Monday, September 26, 2011

Crispy Quinoa Cakes and delish Waffles



This was another Vegetarian ones recipe that I wanted to try but it was not vegan. I didn't have any spinach either so added zucchini instead. I basically re-created the entire recipe so it hardly resembles the original. The results were tasty - lacking only a sauce to top the crisp parties with. They were a bit dry on their own. I made up some remoulade to send with the cakes in my husband's lunch tomorrow. Weshall see how that tastes!

Crispy Quinoa Cakes
2 cups cooked quinoa
2 T flour
1 1/2 T tahini
1 1/2 t apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup grated sweet potato
1/2 cup shredded zucchini
1/4 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup smoky cheese (see recipe in smoky grilled cheese post)
1 t minced dried onions
1 T chopped cilantro
1/4 t garlic powder
1 t salt

Preheat oven to 400. In a bowl, combine all ingredients. Form large spoonfuls into patties. Place on greased cookie sheet. Bake for 25 min or until golden.



I love waffles! I always have. I recreated a recipe from Better Homes and Gardens to fit our veganizing lifestyle. Super yummy!

Perfect Vegan Waffles
1 1/4 cups flour
3/4 wheat bran
1 T baking powder
replacement for 2 eggs (I used EnerG)
1/2 t salt
2 cups soy milk
1/3 cup oil

Mix dry ingredients. Mix wet ingredients. Add wet to dry and stir well. Heat waffle iron and cook. Serve with a bit of butter and maple syrup or jam.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Homemade Apple Pie...Fresh Salad Wrap...New Menu

As I have mentioned in recent posts, I haven't had the time to do as much experimental cooking or new recipes since we have started our homeschooling journey - thus the great reduction in the number of weekly posts!Our current school unit is all about Apples, though, and I thought I would share the delicious recipe for the apple pie we made yesterday. Keith made his own mini-pie - both turned out fabulous! We used some of the apples we picked at a local orchard which made the experience even better!

Vegan Apple Pie (adapted from an Amelia Bedelia book!!)
1 double pie crust, uncooked
8 cups apples, peeled, cored, and sliced (we used Jonathons)
1/2 cup flour
scant 2/3 cup sugar
2 T lemon juice
1 t cinnamon
butter for dotting

Place half of rolled pie crust in 9in pie plate. Combine apples, flour, sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon and toss until well coated. Pour into prepared pie crust. Dot with vegan butter. Top with second pie crust and crimp edges to seal. Make 3-4 slits in top of crust for steam to escape. Bake at 400 for 40 min or until golden brown.




Yesterday I didn't have much in the way of leftovers for lunch so I threw together this wrap - super tasty and super easy! My kind of meal for sure! I enjoyed it with some delicious apples from our orchard outing on Monday. All I did was take a flour tortilla and spread about 3 teaspoons creamy dill dressing over the surface (see recipe below). I then took about 1/2 cup leftover salad (romaine, carrots, red pepper, celery, peas, and tomatoes) and sprinkled it on top of the dressing. I topped it off with half of a sliced avocado and folded it in half. Yum!


Creamy Dill Dressing
1/2 cup vegan mayo (I used homemade tofu mayo)
2 t dried dill
1/2 t garlic powder
1/4 t sea salt
3/4 t fresh cracked pepper
Combine all ingredients until well mixed.


I have revised my menu - I made the Spaghetti Con Salsa Fresca last night and though it was fine, it wasn't anything blog-worthy. I made the grilled tofu as well but forgot to take pictures. Basically my thought on that - grilled tofu is absolutely delicious! Turns out with a nice smoky flavor and chewy delicious texture - served with any sauce or rub, it's a winner

Friday, September 16, 2011

I started a post a while back and never got around to finishing it! So, it is showing up as an "old" recipe and is below the most recent posts - check it out! It was super yummy :-)

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Smoky Grilled Cheeze Sandwiches

I was completely excited about trying this recipe - I got this book from the library and it has great pictures and recipes. This cheese is amazing! It is super easy and tastes delicious. My entire family - yes, including my 2 1/2 yr old and 5 1/2 yr old - loved this meal. An absolutely delicious vegan grilled cheese - not chewy like a normal grilled cheese but ooey and gooey and fabulous!

Great Smoky Mountain Cheeze (adapted from Vegan Diner)
1/2 cup water, divided
2 t agar powder
1 (12.3 oz) package silken extra firm tofu
1/4 cup plus 2 T nutritional yeast
3 T canola oil
1 1/4 t sea salt
1 t smoked paprika
1/2 t granulated garlic
1/2 t granulated onion
1/2 t regular paprika
2 T plus 2 t cornstarch

Combine agar and 1/4 cup water, wisk, and set aside. In separate bowl, combine remaining water and cornstarch, wisk and set aside. Combine remaining ingredients in food processor and whirl until smooth and silky. Add agar and cornstarch mixtures to food processor and whirl a few more times. Transfer mixture to saucepan and heat for 2-3 minutes for the agar to totally dissolve. Return mixture to your washed food processor and whirl for 20 seconds until completely smooth. Pour into a greased loaf pan. Place a piece of wax paper over the top of the cheese and lightly press down. This will prevent a skin from forming on top. Refridgerate until set. This can be sliced or spread.

Smoky Grilled Cheezy Sandwiches (adapted from Vegan Diner)
8 slices of french or sourdough bread (I used sliced Kaiser buns as I was out of sliced bread! Worked perfectly!)
Homemade Great Smoky Mountan Cheeze (see above)
1 large tomato
Vegan margarine

Take 2 slices of bread and spread margarine on one side of each slice. Spread 2-4 T cheeze over the unbuttered sides of the bread and top with tomatoes. Press cheeze sides together and place in a heated skillet. Cook until browned, flip, and brown opposite side. Enjoy

Friday, September 9, 2011

Cheesy Seitan Meetballs

These veg meetballs were an adapted version of a recipe I found in Vegetarian Times - the recipe was vegetarian but not vegan. Actually, I modified the recipe so much, it isn't really at all like the original but it at least started there! I wasn't sure if they were going to turn out but they actually were very yummy. Serve with spaghetti and pasta sauce for a tasty main dish (I forgot to take a picture of the original meal so this is a picture of the leftovers, not so pretty, but at least gives the general idea!)

8 oz. seitan (I used boiled seitan, pulsed in the food processor to make coarse crumbles)
1/2 cup nutty cheese, crumbled (I flavored mine with fresh basil - see recipe below)
1/3 cup panko
1/2 cup diced onion
1 T lemon juice
2 t flax seed mixed with 2 t water
1/2 t dill
1/2 t salt
1 T fresh minced parsley
1/2 t cumin
1/4 t baking soda
oil for panfrying

Combine all ingredients except oil in food processor and pulse until well mixed and a bit "squishy". Transfer contents to skillet and heat for 3-4 min (this allows the mixture to meld together and become a bit sticky in order to stick together into balls). Remove from heat and cool slightly - just until it is cool enough to handle. Form into balls and panfry until golden on all sides.

Nutty Cheese (Source: 500 Vegan Recipes)
1 oz agar agar powder
2 cups water
2 cups raw cashews, finely ground into powder
3 T lemon juice
2 T olive oil
¼ cup nutritional yeast
2 t fine sea salt
½ t onion powder
½ t garlic powder
Prepare loaf pan by spraying with cooking spray. Place the agar agar in water and bring to full boil. Boil for 5 min. Stir often to prevent boiling over. Place remaining ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Pour the mixture into the water-agar mixture and whisk until creamy and smooth. Quickly pour into oiled loaf pan and refrigerate until set.

Chorizo Pasta

I bought some Soy Chorizo at Trader Joes and have been itching to try it. I couldn't find a recipe I wanted to try so I came up with one on my own. This turned out quite yummy. The chorizo is a definite score - no funny faux meat taste.

Chorizo Pasta
3/4 cup crumbled soy chorizo
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves minced garlic
1 T oil
1 can corn
1 lb penne pasta, cooked according to package instructions
2/3 cup marinara sauce
1/2 t salt
2 t chili powder

Heat oil in skillet. Add onion and garlic and cook until golden. Add chorizo and cook until browned. Add corn, salt and chili powder. Cook until heated through. Toss cooked pasta with marinara sauce. Add chorizo mixture to pasta and toss. Serve.

Monday, September 5, 2011

Colorful Dilled Potato Salad

I haven't done a good job of making the items on my posted menu - my hubby has been working an insane amount of hours and I haven't been cooking anything too fun most days! Just simple, fast meals. I have posted a new menu though, with a couple added items. I did make the Herby Polenta and it was ok but not blogworthy. I have made a few standby favorites (Chick-un Tacos, Taco Salad) but nothing new to blog about. However, I did make a potato salad yesterday to serve at our Labor Day festivities today and it turned out really yummy. We are headed to my parents' today to join up with my sister and family for a day of BBQ and fellowship. On our menu: Grilled Tofu, Dilled Potato Salad, Fruit Salad, Succotash, and Vegan Chocolate Cake. Yum!

Colorful Dilled Potato Salad
4 med-large potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
3/4 cup chopped peppers (I combined red, yellow and green)
1/3 cup sliced olives
1/2 cup petite peas, thawed
1/2 cup vegan mayo
1/4 t garlic powder
1 t salt
1/2 t dried dill
1/2-1 t fresh cracked pepper

Combine dressing ingredients (mayo through pepper). In a bowl, combine veggies and toss with dressing.

Have a great Labor Day!

Crispy Herbed Potato Stack

Crispy Herbed Potato Stack
I was going to try a recipe for herbed scalloped potatoes and at last minute decided to do something fast and easy. I made up the recipe and it was yummola! I layered sliced russet potatoes in a baking dish, drizzled with olive oil, and then sprinkled with coarse sea salt, fresh ground pepper, basil, rosemary, paprika, and garlic powder. Then I baked them at 425 fr about 45 minutes. They were crisp and very flavorful!

My thrown-together salad today - after discovering I had no leftovers for lunch!

Tamale Fixings

Tamale Fixings
Plain pintos (for Keith), pintos, corn and onions; corn, jalepenos and Daiya; mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes, and chard

Making these was a bit time-consuming but kinda fun! They didn't turn out as good as I had hoped - the outer tamale part (not the filling) just wasn't as flavorful as tamales I have had in restaurants. I have another recipe I will try for the dough next time. Tamales are one of my favorite foods so I won't give up on this one!

"Buttermilk" Blueberry Pancakes

"Buttermilk" Blueberry Pancakes
I modified one of my favorite pancake recipes to make it vegan and then I added blueberries. Turned out quite yummy. Soymilk sours and thickens well - very similar to buttermilk. I have been really impressed with it's ability to substitute for real buttermilk.

"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 and Seitan Lo Mein

Veggie and Seitan Lo Mein
Overall, this was fabulous! However, I don't think the seitan added much so I would just leave it out next time. The lo mein also needed about double the sauce so I would simply do that next time for added flavor. This was especially spicy and yummy with some Sriracha drizzled on top. I made our favorite veg egg rolls to go with this and it was truly a Chinese treat!!

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

Chinese Broccoli Wontons in Ginger Soy Broth
Pretty yummy. I found that steaming the wontons worked much better than the recipe suggestion to boil them. The broth was very mild and a bit too mellow for us. Still pretty yummy though. I added extra veggies to the wontons and scallion to the broth. The seasoning in the wonton filling was quite tasty!

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.