Tuesday, June 29, 2010: Maple-Dijion Mustard Sauce

Originally found in "Vegan with A Vengence" (a fine cookbook for beginner vegans, you can get a taste of this cookbook's approach at the website Post-Punk Kitchen www.theppk.com)...

Add together:

• 2 tbs prepared dijon mustard
• equal amount of maple syrup or to taste
• 1 clove minced garlic (to taste... I use less because I find really garlicky things leave an aftertaste in my mouth which then makes me hungry even when full)
  
• around 1 tbs extra-virgin olive oil... I usually just add enough to make it the right consistency to coat whatever I'm applying this sauce to
• around 1 tbs soy sauce

And stir.

For Green Beans, Onions/Shallots and Potatoes: in an oven-proof dish with a cover, place potatoes and onions, toss with the sauce and roast until done (maybe around 30-45 minutes at 350 degrees F)... at the last minute, add green beans which cook in less than five minutes

For Baked Tofu Slices: Marinate your tofu in the maple-mustard sauce over night and then bake everything for 15 minutes at 350 degrees F. You could also add vegetables like brocoli and carrots in there but then it will take longer and you should cover to ensure faster baking (also, add the brocoli when the carrots are just about done otherwise your greens will go khaki brown)...

I imagine this sauce would be good for baking a kebab... like extra firm tofu cubes, mushroom caps, sweet onion, cherry tomato, red/green pepper... assemble everything on skewers, marinate in sauce and then stick it in the oven

Monday, June 28, 2010: Ginger Juice

It's refreshing! helps digestion! AND reduces excessive inflamation (allergies, asthma, muscle injury, zits, sore throat... basically when your tissues start to get puffy due to perceived and actual attack and your cells need assistance in metabolizing excess toxins and fluids, get out the GINGER JUICE!)

Also this really really tastes yummy and much better than any soda pop I've tasted.

For up to four cups of ginger juice:

• Peel and mince at least 2 inches of ginger into a glass pitcher
• Add the juice of at least 1 lemon
• For every lemon used, add 1/4 cup of agave nectar
• Pour hot water over this mix to help the agave nector to melt and then top up with cool water

That's it! store in fridge! Jessica says even reading the recipe for this makes her happy because this tastes SO good!

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Steamed Asian Marinated Tofu

Marinade:

• minced fresh ginger (I use the tiny ceramic washboard like ginger graters... nothing else gets the juice out like it)... note you may also used powered ginger--don't be mingy/stingy here! Grate a good inch or MORE of fresh ginger, use around o how about 1 tablespoon of the powdered stuff
• sesame oil (about 3 tbs)... it depends how much liquid you need which is determined by how much tofu you have... I only had three half inch thick slices
• soy sauce, mirrin, rice vinegar (I generally don't use more than 1 tbs of things... but use your discretion, dip your finger in and taste)
  
• minced fresh garlic

(not added last night but if I had some, I would also add chopped green onion (the white part only)

Prepare the tofu by slicing into half inch slices, lay down in a flat glass dish with lots of surface area and pour on the marinade, stick in the fridge. If you remember, turn over after a couple of hours (I forgot and just flipped it over and let the other side soak while I prepared the rice and my vegetables and it was FINE).

Once you're ready, you need a stove top situation to steam the tofu. I got a large pot and filled it with 2 inches of water. I then inserted one of those metal vegetable steamers in the pot, and placed a ceramic rice bowl over the centre stem of the vegetable steamer so I had a flat surface on which to rest a saucer which contained a few slices of tofu along with some marinade.

Get the water boiling, cover the whole contraption and steam for a mere five minutes.

I had this with steamed brown rice (if you had one of those tripods, you could stick that in the rice and steam the tofu AFTER the rice is done... less pots to clean! I gotta get me a tripod from China town!) AND I sliced Belgian endive in half, heated up some olive oil and quickly grilled the endive in a frying pan. I drizzled a vinaigrette of lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil and sea salt over the endive after turning off the heat)

Other exciting things to add to basic marinade:

• Dillweed

• Minced shallot

Saturday, June 26, 2010: Vegan Risotto Pie

Vegan Risotto Pie Inspired by Mela in Yorkville, Toronto

In olive oil:
Saute finely diced onion/shallots with minced garlic and add dried basil

Add sliced mushrooms and keep stirring until the mushrooms have released their juices.

Add around 1/2 cup of uncooked rice (I used brown short grain organic rice even though traditional risotto insists upon Arborio rice which apparently goes creamier--I suspect it has higher starch content) and coat with the oil in the pan.

Slowly add an equal amount of Vermouth (I think you can also use white wine) a little at a time, letting each addition be absorbed before adding more.

THEN I completely go off the charts and I just DUMP IN 1 cup ( basically one part rice, two parts liquid, here in case you want to scale up or down) of water/vegetable stock. This is a radical departure from traditional risotto cooking which requires you to stand and stir in little amounts of liquid, allowing each addition to be completely absorbed before adding more. I don't know what havoc will ensue if you tried just dumping in all the liquid in one go with Arborio rice, but I tried with short grain brown rice and it was FINE. Unless you need time by yourself and find stirring in liquid and watching rice slowly expand to be relaxing and beneficial, I say to heck with it! Throw in the liquid, let it reach bubbling, then turn down the heat to minimum, cover and let the rice aLONE.

Let's move on. While the rice cooks, peel and slice rutabaga/celery root/potato (choose just one or a combo of the roots), toss lightly with olive oil, place on a pie plate and roast in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven for 20 minutes.

When the root vegetables are done, pile torn kale on top of them and then either diced tomato/tomato sauce on top.

When rice is done, stir in soy cream cheese, black pepper and salt. Mix well and then put this on top of the root vegetable/kale/tomato layers. You might want to add a second layer of tomato substance on top of the rice. Put everything back into the oven for another 20-30 minutes.