Fresh Vegan Pasta

I am considering offering fresh pasta at the bakery next month--not really a baked good, I know, but I think it will have some appeal. I have blogged about fresh pasta a few times before, and was particularly happy with the pumpkin pasta recipe. However, I have found that eggless pasta has a tendency to get mushy, or even a bit pasty (especially when you go back for a second helping). Eggs provide protein which helps bind everything together and, when cooked, give pasta its texture (at least, I think that is was happens). Running on this theory I decided to add more protein to my pasta with vital wheat gluten and see what happened. The results were exactly what I was looking for--a durable pasta that had a nice "bounce" when bitten without being too tough. I made some this weekend for some visiting guests (who make their own egg-based pasta) and they gave it their seal of approval. Next up: trying to make a whole wheat pasta.

INGREDIENTS

Makes 1 lb of pasta

- 1 cup semolina flour

- 1 cup all purpose flour

- 1 tbsp vital wheat gluten

- 1/2 tsp salt (optional)

- 1/2 cup tepid water (or more)

METHOD

1. Whisk together flours and salt (if using) in a bowl. Make a well in the center. Put water in the well and slowly incorporate the wet into the dry, making a rough dough, adding more water if needed.
2. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead into a smooth dough (5 mins). The dough should not break apart or crack, so wet your hands if the dough seems too dry. On the other hand, try not to make it too moist. The dough should be smooth and fairly tough.
3. Roll into a log and wrap in a slightly damp towel. Set aside for 20 mins to let the dough relax. Roll and cut as per usual.

NOTES ON FRESH PASTA

1. On Making: If the dough is too tacky when rolling, dip it in some flour. If your dough is too wet it will stick together when being cut.

2. On Storing: Fresh pasta can be kept in the fridge for a few days, or in the freezer. However, you need to dry the pasta out a bit first or it will clump together. You can hang your pasta on drying racks, but I find it easier to sprinkle the pasta with flour and let dry spread out on floured linen towels. Rotate/flip the pasta every 10 mins, adding more flour, if needed. I let it dry for about 40 mins, until it is no longer tacky to the touch. Store in a plastic bag to keep from completely drying out.

4. On Cooking: Fresh pasta cooks in a flash. For spaghetti, I find it is done as soon as the water comes back to a boil. Drain and briefly rinse with a some cold water from the tap.

Earth Balance Peanut Butter: A Review

I mentioned a few days ago that Earth Balance sent me some of their new peanut butter to check out. So check it out I did. I personally am a big fan of peanut butter and find myself taking a classic PB&J sandwich to work several times a week. I usually buy Kraft peanut butter, probably because my mom bought the all natural stuff when I was a kid (deriding Kraft as peanut butter icing) and I am still in some stage of teenage rebellion. So, what is the big deal with Earth Balance peanut butter? Obviously it's no great coup to make a vegan peanut butter so I will admit that news of the new product was a little less exciting than when I discovered Earth Balance margarine. The big deal, it seems, is with the fat. Kraft uses hydrogenated oil, which I thought created trans fat, though the jar I have here states that it has 0g of trans fat per serving (in Canada, they have to report 0.1g or more). Earth Balance does not hydrogenate oil but rather uses expeller-pressed oil. Specifically, they use palm fruit oil (not palm kernel oil). The literature they gave me states that palm fruit oil is "quite healthy" (I am sure some of my readers will want to comment on that) because it is about 45% saturated and lower in lauric and mysritic acid than palm kernel oil. What this translates into is a no-stir peanut butter that is stable at room temperature without the aid of hydrogenation.

OK, enough talk about fats, what about the taste? Earth Balance uses agave as a sweetener which makes the peanut butter less bland than all natural but less sweet than Kraft. The taste is more salty than sweet (55mg of sodium per 1 tbsp) and has a very nice roasted flavour.

The peanut butter will retail in the U.S. at prices ranging from $3.99 to $4.49 for a 16oz jar at places like Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Safeway, and Wegman's, but are not yet available in Canada (son of a . . . !). I certainly hope I can buy more in the near future. You can find out more here.

Roasted Pumpkin and Walnut Manicotti

I almost didn't post a picture tonight because it looks so bad. I can assure you, though, that these taste great. The filling would also taste good in ravioli, I think. As I expected, Son #1 wasn't overly crazy about the filling, Son #2 liked it OK, but Son #3 gobbled down two servings.

INGREDIENTS

Makes 8 manicotti

- 1 lb chopped butternut squash

- 1 lb chopped pumpkin

- olive oil

- salt

- 1 cup walnuts

- 1 head of garlic

- 1 tbsp sage

- salt and pepper to taste

- 8 manicotti shells

- double recipe of Easy Sage Alfredo made with 1/2 the flour

METHOD

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

1. Toss squash and pumpkin in a bit of olive oil and salt. Roast in the oven on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper for 20 to 30 mins (depends on how small you chop the squash), turning every 1o mins. Roast garlic head at the same time, for about 15 mins, until soft. Allow squash to cool.

2. Roast walnuts on a cookie sheet for 6 mins, turning after 3 mins. Allow to cool. Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees.

3. Mash squash, pumpkin, and half the head of garlic with a fork (save the other half for the Alfredo sauce). Pulse walnuts in a food processor until they resemble coarse bread crumbs. Mix into the squash mixture along with the sage. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

4. Cook manicotti shells for 4 mins in boiling water. Drain, and stuff with pumpkin filling. Place in a large baking dish and cover with Alfredo sauce. Cover dish and bake for 45 mins. Remove cover and bake for 10 mins.

Protein Power Muffins

Does your mom worry that you aren't getting enough protein? Are you looking for a great way to start your day? Do you need to rebuild muscle after a work out? One way to do that is these muffins. These are a variation on my pumpkin muffins, but packed with protein. The have soy, quinoa, and hemp, all of which are complete proteins (i.e. they contain all essential amino acids), as well as bran, flour, and walnuts (which provide essential fatty acids along with flax seed). Here's how the protein breaks down: wheat bran: 8g; oat bran: 4g; quinoa: 9g; flour: 19g; walnuts: 9g; flax seed: 3g; hemp seed: 44g; soy milk: 10g; chocolate chips: 8g. TOTAL: 114g, or about 9.5g per muffin. This is pretty good considering most adults need about 45 to 55g of protein per day. Eat two for breakfast and you've already had over 1/3 of your protein for the day.

INGREDIENTS

- 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 salt

- 3/4 cups wheat bran

- 1/4 cup oat bran

- 3 tbsp ground flax

- scant 1 1/3 cups soy milk

- 1/3 cup canola oil

- 1 tsp vanilla

- 1 cup cooked quinoa

- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

- 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips

- 1/2 cup hemp seeds

METHOD

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a muffin tin.

1. Whisk together flour, baking powder and soda, sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl. Mix in bran and flax.

2. Whisk soy milk, canola and vanilla in another bowl. Mix in quinoa. Add to dry ingredients and mix together with a wooden spoon until just mixed. Fold in walnuts, chocolate chips, and hemp seeds.

3. Divide batter into muffin tin (it will fill them right up). Bake for 20-22 mins.

Savoury Pumpkin Biscuit (Topping)

In true Canadian fashion, I am going to whine about the weather. It snowed today! Man, did that make for a frosty bike ride into work! So, I was in the mood for some warm comfort food tonight. I made a version of my vegetable stew with biscuit topping, adding in some purple potatoes, roasted chestnuts, and butternut squash. Just look at those wonderful colours! For the topping, I added pumpkin and apple cider to the biscuit recipe for a delicous fall flavour.

INGREDIENTS

- 2 cups flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp rubbed sage
- 1 tsp marjoram
- 1/3 cup non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening
- 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
- 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

- 1/2 cup apple cider

METHOD

1. Whisk flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl. Stir in nutritional yeast and spices. Mix in shortening with your fingers until it resembles coarse bread crumbs.

2. Whisk pumpkin, vinegar, and cider together. Add to dry ingredients and mix with a fork, then gently knead into a dough.

3. Roll out on a lightly floured surface. Either cut and bake as biscuits, or use as a topping for the stew.