“Training is everything.  The peach was once a bitter almond…”

— Mark Twain

I started canning this summer and, as with most of my culinary ventures, I do not excel at it.  I like to be terrible at lots of things at once, though, so now I’m bad at canning too!   My first attempt was peach butter.  I followed the directions and boiled all of my jars and utensils for ten minutes.  Apparently that is enough time to kill the creapy crawlies so that, once canned, they don’t multiply in your peach butter and, you know, kill you.  After the crucial sanitation measures came peeling the peaches.  This involved dropping them in boiling water for a quick dip, fishing them out, and then attempting to rub the skin off the fruit while you scald your fingers and drip peach juices all over the counter, the floor, and the child at your feet.  Once peeled, the peaches were to be mashed with some form of sugar.

I stood over the stove while peach-scented steam coated the windows and appliances in the kitchen, and thought about the glorious peach butter that we’d be slathering on every confection within reach.  We were only a short twenty five steps away!  After much stirring and mashing came one rather strange test of the peach butter’s fortitude that involved a dollop of “butter”, a saucer, and the knowledge of whether or not the butter was “weeping.”  I concluded that it was not.

I was then instructed to “pack” the peach butter into the hot sanitized jars.  While my jars were lovingly sterilized they were no longer hot, and I found myself unsure of the importance of their hotness.  Also, while adept at packing suitcases, I found myself in uncharted territory when confronted with packing a jar.  Can I not just pour it in?  Perhaps not, because once poured, sealed, and sunk into more boiling water for their “canning bath”, my peach butter remains a sauce.  A delicious sauce, but a sauce nonetheless.

Monday

Grilled Bell Peppers, Onions, and Tomatoes over Wild Rice and Navy Beans

Tuesday

Broccoroni and “Cheese”

Wednesday

Quinoa Noodles with Homemade Red Sauce and (Vegan) Meatballs

Thursday

Spelt Crust Pizza with Leftover Red Sauce and Onions, Spinach, Garlic, and Mushrooms

Friday

Takeout Day

Saturday

Spicy Chili and Cornbread

We’ve been pretty obsessed with the farmer’s market this summer.  We go and let the kids run around and buy a bunch of stuff we have no use for.  Then we eat some of it, and I scramble to keep it from spoiling before we finish the rest. 

Crowd pleasers like peaches or strawberries are never in excess supply.  Even Kohlrabi elicited a good response.  Last week I bought several pounds of wax beans and they did not go over quite as well.  Little D humored me by chewing on one, but inserted it into her hair the moment I turned around.  She thinks I can’t see her hair.  I humor her because she’s one and has adorable cheeks but if she didn’t I would totally bust her on it.

I was just turning to see how Big C was enjoying the very same wax beans, when I heard a strange swishing sound.  It was Jackie The Cat and she was playing with a wax bean.  Batting it around on the floor, tossing it up in the air– you get the idea.  That wax bean wizzed through the air and smacked Big C on the leg which she used as an excuse to acquit herself from any wax bean-eating obligation she may have been under.   I don’t know how to fight that kind of reasoning so she wins this round.

This leaves me with an excess of wax beans.  I don’t think they freeze well so I made them into pickles.  Delicious dill bean pickles that perfectly compliment a spicy bloody mary.  Not that I need a drink.

*I used the recipe from Put ‘em Up!: A Comprehensive Home Preserving Guide, by Sherri Brooks Vinton.  You can also find Dilly Beans at Food In Jars, AllRecipes, and I imagine, countless other places.  

Monday

Collard Greens with Corn Grit Cakes

Tuesday

Creamy Mushroom Bake with Chickpeas

Wednesday

Tanuki Soba with Spinach Tempura

Thursday

The Big Salad

Friday

Creamy Sweet Potato Bake with Navy Beans

Saturday

Takeout Day

This week’s recipes were either taken from the following books, or from deep in the recesses of my brain:

• Vegan Comfort Food, by Alicia Simpson
• Vegan Yum Yum, by Lauren Ulm

“I propose to fight it out on this line if it takes all summer.”
—Ulysses S. Grant

Summer break is almost over.  We’re fully committed to stuffing ourselves with peaches and nectarines in record breaking amounts and hopefully you are too.  We will have plenty to say about it very very soon.  Wink.

Learn how to subscribe here, and you’ll know almost as soon as I do.

Red and White Cauliflower Bake

Monday

Vegetable Fried Rice

Tuesday

Creamy Tomato Barley Risotto with Tofu

Wednesday

Pepita Fettucini with Spinach and Cranberries

Thursday

Creamy Sweet Potato Bake with Chickpeas and Kale

Friday

Takeout Day

Saturday

Grilled Corn Fritters and an Herb Salad

All of this week’s recipes were taken from Vegan Yum Yum, by Lauren Ulm.

“Motherhood.  All love begins and ends there.”

–Robert Browning

Cashew Cream Sauce is one of our own standard Mother Sauces .  While technically a Béchamel, you can use this cashew sauce as a jumping off point.  Fresh basil goes nicely if you’re planning on serving it with pasta and veggies, paprika and nutmeg work well in casseroles, fresh garlic and pepper are great with grilled veggies and tofu… I’m modestly confident that you can take it from here.

Cashew Cream Sauce

• 1 cup unsweetened Almond Milk
• 1 cup raw unsalted Cashews
• 1/4 cup Nutritional Yeast
• 2 tablespoons Earth Balance
• 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
• 1/2 teaspoon Coarse Sea Salt
• Fresh Pepper

Soaking the cashews in salted water for a few hours ahead of time makes for a smoother sauce but it isn’t strictly necessary.  Blend everything together until creamy.  That’s really all there is to it.

Broccoli Almond Sweet-and-Sour Tofu

Tuesday

Broccoroni and Cheese

Wednesday

Creamy Tomato Barley Risotto

Thursday

Seven Spice Udon with added Black Eyed Peas

Friday

Takeout Day

Saturday

Creamy Sweet Potato and Kale Bake

This weeks recipes are either my own or from the Vegan Yum Yum cookbook, by Lauren Ulm

These are store bought.

I used to eat corn toasties* with butter as a kiddo and I can’t stop thinking about them.  Luckily, our grocery store has several vegan offerings so I won’t perish with longing.  Still.  I want to make them and I’m not sure why it’s proving so difficult.  How hard is it to mix together flour, cornmeal, salt, milk, and “butter”?  Well as it turns out, rather troublesome indeed.

I tell Big C what I’m making largely because she will continue to ask until I answer, and she waits somewhat patiently on a kitchen stool while I flounder about with measuring cups and almond milk.  The sun is shining from behind her barely restrained seated position and her ears are glowing pink with earnest anticipation.

“Thou are ready?” she asks in her trademark Scots.

Not quite.  Sometimes, things just don’t work out.  I can’t make corn toasties.

*also known as Johnny Cakes, Hoecakes, or Corn Dodgers

Monday

Rapini Panini Sandwiches

Tuesday

Big Salads

Wednesday

The McFu

Thursday

Takeout Day

Friday

Grilled Seitan with Grilled Aparagus, Tomatos, and Sweet Onions

Saturday

Soy-Mirin Tofu with Snow Peas and Peanut Sauce

Monday

Seven Spice Udon with Shredded Brussels Sprouts and Carrots

Tuesday

Pepita Fettucini with Spinach and Cranberries

Wednesday

Tahini Lemon Rice and Beans with Kale

Thursday

Soy-Mirin Tofu with Snow Peas and Peanut Sauce

Friday

Takeout Day

Saturday

Baked Mac and “Cheese”

This weeks recipes were all chosen from:

• Vegan Yum Yum, by Lauren Ulm

“They take great pride in making their dinner cost much;

I take my pride in making my dinner cost so little.”

–Henry David Thoreau

 

There are only three saffron threads to be found in a Saffron Crocus flower.  Such threads are harvested by hand in Persia, where they grow in what are apparently impossible to reproduce conditions.  If it were possible, someone would have started chaining sad crocus flowers together in a factory somewhere long ago in order to capitalize on the world’s most expensive spice.

We tried a recipe last week that called for a significant amount of saffron.  By significant amount, I mean the dinky half teaspoonful you see above which cost more that we normally spend to make our entire dinner.   I’ve certainly eaten it before but never having cooked with it, I wasn’t sure if I could even pick out the flavor.  It turns out, I can’t.  I didn’t even like the soup so I’m going to go ahead and blame the saffron.

Realistically, it probably wasn’t this one spice’s fault– it just wasn’t a good recipe.  Unfortunately recipes like it are part of the reason many are under the misguided impression that vegans have to spend one hundred and twenty percent of their income on food to sustain themselves.  Being vegan has made us more adventurous in the kitchen, and undoubtably more aware of where our food comes from.  Those things have the potential to blow up your grocery store budget, but they don’t have to.  Barley, quinoa, and wheat are not expensive.  Beans and greens are not expensive.  When you take meat and dairy out of your diet you’d be amazed at the extra cash you have laying around.  Add that to the extra money you’ll have leftover when you don’t need a quadruple bi-pass surgery later in life and you’ll be astonished.  Just sayin’.

Monday

Penne Arrabbiata with White Beans

Tuesday

Saffron-Spiked Moroccan Stew

Wednesday

Kale with Sesame Miso Dressing over Quinoa

Thursday

Seitan, Kale, & Carrots with a Spicy Peanut Sauce

Friday

Takeout Day

Saturday

Panko Crusted Seitan with Homemade Red Sauce

This weeks recipes are either my own or they were picked from the following books:

• The Vegan Table, by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau
• Vegan Yum Yum, by Lauren Ulm

Burritos with Long Grain Rice, Black Beans, and Homemade Salsa

Tuesday

Tofu Scramble with Tomatoes over Whole Grain Toast

Wednesday

Cornmeal Crusted Tempeh with Orange Ginger Sauce

Thursday

Pad Thai with Kale and Seitan

Friday

Takeout Day

Saturday

Sprouted Pasta with Homemade Red Sauce and Fried Seitan Medallions

This weeks recipes are either my own or they were picked from the following book:

• The Vegan Table, by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

I never learned to appreciate the simple lunchtime staple- tuna salad.  Probably because it’s normally made with mayonnaise, which I have mentioned before, is gross.  Additionally, the fishiness that canned or vacuum packed tuna has is pretty gnarly.  Even if you do enjoy it, Bluefin Tuna have been very close to a listing in the endangered species club for the past few years, so maybe it’s time for people to move on.  You would feel weird about eating a panda, right?…  Right?

We found a recipe for a tuna salad stand-in recently and it is delightful.  I won’t post it here because it isn’t my recipe and that is rude.  I will, however, recommend that you take the same basic ingredients that are in a tuna salad and substitute mashed chickpeas for the hatchery babies (replace mayo with Vegenaise).  It keeps in the fridge so you can have a few lunches ready to go ahead of time, and your omnivorous friends won’t be scared to eat it because it isn’t a packaged food that says Vegan! on the label.  Because we all know how terrifying vegan food is.    Sigh.

Monday

Sprouted Pasta with Homemade Red Sauce

Tuesday

Curry Cashew Casserole

Wednesday

Portobello Burritos

Thursday

Bean and Bulgur Tacos

Friday

Havana Beans and Rice

Saturday

Reservations Out

Most of this week’s recipes were chosen from The Urban Vegan cookbook.

Monday

Lasagna

Tuesday

Whole Wheat Penne Pasta with Fresh Broccoli, Red Peppers, and Squash

Wednesday

Cheesesteak Sandwiches and an Herb Salad

Thursday

Broccoroni and Cheese

Friday

Takeout Day

Saturday

The McFu Sandwich with Kale Chips

You didn’t ever really like eggs, did you?  They taste like sulfur, and who wants to be thinking about the fiery pits of Hades while dining on brunch?  No one does.  Try a tofu scramble even if you do normally enjoy eating chicken ovulation.  This one is really quite tasty.  We like it piled on top of seared seitan (the same one we use for “cheesesteaks”), and smashed into a Bisquick biscuit.  And yes– Bisquick is vegan.

Tofu Scramble:

Saute:

• Heat a bit of Olive Oil in a large cast iron pan over medium heat
• Saute 1 Yellow Onion, diced, for 15 minutes (turn heat to medium-low to slow browning)
• Add 3 Cloves Garlic, minced or pressed, for an additional 5 minutes

Add:

• 1 1/2 teaspoons Coarse Sea Salt
• 1 teaspoon Oregano
• 1 teaspoon Thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon Tumeric
• 1/2 teaspoon Basil
• 1 pinch Sage
• 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice

Cook:

• Crumble 1 Extra Firm Block of pressed Tofu into the pan
• Stir frequently for 15 minutes
• Add 2/3 cup Nutritional Yeast
• Add 1 or 2 Tablespoons Water as necassary

Husband grew up eating cheesesteaks on the sidewalk in South Philadelphia at one in the morning.  These weren’t the cheesesteaks you get at ripoff chain restaurants or in gourmet establishments with words like “authentic!” or “Philly!” on the menu.  He enjoys being vegan, but if you were to twist his arm I’m sure he’d admit that there are things he misses.

Sometimes food is about nostalgia and not about health or nourishment.  Not even one little bit about health.  Or nourishment.  If you really wanted to, you could address the window at Pat’s or Geno’s and politely request a whole wheat baguette, sauteed mushrooms, onions, and peppers, and any “cheese” other than Whiz.  I only ask that you take a video of yourself doing so and send it to me because I could use a good laugh.

Vegan Cheesesteaks

Steamed Seitan

Wisk together in a large bowl:

• 2 1/4 cups vital wheat gluten
• 1/2 cup quick cooking tapioca
• 1/2 cup tvp
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast

Saute in a little bit of olive oil:

• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 large white onion, minced

Wisk together in a separate bowl:

• 2 cups vegan gravy
• 1/4 cup vegan hoisin sauce
• 1 teaspoon marmite
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 3 tablespoons tamari/soy sauce
• the sauteed garlic and onion

Prepare:

• Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until combined
• Knead for 10 minutes
• Allow to rest covered for an hour
• Knead for another minute or two
• Form into a log and wrap in two layers of tin foil (wrap like a tootsie roll)

Cook:

• Place log in electric steamer (I’m sure a steamer pot would also work fine)
• Use high water level
• Steam for one hour
• Flip over after 30 minutes
• Chill completely in fridge (overnight is perfect)

Cheese Sauce

• Melt 1/4 cup Earth Balance in a sauce pan

Wisk in the following over medium/low heat:

• 2 tablespoons Flour
• 1 cup of Unsweetened Almond Milk (soy or rice would also work fine)
• 1 tablespoon Chickpea Miso
• 1 cup Nutritional Yeast
• Fresh Cracked Pepper
• 1 teaspoon Coarse Sea Salt

Assemble

• Heat olive oil in a large cast iron skillet
• Slice seitan log thinly
• Chop into smaller pieces
• Saute seitan until crispy
• Pile onto a white hoagie roll
• Smother with “cheese” sauce

Roasted Red Pepper, Artichoke, and Pesto Sandwiches

Tuesday

Golden Corn Pancakes

Wednesday

Sugar Snap Peas with Toasted Sesame Seeds and Grilled Seitan Medallions

Thursday

No-Queso Quesadillas

Friday

Purple Potatoes with Cashew Cream

Saturday

Takeout Day

This weeks recipes were picked from the following book:

• The Vegan Table, by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

“Love and scandal are the best sweeteners of tea.”

– Henry Fielding

I’ve been trying to quit drinking soda for fifteen years.  This task has not been made any easier by my not actually wanting to quit drinking soda.  People love to tell stories about Coke taking the paint off of old Chevy’s and aspartame being responsible for seventy-three percent of the world’s unhappiness.  Unfortunately, these horrible characteristics are not enough to make me immune to the bubbly delectability that is diet cola.  Husband is caught in its clutches too.  Sometimes we sit alone in the dark drinking diet soda and then later pretend it never happened.  We hate ourselves.

Every time I read an article about how tea will improve your life, prevent cancer, reverse baldness, and clean your house, I am reminded of my entombed wish to stop poisoning myself with artificial sweetener.  Unfortunately, even tea cannot overcome the damage if I’m dumping a packet of saccharine death into each cup.  Hence, the admittance of agave nectar into our lives.  A year ago, I had never heard of it, but it is not possible to open a vegan cookbook without finding a recipe that includes it.  Often used in place of honey and plain white sugar, agave nectar is a sweet plant-derived syrup that causes a lower glycemic response than other “sugars” and won’t kill you in your sleep like chemical sweeteners.

Plus, when paired with mint and white tea*, agave nectar will make you feel like you’re sitting on the back porch in the summer while your kids pick the neighbor’s flowers.  How sweet.

*you can find the recipe we used in Urban Vegan‘s upcoming cookbook

Monday

Polenta Hearts over a Salad of Herb Greens

Tuesday

Pad Thai

Wednesday

Ratatouille with White Beans

Thursday

Cornmeal-Crusted Tempeh with Orange Ginger Sauce

Friday

Scotch Broth

Saturday

Black Bean Chili

This weeks recipes were picked from the following book:

• The Vegan Table, by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

Who doesn’t love hot chili dip on a cold day?  No one, that’s who.

Vegan Chili Cheese Dip

• Melt 1/4 cup Earth Balance in a sauce pan
• Add 1/2 a Jalapeño Pepper, minced as small as you can manage
• Sprinkle on 2 Tbsp Flour and let it brown a bit before wisking

Wisk in the following:

• 3/4 cup of Beer
• 1/2  - 1 tsp Coarse Sea Salt
• 1 cup Nutritional Yeast
• Fresh Cracked Pepper

At this point it will be a really salty, cheesy paste.  (Could I make it sound any tasty-er?)

• Stir in one can of Black Bean Chili (I particularly like Amy’s Southwestern Black Bean Chili for this recipe)
• Keep stirring over medium heat until hot

Serve immediately with tortilla chips, over fries, or a baked potato and you’ll suddenly feel like watching football.

Monday

Leftover (!) Risotto with Leeks and Porcini Mushrooms

Tuesday

Mini Injeras

Wednesday

Grilled Daiya Cheese Sandwiches and “Insanely Thick and Comforting Squash Soup”

Thursday

Good Old-Fashioned Macaroni Salad

Friday

Takeout Day

Saturday

Out of Town

“There is a passion for hunting

something deeply implanted in the human breast.”

– Charles Dickens

Mushroom hunting– it’s a thing.  Did you know that you must hunt mushrooms?  You can’t just go get some out of the forest and give Bambi a fist-bump on the way out.  You actually have to hunt them.  It sounds aggressive and more than a little dangerous, so naturally I want in.

So I’m geared up like Elmer Fudd with visions of chanterelles dancing before my eyes, but I’m finding that mushroom hunting is actually fraught with risk and uncertainty.  There are several kinds of mushrooms that are lumped into a category entitled: “Little Brown Mushrooms,” simply because the mushroom masterminds can’t even begin to identify them.  It seems problematic to me that all mushrooms look little and brown, but don’t worry, they’re not all poisonous.  If you decide to hunt for some mushrooms on your own, Little Brown Mushrooms might not kill you.  But they might.  Exciting!  It’s like mycological roulette!

I guess that’s where the thrill is.  Hunting animals seems kind of like a game of “Surprise!  You’re dead!”.  It’s a bit unsporting to hunt something that isn’t aware of it’s status on your hit list.  But in the case of cremini, it could go either way.  So man up bear hunters, and go foraging.  You won’t.

Also, just in case we were getting bored… no… we’re going to be recipe testing for Denise Balcavage starting this week.  Denise is the talented woman that wrote my favorite cookbook, The Urban Vegan, so I’m thrilled to try out her newest creations.  Everything on this weeks menu is a tester except for Monday’s, which is a VeganYumYum specialty.

Monday

Seitan, Kale, & Carrots in a Spicy Peanut Sauce

Tuesday

Risotto with Leeks and Porcini Mushrooms

Wednesday

Polenta-Kale Cutlets with Basil Aioli

Thursday

Caponata

Friday

Takeout Day

Saturday

Minimal Pastina with Spinach

Monday

Whole Wheat Pasta with Chopped Tomatoes, Navy Beans, and Spinach

Tuesday

Homemade Pizza with Fresh Tomato Sauce

Wednesday

Rapini Panini

Thursday

Takeout Day

Friday

Let the Holidays Begin!

]]> http://www.selfishvegan.com/2010/12/weekly-menu-12-21-10/feed/ 1 http://www.selfishvegan.com/2010/12/just-salad/ http://www.selfishvegan.com/2010/12/just-salad/#comments Sat, 18 Dec 2010 02:19:38 +0000 The Selfish Vegan http://www.selfishvegan.com/?p=221

“Behave so the aroma of your actions may enhance the general sweetness of the atmosphere.”

– Henry David Thoreau

Everyone knows vegans eat nothing but salad.  That’s it.  Just salad.  Care for some dressing for that salad?  Fancy some pasta, soup, or legumes?  According to the perception of many, you’re out of luck.  First of all, this blog is total nonsense.  We don’t eat bread or cookies.  We never have sandwiches or snacks, and we absolutely never indulge in anything warmer than room temperature.  We’ve all lost approximately seventy pounds and we rarely get out of bed because we’re dizzy from malnutrition.  We’re worried about microscopic shellfish in our water supply so we wisely choose to drink only diet coke which gives us the shakes.  We’re cranky because our hemp underwear is giving us a rash.  Sure, it can be tiresome.  That’s why we’ve branched out and now buy herb salad greens.  The smell of a fresh herb salad takes me back to a time when our restaurant reservations were plentiful and people didn’t constantly wonder how we subsist on salad alone.

Frankly, it’s hard to set a realistic example when you go out to dinner with friends and the only thing on the menu is side salad of herb greens minus the inevitable cheese.  Why wouldn’t that be what people believe when that’s all they see vegans eat.  Not everyone spends hours on the internet discovering fascinating new foods and flavors– what they see is a sullen vegan, sitting at the table picking at a salad.

Butternut Squash Risotto

Tuesday:

Rapini Panini on a Whole Wheat Baguette

Wednesday:

Panko Crusted Seitan Cutlets with Collard Greens

Thursday:

Marinated Asian Tofu with Broccoli, Carrots, Water Chestnuts & Baby Corn

Friday:

Individual Baked Macaroni & “Cheeses” with “Cheesy” Brussels Sprouts

Saturday:

Out and Away

This week’s recipes were picked from the following books, or in the case of the Risotto– the internet:

• Veganomicon, by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero
• The Urban Vegan, by Dynise Balcavage
• Vegan Yum Yum, by Lauren Ulm