Sandwich to Salad - A wonderful dinning treat.
Tami, the lovely and talented person behind the American Vegan Kitchen cookbook (An outstanding book!) and the Vegan Appetite blog, has a new book out, all about sandwiches. To celebrate, she shared a recipe for one that did not make it into the book, Vegan Appetite: Vegan Sandwiches Save the Day! Jibarito, the Bonus Recipe!
Two challenges were awaiting me. My eyesight and the fact that Plantains were MIA from the local markets.
So, this turned into a salad minus the onions.
The verdict - delicious!
We had leftover marinated mushrooms that are going onto a Pizza. Win win.
Two challenges were awaiting me. My eyesight and the fact that Plantains were MIA from the local markets.
So, this turned into a salad minus the onions.
The verdict - delicious!
We had leftover marinated mushrooms that are going onto a Pizza. Win win.
Comments
Salad for Days!
I love salads. Really. Once I get into the swing of things, there is no stopping me. For lunch, dinner or as a treat with TV, there are SO many options, that it's rare that the same one appears twice. (There are exceptions of course. Aren't there always?)
These last few weeks have been devoted to recipes from Appetite For Reduction. Fantastic.
Then, with an email ding, I got word that Bryanna had just posted a, wait for it, Salad.
And what a winner it is. Beets, Carrots, Onions - all roasted then tossed with a dressing, heaped onto a bed of lettuce and crowned with some Vegan Feta.
Being that we had some Cauliflower to use up and just a few Carrots, that change was made, as well as using a store bought Vegan Feta Cheese.
Sometimes, it just does not get much better than this.
No, your eyes are just fine. I used golden beets.
These last few weeks have been devoted to recipes from Appetite For Reduction. Fantastic.
Then, with an email ding, I got word that Bryanna had just posted a, wait for it, Salad.
And what a winner it is. Beets, Carrots, Onions - all roasted then tossed with a dressing, heaped onto a bed of lettuce and crowned with some Vegan Feta.
Being that we had some Cauliflower to use up and just a few Carrots, that change was made, as well as using a store bought Vegan Feta Cheese.
Sometimes, it just does not get much better than this.
No, your eyes are just fine. I used golden beets.
Comments (2)
Vine and Dine - Happy and Sad
I was a bit late to the Vine and Dine party, but better so than never, right?
So that is a happy point. A sad one goes to the fact that this may be the last such event.
On the upside, Tami from Vegan Appetite, the genius behind V&D, allowed me to pick the recipe this time! Score.
The entree comes from American Vegan Kitchen and is The Tempeh Stroganoff Stuffed Potatoes.
I have cooked a lot from this book, and love it. The spice blend alone is worth the price of admission.
The fact that it's author is no other than the awesome blogger of Vegan Appetite, makes the book even more valuable.
Okay, on to the cooking and eating, which is what this is all about. And of course the drinking too!
Having some challenges finding vegan sour cream, I ended up making my own using Bryanna's recipe. Let me just say that after this, I will be making my own whenever it's called for. So good, so easy.
I did cut the recipe in half, portion control or something of that nature...
Above are the potatoes, scooped, and ready to be filled.
Most of the stuffing ingredients waiting to come together. The tempeh was outstanding, and I can see making this on it's own.
All dressed up and ready for the oven.
The final meal, with a shout out for the book too!
The side dish is a simple kale stir fry with hot sauce and some tamari.
Overall, outstanding meal!
For the wine, we went with a local white from Meridian. It was nice and dry, smooth, and completely complemented the main dish.
So that is a happy point. A sad one goes to the fact that this may be the last such event.
On the upside, Tami from Vegan Appetite, the genius behind V&D, allowed me to pick the recipe this time! Score.
The entree comes from American Vegan Kitchen and is The Tempeh Stroganoff Stuffed Potatoes.
I have cooked a lot from this book, and love it. The spice blend alone is worth the price of admission.
The fact that it's author is no other than the awesome blogger of Vegan Appetite, makes the book even more valuable.
Okay, on to the cooking and eating, which is what this is all about. And of course the drinking too!
Having some challenges finding vegan sour cream, I ended up making my own using Bryanna's recipe. Let me just say that after this, I will be making my own whenever it's called for. So good, so easy.
I did cut the recipe in half, portion control or something of that nature...
Above are the potatoes, scooped, and ready to be filled.
The final meal, with a shout out for the book too!
The side dish is a simple kale stir fry with hot sauce and some tamari.
Overall, outstanding meal!
For the wine, we went with a local white from Meridian. It was nice and dry, smooth, and completely complemented the main dish.
Comments (3)
Spinach - Mushroom Quiche
Over at the Post Punk Kitchen Forum, there was a discussion about Quiche. Vegan variety to be sure.
A link was posted to a recipe by Peter Berley's offering from his book The Modern Vegetarian.
Having made a few Vegan Quiches with great success, the winner being the Broccoli one from Vegan Brunch (An awesome book, btw), I decided to give this one a try.
A few changes were made:
1) Having no sesame seeds on hand, a Zaatar mix was used in their place.
2) Frozen spinach that was thawed and well drained sped up the process.
3) About half the oil called for in the filling.
It was really good! The crust was both crunchy and flakey, the filling firm, tender and borsting with flavor, and the meal so very filling. (Although there was still room for some left over birthday Vegan Carrot cake, of course)
Was is crowned the new Quiche winner?
Nope, that honor is still firmly held by the Vegan Brunch.
This one is a solid second.
I went a bit heavy handed on the Paprika...
A link was posted to a recipe by Peter Berley's offering from his book The Modern Vegetarian.
Having made a few Vegan Quiches with great success, the winner being the Broccoli one from Vegan Brunch (An awesome book, btw), I decided to give this one a try.
A few changes were made:
1) Having no sesame seeds on hand, a Zaatar mix was used in their place.
2) Frozen spinach that was thawed and well drained sped up the process.
3) About half the oil called for in the filling.
It was really good! The crust was both crunchy and flakey, the filling firm, tender and borsting with flavor, and the meal so very filling. (Although there was still room for some left over birthday Vegan Carrot cake, of course)
Was is crowned the new Quiche winner?
Nope, that honor is still firmly held by the Vegan Brunch.
This one is a solid second.
The Sexy Vegan - Book Review
Tue, May 15 2012 05:07
| Reviews, Sexy Vegan, cooking
| Permalink
The Sexy Vegan, a blog that birthed a book, is a funny and delightful cooking journey.
Buying the book on impulse turned out to be a wise choice.
I'm not one to often read the forwards, messages, and all that insight that most cookbooks are filled with. I should re-think this strategy as after reading, and nearly busting a rib, not just the introduction, but all the recipe "headliners" too, was a joyous endeavor.
He is one funny dude.
For starters, I went for the Basic Seitan. It has a secret ingredient. Well, not so much anymore; it's mashed potatoes.
On it's own, it was good. Nice firm texture and very flavorful.
Since one can't, or at least, should not, live on Seitan alone, I made the "Steaks" with Gravy plus Celery Root fries dinner combo. (To note, this was the authors Final Meat Eating Meal. No quotations on the steak)
Let's start with the Celery Fries. They were interesting. A little went a LONG way with these.
Ended up making them in the ActiFry, which is one of my all time favorite kitchen appliances.
The "Steak" was outstanding and the Gravy out of this world good.
So awesome in fact, that the left overs kept getting picked at throughout the evening until there were none left... Even the Broccoli got polished off. Dipped into the Gravy, of course. The Celery Fries, well, that is another story.
Being a weekends only kind of cook, and the owner of way too many cookbooks, it may be awhile until the Sexy Vegan and I cross paths again, but we will. Of that I am sure.
Buying the book on impulse turned out to be a wise choice.
I'm not one to often read the forwards, messages, and all that insight that most cookbooks are filled with. I should re-think this strategy as after reading, and nearly busting a rib, not just the introduction, but all the recipe "headliners" too, was a joyous endeavor.
He is one funny dude.
For starters, I went for the Basic Seitan. It has a secret ingredient. Well, not so much anymore; it's mashed potatoes.
On it's own, it was good. Nice firm texture and very flavorful.
Since one can't, or at least, should not, live on Seitan alone, I made the "Steaks" with Gravy plus Celery Root fries dinner combo. (To note, this was the authors Final Meat Eating Meal. No quotations on the steak)
Let's start with the Celery Fries. They were interesting. A little went a LONG way with these.
Ended up making them in the ActiFry, which is one of my all time favorite kitchen appliances.
The "Steak" was outstanding and the Gravy out of this world good.
So awesome in fact, that the left overs kept getting picked at throughout the evening until there were none left... Even the Broccoli got polished off. Dipped into the Gravy, of course. The Celery Fries, well, that is another story.
Being a weekends only kind of cook, and the owner of way too many cookbooks, it may be awhile until the Sexy Vegan and I cross paths again, but we will. Of that I am sure.
Vine and Dine - Blue Plate Special Wheat Meat Loaf
How I love American Vegan Kitchen! Not only is full of mouth watering recipes that are intensely, in a good way, flavorful and easy to make, but it is also written by an extremely nice and very giving person. I also like that the recipes are very "forgiving".
So imagine how happy I was that for the next two Vine and Dine events, the cooking comes from this fantastic book? Very!
The first cook a long is the Blue Plate Special Wheat Meat Loaf. (Try saying that really fast after a few glasses of the "Vine"...)
For a combination of necessity and pure laziness, I made a few changes. These are, in no particular order (I've been watching WAY too much of three different versions of The Voice):
1) Tofu instead of Seitan (laziness)
2) Soy Curls in place of the TVP (necessity and laziness)
3) Dry bread crumbs (you get the picture by now)
4) Baked in a loaf pan (Preference)
And it STILL turned out to be outstanding! See, so forgiving. (Hope Tami is as well) :)
The loaf was bursting with flavor, texture, moist on the inside and a bit crunchy on the outside.
The side dishes were roasted potatoes (smoked paprika, lemon pepper, hot red pepper, smoked salt and a dash of oil) along with a sauté of fresh spinach, mushrooms, garlic and a dash of red wine.
I think that bear would have been a perfect companion for this meal, but since there was non in the house, and yes, due to being lazy, white wine was the served.
I'd love to tell which one, but the bottle went directly to the big recycling bin, and there are limits to what one will do for the details that make up this post.
It was a lovely dry white from Lone Madrone.
The next Vine and Dine will feature a selection from American Vegan Kitchen that Tami was kind enough to let me pick.
So imagine how happy I was that for the next two Vine and Dine events, the cooking comes from this fantastic book? Very!
The first cook a long is the Blue Plate Special Wheat Meat Loaf. (Try saying that really fast after a few glasses of the "Vine"...)
For a combination of necessity and pure laziness, I made a few changes. These are, in no particular order (I've been watching WAY too much of three different versions of The Voice):
1) Tofu instead of Seitan (laziness)
2) Soy Curls in place of the TVP (necessity and laziness)
3) Dry bread crumbs (you get the picture by now)
4) Baked in a loaf pan (Preference)
And it STILL turned out to be outstanding! See, so forgiving. (Hope Tami is as well) :)
The loaf was bursting with flavor, texture, moist on the inside and a bit crunchy on the outside.
The side dishes were roasted potatoes (smoked paprika, lemon pepper, hot red pepper, smoked salt and a dash of oil) along with a sauté of fresh spinach, mushrooms, garlic and a dash of red wine.
I think that bear would have been a perfect companion for this meal, but since there was non in the house, and yes, due to being lazy, white wine was the served.
I'd love to tell which one, but the bottle went directly to the big recycling bin, and there are limits to what one will do for the details that make up this post.
It was a lovely dry white from Lone Madrone.
The next Vine and Dine will feature a selection from American Vegan Kitchen that Tami was kind enough to let me pick.
Bold Organics Pizza - A Review
I love pizza. So much so that it is really the main obstacle in my becoming fully Vegan.
Non dairy cheese has come a long way, so true, but at least the varieties that one can find here just fall a bit short.
When I spotted the Vegan Bold Organic pies at the local health food store, I knew that it would be an expensive "experiment" ($7.99 on sale) but one I had to participate in all the same. A vegan, organic AND gluten free pizza? How could any one resist, right?
First impression, this pizza is small. I baked it according the the directions, and even left it under the broiler for a few minutes. Out of the oven it looked very pleasing, with that oh so charred cheese film.
With great excitement, I took the first bite.
It was okay, but far from great. Rather doughy, a very pronounced and somewhat overpowering tomato sauce, and not enough cheese to marry those two into an harmonious bless.
Would I buy it again? Probably not. It is however a giant step in the right direction.
Non dairy cheese has come a long way, so true, but at least the varieties that one can find here just fall a bit short.
When I spotted the Vegan Bold Organic pies at the local health food store, I knew that it would be an expensive "experiment" ($7.99 on sale) but one I had to participate in all the same. A vegan, organic AND gluten free pizza? How could any one resist, right?
First impression, this pizza is small. I baked it according the the directions, and even left it under the broiler for a few minutes. Out of the oven it looked very pleasing, with that oh so charred cheese film.
With great excitement, I took the first bite.
It was okay, but far from great. Rather doughy, a very pronounced and somewhat overpowering tomato sauce, and not enough cheese to marry those two into an harmonious bless.
Would I buy it again? Probably not. It is however a giant step in the right direction.
Comments (2)
The No Name, No Picture Recipe.
For months now I've been meaning to take back control of the freezer. It is just stuffed.
One easy way to start seemed to just start using some of the many soups, entrees and items that have been living there. So working from the bottom up, the first to go was the two packages of the Vegan "Tuna" Rolls. For someone who does not like overly processed foods, I seem to have an unhealthy attachment to this item. A casserole it was to be.
Fast forward to a trip down the asiles of Trader Joe's, where I picked up the Organic Brown Rice Pasta, Backed Potato Chips, Mushrooms, and... NO mushroom soup. Yikes. But then a can of Organic Split Pea soup caught my eye, and I thought, why not? All I was missing now was the Cheese.
The next day we were at the Health Food Store, and they had just started stocking the Daiya Wedges.
The only one left was the Havarti with Garlic and Jalapeño, so into the cart it went.
A quick taste of the stuff at home confirmed that it was both awesome and would blend well with the other ingredients for the dish.
A half of a red onion, some garlic, and three celery ribs got chopped up along with about eight brown mushrooms, each quartered. These went into a pot where the split pea soup was warming up. A few minutes in there, and the contents of the "Tuna" rolls were added to the mix. The mess was then poured into a big mixing bowl and eight oz. of the undercooked pasta were added as well.
About 2/3 of the grated cheese got to join the party, a few dashes of black peper, a few mixes with the big spoon, and into the lightly greased 8x8 dish it went.
The potato chips (A new bag at this point, as chips do not make it through the night here...) were smashed, and the remaining 1/3 of the cheese mixed in. The crunchy delight went on to cover the casserole, and a few dashed of Parma sealed the deal.
After 45 min in a 350 over, the meal was served, and devoured. It was a winner.
The moral of the story is that sometime you have to think out of the recipe box. And start cleaning those freezers!
Eating in Protugal
I don't speak the language. Add to that that the general assumption in the guide books is that this is not a veggie friendly country, and well, you will understand that I was fully prepared to live on bread alone.
(NOT a bad thing in my book, BTW).
I am here to tell you that there are a good number of veggie and veggie friendly restaurants.
In Lisbon, we dinned at Terra on the first day. Their website is awesome too. Lisbon is a hilly city, and although it looked to be a short walk from the city center, there were lots of stairs and step climbs. All the better to get one ready to chow down!
It's buffet with indoor and outdoor seating. It was a warm and star studded night, and we had some really great food while seated on the patio. Attentive and friendly staff rounds out this lovely place.
Porto in the north is a very different vibe from Lisbon. We had a very nice dinner at Nakite. We were early, by Portuguese standarts, but the food was very good, and the chef quite talented.
Let's skip over the sandwiches and the steamed vegetable plats that made up the rest of the trip and jump straight to our last true veggie meal, and what a winner it was.
Our last full day was in Sintra. Full of windy narrow roads, mansions and above all castles, this place is amazingly beautiful.
We stopped for lunch at Almaca Restaurante Vegetariano. We arrived minutes before closing, but the gracious and warm folks behind the counter assured us it was all right. We got to see and understand what the lunch plates were, placed our order, and sat down to soak in the cool mellow vibe of this place.
First, there was a surprise : garlic bread. Bursting with loads of fresh garlic on toasted whole meal bread, it was really good.
Then came the entrees. There was SO much food, we could have shared.
The partner had the mini potato pies, and there was a side of grain, salad and cooked vegetable. I had a bit, it was wonderful.
I had the tofu on a bed of cooked red cabbage and a side of roasted potatoes.
No kidding, this was the best tofu ever. There were capers and the taste was out of this world good.
We chatted some with the person who turned out to be the owner, and she was so happy we found her restaurant on Happycow!
The restaurant itself is very cute, open, and well appointed.
This meal and experience have to be the best ever, or at least top three, vegetarian dinning I've ever had.
As if there was not enough reason to go visit Sintra, now there is one more.
When in Portugal, do not miss eating here!
We did visit the health food store, which has a number of outlets throughout the country, Celeiro Dieta. There was a fair number of prepared yummy looking food. The branch in Lisbon's city center has a restaurant, but we did not make it there, as they are lunch only.
(NOT a bad thing in my book, BTW).
I am here to tell you that there are a good number of veggie and veggie friendly restaurants.
In Lisbon, we dinned at Terra on the first day. Their website is awesome too. Lisbon is a hilly city, and although it looked to be a short walk from the city center, there were lots of stairs and step climbs. All the better to get one ready to chow down!
It's buffet with indoor and outdoor seating. It was a warm and star studded night, and we had some really great food while seated on the patio. Attentive and friendly staff rounds out this lovely place.
Porto in the north is a very different vibe from Lisbon. We had a very nice dinner at Nakite. We were early, by Portuguese standarts, but the food was very good, and the chef quite talented.
Let's skip over the sandwiches and the steamed vegetable plats that made up the rest of the trip and jump straight to our last true veggie meal, and what a winner it was.
Our last full day was in Sintra. Full of windy narrow roads, mansions and above all castles, this place is amazingly beautiful.
We stopped for lunch at Almaca Restaurante Vegetariano. We arrived minutes before closing, but the gracious and warm folks behind the counter assured us it was all right. We got to see and understand what the lunch plates were, placed our order, and sat down to soak in the cool mellow vibe of this place.
First, there was a surprise : garlic bread. Bursting with loads of fresh garlic on toasted whole meal bread, it was really good.
Then came the entrees. There was SO much food, we could have shared.
The partner had the mini potato pies, and there was a side of grain, salad and cooked vegetable. I had a bit, it was wonderful.
I had the tofu on a bed of cooked red cabbage and a side of roasted potatoes.
No kidding, this was the best tofu ever. There were capers and the taste was out of this world good.
We chatted some with the person who turned out to be the owner, and she was so happy we found her restaurant on Happycow!
The restaurant itself is very cute, open, and well appointed.
This meal and experience have to be the best ever, or at least top three, vegetarian dinning I've ever had.
As if there was not enough reason to go visit Sintra, now there is one more.
When in Portugal, do not miss eating here!
We did visit the health food store, which has a number of outlets throughout the country, Celeiro Dieta. There was a fair number of prepared yummy looking food. The branch in Lisbon's city center has a restaurant, but we did not make it there, as they are lunch only.
Tassajara Cookbook
For years I've been dreaming of spending time at Tassajara. So far it remains just that.
While killing time at the library, I came across this beautiful book, and well, fell in love.
A quick trip to my favorite online store, and mere days later this puppy was in my hands.
This is not a book for the new cook by any means. There are a lot of assumptions made throughout.
If you do get a copy, please be sure to read the forward. Understanding the principles of Zen cooking will help guide one to success with this book.
All five initial recipes were a great success! I meant to only make one or two, but got carried away...
The Kabob is a combination of The Tassajara Marinated Tofu and a Fauxsages from Fatfreevegan.com, along with mushrooms and cherry tomatoes.
Counter clockwise, Tuscan White Bean Salad, Quinoa Caviar, Artichoke-Walnut Spread, and Mexican Tempeh Salad. Simply an awesome meal, with leftovers for days.
While killing time at the library, I came across this beautiful book, and well, fell in love.
A quick trip to my favorite online store, and mere days later this puppy was in my hands.
This is not a book for the new cook by any means. There are a lot of assumptions made throughout.
If you do get a copy, please be sure to read the forward. Understanding the principles of Zen cooking will help guide one to success with this book.
All five initial recipes were a great success! I meant to only make one or two, but got carried away...
Counter clockwise, Tuscan White Bean Salad, Quinoa Caviar, Artichoke-Walnut Spread, and Mexican Tempeh Salad. Simply an awesome meal, with leftovers for days.