Sloppy Joes

I've done a few versions of Sloppy Joes but the kids never really liked any of them. This recipe is a nice compromise--some lentils, some mushrooms, some veggie ground round--that we all love.

INGREDIENTS
- 1/3 cup brown lentils, cooked
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 medium onions, diced
- 2 celery ribs, minced
- 2 clove garlic, minced
- 1 green pepper, chopped
- 3 cups chopped cremini mushrooms
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 pkg veggie ground round (340g)
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1 5.5oz can tomato paste
- 11 oz (i.e. 2 cans) water
- 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp Montreal Steak Spice, ground
- Tabasco sauce or Sriracha to taste
- salt and black pepper to taste

METHOD
1. Cook the lentils until soft but not mushy, about 25 mins.
2. Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Sauté onions, celery, garlic, and green pepper for 5-7 mins, until soft and onions are translucent.
3. Add mushrooms and oregano and cook for another 5-7 mins, until mushrooms have released their water cooked down a bit.
4. Add the lentils and the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Bring to bubbling, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 mins. If too runny for your liking, simmer with the lid off.
5. Serve on toasted buns (I like them open faced).

Baked Mini Corn Dogs

Son #1 wanted corn dogs for lunch this week.  I think they must be serving them in the cafeteria at school because "corn dog" really isn't in our vocabulary.  Now, you know that I don't shy away from frying things in oil from time to time (Mmmmmm.  Donuts . . . ), but if the kids were going to eat these every day for lunch (kids are like that) frying seemed like a bad idea.  Solution: a baked corn dog that is somewhere between a pretzel and the deep fried original.  These were/are a massive hit with my kids and hopefully will be with yours as well.  I also understand there is some major sporting event coming up this weekend which might lend itself to a a corn dog or two.

INGREDIENTS
Makes 24.  Weighing the ingredients (the flour in particular) provides the most consistent results.
- 12oz/340ml/1.5 cups plain soy milk
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp instant or active dry yeast
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 tbsp brown sugar
- 1.5 tsp salt
- generous 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 9oz/255g/1.5 cups fine cornmeal
- 11.5oz/326g/2.5 cups white bread flour
- soy milk for brushing
- 12 veggie hot dogs, cut in half

OPTIONAL
- I have seen recipes that call for some cayenne in the dough, or some minced jalapeño.  These sound like great ideas but not the kind of things my kids like

METHOD
1. Warm up soy milk to between 90 and 100 degrees F, then whisk in vinegar.  When thick, whisk in yeast, oil, and sugar.  Let sit for 5 mins to allow yeast to dissolve.
2.   Meanwhile, whisk salt, baking soda and cornmeal in stand mixer bowl.  Add yeast mixture and mix well.  Let sit for 5 mins.
3. Add flour and mix into a rough dough.  Let sit for 5 mins, then knead with a dough hook for 5 mins on med-lo speed.  The dough should clear the bottom of the bowl and should be tacky but not be sticky.  Adjust flour as needed (I find the amount above to be perfect).
4. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and turn to coat.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.  You can skip this step if you are in a rush and just let the dough rise at room temp, but I find that the overnight fermentation produces great flavour, lets the gluten relax, and allows the cornmeal to soften.  Also, since the dough is tacky, cooling the dough makes it much easier to work with.  You can also compromise between the two methods and refrigerate the dough for about 4 hours.
5. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Place one oven rack in the second highest position, and one on the second lowest.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
6. Divide the dough into 24 equal pieces (around 40g each) then cover to keep from drying out.  Flatten each piece into a rectangle slightly longer than the veggie dog half and wide enough to wrap around the veggie dog.  Lightly dust the work surface with flour if the dough is too tacky to work with.  Wrap the dough around the veggie dog and pinch to seal the seam and ends.  Gently roll the dog back and forth in your hands to smooth out the dough as much as possible.  Place on the prepared sheet and repeat.  Put 12 corn dogs on each baking sheet.
7.  Brush each corn dog with soy milk (I pick them up and brush all sides).  Bake for 7.5 mins, then rotate and switch the sheets from one rack to the other (i.e. the sheet on the second highest rack will now be on the second lowest, and vice versa).  Bake for another 7.5 mins then transfer to a cooling rack.

Thai Stuffed Omelets

I hardly ever buy veggie ground round, but for some reason it called my name on this week's shopping trip. I also finally got around to making the omelets from Vegan Brunch, so it seemed to me that these two things could combine together to make a tasty dish. The result: Thai stuffed omelets. I revised Isa's recipe a bit to make the omelet a little more durable, but they are still delicate. The soft texture of the omelet contrasts nicely with the more chewy filling, and the combination of sweet and savoury makes for a delicious dish that can either be an entree or an appetizer.

INGREDIENTS
Makes 6-8
Omelets:
- 1/4 cup instant tapioca
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 pound silken tofu (not Mori-Nu)
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 tbsp oil
- 1/2 tsp tumeric
- 1 tsp fine black salt
- 1/3 cup chickpea flour
- generous tbsp corn flour
- 1 tbsp cornstarch

Filling:
- 2 tbsp oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 pkg veggie ground round (I used Yves)
- 1 tbsp vegan oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp sweet chili sauce
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tomato, chopped
- 2 tbsp chopped cilantro

METHOD
Omelets:
1. Place tapioca in a food processor and sprinkle water over top. Let sit for a few mins. Add tofu, nooch, oil, tumeric, and salt. Blend until very smooth. Add chickpea and corn flour, and cornstarch and blend until smooth.
2. Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat (you may have to play around with the heat a bit to find the right temp where the omelets can cook without burning). Lightly grease and pour a generous 1/2 cup of batter into the pan. Spread out into an 8" circle with a spatula, then cook until mostly dry on top (a few mins). Flip and cook for another few mins. Remove and let cool for a min or two. I find the omelets are a bit more durable when they sit for a bit.
3. Place about 1/4 cup of filling in the middle of the omelet, then fold the opposite ends of omelet in to create a square. Place on a cookie sheet, cover with foil, and keep warm in the oven while you cook the other omelets.

Filling:
1. Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic for 5-7 mins, until soft. Add ground round, sauces, sugar, and tomato. Bring to bubbling and cook for 8-10 mins, until tomato cooks down into a thick sauce. Add cilantro and stir. Keep warm while you cook the omelets.

Ultimate Vegan Hot Wingz

Seitan is back, baby! I have to give props to my father in law for the idea of putting mushrooms into seitan to make it more tender. I have revised the method, but this recipe is still as easy as the original and is less "bouncy" and chewy. I also revised the coating to make it a little more durable and more able to absorb the sauce. While they won't fool anyone into thinking they are actually chicken, I think they will go over well with vegans and omnis alike.

INGREDIENTS
Makes about 30

Seitan
- 1 cup sliced mushrooms
- 1 small onion, chopped (about 1/3 cup)
- 1 garlic clove, chopped
- 2 tbsp olive oil

- 2 tsp poultry spice

- 1 tsp salt

- 1/2 cup water
- 1 cup vital wheat gluten

Breading
- 1/2 cup fine corn flake crumbs
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp salt
- fresh ground pepper
- 2 tsp oil
- 1 cup soy milk
- 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

Sauce (heat these ingredients in a saucepan)

- 1/2 cup margarine

- 1/2 cup hot sauce
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 1 tbsp ketchup

METHOD
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a sided cookie sheet with foil and lightly oil.
1. Place mushrooms, onion, and garlic in a food processor and process until finely chopped. Add oil, spice, salt and water and process into a smooth paste. Add gluten and process into a smooth dough.
2. Remove dough from food processor and roll into a cylinder about 14" long. Slice into 1" pieces and roll them into a smaller cylinders. Slice that in half if they are too long, then flatten slightly.
3. Mix together ground corn flakes, flour, paprika, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Combine soy milk and vinegar in a separate bowl.
4. Toss seitan in 2 tsp of oil. Toss seitan in corn flake mixture.
5. Dip seitan soy milk mixture, then toss in cornflake mixture again. Place on prepared cookie sheet.
6. Bake for 10 mins, turn over, then bake for another 10 mins.
7. Coat wingz with all but 1/4 cup of the sauce. Bake for 5 mins, then use a spoon to scoop up excess sauce and recoat the wingz. Bake for another 3-5 mins, until bubbling. Remove from oven and let cool 5 mins. Toss in remaining sauce and serve.

UPDATE: Some people have commented that their dough is too wet and the end product too soft. I made these again to make sure the measurements were right and they came out perfectly. So here is my advice: 1. Make sure you use a small onion so the liquid measurement is not thrown off (about 1/3 cup). 2. Save the water for the end. Process the onions, shrooms, spices, and oil, then add the gluten and process. Add enough water to get a soft but still durable dough.

On Tempeh Meatballs

First off, let me thank all of those who offered their congratulations on the birth of Vegan Daughter. Vegan Mom is recovering well (or as well as can be expected) but we both feel like we will never sleep again. I have not been doing any cooking at all since our friends and neighbours have been bringing over meals. I can't say enough about how great that is! But, now that Vegan Sons 1-3 are in bed and Vegan Daughter is snoozing away in her bassinet, I thought I would try to squeak in a quick post.

Back in October of 2008 I posted on Italian Tempeh Meatballs, and more recently I posted a recipe for Maple Garlic Tempeh Balls. Not everyone enjoys tempeh, and tempeh balls can be a bit tricky since they need to have the right taste and texture, and not fall apart in the sauce. After a few readers posted about that very problem, I decided to experiment a bit. Here are my thoughts.

1. You can remove some of the "special taste" from tempeh by boiling it for 10 mins before putting it into a recipe. However, I find that it makes the tempeh rather watery and keeps the balls from remaining cohesive. I would suggest just using the tempeh straight up. Or, if you must boil, use more gluten (see 3).

2. You can season and spice the heck out of these. Don't be afraid to go crazy.

3. How much vital wheat gluten is too much? The gluten really is essential here (sorry to the wheat intolerant), and I have used anywhere from 1/3 to 1/2 cup, along with 1/3 to 1/2 cup of instant oatmeal to help bind thing together. While I like the texture of the 1/3 cup, 1/2 cup makes for a very durable ball.

4. Go easy on the liquids. I have the best result when I have a firm yet malleable mixture that I can bring together with wet hands to form the perfect ball.

5. Make sure the balls are well sauteed and have a nice golden brown outside. Most of the cooking is done in this step, so don't skimp out. A well-cooked ball is less likely to fall apart later. See how nice these look?

6. Your sauce must be relatively thick. Too thin a sauce and it will penetrate the ball and result in disaster. In this pic we see a quick and easy sauce: 1 can chopped tomatoes, 1 jar spaghetti sauce, and 1 can tomato paste.

7. If the ball is well-cooked, and the sauce thick enough, you can simmer the balls in the sauce. This completes the cooking and adds flavour.

Mexican Hotdogs

Sometimes the kids just want a veggie dog and some fries (and sometimes I just don't feel like cooking much else). But, let's face it: veggie dogs really aren't that great. So, I tried to dress mine up a bit to make things more interesting. My deepest apologies to Mexican cuisine.

First, I made the hot dog buns (variation 3) from Peter Reinhart's The Bread Baker's Apprentice. They were totally awesome. Next, I roasted a red pepper and a jalapeno pepper on the grill. I skinned, seeded, and chopped them. The final hot dog had the peppers, chopped tomatoes, onions, and avocado, and some salsa. Not bad for a hot dog.

The other dog you see in the picture has vegenaise, mustard, onions, and sauerkraut. Mmmm.

Stromboli

If you heard a collective yowl ringing through the sky around supper time, that was my kids accusing me of violating the sanctity of pizza by adding greens. Back in the summertime when I was researching in Philly, someone suggested that I make a vegan stromboli in honour of the city. I am finally getting around to it. Looking around on the internets I found that there seemed to be no one way to make stromboli, and that the ingredients varied from recipe to recipe. Some were rolled, some were more like a big calzone. No matter what way you make it, the great thing about stromboli is that you can pack a ton of ingredients inside and you don't have to worry about the cheeseless top drying out. Here is what I did, but really the ingredients are up to you.

INGREDIENTS

- 1 recipe pizza dough (they are all pretty much the same)

- 2 tbsp oil

- 1 large sweet onion, halved and sliced

- 1/2 red pepper, diced

- 1/2 green pepper, diced

- 1 clove garlic, minced

- 4 cups sliced mushrooms

- 4 kale leaves, stem removed, chopped

- 1 tsp oregano

- 1 tsp basil

- 1 tsp parsley

- salt and pepper to taste

- sliced pepperoni

- 2 cups chopped chicken-style seitan

- spaghetti sauce

- soy milk for brushing

METHOD

1. Make your dough as per whatever recipe you are using.

2. Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Saute onion for 5-7 mins, until softened and beginning to brown. Add peppers and garlic and fry for 2 mins.

3. Add mushrooms and cook until they have released their water (about 5 mins). Add kale and seasonings and cook for a few mins until kale softens (it will finish cooking in the oven). Remove pan from stove and place in the fridge to cool down).

4. Heat a pizza stone in the oven set to 400 degrees.

5. I have make this two ways: rolled and braided. If you are going to roll the stromboli, make two smaller ones (I followed the method in this recipe). If you are braiding it (like pictured above), you can make one big one (I followed this video). The basic idea is to put down some sauce, top with pepperoni and setian, then top with veggies. The trick is keeping the sauce away from the edges so you can seal up the dough nicely.

6. When your stromboli is rolled or braided, brush with soymilk and place on a piece of parchment paper on a pizza peel. Transfer to the pizza stone (parchment paper and all). Bake until golden brown. Smaller rolls will bake in about 25-30 mins, larger ones in about 35-40.

Maple Garlic Tempeh Balls

Spring is slowly coming to the North which means it is maple syrup time! Of course, we had to pack up the kids and head out to the local sugar shack. We hiked through the forest, checked out the 70 kms of piping bringing sap to the shack, made maple syrup taffy, bought maple sugar candy, and loaded up on syrup. There is nothing like breathing in the sweet air of the sugar shack while being surrounded by dozens and dozens of bottles of syrup. We left on a serious sugar high. Tonight's recipe is a take on honey garlic meatballs. Some recent comments on my tempeh meatballs made me rethink the recipe to make them a bit firmer.

INGREDINETS

Makes 25 tempeh balls

- 1 8.5 oz pkgs tempeh

- water

- 1 tbsp soy sauce

- 1 tsp salt

- 1 tbsp Montreal Steak Spice
- 1 small onion, coarsely grated
- 1 garlic clove, finely grated

- 1/3 cup instant oatmeal

- 1/3 cup vital wheat gluten

- 1 tbsp cornstarch

- 1 tbsp instant tapioca

- 1 tsp ground fennel seed
- 1 tsp sage
- 1 tsp thyme
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp parsley

- 1 tbsp soy sauce

- 2 tbsp HP sauce, or BBQ sauce

Sauce

- 1 1/4 cup water

- 1/3 cup maple syrup

- 2 large cloves of garlic, minced

- 1 tbsp soy sauce

- dash of hot sauce

- salt to taste

- 1 tbsp cornstarch

- 2 green onions, finely chopped

METHOD

1. Cut tempeh into 4 pieces and place in a sauce pan. Add enough water to cover the tempeh, along with the soy sauce, salt, and steak spice. Bring to bubbling then simmer for 10 mins. Remove from water and let cool.

2. Grate tempeh and mix with onion, garlic, and the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well with your fingers and knead for 1 min.

3. With wet hands, form into 25 balls. Let rest for 5 mins to firm up.

4. Heat a thin layer of oil in a non-stick frying pan over med-lo heat. Add meatballs and cook for 15 mins, turning regularly, until browned all over. Remove from pan.

5. Whisk together sauce ingredient and add to pan. Bring to bubbling and simmer for 5 mins, letting sauce thicken and garlic cook. Add meatballs and turn to coat. Cook for a few mins more to heat through. Right before serving, sprinkle with green onion.

Sap on its way to the sugar shack.

Seitan Scaloppine Marsala

I was in the mood for Italian tonight, but really wanted to do something without tomatoes for once. When I saw Susan's post today on Fat Free Vegan Kitchen for scaloppine with a lemon-olive sauce, I knew what to do. I'm not a big fan of olives (they honestly make me gag) so I used her cutlets to make a faux veal scallopine based on a recipe from The Sporanos Family Cookbook. I was very pleased with the results, and I think this is a meal both vegans and non-vegans will enjoy since it seems that most non-vegan will agree that veal is particularly cruel. In the background of the pic you can see what I am calling an orzo risotto. I will post it tomorrow.

INGREDIENTS

- 1 recipe seitan scaloppine with the following changes:

- add 1 tsp sage

- add 8 dried shitake mushrooms, finely ground (about 1/4 cup)

- use water or veggie broth instead of "chicken" broth

- 1/4 cup all purpose flour

- 2 tbsp margarine

- 2 tbsp olive oil

- 6oz thickly sliced cremini mushrooms

- salt and pepper

- 3/4 cup marsala

METHOD

1. Prepare seitan as per the recipe above.

2. Heat 1 tbsp of the margarine and 1 tbsp of the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add mushrooms and saute for about 10 mins, until nicely browned. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from pan.

3. Add remaining margarine and oil to the pan. Dredge seitan in the flour, then fry in the pan for about 1 min per side, until lightly browned. Remove from pan.

4. Add marsala and let bubble, stirring constantly to thicken. Add mushrooms back to the pan and stir. Right before serving, and seitan to the pan, turning to coat with the liquid. Add a splash of water, if needed. Serve immediately.

Pasta and Potatoes with Tofu Pancetta

We still had half a loaf of ciabatta to finish, so it was more Italian food tonight. I leafed through The Sopranos Family Cookbook and veganized this recipe. I'm pretty sure the tofu tastes nothing like pancetta, but it does provide a burst of smoky and salty flavour with a chewy texture. Actual pancetta is not smoked (it is salted pork belly which is hung and left to go moldy), so I guess this is more like bacon. I think it would taste good in a BLT.

INGREDIENTS

Tofu Pancetta

- 1/2 cup water

- 2 tsp seasoned salt

- 2 tbsp brown sugar

- 1/8 tsp nutmeg

- 2 bay leaves

- 1/4 tsp thyme

- 1/2 tsp rosemary

- 1/2 tsp liquid smoke

- 1/3 pkg extra firm tofu, sliced (see pic below)

- 1-2 tbsp oil

METHOD

1. Place all ingredients except the tofu and oil in a small pot and bring to boiling. Simmer for 10 mins.

2. While that stuff is simmering, place tofu slices in a non-stick frying pan and place over med-hi heat. Once it starts to sizzle, strain liquid into the pan. Let liquid reduce down, gently turning tofu to coat.

3. Once liquid has completely reduced, add 1 tbsp of oil (more if needed). Fry 3-4 mins per side, until crispy and browned. Reduce heat a bit, if tofu is browning too much. Remove from heat and set aside.

Pasta and Potatoes

- 2 tbsp olive oil

- 1 carrot, chopped

- 1 rib of celery, chopped

- 1 onion, diced

- 1 garlic clove, chopped

- 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

- 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and chopped

- 6 cups water

- 1 small can tomato paste

- salt and pepper to taste

- 12 oz dried macaroni

- 2 cups boiling water

- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast

- 1 recipe tofu pancetta

METHOD

1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Saute carrot, celery, onion, garlic, and parsley for 5-7 mins, until softened. Add potatoes, water, and tomato paste. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to bubbling, then reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 mins, until potatoes are softened.

2. Add macaroni and boiling water and cook, stirring frequently, until pasta is cooked and sauce is absorbed. Add more water, if needed.

3. Add nutritional yeast and tofu pancetta and mix well. Serve.

Sausages in the Works

I have been working on a tempeh/seitan sausage in an attempt to make a sausage that is a little more tender and a little less "gluten-y." Sometimes I find that the steamed sausages come out a little tough, or give my stomach a gluten overload. So far, my results have been pretty good, but a little too soft, I think. They taste great and have a good texture right out of the steamer, but they turn to mush if placed in a sauce. I am kind of sausaged out right now, so I will experiment again in a little while.

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.

INGREDIENTS

- 9 lasagna noodles

- 2 tbsp oil

- 1 fennel bulb, trimmed, halved, and thinly sliced

- 2 cloves garlic, chopped

- 1 small red pepper, diced

- 1 small yellow pepper, diced

- 8 oz sliced cremini mushrooms

- 5 king oyster mushrooms, sliced

- 3 vegan Italian sausages, chopped

- 1 tsp oregano

- 1 tsp basil

- 1 tsp salt

- freshly ground pepper

- 1 recipe tofu ricotta

- 2 jars spaghetti sauce

ETHOD

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

1. Cook lasagna noodles as per the directions on the box.

2. While noodles are cooking, heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Saute fennel for 10 mins, until softened and lightly browned. Add peppers and saute for 3 mins.

3. Add mushrooms and spices to the pan and mix well. Add a few splashes of water to the pan to help steam the mushrooms. Cook for 5-7 mins, until mushrooms are soft and liquid is reduced. Add sausage and mix well. Remove from heat and let cool.

4. Assemble the lasagna. Cover the bottom of a large baking dish with spaghetti sauce and top with three noodles. Spread half of the tofu ricotta on top of the noodles, and top that with half of the mushroom mixture. Top with more spaghetti sauce and then three more noodles. Repeat.

5. Cover the top noodles with a thick later of spaghetti sauce. Cover dish with foil and bake for 60 mins. Remove foil and bake for 30 mins, or until sauce has thickened. Let sit for 20 mins before cutting and serving.

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.

INGREDIENTS

- 3 cups cubed seitan (or 1 pkg of tofu, cubed, or one can of chickpeas)

- 1 six oz can tomato paste

- 1/4 tsp ground fenugreek

- 1/2 tsp ground fennel

- 1" piece ginger, minced

- 2 cloves garlic, minced

- 3 tsp coriander

- 2 tsp chili powder

- 1/2 tsp tumeric

- 1/4 cup lemon juice

- 1 1/2 tsp salt

- 2 cups water

- 2 tbsp oil

- 2 onions, halved and sliced

- 4 curry leaves

- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro

METHOD

1. Mix together tomato paste, spices (including garlic and ginger), lemon juice, salt, and water.

2. Heat oil over medium heat in a large frying pan and fry onions and curry leaves until deep golden brown (about 15 mins). Add seitain (or tofu, or chickpeas) and fry for 3-4 mins.

3. Add tomato-spice mixture to the pan and bring to bubbling. Add cilantro, reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, until sauce is thickened (15-20 mins).

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.

INGREDIENTS

Serves 4

- 4 large pieces chicken-style seitan, or tofu

- 1/4 cup flour

- 2 tsp poultry spice

- 1/4 cup margarine

- 1 onion, halved and sliced

- 1 celery stalk, sliced

- 1/2 butternut squash, diced

- 2 medium sweet potato, thinly sliced

- 1 1/4 cups vegetable or chicken-style broth

- 1/3 cup maple syrup

- 1 tsp ground thyme, or to taste

- salt and pepper to taste

METHOD

1. Heat margarine in a frying pan over med-hi heat. Mix flour and poultry spice together and dredge seitan or tofu in the flour mixture. Fry for 3-4 mins per side, until golden. Remove from pan.

2. Reduce heat to medium and add onions and celery to the pan, and add a little more margarine if needed. Saute for 5-7 mins, until soft and translucent. Add squash and potatoes to pan and cook until both begin to colour deepens.

3. Add broth, maple syrup and thyme to the pan. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to bubbling. Place seitan on top of potatoes. Reduce heat and let simmer for 20 mins, basting seitan with the liquid, until potatoes and squash are cooked. Add more liquid if needed.

4. Serve seitan over a bed of potatoes.

Chick'n in a Marsala and Rosemary Sauce

Here in my corner of the Great White North vegan convenience foods, other than Yves, are hard to come by. Stuff like Morningstar Farms and Boca are nowhere to be found. Sometimes it would be great to reach into the freezer and make a quick and easy meal. So, I was excited to see these PC faux chicken breasts in the freezer section. There are actually really good. I would not want to eat them everyday, but it was great to have some ready-made faux meat on hand. The so-called chicken is made with Gardein, which I hope isn't some super-evil, Dupont-controlled, test tube, unnatural, over manufactured product because I would like to keep buying these. The extra bonus is that they are $12.99 for 8 pieces--cheaper than the actual chicken breasts PC sells (for once).

INGREDIENTS
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp margarine
- 1 onion, halved and sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 cups cubed chick'n seitan
- 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes, with juices
- 3/4 cup marsala wine
- 1 tbsp ground rosemary
- 3 cups thinly sliced cremini mushrooms
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- salt and pepper to taste
- pasta

METHOD
1. Heat oil and margarine in a large saucepan over medium heat. Saute onions and garlic for 5-7 mins, until soft and translucent. Add seitan and cook for 2 mins.
2. Add tomatoes, wine, and rosemary to the pan and mix well. Bring to bubbling and simmer for 5 mins, until sauce reduces a bit. Add mushrooms and cook for 5 mins, or until cooked through. Add tomato paste and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve over pasta.

Chili Dogs

Sometimes I crave the weirdest things . . . like chili dogs. It's not like I ever ate chili dogs before I was a vegan, but for some reason they have been in my head all day. I looked up a recipe for Skyline chili (I never ate there either when I lived in Ohio) and assembled these paragons of culinary achievement. I had every intention of topping these babies with grated Tofutti cheese, but we were out. Oh well. Next time.

INGREDIENTS

Makes enough chili for 12 chili dogs

- 1 tbsp oil

- 1 onion, diced

- 2 cloves garlic, minced

- 1/2 small can tomato paste

- 1 1/2 cups water

- 3/4 cup TVP

- 1/2 tsp allspice

- 1/2 tsp cumin

- 1 tbsp chili powder (or more to taste)

- 2 tsp cocoa powder

- 1 tbsp white vinegar

- 1/4 tsp ground cloves

- 1 tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce

- 2 tbsp ketchup

- 1 tsp cinnamon

- 1 tsp salt (or to taste)

METHOD

1. Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Saute onions and garlic for 7-10 mins, until soft and translucent. Add tomato paste and water and mix well. Bring to bubbling and add TVP and remaining ingredients. Reduce heat and let simmer for about 20 mins, until TVP is soft. Add a few splashes of water if chili gets too dry.

2. Serve over veggie dogs topped with the condiments of your choice.

Also, Earth Balance sent me 2 jars of their new peanut butter! I will write a review real soon. Stay posted!

On Steaming Seitan in the Oven

We spent the holiday weekend with family at the cottage, and as you know my plan was to make a seitan roast with stuffing. I had to make a few changes, however. First, I went with a more traditional stuffing to be enjoyed by vegans and non-vegans alike. As you can see from the pic above, I baked the extra stuffing in greased loaf pans (covered with foil) for one hour at 350 degrees. I do think the original wild rice stuffing is better for inside the roast, though, since it provides a nice contrast of taste and texture. Secondly, since I forgot my steamer at home, I had to change my method for cooking the roast. I suppose I could have just baked it, but last time I did that I found it got too dry. So, I came up with this contraption (the cottage kitchen is not blessed with a great selection of pots and pans). Although I used aluminum pans, ideally this could be done in a roaster. Anyway, I made the roast as per the recipe and wrapped it in heavy duty foil (I find the heavy duty foil is needed to keep the roast from bursting out), and suspended it over a loaf pan. I then placed the pan in a larger roaster, and filled the bottom of both pans with a few centimetres of boiling water (making sure it did not touch the roast itself). I then put the lid on and baked it for 1 hr. I then removed the roaster from the oven, removed the loaf pan, emptied the water, and baked the roast on its own for 30 mins.

The end result was a bit more "bouncy" than the original version, but I think that may be because I cooked the roast too long. I think the bake-steaming could be reduced to 30-40 mins. I had to seal up the roaster to keep the steam in, and that made it hard to check the roast. In any event, for those of you who don't have a steamer, this method may be of some use. It seems to me you could make sausages this way. As long as you can suspend the seitan above the water, a roaster can be a good steamer.

Italian Meatballs

I have made and posted various meatballs recipes before (like this one, and this one), but I was reminded just how awesome they were when I made them for tonight's pasta dinner. These babies stick together, have great texture and taste (as long as you're at least partially partial to tempeh), and will hold up when simmered in a sauce.

INGREDIENTS

- 1 pkg tempeh, simmered in water for 10 mins, cooled, and grated

- 1/4 cup instant oatmeal

- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1/2 cup vital wheat gluten

- 1 onion, grated

- 4 cloves garlic, grated
- 2 tsp ground fennel seed

- 1 tsp sage

- 1 tsp thyme

- 1 tsp oregano

- 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp HP sauce/A1 Sauce/BBQ sauce

- 3 tbsp olive oil

METHOD

1. Mix cooled and grated tempeh in a large bowl with oatmeal, nutritional yeast, gluten, onion, garlic, and spices. Add sauces and mush/mix together with your fingers. Add a splash of water if needed.

2. Heat oil in a large frying pan over med-lo heat. Shape tempeh mixture into 36 small balls. Fry in oil for 15 mins, turning regularly, until nicely browned on all sides.

3. Although the meatballs can be used right away, they are even better when simmered in a tomato sauce for an hour or so. Serve over pasta.

Seitan Roast with Wild Rice and Chestnut Stuffing

As I mentioned yesterday, Canadian Thanksgiving will soon be upon us. And by us I mean mainly me since most of my readers are American. I thought I had better take some dishes for a trial run before I make them for members of my family next weekend, like this roast. I will warn you now that the stuffing is a tad finicky. I think when I make it next week I will add in a slice of bread or so to make it all stick together. I also discovered that I made the chestnuts pieces way too big--small is the way to go with stuffing.

INGREDIENTS

Stuffing

- 12 roasted chestnuts, chopped

- 1/2 cup wild rice, cooked

- 2 tbsp olive oil

- 1 tbsp margarine

- 1 large shallot, chopped

- 2 cloves garlic, minced

- 1 rib celery, finely chopped

- 1/4 cup water

- 1 tsp sage

- 1 tsp thyme

- 1 tsp salt

- freshly ground pepper

- 1 cup fresh cranberries

- 1 tbsp flour

- you may want to add a some bread cubes to help hold it all together

METHOD

1. Roast chestnuts and cook rice according to the directions (usually 1/2 cup of wild rice is cooked in 2 cups of water for 50-60 mins. Drain off any excess water).

2. Melt margarine in oil on a saucepan over medium heat. Saute shallot, garlic, and celery for 5-7 mins, until soft and translucent. Add water, spices, and cranberries and cook for 3-4 mins, until cranberries begin to soften. Add rice and chestnuts and cook for 2 mins. Then add flour and mix well. Remove from heat and transfer to fridge to cool. (If you are using bread cubes, omit the flour and toss mixture with the bread)

3. While stuffing is cooling, make seitan. Your stuffing needs to be cool or it will make your seitan break apart during rolling.

Seitan
Get your water on its way to boiling in your steamer
- 1 1/2 cup vital wheat gluten
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp poultry spice
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup soy milk
- 2 tbsp oil
- 1/4 tsp apple cider vinegar

METHOD
1. Whisk together dry ingredients in a bowl. Whisk together wet ingredients in a separate bowl and add to dry. Mix with a wooden spoon into a wet dough. If it seems too wet, add a bit more gluten flour. It should be soft and pliable, but still hold together.
2. Transfer dough to counter top or board. With your hands, flatten into a rectangle, about 1/2" thick. The width will depend on how wide your steamer is. Make sure it will fit.
3. Put stuffing in a line the center of the dough. Compress the stuffing in your hands so the center of the roast will be firm. Gently but firmly roll the seitan with the stuffing in the middle (i.e. make sure there is a cavity in the middle with the stuffing in it--don't roll it like a jelly roll). Seal the ends and seam as best you can.
4. Transfer the roll to a piece of extra wide, extra strength aluminum foil (it is important to have this), and tightly roll up like a Tootsie Roll.
5. Steam for 30 mins, turning over after 15 mins. While steaming, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Then, place roast in a loaf pan and bake for 25 mins.

6. Let roast stand for 15 mins before unwrapping and slicing with a very sharp knife. Serve with your favourite gravy.

The roast, unwrapped, after coming out of the oven.

Chickpea Burgers

I thought it was time to give some love to the chickpea cutlet from Veganomicon, especially after the slight dissing I gave it a while back. The truth is that I really don't use cookbooks much anymore because I am always on the hunt for something new I can post on my blog. But I was in the mood for a breaded chick'n burger and I thought the chickpea cutlet recipe would be a good place to start. You'll have to excuse the picture here and the ridiculous bun--they don't do justice to the taste of the final product which was quite tasty. The kids absolutely loved them. The original recipe is posted here, but here are my modifications.

INGREDIENTS

Makes 8 burgers

- 1 cup cooked chickpeas
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 cup vital wheat gluten
- 1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup vegetable broth or water
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce

- 1 tsp onion powder

- 1/2 tsp garlic powder

- 1 tsp poultry seasoning

- 1/2 cup soy milk

- 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

- 1 cup bread crumbs (I used panko)

- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast

- 1/2 tsp salt

- pinch of paprika

METHOD

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

1. Pulse rinsed and drained chickpeas in a food processor until they resemble coarse breadcrumbs. Pulse in oil, then transfer to a bowl and add gluten, plain breadcrumbs, broth, soy sauce, and spices. Knead together for about 3 minutes, until strings of gluten have formed. Divide into 8 and press into 8 thin patties.

2. Mix together soymilk and vinegar in a bowl. Mix together panko breadcrumbs, nutritional yeast, salt, and paprika in another. Dip a patty in soymilk, then toss in breadcrumbs. Make sure it gets coated well. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining patties.

3. Bake for 10 min per side, or until patties have firmed and breading is lightly browned.