Hosted a dinner party, made some tasty food, had a great time. Some of these dishes were bought pre-made, like the gluten with peanuts, snap peas, chile peas, sea cucumbers, preserved tofu, and chile bamboo shoots. The vegetable bao were also pre-made, but I deep fried them.
The napa salad had shredded napa, watercress leaves, and a sesame soy vinaigrette I made with chopped chiles, sesame oil, crushed ginger, soy sauce, rice vinegar, salt, wite pepper, and raw sugar. The tofu in brown sauce required a little planning.
Brown sauce:
Vegetarian oyster sauce, soy sauce, veggie broth, raw sugar, white pepper, and cornstarch slurry in rice vinegar. Add everything but the cornstarch slurry and bring to a boil, stirring. When it does start to boil, add the slurry and stir until thickened. I made this ahead of time and warmed it back up when the tofu was fired.
Fried Tofu:
Drain the tofu overnight, then soak in soy sauce to season. Make your favorite cornstarch beer batter Mine didn't come out well :( Deep fry in oil at 350 until golden brown and drain on paper towels.
Cover in brown sauce, top with cilantro and pecans. Nom Nom!! :D
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/chiquibuttons/10241759195/" title="Asian Inspired Vegan Dinner by chiquibuttons, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5545/10241759195_d8bd60bb59.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Asian Inspired Vegan Dinner"></a>
You can see the rest of the photos here.
Thursday, May 22, 2014
Stroganoff
I haven't had stroganoff in many many years. During a discussion about casseroles, I was inspired to make some. I had only eaten the Hamburger Helper style stroganoff as a child so I went to the internet to find out more about the dish. So it's actually Russian, and originally a meat only dish made with mustard; the starchy side and sour cream came later. Knowing what I know about cooking, I decided to keep the mustard, omt the Campbell's Soup sauce and hit the spice aisle for ingredients. It's delicious by the way, but do not use more than 1/4 tsp. of dried mustard or it will be bitter. Also, keep the meat/sauce away from the pasta when storing it or the pasta will soak up all the salt. I stored some in the freezer so I'll let you know how that works out when I defrost it.
For 8 servings:
2 bags of +gardein Beefless Tips
1 bag or box of farfalle (or your favorite shape of pasta)
1/2 stick Earth Balance Buttery Sticks
1/4 C +Bob's Red Mill whole wheat pastry flour
1/12 C broth
1/2 C to 1 C red wine (I used sweet vermouth)
Tofutti sour cream
Salt, white pepper, olive oil, herbs of choice (I used parsley and marjoram)
Set the pasta water to boil, this cooks fast. Defrost the Beefless Tips, in a microwave works great. Add boiling water to a bouillon cube and the herbs and pepper. Make a roux in a saute pan by melting the margarine with a splash of olive oil then sprinkling in the flour. Stir Stir Stir until it smells cooked through, then add the broth. When it starts to bubble, add the mustard powder and stir. Add the Beefless Tips and wine then taste. Season if necessary. When it thickens, turn off the heat and add the Tofutti. Hopefully the pasta will be cooked by now, so drain it, season and serve together.
Pumkin Pie
I love pie and at this time of year, pumpkin pie starts calling my name. Spork Foods shared a great recipe for a pumpkin cheesecake in the LA Times a while back so I've been using it ever since. They also have a great cookbook; I bought one from Amazon. So pie and coffee made with Torani SF syrup to save on calories made a great breakfast that day. I tweaked this recipe by using a graham cracker pie shell and I added some maple syrup to the top while it cooled. Next time I'll use maple sugar, the pie is very soft when it's hot so the syrup made little holes on the top.
**Note: Allspice, nutmeg, and Ceylon cinnamon have been reported as tolerable to some IC people. Also, Daiya cream cheese is soy-free and allergy friendly.
**Note: Allspice, nutmeg, and Ceylon cinnamon have been reported as tolerable to some IC people. Also, Daiya cream cheese is soy-free and allergy friendly.
Udon--My Favorite Comfort Food When I Have a Cold
When you're sick you want something hot, nourishing, soothing, and nutritious. Udon is easy to make if you have access to an Asian market or your local grocery store has a good selection of Asian goods. A large pot of this soup makes 4-6 servings.
2 packages of individually portioned Udon noodles.
If you don't use the included seasoning packets, 2 cubes of Vegetarian bouillon and water to cover noodles and fill a soup pot a little more that half way, or broth in the same quantity if you don't like bouillon.
Soy Sauce to taste, maybe a splash.
Rice Wine Vinegar to taste, also a splash or two.
Ginger, your choice of fresh sliced or chopped. You can also use dried or candied slices. I like to use Christopher Farms jarred ginger.
Something sweet, like agave or raw sugar, just a touch. If you used candied sliced ginger there is no need to sweeten any further. If you're not a vegan used honey.
Black and white pepper to taste.
After bringing the stock and noodles to a boil, turn down the heat to warm and add:
1 C baked tofu slices or cubes.
3 fresh red chiles, sliced. Seed if you don't like searing heat.
1/2 small head of napa cabbage, sliced.
2-4 C small baby bok choy, well rinsed and halved.
1 box of sliced mushrooms, cooked separately or fresh.
Bean sprouts, for topping when you serve the soup.
2 packages of individually portioned Udon noodles.
If you don't use the included seasoning packets, 2 cubes of Vegetarian bouillon and water to cover noodles and fill a soup pot a little more that half way, or broth in the same quantity if you don't like bouillon.
Soy Sauce to taste, maybe a splash.
Rice Wine Vinegar to taste, also a splash or two.
Ginger, your choice of fresh sliced or chopped. You can also use dried or candied slices. I like to use Christopher Farms jarred ginger.
Something sweet, like agave or raw sugar, just a touch. If you used candied sliced ginger there is no need to sweeten any further. If you're not a vegan used honey.
Black and white pepper to taste.
After bringing the stock and noodles to a boil, turn down the heat to warm and add:
1 C baked tofu slices or cubes.
3 fresh red chiles, sliced. Seed if you don't like searing heat.
1/2 small head of napa cabbage, sliced.
2-4 C small baby bok choy, well rinsed and halved.
1 box of sliced mushrooms, cooked separately or fresh.
Bean sprouts, for topping when you serve the soup.
This soup does not keep well overnight. The noodles get soggy and the vegetables wilt. If you are making this only for yourself, make the stock ahead of time and freeze the extra. Buy and prepare less of the other ingredients and only add what you are going to eat at that time to the stock and save the rest for later. I know it's hard to buy fresh veggies in small quantities, but napa keeps well if you peel the outer layers and save the heart. Baby bok choy will keep longer if you don't wash it until you're ready to use it. The noodles will keep well; some brands are shelf stable. Chiles keep well in the fruit bowl and baked tofu can always be washed and scrubbed by hand if it gets a little slimy.
Chia Pudding--From Bust Magazine
This month's issue of Bust Magazine featured quite a few recipes, one of which was a recipe for Chia Pudding. I've been wanting to try Chia seeds, and I had a single serving from June's +Vegan Cuts box, so I went to +Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market, bought a bag of +Bob's Red Mill Chia Seeds and a half gallon of +Silk Vanilla Almond Milk and to the kitchen I went. I used the recipes proportion of ingredients and had a sauce pot going before I realized this was a no cook recipe. I let the mixture chill in the refrigerator overnight and I had a tapioca like pudding that tasted sweet without being over-sweetened like real tapioca pudding.
The second time (this week) that I made the Chia Pudding, I did cook it. I also doubled the recipe, substituted 1/2 C of the almond milk with Creole coffee made in the cafetera, added 1/4 C each Torani SF French Vanilla and SF Brown Sugar Cinnamon syrups, and a few tb of powdered cinnamon. After bringing to a boil while stirring constantly, the pudding was well on its way to thickening. It cooled on the stove for about 20 minutes and I packed it in two reusable containers, because I'm sharing with my comadre, and they are cooling now in the fridge.
I think if this was made with plain unsweetened and low-fat almond milk, or soy/coconut/rice milk, it would be very suitable for a diabetic diet. I sat down with a notebook and calculator and did some math; please fix any errors I made, I'm notoriously bad at counting. Also, I rounded numbers a bit since 4.6666667 would be really hard to measure at home, at least for me.
The original recipe calls for 1 1/2 C milk substitute and 1/4 C chia seeds. Since I used Vanilla Almond Milk, this is based on the nutritional content for that milk. Most of the fat comes from the chia seeds, but it's good fat. Most of the carbs come from the soy milk, but in a reasonable portion it's still only one starch exchange.
Totals for 14 oz of cooked pudding
21.75 g Fat
44 g Carbs (24 g Sugar and 20 g Fiber)
13.5 g Protein
Totals for a 4.5 oz serving (between 1/2 and 2/3 C cooked pudding)
7.25 g Fat
14.5 g Carbs (8 g Sugar and 6.5 g Fiber)
4.5 g Protein
The second time (this week) that I made the Chia Pudding, I did cook it. I also doubled the recipe, substituted 1/2 C of the almond milk with Creole coffee made in the cafetera, added 1/4 C each Torani SF French Vanilla and SF Brown Sugar Cinnamon syrups, and a few tb of powdered cinnamon. After bringing to a boil while stirring constantly, the pudding was well on its way to thickening. It cooled on the stove for about 20 minutes and I packed it in two reusable containers, because I'm sharing with my comadre, and they are cooling now in the fridge.
I think if this was made with plain unsweetened and low-fat almond milk, or soy/coconut/rice milk, it would be very suitable for a diabetic diet. I sat down with a notebook and calculator and did some math; please fix any errors I made, I'm notoriously bad at counting. Also, I rounded numbers a bit since 4.6666667 would be really hard to measure at home, at least for me.
The original recipe calls for 1 1/2 C milk substitute and 1/4 C chia seeds. Since I used Vanilla Almond Milk, this is based on the nutritional content for that milk. Most of the fat comes from the chia seeds, but it's good fat. Most of the carbs come from the soy milk, but in a reasonable portion it's still only one starch exchange.
Totals for 14 oz of cooked pudding
21.75 g Fat
44 g Carbs (24 g Sugar and 20 g Fiber)
13.5 g Protein
Totals for a 4.5 oz serving (between 1/2 and 2/3 C cooked pudding)
7.25 g Fat
14.5 g Carbs (8 g Sugar and 6.5 g Fiber)
4.5 g Protein
Sunday, May 18, 2014
Broccoli Salad
Chop one head of broccoli into small pieces.
Chop tomatoes to make 1 cup.
Chop and seed one red (or yellow or orange) bell pepper.
Add one or two cans of sliced black olives.
Add one can of drained and rinsed Garbanzo beans.
Add your favorite vinaigrette, or toss in olive oil and vinegar.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Serves six.
This salad is very rich in vitamin C and has iron and calcium. Also, it makes a great side dish to a pasta entree. I like to use this for women's health issues and to prepare or recover from strenuous exercise.
I suggest taking a heavy dose of Beano with this as well as letting it marinate for a while. Broccoli takes a lot of chewing. :)
Friday, January 31, 2014
Baking With a Bread Machine
I love my bread machine and use it to make my pizza dough, high fiber multi-grain bread, and basic wheat bread. This week I had a craving for cardamom, so I tossed together apricot chunks, pecans, wheat flour, and cardamom et voila: le pain.
Using white/basic with a light crust setting, add these and bake according to the instructions:
Liquid:
1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups Silk Vanilla Soy Milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tb Earth Balance, cut into pieces
1 tb olive or canola oil
Dry:
3 cups of AP or bread flour
1 cup of whole grain wheat flour
2 tsp salt
4 tsp sugar
1 envelope dry active yeast
1 to 2 capfuls of cardamom
2/3 to 1 cup dried apricot chunks
1/2 to 2/3 cups pecans whole or pieces
Add liquid ingredients first, make sure they are warm to activate the yeast. Add dry ingredients and start the mixing process. My bread machine's settings are not adjustable, and I found that substituting that 1 cup of AP flour for whole wheat made the dough ball a little dry. I added extra milk and it came together, but i had to restart the process so that it would mix the dough again. This was not a problem for me, but check your machine's settings.
Make sure you scrape down the sides of your bread pan during the initial mixing, this may reveal dry dough and allow you to add that extra 1/4 cup of milk if you need to before the dough comes together. A good dough ball is spherical and evenly moist, not runny, flaky, or lumpy. Add the fruit and nuts according to your machine's settings.
This recipe is not sweet like raisin cinnamon bread, but can be made sweet by toasting it and serving it with jam. I prefer it steamed (in the micro) with a pat of Earth Balance to bring out the savory side of cardamom. Substitute the fruit, nuts, and spices for your favorites and add more sugar if you like it sweeter.
Using white/basic with a light crust setting, add these and bake according to the instructions:
Liquid:
1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups Silk Vanilla Soy Milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tb Earth Balance, cut into pieces
1 tb olive or canola oil
Dry:
3 cups of AP or bread flour
1 cup of whole grain wheat flour
2 tsp salt
4 tsp sugar
1 envelope dry active yeast
1 to 2 capfuls of cardamom
2/3 to 1 cup dried apricot chunks
1/2 to 2/3 cups pecans whole or pieces
Add liquid ingredients first, make sure they are warm to activate the yeast. Add dry ingredients and start the mixing process. My bread machine's settings are not adjustable, and I found that substituting that 1 cup of AP flour for whole wheat made the dough ball a little dry. I added extra milk and it came together, but i had to restart the process so that it would mix the dough again. This was not a problem for me, but check your machine's settings.
Make sure you scrape down the sides of your bread pan during the initial mixing, this may reveal dry dough and allow you to add that extra 1/4 cup of milk if you need to before the dough comes together. A good dough ball is spherical and evenly moist, not runny, flaky, or lumpy. Add the fruit and nuts according to your machine's settings.
This recipe is not sweet like raisin cinnamon bread, but can be made sweet by toasting it and serving it with jam. I prefer it steamed (in the micro) with a pat of Earth Balance to bring out the savory side of cardamom. Substitute the fruit, nuts, and spices for your favorites and add more sugar if you like it sweeter.
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