Green Dinner: Gluten Free Pesto Pasta, Garlic Broccoli & Simple Green Salad

Finally went shopping.  Yay fresh veggies!  Hubby was helping me bring in the groceries and hung out with me while I was putting everything away.  He had insisted we purchase some beer and went to put it in the freezer  to chill it down quickly.  Imagine his surprise when he couldn't fit even one bottle in the freezer.  Oops!  I am a huge proponent of not throwing things away, so when I make a big batch of soup of a big batch of some other kind of meal, I don't like to throw any of it away, so I put it in a deli container, label it and freeze it.  It makes for some really easy, quick meals down the road too.  So he asked me to try to use up a couple things so his cervezas could chill.  Out came the last couple packages of pesto I made with the basil from our garden last summer.  It turned out great, because then I knew exactly what I was making for dinner.  Yummy pesto pasta!  I have been craving broccoli for a while so I decided to make that and a super simple green salad.  It was a nice tasty meal, not too heavy, and Hubbs was happy about his nice, cold cervezas!

 

 

 

Tasty GF Pesto Pasta and Fresh Veggies!

 

 

 

 

Serves: 2, with a little extra for leftovers

 

 

8 oz. desired pasta - I used Trader Joe's GF Brown Rice Penne Pasta

 

Pesto:

 

Yields: 2 1/2 cups (use what you need and freeze the rest)

 

1 1/2 cups toasted walnuts
3/4 cup olive oil
2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons white miso
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
8 oz. basil, rinsed and spun very well

Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for drizzling

 

Garlic Broccoli

1 bunch broccoli, separated into florets, stems peeled and diced

1 tablespoon olive oil

4 cloves garlic, chopped

sea salt and black pepper to taste

 

1.  Prepare the pesto sauce.   Toast the walnuts and allow to cool.  Place in the bowl of a food processor along with the following: olive oil, garlic, miso, sea salt and black pepper.  Blend until relatively smooth.  Add in the basil and blend until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl several times.  Set aside until ready to use.

2.  Prepare the pasta.  Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Cook the pasta according to package directions.  Drain the pasta, but keep the water in the pot.

3.  Briefly blanch the broccoli until it is tender-crisp. 

4.  Saute the garlic in the olive oil until crispy.  Toss with the cooked broccoli.  Add sea salt and black pepper to taste.  Mix well. 

5.  Toss desired amount of pesto with the pasta.  Drizzle with a small amount of olive oil.  Serve with the broccoli and a simple green salad.

 

 

Enjoy!

 

Koko

 

Breaded Seitan Cutlets from the Vegan Diner Cookbook

I have this crazy thought that I will make most of the recipes out of the hundreds of vegan/vegetarian cookbooks I have.  I'll be honest, there are several recipes out of each cookbook that I would likely never make, simply because I do not like some of the ingredients, but lots of them look good and really make me want to make them.  That is the point of having a cookbook, right?

 

A couple years ago I purchased a cookbook called the Vegan Diner Cookbook.  All the pictures look great and I loved the theme.  Upon further investigation of the book, once it was delivered, I realized it had tons (and I mean tons!) of typos.  Really ridiculous ones too, like turn to this page for this sub-recipe, and the page it says is 000, as if they were going to go back and add it in once the book was completed, and just forgot.  Plus, I have been cooking for so many years that most of the time I am able to look at a recipe and realize if it will or will not work.  And there are quite a few in there that make no sense.  This really in-depth exploration of the book came after making several recipes, thinking that the recipe itself didn't make a lot of sense, then trying it and having it fail.  I cannot recommend this book for purchase, and after making several things from it that did not work, I put it on the shelf and haven't opened it in years.  But, like all meals that I cook, I took pictures of it (these are pics from Brooklyn) and felt I should post it.  So here are the breaded seitan cutlets from the book.  

Breaded Cutlets - baked and topped with melty vegan cheese

Spaghetti with Homemade Marinara and the Breaded Cutlet.

Koko

Pasta with a Creamy Sauce, Spicy Vegan Chicken, Green Salad

Hope everyone had a nice Valentine's Day.  I definitely did.  I worked in the morning, preparing fun and beautiful pink vegan baked goods.  Then ran around doing errands, bought Hubbs some last minute V-Day gifts and figuring out a place for us to have dinner.  Yes, I know I am super last minute.  Hubbs decided that since he is usually the one that decides where we're going and what we're doing, that I would be in charge of where we went for V-Day.  I checked into a couple places but wasn't super into their menu.  Don't get me wrong - several places had specifically vegan options listed on their Valentine's Day Menu which I could have chosen from, right alongside fois gras.  Um, yuck and no thanks.  So I looked, but not really super interestedly.  I found a place in the afternoon and while browsing on Facebook, found out that one of my old high school classmates was going to be playing live at a bar downtown, and being as I've recently discovered that I love the live music scene here, we decided to check it out.  I wasn't super into the style of the music - all covers - but the group was very talented.  I ended up running into another classmate and got caught up with his life (which is funny, because he was one of the most popular kids when we were in school, and we've never actually even spoken before).  Then off to dinner with my Hubbs.  A great night!  And now some simple, tasty food.

 

 

 

Pasta with a tasty creamy sauce, crispy vegan chicken.  Yum!

 

 

Serves 2-3

8 oz. fettuccini, broken in half, cooked until al dente

2 vegan breaded frozen spicky chicken patties

Creamy Sauce:

3 tablespoons earth balance

4 tablespoons unbleached flour

3-4 cups unsweetened almond milk

sea salt and black pepper to taste

1 1/2 tablespoons unchicken boullion

1 teaspoon dried parsley

Green Salad:

1 small head romaine lettuce

1 carrot, shredded

desired dressing

1.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Place the frozen "chicken" patties on a baking tray and place in the oven.  Bake for about 20 minutes, turning halfway through, or until the patties are crispy and firm.  You could certainly also cook them in a small amount of oil until crispy.

2.  While the patties are baking, prepare the creamy sauce.  In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, add the earth balance and allow it to melt.  Once it is melted, add the flour and whisk to combine.  Keep whisking this mixture for severeal minutes, until golden and the flour no longer smells raw.  Add all of the milk at once, immediately whisking until a smooth sauce forms.  It will be very thin at this point.  Add the black pepper, boullion powder and parsley.  Whisk together.  Continue whisking periodically until the sauce has thickened.  Season to taste, adding salt if desired.  Keep warm.

3.  Prepare the green salad:  in a medium bowl, add all of the ingredients, including the dressing, and toss to coat.  

4.  Once the chicken patties are fully cooked, chop into bite sized pieces.

5.  To serve, place a portion of the pasta on your plate, followed by a helping of the creamy sauce and several pieces of the chopped baked chicken patties.  Serve a portion of the salad on the side.

 

 

Enjoy!

-Koko 

Spinach Pie with Parsley & Artichoke Pasta

My hubby and I have decided to go on a 7-day juice fast.  In the middle of this freezing cold winter.  It seemed like a good idea a week ago when temperatures were warmer.  Our fridge is completely filled with fresh fruits and veggies, awaiting being juiced.  Even though we have officially gotten started on our cleanse today, I figured I would post a recipe I made last week.  Drool over the pictures and the memory a little bit.  I think we usually eat pretty well, although generally too many carbs - but we definitely will do well with a cleanse, especially after the holidays.  Enjoy this recipe and hopefully I'll post some pretty juice pictures and recipes in the next week or so, depending on how I feel.  I've been told by day three I'll be super cranky, but I'm going to be optimistic and think that each day will be great!

The spinach pie served with a simple parsley, artichoke pasta.

1 10 oz. box frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed mostly dry

mock vegan feta cheese

2 teaspoons olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 small onion, small diced

sea salt and black pepper to taste

couple pinches cayenne pepper

1/2 package silken tofu, blended

Filo dough

4 oz. earth balance, melted

1.  Place the thawed spinach and and handful of crumbled vegan feta in a large mixing bowl.  Set aside.

2.  Place a saute pan over medium heat and allow it to become hot.  Once it is hot, add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until both have cooked through.  Season with a small amount of sea salt and black pepper.  Add into the bowl with the spinach and feta.

3.  Place half of the package of silken tofu into the bowl of a blender and blend until completely smooth.  Add to the mixture in the bowl, plus additional sea salt and black pepper.  Season to taste.

4.  Oil an 8"x8" baking pan with the melted earth balance.

5.  Take several sheets of the filo dough out of the package, together.  Brush the top sheet generously with the earth balance, fold in half, and place in the bottom of the pan.

6.  Place the seasoned spinach mixture on top of the filo, pressing firmly down.

7.  Take another 4-6 sheets, brush generously with the earth balance, carefully turn over, and brush the other side.  Fold in half and place firmly overtop of the spinach.

8.  Place in a preheated 350 degree oven and cook for about 35-40 minutes, or until the spinach mixture is holding together and the top sheet of phyllo is nicely browned. 

9.  Allow it to cool for several minutes before serving, or it will not hold together.

The top is nicely browned!



Simple, tasty filling.  Yum!

Enjoy!


Koko

Pasta Veggie Saute with Cherry Tomatoes

I am always on the hunt for a deal.  Even when I am shopping and not necessarily intending to purchase something.  Our local coop here in Michigan - Oryana - is great!  They have this really cool thing where when a product is close-dated or maybe a little bruised, they slap a half-off sticker on it and you get something healthy and organic (most of the time!) for a great deal.  Recently I have scored several fake meat items that I just stick in the freezer for a time when I don't really feel like cooking. 

 

The last time I was there, there was a bunch of stuff from the produce department that had half off stickers on them (all being organic): cauliflower, mixed greens, a couple packages of beautiful cherry tomatoes, a bag of apples and a bag of carrots that was ripped open.  Great score!  So I had a couple packages of cherry tomatoes sitting in the fridge for a couple days and decided to make a simple pasta dish  that came together quickly.  It also came out looking beautiful.  Hubby had two giant plates of it, which he of course immediatley sprinkled with cheese.  I ended up roasting the cauliflower with winter squash, juicing the apples and some of the carrots (then making muffins from the pulp), making a giant mixed green tossed salad with the greens and a pasta salad with the rest of the cherry tomatoes.  So good!

The pasta and veggies after cooking.



 

Pasta Veggie Saute:

8 oz. spiral pasta

8 oz. cherry tomatoes, halved

1 green bell pepper, julienned

1/2 red bell pepper, julienned

1/2 red onion, julienned

6 pieces tempeh bacon, cooked and chopped

1 1/2 teaspoons vegetarian mock chicken boullion powder

1/4 teaspoon chipotle pepper powder

1/8 teaspoon black pepper



Some nice veggie cheese to melt on top.  Yum!

Enjoy!

Koko

Vegan "Shrimp" in a Creamy Sauce, Tomato "Cheese" Salad, Steamed Broccoli

One of the last times I went to the store May Wah in Chinatown in Manhattan, I looked at their board with posted sales.  It's usually the most random and strange veganized items you could imagine - like lamb, duck and shrimp - all vegan mind you!  So the shrimp were on sale and I decided on a whim to purchase them.  Years back, when I was still eating seafood, I had this delicious shrimp in a garlic cream sauce that I remember being out of this world.  I thought that would be a delicious thing to try to mimic. 

Since my husband still eats seafood, I decided I would just tell him that I was making a shrimp dish when he asked.  He thought that sounded good and I kept up the charade that it was "real" shrimp until I served it up.  When I put it in front of him, he looked at it a little strangely and asked me if I was sure it was shrimp.  I couldn't keep a straight face and ended up laughing a little hysterically.  I told him yes it was real shrimp - real vegan shrimp that is.  Way too funny!  He was very suspicious and kind of grossed out and took a tiny bite.  I have to say those things look way realistic and the texture was creepily reminiscent of how I remember shrimp being.  Hubbs thought the texture was similar, but the taste not even close.  I agreed that the taste was a bit strange - kind of sea-weedy.  It's probably not something I would buy again, but it was definitely fun and the sauce was crazy delicious!

 

Creamy Sauce, Fresh Crispy Broccoli and Yummy Tomato Salad

 Serves 3-4

1/2 package bowtie pasta, cooked until al dente

"Shrimp" in a Creamy Garlic Sauce:

1/2 package vegan "shrimp", thawed & cut in half if desired

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons earth balance

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2-2/3 cup dry white wine

1 cup unsweetened mimiccream

sea salt and black pepper to taste

Tomato "Cheese" Salad:

2 roma tomatoes, chopped

1/2 cup daiya mozarella-style vegan cheese, chopped into cubes

drizzle of balsamic vinegar

drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

sea salt and black pepper to taste

Steamed Broccoli:

1 head broccoli, separated into florets, hard outside of stems peeled

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

sea salt and black pepper to taste

1.  Prepare the tomato and cheese salad first.  It comes together very quickly, but definitely is better after marinating for a little while.  In a medium bowl, add the chopped tomato, chopped daiya, a splash of vinegar and olive oil and sea salt and black pepper.  Toss well to coat.  Taste a piece of tomato and add more vinegar and salt if necessary.  Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to marinate while preparing the rest of the meal.

2.  Bring a medium pot with a bottomful of water and a steamer basket inside, to a boil.  Once the water is boiling, carefully remove the lid and place the prepared broccoli inside.  Cover with the lid and allow to steam from 3-5 minutes, or until broccoli is cooked to your desired texture.  Once the broccoli is cooked, turn off the heat, remove the pot from the stove and place the broccoli in a bowl until closer to the time when dinner will be served.

3.  While the broccoli is steaming, start your sauce for the shrimp.  In a deep saute pan, add the olive oil and earth balance over medium heat.  Once the earth balance has melted, add the minced garlic.  Allow the garlic to slowly cook.  Do not allow it to become crispy or overcook.  It is preferable that the garlic have a slight raw flavor than a crispy, overcooked flavor.

4.  Increase the heat to medium-high and add the white wine - remember, never pour directly from the bottle, like you see Chef's on tv doing it - that is extremely dangerous!  The flame can leap inside the bottle, causing the contents to catch on fire, exploding the glass bottle in your hands.  Always pour the wine into a cup before adding it to the pan.

5.  Allow most of the wine to cook off.  Lower the heat back to medium.  Add the mimiccream, sea salt and black pepper.  Whisk together  and allow to cook for a couple minutes.  Taste.  Adjust seasonings - you may need to add more earth balance to give it a rich, buttery taste.  Add the shrimp into the sauce and keep warm over very low heat.

6.  Finish the broccoli: in a medium saute pan, add the olive oil and allow it to become hot.  Once it is hot, add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant and beginning to crisp.  Add the cooked broccoli and sea salt and black pepper.  Toss to coat in the oil and garlic.  Season to taste.

7.  To serve: place a portion of the pasta on the plate and top with the shrimp and sauce.  Place a serving of both the steamed broccoli and the tomato salad and serve.

Enjoy!

Koko

Pasta With a Creamy Sauce, Steamed Broccoli

Do you ever crave super super simple things to eat?  Sometimes I find myself going through these phases where I only want some pasta with a creamy white sauce and either a steamed veggie or seasoned veggie on top.  This is one of those times.  I was very hungry, didn't feel like making something complicated or time consuming in the least and wanted really simple flavors.  So this tasty pasta came to mind.  I have my Mum to thank for this, because the base of the sauce came from her.  She taught me how to make a basic white sauce so long ago, and it comes in handy so often!  It is a kind of base for a vegan bechamel sauce, for a white sauce for a pizza or lasagna, pasta, or really anything at all.  So this is for you when you're feeling like eating simple tasty food, and are not in the mood to make something complicated or time consuming.  But still tasty!

 

Pasta with a Creamy Sauce, Steamed Broccoli:

Creamy Sauce with Yummy Steamed Broccoli

8 oz. desired pasta shape, cooked

1 head broccoli, separated into florets

extra virgin olive oil to coat

sea salt to taste

White Sauce:

4 tablespoons earth balance

2 tablespoons unbleached flour

2 cups unsweetened soymilk

3 tablespoons vegan cashew parm, or as desired

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper



1.  Bring a large pot of salted, oiled water to a boil.  Drop in the pasta and cook until al dente.  Scoop the pasta out with a large slotted spoon.  You'll want to keep the boiling water to blanch your broccoli in.

2.  While the pasta is cooking, prepare the sauce.  In a medium pot, add the earth balance over medium heat.  Once the earth balance has melted, add the unbleached flour, whisking together immediately, and continuing to cook until golden in color.

3.  Once the flour has cooked slightly, add the unsweetened soymilk, vegan cashew parm, sea salt and black pepper.  Whisk immediately or the flour will seize, creating a lumpy sauce.  Continue cooking over medium heat until the sauce has thickened and flour has cooked all the way.  Season to taste, adding more parm, salt or pepper as desired.

4.  While the sauce is cooking, submerse the broccoli in the boiling pasta water and cook for about one minute, or until softened but still crisp.  Drain, discarding the water.

5.  Toss the steamed broccoli with extra virgin olive oil and sea salt.

6.  To serve, toss the cooked pasta in the sauce, coating evenly.  Place a serving in a bowl and top with the blanched broccoli.  Top with fresh cracked black pepper or additional vegan cashew parm. 

 

 

Enjoy!

Koko

Gluten Free Private Class: Chicago

 

Before moving away from New York, I taught a private class for a family that lived in Chicago.  They had three girls that were gluten free with several other allergies, including soy, dairy, eggs, nuts and probably a couple other things I am forgetting.  It was such a great experience to be invited into somebody's home as an educator and help the family learn to prepare the dishes for one another that they have not had in so long.  The mother told me stories about how her children felt bad going to parties or get togethers because they were not able to enjoy the same snacks and treats as the other children and would feel left out.  So we were sure to make recipes for cookies, muffins, brownies loaves and other goodies that they could make and bring with them or simply have at home.  It was such a nice experience and I just wanted to share some photos from that time.  I love how the three girls were willing and happy to help during the class- not just their mom.  We made so much food and desserts it was crazy.  I think her freezer was definitely full for quite a while after that!

 



 

The local gluten free store, run by an eccentric lady (not the
one pictured).

Sandwich bread with a design from one of the girls.
 

Gluten free pizza to suit everyone - some with just sauce,
some with veggies and some with veggies and cheese. 
Kids are too funny!

Crispy eggplant with homemade gf breadcrumbs

Homemade baguette made into garlic bread.  Sooo good!

Giant pot of marinara.

The sauce for a lemon chicken dish my client wanted.  The sauce was great!

Vegetable Rissotto

Cooked gluten free quinoa pasta

Quinoa Tabouli

The Lemon Chicken Potato Dish

Gluten Free, Vegan Eggplant Parmesan

The table
 

Giant Platter of Eggplant Parmesan

More food.

And more.

And more.

The seriously delicious plate of gluten free, vegan food.

The happy family.

A tasty chocolate cake with chocolate frosting.

The girls were very happy to put edible glitter on the cake!

Chocolate Cake, Banana Bread, Brownies
 

Seeded Sandwich Bread

Chocolate Chip Cookies - delicious!

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Delicious blueberry muffins

Yum!



Enjoy!

Koko

First Vegan Meal with the Family in Michigan

My Aunt Nancy came over for lunch a couple weeks ago and brought a vegan lasagna with her.  Even for her, super health oriented, this is the first vegan lasagna she ever made.  Which is funny, because way back when, she was the first person to introduce me to tofu, and most likely, inadvertently started my journey into eating plant-based foods.  Love that woman!  We also had several things ready from the garden and decided to use those to our advantage, so I made pesto with basil from the garden as well as the veggies in the mixed green salad from the garden.  My Aunt expressed an interest in being shown how kale is made as a side dish, so I waited until she got to our house to show her how I make it.  Since showing her, she has already made it at her house!  She loved the meal, as did my mom, which I must honestly say I was shocked about.  Before I left for NYC, my mom was notoriously unwilling to try new things.  But since I have moved back, she has tried many new things and said that I am a pretty great cook now.  Hubby ate and so did one of my nieces, who also enjoyed the lasagna, but wasn't a fan of really anything else.  At least she tried everything!  Can't wait to have more opportunities to share these meals with my family!





Vegetable Lasagna, Fried Eggplant from the garden, Garlic Sesame Kale,
Pesto Pasta with basil from the garden, mixed green salad with
cucumbers from the garden.




Enjoy!

Koko

Creamy Pasta Salad with Veggies from the Garden

We have been having a ridiculous amount of veggies coming out of the garden lately.  And because my mom spent so much time putting the garden together (all because of Hubbs and I - she hasn't had a garden since I've been away from home), it makes sense that I am the person picking the produce from the garden and trying to come up with creative ways to use up all of the ingredients.  The idea of throwing anything away because I have not been able to come up with something to use it for or didn't get to it in time is kind of nauseating.  So with the cherry tomatoes and bell peppers from the garden, as well as kalamata olives, carrots and local celery and scallions that I picked up from my local coop, I made this tasty pasta salad.  My mom is a huge fan of pasta salad, albeit the one with just celery and mayo, and surprisingly thoroughly enjoyed this one.  She loves tomatoes - she will eat the roma tomatoes from the garden like apples, so she loved the cherry tomato addition.  She was surprised at the flavor of the olives - I think she's only ever had those gross canned black olives.  And she is already a fan of edamame (thanks Aunt Nancy!), although she had no idea what they were called.  So try this pasta salad, or use it as a base and add in your own favorites/preferences.  It is delicious and I have actually already made it again, this time with lots of fresh cracked black pepper.  Crazy good!


Creamy Pasta Salad with Veggies from the Garden:

Creamy, delicious pasta with fresh veggies.  Yum!

Creamy Pasta Salad:

Serves: about 6

1-16 oz. package pasta (I used elbows)
2/3 -1 cup vegan mayo
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 green bell pepper, diced
1/3 cup sliced kalamata olives
2/3 cup shelled edamame, blanched
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and shredded
sea salt and black pepper to taste

1.  Cook the pasta in salted, oiled boiling water until just tender.  Drain and rinse under cold running water.
2.  In a small pot with boiling water, cook the edamame until just tender.  (Be sure to check your package to see if the edamame is already cooked or needs to be simmered first.)  Drain the edamame and run under cold water.
3.  Toss the pasta, edamame and remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix until completely combined.  Season to taste with sea salt and black pepper.



Tomatoes and green bell pepper from the garden.



Enjoy!

Koko

Vegan "Chicken" Noodle Soup with Homemade Noodles & Soy Protein

 Today is a day when the fridge is empty, it's time to go shopping and Hubbs and I are hungry, so I decided to make dinner with what I had on hand.  Homemade noodles are always a fun thing to make - something my Mom used to make all the time when I was a kid.  But of course she would make egg noodles and put them in "real" chicken noodle soup.  No worries, this is equally as good.  I have made this soup with homemade seitan before and also just the noodles and broth.  Those ways have been equally good, but with a hungry hubby constantly mentioning how hungry he is, I decided making homemade seitan was out of the question for today.  So a simple, hearty soup to make when you're hungry but don't have a lot of time or ingredients!

Vegan "Chicken" Noodle Soup with Homemade Noodles:

Seriously delicious.  Ultimate comfort food!



Serves: 4-6

1/2 cup onions, diced

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

8 cups vegan chicken stock, made with un-chicken boullion

1 cup soy curls

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Pasta:

1/2 cup water

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil

1 1/2 cups unbleached flour (plus an additional 1/4 cup for kneading)

2 tablespoons minced parsley, optional



1.  Prepare the pasta: in a large bowl add the water, sea salt and olive oil.  Mix together till combined.  Add the flour and optional parsley.  Mix together with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together.

2.  Sprinkle a clean cutting board with additional unbleached flour and roll the dough around in the flour to coat.  Press the dough into a disc and roll out to desired thickness with a rolling pin. 

3.  To make rustic pasta (the kind my mom would always make), slice the pasta into strips with a paring knife. 

4.  Sprinkle a baking pan with additional unbleached flour, carefully pick up the pasta and place on top of the flour.  Cover the pasta with a clean, dry towel and set aside until needed.

5.  Now prepare the soup part of the recipe: in a large pot, add the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Once the oil is hot, add the chopped onions and cook for about 3-5 minutes, or until translucent.  Try not to let the onions color.

6.  Add the garlic and allow to cook for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant.  Add the "chicken" stock made with filtered water and unchicken boullion.  Bring the ingredients to a boil.

7.  Once the liquid boils, reduce heat slightly and add the soy curls and black pepper.  Cook till the soy curls are just about cooked.

8.  Add the pasta: place once piece of pasta into the simmering water at a time to reduce the likelihood of the pasta completely sticking together. 

9.  Stir periodically until the noodles and soy curls are completely cooked through.  The pasta will rise to the top once it has cooked.

10.  Try to allow it to cool slightly before eating.

Enjoy!

Koko

Veggie and Sausage Pasta

One of the cooks at my job is from Bangladesh and is always incorporating the spices and flavors from his home into Americanized dishes with delicious results!  He sometimes isn't great about describing what's in a dish, or when he does list the ingredients, he can't say how much of something he puts in it.  My "how much ingredient x is in this" question results in a "oh just a little bit" response.  He makes this delicious pasta dish with veggies and vegan sausage that is creamy, spicy and has a nice amount of spices, different than if I were to prepare it if I were the one cooking.  I would most likely just make it with a simple marinara sauce, which is his base, but he then adds a ton of other delicious ingredients. 

I had been telling my Hubby about the dish for several weeks, and even though I had intended to bring him a sample of it when Gany our cook prepared it, it always accidentally ended up in my stomach instead of his.  So one day when I was talking about it yet again and he was complaining about me never bringing him any to try, I was going through my chest freezer and discovered a package of frozen vegan sausage.  I pretty much always have homemade marinara sauce in the freezer, so I decided I would surprise him with the dish for dinner.  And although it isn't exactly like how Gany prepares it, it sure was delicious!  Hubby ate two giant plates out of it, saying there was something different about it, some kind of spice I don't usually use, something he couldn't figure out.  It made me smile because it was the exact same way I had reacted the first time tasting the dish.

 Veggie and Sausage Pasta:

Nicely spicy and so colorful!

Serves: 4-6


16 oz. penne pasta (or desired pasta - I was out of penne)
4 vegan sausages, cooked in olive oil and sliced on diagonal

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow pepper, julienned 1 green bell pepper, julienned
1 red bell pepper, julienned
1 medium yellow onion, sliced into strips
1 large jalapeno, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups homemade marinara sauce
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
1/2 teaspoon cumin

1.  Bring a large pot of salted, oiled water to a boil.  Cook the pasta until al dente.
2.  While the pasta is cooking, brown the sausages in the olive oil.  Once browned, set aside to cool slightly, then slice on the diagonal.
3.  Place a large saute pan over medium high heat and ass the olive oil.  Allow it to become hot.
4.  Once the oil is hot, add the yellow, green, red and jalapeno peppers, plus the onions and garlic.  Cook, stirring frequently for several minutes until tender crisp. 
5.  Add the marinara sauce and the spices: black pepper, sea salt, garam masala, pepper flakes, granulated garlic and cumin.  Stir well to cover the veggies.
6.  Lower the heat and allow the mixture to cook for several minutes, until fragrant. 
7.  Add in the veggies sausages and toss to coat. 
8.  Add the drained, cooked pasta and toss to coat. 
9.  Season to taste - adding additional sea salt or pepper flakes to taste.


Enjoy!

Koko

Caramelized Onion & Eggplant Marinara over WW Spaghetti, Garlic Sauteed Green Beans, Garlic Bread & Salad

I have a ridiculously huge collection of cookbooks.  Just ask my husband.  Really.  It's kind of out of control.  I go on Amazon shopping sprees once or twice a year and buy all the fun new vegan and/or gluten free cookbooks out there.  And when I moved from Michigan to NY over five years ago, I brought them all here with me.  And I'm sure I have at least doubled the amount I had when I came here.  It's crazy.  It's my unrealistic and improbable goal to make all of the recipes out of most of the best of the cookbooks.  I have made many out of the cookbook Vegan Yum Yum by Lauren Ulm and have had pretty good results.  This is one of the recipes I made out of the cookbook with tasty results.  It was very interesting and tasty, although I definitely prefer my homemade marinara sauce.  Still it was a fun experiment, and another recipe from the book down.

Caramelized Onion & Eggplant Marinara:



Hubby's Tasty plate.  Lucky guy!


2 eggplants, peeled, cut into discs, then into strips
1 teaspoon sea salt, for sprinkling on eggplant
1/3 cup olive oil
1 medium vidalia onion, sliced into strips
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
28 ounce can pureed tomatoes
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sea salt

1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
2.  Line a sheet tray with two layers of paper towels.  Spread the discs of eggplant on top of the paper towels, stacking in layers if necessary.  Sprinkle all of the eggplant with the sea salt.  Let the eggplant sweat for a while, about 15 minutes, then remove the damp paper towels.
3.  Drizzle the eggplant with 1/4 cup of the olive oil and toss to coat.  Place in the oven and cook for 20 minutes, stirring periodically.
4.  Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil to a large saute pan oven medium high heat.  Once the pan is hot, add the onion and cook, stirring periodically until it has a nice golden color, about 10 minutes. 
5.  Add the garlic and spices: thyme, basil, oregano, sea salt and black pepper.  Cook for about a minute, stirring frequently.  Add the tomato puree and stir well.
6.  Check on the eggplant.  It should be nicely cooked, soft and browned.  Add to the sauce and stir to coat.  Allow the sauce to simmer for 15 minutes, stirring periodically.  Season to taste.
7.  Serve over cooked pasta.


Close-up of the tasty, chunky sauce

Enjoy!

Koko

Burgers, "Doritos" & Pasta Salad - Summer in Brooklyn!

The weather here in Brooklyn (and all over the US I'm sure) has been hideously hideously hot lately.  Unbearably so in fact.  What Hubbs and I initially thought of as a great grilling summer has turned into a stay inside or sweat to death outside and die of dehydration kind of summer thus far.  We grilled for the first and only time about a month ago in Prospect Park when it wasn't exactly warm, but rather cool and refreshing out and had a great time.  We had veggie burgers, homemade pasta salad and those strange natural doritos-like chips they have in health food stores.  It was a simple outing with simple fare, but was a great time.  We vowed to do it again and again.  But it has been in the triple digets so much or the lowest being the low 90's, that it has not been worth it or even desirable.  I'm hoping the weather will cool slightly (mid 80's are great!) and we can bust out our tiny NY grill.  It actually looks relatively decent sized in the pictures, but if my family or friends back in MI saw the size, they would laugh hysterically!

Anyway, we had a great time and definitely want to go again soon!



Hubby lighting the charcoal, wearing the gloves
his wifey insisted upon bringing! ;)




The tasty fare: Veggie Burger, "Doritos", Pasta Salad




All the goodies piled on the burger.  Yum!

Enjoy!

Koko