Hearty and Wholesome Winter Eats

When it is winter time and snowy and such, all I really want to do is snuggle up inside and make some rib-sticking, delicious food!! So that is pretty much all I have been doing lately...and I love every minute of it!!

Some stuff I have made recently...warm, tasty, filling, and healthy, too...mmmmm.....

Chili-Rubbed Seitan Sandwiches on Homemade Sweet Potato Buns with Raspberry Chipotle Mayo. Sweet Maple Slaw. Mexican Hot Chocolate Snickerdoodles, from Isa and Terry's Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar! These are sooooo goood! I made some chocolate cinnamon buttercream, and turned them into cookie sandwiches! Forgot to picture it though....too much eating to do!

Two Potato Chowder with local sweet and yukon gold potatoes! Garnished with local tempeh and scallions. Side of Jalapeno-Molasses Cornbread.

Nutty Fig Bars, with local pecans. Seitan Reubens--Homemade rye bread topped with homemade corned "beef" seitan, organic sauerkraut, caramelized onions, and homemade 1000 island dressing. Ah, the open-faced sandwich, how I love thee. Side of local Sweet Potato Salad.Salted Caramel Pecan Bars from Isa and Terry's VCIYCJ. These are my favorite thing I have made from that cookbook so far!! Salty and sweet and crunchy and chewy all at the same time!! I served them with some vanilla soy ice cream, and it was a perfect combination! Pecan-Crusted Seitan with Smoky Smothered Greens and Mashed Local Potatoes and Gravy.

Maple Cupcakes with Maple Buttercream and Candied Walnuts from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World!!! These are seriously amazing!! They taste like maple doughnuts, which I looooved in my omni days! People went crazy for these! Perfection when eaten with a hot cup of coffee and shared with lovely friends.

Thanxgiving Part 1: The Spread!

I love, love, love Thanksgiving! Some of my favorite foods are served at this feast and it is always so much fun to cook for hours and hours and see everyone's delighted faces at your hard work! This year, I went all out and made eeeeeverything from scratch...even the faux turkey! Over the next few days, I'll be posting some of the recipes, so as to not overwhelm in one post, so keep an eye out for all my Thanksgiving recipes!!

The Spread: Homemade Seitan Faux Turkey with Savory Onion Gravy, stuffed with Apple-Sage Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes with Chives (my grandma made these vegan for me! with chives from her own garden!), and Garlic Roasted Brussels Sprouts...

The garlic, bread for the stuffing, apples, chives, and brussels sprouts were all local!The Seitan Faux Turkey RoastI also made Candied Ginger Cranberry Sauce!! I'll give you my recipe below.

Candied Ginger-Cranberry Sauce
3- 12 oz. bags fresh cranberries Juice and zest of 2 lemons Juice and zest of 1 orange 1/2 cup crystallized ginger, chopped 3 cups water 1/2 cup sugar 2 Tbs brown sugar or molasses 1/4 tsp nutmeg 1/8 tsp cloves 1 cinnamon stick 1/2 tsp salt

In a large saucepan, combine all of the ingredients except the ginger and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for 30 minutes. Add the chopped ginger and let simmer for 15 more minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. Remember to remove cinnamon stick before serving. Serve warm or chilled. Best made the day ahead of time to let thicken and enhance the flavors!

My grandma made vegan Mashed Potatoes with Chives for me! Thanks, granny! You're awesome!Local Garlic-Roasted Brussels SproutsSavory Onion Gravy! I love gravy boats!!And because Thanksgiving is just another word for pie: Pies!!!

First is a Pecan Pie, made with locally-grown pecans!! Check out that homemade crust, ya'll!! It was superb, if I do say so myself :) The recipe for the pie filling came from Bryanna Clark Grogan's Vegan Feast Kitchen, because it's amazing! The pie crust is my own creation. And then there was Pumpkin Pie! The recipe will be coming tomorrow, along with a step-by-step on doing the pumpkin puree from scratch! The pumpkin is local, from the farmers' market, and the pie crust is the same as the pecan pie above. This is even better with a big dollop of vegan whipped cream, of course!!

Tis' World Vegan Day! Let's Eat!

Well the Vegan Month of Food is over, but there's another reason to celebrate: today is World Vegan Day! I celebrated with the same way I celebrate every Sunday: with a big vegan dinner at my house! The underground restaurant was hoppin' today, which makes me super happy. There was lots of love going around, and even more delicious, comforting food.

The spread: Vegan Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, and Braised Brussels Sprouts or Greens. It was awesome!! The loaf was a perfect autumnal twist on the classic hippie lentil loaf: Carrot-Lentil Loaf with Pumpkin-Tomato Sauce. This was my entry for this week's Iron Chef Challenge, for which the secret ingredients are carrots and pumpkin. This was really filling and satisfying, and was a great nod to the fall weather upon us!!For dessert, I served Local Apple Crisp a la mode!! I didn't use a recipe, just something I threw together...I need to try and remember what I did, because it was really freakin' good. I'll share it when I do ! :) This is the ultimate fall dessert, in my opinion!! The a la mode was with Nada Moo Maple Pecan Ice Cream! I hadn't tried Nada Moo brand before, and I was soooo impressed. The maple flavor was amazing and it was creamy and not too sweet and very delicious! I want to try more of their flavors now! Nada Moooooooooo!! I love you!

Happy World Vegan Day!! Spread the word and the love!

Super Southern Sides!

This testing thing just gets better every week!! For Vegan Crunk Bianca's cookbook tester recipes this week, I was lucky enough to try out two different Southern-style side dishes: Mashed Sweet Taters and Mess 'o Greens with Turnips!

Sweet potatoes are in my top 5 favorite foods of all time, so I OF COURSE loved this sweet, spiced version! I served the Mashed Sweet Taters with another tester recipe, Country Fried Tempeh with Gravy, and some Sauteed Cabbage and Onions. My belly was very happy after this meal!
And greens are just so good any way you cook 'em, so this smoky, salty, and sweet version that is spiked with tender turnips made the meal a joy to eat! The Mess o' Greens with Turnips went perfectly with BBQ Baked Tofu (made with Annie's Smoky Maple BBQ Sauce, cuz I was lazy), and some of my own Mashed Sweet Potatoes. Ahhhhhh....greeeennnssss....I can already tell both of these recipes will be in heavy rotation on my plate!

Tester Chili and Sweet Potato Butter

Being a tester for Bianca's (Vegan Crunk) upcoming cookbook has gotten me really excited to cook recently! With only two dishes down, and I can already tell this is going to be a wonderful testing process and an even better final cookbook!
The first tester recipe this week: Chipotle Chickpea Chili! This is one hearty chili...packed full of beans, chipotle peppers, and a few other surprise ingredients...and it is really delicious! It was just perfect on a cold night like tonight! I served it with sauteed greens and some of my homemade whole wheat biscuits. And yes, that is my homemade sweet potato butter slathered on those little biscuits!
Since I'm not able to give you the chili recipe (I can keep a secret!), I will give you my recipe for sweet potato butter! It's made in the crock pot, but you could use a pressure cooker if you have that instead. Here's a picture of the little cubes going into the beautiful red crock pot:
Sweet Potato Butter (makes about 3 cups)
1 1/2 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1 qt water
1 Tbs cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cloves
pinch of cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbs sugar
1 Tbs maple syrup or agave nectar
juice of 1 lemon

In a medium or large crock pot, place the water, diced sweet potatoes, and sugar. Turn on to high and allow to cook for at least 8 hours, or until the sweet potatoes are very well cooked and the water has almost completely reduced. Add the spices, salt, maple syrup, and lemon juice to the cooked sweet potatoes. Stir and cover again. Allow to cook for 2 more hours on high. Turn off heat and allow to cool. Pour mixture into food processor or blender and puree until smooth...an immersion blender would work here too! Put into jars and refrigerate.
**If there seems to be extra water in the crock pot after cooking the sweet potatoes, drain a bit off before adding the spices, etc.**

The cold weather of winter has made me crave more rib-sticking and homestyle foods. Some examples from this past week:

Oven-"Fried" Zucchini

(based on my oven-"fried" okra recipe)

Hot Sauce-Glazed Tempeh (from Veganomicon) with

Maple Dijon Mashed Potatoes and Roasted Broccoli

--I will have the potato recipe soon...it's my WIP Wednesday dish!--

More tester recipes and homestyle cooking to come!

Seitan Piccata. omg.

I have discovered a new love: Seitan Piccata!!! Ever since visiting Candle 79 when I was in New York this past spring, and falling in love with this dish, I have wanted to make it!! I am so glad I finally put it in my meal schedule for this week! The sauce on the seitan is just so tangy and salty and lemony and capery and fantastic. PLUS I used my homemade seitan, and this is the best batch I have ever made. Double yum bonus! I seriously could not believe how flippin easy this savory meal was to put together. It only took 30 minutes! I recommend serving the piccata with garlic mashed potatoes and steamed greens, like I did...

Seitan Piccata with White Wine and Caper Sauce (serves 4)

4 seitan cutlets

1/4 cup whole wheat flour for dredging

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup diced shallots

1/2 cup diced onions

2 cloves minced garlic

1/4 cup capers, drained

1 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 cup vegetable broth

2 Tbs flour

4 Tbs vegan margarine

1 cup chopped parsley

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

Dredge the seitan cutlets in the whole wheat flour, shaking off any excess. In a saute pan, heat 2 Tbs olive oil over high heat and brown the cutlets until crisp and golden, about 30 seconds per side. Place the cutlets on a plate while you prepare the sauce.

Heat the remaining olive oil in the same pan over medium heat. Add the shallots, onion, garlic, and capers, and saute. Stir and cook until softened, about 1 to2 minutes. Add the wine and cook until reduced by halt. Whisk in the lemon juice, and allow to reduce a little more. Add the veggie broth and the flour, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer the sauce four about a minute. Whisk in the margarine, parsley, slat, and pepper;, Pour over the seitan and serve immediately.

(From the Candle Cafe Cookbook)

D. Lish!

Fun With Seitan!

As a money- and package-saving measure, I have been making my own seitan! Seitan is probably my favorite protein choice, even if it does make me gassy! (TMI? nah.) It is really satisfying to see something compleltely homemade on your plate, not to mention how tasty and cheap it is to do it DIY!! I used the recipe in Veganomicon for the first time the other day...and I really liked it! I usually make the recipe in Sarah Kramer's La Dolce Vegan, but I have to admit I like Isa and Terry's version a little bit better. Here's a few things I did with my seitan this week: Vietnamese Bahn Mi Sandwich (from Veganomicon) with Sesame Cabbage Slaw

This sandwich is SERIOUSLY awesome! The sweet and spicy au jus is delicous, and I think this is really a perfect sandwich! I added shredded carrots and daikon radish for an extra veggie kick and a zing in flavor...so freakin flavorful!!

Pumpkin Seed-Fennel Encrusted Seitan, Roasted Beets with Leeks and Celery, and Garlic-Mashed Potatoes

I just kind of made up these recipes with what I had in my house and what I was craving, and it turned out really well! This was a really good wintertime meal and was nice and savory for our tastebuds. Do you know how good roasted beets are?? They rock. Also, these are the pumpkin seeds from the local pumpkin I roasted a while back. Another DIY bonus!!

You should try making your own seitan...it is wonderful and worth the extra effort!

Hot Sauce Glazed Tempeh and Some Product Reviews!

I have been super busy and unable to consistently blog....but I have lots to talk about and a little time, so yay!

First up is the Hot Sauce Glazed Tempeh from Veganomicon! Good Lord this is so tasty! I love how savory and salty and spicy this is...I could not believe I hadn't made this before, especially with my affinity for hot sauce! I went home-style and served it with mashed potatoes (thanksgiving leftovers!) and garlic-sauteed greens...this was an awesome and comforting meal!!

I have also been trying lots of new products lately, from Clover's and Whole Foods...I love to go on food adventures :)

First is SOYRIZO! I freakin love this stufff! I have had a few other kinds of vegan chorizo before, and I loved it, so I had to give this a shot! It was a lot more flavorful and spicy than the other kinds I have had, but a little saltier, too. I served this up kind of mexican-style with veggies and such:Soyrizo!

Soyrizo with Local Peppers and Corn, Quinoa, and Avocado

Soyrizo with Tomatoes and Greens, Chili-Baked Polenta, and Pepitas

The next new item is Kozy Shack Soy Pudding! It was really nice to see a clearly vegan item it a common grocery store, in with all the other products!! And this is sooooooo tasty! It really reminds me of childhood...especially the yummy chocolate flavor!

Kozy Shack Chocolate Soy Pudding
....Topped with some Soyatoo Vegan Whipped Cream!

Then there's a holiday must: "Egg" Nog! I always buy the soy variety by Silk, but Clover's started carrying a Rice Dream soy nog, so I had to try it! I must say that the flavor is great and definitely tastes like the holidays. Yuuuummy spices and all that jazz! But, being rice milk, it is just not quite as thick as I would want a nog to be. And I like it thick! Steven says this is good on granola, though! mmmmm!! I would for sure recommend this if you aren't down with soy, though, cuz it is really tasty!
Rice Nog by Rice Dream! Glorious!

Tasty TVP Loaf and Homemade Granola

I have been cooking more and more lately (I am actually waiting to take cupcakes out of the oven right now!), but I haven't been doing a good job of keeping up with my blogging because school is so crazy right now....so here is a catch-up of the past week or so: Homemade Granola with coconut, dried pineapple, raisins, and sunflower seeds!

Kung Pao Seitan, from the Whole Foods Cookbook, with Steamed Brown Rice

I also whipped up a faux "meat"loaf the other night, which we have had as leftovers a few times. I didn't go off of any recipe, so I was kinda just throwing stuff in there....and it turned out amazing! Some of the ingredients included: TVP, brown rice, breadcrumbs, carrots, celery, local bell peppers, onion, garlic, sage, thyme, tomato paste, olive oil, tamari, parsley. There's more, I'm sure. Anyway, I spread some organic ketchup on top before baking for that mom-made feel.

Crazy TVP Loaf with Rosemary-Mashed Sweet Potatoes, Sauteed Chard

Crazy TVP Loaf, Garlic-Mashed Potatoes, Leek and Local Zucchini Saute

Has anyone else already planned their Thanksgiving dinners? I have been thinking about mine for a long while now...too long, probably...so here's a few hints:

--Tofurkey, cuz I'm kind of lazy

--roasted sweet potatoes

--my homemade apple butter on something

--brussel sprouts

--a pie and a cheezecake

--probably lots more!!

What are you thinking of cooking up for Save-the-Turkeys Day??