Food I've Been Eating Lately

I have a few posts that are still in draft form and a couple of recipes that need to be refined before sharing, so I thought I'd offer you some food porn today. Enjoy!

Thanksgiving 2009 - We followed this recipe for the tofu and gravy. Yum!

Rachael Ray Redux

Off-the-cuff Mexican-type casserole with a mole-like sauce - I'm going to play around with this one some more. I really liked it and the kid LOVED it.

I used to love eggs in a basket and my son still does. We had tofu in a basket for breakfast on Christmas Eve and plan on making it a tradition.

Christmas dinner 2009 - My sister and I made potato kale burritos with mole sauce, and as she so astutely proclaimed, chocolate is always a good choice for dinner! (Or something like that.)

Have you heard of the Texan "treat" called armadillo eggs (or atomic buffalo turds)? My dad recently told me that he had made a ton of them over the summer and I immediately started worrying about his blood pressure and general coronary health. I told him I would try and come up with a vegan version of this truly offensive dish. I'm not there yet, but I did make these. Mini sweet peppers halved, seeded, filled with Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese, topped with an olive or mushroom and sprinkled with some Spike seasoning. I put them in a 325 degree oven for about 12 minutes. They tasted even better cold the next day.

Curry Thing

I could live the rest of my life eating nothing but curry. I prefer Indian curries, but never make them because they require ingredients that I'm either not familiar with or am intimidated by. Most of the curries I make at home utilize one of those bottled pastes or powders and coconut milk. Knowing that I love curry so much, I don't know why I hadn't made it in such a long time. So when my son asked for curry last night, I eagerly obliged. Yesterday we picked up our bi-weekly produce box. I used the potatoes, carrots and lovely red onion from the box along with some curry flavor Small Planet tofu. Yum. I had leftovers for lunch today.I don't know what I had planned for dinner tonight, but when Ben asked for curry again, how could I say no? Again I looked for inspiration in the vegetable crisper. This time I found celery, carrots and onions. (What's that French term for the trinity of these three aromatics? I've watched enough cooking shows in my life to know that these ingredients mean something together, I just can't remember what it is.) I threw in the rest of the tofu, more coconut milk and this time added a little tahini and some garbanzo beans. Looks like I'll have leftovers for lunch again tomorrow. There really aren't any major flavor differences between these two (or four) meals, but I don't care. That's how much I love curry.

I served a year as an AmeriCorps VISTA a few years ago and I had to go to a few three or four-day training conferences where we stayed overnight in another city. They always had the meals catered and much to my surprise, always had vegan offerings. On one of these trips, the first veggie meal served was a delicious peanut butter curry that was subsequently used in each of the following meals for the duration of our stay - even as a topping for baked potatoes! After day two, everyone was complaining, but I was in heaven. Food at a catered event like that can be iffy, even if it is vegan. But I feasted on delicious curry for the better part of that week.

More Soup!

We celebrated my mom's birthday on Sunday. Her has back was giving her trouble (she's not that old!) so we stayed in and made soup! We took the idea of Vegan Dad's Creamy Chunky Cauliflower Chowder and used it as a base. My mom wanted curried cauliflower soup, but my step-dad really doesn't like curry, so we made two batches. We added coconut milk to both, curry to one and went super savory on the other with lots of Dijon mustard. Vegan Dad's recipe is great to play around with and build on. The chowder takes a lot of prep, so it probably isn't a weeknight dinner, but it's totally worth the effort!


I had a great time cooking with my family and the soup was awesome! (In fact, I was so busy enjoying my dinner, I almost forgot to take a picture until it was almost gone.) My mom said it was better than anything she could have ordered out and was happy we stayed in. And it was all vegan! After dinner, we had some GF vegan chocolate cupcakes (a Cherrybrook Kitchen mix - meh) and watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

Happy birthday, mom!

Mushroom Dip Sandwiches

The past month has kept me pretty busy and because of that, I've neglected this blog. But I'm back with a recipe to share!

Growing up, French dips were my favorite sandwich. It was always a special treat when my dad took us out for lunch at the little cafe next to the repair garage that my mom and dad owned and operated. I always ordered the French dip. I loved the combination of textures, the warmth of the au jus and the act of dipping the sandwich that made the sandwich so much fun to eat. Something got me thinking of all that the other day and inspired me to come up with a vegan version of this forgotten love.

My step-dad and step-brother were working on my car yesterday and a home-cooked lunch seemed like the perfect thank you for their help. My mom helped me with the shopping and in the kitchen while the guys did their thing outside. Mushrooms were the obvious stand-in for the traditional roast beef, but the au jus took a little more thought. I wanted a mushroom broth, but the store we went to didn't carry any. I ended up getting a creamy portobello mushroom soup (Imagine brand) and it worked well enough. I realized today that one of those Not Beef bouillons would have been great, but there's always next time. Going beyond the traditional recipe, I spread some aioli on the rolls and melted some mozzarella (vegan for me, everyone else had the real stuff) over the mushrooms just before serving.

The sandwiches turned out great. My omni family loved them, even my veggie-suspicious step-brother and my step-dad insisted that I make them again. We made up a simple salad to accompany the sandwiches and we all left the table satisfied. This ones a keeper!

Aioli

You'll need:
(All measurements approximate)

4 T Vegenaise
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 - 1 t lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

Method:

combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. This has a very strong garlic flavor, adjust if needed.

Mushroom Dip Sandwiches

You'll need:

1 1/2 lbs mushrooms, sliced (I used 1 lb cremini and 1/2 lb portobello)

1 recipe aioli

4 oz. vegan mozzarella (I like Follow Your Heart)

4 French rolls (this is a great use for any leftover baguette!)

1 t olive oil

4 C your choice of broth for dipping, heated

salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Heat a large pan and coat in olive oil. Add mushrooms and saute until just brown. If using portobellos, grill slices (George Foreman or panini grill) until tender, about 8 minutes. If using fresh French rolls, slice them open and put them under the broiler until just brown while mushrooms cook - don't leave them in too long! To assemble the sandwiches, spread aioli on the rolls, divide mushrooms among rolls and top with mozzarella slices (top and bottom). Return rolls to broiler until cheese starts to bubble and brown (yes, FYH mozzarella will do that!). Portion broth into individual warmed bowls and serve alongside the sandwiches.

A Compassionate Commitment

My little sister decided to go vegetarian recently after watching "Earthlings". Of course, I have completely supported her decision and am so proud of her! We celebrated her 15th birthday yesterday. I made vegan cupcakes, but she made this: tofu inari. She found the recipe online and adapted it a little to use what was available in the house. The tofu is deep fried and then little bowls were scooped out of the tofu chunks and filled with the rice mixture and then it all goes in to the oven. Isn't it pretty? It was really tasty, too!

It can be so challenging to go veg*n as a teenager; you're dependent on someone else to provide your food and often can't be too "picky" about it. And then, there is the issue of school lunches. The schools are required to give each student a serving of meat on their tray if they eat a school lunch - even if that student requests not to have it and ends up just throwing it away or giving it to someone else.

However, if you have the desire, determination and compassion, you can go veg*n at any age. There are a ton of resources on the web (I won't list them here, as a quick search of the key words will generate numerous information), and several books on the issue. I heard about a book called Generation V on a Vegan Freak Radio podcast a little while ago. I haven't read it, but it is all about going vegan as a teenager. And it was written by a teenager.

I'm just so proud of my sister's compassionate commitment - and her cooking skills!