Veganizing: Blueberry Muffins...Nacho Taco Salad...Smoky Chipotle Tempeh...Tofu Piccata

Monday, November 29, 2010

Blueberry Muffins...Nacho Taco Salad...Smoky Chipotle Tempeh...Tofu Piccata

I haven't been very good about keeping up on my recipes and pictures! Here are several new yummies!Recipes to come...

This blueberry muffin recipe turned out perfect! I veganized the Better Homes and Gardens recipe for muffins and added blueberries.Yum!

Blueberry Muffins
1 cup white flour
¾ whole wheat pastry flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 t baking powder
½ t salt
1 T flaxmeal mixed with 3 T water
¾ cup almond milk
¼ cup oil
1 ½ cups frozen or fresh blueberries

Combine dry ingredients. Separately combine wet ingredients. Fold wet ingredients into dry. Fold in blueberries. Distribute evenly into 12 muffin cups. Bake at 400 for 15-18 min.

I made the cheezee sauce from Vegan on the Cheap to accompany these nachos. The nachos were good overall, though I likely wouldn't make the sauce again. It was pretty strong in flavor. It was fairly good mixed with the other ingredients but just wasn't our favorite. I had some leftover "chicken" seitan that I pulsed into "grounds" and seasoned with garlic salt, cumin, and chili powder. I layered tortilla chips with the cheezee sauce, guacamole, salsa and seitan. Quite a yummy Mexican meal.

Cheezee Sauce (Vegan on the Cheap)
2/3 cup nutritional yeast
3 T cornstarch
1 1/4 t salt
1/2 t garlic powder
2 cups unsweetened soy milk
1 T olive oil
2 t lemon juice
2 t apple cider vinegar
1 t mustard

In saucepan, combine yeast, cornstarch, salt, and garlic powder. In separate bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Slowly whisk wet ingredients into dry over medium heat. Continue stirring until mixture becomes thick and hot.

I found this recipe in the Candle Cafe cookbook and modified it a bit. The recipe made a huge amount of marinade so I cut it in half. It was still more than enough sauce. I also decided to slice the tempeh and layer it on rolls rather than cutting it into burger-like shapes. I didn't marinate it overnight either but it was still really yummy. It was best when dipped in a pool of the marinade/bbq sauce. A bit spicy but not too hot. Unfortunately, we had grumpy kiddoes so I was in such a hurry to get dinner on the table that I forgot to take a pic until after we had already finished dinner and I was putting leftovers away! So, the pics aren't all that great of this meal but at least you have an idea of what the tempeh adn sauce look like!

I have been so pleased with making baked tofu - crusting it with panko makes for such a nice crisp coating without all the fat of frying. I saw a recipe for a lemon caper sauce served over tofu and modified it a bit and then crumb-coated and baked my tofu instead of using the method in the original recipe. I thought it turned out surprisingly well and the lemon-caper sauce was very piccata-like, thus the name I chose for this semi-made-up recipe!

Barbequed Tempeh-Chipotle Sandwiches (adpated from The Candle Cafe Cookbook)
1 t chipotle chili powder
1 minced garlic clove
1 1/4 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup coconut crystals or sugar
1/8 cup mustard
1/2 t dried basil
1/2 t sea salt
1 8 oz package tempeh
buns

Combine all ingredients except tempeh and buns in a ziptop bag. Mix well. Simmer tempeh in pot of water for 20 min. Add to marinade. Marinate for as long as possible (preferably a few hours but not necessary). Remove tempeh from marinade and slice into strips. Heat oven to 425. Place slices of tempeh on grill rack coated with cooking spray. Cook 5-7 min on each side. Place strips on buns. Heat remaining marinade and serve to the side.

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"Buttermilk" Blueberry Pancakes

Egg replacement for 1 egg
1 1/4 cups soured soy milk (put 2 T vinegar into a 2 cup glass measuring cup. Add enough soy milk to equal 1 1/4 cups)
2 T canola oil
1 cup flour (I wouldn't recommend whole wheat or whole wheat pastry - it really takes away from the fluffiness of these pancakes)
1 T sugar
2 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
Blueberries, optional

Mix dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and stir just until combined. Heat griddle pour about 1/4 cup batter for each pancake. Sprinkle blueberries on pancakes after ladling onto griddle. Cook just until golden on both sides.

Veggie Seitan Lo Mein

I really did my own thing for this recipe so I am just going to outline the instructions and include the sauce recipe. I heated oil in a large skillet and added 3 minced cloves of garlic and about 1 cup of half-moon cut onions (I was out of green onions but next time I would use green onions as I like them a lot in Chinese food) and about 1 cup matchstick-cut carrots. After about 5-6 minutes, I added about 1/4 lb of whole green beans. I cooked these veggies until tender. Meanwhile, I cooked a 16oz package of chow mein noodles. Once the veggie mixture was cooked, I poured the sauce on the veggies, heated through and tossed with the noodles. Next time I would double the amount of sauce and have adjusted amounts below to reflect double recipe.

Sauce (Source:Adaptable Feast)
3 T soy sauce
3 T rice wine (I used 3 T rice vinegar and 1 t sugar as I didn't have any rice wine)
3 t sugar
4 T black bean garlic sauce
Mix all ingredients and toss with above mixture.

Chinese Broccoli Wontons in Ginger Soy Broth (Source: Vegan Yum Yum)

(As usual, I modified several things so it's not exactly the recipe in Vegan Yum Yum!)

1 cup chopped broccoli
3/4 cup shredded carrot
1/2 cup chopped scallions
1 T oil
1 t fresh ginger, minced
1 clove fresh minced garlic
1/2 t hot chili sauce (such as Sriracha)
1 t hot Chinese mustard
2 T plus 1 t soy sauce
4 cups water ( I think this might have been more flavorful had I used vegetable broth or faux chicken broth???)
6 slices fresh ginger
1 T mirin (I used a splash of cooking wine as I didn't have mirin)
1 1/2 t sugar
2 t rice vinegar
1/2 t salt
1/2 cup chopped scallions
16 wonton skins

For filling: Heat oil in skillet and add broccoli, ginger, garlic, carrot, onion and cook until veggies are crisp tender. Add chili sauce, mustard, 1 t soy sauce and stir to combine. Remove from heat and set aside.

To make wontons, take one skin and place in diamond shape. Fill with 1-2 t filling. Fold in half to make a triangle and moisten edges with water and pinch sides to seal. Set triangle in front of you with point up and take the 2 side points and bring them together in front to cross. Set aside and prepare remaining wontons. When finished, place wontons in a steamer basket and steam over pot of boiling water until translucent.

Meanwhile, in a pot, combine remaining ingredients (except wontons) and simmer 10-15 min.

Place 3-4 wontons in bowl and ladle broth over wontons. Serve.

Pumpkin Bread

The vegan version!

1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/4 t baking soda
1 t salt
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t ground nutmeg
1 cup solid pack pumpkin puree
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup soured soymilk (add 1 T vinegar to your half cup measure and fill the rest with soymilk
egg replacement for 1 egg
2 T vegan margarine

Preheat oven to 350. Mix dry ingredients together and set aside. Mix wet ingredients and stir into dry until incorporated. Pour into greased loaf pan and bake 45-1 hr or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Whole Wheat Batter Bread

2 1/2 cups warm water
2 packages active dry yeast
1/4 cup honey (or agave)
6 cups whole wheat pastry flour
4 t salt
4 T non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening

Dissolve yeast in water. Add honey, half of flour, salt and shortening. Beat 2 min o med speed of mixer, scraping sides of bowl frequently. Blend in remaining flour until smooth. Scrape sides of bowl. Cover with damp cloth and let rise in warm place until doubled in size - about 30 min. Stir down by beting 25 strokes. Shape nad place in 2 greased 9in loaf pans. Smooth tops with floured hand. Let rise again for about 40 min. Bake in 350 degree oven for 40-45 min or until browned and cooked through.