Lobster Mushroom Bisque

Dinner 09/30

Lobster Mushroom Bisque

We have officially moved into soup weather.

We scored some lobster mushrooms from our local grocery store this week, so we decided to bring back our bisque recipe from 2008.

Two changes: we used shiitake mushroom stock in place of the water and white wine in place of the cognac (we're out). Plus we added fried leek rings as a garnish.

Tomato Soup

Lunch 09/29

Tomato Soup

Somewhere it's 1973, and a Gilligan's Island rerun is showing.
In the center of the soup is some of the "Artisan Vegan Cheese" Chevre we made the other day.

Along the back is a cheese crisp made from Daiya Cheddar -- sprinkled in a cast-iron pan until melted, removed to a cooling rack for a few minutes until hardened.

As for the soup, it was simply shallots, garlic, tarragon and tomatoes from the garden cooked down in olive oil with a little veg stock and pureed, seasoned with salt and pepper.

Hickory-Smoked Tofu Triangles

Breakfast 09/29

Hickory-Smoked Tofu Triangles

Sometimes it is about the pretty pictures ;)

As always, the smoking tutorial is here.

Artisan Vegan Cheese

Dinner 09/28

Chevre & Brie

Yes, we gave in to peer pressure ;)

Thankfully our pantry was already loaded with agar agar and xanthan gum and we always have some rejuvelac on hand -- so we were ready to go.

We started by making the Chevre (goat cheese style) coated with herbes de provence and a wheel of Brie, which was combined with some fig jam for an outstanding bite.

Next up will be the cheddar and mozzarella.

Shawarma

Dinner 09/28

Shawarma

"Have you ever tried shawarma? I don't know what it is, but I wanna try it."
It was our daughter's birthday, the Avengers had just come out on DVD and five of her friends were coming over for dinner. Shawarma seemed like the only logical choice. ;)

The spread (clockwise from upper left): Red Onion, Pickled Turnips, Baba Ghanoush, Hummus, Lettuce, Yogurt Sauce, Pita Bread, Cucumbers, Hickory-Smoked Shredded Tofu, Tomatoes.


An assembled pita (made just like the flatbreads), ready to eat.

Ratatouille with Sausages and Leeks over Pasta

Dinner 09/24

Ratatouille with Sausages and Leeks over Pasta

Ratatouille (recipe) again, with braised leeks (recipe) and the addition of (gluten-free) sausages and pasta in one tasty bowl.

Rajas

Dinner 09/20

Rajas

We made soft tacos again and one of the items we made was rajas (recipe) -- a slow cooked combination of red bell, poblano and cubanelle peppers, along with red onions, garlic and Mexican oregano.


I just liked the close-up of this poblano pepper. ;)

Peach Crumble Tart

Dessert 9/19

Peach Crumble Tart

Tonight's dessert is a recipe that we stumbled across from the current issue of Taste of Home, that called for blueberries (which we didn't have) so we adapted the hell out of it. ;)

Peach Crumble Tart

1 1/3 cups Einkorn flour (AP will work too)
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup Earh Balance, melted
4 cups fresh peaches, peeled, sliced
1 tablespoon "Just Like Honey"

topping

1/4 cup Einkorn flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup old-fashioned oats
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 tablespoons Earth Balance, melted

In a small bowl, mix the flour, sugar and cinnamon; stir in EB just until blended. Press onto the bottom and up the side of the fluted tart pan with removable bottom. Bake at 350°F for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.

In a large bowl, combine the peaches and honey; toss to coat. In a small bowl, combine the first five topping ingredients; stir in EB.

Spoon peach mixture into crust; sprinkle with topping. Bake at 350°F for 35-40 minutes or until topping is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes before serving. Yield: 12 servings.

from Taste of Home October/November 2012, p24

Tofu & Tomato Stew, Gobi Paratha, Stuffed Bhindi

Dinner 09/12

Tofu & Tomato Stew

Gobi Paratha

Stuffed Bhindi

The Tofu & Tomato Stew recipe is here. It's always a crowd pleaser that paired well with the Gobi Paratha (cauilflower stuffed flatbread) from Julie Sahni's book.



We love okra, but wanted to try out a different way of integrating it with our meal, so we made a stuffed version (also from Julie's book, here.)

Tags: cauliflower, gobi, okra, bhindi, bread, tomato, tofu, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Basic Black Bean BBQ Burger, Sweet Potato Fries and Sweet Corn

Dinner 09/10

Basic Black Bean BBQ Burger

Sweet Potato Fries

Sweet Corn

Tonight's burger recipe comes from an excellent book -- "The Best Veggie Burgers On The Planet" by Joni Marie Newman (with great photography by Celine Steen).

The only change we made was to use our own BBQ sauce recipe, topped with a tomato from the garden!

We served it along with Sweet Potato fries (tossed with olive oil, salt and pepper and baked at 425°F for 25-30 minutes) and local Sweet Corn (boiled 5-7 minutes).

Tags: bbq, corn, burgers, black beans, sweet potatoes, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Ratatouille, Roasted Fingerling Potatoes and Braised Leeks

Dinner 09/08

Ratatouille

Roasted Fingerling Potatoes

Braised Leeks

The fingerlings were scrubbed, split in half, tossed with olive oil, salt, pepper and a pinch of herbs de provence and roasted at 450F for 40 minutes, flipping once halfway through cooking.

The recipe for the Ratatouille is here and the Braised Leeks recipe is here.

Tags: eggplant, tomatoes, zucchini, leeks, recipes, potatoes, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Raised Waffles with Cherries

Breakfast 09/08

Raised Waffles with Cherries

The recipe is from Vegan Brunch with the addition of some lovely pitted and sliced cherries.

Tags: waffles, cherries, breakfast, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Tea-Smoked Tofu and Shiitake Mushrooms with Coconut Curry and Collard Greens, Noodle Cakes, Sake & Miso Glazed Eggplant

Dinner 09/02

Tea-Smoked Tofu

Shiitake Mushrooms

Coconut Curry

Collard Greens

Noodle Cakes

Sake & Miso Glazed Eggplant

Tonight we utilized a combo of recipes that came together as a coherent meal. I'm always surprised when it does ;)

The base started with our usual collard greens/curry combo.

In a wok on med-high heat add 1 tbs. canola oil, 1 tsp. garlic, 1 tsp. ginger. Cook for 30 seconds until aromatic, then add the thinly cut collards greens and turn constantly. Cook for five minutes, until the collards are softened. Add a splash of tamari, turn to coat, cook for one additional minute. Remove from the wok and keep warm.

Next, the curry sauce that the collards are braised in was fortified. In the same wok, add 1 tsp. of canola oil and stir-fry 2 tbs. of shallots and 1 tbs. garlic until fragrant, then add 1/2 can of coconut milk, and whisk in 1 tbs. red curry paste (more or less depending on your personal preference), 1/2 of a lime, juiced, 1 tsp. of agave and a splash of tamari. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2-3 minutes until slightly reduced. Add the collard greens back into wok, turn the heat down to low, put the lid on the wok and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Check for seasoning.

From there we added a layer of noodle cake -- We haven't made them in ages -- we started with Bun (rice) noodles, which were cooked and tossed with sesame oil, then pan-fried using a ring mold to hold their shape -- when the first side was done (about 5 minutes) you can remove the mold and flip the noodles over to finish.

The tea-smoked tofu and shiitake mushrooms we fried in the wok as usual, splashed with tamari to finish and then placed on top of the stack.



The eggplants were cut into 1 1/2" rounds, scored with a crosshatch pattern, brushed with canola oil and seasoned with salt and pepper before being pan-fried on both sides for 3-4 minutes. Then they go in a 375°F oven for 20 minutes until cooked through. finally they were brushed with a reduction of sake/mirin/sugar/miso and glazed under the broiler for about 2 minutes per side. They truly do melt in your mouth.

Tags: tofu, noodles, eggplant, shiitake, mushroom, collard greens, curry, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666

Watching Doctor Who

Dinner 09/01

Old Bay Tofu Sticks with Tartare Sauce

This was dinner for our daughter, who had her fez and Sonic Screwdriver at her side while eating. Based on the Old Bay Tofu Cakes from the other night with a sauce made from vegenaise, a little lemon juice, onion and finely chopped pickle (a.k.a. tartare sauce).

Tags: old bay, tofu, vegenaise, pickle, doctor who, vegan, food, dinner, tofu666