Tofu Curry, Pulao, Puri, Toor Dal

Dinner 12/29

Tofu Curry

Pulao

Puri

Toor Dal

The tofu curry is a riff on the mini-phyllo cups we made for the holiday party -- our son loved them so much, that I promised to make a large format version just for him. Neither of our children are big fans of Indian cuisine in general, but the irony is that this recipe isn't the slightest bit traditional.



It starts with reducing apple juice down to a syrup, then adding garlic, ginger, curry powder, vegenaise and currants to make the sauce. Then braising the fried tofu pieces in the sauce until it thickens. Easy & tasty, yes -- authentic, er.. no.

The pulao is pretty standard -- basmati rice with currants, pistachio and spices that matched well with the tofu curry.




The toor dal and puri are another winning combination of slow cooked yellow lentils and deep-fried puffy breads that could double as pillows.

Tasty, tasty pillows... ;)

Tags: tofu, curry, puri, toor dal, basmati rice, pistachio, currants, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Panade with Teese

Dinner 12/26

Panade

It's hard to believe that's it been more than a year since we last made this dish -- but this is the first time we've made it with Teese instead of FYH.

The recipe is a mash-up of Paula Wolfert's (Slow Mediterranean Kitchen) and Judy Rodger's (Zuni Cafe): toasted bread, lacinato kale, Teese Mozzerella, veg stock, shallots, onions, garlic, salt, pepper, tamari.

Slow cooked at 275F for three hours with foil covering, and then 375 for 15 minutes without the foil, until it finally reaches that crunchy on top, creamy on the inside consistency.

Tags: bread, teese, paula wolfert, judy rodgers, lacinato kale, shallots, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Christmas Dinner

Christmas Dinner

It's been a great holiday season so far, and we had a nice relaxed family dinner tonight with my sister-in-law and nephew.

We made a huge batch of pierogies (about 120 or so) back in September and vacuum-sealed them for just such an occasion -- it was so wonderful to not worry about rushing around at the last minute. The pierogies are adapted from Liz's family recipe, and I'm not allowed to see it, so we're all out of luck... ;)

Cabbage Pierogi, Potato & Mushroom Pierogi, Braised Carrots, Roasted Fingerling Potatoes, Haricot Verts

Apple, Cranberry & Grape Salad with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds and Maple Syrup Vinaigrette



For dessert, Liz continued on her hot streak from the holiday party and made eggnog cookies again, along with crescent cookies (kind of like Italian wedding cookies made with walnuts, and shaped like half moons. She also made her mother's clothespin pastries (below)

top to bottom: Clothespin Pastries, Eggnog Cookies, Crescent Cookies


Eggnog Cookies



Crescent Cookies



Clothespin Pastries - prep



Clothespin Pastries - ready to go in the oven



Clothespin Pastries - out of the oven ready to be filled



Clothespin Pastries - plated



The holiday table



Centerpiece



Place Setting



...and as a couple of people asked, the plates are "Dragonfly" by Pinheiro and the silverware is "Vineyard" by Godinger. As far as I know, they are no longer in production, but you can occasionally find some on eBay or replacements.com.

Tags: christmas, pierogi, cabbage, potato, mushroom, haricot verts, salad, apple, cranberry, grape, pumpkin seeds, maple syrup, cookies, clothespin pastries, eggnog cookies, pinheiro, godinger, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Holiday Party XII

Holiday Party XII 12/20

Three days of cooking, 45 guests, and 60 minutes later the food was all gone!

Thanks to the PPK crew (pensarepink & pensareblue, nikitee & family, and special guest star bryophyte) for coming to the annual shindig...

Here's the main table shortly before the horde of very hungry people descended upon the food... ;)

Triple Tofu Salad Sandwich Tower


Can't have a party without Mini-Burgers


Artichoke Dip


Orzo Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette


Tofu Curry Phyllo Cups


I don't quite remember what happened to nikitee and bryophyte after this picture was taken, but I do know that it's hard to focus a camera and wave a knife menacingly at the same time...

OMG, pictures of people on the blog!

Sadly, pictures of the seitan bourguignon, bbq tofu lollipops, roasted fingerling potatoes, mushroom pate, stuffed mushrooms, white bean cassoulet and the dessert table are missing, but here's the menu in full:

Seitan Bourguignon
White Bean Cassoulet
BBQ Tofu Lollipops
Mini-Burgers
Tofu Salad Sandwiches
Phyllo Cups w/ curried tofu and raisins
Tapenade (w/ batard)
Roasted Fingerling Potatoes (w/ Roasted Garlic)
Chilled Orzo Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette
Lentil and Soyrizo Spoons
Mushroom Pate
Baked Artichoke Dip
Olives (garlic / pimento stuffed)
Stuffed Mushrooms
Edamame

Chocolate Cupcakes
Aphrodite Cakes
Nog Cookies
Thumbprint Jam Cookies

Tags: holiday party, orzo, tofu, seitan, curry, phyllo, potatoes, cassoulet, PPK, bbq, mushroom, pate, cookies, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Seitan Stew with Cannellini Beans, Carrots & Mushrooms over Penne Rigati, Roasted Cauliflower

Dinner 12/18

Seitan Stew with Cannellini Beans, Carrots & Mushrooms over Penne Rigati

Roasted Cauliflower

A basic seitan stew (slow cooked seitan, onion, garlic, carrots, mushrooms, veg stock, tamari & black pepper) topped with the deliciously nutty roasted cauliflower (tossed with olive oil, salt & pepper, 450F, 15 minutes), over penne rigati.

yep, it's winter... ;)

Tags: seitan, mushroom, carrot, cauliflower, penne rigati, cannellini beans, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Tea-Smoked Tofu Coconut Curry

Dinner 12/17

Tea-Smoked Tofu Coconut Curry

Tea smoked tofu may be my favorite taste sensation of all time. All it takes is 20 minutes in the smoker box with 1 tbs. of oolong tea. Then the tofu is fried in the wok and seasoned with a little San-J tamari at the end of cooking. Good, good stuff...

Paired with the creaminess/heat of the coconut curry sauce (coconut milk, curry paste, lemongrass, lime juice, tamari, pinch of palm sugar) along with the fresh rice balls and topped with wilted beet greens and sesame seeds, this dish has all the balance of taste/texture that we love.

(RFW will return in January...)

Tags: oolong tea, smoker box, tofu, coconut milk, curry, lemongrass, tamari, rice, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

How To Make Vegetable Stock in the Pressure Cooker

Stock

We get asked this one a fair amount, so here's how we make stock in our (Kuhn-Rikon) pressure cooker.

We start by saving the veggie scraps (carrot, onion, leek, mushroom, shallots) in a produce bag. When it's full, it's time to make stock. This works out to about every 10-14 days.

In the pressure cooker, over high heat, we put 1 tsp. of oil, a couple of peppercorns, and two bay leaves.



Add the scraps and begin to saute, moving and rotating the veggies every couple of minutes. Tongs work best here, as you want to grab the stuff off the bottom and so they all get some time on the bottom of the pot.



After 10 minutes, it's dropped to 3/4 full.



After 20 minutes, it's dropped to half, and is beginning to develop a good layer of fond (browned bits) at the bottom of the pressure cooker.



We then deglaze the fond on the bottom of the pressure cooker with 1 cup of water, scraping as much off the bottom as possible.

Then we add about nine more cups of water for a total of 10 cups (2 1/2 quarts) -- this unit can hold 7 liters total, so it can take it -- but you should only fill the pressure cooker 3/4ths of the way to the top at maximum, or else it won't have enough room to build pressure, so adjust accordingly.



Secure the lid, and bring it to pressure.



The second ring on our Kuhn-Rikon equals 15psi. Cook for 40-60 minutes to fully extract all the flavor.



We drain it using a stand chinois, and really press on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible.



Yields about 8 cups of solid gold.

Tags: stock, veggies, FAQ, how-to, pressure cooker, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Tofu Marsala with Shiitake Mushrooms

Dinner 12/15

Tofu Marsala with Shiitake Mushrooms

It's that time of year to pull out the classics -- and this recipe is one of our favorites.

The nice thing about this dish is you can make it with whatever mushrooms & pasta you have on hand -- tonight it just happened to be shiitake and chiocciole...

Tags: tofu, shiitake, mushrooms, pasta, chiocciole, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Raw Food Thursday: Beets

Raw Food Thursday 12/11

Beet Hand Rolls
(recipe below)

Borscht
(adapted from Juliano)

The idea today was to make Beet Crepes -- which, as you'll see below, we did.

For a meal like this, we usually start in the morning, so all we need to do is assemble come dinner time. The crepes were finished right around lunch time (RAWvolution's "Chicken" Salad), and while removing them from the dehydrator one of the crepes snagged and tore a chunk out of it. This made it unusable as a crepe, but we were able to salvage it by cutting it right down the center which left a semi-circle. So we put two and two together and made an impromptu sushi hand-roll.


Un cadeau pour mon petit chou-chou

This turned out so well, we decided to postpone the crepe part of dinner and just make these instead. ;)

Beet Crepes
(makes approximately 8 crepes)

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup flax seeds

1 tsp. caraway seed
1/2 tsp. dill seed
1/2 tsp. celery seed
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. black pepper

1 1/2 cups of beets, diced
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tbs. olive oil
1 tsp. nama shoyu


Mix the water and Flax together, let sit for 15 minutes.




Grind the spices together and add to the flax.




Peel the beets and dice them, add to the flax along with the orange juice, olive oil and nama shoyu.



Puree everything together in the vita-mix. It'll sound painful. It may need to lie down in between, but it will preserve... maybe.




You'll need two teflex sheets. Pour the mixture into rounds -- an offset spatula works wonders here -- trying to keep it roughly in a round shape.

Place both sheets in the dehydrator at 105F for 90 minutes.

After 90 minutes, check to see if the edges are starting to get dried out. You want to see a little of that -- not too much, as it will become brittle, and you won't be able to cut and fold them later. If it looks firm enough across the entire sheet, you can try to flip it over. If not, wait another 15-20 minutes.

If it's looking good, flip the entire sheet over onto another tray (we like to place one on top, and then flip both over so it doesn't go flying).

Now this is the tricky part -- peel one of the corner edges back, sloooooooowly. If you have a small offset spatula, see if you can loosen the edge of the crepes off of the sheet and hold it down while peeling the rest of the teflex off. You'll have some of the mixture remain on the sheet as you're peeling it back -- don't worry -- you can scrape it off and re-apply it once you've peeled the sheet off. But slowly is the key here.



After flipping/peeling the crepes, place them back in the dehydrator for 30 minutes at 105F. Again, keep an eye on them so they don't become too brittle -- softer is better here.



Assembly

Cut the crepes in half, place filling (shredded carrot, red bell pepper, red cabbage, Dr. Cow*, which has been tossed in an orange poppyseed vinaigrette) at a 45° angle, and roll tightly into a hand roll.



Secure the roll with a thin strip of carrot, and serve immediately.



*We ordered some Dr. Cow Aged Cashew Cheese from Pangea (in addition to our usual Teese order). It reminded us of a sharper version of the cashew cheese we make at home. I liked that you could shave the cheese extremely thin.

Tags: raw food wednesday, raw food, raw, beets, carrots, orange juice, dr. cow, borscht, soup, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Pineapple and Seitan Pizza

Dinner 12/07

Pineapple and Seitan Pizza

Sometimes you just go with what you've got... ;)

I cut the pineapple in half, saving the rest for tomorrow's breakfast smoothie. Then trimmed the edges, and shaped them using two cookie cutters -- one for the core, one for the outer ring.

The rest of the pizza toppings were seitan (cut into strips), red onion, a small bit of tomato/balsamic sauce to keep everything attached and topped with micro-planed Blue Sheese.

I wish we had made two...

Tags: pizza, blue sheese, pineapple, seitan, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Raw Food Thursday: Spanakopita, Dinosaur Kale Dolmas, Celery Soup Shooters

Raw Food Thursday 12/04

Spanakopita
(recipe below)

Dinosaur Kale Dolmas
(adapted from Trotter/Klein)

Celery Soup Shooters
(recipe below)

A Greek-styled raw food night... we'd been trying to come up with a spanakopita recipe this week, and couldn't quite hit on the right combination of color and texture to recreate the phyllo. It wasn't until we were at our co-op (Kent Natural Foods) yesterday that we saw a gorgeous cauliflower just waiting for us to take it home... ;)



Spanakopita

1/2 cup flax seeds
1/2 cup water

1/2 tsp. dill seed, freshly ground
1/8 tsp. allspice, freshly ground
1/2 tsp. celery seed, freshly ground
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tbs. lemon juice
2 tbs. olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper, freshly ground
1 garlic glove, smashed
1 1/2 cups chopped cauliflower

Soak the flax seed and water together for 15 minutes

Grind the spices together and add to the flax seed

Add the rest of the ingredients and the cauliflower and puree until completely combined. Your blender will not like you. At all. Even your vita-mix will complain slightly.

You'll need two teflex sheets. Spread the mixture evenly across the entire surface -- an offset spatula works wonders here -- trying to keep it roughly in a square shape.

Place both sheets in the dehydrator at 105F for 90 minutes.

After 90 minutes, check to see if the edges are starting to get dried out. You want to see a little of that -- not too much, as it will become brittle, and you won't be able to cut and fold them later. If it looks firm enough across the entire sheet, you can try to flip it over. If not, wait another 15-20 minutes.

If it's looking good, flip the entire sheet over onto another tray (we like to place one on top, and then flip both over so it doesn't go flying).

Now this is the tricky part -- peel one of the corner edges back, sloooooooowly. If you have a small offset spatula, see if you can loosen the corner edge of the cauliflower off of the sheet and hold it down while peeling the rest of the teflex off. You'll have some of the mixture remain on the sheet as you're peeling it back -- don't worry -- you can scrape it off and re-apply it once you've peeled the sheet off. But slowly is the key here.

After flipping both sheets, place them back in the dehydrator for 30-45 minutes at 105F. Again, keep an eye on them so they don't become too brittle -- softer is better here.

Remove from the dehydrator and place the cauliflower sheets on a cutting board. Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife cut from top to bottom making 5 equal sized strips. Repeat with the other sheet and stack together. They are now ready to be stuffed and folded into triangles.

Spinach Filling For Spanikopita

2 cups of baby spinach, thick stems removed
1 tbs. lemon juice
zest of one lemon
1 tsp. olive oil
1/8 tsp. nutmeg, freshly grated
Sea Salt & Pepper to taste
1 tbs. of pine nuts
1 tbs. currants

Toss all of the ingredients together, place on a teflex sheet, dehydrate for 30-40 minutes at 105F. Remove and roughly chop.

Pine Nut Cheese

1 cup Pine Nuts
1 tbs. White Miso
1 tbs. shallot, minced
1 tbs. lemon juice
1 garlic clove
Sea Salt and Pepper to taste

Add all of the ingredients to the vita-mix and puree until smooth.

Spread half of the pine nut cheese out on a teflex sheet and dehydrate at 105F for 4-6 hours, flipping once.

Take the other half of the cheese, add a splash of water, mix well, and use as a dipping sauce.


Assembly:

Place a long strip of the cauliflower in front of you on a work surface. Place 1 tbs. of the spinach mixture about an 1/2" from the bottom. Place a chunk of the pine nut cheese on top of the spinach. Grab the bottom right corner and fold it over the spinach and pine nut cheese to the left side. Repeat, folding the strip upwards into triangles until all edges no longer have any exposed spinach (about 5 turns). Trim the excess wrapping. Place in the dehydrator for 20-30 minutes at 105F. Serve with the dipping sauce.



The dolmas were adapted from Trotter/Klein, using Dinosaur (Lacinato) Kale in place of the grape leaves. The kale leaves had the center rib cut out all the way up to about 2 inches from the top, then were tossed with olive oil, nama shoyu and pepper. They were put into dehydrator for 30 minutes at 105F. Finally, they were assembled with the parsnip, pine nut, lemon juice, parsley & currant filling, and rolled up. You can put them back in the dehydrator for a couple of minutes if you like them slightly warm to eat.



The soup was a last minute addition...

Celery Soup Shooters
(makes four)

2 ribs of celery roughly chopped
1/4 cup water
1 tsp. celery seed, freshly ground
1 tbs. lemon juice
1 tsp. olive oil
1 tbs. pine nuts
salt and pepper to taste

Add of the ingredients and puree in the vita-mix, check for seasoning and pour into shooter glasses. Garnish with celery leaf.

Tags: raw food wednesday, raw food, raw, pine nuts, lemon, cauliflower, spanakopita, dinosaur kale, dolmas, celery, soup, garlic, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666