Hot Curried Beef

Well if you visit this blog you know I love hot food and I don't have a good Indian restaurant anywhere near by. I got the idea to use this brand of curry paste from watching Artie's Party on the Food Network. I have to say, we like it. This is my vegan version of the recipe on the back of the jar.

• 1 medium onion, large dice
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 package Gardein Beefless Tips, slightly thawed and sliced in half
• 4 tablespoons Patak's Hot Curry Paste
• 1 can fire-roasted tomatoes
• 1/2 cup water
• Hot, cooked rice

Saute onion in oil.

Add beef and slightly brown.

Stir in curry paste, cook for about 1 minute to mix well.

Add tomatoes with their juice and water.

Simmer until desired consistency, about 10 minutes with no lid. You don't want it too soupy but since it's going over that rice it doesn't need to be too thick. Serve over hot rice.

Enjoy!!!

Panzanella

While there is still a bounty of summer tomatoes I wanted to make a Panzanella Salad. I love fresh tomatoes, so I grabbed a loaf of Tuscan bread from Ward's while shopping. I made this simple salad and served it along side a Tempeh Tuna Salad (that I've already made 4 times, I added about 1/2 teaspoon kelp flakes to my version to add some sea flavor). This made a delightful, light Saturday lunch.

• 2 cups day old Tuscan bread, cubed
• 1 large cucumber, peeled and cubed
• 3 tomatoes cubed
• 1 large handful of basil torn into bite sized pieces
• 1/4 cup good quality olive oil
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Cube the bread , place in a large bowl and set aside.

Peel and cube the cucumber and add to the bowl.

Hold the tomatoes over the bowl while you core and cube them. You want any of that dripping juice to land in your bowl. 

Drizzle olive oil and balsamic over the the ingredients in the bowl. Toss well to coat all the ingredients.

Tear the basil into bite sized pieces, removing large stems and add to the bowl.

Sprinkle with salt and toss again. 

Allow to sit for at least 10 minutes to allow the tomatoes to release some of their juices and for the bread to absorb some of the oil and vinegar.

Enjoy!

Beef(less), Shitake, and Snow Pea Stir-fry

I saw this recipe in my Bon Appetit magazine and ripped it out to add to my arsenal of  vegan "wanna makes". I was at Ward's the other day and saw the shitake mushrooms and snow peas and knew the time was now. This was absolutely delicious - definitely as good as anything I've gotten in a restaurant. I'm trying to cut back on all the pasta and rice we eat, but this would have been good over some ramen noodles, although you may have needed more sauce to successfully do that.

• 1 package Gardein Beefless Tips - slightly thawed and cut in half
• 1 tablespoon Asian sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
• 12 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms, stemmed, thickly sliced
• 8 ounces snow peas
• 1 bunch green onions, sliced, divided
• 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves, divided
• 1/3 cup hoisin sauce
• 1 tablespoons Sirachi 
• 1/4 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder

Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add ginger and mushrooms; stir-fry until mushrooms are tender, about 3 minutes. 

Add Gardein to skillet; stir-fry until beef browns on the outside, about 3-4 minutes.

Add snow peas, half of green onions, and half of cilantro; stir-fry 1 minute. 

Stir in hoisin, Sirachi, and five-spice powder; sauté until peas are crisp-tender, 1 to 2 minutes. 

The steam coming off this really ruined this shot.

Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl. Sprinkle with remaining green onions and cilantro.

Enjoy!!

Cobbler

I'm a good ole Southern girl from birth and what was summer without some kind of fruit cobber? This is so delicious and easy AND you'll always remember the recipe in  your head cos' I call it my Cuppa Cuppa Cuppa Cobbler. You'll see why when you look at the ingredients. Use your imagination and what's fresh and local to make awesome blueberry, peach, blackberry or any combo of cobbler. As you know I am not a very good photographer so don't let the pics keep you from this cobbler.

• 2 tablespoons Smart Balance margarine
• 1 cup self-rising flour
• 1 cup non-dairy milk
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 peaches, peeled and sliced
• 3/4 frozen blackberries
• cinnamon, nutmeg, whatever spice would compliment your fruit (I didn't use any this time)

Place the margarine in a 9x9 baking dish and put this in a 350F oven until it melts.

Meanwhile, mix the cup of flour, cup of sugar and cup of milk well. (no pic - I cropped it out! duh)
When the margarine is melted gently pour the above wet mixture into the pan.

Now gently place the fruit over this wet mixture.

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour until done.

The batter (wet ingredients) will rise up over some of the fruit, and some of the fruit will sink and you'll have a fruit filled EASY cobbler.
Enjoy!

Kielbasa with Onions and Poblanos

I've made this twice slightly different each time. The first time I served the sausage, onions and poblanos in a hot dog bun with lots of mustard. Last time I made it I followed the recipe as it appeared in Bon Appetit using kraut, mustard and crusty bread. Either way you try it you're going to love it.

• 1 large Vidalia onion, cut into 1/2-inch slices
• 2 poblano chiles or green bell peppers, seeded, cut into 1/2-inch strips
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 package Tofurky kielbasa sausages, cut on a diagonal into 3-inch pieces
• Spicy Mustard
• 1 package sauerkraut
• crusty bread

 

Place a 16x12" sheet of heavy-duty foil on a large rimmed baking sheet. I used a sheet that would fit in my toaster oven since it's still so hot right now. Toss onion and chiles with oil in a large bowl; season generously with salt and pepper. Mound vegetables in center of prepared baking sheet.

 

Place sausages on top of the vegetables.

 

Place another large sheet of foil over. Fold and crimp all edges tightly to form a sealed packet.

 

Preheat oven to 350°. Bake until onions and peppers are softened about 25 minutes.(Be careful opening the foil it's full of steam.) Alternatively, cook on the grill about the  same amount of time.

 

Serve with mustard, sauerkraut, and bread alongside. 

Enjoy!

 

Summer Vegetables with Sausage and Potatoes

I've had a lot of produce in my frig this summer. Usually the same things week after week: bells, onions, zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant and celery mainly. Every now and then we have asparagus, brussel sprouts or something that's on sale. I saw this recipe over at Skinnytaste and knew I could make it vegan and use up some of my produce. Here's my version of this fast and yummy dish.

• 1 pound small red potatoes, cut in half or quartered if necessary
• 2 teaspoon canola oil
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• fresh cracked pepper
• 1 package Tofurky Italian chicken sausage, sliced 1-inch thick
• 1 large Vidalia onion, chopped
• 5-6 cloves garlic, smashed with the side of the knife
• 1 yellow bell pepper, diced 1-inch squares 
• 1 green bell pepper, diced 1-inch squares
• 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, roughly chopped
• 2 cups zucchini, 1/2 inch thick and quartered

Heat oil in a large, deep non-stick skillet with a tight fitting lid on high heat add potatoes; season with garlic powder, salt and pepper. When the skillet starts to sizzle, reduce heat to low and cook with a tight lid on for about 20-25 minutes, shake the pan occasionally to prevent the potatoes from burning.

Remove the potatoes from the skillet and set aside. Add the sausage to the skillet and saute on medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally until browned, about 10 minutes. Remove the sausages from the skillet and set aside.

Season the onions, peppers, garlic and rosemary with salt and pepper. Add the vegetables to the skillet.  Cook stirring occasionally until onions and peppers become slightly browned. Add zucchini and cook an additional 5 minutes, mixing as it cooks until cooked through.

Return the potatoes and sausage to the skillet and mix well.  

Adjust salt and pepper as needed; cover and heat through (aobut 5 more minutes).

Enjoy!

French Onion Soup

Today would have been Julia Child's 100th birthday. PBS's did a special honoring her birthday and asked folks to make one of her recipes and share it. I decided to make her French Onion Soup vegan and post it. I wanted to do it earlier in the week, but time and life just got in the way - but here it is - last minute and not too shabby of a job! I present Vegan French Onion Soup:

• Extra-virgin olive oil
• 8 large onions, thinly sliced into 1/2 moons (3 pounds)
• Kosher salt 
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 3/4 cup white wine
• 4 bay leaves
• 6 cups chicken less chicken bouillon
• 1/2"thick slices baguette (1 per bow)
• Diaya mozzarella, grated 

 

Coat a large deep pot with olive oil. Add the onions and sprinkle generously with salt. Bring the pan to a medium heat. Stir the onions to coat with oil. Cover the pot and sweat for 15 to 20 minutes.Once the onions have gotten very soft and let off a lot of water, remove the lid and let the onions cook low and slow. Caramelized onions take a long time, about an 30 minutes to an hour.

When the onions are very brown and have gotten considerably smaller, whisk in th flour, cook for 2 miutes. Add the bay leaves, white wine and chicken stock. Bring to a boil and reduce heat and simmer for at least 45 minutes or longer. Taste for seasoning, you may will need to season with salt.

Put plenty of mozzarella on the baguette slices.

Toast until golden brown. Fill bowls 3/4 of the way with the onion soup, float a cheese toast on each bowl.

Enjoy.

Butternut Squash Ravioli with Thai Peanut Sauce

I had one more package of the Butternut Squash Ravioli and I saw this recipe and knew I was gonna make this one mine. My version is pretty close to the one I've linked to and it was delicious. I like my saucy dishes really saucy, so if you like less sauce add about 2/3's and go from there. This dish was wonderful as a leftover.

• 1 (1 lb)  package Rising Moon Organics Butternut Squash Ravioli
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 inch piece of raw ginger, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 medium eggplant, chopped into 1/2-inch cubes, unpeeled
• 1 (14 oz) can organic coconut milk
• 2 tablespoons thai red curry paste
• 3 tablespoons peanut butter
• 1 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/4 cup Bangkok Padang Peanut Sauce
• salt and black pepper, to taste
  
  
  
                             

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. While water is boiling, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the garlic and ginger and saute, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1 minute.  

Add the pepper and eggplant to the pan.  Stir fry until tender, about 15-20 minutes.

In a medium bowl, stir together the coconut milk, red curry paste, peanut butter, Padang Sauce and brown sugar. 

Pour into the pan with the veggies and cook until heated through.  

Add salt and black pepper to taste. Cook the ravioli in the boiling water until tender.  Drain and mix in with the veggies and peanut sauce.  

 Taste and adjust salt and pepper if necessary.

Enjoy!