Devil's Mess

This is our favorite brunchy thing to make when we have the time. Got all the ingredients fresh at the farmer's market this morning--'cept the tortillas, black beans & hot sauce. Oh, a squirt of lime, to keep away the scurvy!

This one's:

sweet potatoes

black beans

onions

garlic

banana pepper

radish

dill

cilantro

Gimme Lean veggie "sausage"

Ethiopian Food

I never thought we'd be able to pull this off. Living in a small town, we miss access to ethnic foods such as Ethiopian, so we decided to take the skillet into our own hands and make our own. The berbere (red pepper) spice was bought last time we were in Los Angeles--that big cup was just $5. The cookbook was bought from the same Ethiopian market there (Merkato). We didn't think ahead about the bread (injera) so just used wheat noodles instead. The lentil dish, potato dish and tomato salad were AWESOME!!! And tasted even better throughout the week. This was great, economically, too--we figured out that this got us about 6 meals for almost $1 each.

Spring Rolls

soak the rice wraps individually in warm water

spread on a clean towel & fill with rice noodles & whatever else you like (we did tofu, carrots, cucumber, mint & basil)

get an assembly line of friends to fill & wrap (note home made peanut sauce for dipping)

Voila--spring rolls! Dip, eat, repeat.

I've heard these called spring and summer rolls...but whatever they're called, they're easy & AMAZING! Our friends Annie & Steve showed up with many of the fixins and showed us how to do it. We got a little assembly line going, disproving the "too many cooks spoils the broth" theory and demonstrating that group cooking is lots of fun! We made 2 big batches of these babies. Not the best photos but we were too busy to be artsy.

What the heck is Caponata?

We had a gigantic eggplant from the farmer's market. We had some figs. What to do? After googling 'eggplant fig' we found this recipe and decided to try it. We followed it pretty precisely 'cept used red wine vinegar instead of white, and added a little banana pepper from our garden. Toasted some ciabatta and presto! Soooo sweet and savory and yummy. Seems like perfect party food and a good alternative to bruschetta.

Vegan Mac-n-Cheese

Baked version of the old favorite, using nutritional yeast, mustard, macaroni, Bragg's Amino Acids, paprika.

Thai Yellow Curry

The Mae Ploy yellow curry paste is vegan (watch out for the other ones--they have shrimp paste!) We got the paste at the local Asian market, mixed with coconut milk according to directions, and used local sweet potato & basil with onions, regular potato, tofu and bok choy for our veggies. Served over jasmine rice. Nice.

Chocolate Mousse Pie, Part 3

Yup, another version of our chocolate pie. You can never get enough chocolate pie. Notice the fresh chocolate mint, from our yard.

Mexican Lasagna

Aw yeah...a tasty casserole topped with trashy Fritos. The base is cornbread. From there we layered with refried beans, peppers, onions, and "taco filling" made by Fantastic Foods. The layers were separated by corn tortillas used like lasagna noodles. Topped it all off with a can of diced tomatoes, and added Fritos just before it was done baking (20 minutes at 350). After removing from oven and plating, of course each portion had to be smothered in home made garlicky guacamole. This is very hearty and we'll be eating it all week.

Mango Strawberry Smoothie

1 Fresh Mango

7 Fresh Strawberries

1.5 Frozen Bananas

OJ

Soymilk

Blender

Asparagus Risotto

This was made for a vegan pot luck dinner we went to Sunday night. 'Twas a hit. Shawna cooked the pasta just like I did with a previous risotto dish we posted earlier. I blended up EVOO with basil, spinach, flax seed oil, nutritional yeast, nutmeg, and pine nuts for the sauce. Then we stir-fried the asparagus until tender. 

Chocolate Mint Peanut Butter Smoothie

The picture is not nearly as exciting as the taste was. Rich is famous for his smoothies. This one had:

frozen bananas

soymilk

peanut butter

chocolate syrup

chocolate mint (fresh from the yard!)

Baby Pies

No, not pies of babies! Just little versions of the big ol' chocolate tofu pie we always make. Aren't they just cute enough to eat?

Kale and Potato Salad

It may not be the most gorgeous dish, but we did gorge on it. Kale from our friend Annie's garden was steamed and sprinkled with sesame seeds. Potatoes, sweet and regular, were roasted with a touch of olive oil, garlic, fresh oregano, basil, thyme, and rosemary. Mix it all together, splash a bit of soy sauce, and there you have a healthy lunch.

Beet Juice

Beets, carrots, lime, ginger. Ain't it beautiful? Tasted good, too.

Whole Enchiladas

Ok, these were heavily inspired by all of the good-looking Mexican food over at Veg*n Musings.
I'd never made enchiladas before, though I've loved many. Her recipes made me believe I could try to make my own. I forgot to add sauce on the bottom of the pan, so they were a bit dry, but I'll remember that for next time. Still, muy delicioso.

For the sauce, I roasted tomatillos, jalapenos, Anaheim peppers, and garlic before throwing them in a pot to simmer with tomato sauce, cinammon, and maple syrup. The insides of the enchiladas are black beans, onions, and bell peppers. Topped with pumpkin seeds. Saved leftover sauce. Threw a side-salad of lettuce, mango, and avocado together. And then we made the nut cheese.

Ew. I know. "Nut cheese" is not the best-sounding food item, but it serves as a cheesy/sour creamy substitute sometimes. There are tons of versions of this on the 'net and in raw foods restaurants, but ours is:

1/2 cup of cashew pieces (unsalted)
dash of Bragg's Amino Acids
1/4 cup of nutritional yeast
1/4 cup of water
1/2 teaspoon of agar-agar (vegan thickening agent)

Whip it up in a food processor and ole! Que rico!

Indian food: fresh and pre-packaged

We may not have a good Indian restaurant here, but we have a good Asian market and fresh veggies. Pappadoms (the big peppery cracker-like things) came from the Asian market. Jalfrezi sauce came from a jar bought at Harris Teeter. Channa Masala is from a package from Tidal Creek Co-Op. Samosas--lovely samosas--made at Tidal Creek. Lettuce from our friends Matt & Alison's yard. Lentils from our stash...can't remember where we bought 'em. Kale also from Tidal Creek--and it's locally grown, too. Everything turned out pretty good & we have tons of leftovers for lunches. Rode bikes to a movie after eating all of this...

Asian Collard Rolls

The American south meets the far east here. These turned out way better than I thought they would. These were inspired by the Collard Green Rolls we had once in New York at Red Bamboo but those were fried in a spring roll wrapper. We also just bought some daikon radishes at the farmer's market & didn't know what to do with them, so this helped the dilemma.

Here's what we used:

fresh collard leaves

onion

firm tofu, sliced into thin strips

daikon radish

carrot

sweet potato, chopped really small

sesame seeds

soy sauce

peanut oil

white pepper

Here's what we did:

Washed collards really well. Boiled the collard leaves for a few minutes while frying the sweet potato, onions, & pepper in peanut oil. Also fried the tofu in soy sauce and white pepper. Thinly sliced the radish & carrot, and set aside.

Removed collard leaves from water. Cut out bottom of stem. Scooped potato, onion, and tofu into center, placed carrot & radish stick in center, and rolled up like a mini-burrito. Place seam-side down in pan. Repeated until we ran out of stuff. Sprinkled w/sesame seeds. Baked at 350 for 10 minutes.

While that was baking, we made the peanut sauce:

peanut butter

dash of flax oil

hunk of ginger

lemon juice

lime juice

garlic clove

soy sauce

cayenne pepper

Put it all in a food processor, add water as needed, and blend to taste.

Strawberry Rhubarb Cobbler Crisp

There was a dinner party! We had to bring something! Fresh strawberries from Black River Organic Farm inspired this dish.

First we cut the rhubarb into little pieces, put it in a saucepan with some brown sugar & lemon juice, and carmelized the heck out of it. Added the strawberries, some cinammon, a teeny bit of grated fresh ginger, 3 drops of rosewater, and stirred until it was a batch of gooey goodness. Poured into a glass baking pan, and topped with crumble mixture made of: oatmeal, flour, Smart Balance margarine, brown sugar. Baked at 350 for 30 minutes. Cooled on windowsill so neighbors could follow the sweet smell, lifted by their noses, like in the cartoons.

Art-to-Choke Garlic "Cheese" Dip

Most vegan cheeses suck. We don't ever eat them. But I read somewhere that the new "Vegan Gourmet Cheese Alternative" by Follow Your Heart actually melts, plus we love the Follow Your Heart store & restaurant, so decided to test it out. The results were so delicious, we barely had time to take these pics. The "cheese" itself is kind of bland and tofu-like, and it doesn't have any of that weird soy after-taste many of these products have. And it did, indeed, melt; the dip was bubbling as I pulled it from the oven!

Here's what we used:
1 big marinated artichoke heart leftover from a salad bar
red cherry peppers
1 banana pepper
2 slices of green bell pepper
1 quarter of a clove of garlic
2 quarter-inch thick slices of Follow Your Heart Cheese Alternative, mozarella-flavored
tablespoon of olive oil
tablespoon of water
oregano & basil leaves from our garden
bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350. Mix everything except the breadcrumbs together in food processor. Pour into Pyrex or other baking dish. Bake for about 15 minutes. Top with breadcrumbs and bake a few minutes more. Remove from oven. Eat with someone you love.

Sweet sweet potato soup

Thanks to the farmer's market this past weekend, we had lovely soup, which was awesome on this rainy rainy evening.

2 sweet potatoes, quartered & baked
1 apple, cored, peeled and baked
garlic cloves, peeled and roasted
olive oil
onion
celery
carrots
lemon
garam masala
cumin
vegetable broth
mint (courtesy of our yard)

Roast potatoes, apple, and garlic at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. Allow potatoes to cool & remove skins. Simmer veg broth, onions, olive oil, celery, and carrots in a big pot. Blend potatoes, apple, garlic, and a bit of broth in a food processor. Add to soup pot. Add spices. Bring to boil. Add lemon zest. Add sprig of mint for garnish.

Sag Dal

Or Dal Sag? This was inspired by the recipe here
using Toor Dal and spinach instead of amaranth. Didn't have any chili peppers around so threw in some tomatoes and curried cashews.

Chocolate Mousse Pie

Between baking cookies for my students and making this pie for a Belle Brunch over the weekend, there has been a lot of chocolate in our house lately. Who said there's no such thing as a fat vegan?

This pie is our standard party hit. It takes:
1 block of silky soft tofu
1 bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips (check ingredients to make sure there's no whey in them)
1 dollop of maple syrup
1 graham cracker crust (if buying a pre-made one, check to make sure it's without honey)

This recipe's all in the timing. Melt chocolate chips in a microwave while blending the soft tofu 'til smooth in a blender. Quickly add melted chips to blender and blend before they cool (otherwise they'll harden and you'll get lumpy pie...or a broken blender). Add a dollop of maple syrup (Grade B for higher nutritional value) and blend some more. Pour into pie crust. Bake for 5 minutes at 325. Put in the 'fridge or freezer to cool for hours before serving. It should have a chocolate mousse or cheesecake consistency when done. Add your favorite fruit or nuts to the top. Amaze your friends and family. Don't tell them there's tofu in it until they ask you for the recipe--many people are prejudiced against tofu & have no idea it can taste this good.

brownies

Duncan Hines Chocolate Lovers' Walnut brownie mix is vegan! It calls for egg and milk to be added, but we used Egg Replacer & soymilk. The frosting is vegan, too. (Most frosting is just sugar & oil).

Lentil Salad

Trying to eat a salad each day. Black beluga lentils from Trader Joe's. (They're warm.) Produce from various places. Dried wasabi peas from the Asian market. Cute tile bowls from the Pampered Chef, courtesy of Maggie.

south Indian in the South

We got to go to Woodlands Pure Vegetarian Indian Restaurant in Charlotte this past weekend. The buffet & masala dosas can't be beat.

oatmeal chocolate chip cookies

Too tired to post the recipe, but damn, they're good. Want one?

smashed garlic potatoes, garlic asparagus, & strawberry spinach salad

Vegan mashed potatoes with garlic & a dash of flax oil (make the way you like best) + fresh asparagus braised in olive oil, chopped garlic, and lemon + spinach, tomato, red pepper, & strawberry salad topped with Organic Ville Sesame Goddess dressing = delicious spring dinner!

Mango Sticky Rice

This is the home-made version of my favorite Asian dessert that I've had at many Thai restaurants. I bought a package of Orchids Sweet Rice at a local Asian market. Sweet rice is a speciality variety of California rice that is glutinous. I loosely followed this recipe.

Start boiling 1 cup rice with 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup coconut milk. While sticky rice is boiling, mix together 1/4 cup coconut milk, 1/3 cup sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt and bring to a boil. Set aside to cool. Immediately after sticky rice is cooked, put it into the coconut sauce and stir together well. While keeping an eye on it, simmer until thick, sticky and kind of mushy. You may need to keep adding water if it gets too starchy or dry. For the topping, mix 1/4 cup coconut milk with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1 tablespoon sugar. Bring to a boil.

Put the sticky rice and mangoes on a serving dish. Pour the topping sauce over the sticky rice.

2008 Garden Stage 1

This is the beginning of our 2008 summer garden. We're going bigger and better that any we've done before. We just tilled it by hand this weekend. More photo are to come as the garden progresses. There's nothing like growing your own food.

Popeye Pesto Risotto

Adapted from a Rachael Ray recipe. We added basil and used Nutritional Yeast instead of parm. We substituted sun-dried tomatoes for the mushrooms. But we used mushroom stock. Our breath still smells like garlic. But it was worth it.

Persian Rice

Brought this to an oyster bake (since we weren't gonna eat any oysters) and everyone loved it! It's a made-up version of something we had a few times at an Iranian restaurant in California.

rice
lentils (French green ones cook quickly & have a pepper-y flavor)
onions
garlic
dried dates (or raisins)
dried cherries
almonds
tumeric
paprika
garlic
salt
pepper

Cook lentils and rice (as much as you want). On the side, fry onions, garlic, and spices together...then thrown in the fruits and carmelize. Mix all with the lentils and rice, add more fruit and nuts. The dates or raisins will get mushy and sweet and sort of melt into the dish. Sweet-n-savory. Yummmmmm.

Club Med

Our Mediterranean feast (most from the olive bar at Harris Teeter).

More Wraps

We were on a wrap roll. This time we added some bananas & soyrizo (vegan version of chorizo, a Mexican sausage).

Mexisouthern Wraps

A little bit of Mexico, a little bit of the southern US, a little bit of weirdness. Que rico! Muy bueno! You know it was good! Here's what we used:

fried sweet potatoes
fried potatoes
yellow bell pepper
onion
cooked kale
avocado
lettuce
tomato
Tapatio hot sauce
sea salt
pepper

Greens-n-Squash

Peanut sauce and greens recipe came from Ann Jackson's book, Heart of the Home. Mm-mm-mm.

Birfday Cake

Rich's mom made him a birthday cake yesterday! It was moist-n-delicious. Here's her recipe. And don't forget the love!

Easy Vegan Chocolate Cake:

3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
6 tablespoons cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups water (I used 1 cup juice from canned cherries and 1 cup water)
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare pan (I used a bundt pan).

Mix dry ingredients first. Once the mixture is even, well mixed, mix in wet ingredients. Continue mixing until you obtain an even batter (no lumps). Pour into a cake pan and bake for approximately 55 minutes.

Drizzle:

1 tablespoon margarine
1 tablespoon Hershey's cocoa
1 tablespoon water
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Microwave margarine in small microwave-safe bowl at MEDIUM (50%) 20 to 30 seconds until melted. Stir in cocoa and water. Microwave at MEDIUM 15 to 30 seconds or just until mixture is hot, slightly thickened and smooth when stirred. Do no boil.

2. Gradually add powdered sugar and vanilla, beating with whisk until smooth. If necessary, add additional water, a few drops at a time, until of desired consistency or add more sugar if needed. Be sure to whisk until smooth. About 1/4 cup glaze.

Devil's Mess Tacos

Named after a dish at LA diner, Millie's. But this version's vegan, of course. It's black refried beans, potatoes, jalapenos, cabbage, hot sauce, and avocados all on grilled corn tortillas. Muy bueno!