Fennel & Mustard Frittata Gratin, plus other nice things

Hi, my name is Kylie and I am addicted to cookbooks.

Scored all of these for $35 today.

Thank you, Logo’s, for your “5 dollar & under cookbook sale” that never ends.

(Yes, I am addicted. Amazon cookbook wish list is also grossly growing by the minute…)

Today was pretty rad. One of those rad days where the sun is shining, it’s not too hot and not too cold, and you roll the window down and hang your left arm out the window as you’re driving to feel the air run between your fingers. And you feel pretty badass blasting some new awesome music (ahem, Decemberists). It was so blissfully pleasant out that standing in the express line at Trader Joe’s for 20 minutes just to buy a box of Yogi ginger tea didn’t bother me at all.

So yeah, purchased the new Decemberist’s album that came out today, The King Is Dead. It’s pretty frickin’ rad. In addition to The Head and the Heart, Yeasayer live at Ancienne Belgigue.

Currently streaming Broken Social Scene live playing on YouTube from NY. I wouldn’t mind streaming live shows from my bedroom more often. This is quite nice and convenient, actually. Not to mention free.

Umm, yeah. Lots of good stuff.

Ate some pretty awesome food, too.

So awesome that I wanna tell you about all of it:

Invented a new smoothie creation consisting of…

-1 cup almond milk

-1/2 avocado

-1 frozen banana

-handful frozen blackberries

-1/2 cup carob powder

-1 chopped date

Blend that shit up and savor the goodness.

Also made some vegan gluten free waffles. Savory butternut squash gluten free waffles. Last night I premade the savory squash part (includes onions, curry powder, chutney), and incorporated it into the batter with rice flour, spelt flour, garam masala, and cayenne. Served it as a late brunch/lunch, topped with a few scoops of cottage cheese, and some left over tempeh bell pepper, sweet potato and onion stir-fry fajita mix. Topped it all off with some homemade jamaican banana jam and a bit of maple syrup. Heck yes.

Dinner? Roasted a spaghetti squash (never doing the hot water bath steam EVER again… roasting is the answer to EVERYTHING), sauteed some crimini mushrooms in a bit of ghee and dry white wine (one of the most divine smells ever created), added in some red curly kale, and cooked that for a few minutes. Then, I had a few bulbs of fennel that needed to be used so I referred to my handy-dandy collection of vegetable garden cookbooks, and made a fennel and mustard frittata/gratin. The recipe called for puff pastry, but alas, none was on hand, so I made it my own by omitting it and it was frickin’ delicious regardless. For the mustard, I used a bit of my homemade apricot bourbon mustard that I made for the holidays. And I topped it all off with a bit of lemon salt, a squeeze of a lemon, and a few sprinkles of bread crumbs. See recipe toward the end.

So I ate all of that together with some leftover savory mashed butternut squash. Then I topped the spaghetti squash with the kale and mushrooms, a few shavings of grana padano and a bit of goat cheese, and had a bit of this fennel gratin on the side. Everything was very complimentary and went perfectly together. Not to mention frickin’ delicious. And vegetarian. Perfect winter dinner if I do say so myself.

Fennel and Mustard Frittata/Gratin Bake

Serves 4

3 fennel bulbs

4 Tbsp ghee

5 eggs

1 cup sour cream

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

3 Tbsp mild grain mustard

s&p

freshly ground nutmeg (optional)

bread crumbs, for topping (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare an 8′ square pan or round baking dish of any sort you’d think would be pretty to bake it in.

Cut off the hard base of the fennel and remove any damaged parts. Cut the fennel into strips. Melt the ghee in a pan, add the fennel, cover with a lid, and cook for 12-15 minutes.

Break the eggs into a mixing bowl. Add the sour cream, and beat to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste, the curry powder and mustard, and mix well.

Arrange the fennel in the bottom of the tart, pour over the sauce, and place in the oven for 30-35 minutes.

I’ve also been enjoying this Weizen immensely with a nice slice of lemon.

Ok bye.

When Life Gives You Lemons…

And when life gives you lavender, make lavender lemonade and lavender lemon dumplings! That’s what I did a few days ago, at least, and I am so stoked on both creations.

The first, lavender lemonade, couldn’t have been possible without the whole bag of free meyer lemons I scored at work that enabled me to squeeze out about 3 cups worth of organic, fresh lemon juice. So, so worth all of the hand squeezing. And I recently purchased a bottle of this lovely stuff:

Yes, lavender syrup! I had been eyeing this for days before I finally decided to purchase it, full of sugar and purple food coloring and all. One of the three recipes on the back was to make lavender lemonade and it sounded like the perfect summer drink. Sure enough, it definitely is. If you don’t happen to have any premade lavender syrup nearby, you can easily make it yourself.

Lavender Lemonade

Serves 3-4

3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

4 cups water

1/3 cup lavender syrup, or more to taste

cubes of ice

slices of lemon and/or sprigs of mint, to garnish

Combine all ingredients in a 4 liter pitcher, put a little ice in your glass, and garnish to enjoy!

The second recipe, the lavender lemon dumplings, comes from this idea, Orange Ricotta Breakfast Dumplings, on Design Sponge. I always come across great recipes that they post every Friday on the blog, drool over them, bookmark them, and hardly ever go back to attempt making it. But this one I couldn’t stop thinking about. Since I’m lavender obsessed, I just had to try it. Plus it didn’t seem to difficult to put together. Flour + ricotta + egg + zest + lavender + butter. SO EASY! But I’m not really a big fan of orange zest in things. I’m not sure why. So I went with lemon instead because I think lemon and lavender are meant to be together and should get married more often. Anyway, these are freaking PHENOMENAL. I couldn’t stop eating these little guys. They would be great for breakfast or as a dessert with a little yogurt and honey, perhaps. Or just great any other time of the day. Also could be a great appetizer at a party. You can make these ahead of time, like I did, and freeze them until you’re ready to boil them and make the butter sauce. And, of course, I substituted ghee for the butter instead and it definitely heightened the taste, I’m sure of it.

The blogger that contributed this recipe can be found at Crumpets and Cakes. I’m definitely a fan.

Lavender Lemon Dumplings

Serves 4-5 people, making approximately 50-60 dumplings

For the dumplings:

1 cup ricotta cheese

1 cup all purpose flour divided in half

1 medium egg lightly beaten

1 tablespoon dried lavender

1 teaspoon lemon zest plus more for garnish

For lavender butter:

3 tablespoons ghee

1 tablespoon lavender sugar

1/4 teaspoon dried lavender

1 teaspoon lemon zest

Prepare the dumplings:
In a medium pot bring to a gentle boil 2 quarts of lightly salted water.

In a large bowl mix the ricotta with the egg, add ½ of flour and mix it with a spoon to form it into a ball, add lemon zest and dried lavender, and then more flour little by little as needed. The dough will be very sticky, but not wet, and the amount of flour you use will depend on how much moisture is in the ricotta cheese you use. I ended up using probably 2-3 cups of flour. I lost track, but I know I used A LOT because my ricotta was very wet.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and cut in half. With your palms, gently roll it into two long strands about ½ inch thick. With a knife, slice each strand on diagonal into about half inch wide dumplings. This will make approximately 50 dumplings depending on how much flour you used and how big you’d like the dumplings. Transfer all the dumplings to a large pot and boil until all float to the surface, about 10 minutes.

Prepare the lavender butter:
In the mean time in a frying pan or small sauce pan, on a medium heat, melt ghee with lavender sugar, dried lavender and lemon rind. Cook for few minutes, being carful not to brown the mixture.

Serve:
Arrange cooked dumplings on a serving platter or divide into small bowls. Top with lavender butter, garnish with lemon zest and some fresh lavender petals, serve immediately.

And just for fun, I’m going to partake in Five Senses Friday, inspired by Abby Try Again.

Tasting: lots of lemon and lavender and the tom kha soup with baby shiitakes I just consumed

Smelling: lavender lotion that I put on at work

Hearing: free online Dr. Lad lecture about the secrets of Ayurvedic pulse taking, and music wise, the new Band of Horses album, and lots of Grizzly Bear

Feeling: ridiculously exhausted from this whirlwind week, only getting 4 hours of sleep last night, but otherwise extremely excited, hopeful, and inspired about the crafty things I’ve been up to

Seeing: new fabric swatches and color combos for my future stuffed animal owls!

Today I am Excited about Everything

Streaming live video by Ustream

So I’ve become a little obsessed with watching (or stalking, rather…) this live steam of barn owl Molly in her nest box taking care of her newborns the past few days. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined being able to catch a glimpse of this spectacular phenomenon. This is better than going owling! (Mainly because my ventures out at night have been pretty unsuccessful, although I did hear one owl the other night on a hike…) It’s available 24/7! Whattt?!? Amazing, I tell you. Amazing. And yes, I do watch it while I bake and I squeal and freak out over it… because I’m a dork. I’m in awe over this. It’s too perfect for an owl-obsessed freak like me. Look at how beautiful she is!

Besides that, here are a few other things I’ve been loving lately…

(Just discovered her awesome blog here.)

Urban Weeds (Portland Street Style)

Reason #697 on why Portland rules and why I can’t wait to live there.

Everyone is beautiful and has style!

I can’t help but have the hope that maybe one of these days I’ll be photographed unexpectedly as I wander the streets…

Donna Wilson‘s collection!

OH MY GOD.

MY NEW OBSESSION.

I LOVE ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING.

Seriously, I would buy anything and everything that she makes.

Owls, beards, birds, foxes, kitties, weird monsters, cupcakes, faux wood…

pretty much everything I adore.

And look at how cute she is!

Oh, and I finally bought a carton of this today because it was on sale and I’m stoked on trying it.

Coconut everything these days, I tell ya. Even coconut kefir!

Alright well I’m in the midst of cooking an indian feast for a friend and I tonight. Vegan baked sweet potato samosas, cardamom coconut brown rice, sauteed garlicky ginger chard, with many fixin’s and sauces: cilantro-cashew-ginger chutney, banana-ginger-apple chutney, mango cardamom jam, tamarind sauce, and making a special “kapha” tea tis the season. Yeah, I think that’s about it. I’ve been cooking a ton cause it’s spring break woohoo! Red lentil beet dal, sweet potato and dandelion greens gratin, coconut chocolate avocado muffins.

RECIPES SOON TO FOLLOW. I PROMISE.

PB&J Vegan Cookies, Dinners, January!

Happy New Year!

I’m really happy it is January. Actually, it hasn’t really hit me yet. I can’t believe that my birthday is 31 days away. So many great things are happening this month, I can’t wait. Namely, the MMI Ayurveda program starts in exactly four weeks! That’s why I’ve been trying to hit the books and study up before I head in. Dr. Vasant Lad, the Ayurvedic Physician of Ayurvedic Physicians, is going to be there for the first intro weekend. He is like the Ayurvedic God. Being his student will be best birthday gift I could ever imagine. Waking up in a cabin in the hills overlooking the Monterey Bay, practicing yoga, learning more about this fascinating medicine, cooking and eating tons delicious Ayurvedic vegetarian food, drinking Yogi tea 24/7, going on little hikes in the forest, relaxing in the hot tub, shopping for herbs in the Ayurvedic store. I can’t actually believe it’s going to happen. That I actually willed, motivated, and inspired myself and am going to make it happen. It is going to be such an honor.
Other than that and the other things I’ve been looking forward to, I’ve been doing a lot of cooking and baking with friends lately. The other night my friend and I dined on an orange and rosemary roasted organic free-range chicken, red kabocha and homegrown butternut squash roasted with brown sugar and sage, wild rice with toasted walnuts and cranberries, and, my favorite, sauteed chanterelles (thank you, work!) in thyme and truffle oil. And I popped open a few bottles of my favorite owl beer. I brought back the Ginger Beer from Portland, and tried it for the first time the other night. It was excellent!




As far as baking goes, we cracked open my new copy of Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar and modified the recipe for the Linzertorte Thumbprint Cookies just a bit. Since we didn’t have any hazelnuts or hazelnut butter, we easily converted them into PB&J cookies with some peanut butter instead. And the jellies (strawberry, plum, and cherry) were homemade from last summers fruit, thanks to Bridgette. They turned out delicious! Rich peanut buttery goodness can never do you wrong. Strawberry won my vote out of all three. Some taste testers exclaimed that they were better than “normal” peanut butter cookies. That right there, my friends, is why I love vegan baking.



PB&J Thumbprint CookiesAdapted from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar “Linzertorte Thumbprint Cookies”Makes 20 cookies
1/3 cup canola oil 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup peanut butter 1/3 cup nondairy milk (we used coconut) 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons cornstarch 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 cup peanuts, finely chopped at least 1/3 cup of any kind of jam you please
1. In a large mixing bowl, use a fork to vigorously mix the oil, sugar, and peanut butter. Mix in the nondairy milk and vanilla. Sift in the flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking powder and mix well until a stiff dough forms.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Have a small bowl of water handy. Spread the chopped nuts onto a dinner plate.
3. Roll the dough into a walnut-size ball. Dip very briefly in the water and firmly roll in the peanuts until coated. Place on a baking sheet and use your thumb to make a deep indent in the cookie. Use your free hand to hold the cookie in place and make sure it keeps its shape. You should be able to fit all twenty cookies onto one baking sheet; they don’t spread.
4. Spoon about a teaspoon of jam into each cookie. A baby spoon works great for this. Bake for about 18-20 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheets for at least 5 minutes. Transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in a tightly sealed container. Enjoy with some tea or milk!

Also, lately I can’t stop listening to these two songs. So much great music! Eighteen days worth, to be exact. It’s crazy. I love this time of year, reevaluating my music collection, sifting through and rediscovering some great stuff and making playlists. Lately it’s been a lot of Smog, Wilco, Neko, Cave Singers, Bonnie Prince, Mazzy Star, My Morning Jacket, Lucinda Williams, Department of Eagles… I could go on and on. Anyway, hope you’re doing the same and enjoying yourselves.

Pumpkin S’mac

Invented by yours truly. It’s rare that I actually make up my own dishes from scratch. Usually I tweak and add my own flair to things, but this, this is pretty much the product of a lot of foodie thinking. This is what happens when I meditate on a few ingredients and acquire inspiration throughout my days working at a grocery store and going out to dinner every now and then. I am so, so proud of this dish, I cannot lie. It turned out INCREDIBLE. I had so many ideas and ingredients I wanted to incorporate into creating a creamy pumpkin pasta dish and this was the final product:

(Pre-panko bread crumb broilage…)

How it turned out after put under the broiler a few seconds too long…

Yeah, so basically this is my dream dish come true. Freshly roasted pumpkin, orecchiette, sage, thyme, truffle oil, creamy comforting yumminess in a single-serve dish. The idea was inspired mainly from a dish that I always order at a local restaurant, a version of mac n’ cheese made with truffle oil and some amazing smoked gouda cream sauce. And I wanted to be able to make it on my own, but take it to the next level. And that’s exactly what I did. I also have to thank Country Living’s Pumpkin-Sage Cream Sauce for inspiration otherwise it wouldn’t have been the same…

Pumpkin S’mac

(Serves 1-2 people in a single-serve dish, or you can save for leftovers, or divide it up however the heck you’d like)

Roasting the Pumpkin:

-1/2 sugar pie pumpkin, deseeded, skin peeled, and cubed into 1/2″ inch pieces

-1 teaspoon walnut or olive oil

-salt, to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cube the sugar pie pumpkin and toss with the oil and a bit of salt to your liking. Place squash on a baking sheet and roast for about 20-25 minutes, until somewhat browned and crispy, or until you’re able to pierce squash easily with a fork.

Meanwhile, make the sauce, and fill a medium sized pot with enough water to boil the amount of pasta you want to use (I used about 1/2 box of orecchiette) and put on “high” on the stove.

Pumpkin-Sage Truffle Cream Sauce:

-1 cup heavy cream

-1/2 cup pumpkin puree

-1/4 cup freshly grated grana padano Parmesan cheese (this stuff is BOMB, my new favorite Italian cheese, discovered thanks to an evening dining at Greens Restaurant in SF)

-1/2 cup any other cheese(s) that suits your fancy (I used a mix of smoked gouda, sharp white coastal cheddar, and a semi-firm goat cheese)

-16 sage leaves, sliced into thin strips

-1/2 teaspoon salt

-1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground pepper

-1 tablespoon truffle oil

Combine the cream, pumpkin puree, Parmesan, other cheeses, sage, salt, and pepper in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Simmer the mixture until slightly thickened, 10-12 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in truffle oil. Set aside until pasta is cooked.

Cooking the Pasta:

Once your pasta water is boiling and ready to go, add the orecchiette and a pinch of salt and boil according to directions (usually about 12 minutes, until al dente).

Putting it All Together:

Use any kind of oven-proof dish that you’d like (mine was ceramic and about 5×5 or something like that), place as much pasta and some roasted pumpkin that will comfortably fit into the dish and toss, and pour the pumpkin-sage sauce over that. I also added a little fresh thyme to mine as well, for some extra flavor. Now you could leave it at that and place it under the broiler for about 2-3 minutes to get a little crispy, or you can sprinkle some panko bread crumbs on top for an extra crunch, if you’d like. Just be careful and don’t do what I did, which was putting it under the broiler for more than 1 minute because I smoked up the whole house and the fire alarm went off. I’ll never do that again!

Take it out when it’s ready and hot and prepare for your eyes to roll to the back of your head.

(Feedback is very much appreciated…)

A Happy Pumpkin (and Owl) Filled Feast!

So I know it’s been a good week now, but I sadly haven’t had time to update. My Halloween is usually never typical, and this one was no exception. When I woke up, I was immediately inspired and motivated to cook and bake. I wanted to create a nice dinner meal for my family. And that is what I did. All day long. Eight hours. In the kitchen. And I loved every second of it.

It was a such a beautiful fall day so I went on an adventure and walked to the grocery stores, and trekked my groceries home. I walked around the lovely neighborhoods and checked out the awesome house decorations, carved pumpkins, fake spiderwebs and tombstones and such. It was quite lovely.

To start off, I made an ale, pork loin, and pumpkin stew in the slow cooker. That took about 5-6 hours all in all, so I made other things while that was going. I also made some sweet, salty, anise and orange spiced pistachios that turned out amaaazingly delicious. So easy too! Then I roasted some butternut squash and brussel sprouts, and tossed them in candied ginger with some chopped cilantro (both recipes from Rachael Ray). And then I made the most amazing thing of all: a (vegan) pumpkin ice cream torte. Yes. The recipe called for regular ice cream, but I had some coupons for free dairy-free pints so I took advantage of that, making my own pumpkin ice cream smash. It turned out amazing! And I added a little twist to it at the end, of course… pictures and recipes below!

I made my own pumpkin and leaf toasts out of black bread and a cookie cutter.Put a little butter and cinnamon sugar on them, stuck ’em in the broiler for about 2 minutes…

Ale, Pumpkin, & Pork Stew-2-3 lbs. pork loin
-4 c. chicken broth
-1 bottle of a good scotch ale (or any beer you think would pair)
-1 c. water
-15 oz. pumpkin puree
-4 T butter
-1 c. sliced carrots
-1/2 sliced red onion-1/2 t. cinnamon
-1/4 t. cloves
-1/4 t. nutmeg
-3/4 c. heavy cream
-salt & pepper to taste
Turn the slow cooker to ‘high’. Add the beer, broth and water – then the pork loin. Cook for 3-4 hours until the meat begins to fall apart. Take chunks of the pork out and break into bite size pieces and then return to the pot. Add the pumpkin and spices. In a pan on the stove, melt the butter and toss in the carrots and onions – lightly salt and pepper. Cook until they just become soft then add this to the stew pot. Stir the stew and cover – cook another hour. Add the heavy cream and cook another hour. Turn the soup to warm and serve when ready.

These turned out AMAZING! I plan on making lots of these guys and giving them out as gifts this season…

Pistachios with Anise & Orange-1 tablespoon superfine sugar -1 teaspoon ground aniseed -1 teaspoon salt -2 tablespoons vegetable oil -Grated peel of 1 orange -1 1/2 cups shelled raw pistachio nuts Preheat the oven to 350°. In a bowl, combine 1 teaspoon each superfine sugar, ground aniseed and salt. In a skillet, heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil over medium heat. Add the grated peel of 1 orange and 1 1/2 cups shelled raw pistachio nuts and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Transfer the nuts to a baking sheet and toast in the oven for 8 minutes. Toss the toasted nuts in the sugar mixture.
Butternut Squash & Brussels with Ginger & Cilantro4 pounds butternut squash, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes (about 10 cups) 3-4 cups sliced and quartered brussel sprouts (optional)1/4 cup vegetable oil 2 teaspoons ground coriander Salt and pepper 1/2 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger 1/2 cup cilantro leaves
Preheat the oven to 450°. In a large bowl, toss the squash and brussels with the oil, coriander, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. On each of 2 large baking sheets, arrange the squash in a single layer and bake, turning occasionally, until tender and golden-brown, about 30 minutes.
Transfer the squash to a serving bowl and toss with the crystallized ginger and cilantro.

Vegan Pumpkin Ice Cream Torte with Graham Cracker Crust and Caramel3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons finely chopped pecans
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Cooking spray
1 cup canned unsweetened pumpkin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
9 cups vanilla dairy-free ice cream (about 1 1/2 cartons), divided
1/4 cup finely chopped pecans, toasted and divided
1/4 cup jarred caramel topping (I made my own, which, by the way, was my first time making caramel and IT WAS HARD… all the recipes online said it was so easy.. liars! But it eventually kind of came out…)
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Combine first 4 ingredients (mixture will be crumbly). Firmly press crumb mixture into bottom of a 9-inch springform pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes; cool on a wire rack.
3. Combine pumpkin and the next 4 ingredients (through cloves) in a bowl. Soften 6 cups ice cream; add to pumpkin mixture, stirring to blend. Spoon half of mixture into prepared pan. Cover with plastic wrap; freeze 1 hour or until firm. Cover and freeze remaining pumpkin ice cream.
4. Soften remaining 3 cups vanilla ice cream; stir in 3 tablespoons pecans. Spread over pumpkin ice cream layer; freeze 1 hour or until firm. Soften remaining 3 cups pumpkin ice cream; spread over vanilla ice cream mixture. Cover; freeze 8 hours or until firm. Cut torte into 12 wedges. Place 1 wedge on each of 12 plates. Place topping in microwave-safe bowl; microwave at HIGH 45 seconds. Top each serving with 1 tablespoon topping; sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon pecans.

Cheers! Hope you enjoyed the pictures and recipes from the feast and that you’ll try out a few things as well!

Beets, Tofu Omelets, Tempeh Cakes, & Curries!

For those of you that don’t already know, Isa Chandra Moskowitz rocks the vegan planet. HARD CORE. No, really. I don’t know how she does it. She really is a vegan goddess. I’m never ceased to be amazed. I’ve been trying my best to get through the Vegan Brunch book as quick as humanly possible, but of course a lack of time amongst other things get in the way. Last week I finally whipped up the Tofu Omelets and stuffed them with leftover golden beet and green bean salad. There was a little trial-and-error. The first two omelets I tried out were quite unsuccessful. They fell apart and were too dry and ended up looking like a tofu scramble. I then looked at the little side tip and saw the suggestion of adding up to 1/4 cup of water. And wah-lah, they now looked just like the picture! I was so stoked. They spread out a lot easier and held together when flipped. So yeah, good stuff. I kept the batter in the fridge for a few days so I could make it whenever. You could probably get about 4-5 omelets out of the whole batch. It looks just like an egg omelet, just not so much of an egg-y taste. I think this cookbook should be appropriately renamed as “The Meat Eaters Vegan Brunch Book for Non-Believers”. Between omelets, scrambles, sausages, frittatas, crepes, waffles, muffins, quiche, and coffee cake, you wouldn’t ever believe it’s vegan. And that is why I love it so much. BUY IT. NOW!

Tofu Omelet from Vegan Brunch

Golden-Beet Green Bean Salad

In addition to the overflow of tofu I’ve acquired lately, I also scored a few packages of slightly expired tempeh from work the other day. Hmmm, what to do with some lovely tempeh? Make the Chesapeake Tempeh Cakes, of course!

Chesapeake Tempeh Cakes

People have been raving about these ever since I can remember hearing about the cookbook. They’re imitating crab cakes, and I have to say I’d probably prefer them over real ones (especially after reading the note about Chesapeake Bay)! The only problem I had was a few fell apart when I was trying to shape them and flip them over while frying. Next time I might reduce the amount of panko inside the batter. But other than that, fantastic. The remoulade was quite amazing, as well. Really simple and the perfect accompaniment to the mini patties. I added some freshly chopped dill to the mix because I’ve been all about adding dill to everything these days and it actually made it even better. Served alongside some sweet potato fries, stir-fried chard, mushrooms, green beans, and home-brewed lemon-lime “mojito” kombucha, it was the perfect dinner.
A few weeks ago I received an older issue of Gourmet (from last October, to be exact), and a recipe for this Southeast Asian Squash Curry caught my eye. Relatively easy and delicious sounding. A lot of my favorite foods in one dish: spinach, butternut squash, and cashews. Well, it turned out okay. The consistency was a bit weird and the red curry paste made it too spicy for my liking. I love butternut squash, and honestly don’t think it needed that much. It was my first time using fish sauce, as well. Damn, that stuff really is fishy and stinky. But it added the extra bit of saltiness I suppose it needed. Anyway, I don’t regret making it, but I probably won’t make it again. I had to doctor it up with a lot of cashews and some cilantro chutney, thanks to the Sukhi’s booth at the farmers market!

Southeast Asian Squash Curry

Lastly, something else delicious I got around to making last week was this amazing walnut teet dip/puree. So colorful and delicious! I had a few leftover red beets from roasting, but needed a few more and thankfully I had a can of pickled beets in the cupboard. I typically cannot STAND pickled beets (so wrong but they work in a pinch…) and I think that’s probably the reason some people hate beets. They’ve had the wrong kind. I, too, used to be a beet-hater. I would never touch the things. Until one fine day I had a roasted one and my life was forever changed. Canned, pickled beets are not beets. They’re a complete 180 from slow-roasted, fresh, organic, sweet-as-candy earthy beets that stain your fingers in a lovely rosy hue. You don’t get that same effect from the canned ones. Anyway, this dip is really quite good. It’s almost just like hummus. You could dip anything in to it. So far I’ve only had it with some french bread, but I intend to make it as the base sauce for a pizza and probably put it on some sandwiches with some arugula, tofu, or cheese. I also thought about making raviolis with it–stuffing won-ton wrappers with it. It’s so lovely and would be perfect sitting out for a party.

Walnut Beet Dip
1/2 cup walnuts1/2 lb beets, trimmed, roasted, peeled, and cut into large chunks1/4 cup olive oil1/8 cup water1 tablespoon tahini1 tablespoon lemon juicesalt to taste

Vegan Pumpkin Whole Wheat Lasagna

With the little time I’ve managed to have in the kitchen lately, everything I’ve made has been with pumpkin. How could it not be? I always try to take advantage of this time of year as much as possible. I’ve been going crazy on Amazon.com buying cookbooks left and right and then feel guilty for not having the time to use them. One of the latest greatest ones I’ve received is Yellow Rose Recipes. Vegan, simple, delicious, easy-to-prepare meals with a mix of different cuisines. I love it! I honestly believe it is one of the best vegan cookbooks out there. Last night I adapted a recipe to make Whole Wheat Pumpkin Lasagna and it turned out INCREDIBLE. The pumpkin sauce was perfect and didn’t miss the ricotta at all by using crumbled tofu instead! Simple, streamlined ingredients that made a healthy, wholesome, heart warming autumn meal (that can feed an army, as well!). Do yourself and your friends a favor by making this and sharing it for everyone to devour. And make it with a friend. That’s even better! 

Vegan Pumpkin Whole Wheat Lasagna – adapted from the Yellow Rose Recipes cookbook “Butternut Squash Lasagna” 

Serves 8-12

1 15 oz & 1 28 oz (larger) can of pure pumpkin puree

1 lb firm tofu, drained

12 whole grain lasagna noodles (we used the no-boil version–SO EASY!)

1 Tbs olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbs fresh sage, chopped

1/8 tsp nutmeg

salt and pepper

1 recipe Bechamel sauce (as follows)

1 cup shredded vegan mozzarella (we used real mozzarella)

2 Tbs vegan parmesean

Bechamel Sauce (makes 2 cups)

2 Tbs non-hydrogenated margarine

1/4 cup shallots, minced

3 Tbs unbleached all purpose flour

2 cups soymilk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1/8 tsp ground white pepper (optional)

For the sauce:

Melt margarine in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and saute 2-4 minutes, until tender. Add flour 1 tablespoon at a time and whisk until there are no lumps. Reduce heat to low and briskly whisk for one minute. Slowly whisk in soymilk and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes, whisking for 10 seconds out of every minute as sauce thickens.
Whisk in salt, nutmeg, and pepper and take sauce off the heat. Allow to cool while you are preparing the lasagna.

For the lasagna:

In a large bowl, crumble and squoosh the tofu with your hands until it resembles ricotta and set aside.

In a large, heavy-bottomed skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil on medium heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until onion is tender, 6-8 minutes. Scoop out the canned pumpkin into the skillet. Add sage, nutmeg, and pinch each of salt and pepper. Saute for 4-6 minutes and then remove from heat. 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook lasagna noodles (or not) according to package directions. 

Take out 1 cup of the pumpkin sauce and set aside. Add the crumbled tofu into the skillet with the remaining pumpkin sauce and mix gently–this is your filling.

Add bechamel sauce to remaining cup of pumpkin mixture and blend until smooth–this is your sauce.

Ladle a small amount of sauce into bottom of 9×13″ pan. Arrange 4 lasagna noodles on top. Distribute half the filling in an even layer. Do another layer of noodles. Add the rest of the filling and then another layer of noodles. Pour the remainder of the sauce over the top. If using the mozzarella and parmesan, distribute evenly on top of the sauce. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes!

Owl Stationary and Eggplant Sub Recipe

If any of you love stationary involving owls, wood grain, birds, or other cute graphic design images of animals as much as I do, check out this awesome online store Rock Scissor Paper for awesome cards, journals, tote bags, coasters, and other handmade goodies! Some of the cutest stuff I’ve seen in quite a while…

Speaking of owls, I found this great pot holder at Target recently. It makes me inspired to be baking even more so than usual!

Also, if any of you love eggplant, especially eggplant parmesean sandwiches, check out this recipe from Rachael Ray. It’s amazing and very simple to make!

Grilled Eggplant Subs with Mozzarella and Tomato Jam 

From Every Day With Rachael Ray October 2008

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
2 cloves garlic
1 sprig rosemary
1 small red onion, chopped
One 15-ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 eggplants, cut into 8 slices each
Salt and pepper
1 cup packed baby arugula
1/2 cup basil leaves, torn
Juice of 1/2 lemon
4 sesame-crusted sub rolls
One 1/2- to 1-pound ball smoked mozzarella, sliced into 8 rounds

1. Preheat a grill pan to medium-high or a broiler to high. In a small saucepan, heat the EVOO over medium heat. Add the garlic and rosemary and let steep for 3 minutes.
2. In a large skillet, combine 1 tablespoon of the infused EVOO and the red onion over medium heat and cook until softened, 6 to 7 minutes. Add the tomatoes, brown sugar and vinegar, lower the heat and cook until thickened, 7 minutes.
3. Brush half the eggplant with the infused EVOO and season with salt and pepper. Grill or broil, flipping once, until tender, 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Repeat with the remaining eggplant.
4. Dress the arugula and basil with the lemon juice and remaining infused EVOO; season with salt and pepper.
5. On each roll bottom, layer 4 eggplant slices, a handful of greens and 2 smoked mozzarella rounds. Grill or broil to melt the cheese. Slather the roll tops with the tomato jam and set in place.

The Best Damn Vegan Chocolate Cake You’ll Ever Eat In Your Life (Plus More Concoctions…)

I have been quite the cook in the kitchen the past 24 hours in this household of mine. Last night I made the Georgia Peach Chicken Sandwiches for my dad and I and they turned out quite good. Simple and (relatively) easy to prepare. I don’t cook with meat that often so I had to be more aware of the cross-contamination issue with the chicken. Basically it was just coating the chicken in buttermilk, chopped pecans (thank goodness I finally got a food processor!) and bread crumbs and frying it and slapping it on a burger bun with mayo, sweet relish, a few slices of peaches, and some lettuce. Delicious.

Since it’s been super freaking abnormally hot the past few days here and I was up hot all night tossing in turning, I definitely needed something other than a cold shower to start my day off right today. An acai bowl was the only cold and yummy breakfast-like thing that I could think of. Blended some plain yogurt with half a packet of acai and sliced some strawberries, banana, and topped it with my homemade peanut butter granola and some blueberries. It hit the spot.

Once it cooled down a little this afternoon I wanted to bake. Something chocolatey. So I thought why not try making another cake (the one that turned out before) and seeing how that goes. So I made “Wolffie’s Cocoa Cake with Chocolate Fudgey Frosting” from La Dolce Vegan! and added a little peanut butter into the mix.

Wolffie’s Cocoa Cake with Chocolate Fudgey (Peanut Butter) Frosting from La Dolce Vegan!

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 1/2 cups flour

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup soft or silken tofu

1 cup soymilk

1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 Tbsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly oil two 8-inch round cake pans and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a food processor, blend the tofu, soymilk, vinegar, vanilla, and oil until smooth. Pour into bowl along with the water and stir together well. Spread evenly between the two cake pans and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick or knife comes out clean. Let cool for 10-15 minutes before removing from pan. Cool completely before frosting. Makes 1 cake.

In the meantime, you make the frosting:

1 1/2 cups water

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 cups sugar (I only used 1 cup)

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup vegan margarine (I used less)

a spoonful of peanut butter

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, whisk together the water, cocoa powder, sugar, salt, and cornstarch. Slowly bring to a boil, whisking constantly for 3-4 minutes to avoid sticking. Once it starts to thicken, remove from heat and stir in margarine, peanut butter, and vanilla. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before frosting cake, blend frosting in food processor to make it smoother if you need to. Makes approx. 2 cups.

And as for my dinner, I whipped up a simple veggie spaghetti dinner. I bought some frozen vegetarian meatballs at Trader Joe’s recently (which are great) and have been using them for meatball sandwiches. Tonight I sauteed some eggplant, zucchini, and a portobello mushroom in a pan, cooked some Ezekiel whole grain pasta, baked the meatballs for a little bit, and dumped it all together with some marinara sauce and some petit basque cheese and some parmesean. Super good!

Phew! I think I’ve had my fill of cooking and baking this weekend. I think I’ll be set for a little while. It always feels so nice to bake, especially when it turns out alright! Bake the cake if you have a chance. You won’t regret it.