Imaginary Ordinary Vegan

A little Cilantro love

2011-03-29T11:17:00.000-04:00

A dinner staple at our house is Isa and Terri's Chickpea Cutlets from Veganomicon. They are a breeze to whip up, can be baked or fried, and used in dishes across the board. This time around I decided to add chipotle to them for an extra kick and made a delicious cooling cilantro aioli to dollop on top. Cilantro, an herb that is used all around the world, comes to us from the coriander seed. These little sprigs are also known to have aphrodisiac qualities, so please, spread the love around.

Cilantro Aioli
(makes about two cups)

1 cup fresh cilantro
1/2 cup tahini
1 tsp. brown rice syrup
1 cup cashews
1 cup water (more or less depending on thickness)
juice from 1 lime

Place all ingredients in high speed blender and have at it!
Serve on chipotle chickpea cutlets or use as a dip or spread for sammies.
Enjoy!

A Carat of Carob Please

2011-03-12T22:25:00.003-05:00

Carob is a foreign pod to most Americans; however, this sweet little pea has gained quite the reputation among the the vegan and health-conscious communities. Usually used as an alternative to chocolate, carob has been wrapped around raisins, powdered on pastries, and stirred into sweets as a rich, all-natural dairy free substitute.

Carob, like chocolate, is a legume. It is the fruit of the carob tree, Ceratonia siliqua, a member of the pea family. Native to the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern regions, these sweet pods are very popular across the pond and used in a number of dishes and desserts. The genus is derived from the Greek word for carob - keration. Back in the day (and by that I mean thousands of years ago) they weighed gold and gemstones against carob seeds, thus deeming the term "carat," from the Greek keration. With modern advances, the carob beans were left to be eaten and the carat was standardized to .2 grams.

Lia stopped in our favorite Middle Eastern market, Bitar's, and picked up some Carob Molasses.


Carob Molasses has proved itself as my new favorite sweetener. Also, mix it with tahini and it makes a killer breakfast spread. Carob molasses is made by soaking milled carob pods in water, straining the liquid, and boiling it down until it forms a thick, dark syrup. That's right: No cane sugar, thickeners, or any other ingredients, just pure, sweet, delicious carob.

Lia in front of a Ceratonia siliqua in Schinos, Greece.

Fresh-off-the-tree carob pod.

I decided to calm my craving for pizza with a Middle Eastern spin, and instead of using tomato sauce, I spread on some of this new sweet love. Paired with caramelized onions and red peppers, this pizza turned out absolutely delicious! And of course, we all know the rules to pizza making:
1. has to be made with friends
2. consumed with a nice cold bubbly beverage
3. you can't make just one.

Along with the carob 'za, we put together a lovely veggie with broccoli, tofu ricotta, and roma tomatoes, and a portobello and onion 'za, both with red sauce.
Enjoy,

Carob 'Za!

Look at that team work - just screams fun.

Spanakopita = Spinach Pie!

2011-02-19T08:38:00.001-05:00

My apologies for the long delay in posts, but as always I have a viable excuse: I'm in Greece!
This is the land of meat and cheese, I don't even bother saying vegan because it doesn't mean anything here. Even with the word "vegetarian," we are greeted with quizzical stares and many questions of how and why. But one word that has gotten us through thick and thin - Spanakopita. The ever wonderful hand filled pocket pie packed with spinach, leeks, and dill.

Currently we are staying on an organic farm full of orange and olive trees, an acre of fresh greens, and veggie patches galore. Our host is a real "DIY" guy (we call him D) and even has us grinding wheat for bread. It's been absolutely lovely. We will return stateside March 3, so be on the look out for more deliciousness from some ordinary vegans reaching beyond the imaginary cuisine. (sooo excited to cook and bake again, its going to be great folks!)

Here are some of the pictures from the adventures thus far... ENJOY!

Homemade Spanakopita - there was a little feta sprinkled in, but have no fear, we picked it up from the local shepherd!

All of the happy little goats! These billies roam the beautiful lush hills all day. On a hike in the nearby mountains we ran into a mother giving birth au naturel.

Fresh picked oranges (navel), mandrins, and lemons. Since Feb. 1st I have consumed 107 oranges.

D loves mushrooms! Every time we go for a hike he's in the woods searching. Here's a Saffron Cap.

Deb, Lia, and D showing big love for the big bread.

Melomakaronas. The best cookie in the world.

Home for the past 3 weeks...

Homemade bread and baked olives, the go-to snack, lunch, breakfast, etc ..

Shelling beans.

How can you not eat more than 5 of these a day!?!

Lia cleaning horta (greens) for dinner.

Whole grain wheat berries = whole grain wheat flour. Voila!

Fresh carob - it's super sweet.

...so many olives to be picked.

Step 1. Clean olives.

Step 2. Put the olives in a sewn-shut pair of pants with salt and shake shake shake for 10 days straight! (curing)

Another find - Hedgehogs!

Underside of Hedgehogs.

D lived in Portland for 20 years and was craving chocolate covered raisins for our "movie night," so we made our own! SO easy and delicious when using real 70% dark chocolate.

Donut Daze

2010-12-15T00:31:00.001-05:00

It was a bash. A birthday bash. Myself celebrating 26 years of life, Lia the roomie moving onto 23 years. Our birthday party theme was "forever young" which entailed ample amounts of refined sugar, cheap toys, and pastel streamers. We all met a new sugar high that night with vegan birthday goodies such as: Dirt N' Worms, Jello Jiggler shots, Salt water taffy, a double-layer apple walnut maple cake, and the cherry on top ... hand-made donuts!

Lia took it upon herself to bake up these delicious beauties for our party. But these weren't just any party donuts to munch on here and there, oh no, the purpose much more. These donuts hung from string, which hung from a broom, which someone held up while guests raced to finish without using their hands. Covered in chocolate and sprinkles this proved to be quite an entertaining party game I would highly recommend to anyone.

Battle royal - Jared vs. Birthday Girl (I won)

Andrew and Kristina duking it out.

Here's the recipe that Lia found online and veganized it - substituting one banana for the eggs, rice milk, and earth balance.

Old-Fashioned Cake Donut Recipe

Ingredients:

2 1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 c. sugar
2 beaten eggs
1 Tbsp. softened unsalted butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. milk

Directions:

In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside.
In a separate bowl beat the eggs and sugar with a mixer.
Add the softened butter, vanilla, and milk and mix until well-incorporated.
Slowly add the dry ingredients and beat until smooth. Do not overmix.
Lightly coat the inside of the donut maker with nonstick cooking spray and fill with batter.
Hold the machine just over the hot oil and lightly press on the lever to release the batter. Then gently release the lever and allow the donut to fall into the pan. **NOTE: we did not have a donut maker - Lia shaped the donuts with her hands, and simply dipped into hot vegetable oil.**
Fry the donut batter in hot vegetable oil, turning halfway through to ensure even browning. Fry approximately one minute per side, although that time can vary depending on how hot the oil is.
Remove golden-brown donuts and allow them to cool on paper towels.

Makes about 1 dozen donuts.
Read more at Suite101: How to Make Homemade Donuts: Old-Fashioned Cake Donut Recipe http://www.suite101.com/content/how-to-make-homemade-donuts-a196698#ixzz189g7LN00

There ya have it folks. They are simply delicious. The chocolate ganache was made by melting down about 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips with a tablespoon of earth balance. Let the donuts cool and then just dip 'em on in.
ENJOY!

Early Bird

2010-11-12T10:05:00.001-05:00

This morning I awoke from the sun beaming through my east facing window at 7:00 am. Feeling ambitious and wanting to try a new scone recipe, I decided to take advantage of this quiet sunny morning. I came up with cranberry pistachio spelt scones. Quite a mouthful but they have a nice ring yea??
I started with Isa's basic scone recipe from Vegan Brunch, substituting regular flour for spelt flour.
Her recipe is:

1 1/4 cup almond milk
2 tsp. acv
3 cups flour
2 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar, plus a little extra for dusting
1/2 cup vegan shortening
2 tbsp oil
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 375 and spray or line a baking sheet. Mix the milk with the vinegar and set aside to curdle. Mix the dry ingredients and cut in the shortening. Make a well and pour in the milk mixture, oil, and vanilla. Now, here's what I did to jazz these babies up.
First, I used rice milk instead of almond, and again spelt flour.
In the dry ingredients I added 1/2 tsp cardamon and 1/4 tsp nutmeg.
I added 1 tsp. orange flower water to the wet ingredients.
Folded in one cup dried cranberries and one cup finely chopped pistachios.

The nutty flavor of the spelt is the perfect compliment to the sweetness of the cranberries and salty pistachios.
Sitting in the sun with a cup of Rooibos, crossword, scone, and worm (new cat) was well worth getting out of bed at 7:00 am.

New Endeavours

2010-11-05T15:11:00.000-04:00

Its official, the South Philadelphia Vegan Baking Society now has a blog so FOLLOW US!!!

http://spveganbakingsociety.blogspot.com/

Constant Falling

2010-11-04T23:53:00.000-04:00

Oh how I love love love fall. I can't express it enough, and as the days get shorter, the light a little dimmer, my love for the season gets a little bigger. Gords, leaves, colors, brisk mornings and nights, scarfs, boots, apples, apples, apples. What could be better?? This year I have embraced fall to the fullest. Thus far the activities have included: apple and pumpkin picking, making and canning apple sauce, apple butter, candied pears, all baked goods are pumpkin ginger this, apple cranberry that. I just can't stop. Here's a little photo montage of the best east coast fall ever.

Stephanie K. Visco picking apples in Downingtown.

so beautiful and delicious

our harvest

stuffed pie pumpkins with oatmeal, cranberries, raisins, and apples, with roasted seeds and cherries on the side! YUM!

Fall dinner includes ... apples arugula salad with tahini lemon garlic dressing, roasted root veggies, spaghetti squash and bbq seitan.

my new fave ...

Pumpkin pancakes with cranberry ginger syrup ...

Philadelphia .. Part Deux

2010-10-18T22:14:00.000-04:00

I'm back! While trekking through the unforgettable and pristine Alaskan wilderness, I've managed to find my way back to the city of brotherly love. Despite much hesitation leaving one of my only true loves (Alaska that is), I came back to a different kind beauty - one full of bicycles, baking, and booze. All of which are very dear to my heart, and a life-style that upon my return, I was happy to be back in.

Things have finally settled back into place and cooking is in full swing. Living with two vegans, the wonderful Andrew and fellow Alaskan Lia, it's non-stop. I've never lived in a house with all vegan housemates before and I must say, it's quite the treat, literally and figuratively.

Fighting a cold for a few days now, tonight I felt I needed some soup. What kind of soup? Ahhh, Creamy Tomato ... and we all know that nothing goes better with Tom Soup than Grilled Cheeze.

Creamy Tomato Soup from Veganomicon Whole Wheat Grilled Cheeze with Daiya

Also, nothing comforts a cold like cups upon cups of hot tea. Tonight's was a homemade tea from the wonderful Alison Giese served in her homemade mug! This girl knows how to send a care package.

Ali's homemade concoction, Earl Grey Goodness: Earl Grey, lavender, roses, cardamom, and lots and lots of love!

***Baking Update - Andrew and myself have started a side baking business "South Philadelphia Vegan Baking Society" check out our goods at Grindcore House the latest (and may I add greatest ) 100% vegan coffee house. Rad art, comfy couch, friendly atmosphere, sweet treats, great joe and my favorite part (as if it gets better) the array of creamers! Not just soy milk folks, go out on a limb and try coconut creamer, or almond milk, or rice milk ... they have it all.

Stay tuned. This chapter is going to be pretty great, more baking, cooking, and vegan sharing to come!

Enjoy.

Holy Moly Guacamole

2010-08-18T12:03:00.000-04:00

Disclaimer - this post is not about guacamole.

Quick two second update:
broke up, moved out, Alaska bound.

With that said, I'm sorry for the delay in delicious vegan food, however, life has been throwing me quite the curve balls, and let me just say ... I've been hitting them outta the park!

I'm in a new house, living with another amazing vegan baker and chef - who is also going to be my business partner for our vegan baking company ...... You may recall him from my Cinco de Mayo post - these empanadas are going places - like to the new Grindcore Coffee house in south philly where andrew and myself are going to be selling them along with many other signature gems. Can I get a "whoop, whoop".

Here's a photo recap of the past month of vegan endeavours, which may be the only reason I have stayed sane throughout this hectic period. Here's to hobbies, friends, and deliciously conscious food.

ENJOY!

Eclaire from Vegan Treats in Bethlehem.

Empanadas - our signature dish!

Our table at Punk Rock Flee Market

Victorian Cup Cakes with cream cheese frosting and fresh berries

Double Apple Bundt Cake

Canning! Tomatoes, basil, garlic, deliciousness.

Sample platter for Grindcore, lemon poppy mini bundts, mexican wedding cookies, chocolate chip cookies, and of coarse, empanadas.

WE got the BEET!

2010-07-28T11:55:00.001-04:00

My co-worker Susanna and I are doing another Health Starts Here cooking class tomorrow! Come join us at Callowhill from 6 - 7 pm if you're in the hood to learn amazing recipes for beets! Here's Susanna's webisode of one of the recipes we'll be preparing tomorrow night.

**ps: it's delicious!

Stuffed Summer Squash

2010-07-08T09:09:00.000-04:00

As of late work has been intense. I know a better blogger and chef wouldn't use that as an excuse, but I am. However, today, I share with you a very special gem ... My First YouTube Cooking Class! As a way to advertise and promote the Healthy Eating Cooking Classes we are doing every Thursday (tonight) from 6 - 7 at Callowhill (they're free!) Susanna my healthy eating partner in crime and I did short little cooking videos. We had one day to film, so they're not perfect, BUT look forward to seeing one every week and come out and cook with us!!

ENJOY!

Faux Tuna and Nectarine Salsa

2010-06-23T22:35:00.000-04:00

I love when the new issue of Vegetarian Times pops through the mail slot. The beautiful pictures, recipes, tips, are just oh so inspiring. The current issue highlights perfect meals to be enjoyed in this hot summer weather. I found the Sea Salad by Bliss Raw Cafe owner Dee Pissaro and a nectarine salsa the perfect hot weather lunch.

Sea Salad (Mock Tuna Salad) by Dee Pissaro

serves 4

-1 1/2 cups raw sunflower seeds - soaked for 4 + hours

-1 tbsp. olive oil

-1/2 tsp salt

-1/4 cup chopped celery

-2 tbsp. finely chopped sweet pickles (I substituted the best relish in the world from oak grove farms)

-2 tbsp. chopped fresh dill

-2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley

-1 1/2 tbsp dulse flakes

-1 tbsp lemon juice

Drain sunflower seeds, and pulse with oil and salt in food processor until chunky paste forms. Transfer to bowl. Stir remaining ingredients into mixture.

I put this on whole grain sprouted bread with dijon mustard, avocado, and fresh collards from our garden. It was the best sammy I've had in a long time!!

For the Nectarine salsa I chopped up 4 nectarines, handful of cilantro, juice from one lime, 2 hot peppers from our garden, and half of a red onion. Then I baked a sprouted tortilla for chips.

Enjoy!

Cucumber Gazpacho

2010-06-21T17:24:00.001-04:00

Is anything more satisfying on a hot summer day then a nice cold cup of gazpacho? Especially when the right vegetables (cucumber!) and herbs (mint and basil) are used to truly capture the essence of the season.

This gazpacho has absolutely no tomatoes, but instead is extremely simple and uses only cucumber, herbs, and toasted pecans. I learned from chef and author of Lucid Food, Louisa Shafia, that "fat carries flavor", so with that said if you feel that 1/4 cup of toasted pecans isn't enough, go ahead and add more! I think that garnishing each bowl with the pecans and fresh mint would be perfect.

Cucumber Gazpacho

serves 2

-2 cucumbers

-2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

-juice from half of a large lemon

-handful of chopped fresh basil and mint leaves

-1/3 cup toasted pecans (some for garnish)

-salt to taste

In a blender, blend the cucumbers (you can peel them and seed them if you wish, but remember all the nutrients are in the seeds! and if you have a high speed blender no one will ever know), balsamic, lemon juice and herbs. While blending, lightly toast your pecans by either toaster oven or broil in the conventional oven for just a couple of minutes. When the gazpacho has reached a nice smooth consistency go ahead and add in 1/4 cup of the pecans and blend for a few more minutes. Taste. I probably added a tsp of salt, but of coarse add more salt or pecans to taste. Garnish with the left over toasted pecans and fresh mint leaves.

ENJOY!

Simple Sushi

2010-06-20T21:00:00.000-04:00

Ahh Sushi. One of my all time favorite "date" dinners. And for a long time I thought that it was just that ... a decadent meal only to be enjoyed once in a while where we spent oodles of cash because only japanese sushi masters were capable of creating these beautiful foreign wraps.

But boy was I wrong. Sushi is wonderfully cheap and simple when you do it yourself, and can still be a great "date" dinner enjoyed in the comfort of your own home with a nice Reed's Ginger Brew on the side.
My sushi roll included: short grain brown rice, cucumber, carrot, avocado, and a really great spicy peanut sauce. Plus, extra bonus, rolling sushi is super fun! I especially enjoyed cutting it; run your knife under hot water and the slices will come out perfect.

Here's the recipe for the Spicy Peanut Sauce I used:

-1 cup shelled peanuts
-2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
-2 tbsp Frank's Red Hot
-2 tsp cayenne
-handful of basil (our plants our boooming!)

This adds a nice flavor and kick to the roll.

Enjoy!

RAWSOME!

2010-06-12T21:34:00.001-04:00

I've only had one dream where I drank a beer and stuffed crisp warm french fries in my face and that's as close as I've come to "cheating" on my cleanse. Feels pretty great. This is the first weekend I actually went out and just ordered seltzer and OJ (sans the vodka please :) At the diner we went to this morning there was even an option for quinoa porridge sweetened with agave and fresh fruit ... perfect!
However, the cleanse (no caffeine, alcohol, refined sugars or flours) wouldn't be going so great had I not borrowed "RAWvolution" by Matt Amsden.

This book is rawsome! The recipes are easy, mostly fast (some require the ole' 32 hr dehydrator act) and delicious! The layout is simple and pictures elegant. Big recipe keys are found in the right hand corner of every page that let you know what you're getting yourself into by simple codes as easy as 1, 2, and 3 (1 easy recipe doesn't take a lot of steps and time to 3 multiple steps, and usually requires some drying time) to icons of what tools you'll be using (juicer, high speed blender, dehydrator...). His soups are amazing, and I haven't tried the famous onion bread yet but I can't wait until I do!!

Here's a recipe of his that is just delightful! I made this egg-less egg salad to make sammies for lunch, but ended up eating half of it as dip with cucumbers right after it finished blending it was that good!

Egg-Less Egg Salad

-1/2 cup water

-1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

-1 1/2 tsp. turmeric

-2 cloves garlic, peeled

-1 1/2 tsp. sea salt

-1 1/2 cups raw macadamia nuts or cashews

-1/3 cup chopped scallions

-1/3 cup chopped celery

-1/3 cup chopped red bell pepper

In a high-speed blender, combine the water, lemon juice, turmeric, garlic, sea salt, and nuts and blend until smooth.

In a medium bowl, combine the contents of the blender with the scallions, celery, and bell peppers. Mix well and serve.

Thank you Matt!

ENJOY.

Blueberry Walnut Black Bean Burgers (or Pate!)

2010-06-06T10:56:00.000-04:00

Got a case of the Monday Blues ... me too! Only my blues are nutritious and delicious.
These burgers are of coarse banging .... but the best part ... if you don't want to take the time to cook them (ya know sometimes 5 extra minutes is just too long) then you have an amazing Dip/Pate. I actually like this recipe better as just a dip ... however ... it's not very eye appealing ... maybe if I lined the top with blueberries??

Blueberry Walnut Black Bean Burgers

-2 pieces sprouted whole grain bread of your choice ...
-1/3 cup blueberries
-1 tbsp. mustard
-1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
-1 tsp. liquid smoke
-2 cloves garlic
-3 tbsp. ground flax seed
-2 cups walnuts - ground
-1 16 oz. can of Black Beans

In a food processor pulse the bread into crumbs, when nice and crumbly remove and put into a mixing bowl.
Place the remaining ingredients sans the black beans and walnuts into the food processor and blend thoroughly. Pour that mixture in with the bread crumbs. Add black beans to the mixture and mash with a potato masher, then one cup at a time mix in the walnuts.
Form into patties and either grill (on tin-foil), bake or pan-fry.
I choose the pan fry method. I cooked each burger for about 5 minutes on each side, until they looked nice and burger-like.

...looks just like burgers!

I didn't even dress them ... just ate them as is... soo good, with a little relish ... all you need.

Enjoy!

Eat the Rainbow

2010-06-04T15:05:00.000-04:00

Don't just taste... eat the rainbow.

Home-made Hummus

2010-06-02T19:46:00.000-04:00

Hummus - nothing beats it. Especially during these hot summer days.
My "go to" meal has been hummus and tabouli. Such a perfect hot weather duo. Wrapped up in collards and topped with a couple of olives ... heaven.

This meal has also been perfect during my "cleanse" - a sort of detox - nothing too extreme - but for 28 days no processed foods, no alcohol, no caffeine. Today is day 2 and so far so good. I was dealing with a slight head-ache last night and when I woke, but that's it.
Today for breakfast I had a green smoothie with pineapple, kale, banana, ginger, ice, and flax along with a half of avocado.
Lunch was a sprouted whole grain tortilla with home-made red pepper hummus (recipe below - sooo awesome) and the other avocado half, hand-full of cashews, and a weird blueberry dip I was experimenting with ... it tasted like a smoothie. Back to the drawing board for that one.
Dinner was tabouli on greens with some more hummus, and let me tell you - I am stuffed. Drinking my seltzer it feels just great. But don't worry, that is the only meal by meal account you will get :)

On to the Recipes!

So home-made hummus is awesome for a number of reasons -

1. most kitchens have the ingredients stocked, so really the only thing you may have to bust open your wallet for is, say, a red pepper, or a can of chickpeas (.89), and it makes sooo much hummus - a much better value.

2. if you look on the ingredients of packaged hummus some can be tricky and throw in soy or corn oil, even sugar!

3. the nutrition label of processed hummus scares me - the sodium content is usually doubled that of the calories (sodium in a product should never exceed the calories per serving) and even the calories from fat is way over the recommended daily intake (which is 20%). Yes granted beans and olive oil and tahini are fatty, you control the amount of salt and olive oil you put in - the sodium is really what gets me personally ...

4. Why waist the packaging? and resources that go into packaging?

The best way to go is buying dry chickpeas in bulk and then taking it from there - however, with my lack of time I still opt for the can --- oh one day.

Anabell's Reliable Roasted-Red Pepper Hummus

-1 16 oz can chickpeas
-1/2 cup tahini
-1/4 cup water
-juice from 1/2 a lemon
-1 tbsp. olive oil
-2 cloves of garlic
-dash of salt
-1 red pepper

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Put the red pepper on a baking sheet and roast for about 20 minutes, until the outside skin is slightly blackened. In the meantime, Bring a small sauce pan to a boil and put in your drained, rinsed chickpeas from the can. Boil for about 3 - 5 minutes, this tenders up the chickpeas and makes for a nice and smooth hummus. In a food processor blend all ingredients. I wait and put the red pepper in until last (only because I'm waiting for it to roast!). When your pepper is done, rinse under cold water and peel off the outside skin and take out the seeds and stem. Throw it in, and ENJOY!!

Perfect for a lunch or snack :)

Getting ready for tabouli! Above is red onion, cucumber, tomato, dill, cilantro, basil, and lemon juice... just missing the bulgar! YUM!

Bad Blogger

2010-05-26T10:59:00.000-04:00

I apologize for the delays in posts.

Do I have an excuse ... yes.

I was in Costa Rica!

Rain-forests, sloths, monkeys, surfing (it's harder than it looks) and the never ending meal of rice and beans (most of the time ... don't even get me started on "sachipapas")

Quick news ...

before I left I made some more cupcakes for Mazag Cafe, and some "cock-cakes": cupcakes + cocktails for my dear friends graduation party.

Now that I'm back I will let you know on June 1st, I am starting a 28 day cleanse ( no refined or processed foods, no alcohol, no caffeine, plus the usual no meat no dairy of coarse ....). I'm excited but I know that it will be very challenging! My co-workers at Whole Foods are teaming up with me and we're going to all set our own bar.

Do any readers want to join?? It doesn't have to be all of the above, but maybe just refined sugars? or flours? I'll be more than happy to provide recipes, support, and give you a link to the blog that we'll be using for our Whole Food team members.

Almond cupcakes with chocolate ganache and coconut topping

The cockcakes - Black and Tan on left ='s chocolate stout cake with coffee icing and ganache and Mojito on right ='s rum lime cupcake with mint icing and candied ginger!

All the cakes (from front to back): Mojito, Black and Tan, Strawberry Daquiri, Pina-Colada!

Giant Avocado Stand in Costa Rica. SOO good!

Typical Breakfast - Rice and beans, fixings, and fruit shake!

Thanks for reading!!

Enjoy!

Tis the Season

2010-05-10T21:29:00.000-04:00

The season is spring, the taste is spring rolls.
They're fresh, crisp, light - put together with some awesome peanut sauce - and you've got a meal baby. Zip. Zap. Zop.

Philly Spring Rolls

-rice papers (found in your local asian market)
-shredded carrots
-thai basil
-tofu
-sesame oil
-kale
-bean sprouts

There's usually directions on rice papers, but on the ones we picked up there wasn't. No big deal. There super easy. Just heat up some water, dip the paper in for about 5-10 seconds, lay on a plate, fill with the ingredients and bam.
I like to saute the tofu with garlic and sesame oil.

Peanut Dipping Sauce
-1 can coconut milk
-1/2 cup peanut butter
-1/2 cup soy sauce
-dash of cayenne (if you're into it ....)

Blend all together! (Go Go Vita-mix)

Enjoy!

A Vegan Fiesta

2010-05-06T21:58:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, as you may all know, was the celebration of Cinco de Mayo. In honor of our mexican friends victorious battle against the french in 1862, my good friend Andrew and I got down and dirty with Terry Hope Romero's new book, Viva Vegan.

Andrew, another amazing vegan chef/baker, recently just bought Terry's new book and has been raving about it ever since. So, naturally, after looking over it at brief hang-out sessions, it was time to see what all the hype was about!

We decided to make her rendition of empanadas with delicious red seitan, shitake mushrooms, olives, and raisins. To go with this we made some killa five-layer vegan dip, and margarita cup-cakes to finish the night off!

pre-cooking, a margarita on the roof!

Vegan Cupcakes to follow .... from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World.

Up close and personal... btw, these were soooo delicious!

The empanada dough, the recipe said to chill it over night or at least 4 hours, us not having looked at the recipe in advanced thought an hour would suffice ... and that it did!!

The Filling = red seitan, shitake mushrooms, potatoes, onion, garlic, paprika, liquid smoke, cayenne, oregano, salt, and raisins, and olives. YUM!!!!

The Magic happening!! Here's Andrew and myself filling and folding ...

Pinching with a fork for that perfect look....

Right before going into the oven, brushed with silk creamer

Fresh out of the oven, crisp and delicious

Inside view!

The spread: Vegan 5-layer dip = (from bottom up) refried black beans, tofutti sour cream, guacamole, salsa, and daiya cheddar cheese. Empanadas and cupcakes! WHOO HOO

Andrew, my partner in crime and one of my favorite philadelphian's.

Viva La Vita-Mix

2010-05-05T10:23:00.000-04:00

My life has been forever changed....ever since it came in to it.
With it's shiny red base, tall sleek sturdy torso, and that rubbery tight fitting head with that adorable little tamper popping out.
Vita-Mix, how I've dreamed of owning one of these machines for oh-so long. Then it happened. The world finally answered my prayers and a stork dropped one on our doorstep (for a pretty penny). It's so beautiful. We are so proud.

OK, seriously, this machine is a MONSTER! It's insane! It does everything, and I mean everything!
Here's what I've made so far ... (and many of these many times over)

-Smoothies GALORE (with kale, swiss chard, and collards!! + fruit of coarse, but I'm talking the whole fruit ... skin no problem, seeds forget about 'em, cores - bring it. )
-Almond Milk
-Almond Butter (all kinds of nut butter)
-Roasted Red Pepper Hummus
-Vanilla Frappe
-Pineapple Sorbet
-Peanut Butter Banana Milk Shakes
-Peanut Coconut Thai Dipping Sauce
-Pesto
-Chipotle Mayo (this was banging, the recipe to come! but most importantly, no veganaise added!)
-Grapefruit Juice
-Orange Juice
-Tomato Black Bean Soup (oh and the vita-mix heats the soup up too! No stove top baby!)

It kneads your bread. It boils your water. It wipes your ass.

I haven't stopped talking about it since I got it.
I'm hooked.

My Baby with some Green Smoothie left in him!

Green Smoothie = Kale, Chard, Flax Seed, Bee Pollen, Cantaloupe, Pineapple, Banana, and OJ.

Restaurant Review: Philly's "Thoreau"

2010-05-03T00:28:00.004-04:00

Thoreau, needs to get a little closer to nature. Yes, their food is amazing, the vegan options absolutely splendid, however, on a scale of 1 - 10, I'd have to say a 7. Was it the wait staff. . . No. Was it the food. . . No. Was it the atmosphere. . . Yes. If I went back, it would be take-out only. Apparently they are setting up a bomb outside seating area, but for now, I wouldn't go back and sit in the stale, crammed dining room.
The color of the walls reminded me of a new born baby's room. There's no style, no feeling. The walls are pastel, the tables are covered in white linen, and the wait staff all dressed in black?

Anyways, like I said early, the food ... incredible.
My friend Amy and I went there the other weekend. We decided to get a salad, appetizer, and entree - all to share.
Here's what we started with:

Green Curry Mango Summer Rolls
Grilled julienned carrots and parsnips in green curry glaze with fresh mango in rice paper wrapper. Served with arugula-ruby red salad, dipping oils, and grapefruit garnish!

These were super refreshing and really light. I could've have eaten 10 more and called it a night.

Inverno
Watercress and frisse with maple pecans, jullienned Anjou pears and ricotta salata in chile lime vinaigrette. Served with roasted glazed carrots and beets.

Glazed carrots and beets got us. What they failed to mention on the menu was the avocado! ... could it look anymore perfect??

Khorma~

Indian inspired khorma of red lentils, butternut squash and leeks in mild house curry. Topped with mango papaya relish and savory hush puppy corn fritters.

This stuck out for a number of reasons ... 1. I love indian food 2. khorma's .. yes please 3. Hush puppy corn fritters? A southern spin in lieu of the traditional naan, which was an incredible match!

oh .. and I did I mention dessert ...

Hazelnut Toffee Basket
Chocolate buttercream mousse, bruleed bananas, hazelnut oatmeal tuille cookie.

THIS IS VEGAN! So amazing. I've never had caramelized banana's before .. oh wait I mean bruleed banana's.. totally rocked my world! Mixed with mousse, mint, whole hazelnuts, and that amazing oatmeal tuille cookies. Oh and the presentation, A+.

More at Mazag

2010-04-23T18:16:00.000-04:00

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

2010-04-22T13:55:00.000-04:00

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!

2010-04-13T19:59:00.000-04:00

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!

2010-04-12T10:48:00.001-04:00

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

2010-04-10T18:27:00.001-04:00

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.

TGIF

2010-03-28T20:33:00.000-04:00

So, as I mentioned in my previous blog ... Friday was a beautiful day off. Unfortunately, it left me down and out for this weekend was spent sick in bed :( boo-hoo.

Friday though, man, what an awesome day, and to the start of any awesome day is an awesome meal...

Lauren from vegan royale, made bomb TLT (tofu, lettuce, tomato) - soooo delicious!! I need to make these more often ... weekly, daily... She told me how to make the fakin' bacon with tofu, but two days have passed and I just don't remember ... I do remember that it isn't as time consuming as I once thought. On the side we had a great salad (thanks codee), my lovely split pea soup, and date balls for dessert!

Our plans were to then see Alice in Wonderland in 3-D, but we got the times mixed up, grabbed a six-er and walked into Hot Tub Time Machine. Im not going to recommend it to anybody, but I will say if you go see it, sneak in a beer or two.

We then hit up happy hour at the POPE and my lovely, healthy lunch was sabotaged by deep fried seitan wings and french fries ... oh a girl can only do so much.

T.L.T equipped with avo, veganaise, and mustard

Split-Peasy Soup

Happy Hour was never so happy.

It's a Date!

2010-03-26T13:06:00.001-04:00

Today is not only my day off, but my two best buds and roomies day off!
Whoo-hoo.
On the menu: we got lunch, matinee, and happy hour. Perfect for this cold, soon to be raining day.

For our lunch date, I decided to make some awesome date balls for dessert! Easy to whip up, and delicious to sink your teeth into. Sugar free, gluten free ... hells yes. I found the recipe on Earth Muffin. I followed the recipe, but thought that they were a little too sticky so I went ahead and added about 3/4 cups of rolled oats ... it worked out beautiful!
Speaking of Earth Muffin she is also hosting an awesome give away! Check it out, along with the date recipe!!

Enjoy!

Easy Pea-sy

2010-03-23T19:36:00.003-04:00

All good things must come to an end (why is that again?) and our lovely 70 degree sunshine stint saw its way out, and the rain came in, and when it rains ... it pours.

Nothing, and I mean nothing beats the rainy day blues like a warm cup of soup.
Today's choice: Split Peasy!
Looking online for a recipe I realized that our vegetable selection was a little bleak. No carrots, no celery, no bay leaf, no garlic. Who needs 'em!
I created this to suite my mood - lazy.

Soups on!

Easy Split Peasy Soup

-2 tbsp. earth balance
-1 yellow onion, diced
-1/2 cup button mushrooms, diced
-1 tsp. garlic salt
-2 cups split peas
-1/2 cup barley
-1 1/2 tsp. salt
-7 1/2 cups water
-1/2 - 1 tsp of the following: basil, thyme, cayenne, cumin, black pepper

In a large soup pot melt the earth balance on medium heat and saute the onions, mushrooms, and sprinkle the garlic salt a top. Saute for about 7 minutes until the onions are translucent and smelling reeeaaaalll nice. Add the water, split peas, barley, and salt and bring to a boil. Cover and let simmer for about an hour. Add the rest of the spices, and whatever else you may feel like, and let simmer for another hour.
Easy Peasy!

Enjoy.

Being Belgian

2010-03-22T19:18:00.000-04:00

Ladies and Gents, it is my greatest pleasure to introduce to you my all time favorite restaurant (in philadelphia) ...

The Belgian Cafe.

Equipped with sidewalk patio seating, 200 bottled brews, spectacular veg and non veg food, what is there not to love?

John reading about art nouveau in the sun.

Located at 21st and Green Street this cafe was introduced to me one year ago, when a good friend told me about a set vegan dinner/drink menu they were hosting for beer week. Done and Done. Well, unfortunately the set vegan menu they had that night didn't do the cafe too much justice. It was mediocre to put it lightly. But, for some reason I let this little place redeem itself ... not once, but over and over again.

The main draw is the vegan seitan BBQ wings (ask for them extra spicy). Coming with a nice cool vegan aioli (that isn't just veganaise, chaa) and a nice little bed of greens with celery, this is the meal I've tried ample times to recreate but have just never quite landed it. Something magical happens in their kitchen that I just don't have...

BBQ seitan wings

Close up

Besides the best vegan wings in the city, they also offer a vegan soup, burger, meatloaf, fries, and sweet potato hummus. Oh, and did I mention the beer?

LaRulles Tripel

Specializing in belgian brews, they have quite an impressive bottled collection and always evolving draft selection. This past visit was as wonderful as the new budding flowers. It couldn't have been a more perfect Sunday afternoon. It started with biking there on our new tandom (AHHH!!!). Then mother nature decided to be exceptionally cooperative giving us 65 degrees and warm sun. The outdoor seating and spring beers on tap fit the mood like a glove.

I started with Southampton's Biere de Mars a smooth, fruity, light, very crisp and refreshing beverage that's based on the authentic french-farmhouse version. It's like drinking those budding flowers. I would've had another one, but I wanted to expand my horizons and try another bubbly rendition of this perfect spring day. My choice: a belgium brew LaRulles Tripel. Having a classic triple belgium taste, but with a faint and surprising far sweet after taste. If this ale was indeed spring it would come in like a lion and out like lamb.

I recommend this cafe to any and all interested in fab food and delish drinks.

Enjoy!

The Food For All Collective Adventure

2010-03-15T23:28:00.001-04:00

As I've mentioned before Im part of the food bulk buying club here in South Philly, The Food For All Collective. My roomie Riley (being one of the founders) loves the idea of bulk buying, supporting sustainable farmers and community, thus ordering A LOT. Not to mention we live in a house with three hungry boys + me .. . food here goes fast. Our order this month was more than just a shit load of food ... it was an adventure ....

Besides living in a hungry household, we also live in a vehicle-less household. Needing to step it up a notch from our wagon, "rolling thunder" (the name gives it away) John decided to put his habit of collecting old/used bike parts (especially frames), artistic and practical talent to use making our house a bike trailer! Ya know, for those trips to the grocery store, beer distributor and the bulk food pick up for those times when your messenger bag just doesn't cut it. Being the first bike trailer that John's ever welded, there were some kinks that needed to be ironed out. Fortunately, I got to do just that. Being the only roomy available during the pick up time I was deemed assignment FIRST RIDE : ride bike trailer in rain. collect 40 lbs. of food. make it back in one piece. Besides taking a spill on south street and having our food fly everywhere (my entourage quickly helped gather the goods), almost getting hit numerous times, having angry drivers yell at me for taking up the road and swerving, I made it home safely with everything still in it's tightly sealed bags and containers ... Food for All!

the bike trailer ... equipped with red plastic bin ...

front view ...

12 lbs. of raisins .. + 9 lbs. sweet potatoes, 5 lbs. coffee, 3 lbs. portobellos, 9 lbs. apples, 10 lbs. cashews, 5 lbs. granola, 3 lbs. dates, 6 lbs. almonds, and a 4 lb. loaf of sourdough ....

myself carrying out the 40 lb load ...

loading up ...

explaining the route to James, my front man ...

So worth it! Dinner that night = grilled portobello mushroom sammies with caramelized onions, yellow peppers, spinach, tomatoes, oak groves organic (and amazing) relish and veganaise with sweet potato fries on the side!

Do I need to Spelt it out??

2010-03-13T11:43:00.001-05:00

In a previous post, I need to Spelt it out, I mentioned the awesome food buying club I am a part of The Food For All Collective and my purchase of 10 lbs of spelt flour. Since the blueberry pancakes featured in "I need to Spelt it out", I haven't really touched the stuff. Then I was flipping through my cookbooks and found in Babycakes a recipe for Raspberry Scones ... having blueberries in the freezer I knew exactly what I was going to have for breakfast.

A note about Spelt : So, I've recently gotten a new position at Wholefoods as the "Healthy Eating Specialist". It's a pretty rad position, I basically read a whole bunch, get a couple of certifications, then teach the Wholefoods team members and customers about healthy eating alternatives, and focus on a plant based, whole foods diet! Not too shabby. Not too shabby. As you can imagine, I'm being bombarded with information right now, so why not share that with my loyal readers, I mean who doesn't want to know about the food they are putting in their body??

Spelt, an ancient cousin of wheat that originated in the Middle East at least 6,000 years ago has a great nutty, sweet flavor and contains more protein than typical wheat flour. Being related to wheat it does indeed contain gluten, however, it has proportionally less gliadin, (gluten is made up of two proteins gliadin and glutenin - both responsible for different properties) which prohibits the develop of air pockets to capture gases created by the leavening agents ... this is also the component that appears to be responsible for adverse reactions to gluten, making it a great substitute for people who have trouble digesting gluten or have a gluten intolerance (remember, this is only the case for some people, if you have severe reactions to gluten or are gluton intolerant, always consult a doctor before having spelt). Spelt is also more water-soluble leading some people to believe this aids in the digestibility and makes nutrients more easily absorbed in the body. However, because of this, if you are substituting spelt flour for a typical wheat flour it may be a good idea to reduce the liquid, Margaret Wittenberg author of New Good Food, suggests reducing the liquid by 25%, and then going from there to obtain the consistency that's necessary for the recipe/batter you're working with.

Well, there's your cliff notes on spelt. If anyone wants further info about gliadin and glutenin just ask. Im happy to ramble on about this stuff all day.

Wait ... wasn't I going to share a recipe with you! Ahhh yes, the beautiful spelt scone I made!

Blueberry Spelt Scones
by Erin McKenna

-2 cups whole spelt flour
-1 tbsp. baking powder
-1/2 tsp. salt
-1/3 cup coconut oil - + a little more for brushing
-1/3 cup agave nectar - + a little more for brushing
-1 tbsp. pure vanilla extract
-1/4 cup hot water
-1 cup fresh raspberries or in my case, frozen blueberries

Preheat oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking pow, and salt.
Add the oil, agave, and vanilla and stir together until thick, slightly dry batter is formed.
Pour the hot water into batter and mix.
Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the berries until they are marbled throughout.
For each scone, scoop 1/3 cup batter onto the prepared baking sheet. Space the scoops 1 inch apart to allow them to spread. Lightly brush the tops with oil (something I forgot to do, and same with agave, still came out great ... )
Bake the scones on center rack for 14 mns, rotating the sheet 180 degrees after 7 minutes.
The finished scones will be golden and slightly firm. Remove from oven and brush with agave.
Let scones stand on sheet for 15 minutes. Carefully slide a spatula under each and transfer it to a wire rack and cool completely.
Store in airtight container at room temp for up to 2 days.

ENJOY!

Raw Strawberry Cake

2010-03-03T11:16:00.000-05:00

So today is day 10 for me on the SSSC (super sexy sugar cleanse) - that's refined sugar have you. As you can imagine my sweet tooth cravings have been calmed by nature's candy such as fruit and agave! Thus, volunteering for cake duty for my boyfriends mom (before the cleanse...), I wanted to make a delicious cake without any refined sugar (a little selfish, but if I'm making it, I want to enjoy it .. ey?)

You can't go wrong with raw. Amazing, delectable desserts just by throwing some things in a processor and letting them sit over night ... incredible!!!

I decided to try a cake I've been eyeing for a while that I found on the post punk kitchen, Isa Chandra Moskowitz's blog.

It turned out great! If you're in the mood for a light, fluffy, rich cake this is just what the doc ordered. On her website she describes it as being very "rich" and that because of this it does indeed serve 16. Mine, for whatever reason didn't turn out as insanely rich as she had described, and it served 5 ... all with seconds (and one piece left over - :).

Being a non-dairy consumer, this cake reminded me of a yogurt parfait. The cake itself an amazing yogurt (that is what the texture reminded me of) and the crust a rocking granola.

Not to mention, if you cut strawberries to top it off, it comes out adorable :)

Enjoy!

YUM! For the recipe off of the post punk kitchen, click here!

Vegan Brunch at Studio 34

2010-03-02T12:41:00.000-05:00

Calling all Philadelphian Vegans!

Studio 34 located at 4522 Baltimore Avenue in West Philadelphia is not just a yoga studio. Yes, offering a wide range of yoga classes, and offering the only Forrest Yoga class in the city, this place is the definition of community.

To start off, every last Sunday of every month they host a pay what you can Vegan Brunch. It is incredible, especially if you attend after the 2 hour Forrest session! The instructor of the class is so jazzed up about the brunch for a partner activity one person was deemed "tofu scramble" and the other "sweet potato corn bread". But, why shouldn't she be jazzed, not only is there an amazing array of vegan food (like the two listed above) but an entire community eating and coming together for a beautiful sunday meal.

Last months brunch! The samosa soup was the most amazing thing I've ever put in my mouth. Other dishes include: sweet potato bread (a staple, along with tofu scramble) curry basmati rice, apple raisin quinoa, lemon pepper seitan, and an awesome chickpea casserole.

This months meal included fantastic selections such as: lemon herbed potatoes, polenta gravy, seitan chili, curry sweet potatoes, and then a shepard pie-ish concoction. YUM!

This is just one example of Studio 34's community greatness. To name a few others... they hold an assortment of classes that focus on wellness and healing many with a "pay what you can" or "community ($5.00)" label. Some of the classes they offer include numerous yoga based classes (including in and out of chair yoga, new this month!), pilates, tai chi, african dancing, hoop dancing, etc ... other than classes they hold community based programs such as workshops, art lectures by ArcheDream director Allan Bell, art openings, live music (Scott McMicken from Dr. Dog will be performing there this Saturday), children's music class, various dance classes, meditation sessions ... I mean the list goes on and on!!! And to top it all off they have a community lounge that's open daily where anyone is welcome to hang out and enjoy a nice cup of tea on them.

I stumbled upon this studio looking to continue my Forrest yoga practice when I came to Philly. Not only is the buildling spacious and welcoming, but every instructor I have ever had there has been healing and inspiring. I highly recommend Studio 34 to anyone in the Philly area, even if your not into .... anything ... at least go for the vegan brunch, which I know you're alll into!

Blazing Brussels

2010-03-01T12:12:00.000-05:00

I don't know when or how these miniature cabbages made there way into my life, but let me tell you something ... They are here to stay!!! For some reason (maybe due from a trauma incident .. the attack of the giant brussels sprouts??) I can not for the life of me, ever recall eating brussels sprouts ever in my life before this past year....

And then they were there. Suddenly. Its like a woke up from a long long nap and as I opened the fridge brussels were there to greet me. I was eating them on a weekly basis. Craving brussels. Not being able to picture a life without these leafy little gems. . .

Coming from the same family as cabbage, collard greens, broccoli, and kale - they are packed with vitamins and fiber!

Brussels are featured in this months issue of Vegetarian Times, in the "Chef's Guide to Frozen Vegetables". Now, I don't want to sound snobby, but I try to steer away from frozen veggies, buuuuuuuut if frozen veggies are your thing, then this article is great, giving amazing recipes for veggies found in the freezer section that are both affordable and hold on to their nutritional value. Apparently 80-85% of the US brussels production is used for the frozen food market... crazy.

I used fresh brussels for this 'pie, but go ahead and use whatever you're comfortable with. This is a great lunch or dinner side dish ... as always, Enjoy.

Miso-roasted Brussels Sprouts
(if you're using fresh brussels cut the end off and do quarter florets, follow recipe as is)

-3 tsp. toasted sesame oil
-3 tsp. rice vinegar, divided (I substituted Apple Cider Vinegar)
-2 tsp. miso paste - (I used red...)
-1 clove garlic, minced
-1 16-oz. bag frozen Brussels sprouts
-1 tsp. toasted sesame seeds
-1/2 tsp. sriracha chile sauce (or any hot sauce of your choice)

Preheat oven to 450. Whisk together 2 tsp. sesame oil, 2 tsp. vinegar, miso, garlic, and hot sauce. Add Brussels and toss to coat.
Spread brussels on baking sheet (I used a casserole dish) and roast for 20 minutes. Tossing about half way through.
When done, transfer to a bowl and stir in remaining oil, vinegar, and sesame seeds.
Add salt and pepper if desired!

Imaginary Ordinary's One Year Anniversary!!!!

2010-02-24T12:05:00.001-05:00

Happy Anniversary!
It was today, one year ago, I entered the blogosphere. This blog has been a great way for me to share my recipes, food, suggestions, and vegan findings. It has also opened up the wide world of vegan blogging and I have learned sooo much!!

In honor of my one year of vegan blogging, I decided to share what I love most about being vegan, not only of the past year, but through my whole journey of veganism (on and off the wagon for four years now...)

Enjoy!

Incorporating sooo many fresh fruits and veggies into my diet!! 2006: Berry picking in Tatitlik, AK, featured berries: salmon, blue, and cloud.

Learning and experimenting with so many new and fun recipes, and taking the turkey out of Thanksgiving!

2007: My first homemade Tofurkey!

Sharing wonderful meals with wonderful people! Pictured above two of my dearest friends, Dblanch and Rache! Here enjoying a pre-New Years Eve Party Dinner enjoying eggplant curry!

Even in the backcountry I can whip up a mean vegan dish! Above my famous Thai Peanut Pasta - backpackers style! On Resurrection Pass, AK 2008.

Reinventing breakfast ... see ya eggs. Saturday Morning Fresh Toast!!

Vegan baking... enough said! Check out my goods @ Mazag, 10th and Carpenter!

Learning that tofu is the superman of food and can transform and save any dish! Tofu quiche.

ahh... Wheat Gluten. The next best thing under the sun ... my favorite ... Buffalo Bites

There are just my favorite treats in the whole world so I had to picture them, Buckeyes.

Thanks to all my loyal readers for following, sharing, and enjoying the imaginary ordinary vegan.

DYI: Salad Dressing

2010-02-23T15:20:00.001-05:00

I'm always amazed walking down the salad dressing isle of a grocery store and seeing the hundreds of bottles lined in colorful rows. The variety of dressings we have to choose from is somewhat shocking... what's even more shocking is what is in them ... I can't pronounce half of the ingredients, and then of course there's the little high fructose corn syrup or sugar that seem to sneak into every bottle.

Have no fear. Salad dressings are easy, fun, and super affordable to make.
I started making all of my salad dressings this year, and I'm sure I have saved tons of money by doing so. I love knowing that when I'm craving a bit hearty salad I can dress it up with no problem.

My DYI dressing over spinach, apples, avocado, and sesame seeds!

The easy "go to" of DYI salad dressings is, naturally, Balsamic Vinegar and Olive Oil with a dash of salt and pepper. But the combinations are limitless!

Toby Hatchett from Seacoast Online wrote a great article if you're new to making your own dressings. His article includes basic recipes for all types of salad dressings (not-veg friendly, but substitutions are basic). He also reminds us most salad dressings are 2 parts oil per 1 part vinegar.

Other resources are available via the world wide web and your book shelves! I don't know a single vegan cookbook that doesn't have a dressing recipe in it. One of my personal favorites is the Vegetarian Times website and magazine. In every issue they have divine salads paired with simple and elegant dressings. Once you've played around with recipes its easy and fun to start creating your own concoctions.

My go to salad dressing is (sorry I've never once measured the ingredients, I always end up just throwing them together in a food processor! but I encourage you to do the same!):
-Tahini
-Olive Oil
-Apple Cider Vinagar
-Lemon Juice
-dash of salt
-Medjool Dates (about 2 chopped)
-and a dash of water (so it's not a dip, but more of a dressing)

I almost always use tahini as my base for dressing because I love the stuff. Other fun salad dressing ingredients are:
-grapefruit juice
-raspberries
-orange juice
-lime juice
-sesame oil
-peanut oil
-miso
-veganaise
-basil
-dill
-mustard
-nutritional yeast
-sesame seeds

Like I said earlier the combinations are endless!
So load up the processor or blender the next time you've got a bowl full of greens waiting and experiment!

Carrot Cutie!

2010-02-20T13:22:00.001-05:00

So, yes, I work at Wholefoods, and I know I may mention them from time to time ... well this is one of those times.
Today is one of my dear friends birthday. His cake request ... Carrot! Yum! As I was out and about yesterday I needed ingredients and didn't feel like coming all the way home only to go out and get them ... so I did a quick google search on ... awesome vegan carrot cake. To my surprise the Wholefoods website sported what sounded like an awesome cake, using both applesauce and almond milk for moisture. Another lure was the name .."Triple Layer". To me this means A LOT of cake. So instead of going the full triple layer, I made a double layer cake and a dozen cupcakes!

These are sooo delicious! This recipe is spot on. I did make a few adjustments here and there, just given what I was working with.
For instance, while shopping at Wholefoods they were out of plain applesauce (what!?) so I opted for the cinnamon, thus nixing the called for cinnamon in the recipe (which is only like a tsp. ) but it worked! Also, instead of 3 tbsp of egg replacer I just went ahead and used a banana. I replaced the walnuts with sliced almonds, and maybe a couple of other adjustments here and there, nothing serious.

For the cream cheese frosting ... I basically followed their recipe except it sounded like it yielded a lot of frosting (1 1/2 lb of tofutti ... yeah right!) I used an 8 oz tub of tofutti, about 1/2 cup powder sugar, tsp vanilla, and about 1/2 cup earth balance .. give or take. It provided just enough for the job! (but not enough to write Codee's name on the cake :(

If I've said it once I'll say it a million times ... This cake is banging!
Today we'll be enjoying it at Rays Happy Birthday Bar.
Happy Birthday Codee!!

Ingredients

Carrot Cake
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground ginger
3 tablespoons egg replacer
2 cups light brown sugar
1 cup safflower oil
1 cup almond milk
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
3/4 pound carrots, finely grated (about 3 cups)
1 cup walnuts or pecans, chopped
1 cup seedless raisins

Frosting
12 tablespoons non-hydrogenated margarine, chilled and cut into pieces
1 1/2 pounds soy cream cheese, cold
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

Preheat oven to 350°F and lightly grease three (9-inch) round cake pans; set aside.

For the cake, put flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and egg replacer into a mixing bowl and whisk together to blend. Put sugar in a separate large mixing bowl and whisk in safflower oil, almond milk and applesauce. When fully combined, add almond milk mixture to flour mixture and mix just until smooth. Stir in carrots, walnuts and raisins, then divide batter evenly between the prepared cake pans. Bake for 25 minutes, or until the center springs back gently when pressed. Remove from oven and transfer to racks to let cool completely.

Meanwhile, make the frosting. Beat margarine in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed for 3 minutes. Add cream cheese in pieces and mix until thoroughly blended. Slowly add sugar and vanilla and mix until blended. Increase mixer speed slightly and continue mixing for 2 to 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Cover and set aside until ready to use.

Place a cake layer, bottom side up, on a cake plate or pedestal. Spoon one-quarter of the frosting onto the top and spread it evenly. Place a second cake layer, bottom side down, on top of the first, and spread with an equal amount of frosting. Place the final cake layer, bottom side down, on top of the others and frost the top and sides with remaining frosting. Cover and chill until ready to serve or set aside to let set for 30 minutes, then cut into slices and serve.

Nutrition

Per serving (1/16 cake/201g-wt.): 590 calories (290 from fat), 32g total fat, 3g saturated fat, 9g protein, 72g total carbohydrate (3g dietary fiber, 47g sugar), 0mg cholesterol, 640mg sodium

Imaginary Ordinary Goes Public!

2010-02-17T15:32:00.000-05:00

I have some awesome news.
The cafe down the street from my house, Mazag, located on 10th and Carpenter will be selling my very own baked goods!!
If your in the hood, or strolling through the italian market, check them out.

Today I dropped off my first goodies to sell.

Nothing too jazzy, but there's more to come.
A plain cheesecake topped with kiwis and chocolate cupcakes with cookies n' cream icing that has a nice shimmer to it!

Kitchen Must Haves

2010-02-15T13:25:00.001-05:00

Ok Ok Ok, so I decided to just go back to my old layout with a new picture. I thought the new year, the new decade, could use a little change, but then I remembered ... change is bad.

I recently just bought a pizza stone. This is a must have in any kitchen if you enjoy baking pizza's (which I do!) and other crispy things .. i.e. crackers.
A pizza stone is basically a large either rectangular or circular stone that just sits in your oven. The pizza is baked on it, and the stone's main advantage is that it helps evenly distribute the heat, and the porous nature of the stone (usually unglazed terra cotta) helps absorb excess moisture which leaves you with a brilliant crispy crust every time!

I was sick of making delicious pizzas and then the center crust being soggy. So, I buckled up and bought a stone. There are many different varieties and brands out there, and they can be as inexpensive as $15.00.

The first delicious pizza I made on the new stone was a white pizza (no sauce, just olive oil and garlic) with butternut squash, asparagus, and sea salt.

Pizza #2 was a typical homemade sauce with fresh rosemary (despite all the snow our plant is still kickin it on the roof ... you go rosemary ...) topped with onion, broccoli, and a nice ricotta we whipped up by food processing raw cashews, nooch, salt, olive oil and lemon!

Lauren the Primo Pizza Crust maker shows her skills

Jamie holding the pizza up just by the crispy crust! Oh how I love thee Pizza Stone!

Another must have for baking ... a mini-bundt cake pan! These are adorable little cakes that make a perfect gift or accent to a dessert tray. I don't own them yet, but next paycheck, they're mine (only one new kitchen gadget a week ... ).

Mini-bundts! Next to mini-cakes.

Andrew the Adorable baker with the mini-cakes.

Wild Rice Soup

2010-02-11T13:31:00.000-05:00

I apologize for yet again another change in layout .... uhhh blogger why do allow for such limited layout selections!

Here in Philly we've been having major snow! YAY! And not only is it beautifying the entire city, its also giving me time to play in the warm kitchen. After yesterdays walk in the park, snow octopus building, snow volleyball, and of coarse snowball fight, all I wanted to eat was a bowl of warm delicious soup. My all time favorite soup is Wild Rice ... I added shitake mushrooms which gives it a nice meaty texture.

Wild Rice Soup with Shitake Mushrooms
- 3 tbsp earth balance
-2 small yellow onions - finely chopped
-1 cup diced shitake mushrooms *
-3 1/2 cups water
-1/2 cup soaked (24 hrs.) raw cashews
-1 tbsp olive oil
-1/2 cup wild rice
-1/2 cup hemp milk
-salt and pepper to taste

In a large soup pot on med-high heat melt the earth balance and saute with the onions and mushrooms until soft (about 5 mns). Add your water and bring to a boil. While the water is boiling, blend the cashews with the olive oil until thick and creamy. Once the water is boiling, stir in the rice and cashew blend, turn down heat to a simmer and let sit covered for one hour.
Add the hemp milk and salt and pepper to taste.
Enjoy!!

my favorite!!!

snow octopus

Creamy Cauliflower Does it Again!

2010-02-07T17:37:00.001-05:00

Recently I've been fixated by cauliflower. Everyday I grow a greater appreciation for this awesome vegetable, and the creaminess it is capable of bringing to any dish.
The latest ...
Cream of Cauliflower soup.
I was given this recipe by a non-vegan friend who made it non-vegan at a potluck, and I vowed to make a vegan version.
It worked ... I definitely over compensated on the creaminess thinking that it wouldn't live up to the cream of the non-vegan version, so next time around Im going to add some more water, but needless, this is a super thick, super creamy, super yummy, super easy recipe! Please Enjoy!

Cream of Cauliflower Soup
- 3 leeks - only white/light green parts
- 10 cups cauliflower - chopped in one inch pieces
- 3 tbsp earth balance
- 1 cup soaked raw cashews
- 1 cup soy creamer
- 2 cups hemp milk
- 4 cups water (I originally made it with 2 cups, so go ahead and up the h2o right off the bat, and if it's still too thick, just keep it coming)
-salt and pepper to taste

In a very large or two fry pans, evenly divide up the leeks, cauliflower, and earth balance. Saute until the cauliflower is semi-soft, about 20 - 25 minutes.
In a large soup pot combine all the liquid ingredients with the veggies and cook on med heat, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes.
Blend. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Voila!

the whole dinner = creamy cauliflower soup, steamed broccoli, roasted asparagus, buffalo seitan and basil aioli! YUM!

I need to Spelt it out

2010-02-04T12:13:00.001-05:00

Recently my roommate became a part of a food-buying club. Smaller than a co-op, but basically the same concept: buy from local farmers in bulk and split it amongst a group of interested individuals. Being an avid baker, flour was number 1 on my list when he asked me what I would like in bulk ... however, the only flour on the list was Spelt ... therefore, I now have 10 lbs. of spelt flour, something I've never used before in my life and have no idea what to do with it .... help?!?

Purusing the web searching for spelt recipes, I came across a blueberry spelt pancake recipe from Eatn Vegan in Toronto. It's a super easy recipe, and the pancakes turned out great!

From Eatn Vegan:

Ingredients

2 cups of spelt flour

1 tsp of baking soda

2 cups of soy milk

1 cup of fresh blueberries

Maple Syrup

1 banana, and chopped strawberries (optional)

Method

Mix flour and baking soda in a bowl, add in soy milk (you could also use almond milk, or non-dairy milk of choice) and mix well.

Drop in your blueberries and stir.

Heat a pan to medium heat (I used a non stick pan, otherwise use a bit of oil to prevent sticking).

Drop 1/4 of a cup of the batter at a time into the pan. When you see bubbles and the edges beginning to to golden, flip the pancake. Continue on making pancakes!

I didn't use the banana's or strawberry's but just covered the cakes in earth balance and pure maple syrup :)

If anyone out there knows of some awesome spelt recipes, please, SEND THEM MY WAY!!

Enjoy.

Cauliflower ... its the new Creamy

2010-02-01T19:35:00.000-05:00

Cauliflower (or should we say Transformaflower) is a vegetable that has taken it upon itself to be the new creamy substitute... sorry tofu, you can't have all the glory. Steamed and blended cauliflower transforms into a delicious creamy medium that is suitable for soups, casseroles, sauces, dips, etc ... if the creaminess factor needs to be turned up a notch, call cauliflower in for the job. I recently used cauliflower as a creamy addition to a "cheesy" sauce for macaroni and cheese. Along with some soaked cashews this dish was delicious and dare I say it ... nutritious!?!
A half cup of tofu contains 10 grams of protein while half a cup of cashews is 18 grams!! (and who says vegans don't get enough protein?) Now lets look at the nutritional bennies of substituting cauliflower for your creamer shall we ...
The cauliflower in this recipe is steamed, then blended, so a half of cup only adds a whopping 14 calories, no fat, 46% of your daily vitamin C, and is high in phosphorus, potassium, and vitamin B6. Not too shabby.
If you're looking for an awesome Mac N' Cheese recipe for those days when you just want to curl up on the couch, or need a kick a$$ dish to share at those ever so lovely potlucks, give this a shot ...

ENJOY!
the new and vegan improved ...

Mac N' Cheese
-1 lb. elbow macaroni
-pinch o' salt
-2 cups soaked cashews (soaked at least 1 hr.)
-4 cloves garlic, peeled
-1 cup Rice milk
-1 cup nutritional yeast
-1 tbsp red miso
-swirl o agave nectar
-1/2 cup cauliflower florets, steamed
-1 tbsp crushed red pepper
-1 tbsp dried basil
-1 tsp salt
-1 cup bread crumbs
-2 tbsp earth balance

Preheat oven to 350.
Bring 3 quarts of water to a boil with a dash of salt. Add in the macaroni and cook for approximately 7-8 minutes or until noodles are tender.
Drain and set aside.
In a food processor combine soaked cashews and garlic, and pulse until well chopped.
Add in remaining ingredients and blend until very smooth and ... creamy ...
Place noodles in an 8 x 13 baking dish and stir in cream sauce, covering every noodle. With a spoon evenly spread noodle mix in dish and cover with bread crumbs, while throwing little dollops of earth balance on top.
Place uncovered in oven and bake for approximately 20-25 minutes or until macaroni has reached a nice golden brown.
Serves 10 or more!
-

Friends + Food = Potlucks!

2010-01-28T12:38:00.000-05:00

Potlucks: Joyous occasions when great friends and great food meet. Who could ask for anything more? For many years now potlucks have been drizzling down and I'm delighted to say that this years forecast calls for rain.
Last week I was invited to a potluck which gathers every Sunday. A wonderful weekly tradition to gather round, meet people, eat, drink, and to sound cliche, be merry!
Although this potluck wasn't strictly vegan, the vegan options were plentiful and delicious.
I contributed homemade focaccia with white bean aioli and BBQ Tofu. One vegan dish that blew my mind was a curry that featured butternut squash!
I have to say the Focaccia turned out amazing. The recipe I used comes from Dynise Balcavage's recent book, "The Urban Vegan". I'll admit, so far I haven't given this book much of a chance, to me the voice of the book is a little pretentious and who publishes a book without pictures ... !?!?!
But, tell you what, her foccacia recipe is simple, extremely easy, and completely dresses to impress.

My plate = focaccia, aioli, bbq tofu, squash curry, bok choy with ginger, garlic, and tamari

citrus salad

apple cake from Vegan Bites!

Grubbin' down.

Chana Masala with Yellow Split Pea & Peanut Cakes

2010-01-18T16:35:00.001-05:00

Curry n: any dish that consists of either meat, fish, poultry, legumes, vegetables, or fruits, simmered in or covered with a sauce, gravy, or other liquid that is redolent with any number of freshly ground and very fragrant spices and/or herbs. -Raghavan Iyer.

To me, Indian cuisine had always seemed like an unattainable art. Many years back I attempted to make dahl, it turned out terrible and ever since I've steered clear of the dahls and masalas to avoid failure. Indian cuisine is definitely in my top 3 and it killed me that every time a hankering came on, I was forced to spend mucho $$ at restaurants or take-out. What was a girl to do??

Enter 660 Curries; the book that has changed my sad non-indian cuisine cooking life! This year for christmas my wonderful sister-in-law gave me "660 Curries" by Raghavan Iyer. This book is deemed "the gateway to Indian Cooking". And let me tell you, it is!!!! It's an awesome cookbook, not only are there 660 curries but also biryanis (rice-based dishes), breads, pickles, relishes, raitas (yogurt sauce), pastes, appitizers and sooo much more! This is an Indian Cuisine Bible and I just have to give a huge shout out to Mr. Iyer who was IACP's award winning teacher of the year. Now it's not geared towards vegans , and there are many poultry, beef, and seafood dishes.. . however, I bet they are easily substituted with tofu/seitan/tempeh and dairy of coarse can always be substituted by alternative milks and yogurts.

I decided to start with something simple (given my history) and a classic favorite ... Chana Masala. Then for a fun twist (and they sounded easy enough) I made Yellow Split Pea & Peanut Cakes with an awesome aioli that my dear friends and sous chefs whipped up.

I couldn't believe how simple and delicious the Chana Masala (chickpeas w/ a spicy tomato sauce) turned out. Basically it boils down to ginger and garlic sauted, throw in some coriander, turmeric, cayenne, cumin, and cilantro - add your chickpeas with tomato paste and water - cook on high until the sauce boils off and thickens and bam! Who knew?!!?!!?!

The Yellow Split Pea and Peanut Cakes (dal sengdana vadi) were a little on the dry side, but thanks to the awesome chef Lauren from Vegan Royale and our good friend Amy for their aioli saved the night. It was a perfect match and enabled us to wipe the plate clean. I don't know exactly what they put in it but it was a combination of just about everything we had lying around in the kitchen (coconut milk, ginger, garlic, cilantro, veganaise, tahini, carrots ... I know I'm missing some things, but you get the picture). The main ingredients in the cakes were yellow split peas (chana dal), raw peanuts, coconut, chilies, and ginger. Blend all together with more spices, fry up and voila! The author uses this recipe as a vegetarian answer to crab cakes. The greatest part is that the peanuts act as a binder so no flour or egg substitute is needed.

If you're into Indian Food, I highly suggest picking up a copy of 660 curries. It has tamed my fear of cooking indian cuisine and I can't wait to see what other amazing dishes will come out of it!!! I've got 659 to go!!!

The New year called for a New Look!!

2010-01-16T13:22:00.000-05:00

This year for my low-budget christmas gifts, I decided to make a cookbook. The best of the best kind-of thing, recipes that I knew (or hoped) couldn't fail to impress even the meatiest of meat heads (brother-in-law). My amazing cutie-pa-tootie roommate Jameson Murphy agreed to illustrate my cookbook with his adorable drawings!
I named the book "Vegan Bites" and it consists of three different parts; little bites, big bites, and sweet bites, each only containing about 3-5 recipes. I don't mean to brag but the book came out awesome (with some help from the Howell Family) that I decided to re-name my blog, add Jamie's cute drawings, and continue to add to it for hopefully a future sequel (More Vegan Bites!).

So, Im sorry for the confusion, its the same great blog, just a new look, and a new name. Im not changing the web address which may be even more confusing, but I think yo-a'll can figure it out.

Below are some pics of the book. Let me know if any of you dear readers would like a copy - I am more than happy to share the love. (and get feedback, recipe testers, and the like.... )

table o' contents

apple cake recipe

How cute right?!

More lovely vegan food sharing to come!

A New Butter's In Town .... Spread it Around!!!

2010-01-08T12:15:00.003-05:00

20-10: My first post of the new year! Please, please, hold your applause ...

I am so excited about this first recipe that I have to share with you!!

A friend of mine sent this along to me and immediately after reading it, I knew exactly what was going to be for dinner that night.

It starts with a butter. Yes, a new, beautiful butter in my now perfect world: Basil Cashew Butter. Of coarse, this in itself is delicious on anything - crackers, bread, sammies - you name it. But, not only did I get this recipe in my inbox but along with a tip for putting it on pizza! (butter and pizza, my two favorite things!) with asparagus brushed with olive oil sprinkled with koesher (I used Celtic Sea Salt) and fresh tomatoes! YUM! I also topped it off with garlic and fresh cilantro..... mmmmmMMmmmm

So far for vegan cooking in the kitchen, the new year has been fantastic! Lets give a big thanks to the beautiful Lindsey in Minneapolis for sharing this 'pie with me and you! THANK YOU LINDSEY!

Basil Cashew Butter

(Straight from the chef...)

3 cloves garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large bunch of basil
1 can of white northern beans
1 cup of raw cashews
lemon, salt, pepper to taste
------
put everything but cashews, lemon, salt and pepper into your food processor. after well blended, add the cashews slowly until they seem to have minimized down (to your own preference, i like them really blended, makes everything more pleasurable!)

All right - NOW that that's done, Go For it!

I used Isa's pizza crust from Vegan with a Vengeance. Once stretched and ready to go I spread the basil cashew butter as a base, topped with asparagus, brushed with olive oil, sprinkled with chopped garlic and sea salt, and cilantro. Baked at 500 for about 9 minutes. That's pizza #1 -

for pizza #2 we got the cashew butter, then tomato paste swirled in, topped with olives, garlic, and diced tomato.

Enjoy!

It's all about the Bennies -

2009-12-28T20:28:00.001-05:00

Since becoming vegan I have developed an addiction for Nutritional Yeast. Its terrible. I can't seem to ever get enough. Any recipe that calls for it, I know I will love, and many a time have ended up putting in more than what's called for.
One of my absolute favorite nooch recipes is Isa and Terry's recipe in "Veganomicon" for Cheesy Sauce. Not only is this amazing drizzled on EVERYTHING, but it works perfectly for a late morning benny. This "ultimate vegan cookbook" also features a Tofu Florentine, a sudo benny that calls for sauted spinach and broiled tofu. This is a great dish that I've found really pleases both omnivores and carnivores alike, however, I've found that using fresh spinach, a big ole' slice of tomato, and blacked tofu instead of broiled really hits home when those benny cravings come crashing in.

I made this a couple of days of ago for the "christmas breakfast" with my boyfriend's family and they loved it (all being very far from veg)! The best part is that it is a snap to make, and really only takes about 20 minutes if you've got a pair of hands helping you ... and did I mention its delicious! All of us (yes, all) went in for seconds and were scraping our plates!! Next time your aiming to please with a breakfast benny give this one a go!!

Cheezy Sauce
-2 cups vegetable broth or water
-1/4 cup all-purpose flour
-1 tbsp. olive oil
-3 cloves garlic, minced
-Pinch of dried thyme
-1/4 tsp salt
-pepper to taste
-1/8 tsp. turmeric (i've many a time omitted this due to its non-existence in my cupboard and its completely not necessary, however, it does add a beautiful "cheesy" color to the mix when added!)
-3/4 cup nutritional yeast
-1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
-1 tsp. prepared mustard (i also omit this ... i don't know why ... its just never appealed to me)

Combine the broth and flour in a measuring cup and whisk with a fork until dissolved.
Preheat a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Place the oil and garlic in the pan and gently cook for about 2 minutes, stirring often and being careful not to burn the garlic (a very easy thing to do!).
Add the thyme, salt, and pepper and cook for about 15 seconds. Add the broth, termeric, and nutrional yeast, and raise the heat to medium. Use a whisk to stir consistently. The mixture should start bubbling and thickening in about 3 minutes; if it doesn't, turn the heat up a bit higher.
Once the mixture in bubbling and thickening, stir and cook for about 2 more minutes. Add the lemon and mustard. The mixture should resemble a thick melty cheese. Taste for salt. Turn off the heat and cover the pan to keep it warm until ready to use. The top might thicken a bit while it sits, but you can just stir it and it will be fine - serve warm.

All right, so that's the recipe from the ultimate book.
and like I said, instead of using broiled tofu, I used blackened tofu - check this out

Blackened Tofu
-1 lb extra firm tofu, pressed
-1/2 cup earth balance melted
-1/4 cup flour
-1 1/2 tsp creole seasoning*
-1 tsp pepper

Cut the pressed tofu into long rectangular strips or triangles (cut the tofu block into four sections from bottom - up)
Mix the four and spices together in a large enough bowl to fit a tofu piece
Dip the tofu pieces into the earth balance on both sides, then repeat into the flour/spice mixture
Place the dipped floured tofu pieces on a heated skillet on high and cook for about 5 minutes on each side (until they become nice and "blackened")
*I've never used creole seasoning before, but on this particular morning found it in the cupboard. Turns out, its perfect with this combo! You don't need too much of anything else since it is booming with flavor, but if you don't have any on hand, use any type of seasoning/spice combo of your choice

Now, for a Banging Benny ...

Toast an english muffin (be careful, lots of brands contain milk ingredients)
Butter with earth balance
Layer with a nice bed of fresh spinach
Place a big round fresh tomato slice atop the spinach
Add a piece of blackened tofu to the tower
Shower with cheesy sauce!

DIG IN!!

I made this for 7 people and by doubling both recipes, it was enough for seconds, sating all appetites.

Enjoy!!!

The Joy of Colored Frosting

2009-12-27T17:23:00.001-05:00

Christmas cookies are one of my favorite holiday past times . . . let me rephrase that, decorating christmas cookies is one of my favorite holiday past times. Yes, making them is a joy just as any other batch, but the special sprinkles, cutters, colors, and shapes that come along with this holiday season is but to be enjoyed only once a year.
This year, I bought a couple of new cookie cutter shapes .. a moose ( probably due to my sincere homesickness of the last frontier) and a snowflake (a derivative of this homesickness). I wanted to have ambigious "winter" shapes that veared from specific holidays of the season, thus to be enjoyed throughout many but not just one of these short winter days. With the new cutters on the table, some sprinkles, and food coloring all ready to go; a short, easy recipe was called for. I chose Isa Chandra Moskowitz (what else is new) to fill my cookie void.

In Vegan with a Vengeance I used her "Buttery Lemon Cutout Cookies" recipe. The recipe is easy, fast, and requires no "funny" ingredients. The cookies taste wonderful and are provide the perfect dough tinted canvas.
John and I decorated these cookies during Philadelphia's 2009 snowstorm - which couldn't have been more perfect. The icing came out to be a little lite, because I'm always weary of food coloring. They're like a love child between easter and christmas.

Now, for those of you out there who are also weary of food coloring (I don't know why, but there's something a little tooo unnatural for me in those elf shaped droppers) I have good news!!
A recent christmas present, "Babycakes"a cookbook which comes from the delightful animal and allergenic friendly bakery in NYC has some natural food coloring alternatives. This little treasure chest includes amazing vegan and sugar and gluten free recipes. However, besides treats (cookies, cakes, cupcakes, crumbles, scones .. if you love it, they got it) there's also a section on beverages and icings. Now, now, as you can imagine, a book with such lovely ethics is surely not going to grab the little elf dropper from the cupboard and drop in the recommended dosage. They color all of their frosting naturally with these awesome tricks!

Pink/Red: cherry, raspberry, cranberry, pomegranate, or beet juice all work.
Purple: blueberry juice - the more you use, the deeper the purple
Green: chlorophyll (ya know the green pigment in plants....) comes in liquid form at many health food stores!!
Yellow: turmeric - just a pinch!

Now, you may be thinking how these alternatives could change the taste of the frosting - nope. If you've ever had a babycake dessert you know damn well how wonderful they taste and would have no cause to question.

Enjoy!

Cheese to the Cake

2009-12-20T10:32:00.004-05:00

Since I was a small small girl my birthday cake requests have and will always continue to be cheesecake. Ahh, cheesecake to me is the apex of desserts. The combination of sweet, creamy, and rich makes me melt and sends me straight to a feeling of pure ecstasy. Who couldn't love this dessert? Especially with its multitude of accents: fruit for the semi-healthy guest, chocolate to really seal the deal, caramel to let the cream do its job, pumpkin as a vessel for nutmeg, the list goes on and on to please just about anybody. I've personally never tasted a cheesecake that I didn't like (or one that didn't like me for that matter). Which has led me to believe that they are pretty easy to make. Have you ever had a bad cheesecake?

Becoming vegan obviously led me upon a small challenge for the next day of my birth. I must master the art of vegan cheesecake. Now, master is a pretty strong word, this I understand, and I am not there yet, but with each bake I am climbing a little higher.
The latest has been a chocolate hazelnut cheesecake that will require a tall glass of soy/almond/rice/hemp/oak milk.
I must warn you, this is not a child's cake. This is a cake that could, and quite possibly might, knock you off of your seat. Enjoy with sincere caution.

Anabell's Chocolate Hazelnut Cheese to the Cake

For the Crust: (works best with a spring form pan)
-14 "oreo" cookies ( I used wholefoods 365 brand Creme Sandwich cookies because they're like $2.00!)
-4 tbsp. butter @ room temperature

In a food processor chop or lightly pulse until the cookies have turned into nice little sticky crumbles!

For the Cake:
-2, 8 oz. packages of Tofutti Creamcheese
-6 oz. of Tofutti Sour Cream
-4 oz. of firm tofu (1/4 of a 12 oz. block)
-1 cup sugar
-1 tbsp. vanilla extract
-1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts

Blend all ingredients (sans the hazelnuts) together until nice and smooth.

For the Chocolate Layer:
-3/4 cup vegan chocolate morsels
-1 tbsp. butter
-2 tbsp. coconut milk

In a double broiler melt the chocolate with the butter and coconut milk. Constantly stir to prevent clumping. 3/4 of this mixture will be used as a layer over the crust, and the other 1/4 will be used to swirl into the cake. Now ... onto assembling ...

Assembling the cake:
Preheat oven to 400.
In a spring form pan squish your cookie crust down until the whole bottom is covered with an even layer roughly around 1/4 in. thick.
Pour 3/4 of your chocolate mixture over the entire crust. Sprinkle your hazelnuts on top of the chocolate.
Pour in the cake "batter". Lift and drop your pan a couple of times to ensure an evenness. With a fork swirl in the rest of the chocolate.
Put in the oven and bake for about 40 minutes. The edges should be a nice golden brown. The cake itself will look/shake like a jello mold. Don't worry. You will need to let the cake cool and set. Let the cake cool for about 1 hour before putting it in the fridge. Then let it sit in the fridge for at least 4 hours before serving. The longer it sits in the fridge the better!! (try to go for an overnite adventure).

Look at that chocolate layer - whoo-ee!

a little slice of rich chocolatey heaven...

For another amazing cheesecake recipe with a nice raspberry swirl and graham crust, check out my february archive from 2009! Enjoy!

Me enjoying my finger licking good cake this year. If you don't have the time or motivation to make your own cheesecake and live in the Philadelphia area - check out Govinda's. That's where this strawberry cheesecake gem came from for my 25th! Its loaded with faux whip cream which Im not usually into, but on this occasion with this cake, amazing -!

Make it yourself Tofurkey

2009-12-06T12:08:00.004-05:00

We've all seen the faux turkey loaf is the freezer section, the official thanksgiving replacement for us vegans and vegetarians out there. Well, I don't know about you guys, but Im sorry, those blow. I think they're dry, flavorless, and don't even deserve the name "Tofurkey". It's not like we've never eaten stuffing or turkey before and think that its suppose to taste this horrible. Yes, Im ragging on Tofurkey's because I've had the real deal. I've experienced a tofu based entree stuffed with real homemade stuffing, and it truly puts the store bought freezer Tofurkey meal to shame. This is also unbelievably easy to make, which leaves no excuse for the vegans out there during this holiday season. If you take the time (the most time consuming part is pressing the tofu ... I mean, come on ...) this truly is a holiday miracle.

I used a recipe that I found on the web @ www.yak.net/fqa/296.html.

John carving the Tofurkey

But, there are a million different variations, and many other sites that offer great recipes. You can also look at the tofu as an empty canvas and be totally creative!
Enjoy!

YUM!!

What a goooood looking plate!

Cake Day 2009

2009-11-23T16:13:00.001-05:00

Cake Day. A friend of mine wanted to bake and eat a lot of cake. Naturally, she invited friends over to bake, frost, and sprinkle all day/night.

There was one vegan cake among the 20 or so which decorated the table, counters, and even china cabinet. It was delicious; chocolate with peanut butter smeared on top and topped with raisins lined in a pattern that resembled a collared shirt.
The array of frosting colors and cake creativity could have made Ebenezer Scrooge himself crack a smile and grab a fork.
If you're feeling blue, don't just make a cake, make a cake day.

Enjoy.

Product Review: Daiya Vegan Cheese

2009-11-19T18:31:00.001-05:00

Ladies and gentlemen,
Buckle your seat belts.
I've got some ground shattering, car tipping, roller coaster dropping news!

We've all been there. Perusing the dairy aisle, looking for the infamous faux cheese products. The same players every time ... Vegan Gourmet, Rice Slices (pepper jack is pretty decent), Tofutti Slices, Almond, Soy, Sheese blandness ... and to top it off half of them have casein in them, so really what's the point? I know many vegans who don't even mess with faux cheese because its a lose lose situation.
Well, like I said, Buckle your seat belts because this is gonna rock your world!
It's a vegan cheese that is good! It melts! It tastes like cheese! It looks like cheese! It acts like cheese! It even talks like cheese ...

Daiya baby, Daiya. Its the best I've come across. And the cherry on top, it doesn't contain not only dairy, but no soy or gluten or rice or nuts! S-s-s-say wwhhaat? So what is in Daiya cheese alternative some may ask.... lets take a gander ...

Purified water, tapioca and/or arrowroot flours, non-GMO expeller pressed canola and/or non-GMO expeller pressed safflower oil, coconut oil pea protein, salt, inactive yeast, vegetable glycerin, natural flavors (derived from plants), xanthan gum, sunflower lecithin, vegan enzymes (no animal rennet or animal enzymes), vegan bacterial cultures, citric acid (for flavor), annatto.

I mean, that's not bad. But it's wonderful. Currently they are working on a retail launch strategy but haven't made the debut yet and are only selling to food services ... however, Wholefoods at Callowhill uses it to make delicious vegan cheesy dishes (such as cheesy broccoli and cauliflower and quesadillas) but ALSO sells it for 8.99/lb. in the prepared foods department! It comes shredded and I've been eating it by the handfulls. The roommates don't think its that great, but they also frequent di bruno bros ... so ... we can't compare apples and oranges now can we?

Last night I had a beautiful red pepper quesadilla, and for lunch today ... Mac N' Daiya!

If you're in the area and get a craving for cheesy nacho's you know what to do.

Buckeyes are a Beautiful thing

2009-11-04T15:30:00.002-05:00

Buckeyes. When I mentioned these treats in front of my roommate he looked at me quizzically and repeated .."buckeyes?". Yes. B-u-c-k-e-y-e-s. Georgia, my loving and wonderfully gifted chef/baker mother, use to make these every year around the holidays. Since I can remember, buckeyes = warm house, cold weather, and endless sledding. Well, living in philly Im definitely not going to get my sledding fix, but the buckeyes are hear to serve at least some of my seasonal craving. I just adapted my moms recipe to a vegan recipe. Extremely easy to do; earth balance in place of butter and vegan chocolate in place of chocolate morsels. Wham, Bam thank you mam.

Perusing the web, I found that not all buckeye recipes are the same and they vary across the board. I'm not saying their's aren't great ... but I've already eaten three of these and I think Im going to skip dinner and go for more! They are dangerously good! I think my recipe might just be better.... the secret ingredient ... rice krispies. Who knew?

Georgia's Buckeyes (yields about 2 dozen)
-1 18 oz. jar chunky peanut butter
-1 stick earth balance
-3 cups powder sugar
-2 1/2 cups rice krispies
-10 oz vegan chocolate morsels

Combine all ingredients together except the chocolate until well blended. Make into balls and set aside. In a double boiler melt the chocolate. Dip the balls in the chocolate and set on wax paper. Cool and store in fridge. EJNOY!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars

2009-11-02T08:49:00.001-05:00

This recipe has been in my book since 2004. I got it from a woman I was babysitting for whose son was allergic to eggs. While babysitting she asked me to make treats for his soccer game that night. As I was paging through books and eyeing what they had in the cupboard, this one checked out. Pumpkin ... check. Flour .... check. Sugar ... check. It is an insanely easy recipe and the result is awesome!! I immediately copied it down and when I got home jotted it in my "cooking, cooking, baking, baking" book, I suggest you do the same.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars
- 2 cups sugar
-1 cup earth balance
-1 (15 1/2 ounce) pumpkin
-2 tsp. vanilla
-4 cups flour
-2 tsp baking soda
-2 tsp ground cinnamon
-12 ounces vegan or carob chips

Preheat oven to 375.
Cream the sugar, e.b., pumpkin and vanilla. Mix until light and well combined.
Mix the flour, baking soda, and ground cinnamon. Stir the flour mix into the creamed mixture. Mix until well combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
Now, you can make cookies or bars. This is the time to decide. It you want to go for the cookies (it yields A LOT) drop by teaspoon onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake for about 12-15 minutes. Cool on rack. If you're going to opt for the bars - pour batter (which is going to be pretty stiff) into 9 x 13 baking dish. Bake for about 25 minutes.
Enjoy!

Creamy Tomato Soup

2009-10-29T19:14:00.000-04:00

When I say creamy, I mean creamy. This coming from an ex-cream lover herself. This soup is a miracle. As the days are getting shorter and while the darkness and cold start creeping in, this soup could serve as your best friend. Its dairy, soy, and gluten free (so it can be everybody's best friend) only takes 45 minutes to make, and is low in fat! Can I get a "what, what". This comes from Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero's book Veganomicon, and when they say it's the "ultimate vegan cookbook" they mean it's the ultimate vegan cookbook. A creamy tomato soup is the comfort of all comfort foods. Here's one for the ages...

Creamy Tomato Soup
-2 tbsp. olive oil
-1 medium onion, chopped coarsely
-3 cloves garlic, chopped
-1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary (crushed between your fingers)
-1/2 tsp. dried thyme
-1/2 tsp. dried oregano
-1 tsp. salt
Lots of freshly ground black pepper
-1 lb. waxy potatoes (2-4 average-size potatoes) peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
-1 cup sun-dried tomatoes (not the ones packed in oil, the straight up sun-dried tomatoes)
-6 cups water or vegetables broth
-1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes (the fire-roasted are especially worth it here)
juice of 1/2 lemon, or to taste

Preheat a large soup pot over medium heat. Saute the onions until translucent, 5 -7 minutes. Add the garlic, herbs, salt, and pepper. Saute for 1 more minute, until the garlic is fragrant. Add the potatoes and sun-dried tomatoes. Pour in the water. Cover and bring to a boil. Once the soup is boiling, lower the heat to medium, cover, and let simmer for about 20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender and the sun-dried tomatoes are soft.
Add the crushed tomatoes and heat through. If you have an immersion blender, use it! If not the good ole' fashion way works as well.
Heat again, throw some lemon zest (I didn't bother) and bam!
Instead of the lemon zest I topped mine with a nice pesto dollop and bread crumbs.

Restaurant Review : NYC's HanGawi

2009-10-26T13:17:00.001-04:00

I am fortunate enough to have a boyfriend who's parents try their best to cater to our vegan selves. JT Howell is one who aims to please, and did just that when he picked this restaurant in NYC for a Sunday family lunch.
HanGawi located at 12 East 32nd Street, between 5th and Madison Avenue calls itself "a vegetarian shrine in another place and time". They got it spot on. Walking into the zen atmosphere you must take off your shoes before stepping up into the dining room. The tables are 2 feet above the ground with decorative silk quilted pillows as your seat. Silver chopsticks and a floral engraved spoon are then placed in front of you. I wasn't sure if I should start meditating or to look over the menu. The peaceful servers walk around in traditional korean slippers and robes as they graciously wait to take your order and answer any questions you may have about the menu. All the dishes are vegan, some raw, and they offer organic dishes and an organic/non drink selection.
The drinks range from traditional rice wine cocktails, to sake, to fresh squeezed juice and of coarse a beautiful array of tea. John went for the carrot ginger juice and I choose the rose green tea. Both excellent.
Each choosing a mouth watering appetizer to share our selection ended with: stuffed shiitake mushrooms, vegetable steamed dumplings, kabocha pumpkin pancakes with mung beans, avocado salad with carrot ginger dressing and a combination roll plate - some were like mini fresh rolls wrapped in a variety of rice papers, while others reached the decadence of sushi.

For our main dish, I got bean curd with kimchi and spicy vegetables. The sauce was a light slightly thickish sesame-soy-gingerish sauce with the perfect spice on top of onions, ginger, mushrooms, and spinach. Topped with spicy kimchi (YUM!) while the bean curd was separated, each topped with a different flavor accent: sesame seeds, poppy seeds, carrots, scallions, and red peppers.

John got the spicy chili mushrooms. Similar to mine, sans the kimchi and bean curd. Instead a plethora of different mushrooms tossed in a beautifully thick spicy sauce, side of parsley, with a carrot rose, and decorative oranges.

The other main courses at our table included: crispy mushrooms in a sweet and sour sauce, kabocha pumpkin stone bowl rice, and my absolute favorite : grilled todok - mountain root strips in a ginger soy sauce. The grilled todok had a simple taste, similar to a sweet potato, but a perfect almost meaty stringy texture. Served on a stone plate that was still sizzling as it was brought to our table.

Unfortunately our time restrain didn't allow for dessert, however, I was very full from the slice of heaven I had just ingested.
If you're in the NYC area, and looking for not only a wonderful meal, but an all around wonderful experience, I would definitely suggest HanGawi, it has been by far the best vegan restaurant I have been to this year.

Yam Fries with Yogurt Dill Sauce

2009-10-18T11:51:00.001-04:00

What is the difference between a sweet potato and a yam? I always thought they were the same. Some other people, including my dad, always said that it was a regional dialect, in the north sweet potatoes and in the south they called them yams. I bought this, thinking they call all "pop" cola in the south, so why wouldn't the exchange convert to vegetables.
However, I am wrong, my dad is wrong, and all the others who thought/think they are the same thing. There's all sorts of information on the good ole' reliable world wide web about the difference of these two vegetables. Region does play a part, the yam coming from latin America, the sweet potato is found more north. The yam has more natural sugars in it and can grow up to 7 feet in length!! At About.com: Home Cooking there is some great information along with links that compares the difference between the two.
Well, sweet potato fries and yam fries .... apparently there's a difference.
I picked up some yams. And they really make some delicious fries. A yogurt dill dipping sauce is the perfect accent. This 'pie will yield a giant plate of fries (more than enough for four people) and same goes for the sauce.

Yam Fries
-2 medium sized yams - sliced into thin strips
-1 tbsp olive oil
-dash of salt
-dash of cayenne

Preheat the oven to 450. Layout the cut, sliced yams on a cookie sheet and drizzle oil over them, toss them so it gets on both sides. Sprinkle salt and cayenne over yam fries. Place in oven and bake for about 10 minutes, flip them over and bake for another 10 -15 minutes until they turn golden. If you like crispier fries, lay-off on the olive oil and bake a bit longer.

Yogurt Dill Sauce
-1 cup soy yogurt - I use the silk brand
-juice from 1 lemon
-2 teaspoon dried dill
-dash of salt

Mix all together in a bowl. Serve on the side with fries. ENJOY!

Bananarama-Mang-Ding-O

2009-10-16T09:40:00.000-04:00

If banana and mango go great together in a smoothie why wouldn't they be just as right for each other in a muffin? My thoughts exactly.

Banana - Mango Nut Muffins
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. nutmeg
-2 ripe bananas - mashed
-1 cup rice milk
-2 tsp. flax (ground)
-3 tbsp. earth balance
-1 tbsp. agave nectar
-1 champagne mango - peeled and chopped into small pieces
-1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350. Grease your muffin tin (yields 12 small muffins). In a large bowl sift together the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda/powder, salt and nutmeg). In a small bowl mix your wet ingredients including the flaxseed nix the walnuts. Combine the two and stir using a wooden spoon and add in the walnuts. Spoon into greased muffin slots and bake for 20 - 25 minutes.

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Stuffed Shells with Jalapeno Rosemary Sauce

2009-10-15T13:10:00.001-04:00

I found this recipe in a book I picked up at the Library - The Complete Vegan Cookbook by Susann Geiskopf-Hadler and Minday Toomay. I flipped right to this recipe and knew that I would be checking it out. YUM! Did someone say .. pumpkin ... rosemary ... and jalapeno? In this book, the authors have very decadent recipes but simple ingredients, no wacky stuff, with the nutritional information per serving. The layout is wonderful starting with cooking fundamentals that covers techniques, jargon, appliances, and the art of measuring. Then it includes the "essential" foods a vegan should always have in their pantry along with proper care and storage. My favorite is they have a seasonal menu section. With that its just like any other cookbook, but they've got some major stuff going on -- Caramelized Onion and Tempeh Spread, Cauliflower in Coriander Cashew Sauce, Hot and Sour Soup, Mushroom, Oat, and Almond Burgers .. I'm pretty excited to read on!

This recipe was good, but not great. I would spice it up a bit more, it was a bit bland. Granted I didn't add the dry sherry because I didn't have any, but the sauce could definitely use more flavor, I would say, more garlic, a pinch of salt, and something savory like mushrooms. Needless, it's a good meal and very easy to make, and I bet even easier to make great.

Pumpkin Stuffed Shells with Jalapeno Rosemary Sauce
yields 6

The Filling
-2 tbsp. dry sherry
-2 tbsp. olive oil
-3 cloves garlic minced
-2 tbsp. minced fresh rosemary
-1 bunch fresh spinach - (i used kale)
-1 can (15 oz) pumpkin
-1/2 tsp. salt
-dash black pepper

You want to start by making the filling. In a large pan heat the sherry, oil, garlic and rosemary over low heat. Add the spinach and cook until it wilts down. Stir in the pumpkin, salt and pepper. Remove from heat and set aside.

The Sauce
-3 tbsp. olive oil
-2 cloves garlic
-1 tbsp. minced fresh rosemary
-3 tbsp unbleached white flour
-1 1/2 cups plain rice or soy milk
-1 tbsp. minced pickled jalapeno chilies - (i used a fresh jalapeno diced..)

Heat the oil in a heavy bottomed skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and rosemary and cook about a minute. Sprinkle in the flour and continue to cook another minute stirring constantly. Whisk in the milk, 1/2 cup at a time, then bring to a simmer, and cook until it slightly thickens... about 5 minutes. Stir in the jalapenos and set aside.

In the meantime, you should bring a big pot of water to a rapid boil. Add in 12 ounces of dried jumbo pasta shells and cook until they are al dente. Strain and run cold water over them.
Preheat the over to 350 and lightly coat a 8 x 12 baking dish with olive oil. Place a pasta shell in the palm of your hand and squeeze the two ends together to open the shells pocket. Place a spoonful of filling into each shell.
Place the filled shells into the baking dish and pour your sauce evenly over them. Cover the dish and bake for 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

Tofaking Egg Salad

2009-10-13T20:42:00.001-04:00

Whoop Whoop give it up for tofu. Once again this little soybean transforms itself into another mockery of a meal. Egg salad - something I never thought I would crave again ... until I started working at a deli. It's amazing how long something can sit in front of you until one day you find yourself saying .. hmm.. that looks good. Why? Why does a big yella goop of mayonnaise appeal to me? Because I'm from the midwest. That's the only excuse I can think of.
Well here's a big yella goop that I'm going to throw on a sammy for lunch tomorrow and I say you do the same now .. don't cha know.

Tofaking Egg Salad
-1/4 cup veganaise
-1 tsp. vinegar
-1 tsp. mustard
-1/2 tsp. turmeric
-1/4 dried dill
-half an onion - minced
- 1 lb. firm tofu - pressed
-1/4 tsp. cayenne
-salt and pepper to taste

When yer tofu is nice and pressed go ahead and slice and put into a bowl with the minced onion. Crumble the tofu and onion together using a fork. Once you're looking at a nice tofu consistency (egg-like) - mix in all the other ingredients. I would've added celery or pickles and paprika if I had it, but unfortunately that will have to wait until next time I have a hankering for some fakering egg salad (which I hope is quite a while....).

Spicy BBQ Seitan Fingers with Basil Aioli

2009-10-12T12:37:00.006-04:00

The Belgian Cafe in Philadelphia has the most amazing Spicy (you gotta ask for extra spice...) BBQ Seitan Wings. I have tried to recreate them time and time again.
Have I come close ... no ... not yet.
But what I do get out of the attempt is always a
finger licking lip smacking good recipe.
In this aim instead of boiling the seitan I baked it.
This recipe came from Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero's Seitan cutlets or steaks recipe from their book Veganomicon. They claimed that this recipe had a more meaty rough texture ... exactly what I was going for. Unfortunately I found them to be pretty similar to the boiled seitan, which like I mentioned earlier has the smacking and the licking with the lips and the fingers, but the texture just isn't there. It turned out spongy. How!?!? I ask you... How do restaurants do it? Every time I order seitan its always extremely meaty, roughly textured ... how come mine turns out springy and squashy? Well, I challenge you and dare you to share the secret to unspongiformed seitan. Until then this will do.

The BBQ sauce, now that's another story. This is my favorite bbq recipe it comes out perfect every time. The more time you let it simmer the thicker and more wonderfully tasty it will be.

BBQ Sauce

-1 tbsp Earth Balance/veggie oil/ olive oil
-2, 15 oz cans crushed tomatoes
-small yellow onion, chopped
-4 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
-1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
-1/3 cup maple syrup
-dash of basil
-1 tbsp crushed red pepper
-dash of chili powder
- 1-2 tbsp cayenne (depending on your spice desire)

In a sauce pan saute the onion and garlic for a good bit in your chosen oil. Add the rest of the ingredients and just let it cook.

Once the sauce is done and the seitan has been baked, take the seitan and dip it into the sauce, then dip in cornmeal and fry them for about 10 minutes. While they were in the pan frying I also poured some more sauce on them, because I like them extra saucy :)

Basil Aioli

Now let me get one thing straight before I go into this basil aioli. Aioli is traditionally olive oil and garlic .. that's it. The garlic is emulsified into the oil usually by means of a mortar and pestle. Egg has been introduced to make the mixing easier. However, it seems to me that this term is thrown around much to loosely. Basically if you can dip something in it, people tack on the fancy "aoili". I myself am guilty. I just wanted to clear things up incase anybody is ready this saying .."uhh.... that's not a real aoili".. I know.

-bowl full of fresh basil leaves
-tbsp. olive oil
-1/4 cup pine nuts
-1/2 cup walnuts
-1/2 cup veganaise
-juice of 1 lemon
-juice of 1/2 lime

Throw all ingredients into a food processor or blender and blend until smooth and creamy. A match made in heaven ... but Im asking ya .. how do you get that seitan meaty!?!

A Curry Party and Everybody's Invited

2009-10-09T09:29:00.002-04:00

A couple days ago my roommates and I decided on a veggie curry for dinner. We get this great curry paste from the local asian market for like a buck something and it always spreads itself through a number of dinners. The ingredients on the back are actually in english and there's no funny business going on: dried red chilies, garlic, shallot, salt, lemon grass, sugar, kaffir lime, and spices (coriander seeds, cumin, cardomon). The brand is Maesri and it's called "Red Curry Paste". You can get it in green and I think coconut and spicy, although this stuff is pretty potent on the spice level.

So with this as our base, we started cooking up some jasmine rice and choppin' veggies. We started by sauteing garlic and onion in about a tbsp. of sesame oil. Then the party started.

We had red peppers and eggplants from our garden so those would go in. We had baby carrots that needed to be eaten up, cauliflower that was about to go bad, tons of peppers, some green beans -- before we knew it we decided to just throw in whatever veggies we had. There were some frozen peas and corn .. throw 'em in! Brocolli, ginger, throw 'em in! The total count was 12 different veggies.

not all veggies present pictured above...

For the sauce we had the red curry paste (about 2 tbsp) mixed with a can of coconut milk. After tasting that we decided it could use a little something. Again, it was a party! We had vinegar come along with the red pepper flakes. Corn starch to thickin' things up a bit. Peanut Butter for that extra kick, and Jamie's homemade nut butter which was pistaschio, cashews, and almonds. But where was that little hint of sweetness? Agave come on in! With this our curry party was complete. We were all a bit skeptical on how it was going to taste... but it was GREAT! I ate so much that after dinner when we went biking I had to pull over and stop for a deathly stomach cramp! I couldn't even imagine what I would do if I was in a body of water ... I probably would've drowned.

So this time it worked. Throwing everything under the sun (or at least all the veggies in the fridge) in one pot and just going for it.

Acorn Squash with Quinoa and Rosemary Biscuits

2009-10-08T10:21:00.002-04:00

Known as the "Gold of the Inca's" quinoa (pronounced "keen-wah") is one of my favorite foods. I'd take it over gold any day of the week. Typically thought of as a grain, quinoa is actually a seed that comes from a high in amino acid leafy green similar to swiss chard and spinach. Native to South America, quinoa is chalked full of protein - it's actually a complete protein which means it contains all nine essential amino acids. According to whfood.com (which stands for world's healthiest foods) quinoa is well endowed with the amino acid of lysine, which is especially good for tissue growth and repair.

This recipe is awesome. I threw in this and that and it all worked itself out into a nice little melody. Please, do your body a favor and have yourself some quinoa!!

Acorn Squash with Quinoa
(this will serve 4 hungry people, with maybe left overs for lunch)

-1 acorn squash medium in size
-2 tbsp. earth balance
-dash of cinnamon
-2 cups quinoa
-4 cups water
-2 apples - diced
-1/2 cup almonds - diced or sliced
-1 tbsp. maple syrup
-1 tbsp. nutritional yeast
-1 tsp. red miso
-1 tsp. cayenne

Preheat oven to 400. Cut the squash in half, from the stem down. Pull out the seeds and strings. Rub a table spoon of earth balance in each half and sprinkle with cinnamon. Place facing down on baking sheet and cook for about 30 - 45 mns. You can tell if you squash is done if it is soft when you poke it.

While the squash is cooking, place the quinoa and water in a large pot. Bring to a boil. AS soon as it starts boiling, turn the heat down to low and let sit for about 15 minutes. When the quinoa is done the water will be gone and it will be nice and fluffy with a pretty ring around it.

Add the rest of the ingredients into the quinoa along with the baked squash when it is done.

**the miso isn't nesessary, but I just used that instead of salt, because I'm kind-of on a miso kick.

Rosemary Biscuits

-2 cups flour
-1 tbsp. baking powder
-1 tsp. salt
-1/4 cup earth balance - room temperature
-1 cup rice milk
-1 1/2 tsp. rosemary

Preheat oven to 350. Mix the flour, baking soda and salt together. Cut the butter in using a fork or pastry knife. Add the milk and rosemary and stir until it's all clumped together. Place onto ungreased baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.

This is a wonderful seasonal meal! It's super hearty with the quinoa and squash, so you may want to serve it with some hot cider! I accidently grabbed the cumin instead of the cinnamon and sprinkled that into my cider. Once realizing (the smell gave it away) that I was sprinkling cumin into my cider, I tried to undo my mistake by also putting cinnamon in, thinking the cinnamon would over power. It didn't, but the result was actually really great! Go out on a limb and with cumin.

Enjoy!

-

Apple Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

2009-10-06T13:43:00.001-04:00

Ahh, fall is here. It's amazing how the humidity just stops as if somebody turned the dial from summer to fall. That's philly from september to october. The second the month turned, so did the dial. The nights became cool and tea and cider are brewing. One of my favorite seasons (along with winter, spring, and summer) I love fall. I love apples and gourds and bonfires and boots.
This is a treat completely inspired by this wonderful season. Originally this was greeted in my inbox as vegcooking.com' s recipe of the week, and I believe that was 2 years ago. I've held onto it and changed this or that because it's so simple and easy. It's a recipe you can just have fun with! So do it.

Apple Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

For the cupcakes:

-1 1/2 cup veggie oil
-2 cups sugar (I use 1 1/2 - 2 cups ... I think that's a bit obsessive...)
-1 cup apple sauce
-3 tbsp. vanilla
-3 cups flour
-1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
-1 tsp. salt
-1 tsp. cinnamon
-1 tsp. nutmeg
-1 cup chopped/crushed walnuts
-3 cups (equivalent to about 3 apples) chopped apples

Preheat the oven to 350. Combine the wet ingredients with sugar (oil, apple sauce, vanilla). In a separate bowl sift together the dry ingredients. Add to the wet mixture and stir by hand until it is thoroughly mixed. The batter should be stiff. Fold in the walnuts and apples. Pour into cupcake liners. Bake for about 15-20 mns.

For the frosting:

-1 tub tofutti cream cheese
-1/2 block of extra firm tofu
-1/2 cup powder sugar
-1/4 agave nectar
-1 tsp. lemon zest

Combine all ingredients in food processor or blender. Cool in the fridge.

Let the cakes cool in the pan for a about 20 minutes, then another 40 outside of the pan before attempting to frost them.

I just bought a piping bag and love it!! It makes everything look so much cuter. Put the frosting in a piping bag (go out and get one if you don't own one, I think I spent a total of $1.45 on both the bag ((go for the reusable - not plastic)) and tip) and top with a walnut. These keep in the fridge really well. I think that they taste better when the frosting has hardened a bit.

Enjoy!

Anabell's Mango Delight

2009-09-30T17:45:00.002-04:00

I won't take credit for this one, but I will take credit for its philadelphia debut.
Last year I visited Philadelphia, PA for the first time ... ever! Coming from Minneapolis to visit John and as a stop over during some adventuring, I was introduced to the Italian Market. John, being a newbie to the city himself, couldn't get enough of this place. Everyday he would come home with produce that he got for a buck here and a buck there. One day he came home with mint and mango. I just so happened to have had made my (and his) favorite dip that involves miso. With a fresh Sarcone's baguette he put together this sammy.....
-mango
-mint
-miso
-mayo (veganaise of coarse)

It was m-m-m-magical. I called it the "Mmmm good!"

Well, at Whole Foods on Callowhill in Philadelphia, my place of business, this very sandwich will be featured for the next couple of weeks!! (Jazzed up a bit, because, well, that's what I like to do... ) I proposed this vegan delight to the bosses and they gave it a go! Changing the name (why!?) you can pick up "Anabell's Mango Delight"... Or better yet, skip spending the $6.49 (!!!!) and make one yourself.

Check it out --

1. Mix some red miso in with veganaise.
2. Spread on bread of choice.
3. Slice up some mango, throw on some mint, and wha-bam.
Easy as 1.2. 3. For the jazzed version, add some asian slaw and spring mix :)
As always, Enjoy.

ciabatta rolls meet miso mayo

mango sammies march two by two

almost.....

and they're in!!

Tofu Quiche

2009-09-14T18:02:00.002-04:00

Tofu scrambles are a thing of the past. I'm always so skeptical to order a tofu scramble, sometimes they can do it, and sometimes they can't. However, if anyplace had vegan tofu quiche on their menu, there would be no question or hesitation. I mean, this is just a good Tofu scramble jazzed up with a crust, really, that's it, and suddenly it's a million times more delicious (personally speaking... I think the fat may have something to do with it....). Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, it all works. Please, Enjoy!!

Tofu Quiche

For the Crust

-2 cups flour

-1 1/3 cup earth balance

-2/3 cup water

Preheat oven to 425. Mix all together in a small to medium size mixing bowl. I use a fork to cut the butter into the flour, but if you have a pastry knife the more power to you. Once it is all mixed up , line it in a pie pan (which I don't own) or a baking pan of your choice (I opted for the 8 x 6 glass ). Set aside.

For the Filling

-1 block tofu

-1/4 cup red onion, chopped

-1 small red pepper, chopped (ours came from our garden which is why it was a little tiny, but a reg. pepper would do just fine)

-1 clove garlic, chopped

-1 tbsp. olive/veggie oil or a milk substitute

-1/3 cup water

-1/2 cup nutritional yeast

-1 tsp. dried basil

-1 tsp. turmeric

-1/2 tsp. salt

Mix all together is the same bowl you mixed your crust in. You want to make sure you mash up the tofu pretty good. You're going for the look of a scramble here. When you think it's mixed well enough, pour into the unbaked crust and stick uncovered in the oven for about 15 minutes. You want the crust to be lightly browned around the edges. Let cool a few and serve with a side of hot sauce!! (if you're into hot sauce, which I am....)

yum!

Treats, Glorious Treats

2009-09-13T13:11:00.002-04:00

I had to bake a lot the other day. I'm not getting my hopes up, but I will say I gave a certain place a certain sample platter and we'll see what happens from there. Hopefully a certain someone's baked goods are going to be found at a certain cafe.... but that's all I'm saying. Here are a couple of the treats, glorious treats that made the cut.

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Mousse`

For the Cake :

- 1 1/2 cup flour

-1 cup sugar

-3 tbsp. cocoa powder

-1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. vanilla

-1 tbsp. distilled vinegar

-5 tbsp. earth balance

-1 cup cold water

Preheat oven to 350. In a bowl combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, and baking soda mix together using a fork or whisk. Stir in the vanilla, earth balance, vinegar and water. Mix well. Pour into lined muffin tins and bake for about 12-15 minutes, check with a toothpick. Let cool for about an hour before adding any toppings.

For the Peanut Butter Mousse

-1 block firm tofu

-1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

-1/4 cup Agave nectar

-1/4 cup powdered sugar

-2 oz. dark chocolate (vegan)

Put all ingredients in a food processor and blend until creamy. Taste for sweetness, if more is desired, add more agave or sugar.

Using a piping bag and star tip, circle mousse on cupcakes. Shred dark chocolate on top of mousse.

Enjoy!!!

Classically Delicious Chocolate Chip Cookies

-2 1/2 cups Flour

-1 tsp. baking soda

-1 tsp. salt

-1 cup earth balance

-1 1/4 cup sugar

-1 tbsp. molasses

-2 tsp. vanilla

-half of a bag of vegan chocolate chips

Easy as pie. Just mix the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl mix the wet ingredients. Combine the two and then fold in the chocolate chips. I like big cookies so this recipe makes a dozen big cookies, I make a little ball in my hand (bigger than a golf ball, smaller than a baseball -- racquet ball size or a big bouncy ball...) and press it flat on an un-greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for about 8 - 10 minutes. Take them out and let them cool for a few on the cookie sheet before placing them on a plate or wire rack. **Make sure to have the milk beverage of your choice on hand. Or even the ice-cream of choice for an extra special treat.. the classic chipwich!!

Put some Pizzaz! on that Pizza!!

2009-09-10T17:25:00.001-04:00

Pizza and beer. Music to my ears. Remember in elementary school (or when you're on a road trip or stuck somewhere with someone) the question of "If you were stranded on a dessert island and could only have one thing to eat and drink for the rest of your life....." My answer is and will always be... Pizza and Beer. But I have to say, fake mozzarella doesn't do justice, not a damn thing. No fake cheese does (except for my mom's - georgia's - homemade fake cheese that she makes for me :)... that woman is magical) or ever will compare to the real thing ... especially on pizza. So I ask you this... why? Why even try. Why not make a pizza so damn good and full of flavor you wouldn't even know cheese was a regular topping. That, is exactly what I did. Check it out my friends, on the menu tonight we have...

BBQ Blackened Tofu pizza and Thai Peanut Tofu Pizza. The BBQ one is a bit of an endeavor, but if you have the time, totally worth it. The Thai totally easy and totally fast, if you really wanna cut corners you could buy an already made crust, but I think making crust is the funnest (yes, you read it correctly) the funnest part!!

SOOOO amazing. I can't begin to explain how good these are, so please, just get in the kitchen crack a brew and find out for yourself. You will not regret it. Please, Enjoy!!

BBQ Blackened Tofu Pizza

Now, this pizza, like any pizza has a couple of different steps so I'm just going to lay them out for you right now. (It helps if you're making this with friends or family and each person can tackle of different job to have a meal truly full of love.)
Ok so there's the crust - now I have an amazing crust recipe that actually makes two 14 in. pizza's - SO that takes care of both pizza's.
Then there's the sauce and the tofu. First things first.

The Crust
I think any pizza crust recipe you find is basically the same: yeast, water, sugar, flour and salt. The key that I found to making a killer crust is the kneading. Like my roomy Riley says, "You need to knead". And it's true, you need to knead.. a lot. In Isa Chandra Moskowitz's book Vegan with a Vengeance, she has a couple of things to say about Pizza dough and I obeyed, and it worked. I will give you a condensed version, but like I said - knead!

Remember this makes 2, 14 in crusts.

-1 cup warm water
-1 1/2 tbsp. sugar
-1 package active dry yeast
-2 tbsp. olive oil , plus a tad
-3 cups all purpose flour
-1 teaspoon salt
-cornmeal (which isn't necessary)

Place the warm water in a small bowl and dissolve the sugar. Add the yeast and mix well. Let sit for a couple of minutes, bubbles are good. Then mix the dry ingredients in a small bowl. Go back to your yeast mixture and add 2 tbsp. of the olive oil and pour into the dry mix and stir, pretty soon you will have a pile of almost ready dough. If the dough seems dry don't worry about it just yet, start the kneading and then make a decision whether you need to add more water. Sprinkle flour on the counter top and your hands and have at it. You want to knead for a good 10 minutes. If you dough is sticky just keep flouring your hands.... if its really sticky then add just a tad more flour, but remembering to knead first before making any final decisions about what your dough does and does not need. When the dough is nice and stretchy (stretch armstrong style) for it into a nice ball. Throw a dash of oil into a bowl that's at least double the size of the dough ball and throw your dough bowl in it coating the outside with the oil. Cover it with plastic wrap or a damp towel. Let it sit for an hour. It should double in size. Give it a good punch, knead for another minute, let it sit for a minute and you can stretch it! Roll it with a pin, hang it and let gravity do the work, whatever you need to do to fit the pan you're using. Whew... onto part B!

The Sauce
A beautiful BBQ sauce recipe that I initially made for some seitan fingers this past weekend and had leftovers. So this recipe yields much more than you'll need for the pizza, so either cut it in half, or make it all and use for another delicious meal.

-1 tbsp Earth Balance/veggie oil/ olive oil
-2, 15 oz cans crushed tomatoes
-small yellow onion, chopped
-4 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
-1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
-1/3 cup maple syrup
-dash of basil
-1 tbsp crushed red pepper
-dash of chili powder
- 1-2 tbsp cayenne (depending on your spice desire)

In a sauce pan saute the onion and garlic for a good bit in your chosen oil. Add the rest of the ingredients, cook on low for a while - (make this first, then do all the other fixings, tofu, what-not, you want it cooking for at least 30-40 minutes, the longer the better...)

Blackened Tofu
Is soo easy! I had no idea. The only thing you have to be wary of it pressing the tofu in advance, put it in the sink or a bowl with something heavy on it for a good hour +.

-1/2 lb. pressed extra firm tofu
-1 teaspoon of the following spices...
   -garlic powder
   -onion powder
   -basil (dried))
   -black pepper corn
   - oregano
   -red pepper flakes
   -cayenne
-1/4 cup flour
-1/4 cup Earth Balance - melted

Cut the tofu in half, then into 1/4 inch thick slices. Mix all the spices with the four into a bowl. Dip the tofu into the earth balance get it nice and coated then dip it in the four/spice mix and through it on a fry pan for about 3-5 minutes on each side or until it "blackens". Side aside on a plate.

and finally the Pizza!!

BBq Blackened Tofu Pizza
- 3/4 - 1 cup BBQ sauce
-1/2 lb. blackened tofu
-1/2 cup red onion, chopped
-1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
-1 tbsp garlic, chopped
-juice from half of a lime

Have your crust ready and fit to your pan. Spread the BBQ all over, be generous! Evenly spread the onion and garlic. Break the tofu into little pieces and crumble evenly across za. Sprinkle cilantro and drizzle the lime. Bake at 500 for about 9 minutes (the crust will be golden brown.)

Thai Peanut Pizza

All right so this one is not nearly as complicated. You got your crust already ready to go, so all you're missing is the sauce and goodies. Lets get started.

Thai Pizza Sauce
-1 cup Peanut Butter
-1/2 cup soy sauce
-1/4 cup water
-juice from 1 lime
-1 tbsp maple syrup
-1 tbsp seasamee oil
-1 tbsp red pepper flakes

Blend everything together in a food processor or blender until its nice and creamy. Then go ahead and spread that on your crust.

Toppings...
-1/2 lb tofu
-1/4 cup earth balance
-1 tbsp garlic, chopped
-1 cup bean sprouts
-1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
-1 cup shredded carrots
-wasabi peanuts (or regular peanuts)
-juice of 1/2 lime

Saute the tofu with the earth balance and garlic for about 5 minutes on med - high heat. Spread over the sauce, covering entire pizza.

Sprinkle the basil, carrots, and half of the bean sprouts evenly. Bake about 9 - 10 minutes at 500 (or until crust is lightly browned). Garnish with the rest of the bean sprouts, crushed peanuts, and lime juice!! (drizzle a little hot sauce for an extra kick!)

Brownie Love

2009-09-08T13:00:00.001-04:00

Sometimes I wake up and all I want for breakfast is something sweet to dip into my coffee.
This morning was one of those mornings.
Luckily, I had no problem-o whipping up something sweet thanks to How it all Vegan! by Tanya Barnard and Sarah Kramer. In this gem they have an awesome recipe for Maple Walnut Brownies. Best part, the only sugar in them is maple syrup, talk about a perfect breakfast treat or what.

These are super fast and easy to make, however they don't yield that many (only 6!), so if you're looking for a mighty treat to share I would go ahead and double the recipe and bake in a cake pan. I only had olive oil so I went ahead and used that in place of a veggie oil, and they still turned out great. These brownies and nice and dense and moist.
Here's the 'pie .... Enjoy!

Maple Walnut Brownies

-1 1/3 cup flour
-1/3 cup cocoa powder
-1 1/2 tsp baking powder
-1/2 tsp salt
-3/4 cup maple syrup
-1/4 cup aj or water (i use water just not to complicate things....)
-1/3 cup oil
-2 tsp vanilla extract
-1/2 cup walnuts (chopped)

Sift all the dry ingredients together in a medium size bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients (the wet stuff) and mix until "just mixed". Spoon into a lightly oiled 8x8 pan and bake for 5-30 minutes. Test with a knife. Makes 6 large brownies.

Creamy Summer Pesto Pasta.. Ahhhh

2009-09-03T15:23:00.002-04:00

One thing that rings summer in my ear is cold pasta salads. I love them.
This one is especially good because 1 - it was made with love and 2 - this creamy pesto sauce that can be used as almost anything (dip, spread, pizza sauce, etc..). The recipe for the sauce yields about 3 cups. You'll only need about 1/2 - 1 cup (depending on how creamy you like it) for the pasta, so either cut the sauce recipe in half, or tupperware it up and save it for ... anything!! As always, Enjoy.

Creamy Pesto Sauce
- handful of basil
-1/2 cup of Veganaise
-juice from 1 lemon
-1 cup almonds
-1/4 cup pine nuts
-1/2 cup olive oil
-1/4 cup almond milk

Blend all ingredients in a food processor for a good amount of time.

Creamy Summer Pesto Pasta
-4 cloves garlic
-1 tbsp. ginger
-1 tbsp. olive oil
-1/2 lb. macaronni
-1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes - chopped
-1/2 - 1 cup creamy pesto sauce
- dash of salt

Chop the garlic and the ginger. Saute in the olive oil for about 5 minutes on low heat. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. When boiling, throw in the macaronni and cook for about 7-8 minutes stirring occasionally. When the macaronni is done, drain in a colander and rinse the noodles with cold water. Put back into large pot and mix in the creamy pesto sauce, sun-dried tomatoes and salt to your liking. YUM!