Guest Post - Eggplant Parmesian

There's a new addition to the blog this week, an entry from my best friend Andi from Vermont that came to visit for the weekend. She decided to make her famous eggplant parm that we absolutely love... check it out!
Now just as a note, this is a real "comfort food" and not vegan, but still very filling and delicious! there's a lot of cheese (some of it Cabot) and some frying of eggplant slices so it's not one for anyone that is watching what they eat. it's a good belly filler every so often. Here's how to make Andi's version:

One large eggplant

One block Cabot mild Cheddar

One half block Mozzarella

One jar Prego Traditional Sauce

2 tbsp cup italian seasonings

1 cup parmesian cheese, divided

2 tbsp oregano

3 eggs

3 cups breadcrumbs

generous helping of oilve oil for frying

wash the eggplant and remove the top and bottom, cut into 1/4 inch thick slices, whether you keep the skin on or not is your decision, heat the oil in a large frying pan on medium-high heat, then line a glass 13x9 baking dish with aluminum foil. spread a layer of sauce on the foil. preheat oven to 375 degrees.

beat the eggs in one bowl and pour the breadcrumbs into another. dregde the eggplant in the eggs and breadcrumbs and transfer to the oil, turning occasionally until golden on both sides. transfer slices to the dish, making a single layer of at least 6-9 slices depending on size. cover with half of each cheese and the italian spices.

repeat these steps with the remaining sauce, eggplant slices, cheese and seasonings, making sure to add the oregano last. pop into the oven for 20 minutes. take out and serve!!

mmmmmmmmm delicious!!

Carribean Potato Salad and a Survey

I thought I'd share with you a tiny bit of food porn, see Carribean Potato Salad:

and a survey. The salad is from Vegetarian Planet (like most everything else I've been cooking lately) and comes highly recommended. You definitely need to let it chill though...it's mediocre at best warm.

Now it's time for the survey, cause I've seen this on a number of blogs.
1) Copy this list into your own blog, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Post a comment here once you’ve finished and link your post back to this one.
5) Pass it on!

1. Natto
2. Green Smoothie
3. Tofu Scramble
4. Haggis
5. Mangosteen
6. Creme brulee
7. Fondue
8. Marmite/Vegemite
9. Borscht Yuck
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Nachos
12. Authentic soba noodles
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Taco from a street cart
16. Boba Tea
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Gyoza
20. Vanilla ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Ceviche
24. Rice and beans
25. Knish
26. Raw scotch bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Caviar
29. Baklava
30. Pate
31. Wasabi peas
32. Chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Mango lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Mulled cider
37. Scones with buttery spread and jam
38. Vodka jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Fast food french fries
41. Raw Brownies
42. Fresh Garbanzo Beans
43. Dahl
44. Homemade Soymilk not so good.
45. Wine from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Stroopwafle
47. Samosas
48. Vegetable Sushi
49. Glazed doughnut
50. Seaweed
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Tofurkey
54. Sheese
55. Cotton candy
56. Gnocchi
57. Piña colada
58. Birch beer
59. Scrapple
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Soy curls
63. Chickpea cutlets
64. Curry
65. Durian
66. Homemade SausagesVegan of course
67. Churros, elephant ears, or funnel cake
68. Smoked tofu
69. Fried plantain
70. Mochi
71. Gazpacho
72. Warm chocolate chip cookies
73. Absinthe
74. Corn on the cob
75. Whipped cream, straight from the can
76. Pomegranate Not just a fad!
77. Fauxstess Cupcake
78. Mashed potatoes with gravy
79. JerkyVegan only!
80. Croissants
81. French onion soup
82. Savory crepes
83. Tings
84. A meal at Candle 79
85. Moussaka
86. Sprouted grains or seeds
87. Macaroni and “cheese”
88. Flowers
89. Matzoh ball soup
90. White chocolate
91. Seitan
92. Kimchi
93. Butterscotch chipsI HATE butterscotch
94. Yellow watermelon
95. Chili with chocolate
96. Bagel and Tofutti
97. Potato milk
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Raw cookie dough

Selah.

Chickpea Cutlets and Potato Muffins

This was created to be a fairly simple comfort-food meal, and it filled that role nicely. I’ve made the chickpea cutlets from Veganomicon before (pre-blog) but they came out a bit different this time. I think I used a bit less vital wheat gluten than usual, and fried them a little longer than before, so they had some more crisp on the outside, and weren’t quite as chewy as the first time around.

They were definitely good though...more than good enough to warrant the use of a can of chickpeas which could otherwise have become hummus.

In the past I’d served them up with the red wine roux, which was pretty good…but this time we made the mustard sauce (also from V’con) and they were even BETTER. I’m officially in love with the mustard sauce, I’d never think to put capers and mustard together, but the briny flavor is AMAZING.



For as long as I can remember, my grandmother has made these potato muffins that I am absolutely in love with. Think a potato latke…in the shape of a muffin, and you have them exactly. I’m not going to share the exact recipe because I think it may be a family secret, but it’s very simple. However you prefer to make your latkes, eliminate the flour and then fill muffin tins with the mix. Be sure to fill them to the top, because they won’t expand, and put a drizzle of oil on the top of each one before cooking. Mine were a bit mushy inside, but I think that’s because I didn’t drain the shredded potatoes and there was just too much liquid in them.

I ate mine plain, but my boyfriend smothered his in some more of the mustard sauce, and all reports were positive. I’ve also been thinking about some variations on these…a sweet potato version could be out of this world. And now that I’m thinking about savory dishes made in muffin tins…personal noodle kugels…SCORE!



Selah.

Israeli Couscous

This was a simple dinner, made to utilize some of the leftovers in the fridge/pantry before we go grocery shopping again. Israeli couscous is something I’ve always found pretty confusing, because I’ve spent time living and cooking in Israel…and they all eat what’s called “Moroccan or French Couscous” here, and I may have seen “Israeli couscous” once. I’ve never actually made this kind of couscous before, and decided I’d buy some to check out, so tonight was the night.

It’s a lot like tapioca pearls, but in pasta form, and to be honest I’m not a huge fan, so I think I’ll stick with the Moroccan kind.

Ingredients

Approx. 3 cups Israeli couscous pearls

One yellow onion, minced

One Zucchini, minced

1 heaping tablespoon minced garlic

Approx. one cup shitake mushrooms

Generous splash sherry

Chili Flakes

Oregano

Drizzle white truffle oil

Oliver oil

Salt and Pepper



Directions

1. Put water in a large pot to boil. Heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet, and then toast the couscous for a couple minutes until it turns lightly golden brown and develops a toasted scent.
2. Once the water has boiled, transfer the couscous and cover. Check often, as it cooks very quickly. In the meantime, add more olive oil to the skillet, and add your garlic. Once it has started to color, add onions, zucchini and mushrooms. Pour in a generous splash of sherry, along with all of the spices. Allow to cook for approx. 10 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and the liquids have evaporated.
3. By this time the couscous should be done. Drain it, and pour in the vegetable medley. Give the dish a light drizzle of white truffle oil (if you have it, otherwise it can be skipped) and mix in.

This dish had a nice kick and some good flavors, but was screaming for an acid, which was very much absent. I’d wanted to add sun dried tomatoes, but didn’t have any available at the time, so I made the dish without. I think the tomatoes would have added the necessary acid element, and really rounded out the flavors of this dish, so I won’t completely blame myself…I knew it would be lacking. The only tomato product we had was tomato sauce, and that would have been way too overpowering for the couscous.



Selah.

Carrot-Zucchini Wontons, Fried Rice and Pickled Carrots

Greg came over one last time before leaving for a year in Korea this week, and in honor of his relocation to Asia, we made Asian food. I didn't attempt any Kimchee...although I have a recipe for it, and the thought did cross my mind.

Instead, I decided to class it up a bit, and make the "daikon-carrot potstickers" from Vegetarian Planet There was only one problem with that choice...Shaws, which ALWAYS has Daikon, decided not to order any this week since apparently it hadn't been selling that well. They replaced it with horseradish root, since everyone needs that. I decided to try out Stop and Shop, but was told there that they NEVER stock Daikon...no wonder I don't shop at S&S. I could have gone to the Asian market, but it's much further out of my way, and if for some reason they were out, it would have been a REAL aggravating waste of a trip. I decided to play the substitution game, and zucchini it was. They were also supposed to be made in wonton skins, but the health food store only had egg roll wrappers, which I figured were the same thing but bigger. I'm not sure if that's true or not, but they seemed similar enough, and it worked.

They were made with the Sesame-Wasabi dipping sauce from the book, although we were probably a bit too shy with the wasabi...when you have guests you want it to be a crowd pleaser. Since we were using egg roll wrappers, I made one egg roll for each person as well, using the same filling.

For a side dish, we decided on fried rice, although we had to use the sweet rice, since besides sushi and arborio..that was all to be found in the pantry. It was a very "glutinous" version of fried rice, but other than the unique texture, very good. I made it simple, with zucchini, onion, eggs, and soy sauce, and I'm glad to report it soaked up the extra wonton sauce well too.

Last but not least, I made some ginger pickled carrots for a light side. These were boiled in a combination of water, rice vinegar, sugar, and minced garlic for about 20 minutes. After that they were relocated to the freezer for a quick chill, before joining the meal.

Because they weren't chilled very long they were more "sweet" than "pickled" but still a very successful snack.

I must say I really love making Asian inspired food..it's just such a fun flavor profile, although I am supposed to be on my "less soy-sauce kick"

Selah.

I made another recipe from Vegetarian Planet today, this one being the Indonesian bean curd stew. This had a very similar flavor profile to Thom Kha Tofu, although there was no soy sauce, which was pretty exciting, because I’ve been feeling a bit of “soy sauce-overload” lately. I also eliminated the “optional” cilantro from the recipe since I felt that would make it a bit too similar to Thom Kha. The chunks of Carrot and Zucchini that gave it its “stew” designation were absolutely delicious, and cooked to perfection in the broth. I might even double the amount of vegetables in future renditions, because really, I can never get enough zucchini. Eggplant cubes are a definite possibility as well… I also omitted the green beans the recipe calls for (I think they get soggy and gross in soup) and instead used button mushrooms, which were delicious.

The entire concoction was served over Chinese Sweet rice, and while the rice was a bit overcooked, I can’t say anything bad about the stew. In fact, all told, I think I like it better than Thom Kha. I am however a bit concerned about the amount of coconut milk I’ve been using lately, especially since I recently read that one can of coconut milk has more saturated fat than a 16 ounce sirloin steak. Ouch. I could of course try the lite version, but I’m told that it’s severely lacking in the flavor department…Anyone have ideas for coconut milk substitutions?



Selah.

Mashed Potatoes, BBQ Tofu and Zucchini Bread

I was in the mood for a very classic American, comfort food style dinner. To me (feel free to disagree) the best comfort food on EARTH is a big bowl of mashed potatoes, and I made a big pot of it tonight so I could do just that. I kicked it up a notch by putting a handful of fresh thyme leaves into the potatoes before mashing. Otherwise they were completely traditional...butter, milk, and a generous grind each of sea salt and black pepper.

As you can see in the picture, I'm VERY partial to a generous dosing of dried dill on my potatoes, and never eat them without it. In combination with the thyme, it was even better.

I also made the carrots that I posted about here to back up the mash.

The "entree" so to speak was BBQ tofu, the instructions lifted from V'con. I used the BBQ sauce that was in the fridge (I forget what it's called, we're trying a new kind...it's GOOD though). The key to this recipe was definitely pressing and then squeezing the liquid out of the tofu, since it allowed it to get nice and chewy in the oven, and I LOVE chewy tofu.

It may not look like much (tofu never does) but boy was it good. The solid kick in this particular BBQ sauce didn't hurt either.

Last but not least, I decided to make zucchini bread, since the banana variety was such a success. Since the recipe was for two loaves and I still only have ONE loaf pan, rather than half it, I used my brownie dish. It actually worked out great, since it's a pretty deep brownie square anyway, and fit all the batter perfectly.

The recipe I used, found at AllRecipes called for cooking the bread "60-70" minutes. Perhaps it's because I used a more shallow pan, but I pulled a clean knife out after 45. Overall it was a bit dry, probably due to being left in the oven longer than necessary. It was still very good though, and is still being nibbled on as we speak.

Selah.

Noodle Quiche

This time around, I tried the "noodle Quiche" from Vegetarian Planet, which I'm currently borrowing from the library, but may HAVE to buy before it's due. The book is seriously amazing, it's got tons of recipes, some Vegan, most just Vegetarian, but there are more than a hundred I wanted to try just flipping through...oh to have thousands of dollars just to spend on cookbooks...

This particular recipe is different from normal quiches because it calls for a layer of noodles to make up the bottom crust. The recipe says "vermicelli or spaghetti", but I used Fettuccine...I always have to be different. The pasta crust worked pretty well, but in the future I'd bake the pasta layer BEFORE filling it, to crisp it up a bit.

The other component that really set this apart from other quiches was its use of blue cheese as the sole cheese. (was that repetitive or what) Personally I thought the blue cheese was a little too much and overtook all the other flavors in the quiche, but then I'm not a huge "moldy cheese" proponent in general. My boyfriend is, and he loved the quiche, so keep that in mind if you make this. Overall it was a nice departure from your average quiche, and I'm totally in love with the idea of the noodle crust. I'm also thinking I may try an olive/feta derivation in the future...

Selah.

Asian Slaw, Baked Beans with “Dogs” and V'con Baked Lima Beans

This was a multi-part meal, designed with the purpose of finishing off the perishable fridge contents before they well…perish. This dinner was actually very BBQ-Esq., minus the need for an actual grill or barbequing action.

The purpose of the slaw was to finish off the head of napa cabbage that’s been rolling around in my fridge for what feels like ages, since I SWEAR that stuff multiplies in quantity when you slice it. Combined with some julienned carrots, a crumbled package of ramen noodles (trash the seasoning packet), a sprinkle of sugar, canola oil, and rice vinegar, it’s a tasty and quick slaw that I’ve always enjoyed. I topped it with some toasted sesame seeds for that something “extra”, and it was
Next I decided to deal with a rather large Tupperware of kidney beans that had been sitting in my fridge since I re-hydrated them for a particular dish and used less than half for that purpose. While I know that baked beans are normally made from white beans, I figured there were worse things I could do with my leftover kidney’s, and decided on the “cheater baked beans” recipe from V’con to cook them. I don’t keep molasses (because frankly it grosses me out) so I used Vermont Maple syrup as the sweet addition to the sauce, which turned out great.

We also cut up the remaining Yves hot dogs and added those to the mix when placing the beans in the oven. The consensus on the dogs was that they were okay, but would have benefited from some crisping in a skillet before being added to the beans. The “skins” on the kidneys weren’t great, but it actually wasn’t as problematic as I’d feared, and the sauce was AMAZING. I definitely plan on making these again in the future with the called-for beans.

I’d thought I had more leftover lima beans than there were…which is why I decided to make the lima bean recipe from V’con. I thought there were about 3/4s of a can leftover from the Yuca-less Jamaican Shepard’s pie, and that I’d be a bit short. As it turns out, there was only about a quarter can left, but by the time I realized that, it was too late. I made a number of changes to the original recipe, and the result was neither a lima bean dish nor anything like the intended result, I’m sure.

That said, I have no issues with sharing my version here.

Ingredients

1 Quarter can cooked lima beans

15 ounces pureed tomatoes

½ cup rice

1 yellow onion, diced

Heaping spoonful minced garlic

1 bunch cilantro, minced

1 bay leaf, dried

Splash red wine vinegar

1 cup vegetable Stock

Palm-ful dried mustard

Palm-ful dried oregano

Powdering ground allspice

2 tbsp. olive oil

Salt and Pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350, and if you don’t have ready made stock, boil a bullion cube in a cup of water, and then set aside. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a small to medium pot on medium heat.
2. Add the onion and garlic to the oil, and stir until onion is translucent, but don’t burn. At this point, add all the other ingredients EXCEPT the rice. The cilantro should go in last, since it wilts quickly.
3. Allow the ingredients of the pot to simmer and reduce for approximately 10 minutes, before adding the rice and giving it a stir.
4. Cover the pot, and place in the oven for 45 minutes. After this time, remove the cover from the pot, and cook another 10 minutes to soak up some of the liquids.

This was good, although in my opinion, a bit TOO tomato-y. The contrast of the cilantro was a good choice though, and set it off quite nicely. I was also shy with the amount of rice, because I was afraid it would soak up too much of the sauce, and dry out the dish. After having the final product, I would double the amount of rice to a cup, since there was more than enough sauce to stand up to it. That may end up closer to a “Spanish rice” type dish, which is fine by me…further experimentation is definitely called for in regards to this recipe…



Selah.

Sweet and Sour Yam Noodles

I'd never tried, nor heard of, yam noodles before I saw them in the Asian market last week. Apparently they were very popular during the anti-carb craze...which I never got into, so I guess there's no reason for me to have heard of these. I thought they looked interesting when I came across them recently, and bought a package to experiment with. I also had some napa cabbage and tofu in the fridge that needed to go, and so I set out on a quest for the perfect recipe. Enter Fat Free Vegan Kitchen's Hot and Sour Shirataki Noodles...perfect.

I made a couple minor changes, but kept the majority of the recipe the same. I chose to replace the white button mushrooms with reconstituted wood ears, which as a pleasant surprise, had nearly the same texture as the noodles themselves. In addition to using the napa cabbage as a bed for the dish, I sauteed a few leaves with the other vegetables and noodles.

Overall, this was absolutely delicious, and now that I know how good (and low in calories) the yam noodles are, I'll definitely be picking up more in future trips to the Asian market.

Selah.

Banana Bread

I finally found a baking recipe that even I can’t screw up….probably because there are fewer than ten ingredients and the directions are very clear. You know how sometimes you go to grab a banana off the bunch, and in twisting the stem, manage to rip all of them at the top? Once that happens, you must immediately go into “salvation mode”, since none of the bananas will last long in this condition, regardless of what state they were in. When my boyfriend went to grab the third-to-last banana today, he did just that…and with two bananas remaining, and the clock ticking…I decided to attempt my first EVER banana bread.

The recipe I used came from here and for once, I can’t say I made a single change…I even measured things out. Although it deflated a bit when cooling, this was so good that my significant other said he’d “accidentally break more bananas” in the future, just so that I can make more. The bread was also not too “banana-y”, which I can really appreciate, because sometimes I feel it’s a bit overdone, and the bread is closer to a pudding than a loaf.

Moral of the story? If I can make this successfully, you definitely can, and with some “energ-egg”, I’m sure they’re easily veganizable.



Selah.

Simple Pasta Supper

I can’t really take any credit for tonight’s dinner, unless it’s for the chopping, since that was my contribution. Other than that, this was my boyfriend’s creation, and I’m more than happy to give him his credit due. This was quick, simple, and filling, not to mention it used up a couple things that were languishing in the fridge.

The pasta is a whole wheat penne, which is awesome because until recently (the last six months or so) it never occurred to me to eat whole wheat pasta…since as it turns out it’s much better for you, AND tastes exactly the same. (At least to my tastebuds). It’s a little more expensive, but if you wait until it goes on sale and stock up, it’s not a big deal. While the pasta was boiling, we sautéed a few button mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes, garlic, basil, and a Yves jumbo hotdog, sliced, in extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. Neither of us had tried the Yves hotdogs before, and I can’t say that I’m a huge fan. I don’t love fake hot dogs in general, but this one had an eerily “real” texture that I didn’t love, along with a slightly odd after taste that very much turned me off. We think it was a bit undercooked, so we’ll be trying to incorporate the remaining four into other dishes, but I don’t think it’s something I’d buy again. Granted my boyfriend bought them…so perhaps saying I’d not buy them again is a bit inaccurate.

All in all, this was good, and with a bit off added olive oil and chili flakes, I quite enjoyed my portion. The fresh figs for desert certainly didn’t hurt.



Selah.

Yuca-less, Jamaican Yuca Shepard Pie

I decided to make the yuca shepard's Pie from V'con, only to discover that there was definitely no yuca to be found anywhere in the vicinity. I decided to use additional sweet potatoes instead of the yuca, and to replace the Scotch Bonnet peppers (which I couldn't find either) I minced up a habenero and a half. I didn't have a Jamaican curry either, so I just used my standard Turkish one.

Other than that, I kept everything as it was, and I must say that this was really good. It's a very hearty dish, and with so many veggies and vitamins, who needs supplements or a salad? I haven't really seen this dish getting as much press as other V'con ones on blogs and such..so if you have the book, (and if you don't WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR???) I HIGHLY recommend that you give it a shot. If you don't want it to have a serious kick, obviously leave out the habaneros and try out a different pepper or a complete omission of that ingredient. I apologize that it's not very photogenic...but then most comfort food isn't. I mean really..think about it.

Selah.

Guy Fieri's Veggie Burger

There are a few reasons I love Guy Fieri so much. One is his personality...he's just plain cool, and he brings some much needed life to the food network morning line up. The other big reason? While he's not Veggie, his sister IS a long time vegetarian, and he's very good with supplying Vegetarian entrees that I can try out.

The original recipe for these can be found here, although I must admit mine don't hold their shape nearly as well as his appear to.

I also made a couple changes, so I've pasted his recipe below along with my own alterations that you can try out. (or not)

2 ounces olive oil
3 tablespoons diced red onion1 whole white onion, diced
2 tablespoons diced black olives
2 tablespoons diced red bell peppers
teaspoon diced jalapenoHalf habanero, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons diced garlic
1 tablespoon diced artichoke
4 ounces black beans, drained
4 ounces chickpeas, drained
4 ounces white beans, drained
6 ounces rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon Hungarian paprika
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves
1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons celery salt1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon ground sage
2 tablespoons seasoned bread crumbs
1 egg

In a medium saute pan over medium heat, add 1-ounce olive oil and all raw vegetables except beans. Saute until translucent. Remove and cool.

Put beans in a large mixing bowl, and mash coarsely. Add veggies to beans and mix thoroughly. Add all dry ingredients along with the egg. Thoroughly mix all ingredients and form into patties, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

In saute pan add 1-ounce olive oil, and cook patties 2 to 3 minutes per side.

They were served up with a couple kosher dill spears and a glass of pomegranate iced tea....mm perfect.

Selah.

Baby Bok Choy with Shallots and Miso Soup

I've made the baby bok choy recipe from V'con a few times, but it's been awhile, so it hasn't seen the light of "blog" yet. The sad thing is...I'm just not as enamored with it as I used to be. This was the BEST baby bok choy recipe ever...until I made the baby bok choy with wood ear mushrooms from "World Vegetarian" and it simply slunk off into the shadows.

This was the first time I'd actually made it with the shallots the recipe called for, since I usually don't have any on hand and replace with onions. Having now tried both, I actually prefer the onions, they lend a bit more sweetness to the dish when nicely caramelized.

I also made a miso soup, although it didn't occur to me that miso soup by nature LOOKS out of focus. It becomes even more so when you attempt to take a picture of it, so you'll just have to take my word that it looks the way miso soup should.

I used the most basic of recipes for the soup, and it went something like this:

Ingredients
2 cubes veggie bullion
approx. 5 cups water
3 tbsp. brown miso paste
splash tamari
1/4 block medium tofu cubed
1 white button mushroom, sliced
1 scallion stalk, sliced on an angle

Directions
1. Boil water with bullion cubes, once it comes to a rolling boil, turn it down to med/low.
2. Add mushroom and tofu.
3. Put the miso in a separate bowl, add a ladle of soup, and mix together until dissolved.
4. Add miso mixture along with scallions to soup, and allow to simmer for 3-4 more minutes before serving.

This was a nice, light, Asian meal..now to seek out my green tea ice cream bar for desert...

Selah.

Snacks for Dinner

Making hummus from scratch is something that I’ve been meaning to do for a long time…and never quite got around to. Now that I’ve finally done it, I don’t think I’ll ever stop. This stuff is DELICIOUS, although I’ll be honest, the first time I had it, I thought it was missing something. A day and a half later when I ate the remainder with some warm pita, it was perfect. *NOTE TO SELF* Always make hummus a day in advance.

Now if you’re going to make real Israeli hummus (and I wouldn’t do anything else) you need to serve it in a shallow bowl, and smooth a well into the middle. Sprinkle paprika over the entire thing and then fill the well with extra virgin olive oil. The pita MUST be warm, and tearing is the only worthwhile method for this treat.

Ingredients

1 can chickpeas - drained

2 tbsp Lemon juice

5 tbsp Olive oil

2 tbsp Tahini paste

Salt and Pepper



Directions

1. Put all the ingredients in a food processor, and pulse until smooth. Add olive oil until the texture looks right.
2. Pour the hummus into a bowl, create a well, sprinkle with paprika, and add olive oil.
3. Heat your pita!!!

I also made a tomatilla salsa, which was pretty exciting since I’d never had the opportunity to make anything with tomatillas before. I scored them at the Co-op in Vermont, so unfortunately there probably won’t be more tomatillo recipes anytime soon. I’m sad I don’t have normal access to them, because the salsa was really good, and scooped up with homemade pita chips…even better.

Ingredients
4 tomatillos, diced
2 shallots, diced
1 large jalapeno, diced, with seeds
Splash Olive oil
Splash lemon juice
Salt and pepper



Directions

1. Chop the vegetables, and put in a bowl. Add the oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and mix together.
2. Chill for half an hour. This is VERY important, because it allows the flavors to really meld together and intensify.



Pita Chips

Take 2 whole wheat pitas, split, and cut into triangles. Brush both sides with olive oil, and sprinkle one side with zaatar.

Place in a 400 degree oven for about 6 minutes. Keep a close eye on these, because they will burn FAST.

Hooray for snacks for dinner!



Selah.

Apologies

I had food to post..there are pictures of homemade hummus and tomatilla salsa with fresh baked pita chips, just sitting on the camera...raring to go. The only problem is that it's my boyfriend's camera, and he took it on vacation to Maine with him, prior to my getting those pictures off.

Unfortunately that means no posts until Wednesday when he makes it back, and that I won't be able to take pictures of anything I eat while He's gone...I apologize in advance...

Selah.

Homemade Pasta

So this was my first attempt at making my own pasta with my new machine....it could have gone better. On the bright side I figured out what I was doing towards the end, so there were some good noodles...unfortunately there were also a lot of "noodle clumps". The good news is that we live and learn, and I'm already getting hyped up for my next go.

The sauce was a combination of sun dried tomatoes, capers and mint, reduced down in white wine, salt and pepper. I'm not going to bother with more exact measurements because it wasn't very good and I don't recommend making it. I wanted basil, but for some reason the market didn't have any this week...mint was an odd choice...

In more exciting news...I have a fav icon!!! (That's the little picture next to my url in the address bar or on the tab if you're my style of web surfer.) The bok choy is tiny...but it's there in all its 'fav icon' glory!

Selah.

Coconut Curry

I'd been thinking about making a coconut curry for a long time, the problem is, when I finally got around to it yesterday, I used too much coconut and not enough CURRY...ah well, live and learn. It wasn't bad, just more mild and sweet than I had been hoping for. Most people would probably find mild and sweet to be a good thing, but we all know I'm into heavily spiced food with a kick, so it wasn't exactly what I was looking for.

I'll admit the sweetness was my own fault, in addition to the coconut milk, I put tamarind paste in the sauce and one of the ingredients was canned leechee added with a bit of their juice.

This was served over some rice (as all good curries are) and the recipe follows...feel free to mess with it, I plan to.

Ingredients
I crown broccoli, sliced
1 can leechee fruit, retain about half cup of juice
1 cup frozen peas
handful mung bean sprouts
handful sugar snap peas
1 red bell pepper, large dice
1 white onion, sliced
2 tbsp minced garlic
4 dried red chili peppers, whole
1 can coconut milk
3 tbsp. tamarind concentrate/paste
1 tsp tandoori masala
3 tbsp turkish curry powder
2 tbsp. peanut oil

Directions
1. In a large saucepan (I use a wok) pour the peanut oil, and heat to medium. Add garlic, onion, red pepper, and broccoli. Cook for about 4 minutes.
2. Add the peppers (seeds intact)leechee, sprouts, peas, and sauce ingredients. Once you've poured in the coconut milk, put the curry powder in the empty can with about a 1/4 cup of water to create a "broth" and add.
3. Once the contents of the wok have come to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and cover. Cook for approx. 20 minutes.

I was hoping to obtain a lot more heat from my peppers, but they're rather old at this point, and unfortunately seem to have lost their real kick...so time to buy more!

Selah.

Vegetable Lo Mein

I got some lo mein noodles at the co-op in Vermont (OK, technically it's in NH, but just barely) and they were begging to become a yummy asian meal.

Unfortunately these noodles aren't Vegan, but everything else is, and I'm sure you could make lo mein with whatever pasta you choose.


Obviously this recipe is great because you can make it with whatever veggies and spices you want, but the recipe I used today follows:

Ingredients
1 bag lo mein noodles
couple leaves napa cabbage
handful sliced button mushrooms
1 crown brocolli, sliced
handful carrots julliened
1 yellow onion, sliced into half rings
handful sugar snap peas
handful mung bean sprouts
1 lg. scallion, sliced at an angle
approx. half cup tamari
1/4 cup mirin
splash hot chili sauce
dash 5 spice powder
dash dried ginger
2 tbsp. peanut oil

Directions
1.Bring a pot of water to a boil, and cook noodles according to directions.
2. Pour peanut oil into a wok, and bring to medium heat. Add vegetables according to cooking time. I started with carrots, followed by onions and garlic, and broccoli...to which I added the mirin. Then came mushrooms, cabbage, bean sprouts, sugar snap peas, and finally, the scallion.
3. Once the vegetables are looking pretty close, add spices, tamari, and chili sauce. Drain the noodles and add to the wok.
4. Mix all ingredients together, and cook for an addition 2-5 minutes before serving.
5. Enjoy!!!

Selah

A little backtracking

We're back from vacation (sadly) and I have one more post to catch up on before I start cooking again. We were trying to finish up the reminder of the fridge contents before leaving, so it's not the most exciting meal...just to warn you.

I started off with a simple salad of spinach leaves, julienned baby carrots, and the remainder of my home-pickled daikon. I topped the salad with some black toasted sesame seeds and a bit of the leftover pickling liquid.

This was light, fresh, and delicious. I was only trying to use up leftovers, but it's something that I'll make again in the future, even with other options.

We also had a couple potatoes to finish up, and although I've got my own family recipe for potato latkes, we were out of eggs, so I decided it was time to try the V'con version.

Long story short, these were mediocre at best, and I much prefer my own recipe. V'con also reccomends using a food processor, which I did with one potato before switching to the greater. Grating may take a bit longer, but texture is what MAKES latkes. In addition, I made a dipping sauce with ricotta, Olive Oil, salt, and pepper, and that was delicious on these.

Last but not least was a V'con recipe that I've made before and never blogged about, which is the Quinoa-Chickpea pilaf. The first time I made this I didn't have any of the tomato paste the recipe called for, so I replaced it with pasta sauce. This time around I used tomato paste, but will actually go back to the sauce in the future. This rendition was a bit dry overall and not quite as flavorful.

Regardless, this is a great, belly-warming (yes that's steam you see in the picture) food that I highly recommend...with tomato sauce, not paste.

All that said, I went grocery shopping today and I'm off to the kitchen to rustle up some dinner right now, so you can expect more posting soon.

Selah.