Veggie Grain Bowl with Shitake Sesame Dressing

 

Some people claim that salads are boring. Sure, that's true if you make them with the same ingredients and glop on the same dressing day in and day out. This dressing is as far from boring as the sun from the moon!

I had an inkling to recreate one of my favorite salad dressings in a bottle - Shitake Sesame Vinaigrette. There wasn't much thought that went into it, just a hunch and I struck gold! Saute some garlic and fresh shitake mushrooms, add the usual suspects and Presto, fantastic dressing that you will want to drown, I mean drizzle, over salads from now until July!

Pictured above was my take on a grain n' veggie bowl: place some cooked grains in the bottom of a bowl and pile on lots of vegetables cut into bite size pieces, and then add your favorite dressing. As you can see, nothing that out of the ordinary besides the dressing.

Cucumber, Pepper and Red Cabbage Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing

This was one of those gorgeous delicious salads that came together quite by accident. Accidental in that I had no plan for it to taste so good nor to be so easy to put together. It is what happens when you have red cabbage, cucumber, and a bell pepper (green in this case) hanging out in the vegetable bin and you're starving. And you want something "gourmet" but you don't want to leave the house or pay for delivery.

And then I saw the carrots and remembered I had ginger. So carrot ginger dressing was made in a flash. Pulling out my Christmas gift of an awesome red mandoline, I made quick work of the cabbage and diced up the cucumber and green pepper. Noticing some fresh mint and basil, that was added to the mix and tossed with the carrot ginger dressing. Topping it all off were a small handful of pan roasted cashews and some lime juice. Heaven in a bowl!

Faux'roni Stromboli - DIY Vegan Pepperoni

Stom-bol-i. Just saying it makes my heart sing! Pizza dough wrapped around some cheese and meaty deliciousness is what makes something a Stomboli. Here it's vegan pepperoni and some mozzarella (dairy or vegan, your choice).

This is one of those recipes that is almost not a recipe, unless you're making the dough from scratch (yeah, I did, but don't feel pressured - this is comfort food at the best, so buy the dough if that makes it easier for you).

If you grew up in the Northeast, specifically the Tri-State area (NY, NJ, CT) then you'll remember stromboli along with pizza and calzones usually displayed at your local mom-n-pop Italian diner place. It's sad to think that Sbarro has mostly taken over those places, but I hope there are still some locally owned places making stromboli!

Vegan Pepperoni - DIY Pantry

Homemade, vegan, pepperoni.

Really, need I say more?

This is a recipe that combines various versions found around the web. It does rely on vital wheat gluten, but unlike some of the recipes I found, it is not a hard and rubbery version. With about three times the tomato paste and my own addition of chili oil because the first versions I tried lacked both fire and the tomatoey flavor that pork pepperoni has, I feel justified calling it my own recipe.

Happily this version freezes well because I ate nearly one third of the batch in one sitting, and my digestive system was screaming at me for that! It's great on pizza, sliced for snacking or tucked into your favorite pizza dough with cheese and baked in the oven (stromboli style, watch for it soon in this space!)

Raw Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Day five of your New Year's Resolutions - How's it going?

For me, I want to eat as much raw fruits and vegetables as possible, which includes raw entrees as well. Those recipes will be coming soon, but for now, here is a mainly raw dip that will blow your mind!

A few nights after the Christmas debauchery had ended, I whipped up this dip based on a vague idea of making a raw (and unprocessed) version of this recipe, which translated into no vegan mayo. My new version was even better than the last, since it was made of lots of spinach, artichokes, walnuts that had not been soaked, a little miso and lots of jalapeno. Super delicious and almost entirely raw, except for my homemade marinated artichoke hearts. 

Pair this with raw vegetables for dipping - sturdy ones like carrots and celery or cauliflower and jicama.  It would go equally well on crackers, tucked in a pita along with other veggie sandwich fixins, swirled into cooked grains or tossed with pasta. Whatever you fancy!

2012 Year in Review

Well it's that time of year. Time to welcome the baby new year - Hello 2013! - and bid adieu to 2012. I don't know about you dear reader, but 2012 was a douzy for me! So much change, so much growth, so much love and great food! I'll raise a glass to more love, ease, light, and joy in 2013!

Instead of seeking out the top visited posts, I choose my favorites for the year, and here they are, in order of the day - breakfast to dessert. Enjoy with lots of hugs!

As with so many foods this past year of going vegan, I have been converted to eating foods that I was never a big fan of like pancakes. The first time I made these Pillowy Puffy Vegan Pancakes I was SOLD! Maybe it's the fun chemistry of making them without eggs or the fact that the secret ingredient is apple cider vinegar (and vinegar is one of the loves of my life), but I couldn't get enough of these!

Having spent most of my college years in the South, I learned to worship at the alter of good biscuits: flaky, spongey, airy, mouth-watering delicious. Add a breakfast patty in between and you could lead me by the nose into molten lava and I'd go willingly! Discovering these Vegan Buttermilk Sausage Biscuits and the referenced faux sausage recipe was nothing short of a culinary miracle. No fake meat from the store ever again!

Mushrooms are not an ingredient that inspire so-so responses; people either love them or hate them. Being a fairly recent convert to the lover side, I am a fanatic and have been known to pay obscene amounts of money at the farmers' market for gorgeous mushrooms. Luckily, this dish of Pan Roasted Mushrooms with Wild Rice can be made with cremini mushrooms, easily foraged from your local grocery store!

 Eggplant and barley are two of my favorite ingredients and ones that I love to write about since so many people seem stumped when it comes to using them creatively. Mediterranean Eggplant and Barley Salad is one of those dishes that people will be shocked at how much they like it. So don't take it personally when they react that way, it's the salad, not you!

When it comes to exploring a new cuisine, I follow the traditional route as close as possible to get a sense of the how the food developed - ingredients indigenous to a specific region, noting how seasons shape pairings, and understanding how abundance and ease of gathering ingredients informs the prevalence of particular food stuffs. This dish of Stovetop Corn and Roasted Poblanos couldn't be more traditional, marrying two of the key staples of Mexican cuisine, corn and chilies.  A match made in heaven!

Following along the Mexican theme, 2012 was the year I finally made Red Chile Tamales; that in itself made it a banner year! Intimidating, yes. Worth it, absolutely! This recipe is for both pork and vegan (tofu) tamales, so everyone can join in the fun. The key to making tamales is the advance prep, including making the pork or freezing the tofu for best texture in the tamales. Plan ahead, invite a friend or two over to help assemble these bundles of joy, and you will not regret one single moment of this delicious endeavor!

Tempeh is an ingredient that has taken a while to inch into my repertoire, until I discovered Chesapeake Tempeh Cakes. Inspired by Maryland crab cakes, these tasty morsels not only won rave reviews from the most omni of omnivores, but finally cracked the code on tempeh for me. Piping hot or cold leftovers, these nuggets of gold will have anyone eating out of your hand and begging for more!

"Lentil meat" was one of the revelations of 2012 for me. Who knew the modest legume could bring such joy! Until discovering its entree potential, it had almost always only been found in soup or Indian dal. Liberation! With these Spicy Lentil Lettuce Cups I sauced them up and served them Asian style in their own lettuce cups, reminiscent of my favorite Chinese dish of tofu lettuce wraps.

Here's another vegan makeover of a classic, Chickpea Parmesan, using my favorite legume to create a gorgeous cutlet for slathering on lots of red sauce and cashew cheese sauce. Be forewarned, this will create culinary rapture, so be sure to be seated while eating!

While preparing to make this gorgeous Vegan Grasshopper Pie, I learned that there are places that deep-fry grasshoppers and eat them like popcorn! So to be clear, no grasshoppers were harmed in the making of this pie! Another important note, said with pride, is there is no artificial food coloring used to green the pie - that's baby spinach leaves ground into the filling!

 Limoncello, the lemon zest infused sweet vodka of Italy, is one of those things that I like to make more than I like to drink. All that changed when I made Limoncello Macaroons! These blew my mind despite my severe lack of a sweet tooth! Boozy desserts are always a fun choice but imagine the tang of lemon, the creamy sweetness of sugar icing and the crunch of coconut macaroons!

The other dessert that swept me away this year was this Vegan Caramel Flan. Simple and elegant, easy and foolproof. This is the kind of dessert I adore for dinner parties! Impressive to look at, delicious to eat, and easy to make ahead of time! You need this in your repertoire now!

And that is my top 12 for 2012. I hope you enjoyed this virtual feast! Raise a glass to a glorious past year and all of the delicious, nourishing, and enlightening meals and food gatherings to come!

Happy New Year and Hugs to All!