Solstice Dinner Party

Here is the spread from my winter solstice dinner party the other day. It was a potluck. I made the cabbage rolls, and slow-cooker cranberry-walnut stuffing, and my friends brought: roasted veggies, mashed sweet potato, a salad with orange-ginger dressing, chili, and a spagetti squash stuffed with purple potatoes and other vegetables! Oh, and lots of dessert, which I forgot to take a photo of..


and from the other side..

Sweet and Sour Neatmalls on Mashed Potatoes

Comfort food out of my comfort zone! I'd never tried this recipe, or anything similar. I'm so glad I did try it!
This is an edited version (as usual) of the "Sweet and Sour 'Neat' Balls" in The Everyday Vegan. I didn't use roasted garlic or carrot, and I added a handfull of hulled hemp seeds. I also used a bottled sauce.

"Peanut Butter in my Chocolate" Cookies

This is kind of a crappy photo, but this is a GREAT recipe from Eat Drink and be Vegan by Dreena Burton!

Squash Pita Pizza

Mmm.. pre-baked acorn squash, black beans, salsa, soy cheese and black olives. SO GOOD.

Homemade Perogies!

I finally made perogies by hand. It was easy! We filled them with a mix of potato, grated cheddar soy cheese, and fried leeks. Yay!


Circles cut with the mouth of a container..

Super Quick and Healthy Butternut Squash Soup

I got a small can of organic butternut squash puree on sale at the natural food store the other day, and I wasn't sure what to do with it, but then I came up with this awesome soup! It could easily be made with canned pumpkin, too.

First, I fried up a chopped onion with some olive oil in the bottom of a medium sized pan, and then I added about 2 tsp of my favourite curry powder and stirred it around, and then I added the can of squash plus enough rice milk to make it the right consistency. I will definitely be doing this again!

Slow-Cooker Chili with Cornbread

Saturday was chili night! The chili was based on the 'Sweet Potato Chili with Chipotle' (or something like that) from Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker (I added black beans and tvp crumbles), the cornbread is 'Skillet Corn Bread' from Veganomicon, and the sour cream is Tofutii brand. It was as good as it looked!!

Vegan Cheese Reviews

Homemade nut and/or nutritional yeast cheese is great, but fake cheese rules too. I've tried quite a few brands and flavours, and here is my verdict for the best ones.

The best for eating melted:

I have found that the Montery Jack flavour from Follow Your Heart is the absolute best vegan cheese on pizza. It melts quite soft, so you have to cook it until it bubbles and browns a bit (always good) or it can be too runny, but even then it tastes great. The mozarella flavour is good, but it just tastes sort of butter-y.. the jack has a bit more kick.

The best for eating cold, unmelted:

Sheese is very expensive but pretty damn good. It is the only vegan cheese I've ever had that tastes really good in a cold sandwhich. It is very firm and has a great texture. I doesn't melt very well, though. It doesn't spread out like FYH does. My favourite is the Smoked Cheddar flavour, but I'm sure they are all great.

Best parmesan substitute:

I'm a big fan of the Galaxy Foods brand parmesan.. as far as I know no one else makes a parmesan substitute.. but that's ok, because this stuff rules.

Best cheese slices:

Tofutti slices are the greasiest cheese I've tried, so I don't eat them often, but they are pretty yummy. Try them torn into pieces and melted on pizza. The flavour is quite butter-y, but sometimes that's what you're going for.

Pumpkin Cinnamon rolls, again!

It's that time of year again! Time for this recipe!
My sister and I made them last weekend as a Thanksgiving weekend activity. Baking with yeast takes sooo long.. but it is worth it!

Mexican-inspired Baked Pasta

Ingredients: cooked whole wheat rotini, salsa, red beans, frozen corn, and some orange cheez sauce (tofu, roasted red pepper, nutritional yeast, tahini, garlic powder, salt), bread crumbs. I mixed everything up and baked at 400 for 20 minutes- just to crisp up the top a bit.

Me news and Elsie pics

I started my last semester of my English degree last week! My classes are all pretty cool. Highlights include a seminar on the wackiness of Columbus (not the actual title..) and a film class.

Also, I just got back from a great weekend in Toronto! The boyfriend and I went to the Vegetarian Food Fair and the Royal Ontario Museum, and we ate at Fresh (of course) and I had my first visit to Fressen! It was nice.. and the food was swanky.. but it didn't amaze me.

...and now, some photos of my kitty sleeping in cute ways!

Balsamic Collards and Portabello Mushrooms on Cheezy Pasta Spirals

The pasta sauce is a white-bean cheez sauce from the Uncheese Cookbook. It's pretty much white beans, nutritional yeast, soy milk.. salt, spices, whatever. Creamy goodness.

On top is sliced portabello mushrooms and collard greens cooked with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. I don't like collard greens as much as chard because collards are more bitter, but they are in season right now and are perfectly yummy!

Banana-Date-Peanut Butter Ice Cream

This ice cream is naturally sweet! No sugar added.

Ingredients, blended:
1 can light coconut milk
3 ripe bananas
6 pitted dates
2 tbs peanut butter

+ chocolate chips

Cauliflower-Leek Pie with Chickpea Crust

I used the pie crust from the 'Curried Vegetable Pie with Chickpea Crust' recipe from The Garden of Vegan: (1/2 cup mashed chickpeas, 1 1/2 cup chickpea flour, 1/3 cup margarine).

Ingredients for the filling, food processed:
2 chopped leeks and two minced garlic cloves sautéd in olive oil
1 blanched cauliflower
a few tbs of vegan parmesan
1/2 cup soft tofu
black pepper
sea salt

topped with:
tamari-roasted pepitas and more vegan parmesan

PS- You have to hear this CBC session that Steven Page did with an orchestra! His cover of 'Paranoid Android' is amazing.

Chocolate Cream Pie

Mmm. This is 'Peanut Butter Fudge Pie' from the Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook - but I used almond butter instead of peanut butter because that's what I had.
I used a store-bought graham cracker crust, I admit it.

Mustard-pomegranate Tempeh, Frozen Soygurt

The secret ingredient today was pomegranate molasses, which is concentrated pom juice. It is found at middle eastern stores (if you're lucky!). It isn't sweetened like granadine (originally made from pom) but unsweetened and sour/tangy.

I marinated the block of defrosted tempeh (a soy product) and then marinated it for a half hour in a sauce consisting of minced fresh garlic, and 2 tbs dijon mustard, about 1 tbs pomegranate molasses, about 1 tbs water and touch of olive oil.
I browned the tempeh with a bit more olive oil, and then added oyster mushrooms and a chopped fresh tomato. When the mushrooms wilted I added some sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper. It was a bit dry so I added some more of the mustard-pom-water mixture.
It was very very good!!!

For dessert was frozen soygurt! The soygurt I used was strawberry flavour- and I added a bit of chocolate almond milk to thin it out, some pomegranate molasses, chocolate syrup and chocolate chips. Tangy-licious! Better than Pomegranate Chip from Purely Decadent. I can't believe I never thought to use soy yog as a base before... thanks Veg News!


also: this blog passed its one-year anniversary without my noticing! Almost 100 posts! Wow!

Two pizzas! both incredible!

Pizza 1: homemade spelt crust, a softer version of Crock Cheez (sharp cheddar style spread) from The Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook, walnuts, the Seared Portabello Mushrooms and Simple Swiss Chard recipes from Eat, Drink and be Vegan.


Pizza 2: homemade white flour crust (I was feeling wild and crazy), sliced tomatoes, sliced roasted red pepper from a jar, sliced black olives, Soy Curls (re-hydrated in a bacon-style marinade: water, tamari, liquid hickory smoke), Follow Your Heart soycheese.

PS- Me and my guy are all ready for the Vegetarian Food Fair in Toronto on the first weekend in Sept! We're all booked for transportation and lodging. Anyone else going?

Soy Curls!

First Soy Curls meal: warm chikn sandwich! I used the gravy recipe in The Everyday Vegan by Dreena Burton, but I used tamari instead of vinegar (why is there vinegar in gravy?). SO GOOD.

First Soy Curls meal: gyros! I used the gyros (Greek meat-on-a-pita) recipe in Vegan Express. Also good!

Verdict: they are pretty much the same as TVP chunks, but in a more fun shape.. I won't be ordering them again but I'd buy them all the time if it was sold in stores here.

Orange Seitan

I've been making a batch of homemade seitan every week lately. Yum!! Its a nice change from tofu. For this dinner I sliced it thin and fried it a bit in a pan with a bit of oil, and then I poured the orange glaze sauce from Eat Drink and Be Vegan over it until it ..glazed. So good. Here's a similar recipe for the sauce if you don't have that (awesome) cookbook: on vegweb.

In other food news, a big package of Soy Curls arrived at my house today! I can't wait to try them. I bought them from a great vegan store based in Quebec City called VivaGranola.

Philly Cheese Steak Poutine

This one is so fabulous that it gets two pictures..


Topped with Follow Your Heart brand vegan cheese!


Before being topped with (more) cheese.

First I fried strips of onion and red pepper in a bit of olive oil, and then I added strips of homemade seitan.
I seasoned the whole thing with a sauce of tamari, soy sauce, vegan worchestire sauce and chili powder. The I added a couple of tablespoons of corn starch dissolved in water to make it more gravy-like. I added a bunch of grated "cheese" in the pan at this point as well.

The seasoning was a bit too salty, but the meal was still INCREDIBLE.

Vegan Homemade Ice Cream

Gourmet mango ice cream!

I didn't use a recipe for this ice cream, but I really tried to remember what I did so that I could post it.
I put the following in a blender (I think):
1/2 cup raw cashews
1/3 block silken tofu
2-ish cups vanilla rice (or soy) milk
1 can mangoes with some of the syrup (fresh is better, of course)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2-ish cup agave nectar (makes for no sugar gritties)

and then I put in the ice cream maker. I don't usually use cashews, but they really make it rich and gourmet-tasting. It was as good as gelato!

The raspberries were on sale, so this dessert was extra-awesome.

Cold Peanut Sauce, Cucumber and Rice Noodles

An easy Saturday lunch. I actually found brown-rice rice noodles! So cool. The sauce is just peanut butter, soy sauce (or tamari), mirin, sesame oil and garlic powder stirred up in a cup. Easy! Also, it wasn't actually cold, just room-temperature.

Also, how great is the Compassionate Cooks podcast? So great.

Fried Seitan and Roasted Asparagus

This is just homemade seitan breaded with whole wheat flour, salt, pepper, and cajun seasoning and fried in olive oil. So damn good. Also, I've been eating roasted (local) asparagus pretty much every night for the last too weeks. It will be gone soon!

De Puy Lentil Crepes and Butternut Squash Crepes with Cashew Cream

Crepes for dinner!
The crepe recipe is from Veganomicon.
The filling: 1- de puy lentils with dashes of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. 2- cubed butternut squash (from frozen) with herbs and a touch of olive oil.
They are topped with cashew sour cream.

Bonus photo:
My vegetarian cookbook collection (started 10 years ago and going strong..)

Nachos!

Today's version of nachos consists of:
sautéed onion, red pepper, corn and jalepeno pepper
salsa
"re-fried" romano beans
cashew sour cream (raw cashews, water, salt, lemon juice - very rich)
olives

Asparagus with Alfredo Sauce and Noodles

Steamed asparagus with a soft-tofu based white sauce on noodles. Topped with freshly ground black pepper. Delish!!

Homemade Veggie Burger and Asian Asparagus

Homemade veggie burger from the ReFresh cookbook (Fresh is a great veg restaurant in Toronto) and steamed Ontario asparagus with a touch of sesame oil and sesame seeds.

Indonesian Food

Sorry for the lack of posts lately! School got in the way.
Here is a picture from an Indonesian-themed potluck that I had. There is tofu satay with peanut sauce from Vegan Express, veggie fried rice, sour+spicy cucumber salad, and a sweet potato/tofu/etc/ noodle dish. Yum yum!

BBQ Tofu on Baby Spinach and Quinoa

My bf threatened to order-in, but I promised I could whip up something fast and delicious within a half hour- and I did!
I lightly fried the tofu on both sides and then I poured a home-made bbq sauce (super easy to do!) on top, and that did its thing while the quinoa steamed. I put the hot tofu on top of the spinach so that the spinach lightly wilted. Yum yum!

Vegan Tuna/Egg Salad

Vegan tofu salad! Actually mine turned out more egg-salad-ish because it was very saucy. This is the recipe I used, so if you want your less saucy .. make less sauce.

1 can chickpeas
1/3 package silken tofu
2 pickles, sliced
1 tbs whole grain mustard
juice of half a lemon (or more)
some green onions, including while bit
salt + pepper

Mush chickpeas in a food processor until they are mashed up. Remove the chickpeas from the processor and put them in a big bowl. Then put tofu, pickles, mustard, tofu and lemon in the food processor and process. Add to chickpeas. Add salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Quinoa, Golden Fried Tofu, Spinach and Almond-Miso Sauce

So much protein.. so much calcium.. so much iron.. so much fat.. SO GOOD.

Mu Shu Tempeh

My boyfriend cooked tonight! He chose a recipe I wouldn't have- which is good, beause I get into food ruts. I've never had "mu shu" before, vegan or otherwise, but it was really good! The wrap is just flour and water, and the insides are tempeh, green onion, ginger, mushroom, bamboo shoots, and some other stuff. Recipe from 1001 Low-Fat Vegetarian Recipes.

Paella Vegetariana

A great recipe from a fabulous new cookbook called Vegan Express. This wasn't that "express" because I used brown rice, but I wasn't in a hurry.

Falafel

These are homemade falafel patties. I just mashed up some chickpeas and added some ground flaxseeds+water for stickiness, some breadcrumbs, lots of cumin and dried parsley. Then I fried them up in my cast-iron pan with some oil. We didn't have any pita or fresh lettuce or fresh tomato to go with it.. but it was still tasty.
Served with tahini sauce (tahini, lemon juice, dried parsley, water,..). Yum!!

...and here is my cat having a stare-off with a squirrel on my second-floor window sill: