. Heat oil in a large saucepan. Add the minced white scallion and saute until tender. Add the rice and two cups broth. Bring to a boil, stir once and reduce the heat. Cover tightly and cook over low heat until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed, about thirty-five minutes. If necessary add more broth as the rice cooks. (Note - it took me about 45 minutes for the rice to cook, so leave extra time).
   
3. In a separate pot, prepare jasmine rice according to directions (usually: rinse rice, boil 1 1/2 cups of water, add rice and stir, bring to a boil, reduce heat & cover, simmer 10-15 minutes, let sit off heat for 5-10 minutes).
   
4. Meanwhile, slice the almonds and lightly toast them. Cut the green scallion stems diagonally into two-inch lengths. Cut the mushrooms into thin slices.
   
5. Five minutes before the wild rice is done, heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the scallion stems, peas, mushrooms, and almonds and saute only until the mushrooms are tender and peas are hot.
   
6. Transfer both of the cooked rices and vegetable mixture to a casserole. Add salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle with toasted almonds. Mix lightly and keep hot for serving in a very low oven.
   

The next book club selection is a local Seattle food blogger (she owns Delancey -fancy pizza- and is known on the 'net as Orangette): A Homemade Life. It includes several recipes, but I'll be hosting it the day after Thanksgiving so we'll just have leftovers. Simplicity!

99% Curry

I was going to title this "Curry for Poor People" but decided to be TIMELY instead.

This took about 45 minutes, start to finish, with cheap & frozen ingredients. I got the tofu on sale for a buck a pound. I buy onions, frozen veggies, oil and rice in bulk from Cash & Carry. Curry paste, coconut milk & garlic from the Asian grocery up the street. Probably a total of $5 or $6 for the portions of ingredients used, so about $1.25-$1.50 for a meal.

This uses the Moosewood method of cooking short grain brown rice because it makes it a million times more awesome (separate grains with a firm bite rather than a ball of mush).

Curry pastes are different so see how much the package recommends for a pound of 'meat' or veggies, and use that. You can always add more if it's not tasty/spicy enough.

Makes 4 large servings.

5 tsp olive oil, divided
1 cup short-grain brown rice (or carb of choice)
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb frozen tofu
1 lb frozen veggies of choice
1/4 cup favorite vegan curry paste (I used panang)
1/2 can coconut milk

1. Defrost the frozen tofu in the microwave (2 turns of 5 minutes on low/defrost should do).
   
2. Wash the rice thoroughly. Heat 1 tsp oil in a medium or large pot over high heat. Add the rice and stir constantly for 1 minute. Add 2 cups of cold water. Stir and cover. When steam escapes from the lid, turn the heat off. Set a timer for five minutes. When the timer for the rice goes off, turn the rice on simmer and set a timer for 35 minutes.
   
3. Drain the tofu package, then squeeze the excess liquid out with your hands or between two small plates (no need to be gentle with the tofu, but don't break the plates). Cube the tofu.
   
4. Heat 2 tsp oil in a large sautee pan on medium heat, then add the tofu to the sautee pan and let sit for a few minutes. Start flipping the tofu cubes over to check and see if they are turning golden brown, even lightly. If they are, start flipping the cubes over. Feel free to squash the water out. Once a few sides of the cubes are browned, set tofu aside on a plate for later.
   
5. In the same sautee pan, heat 2 tsp oil. Add onion and sautee until it starts to soften. Add garlic, sautee until fragrant. Add frozen veggies & stir. Add 1/4 cup of water, stir, and cover.
   
6. When the veggies start to boil, remove the cover and cook until veggies are softened/defrosted. Add curry paste & stir well. Add tofu, stir. Add coconut milk plus half a can of water (1/2 or 3/4 of a cup, depending on how thick your coconut milk is). Reduce heat to simmer, let cook for five to ten minutes depending on your patience.
   
7. When the rice timer goes off, turn off the heat and let it set for ten minutes. At this point, the curry and the rice should both be done. If the curry is too thin, cook for a few more minutes, uncovered. If it's too thick, add water.
   
8. NOM.
   

Vegan Southern-style meal, and why factory meat is terrible for everyone

This article covers a lot of ground about why people go vegetarian, or why spending more money on quality meat is important: How the meat industry turned abuse into a business model | Grist

I've said multiple times that I don't expect most people to go vegetarian, let alone vegan. What I would like to see is people buy better meat, less often. Spend the same amount of money, eat less meat, have that meat be delicious and healthy (for the animals, the workers, the environment, and you).

I figure the least I can do is offer some yum meatless meals for those who feel lost at the concept. Here's what I made the other night. It'd be perfect for a True Blood watching party, as it's vaguely Southern-style food.

Vegan Southern Greens

2 tsp cooking oil
1 medium onion, coarse chopped
1 TBSP minced garlic
2 LBS of washed, chopped greens (Collard, mustard or turnip greens, spinach, kale - any mixture works. Trader Joe's sells a big bag of Southern Greens that's perfect - use 2 in this recipe)
3/4 cup vegetable broth (sub water or wine, just add more salt)
2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
2 TBSP rice vinegar (sub: red or white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar)
salt & pepper to taste
Tabasco sauce to taste (optional)
2 tsp sesame oil, to finish (sub liquid smoke or smoked salt/paprika)

1. Heat oil in your biggest stew pot or wok on medium-high heat. Add onions & sauté until partially translucent.
   
2. Add garlic & sauté until fragrant.
   
3. Start adding handfuls of greens and mixing top-to-bottom. As they cook down, add more greens until they're all in the pot.
   
4. Add the broth and bring to a boil. Stir greens in broth until they're fully wilted (they should reduce by 80% or more).
   
5. Add the red pepper, vinegar, salt, pepper & Tabasco & stir.
   
6. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook uncovered for 30+ minutes, until the greens are tender but not falling apart.
   
7. Taste & add any extra seasonings as needed. Turn off the heat and stir in the sesame oil.
   

Serve with a slotted spoon. They'll be soupy, so either serve with something to soak up the broth or strain it for the next time you make rice or soup. While the greens were simmering, I made a box of Zatarain's Dirty Rice (Jambalaya would work) and in place of meat, drained, washed and mixed in a can of black beans and a can of black-eyed peas (sub kidney, garbanzo or white beans). I feel ok about using Zatarain's once in a while, because they're a New Orleans-based company and there's not too many sketch ingredients as processed food goes, but if you want you can make your own from scratch - I don't like TVP so I would still sub in beans.

Serve side by side with some limeade, sweet tea, bourbon or a mint julep and watch you some "vamperrs".

Menu for the last couple of days

For posterity!

Lentil Shepherd's Pie

I sort of made this up based on several recipes and didn't measure as I went along. Doing the best I can from memory. Serves 8? It's a lot of dense food. Tastes even better the next day.

6 russet potatoes, cubed
2 tsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, roughly chopped
1 Tbsp minced garlic (3-4 large cloves)
2 cups frozen veggies (I used peas and corn)
1 Tbsp thyme
1 Tbsp paprika
1 tsp black pepper
3 cups cooked lentils
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil (or 1/4 tsp liquid smoke)
3 Tbsp margarine, plus extra
1/4 cup unsweetened plain soymilk, plus extra
salt and pepper to taste

1. Bring large pot to a boil and put potatoes in for 18-20 minutes, until a piece crumbles when you try to put a fork in it.

2. Meanwhile, heat oil on medium-high in a large pan. Sautee onions about 5 mins, until translucent. Add garlic and frozen veggies, cook 5 mins. Mix in spices, then add lentils and cook 5 mins. Reduce heat to medium-low and mix in soy sauce and sesame oil.

3. The potatoes will be almost done - CAREFULLY use a ladle to scoop out some hot water and add to lentil mixture. Keep adding until there is some spare liquid, enough to seem like a gravy. (You can also just dissolve 1/2 tsp corn starch in hot water instead.)

4. Preheat oven to 400.

5. When potatoes are done, drain well. Return to pot and immediately add margarine and soymilk. When the margarine melts, mash until there are no more lumps - if it seems dry, add splashes of soymilk and mix until you get the texture you want. Add salt and pepper to taste.

6. Pour lentil mixture into deep 2.5 quart casserole dish and top with mashed potatoes. Use a fork to draw lines in the top and dot with margarine (optional).

7. Bake for 30 minutes or until the top of the potatoes start to brown.

Strawberry Cobbler! Except I only had 6 cups of fresh strawberries (sliced) so I added 2 cups of frozen blueberries from last season. Oh, and went light on the sugar in the topping. I used a mystery flour (thanks Joni) so the topping looks different than the ones on the website.

Next up: Olive Lentil burgers as we have olives, lentils and mushrooms to use up.

vegancooking: Home-made REESE'S Peanut Butter Cups

vegancooking: Home-made REESE'S Peanut Butter Cups

YESSSSSS

Vegan Super Bowl Menu (Steelers!)

Well, it's a bit late now. Sorry Steelers, I guess you'll just have to be satisfied with SIX rings, for now.

I went a bit crazy pants with my food provisions.

Here was my menu:

• Pigs-in-a-blanket served with HEINZ ketchup (eff yeah) and 4 kinds of mustards
• Chips with a variety of salsas, including Steelers Black & Gold Salsa
• Potato pierogies with caramelized onions and applesauce (from Vegan Brunch)
• Crackers & TJ's hummus

Here's the recipe I'm using for the 'pigs':
V e g a n D a d: Vegan Bratwurst

But I changed a couple of things:
subbed 1/4 cup chickpea flour, plus some liquid, instead of mashing beans
instead of grinding dried mushrooms, buy some freaking mushroom powder, what a pain

I simmered them in a pan in some beer before I cut them into thirds and wrapped each piece in crescent roll dough (2 tubes). Baked at 425 for 20 minutes (check at 15, mine were a little burnt/dry). Next time I might aim for a Kielbasa center instead.

I got some black and yellow chips to mix together and serve with Black and Gold Steeler Salsa:

Black and Gold Steeler Salsa

1-1/4 cup Black Beans
1-1/2 cup Yellow Corn, thawed
1/2 cup Red Bell Pepper, finely chopped
1 Jalapeno Pepper, minced (optional) (I used a can of diced green chilies and a few shakes of Tabasco)
1/2 cup Balsamic Vinegar (I did more like 1/4 cup)
1/3 cup Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 tsp. Dijon Mustard
Salt & Pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients and let marinate at least 1 hour before serving.

Vegan Italian Sausage Recipe

via the Everyday Dish TV

Spicy Italian Vegetarian Sausages
Makes 8 links

2 1/4 cups vital wheat gluten
1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1/4 cup chickpea flour
2 tbsp Bills Best Chik’Nish Seasoning (if using another brand which is salty, or saltier than Bill’s Best, you’ll want to greatly reduce the amount you use)
2 tbsp granulated onion
1 to 2 tbsp fennel seed, optional
2 tsp coarsely ground pepper, preferably freshly ground
2 tsp ground paprika
1 tsp dried chili flakes, optional
1 tsp ground smoked paprika
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground allspice
2 1/4 cups cool water*
6 to 8 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp soy sauce

1. In a large bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients. Whisk together the water, garlic, olive oil and soy sauce and using a fork, gently stir into the dry ingredients. Stir just until ingredients are mixed. If dough mixture is too dry, you can add another tablespoon of water or as needed.
2. Scoop 1/2 cup dough mixture at a time and shape into logs. Place logs on piece of aluminum foil and roll up, twisting ends. Place sausages in steamer and steam for 30 minutes. Once sausages have cooled, remove from foil and refrigerate until ready to eat. After cooling, the sausages may feel a bit dry on the outside. Don’t worry, as they will soften and firm up considerably after chilling.

Variation: You can shape the dough into little patties instead of links. If you don’t want to use aluminum foil, you can wrap the links in damp muslin or tea towel and tie ends with cotton twine.

***************

There was exactly a 1" strip of aluminum foil left in the box (WTF?!) so I tried it with cheesecloth. What a freaking pain that was. We'll see if they explode or not.

***
Edited to add: This recipe is GREAT. Easier and definitely better texture than the last time I tried - I think it's using chickpea flour instead of mashing the beans. The cheesecloth worked but is a pain in the ass to take off - definitely wrap with wax paper or similar next time before putting the cheesecloth on. Or just use foil!

Vegan Thanksgiving

I may update this later with a post-mortem, but thought I'd go ahead and put all of my recipes in one place for selfish reasons.

This year I'm hosting and cooking 90% of the dishes for myself and 7 other people, one of whom is vegetarian. I'm paying extra for a $1.99/lb free-range fresh turkey rather than a $.39/lb frozen Butterball. My friend Tyler, who lives a few blocks away, has graciously offered us the use of his Big Green Egg to smoke the sucker, which will leave our oven free and generally be less of a hassle.

Other than that, I picked up a lentil-sage and a wild-mushroom Field Roast as the protein since I'm making lots of stuff. A chopped salad with romaine hearts & assorted veggies, choice of dressings; basic mashed potatoes (Yukon gold + soymilk + margarine + salt & pepper); Pillsbury crescent rolls, and canned cranberry sauce. Approximating the stuffing recipe on the back of the bag, 1 with turkey juice and 1 vegan with pecans and apples.

Pre-dinner noshes will be Safeway salsa + chips, assorted veggies & dip (dressing or I might make a hummus or onion/tofu dip), leftover cheese and crackers.

Others are bringing a lemon cream pie, pfeffernusse cookies and fresh cranberry sauce.

Here are my recipes for everything else:
Gram's Cranberry Sherbert
4 cups fresh cranberries
2.5 cups water
1.5 cups of sugar
Juice and zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon.
1 teaspoon of gelatin (I used 2 teaspoons of vegan cherry-flavored jel dessert)

1. Cook berries in water until berries stop popping and strain into pot, saving juice.
2. Using food mill or a fine metal sieve, a flat metal spoon and a lot of effort, smash the pulp out of the cranberries into the pot, keeping the skins out.
3. Add sugar, cook on low until dissolved.
4. Add gelatin; cool.
5. Stir in juice and zest.
6. Pour into freezer tray.
7. Beat with mixer 2 days prior to serving, refreeze and serve on Thanksgiving.

Evangeline's Brussels Sprouts, Apples and Walnut Salad
I sliced the sprouts in half and steamed them (I cooked mine for too long, they should be just underdone). Then I pan-seared them in olive oil and a couple cloves of crushed garlic, really letting the sliced sides get crispy. Just before removing them, I stirred in some maple syrup (1 tsp? 1 tbsp? a little goes a long way) and removed them from the heat before the sugar burned too much. Actually, it got pretty smoky. Good luck. I added chopped fresh apple (I used half a medium-sized apple, something tart, sweet and crispy but I don't remember what kind) and walnuts pan-roasted with a pinch of salt and a little maple syrup. I can't remember if I added shallots, but they would be good in this. I made a dressing out of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, lots of thyme, a pinch of cumin, 1-2 tsp of brown deli mustard and something sweet, either a tablespoon of honey or maple syrup again, I'm not sure which.

Praline Topped Sweet Potatoes
3 one-pound cans of yams in light syrup, DRAINED
1/2 c. margarine, melted
1/2 c. cashew cream (equal parts raw cashews to water, blended)
2 Tbsp milled flax seed mixed with 1/2 cup water (i.e. 2 large eggs)
1 c. firmly packed light brown sugar
3/4 c. chopped pecans
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. vanilla

1. In a food processor, puree yams with 6 Tbsp. margarine and 2 Tbsp. cashew cream.
2. Add flax/water and 1/2 c. brown sugar, process until blended.
3. Pour into 2 qt. baking dish.
4. Preheat oven to 375.
5. In a small saucepan, combine remaining ingredients EXCEPT for vanilla. Bring to boiling, simmer 5 mins.
6. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla.
7. Spoon mixture over potatoes.
8. Bake 20 minutes or until bubbly.
Serves 6-8.

Vegan Pumpkin Pie
(adapted from this recipe
9" store-bought graham cracker crust (because pssssh)
2 cups canned pumpkin or puréed home-cooked fresh pumpkin (see note)
1 cup low-fat soymilk or rice milk
3/4 cup granulated sugar cane syrup
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 Tbs. dark molasses or to taste
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground allspice

1. Preheat oven to 425F.
2. In large bowl, mix all remaining ingredients until smooth and blended. Pour into prepared crust and smooth top. Bake 10 minutes.
3. Reduce oven temperature to 350F; bake until filling is set, about 50 minutes. Set on wire rack to cool, then refrigerate overnight. Top with your choice of dessert topping if desired.

Brussels Sprouts with Dijon and Balsamic Vinegar

I've been trying to nail down different ways to do Brussels Sprouts. The vaguely Chinese-style is pretty easy (minced garlic, ginger powder, soy sauce, sesame seeds, maybe some rice vinegar or cooking sherry), but I really like Balsamic with them, too. I was aiming for vaguely French-inspired, although I don't do much French food since it doesn't play well with veganism as far as I can tell.

Trader Joe's Brussels Sprouts in the microwaveable bag (1 lb.)
2 large shallots, thinly sliced
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Sea salt
Dijon mustard
Cooking sherry
Black pepper
Fresh thyme

1. Microwave sprouts for 4 minutes, with a piece of bread to absorb a little of the ass-smell. Cut in half, lengthwise.
2. Heat 2 tsp olive oil in large pan on medium-high heat. Add shallots and sautee until they begin to brown.
3. Add sprouts and sautee until they begin to steam. Add a healthy splash of balsamic - 2tsp, maybe 1 TBSP. Sprinkle with 3 or 4 pinches of sea salt.
4. Cook about 5 minutes, then add about 1 tsp of mustard and a couple of healthy splashes of cooking sherry.
5. Stir well and cook for 2 more minutes. The vinegar, sherry and mustard should make a sort of paste that clings to the shallots and coats at least part of the sprouts. If it's too thin, keep cooking it down; if it's too thick, add more sherry.
6. Remove from heat, grind some pepper on top and tear the leaves off of a few sprigs of thyme. You don't need too much. Stir together and serve immediately.

When working isn't a problem

Things have taken off, and my schedule has stabilized. This may be, in part, due to roommates waking up insanely early even on the weekend to go showshoeing and mountain climbing and other alien pursuits. Also this cold hasn't helped, I've been waking up before my alarm from the sound of my tongue cracking (since my nostrils don't work).

The thing I am still having trouble with is getting things done around the house, and sticking to an exercise schedule. My new thought is that if I have fun new video games to play, it will get me down in the exercise area and function as a non-food reward (those are hard to find). Of course I can't afford to buy new games so instead I made a small investment so I can do a little h4x0ring. Stay tuned.

The other day, when the pantry was a bit bare, I decided to try cooking up some of this grain mix that's been sitting around forever. It's a combination of Trader Joe's harvest grains mix, some buckwheat groats, and assorted unknown dried beans, legumes and grains. Possibly rice? Who knows. Here's what it looks like:

 

So I cooked it up with some Italian spice blend (no salt when cooking lentils) and it came out tasting like mashed ass. After that initial disappointment, I decided it was a perfect time to make some burgers to freeze for quick protein. Lately my joints have been extra achy and my brain malfunctioning what with the cold, so I decided I might be low on Omega fatty acids. Hence this recipe:

Omega Burgers
Makes 10+ burgers depending on how big you make them. 

1 cup walnuts
4 cloves garlic
6 green onions, white parts only
3 cups mixed, cooked grains
1/4 cup ground flax seed
2 TBSP soybean oil (aka vegetable oil)
2 TBSP soy sauce
1/4 can beer
1/2 C chickpea flour (or other flour)
1/2 C cornflake crumbs (or breadcrumbs or panko)
olive or vegetable oil
season salt
black pepper

Combine walnuts and garlic in a food processor and run until fairly well chopped. Add green onions and puree. Scrape the sides and add grains, flax, oil, and soy sauce. Process until it starts to freak out or a large clump starts circling, then slowly pour in beer until it has a paste-like texture. Scrape into a bowl and mix in chickpea flour and cornflake crumbs, adding more beer if it becomes too thick to work, or more flour & crumbs if it's too wet. You're aiming for something that you can shape into a patty in your hand that sticks together, but doesn't stick too badly to your hand. 

It'll look about like this (note I used Busch Lite because it's not like I'm going to be drinking it or anything):

You can either panfry these or bake them. Panfried are squishy in the middle, but have a nicer color and a crisp crunch.

To bake, preheat oven to 400 (or maybe 425, I had them at 375 and it was too low). Brush a baking sheet in olive oil. Shape burgers by about a 1/3 to 1/2 cupful in your hand. You can squash them flatter on the baking sheet. Brush the tops with olive oil and shake on a dash of season salt and grind some fresh pepper on the tops. Mine looked like this:

Bake for at least 20 minutes and keep checking until they're firm, starting to brown on the bottom and hopefully will release easily from the sheet. It might take longer so adjust times/temps accordingly.

For panfrying, cover a plate with paper towels or torn pieces of a paper bag. Heat a skillet on medium heat and add enough vegetable oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Drop in a burger (I did mine one at a time but you can be daring and try more), and cook a few minutes until you can see the bottom edge starting to brown. Flip and cook the other side for a minute or two and cook until it's as brown as you like. Here's about the color after the first flip:

Put the cooked burgers on the paper-covered plate to absorb the extra grease. Use the leftover oil to caramelize onions, if you like.

I had mine with caramelized onions, salsa and avocado, or the next day with some ketchup and mustard on a cracked wheat sourdough roll. Both are good.


If you have a dog that does well with onions and garlic (they can be toxic), or you leave those out, get the dog to clean your hands for you:

Thanks Lulu!

Blueberry Almond Scones

Joni accidentally opened an extra box of soymilk, so I thought I'd make some scones. Of course in our house, we call them sconces - back in my Starbucks days there were a few customers who were unaware of the difference between pastries and home decor. I can't find my copy of Vegan with a Vengeance for some odd reason so I had to use my google-fu, and altered this recipe to match my ingredients.

Cherry Almond Scones

1 C. All-Purpose White Flour
1 C. Whole Wheat Flour
1⁄2 C. Turbinado/Raw Sugar
2 t. Baking Powder
1⁄2 t. Baking Soda
1⁄2 t. Kosher Salt
1⁄4 C. Margarine
1⁄2 C. Soymilk (plain or vanilla)
1 t. Vanilla Extract
3⁄4 C. Fresh or Frozen Wild Blueberries
1⁄2 C. Slivered Almonds
Extra Soymilk and Sugar, for topping

1. Preheat the oven to 400º.

2. Mix together the flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the margarine and cut into the flour mixture using a pastry cutter (two butter knives held together) or your fingers, until the mixture resembles a coarse, crumbly meal.

3. Add the soymilk, almond extract, blueberries and almonds. Mix well with a wooden spoon or your hands until the mixture comes together to form a dough. You may need to add an extra tablespoon of soymilk if the mixture is too dry.

4. Scoop the scones in approximately half-cup mounds onto a cookie sheet and press the tops flat; round the edges if needed.

5. Brush the tops with a bit of soymilk (I used my fingers) and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until the edges and bottom are golden. Place scones on a plate to cool.

Makes 9.