Mee Goreng

2 tbsp grape seed oil
1/2 onion diced
1 pkg extra firm tofu
1 cup green beans
2 cups bok choy
bean sprouts
3 green onions

Sauce:
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp cumin
2 tsp sambal(we made our own)
2 tsp dark soy sauce
2 tsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp water

8 oz cooked udon noodles, drained and rinsed with cold water

Heat pan on high, add oil and onions. Cook 1 minute. Add tofu, on the bottom, and green beans. Cook 3 more minutes until tofu gets some color. Add bok choy and toss until wilted. Add noodles, toss and let the noodles fry some. You have to be careful not to break the tofu. And spices, sauces, and green onion. Toss and serve.

We topped ours with spicy radish sprouts, the original calls for mung bean sprouts but we couldn't find any. If you find the mung bean sprouts, just throw them in when you add the green onions and spices. Sometimes in Malaysia they add fresh shredded lettuce on top also, sounds pretty spectacular.

Having the specific sauces is important. You can't use plain old soy sauce and expect this to be as amazing as it should be. It's so surprisingly light and flavorful. You would not think a dish that contains so much noodle and tofu would be light. But filling. I was really in the mood for green beans and they soak up all the sauces...I thought they were the best part. With saying this, using homemade sambal was also pretty important to us. It is fresh, tasty, and hard to find in stores otherwise. It is so easy, we googled it and made a big batch. If someone wants our recipe, just leave a comment. This made enough for 2 at dinner and Ryan's lunch for tomorrow.  For a family maybe double it.

This is a great introduction to Malaysian/Indonesian cuisine at home. You can serve with lime wedges, or not. Try it!

-Sally and Goose

Peanut Thai

Really easy and really tasty....you can add a bit more peanut butter if you want it thicker (we added an additional 1/8 of a cup to the recipe)

Peanut sauce:

Peanut Putter (organic) - 1/4 cup

Tamari - 3 tbsp

Rice Vinegar - 1/4 cup + 1tbsp

Garlic - 1 clove(chopped)

Red Pepper Flake - 1 shake

Sugar - 2 tbsp

Lime - 1/2 squeezed

Almond Milk - 1/4 cup

Pepper to taste

Stir Fry:

(even amounts of each)

Carrots - 2 (diagonal circles)

Zucchini - 1 (strips-discard center)

Broccoli - 1 to 2 florets        

Garlic - 4 cloves(chopped)

Onions (white) - 1/2

Onions (green) - 2

Cilantro to taste

Parsley to taste

Directions:

Make peanut sauce by combining listed ingredients.  In a wok heat 1 tbsp oil and add carrots, zucchini, and broccoli.  Stir fry for 2 -3 minutes and add onions/garlic for an additional 2 minutes.  Now add sauce with cilantro and parsley for 1 to 2 minutes.

Add pepper and salt to taste and serve with organic white rice covered with crushed peanuts.

Spring Rolls w/ Broccoli Zucchini in Garlic Sauce

Vegan Raviolli w/ Orange Sage Butter Sauce

 

Raviollis are amazing lets face it....and I still want some now that we've made the switch to full on vegan.  So we sucked it up and bought ourselves a pasta press.  Surprisingly, it's made the process a whole lot easier.  I was convinced it was just going to be a pain in the ass reguardless.  In fact we just mixed some ingredients in a bowl, pressed them out, and it was delicious.  But we'll save experiments for later and just do a simple pasta for now.  

Pasta:

2 cups flour of choice

1 1/3 tbsp olive oil (tsp per half cup of flour)

1 cup water

4 tsp salt

Most classic recipes will tell you to place the dry ingredients on a flat surface and work the wet ingredients in slowly.....Commit heresy and do it in a bowl.  Your counter and significant other will thank you when oil/water/flour doesn't go spilling everywhere.  I make a small hole in the middle and add the wet ingredients to dry slowly until you can knead it into a ball.  The key is to not over work it.  If its too dry add some water/oil and too wet simply add more flour.  Should be springy and not sticky. Now let it rest wrapped in a damp facecloth/dishtowel and make the filling.  

Filling:

1/2 package extra firm tofu crumbled

1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp dried marjoram
1/2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp nutritional yeast

1/2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup mushrooms diced

1/2 cup frozen spinach diced

pepper to taste

Everything minus the mushrooms and spinach is a tofu ricotta we use for cauliflower bake.  We put the mushrooms and spinach in a food processor first.  Add all ingredients in a bowl and set aside.

To make the raviolis roll the dough out with a pin(or press out if you have a fancy machine like ours) into two sections.  Place small portions of the filling out on top of the first and throw the second on top.  Press out air in between and slice them into whichever shape you want.  Toss them in boiling water in batches for 3-4 minutes until cooked. While these guys are cooking you can make your sauce.

Orange Sage Butter Sauce:

I could say this over and over again and it would still cause involuntary yearning in my stomach.....Its just so damn good.  

4 tbsp earth balance

2 tbsp fresh sage chopped

1/4 tsp orange zest

Melt the butter and add the sage sauteing for 5-10 minutes or until its starts to crisp.  Add the zest and your  done.  NOW EAT! 

~Ryan

Vegan Pot Pies

Preheat ov









Thank you Ashley for a little motivation!

Vegan Pie Crust: (can be used for savory AND sweet)

2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
7 tbsp cold water
3/4 cup earth balance butter

 Cut them all together with a pastry cutter adding one tablespoon at a time, you may need to add a tablespoon more of water (I did, regular flour soaks up water very easily). I don't have a pastry cutter so I did most of the work with a fork, it was a little strenuous but who doesn't need an arm workout? Make into a ball and let it sit until your filling is ready.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Filling:

disclaimer: fillings are infinite. We picked what we had on hand, and what inspired us for the evening, Broccolini. There is no meat, tofu, or seitan in ours because we kept the broccolini in nice big chunks.

1 onion
2 stalks celery
1 carrot
1 cup mushrooms
2 cups broccolini (broccoli works too)
3 cloves garlic


Saute these together, I did the mushrooms first at higher heat so they browned then added everything else.  When they are tender, about 7-10 minutes, put them in a bowl and start the roux.

Roux:

4 tbsp earth balance butter
4 tbsp-1/4 cup flour
3 cups veg stock, you may need more liquid but using water will do
2 tbsp tofutti sour cream


A roux is just butter and flour. Melt butter, add flour, if it looks too thin add a little more flour but if its too think add a little oil.  Making a roux is something you get better at with practice. The reason for it is to thicken your sauce. Add the veg stock and whisk until smooth. A whisk is necessary at this point. Keep at medium heat until it starts to thicken. You want it to coat the back of a spoon. If you don't think it is thick enough let it simmer a little longer. If it still isn't thick enough, you can take 1 tbsp of cornstarch mixed with 1 tbsp cold water and add it to the sauce, whisk. Ok, this is a beautiful and delicious filling but we wanted above and beyond. This is where the sour cream comes in, add it to the sauce mix together, and then put all the veggies back in. Filling done.

Roll out the dough (I'd say about 1/8" not to thick and not so think that it has holes), put it in bottom of the baking dish of your choice, fill them up, put the top dough on. Crimp the edges with a fork, this make it look awesome and also keeps them from exploding out the sides in the oven. Bake until golden brown. I cut out the little leaves for the top because we had extra dough :) Let them cool before you try to eat them.

These freeze very well and you just re-bake directly from the freezer.

Gorge yourself!

Recipe to follow.....we promise

Yellow Currrrrry!!

Homemade curry...check it off the list! This was a task I found daunting when I thought about it, but now that we have conquered the long ingredient list and terror of MAKING curry, I am quite pleased.  It tasted great, buttery and ethnic.  I can't eat spicy foods, so we omitted chilis. If you want to add a few thai chilis to add a flare, go for it. I think next time I will even add a little more cayenne pepper because our curry was not at all spicy.  Our lime was also pretty dry and I wish I had added more lime.  Next time.  I will also add more ginger and garlic the next time. Keep it interesting. Great first experience getting all the ingredients and obtaining the wok from our deep dark kitchen closet.  I found the kaffir lime leaves and lemongrass at whole foods. The fenugreek I found at a local Mediterranean market we have here, but any asian or indian market will probably have them.  All the other things are easily found at the grocery or whole foods.  This is a super hearty meal and with all the veggies we have leftovers that will last a while.  So, if cooking for two or four this amount works. And if you have side dishes it could feed six. Dinner party food like this would be a smash. Try it.

1 can good-quality lite coconut milk
1/2 tsp. fenugreek
1 tsp. ground coriander, I used seeds and ground them in the mortar
1 Tbsp. ground cumin
3/4 tsp. turmeric, dried
pinch of cayenne pepper
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp ginger minced
1 stalk lemongrass, sliced thinly
1/2 onion
3 tbsp tamari (this is usually where fish sauce comes in, but I do not eat fish sauce and haven't found the vegetarian substitute)
1 tbsp tomato paste
1/2 cup fresh coriander, including the stems
1 tbsp honey
juice of 1/2 lime, if it is not juicy use the whole thing
2-3 kaffir lime leaves, fresh
VEGETABLES:
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
1 large carrot, sliced
1 cup broccoli
1 cup tofu
2 shallots sliced
1/4 cup peas
1/2 to 1 cup fresh basil to finish the dish, roughly chopped if the leaves are large

Place 1/2 can of the coconut milk (reserve the rest for later) plus all other sauce ingredients in a food processor. Process well. I think I will try the blender next time I do the sauce...it may turn out different. The sauce was well blended, no chunks, but it had little flecks of ginger and garlic that annoyed me.  You could also put it through a sieve I guess.

Place 1 Tbsp. veg oil in a wok or large frying pan over medium to high heat. Add the curry paste and gently stir-fry for 1 minute, or until fragrant.  Add the other 1/2 can of coconut milk and stir. Now add those vegetables that require the longest cooking time, such as the carrots. Stir well and bring to a simmering boil. Turn down heat to medium, cover, and cook for 5-10 minutes.

Then add the rest of the vegetables. Stir well and cover, allowing to cook for another 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and do a taste test. Add more salt if necessary. If the sauce is too bitter, add 1-2 Tbsp. more honey. If it's too sweet, add more lime juice.
Sprinkle the curry with fresh basil and serve with rice (white or brown). 

 

 

 

 

Seitan Roulade with Spinach and Mushroom Filling

Turns out that really complex looking seitan we've been buying is ridiculously easy to make (way cheaper also).  And whats even better is you can do larger strips if you make it yourself.  So we had this idea to make a roulade with seitan as the "casing" and fill it with spinach and mushrooms and it was fantastic.

Ingredients

Seitan:
1 cup vital wheat gluten
1/8 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup veg stock
1/8 cup tamari
1 garlic clove minced

Filling
1/3 pound frozen spinach thawed
1 cup mushrooms sliced
1/2 mozzarella cheese
1/3 parmesan cheese

To make the Seitan add all ingredients and kneed with your hand,  it should be a bit springy.  Let it rest for 15 minutes.  Next press it out into a large sheet roughly 12 by 18 inches.  Saute it on each side until browned in your largest pan or a wok with a little olive oil.  It might take two sets of hands to flip it.

When its done set it out on a cutting board and layer the filling on top.  Be sure to saute the mushrooms in a small amount of olive oil beforehand so they are cooked.  Now simply roll the Roulade and tie off with some string.  Bake for 40-50 minutes at 400 and serve with your favorite veggies and mashed potatoes.