| Vegan MoFo 2012 | Day 1

 

It is full on Fall and VeganMoFo has begun!

This is MY season.  To me, wearing a sweater is like wearing a hug all day long, and warm, stick-to-your-ribs cooking has soul healing properties.  I am so ready to get down to it, except… I’m not.

It is exactly one month since we moved, two weeks since our belongings joined us, and I still don’t have my kitchen in order.  For me, MoFo is going to be heavily dedicated to getting my pantry set up.  It has been a long time since I have had to start completely from scratch.  So all suggestions are welcome!

Here are some of my Vegan Pantry Musts:

• AP flour
• White Whole Wheat Flour
• Quinoa
• White and brown rice
• Starches (corn, arrowroot, tapioca)
• Whole Wheat and Brown Rice pastas
• Dried beans (chickpeas mostly)
• Active Dry Yeast
• White and brown sugar
• Better Than Buillion Veg Broth
• Maple Syrup
• Nutritional Yeast
• Rolled Oats
• Vinegars (as many kinds as we can fit)
• Olive, Peanut, and Sesame Oil
• Coconut Milk
• Jarred tomato sauces
• Tomato Paste
• Miso (usually light)
• Soy Sauce
• Herbs/Spices (whole and ground) (as many as I can find space for)
• Powdered Soy Milk
• Vanilla Extract
• Chocolate Chips (my kitchen isn’t square if I can’t make cookies with what’s in my pantry)
• Peanut and Sunflower seed butters

 

Did I miss anything important?  Do you have any store or brand specific must-haves?  I am living within reasonable distance of both Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s for the very first time.  I’d love some suggestions of what to take advantage of.

Happy MoFo, ya’ll!

Iron Chef Challenge November — Breadcrumb Battle —

The Vegan Month of Food may be over, but the ladies over at the VeganMofo blog are still bringing it.  The second Friday of every month they’ll be holding a Vegan Iron Chef Challenge, and this month it’s a Breadcrumb Battle.

If you haven’t noticed, I’m not exactly a food innovator.  I find good recipes that work for me, and then, if I’m really letting loose, I try to modify them to suit my tastes and ingredients on hand.  So, for this challenge, I’m adapting a recipe I’ve long loved that takes quite well to tweaking, Dreena Burton’s Rosemary Seasoned Tofu Balls from Vive le Vegan.

I usually use the same basic quantities as Dreena but change up the veg and seasoning to suit my tastes.  She calls for red peppers and green onions where I  like to use mushrooms and white or red onion.  But, this time I’m going straight up fall harvest on this mutha’ and adding in some roasted butternut squash.

I’ve always thought that these balls had a tangy bite that was almost cheezy, and I think the squash compliments that well.  I’d like to call them Baked Cheezy Squash Balls, but I’m worried I’m the only one who thinks they taste anything like cheeze.  They ARE tangy, herby, butternutty goodness though.  So, let’s just call them Butternut Squash Tofu Balls…

Ingredients

• half block extra firm tofu (drained and pressed)
• 1/2 C roasted butternut squash
• 1 med to small onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 T miso
• 1 T acv
• 1 1/2 T ketchup
• 1 1/2 T olive oil
• 1 T soy sauce
• 1 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 to 1 tsp each any other seasonings you enjoy (I’m not going to pretend I know anything about what pairs well with what, but sage would probs be good)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• pepper to taste
• 3 C bread crumbs

Directions

Preheat oven to 375.

Puree tofu, onion, squash, and garlic in food processor/blender until smooth.  Add everything but bread crumbs and blend.  Transfer to big bowl and combine with bread crumbs.

Form into balls about two tablespoons deep (heh).    Place on baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Should make around 28 balls.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.  Will be golden brown.  They taste good out of the oven, but they firm up and the flavors meld if left overnight.

These are great covered in pasta sauce and eaten with noodles, but sometimes I sneak them straight outta the fridge, completely undressed, and just nom them up cold.

food swappery

True facts, one time I deleted someone from my twitter feed because she said she didn’t like food.  It’s not like I think she’s a bad person, but, really, what more could she have to say that would be of value to me?!   Food plays a very important role in how I connect with people.  I love cooking for and with people, talking about food, and, oh, of course eating.  If these aren’t a few of your favorite things… Well, I don’t know your life.

This past Spring, I was totally stoked to find out a food swap was beginning in my town– And, a little pukey because even just thinking about new social interactions makes me nervous.  Mostly stoked, though.

The basics of a food swap are these:

1. Make foodstuffs
2. Bring foodstuffs to swap
3. Trade with other swappers 1-for-1
4.  Go home with your new yum-yums (and maybe some new friends… AWWWWW)

It has only been a few months, but I am definitely head over heels for my local food swap.   Every month I get to step away from my family and go to an event that feels like it is just for me.  We meet at a yarn store; everyone sets up their swap goods while gabbing with new old friends; and, there is a real sense of warmth and camaraderie in the air because we are there for mutual, obsessive love of food– Okay, sometimes the warmth is a broken A/C unit in the middle of July, but usually it is camaraderie.

The swap I go to is a monthly event, and, no, it isn’t exclusively vegan.  But, it is a lot more vegan-friendly than you might think.  My vegan baked goods have always been well received, but probably the most popular items I ever brought were ginger syrup and candied ginger.  Homemade condiments are very often vegan, and they get a ton of love.  There are a number of people who bring intentionally vegan fare, but there are also plenty of popular items that are accidentally vegan (jams, salsas, and extracts to name but a few).  Alls I’m saying is, if you avoid mixed-diet potlucks like the plague (and I feel you on this one) you may find more middle ground at a swap.  Of course, there’s no reason we couldn’t make vegan food swaps the next big vegan trend…

Whaddaya say?  Want to find a food swap in your city or mayhaps start swap of your own? Author and Blogger, Kate Payne, has a food swap how-to and a list of swaps in cities nationwide.  I especially like the link she includes to a Chow.com article about effective food swapping.  It is a great excuse to make some new recipes and meet some new friends!

 

 

P.S.  Look at these mitts I just finished!  They were supposed to be a Christmas gift LAST year, but pregnancy malaise took me over.  Only a little belated…

I realize in this picture they look child sized, but I promise you that they are just so big and fuzzy they make my normal, adult hand look shockingly petite.

{Vegan MoFo} Week 3 Round Up!

Happy weekend, MoFo’ers!  Unless, you’re like our family, and it’s not your weekend.  Then, a happy still-the-middle-of-the-damn-week to you.

This month has been fun so far, but shucks it is hard to keep up with all you people and your delicious foodstuff bloggery.  Here are some of the standouts for me this week…

Joni of Just the Food has been mashing up two unlikely foods each Monday, and this weeks Pumpkin and Potato Taquitos need to get in my mouth.  Stat.

Jenna of Good Good Things has mixed up a delicious looking Cashew Dill Sauce I cannot wait to try. ON.  EVERYTHING.  (P.S. check out the seitan recipe she posted just before the sauce.  It’s def going on my impossibly long MoFo To-Make list)

Speaking of good, good things, check out this fantastic Descendents themed cake from Kristen of Sugar Skull.  High school me just squeed with joy.

My mind pretty much blew up today when I saw these simple but impressive Squash Ribz over at Unhealthy Vegan.

Finally, no one had to sell this lady on Macaroni and Cheese Pizza, but I’m especially smitten with this no-fuss roux based cheese sauce over at Munchin’ Mochi.  Doesn’t that look like a slice of heaven?

I cannot believe that after three weeks people are still bringing it so hard.  This food looks amazing, ya’ll.  It’s probably going to take me all the way to Vegan MoFo 2012 to try all the recipes I’ve been bookmarking.

cauli’ mac: adapting the veg news mac n’ cheeze

I assume at this point most people who care about vegan mac and cheeze have at least heard of the Veg News Mac and Cheeze.  It’s one of very few nutritional yeast free cheeze sauces I’ve ever seen, and in my opinion, it’s one of the best cheeze sauces period.

Well, last night I had a hankering for some creamy, comforty mac and cheeze, but I was sans potatoes.  What I did have was a head of cauliflower.  I thought about how often people use cauliflower as a substitute for mashed potatoes, and it all became clear.  Clouds parted, angels sang.  It was good times.

Happily, it tastes just as good as it would with potatoes.  Though, I dare say it is slightly less photogenic.

I think a combo of cauliflower and potato would be a nice compromise and add some smoothness back to the sauce.

Adding cauliflower was a new trick, but there are a few deviations I make from the recipe every time.

1.  I always use significantly less Earth Balance.  It calls for a lot, and I’d sooner up the cashews than use that much EB.

2.  I double the sauce.  Mama likes the sauce.

3.  I use apple cider vinegar instead of lemon juice.  I do this in every vegan cheese recipe that calls for lemon juice.  It adds the same kind of tang without imparting a strong flavor.  CHEESE ISN’T SUPPOSED TASTE LIKE LEMON.

The Veg News Mac is tied as my favorite vegan mac along with the recipe from Vegan Yum Yum.  The nooch + onion powder sauces just don’t do it for me, and even if I thought Daiya tasted good (I don’t) it makes me feel ill.

Did I offend you with my Daiya hate?  Do you have a favorite vegan mac?  Or, do you avoid it altogether?

{veganize it} pull-apart pumpkin bread

So, seriously, Pinterest is gonna be my downfall.  It’s as full of ideas as Laura Palmer was full of secrets (and that girl was full up).

When I saw this bread get pinned I crossed my fingers it would be easy to veganize and clicked through to the link.

And, by the beard of Zeus it was!  A simple non-dairy milk/margarine for dairy milk/butter swap– You could veganize this in your sleep.  I also ended up using AP flour instead of bread flour (simply because I didn’t have any) to no ill effect.

Oh, and verdict, it’s totally delicious.  Honestly, the glaze is nice, but if you want to ease up a tad on the sugar you could do without it.  But, I don’t really care what you do because I’ll be busy eating some of this bread.

Vegan Mofo Iron Half-Chef

Have you been following the official VeganMoFo blog?  You should.  The MoFo team is doing daily round-ups, give-aways, and, every weekend, an Iron Chef challenge.  This week’s ingredients are Banana and Coffee.

I tapped my finger to my noggin’ a few times trying to think of a unique way to combine these ingredients, but alas.  Fortunately, there are a bunch of people MoFo’ing who didn’t draw a blank!  Some of my favorites from the reader are:

• Kelly from V for Vegan’s Chocolate Chip Coffee Banana Ice Cream
• Bread Without Butter’s inspired savory contribution, Smoky Black Bean Chili with Sweet Banana Chutney
• And, Think.Care.Act.’s Banana Panna Cotta Tiramisu Fairy Cake with Tiramisu Semifreddo and Caramel Sauce

There are so many more wonderful contributions, and I’m excited to see the official list up on VeganMoFo.com.

If I was going to contribute a recipe it probably would have been a variation of my Chocolate Banana Bread Muffins.  Coffee seems like a natural addition to this recipe.  It’s often used to add richness to chocolate baked goods.  However, I didn’t do that because so many other MoFo’ers already had a similar idea, and I’m not highly motivated to add unnecessary caffeine to my baked goods (the java don’t jive with my nursing baby, just sayin’).

Even though I didn’t add any coffee, I am going add to the banana bread inundation on your MoFo reader and post my muffin recipe.  Because, excuse the brag, people effin’ love these muffins.  Seriously.

Chocolate Banana Bread Muffins

NOTE: This is really a heavily modified Betty Crocker recipe so a little more experimentation and tweaking never hurts.  Things I often tinker with: the amounts and kinds of sweetener, the kind of flour, and the add-ins.  Most recently I omitted the white sugar, used coconut oil instead of EB, and did half White WW Flour.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 C soymilk + 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar (this is the buttermilk mix, combine at start so it’s ready when you need to add it)

1/2 C earth balance (or coconut oil… really whatever fat you want)
1/2 C sugar
1/4 C maple syrup or agave nectar
1 1/2 cup mashed, ripe banana (about 3 medium)
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 C flour
1/4 C cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large bowl, cream together the earth balance and sugar. Add in the bananas, soymilk/acv mixture and vanilla. Stir until well combined and smooth.

2. Stir in the dry ingredients. Don’t overmix.

3. Fold in any additions you see fit (nuts, chocolate chips, dried fruit, etc). No more than 1 cup, probably.

4. Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes.

5.  Eat ‘em up.

{veganize it} apple cinnamon streusel loaf

Sometimes, being a parent means blogging from bed with your babies sleeping next to you while you catch up on Doctor Who.  Like tonight.

Sometimes, being a parent means staying up so late trying a new recipe that your oldest puts himself to bed while your baby tugs at your pants, giving you that, “Hello, why aren’t we doing what he’s doing?” look.  That was last night.

I couldn’t help myself.  This delicious looking so-and-so from Joy the Baker was stalking me around the internet.  From Facebook to Pinterest, I could not escape its call.  I had to veganize it.  It had to be mine.

The original dough recipe calls for three eggs.  Instead of trying to substitute all those eggs I decided to use Julie Hasson’s Cinnamon Swirl Bread dough (yes, I am rep’ing Vegan Diner AGAIN).  I don’t know much about baking, so I like to stick with recipes other people have written that I know work.  Based off Joy’s description and pictures, I felt confident it was a comparable dough.

Gotta say, folks, I’m pretty sure I was right.  Well, mostly.  I definitely should have divided my dough and made two loaves.  The ratio of bread to filling was too high.  I thought because there was over a cup less flour one loaf would be good.  And, it was good (it’s the next night and the whole loaf is gone good).

Two loaves would have been better though.

EDIT:  If you’ve come here and are disappointed I didn’t post the recipe for the dough, I’m very sorry.  I do not post recipes that I didn’t create or alter heavily.  But, if you want to make your own vegan streusel loaf, I think you will have good luck using the sweetened yeast dough of your choosing and following Joy’s rolling, filling, and shaping instructions.  Afterall, that’s what I did.  Oh, and for the crust, I brushed with almond milk, let it soak in, brushed with second coat of almond milk and sprinkled with sugar.  Happy baking!

 

 

waffling.

For the past week, I’ve born witness to a horrible Snotpocalypse.  Both of my wee ones and the husby have got the snots, the stuffies, and the achies.   Luckily, I appear to have been bypassed.  So, I’m trying to be extra understanding when my three year old turns down my many offers of pancakes, insists he wants waffles, bugs the kindness out of me until I make those waffles, and upon receiving a plate of waffles asks for pancakes.  I said TRYING.

Pancakes are one of my son’s favorite food groups.    To make things a little easier on myself I’ve started keeping the Whole Grain Pancake Mix from Vegan Diner on hand.   Only, it’s not easier when your master and commander starts insisting he wants waffles… or so I thought.

A quick google search about what makes waffle and pancake mix different revealed waffle mixes usually have more fat in them (though reasons were debated).  I didn’t think too hard about it and added around two tablespoons of canola oil to my pancake batter.  I dumped that mess into my waffle maker and crossed my fingers.

It was a total success.

Until I brought them to my kiddo who was all, “Where are the pancakes?”  You must be joking, son!

He wasn’t.  But, I did get him to eat the waffles.

I really like the Vegan Diner Whole Grain Pancake Mix.  I love that it’s whole grain.  So, I can feel a little less awful about giving my kid pancakes as a meal.  And, I love that it’s something I can make in advance so that we can have griddle fresh pancakes at a moments notice.  I’ve made a big batch of pancakes, and kept them in the freezer for reheating.  This is so much better and only a little bit more work.  All you have to add is milk and vanilla (and oil if you wanna make waffles, apparently).   It’s so easy.  Also, it makes just enough pancakes that you’re all satisfied, not so many that you’re sitting at the stove for eternity.

I’m Rambling.  Love this recipe as pancakes AND waffles.  The end.

ok, i’m really done talking about pie now.

Last pie notes:

• Rolling out crusts betwixt 2 pieces of wax/parchment paper has revolutionized and prettified my pie making.  It makes the transfer to dish so much easier (which is usually when things really start to go down hill for me).
• I baked up the pumpkin seeds in a lime-chili mix.  It was so delicious my 3 year old liked them, and he hates everything.
• If you’re the only person excited to eat pie in your family you probs shouldn’t make two pies in one day.  Or, get a new family.  That’s an option, right?

Today, it’s rainy and bleak.  Basically, perfect kitchen weather.  I’ve been eyeing a few recipes I would like to veganize, and I’m ready to have my way with them.

AND, cooking just became a little more exciting [and my kitchen a little more awesome] because my husband finished tiling the top of our kitchen island.

It was his first tiling project.  He certainly learned a lot.  It’s not perfect, but oh is it beautiful.  Especially compared to the creaky, storage-less table it replaced.  Our counter space and storage has basically doubled– did I mention it’s also infinitely prettier?

The base is three Ikea Expedit shelves pushed together.  We’ve had them arranged in our kitchen for probably six months now.  As they were, they still looked better than the old table, but the tiled top really makes it look finished.  I know this isn’t exactly food related, but this is where all my food’ing happens, and I am so thrilled with how this project turned out.