Veganmofo: Comfort Food

Tonight we are having a big bowl of comfort food- mashed potatoes. Neil received a big bag of potatoes from a guy at work and now we have to use them. The plan is to make some yummy Montreal Chicken Spice Mashed (rather whipped) Potatoes. They will then be topped with vegan gravy, french fried onions and to add a little green we will have some salt and pepper roasted brussel sprouts on the side. I know not the most well balanced meal but we have been craving something warm, creamy and comforting in these last few cold and rainy days in VT.

Vegan Gravy (adapted from Vegetarian Gravy on http://www.vegcooking.com/)
3 Tbsp. Earth Balance
3 Tbsp. corn starch
2 1/2 cups vegetable stock (I like to use Veggie Better than Boullion)
3 Tbsp. dark soy sauce salt and pepper to taste
• Heat the oil in a saucepan and add the cornstarch. Stir over moderate heat for a few minutes until the flour turns brown.
• Pour in the water or stock and stir slightly until thickened. Simmer for 10 minutes, then add the soy sauce and a little seasoning to taste, if desired

For the Potatoes:
4 potatoes, diced
3/4 cup soy milk
2 Tbsp. margarine
1 T Montreal Chicken Spice (trust me makes all the difference)

Cook the potatoes and then add the remaining ingredients and whip with electric beaters.

For the Brussels sprouts:
1 bag frozen sprouts (fresh if you can)
1t salt
1/2t pepper
4 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• Defrost sprouts slightly and then cut them in half, arrange in a baking dish, and set aside.
• Mix the salt, pepper, and olive oil and pour the mixture over the Brussels sprouts. Bake in a preheated oven for about 25 to 30 minutes at 375 degrees F. Turn after about 15 minutes to ensure even cooking.
Makes 4 servings

Veganmofo: Dinner Tonight

Sesame Soy Curls with Asparagus and Roasted Garlic Couscous

Adapted from http://veganyumyum.com/2008/05/sesame-soy-curls-with-asparagus-and-quinoa/

Serves Four

1 package Dry Soy curls

2 Tbs Oil

2 Cloves Garlic, minced

2t chili flakes (I like mine spicy)

1 box frozen asparagus

2 Tbs Sugar

5 Tbs Soy Sauce/Tamari

2 Tbs Rice Vinegar

2 tsp Toasted Sesame Oil

Sesame Seeds for garnish.

Place soy curls in a bowl and cover with boiling/near boiling water. Let sit for 10 minutes or so to re-hydrate. Once hydrated, squeeze out any remaining liquid.
Heat a wok over high heat and add oil. Add soy curls and stir-fry until browned. Remove curls from the wok and add garlic, chili and veggies (using more oil if needed). When asparagus is bright green and tender-crisp, add soy curls back into the wok. Add soy sauce, sugar and vinegar and toss well. Drizzle sesame oil over the top. Taste a soy curl and adjust seasoning if needed.

Serve over Roasted Garlic Couscous

I am using Near East Roasted Garlic & Olive Oil Couscous

Friendly Fall Feast

With fall quickly approaching (if not here in all but date only), Lindsay and I have been looking forward to making good, hearty, stick to your ribs type of meals with all the lovely food we have been able to get at the local farmer's market as well as from our own garden.

As I've gotten older, fall has definitely become my favourite season. I love the crisp smell in the air, the changing colours of the foliage (and now that I'm in Vermont, it's even more beautiful than back home in NB), cuddling close to my lover to keep her warm at night and not to mention being able to wear sweaters and long sleeve shirts again.

Lindsay had a couple of her girlfriends down visiting from Burlington today and we decided to take advantage of that and go all out and make a four course meal featuring all kinds of different local goods. After some searching online, Lindsay found a good inspiration for our fall feast on Vegan Yum Yum. We spent the morning at the Farmer's Market in Montpelier picking up the rest of what we needed to prepare our feast for our guests.

To start, Lindsay made a green salad using mesclan mix and spicy sprouts and a maple vinagrette made from Vermont maple syrup, dijon mustard and balsamic vinegar. It was a nice light start to the meal.


For the second course, I made a roasted squash soup out of three different squashes that we had grown in our (organic) garden at Lindsay's parents house in Waterville. The three varieties of squash we used were acorn, buttercup, spaghetti. We cut each of the squash in half, drizzled olive oild over them, and roasted them in the oven for 45 minutes at 425 F. I started the soup by sautéing a medium sized onion and four large garlic cloves (from a local organic farm at the Rutland, Vt farmers market) until they were tender, being careful not to burn them. At this point I added the squash, fresh thyme, fresh sage and vegetable stock and let the soup simmer for some time allowing the squash to become more tender and the flavours to come together. At this point, I used an immersion blender to puree the soup and then added soy cream (which I made using soy milk, flour and some sugar) as well as Vermont maple syrup. After mixing that in, I seasoned the soup with sea salt and fresh pepper to taste. I made the soup a five or six hours before dinner which allowed the soups flavours to develop even more. I think the mix of the different types of squash gave it a nice flavour that you wouldn't experience if using just one type of squash.

Following Lindsay and I made a variation on Shepherd's pie using lentils rather than ground meat (obviously) or a meat replacement. The base of the meal was sort of a stew made using lentils, peas, veggie stock, fresh sage, fresh thyme, garlic, carrots, and onions (the last three all from the local farmer's market). She used a flour and water slurry to help thicken the stew. We topped the stew off with a couple scoops of whipped yellow potatoes that we had gotten from the farmer at the Rutland Farmer's market the weekend before. It turned out really well and is something we would definitely make again (and I'm really looking forward to eating the leftovers)

Of course, no meal is complete without dessert. And no fall dessert is complete without pumpkin (well, I think so at least!). For our final course, Lindsay had prepared Pumpkin Whoopie Pies from a recipe that she had gotten from Vegan Yum Yum. They turned out better than I ever could have imagined. I think Lindsay was most excited by the fact that she finally got to put our kitchenaid to good use. The flavour for the cookie batter came from the pumpkin puree, molasses, allspice, cinnamon and nutmeg. She then made a cream cheeze frosting using vegan cream cheeze and icing sugar. Of course being the loving husband that I am, I volunteered to taste test the batter. It reminded me of a molasses cookie but more sweet and rich. The whoopie pies were a great finish to the evening and I can't wait to eat the leftovers tomorrow :)



We have decided to sign up as members of a CSA with Pete's Greens and are looking forward to making the most of all the amazing fall and winter vegetables that we will be getting from them.

What a little research will find you....

So I have spent the morning doing some research on restaurants- specifically chain ones. I was just inspecting Uno's and i found that their Balsamic dressing isn't vegan:

BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE

INGREDIENTS: soy oil, balsamic vinegar, water, salt, sugar, xantham gum, spice, garlic, fish oil, caramel, pg alginate, calcium disodium, paprika.



kinda scary to think that balsamic vinaigrette would have fish in it!



CPK has a vegetarian menu and it detials the vegan options:
http://www.cpk.com/menu/vegetarian_%20gluten.pdf




also BE AWARE Panda Express is NOT vegetarian they use a chicken base!





Legal Seafoods:

Vegetarian Box (vegan friendly) 17.95
Asian flavored stir-fried vegetables, Thai red coconut curry sauce, cashews, tofu and brown rice

Yummy Kung Bao Chik'n

Last night I made stir fry veggies with May Way's Kung Bao Chicken over whole wheat couscous. It was amazing the flavor was just right and it had a little spice to it and the texture was great (I bet it could even fool grandma!). It was great to finally eat something so yummy considering that the last thing we tired from May Way was the prawns and they were awful. So far we have tried
BBQ Pork - receives an A
Chicken Legs- receives a B
Prawns- receives a F-
Kung Bao Chicken- Receives an A+


I have pictures to come I just need to upload them. And of course I just got to work with my beautiful creation of sesame-peanut noodles and I forgot to take a picture!

A Picnic Dilemma....

So tomorrow is my department picnic and it's a pot luck so everyone is to bring something...of course I'm the only vegan in my department....as well as the only vegetarian. There is one uy who is really into vegetarian/vegan cooking however he's the exception out of the other 35 people. I checked the list today and there is very little for me to eat, so this is what it boils down to- whatever I make is what I am going to be eating so it better be yummy! (of course haha).

I have decided to go with sesame peanut noodles because I think that it will go over relatively well with everyone. Some might think it is strange but I hope people will be willing to give it a chance I mean really unless you have a peanut allergy most everyone I know enjoys peanut noodles.

I found this recipe for Seasme-Peanut Noodles and I think it will work great with a few alterations

Adapted from:
Sesame-Peanut Noodles
by Ted Allen
from The Food You Want to Eat
(Clarkson Potter, 2005) (found on http://www.leitesculinaria.com/recipes/cookbook/sesame_noodles.html)
Serves 4

Kosher salt for boiling noodles
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup toasted sesame oil
1/3 cup roasted peanuts, cashews, or whatever nuts you have
1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon mirin or sherry (see Note)
2 medium garlic cloves
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (or more if you like it spicy)
1 English cucumber (also called hothouse cukes — the long, skinny ones), peeled
1 pound soba noodles (I really don't like the taste and texture of Soba Noodles so i am going with fettucine)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 scallions, green parts only, sliced 1/4 inch thick on an angle (I like the white part too so i am mixing them in and garnishing with the greens)

I am also going to top with some bean sprouts and shredded carrot to give it some color and crunch!



Directions
1. Bring a large pot of salted water (1 teaspoon salt per quart of water) to a boil.

2. Meanwhile, toast the sesame seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until they turn golden brown, about 5 minutes.

3. In a food processor, combine the peanut butter, sesame oil, peanuts, soy sauce, vinegar, mirin or sherry, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Process to a purée. Stir in half the toasted sesame seeds.

4. Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds with a spoon; discard the seeds. Slice the cucumber halves crosswise about 1/4 inch thick; set aside.

5. When the water comes to a boil, add the noodles and cook until tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Drain very well, shaking the colander until it stops dripping, and dump into a bowl. Add the peanut mixture, cilantro, and black pepper, and toss to coat. Turn out onto a large platter. Arrange the cucumber slices around the edge of the platter, sprinkle the scallions on top, and sprinkle the remaining sesame seeds on last. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Note: Mirin is a sweet Japanese rice wine; you'll find it in the Asian section of your supermarket.



I am going to save some for dinner tomorrow night because my husband loves peanut noodles and top it with some yummy smoked tofu.

Pictures to come! and updates on how well it goes over!

May Wah- Veggie Prawns

Last night my husband and I had stir fry Thai noodles with veggie Prawns that we had purchased from May Wah (vegieworld.com). I have to say by far they were the worst tasting veggie thing I have ever had. The consistency was slimmy and just completely unappetizing. It turned me off from my whole meal. On a positive note the veggie pork and chicken that we have tried from May Wah has been great so far just the prawns were awful and we would never recommend buying.

May Wah

I am excited to post that we just received a huge package of food from May Wah (www.vegieworld.com).

This is what we got:














I am so excited to use it all!

So far I have used the BBQ Pork which was amazing. We first had it as a side with some stirfry veggies and brown rice, just heated up. Then today we are having it in an Asian BBQ stirfry with mushrooms, peppers and onions over whole wheat couscous YUM!

I used some of the chik'n legs and made a shake and bake with them and I plan to make some buffalo wings with the remainder.

More updates, pictures and recipes soon!

Back from Our Disneymoon!...our dining experience

Neil and I just got back from a wonderful (but very short) Disney Honeymoon. We had 4 nights/3 days at Disney and it was the best time (we can't wait to go back). We stayed at the Port Orleans- French Quarter and it was great we even got upgraded to a river view room, we originally were supposed to be facing the parking lot. It was also a great place because there was a boat that takes you to downtown Disney we we were the first bus stop for all the parks.

Our first day we just wondered around some of the Disney Resort hotels and downtown Disney. We went to the Contemporary Resort were we played some games at the arcade and then went to lunch at The Wave.


We got honeymoon sparkling shiraz wine it was Delicious!


I had the vegetarian (vegan) stew with wild rice it was amazing. It was filled with fresh veggies and had a light vegetable broth.

Neil had the veggie tofu sandwich sans goat cheese and it was just as amazing and came with oven roasted potatoes.




Following this we went back to the hotel and lounged by the pool for a bit before we had to head to the Animal Kingdom Lodge for dinner at Boma. Dinner at Boma was great the chef came out and walked us through the buffet to let us know what dishes were vegan she was also willing to make us some other dishes if there wasn't enough but there was a ton of options. We had couscous, roasted veggies, a variety of rices, falafel and some yummy olive hummus, as well as a variety of salads and fruit! Our waiter was great too and got us a special desert some raspberry and coconut sorbet because there was nothing at the buffet we could have, overall it was great!








The next day we went to Epcot and Hollywood Studios (former MGM). We went to lunch at Epcot at the Rose and Crown Dining Room where we had a great lunch of vegetable curry with quinoa and bread and vegetable samosas with tamarind and mango sauce (sorry no picture we were so hungry).

Once it started to pour we decided to take a walk over to Hollywood Studios where we had a great time, Neil loved the Tower of Terror. We decided to go to dinner there at the Brown Derby where we had a yummy coconut crusted tofu noodle bowl that was filled with bok choy, edamame and shiitake mushrooms with a red curry sauce.




And we also got another free glass of champagne this time with a strawberry!



Our last day we went to Animal Kingdom which ended up being our favorite park I could have spent the entire weekend there it was so amazing. We went to the Rainforest Cafe where we had a portobello sandwich which was good. We spent the 2nd part of the day at Magic Kingdom which was packed! We were overwhelmed by all the people but made sure not to leave before we stopped at the Ice Cream Parlor and had some Toffuti! I had chocolate which was so yummy and Neil had vanilla.






Over all we had an amazing time and can't wait to go back!

Vegan 100

Hannah over at BitterSweet has created the the vegan's hundred...a play on the omnivore's hundred that's been circulating foodie blogs lately. Here's how it works:

1) Copy this list into your own blog, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Post a comment here once you’ve finished and link your post back to this one.
5) Pass it on!

1. Natto
2. Green Smoothie
3. Tofu Scramble
4. Haggis
5. Mangosteen
6. Creme brulee
7. Fondue -
8. Marmite/Vegemite
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Nachos
12. Authentic soba noodles
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Taco from a street cart
16. Boba Tea
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Gyoza
20. Vanilla ice Scream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Ceviche
24. Rice and beans
25. Knish
26. Raw scotch bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Caviar
29. Baklava
30. Pate(vegan)
31. Wasabi peas
32. (vegan)Chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Mango lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Mulled cider
37. Scones with vegan buttery spread and jam
38. Vodka jelly
39. veganGumbo
40. Fast food french fries
41. Raw Brownies
42. Fresh Garbanzo Beans
43. Dahl
44. Homemade Soymilk
45. Wine from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Stroopwafle
47. Samosas
48. Vegetable Sushi
49. Glazed doughnut - not in vegan form...yet.
50. Seaweed
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Tofurkey
54. Sheese
55. Cotton candy
56. Gnocchi
57. Piña colada
58. Birch beer
59. Scrapple
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores not vegan ones yet
62. Soy curls
63. Chickpea cutlets
64. Curry
65. Durian
66. Homemade Sausages (vegan)
67. Churros, elephant ears, or funnel cake
68. Smoked tofu
69. Fried plantain
70. Mochi
71. Gazpacho
72. Warm chocolate chip cookies
73. Absinthe
74. Corn on the cob
75. Whipped cream, straight from the can the vegan kind ya
76. Pomegranate
77. Fauxstess Cupcake
78. Mashed potatoes with gravy
79. Jerky vegan
80. Croissants
81. French onion soup vegan
82. Savory crepes
83. Tings
84. A meal at Candle 79
85. Moussaka
86. Sprouted grains or seeds
87. Macaroni and “cheese”
88. Flowers
89. Matzoh ball soup
90. White chocolate
91. Seitan
92. Kimchi
93. Butterscotch chips
94. Yellow watermelon
95. Chili with chocolate
96. Bagel and Tofutti
97. Potato milk
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Raw cookie dough

77/100 not bad!
-Lindsay