Broccoli Soup!

This picture makes me realize I need some non-red dishes because all food doesn't look good in red! I love red though as I am sure you can tell!







I used to eat Broccoli Cheddar soup 2-4 times a week. I was my FAVORITE so when I became a Vegan it was a huge struggle for me not to eat it but as some of you know the reason that I don't eat dairy is because I am very allergic and I have a bad reaction when I eat it. Usually in the form of digestive pyrotechnics... so it isn't too hard to not eat dairy! This soup is an amazing substitute and I don't miss the greasy cheese either. I love that this soup is thick and creamy and still has all of the broccoli flavor of the cheesier version. Even my non veggie kids love this soup. Take the time to make the homemade croutons...it is so worth it.


Broccoli Soup
• 2 tablespoons margarine
• 2 tablespoons Olive oil
• 1 1/2 pounds fresh broccoli
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 4 cups Vegetable Stock or Purchased Broth
• 1/2 cup Tofutti Sour Cream
• Homemade Croutons, recipe follows
Melt margarine and heat the oil in heavy medium pot over medium-high heat. Add broccoli, onion, carrot, salt and pepper and sauté until onion is translucent, about 6 minutes. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute, until the flour reaches a blonde color. Add stock and bring to boil.
Simmer uncovered until broccoli is tender, about 15 minutes. Add the Sour Cream. With an immersion blender, puree the soup. Add salt and pepper, to taste, and then replace the lid back on the pot. Serve hot with Homemade Croutons.

Homemade Croutons:
• Day old French bread
• Olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Cut bread into cubes and place in a large bowl. Drizzle cubes with olive oil, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Using your hands mix well.
You can use any spices that you want but for this recipe it goes well with the soup!
Spread seasoned bread onto a sheet pan and bake for about 15 minutes until golden brown on both sides.

Trying to mainstream it for the Meatout!

Here is last night's dinner... It doesn't get any easier than this!

I am working on Spanakopita recipes today!

There are a lot of Spanakopita recipes out there... Vegan ones too... I hate them all. But I love the original version with all of it's lovely feta and butter. But obviously THAT isn't going to happen. I am NOT putting animal fat in my mouth. gross.

Isa's recipe isn't even all that for me. I love her and it feels like sacrelige even saying such a thing. But I am going to work on it and see what I can come up with. Wish me luck!

Greek Sauce land...

Here are some pictures of the "Kristine Crack" from the middle eastern grocer! I <3 Falafel!!!



Tzatziki Sauce

Tzatziki Sauce

2 medium cucumbers
1 tablespoon salt
juice of 1/2 lemon
(about 1 tablespoons)
2 cloves of minced garlic
2 teaspoons dried dill
2 cups (16 oz) of soy yogurt
dash of freshly ground black pepper
dash of granulated sugar


Peel your cucumbers and cut them in half, scoop out the seeds and put in a strainer in the sink. sprinkle 1 tablespoon of salt on them to help remove the water from them. It will take 30-40 minutes to drain properly.

Pat cucumbers dry with paper towel or clean kitchen towels. Squeeze all of the water you can out of cucumbers. (You can also use tofu pressing methods if you are in a time squeeze and can't sit and squeeze them out by hand.)Add all ingredients to blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

Depending on your cucumbers you may want to strain this mixture through a strainer to get some of the water out when you are done.

Tahini Dressing

Saute the Garlic:


Squeezing the Lemon:


Adding the Balsamic:


TaaaDaaa!!!




Tahini Dressing
(MY FAVORITE)

6 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic (3 cloves)
1/2 teaspoons paprika
1/2 cup tahini (not tahini sauce-should only list sesame seeds in the ingredients)
2 teaspoons aged balsamic vinegar
1/4-1/2 cup water
1 juice of one lemon (2-3 tablespoons)

Lightly saute garlic in olive oil for about 2 minutes... not too long or the garlic will turn bitter. Here is how I do it... I heat my oil in a small pan and then remove it from the oil and add the garlic. I stir it around and when it stops sizzling and crackling I move it back to the heat to keep the temperature up in the pan. When it starts to brown then I am done.

Put everything into the food processor except the water. blend until smooth and then add the water until you reach the desired consistency of the dressing. I like mine a little on the thick side so I use less but if you are using it on vegetables you may want it a little more liquidy.

Falafel and Stuff

Well, I finally got my husband off of the PS3 and we went to the Middle Eastern Grocery... I got Raw Chickpeas, Natural Sesame Seeds, Pita Bread and Falafel mix. Yep... I am cheating. His is just sooooo much better than mine is. I guess I am going to try and carefully disect it to see if I can figure it out. The man that makes it at the Middle Eastern grocer wouldn't cough up his recipe. Wish me luck. I am making Tzatziki and an awesome Tahini sauce though I will post those recipies. I made a lovely minestrone for my daughter who is sick today and will get that recipe and the pics up later too! Gotta go paint a bathroom now. Cooking later!

Day... yeah whatever.

Soooo It has been a few days. Let's blame it on, I don't know. I have eaten in the last few days.

I have no excuses...

Thursday I had take-away from my Chinese restaurant nearby that I trust to cook bean curd home style in a vegan way. (mostly because the girl that works at the counter speaks English and goes to my daughter's school... she has informed me that they make it vegan for everyone.) I don't trust restaurants since I went to a coffee shop let's call them "Moondollars" and I discovered they use the SAME cups to steam the cow's milk and the soy milk. Yeah, I am SURE they washed the cups and nozzles between...that is why I got sick for two days after drinking it.

Friday I had chili I had frozen from a few weeks ago when I had the gang over. I will have to make a blog entry on that one when I make it a new. It is Honey-Chipotle Chili and my family just adores it. Yeah I know some Vegans don't do Honey... I have seen Bee Movie but I am just not feeling that one. I don't see it as any worse than flour. Call me crazy... if you feel differently maybe there is something I don't know. Feel free to comment or message me!

Anyway, I woke up this morning and decided I really want to cook today. I went all over the internet blogs, searched my vegan cookbooks and non-vegan cook books... I finally settled on falafel sandwiches, rice pilaf,tzatziki and tahini sauces. Now to get my man to get off of CALL OF DUTY and call up our Iraqi friends and find out the name of the Middle Eastern grocer in the town near us... They have the best pitas and flatbread that has ever existed.

We will see... that is the plan for now, but plans change don't they?

Anyway, here is lunch!

1 beautiful bunch of asparagus
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons of sesame oil
2 tablespoons Braggs Liquid Amino
Red Peper Flakes/sea salt to taste
toasted sesame seeds for garnish

wash and dry asparagus cut off ends, heat oil in a large pan (big enough to not crowd the asparagus)for a minute or two. Add Braggs, vinegar, salt and red pepper flakes stir and then add the asparagus. Cook for about 3-5 minutes until the asparagus is slightly softened but still crispy. Settle on plate and garnish with toasted seasame seeds.

Well, my kids don't like Asparagus I just discovered... oh well.

Day 3

Today is my birthday!!! wooo hoo!!! Happy Birthday to me!
Last night's dinner is on the blog for today! My husband was preparing to go out of town and had to stay at the office a little late. I knew the kids would be starving by the time he got home so I made them dinner early and used this opportunity to use up my Veggie Enchilada mix. Below is the recipie for a full 9x13 pan but you will have extra mixture left, it is just enough to make about 5 more. Just right for me and my husband and leave a little left over for our lunches the next day!


Vegetable Enchiladas
olive oil (enough to sauté)
1 butternut or acorn squash
2 diced yellow onions
2 diced sweet bell peppers
1 medium diced zucchini
1 medium diced yellow squash
1 ½ cups frozen corn
3-4 cloves of minced garlic
1 can of black beans
1/2 bunch cilantro
2 tsp cumin
salt and pepper to taste
cooking spray
tortillas (corn, flour, spinach whatever you like)
1 ½ cups of your favorite salsa


Wash and halve squash, scoop out the seeds. Place face up in a shallow baking dish, add about an inch of water. Roast in the oven about 30-35 minutes at 400 degrees, or until squash is soft but not mushy.

Preheat oven to 375. Grease 9x13 baking dish

Chop up all vegetables and in a large skillet, warm the olive oil. Add onions and peppers, zucchini and yellow squash. Sauté about 10-15 minutes on medium, add in garlic and corn and sauté an additional 2 minutes. Place in a large mixing bowl

Drain and rinse beans. Put beans and roasted squash into food processer with about 2 tablespoons of water until mixture is mixed well.

Add blended mixture and whole beans to sautéed veggies in the large mixing bowl. Season with sea salt, black pepper and cumin as desired. Chop bunch of cilantro and add to this mix.

Fill tortillas with about 1/4-1/2 C filling, depending on size of tortilla. Place seam side down in baking dish until full.

Top enchiladas with salsa Bake for 20-30 minutes cover with foil but becareful not to let the foil touch the top of the food because it will stick to the food!

The Vegetable mixture will make 1 pan of “taco size” tortillas and leave a little extra. In the below pictures I made “what was left” from a batch I made last week. You can freeze the leftover filling and make a smaller batch on a night when you have a smaller crowd.

The first time I made this my kids caught me making the squash... they aren't fans at all to put it mildly, THE HATE IT. But I made them try it any way. They actually loved the enchiladas my son ate 3 of them! If your kids aren't fans of any of the specific veggies... make them stay out of the kitchen while you cook and lie! They are great and the flavors together hide a multitude of great veggies! Bring on the vitamins and fiber! shhhh. I won't tell!

Panned


and Plated

Day 2

Breakfast Anyone?

Okay, I have a teenage girl (14) who doesn't want to wake up in the morning at all! She gets up with 20 minutes until we have to leave she takes 15 getting her clothes picked out and another 5 or so straightening her hair. She does her make-up in the van and carries her shoes and coat to the car. She doesn't have time for breakfast. I have been buying those crappy breakfast bars and she doesn't really like them but she doesn't have time to cook anything and hates cereal. I have 3+ other kids so I don't have time to cook something while trying to get them all ready... So what to do? Well... I tried this this morning. Not sure she will ACTUALLY eat them but they are really good!


Maple Date-Nut Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

1/4 cup real maple syrup (no aunties or cabins please)
1/4 cup coarsely chopped nuts (I used pecans)
1 cup chopped pitted dates
1/2 cup dark brown sugar Using brown sugar makes baked goods crispy but moist
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons vegan margarine, softened
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup soy, rice or coconut milk yogurt (I used Soy blueberry flavored because I couldn’t find my normal plain soy)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups quick-cooking oats
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
4 Tbs ground flax seed (flaxseed meal (do not skip this it holds the recipe together))

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, grease a 9- x 13-inch baking pan (325 degrees for glass or dark pans)
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl, stirring slowly with a wooden spoon until well combined. Pour the mixture into pan, and press evenly with waxed paper or a spoon that has been sprayed with cooking spray. (picture 1) Bake 25 minutes or until just golden brown around edges. (Picture 2) Cut into squares after it cools. Store up to 3 days at room temperature or keep in the fridge for a week. I cut mine and put them in sandwich bags so that she could grab them for lunch.

I would imagine you can freeze these bad boys and pop ‘em in the microwave if you wanted to… I haven’t tried it. I will and let you know how that works.


Picture 1


Picture 2

Day 1

This is my birthday present to me... my birthday isn't for a few more days but after watching Julie and Julia I got the idea to start a Vegan cooking blog. I know there are 1000000000000000000000000000000000 million out there. But I don't care I am doing this for me and all of the people who are constantly asking me questions about Vegan"ness". Not sure what I am cooking for dinner tonight but it probably won't be a big event. I made Vegan Onion Rings and Veg Patties last night. I am still fanning the smell of the oil from my kitchen. Unfortunately it is only 30 degrees today so I can't open the windows or my chihuahuas might burn themselves trying to climb INTO the fireplace.

Here are last night's recipies...

Vegan Beer Battered Onion Rings

Vegan Butter Milk
For every 1 cup of soy or rice milk, add 2 tablespoons of either white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or lemon juice.

For example, if you have three cups of milk, add 5 tablespoons of vinegar/lemon (1/4 cup plus 1 tbsp)

Wisk in Bowl and leave at room temperature for 15 minutes to “curdle”

Beer Battered Onion Rings


• 3 cups vegan buttermilk (above)
• 2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 1 teaspoon garlic, granulated
• 12 ounces beer, medium body
• 3 Sweet Onions
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Cut onions 1/2-inch thick, remove dark exterior of onions, separate into rings and soak in “buttermilk” for 1 hour.
Combine 1 cup of flour, remaining salt, pepper, and garlic, mix thoroughly. In a medium bowl combine beer and 1 cup of flour, mix thoroughly.
Remove onion rings from “buttermilk”, shake off excess, dredge in flour, shake off excess, then dip in beer batter.
Drop some onion rings in oil and continue process, being sure not to crowd rings as they will stick together. When golden, remove and let drain on paper towels.

and

Yummy Veggie Burgers Adapted from:
Guy Feiri’s “Morgans’ Veggie Patties”

Ingredients
• 2 ounces olive oil
• 3 tablespoons diced red onion
• 2 tablespoons diced black olives
• 2 tablespoons diced red bell peppers
• 1 teaspoon diced jalapeno
• 1 1/2 tablespoons diced garlic
• 1 tablespoon diced artichoke hearts
• 4 ounces black beans, drained
• 4 ounces chickpeas, drained
• 4 ounces white kidney beans, drained
• 6 ounces rolled oats
• 1/2 teaspoon Hungarian paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon celery salt
• 2 tablespoons seasoned bread crumbs
• 1 egg (ener-g egg replacer)
Directions
In a medium saute pan over medium heat, add 1-ounce olive oil and all raw vegetables except beans. Saute until translucent. Remove and cool.
Add veggies to beans and mix thoroughly. Add all dry ingredients along with the egg replacer. Thoroughly mix all ingredients and form into 4 patties, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
In saute pan add 1-ounce olive oil, and cook patties 2 to 3 minutes per side.

Sorry no pics for this one but I will take some the next time! Who knows maybe I will put my dinner up!