VeganMoFo V: Best Thing I Never Ate-Wolfgang Puck Edition

We've entered the stage of MoFo where I completely veer from my plans and just go with the flow (mostly).  I was trying to think about what I wanted to do for this blog, when I caught this beauty on a recorded episode of Best Thing I Ever Ate.  It was the one with dishes as good as Mom's cooking.  Well, Wolfgang Puck described these decadent, eggy Austrian pancake things called kaiserschmarrn.  What follows is the most defeating and hysterical account of recipe making I've ever encountered.

kaiserschmarrn on a bed of strawberry sauce

The recipe seemed easy enough: a pancake (eggs, flour, sugar, vanilla, milk), raisins (or cranberries if you live with a raisin hater), and rum.  My first attempt, I went with this recipe.  I used Ener G to replace the egg.  Big mistake.  I think Ener G is officially my nemesis.  It made everything super gummy and gross.  I'm gonna have to break up with it for good.  I never even use the stuff.

My second attempt, I just modified my own pancake recipe.  I added yogurt for an egginess and baking powder for the leavening.  Something went horribly wrong and it tasted bitter.  I started chewing it, but it just fell out of my mouth because it was so horrible.  As in...my jaw unhinged because I couldn't even process how bad it was.  Era was laughing at me.

By this time, I pledged I would lock myself in the bedroom if I didn't get a pancake out of this.  So I went back and did it again.  I think it was a success.  Don't ask me if it tastes like kaiserschmarrn because I've never had it before.  It tasted like an eggy pancake.  I think if I make this again, though, I'd use the Vegan Brunch omelet as a reference.  I'm thinking silken tofu would get more of the texture needed.

Tomorrow is another Mandy Moore day!  Hooray!  For now, I have geology and English to do.  Hope everybody had a great weekend.

VeganMoFo V: Dirty POP Tarts

Wanna know why I love MoFo so much?  It forces me out of my own comfort zone and allows me creative projects I'd never attempt otherwise.  I think MoFo is also a great time for when you happen upon an epic fail like I did tonight.

My plan was to make a decent filling for my gingerbread pop tarts.  The problem?  They were far too sweet originally.  With all the sugar, I seriously crashed last year after eating a little bit of one.  My idea was to have 4 variations and see which was best.

apple-pear and lingonberry

I did some googling and discovered Kellogg's actually had a limited edition gingerbread flavor, but it was filled with frosting and topped with cinnamon sugar.  I opted to go with cinnamon sugar and try some fruity fillings.

First up was apple-pear.  I sauteed the fruit, added a small amount of sugar, pinch of cinnamon, and vanilla.  It was okay.  Not really out-of-this-world awesome.  My bias runs deep, though, because I generally think apple is a boring flavor.  Love apples.  Not so much apple filled baked goods.  The other flavor I went with was lingonberry jam because lingonberries taste like cranberries to me, which pairs perfectly with ginger.  It was a winning combination!  Tart, sweet, and very holiday tasting.  My favorite of the batch.

pop tart monstrosity.  just look at that speculoos viscera.

Next, I really wanted to get crazy.  I thought it would be hilarious if one holiday flavor consumed another.  In actuality, it was so not funny.  Upon tasting it...never again!  The speculoos just becomes this thick, goopy thing in the middle of the pop tart.  Pictured above is a straight up speculoos one and the other has some chocolate chips thrown in.  Brrr.

I think the biggest problem was I messed up on the dough, and I'm not sure where.  I made it super fast, used a different kind of margarine, and I'm not entirely sure I followed the directions completely.  Muahahaha.  This was doomed from the start.

Oh, well.  You live and learn.  My lesson today was that lingonberry jam or any tart jam goes perfectly with this crust.  Hopefully, I'll get everything right when I make these again.

Tomorrow: I have a wicked awesome cabbage recipe to share.  For now, I'm starting my weekend.  Until next time...

VeganMoFo IV: The Day a Gay Cake Owned Me

I almost quit MoFo today.  For reals.  While baking a pound cake earlier, my microwave burst into flames.  Burst!  Flames!  Okay.  It was a small flame, but a flame nonetheless.  I wasn't even using it.  Now the little plastic turntable piece is completely melted.  I'm afraid to use it.  We'll have to tell the landlord and hopefully it will get fixed.  Though, he still hasn't painted the walls or moved all his stuff from the backyard yet and we've been here since July.  Grr.  I am such a crankypants right now.

Then to end this day of not awesome, my gay cake was a flippin' disaster.  I think it was part ambition and part lack of attention that did me in.  After thinking about the cake and my extreme need to do a jello mold, I looked around the internet and found a rainbow jello mold with instructions here:

My idea was to flip the colors and do a rainbow jello mold perched atop a pound cake with frosting to look like clouds.

What went wrong:
1. Vegan jello needs to be perfected.  I used some that had carrageenan in it.  I should have known it wasn't going to work because a mold shouldn't be "juicy" before you flip it.  Especially,  not after two days of setting.

2. My cake was too small.  The mold was larger.  It was a bonehead move on my part for not double checking.

3. Instead of refrigerating the jello, I popped it in the freezer.  My impatience caused the mold to have distinct layers instead of everything fusing together.

All that being said, I flipped the mold over onto the cake.  For a split second, I saw the beautiful colors before  all the layers slid off...one by one.  I was left with this:

this was left on my counter after I scooped the rest up

scooped into the bundt for later because...$16 worth of jello

At this point, I wanted to cry.  Only 1.5 layers stayed on the cake.  You can witness what all of my hard work left me:

sad face

Tomorrow, I'm thinking about doing Thanksgiving stuff.  We'll see.  I still have a roundup to do.  Hope everybody is having a fantastic Tuesday! :)

Vegan MoFo III: Bluebonnets and Lonestar Beer

This is the second part of my ode to Tejas.  I love that place.  Wink.  I should probably tell you that I pretty much loathe Lonestar Beer, though.  Blech.

I'm going to give the recipes for the enchiladas, rice and sopapillas, but the enchiladas need to be tweaked.  First, the ricotta was too thick.  I think I'll leave out tofu next time and just use cashews.  Maybe.  It needs to be thinned out at the very least.  The tomatillo sauce is missing something.  I'm thinking it needs more cumin and maybe jalapenos?  Also, I found the jackfruit distracting.  It didn't add to the dish at all.  And my Teese didn't melt (even after I did that broiler thing)!  What the frack?!  I need Daiya to come this way already.  It's the only consistently reliable melty cheese for me.

First Attempt @ Enchiladas Poblanas

*Note: This recipe is considered a fail. Prepare at your own risk*

20 oz jackfruit (in brine NOT syrup), drained and marinated*

Cilantro Cashew Ricotta (recipe below)

6 halved poblanos, stems and seeds removed and roasted (skins removed)

12 corn tortillas

Tomatillo and Avocado Sauce (recipe below)

vegan cheese, optional

Make the Cilantro Cashew Ricotta and the Tomatillo and Avocado Sauce first. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9x13 casserole pan with nonstick spray. Coat the bottom of it with a thin layer of tomatillo sauce. Heat a skillet over medium high. Set up an assembly line: corn tortillas, hot skillet, tomatillo sauce, filling, then your enchilada pan. Take a corn tortilla and warm it up in the skillet, don't cook it. It just needs to warm up to be pliable. Next dip the tortilla in the sauce. This keeps it moist. Finally add your filling: cashew ricotta, poblano half, and some jackfruit. Repeat with the remaining tortillas. Pour the rest of the tomatillo sauce on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese if you are using it. Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese is nice and melty and the exposed tortillas are a little browned.

*Jackfruit is completely optional.  I marinated mine in beer and chikn broth powder.

Cilantro Cashew Ricotta

1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked for a few hours

juice of 2 small limes

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 clove of garlic

1 lb firm tofu, drained and crumbled

1/4 cup lightly packed cilantro

1 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)

Combine everything in a food processor and blend until silky smooth.

Tomatillo Sauce

2 Tbsp oil

1/2 medium white onion, roughly chopped

2 lbs tomatillos, roughly chopped

3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp oregano

pinch of sugar

1/2 cup of water

1/2 cup tightly packed cilantro

2 large avocados, pitted and roughly chopped

salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil over medium high heat. Cook the onions and tomatillos until the mixture goes from bright green to pale green. Add a pinch of salt and the garlic and cook for about a minute more. Add the cumin and oregano and cook for 30 seconds. Add the sugar and water. Bring it to a boil.  Remove from heat and add salt and pepper to taste.  You may need to add more sugar to balance out the tartness.  Let cool for a few minutes. Meanwhile, add cilantro and avocado to a food processor or blender. Add the tomatillo and onion mixture. Blend until you get a sauce. Adjust the seasonings. Pour into a saucepan or dish so it's ready for tortilla dippage.

Not the prettiest picture, but tasty for the most part!  Oh, those refried beans are out of a can.  I always add a little oil and water to thin them out because I hate that super thick canned refried bean thing.

The rice is pretty easy.  I used achiote oil for it, which is a Terry tester for her Vegan Latina cookbook.  Achiote adds a very subtle flavor and gorgeous color.  Any oil works.  You may want to up the cumin to 1 tsp if you don't use achiote.  I just like saying achiote.

Rice w/ Peas and Carrots

1-2 Tbsp oil

1/2 medium white onion, diced

1 carrot, peeled and diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2-1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup long grain white rice

1/3 cup frozen peas

1 3/4 cups water (1.5 cups for a firmer rice)

salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and carrot. Saute until they just start to soften. Add garlic and cook for another minute. Add cumin, salt, and rice. Cook until rice gets a little toasty. Add water and peas. Bring to a boil and cover the pot. Lower the heat to a simmer for about twenty minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Okay...sopapillas!  They are little fried pieces of heaven.  Now I openly admit this is a complete bastardization of actual sopapillas.  The traditional stuff is made from dough and fried.  Whatever.  This is just as tasty and takes about as much time to prep as it would take to just gather ingredients for that dough.  So there.  Ha ha.  Traditionally, sopapillas are served with butter and honey.  I've added margarine and agave but it's optional.  They aren't too sweet as is.  I like that the margarine and agave make them crispy and gooey/chewy.  Also, this is a combo between just plain ol' powdered sugar and cinnamon sugar because I like how delicate powdered sugar makes these seem.

Cheater Sopapillas

5 refrigerated flour tortillas

1 cup vegetable oil

¼ cup powdered sugar

¼ tsp cinnamon

Vegan margarine, optional

Agave nectar, optional

Take the tortillas and cut each one into four wedges and set aside. Mix together the powdered sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Set aside. And have a cooling rack prepared. Heat a wok on medium high heat and add the vegetable oil. (NOTE: If you don’t have a wok, use a medium saucepan but a wok heats faster and hotter).

Drop the wedges into the oil, but don’t over fill. 2 to 3 at a time is enough, depending on how big your wok is. I only did one at a time, though.  You want to flip them as soon as the edges start to go golden.  Then again after 3-5 seconds or so.  It shouldn't take longer than 10 seconds per batch.  The temperature is perfect if the wedges puff up and turn golden brown. Remove from oil and place on a cooling rack. This is crucial for them to stay crispy.

Repeat until finished. Let the sopapillas cool to just above room temperature. Sift the cinnamon sugar over them and serve with margarine and/or drizzle with agave nectar. 4-5 servings.

Now, if you'll excuse me...I'm going to collapse in a food coma.  Mmmm.

Vegan MoFo III: Sucka Emcees Call Me Sire

I wish I was the [Queen] of Rock, but I'm actually the queen of losing recipes.  I cannot tell you how many recipes I've lost because I wrote them down on scratch paper and accidentally recycled it.    Today marks the beginning of food memories week.  One of the things I was totally set to do was revisit and rework my menudo recipe from last year.  I have a special connection to menudo.  It has helped many a vegan hangover.  So of course, I couldn't find the recipe.

While searching for menudo recipes, I happened upon one by Michael Chiarello.  I glanced at the ratings and saw that two crassholes gave the recipe a 1 star rating (without making it) because it was made with chili powder and not chili sauce.  Uh?  Menudo is like every other recipe on the planet.  There are basic components, but beyond that it's familial.  But I was intrigued.  So I set out to make my own chili sauce.

Now, I've never had menudo with tripas because organ meats always creeped me out.  But I did have a basic idea on what I wanted to use.  As far as I can tell, menudo is a really simple soup.  It usually has chili powder/sauce, hominy, onion, garlic, oregano, meaty bits, and maybe cumin.  Easy, right?  Well I went for the recipe found here.  I halved the actual menudo recipe and only made a quarter of the chili sauce.  Here's what I did.

Vegan Menudo

*Note: This recipe is considered a fail. Prepare at your own risk*

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

1 small onion, roughly chopped

1/3 cup red chile sauce (recipe below)

2 cups vegetable broth

2 cups water

1.5 cups hominy, drained

2 cups seitan, cut into bite size pieces

1/2 Tbsp vinegar

1/2 Tbsp oregano (preferably Mexican)

1 tsp cumin seed

salt and pepper to taste

cilantro, lime, green onion, and/or chopped onion for garnish (optional)

Heat oil in saucepan.  Saute onion and garlic until translucent.  Add the chili sauce, vegetable broth, and water.  Bring to a boil.  Once boiling, add remaining ingredients (not the garnishes) and let simmer for 15 minutes.

Chili Sauce/Paste
2 oz dried ancho chiles, whole
1 small garlic clove, minced
pinch of ground cumin
3/4 tsp vinegar
1/4 tsp oregano (preferrably Mexican)
small pinch salt
1/4 tsp sugar

Put the whole dried ancho chiles on a hot dry griddle or frying pan and toss around a bit until they just barely begin to change color. Do this carefully, the chiles will scorch easily.

Remove chiles, place in a paper bag, and let cool. Remove stems and most of the seeds. Place in a pan, cover with boiling water and let steep 15-20 minutes. Reserve liquid.  Run through a food mill or a food processor, adding reserved liquid to help the paste along 1 tablespoon at a time if needed.

Return chile mixture to pan and add garlic, cumin, vinegar, oregano, salt, and sugar to the chile pulp.

Simmer over low heat for a 3 -4 minutes. Cool and refrigerate.

Okay.  Thoughts.  I am not a fan of the chile sauce!  Sorry food snobs!  Ha ha.  I much prefer ancho chili powder because this soup turned out somewhat bitter.  I had to add a bunch of lime juice to even force down the small cup I had.  Era ate most of this.  Blech.

Menudo makes me think of Sundays in San Antonio, but I will just have to perfect the recipe I created last year.  It was good to reminisce about home, especially because I miss it a lot right now.

Coming up this week: a Spike Lee joint Movie Monday, enchiladas poblanos, s'ghetti on my sweaty, chili 3 ways, green tofu and ham, and something Halloweeny!  I'm kinda sad this is the last week!  I've enjoyed reading all your blogs.