Le menu (13-19 November)

This week's menu was largely driven by my Bountiful Baskets produce.   The soup I whipped up today was SO yummy, so if for no other reason than to preserve the recipe before my brain can forget, I am posting it here.  

Winter Veggie Soup

Ingredients:

1 pound potatoes (skins on), cleaned and cut into 1/3" pieces (I used fingerlings)

6 medium carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4"

2 leeks, white and pale green parts, sliced lengthwise and cut into 1/2" dices

1 bunch kale, washed, stems removed, and leaves torn into bite-sized pieces

2 quarts vegetable stock

1 tbsp Italian seasoning

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1-2 tsp salt, to taste

2 tsp white pepper

1 pint soy creamer (not vanilla flavored!)

2 cans Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained

Directions:

Bring chicken stock to a boil and add potatoes and carrots.  Continue on a low boil until veggies are just tender.  Add all remaining ingredients except creamer and simmer for another 10 minutes or so.  Just before serving, stir in the creamer.  

You could add in some soy sausage crumbles or slices, but my sausage was frozen and I didn't even remember I had it until it was too late.  In any case, this was a hearty, yummy bowl of comfort!  

The other recipes for this week can be found below, but note that some require some veganization.  My big challenge for the week involves making something resembling chicken Cordon Bleu for Hubby and me, as well as a gluten-free, vegan apple cake, for a church dinner party we're attending on Saturday.  The "chicken" is so we'll have something to eat that looks vaguely like what others will be eating, and the apple cake is a copy of the dessert that is being served that we and the gluten-sensitive members of our congregation will be able to eat.  Wish me luck!

Monday

Barley, Mushroom and Lentil Soup  Veggie broth will sub for beef.  Easy-peasy.  

Tuesday

Hoppin' John  I'll be making as-is, save for the substitutions of tempeh bacon and veggie broth

Collard Greens Vegan butter and we're good to go!   

Grandmother's Buttermilk Cornbread  We made this in our pre-vegan days, and it's to-die-for.  This is my friend Bethany's recipe, and you can see that it's extremely highly rated.  I hope my vegan version will be in the ballpark!  I plan to make vegan buttermilk (1 tsp vinegar to 1 cup nondairy milk) and use golden flax meal in place of the eggs.  

Wednesday

Gyro "meat" with tzatziki sauce I'm subbing seitan for the lamb, and I'm sorry, but the more I think about it, what kind of a jerk eats lamb?  Or veal?  They're babies!!!  (OK, so that's something I didn't put together in my omnivore days, so I know I have to cut others some slack, but still.  Watch some videos. It's horrifying.)   

Greek Style Spinach and Rice  This one will get a feta makeover; lemon-marinated, crumbled firm tofu works well.  Or I may just leave it out.  We'll see.  

Thursday

Eggplant "parmesan"  This one's already vegan, but that's the least of my worries.  You see, I loathe eggplant.  It's vile.  But Hubby loves it and I'm determined to find a way I can stand it.  Since breading and frying anything makes it 100 times tastier, I figure this is a good place to start.  I may need some diving nose clips to get through it, but I'll give it my best.  

Friday - Hubby is cooking, so it's a mystery.  Frankly, it's even a mystery to him until it's finished.  His stir-fries are a good way to clean out the fridge.  ;o)  

Saturday - My friend is sending me her apple cake recipe, which I will de-gluten and veganize.  My loose plan for chicken Cordon Bleu is to use Gardein Chick'n Scallopini cutlets, stuff them somehow with vegan bacon (I can't get any closer to ham on such short notice) and vegan cheese, bread them, bake them, and then douse them in a soy cream/white wine/paprika sauce.  I'll let you know how it turns out.  

Bountiful Baskets!

I am beyond thrilled that my friend K is getting a Bountiful Baskets site set up in our little community!  We have to volunteer twice at other sites (both two hours from here) in order to be approved to start our own site, but she's done one already and I hope to go with her for the second one.  If everything goes according to plan, we'll have our own bi-monthly stops starting in January, and we're crossing our fingers that it will get so popular that we can get an A and a B route, which means weekly deliveries.  :o)

I got three baskets of organic produce this time, but I think next time I'll get a box or two of of "regular" produce so I get greater variety.  Really though, three boxes is about right for our family for a week, so maybe I'll have J1 sign up so he can buy for us, too.  Then we could get up to 6 baskets, which would be awesome if we have to go two weeks between deliveries.  With this, Azure Standard deliveries, and what I order from Amazon, I hardly have to buy anything at the grocery store these days except convenience foods (healthy ones, promise!) and stuff to make lunches.  Awesomeness.  :o)

Here's my haul from last night.  Isn't it beautiful?!

It's a little hard to see what's what in the picture, so here's a list:

1. Apples (gala, if I remember correctly)
2. Pears
3. 3 quarts of strawberries
4. Celery
5. Zucchini
6. Cucumbers (yes, cucumbers in November!)
7. Carrots
8. Fingerling potatoes
9. Collard Greens
10. Spinach
11. Black grapes
12. Tomatoes

Walnut tofu balls

This recipe was given to my by Hubby's office manager, who is a vegetarian Seventh-Day Adventist.  Her family eats these as part of their Thanksgiving dinner.  Ours went into some yummy barbecue sauce and were then served up on sourdough hoagies.  Yum!

Ingredients

• 2 cups bread, torn into small pieces
• 3/4 cup walnuts, chopped
• 1/2 cup oats, quick-cooking
• 1/2 cup diced onions
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
• 2 teaspoons vegan chicken seasoning ( Chicknish, Butler's Chick-Style, or other)
• 16 ounces extra firm tofu
• 1/2 cup water ( if needed)
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce

Directions

1. Mix first 4 ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Add seasonings and mix until combined.
3. Drain tofu and crumble with hands into the meatball mixture, mix.
4. Add soy sauce and mix until all ingredients are incorporated.
5. With clean hands, roll about a tablespoon's worth of mixture into a ball. If it is too dry to stick together, up to 1/2 cup water can be added. (I don't ever have to add water.).
6. Continue to roll mixture into balls, and place onto a greased baking sheet, an inch or two apart. I use a cookie dough scoop to get mine a uniform size.
7. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes (depending on size), until nicely browned.
8. Cool and transfer to container or bag for freezing, or serve hot as desired.
9. (These work well as appetizers, or as part of a main dish with barbecue sauce, brown gravy, vegan stroganoff sauce, or Asian sauces.)

16 chairs!

I have yet to stain the table, but the chairs are all there!  (There are two against the wall that's not visible).  

Ginger Pumpkin Blender Bread

This recipe comes from Blendtec, but any regular blender could handle this list of ingredients.  (My sister made some yesterday with her regular blender.)  I love using my blender with recipes like this - just dump everything, blend, and bake! This bread rises well and bakes up moist and yummy!

This recipe was vegan as is, but you could substitute dairy milk if you really want to.  My sister used almond milk and regular whole wheat flour and reported great results. 

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup soymilk ( or almond, flax, oat, etc.)
• 1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
• 3/4 cup sucanat
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 medium apples, cored and seeded
• 1 tablespoon gingerroot, peeled
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F
2. Add first 8 ingredients to blender and secure lid.
3. For Blendtec users: press “Speed Up” to Speed 5 and allow full cycle to run.
4. For other blender users: blend until thoroughly mixed and apple is pureed.
5. Add the remaining ingredients and secure lid. Press “Pulse” 6-8 times to incorporate dry ingredients.
6. Using a spatula, scrape down sides of jar and add batter to a greased 8”x4” loaf pan.
7. Bake for 40-45 minutes until done.

Cherry-Almond-Poppyseed Muffins

This recipe is from Julie Hasson's "Vegan Diner." They are one of my favorite muffins EVER - vegan, or otherwise. Trust me when I tell you you don't need eggs or dairy milk to create great muffins. Even if you're not vegan, save yourself the fat, calories and cholesterol and give these a try! We eat them for breakfast or snacks. 

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour ( I always use whole wheat pastry flour)
• 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
• 1 tablespoon flax seed meal, preferably golden
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar ( to spoon over tops of muffins, though I omit this)
• 1 cup soymilk, divided
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 teaspoons almond extract ( please, I beg of you, don't use imitation!)
• 2/3 cup dried cherries ( I chop these up a bit so they're not so big)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F Line a 12-cup muffin tray with paper liners or grease well with vegetable shortening or nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, poppy seeds, flax meal, baking powder, and salt, mixing well.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together 3/4 cup sugar, half of the soymilk, canola oil, applesauce, and almond extract, whisking until smooth. Add the flour mixture a little at a time, alternating with the remaining soymilk, whisking until just combined. Stir in the dried cherries.
4. Scoop the batter evenly amongst the 12 cups of the prepared muffin pan and sprinkle remaining tablespoon over sugar over the tops of the muffins.
5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until muffins are just barely golden around the edges and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
6. Let muffins cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, and remove to a rack to cool completely.

Le Menu (November 6-12

Today, we finally actually made the almond asparagus couscous that has been bumped from the menu for the last two weeks.  I didn't think it would be all that tasty, but it was actually very good and all the kids liked it.  I'll make it again sometime.  (If you want the recipe, it's on the previous menu's post.)

Recipes for the dishes with numbers following them can be found on food.com (just enter the number in the search field).  I will try to post Monica's meatless meatball recipe later in the week, as well as the recipe for the blue corn bread.  It's from Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's "Color Me Vegan."  I made and froze it last week, and it looks really yummy, but definitely different!  It has blue corn meal, quinoa and blueberries.

In the meantime, here is my bagel recipe (see Wednesday's lunch).  I made some bagels yesterday and will probably make some more tomorrow.

Authentic New York-Style Homemade Bagels

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups warm water ( 110 to 115*F or 45*C )
• 1 tablespoon dry active yeast
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons malt syrup
• 2 tablespoons malt syrup, for boiling step
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon salt, for boiling step
• 4 1/2 cups unbleached bread flour ( more if needed)

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, stir together water, yeast, and sugar. Let stand for 5 minutes.
2. With a wooden spoon, stir in oil, malt and one cup of the flour. Add salt, then enough of remaining flour to make a stiff dough.
3. On a lightly floured surface, knead for 10 to 12 minutes. Cover with a floured dish towel and allow dough to rest on a board for about 15 minutes.
4. Divide dough into 12 sections and form each section into 10-inch long strips. Roll the ends together to seal and make a ring. Place on a lightly floured surface, cover, and let bagels rest 15 to 20 minutes, rising about halfway and becoming slightly puffy.
5. Meanwhile, fill a large cooking pot or Dutch oven three quarters full with water. Add the malt syrup and salt.
6. Bring water to a boil. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line two large baking sheets with baking parchment and, if desired, sprinkle generously with corn meal. Set aside.
7. Line two other baking sheets with a kitchen towel, set near your stove. Reduce boiling water to a simmer and cook 2 bagels at a time (do not crowd the pot). Simmer bagels for about 45 seconds on one side, then turn and cook other side for another 45 seconds and then drain bagels on the towel-lined baking sheet.

8. Carefully place bagels on the parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake bagels plain or sprinkle with a topping of your choice. Place in the hot oven, immediately reduce heat to 425 degrees F, and bake about 17 to 25 minutes. When almost baked, turn bagels over (a pair of tongs do the job easily). If you have a baking stone, finish bagels on the stone directly. Transfer bagels to wire rack to cool.
9. These freeze well, which helps to retain a just-baked taste, if they aren't all eaten on the first day. To freeze, slice cooled bagels first, place a small strip of plastic between the bagel halves and place in a plastic self-sealing freezer bag. When you're ready for a bagel, they'll come apart easily, ready to pop into the toaster/oven and enjoy.

 

So this is the DINING room!

Remember that commercial?  Something about meals out of a jar that were "fancy" enough to merit eating in the dining room, and the husband marveled at sitting in that little-used space?  Well that's how I'm feeling about mine.  It's so close, I can taste it (no pun intended). 

For nearly 3 years, we haven't been able to use our dining room.  It's been filled with appliances and construction materials, not tables and chairs and people.  I'm still amazed that I can now see out of my windows and not have to climb over piles of boxes to find anything.

The stain for the table should be here Wednesday, so come next weekend, we should be EATING in our dining room.  Assuming, of course, that Hubby gets the other 13 chairs assembled by then...

She knits

Or is it crochets?  I honestly don't know the difference, but thanks to a friend's instruction, L2 is fashioning all sorts of things out of yarn.  Unfortunately, she's a perfectionist, so she's just as often unraveling her works of art to start all over again.  I need to find a grandma who can teach her some mad new skillz.  Knitting and crocheting ability skipped a couple generations in my family. 

These are a few of my favorite (vegan) things... Dairy subs

I haven't written much yet about the logistics of our veganism, but I thought I'd start with a post on things we've found that have made it "easy being green."  I'll cover our dairy replacements first.  :o)

Cheese, glorious cheese!

One HUGE concern for me initially was cheese.  "But the cheese!  How will I ever live without the cheese?!" I felt I could give up meat, eggs, and milk with no problem, but cheese was a deal-breaker.  I even remember telling my sister that I could easily be vegan if not for the cheese thing.  (I've since discovered that nearly everyone says this!)  Whereas I practically could have lived on sharp cheddar dairy cheese (if not for the fact that it was clogging my arteries and leading to my premature demise), we've discovered that different vegan cheeses are best used in a variety of foods, and there is no one "sharp cheddar" that works for all dishes.

Daiya - For anything requiring shredded cheese like pizza, nachos, etc., there is nothing better than Daiya.  While I wouldn't snack on it straight out of the bag (note that my kids will, however!) it's a good-tasting option in these kind of foods as it tastes like cheese and it melts.  It comes in cheddar, mozzarella, and pepper-jack flavors.  (I love the pepper-jack in "crack wraps." A crack wrap is a grilled tortilla filled with a schmear of hummus and some vegan cheese.  Try it.  Trust me.)  Daiya is made from arrowroot and tapioca starch, and is soy-free.  It comes in shreds or block form.  I order it in 5 pound bags from our health food store. 

We Can't Say it's Cheese - This is a line of cheese sauces made by a Montana company.  Their sauces are oatmeal-based, if you can believe it!  For macaroni and cheese, it's our favorite.  The whole family loves it. 

Cashew Cheese - This one seems to have begun with Seventh-Day Adventists, but there are several versions of this recipe around.  The one we use came from - surprise! - an SDA and it's really yummy.  We use it for a nacho cheese-type dip for chips, and it also makes good mac and cheese.  With the addition of agar-agar, it can be formed into a block and sliced.  It's tasty and good for you! 

Follow Your Heart - This is our favorite "slicing cheese."  It's what we'll put on a sandwich, and because it melts well, it's a great choice for grilled cheese sandwiches (though Daiya is, too).  It has a slightly grainy texture when cold, but it's completely smooth and yummy when melted.

Tofutti - This is just OK, but if you want an American cheese slice for grilled cheese sandwiches, it tastes about the same as its dairy counterpart.  We used to buy Galaxy Foods "Veggie Slices," but although they're soy-based, they contain casein.

Dr. Cow and Sheese are two brands we've not been able to find around here, but they're supposed to be really good.  Dr. Cow's are nut-based and come in lots of flavor options.  Sheese is available in England and people rave about it. 

These cheeses have made a huge difference in our adjustment, but we've also found that we simply eat lots less cheese than we used to. 

Creme de la creme: cream cheese, sour cream, whipping cream, creamer, ice cream

Although there are other brands of cream cheese and sour cream, Tofutti and Follow Your Heart are the only ones we've tried.  We all prefer Follow Your Heart because both products contain the right tanginess that is missing from the Tofutti versions.  Tofutti is slightly less expensive, and I think it works best in baking because it's slightly sweeter.  Follow Your Heart sour cream, however, can be plopped onto your potato and their cream cheese schmeared onto your bagel without you feeling someone's playing a cruel joke on you.  They are very close in taste to the dairy versions. 

For whipping cream, the only substitute we've used so far is coconut milk.  You can whip it just like cream, add some sugar, and blop it onto your dessert.  It's HEAVENLY.  We ordered some "MimiCreme" (cashew based) but haven't yet tried it.  I'll post a review when we do, but others say it tastes like Cool Whip.  It is whipped just like a dairy cream.

We aren't coffee drinkers, but I buy soy creamer for recipes.  Since I only cook and bake with them, I can't tell any difference in their taste or performance compared to dairy.  I buy Silk and Wild Wood brands. 

Ice cream is another place we've found a huge variety of offerings with some being better than others.  The most common options are rice milk-based, soy milk-based, and coconut milk-based, but there are some others (like almond milk versions).  Sorbets are also a good option, and I usually buy Ciao Bella.  Our favorite ice creams are the soy and coconut versions, and we usually buy So Delicious, which offers both versions.  Rice Dream is gritty and has an odd taste.

Yogurt 

My only gripe about nondairy yogurt is the cost; they are so expensive.  Soy versions are cheapest, but since I try to limit soy so we can indulge in other soy foods, I usually buy coconut milk yogurt.  We get the So Delicious brand, and it comes in several flavors including plain, vanilla (these two flavors come in larger tubs which comes in handy for smoothie-making), raspberry, strawberry-banana, blueberry, and mango-passion fruit.  I buy vanilla and plain WholeSoy Co yogurt for baking and smoothies, and we also like Amande (almond milk) yogurt.  I've heard great things about Silk's soy yogurts, and I've asked our local Albertsons to special order some so we can try them.  Like I said, I don't want us to get too much soy, but I'd like to give them a try. 

Mayonnaise

If cheese was my pre-vegan hangup, mayo was Hubby's.  In all the years of our marriage, he's been very particular about mayo.  My arguments of, "But this brand was on sale!" always fell on deaf ears.  It had to be Best Foods, and not the olive oil or light varieties, or Heaven forbid, the kind that you squeeze out of the bottle.  I can sum up our sampling of vegan mayos in this way: Follow Your Heart Vegenaise (grapeseed oil version) - Good.  Spectrum Eggless Canola Mayo and Nayonaise - Very, very bad.  And I kid you not, hubby says he prefers Vegenaise to Best Foods.  Miracle of miracles.  

Milk

Our family is all over the place with this one, but you know what?  All the nondairy milks cost about the same, and because of aseptic, shelf-stable cartons, it's easy for me to provide for everyone's preference.  I buy 'em all!

Flax milk - This is by far my personal favorite, and most of the family will happily drink this when it's around or if we're out of their favorite.  Flax milk is just slightly sweet, smooth and creamy, and it has a great taste.  I was never one to chug a glass of milk (not since I was 16, anyway), but I will actually drink a glass of this on occasion, in addition to putting it on cereal.  One cup has only 50 calories, and it supplies a big percentage of our Omega-3 requirements.  And look ma, no cow pus or antibiotics!  ;o)  I buy FlaxUSA Flaxmilk at Walmart, of all places. 

Rice Milk - This one seems to be the favorite of the older kids in the family.  Nutritionally, it's higher in sugar and lower in other nutrients than some other options, but it's fortified with vitamins A, D and B-12, making it a really good option for vegans/vegetarians.  It's rather thin, so I don't like to use it for cooking, but the taste is good and I can store cartons of it in the cupboard.  We buy the organic Rice Dream from Walmart.

Coconut Milk - Two of our kids vastly prefer coconut milk, so this is another one I keep on hand.  There are a few brands, but we buy Silk Coconut Milk from Walmart (refrigerated) and I also buy coconut milk powder that I can use for baking.  So Delicious makes a shelf stable version.

Soy Milk - We don't drink soy milk in the mornings, but I do buy small cartons of vanilla and chocolate soy milk for the kids' school lunches.  I get either Silk or Pacific Foods brands, both of which come to us on the Amazon Subscribe and Save program.  For baking, soy milk is really good option, so I keep a couple of half-gallons in the fridge.  I buy Walmart's or Costco's organic versions, and I also have some shelf stable brands in the cupboard. 

Almond Milk - None of us likes drinking plain almond milk, but I do keep some on hand because it's called for in some recipes.  We do like the chocolate version, though, and I buy individual cartons for the kids' lunches through Amazon's Subscribe and Save program.  The brand we get it Pacific Foods. 

Oat Milk - This is another of our family favorites.  The brownish color is a little off-putting at first, but it tastes YUMMY and is especially good on - you guessed it! - oatmeal!  This is another Pacific Foods offering.  We get it either in the big city (two hours from us) or order it from Amazon.  They sell it at the local health food store, but it's twice as much there. 

Hemp Milk - and finally, I thought I'd include the one that didn't make the cut.  We wanted to like hemp milk, because nutritionally, it's got a lot going for it, but yuck.  It's just nasty. 

So that's it for dairy!  All in all, we're not feeling too deprived.  :o)