Cookoff - Making Food Happen Since 2009

End of the Semester Experiments

2009-12-16T14:17:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

I've just finished the semester and so haven't done much cooking recently, but thought I'd share what I have done.

I made a Vegan Leek & Potato Soup that was really good and easy. I don't like cream soups but I love cream soups with no cream! I made it right before Thanksgiving and froze it when I was out of town and it thawed out pretty well.

I made the Mexican Squash Casserole Jasmine mentioned below, but it didn't turn out as well as I'd hoped! I used butternut squash, which I think was a problem, and it took a really long time in the oven - after 80 minutes not all the onions or squash were tender. I think I'll try it again some other time when I have time to pre-saute the onions and maybe roast the pumpkin first ... and I'll also check to make sure my oven is working correctly. When we took out the squash and onions and added nooch and a tortilla, it was really good. I am not going to give up.

I made the Quinoa & Red Lentil Cutlets for Thanksgiving, and they were definitely a big hit with the vegetarians. Some of the non-veggies ate them as well, and seemed to like them okay, but they seemed to be no replacement for turkey - which is lucky for Val since she got all the leftovers! I had mixed everything together the night before, kept in the fridge, and then kneaded and baked it Thanksgiving afternoon, and it worked fine. I made a double recipe and half the size for 32 cute little cutlets, which were a great compliment to my mom's gravy.

Happy holidays, all!

One more squash recipe ...

2009-11-19T12:18:00.000-08:00

These recent posts have inspired me! Just in case you guys didn't see this in the NY Times a few days ago, check out the Roasted Winter Squash and Apple Soup with Cilantro Pesto recipe. It's almost the exact recipe I use for butternut squash soup except the squash is roasted first, but the cilantro pesto looks like a dynamite addition. At the bottom of the article are links so some more squash recipes by Martha Rose Shulman; she's terrific -- I have a few of her cookbooks, including one with the challah recipe (and holiday variation) we love.

Huge Winter Squash Roundup

2009-11-19T10:28:00.000-08:00

JJ's post inspired me. Plus the server I need to do my data work is not responding. Maybe if I eat lunch and write this post, it will be up again afterwards?

Our CSA is over for the year, but two years participation have fully warmed me up to cooking with winter squash of all sorts. I admit I began as a winter squash skeptic, but now I find myself buying squash at Whole Foods long after the CSA season is over. I generally like to spice it up, so the squash is not overwhelmingly sweet. That is, unless I'm cooking it for dessert or breakfast.

Over the last couple of months, we have sampled a whole bunch of squash varieties, several of which I was unaware of until about a year ago: butternut, buttercup, sweet dumpling, delicata, acorn, red kuri, kabocha, blue hubbard, spaghetti, and of course, pumpkin.

To keep it interesting, I have tried out dozens of squash recipes, so here are some suggestions from my best-of list. Most of these recipes work just fine with whichever type of squash you have on hand.
-Acorn squash quesadillas
My tips: sub corn tortillas for a really nutty flavor; add a can of black beans; we used just a little bit of pepper jack soy cheese (of course); poblanos are optional.
No tomatillos or jarred salsa on hand? try this recipe: 1 can tomatoes (plum or
fire-roasted, preferably), 1 tbsp scallion, 1 chopped jalapeno, 2
tbsp cilantro, 1 tsp cumin, 1 clove garlic, 1 tbsp lime or lemon juice, salt
to taste.
-Pumpkin lasagna
A seasoned (sage & nutmeg) pumpkin puree takes the place of tomato sauce here. So delicious.
I added some tofu ricotta (Veganomicon-style) between the layers.
I would use white lasagna noodles next time though; the whole wheat ones got a little too mushy.
-Mexican squash casserole
So easy and so healthy and delicious! I have made it a few times now with butternut squash.
-Winter squash & saag curry
Try the Veganomicon recipe--I adapted that one when I made it.
Next up in this vein for me is Manjula's spicy squash subsi--I haven't tried it yet though.
-Spaghetti squash with Tofu cacciatore
J ate this and was asking me where spaghetti squash had been all his life.
-Pumpkin Barley Soup (recipe below)
-Three Sisters Stew with Chard (recipe below)
-Pumpkin, cranberry, molasses breakfast bars
-Pumpkin waffles
recipe from Vegan w/a Vengeance--do you guys have that book?

Three Sisters Stew with Chard and Cornmeal Dumplings
adapted from combining a Modern Vegetarian Kitchen recipe + a Gourmet recipe
Saute over medium heat:
olive or sesame oil
1 onion
1 carrot
1 jalapeno
1 lb winter squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed

Now add:
14 oz can tomatoes
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp dried sage
2 cans pinto beans
1 large bunch of thinly sliced chard
vegetable broth--enough to just barely cover the veggie mixture
salt and pepper to taste
Bring the stew to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, before adding dumplings.

Meanwhile, mix together:
1/3 cup cornmeal
2/3 cup AP flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp brown sugar (optional)
1/2 cup soymilk
1 tbsp olive oil
Mix the dry ingredients above together. Then stir in the wet ingreidents until just combined. Let sit for 5 minutes. Then form into rounded tablespoon-sized balls. Drop the dough balls on top of the stew. With the heat on low or medium/low (a low simmer), cover the pot, and let it steam undisturbed for 20 minutes, until the dumplings are puffed up and cooked through.

Pumpkin barley soup
Note: start this recipe after you roasted and pureed half of a sugar pumpkin.
In a large soup pot over medium heat, add:
olive oil
1 carrot
2 celery ribs
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
...pan fry until tender

deglaze with:
1/2 cup white whine

add:
1/2 of a sugar pumpkin, oven roasted, peeled, blended in a food processor (or ~2 cans pumpkin)
1 slice of baked pumpkin chopped
4 cups vegetable broth
1 diced kohrabi, turnip, potato--whatever you have
1/2 cup pearl barley
1/2 tsp rubbed sage
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar (to taste, depending on how sweet your squash is already)
...simmer 20 minutes, add water as necessary. add salt to taste.

At the end, stir in:
2 cans cannelini beans, drained & rinsed
2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
serve with black pepper, soy parmesan, salt to taste.

Moroccan-Style Stuffed Acorn Squash

2009-11-18T22:39:00.000-08:00

I just came from a dinner where we made Moroccan-style stuffed acorn squash and it was really incredible. I had 4 acorn squashes sitting in my closet since my CSA has delivered them the past couple weeks, and I wasn't sure what to make. This recipe was super easy and cooked up completely in about 35 or 40 minutes. It's essentially a complete meal for 4, which I think is a pretty good time/outcome ratio.

A few things about the recipe:

I did what they said with the butter and brown sugar, but it didn't really make much sense to me. I ended up pouring out the butter and brown sugar mixture that had pooled in the bottom of the squashes before stuffing them. In the future I would ignore those instructions.
I clearly love anything with cumin, and this is no exception. I think adding some more spice would make it more interesting (though it was by no means boring). I might try it with a hawaij spice mix next time.
This could be really awesome with quinoa for a little more of the protein punch.

I also got a buttercup squash in my CSA a couple weeks ago. I wasn't sure how to prepare it, so I looked around online and found you can make it in the microwave! I cut it in half, scooped it out, put a little bit of maple syrup in the halves and then microwaved for 7-10 minutes and ended up with a really good squash. I got another one and did it again last night, but since I had no maple syrup I used agave nectar and molasses - very tasty.

Since it's obvious the CSA is forcing me to expand my horizons, one last finding: green chard. I sauteed the green chard I got with a tablespoon or two of sesame oil and it was amazing. Ben isn't a big fan of leafy greens but actually went out and bought more green chard to make it the next night.

New Apartment, New Favorites!

2009-11-11T09:17:00.000-08:00

Sorry to be SO BEHIND! Seeing the baked tofu post has inspired me, though--not only to bake tofu of my own, but to put up a few recipes I've come to love. My new apartment has a tiny (but truly lovable) kitchen, so these are all things that take relatively few dishes and not too much space, but are delicious when they're done. (Photos to follow soon, now that I have a new camera.)

--Mollie Katzen's Farfalle with Arugula Gremolata, Gorgonzola, and Walnuts (posted here: http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=531928): I upped the amount of the gremolata but kept everything else just as it was, and was awarded with a delicious, filling, and unusual pasta dish.
--Roasted butternut squash and shallots. Cut into small pieces, toss with a splash of olive oil and some salt and pepper, and roast at 450 degrees. Time depends a lot on size--I overroasted mine a bit, and found that made them even creamier and better.
--Lentil Stew with Spinach & Potatoes (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Lentil-Stew-with-Spinach-and-Potatoes-349). Simple, quick, and yummy. I top each bowl with an extra splash of lemon juice and some fresh pepper.
--Cranberry Walnut Pumpkin Bread (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Cranberry-Walnut-Pumpkin-Bread-108606). I subbed apple sauce for most of the butter, since there's a lot in there, but man, this bread tastes good. After the first loaf, my roommate made it clear that the rest of the canned pumpkin should be made into another loaf, ASAP.

That's all for now! Looking forward to making some tofu & dal--

Easy Baked Tofu

2009-11-11T08:18:00.001-08:00

These two sauces make great baked tofu!
I already posted here about using jarred Indian sauces for making a quick tofu dinner. But a couple nights ago I found that by diluting the jarred sauce with a little water (if necessary), it made a great sauce for coating tofu before baking. I cut two 1-pound blocks of extra firm tofu crosswise into 12 slabs each and dipped the slices from one pound into the diluted Indian sauce and used the LaChoy Garlic Ginger sauce (undiluted) for the other. I fit all the slices onto one baking sheet and baked them at 400 for 20 minutes, turned the pieces over, and popped them back in the oven for another 10 minutes. Delicious!!! I think I liked the leftovers even more -- they make great sandwiches and are delicious eaten just as is. So easy, so good. And I love getting 2 full pounds of tofu on one baking sheet. You could also cut thicker slabs or cubes, or triangles, or any shape you want.

Garlic Ginger Tofu (left) and Madras Curry Tofu (right)

I can get 2 pounds of tofu from each bottle of the LaChoy sauce and probably about 4 pounds (more?) from each bottle of the Pataki sauce -- and both sauces keep a long time in the fridge. Now I'm on the lookout for other prepared sauces for quick meals. Let me know if you've tried any that you like!

Berkeley Bowl, fresh turmeric and a great soup

2009-10-23T11:02:00.001-07:00

I was just visiting J in Berkeley and because she knows what I like, she took me to the newly opened Berkeley Bowl. Wow! Everything you could imagine in a grocery store, and more. At first I was dazzled by the intensity of the colors.

I wanted to bring home some of everything, but that was a little impractical with my carry-on luggage. So I settled for 2 colors of quinoa that I hadn't seen before, and some fresh turmeric.

I got yellow, of course (what's the point of white?). I've always thought of turmeric as a powder, but never considered where it came from. Turns out it's related to ginger. And fresh turmeric is an adventure in tasting that you will never get from the powder! (Think of the difference between fresh and dried basil.)
Turmeric appears as a stubby little thing that looks like ginger. Peel it and an Illini orange flesh appears. It's a really intense color, so beautiful! I shredded it in the finest grater I have and was relieved to find that, unlike ginger, it is not at all stringy. When I took a taste, it gave a tingly kick, kind of like ginger, but milder, more citrusy and only a hint of what dried turmeric tastes like. So delicious! Of course, I hadn't thought to read about it before I used it, I just relied on the old rule of thumb to gauge my measurements -- about 3x as much fresh as dried. It was subtle in the soup, but definitely present. Next time I'll use more ... if I can find fresh turmeric in town!
Here's the recipe for the soup. I have always called it Ethiopian Soup because I made it in imitation of J and V's favorite dish at the Blue Nile restaurant in Ann Arbor. It's a comfort soup with a pleasant surprise from the fresh turmeric.

Ethiopian Soup

1 Tbs vegetable oil
2 medium onions, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
8 cups water
1-1/2 cups yellow split peas (not green split peas -- they taste very different!)
2 medium potatoes, in 1/2” cubes
2 tsp vegetable broth powder (or vegetable bouillon cubes)
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt (to taste)
1 tsp dried turmeric or 1+ Tbsp fresh turmeric, finely grated

1. In a large soup pot, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onions and carrots and saute, stirring frequently, until they begin to turn brown. Add the garlic and heat for a minute longer.
2. Add the water, yellow split peas, and potatoes. Bring to a low boil and skim off the foam that rises. Add the remaining ingredients.
3. Reduce heat to medium, cover (with just a little bit uncovered) and simmer, stirring every now and then, for about 1 to 1-1/2 hours. Soup is ready when peas are getting mushy and broth thickens. (You will need to add water to reheat the leftovers.)

And if you'd like to read more about fresh turmeric, I found this article in the New York Times. Note the date -- it was published the day after 9/11.

Finally updating!

2009-10-20T17:55:00.001-07:00

After months and months of negligence I am finally updating the blog! I've been living on my own now and there are a few things I've really liked making:

Quinoa and almond muffins from Veganomicon - These were great when I brought them to a potluck. I made a batch of them early on in the school year and have kept them in the freezer to stick in my lunch whenever it doesn't have quite enough food. I've started getting requests to bring them places!
Mung bean daal using a recipe from one of Madhur Jaffrey's books - It is ridiculously easy, requires no chopping, and is completely delicious. I've used it as a spread on tortillas.
Red lentil and quinoa cutlets - These I made on my birthday and loved, loved, loved them. They take a while because you have to boil the lentils and quinoa, wait for it to cool, and then bake, but they were so worth it. I will be making a double or triple recipe next time and freezing them so I can eat them forever. I'm also planning on making these for Thanksgiving this year, with some of my mom's gravy!

And, the biggest discovery:

Last night I decided to make some bourekas, since I'd gone to a potluck a couple weeks ago where someone brought the most delicious homemade bourekas. I was looking for a mushroom recipe, and I came across this recipe. I didn't think much of it, until I sent my sister the link so she could re-create their awesomeness and took a good look at the URL. I know the person who wrote the recipe! I was so excited about it that it inspired me to update. I have been checking out the rest of the recipes here and am hoping to use some for some more Jewish recipes sometime.

All for now! I'll hopefully have more updates soon.

101 Salads

2009-07-25T07:19:00.000-07:00

The Minimalist column in the New York Times this week features 101 Simple Salads for the Season. V pasted them into a Word document and deleted the very few that had meat -- I'm sure she'll email it to you if you ask her. We've tried a few and so far, DELICIOUS! All are easy and fresh, and most are a tad unusual. Definitely worth a look.

Major kitchen upgrade & some Indian food

2009-07-06T18:49:00.000-07:00

I can't seem to manage to take photos of any food (I guess we just eat it too fast)... So instead, I will show you my very exciting new kitchen. But I think to fully appreciate it, you have to know what my old kitchen looked like. So here goes...

Old kitchen:

As you can see, the only counter space is on the little island there that we bought. We had 3 burners on the stove (who has only 3 burners?). The oven wasn't big enough to fit a large cookie sheet. The refrigerator is 3/4 size. And the sink is kind of small too. But it worked. And I did a lot of cooking anyway.

But now, I have this lovely kitchen. With a DISHWASHER, and a relative abundance of counter space, and a large sink, and an oven that could probably fit 4 big cookie sheets. Plus many new gadgets, pots, knife block:

And so, what have I been up to in this new kitchen?

Well last night I adapted a Manjula's Kitchen recipe to make my own low-fat vegan zucchini koftas. (Her recipe is deep-fried and cooked with cabbage rather than zucchini.) They were delicious. I highly recommend them.

Here's how it works:

Koftas

2 cups shredded zucchini

1 cup besan (chickpea/gram) flour

1 tbsp ww flour

2 tsp chopped cilantro

1 tsp shredded ginger

1 green chili pepper

1/2 tsp cumin seed

1 tsp salt

TO fry:

canola oil

1/2 tsp mustard seed

1 tbsp sesame seed

Set up your steaming basket, bring water to a boil. THEN, mix kofta ingredients together to form a soft dough, and drop the dough into the steamer by the tablespoon-full. (If you let the batter sit too long, the dough gets soggy and you will need to add more besan flour.) Cover the pot and steam on medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the dumpling comes clean.

Then remove dumplings from pot. Heat canola oil for frying in a skillet. Once hot, add the mustard and sesame seeds and stir fry for 30 seconds or so. Add the kofta to the skillet. Fry for a few minutes until golden.

Gravy

3 medium tomatoes or 1 can 15 oz of tomatoes

1 tbsp or so of ginger (or 1/2 inch minced)

1 chili pepper

canola oil for frying

pinch asfetida (hing)

1 tsp cumin seed

1 tbsp besan/gram/chickpea flour

1 tbsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp paprika

2 tbsp (soy) yogurt

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups water

1 tsp sugar (if using unsweetened yogurt--soy yogurt is usually a bit sweet, so I omitted this)

2 tbsp cilantro chopped

NOTE: if you don't have asfetida, you could try to substitute 1-2 cloves of garlic and 1/2 an onion or so, panfried before adding the tomato mixture. You may want to also slightly reduce the coriander in this case.

In a blender, puree the tomato, ginger, and chili. Heat oil and pan fry the asfetida, cumin, and besan for a minute or two, until fragrant and golden. Add tomato mixture, coriander, turmeric, paprika, and cook until mixture reduces by half. Add yogurt. Cook another 2 minutes. Add 1 1/2 cups of water, and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium/low, and cook for several minutes until thick and reduced. Add sugar to taste.

Add kofta dumplings to the gravy and let simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add cilantro. Serve with yogurt and rice or chapati. (We made chapati.)

And for dessert? This low-fat chocolate beet cake, because we got beets in our farm share and neither Josh nor I are crazy for them. This wasn't the best cake ever, but it hit the spot. Next time I would either add more sugar or mix in some chocolate chips.

Cauliflower hummus

2009-07-05T11:34:00.001-07:00

Yum! This was really good -- lighter tasting than regular hummus, but flavorful and satisfying. The recipe is on page 68 of Veganomicon. I'll definitely make this again.

I made a few changes to the recipe. First, I roasted the cauliflower and used half as much cauliflower as called for (that's all I had); it fit perfectly on the little pan that goes in the toaster oven. I bet this would be good with the full amount of cauliflower, but it might take more seasoning than the recipe calls for (I didn't adjust that down at all).
The other change I made was to substitute cilantro for the parsley. I've made hummus with parsley before and it's delicious, but I didn't have any and I love cilantro. So there you go -- it was really good in this dish!
Here it is with all the fixings. We dipped the veggies in it, too.

Everyone who can post to this blog should now be getting email notifications when a post is made. That way you don't have to keep checking -- you'll be told when there's something new to read. If you don't want to get a notification, go to the email section of the settings, remove your email address, scroll to the bottom and click "save."

Beets -- and testing notification

2009-06-23T06:26:00.001-07:00

I just put in JJ's, V's, and my email addresses to send this post via email (I don't have Ribbit's and Jasmine's emails) and wanted to test it. Thought I'd share these beet photos I took last summer as long as I was posting.
Isn't this a lovely variety? They were just gorgeous and tasted great, too.
We don't eat beets many ways except roasted. Those are sooooooo good in a salad! Roast some beets when the oven is on, and then you have them for several days in salads.

A few years ago I made a wonderful beet with beet tops dish using fresh baby beets and a recipe in the Victory Garden Cookbook. I got that cookbook around 1982 and it's fabulous. Still available on Amazon, and with 46 reviews it has 5 stars.

Asparagus Soup

2009-06-15T16:51:00.000-07:00

Sorry, no photo! But I had to post anyway because this is an

A W E S O M E

soup! (As you can see, I'm throwing in an asparagus green font to make up for the lack of a photo.) We had this in mugs as a first course before dinner (while watching What Not to Wear, but that's another story). B, V and I all loved it! Creamy and delicious. You can get the basic recipe here. Once again, it's from Eating Well magazine, one of my faves. I did make some minor changes to the recipe:

Veggie broth (from bouillon, I don't like the ready made stuff as it's too overpowering) instead of chicken broth
Skip the prosciutto and garnish each mug of soup with 3 cooked (I nuked them) asparagus tips

This is extremely quick, extremely easy, and extremely delicious! Try it!

Y U M !!!

Super Fast Indian

2009-05-24T17:52:00.001-07:00

I would never say that this compares to fragrant, homemade Indian food, the kind that simmers all afternoon and drives you crazy with the smell. But it is good and, sometimes even more important, it is fast and easy.
About a year ago I bought two jars of Indian sauces at Trader Joe's. There has never been a time I wanted to use them, guess I just thought they couldn't be that good. Finally, because we had some other leftover Indian, I decided to try one to round out the meal. It's really tasty! I took a pound of tofu, cubed it like paneer, and browned the pieces in a little oil. I poured the sauce over and let it simmer a few minutes then served it over rice. Tasty! This jar was Trader Joe's Masala sauce. I also have a jar of TJ's Korma sauce, which I'm now eager to try. Seems like these might be good shelf staples for last-minute meals.

Caramelized Onion Pizza

2009-05-24T17:40:00.001-07:00

Some food is so good that if you don't get a photo the second it comes from the oven...
...you don't get a photo at all. We had this pizza as an appetizer for company a couple weeks ago and everyone just snarfed it down. Even Otto, only 11 months old, dove into his mom's piece.
We had it again tonight. Easy peasy. Here's how to do it:

Caramelize 4 medium onions. I used 3 yellow and 1 red, but you can use whatever. (To caramelize, slice the onions and cook in a tablespoon or two of oil over medium low heat, stirring from time to time, until they get soft and yummy. It takes about half an hour, but you can do other things while they cook.)

Roll out refrigerated pizza dough onto a baking sheet or pizza pan. Spread Trader Joe's Artichoke Antipasto over it (or use pesto or even just a thin coating of garlicy olive oil). Sprinkle on some herbs and, if you wish, a bit of crumbled feta. Top with the onions and bake according to the directions on the pizza dough package. (425 for 16 minutes worked for me) So good!!

Veganizing Passover

2009-04-09T07:28:00.001-07:00

Happy Passover! (I'm not sure that's what you are supposed to say.... someone please educate me if there is a more appropriate greeting!) J and I did our own little mini seder yesterday. Here is what we had:

Vegan Matzoh Ball Soup w/flaxseeds--these were great! J and I like denser and chewy matzoh balls, so this was a great recipe for that. We even used w.w. matzoh meal for the first time without any detrimental effect.

Last year, I tried a matzoh ball recipe with tofu, and they were the opposite--very light and fluffy. Also, since tofu is technically not so kosher for passover, so the flax seed recipe is nice to have in the repertoire...

Latkes from a mix--J prefers these to homemade latkes, and it is a million times less work, so that's how we roll... We used flaxseed to replace the egg, and it worked really well. (1 tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp water for each egg) We were both impressed.

Cauliflower leek kugel with almond herb crust (has tofu) was a favorite from last year. I boil the cauliflower instead of steaming it. I'm sure it works either way. For us, it's a keeper.

If anyone wants one of the vegan matzoh ball soup recipes, let me know. They are both from the folks at the PPK and can be found on that website with a little hunting. I also use their vegetable broth recipe when I make it, which is a fantastic complement.

As you can see, our version of passover includes soy products. It makes my life A LOT easier, since I don't like to cook with eggs or dairy at home. J is lactose intolerant too, so it works for both of us :).

sushi, bokchoy,enchiladas

2009-03-25T13:14:00.001-07:00

Again, I'm falling far behind on both cooking and eating. But, for once, it's because I'm catching up on school! so, yay.

Let's see, recent successes decidedly worth repeating:

I made the v-con sushi and it was, as Jasmine said of it, the hit of the party. I wouldn't have thought to try it (doesn't sound that special to me) if not for your comments on it, so thanks a lot! I didn't have seitan, so just replaced that with the broiled tofu. I also left out the mayo, which I feel made it a little too dry, but nobody complained.

I made the baby bok-choy from v-con and my test subject looked thoroughly surprised and said "wow, this is better than any boy choy i've ever made!" (he loves bok choy). His surprise was lessened when I admitted to using a recipe, and "exotic ingredients like mirin", but I was still happy.

Recent failures:
I made the vcon enchiladas. These were kind of cute, and certainly not unpleasant, but I didn't really care for them. Luckly Guy ate most of them (there was a huge amount) and seemed to like them. It may just be because I don't like any of the ingredients (except for the roasted peppers) that much. But, I was kind of turned off of cooking for a while after making these. It took me over a week to recover and make the two things above. Maybe I ought to stop making huge quantities of things... but it *was* worthwhile with the moussaka.

I made the "muffin donuts" from vcon and didn't like them that much. They weren't really bad enough to classify as failures, but I prefer plain muffins. Some people did seem like them, but I won't be making these again.

Your reviews are so helpful. Next in the lineup (and some have sat there for a while) are the roasted cauliflower soup, the spinach paratha, and the irish soda bread. I know I really ought to be making lentils, but I just don't have the enthusiasm for them.

St. Patrick's Day Meal

2009-03-17T20:57:00.000-07:00

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, J and I had shepherd's pie and Irish soda bread tonight (both Veganomicon recipes). They are both excellent. I don't know that shepherd's pie is traditionally Irish, but it involved mashed potatoes, so that was close enough for me. The Irish soda bread recipe from V-con is my favorite ever, even if it s not very authentic. The millet gives it a wonderful chew, and it has just the right sweet/salty balance.

Other recent culinary experiments included punjabi chola and spinach paratha. Both were delicious, and I'd recommend them if you feel like branching out with Indian cooking. If Indian cooking is new to you, I'd recommend starting with chana masala and chapati, because the recipes are more streamlined and closer to popular restaurant cuisine.

As a side note, Manjula's dosa recipe with aloo masala is also awesome and does not require a multi-day fermentation, which is a major plus in the world of dosa making. Pair it with sambar (I always just do it from a mix) and some coconut chutney and you'll be in South Indian heaven.

Two good meals

2009-03-17T06:54:00.000-07:00

Doesn't this photo look like a smiling, googly-eyed dinner? :)
Sorry I haven't posted in awhile -- I was out in California eating good food with J, and then there was one thing and another when I returned home. A couple days after I got back, I decided to try out the French Lentil Soup from Veganomicon that everyone has been talking about. Yum! It was quite tasty, not noticeably different from other basic lentil soups, but easy and good. The leftovers, which I served over rice left from another meal (below), were even better. We made a salad with leftover roasted veggies, included roasted paprika potatoes that V had made the night before (no recipe, just tossed salt and paprika with the chopped potatoes before baking). Since there's paprika in the soup, it was perfect. And we used Trader Joe's artichoke and hearts of palm topping with sliced red onion and a crumble of feta over multigrain bread to go with it. We were happy campers!
I was tearing recipes from some old cooking magazines so I could toss the rest in the recycling and came across a recipe for Saag Tofu in Eating Well (such a great magazine -- not vegetarian, but so much plant-food based stuff that I use many of their recipes). It was super! As you can see by comparing my photo to the one shown if you follow the link, mine looks less creamy. That's because the yogurt, which I had brought to room temp and stirred in over very low heat, separated. It's really hard to keep yogurt from separating. I think next time I'll just leave it out. This was such a good dish, I will definitely be making it again. Also, the sauteed tofu (cooked more slowly than I usually do) was really tasty with just a sprinkle of salt. I was thinking it would be fun to cut it into thin sticks and cook it like that, then serve it with some dipping sauces (kind of like the tofu fries at Zao's in Palo Alto, for those of you that have been there).
V made our usual cauliflower and potato dish (alu gobhi) to accompany this. SO GOOD! I think it was even better than usual -- I may just turn all the cooking over to V! The recipe comes from Lite and Luscious Cuisine of India by Madhu Gadia, who is a dietitian from India. Many of our favorites come from that book. In looking up the link on amazon, I see she has an Indian vegan cookbook coming out in October -- though this one is pretty much vegan. I'll have to get the new one anyhow! I couldn't find this recipe anywhere on the web, so I'll post it here:

Alu Gobhi (Potatoes with Cauliflower)

Heat in nonstick frying pan (that has a lid) over medium heat:
2 tsp oil

Add and cook for a few seconds:
1/2 tsp cumin seeds

Stir in:
4 cups cauliflower flowerets
2 medium potatoes, peeled and
cut into 3/4” cubes

Add and stir well to coat:
1-1/2 tsp fresh ginger, minced
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp salt
4 shakes cayenne pepper

Heat through, then cover, reduce heat to medium low, and cook for about 10 min, stirring occasionally, until veggies are tender but still firm. Remove lid, increase heat, and stir in:
2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp garam masala
2 tsp lemon juice

Drizzle around inside edge of pan and stir fry for a few more minutes:
2 tsp olive or canola oil

Before serving, top with (optional):
chopped fresh coriander

Dinner Theme: Caramelized Onions

2009-03-16T07:22:00.000-07:00

So, these recipes weren't on the list, but for dinner on Saturday I decided to make two dishes built around one of my favorite things: deeply, deliciously sauteed onions. The menu was:

-- Potato and Smothered Onion Soup (Marcella Hazan's "The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking")
-- Fresh Pear, Blackened Onion, Roast Beet Salad (no recipe, just awesomeness) with Cranberry-Mustard Vinaigrette (Heidi Swanson's "Cook 1.0").

The soup was really easy to make; aside from some labor intensive onion chopping and some (very fun) mashing of the potatoes once they're boiled, it pretty much takes care of itself. The onions provide a lot of flavor, and a little parmesan and parsley tossed in at the end are a good touch. (The soup could easily be made vegan; I already substituted oil for butter and veggie broth for meat with no deleterious effects, and I'm sure something similar could be done for the cheese.) As you can see in the picture, we also crumbled up some soy bacon to put on top--mmm.

The salad is one I put together this fall and really like: mixed greens, blackened onions, roasted beets, fresh pear, slivered almonds, and crumbled bleu cheese. The cranberry-mustard vinaigrette was a perfect compliment, tangy but sweet.

If you'd like the recipes, I'll happily post or send them!

no fuss Italian dinners

2009-03-03T10:27:00.001-08:00

So the last week has been my week for minimal effort recipes. I made my version of whatever-i-have-in-the-pantry minestrone. (It's similar to the pasta e fagioli recipe posted by jovaliquilts, but easier, and probably less gourmet-tasting.) You could easily adapt her recipe to mine by subbing canned beans--I know it's not the same, but it's ready in 20 minutes that way! I also increase the tomato-to-water ratio for a more tomato-y broth. I use a 15 oz can of diced tomatoes including juices, or throw in a canned tomato sauce, and reduce the water to 6 cups. This time I put in a potato and a few lima beans and green peas, frozen chopped spinach, and even a little eggplant. Not authentic but it's what I had.

This type of soup recipe can take a lot of abuse and still come out quite tasty, in my estimation. A good grind of black pepper or a drizzle of balsamic vinegar at the end can up the flavor quotient and turn it into something quite delicious. Anyway, if you have the time, make jovali's recipe, but if it's 8 pm already and you haven't been to the store in days, then the abbreviated version can still hit the spot.

Continuing the Italian theme, I made this spinach mushroom lasagna last night. Again, there are probably more gourmet lasagna recipes, but this one scores major points for requiring less than 15 minutes of prep before you throw it all in the oven. I even mashed the tofu with my hands (they were clean, i promise!). It seemed really saucy when I put in the oven, but because the noodles weren't precooked, they seemed to absorb much of the excess sauce and it came out just fine.

Cauliflower Soup

2009-03-01T20:04:00.001-08:00

I just made the Roasted Cauliflower Soup from Fatfree Vegan, and it was awesome. I used a hand held blender and so I got a few small chunks, but the soup was thick, creamy, and delicious. We didn't have any truffle oil, but we drizzled on a little of the Chilean peppery olive oil that I got B for Hannukah and some paprika. It was really great, and I think the truffle oil would have taken it that extra mile ... I will be making this again.

Also made Mac Daddy. Despite my love affair with nutritional yeast, I was a little underwhelmed. It was good, but not great. B really liked it - which was good, because we made the full recipe which serves 10 and have frozen it so he can eat it whenever.

Setting out on your suggestions

2009-03-01T13:25:00.000-08:00

On Friday I made the bruschetta, using the San Marzano tomatos (only 50c more here than the muir glen! possibly because the others are more expensive to begin with). When it was warm it tasted extremely gourmet. As soon as it cooled, it tasted totally mundane. So I made them two by two (in the toaster oven). As you can see in the picture, at some point I was just eating toasted tomatoes, having run out of bread (half of it went to another cause). All in all though, C and I agreed that this is a huge hit in terms effort-taste tradeoff, and definitely a food with which to impress guests. Thanks Jasmine!

Between slices of bruschetta, I made the moussaka from Veganomicon. Three votes for "really good" (I think I just love sliced toasted potatoes covered in cream-like-things) and one for "weird". The mock-cream paste (tofu, pinenuts, lemon) tasted terrible before being cooked, but wonderful after (to all the three of us who liked it...). I kind of like this dish for its heaviness, and because it's clearly a complete meal (though I served it with two of my favorite sides: microwaved broccoli and (pan fried) swiss chard).

I also made and enjoyed the quinoa almond muffins from Veganomicon. But, really, I think I enjoyed the raw almond paste more. I could just eat that all day. But the muffins were nice too. I wish I'd tried to sub the 1/4 oil with 1/4 cup of applesauce though, since I'm pretty sure I wouldn't know the difference. In other words, I agree with Jasmine's review-- kind of delicious, but not the best ever.

On Wednesday, at 5 am, I made the pumpkin cupcakes from the cupcake book. Everyone who had these said they were fantastic. Much bigger hit than any of the muffins I've made recently. I'll admit they were good, but I wasn't raving over them.

And, thanks to you guys, I bought ingredients for broiled tofu, pasta e fagioli, Spicy Tempeh Nori Rolls, Grilled Yuca Tortillas. I'm really looking forward to these!

Mac N Cheese; Thai Peanut Stirfry

2009-02-27T07:51:00.001-08:00

So I still haven't gotten around to the Indian food, but I made two quicker recipes for dinners this week. And I obviously have no photo skills whatsoever, so I apologize for that.

I made the Mac n Cheese from Veganomicon on Wednesday and it was great. J and I liked it a lot, even though J is not a big fan of nutritional yeast. So I would recommend that recipe if you want a lower-fat vegan mac & cheese option. (The one on veganyumyum is loaded with Earth Balance!).

And then we made this recipe last night for tofu and vegetables in Thai peanut sauce. It was simple and pretty tasty. I stir fried the veggies instead of steaming them, and omitted the coconut extract, but otherwise followed the recipe as written. I would probably make it again.

Pasta e fagioli recipe

2009-02-26T06:10:00.000-08:00

1-1/4 cups dried white beans
1 medium onion, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 bay leaves
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 Tbs olive oil
8 to 10 cups salted water or broth*
1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes, drained
2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp. black pepper
8 oz small pasta shells or elbows (scant 2 cups)
1 medium zucchini, chopped
pesto

1. Cook the dried white beans in 8 cups water. (May be done a day in advance.)
Note: White beans cook in about 1-1/2 hours after soaking (all day or overnight) or quick soaking (boiled 1 minute and then left to sit 1 hour). Unsoaked, they take closer to 2 hours. I once used canned white beans in this recipe, but it wasn't nearly so good.
2. In your soup pot, saute the onions, carrots, celery, bay leaves, and garlic in the olive oil over medium heat just until the vegetables begin to get tender.
3. Add the water or broth, tomatoes, oregano, pepper, and the cooked beans. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer about 1/2 hour.
4. Add pasta and zucchini. Continue to simmer about 10-15 minutes more until pasta is done and zucchini is tender. Add more water if thinner soup is desired.
5. Serve with a spoonful of pesto swirled into each bowl at the table. (Pesto loses its flavor if cooked into the soup. If pesto is unavailable, make a paste of raw garlic, olive oil and dried basil and stir a little into the soup at the table. It's not the same, but it's good!) If you eat cheese, you may sprinkle a little grated Parmesan onto each portion also.

*How much salt depends on the broth and your personal taste. I usually use water with a few teaspoons vegetable broth powder and 1/2 tsp. salt. If you use canned broth, use only one or two cans and the rest water or the broth flavor will be overpowering. The sauteed vegetables help to enrich the broth as the soup cooks.

Awesome Dinner

2009-02-25T21:53:00.000-08:00

[Pictures when I get them off my camera]

Last night for dinner, I made the Curried Carrot Dip and Broiled Tofu recipes, put them on a whole wheat bun with some steamed kale and nutritional yeast ... it was truly incredible. This was a really, really, really great dinner, and I may have eaten 2/3 of a pound of tofu because I just couldn't stop. This was really great.

You know what else was great? I came home on Tuesday to a copy of Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World! Thank you ribbit. :) I just made my first batch - I made the Agave Vanilla cupcakes with blueberry frosting! I haven't had one yet - we will see how they go.

More updates as I get pictures/have time to write!

Pasta fagiole and roasted green beans

2009-02-24T17:41:00.001-08:00

I could eat soup every day -- tasty, satisfying, warm, nutritious soup. Yum! Pasta fagiole is one of my favorites.
My original recipe of this has the comment "J likes!" and is dated 1985. It's pasta and white beans with seasoning vegetables (carrots, onions, celery), with a little tomato and zucchini added near the end. At the table you stir in pesto -- I'm not sure that's traditional, but it is delicious. You all may have favorite pasta fagiole recipes, but if not, let me know and I'll edit this post to include it.

Lately we've been having roasted green beans two or three times a week. They are so good, and so easy. We toss them with a dab of oil (seriously, not much -- you don't want them greasy) and roast them for 20 min at 425. If the pan isn't crowded, I don't even bother turning them -- the undersides get plenty brown.

For years I avoided pre-mixed seasonings but on a whim I tried this and we really like it. I sprinkle it on the beans when they come out of the oven (we use it on other veggies, too), and they are delicious! Do any of you have other seasoning suggestions? I'd like to try something a little different.

So we had a really good dinner tonight! And even better, we started with pieces of a Mirabelle boule dipped in Yellingbo olive oil ...

No-knead bread variations

2009-02-23T18:56:00.000-08:00

I have been working with this no-knead bread recipe and I haven't nailed down a version of the classic crusty boule that I love, but I have been having a great time with all the variations. Last night I made focaccia inspired by this blog post. Delicious! I baked it in a cast iron skillet and topped it with rosemary, kosher salt, and of course, olive oil.

The bread dough also made an absolutely fantastic pizza dough (esp. when topped with San Marzano tomatoes, if you were following my previous post)...

And I loved this cinnamon raisin bread, which I improvised with, since I don't own a loaf pan.

So I'm making this recipe over and over again because I love the versatility, and I love having bread dough ready to go in the fridge.

I'm on a bread hiatus tonight though because tomorrow I want to make this chole dish and accompany it with spinach paratha (I bought Indian whole wheat flour just for this purpose). Let's see if I get to the bean soaking step in the morning, which will determine whether I manage to carry through!

Cashews?

2009-02-22T22:17:00.000-08:00

So the more vegan recipes I read, the more cashews seem to be a prominent theme. I'm guessing this is because they blend well and are kind of creamy? Can anyone speak as to why this is and what the outcome has been if you've tried it? Does it still taste cashew-y? Is it hard to get it blended finely enough?

Cashews. Enjoy!

Banana Nut pancakes

2009-02-22T07:43:00.000-08:00

J. & I are big breakfast fans. We do pancakes, waffles, crepes, french toast--I'm not a fan of savory food for breakfast most of the time.

This morning we used one of our favorite pancake recipes from Vegan with a Vengeance (Isa's first cookbook)--banana pecan pancakes. We made them with all white whole wheat flour, and used hazelnuts instead of pecans (because that's what we had). I subbed the oil with soy yoghurt. This recipe comes out wonderfully every time for us. Just keep the pancakes small (I make 4 to a pan), because they are thick and cakey and won't cook well if you make them too big.

I found the recipe online here.

Cornmeal Roasted Brussels Sprouts; Poached Pears; Roasted Portobello

2009-02-18T19:56:00.000-08:00

So, you've all been blowing me away with both the frequency with which you cook, and the obvious expertise. To join the conversation, I thought I'd post a picture of the (unadorned) yam I had for lunch, or the chopped-up raw cauliflower + plain noodles I had for dinner last night. I suppose it's people like me who give vegetarians a bad name (though I'm perfectly capable of butchering a meat meal as well).

Last Friday I went to the grocery store with a new friend (who, incidentally, I spent valentine's day with, but no cooking or dining), so for the first time in months had ample free time with which to collect my produce. Usually my two roommates are in a hurry, and I scurry around collecting any vegetable in sight before my time is up. This time, I picked up far too many items, bringing my bill to an alarming 160$, more than twice the usual (I go about once every 2.5 weeks). As a result, I now have copious amounts of perishables to consume before I can make a trip for the more exotic ingredients Veganomicon calls for.

But, I figured I'd try to make a dent in the fridge today, while still trying out some things from the book.

I already had all the ingredients for the poached pears, so started with that. I forgot that when doubling a recipe you don't double the liquid, so am now gently boiling my chocolate sauce in an effort to thicken it. I'm not even sure I'd recommend the chocolate sauce; the sweet black-tea pear marinade is delicious on its own. Also, I followed Jocelyn's inspired suggestion of using an icecream scooper! This recipe is totally worthwhile.

I had one of those clubs of brussels sprouts, mostly because I can't resist the urge to pick them up and shake them at my shopping companions. I looked through Veganomicon, and lo-- a recipe for which I already had all the ingredients! Yay for finally getting to use my garbanzo flour, and proving to my roommates that it was not, in fact, another of my cute, but ultimately useless, purchases. At some point through the recipe I realized this was a dish my dad used to make with cauliflower, which I had loved as a kid. He'd use falafel mix instead, and fry it rather than roast it, but the result is pretty much the same. And, just as highly recommended, even if you're turning a fine healthy vegetable into pub food.

Finally, I made the roasted portobello mushroom from Veganomicon, because I'd bought two on a whim, and have never known what to do with them. These taste really nice, and are very little work. However, I don't understand how people (the authors included) can think of them as a meal or reasonable substitute for a burger. Where's the calories??

So, that's my food for tonight. Plus, a pop quiz. Without glancing up, spell the missing words: _____ sprout and ______ mushroom. Did you get them right? Both took my by surprise. I never realized the former didn't end with l, or that the latter didn't have a fairer share of a's.

Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World

2009-02-18T06:19:00.000-08:00

If you haven't seen this book, it's worth looking for. It's written by the same wonderful ladies who brought you Veganomicon.
Make no mistake: these are not health food. But they are the most creative, inventive vegan cupcakes I have ever seen. A blogging friend with allergies to both eggs and dairy alerted me to this book, which even has a couple recipes for people who are also gluten intolerant. The photos are wonderful, and the writing is what you'd expect from Isa and Terry. For example, their intro to S'mores Cupcakes reads:

We may be city girls but we love us some campfires. And not just because we like to steal people's bras and hide them in trees. These cupcakes will bring out the rustic survivalist in you--the rustic survivalist that knows from scrumptious cupcakes.

Oh, yes, and did you know Isa has a vegan brunch cookbook coming out in May? I don't see Terry as co-author, though.

Indian House Dinner

2009-02-17T21:26:00.000-08:00

So my house dinner is done! People liked the food, but I was a little iffy on some of it:

Samosa Baked Potatoes
I thought these were good, although mine ended up being a little dry. I regretted that I didn't have any chutney or anything to put on them! I think that would really make a difference. I've never liked samosas much for some reason, but I think that these were really pretty good.

Tamarind Lentils
I didn't really like these. :( I'm not sure if I don't like tamarind or gharam masala or some combination of things, but the flavor was just too weird for me. Sad, but now I know.

Pumpkin (er, butternut squash) Saag
I thought this was neat - I would, next time, put in a little less cinnamon and maybe play around with the spices to make it more my own style. It was really nice to be able to cook it and then let it chill while I was cooking the rest of the meal.

Tea Poached Pears
These were super good. Everyone loved them, and the recipe was really, really simple. I followed it basically exactly as it was written and I could definitely imagine making these for just a 2 or 3 person meal as long as there was a little advance planning. I didn't put out ice cream since it was a vegan meal and I didn't pick up any non-dairy dessert, but I think that a little vanilla would be a great compliment to this. The presentation is also a really important part of this, and something that I would work on more on future iterations. My favorite part of making these was figuring out how to get out the seeds with an ice cream scooper and get a beautiful, perfectly circle-shaped hole. :) [Sadly, no picture. However, see below proof that my housemates not only ate but appeared to enjoy the meal!]

For Valentine's day, Ben and I cooked a few recipes from Veganomicon as well:

Porcini Wild Rice Soup
This was really good. Wild rice never gets quite as soft as I think it will for some reason, and Ben pointed out that this might be good to try with barley or some other grain. Has anyone else done a soup like this with another grain that worked?

Mashed Sweet Potatoes
A definite classic! Very Thanksgiving-y. I left out the salt and I think I shouldn't have.

Chickpea Cutlets
We were at Whole Foods buying the ingredients for the dinner, and I picked up an extra can of garbonzo beans because I figured that it would be good for Ben to keep around. He was in charge of mashing the beans and kneading the dough, and I put all the ingredients in - or so I thought. While I was measuring out the vital wheat gluten, he saw the other can of beans, opened them, and added them, not realizing they were just to keep around. This actually turned out really well, despite doubling the main ingredient! I would definitely make these again, even trying the correct proportions. :)

Curried Carrot Dip (Veganomicon)

2009-02-17T18:35:00.000-08:00

Yum! We all really liked this -- Brian and Val are both taking it for lunch tomorrow. Guess I'll have to make more for me.

What I did
I followed the recipe as written except:

I substituted almonds for sunflower seeds, because I love almonds and I like their fatty-acid profile (and, well, I didn't have any sunflower seeds...).
Canola oil replaced the grapeseed oil (which I also didn't have).
I used Penzy's Maharajah Curry Powder. I imagine the particular curry powder used would make a noticeable difference in the flavor.
I used a food processor, not a blender.

Comments
Normally I don't care for curry dips. Val said the same, but this one has a lovely flavor. Freshly made, the lemon flavor is strong, but after just an hour in the fridge, everything melded together. (That is, whatever was left after my several samples of the freshly made dip!) This is very easy and can -- should -- be made in advance. We spread it on leftover naan and onion kulcha, but it'll be spread on rye bread for lunch tomorrow.

And it's true, carrots improve eyesight! I couldn't find my Veganomicon, decided I never really owned it, and got a new copy. But while munching on Carrot Curry Dip at dinner, I glanced at the bookcase, and what to my wandering eyes should appear... Lucky Val, after dinner she was given her own copy of Vegonomicon.

Pudding; Cauliflower Popcorn; Eggplant stew

2009-02-17T18:30:00.000-08:00

The pudding came out alright. A little spicier than necessary, but still perfectly enjoyable. I would recommend the recipe :).

Tonight we ate: Popcorn Cauliflower which was a hit. It was an easy way to use up half a head of cauliflower which I had in the fridge.

And then we had this Curried Eggplant Stew which was good but not great. Josh wasn't a huge fan, so I'm not sure I'd make it again. I found the flavor combination intriguing and appealing but I didn't fall in love.

I hope your dinner party is a great success, Jocelyn!

Bruschetta; Bread pudding

2009-02-16T18:27:00.000-08:00

My first post!

Nothing too exciting here, but I thought I'd share my latest cooking adventures--however modest.

On Valentine's Day, Josh and I cooked (err mostly reheated from Whole Foods) an Italian themed meal. We made my new favorite wintertime bruschetta recipe, and I wanted to recommend it. It is adapted from the artisanbreadinfive blog.

-baguette

-1 can of diced San Marzano tomatoes

-fresh basil

-garlic

-kosher salt

-olive oil

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice the baguette and arrange slices on a cast iron skillet. Spray or brush each slice with olive oil. Drain the canned tomatoes over a fine-mesh sieve--leave them for a couple minutes so they are well drained. Rub each slice with a piece of garlic that has been cut open. Or, if your garlic isn't very juicy, use a microplane grater to very lightly dust each slice with a bit of garlic. Add a heaping spoonful of the tomatoes on top of the bread. Sprinkle with coarse salt. Top with chopped basil. Bake for 5 minutes. And that's how you can pretend it's August, when it is really February in Boston.

The key was really the San Marzano tomatoes. They make it smell like summertime, even though they come from a can. We used the leftover bread and basil to repeat the appetizer the next night, but with regular (Muir Glenn) canned tomatoes, and decided that it's really worth the extra $2 for the San Marzanos. I discovered them just a couple weeks ago on the strong recommendation of the elderly proprietor of a specialty food store in my neighborhood, who insisted that they are what makes the pizzas at my favorite gourmet pizza spot taste so good.

I just pulled the Chocolate Chip-Banana bread pudding from V-con out of the oven. I haven't tasted it yet though. I had a minor disaster with the nutmeg though (didn't realize there was no top on the spice and accidently dumped it directly over the batter), so we'll see what happened. I thought I scooped most of it out, but the pan still smells suspiciously spicy..

Prepping the Meal

2009-02-16T15:04:00.000-08:00

Well, it turns out that whole foods had neither pumpkin nor butternut squash - so all I got for the pumpkin saag recipe was a 2lb butternut squash I happened to have sitting around. Also, I think this was my first time baking potatoes, and I didn't quite let them bake long enough ... but I am still hopeful for the rest of the meal! Onion and garlic chopping are done!

administration

2009-02-15T23:34:00.000-08:00

If you give a mouse a cookie...

do you think you could make it an administrator?

Also, can we be anonymous? I'm happy being referred to by any name save my own.

And, thank you for setting this up!!

Recipes to Try

2009-02-15T20:33:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! Ribbit and I were talking this afternoon and thought it would be fun to have a blog where we can all make the same food (or different foods), and post pics and info about them for everyone to share. This is going to be the most fun if we all have the same cookbooks, so if anyone starts getting crazy on one book it may be worth checking out. :)

I'm putting a little list of things I want to try below - I'm not sure if there's a better place to keep these so we can all edit and add to the list, so let me know if you know of one.

On Tuesday night, if anyone wants to start then, I will be making (all recipes are from Veganomicon):
Samosa Baked potatoes (p60)
Tamarind Lentils (p123)
Pumpkin Saag (p184)
Rice (...)
Tea-poached pears (p246)

I'm cooking for 14 so I don't expect anyone else will also be making 5 dishes, but if you want to try out a couple with me, it should be good!

List of recipes I want to try:

Appetizers:
Spicy Tempeh Nori Rolls (Veganomicon, 47)
Grilled Yuca Tortillas (Veganomicon, 49)
Broccoli-Millet Croquettes (Veganomicon, 51)

Main Course:
Mac N "Cheese" (VeganYumYum - http://tinyurl.com/9o2gl8)
Cashew crusted tofu (The Vegan Foodie - http://tinyurl.com/amq648)
Tofu & Noodles (It Ain't Meat Babe - http://tinyurl.com/bbfymg)

Breads, Muffins, etc:
Poppy Seed Cornmeal Roti (Veganomicon, 221)
Pumpkin Cranberry Scones (Veganomicon, 225)
Almond Quinoa Muffins (Veganomicon, 227)
No-Knead Bread (NYT Blog - http://tinyurl.com/85k58z)

Dessert:
Sweet potato chocolates (Diet, Dessert, & Dogs - http://tinyurl.com/boque3)
Carrot chocolate pie (http://tinyurl.com/cra4pu)
Sweet potato and almond cookies (Vegan Food & Fitness - http://tinyurl.com/b8fzvp)