Cheesy Wild Mushrooms and Seitan

This is recipe is modified from a recipe using breaded chicken. I'll frequently cook both the chicken and vegetarian versions to satisfy both vegetarians and non-veg. 


Ingredients:
3 cups mixed, wild mushrooms, sliced
8 oz seitan, thickly sliced
1 egg, beaten
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons pumpkin seed oil
2 1/2 cups of grated mozzarella and Parmesan cheese
3/4 cup vegetarian broth

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Place half of the mushrooms in a 9x13 inch pan. Dip seitan into beaten egg, then roll in the nutritional yeast.
Heat the pumpkin seed oil in a skillet. Brown both sides of the seitan.
Place chicken on top of mushrooms, arrange remaining mushrooms on seitan, and top with cheese. Add vegetable broth to pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until top layer of cheese is melted and crispy.

Mushroom Miso Soup

I like miso soup every once and a while (especially when the craving for something salty hits). The convenience of buying the pre-made, dry version is ruined by the fact that they all contain "bonito"; a type of fish. I haven't been able to find a packaged mix that doesn't contain bonito so I ended up trying this quick and easy homemade recipe for mushroom miso (I used dried shitake, portabello, and enoki)


 

A bundle of enoki mushrooms

The soup is surprising hearty—using enoki gives the texture of noodles in your soup.


Ingredients:
5  cups water
1/2 cup of dried mushrooms
2-3 tablespoons miso paste
3/4 pound assorted, thinly sliced mushrooms (shitake, oyster, enoki, king, lobster etc)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 red bell pepper, diced
300 grams tofu, cubed
2 green onions, chopped

Directions:
In a large pot, bring the water and dried mushrooms to a boil. Turn off the element, and let the mushrooms steep for about 15 minutes. Add the miso paste and mix well.

In a skillet, saute the mushrooms in the olive oil. Add the bell pepper and continue cooking for another 2-3 minutes. Add the mixture to the miso broth along with the tofu and green onions.

Serves 4
Nutritional Breakdown Per Serving
  224 Calories
  8 g Fat (29.1% calories from fat)
  12g Protein
  32g Carbohydrate
  6g Dietary Fiber
   0mg Cholesterol
   337mg Sodium

Tomatoe Pie

If you grow tomatoes and find yourself overwhelmed with excess...this is an great recipe to use em up. It's reminisant of a deep dish, cheese pizza. I've had people pile on the compliments, even when they normally don't comment recipes.

Tomatoe Pie
1 9-inch pie shell
1 large yellow or red onion, chopped
3 cups roughly chopped tomatoes, squeezed to remove excess juice
1/4 cup choped fresh basil
3 cups grated cheese (any mixture of vegetarian sharp cheddar, parmesan, monterey Jack, Gruyere or Mozarella)
3/4 cup low fat mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Hot Sauce (or Tabasco)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:
The recipe calls for the pie shell to be baked and then cooled first. Since the pie is going to be baked in the oven for about 20-30 minutes, I figured that I could used a slightly cooked shell. I'm certain a raw crust would be OK but I havn't tried it yet.

Spread the onions evenly on the bottom of the shell. Next, layer the drained, chopped tomaotes and finally spread the fresh basil on top.

In a bowl mix the mayonnaise, cheese, hot sauce, salt and pepper. Spread this mixture, as the final layer over the pie.

Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes at 350 degrees C.

Swiss Chard Pesto

When I here the word "pesto" I always think of the basil, parm and pine nut variety. I've heard of substituting the parm with asiago or romano or using blanched almonds instead of pine nuts, but when I came across a recipe that uses swiss chard in it, I was intrigued. This recipe maintains the basil with the added bonus of the chard. I have lots of swiss chard growing in the garden and haven't had a chance to use it at all this summer so this was the perfect opportunity!!

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 cups Swiss chard, with lower stems removed
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup walnuts
2 ounces freshly grated pecorino or parmesan cheese (vegetarian variety)
1/2 cup of packed basil leaves
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Directions:
Heat up 2 tablespoons of olive oil and wilt the chard leaves in the oil. remove from heat and let cool.
In a food processor combine the garlic, walnuts, basil and cheese. Pulse until the mixture is finely ground and mixed. Add the cooled, swiss chard and mix well.
Pour in the olive oil and mix until fully blended. Refrigerate or freeze.

Ginger Pumpkin Bisque

The word "bisque" traditionally is used to describe a soup made with lobster or shell fish of some sort. Alternatively it is can be used to describe soup made with roasted vegetables. For this recipe I used roasted pumpkins instead of the canned variety therefore—bisque!

Possible Recipe Substitutions:
Olive Oil: Pumpkin seed oil can be substituted for the olive oil. It will give your soup a darker colour and a deeper flavour.
Shallots: The recipe also calls for 3/4 cups of shallots. If you don;t have them handy (or don't want to pay the crazy price) you can use one of the following substitutions:

• 3/4 cup sweet onion + 2 tablespoons chopped garlic chives
• 1/2 cup regular cooking onions + 1 crushed clove garlic

Apple Cider: The 1/2 cup of apple cider can be substituted for any one of the following

• 1/2 cup beer
• 1/2 cup apple juice
• 1 medium apple (juiced)

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil or pumpkin seed oil
3/4 cup chopped shallots
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1/4 cup unbleached flour
4 cups vegetable
1/2 cup apple cider
1 (15- or 16-ounce) can pumpkin or 4 cups fresh, cooked pumpkin
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed
1 teaspoon dried sage, crushed
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/16 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup half-and-half or whipping cream

Topping (optional)
Whipping cream or low fat sour cream
Fresh thyme


Heat oil over and add the shallots, onion, and ginger; cook until tender.
Stir in the flour and cook for 1-2 more minutes. Pour in the broth and cider all at once, stirring constantly to avoid lumping. Cook and stir over until thickened and bubbly.
Mix in the pumpkin, maple syrup, bay leaves, dried thyme, cinnamon, pepper, and cloves.
Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.
Remove from heat. Discard bay leaves. Cool slightly.
Blend the mixture in batches using a blender or food processor.
Once the entire lot is smooth, return it to the saucepan and stir in the cream.
Heat through, but do not boil.

When serving, swirl a little sour cream (or whipping cream) into each bowl and garnish with fresh thyme.
Makes 6 servings

Goat Cheese, Tomato and Arugula Pasta




Arugula growing in my garden

 This year was the first time I've planted arugula. The stuff is growing like wildfire and is crazy-ass hot (spicy)!! It's so strong tasting that I can't imagine using it in a salad so this recipe is perfect.


Ingredients
5 1/2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
2 cups coarsely chopped arugula, stems included
1 1/2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
2-3 cloves of minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste
8 ounces penne pasta

Directions
Cook pasta until al dente.

Combine goat cheese, arugula, cherry tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, and salt and pepper in a large serving bowl.

Drain pasta and toss with goat cheese mixture.

Garlic Bok Choy Stir-fry

I know this sounds wierd, but I frequently have extra bok choy in ny fridge that needs to get used up. This is a quick and tasty side dish. It calls for brown sugar however you can substitute any sweetener that you prefer.

Garlic Bok Choy Stir-fry

1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon ginger, freshly grated
2 cups shiitake mushrooms, chopped, stems removed
6 cups bok choy, chopped into 2 inch strips
2 red pepper, sliced into thin strips
2 tablespoons tamari sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice  or white wine
1 tbsp brown sugar (or maple syrup for vegan)
1/4 cup cashews or raw peanuts for garnish

Preparation:
In a pot, heat up the sesame and olive oil.Add the onion  and cook until soft.
Add the mushrooms, garlic, ginger and red peppers. Cook until peppers are just beginning to soften.
Add the remaining ingredients, and cover for two to three minutes to steam bok choy.

Serves 6

Nutritional Breakdown Per Serving

  331 Calories
  7g Fat (15.5% calories from fat)
  11g Protein
  69g Carbohydrate
  11g Dietary Fiber
  0mg Cholesterol
  394mg Sodium

Curried Carrot and Ginger Soup

I'm not too fond of cooked carrots however I needed to use up ~2 1/2 lbs of carrots. I didn't have enough carrots to juice for this recipe so I decided to modify a soup recipe from the Oprah web site:

Curried Carrot and Ginger Soup 
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 1/2 pounds carrots, scrubbed but unpeeled, cut into 1/2-inch thick rounds
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 tablespoon grated ginger root
5 cups vegetable broth
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste


Preparation:
Heat up the oil and add onion, celery and galic. Cook until softened. Add carrots, curry powder and ginger.
Mix well and cook for another minute or two.
Pour in broth and cook uncovered until the carrots are soft (approximately 30 minutes).
Puree the soup in a food processor or use an immersible hand blender.

You can serve the soup like this or add 1 cup plain nonfat yogurt or light coconut milk into the entire batch. I choose to stir in 2 tablespoons of non-fat sour cream into each serving.

Serves 6

Nutritional Breakdown Per Serving
 228 Calories
 6g Fat (22.4% calories from fat)
 7g Protein
 39g Carbohydrate
 8g Dietary Fiber
 2mg Cholesterol
 1410mg Sodium

Squash Couscous

This recipe is adapted from a 2001 LCBO Food & Drink magazine. I like to bring this to BBQ parties as an alternative to meat. Couscous is "high" in protein and therefore a tasty alternative. The original recipe calls for acorn squash, however I prefer the creamier consistency of the buttercup. Because it is a drier squash, I add a bit of vegetable broth to soften it up.

Squash Couscous
1 tbs. olive oil
2 cups diced buttercup squash
2 cups diced red pepper
1-2 tsp curry powder
1/2-1 tsp paprika
2 cups frozen peas, cooked (can substitute edamame for peas)
2 cups couscous
2 cups vegetable stock (if you use whole wheat couscous then you will need 2 1/2 cups of stock)
6 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup pine nuts

Heat oil  in a pan and add squash. If using buttercup, cook for a few minutes then add a couple of tablespoons of broth or water to help soften the squash. Add peppers and cook mixture until softened.Stir in curry and paprika and cook for another couple of minutes.
Cook peas in the microwave and drain. Set aside.
Heat vegetable broth in a pot or microwave until boiling. Place couscous in a large bowl and pour broth over it. Mix well then cover the bowl and let it site for 5 minutes.
When the couscous is ready, uncover and mix with a fork. Add pea, squash mixture and pine nuts. Stir until well mixed. Serve warm or cold.

Serves 8

Nutritional Breakdown Per Serving

   323 Calories
   8g Fat (21.0% calories from fat)
   12g Protein
   53g Carbohydrate
   7g Dietary Fiber
   1 mg Cholesterol
   417 mg Sodium

Better than plain rice....

We make chimichangas at least once a month. Typically we just have a chimi each with a glass of wine and that's our meal, but for some variety we'll have sides of green salad and rice.

I'm getting bored with plain rice so I recently started using this rice recipe that has a bit more flavour (and veggies). It's great on it's own as left overs, cold, for lunch.

Rice with Black Beans and Corn
6 cups cooked jasmine rice (use brown rice if preferred)
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 cups of frozen corn, heated and drained
4 fresh tomatoes, diced
6 green onions, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

The recipe also calls for:
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
2 dashes hot sauce
Because I serve this as a side dish, I don't want it to be hot so I don't add the jalapeno or hot sauce.
Also,  I HATE cilantro so of course I don't add it, however many people love this herb so add what you want.

Preparation:
In a medium bowl, combine black beans, corn, tomatoes, onion, lime juice, oil, salt, pepper. If you are including the extra ingredients (cilantro, jalapeno and hot sauce) add them now. Serve the hot rice with a 1/6 of the bean and corn mixture on top OR mix the rice with the bean/corn mixture before serving being careful not to make the rice too mushy during the mixing process.

Serves 6

Nutritional Breakdown Per Serving
    474 Calories
    4g Fat (7.9% calories from fat)
    13g Protein
    96g Carbohydrate
    7g Dietary Fiber
    0mg Cholesterol
    416mg Sodium

CHOCOLATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't know about you, but this is the time of year for me when chocolate cravings kick in. A few weeks after the new year and into the cold months of February, the winter blues or maybe a deep, Darwinian instinct to calorie load starts making the thought of chocolate irresistible.

Last week I gave in and made Alicia Silverstone's delicious, melt in your mouth, peanut butter cups! (Yeah chocolate!!)

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

I made a few adaptions to the recipe.  The original recipe is vegan however I still haven't been able to get rid of dairy in my diet so here's my version.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups
Filling:
1/2 cup of melted butter

3/4 cup of natural, crunchy peanut butter
3/4 cup of graham cracker crumbs (approx. 10 graham cracker squares)
1/4 cup of maple sugar or other granulated sweetener

Chocolate covering:
1 1/2 cups dark chocolate chocolate chips
1/4 cup of soy, rice, or nut milk

Line a muffin pan with 12 muffin cups.

Mix together the melted butter, peanut butter, graham crumbs, and sugar.

In an pan, melt the chocolate and the milk together. If you have time, paint the the inside of each muffin cup with the chocolate. I took the easy way and simply placed a small spoonful of chocolate in each cup, reserving the rest for the top of the cups.

Spoon the peanut butter mixture into the cups, dividing it evenly. Divide the remaining chocolate, spooning it onto the the top of the peanut butter cups.

Chill the cups for a few hours for them to harden. Store in a cool place—they melt easily.

Makes 12 servings
Nutritional information per serving:
   331 Calories
   25g Fat (62.4% calories from fat)
   6g Protein
   28g Carbohydrate
   3g Dietary Fiber
   21mg Cholesterol
   189mg Sodium

On the menu today—Thai Noodle Stir Fry

A recent cold snap in our area forced me to make a vegan dish that I hadn't made in a while.

I had been storing some excess vegetables—bags of carrots, onions, squash, beets and cabbages in my garage. I was experimenting with the concept of constructing a cold storage area in the garage. My grandparents used to have a cold storage in their basement. It was not insulated, had a dirt floor, no windows and I remember it being cool in the heat of summer. This type of storage is low tech, effective and environmentally friendly; so in my mind, worth investigating as an option for food storage.

I was attempting to figure out how much the temperature fluctuation could affect vegetables in the garage when bamm...temperatures of -29 C hit. Nothing uncommon for Canada, but too cold for the veggies.

The result of the cold snap was a bunch of frozen veggies. The two, 2lb bags of carrots were frozen solid. Instead of throwing them out, I decided to thaw and juice them. It was perfect because I have a vegetarian recipe for Thai noodles that need 5 cups of carrot juice. The 5 cups of juice = 2 bags of carrots juiced.

The recipe had been given to me from a friend at work and I was initially hesitant to try it because the main ingredients of the sauce are carrot juice, ground sunflower seeds and coconut. I wasn't sure if I would like the taste. That being said, it has ended up being one of my favorite vegan recipes so far.
Thai Noodle Sauce

3 inches of ginger root, minced

12 cloves of garlic

2.5 tbs sesame oil

2/3 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 cup grated, unsweetened shredded coconut

2 tbs chili powder

2/3 cup fresh lemon juice (~ 3 lemons)

2/3 cup tamari (or soya sauce)

5 cups of carrot juice

4 tsp paprika

                                                     1 stalk of lemongrass, one end cut off and smashed to release fragrance

Cook the ginger and garlic in the sesame oil for a few minutes in a deep pot.

Grind up the sunflower seeds. I used a spare coffee grinder that I keep around for grinding seeds or spices. You can pick up a cheap one for around $8.

Add the ground seeds and the remaining ingredients into the pot,bring to boil and then reduce the heat. Cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the lemongrass stalk.

Serves 6
Nutritional Breakdown Per Serving of sauce:
  368 Calories
  23g Fat (52.6% calories from fat)
  11g Protein
  36g Carbohydrate
  7g Dietary Fiber
  0mg Cholesterol
  1878mg Sodium

The recommended serving is to use the sauce in a stir-fry of rice noodles, chopped greens (kale,swiss chard and/or bok choy), chopped tomato, cubes of tofu or seitan ( marinated in 1/2 c tamari and 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar or teriaki sauce). Top with bean sprouts, roasted peanuts and a lemon wedge.

On the menu today—Grilled Zucchini and Tortellini Salad with Feta

This is another LCBO recipe. I typically make this to bring to dinner parties if I know the hosts are not used to cooking vegetarian meals. Can be made a day before serving.

Vinaigrette:
1/2 cup (125 mL) olive oil
2 tbsp (25 mL) red wine vinegar
2 tbsp (25 mL) balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp (25 mL) finely chopped fresh oregano
1 tbsp (15 mL) grainy Dijon Mustard
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste


Salad:
3 green zucchini
3 yellow zucchini
1 lb (500 g) fresh cheese-stuffed tortellini
1/2 cup (125 mL) Kalamata olives
1/3 cup (75 mL) chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
6 ozs (175 g) Feta cheese, cut into small cubes
1/3 cup (75 mL) coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley


1. Combine oil, red wine and balsamic vinegars, oregano, mustard and garlic in a bowl; season with salt and pepper.

2. Cut each zucchini into three length-wise slices, about 1/2-inch (1-cm) thick. Place on a baking sheet and brush with 1/3 cup (75 mL) of the vinaigrette. Place on greased grill over medium-high heat and cook for 4 to 5 minutes per side or until just crisp-tender. Let slices cool slightly; cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) thick chunks.

3. Meanwhile cook tortellini in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender. Drain; rinse under cold water to chill. Drain well.

4. Combine tortellini, grilled zucchini, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, cheese and parsley in a large bowl; pour remaining vinaigrette over and toss. Cover and refrigerate until serving.


Serves 7
Nutritional Breakdown Per Serving:

  480 Calories
  30g Fat (55.6% calories from fat)
  16g Protein
  38g Carbohydrate
  4g Dietary Fiber
  70mg Cholesterol
  864mg Sodium

On the menu today—Mushroom Risotto

This is a recipe from the LCBO and makes an great main dish for vegetarians. For non-veg it can be served with meat on the side.

1 cup (250 mL) boiling water
1/2 cup (125 mL) dried porcini mushrooms
8 oz (250 g) mixed fresh wild mushrooms
2 tbsp (25 mL) olive oil
2 tbsp (25 mL) butter
1 tsp (5 mL) chopped garlic
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tbsp (25 mL) chopped parsley
Risotto:
5 cups (1.25 L) vegetable stock, approximately
2 tbsp (25 mL) olive oil
2 tbsp (25 mL) butter
1/2 cup (125 mL) finely chopped onion
1 1/2 cups (375 mL) Carnaroli or arborio rice
1/2 cup (125 mL) white wine
1/3 cup (75 mL) feshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and freshly ground pepper


Pour boiling water over dried mushrooms in a bowl and let sit for 30 minutes. Drain mushrooms and reserve liquid and mushrooms separately.

Remove stems from fresh mushrooms and slice. Heat oil and butter in skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and sliced mushrooms. Sauté until mushrooms exude their liquid. Season with salt, pepper and chopped parsley. Leave in skillet for reheating.

To make risotto, bring stock to simmer on stove. Heat oil and 1 tbsp (15 mL) butter in a heavy pot on medium heat. Add onion and sauté for 3 minutes or until softened. Add rice and sauté until rice is coated with oil.

Pour in wine and simmer steadily until wine is absorbed. Pour in mushroom soaking liquid and dried mushrooms and cook, stirring until most of liquid is absorbed. Add 1 cup (250 mL) of stock, stirring until most is absorbed. Continue to add stock in 1 cup (250 mL) quantities, stirring most of the time until rice is creamy with a slight bite in the centre, about 18 to 20 minutes. Reheat mushrooms and stir in to rice.
Remove from heat, stir in remaining 1 tbsp (15 mL) butter and Parmesan cheese. Season well with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Serves 4
Nutritional Breakdown Per Serving:
  777 Calories
  32g Fat (38.0% calories from fat)
  18g Protein
  100g Carbohydrate
  6g Dietary Fiber
  39mg Cholesterol
  2295mg Sodium