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: Chickpea Croquettes Revisited

First of all, did you hear it's MOFO HUMP DAY?!  WEEEEEEEE!

So, this is another recipe from MoFo past.  During my first year, I spent most of the time veganizing omni things.  I found a recipe for salmon croquettes by Paula Deen and followed it completely, using chickpeas instead.  It wasn't big on flavor and quite boring.  So, I started thinking about the croquettes we had as a kid.  I think I remember them being a weekly thing for a little while.  They had a bunch of flavor and color to them.

that's some tasty business

Chickpea Croquettes
(makes 8)

This is easily made gluten and/or soy free.  I like 'em with a squeeze of lime and some tartar sauce, but they'd be fantastic with some remoulade.

Two 15 oz cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained

⅓ cup vegan mayonnaise

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp lemon zest

¼ cup minced red bell pepper

2 Tbsp minced celery

4 green onions, minced

2 toasted nori sheets, crumbled into a powder (optional)

2 Tbsp fresh dill or parsley, minced

½ tsp Garlic Pepper or granulated garlic

½ tsp paprika

¼ tsp onion powder

¼ tsp cayenne pepper
⅓ cup bread crumbs

salt and pepper to taste

⅓ cup flour or starch

Mash the chickpeas in a large mixing bowl until no whole beans are left. Stir in the mayonnaise, lemon juice, zest, bell pepper, celery, onions, nori, dill or parsley, and spices. Mix thoroughly before stirring in the bread crumbs.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Coat with a thin layer of olive oil. Use ¼ cup scoop to form patties.  Dredge each patty in a little bit of flour or starch before placing in the skillet. Fry until golden brown, a few minutes on each side.

served with some mixed greens

This was so much better than my first attempt 3 years ago.  It's got a little crisp on the outside and a flaky, tender middle.  Me likes!

Tomorrow, I'm gonna be doing something with matcha.  Oh, and I've been doing something for my next rainbow day.  It involves alcohol so wooo!

VeganMoFo V: Best Thing I Never Ate-Bobby Flay Edition

Have you ever had a meal that changed your freaking life?  That's how I feel today.  I got some sleep, aced my exam, and just finished eating the best burger I've ever had.  This wonderfully awesome gem comes from the burger episode of Best Thing I Ever Ate.  Technically, this should be the adorably Southern Claire Robinson's edition, but it's all about Bobby.

why, hello!

So, Claire was describing a wonderful burger from Bobby's Burger Palace.  This thing is called the Buffalo Burger.  Hot sauce is cooked right into, it and it's topped with this blue cheese sauce (just the sauce recipe, and you probably only need half).  But the kicker is that Claire gets that bad boy crunchified.  We're talking chips on the burger!  Hallelujah, holla back!  This thing is so super killer.

this burger is made of awesome

A couple of weeks ago, while at the library, I spotted Bobby Flay's Burgers, Fries, and Shakes.  I need this thing in my life.  The pictures are gorgeous, and everything seems to be completely veganizable.  Plus, the shake section is totally out of this world!  Everything I made today came from that book.  For the burger, though, I used Tami's All-American Incrediburger (replacing some water with hot sauce and brushing with more hot sauce).  Best homemade veggie burger I've ever had!  I've had that thing marked in American Vegan Kitchen forever!  So glad I finally made it!

ah, my sweet, liquid marshmallow

Last, but certainly not least, I made Bobby's Toasted Marshmallow Milkshake!  So good.  I used Veganomicon's ice cream recipe and just followed Bobby's shake recipe.  It was fantabulous.  The only thing I suggest is to go with unsweetened milk AND use an ice cream that is less sweet if you go with store bought.  All that marshmallow action is enough to make you climb the walls.  Seriously...Bobby Flay is a genius.  If I wasn't he wasn't married, I'd totally let him birth my babies.

VeganMoFo V: Best Thing I Never Ate-Michael Symon Edition

Any friend of mine will tell you I have an obsession with teeth and smiles.  Michael Symon's smile lights up the entire universe.  Plus, I seriously love his bald head.  Love it!  He can birth my fictitious babies any time.  I seriously love this man.  Ha.  Anyway, dude was on Best Thing I Ever Ate (the one about combos) and started talking about this dish at Lucky's Cafe.  Cheddar and scallion biscuits, eggs, sausage gravy, and potatoes.  Say whaaaaat?!

I obsessed about this for several days.  It was kinda weird that I was so in love with the idea because I HATED sausage gravy and biscuits as a kid.  There was a traumatic incident with a babysitter feeding it to us every single day while her family ate straight-up feasts.  When I told my mom I hated it, the babysitter started feeding me cold jelly sandwiches.  How the crap did this woman have a license to watch kids?  Digressing.  I veganized the dish based off of ol' Mikey boy's description. There are several components to this.  You can easily substitute store bought sausage or something.

Also, this is not what you'd call low fat.  This is Sunday-morning-rockin'-sweatpants-gym-tomorrow type food.

Southern Cheddar Scallion Biscuits
(makes 12)

I usually make 8 of these, but smaller biscuits work better with the gravy component.

2 ½ to 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour

1 Tbsp baking powder

1 tsp fine sea salt

½ tsp baking soda

⅓ cup vegetable shortening

1 cup shredded vegan cheddar

½ cup finely sliced green onions

1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk

2 tsp apple cider vinegar

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Mix the non-dairy milk and vinegar together in a liquid measuring cup. Set aside. In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients together until combined. Cut in the shortening until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Mix in the cheese and green onions.  Stir in the curdled milk until the dough comes together. Knead gently to form into a ball, adding more flour until dough is easy to work with.

Pour the dough onto a lightly floured surface, and roll out to desired thickness. Use a biscuit cutter or knife to cut out 12 biscuits. Place them on a lightly greased cake pan (I use a square 8x8). Bake for 25-28 minutes, until golden brown.

biscuity goodness

Country Gravy

For a thinner gravy, only use half the tempeh sausage.  If, however, you like yourself a thick and spicy gravy...add it all, sucka!

2 Tbsp canola oil

¼ cup unbleached all purpose flour

½ small yellow onion, minced

2 cups unsweetened non dairy milk

⅛ tsp nutmeg

Spicy Tempeh Sausage (recipe below)

salt and pepper to taste

Heat the canola oil in a large saucepan over medium.  Add the flour and stir until slightly golden.  Mix in the onions and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes.  Whisk in the milk and stir constantly until the gravy starts bubbling.  Add the nutmeg and tempeh sausage.  Heat to desired thickness.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Spicy Tempeh Sausage

This tempeh sausage has a nice kick from the crushed red pepper and cayenne. Feel free to adjust the heat to suit your personal tastes. This also makes a great addition to breakfast tacos.

8 oz tempeh, steamed for 10 minutes and crumbled

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 tsp fennel seeds

1 tsp Garlic Pepper or granulated garlic

1 tsp poultry seasoning

1 tsp rubbed sage

½ tsp crushed red pepper

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

⅛ tsp nutmeg

½ cup vegetable broth

½ tsp fine sea salt, more or less to taste

pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil over medium high heat in a saucepan. Add in the crumbled tempeh and cook for about 2 minutes. Add in the fennel seeds, Garlic Pepper, poultry seasoning, rubbed sage, crushed red pepper, cayenne pepper and nutmeg. Cook for 1 more minute. Pour in the vegetable broth, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the liquid is reduced, about 5 minutes. Add the salt and pepper to taste.

hiding under all that gravy is some tofu, biscuits, and potatoes

To build the above plate, it's just biscuits, a basic tofu scramble, gravy, green onions, and a side of potatoes.  If you wanna go hard, add some ketchup and Cholula to those potatoes.  Oh, yeah.

Tomorrow will be my first Mandy Moore Monday!  Hootie hoo!  Now, I'm off to do homework, write a round up, and maybe even relax a little.

VeganMoFo IV: Iron Chef-Quinoa Caviar

When I went to bed Friday night I woke up with a crazypants idea for Iron Chef.  I knew that I wanted to do something unexpected with quinoa.  I wanted to go sweet, but all I could think of was an oatmeal type dish.  Then I started thinking that quinoa was a super protein, so why not use it as a meat replacement?  I thought about burgers but I found so many dynamite looking ones, I thought mine would be horrible in comparison.  I wanted to create a dish inspired by quinoa's "pop."  It made me think of two things...caviar and tapioca.  Crazily, caviar isn't a completely original idea...but it still seemed like fun!

with sriracha

Quinoa Caviar
cilantro onion sour cream:
6 oz vegan sour cream
1/4 cup cilantro, minced
2 green onions, minced
tiny splash umeboshi vinegar

1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup water
2 tsp umeboshi vinegar

2 nori sheets,  minced or processed into small pieces
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 Tbsp grated ginger plus more to taste
1 portobello mushroom (stem removed), diced small
1/2 Tbsp red miso plus more to taste
good squeeze of sriracha

blini, toast points, crackers, or crostini
sriracha (optional)
cilantro for garnish

Mix together sour cream, cilantro, green onions, and umeboshi vinegar in a small bowl.  Cover and refrigerate for several hours so the flavors meld.

In a small saucepan, pour the water over the quinoa.  Bring to a boil over medium heat, cover, and lower to a simmer.  Simmer until water is fully absorbed, about 10 minutes.  Remove from heat and cool with the lid on.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat.  Add garlic, ginger, and portobello.  Heat until almost all the moisture is out of the mushroom, about 10 minutes.  Add mushroom mixture, nori, and red miso to a food processor.  Process until everything is finely chopped.

Pour quinoa into a small bowl.  Add the mushroom mixture to the quinoa, along with sriracha.  Mix thoroughly and add more miso and grated ginger to taste.  Cover and place in the refrigerator for several hours.

To assemble: take a blini, cover with a bit of sour cream, drizzle with a bit of sriracha, top with quinoa caviar, and garnish with cilantro.

looking all sinister

Don't ask me if this tastes anything like the real thing.  I've only ever had vegan caviar, and Era ate most of that.  I just knew I wanted seaweed and miso as the key flavors and built on it from there.

I feel like this was a rather tasty attempt, which was surprising to me.  My expectation was to make something and laugh at how horrible it was.  Ha ha.  When I tried it on the blini, I thought I could have made the quinoa even saltier because it didn't punch quite enough.  I'd definitely fiddle around with this recipe because it could be kinda cool looking as an hors d'oeuvre at a party.

I will most definitely play around with flavor combinations, as well, because I really want to use dill the next time.

I also made a nog flavored quinoa tapioca pudding, but wasn't impressed.  The quinoa definitely takes away from the tapioca.

That's all for now!  I have some blini to eat and a mess to clean up.

VeganMoFo IV: Like a "Meat" Cake Burnin' in My Heart

Buuuurp.  Okay, seriously y'all, I have never been this excited about a MoFo post before.  The only thing that comes close is when I did those hot dog roll ups because it was so funny!

Backstory: In late summer somebody on the PPK boards posted something about omni meatloaf cupcakes.  Most people were disgusted.  I was very intrigued.  So I did some googling and ran across this OMNI meat cake (don't click if you have a problem with seeing meat).  I liked the usage of cranberrrry, so I took that idea.  After looking up meat cakes for way too long, I found a cute take on it that involved using mixed vegetables as sprinkles.  Originally this was planned for next week, but this Vegansaurus post sparked a fire in me.

"the itis" in cake form

What you need for a 4 layer Thanksgiving "meat" cake:
Seitan-I used the seitan en croute recipe from 500 Vegan Recipes.  Replace the parsley, paprika, and garlic powder with thyme, poultry seasoning, and onion powder.  Drop the puff pastry and liquid smoke.  I halved the dough and baked each half in a cake pan (with a smaller one on top to flatten) for 35 minutes.  I probably didn't need to keep it in that long. EDIT: For gluten and/or soy free...use tofu, nut, or bean loaf.  Just bake the recipe in a cake pan and make sure it firms up enough to flip it out of the pan.


Stuffin'-Divide it into two cake pans and turn out to cool before building the cake.  I used my own recipe, which calls for sweet cornbread (adapted from Vcon).  If you don't like it sweet then you'd want to half the sugar.

Instant Potatoes-Seriously get more than you think you'll need.  I ran out, so the "frosting" isn't nearly as smooth as I'd like.

1 Sweet Potato-For one of the frosting layers.  I mixed it with a little bit of instant potato for an orange layer.  No sticky sweet marshmallow infected sweetie pots for me!  Ha ha.

Mixed Vegetables-For sprinkles, just mix into the instant potatoes for 2 of the frosting layers.

Cranberry Sauce-I used the one in Vcon because it calls for agar, which was perfect for what I had in mind.  I changed the recipe, using a mix of orange and apple juice.  I also used brown sugar and added orange zest.

the potatoes with mixed vegetable "sprinkles"

the cake before it's iced

You can basically build it any way you want.  I went with seitan on bottom because it had a sturdier (ahem...slightly browned) bottom.

Assembly went as such:
1. Seitan
2. Mixed vegetable frosting layer
3. Stuffing
4. Sweet potato frosting layer
5. Seitan
6. Mixed vegetable frosting layer
7.Stuffing

After it was assembled, I popped it in the freezer while I got the last of my potatoes ready.  It's much easier to frost this with warm potatoes.  Also, use water on your knife/spatula for easier smoothing.  For the top layer, I built a trench in the stuffing and poured warm cranberry sauce.  Then I put potatoes in a piping bag to beautify it a bit.  That last sentence makes me feel crazy.

This is the final result:

I don't know if this looks delicious, but it really is!

I would cut this while it's cold and heat up just before serving.  It's really good.  It tastes just like Thanksgiving.  You could even pour gravy over it or more cranberry sauce.  I was fine with it the way it was.

Well, everybody, I'm spent.  I think there will probably be vlogs for the next few days while we make our way through this cake (and tons of salad to combat the starches).  I'm in serious need of some nog and a nap.

VeganMoFo IV: Gingerbread Pop-Tarts

Sweet mother of pearl!  What did I get myself into?  I am so cracked out on sugar right now, I'm surprised I'm not claiming to be The Great Cornholio.  You know when you get an idea in your head that you just can't let go of?  Well, these became an obsession yesterday.

The back story is that I really wanted to use some lemons for filling or frosting.  Naturally, I thought about pairing the lemon with gingerbread.  But...from the depths of my brain, I remembered this Food Network or Cooking Channel show featuring a restaurant that made Pop-Tarts in house.  Thus, the idea of gingerbread pop-tarts was born!

ran out of rainbow sugar so I "settled" for candied ginger

For the crust, I adapted a recipe from one of those top secret recipe books.  I veganized it by using flax eggs and threw in some blackstrap molasses and gingerbread spices.  The original recipe called for creaming the fat and sugar in a food processor before adding the flour.  I did that, and it was the stupidest thing ever.  So I changed the order to something logical...

Gingerbread Pop-Tarts
makes 12 ginormous tarts

2 Tbsp ground flax
1/4 cup water
3 3/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
3 tsp baking powder
2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup well chilled vegan margarine, cubed
1 Tbsp blackstrap molasses
ice cold water
recipe Lemon Filling (as seen below)

frosting:
3/4 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp water
1/2 tsp vanilla
candied ginger or colored sugar (optional)

Whisk ground flax and water until fluffy.  Set aside.  Pulse flour, baking powder, spices, and sugar in a food processor until combined.  Add margarine and pulse until the mixture looks sandy.  Add flax mixture and molasses and pulse until incorporated.  Slowly add in cold water until a ball of dough forms, 1 tablespoon at a time (it took about 4 for me).  Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about an hour.  If you are super inpatient like me, just throw it in the freezer.

15 minutes before you take the dough out of the fridge, make the lemon filling and set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray two cookie sheets with nonstick spray.

Take half the dough and roll it out on a floured surface.  You want to create twelve 4 inch by 6 inch rectangles, so roll it thin (I do six at a time and take the scraps to roll the other six).  Add 1 Tbsp of the lemon filling to 6 of the rectangles, spreading until about 1/2 inch from the edge.  Top each with a clean piece of dough and use a floured fork to crimp the edges.  Bake for 20 minutes and repeat with the remaining half of dough.

Let cool on a wire wrack.  While the pop-tarts cool, make the icing.  Place the powdered sugar in a bowl.  Whisk in the water and vanilla until smooth.  When pop-tarts are finally cool, drizzle icing on them and top with candied ginger or coarse rainbow colored sugar.

inside shot

Two things on the lemon filling.  First, this makes a lot.  You could probably just half it and be fine.  Also, as soon as the filling starts to thicken completely you have to remove it from the heat.  Otherwise it will be a little harder to work with, as it continues to thicken when cooling.

Lemon Filling

1 cup sugar
6 Tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup water
2 Tbsp vegan margarine
zest of two lemons
1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix sugar, cornstarch, and turmeric in a saucepan.  Add lemon juice and water and stir until combined.  Heat on medium, stirring constantly until thickened.  As soon as it thickens completely remove from heat and stir in the margarine, lemon zest, and vanilla.  Set aside to cool.

Overall, I thought it was pretty good.  I'll probably go back and tweak the lemon filling, though.  These are probably only slightly healthier than the originals.  There is the added omega 3s from the flax and iron from the molasses.  Of course, there's enough sugar to cancel all of that out.  Ha ha.  I think I need to drink a green smoothie to even out this rush.  Woooooo!

Green Eggz N Hamm and PB&J French Toast Sticks

Green tofu and seitan ham just doesn't have the same ring to it.  Ha ha.  So, for VeganMoFo I was supposed to do a Food Network Friday featuring these two recipes.  It was funny.  I was actually watching Food Network that week (which I rarely do since my class started) and the show was about green eggs and ham and pb&j pancakes!  I was pretty stoked.  It fit in with my food memories theme, but I never got around to making it last month.

This morning I decided to make it finally.  Instead of spending a bunch of time veganizing the recipes, I just went with what I knew.  Plus, it took forever because I made pesto, seitan and pesto jack (more on that later) from scratch before I started making the scramble.  So I opted to make pb&j French toast sticks instead of the pancakes.

For the tofu, I made a scramble out of zucchini, spinach, and red bell pepper (for color).  I salted and sauteed the vegetables until soft and a lot of the liquid was gone.  Then I added the crumbled tofu and cooked for about 10 minutes more.  I turned off the heat and stirred in huge spoonfuls of pesto until it was geen enough for me.

I ended up using Isa's recipe in Vegan with a Vengeance.  I made two changes based on what I had.  I did 2 cups basil and 1 cup spinach.  I also did half toasted sunflower seeds and half toasted pepitas instead of the walnuts.  Era and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

I wasn't expecting much from the French toast, but it was so freaking good!  Of course, this means that I didn't write the recipe down.  The batter was simple: So Delicious plain unsweetened coconut milk, some creamy natural peanut butter, chickpea flour, whole wheat pastry flour, cinnamon, and vanilla.  I've gotta recreate this stuff.

I topped it with a sprinkling of powdered sugar and some cherry preserves.  I love breakfast so freaking much!!!!

Back to the pesto jack...I got it in my head to tweak The Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook's jack block uncheese.  Last year I made the pepper jack, but I remember it being too oniony.  Plus, I wanted to try to make it feel less jellied.  The result wasn't great.  It wasn't bad, but I upped the cashews and didn't change the other spices enough so the flavor wasn't as well rounded as I'd like.  The texture was better than I remembered though.  I'll post some pics tomorrow.

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.

Vegan MoFo III: Paul Rudd Lovin'

Today is Movie Monday.  I was so very stoked about this one because I got to revamp my old deviled tofu recipe.  I think it's so much better now.  Super creamy and delicious.  But I'm jumping ahead.  Today's movie is 200 Cigarettes.  It's about a group of people who are meeting up at a New Year's party.   It takes place in NYC in 1981.  I love this movie because I always forget that I love it.  Once I start watching it, I can't help but laugh uncontrollably.  It's got a huge cast of really good actors/actresses.  Christina Ricci and Gaby Hoffmann doing their Jersey accents is so freaking funny.  It reminds me of my friend, Tara, because she used to quote Christina Ricci's character all the time.

This movie is when I realized how absolutely fantastic Paul Rudd is.  He is master of the awkward funny.  I seriously did not recognize him at first in Forgetting Sarah Marshall.  Gah!  I've loved this man since Clueless (which is tied with Fight Club for my favorite movie of all time).  I talk too much.

Party Like It's 1981 Menu

Don't Go Past Avenue A Deviled Tofu (vegan deviled eggs)

Better Than Crab Dip (Kmouse's spinach-artichoke dip)

The Virgin Hates It Hot Wingz (in theory, at least)

Uh oh!  Whose glasses are in my spinach-artichoke dip?

By the way, you should seriously make that dip.  It is so freaking delicious!  This will be at every party I throw from now until the end of time.  I was also going to make the DEOTS tempeh wingz (scroll down),  but I ran out of light and time.  I'm making them tomorrow and I'll be sure to take a picture.

Now onto the deviled tofu.  I originally had this brilliant (ha ha)  idea about making the egg yolk part out of beans.  The texture is very similar.  I even did a mofo entry about it last year and ever'thing.  I even did that google thing to make sure I wasn't jacking anybody's idea.  I only ever saw a handful of deviled tofu recipes and they all called for shaping tofu and using tofu as the yolk base.  That just wigs me out.  Tofu on tofu is just unnatural.  So here's my recipe (I used the vegsource boiling method for the tofu...sorta):

New and Improved Deviled Tofu
UPDATE: an updated recipe can be found here.
1 lb tofu, drained and cut into 24 squares

4 cups water
1/4 cup white vinegar
pinch of salt

15 oz can white beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 cup Vegenaise (or any vegan mayo)
1 Tbsp yellow mustard
pinch of turmeric (enough to make it yellow)

1/2 Tbsp dill relish
black salt (also known as kala namak) to taste
paprika (for garnish)

Bring water, vinegar, and salt to a boil.  Add tofu and boil for a couple of minutes.  You might need to do this in batches.  Carefully remove the tofu slices and drain.  Once they are drained and cool enough to handle, transfer to a platter and refrigerate.

Blend beans, Vegenaise, mustard, and turmeric in a food processor until smooth.  Combine bean mixture and dill relish in a mixing bowl.  Add black salt to taste.  Refrigerate until it thickens up, about 35 minutes.  Make sure you cover the bowl with something or your fridge will smell like eggs.  Blech.

Pipe bean mixture onto the tofu squares and sprinkle with paprika right before serving.

This stuff doesn't just have to go on tofu.  Pipe it into cherry tomatoes or even on bell pepper strips.  It's really good.  This is my idea of some good party food!

What's your favorite thing to serve at a party?

Inept Couriers and Easy Cheezy

It's that time of year again when almost every package I order gets lost. My local post office is filled with idiots who constantly deliver mail to the wrong house. I have lost numerous comic books this way. The latest thing is: a cd I ordered has gone missing. Then a netflix dvd disappeared. And all I got was this cellophane bag with my torn netflix sleeve in it. Now UPS let me down. Good thing my neighbor from a street over delivered it to me. It was filled with Vitasoy Chocolate Peppermint Soymilk, Papa Tofu and Vegan De Guadalupe. HOLLA!


The first thing I created was a veganized version of the Onion, Pepper, and Spinach Quiche Bites from Vegetarian Times (Nov/Dec 08,pg 38). I don't have a finalized recipe and probably won't until Thanksgiving. Changes I made: FYH monterrey jack for the gruyere, 1/2 cup blended silken tofu plus 1 teaspoon arrowroot for the eggs, and soy creamer for the milk. I also baked it for an hour because it took that long to brown. The result was good, but kinda sweet. Because the peppers and onions have natural sweetness, I plan to use unsweetened almond milk next time. Also, I will most likely be using Cheezly because people rave about it. I suggest letting these cool in a fridge completely before slicing. Serve at room temperature or hot.

Next up, I made some stuff from The Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook by Joanne Stepaniak. Pictured below is the White Bean Boursin. I've never had boursin so I don't know how close it is. This was good though. Herby goodness, creamy, and salty. The umeboshi paste adds a tangy and salty punch. It couples with the creaminess of the white beans and really has a cheesy taste. I advise pairing this with unsalted things. It works great with baguettes and cucumbers.

I also made the Gruyere from the book. Never had gruyere before so I don't know if it compares. What I can say is that it was noochy, bitter from the tahini, and zingy from the lemon. It was good if you like nutritional yeast. It was pretty great in the French onion soup I made. And look how gooey:

Finally, I adapted Crystal's queso recipe and made chili con queso. I omitted the Rotel, added a bit more liquid and added crumbled chipotle sausage. I like this version more with a spicy Italian sausage because it reminds me of the stuff my mom used to make.

I'm getting back into food blog mode. There will be much commenting tomorrow. Also, I will be making pepper jack. Expect to see an original pesto jack recipe in the near future.

VeganMoFo: Vegan Sno Ball Cupcakes

Because it's not snowing in Texas right now, I wanted something that reminds me of pink snow covered landscapes. If you've never had a Sno Ball before, I feel sorry for you a bit. It is the ultimate in disgusting junk food enjoyment.

Last month, I bit into a toasted coconut Sweet and Sara marshmallow. It was at that moment that I wondered why those lovely people haven't made a vegan version of Sno Balls already. Seriously. Their s'mores are basically moonpies...and that is a sweet, delicious miracle in its own right. If you have control of Sweet & Sara and happen to be reading this: banana! That is all. Banana moonpies were THE best.

This recipe was the Frankenstein's monster of desserts. Take Fauxstess Cupcakes, subtract the ganache and squigglies, add ricemellow creme, coconut extract and toasted coconut (dyed pink) and you got it, dude!

Next time I want to try My Sweet Vegan's ricemellow creme frosting because using the creme itself results in sticky, gooey insanity. I also wonder what melting a bunch of toasted coconut marshmallows would result in. And instead of using food coloring, I used maraschino cherry juice. What else was I gonna do with it?

VeganMofo: Festivus Fanatic

Today marks the beginning of Food Memories Week. So every year around this time I begin planning our hugest party of the year: Festivus. It started in jest. One year we wanted to have a huge holiday party. About two weeks before the day, we cancelled it in order to have a small wine and cheese gathering. Only, not everybody got the memo. A bunch of friends came over, and we made it work. Festivus was born. Of course, we didn't call it that yet.

I'm a huge Seinfeld nerd. My husband bought me the complete series for our second anniversary. It runs deep, people. Anyway. We decided to make Festivus a tradition for a few reasons. I'm atheist. My husband's Catholic. Our friends range from Mormon to Agnostic. Festivus is fun and light hearted. But mostly, I wanted an all inclusive holiday for the season.

Our Festivus parties are always memorable. I have one rule. It is strictly vegetarian. There are exactly two non vegan things I serve: ranch dip and cheese cubes. I have found that omnis are far more receptive if they feel like they have an option.

Last year, to my suprise, a major hit of the party was a cheezeball I threw together. I had originally seen a recipe like this on the internet, but I couldn't find it anywhere when I searched today. So I just made up some stuff. It turned out well! If you do not like using fake cheezy products, I suggest trying this recipe or the cheddar version. I've tried the original, and it's pretty good.

Spicy Roasted Red Pepper Cheezeball
1 pkg non-hydrogenated Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese,at room temperature
1 cup shredded vegan cheddar cheese
1/2 Tbsp vegan worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning, crumbled between fingertips
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 red bell pepper, roasted and diced
1 cup thinly sliced almonds

Mix all ingredients except the roasted pepper and almonds in a medium bowl. Stir in the roasted pepper. Place bowl in fridge or freezer to firm up a bit (maybe 30 minutes). Take the cheezeball mixture and roll in the almonds. Form into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm. Serve with crackers, chips or veggies.

And today I felt like discovering unchartered territories. So I have half a recipe for you. Deviled tofu. I will be serving this at my next Festivus. The actual deviled part of this is spot on! I need to work on the tofu part. For now, I'll tell you that I took 28 oz of tofu, pressed them, seasoned them, and baked them. I used nooch, salt, apple cider vinegar and oil. I need to perfect the recipe. Also, I'm fairly certain I only needed one block of tofu.

Deviled Tofu
*Note: This is an old recipe. The updated version can be found here*
24 squares of baked tofu
1 15 oz can cannelini beans, drained and rinsed
2 Tbsp Vegenaise
1 Tbsp yellow mustard
black salt (also known as kala namak) to taste
1-1 1/2 tsp dill relish, optional
paprika

Mix beans, Vegenaise and mustard in a food processor until smooth. The mix should be creamy. If it still isn't add water (1 Tbsp) at a time. Combine bean mixture and black salt in a small bowl. Taste it before adding the dill relish. You can also add turmeric for more of a yellow color if you want. Refrigerate until needed.

To use, just pipe this onto the tofu squares and sprinkle with paprika. This was really, really good!

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to practice for feats of strength. Festivus, yes! Bagels, no!

VeganMoFo: Chickpea Croquettes

Well, howdy y'all! I decided to veganize this Paula Deen recipe for salmon croquettes today. It seemed easy enough and didn't require too many ingredients.

So I made chickpea croquettes. I kept the recipe super basic so I didn't stray too much from Deen's recipe. The next time I make these, I will definitely add some bell pepper...maybe even Old Bay seasoning. The recipe is very adaptable to personal tastes. I served these with some tartar sauce. I ran out of dill relish so I had to use capers.

Chickpea Croquettes
*Note: This recipe has only been tested once.  Prepare at your own risk*
1 15oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 Tbsp Vegenaise
juice of 1/2 a small lemon (less if you don't like zing!)
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1 tsp kelp powder
2 green onions, thinly sliced
salt and pepper to taste

bread crumbs
nonstick spray (seriously...do NOT try this with oil like the original recipe)

Mash chickpeas in a medium bowl until fairly uniform, but they still have distinct shape. Mix in the Vegenaise, lemon juice, bread crumbs and kelp powder. Stir in the green onions. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Heat nonstick spray in a medium skillet over medium heat. Divide the chickpea mixture into four balls and flatten into patties. Cover with bread crumbs before frying. Cook until golden brown on both sides.

VeganMoFo: Stay On The Road. Keep Clear of the Moors.

That's the only U.K. pop culture reference I could conjure. This, my friends, has nothing to do with the crazy characters from An American Werewolf in London. Today I went all international and made some Scottish and Irish fare.

Haggis and Champ. I know, I know. Haggis?

Most people think "blech" when vegan haggis is mentioned. I was at the top of that list. In fact there were at least two things I would have rather done than eat vegan haggis: go feet first through a meat grinder and swim in a pool of natto. Alas, I decided to open my mind. JCD from the PPK gave me a recipe. She said she loved it with potatoes. So I read the recipe and it sounded fantastic. Oats, vegetables, nuts, beans and spices. It's stuffing! What the hell? If I knew that, I would have made it ages ago. I have the American measurements if you are interested in making this.

So to accompany my haggis, I remembered my love of champ. The first time I had it was at Kieran's Irish Pub in Minneapolis. It was bombtastic. I found and veganized a recipe. Top this sucka with a little melted Earth Balance and it's on!

Champ
Ingredients:
2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup soy creamer
1/4 cup Earth Balance
1 bunch green onions, sliced

Cook potatoes in pot of boiling salted water until very tender, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring soy creamer and Earth Balance to simmer in heavy small saucepan over medium heat, stirring often. Mix in green onions. Remove from heat. Cover and let steep while potatoes cook.

Drain potatoes thoroughly. Return potatoes to same pot and mash. Add cream mixture and stir until blended. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be prepared 2 hours ahead. Cover; let stand at room temperature. Rewarm over low heat, stirring often.)