More at Mazag

So as you all may know, I have been baking cupcakes for the cafe down the road, Mazag.
For this current order I made Rose-water Pistachio Cupcakes that were to d-i-e for (and chocolate with cookies and cream frosting). Since, I don't own Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World (hint, hint ....) I searched online for a recipe. I found this one from BrokeAss Gourmet. The frosting tasted like ice-cream.
If you in da' hood stop by and support Mazag (and me!)

Perfect for Spring wouldn't ya say!?

Portobello Mushroom Pate

The hardest part about pate is trying to make it look appetizing in a photograph.
I tried my best. I think one of pates prerequisites is it has to look like cat-food before you can even start writing out the pa....
But remember looks can be deceiving, this creamy, earthy pate is absolutely delectable.
Today its the base for an open face sandwich. It's been a spread on wraps, a dip for veggies and served next to thick slices of toasted sourdough. After today pairing it with red russian kale and fresh roma- tomatoes, it will appear next as a base sauce for my next pizza.

Portobello Mushroom Pate
-3 large portobello mushroom caps - rinsed
-1/2 cup soaked (try for at least an hour...) cashews
-1/2 large red onion, chopped
-3 cloves garlic chopped
-1 tbsp olive oil
-1 tbsp red wine
-2 1/2 tbsp veganaise
-1 tsp. red miso
-1 tsp. thyme

Start by sauteing the mushrooms caps in the olive oil. Remember, you don't want to over heat the oil, so keep it on a medium heat (olive oil smoking point = 365 F). After about 2 minutes, add the red wine and cover immediately. Let this cook for roughly 10 minutes or so, you want the mushrooms to be nice and juicy, and that awesome liquid to be covering the bottom of the pan. When you've reached this point, take out the mushrooms, set aside, cover, and throw the onions in the pan that the mushrooms were in to cook them in the left-over liquid. After about 5 minutes, add the garlic, and saute for another 2-3 minutes.
Blend the cashews in a food processor until well broken up. Add in the veganaise and process until well combined, and its formed a nice creamy texture. Add in the mushrooms, onion/garlic combo, and the miso and thyme. Blend until all is well and combined, about 2 minutes.
Scoop out and out Sham-Wow! You've got an amazing mushroom pate. You can serve immediately (I like it warm) or put it in a container in the fridge and serve cold with veggies, as a spread on sammies, pizza sauce, etc.

ENJOY!

My Lunch Date, Japanese Maple. 

Raw Taco Meat ... what can't be done!

Yes, you read that right, Raw Taco Meat. SO Good!
SO Easy. Crush up walnuts, put some spices and wha-bam. John actually made this, so no credit to me, but I did get the diya cheese and fixings for these amazing burritos!
He found the recipe via the world wide web. Im not sure which site he used, but I'm sure it's pretty easy to find. Sorry Im not giving much help, but I will give you pictures :)
We dressed it with daiya cheese, melted on chili tortillas, chopped tomato, avocado, and then drizzled salsa and hot sauce, served on a bed of fresh spinach.

The Inside

All rolled up. and ready to go!

Kamuooooot!

Well, I must say I have just fallen head over heels for my new (yet ancient) favorite grain, Kamut!
Kamut, (the name is derived from the ancient Egyptian word for wheat) has a great rich, buttery savory whole flavor, something I found similar to corn. Being a type of durum wheat compared to traditional wheat Kamut is loaded with nutrients! It has 40% more protein, more fatty acids, 30% more vitamin E, and more magnesium, selenium, and zinc. Another added bonus: Kamut is always grown organically! Since reading all this great info about Kamut I really wanted to start making it a staple. Well, its been sitting in the cupboard for a while, but I finally used it! When I first bought it I brainstormed a savoy salad with portobellos,  sun-dried tomatoes, capers, with a red wine vinegar. I finally put that together for a this lovely dish, which I named, King Tut's Revenge.

King Tut's Revenge

King Tut's Revenge Kamut Salad 

-1 cup uncooked Kamut*

-4 Portobello mushrooms, cut into strips

-1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, in oil

-1/4 cup capers

-1 small can black olives

-2 tbsp. red wine vinegar

-1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar

For the Kamut, I followed the cooking directions given by Margaret Wittenberg in her book, New Good Food, and it came out perrrrrfect. It's very easy, unfortunately just a bit time consuming. If you soak the Kamut before hand, it will cut down on the cooking time to about 1 hour instead of the 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Put the dried Kamut in a sauce pan with 3 cups of cold water to 1 cup Kamut. If you soak the Kamut, use the water you soaked it in to retain nutrients. Bring the Kamut and water to a boil, then lower the heat, cover, and simmer until the grains are plump and a few have burst. 

Drain and rinse with cold water and transfer to a large mixing bowl. 

While the Kamut is a cooking, go ahead and saute the portobellos on medium heat, until they have reduced about half in size, set aside. Chop up the sun-dried tomatoes and add to the mixing bowl. Throw in the capers, olives, and vinegars. Once the mushrooms have cooled add them, and of coarse the Kamut when it is ready. Mix all together and ENJOY!!! 

*All right, so I didn't make enough Kamut (to have as a side for 6 people) so I went ahead and added in about 3/4 cup of cooked quinoa to bulk it up. If you're making this for a large crowd or want some left over, I would make 1 1/2 to two cups of Kamut

Dinner, starting left going clockwise: Quinoa Squash salad, balsamic drenched red cabbage, and King Tut's Revenge!

Butternut Squash cooked with cinnamon, dried cranberries, quinoa, and agave. 

A standard at our house, Red Cabbage chopped and mixed with balsamic, olive oil, salt and pepper. 

Another Saturday

Asheville, NC. Totally worth the 11 hour drive. This little nook is any vegan's haven! I ate so many wonderful meals, hung out with so many wonderful people, and camped out in the wonderful Linville Gorge. Needless to say, it was pretty damn hard to come back to the city.

Check out these bad boys: 

First night's dinner at Rosa's Cafe - Tofu Avocado Sammie with a creamy walnut dressing.

Vegan Nacho Cheese - soooo good!

Sesame Kale for Breakfast

Greenlife's Raw Quiche - walnuts, cashews, flax, more good stuff topped with spinach basil 

Amy perfectly matching Rosa's Vegan Mac N Cheese - Togo cup only 2.50!! 

Appetizer at the Laughing Seed. Dumplings that were mexican/asian fusion. Delicious black bean filling with a sesame soy glaze on top bed of greens and sprouts. 

Laughing seed main course! Raw Spinach manicotti. SO good, zucchini noodles, filled with spinach, basil, cashew cream, on top of sun-dried tomato sauce drizzled with pesto garnished with olives and basil. 

Back to the Greenlite for breakfast. Today's hot bar had vegan sausage and gravy, homefries, tofu scramble topped with fresh veggies, sprouts and hot sauce - all this for $5.99.

Even  the small town of Black Mountain had vegan options on the menu. Above is the best rice bean burger I've ever had, served with fresh tomato, guac, a side of pinto beans, and chipotle fries. 

Linville Gorge. My camera died immediately after this picture, otherwise I'd have the VEGAN S'MORES that Beka provided for our group. Definitely the cherry on top of this awesome vegan food filled weekend.