Vegan Mayo and Egg-free Salad

I've never made mayonaise before! Why is this? Hmm, maybe because I don't like mayo, except as an ingredient in other foods once in a while. And that is what prompted me to try J.J.'s Vegan Mayonaise in Vegan Fusion--I wanted to make Amaya's Egoless Egg-free Salad, which calls for the vegan mayo. Anyway, it turns out making mayonaise is rediculously quick and easy, and the best part? When made from this recipe, it even tastes good! Frankly, I was astonished at how much I liked it.

J.J.'s Vegan Mayonaise

2 1/4 cups safflower oil (I used canola)
1 cup soy milk (the unsweetened kind, of course)
1 Tbsp maple syrup or agave nectar (I used agave)
3/4 tsp sea salt, or to taste
2-2 1/2 tsp raw apple cider vinegar, or fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp dijon mustard

Combine all the ingredients except the vinegar or lemon juice in blender, blending until smooth. Slowly add vinegar or juice until the liquid thickens. (I think I only added about 1 1/2 tsp vinegar and it was plenty thick.)

So, off to a good start, I assembled the ingredients for the egg-free salad, which is also a quick and easy recipe. My husband and I have been big fans of Toby's tofu pate for years, and I hoped this would be similar. I was not disappointed! If you like egg salad, or potato salad, you'll probably like this as well. It can be as thick and chunky or as smooth and creamy as you decide to make it, so it could be a sandwich filler, or a dip, or (as the book suggests) a stuffing for tomatoes. At first I wished I had stirred it all up and tasted it before adding the shoyu, because I didn't really think it needed it...but after letting it sit overnight I changed my mind. I would add a LOT more dill, just because I love dill...but there is a very sad story of slugs in my garden that has resulted in me not having much dill on hand just now. Boo. It would also be good with a minced jalepeno, if you like a bit of spice.

My husband and I gave this 4 carrots; the kids declined to try it.

^^^^

~Sophie

Thousand Petals Tempeh Stir Fry

As I’ve mentioned before our family is fairly typical; two omnivores, one pescatarian (or, veg-aquarian) and one vegetarian.  Two adults, two kids.  Despite our differences, I never make separate meals, never have.  Tonight I broke that rule. 

It’s the fishmonger’s fault.  I had to buy fresh clams at the Farmer’s Market.

So tonight I made a tempeh stir fry for all of us to share, and a big bowl of steamed clams for the three of us who eat seafood.

To make things a little easier on myself, I used the same basic seasonings for both recipes, the Lotus Curry Paste that I’ve used before to make Gift of Govinda Curry.   I had some on hand making the meal that much easier.

Lotus Curry Paste

• 1 small Lime Leaf
• 1 Tbsp shallot, minced
• 1 Tbsp chili pepper, hot variety, minced
• 1 Tbsp lemongrass stem, minced
• 2 tsp ginger, peeled and minced
• 1 tsp Garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp curry powder
• 1/4 tsp coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp sea salt, or to taste
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 2Tbsp Sesame oil

1. Blend all ingredients in a blender, adding sesame oil until smooth consistency is attained.  Store in refrigerator in a jar and use as needed.  Lasts up to a week or longer if refrigerated.

For the Thousand Petals Tempeh Stir Fry, I marinated the tempeh in shoyu then roasted it for about 30 minutes.  The vegetable mix included red bell pepper, broccoli, asparagus and swiss chard.  I added the Lotus Curry Paste to the onions, garlic and ginger at the beginning of the recipe.

My family was pretty iffy on both the tempeh and the chard.  I usually used chard in soups or stews so the sharp flavor wasn’t doing it for them.  Contrast that flavor with the relatively flavorless tempeh and, well, no.

Our little family gave the stir fry 

 

dawn

PS  for the steamed clam recipe, click on over to my blog.

Rahim’s Rasta Pasta Primavera

The local farmer’s market is now open and the kids love it.  Mostly because they can get Hawaiian Shave Ice, but they do like picking out fruits and vegetables and just wandering around, seeing what’s new. 

Today we came home with whole wheat spinach pasta, asparagus, a sweet Walla Walla onion, cherries and 1/4 pint of raspberries (okay, we started with a pint, but that was all that was left by the time we got home).  Oh, and a packet of radish seeds. 

What we really came home with was pasta primavera for dinner with fresh cherries for dessert.

The basis for Rahim’s Rasta Pasta Primavera is simply your choice of pasta and vegetables along with a few other yummy ingredients such as bell peppers, Kalamata olives, red onion, parsley, basil and garlic. 

And hemp seed, which I don’t have on hand today but the more I read about it the more I need to get some on hand (but I digress).

The main “sauce” is a balsamic dressing:

Uma’s Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette

• 2/3 cup water
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup Balsamic vinegar
• 2 1/2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1 1/2 Tbsp shoyu
• 1 Tbsp stone ground mustard

1. Place all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk well.

I used the fresh asparagus, along with some carrots and peas that I already had on hand.  I added more Kalamata olives and garlic than the recipe called for because we all love their flavors.  And some of us sprinkled it with Parmesan cheese.  Really simple, one dish meal.  We all enjoyed it, although my husband and kids said it took some getting used to because it was a “non-traditional” pasta sauce.

Our little family gave this meal

 

dawn

Ammachi's Aloha Pate

I must admit that I did not have high hopes for this recipe - it seemed like a fairly random collection of ingredients, but I had some friends over yesterday and, since it looked really easy to throw together I thought I'd give it a go. And I am SO happy that I did!! It is delicious and everyone loved it. The beet gives it an interesting pink hue that starts out pretty but turned a little brown as it sat - by that time everyone had tasted it and was hooked so it didn't really matter.

We experimented with a variety of crackers, chips and vegetables and discovered a magical combination: spread some pate on a tamari seaweed rice cracker and top with a slice of cucumber. YUM!!

Here's the recipe:

Ammachi's Aloha Pate

1/2 c. almonds
1/2 c. cashews or macadamia nuts (I used cashews)
1/2 c. sunflower seeds
1/3 c. carrot (didn't measure, used a large carrot)
1/3 c. beet (didn't measure, used half of a large beet)
2 T. leek, rinsed well and diced
1/4 c. Daikon radish
1/4 c. green bell pepper (I used red)
1 T. basil, Italian parsley or cilantro (I used parsley, I think cilantro would be great, too)
1/2 t. garlic, minced (says optional, but I think it needs it)
Sea salt and pepper, to taste
dash of Shoyu (optional - I didn't add it)

Throw it all in a food processor and add a little water if needed. It really does need to sit for several hours or overnight, so plan ahead.

Enjoy!

Liz

Radical Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Sometimes I work Saturday night, as in all night. When I do, Sundays in my home are pretty unstructured, with mom asleep and three guys left to their own devices. As a result, it came to pass last night that everyone but me had eaten dinner. "Ah-ha!" I thought. "The perfect time to make something adventurous, something only I would have any interest in eating! Something Raw or Vegan that feeds the body and the soul...." And then I looked around my pantry and fridge and lowered my expectations a wee bit. Red bell peppers, cans of garbanzo beans, a sad-looking lemon...well, at least I could make hummus! And really, there's nothing at all shabby about hummus. It does, indeed, feed my soul.

The step of roasting the red peppers does make Radical Roasted Red Pepper Hummus a little more time-consuming than some other hummus recipes, but roasted red peppers are sooooo good that's it's always worth it. (And I always roast more than the recipe calls for, so now I have extra sitting in my fridge, just waiting to be put in a sandwich, or on a pizza, or in a soup!) As usual, I used liquid aminos in place of shoyu, and I skipped the step of toasting the cumin. I also used canned garbanzos, and I only had the regular, raw tahini, not the roasted variety (which I must get, because yum!)

The result was a very good hummus, although I'm not sure I'd go so far as to call it radical. In addition to awesome flavor, the red pepper gives it a beautiful color. I did think it could use a bit more lemon, but sadly, I'd squeezed mine dry just to get as much juice as the recipe called for. And next time, I will toast the cumin. I love toasted cumin, I just don't always have the patience, mid-recipe, to stop and do that step. This is a dish, though, where that smoky flavor would really shine through.

All in all? Three carrots.

^^^

(Ha! Three carets! I crack myself up sometimes...)

~Sophie

Mahatma's Mung Dahl

Mung beans haven't been a staple in my pantry up until now, but I've been hearing about them a lot lately. Not only are they a great source of protein, but they are known to be easier to digest than other kinds of beans. So I gave the Mahatma's Mung Dahl a try and I'm glad I did. I followed the recipe pretty closely, except that (as usual) I didn't bother with the toasting of the cumin seed and powder. I think next time I would add more carrot and celery but not include as much water - it turned out pretty soupy, which was fine with some brown rice to soak up the liquid, but I think 4 or 5 cups of water or vegetable stock would have been plenty.

Great flavor, and really quick and easy to throw together on a weeknight. I will definitely make it again - hopefully as part of a joint effort with Sophie and Dawn to create the Taj Mahal Indian Sampler Platter. :)

Mahatma's Mung Bean Dahl

6 c filtered water or vegetable stock
1 c mung beans (the recipe doesn't specify, but I used split mung beans)
1 medium onion, diced
1 medium carrot, cubed
1/2 c. celery, thinly sliced
1 T. garlic, minced
1 T. ginger, peeled and minced
1 T. jalapeno, seeded and minced
1 T. cumin seed, toasted
1 t. cumin powder, toasted
1/2 t. curry powder
1/4 t. sea salt, to taste
1/4 t. black pepper, to taste
pinch of cayenne
2 T. cilantro
1/3 c. shoyu, to taste

1. Rinse beans and place in a medium sized pot with water or stock on medium high heat. Add onion, carrot, celery, garlic, ginger and jalapeno, cook on medium heat until beans are soft, approximately 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Add shoyu and remaining ingredients, except cilantro, and cook for an additional 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Add cilantro, remove from heat and enjoy.

Enjoy!

Liz

Grain and Fruit Salad

I’ll have to think of a clever name for this salad that I made for a potluck picnic today.  It’s a combination of a couple of recipes.  One I had, one I vaguely remembered but can’t find the little slip of paper it was written on, and ingredients on-hand rather than what it called for.  You know the one.

Salad

• 1 16-oz package Trader Joe’s Harvest Grains Blend, cooked according to package directions
• 2 cups seedless green grapes, halved
• 1 cup orange segments cut in small pieces
• 1/2 cup chopped red pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 1/2 cup minced parsley

Dressing

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 Tbsp agave nectar
• grated rind of one orange*
• 2 Tbsp orange juice
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Combine all the salad ingredients in a large bowl;
2. Combine the dressing ingredients and pour over grain mixture, tossing thoroughly;
3. Chill.  This can be made a couple of hours ahead so the grains and pasta soak up the dressing.

* I know you are using as many organic or locally grown ingredients as possible, but when it comes to citrus rind, always, always use organic.

Party goers gave this salad

 

dawn

Toltec Tofu Stuffing

Can you tell I have a little time on my hands this morning? :)

This is another recipe that I tried awhile ago and will definitely be making again. While the book suggests using it as a filling for stuffed bread or as a pizza topping, if I remember correctly I just ate it with some salsa, and probably some avocado, and maybe some brown rice. Did I mention it was awhile ago? At any rate, it is a very flexible recipe for which I'm sure there are many creative uses. Try it and see what you come up with! I think the next time I make it I'll make stuffed peppers. Mmmm....

Toltec Tofu Stuffing

2 T. olive oil
1/2 c. onion, chopped
2 t. garlic, minced (the book says "optional," but garlic is never "optional" IMO)
1 t. jalapeno, seeded and minced
1 lb. tofu, extra firm, crumbled (have you tried the sprouted tofu? Yum!)
3/4 c. black beans, cooked (oh, just throw in a whole can)
1/2 c. corn, fresh or frozen
3 T. tahini
1 1/2 T. shoyu
1 T. cilantro
1 ancho chili soaked in hot water until soft, seeded and chopped
1/2 t. cumin powder (toasted...or, in my case, not)
1/2 t. chili powder
pinch of cayenne
salt and pepper to taste

Saute onion, garlic and jalapeno in oil over medium-high heat until the onions are softened, approximately 8 minutes. Add tofu and cook for 5 minutes. Remove and place in a large bowl with remaining ingredients and mix well. (Hmmmm...like I said, it's been awhile since I made this, but why would you take the mixture out of the pan and get another bowl dirty? I'm pretty sure I just threw it all into the pan and mixed it up, and may have added a little water or vegetable stock to cook it a little more and get the flavors combined. I have no real idea if that's what I did, but I am imagining that's what I'd do if I was making it again).

Enjoy!

Liz

Sistah Jah Love Roasted Squash Soup

This is the first recipe I tried from the book, and it's a good thing I tried it early in squash season because I ended up making it several times throughout the fall and winter. So many butternut squash recipes call for steaming. I think that is a big mistake and definitely not worth the time savings - the flavor is so much better when it's roasted, as this recipe calls for.

Even though our June weather would make this an appropriate soup even now, I probably won't make it again until the fall...and will blog more about it's perfection then!

Liz

Gracias A Dios Guacamole

2 medium avocados, chopped (1 1/2 c.)
1 c. tomato, diced
1/4 c. red onion, diced
3 T. lime juice
2 T. cilantro, minced
1 1/2 t. jalapeno, seeded and minced
1 t. garlic, minced
1/2 t. sea salt
1/4 t. black pepper
1/4 t. chili powder
pinch of cayenne

Place all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix well.

This is a pretty straightforward guacamole recipe and was good - but I will tweak it a little bit next time. I hate it when I get a hunch about a recipe and decide to follow the recipe and not the hunch. In this case I was not sure that chili powder was a good idea in guacamole, but I added it anyway. Next time I won't. I did leave the cayenne out, thinking it would be spicy enough with the jalapeno, and that was a good call. It would be fine with it, but didn't need it.

The guacamole turned out a bit runnier than I'd like, but that may have been my fault. I soaked the red onion to tone it down a little, which worked but may have affected the texture. I think next time I will use a white onion - naturally a little bit milder and sweeter so I could skip the soaking. I also added more than the 3 T. of lime juice, which hopefully I could've gotten away with if it wasn't for the onion situation. Also, the recipe doesn't say to, but make sure you take the seeds out of the tomato - if I hadn't done that it would've been a real mess!

I learned that the paper bag technique works really well for ripening avocados, especially if you stick a banana in with them. Oh, and I did not make the optional sour creme - I might try that sometime when I'm using the guacamole for something other than dipping chips.

All in all, a good starting point. Can't wait to make it again based on what I learned this time around!

Liz

a night off

In case you were starting to worry about me, thinking to yourself that I spend an inordinate amount of time in the kitchen… take heart, everyone needs a night off.  And when I’m not sure what to cook, our family has ramen.

Yup.  The staple of university students everywhere.

I do try to buy the healthy versions of the packaged noodles, but to be honest, sometimes I just grab whatever vegetarian version is at hand.  Because, what is key to this meal, and half the fun, are the add-ins.  Leftover roasted tofu, two different kinds of sprouts, baby corn, boiled eggs, mushrooms, green onion, seaweed and anything else in the fridge that might be tasty. 

The 30-minute Vegan has a great recipe for Ravin’ Ramen Noodle Soup.  What I like about the recipe is it gives a combination of dried ingredients to substitute for the little packet of MSG that comes with the store-bought packages.  I’m going to make up a bulk batch of this for the summer - the kids can boil some water, add rice stick or bean-thread noodles and have a quick lunch.  Yup, getting them ready for college.

Our little family always gives ramen night

 

dawn

creamy asparagus over toast

yes, it’s still asparagus season here in Washington and I couldn’t resist.  And the other thing I couldn’t resist, picking up a copy of The 30-Minute Vegan! So this recipe is from my new recipe book by the wonderful folks who brought us Vegan Fusion.

I remember when I took home economics and learned to make Welsh Rarebit.  It was such a wonderful comfort food, like a gourmet version of canned spaghetti on toast (lol, this is cracking me up – admit it, you’ve all eaten this sort of thing!)  Well, creamy asparagus over toast reminded me of this and I had to try it.

I had all the ingredients on hand except, embarrassingly – toast.  So I served it on breaded “chik’n” patties.  It tasted amazing and everyone loved it.  I have to admit, I was a bit surprised because it is so different than anything I usually serve my little family and the color of the creamy portion was, well, not as appetizing as you might think. 

This recipe makes a lot.  It says, “serves 6” but I think those are very generous portions.  Again, not a problem as I’ll happily have it on toast for lunch but I think if I were to make it again, I’d half the recipe.  And I’d leave it chunkier, as suggested as a variation.

Our little family gives this

 

dawn

curry

We love curry.  I make it all the time, usually just using a bottled curry sauce or something simple with curry powder yogurt.  Today seemed like a good day for curry so I opened up my Vegan Fusion cookbook to Gift of Govinda Curry.

The basic recipe is just the way I like it – spices, coconut milk, whatever veggies we have on hand.  Perfect.  But then I noticed it called for curry paste.  I don’t use curry pastes because they all seem too spicy for the kids.  I made Lotus Curry Paste.  The beauty of making your own paste is, of course, being able to control the heat.  I’m in.

 

I decided to add tofu to the mix, so I roasted it using the Lemon Herb Marinade recipe, substituting lime juice for lemon juice, and using fresh coriander.  I added zucchini, red pepper, carrots, apples and chickpeas to the pot.

I really didn’t mean for my simple curry dinner to get so complicated.  But the beauty is, I now have curry paste on hand for next week’s curry.  I have extra roasted tofu for lunches this week. And I’ve discovered a lovely curry recipe that doesn’t involve a bottled sauce.  It’s all good. 

No, actually – it’s delicious.  Just the right heat and sweetness.

Our little family gave this 

 

dawn

PS  One of the serving suggestions is as part of the Taj Mahal Indian Sampling platter… hmmm, might have to see if Liz and Sophie are interested!