Peppermint Bark
15-Minute Ice Cream Pie (Coconut & Mango)
Marinating Seitan Kabobs
Smoky Yogurt Dipping Sauce
Seitan Kabobs with Smoky Yogurt Dipping Sauce
Baked Agave Tofu
Balsamic-Baked Beans
Latkes
Tostones
I updated my FB status with, "Vicki asks What to do with all this broccoli?" Getting responses like a YouTube of Dana Carvey's "Chopping Broccoli", or the "Love Food Hate Waste" link with recipes to use it up. Or, a PPK recipe Theresa suggested "Classic Broccoli Quiche" which you see. It was OK. I think it'd be righteous sandwich spread, or burrito filling - being complimented by other ingredients. If nothing else, go learn potluck faux pas & eves drop on the fall-out of one potluck party gone bad.
This is the pie shell I used for the quiche. It was delicious and convenient. No wonder Wholly Wholesome was named "Best Pie Crust" in the November 2008 issue of Real Simple Magazine.
Green because they are organic, animal-free pie shells. They are available in Traditional, Whole Wheat & Spelt, as well as Graham & Chocolate Pie. No kneed to roll the dough.
My Costco broccoli bag continued...
VICKI'S BROCCOLI POTATO SOUP
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
3 lb yukon gold potatoes, chopped
6 cups boiling water
2 tbsp "Better Than Bouillon" vegetable base
4-5 cups fresh broccoli, cooked & drained
sea salt, fresh ground pepper & nutritional yeast
1. In a soup pot saute onion & garlic in oil. Add potatoes, water and veg base. Cover, bring to boil and then reduce heat to medium and cook until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.
2. Clean & remove broccoli stems and steam. Once cooked add to soup.
3. In a food processor puree the soup and return to stock pot. Season with salt, pepper, and nutritional yeast.
If you're lucky, you'll have Sweet & Saras on hand for dessert! Seriously.
Have you heard of Cono Sur?
You can feel even nicer drinking this wine because it's green. They are the first winery in the world to obtain CarbonNeutral delivery status, which means that CO2 emissions from the shipping has been measured and balanced to net zero through Greenhouse Gas Emissions reductions projects. They also grow organic grapes, and ride bicycles. Bet they recycle & compost too. And the wine doesn't suck either!
CHOCOLATE-CHIPOTLE CHILI
CREAMY CILANTRO-LIME SAUCE
SWEET FRENCH TERRINE
MOROCCAN MILLET TIMBALES
LEMON-SCENTED CARROTS WITH CAPERS AND CORIANDER
VIETNAMESE-INSPIRED TAPIOCA PUDDING
It feels great to be back in So Cal! Yesterday, we rented bikes and cruised Venice Beach.
I wanted to check out the new vegan restaurant, Seed, but my family expired before I could find it. Next time. Anybody eaten there? But I have nothing to complain about, the food so far has been delicious and priced just right! Here's an unofficial guide to eating cheap in and around Hollywood!
I have been known to rave once or twice about the soul food served up at the Hollywood Farmer's Market Sunday mornings at Selma & Vine by A Taste of Life. As usual, Art and I shared the soul food dinner combo with kale, black-eyed peas, vegan pot roast and macaroni and cheeze. comes with cornbread. $12 -- For the price, you can't do better than this if you don't mind sitting on the sidewalk.
This is a new favorite routine of mine:
Go to How's Market, NoHo. Order tofu skewers from the service deli. Check the deli case, and if you're lucky, there will be inari sushi (basically rice inside tofu pouches). Go to the coffee counter and score yourself a Peet's Coffee. Settle at a table in front of the TV and enjoy the newspaper left behind. -- less than $10
I've been dying to try Vicious Dogs since Art discovered it and wrote his guest post.
The owner's name is Willy, and he boasts 4 varieties of vegan dogs. He magically transforms Yves hot dogs into something that looks like this (minus the giant bite). Mine had grilled onions & peppers, sweet & sour sauce, and chopped tomatoes for only $3.99
Abi enjoyed hers plain with ketchup. We sat out front watching the cranes across the street build a new theatre.
All is good here in California! We're looking forward to more adventures including Thanksgiving with family. Hope yours is full of happiness.
XO
I have the opportunity to guest blog here for Vicki, I've been on the hunt for new vegan grub in the LA area. I have tried various veggie dogs in town, including Pink's on La Brea (they have a "Pat Morrison Vegan Dog"), and also Orean's in Pasadena (they have a good BBQ tofu dog), but NOBODY beats the vegan dog at this place I found. It's called Vicious Dogs, located in the NoHo Arts District on Lankershim Boulevard. They have several vegetarian or vegan style dogs, take your pick. I grilled the owner (pardon the bun) on whether the dogs were actually vegan.
Sure enough, they are! Yves, and he was kind enough to pull them out and prove it! He tosses them on a special section of the grill, and you can order them any way you want. I've tried several varieties, but the best one, and what seems to be most popular there with vegans, is the "Sweet and Spicy" vegan dog. Damn, it's so good I have to cuss about it! I usually order two of them, they are $4.00 each, it's got grilled onions, grilled peppers, sweet and spicy sauce, and a delicious soft bun with the jumbo Yves dog in there.
The onions and peppers are grilled in a pan with olive oil. I caught this photo just as he had tossed the stuff on the grill. You could smell it already. They report that the vegan dogs are one of the most popular (there is a large arts community in the area and we know that artsy people are often vegans). Well, you can have it anyway you want, so I'm thinking about coming up with my own variety and asking him to name it after me. He has an "Original Willy Style" which has a special chipolte sauce and other stuff, but I'd say my favorite is the sweet and spicy and that's going to be hard to beat.
Look at that puppy! It was so good, after taking the photos, I wolfed it down and then got another one to go! You can call in your orders and each dog is made specially and ready to eat when you get there. Or, do like me, and order the dog there and talk smack with the owner, which is more fun, and probably why it's called Vicious Dogs. The difference here is that the vegan dog is cooked perfectly on the grill, as opposed to boiled or microwaved. We've tried the Foreman grill at home and it's okay, but nothing like this. So let me know what you'd put on a special vegan dog and maybe I'll get one named after me?
I have been enjoying the DVD "Everyday Dish" which features Julie Hasson, Dreena Burton and Bryanna Clark Grogan, along with some of their delicious recipes. The DVD format is great for me because my computer is within sight in the kitchen so I was able to watch and prepare along with the pros! I could see it being done, then watch it while using the printable recipes. I would do the prep work and set out the ingredients, then cue up the DVD, and mise en place I really had fun! I've watched some sections several times and I will eventually try everything in the DVD, but I'm at a point now to show some of the great results I got.
I made Julie's 'Nora's Cake' and 'Chocolate Espresso Frosting' for my mom's birthday. This cake is very easy to make and super-delicious. It's light and very chocolatey. I was so taken with Amey's cake design, that I made my own snowflake stencil to shake powdered sugar over. Mom said she'd only seen this done with doilies, which would be amazing. One tip -- don't use candles (or at least don't blow them out) as my Mom gave us all a surprise accidental dusting of sugar as we finished singing to her. I had to flaten out the frosting for the stencil design, but you should know this frosting is very light and fluffy.
Here's Julie's 'Deli Style Noodle Soup' which is a snap to prepare, and makes the house smell delicious... as if you've been slaving for hours. After prep, it only takes 25 minutes to assemble soup that may remind you of your childhood - warm & comforting. Watching the DVD imparts tons of information you can't glean from a flat cookbook, like: product identification, professional techniques & tips, substitutions, variations, visual step-by-step, quick recipes, and even fun cooking terms. Plus, you get to watch seasoned vegan chefs sharing their trade right in your home.
Dreena's 'Sundried Tomato Humus' is a welcome twist on an old favorite. We enjoyed having this on hand this week for quick snacking, and thought the flavor only improved the next day. Make it the night before your next gathering for some easy & impressive entertaining. Pairs well with a bottle of red wine!
Dreena's 'Chocolate Mint Melties' "Scratch every other cookie off the list. This is the one." were Art's words after eating this cookie. My mouth was too busy chewing, so I just nodded my head in agreement and giggled at Liv's chocolate-smeared face, as we gobbled them all up. I had to reassure Art that I had another endangered species Dark Chocolate with Deep Forest bar. We can & will make more.
Bryanna's 'Vegan Chicken Cutlets' prepared one way she suggests. She shares how she breads the cutlets (w/o egg, of course!) to make them veinerschnitzel style, which is what I did here. I may not have tackled this recipe without the video demonstration, which really clarifies so much. I figured out how to make the patties more uniform, as well as sped up this process considerably -- I formed the patties by placing the cutlet between parchment paper and pressing, unfold the paper and a perfect cutlet is formed and easily removed from the parchment paper. This recipe will replace most of the boxed faux meats that we currently purchase. They're easy to make, quick to prepare, totally delicious, and extremely versatile as you'll see in the next photo...
Here are Bryanna's 'Vegan Chicken Cutlets' made Art's style, which has been dinner the past two nights. (we have gone through 16 cutlets this week!) He slices the cutlets, then grills them in a pan with some light oil, and repeatedly adds bar-b-que sauce and serves on a bun with fresh greens and tomato slices. This sandwich totally rocks. I see no reason to fiddle around with other seitan recipes. The search is over. I'm set. But I guess I shouldn't be too surprised because I've heard Bryanna is the faux meat queen. These cutlets are really that good.
Bryanna's 'Lemon-Lime Bars' are a perfect summertime treat. They're light and similar to cheesecake, with a superb tangy tropical flavor. Make them the night before company arrives. Toast some shaved coconut, top with lime zest, and perhaps a mint sprig. Or, you can sneak bites straight out of the pan at midnight like we've done the past few nights.
If you've ever dreamed of watching a vegan cooking show, then this DVD was made for you; there are more clips to see on the Everyday Dish link.
Liv & I began planting the garden (occasionally taking breaks to take photos) while Art prepared the following meal. He enjoys cooking, and with equal enthusiasm, we eat it up! This meal was specifically prepared with Gaia's 'Sweetie's Recipes' idea in mind.
For the record, we planted 2 broccoli, 1 cauliflower, 1 habanero pepper, 2 tomato, and a grove of onion -- and we still have plenty of room.
Now for the food... Take it away, Art!
This is my favorite tofu dish. It's sauteed in chipolte chili pepper and Mr. Yoshida's sauce was selected this time as the marinate. The dish is a combination of three things: tofu, over rice, with peaches. Unfortunately, peaches are out of season, so in sticking to the recipe, canned peaches are substituted for what will soon be fresh peaches when they are in season. As sides I always prefer collard greens with this tofu recipe, and I also prepared vegan peanut butter cookies.
Get the grilling kind, I prefer Nasoya "firm" which says it's for grilling.
Cut the entire tofu package into 1/2 inch pieces that are each about the size of a deck of cards. You want them big so that they are easier to keep intact in the pan. Put the pieces into a dish and sprinkle the chilli pepper on first, then dump about 1/2 cup of sauce and swish it around. Then carefully add the tofu steaks to the pan with some soy butter (1 tablespoon will be enough), or olive oil if you prefer, and just add the tofu and cook over medium heat, try to only turn them once or twice. I let them cook for like 10 minutes per side, 0n low heat (high heat seares the tofu quickly, locking out the sauce, and making it burned and dry). You can keep adding the leftover sauce into the pan as needed, or just dump it all in at once. Separately, cook up your favorite rice; I prefer jasmine or basmati, this time I used jasmine rice, 1 cup for 2 1/2 cups of boiling water, which took about 20 minutes to prepare.
I would use the rice cooker for the rice, but, collard greens do so well in the rice cooker that the rice had to be done on the stove. The collard greens are easy. You wash them, then cut out the center stem, and then toss them into the rice cooker (with the steamer attachment at the bottom) and add like 1/2 cup of water, sprinkle in a few dashes of salt, and toss in some soy butter or Earth Balance (1 tablespoon or so). Then, cut a couple of peaches up, and have them ready. You serve the dish with a bed of rice, then tofu pieces, then peaches, and you kinda cut it all together and mix it up and it's delicious. The collard greens are a good strong compliment to the tangy/sweet flavors.
The peanut butter cookies were also easy. 1 cup of flour, 1 cup of brown sugar, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1 1/2 cups peanut butter -- mix the dry stuff first, then toss in a couple pinches of baking powder, then add in the peanut butter (use creamy because it mixes better). Ball up the dough, put 1 inchers onto the cookie sheet (use cooking spray) and mash down with two fork presses, making a criss-cross. Cook them at 350 for 13 minutes, then let sit on the sheet out of the oven for 5 minutes, then put onto a drying rack for 15 minutes and they will be ready after dinner is over. I put everything "on" at the same time, so plan to toss in the first cookie sheet, turn on the collards in the cooker, put on the saucepan with water for rice, and put the tofu saucepan on the stove all at the same time, and then everything will be done at the right time.
