takin' a break

i've been doing the Master Cleanse so haven't been posting (or eating) anything lately. I did make some cream cheese brownies a few weeks ago which turned out alright, but i'm gonna work on it some more before posting. i made soy Muenster cheese but i must have done something wrong- it wasn't any firmer than soft silken tofu. i made an amazing dip for homemade fries with avocado and thyme and soy mayo! I also made the Shepherdess Pie from Veganomicon, which was amazing! i had some left over when i started the cleanse and it is waiting oh-so patiently in the freezer for next Wednesday. i miss food! but i do feel a lot better. 

I've been working on a list of foods I want to cook/eat when i can again, and here it is so far:

-grapefruit

-hummus and Ak-Mak

-hot bar at Whole Foods

-sauteed veggies and tofu in a good soft pita

-asparagus and pine nuts on portabella caps

-almond butter w/ pretzels

-hot chili corn cake

-guac and chips

-sauteed onion, black olives, and green pepper dip with toasty bread

-super garlic-y mashed potatoes

-sweet potato fries with dip (what kind? hmmm)

-fake meatball---  sub and pasta, and garlic bread

-big huge salad with toasted almonds, cranberries, fried tofu, spinach, cucumber, avocado, etc etc and chinese balsamic dressing

half of those things ive never made before but they just sound really really good. i will post recipes and pictures of tasty food when i get to cooking again! tonight i am going with some friends to The Twisted Fork so maybe i will get more ideas there (though alas, no tasty, filling, warm food. oh how i miss you.).

Brownie Monsters!!

I love brownies, especially on a day like today when it's rainy outside and I can't do any of the things I want. Also I had some coconut and I kept looking at it and wanting to eat it- and here we are! They fall apart a bit in the middle, you could substitute maybe 1/2 cup soy cream cheese or maybe even some soft silken tofu for the soy milk to make it stick more, but I kinda like it the way it is! 

 I hate to use the word "fudgy" to describe brownies... but these are, and really tasty and rich and I ate two and my stomach hurts a little bit now. 

The Innies

3/4 cup water

4 tablespoons ground flax seed

2 oz semisweet baking chocolate

1/2 cup veg oil

1/2 cup applesauce

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup whole wheat flour

....

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup unsulphered shredded coconut 

1/4 cup soy milk

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

The Way

In a small saucepan, heat water to boiling. Stir in ground flax, reduce heat to low, and stir until thick and viscous. Set aside.

Heat the baking chocolate in a double broiler until completely melted. Or, heat in the microwave for 30-second intervals until melted.

In a large bowl mix together 3/4 of the flax mixture (should be about 1/2 cup), oil, applesauce, sugar, vanilla, and melted chocolate. 

In a separate bowl mix the cocoa powder, baking soda, and flour. Add to the wet mixture and mix just until uniform. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, blend the remaining flax mixture with sugar, coconut, soy milk, and vanilla. Add walnuts. 

Pour half of the chocolate mixture into a prepared 8x8 inch baking dish (make sure you have coated the sides of the pan well with oil!) Spoon the coconut mixture evenly on top. Cover with remaining chocolate mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees on middle rack for 35-45 minutes. Check out someecards.com. Brownies are done when inserted knife comes out clean! Let them cool before eating! I know it's exciting!

About As Expected As A Mute Wingman

I'm not a huge fan of canned sauces, but I saw this at Trader Joe's it is made with coconut milk and has coconut flakes, and while I don't usually like curries and much less simmer sauces, I do love coconut! Looking back it really isn't something that I would usually even consider buying, but I'm really glad I did. 

The jar suggests simmering tofu in the sauce, but as I've recently discovered how to fry tofu in a way that is pleasing to me, I warmed up the sauce and poured it over the tofu and jasmine rice. Since it was AMAZING: spicy and warm and just enough coconut to give it a bit if richness, I will post my suggestions for the never-before-seen, the exotic, the only Thai Tofu Toss!

(Actually this will really just be a recipe for Spicy Fried Tofu for People Who Can't Cook Tofu and you can add whatever you want to it.)

The Innies

1 package firm to extra firm tofu (not silken)

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)

about 4 tablespoons Spicy Pepper oil (or any spicy oil)

The Way

Remove the tofu from the package. Gently squeeze the tofu until it is not dripping. Place between several folded pieces of paper towel and place a 4-6 year Harry Potter book on top. Mix the flour, cornstarch, and optional cayenne in a bowl. Set aside. Do other things for 15-30 minutes (like prepare your jasmine rice and clean the living room).

Remove the tofu from the paper towels. Using a medium kitchen knife, 

slice the tofu in 1/2 slices, then cut in half. Coat the tofu, one piece at a time, in the flour mixture. 

Heat the oil on high heat in a small frying pan for about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-high and, using tongs, set several pieces of the tofu into the pan, not allowing them to touch. Allow to cook for 3-5 minutes and turn over. Tofu is done when each side is golden brown and crisp when prodded with tongs. Remove with tongs, drain off excess oil, and set aside while you put in another batch.

You can cook all of the tofu at once in a large frying pan but you will need to use a lot more oil and I'm not much of a wasteful person. So I guess if you don't really care about money or the starving kids in Mesopotamia, go for it.

To reheat any leftover tofu the next day, heat your pan without oil and toast the tofu a bit as it will get really soggy in the microwave.

Adventures in Pizza-Making

I have begun the search for the perfect home-made vegan pizza. It may take days... weeks... years, but I am unrelenting in my quest! Here are my results from Round One:

I used a pizza dough recipe from allrecipes.com called Pizza Dough III. As I've never made pizza dough before this seemed like the best recipe to me. Though the recipe calls for bread flour, I used white whole wheat flour, because that is what I had. My critique is that the dough was not light enough despite having an entire packet of yeast. The changes that I will make will include using a bit more oil and including baking powder. I won't change the flour! Whole wheat flour is the only kind I use! Because it's the best.

The sauce that I used was also from allrecipes.com and was called Exquisite Pizza Sauce. It called for honey and I used agave. Also I included fresh sage (since I had some) and I left out oregano and parmesan. It was still too sweet even after I added a bit extra of cayanne pepper and minced garlic. I will probably start completely over in regards to sauce though I like the addition of cayanne and red pepper flakes. I prefer my sauces to have a small amount of tomato chunks and this was very thin.

To make it all cheesy I used Veganrella, which I was concerned about when I opened the package. It had a very strange slimy texture on top that was hard to wash off (of my hands, I didn't wash the cheese). I originally attempted to shred it but I found quite quickly that it crumbles easily. I used two ounces on an entire pizza, and I found this to be adequate. I think I will try a different soy cheese next time just to see if there is anything I like better. I also might try soy feta! As feta is the only kind of cheese that I really really miss. Please be tasty, soy feta!

The pizza did satisfy my weekend-long craving and it made enough for two smaller pizzas that make two servings each. It's also relatively low in fat (one tablespoon of olive oil per pizza and a single serving of veganrella on the entire pizza, plus the olive toppings) or maybe just comparatively speaking. I will use roasted garlic next time, too, and more kalamata olives, and maybe some artichoke? Oh god.

Finally, Pizza!!

Last night some friends and I went to Lilly's Pizza in Five Points. Lilly's Pizza is one of my favorite restaurants in Raleigh- they use all-natural ingredients, and are next to a cool coffee shop, and they are all rude and busy and crazy- but I hadn't been there since I stopped poisoning my body with dairy. The last time I was trying to cut dairy out of my diet they did not have a casin-free dairy substitute so I just got my pizza without cheese, which was perfectly good. This time they had Veganrella, which I'd never had before, but one of their employees told me that it was really good as long as you asked for a small amount, otherwise it gets soupy. Here is what happened:

PURE BLISS

It took all of my willpower to stop eating it long enough to take a picture. The veganrella was kinda soup-ish, but I liked that because it blended with the sauce and I dipped my crust into it. It's become an obsession, and as soon as I finish up my butternut squash risotto and black bean soup I will begin a new adventure into pizza-making! Mmm I think I will put roasted garlic on it....

Melty Crispy Avocado Burritos

A Latin sandwich? Or just the best kind of no-utensil-needed food there is? This is my current favorite quick dish, as I love avocado but need to stop eating it alone or drizzled with olive oil and black pepper... apparently protein is important! There are some optional innies listed but I very rarely use any of them as I feel they prevent a truly "melty" texture. This will make one serving but is easily multiplied by using a calculator, or, if you're feeling up to it, your mind.

The Innies

1 10" tortilla

1/4 cup Not-refried Refried Black Beans (ok if cold)

1/4 cup prepared white rice (also ok if cold)

1/2 small Hass avocado, sliced into small chunks

salt

spray cooking oil

optional: 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh cilanto and/or 2 tablespoons chopped fresh tomato and/or 1 tablespoon dairy-free sour cream (Tofutti makes the best, texture-wise)

The Way

Spread the tortilla out on a plate or clean surface. Spoon the black beans into the middle of the tortilla in a line that is tapered on both ends. Cover the beans with the white rice, and then sprinkle the avocado one top of that. Add salt to taste and any optional innies (I hate cilanto but you are welcome to it).  Roll the tortilla so that the rice, beans, and avocado are held tightly in the middle (this is called a burrito).

Spray a large skillet or frying pan with spray cooking oil. Heat for one minute on medium-high heat. Place the burrito with the loose end down onto the skillet. Using a spatula, press down gently to expose more of the tortilla to the hot surface. Flip after about 5 minutes or when the tortilla has acquired a beautiful golden tone. When both sides are crispy, remove from heat and serve. 

Zucchini Tomato Sauce

I was surprised at how many of my friends don't know how to make a basic tomato sauce... here's a lighter, tastier sauce that's easy to make and takes just as long to cook as your pasta (ok, boiling time included). Keeps in the 'fridge for a week. I usually eat it with penne and a slice of rustic bread, mmm

The Innies

1 zucchini, sliced and halved

1/2 onion, coarsley chopped

4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

4 fresh medium tomatoes, cut into 1/2 inch chunks

1 teaspoon sage (fresh is best if you have it)

1/2 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon salt

The Way

Heat the olive oil in a medium thick-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat for one minute. Add the zucchini, saute for about 3 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and saute just until the onions begin to soften, about 5 minutes (the zucchini will not be soft at this point, and if it is, it's rotten and you should learn more about picking your vegetables).

Add the tomato, sage, thyme, and salt, stir. Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has been reduced and the zucchini is tender (but not falling apart).

Remove from heat and serve! 

This also does well with breaded eggplant cutlets (recipe coming soon when i make them better) but you can get dairy-free frozen prepared eggplant cutlets at your local, amazing Trader Joe's.

Not-refried Refried Black Beans

Inspired by a delicious bean burrito at one of the million Mexican restaurants in North Carolina, but without all the slow-cooker crap and fat. Also I don't care for pinto beans much. So! Here are tasty mushy black beans for fillings or over rice. You can use less jalapeno if you are a sissy. Also you can forgo the mashing and serve them whole-bean style! Lumpy goodness! 

The Innies (or, things you are going to put "in" to one another)

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 medium fresh jalapeno, diced

1/2 medium onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

2 can (15 oz each) black beans

1/2 teaspoon cumin powder

2 teaspoons salt

The Way (not to be confused with the Tao)

Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat for about one minutes. Add the jalepeno, onion, and garlic. Cook until the onion is slightly translucent (about 5 minutes).

Mix in the beans and the spices.  Continue to heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and, using an electric mixer, beat until all of the beans have broken up (mixture will not be completely smooth). Adjust spices to your taste!

For a completely smooth texture, you can skip the beater and put the mixture into a food processor, but you will have to wait about 10 minutes for them to cool.