Rhymes With Vegan

a vegan thanksgiving day 1

the holiday's can be a stressful time for everyone, especially when others are concerned about "what to make". so, for the next week i plan on posting simple recipe ideas for you to use or share with family and friends. 

i hope each of these recipes will make things a little less stressful for you and yours.

my first recipe i would like to share is from my late grandfather. 

we call it grandpa Earl's stuffing. 

it is so rich and flavorful that your family will want the recipe to have as their own.

 

grandpa earl’s stuffing

 

2 tbsp olive oil

½ yellow onion – chopped

½ tube gimme lean – sausage style (or you can use mushrooms)

2 celery ribs - chopped

1 tsp rosemary

1 tsp thyme

1 tbsp poultry seasoning

½ bag herb seasoned croutons

2-3 cups no-chicken broth (or you can use veggie or just water)

3 tbsp earth balance

salt and pepper to taste

 

heat your oven to 375 degrees.

in a medium pot, heat your broth or water with the celery until the celery is soft.

set aside.

add your olive oil and onions to a medium skillet.  once the onions are transparent, add your gimme lean sausage, small pieces at a time, the rosemary and the thyme.  cook until slightly browned.

remove from heat and set aside.

in a large mixing bowl add your croutons and poultry seasoning.  slowly add your broth/water and mix until the croutons have softened quite a bit.  (you may not need to use all of your broth/water)you can now add your sausage and onions and fold together well.

pour into a casserole dish, top with the earth balance 1 tbsp at a time. 

pop into the oven for 15-20 minutes or until the top is a crispy brown.

 

serve with a delicious homemade gravy.

vegan caesar salad w/ toasted baguette croutons

if there was a salad dressing out there i didn't think i'd be having again, it was a caesar dressing. 

no offense to the many that exist right now, but i am very, very picky as to what my dressing tastes like. so, much to my surprise, i really think i hit upon something here. 

its peppery, rich, creamy texture with a subtle taste of the sea makes for the perfect vegan caesar dressing.

vegan caesar salad

 

serves 4-6

for dressing

1 avocado

1 cup vegan sour cream

½ cup vegan mayo

2 tsp nori

1 tbsp minced red onion

3 cloves smashed garlic (using a garlic press)

2 tbsp vegan worcestershire

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

2 tsp onion salt

1 tbsp cracked black pepper

¼ cup vegan cream

2 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

squeeze of 1 lemon

 for croutons               

1 medium baguette

2 tbsp olive oil

1 clove garlic – minced

salt and pepper to taste

 for topping

3 cashews – shaved

heat your oven to 400 degrees.  slice your baguette into small, bite sized croutons.  toss with the olive oil, garlic and salt and pepper.  lay the pieces onto a cookie sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown.

remove and set aside.

put your nori into a small bowl with 1 tbsp of warm water…let moisten.  remove and chop into fine pieces.

in a medium mixing bowl combine all of your dressing ingredients, including the nori.  whisk together very well and put into fridge to let cool. 

feel free to adjust the taste to your liking.

on a large serving platter, lay your fresh romaine hearts, dress with the caesar and toss with the croutons, cashew shavings. lemon juice and a dash of salt and pepper to taste.

this makes a great starter or side dish to your favorite pasta.

add grilled tofu for a little “chicken” style caesar!

serve with a glass of cabernet.

enjoy!

squash stuffed w/ quinoa pilaf and coconut curried chickpeas

a cool, crisp fall evening calls for a rich, warm dinner cooking in the oven.

tonight's menu?

squash stuffed w/ quinoa pilaf and coconut curried chickpeas

(and of course a large bottle of red wine...)

 

squash stuffed w/ quinoa pilaf and curried chickpeas

 

serves 4

2 medium sized acorn squash – cut in ½

1 cup quinoa (pre-soak the quinoa per the packaging directions)

2 ½ cups broth

½ cup peas

2 scallions – chopped

¼ cup toasted squash seeds

1 can coconut milk

1 ½ tbsp garam masala

1 ½ tbsp curry powder

½ tsp freshly grated ginger

1 tbsp red pepper flakes

1 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp fresh chopped parsley

2 cans garbanzo beans

1 small can roasted mock chicken

1 small leek – chopped

2 cloves garlic – minced

salt and white pepper to taste

 

pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees.

lay your cleaned and de-seeded squash face down in 1-cup broth and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until soft.  save the seeds to bake and use as a garnish.

in a small saucepan heat the rest of your broth to boil, add your quinoa and let cook for 15-20 minutes.  toss with 1 tbsp olive oil, peas and 1 scallion. set aside.

in a medium pot, heat the rest of the olive oil, leeks and garlic on medium-high for 3-5 minutes.  add your mock chicken and your chickpeas.  cook for 10-12 minutes.  you can now add your coconut milk, garam masala, curry powder, ginger, cayenne and a pinch of red pepper flakes.  add salt and pepper to taste.

cook this mixture for about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

when the squash is done, throw your seeds into the oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

take each squash, add pilaf and then the curry and garnish with fresh parsley, scallions, red pepper flakes and toasted squash seeds.

serve with a deep burgundy wine.

enjoy!

basil butter polenta bites w/ fresh chopped tomatoes

every so often we find ourselves in a pinch to put together something quick to bring to a party or gathering of some sort, and with the holidays right around the corner, this is surely to be a frequent occurrence.

RWV to the rescue....these little ditties are a sure-fire hit especially since they take less time to make than you can say "basil butter polenta bites w/ fresh chopped tomatoes"

basil butter polenta bites w/ fresh chopped tomatoes

serves 10-15

 

3 cups no-chicken broth

1 cup yellow cornmeal

1 cup fresh chopped basil (yield 1 tbsp for garnish)

4 roma tomatoes

3 tbsp earth balance

1 tsp olive oil

salt and pepper

in a medium bowl combine the fresh basil with the earth balance.  let sit to room temp.

in a medium pot, bring broth to boil.

reduce heat to medium; gradually whisk in cornmeal.

cook until mixture is thickened, stirring constantly.

remove from heat and season with salt.

set aside for 5-10 minutes.

slice your tomatoes into ¼ inch bites.

form small bite sized patties with the palm of your hand.

bring to medium-high heat a skillet.  add a little of your basil/butter mixture.  fry up 2-4 patties until golden brown on each side.  remove and let drain.  continue to add the basil/butter and the patties until all are cooked.

top each with the sliced tomato and a fresh basil garnish, salt and pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.

serve with a nice chianti.

enjoy!

roasted butternut squash risotto w/ toasted squash seeds

tis the time of year in which squash is everywhere...and i mean everywhere.  i do love squash so very much and for so many different reasons.  it really is a diverse vegetable that allows you to mold it into anything you can think of.

this time i wanted something comforting and warm, and, well risotto does just that.  i roasted the squash beforehand and i also sauteed up some imitation bacon chips with some earth balance.  you can certainly leave that out if you're not wanting the extra soy, but i will say, it added a nice smoky, warm taste that worked really well with the sweetness of the squash.

p.s.

toast the seeds...they are fabulous!

roasted butternut squash risotto w/ toasted squash seeds

1 butternut squash  

6 cups stock (I used veggie stock)

1  leek - minced

2 cloves garlic - minced

1 1/2 cups arborio rice

1/2 cup dry sherry

1 cup imitation bacon chips

½ cup squash seeds - toasted

3 tbsp earth balance

3 tbsp olive oil (reserve a little for drizzling when serving)

1 scallion – chopped salt and pepper to taste  

set oven to 425 degrees.  

peel the butternut squash, remove the seeds, and cut it into small to medium sized cubes.   put the seeds into a strainer and rinse away remaining squash.  place the squash on a sheet pan and toss it with 1 ½ tbsp olive oil and a little salt and pepper.  put into the oven for 25 to 30 minutes, tossing once, until very tender. remove and set aside.  

in the same oven setting, toss your seeds with 1 tbsp oil, salt and pepper and put into oven for 10-15 minutes, or until slightly golden brown. remove and set aside.  

in another small pan add 1 tbsp earth balance.  bring to a simmer and add your imitation bacon.  cook until very tender.  set aside.   in the meantime, heat the veggie stock in a small pan bringing it to a simmer, but not a boil.  

in a large pot (preferably one with a heavy bottom), melt the 2 tbsp earth balance and sauté the garlic and leeks on medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until the leeks are translucent but not browned. add the rice and stir to coat the grains with the earth balance mixture. you can now add your dry sherry and cook for 2 more minutes. add 2 ladles of stock to the rice plus a little more salt and pepper.  cook until the liquid has evaporated and continue to ladle in more stock until the stock is gone and the rice is creamy and thick, almost al dente.   take off of the heat and combine with the squash and imitation bacon.  fold in together.  be patient as you allow the squash to breakdown a bit into the rice.

once combined, garnish with fresh scallions and the toasted seeds and drizzle a little olive oil on top.  add salt and pepper to taste.  

serve with a cold glass of pinot grigio.

enjoy!

corn fritters for a fall day

just a quick little something to welcome in fall (my favorite season)

had some extra corn laying around from the farmers market, so i threw these together with some spices and a good beer batter.  serve these up with a spicy cajun sour cream....mmm, mmm, good!

  beer battered corn fritters w/ spicy cajun sour cream  

beer batter recipe, click here

1 cup of corn meal (for thickening)

2 cups corn

1 red bell pepper - chopped

½ yellow onion – chopped

¼ tsp crushed red pepper

2 tsp hot sauce 

1 cup dairy-free sour cream

2 tbsp cajun spice (garlic and onion powder, crushed red pepper, paprika, salt and pepper)

in a medium sized skillet heat your oil.  add your onions, peppers, corn and 1 tsp hot sauce.  cook until al dente. remove from heat and let stand until cool.

in a small bowl combine your dairy-free sour cream, 1 tsp hot sauce and the cajun spice.  set in refrigerator until ready to serve.   

in a large mixing bowl, throw together your beer batter and add your veg mixture as well as the crushed red pepper and salt and pepper.  fold together well.  if it is too runny, begin to add a little corn meal, 1 tbsp at a time. you want it to be pretty thick so as to almost “stand” on it’s own.  

in your deep fryer, heat your oil to 375 degrees.  with a large spoon, drop medium dumpling sized fritters into the hot oil (no more than 3 at a time, so as to keep the oil hot) cook for approximately 5-7 minutes, or until golden brown.   remove and drain on a towel. sprinkle each fritter with a little more salt. 

serve immediately with the cajun sour cream and an ice cold beer.

enjoy!

crispy portobellos w/ creamy cajun sauce

boy, there are a lot of C's in that title isn't there?

anyways...

many years ago a group of my friends and i went up north to a a place in minnesota called grand marais.  it's really beautiful up there, especially if you take the north shore scenic drive right along lake superior.  while we were visiting we stumbled upon this little restaurant/bar called "my sisters place"

we absolutely fell in love with this place for all of it's unique decor and it's wonderful theme of "sisters".  much to our surprise the menu offered quite a good amount of meatless dishes (unfortunately they list fish as meatless....hmmm, not so much) and great bar appetizers.  the one that stuck with us all was the deep fried portobellos served with a horseradish dipping sauce.  cold beer in one hand, portobellos in the other, we were very happy travelers.

i don't think they serve these delicious deep fried goodies anymore, so in honor of them i have taken it upon myself to keep 'em going here in minnesota with my own little rwv twist.

try these things...you'll love 'em.

crispy portobellos w/ creamy cajun sauce

serves 4

 

2 large Portobello caps – sliced  ½ in thick

2 cups tempura batter – (prepared per the instructions on the box)

2 cups panko breadcrumbs (kikkoman has a vegan panko)

2 tbsp cajun seasoning (garlic powder, onion salt, smoked paprika, oregano, cayenne pepper)

1/2 cup vegenaise

1 tbsp dairy free sour cream

1 tbsp fresh parsley - chopped

deep fryer

canola oil

salt and pepper

in a medium bowl combine your vegenaise, sour cream and 1 tbsp of the Cajun seasoning.  Set in fridge to keep cool.

heat your deep fryer (if you don’t have one heat a pan with enough canola oil to cover the bottom about ¼ in high) to 375 degrees.

 in another bowl combine your panko with the 1 tbsp of Cajun seasoning.

after slicing your portobellos, roll each one in the tempura batter first, then into the cajun/panko mix.  drop into the oil immediately for approximately 3-5 minutes or until a golden brown.   (fry no more than 3 at a time to keep the oil at the desired temp).

remove, drain excess oil and sprinkle with salt. 

once you have deep fried all of them, garnish with the parsley and serve with the creamy cajun sauce.

 serve with a cold beer.

enjoy!

vegan sea cakes w/ creamy tartar sauce

ok, i have to admit that there was a time when i REALLY loved crab...and i mean really.  however, i was never much of a fan of crab cakes.

well, i am now (minus the crab, of course).

these little suckers are so damn good, you'll have everyone fooled and worshiping the cooking ground you walk on.

vegan sea cakes w/ tartar sauce

2 1/2 cups vegenaise

4 tbsp lemon juice - fresh squeezed

1 tbsp hot sauce - your favorite will do

1 tbsp fresh mint - chopped

1 tbsp fresh dill - chopped

2 tbsp sea weed - finely crushed

1 12oz. package extra firm tofu - drained VERY WELL (I prefer to use a package that i have frozen for a few days and then thawed.  it tends to get drier which really helps with this particular recipe)

1 cup saltines - finely crushed

3 scallions - chopped

1 red pepper - chopped

2 tbsp pickled relish

1 tsp crushed red pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

in a small bowl combine 1 cup vegenaise, 2 tbsp lemon juice, pickled relish and salt and pepper to taste.  set in the fridge to keep cool until ready to serve.

after draining your tofu, crumble the whole package into tiny bite size pieces.  set aside.

in a medium bowl, whisk together 1 1/2 cups vegenaise, 2 tbsp lemon juice, hot sauce, sea weed, mint and dill.  set aside.

in a medium skillet bring 1 tbsp of olive oil to medium.  toss your red pepper in and cook until al dente. 

you can now fold your tofu, crushed red pepper, 2 chopped scallions, cooked red pepper and crushed crackers into the vegenaise mixture.

you will want to form small 2 inch patties.  set onto parchment or freezer paper so they don't stick to your plate.

adding the remaining olive oil, bring your skillet back to a medium high heat level.  it should just begin to smoke.  cook you patties on each side until nicely browned, approximately 3-5 minutes per side. 

remove from heat and garnish with remaining scallions and creamy tartar sauce.

serve with a cold glass of pinot grigio.

enjoy!

 

 

damn good garden tomato pasta sauce

it's been a weird summer weather wise, but fortunately for us, and probably for many of you as well the garden goddess always blesses us with delicious heirloom tomatoes.

so, in honor of her and the dozens of tomatoes we have, i put together a delicious pasta sauce to use on all of your favorite goods from seared tofu to grilled flatbread.

garden tomato pasta sauce

3 cloves garlic - chopped

1/2 yellow onion - chopped

1/2 cup fresh basil - chopped

1/2 tbsp - crushed red pepper flakes

1 1/2 tbsp tomato paste

1 tbsp olive oil (keep a bit for a final drizzle)

4 garden tomatoes - boiled, skinned and blended

1 cup red wine

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp oregano

1/4 cup water **(optional)

salt and pepper to taste

(for those of you who don't use fresh tomatoes very often for sauce, it's really quite simple and fun.  what i do is bring 4 quarts of salted water to a boil.  then, after coring my tomatoes i add them to the salted water.  let them cook until the skin begins to split pretty well.  remove them and let cool.  once they are cooled off, you can peel the skin off.  throw them into a blender and voila!, tomato sauce).

in a medium skillet heat your oil. add the garlic, onions and a pinch of salt and pepper.  cook until the onion begins to sweat, then add your tomato paste and red wine.  reduce for approximately 5-7 minutes. the color should be a deep red, almost purple.

add your blended tomatoes, oregano, sugar and red pepper flakes.  add a pinch of salt and pepper to taste.

**(if you find your sauce to be a bit too thick, feel free to add the 1/4  up of water).

right at the end add the fresh chopped basil, a drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper if needed.

pour onto your favorite pasta or use as a dip for garlic bread.

serve with a glass of cabernet.

enjoy!

 

pepper pressed mock duck sandwiches w/ rosemary potato chips

if you haven't noticed by now, i'm a big fan of sandwiches.  they are easy, inventive, and of course delicious with just about anything.  i came up with this idea after eating too much bland, veggie sandwiches.  i wanted something that had a little bit of a kick to it.

i mean, really...is it that hard to serve us fine vegans something kick-ass?

i think not.

pepper pressed mock duck sandwiches w/ rosemary potato chips

1 large baguette – gutted (remove the inner breading so it’s not too thick)
1 large can of roasted mock duck – or you can use seitan
½ red pepper – sliced
½ yellow pepper – sliced
½ orange pepper – sliced
½ Vidalia onion – sliced
1 cup cracked black pepper
¼ tsp crushed red pepper
1 tbsp smoked paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
cashew cream sauce OR horseradish sour cream
4 large white potatoes
½ cup fresh rosemary – chopped
sea salt
canola oil

in a small bowl combine your black pepper, red pepper, paprika and garlic powder. 

In another small bowl combine your rosemary with 1 tbsp sea salt (you may need more, depending on how salty you like your chips).

remove your roasted mock duck, drain and pat very dry.  cut into larger bite size slices.

set your deep fryer to 375.  slice your potatoes very thin and let sit in water until you are ready to deep fry.  Once the fryer is ready, begin to drop in slcies, 3-4 at a time.  you will want to have two different plates as the best way to make chips is to double fry them.  so once each batch is finished frying, remove and let drain.  do this routine until you are ready to begin the entire batch again.  then once you remove the 2nd round of frying, sprinkle with the salt/rosemary mixture.  set aside.

in a large skillet heat your oil to almost smoking and begin to cook your peppered mock duck.  you want to try and sear it, as you want to make sure the pepper mixture stays in tack with the mock duck.  do this for approximately 4-6 minutes, depending upon your skillet’s heat level.

once you have gotten the mock duck darkened on each side you can add your peppers and onions.  cook until they are al dente.  feel free to add a little salt, if you’d like.

slice your baguette into 3-4 larger sections.  slice open and take out the excess bread.  brush the inside with a little olive oil, toss into a 400-degree oven to toast for 3-4 minutes. 

spread whichever cream sauce you choose (we highly recommend the horseradish sour cream). layer the mock duck, then peppers and onions.  add a little more creamy sauce on the top.

serve with your rosemary chips and an ice cold dark beer.

enjoy!