This probably isn't actually a chutney, but it sounds better to say it is. I served this with some chicken-style seitan (this stuff that I blogged about before), but you could serve it with tofu, or a chickpea cutlet, perhaps.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Seitan with Apple Squash Chutney
Monday, November 24, 2008
Bread in the Works
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Winter Vegetable Pie
It has been a crazy past few days of home renovating, so I am sorry to say I have not been very creative in the kitchen. But now, with all the saws, screwdrivers, ladders and paintbrushes put away, it was time to create something tasty in the kitchen. With winter weather upon us, root vegetables are abundant in the grocery store, so this dish makes good use of them. The quantities are variable here--it's better to have too many veggies than not enough so add more if needed.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Oatmeal Raisin Muffins
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1/4 tsp cloves
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cup oat bran
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a muffin tin.
2. Whisk together flour, baking powder and soda, sugar, spices, salt, and bran in a bowl. Mix in oatmeal. In a separate bowl, whisk together soy milk, oil, and extracts until well-blended.
3. Add to dry ingredients and mix until just moist. Divide batter into muffin tins and sprinkle some oatmeal over each muffin. Bake for 18-20 mins, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Monday, November 17, 2008
On Why I Won't be Blogging Every Day Anymore
My life has seemed impossibly busy over the past year, and recently it got even busier. Yes, that means additional responsibilities on top of teaching, writing a book, trying to get tenure, taking care of 3 kids, cooking, cleaning, putting together a cookbook, running a home bakery, and blogging on daily basis. Something has to give. In this case, the daily blogging. My plan is still to post 4 times a week or so, but I just can't keep up my current pace. There are, of course, 471 other posts for you to sift through. They're not all gems, but there are some great recipes I would like to revisit and I'm sure you will enjoy.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Sweet Potato and Carrot Muffins
You may have noticed a that my mom posted a message a few days ago asking for a carrot or zucchini muffin recipe. Well, here you go, Mom.
METHOD
1. Soak raisins in hot water.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Fennel and Mushroom Lasagna
I love lasagna but I rarely have the time to make it. I have learned that, like pizza, you don't need to top it with cheese (or cheese substitutes) to make a great lasaga. I make mine nice and saucy so it does not dry out and have yet to be disappointed. The fennel is a nice flavour addition here, and the sausage and mushrooms provide great texture.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Seitan Vindaloo
This is a great Indian dish with a nice kick to it. You can adjust the heat by adding more or less chili flakes--the way I have it written here will clean out your sinuses but was mild enough that the kids still ate it.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Maple Banana Walnut Muffins
Tonight is bakery night so just a small post about muffins (again!). We had about 25 old bananas clogging up the freezer so I thawed them out and made a whole whack of muffins. These are just a variation on my hearty apple muffins and protein power muffins. I also tried to make a banana walnut pudding cake (yes, I am a one trick dessert pony) but I need one more try to get it right.
Makes 12 large muffins
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup wheat bran
- 1/4 cup oat bran
- 2 cups pureed banana
- 1/3 cup canola oil (or applesauce)
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a muffin tin.
2. Divide batter into muffin tins and bake for 18-20 mins, until a toothpick comes out clean.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Sweet n' Sour n' Hot Tofu n' Noodles
I bought a pineapple a while ago and it has been sitting on the counter begging to be made into something. So, I decided to pull out the juicer and use it as the base for a sauce. I am not the biggest pineapple fan, but this dish is quite tasty and very easy to make on a busy night. I like the addition of heat to a fairly standard sweet n' sour sauce--you can always add more curry paste if you want it hotter.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Irish Soda Bread
As promised, here is the recipe for Irish soda bread. The recipe was easily veganized from Martha Day's Complete Baking. The original recipe calls for twice the flour which makes for one huge loaf. This recipe is half the size (which is still plenty big) and I have converted the grams (which the original recipe calls for) into cups. I'm pretty sure cream of tartar is not a traditional ingredient for soda bread, but it does make for a nice texture.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Irish Stew
Following the stew theme started last night, I went for a more familiar Irish stew tonight. I was disappointed to find out that most Irish ales are not vegan (Guinness as well) because they use isinglass to filter the beer. Most lagers, though, are vegan, including Harp's. The stewing beef is Bryanna's beefy seitan, an old-school simmered seitan that is wonderfully tender.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Ethiopian Stew
This isn't any particular Ethiopian dish, but rather is a stew inspired by Ethiopian flavours. I was craving something hearty and this really hit the spot.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Baked Tofu
I was in the mood for some home-style cooking today (vegan home-style, of course). Usually that means baking something in the oven, or making a huge pot of something mushy. The former won out tonight and I went with baked tofu, baked sweet potatoes, assorted veggies, and rutabaga. I was never a big fan of rutabaga as a kid (and my sons are carrying on the tradition), but now I love it mashed with some margarine and maple syrup.
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
Thursday, November 6, 2008
King Oyster Mushroom Curry
I am using curry in the most generic sense here because I am not sure what else to call the dish. Its origins are a fish dish in an Indian cookbook I have. There really isn't a vegan substitute for fish, but I thought I would try king oyster mushrooms for something different. In the end, I was a little disappointed with the mushrooms because they were rather tough. Chickpeas or tofu would work just as well with this sauce.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Semolina Bread
I was all wrapped up following the election last night, so sorry about the lack of a post. I am able to vote in Ohio, and as an American historian I was extremely interested in the outcome. Plus, whatever happens in the U.S. has an impact on us here in Canada. I was also reminded that while we Canadians often pride ourselves in our diversity and in thinking we are more liberal-minded than our neighbours to the South, we have yet to elect a person of colour as Prime Minister. We have had only one female PM (for four months, when Brian Mulroney quit), but she was soon defeated in the 1993 election. Our latest election was almost entirely a slate of white guys.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Seitan Madras
When Vegan Mom and I were married over a decade ago, we quickly fell into a fairly mundane weekly routine of meat-based dishes. We then decided to try a vegetarian diet to force ourselves to explore new cuisines, methods, and ideas. It was then that we discovered Indian food, and it remains my favourite cuisine.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Perfect Fresh Whole Wheat Pasta
With a little experimentation I came up with a much better fresh whole pasta than my first attempt.
UPDATE:
I made this recipe again, and this time I sifted the whole wheat flour, then ground the leftover bran and germ in my coffee grinder (which I use to grind flax seeds, etc.) and added it to the dough. It worked very well and made for a smoother dough.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Seitan over Maple Squash and Sweet Potato
Have you ever looked in the fridge and wondered what in the world you were going to make for dinner? Especially on the day before shopping day? Sometimes the results can be surprising. This dish was wonderful and was perfect for a cool Canadian autumn day.

