Smoky Collard Greens (Chard) with Vegan Bacon ~ pg. 281

VegCookbookClub August recipes from Betty Goes Vegan by Annie & Dan Shannon:

Aww~I missed posting on my 2nd year blog anniversary yesterday. Well Happy Anniversary to me today! I know I just have a basic simple blog but it serves my purposes well. I originally started it to join in the La Dolce Vegan Challenge and cook through that cookbook in a year. I made almost all of the recipes! Now I use the blog as a way to keep track of what I've cooked and to easily find a recipe by looking up an ingredient and what cookbook it came from. It also helps me stay accountable to what I put into my mouth! So, here's to another year of great vegan cooking! 

I was so excited to try this recipe because I love collard greens. Well, I had all my ingredients ready and grabbed the bag of greens out of the fridge. After unwrapping them I discovered I had inadvertently picked up green chard at the store instead of the collard greens. Duh! I decided to try this anyway and I had great results. Of course the chard doesn't need to boil for 30 minutes like the collard greens so I adjusted the recipe directions. 

I sauteed the onion, spices and my Pig Out Bacony Bits in the olive oil first and then added the chard and 1 tsp. lemon juice (I didn't have any white wine). 

These are crunchy little bacony tasting bits!

Since the chard didn't have the bulk of the collard greens there was plenty of seasoning on these. I didn't need to add any more salt or pepper. I'm glad I had chard instead of the collard greens. What a happy mistake. I found a new way to cook chard now! Delicious!

Smoky Green Chard with Vegan Bacon, roasted asparagus, Gardein Chik'n Scallopini and loaded baked potatoes (Earth Balance margarine, Daiya cheddar, vegan sour cream, chopped green onions and Bac-o's.)

I used this awesome seasoning on my roasted asparagus. This is made locally here in Arizona. The Slavo Salt tastes great on everything! 

Toffee Bars ~ pg. 309

VegCookbookClub August recipes from Betty Goes Vegan by Annie & Dan Shannon:

I'm a sucker for anything that has the word 'toffee' in it! These won't disappoint. The recipe calls for dark chocolate chips but I had vegan semi-sweet chips I used instead. I think I needed to chill these out in the fridge before I tried cutting them but I couldn't wait! Also, the recipe states that it makes 6 bars; that's a typo. I believe it should say 16 bars because I cut mine up into 8 bars and they were still quite large. 

Buttery, sweet, salty, crunchy, chewy, chocolatey~what more could you want?!

The Incredible Green Monstah Casserole ~ pg. 166

VegCookbookClub August recipes from Betty Goes Vegan by Annie & Dan Shannon:

Yum! I could eat this with a little salad dressing just as it is. I think a better name for this dish is "Everything But the Kitchen Sink" casserole or "Clean Out the Fridge and Freezer" casserole! I know the recipe calls for whole wheat pasta shells; I've tried and tried to like them but I just can't do it. The same with gluten-free pasta - yuch! If I'm going to eat pasta it will be good old-fashioned 'white' macaroni.

I prefer to make my own seasonings and spice blends but she keeps referring to this particular blend. I always see it on the shelf at the grocery store so this time I finally bought it. It's got a nice spicy kick with the red and black pepper and chili powder in it.

I'm glad I followed the directions and used my big lasagna pan because this makes a Huge amount. We will be eating leftovers for a few days! I don't think this would freeze very well. I might have to try a little and see how it defrosts. I had to add just a little Daiya cheddar and mozzarella on top.

The sauce for this is quite tasty. The addition of the liquid smoke really brings out all the flavors. I garnished my pasta with some chopped green onions. 

Mini Pumpkin Spice Doughnuts ~ pg. 336

VegCookbookClub August recipes from Betty Goes Vegan by Annie & Dan Shannon:

Ok, the first attempt to make donuts was Not a Success!! I was so intrigued by all the doughnut recipes she has in the cookbook and the beautiful doughnut pictures that I even bought some mini and regular size doughnut pans. The recipe says it makes 2 dozen donuts so I thought great! I'll buy 2 pans and get them baked all at once. But oh no, the recipe made enough for 4 dozen donuts! I tried using a plastic pastry bag that I cut the end off of and that was the gloopiest mess I have ever made with a batter. She said to fill the doughnut rings halfway full so I did. Then I baked them 5 minutes-in between the 4 to 6 minutes recommended. Not enough; added another minute; nope; another minute; ugh. After 8 minutes these were still doughy and gummy inside. Hmmm! The only thing I can think of that I did wrong is my arrowroot powder was really old. Other than that, I don't know. I'm not going to waste any more ingredients making the glaze for these. So, I'm going to try a different doughnut recipe (and maybe some new arrowroot powder) she has and see if I have better results. 

Strawberry and Cream Quinoa Porridge ~ pg. 47

VegCookbookClub August recipes from Betty Goes Vegan by Annie & Dan Shannon:

Sweet, creamy and comforting. I added some more soymilk to eat this as it thickened up a little. Makes enough for another breakfast. 

The sign of perfectly cooked porridge~a trashed stove! hehe

Corned Beefless Brisket and Cabbage ~ pg. 147

VegCookbookClub August recipes from Betty Goes Vegan by Annie & Dan Shannon:

This is the first recipe I wanted to try when I got this book several months ago and now I'm finally making it. It reminded me of the corned beef and cabbage my mom used to make for us; especially the picture next to page 160 (except the corned beef was a reddish color!) 

Warning-this is not a quick fix meal. Those are my kind of recipes but I just had to try this. I've never bought pickling spice before. It has mustard seed, cinnamon, ginger, bay leaf, red pepper, caraway, allspice, black pepper, coriander and cloves-wow! Very fragrant; I kept wanting to smell the bundle of spices and then I would start sneezing. Duh. The recipe calls for dumping the spices right into the marinating beefless tips and also into the broth and veggies. My mom suggested I put them in cheesecloth and I agreed. I didn't feel like chewing on coriander seeds, etc. This idea worked really well. The flavors mingled with the ingredients and didn't leave any chunks of spice behind. 

cabbage, red potatoes and red onion

Corned Beefless Brisket and Cabbage

I garnished the dish with salt, pepper and balsamic vinegar like the recipe suggested and it tasted delicious. The pickling spices and vegan beef broth gave the veggies a nice spicy, sweet, rich flavor. It is somewhat reminiscent of Mom's corned beef and cabbage but will never be quite the same. My hubby really liked this-he said it's a real "meat and potatoes" meal. Score!

Blueberry Banana Bread Pancakes ~ pg. 41

VegCookbookClub August recipes from Betty Goes Vegan by Annie & Dan Shannon:

Nothing like the aroma of banana scented pancakes on the griddle! A late morning breakfast today. I keep overripe bananas in the freezer for recipes like this. The batter was quite thick; you can't pour it onto your griddle. I scooped some out and spread the batter out with the back of a spoon. You don't need much maple syrup as the banana and blueberries give these some natural sweetness. Two of these pancakes and you're ready to start the day. The recipe made about nine pancakes so I froze the rest for easy future breakfasts.

Spiced Apple Waffles ~ pg. 39

VegCookbookClub August recipes from Betty Goes Vegan by Annie & Dan Shannon:

I hadn't made waffles in a long time so I dug in the cupboard and pulled out my waffle iron. These babies will keep you going all day! Whole wheat flour, applesauce and cinnamon make these really tasty. The batter was quite thick and the waffles are kind of dense. Probably from using straight whole wheat flour. I would like to try these again and use only half whole wheat and maybe a little more soymilk to thin out the batter. They were still good with lots of Earth Balance margarine and maple syrup and some extra applesauce spread on top! 

Cooking In the Cabin

Our cozy little cabin in Sedona. It's been in our family for over 40 years! My hubby and I have been working hard as she's been neglected the last few years. We've spent many hours giving this old girl lots of TLC! 

Cooking in the cabin is an adventure. Lots of vintage cookware and utensils; I had to update a few of them. The stove is half functioning as the gas stovetop works but the oven doesn't. So any meals I cook right now are one-pot meals. 

Here is the extent of counter space I have for cooking. Just enough room for my cutting board and ingredients. My hubby installed the undercounter light this time. It was a black hole before and you took your life in your hands trying to chop veggies in the semi-dark! 

I brought a couple of cookbooks; Sarah Kramer's Vegan A Go-Go and an extra copy of How It All Vegan. I ordered another copy of La Dolce Vegan (my favorite cookbook) to keep at the cabin. And my three ring notebook with copies of some of my favorite recipes. I didn't want to try any new recipes from the Veg Cookbook Club cookbook this month. I'll save that for more familiar and larger surroundings. 

From Vegan A Go-Go I made Creamy Curried Veggies. 

A mixture of cauliflower, carrots, onions, cremini mushrooms,coconut milk and lots of curry powder and spices. The recipe called for peas but I used edamame instead. I served this over soba noodles and garnished it with chopped cilantro. Mmm, mmm! This made plenty for leftovers. There is an awesome natural foods store in Sedona- "New Frontiers". I'm in heaven as soon as I walk in the door! All the organic veggies you could ever want and anything else you can think of. I even got to finally try some Daiya Havarti Wedge cheese. Yum! The only Daiya I can get where I live is the shredded. 

The other recipe I made was Smoky Tomato & Kale Soup from VegNews-Nov/Dec 2012 magazine.

This makes a big old pot o' soup! 

Onions, garlic, chili powder, cumin, coriander, oregano, yellow potatoes, canned tomatoes, quinoa and kale makes a hearty, filling soup. We ate leftovers a couple of times and then I froze the rest and brought it home for a future quick meal.

I served the soup with some sourdough garlic bread toasted in my new toaster oven.

Can't wait for more adventures in "Cooking in the Cabin!"

Breakfast Tacos (Scramble) ~ pg. 35

VegCookbookClub August recipes from Betty Goes Vegan by Annie & Dan Shannon:

I was hungry for a big old breakfast with some tofu scramble, hash browns and toast. BGV has a couple different recipes for tofu scramble but this was the easiest and I had all the ingredients. She uses the filling in tacos but it tastes just as delicious with hash browns. I sauteed the red bell pepper along with my spices and then added the tofu. Of course I had to top the scramble with cilantro and avocado. Great breakfast!

Zucchini Apple Bread ~ pg. 326

VegCookbookClub August recipes from Betty Goes Vegan by Annie & Dan Shannon:

I'm so excited we're cooking out of this cookbook this month! I don't know why it appeals to me so. Maybe it reminds me of my grandma and mom and watching and helping them cook in their kitchens. And I love the movie Julie/Julia. It just makes me want to cook through the entire book! We're heading to Sedona again but I'm taking this cookbook with me and try and do some cooking or at least enjoy reading through all of the delightful stories and recipes.

I wanted to make some bread to honor Lammas, the first of the season's harvest festivals and this recipe sounded perfect. It has zucchini, Granny Smith apple, applesauce, walnuts and uses whole wheat flour.

I used the convection setting on my oven for a cool kitchen and these loaves still took almost an hour to bake. I cooled them completely and then wrapped them in foil like she suggested and stored them in the refrigerator. After they chilled, I sliced the loaves. Moist and delicious, and it is better if you keep these in the fridge. I love the addition of the Granny Smith apple for a little bit of texture and extra flavor.

Even my grandsons loved this bread and got their veggies, too!

Polenta Casserole ~ pg. 138

VegCookbookClub July recipes from eat, drink & be vegan by Dreena Burton:

Another easy-to-make casserole. I've never used polenta before so I bought a tube to try this recipe. It calls for grated polenta so I chilled the tube in the refrigerator so it would be easier to grate. I like recipes where I can use the whole can of whatever and this called for 2 1/2 C cooked beans and 1 C tomato sauce. I got daring and used 2 whole cans of beans (1 15 oz. can tri-blend of kidney, black and pinto and 1 15 oz. can of cannellini) and 1 15 oz. can of tomato sauce. Hey, it worked out just fine! Instead of the fresh thyme I used 1/2 tsp. dried. The casserole tasted kind of like chili and cornbread. The polenta could have been a little crispier on top; next time I'll broil it a few minutes.

I served the Polenta Casserole with a fresh green salad and Sauteed Chard from Crazy Sexy Kitchen.