Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Tempeh Toss

From "The Garden of Vegan"-pg. 145:

As you can see, I didn't use tempeh. I have tried tempeh before and I love the taste and texture but wouldn't ya know, I would be allergic to it. I'm sensitive to foods that have been fermented like tempeh. I used firm tofu but it still crumbled up a little. I served this over brown rice and doctored mine up with some sriracha hot chili sauce and Braggs. The recipe called for 1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes but that wasn't hot enough for me! Next time I might try using Gardein Homestyle Beefless Tips.

Apple Pie Pancakes~pg. 38

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I have made these pancakes before and I forgot how good they were! I used spelt flour as Sarah suggested; an awesome nutrition packed substitute for plain white wheat flour. They were especially delicious with Earth Balance margarine and maple syrup. I'll try to remember to make these more often.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Wolffie's Fiesta Macaroni Bean Salad~pg. 73;Creamy Fiesta Dressing~pg. 91

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I have made this salad several times and taken it to parties. I always get asked for the recipe. Of course I never can wait to chill the salad before I have to eat it! I had some black beans left over so I threw those in with the kidney beans.

I just got back from the gym (first time in 3 months after a back injury) and I thought I could use a healthy helping of some carbs. I ate my macaroni salad on top of some baby spinach; need to get the greens in!

Monday, November 28, 2011

Danica's Popcorn Balls~pg. 65

This recipe took me right back to my childhood. My mom would always make popcorn balls; she would make them different colors and add different flavors in them. We could hardly wait until they cooled off to eat them. After making these popcorn balls and consulting with my mom the sauce should have cooked to a hard-crack stage (300 degrees) before adding to popcorn.  These turned out more like a chewy caramel popcorn ball. I like mine crunchy so next time I'm getting a candy thermometer and doing 'em right! They still tasted good though, and it won't stop me from eating them.

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Emily's "Meat" Loaf~pg. 166; Carmelized Onion & Fennel Mashed Potatoes

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I have this recipe permanently marked in my cookbook. I have made it several times; I use it when I miss having 'real' meatloaf. I like when people ask me if I can eat meat. My answer is "yes, I can eat meat, I just choose not to eat meat." I grew up eating meat and potatoes, cooking meat and potatoes and I still crave meat and potatoes. I chose to give up the meat for the animals, for the environment and for my health. I remind myself of that whenever I think about eating meat again. But I still eat potatoes!! I used a recipe in "The Garden of Vegan", pg. 116-Carmelized Onion & Fennel Mashed Potatoes. A tasty alternative to plain mashed potatoes.

Roasted Carrot Coconut Soup~pg. 112

This was a light, refreshing soup. The lime juice and lemongrass added a citrusy flavor. I have never seen fresh lemongrass in my grocery store so I used 3/4 tsp. dried. I have a gallon jar of dried lemongrass which I use when I'm making my herb teas. I also had some turnip left over from something we made last week so I added a cup of diced turnip to my roasting vegetables. And the soup has my favorite ingredient~cilantro! I know how Joel loves cilantro; I'm sure he'll use extra (or maybe not!!)

Mama Mayhem's Perfectly Easy No-Bake Cookies~pg. 220

Not much to say about these. They were so-so; won't be making these again.

Saturday, November 26, 2011

December Calendar of Recipes for Challenge

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge
December 2011

Thu. 12/01: Cold Coconut Curried Noodle Salad-80
Fri. 12/02: Wolffie’s Cow Pies-205
Sat. 12/03: Catch-Up Weekend
Sun. 12/04: Catch-Up Weekend
Mon. 12/05: Choice of salad and French Dressing-92
Tue. 12/06: Gingerbread Cookies-217
Wed. 12/07: Cranberry Pumpkin Cookies-219
Thu. 12/08: Nana’s Pesto Pinwheel Rolls-55
Fri. 12/09: Pumpkin Tofu Cheesecake-244
Sat. 12/10: Rene’s Tomato Soup Spice Cake-246; Rene’s Vanilla Frosting-260
Sun. 12/11: Veggie Pot Pie-153; Merciful Miso Gravy-182
Mon. 12/12: Yam Pecan Bake-189
Tue. 12/13: On the Run Breakfast Smoothie-53
Wed. 12/14: Peacefrog’s Artichoke Heart Pasta-133
Thu. 12/15: Mashed Potatoes with Kalamata Olives-192
Fri. 12/16: Santa’s Favorite Christmas Bread-241
Sat. 12/17: Tomato Walnut Crusted Fried ‘Chicken’-172;
                 (add Basic Baking Powder Biscuits-271)
Sun. 12/18: Choice of Pasta & Red Lentil Sauce-182
Mon. 12/19: Hayley’s Lemon Cranberry Muffins-274
Tue. 12/20: Cranberry Almond Pecan Granola-48
Wed. 12/21: Chunky Vegetable Chowder-120
Thu. 12/22: Vesanto’s Choco-Currant Cranberry Squares-64
Fri. 12/23: Free Day
Sat. 12/24: Free Day
Sun. 12/25: Banana Pecan Pancakes-39
Mon. 12/26: Wolffie’s Southwestern Corn Casserole-169
Tue. 12/27: BBQ Popcorn-67
Wed. 12/28: Tara’s Chocolate Cake-250; Toronto Tara’s Chocolate Frosting-261
Thu. 12/29: Coconut Curry Red Lentil Soup-106
Fri. 12/30: Spiced Potato Salad-89
Sat. 12/31: Catch-Up Weekend
 

Friday, November 25, 2011

Cool, Autumn Morning!

My four precious animal companions enjoying a cool, autumn morning!
(l to r-Lily, JoJo, Jet and Penny)

'Poultry' Seasoning

Well, first I must say I'm glad I don't have to use this on poultry. It needs a better name. This recipe comes from Herb Mixtures & Spicy Blends. I cut the recipe in half and it still makes 2 1/4 cups; so I like to give small jars of it as gifts.

1 C. dried parsley
1/2 C. dried sage, crumbled
1/4 C. dried summer savory
1/4 C. dried rosemary
1/8 C. dried celery flakes
1/8 C. dried marjoram
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. dried onion powder
         Combine herbs & seasonings thoroughly; and store in airtight container in a dark place away from heat.

Faux Turkey~pg. 289; Cranberry Sauce~pg. 299

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

My Faux Turkey simmering in the broth. I didn't add the 1/2 tsp. salt because the broth is always salty enough with the nutritional yeast and tamari. I also replaced the onion powder, sage and thyme with my poultry seasoning I make. I posted the recipe in "Seasonings". I am going to freeze the 'turkey' for later use. We're still eating leftover Tofurky from Thanksgiving yesterday. I roasted the Tofurky with butternut squash, potatoes, carrots and onions. I wish I would have taken a picture; it looked delicious and tasted delicious, too.

I served this cranberry sauce with my Tofurky. I really liked the golden raisins and walnuts in it. The recipe called for apple cider vinegar which I thought was weird but it tasted great.

Shook 'N' Cook Breading~pg. 56; Shook 'N' Cook Zucchini~pg. 57

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I doubled the recipe on the breading because I know we will use it several times.


Oh, yes; I did eat this whole pan by myself. Well, it was only one zucchini! I made the Caesar salad dressing it called for in the recipe (it's not my favorite) but it was okay using it to coat the zucchini before shaking in the breading mixture. The next time I make the Shook 'N' Cook Breading I think I will decrease the salt; it seemed a little salty to me.

Adam's Black Bean & Corn Salad~pg. 74

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I've made variations of this salad over the years and this is a good one. I like the lime juice in it and I'm always a fan of cilantro ( I added an extra 1/8 C. cilantro to mine!) I did cut down on the oil as 1/3 C. seemed like a lot. A quick and easy dish to prepare.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Lindsey's Peanut Butter Cupcakes~pg. 239

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I don't know why these are called 'peanut butter' cupcakes. They were more like banana cupcakes; maybe because I used an extra large banana in mine. Either way, they were still great!

I think I better send these to work with my husband; too dangerous to have around the house!

Frenchie Onion Soup~pg. 191; Easy French Bread~pg. 269

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:


I have made this before and it is still delicious! I used "Better Than Bouillon No Beef Base" to give it a richer taste. But I added way too many onions. The recipe calls for 4 medium onions; I used 3 and it was still too many. We must grow 'em big out here! I strained the leftovers and threw away a bowlful of cooked onions. I'll remember that for next time and just use 1 regular onion. I don't like to put my bread in the soup so I served it on the side.  I made "Easy French Bread" on page 269 and it is easy and yummy. Nothing better than homemade bread hot from the oven. I love kneading the dough; it gets all my stress out!

Look at that awesome loaf of French bread!

I sliced the rest of the bread we didn't eat for supper and froze the slices on a cookie sheet. Then I put them in a freezer bag and I can take out just the amount of slices I need.

I broiled the French bread after spreading it with Earth Balance margarine, topped with garlic powder and Daiya mozzarella style shreds. I didn't eat all those onions in that soup!

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Baked Chili with Cornbread Biscuit Topping~pg. 173

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:


Excellent! Love this recipe-it does make alot though. I might try to freeze some in portions. I've never put cocoa powder or molasses in my chili before; it gives it a richer flavor along with the chili powder.

The Garden of Vegan Recipes

These are the recipes from The Garden of Vegan I am using to fill in on days we just make desserts or as an addition to what we are making:
11/27:  Carmelized Onions & Fennel Mashed Potatoes-pg. 116
12/02:  Christina's Vegetable Curry-pg. 148
12/03:  Green Bean & Fennel Toss-pg. 115
12/04:  Simply Lovely Quinoa-pg. 163 and Swiss Chard & Garlic-pg. 118
12/05:  Tofu Chimichangas-pg. 162 and Becky's Pico de Gallo-pg. 131
12/06:  Curried Vegetable Pie with Chickpea Crust-pg. 158
12/09:  Home-Style Green Pea Soup-pg. 82

That's all I have planned for now!

Marc's Magnificent Noodles

The Garden of Vegan~pg. 155:

 I didn't really feel like cooking supper but I made this and it was so easy-only 6 ingredients and it was quick to make and soooo good. It had soba noodles (which I love), garlic, miso, flax oil, baby spinach and green onion. The recipe called for 3 garlic cloves which are used raw in the sauce. Whew! I think we'll be keeping  some vampires away a few days! Next time I might saute' the garlic or decrease the amount. But it was still delicious. My husband asked if it had butter in it; nooo, that is the flax oil and miso!

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Sharon's Black Pepper Coffee Cake~pg. 249

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:


Don't worry-no black pepper in here! Just a good old-fashioned coffee cake. The author of this recipe had never made a cake and thought B.P. stood for black pepper instead of baking powder. Needless to say, her boyfriend got one spicy cake. This was quick and easy to make for a quick, sweet treat. My husband couldn't even wait for it to cool down; he asked me if I had gotten my pictures taken and then he dug in!

Friday, November 18, 2011

Country Turnip Carrot Soup

From The Garden of Vegan ~pg. 81:


The picture doesn't do this soup justice. It is delicious; especially now that the weather is finally cooling off. It is chock full of turnips, carrots, potatoes and leeks. I served it with "Wolffie's 'Buttermilk' Cornbread" from La Dolce Vegan (my favorite-ever-cornbread). I'm not printing these recipes because you need to buy the cookbook! All of Sarah Kramer's cookbooks are excellent. I use them the most out of all my approx. 50 vegan cookbooks! Alot of the cookbooks use too many ingredients, unfamiliar or hard to find ingredients, are too time consuming or make too many servings so I usually go back to Sarah Kramer's cookbooks! On the days we just make a dessert I'm going to fill in with some of her recipes from her other cookbooks; it takes alot of guesswork out of what to make for supper!

Mama Mayhem's Tofu Extravaganza~pg. 160

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:


I am so glad I tried making this again because the first time I made it I wasn't too impressed. I halved the recipe but mistakenly added 2 Tbsp. of nutritional yeast and it turned out fantastic! I also made sure to mince all the ingredients very fine including the walnuts. I didn't make my own mayonnaise; I used my favorite Vegenaise. I toasted some Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Whole Grain Bread and topped it with the mixture and ate it for breakfast! Quick and easy high protein meal.

My Adoption is Final!

Isn't she beautiful? Her name is Amelinda. She lives at the Farm Sanctuary in Orland, CA. I adopted her through adoptaturkey.org. She is healthy, happy and. . . alive! 

My contribution every year to our family Thanksgiving dinner is bringing the Tofurky!
Have a happy, healthy, compassionate holiday everyone!

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Cumin Fried Potatoes~pg. 192

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I love cumin so these potatoes with cumin seed were really good. I wanted something else to go with them so I found a recipe out of The Garden of Vegan, Sarah Kramer & Tanya Barnard's previous cookbook.

Chickpeas & Swiss Chard
(The Garden of Vegan~pg. 117)

I had never tried swiss chard before but I saw some good looking organic rainbow swiss chard at the grocery store so I brought it home. Sorry kale, swiss chard is my new favorite greens! I served it on top of the Cumin Fried Potatoes with a dash of liquid Braggs.




Fruity Fruit Squares~pg. 215

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I used a frozen mix of strawberries, raspberries and blackberries. This was a little tart and tangy! It could have used some vegan vanilla ice cream. Maybe next time I'll add more sugar in the fruit mixture.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Cinnamon-Spiced Roasted Veggies with Couscous~pg. 139

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

Mmm, I love the smell of roasting veggies; especially when they have cinnamon, coriander and cumin on them!



The butternut squash and sweet potato tastes delicious with the couscous.

Monday, November 14, 2011

Faux Ham~pg. 286; Basic Instant Gluten~pg. 284

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

Whoo Hoo! I have created an alternative to the scalloped potatoes (cow milk) & ham (pig) I always used to make.

I sliced my faux ham into chunks before simmering in the broth. For the scalloped potatoes I made a basic white sauce and added chopped onions. Here is the recipe:

1/4 C vegan margarine
1/2 C chopped onion
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
3 C. unsweetened soymilk
6 peeled, sliced russet potatoes
salt & pepper to taste
       Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil baking dish. Melt margarine in large skillet and saute' onions until translucent. Whisk in flour until bubbling then whisk in soymilk. Cook until thickened; stirring occasionally. Add salt & pepper to taste. Layer 1/2 of the sliced potatoes and 1/2 of the faux ham in baking dish. Repeat. Pour white sauce evenly over potatoes and faux ham. Cover dish with foil and bake for 45-60 minutes. It is done when potatoes can be easily poked with a fork.


Okay, this will be one of my go-to recipes from now on!


Hot & Sour Soup~pg. 104

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

This was surprisingly delicious! I tend to stay away from recipes that call for mushrooms. My husband really does not like to eat them so I made this for lunch. I had never tried oyster mushrooms before; they tasted good and I loved the sweet/sour/hot taste of the soup.

Friday, November 11, 2011

Double Chocolate Muffins~pg. 236


These definitely didn't need chocolate frosting as was suggested in the recipe. One cup of cocoa powder and one cup of chocolate chips made these delicious and moist on their own.

Punk-kin Pasta~pg. 128



I just can't get past using pumpkin in a savory dish. It wasn't horrible but I probably won't make this again. For the veggie sausage I used Litelife Gimme Lean Ground Sausage which gave it a nice, spicy flavor. The sauce was really thick so I ended up using 1 cup of vegetable broth to thin it out. 

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Wolffie's Dijon Maple Dressing~pg. 97

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge



I liked the flavor of this dressing; it had a sweetness to it due to the maple syrup. It reminded me of a mild version of french dressing.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Debbie's Peanut Butter Coconut Squares~pg. 203

Anything with peanut butter AND chocolate is fine by me!

I like this version because the addition of corn flakes and coconut along with the rice crispies gives it a richer flavor and better texture.

Curry Almond Burgers~pg. 160

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge: (There is no Vegan Culinary Institute website so I'm not going to reference it anymore. If it gets up and running again then I will gladly give it credit. We're on our own, baby!)

As you can see my burgers fell apart! So I just ad-libbed and turned them into "Hot Sloppy Curry". I made an 'off the top of my head' sauce of 2 Tbsp. apricot fruit spread, 1 Tbsp. tamari and 2 tsp. sriracha hot chili sauce. Tastes mighty fine! You could use less hot chili sauce depending on how spicy you like it.

I really like the taste of these curry 'burgers'. It will be easier when I make them again not messing with trying to form burgers.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Veggie Goulash~pg. 140

Vegan Culinary Institute La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

Bubbling away on the stove!


Sorry it's messy I was hungry!

I added some minced shallots to my chopped onion because I hate to waste food and it looked so lonely in my crisper! I also used a can of tri-blend beans (kidney, pinto, black) instead of just pinto beans. I sprinkled a good helping of No-Salt Shaker (pg. 303) on top and ta-da~ my favorite starch to serve it over~quinoa!

Eat one cup of quinoa (a single serving size), and you’ll consume:
  • 220 calories (70 percent carbs, 15 percent fat, 15 percent protein)
  • 40 grams of carbohydrates (13 percent daily value)
  • 8 grams of protein (16 percent of daily value)
  • 3.5 grams of fat (5 percent daily value with no saturated fat)
  • A glycemic load (blood sugar spike) of only 18 out of 250
  • 5 grams of fiber (20 percent of daily value)
  • 20 percent of daily value of folate (various forms of Vitamin B)
  • 30 percent of magnesium daily value (beneficial for people with migraine headaches); 28 percent daily value of phosphorous; iron (15 percent); copper (18 percent); and manganese (almost 60 percent)
Quinoa is stocked with life-sustaining nutrients all across the board, including all eight essential amino acids. There are other highly beneficial compounds, vitamins and minerals in this food that the Incas reverently called "chisaya mama" (mother of all grains). www.mnn.com/food/healthy-eating/stories/quinoa-nutrition-facts

Oatmeal Pumpkin Muffins with Walnut Streusel Topping

I had the rest of a can of pumpkin bouncing around in my freezer and I saw this recipe in VegNews-Oct. 2011 so I just had to make it. We eat alot of muffins for breakfast and I refuse to feel guilty! I really don't have to feel guilty because I am not using the embryos of unborn chickens or taking the milk out of the mouth of a calf. (Sorry, got up on my soapbox a little bit there!) Well, anyway~here is a delectable muffin from Jennifer Whiteford of the "It Ain't Meat Babe" blog.


Exta delicious slathered with Earth Balance margarine!

Makes 12 muffins
For the streusel topping:
1/4 C flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp allspice
2 Tbsp brown sugar
3/4 C chopped walnuts
1 Tbsp safflower oil ( I used canola oil)
For the muffins:
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
3/4 C soymilk
1 C rolled oats
3/4 C canned pumpkin
1 1/4 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp finely grated fresh ginger ( I used 1 tsp "The Ginger People Organic Minced Ginger" in the jar)
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 C safflower oil (used canola oil)
1/2 C packed brown sugar
1/4 C applesauce

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees & place paper liners (or grease) the cups of a 12 cup muffin pan. In small bowl, mix all streusel ingredients. Set aside.
2. In medium bowl, add vinegar to soymilk. Once milk curdles, add oats & pumpkin. Set aside. In separate medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger (if using jarred ginger add to oats & pumpkin mixture),  nutmeg and allspice.
3. To oatmeal mixture, add safflower oil (canola oil), brown sugar and applesauce and stir well. Mix dry ingredients into wet and stir to just combine. Divide batter evenly into muffin tins and top with streusel topping. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Seaweed Soup~pg. 104

Vegan Culinary Institute La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I would always pass by this recipe when browsing through my cookbook but it pays to try new things! This is absolutely delicious. I don't like the smell of the dried seaweed but after you simmer it in the broth it is wonderful. The lime juice really brings out the flavor of everything; I even added extra lime juice on my serving (well, I ate 3/4 of the pot!)


I had to take a picture of the dried seaweed strips; they looked so pretty.



After I took a photo I used scissors to snip the noodles into pieces to make it easier to eat. Now I know what to do with the remaining sheets of nori seaweed I have; make more soup! It's great with some cubed tofu added to it also. 

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Wolffie's Eggnog Muffins~pg. 273

I know we were supposed to make 'Seaweed Soup' on Friday but for some reason I just keep putting it off! I promise I will make it tomorrow but today I made Wolffie's Eggnog Muffins which weren't on our calendar to make. If you can find soy eggnog in the stores now you should really try to make these muffins. They are yummy! They have 1 1/4 C. eggnog plus 1 tsp. nutmeg and 1/2 tsp. ginger in the ingredients and they smell wonderful baking. I love the nutmeg flavor and they are not too sweet.

Hot from the oven!

I think I will make these a seasonal must have muffin!