Long Time No Post

I have not been posting because I've been super busy/not cooking as much as usual. I have a few pics from recent adventures in the kitchen but I'm ashamed to say that it's been so long since I've messed around with food pics that I forgot what a few things were!



In any case, now that it's summer. I feel less like cooking and more like drinking. Maybe I should switch to posting about booze. I did make an amazing strawberry shortcake:


I hacked together some not vegan recipes from Food Network's site and veganized them. I also veganized Alton Brown's heavenly home made soft pretzels.



It hasn't been 100% booze and junk food however. I have been playing with my miso soup recipe


At what point is it no longer miso soup? It now includes lemongrass, ginger, spinach, shiitake and baked lemon pepper tofu.

I also made mini pizzas using giant portobello mushrooms instead of dough. I just washed these babies and scooped out the gills with a spoon. Sprayed with olive oil cooking spray and roasted 'em on both sides under the broiler until tender. Then I spooned on some tomato sauce and shredded mozzarella soy cheese. I topped it with some shredded basil from the garden and popped it back under the broiler to melt the cheese. Delicious!


About the soy cheese in my little low carb pizzas above: I used a soy cheese called Teese which is made in Chicago and available from Pangea. If you are a vegan YOU NEED THIS PRODUCT!!!! It melts, for real, better than FYH! We also made a lasagna with it.

Sexy Tomato Soup

I really like soup so it's tough to play favorites, but this one really was amazing and as a bonus it's easy to make! We used veg stock instead of beef stock and Tofutti sour cream instead of Crème Fraiche. Otherwise, we just followed the recipe and ended up making this soup a few times a month thereafter.

Lemongrass Miso

We love lemongrass and we love miso soup so we had to try this recipe.

The results were fantastic. It's a refreshing take on a classic Asian recipe. We did spice our version up a bit with some chili paste though. If you like a little spiciness this makes a perfect addition.

January Vegetarian Times

We made a few things from the January Veggie Times this month


Broccoli With Peanut Sauce


Tofu Frittata with Zucchini and Onion


Vegetarian Pho (this was so good we made it twice!)


Southwestern Stew

Baby, It's Cold Outside

So warm up with a steaming bowl of soup. Soup is one of my favorite winter meals. Here are a few I've tried lately and liked:

Rosemary Cauliflower Soup by La Tartine Gourmande

The great thing about this soup was that it was really rich and creamy without being heavy and filling. It's perfect comfort food without the calories. I did find the original recipe somewhat lacking in flavor so you'll want to raid your spice cabinet for additional flavor. I added garlic salt, onion powder, coriander and cumin.

Butternut Squash Soup with Caramelized Onions and Apples from Spa Flyer

This recipe had the perfect flavor profile. The butternut squash, onions and apples were ideal compliments to each other. We ended up using vanilla (soy) yogurt for garnish and found the slightly sweet vanilla flavor actually enhanced the flavor of the soup greatly.

Heirloom Tomato Soup by Two Yolks

It's tough to imagine why any one would ever eat soup from a can with recipes this simple and delicious around. This soup derives it's "creamy" consistency from rice. It was a great excuse to pull out our immersion blender so we can feel like Food Network cooks. We served this light soup with some roasted potatoes seasoned with fresh dill and topped with a vegan mayo/horseradish dip.


Chorizo and lentil soup by Seven Spoons

Who says you need veg recipes to make a vegetarian meal? We substituted vegetable stock, soy sausage and soy Parmesan for the chicken stock, sausage and Parmesan this soup recipe called for. The variety of ingredients made for a rich hearty flavor.

From Russia With Love

Matt's 82 year old Russian grandmother is a fantastic cook. She makes the best soup I've ever eaten in my life and ever since my first bite I was after her recipe. The trouble with his grandmother's recipes is that they aren't hidden away in a cookbook or even written down, they're all in her head, and the only way to learn to make any of her recipes is to watch and take notes. If you ask her "how did you make this?" the answer is always something like "I just put some stuff in a pot." If you want to know what stuff, for how long or in what order you've got to see it for yourself. So one afternoon I went over to her house to watch her make borscht and here's how it goes:



2 onions chopped finely
2 Tbs olive oil
5 celery stalks, finely chopped
6 cups vegetable stock
handful of parsley
2 bay leaves
handful of basil
several shakes of dried Italian seasoning (thyme, basil, oregano)
several cloves of finely minced garlic
3 carrots, chopped finely
2 potatoes, peeled and chopped finely
3/4 cup barley
2 cans chopped tomatoes
3/4 head of green cabbage, julienned
1 can sliced beets, chopped finely, in their juice
1/3 cup ketchup
1 tsp sugar
coriander and curry powder to taste
2 packages of veggie ground beef

Sautee the onions in 2 Tbs olive oil. Add the celery, cover and cook until onions are translucent, then add the stock, parsley, bay leaves, basil, Italian seasoning and garlic.

When the soup begins to boil add carrots, potatoes and barley. Reduce to a simmer and add 2 cans chopped tomatoes along with their juice.

Once the barley is tender, add the caggage and beets (including the juice the beets came with). Add the ketchup sugar, curry powder, coriander and veggie ground beef. Continue to simmer for about 30 minutes.

Notes: The original recipe contained real ground beef and chicken stock. I am not sure how it works with real ground beef but if that is an ingredient you are used to working with you can probably figure it out. Matt's grandma has been great about using veg substitutions in her original recipes. Everyone should be so lucky as to have such a cool granny!

Let the Penance Being

This week Matt and I are to eschew chips, cakes, cookies, pastries, candy, fried anything, etc. We had too many baked goods and we are feeling very unattractive. We kicked our week off with soup and salad.

The Salad:
1/4 c chickpeas + 2 Tbs
1/4 c carrots, diced + 2 Tbs
1/2 package of baby spinach
1/4 cucumber, peeled and diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
1/2 cup cubanelle pepper, diced
1/2 cup grape tomatoes
1 tsp veg bacon bits
2 Tbs light balsamic dressing

Serves Two, 70 calories/serving



The Soup:
1/2 Tbs garlic, minced
1/2 c carrots, chopped finely
1/2 c onions, chopped finely
1 c celery, chopped finely
3 cups vegetable stock
1/2 c beets, chopped finely
1/6 c bulgar wheat
1/4 c chickpeas + 2 Tbs
3/4 c diced fire roasted tomatoes
2 c kale, julienned
fresh basil, chopped -- to taste
fresh oregano, chopped -- to taste
pepper, to taste
salt, to taste
cumin, to taste
chili powder, to taste

Heat a bit of cooking spray in the bottom of a large soup pot. Cook onions, garlic, carrots and celery on medium high heat until they just start to soften. Add the vegetable stock and bring to a rolling boil. Add the beets, bulgar, and chickpeas and boil for a few minutes. Reduce to a simmer and add the tomatoes, kale and herbs and spices. Allow the soup to simmer for about 45 minutes or until all the vegetables have become soft.

Serves Four, 120 calories/serving



So that was our less-than-200-calories dinner. The soup was delicious and filling and we had enough left over for lunches the next day.

Fava Beans

I was attracted to the current issue of Vegetarian Times recipe for Fava Bean Ragout for two reasons:
1. It involved wine. I tend to like how stuff cooked in wine tastes and I appreciate having all the left over wine so I can feel like Julia Child and get totally hammered whilst preparing dinner.
2. It involved fava beans which I've seen around for a while but never knew what to do with 'em.

The recipe itself was just okay. Not bad but not amazing. The fava beans were a pain in the ass. They must be shelled, they must be boiled, they must be drained, they must be peeled. You know what fava beans? Fuck you guys. There are other veggies out there that are much less high maintenance.

Any way, here is the grub:

Spinach Shitake Miso & Ginger Garlic Slaw

Tonight for dinner: Asian Style Coleslaw and classic Miso soup with a twist.

Miso Soup
4 cups vegetable broth
1 cup Spinach, shredded
1/2 cup dried shitake mushrooms, soaked in hot water to reconstitute
1 cup tofu, cut into very small cubes
1/2 cup green onions, chopped
2 1/2 Tbs white miso paste

In a large pot, bring the vegetable broth to a simmer. Add tofu, green onions, mushrooms and spinach and cook just until the greens wilt. Stir in the miso until it is dissolved. Remove from heat and serve. Serves about 6.

Asian Coleslaw
(This is from a recipe on allrecipes.com by Bobbi Ritcheske)

Dressing
3 Tbs rice vinegar
3 Tbs canola oil
2-1/2 Tbs peanut butter
1-1/2 Tbs soy sauce
1-1/2 T brown sugar
1 Tbs ginger root, minced
2 Tbs garlic, minced

Slaw
2 cups green cabbage, sliced thin
2 cups red cabbage, sliced thin
1 red bell pepper, sliced thin
1 carrot,julienned
3 scallions, chopped
1/4 c fresh cilantro, chopped

To make the dressing, combine all the ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend for a few seconds.

In a large bowl combine the slaw ingredients and toss with the dressing right before you serve. Serves about 6.

Garlic Spinach and Chickpea Soup

This is Matt's favorite soup. It's deliciously spicy and flavorful. We like to serve it with rosemary onion bread.

INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 onion, chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
5 cups vegetable stock
12 ounces potatoes, peeled and chopped
15-ounce can chickpeas, drained
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2/3 cup Silk non-dairy creamer (or heavy cream if you prefer)
2 tablespoons light tahini
7 ounces spinach, shredded
cayenne pepper to taste
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and cook the garlic and onion for until they are softened and golden brown. This will probably take about 5 minutes. Then stir in the cumin and coriander and cook tor another minute.

Pour the stock and add the chopped potatoes to the pan. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the chickpeas and simmer for five minutes or until the potatoes and chickpeas are just tender when pierced. Blend together the cornstarch, cream, tahini, salt, cayenne and black pepper. Stir into the soup with the spinach. Bring to a boil, stirring, and simmer for another 2 minutes. Adjust the amounts of cayenne, black pepper, salt, cumin and coriander to taste.