The Last VeganMoFo Entry...

...sad but true. The Vegan Month of Food has come to an end. An era passed. A time gone by. Actually, I am quite relieved. The guilt I was feeling when I missed a post was killing me.


I will end this post with a picture of a burger inspired by one of my testers, Liz. She was at a restaraunt and had a burger she really liked. She described it and asked if I could recreate it. Hopefully this will satisfy her needs. I call it the Fire Roasted Red Pepper Burger.



Here's the fire rosted red pepper getting fire roasted:

VeganMoFo and what to make next...

Oh my. There are so many things I want to make. Christmas baking aside, I have recieved PapaTofu and Don't Eat Off the Sidewalk 2 and Veganomicon and I want to make new burgers and...

There are so many choices, that I am overwhelmed! I am determined to make at least 2 different burgers before the weekend is over and I want to try at least one recipe from each of the above three books. Since it is Thursday already, I'd better get to cooking!

VeganMoFo, Amazon and Veganomicon

My apologies for falling behind on the 'mofo! I was doing so well up to Thanksgiving and then...

Anyhow. Back in August, I preordered my copy of Veganomicon from Amazon. As I sat reading blog after blog and post after post on the ppk about how wonderful it was and how many wonderful recipes were awaiting me, I just became more and more frustrated as my copy hadn't arrived yet. And to add insult to injury, I kept getting emails from Amazon "Recommending that I purchase Veganomicon based on other books I have already purchased" (They also sent me an email recommending that I buy Cozy Inside, which made me giggle.)

It finally came last week, on the day before Thanksgiving.

I had already planned my Thanksgiving menu, so I had to set this beautiful baby aside until after the holiday. And then there were the leftovers. So finally, I was able to bust it out and break it in. The first recipe I made from the V was the Mac Daddy.



Let me start by saying that Mac and Cheeze has been a favorite of mine since I was a wee little girl. I can eat it all by itself, or as a side...whatever. I love mac and cheeze. I knew that if anyone could come up with an awesome, satisfying, comforting mac and cheeze it would be Miss Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. After all, they are America's Best Selling Vegan Chefs right?

I have never made a Isa or Terry recipe that I didn't like. So, as you would expect, my hopes were extremely high for this, the first of many, from V'con. The results...just okay. It tasted fine, but I felt like there was something missing. But what? Richness and creaminess. It was tangy and tart, and definitely noochy, and I especially loved the idea of the tofu ricotta type texture in the mix, and it certainly didn't lack in flavor...but the cheeziness left me wanting just a bit more.

I made it as written, without any of the variations. I have read others' posts about the Mac Daddy and they have all said it would be better with greens, like peas or spinach. Well, I don't want any greens in my mac and cheeze. I just want mac and cheeze. So, while it was okay, I probably won't be making the Mac Daddy again any time soon. I will, however, mix crumbled tofu into my Macaroni and Cheeze recipe from now until eternity.

VeganMoFo and Leftovers

Nothing much happening 'round here...I am STILL eating leftovers!

VeganMoFo and the day AFTER!

The day after Thanksgiving is sometimes better than Thanksgiving itself! No stress, no rushing around...just fuzzy slippers, sweats and a big ol' plate of leftovers.

I forgot to post pictures of a few of the other things I made yesterday, so here they are:

Julie Hasson's Pumpkin Spice Cake made into a 2 layer cake with cream cheeze frosting from VCTOTW. Everyone loved the cake. Sadly, I didn't even get to try it, because my husband and I had to leave to go to his mom's house for round two.


The Festivous Loaf, sliced and ready to eat:


And a really horrible shot of the "Vegan Buffet"...my camera died after this shot, so I didn't get a better one, but it's the only shot of the pumpkin raviolis so I posted it anyways. Also, we got to put our food in the actual DINING ROOM this year, and the TURKEY was shoved onto the little crappy kitchen table. I guess it pays to have a pretty presentation!


All in all Thanksgiving was a success. I wish I could've stayed at Dad's longer, but I had a wonderful time at Dan's Mom's house as well. Now off to put on those fuzzy slippers and get to my leftovers...

Festivous Loaf

Festivous, you know, for the rest of us?   The holiday meant for those who don't celebrate those other holidays and made famous by the memorable Seinfeld episode.  But every holiday needs a signature dish, right?  Alright. Here it is. The one, the only, the Festivous Loaf.

Ingredients:
2 cups vital wheat gluten flour
2 cups garbanzo bean flour
2 cups all purpose flour (can sub whole wheat pastry flour here too)
2/3 cup vegetable broth powder (I used vegetarian chicken flavor)
2-3 cups water
Pesto (I used sundried tomato flavor, but any pesto will do)
2 boxes of storebought stuffing mix (prepared with vegetable broth)
4 cups additional vegetable broth

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix together the flours with the vegetable broth powder and slowly add in the water. Start with 2 cups and add more if needed. Knead together until a nice smooth dough ball is formed. Knead for 5 more minutes, and then cover and set aside to rest for 20 minutes.
While it's resting, prepare 2 boxes of storebought stuffing according to package instructions and set aside. (Most boxed stuffings are vegan, infact they are really just a bag of seasoned croutons or bread crumbs so if you have a favorite stuffing recipe, this would be a good place to use it.) Set aside.
After your dough has rested, roll it out on a well floured surface, trying to keep a rectangular shape...mine ended up being almost as big as the cutting board:



Spread a hearty layer of pesto all over the dough:



Sprinkle on a good amount of prepared stuffing:



Roll that puppy up!



Pour about 2 cups of vegetable broth into a 9 x 13 baking dish, then place the loaf in the dish:



Add the remaining stuffing all around the loaf:



Place in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 90 minutes, basting with the remaing broth every 15 minutes or so. You'll know it's done, when it is firm.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I realized that I didn't even post yesterday, so today you get two posts! First off, I would like to wish all of you out there the warmest Thanksgiving wishes. May all of your families and friends be nice to you when you show up with a vegetable or a festivous loaf rather than partake in the dead bird.

The countdown is on and I think I am on schedule. The festivous loaf is in the oven, and all I have left to do is finish the raviolis and make the gravy and frost the cake.

Here is a picture of phase one completed. All that needs to be done is to reheat and enjoy! Clockwise from 9 o'clock is Garlic Smashed Potatoes, Greek Stuffing, Bourbon Sweet Potato Mash, and Bryanna's Pumpkin Pie:



I will post a tutorial on the festivous loaf next! Enjoy your day!

VeganMoFo and Thanksgiving Preparations

Alright. I went shopping. Did the dishes, and I am ready to start this feast.

My official menu is:
Cozy Inside Greek Stuffing (recipe below)
Ravioli with Pumpkin filling and a pumpkin seed creem sauce (will post recipe soon...)
Festivous Loaf (will post recipe soon...)
Cozy Inside Roasted Garlic Smashed Potatoes (recipe below)
Bourbon Sweet Potato Mash (I veganized this recipe)
Bryanna Clark Grogan's Pumpkin Pie (recipe here)
Julie Hasson's Pumpkin Spice Cake (recipe here) I am subbing chocolate chips for the fruit and frosting it with cream cheese frosting as a 3 layer cake for my Dad's birthday.

I may also make some bread, and a "fried cheese" appetizer, and if I have time I am going to make Joanna's Green Beans, from Yellow Rose Recipes.

Hopefully I'll be able to out do last year's feast!

Recipes:
Garlic Smashed Potatoes
Ingredients
4 large russet potatoes
½ cup soy creamer
¼ cup vegan margarine
¼ cup vegan sour cream
1 head of roasted garlic (see below)
Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
Directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Wash potatoes and cut them into approximately one inch chunks. Place chunks into the boiling water and cook until tender, usually 10-15 minutes. Drain and return to pot. Add in the creamer, margarine, sour cream and garlic. Smash with a potato masher until you get your desired consistency. I like mine with lots of lumps. Serve nice and warm smothered with Earth Balance and Mushroom and Onion Gravy. For cheesy garlic smashed potatoes, try adding in a quarter cup of nutritional yeast.

Roasted Garlic
Ingredients
1 head of garlic
Olive oil for drizzling
Sea salt to taste
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove excess outer layers of skin, but do not peel. With a knife, cut the top off of the whole head of garlic, exposing just the tips of the garlic cloves. Place on a sheet of aluminum foil and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt. Wrap the entire clove in the foil and bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove from oven, let it cool to the touch. Squeeze each clove out and use in garlic smashed potatoes, eat them on their own as an appetizer, spread onto bread, or add into any recipe calling for garlic when you want a milder, roasted flavor. To roast more than one head of garlic at a time, use a muffin tin!


Greek Stuffing
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups uncooked wild rice blend
500 grams vegetable bouillon (2 cubes)
24 ounces seitan, about 3 cups chopped into tiny little pieces, (or any other meat substitute like Boca Crumbles, Textured vegetable protein, or Tempeh sausage crumbles)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup golden raisins
4 tbsp tomato paste
1 cup pine nuts
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
Directions
Prepare rice, according to package instructions adding bouillon cubes to the water. Cook seitan, or other meat substitute, in a separate pan in a smidge of olive oil, until browned. Use about 1/2 of the olive oil in a large pan (I used a wok) and sauté the onions and garlic on medium high heat for about 5-7 minutes, or until onions are translucent and garlic is fragrant. Reduce heat, add the seitan, then all other ingredients to the pan, mix well and remove from heat. After rice is fully cooked, add to the sautéed ingredients along with the remaining olive oil and mix it all together.

VeganMoFo and the last "Pantry" experiment

This is the last meal of the great grocery experiment of 2007 as it is time to begin prepping Thanksgiving dinner and go grocery shopping!

This "Experimental Loaf" was made to see if it would work. It worked, so now I just need to tweak the thickness of the dough and change the filling so I can make a larger one for Thanksgiving dinner.



Basically it is a dough made with a mixture of vital wheat gluten, chickpea flour and whole wheat flour, rolled out, and spread with an herbed paste then rolled up and baked. When I tweak it to perfection, I will post the recipe.

Now I'm off to work, and after work...I'M GOING SHOPPING!

VeganMoFo and "Pantry" Ravioli

I am almost done with the pantry experiment. I could easily go longer, if it weren't for Thanksgiving, and specific ingredients I need to make certain things. Today I boiled up a HUGE batch of seitan to have on hand for lunches and for Thanksgiving.

I also made ravioli from scratch. I have never done this before, but I had the necessary ingredients so I figured why not. All the recent posts about ravioli really madse me want to try it. My first shot at it was successful. The pasta came out great, and the filling was rich and tasty. My biggest problem was my filling to pasta ratio. Next time I will either make the ravioli's smaller, or put more filling inside!

Rolling out the pasta dough:


Placing the filling:


Ready to boil:


Ready to eat (topped with some jarred marinara):


I followed this recipe, subbing whole wheat pastry flour for the whole wheat, and needing a bit more water to get the dough to come together. For the filling, I just mixed together a can of spinach, drained, with some garlic powder, onion powder, toasted pine nuts and Tofutti better than cream cheese. It was pretty tasty!