Breads, Cookies, and More!

I made a family favorite recipe - Chicken Divan - into a vegan meal a few months back and though it was yummy, it really didn't resemble the original. I decided to try again. This time, it was much closer to the original and very tasty. It is very similar to the way I made it last time but I used Gardein Crispy Tender instead of the Scallopini and instead of add it to the broccoli and sauce, I cooked it separately and topped the broccoli/sauce with the tenders when I plated the meal, preventing the "chicken" from getting soggy. Very yummy!

"Chicken" Divan Revamped
(this makes a small casserole dish - if you are having company, I would suggest doubling the recipe)
1/2 cup vegan butter
1/4 cup flour (plus more if sauce isn't thick enough - should be a thick white sauce)
2 cups unsweetened soy milk
4 t faux chicken boullion
2 t curry powder
3/4 cup Veganaise
1 package Gardein Crispy Tenders
3 cups blanched broccoli spears
Topping:
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 1/2 T vegan butter
1/2 t salt
1 t curry powder
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Whisk in flour to form paste. Slowly whisk in the milk, being careful not to let lumps form. Stir until smooth and bubbly. Add boullion and curry powder, stirring to incorporate. Remove from heat and stir in Veganaise. Set aside. Place Crispy Tenders on a baking sheet and cook according to package instructions. Remove from oven and cut into bite-sized pieces. Coat 9x13 casserole dish with cooking spray. Cover bottom of dish with broccoli. Pour sauce evenly over broccoli. Melt remaining butter. Add bread crumbs, salt and curry powder. Sprinkle mixture over casserole. Bake in 350 degree oven for 20 min or until casserole is lightly browned and bubbly. Sprinkle Crispy Tenders over cooked casserole. Serve over rice.

In a word, delicious! Fabulously creamy and full of zesty lemon flavor. The recipe called for fusilli and green beans but I used what I had which happened to be penne and broccolini! A certain make-again!

Penne with Potatoes, Broccolini and Lemon Basil Creme (adapted from Vegan on the Cheap)
1 lb white potatoes, peeled and diced
12 oz broccolini, cut into 3rds
12 oz penne pasta
1/2 cup raw cashews
2 garlic cloves minced
1/4 cup water
3 T fresh lemon juice
2 T olive oil
zest from 1 lemon
1 T nutritional yeast
1 t dried basil
1/2 t oinion powder
1/2 t salt
1 1/4 cups unsweetened soy milk

Steam potatoes for about 5-7 min or until tender. Add broccolini and steam additional 3-5 min or until broccolini is just tender but still bright green. Set aside. Cook pasta according to package insructions. Use food processor to grind cashews to fine powder. Add remaining ingredients (except pasta and veggies) and blend until smooth. Pour sauce into pan and heat thoroughly - about 7 min. Add pasta and veggies to sauce and stir to coat evenly. Serve.

These little morsels are a family favorite - growing up, it was not Christmas at our house without Meltaways! I decided to try a vegan version this year and they were a great success! Taste just like the originals!

Meltaways
1/2 cup vegan butter (I used soy-free Earth Balance)
1 cup sifted flour
3 T powdered sugar
3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
additional powdered sugar for rolling cookies in

Cream butter and sugar together. Add flour and mix until crumbly mixture forms. Add nuts and stir to fully incorporate. Chill for at least an hour. Remove from fridge and roll Tablespoons of dough into balls. Place on cookie sheet coated with cooking spray. Repeat with remaining dough. Bake at 350 for 20 min or until lightly browned. Cool 5 min. Roll balls in powdered sugar. Let sit 5 more minutes and roll in sugar again. Enjoy!

I have been making all my own bread recently and have been enjoying freshly baked bread almost daily! I used to make this recipe years ago - it's from a cookbook called 1000 Classic Recipes (not a vegan book). This recipe happened to be vegan so I didn't have to do any improvising! These loaves are delightfully crusty on the outside and delightfully soft on the inside.

French Bread
1 T active dry yeast
2 cups lukwarm water
4 cups flour
1 T salt

Dissolve yeast in water. Add salt. Slowly add flour, stirring after each addition. Use dough hook on mixer or knead by hand for 5 min. Shape into a ball, grease the top and let rise until doubled in size - about 2 hours. Divide dough in half. Shape each half into long loaf and place on greased baking sheet. Let rise additional 5 min. Score tops of loaves diagonally. Place a pan of boiling water on the bottom oven shelf. Bake loaves at 400 degrees for about 40 min or until crusty and golden.

I like the flavor of a pizza crust recipe I use and decided to use it for rolls. They turned out great!

Crusty Rolls
1 1/3 cups warm water
2 t sugar
1 1/4 t salt
2 T olive oil
3 cups flour
1 t baking powder
1 1/2 t instant yeast

In a large bowl, sprinkle yeast over the water. When yeast is dissolved, add sugar, salt, baking powder and oil. Slowly add flour, using a mixer to incorporate. Use a dough hook to knead about 5 min. Cover with damp towel and let rise 45 min. Take about 2 tablespoons of dough and form into a ball and place onto greased cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining dough. Bake at 400 for 7-10 min or until lightly browned.
Tempeh takes some getting used to and I am still not entirely sure how much I really like it. This dish turned out pretty yummy with lots of creamy curry flavor. My hubby quite liked it - he is not such a big fan of tempeh but he enjoyed this.

Curried Chikenless Salad Wraps (adapted from Vegan Planet)
1 12oz package tempeh, poached and cooled, crumbled
2 t minced dried onions
3/4 cup vegan mayo
1 T chutney
2 t curry powder
1 t lemon juice
1/2 t sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
Pita or flatbread

Combine all ingredients except bread. Stuff into pita or flatbread and serve.

A Martha Stewart recipe transformed to fit the vegan lifestyle! These cookies call for sour cherries too but I never have those on hand. Don't have to say a whole lot about chocolate chip studded chocolate cookies! Yum!

Chocolate Chip Chocolate Cookies
1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
2 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
1 1/4 cups canola oil
1 1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
egg substitute for 2 eggs
1/4 t vanilla
12 oz vegan semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray. In a bowl, mix together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. In separate bowl, cream oil and sugars until creamy. Add egg substitute and vanilla. Add flour mixture to wet mixture. Mix lightly. Fold in chocolate chips. Drop spoonfuls of dough on prepared sheet. Bake at 350 for 8 min.