Three and a Half Vegans

Leftover Revamp

2012-03-01T10:15:00.000-05:00

I am kinda the Queen of leftovers. Notorious for cooking more than enough and then some. Lunch around here is usually just warmed up whatever we had the night before and sometimes it's even better the next day. Sometimes just sitting overnight lets all the flavours mingle a bit more and come together even better when it is warmed up the next day. Some things are even better cold the next day (like my Kentucky Fried Tofu, don't judge until you try it) or even pizza. But every now and then I do a little revamp on the leftovers, turn them into something even better than they were the night before. This week that's happened twice and I had to share them!

The first one was a product of some excellent stuffed shells I made. I kind of threw a bunch of stuff (firm tofu, cashews, umi plum vinegar, lemon juice, Italian seasoning, garlic, nooch and miso paste) into the food processor to make some ricotta. Stuffed that into some large shell pasta and smothered with some tomato sauce I picked up at Costco (just to note the sauce is awesome and all it has in it is tomatoes, basil and salt) and baked in the oven for 30 minutes. It was tasty that night with a side of miso garlic bread but one bite with both was mind blowing. Right then and there I knew I had to make a sandwich the next day with the leftovers. The next day I waited patiently for lunch to finally come and toasted a hamburger bun, slathered it with miso garlic butter (equal parts yellow miso paste, vegan margarine and a pinch of two of garlic powder) and sat two stuffed shells down on the bun. It was freaking magical. The picture I took does not do it justice but it was seriously delicious and needs to be made again...soon and with bigger buns!

Just a day or two later, I was testing out a recipe from Joni Marie Newman's upcoming book for Buffalo Hot Sauce on her delicious Toffulo Wings. The wings and sauce were incredibly good. I don't usually go for hot stuff since it gives me some serious indigestion but I decided to go for it just for Joni. I was definitely glad I did and didn't suffer too badly at all. The next day I was looking forward to lunch yet again and then I remembered something I pinned awhile back on Pinterest. A recipe that was not at all vegan but I was intrigued by the idea. They were Buffalo Chicken Nachos so I quickly spread out some corn chips in a pan, chopped up the left over Toffulo Wings, drizzled both homemade ranch dressing and leftover Buffalo hot sauce all over and baked for 12-15 minutes at 425F. Holy hot damn these were tasty! Poor Ryan was on the phone from work as I was digging in and was super jealous of what I had made. Guess I'll have to make these again sometime soon for him to try! Any other leftover lovers out there?

Pierogi Making

2012-02-23T08:26:00.000-05:00

One thing that being vegan has really taught me is about trying new things and putting a little more effort in in the kitchen. I don't spend all day on every meal but I definitely have learn a few new recipes that take a little more time. We love the pierogi from Vegan Brunch so much that I don't just make a batch...I make four or five times the recipe and freeze them for quicker weeknight pierogi cravings. Mac calls these potato pockets and requests them often. I have slightly changed the recipe over time since I'm trying to sneak in as much nutrition as possible when he likes something so now while boiling the potatoes I add in a head of cauliflower and a can or two of Eden Organics Garbanzo Beans. Mac doesn't notice and now I can't eat mashed potatoes without these additions any time because they don't taste right without. I made a big batch on the weekend and took pictures along the way. Here is a pictorial day in the life of a pierogi.

Rolling out the dough and cutting into perfect little circles

I've worked up to being able to handle six at a time

Giant bowl of mashed potato...nom!

The station I set up when I'm ready to fill

Pierogi army all lined up

We like them a little bit fried in olive oil

Mac getting ready to dig in

Finished plate - served up with peas, sauteed cabbage and onions and a simple dipping sauce
of Vegenaise, horseradish, lemon juice, paprika, cayenne and S&P

MMMMM! Get in my belly!

Testing Sweet and Savoury Jackfruit Carnitas

2012-02-16T09:06:00.000-05:00

I'm still testing for Terry Hope Romero's newest project and I'm telling you...I'm really enjoying these tastes from around the world. This book is going to be epic! Just this weekend I made her Sweet and Savoury Jackfruit Carnitas and oh boy were they delicious. I love carnitas and have made them a few times now since being vegan, always with jackfruit because it really does mimic the texture you would expect. And once you caramelize it a little in a cast iron pan, it really does look exactly like what I made pre-vegan (almost eerily so). These were definitely a favourite of ours from this testing and will get made again for sure!

A carnita feast served up with shredded cabbage, tomatoes, salsa, guacamole, warm corn tortillas, pickled onions, and rice

The star of the show

I love pickled onions (also a test for Terry)

You even need two tortillas to hold it all in!

Food Network Friday: Reuben Meatball Sliders

2012-02-10T11:28:00.000-05:00

This Food Network Friday I got to pick! I simultaneously love and stress out about picking. I want to pick something I think is tasty, that I think everyone else will enjoy, something that is a little tricky but not impossibly hard. Then I came along a recipe by Jeff Mauro the self-proclaimed Sandwich King for Reuben Meatball Sliders and knew it was "the one"! I had never had a Reuben pre-vegan but during sandwich testing with Tami and Celine, I tested a few and loved them! I know Tami and Liz both love a Reuben so I knew this one would be a hit.

In preparation for this Food Network Friday I watched a few episodes of the Sandwich King which just recently started airing up here in Canada and I gotta say...I'm not a big fan. My husband can't understand why I keep watching it since all I do is talk smack while it's on. I wasn't a fan while he was competing on The Next Food Network Star but I do like his show idea of making any sandwich into a meal and any meal into a sandwich. That's something I can get behind because I seriously love me some sandwich action! Now if he can just stop leaning on the counter talking to me as if it were completely natural and describing everything like he just got a new copy of the Oxford English Thesaurus that would be ~~great~~ ~~marvellous~~ ~~spectacular~~ ~~wonderful~~ perfect!

And on to the recipe itself...We loved this one for sure! It wasn't insanely hard, came together pretty quickly, and most importantly tasted amazing. Tami was originally worried that we would all go with seitan for the meatball base so I made sure to mix it up. I decided to try (for the first time) a tempeh meatball. I love tempeh (as you might have noticed having read previous blog posts) and most of the Reubens I have loved so far have been tempeh based so I thought I would give it a go not really knowing what to expect. I started out by grating the tempeh with a box grater. I did half on the larger holes and half on the smaller side and I think that was a good idea. I liked the larger pieces for texture but the smaller side I think helped them hold together better. In the original recipe there is shredded Swiss cheese in the meatball which I decided to replace with a homemade Swiss-ish spread (recipe below!) that also helped pull it all together while adding a little zing. For breadcrumbs that were supposed to be rye bread I went with Glutino gluten free pretzels. I really love these pretzels despite their high price tag and they make an excellent stand in for breadcrumbs in just about anything. I fried the outside of one little meatball to check the seasoning and it fell a bit flat. I added some minced onion, upped the caraway and cheese spread and tried again and they were much tastier. I also reduced down some "beef" style veggie broth while I was making the meatballs and threw a splash or two of it in the pan once they were evenly browned to try to add a little "beefy" flavour to them. It worked to add the flavour but did soften the outside of the meatballs if only just slightly.

I took a peek at Liz's summary this morning and saw that we both used Tami's Reuben sauce from American Vegan Kitchen. I guess we both know who to look for Reuben advice. I had originally planned on baking up a batch of slider size rolls for this but then remembered the hundreds of other things I had to do this week so I went with some store bought hamburger rolls and cut them to size with a biscuit cutter. They did look really cute! Ryan decided he wanted more meatball per sandwich so he went with a full sized bun with a few meatballs all smooshed into one sandwich, more like a Reuben burger than slider but still delicious he said.

I definitely will be experimenting more with tempeh meatballs because they really did hold their shape well and the texture was perfect. I did write down what I did this time to share with you so let me know if you do try them!

Looking forward to next Food Network Friday!! Don't forget to check out what everyone else did with this one on Tami's blog and maybe next time you can cook-a-long with us!

Finished product!!

Tempeh Reuben Meatball Sliders

Swiss Style Cheese Spread
1/2 box of Mori-Nu Extra Firm Silken Tofu
4 tbsp nutritional yeast
2 tbsp yellow miso
1 tbsp lemon juice (I used bottled)
100g whole blanched almonds
1/4 tsp salt

250g pkg of tempeh, grated
1 tsp ground caraway seeds
1/2 tsp salt
pepper
1/4 cup finely ground gluten free pretzels
1 small onion finely minced
1/2 cup swiss style cheese spread
splash of Kitchen Bouquet
2-4 tbsp olive oil, as needed to fry the meatballs

2 cups sauerkraut, drained
1 cup of your favourite 1000 Island type dressing (my I recommend the recipe in American Vegan Kitchen if I haven't already!)
Dill Pickles on the side (absolutely necessary)
12 slider buns, toasted

1. Make the swiss style spread first by combining all ingredients in a high speed blender and blending at highest speed until smooth. (You can soak the almonds ahead of time to make this easier/faster but I tend to just throw them in and hope for the best. It also helps to add half of them at a time.) Set aside.

2. Combine grated tempeh, caraway, salt and pepper, ground pretzels, onion, swiss spread and splash of Kitchen Bouquet in a large bowl. Mix together with your hands until everything is uniformly mixed and it sticks together nicely when shaped into a meatball. You should be able to get 12 slider sized meatballs from this. Lay on a sheet pan lined with waxed or parchment paper until you are ready to cook.

3. In a large skillet, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil and add the meatballs. You may have to do these in batches depending on the size of your skillet, adding more oil if needed. Make sure to flip them around so all sides are evenly browned.

Optional step: Once they are browned, drain the oil in the pan and return to heat adding a few splashes of reduced "beef" style veggie broth to the pan and let it reduce down even further while flipping the meatballs so all sides get a bit of the flavour.

4. While your meatballs are browning, add the drained sauerkraut to a small saucepan and gently heat. Turn the heat to low and add the 1000 Island dressing, stirring to coat.

5. Once everything is warmed, assemble your sliders! Place one meatball on each slider bun bottom, top with dressed sauerkruat and finish by adding the top bun. Skewer with a toothpick to hold together until you are ready to eat! Enjoy!

Bacon Cheeseburger Fries

2012-01-23T09:53:00.000-05:00

I am not recommending these as an everyday food for sure but I am recommending you try this combo out! It is an amalgam of a different recipes to create one little dish of deliciousness.

Just take a look at it...

I used a really cute little fold up paper tray but it totally got lost in all the parchment and goodness. That right there is (from bottom to top) oven baked yukon gold fries, chopped up pan-fried Gardein burgers, diced onions, PPK Cashew Queso with a few tweaks (left out the heat, upped the nooch and added ume plum vinegar), Imitation Bacon Bits (from Hearty Vegan Meals for Monster Appetites) and diced pickles. After taking these pretty pictures I put a squirt or two of ketchup and mustard over the top too. I should have put tomatoes and lettuce too but by the time I thought of it...it was gone!

Food Network Friday: Bayou Chicken Pasta by Emeril

2012-01-20T09:43:00.000-05:00

This is one delicious Food Network Friday! This time we are making Emeril Lagasse's Bayou Chicken Pasta. It is a spicy one though (you've been warned) and I even cut the heat down considerably by cutting the habanero out completely! I like a little spice in my food but I will admit to being totally intimidated by habanero peppers. Between what I've heard about them being like the hottest peppers on Earth and a bag of Death Rain potato chips a few years back, I am straight up terrified of these seemingly harmless little guys. I did however really enjoy Emeril's Essence (still questioning the name of it though as it conjured up some less than PG jokes from Ryan and myself that night) and it really did give this recipe a hit of "BAM!" like he's always promising.

I didn't write down a recipe since I didn't really change much of what was actually written but I will go through my substitutions to show you how easy it is to take a dish that looks so unvegan and make it deliciously vegan! Emeril goes for chicken but I say "BAM!" and change it out for chickeny seitan cutlets. I used a tester recipe from Tamasin so I can't share it but you could use any seitan or sauteed mushrooms would be excellent or even pressed tofu like Liz did over at Cooking the Vegan Books. He also uses a bit of butter in the recipe, you could use EB or something like that but I just went with a little more olive oil. Next up was the heavy cream which led me to the cupboard for some cashews. Cashew cream is one of my favourite vegan tricks to make a dish really creamy and one of the many reasons I love my Vitamix. I used to let my old blender run for 10 minutes and still didn't get the creamy smoothness that the Vitamix does. I used 3/4 cup of cashews with 1/2 cup of soy milk and 1/4 cup of water to make my heavy cream so take that Emeril...BAM! Last substitution needed was the Parmesan which I quickly swapped out for some nutritional yeast and this time I really did say BAM! as I sprinkled it on top of the final dish. I had to say it once at least while making this or it would feel right!

Some other subs I made that were just for personal preference or lack of stock in the fridge (I'm talking to you green onions) were: took out the habanero completely (like I mentioned), didn't add the extra 1 1/2 tsp of salt (it was already salty enough for me), I used leftover spaghetti instead of linguine which made my cooking time a little less and used up my leftovers (I added 1/2 cup of veg broth to my diced tomatoes instead of just plain water and heated the pasta in the sauce as it simmered) and left out the green onions but think they would really work with it. I also added in some sundried tomatoes (six halves of the non-oil packed kind to be more specific) when I added the cream to up the tomato flavour and I think it really added a little something....maybe a little BAM! I also added some peas to it after I took the picture because there is something about peas and pasta with me. It would also taste excellent served with some steamed broccoli.

Ryan really enjoyed this one (read went back for seconds and had it for lunch the next day) as did I. My mom gave it a try (sans chickeny seitan) and while it was a bit hot for her tastes she did eat it all. We will definitely be having it again maybe even more toned down. It would be good even without the chicken as well. Another idea popped into my head while I was cooking this as well...."Damn, this would have been a great pizza!" so I'm sure that will happen sometime soon too! Everything tastes better on pizza crust, doesn't it?

Don't forget to check out what everyone else did for this Food Network Friday recipe over on Tami's blog! And why not cook-a-long with us for the next one?

Crafty Projects

2012-01-16T14:55:00.000-05:00

I have been seriously enjoying testing all the crafty projects that Joni has been coming up with for her upcoming book. I love crafting and have a serious amount of scrapbooking supplies up in my spare bedroom so most of the time I have what I need on hand. These projects may look a little complicated but trust me they are easy to make (with Joni's instructions at least) and so beautiful! People will be fighting over who gets to keep them and you won't want to let them go. Around here Mac has been trying to lay claim on them but so far I've managed to keep them for myself. I also have been loving Joni's "in a jar recipes" because while they are great for gifting, they are also great for my pantry! I mixed up a bunch of them and then when I want something most of the work is already done which makes meals so much easier!

Double Sided Accordion Cookbook
I couldn't figure out how to get a picture of it all
opened up and all but you can put some recipes
in it to give as a gift and can use both sides

Recipe Treasure Box
The kind where you stash those index
cards with all the recipes you use all the time

Same box different angle

L-R Chipotle Ranch Dressing, Hearty Pasta Soup with Chickn',
Curried Rice Pilaf and Cajun Red Beans and Rice

Strawberry Pineapple Orange Cake Mix

This is the Hearty Pasta Soup with Chickn' once it was all cooked
and it was soooo delicious!

Cranberry Muffin in homemade parchment baking cups

I'm sorry...hopefully you will take me back

2012-01-07T12:24:00.001-05:00

I've been neglecting this blog. It's not you...it's me. Really. Life in December in this house was a little crazy and I never quite found the time to get to it. I thought I would start back up in the new year all refreshed with lots of time but so far life hasn't co-operated. But enough excuses, I'm back and hopefully will be better at keeping up with this because I do really enjoy it!

Christmas around here was an exciting one. Our little one is four and he was just about the most excited I've ever seen for Christmas. We started our countdown back in November and there were actual tears shed when it felt like it was just too far away. We have a few traditions around our house that we enjoy over the holidays. We decorate gingerbread houses together and make some cookies for Santa of course! This year we made Santa some squirrel shaped gingerbread. The big guy was pretty impressed with them, said it was a first!

We had Christmas Day dinner here with Ryan's parents and brother and had our second annual pierogi supper. I totally didn't think to take any pictures but we had pierogis (using my modified version of pierogi from Vegan Brunch by Isa Chandra Moskowitz) with fried onions and cabbage on the side, lots of broccoli (Mac's favourite vegetable might I brag) with two kinds of dipping sauces (sour dill cream and a spicy horseradish dip). We followed it up with homemade ice cream for dessert. Mac went with his favourite of cookie (speculoos) ice cream with two cookies, as did I. The rest were a mix of Mocha Almond Fudge and Cookie both getting rave reviews. Ice cream is kinda my thing now. I keep using Carla Kelly's vanilla base formula to create all kinds of different flavours like most recently Peanut Butter which is crazy delicious especially with a scoop of chocolate!

After Christmas Day, Mac's excitement turned to New Year's Day and counting down to that and also the next time Nana and Papa were coming over for supper! I have never been a big New Years' fan by any means but watching him get all excited about it helped me get into it too. I planned a big meal of homemade Chinese takeout favourites for our New Year's Day supper and even made homemade fortune cookies to finish it off. We had (purchased) spring rolls, fried won tons, fried rice, "beef" and broccoli and veggie stir fry. I was so into the won tons I didn't even eat the spring rolls on my plate which are usually my favourite part. I will admit that two hours later I was sneaking down to the kitchen to find them though...

I also tested throughout the holidays for the different books I'm testing for. Probably not as much as I would have if it weren't so busy I did make Hazelnut Orange Blossom Baklava (which Mac helped me make as the butter guy), Spinach Coriander Roti and Coconut Bean Curry, Drunken Noodle Saga (Pad Kee Mao) and a giant feast of Ethiopian food (all tests for Terry Hope Romero). I also made some excellent spice mixes for Joni's upcoming crafty book as well as some preserves, cookies and muffins all of which have been enjoyed and rarely photographed.

And last but certainly not least...Vegansaurus brought Falachos to my attention courtesy of No Face Plate (truly a food genius and I still want to try the Fawaffles) and sweet damn these are tasty! Mine are not nearly as pretty as theirs and are missing some of what they had but I really wanted to try them out and went with what I had on hand. Mine have curry roasted chickpeas, garlic mayo (Vegenaise with fresh minced garlic and a bit of lemon juice), chopped tomatoes and red onions, tahini sauce (thinned tahini with lemon juice, water, garlic and salt), chopped pickles (made for the best bites) and kalamata olives all on a bed of homemade pita chips with the seasonings suggested in the original recipe. I can't believe I never thought to do this but I know I will be doing it again!

P.S. Ryan and I are both drooling now after writing this and looking at the pictures, thinking about these and wishing this is what is for lunch! And I may have just uttered "I wanna put my face in that!"

Late Night Post after a Long Day!

2011-12-10T21:15:00.001-05:00

I'll be brief since it's been a very long day!!! I took the time this afternoon to finally help my mom declutter her storage space. What I thought might take weeks ended up only taking three solid hours which was a bonus. I'm glad to be done for sure!

For supper tonight we had Curry Seitan Jamaican Patties which is another test recipe for Terry Hope Romero. They were soooo tasty! I have been strangely craving tourtiere and these, although differently spiced, hit the spot. The pastry is flaky, tender and flavourful. The filling was a bit hot but in the tasty way and it was perfectly spiced with the home made Jamaican Curry Powder (another test recipe). The recipe is great because you can do parts of it ahead of time and then assemble them when you are ready to eat. My pictures are less than stellar but I'm still sharing them anyways. I have yet to manage to capture the filling of a patty like this in a picture, they always seem to come out blurry! Ah well, they tasted fantastic and are definitely something I will make again!

Soy Curl Carnitas with PPK Cashew Queso

2011-12-06T09:26:00.000-05:00

I have been a bad blogger and a bad tester lately and I want to apologize. I have been up to my ears with household responsibilities and Christmas to-do's that I have gotten a little behind for sure! I have even been finding it hard to get my butt in gear to make supper lately especially with my self-induced gluten strike for the past two weeks (trying to see if an intolerance was causing my headaches but nope). I really gotta tip my hat to anyone that is gluten free. It is tricky and not eating it for even just 12 3/4 days was really trying. I never knew what to make and while at first it felt like breakfast was the hardest to degluten, it turns out lunch was my sticking point since I usually have a sandwich. I did end up giving into the gluten since I was still having the same headaches during my gluten fast but I will say we had some seriously delicious meals without it so from now on I won't rely so much on the old standards.

One supper we had that really stood out was Soy Curl Carnitas that we topped with PPK's Cashew Queso. It was sooo yummy! I had bought a pouch of Frontera Grill Garlicky Carnita Skillet Sauce a while back at Grace in the Kitchen but hadn't had the chance to use it yet. Please ignore the pork on the package or you could do what my son does and just make everything vegan by simply saying it is.

I was thinking about what it would work on and landed on soy curls. I rehydrated them in some hot water, squeezed them out and put them in a container. I covered them in the skillet sauce and tossed it around so they got all covered. Then I stuck them in the fridge overnight to marinate. The next night at supper time I just tossed them into a lightly oiled, hot skillet with a chopped onion and pan fried them until they were golden and a bit caramelized. I served them on a bed of basmati rice with the queso poured over top and a side of guacamole and it was perfect! I kept saying as we ate "these would make great..." and listed off pretty much anything I could think of like tacos, burritos, quesadillas, enchiladas, and then landed on fajitas. They would make good anything really and that queso is the stuff dreams are made of. It is so rich and creamy and just the right amount of spicy and so flavourful. It makes a bunch too which is great because you are going to want a bunch of it. We had it after on nachos and just as a dip. It says serve warm but I was dipping tortilla chips in it cold and it still tasted amazing. I think it might be Ryan's favourite thing I've ever made. He was big into his queso before so he was very happy to be reunited. We both made sure that not a drop was wasted for sure with this one! It will definitely get made again and again especially over the holidays. Now I just have to restock on soy curls and skillet sauce.

Food Network Friday: Bacon Corn Muffins with Savoury Cream Cheese Frosting

2011-12-01T22:44:00.001-05:00

This Food Network Friday totally snuck up on me! The break through MoFo might be to blame but once I saw it, I was in! Now usually I do all kinds of crazy impersonations for these Food Network Friday posts but this time I got nothing...sorry! I don't think I've ever seen an episode of What Would Brian Boitano Make? and I'm not sure it airs up here in Canada to be honest. I did try my best to find some clips or something but YouTube failed me big time and only had a few small clips that didn't really give me the feel of the show. Next time, I promise!

The recipe this time was Bacon Corn Muffins with Savoury Cream Cheese Frosting and I will admit to being turned off by the idea of savoury frosting right off the bat. I think it was that it was called frosting more than anything to be honest...ah semantics! Anyways, I dove in head first and went for this one despite my hang ups. I have been trying a gluten free thing for the past week and a bit too so I made them as gluten free as I know how to. I have very little experience with gluten free baking but I really wanted to take part so I put my thinking cap on. The recipe uses a mix of cornmeal and all purpose flour so I decided to use corn flour in place of the all purpose. I added a bit of potato flakes and xantham gum as well for good measure since I've heard good things about both in gluten free baking. These muffins have bacon in them and on top for garnish and I decided to go with crumbled tempeh bacon since it is my new favourite thing (thanks to Tami and Celine's upcoming sandwich cookbook, Vegan Sandwiches Save the Day!) and it really did do the trick. The muffins came out pretty good and held up well too. They were slightly acidic but I think that was my fault since I added some apple cider vinegar to my soy milk. I would skip that next time. The frosting was a mix of Tofutti Cream Cheese, Tabasco, minced chives and agave nectar and I wasn't a big fan. It was better on the muffins but still wasn't my thing. I would prefer the muffin straight up and maybe mix the chives into the muffin itself next time. But I will say that they looked pretty impressive with the frosting, tempeh bacon and chives all garnishing the tops.

No recipe this time sorry! I was throwing in dashes of this and pinches of that and totally forgot to write it all down. I can tell you that I subbed the egg in the recipe with 1/4 cup of Tofutti Sour Cream, I used 4 tbsp of olive oil instead of melted butter and bacon fat, I used 2 tbsp potato flakes and 1/2 tsp xantham gum, I subbed the corn flour for the all purpose in equal measure and I added a 1/4 cup of tempeh bacon crumbles to the mix. Anything else in the recipe I used the measurements specified and followed the instructions/temperatures as well.

Check out Tami's blog to see what everyone else did with this recipe and sneak a peek at some of the sandwiches from Tami and Celine's sandwich book since Tami just posted some sneak peek pictures yesterday! And just to note...I tried all three of the sandwiches pictured and they were all fricken fantastic! Also, check out their newest venture, Vegan Muffins on the Move if you love muffins and really, who doesn't?!?

Vegan Muffin Love

2011-11-28T22:04:00.001-05:00

Two of my favourite people have come together on a new project that I absolutely love! Celine Steen and Tamasin Noyes not only paired up to write the tastiest (upcoming) vegan sandwich cookbook, they also decided to start up a new blogsite dedicated to Vegan Baketavism, called Vegan Muffins On The Move. Now, I can't say I'm sure that's a real word but I'm making it one now. They took this idea and invited Lisa and Gabrielle from Vegans On The Move to join in with them which makes it even better! This new blogsite encourages all of us to get baking, particularly muffins and share them with the world. I love this idea of sharing something vegan but less intimidating and showing everyone that vegan doesn't mean cardboard or tasteless. They are sharing recipes once a month to give you the motivation and hoping you will join in and share the vegan muffin deliciousness. The first recipe posted for Cinnacrunch Muffins is from Tamasin's book, American Vegan Kitchen. I have this book but will admit with testing my cookbooks can get ignored from time to time. I had never made these muffins but in the past month, I've made them twice...they're that good! I sent (most) of my first batch off with Ryan to work to share with his co-workers and everyone loved them. The next batch I made I didn't have the applesauce needed on hand but I did have some pumpkin so I just switcherooed it and they were delicious. The second batch I dropped off at a local charity bake sale/bazaar that was in support of a local animal rescue. Definitely check out this new site and get baking, show the world what vegan baking can taste like and share your experience with vegan living with someone else. And I totally can't wait to see what the next recipe will be!

All packed up, getting ready to shine for Ryan's co-workers!

More Crafty Treats from Testing for Joni

2011-11-24T12:27:00.001-05:00

Here are a few more projects I have made for Joni Marie Newman's upcoming crafty vegan book.

A fold your own Truffle Box

Opened up but no treats yet!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls have found their home!

(These were a big hit and super easy to make!)

Reusable Felt (100% Recycled Plastic bottle felt) Gift Bag

hanging out with my Candied Citrus Peels

(which are now my making supper snacks)

Food Network Friday: Turkey Pot Pie By Paula Deen

2011-11-17T16:43:00.001-05:00

Hey Y'all! It's time for another Food Network Friday Cookalong and this time 'round, we're gonna make the most incredible Turkey Pot Pie but with a little twist. Now Paula Deen has a bit of a reputation for her less than healthy cooking with a little extra butter y'all but this Pot Pie is completely vegan so it has to be healthier even without running the nutritional info! The original recipe is a little crazy and tries to use up leftovers from Thanksgiving but this one you can make anytime. If you clicked to see the recipe you would have seen two cans of condensed Cheddar cheese soup in that list and I gotta tell y'all, I never heard of that before in my life! I used to be a serious cheese eater but I never hit the can for a fix that's for sure. In place of all that cream condensed soup I decided to make a herbed cheezy gravy for my pot pie using good ol' nooch and miso paste to add a little zing y'all (who's tired of y'all by now??). I also went right ahead and skipped the turkey or any sorta vegan substitute and just went straight vegetable on this pie (I was thinking soy curls but I wanted my mom to eat so I skipped them). But then came the top of it y'all and I didn't know what to do. Now I know there are a few supermarket brands of puff pastry that are vegan y'all but they also come with that "may contain milk ingredients" warning which doesn't fly in our house since we have allergies to think about as well. I didn't know what I was going to do so I thought real hard and wondered, "What would Paula Deen do?" and it came to me! A tater tot crust was the answer to all my questions (well at least that one) since Paula always loves a little fried something in her food. I have to say this version is super creamy and rich and I wasn't missin' anything y'all! Next time you have a craving for a little taste of Pot Pie, maybe you'll give this Tater Topped Veggie Pie a try!

Don't forget to check in with Tami to see what everyone else did with this recipe!

That corner bite was the one Ryan and I almost fought for...
Good thing the pan has four corners!

Tater Topped Veggie Pot Pie
Inspired by Paula Deen's Turkey Pot Pie

4 cups soy milk
2 tbps nutritional yeast
2 tbsp yellow miso paste
1 tsp ume plum vinegar
2 tsp vegetable bouillon powder
1/4 tsp celery seed
1/4 tsp rubbed sage
1/4 tsp poulty seasoning
1/2 tsp ground white pepper
1/2-1 tsp salt, depending on your taste
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp dry mustard powder

1/2 cup vegan margarine
1 1/2 onions, finely diced
3/4 cup all purpose flour

2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
1 onion, diced
1/2 small head of cauliflower, diced
1 cup frozen peas
1 bag of tater tots (I used McCain's Tasty Taters), you might not need a whole bag but you wanna make sure you have enough

1. Start by prepping all your veggies and set them aside so they are ready when you need them. Preheat the oven to 350F.

2. Next, mix soy milk, nutritional yeast, miso paste, ume plum vinegar, vegetable bouillon powder and the rest of the seasonings/spices in a blender until well combined. Set aside.

3. In a large, heavy bottomed soup pot, melt the margarine over medium heat. Add the finely diced onion and cook stirring occasionally until they are softened, about 5-8 minutes. Sprinkle the flour into the pot and stir with a wooden spoon. The flour will absorb all of the margarine and it will look like a paste. Stir this around in the pot until it is light golden brown. Switch to a whisk and slowly add the soy milk mixture from the blender into the pot while constantly whisking. I made a mess so you've been warned if you are messy like me it might fly out of the pot! Once all the soy milk mixture is added, just keep whisking until it just nearly comes to a boil and thickens. It is thick enough when it coats the back of a spoon and when you slide your finger down the back of the spoon it leaves a distinct line.

4. Turn the heat down to medium-low and add the diced carrots, onion, cauliflower and the frozen peas. Stir to combine and put the lid on the pot. Let it cook like that for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. You don't want it to boil, just gently warming the veggies.

5. After 10 minutes, pour the contents of your pot into a 11x13 glass baking dish. Cover the top with rows of tater tots. Carefully place the pan in the preheated oven and you might want to put a baking sheet on the rack below in case of drips (speaking from experience!). Bake for 50-55 minutes, until the tater tots are golden brown on the top and the sauce is bubbling. Remove from oven and let cool/set for 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy y'all!

How do you spell yummy?

2011-11-16T17:44:00.001-05:00

After trying these....

I spell it Okonomiyaki! Damn! This is another test recipe from Terry Hope Romero and I will flat out say I am in love with these! I had never heard of it before (I need to get out apparently!) or seen an okonomiyaki but this will definitely not be my last. It is a delicious, almost pancake made out of cabbage that has these toppings that are pressed into it and then fried in a cast iron skillet on both sides to make it all browned and scrumptious! I went for baked tofu that is slightly "ham" like, edamame and some shredded carrot to press in. The real yummy part is the Tonkatsu sauce (another test recipe from Terry) that you slather on top of the baked okonomiyaki and the mayo drizzled on top mixes with it and makes magic. Like the kind of magic that makes you crave them again later that night. Like the kind of magic that makes you want to make them once a week and you would never get sick of them. Like the kind of magic that now that I have written about them and ~~looked~~ drooled over these pictures, I want to make them again!

Speculoos Ice Cream

2011-11-12T08:58:00.001-05:00

While testing for Carla Kelly I got to try out simply the best ice creams I have ever made or eaten for that matter. I keep begging her to write an all ice cream book it's that good! All ice creams I make now are based on her formula with slight variations. I didn't want to blog about them without asking Carla but she has given her blessing on it so I can share one of the variations I created using her super duper ice cream formula.

Speculoos cookies are definitely addictive. They are like plain and yet not all at the same time. I love them and so does everyone else in my house! I found four packages of them at a specialty shop here in Ottawa (Swiss Pastries in Carlingwood for the locals) and I greedily bought all four. I couldn't wait to experiment with them! I had them for a few days and all I had done with them was eat them straight up with in itself is an excellent way to do it but I wanted to incorporate them into something else. I then tried them as a graham cracker substitute in the crust to my first Vegan Pie in the Sky pie which worked pretty well but was a bit greasy since I didn't compensate for the oiliness of them when I mixed it up. Then I mixed up a batch of Brown Sugar Cinnamon ice cream (which I blogged about the other day) and served it with two cookies which worked really well together and then I realized I need to make the cookies into an ice cream. I thought about the best way to do it that night and went to work at it the next day. I used the basic formula from Carla's ice cream but incorporated broken up cookies right into the mix and made a few changes since the cookies themselves are sweetened and oily (see...lesson learned!). I mixed it in the Vitamix figuring if it could crush whole nuts into cream that the cookies would incorporate into the ice cream base just as well and it worked! I added a few things and gave it a taste and oh man! It tastes just like the cookies except better because it is smooth and rich and creamy! Like Speculoos and (non-dairy) milk. Like if Christmas were edible, it would taste like this.

Now go and find some Speculoos cookies and mix up a batch...you won't regret it!

Speculoos Ice Cream (Variation of Carla Kelly's vanilla ice cream recipe)

1 pkg Speculoos cookies (minus two cookies that you will eat while the blender is blending)

1/2 pkg extra firm boxed tofu (like Mori-Nu)

1 1/2 cups soy milk

1/4 cup canola oil

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

Combine all ingredients in blender and mix on highest speed until smooth. This will work best in a Vitamix or other high speed blender. Once it is completely smooth and creamy, place in the fridge until well chilled then process according to your ice cream maker's instructions. If you have a counter top self-chilling ice cream maker (yes I am spoiled!) you can simply pour from the blender into the machine and process immediately. Store in freezer once it's done, enjoy!

Chili Cheese Fries Pizza

2011-11-10T17:52:00.001-05:00

Yeah you read that right...I said it...Chili Cheese Fries Pizza! I saw one on F*** Yeah, Vegan Pizza during Vegan MoFo and I couldn't stop thinking about it. It really was keeping me up at night since I was thinking about how good it would taste and when I should make it, you know the real hard questions.

Last night even though it was much too late to attempt such a thing I went for it. I slapped together some pizza dough (quite literally I just poured a couple of cups of flour in a bowl, proofed some yeast, added some salt and sugar, a splash of olive oil and kneaded til it looked right to which my mom rolled her eyes but it worked), Ryan quickly peeled some potatoes which I crinkle cut and I luckily had a container of homemade chili in the freezer so all I had to do was defrost it. The pizza I saw had Teese on it but that isn't something we have all the time and is something I really need to think ahead about using since I can only get it by online ordering so I decided just to make a batch of cheese sauce from Hearty Vegan again and drizzle that on top once it had baked and it was fracking amazing! The only thing I would change is that the crust was a little thick for my liking but that was the only thing and totally easy to fix. The chili and the oven fries and the cheese sauce all tasted so delicious together and since I love me some carbs the pizza crust was an excellent addition to an already tasty combination. Plus this way I ate way less fries. It will definitely get made again since both Ryan and I couldn't get enough!

Sorry for the less than stellar photos...this getting dark early thing is killing my food photography! But still don't you just wanna take a bite?!?

A Vegan Molecular Egg

2011-11-08T19:02:00.000-05:00

During MoFo I posted that I had bought a molecular gastronomy kit and on the weekend I finally got a chance to play with it! It was exciting trying something new and completely unfamiliar to me. I checked out the recipes on the DVD and the Molecular Egg definitely caught my eye. The thing I love most about molecular gastronomy is how it can be so playful and what you see isn't always what you get and this recipe was exactly that. The original recipe has milk and yogurt so I just switched it out for soy milk and So Delicious coconut yogurt (my new favourite thanks to Rainbow Foods).

Basically the "egg white" is milk mixed with agar agar which is then mixed with vanilla yogurt and then spread on the plate to resemble the white. The yolk is mango chunks mixed in a blender with a little sugar and calcium lactate. You then have to put it in a sodium alginate bath, rinse with water and presto! you have a "egg".

I gotta say the "white" was cold which is not what you are expecting obviously but it shared a similar texture that I remember from my pre-vegan egg eating days. The "yolk" was delicious since it was mango. Mac even braved a taste of my creation (muwhahahaha...evil laugh) and thought the yolk was yummy but was a little turned off by the white. He has never had egg in any form since he was diagnosed with a serious allergy to it before we even would have introduced it so it was like his first egg. He's been asking for vegan green eggs and ham since I read about someone else making that a while back so maybe this will be the way I can make it.

I definitely had fun playing around with it and can't wait to try to make the infamous foam (I might be the only one that loved Marcel on Top Chef I know). They do have recipes on the site but unfortunately not the one for the egg. Check it out if you are into this kind of stuff, they also have videos with sexy music to lure you into buying a kit...just warning you!

Oh so yummy dessert

2011-11-07T19:11:00.000-05:00

I'll admit it...we are dessert people. There I said it! Every night after supper we have something, just a little something sweet. Sometimes it's fruit but I won't lie, most of the time its not. Popsicles and Smooze (or push pops as Mac calls them) are a favourite of Mac's. Homemade vegan ice cream is also a favourite. This morning I made Baked Oatmeal Squares by Mama Pea for breakfast...how does this relate to dessert you might ask? Well, it uses half a block of silken tofu I answer to that. And what else do you do with half a block of silken tofu but make homemade vegan ice cream?? Exactly (even though I'm sure there are a million other uses for it)! So today I made some Brown Sugar Cinnamon Ice Cream and served it with Speculoos cookies and oh my gosh it was a match made in my mouth. Mac saw the ice cream, picked up a spoon and asked Daddy "Can you get me a bowl for this spoon?" for which he got a bowl and a big laugh which is a big win for him. Here's a picture just so you can dream about it tonight! And yes, it is rich and creamy and sweet and spicy...in short, it's delicious!

Goldilocks and the Three Phos

2011-11-06T09:43:00.000-05:00

Once upon a time there was a thirtysomething girl with hair of gold (actually it's more silver than gold these days) and a taste for pho. She had made some life changes and became a vegan and didn't know where to go for pho anymore. Since Goldilocks was a girl who knew what she wanted and couldn't find it, she decided to make it herself. There was only one problem, she had no idea how.

Then one day, a wonderful thing happened...a test recipe site came along with promises of flavours from around the world, things Goldilocks had never had before and things Goldilocks was waiting to have again. Things like Pho Noodle Soup with Bok Choy. As soon as Goldilocks spotted it she knew she ~~wanted~~ had to make it! She set out at once to the market and brought back all the ingredients she would need and set to work making a flavourful broth full of aromatic spices. She carefully sliced bok choy into thin shreds, picked the perfect basil and cilantro leaves and prepared rice noodles. She decided it would be even nicer to share her pho so she ladled up a bowl for her mother and husband.

Now there were three phos...the biggest one for Daddy, the medium sized one for Goldilocks and the smallest one was just right for Nana (who was afraid of a few of the ingredients). They sat and slurped and enjoyed the complex flavours of the broth mixed with tasty bites of baked tofu and a little oomph from a squeeze of fresh lime juice. They even attempted to eat it using chopsticks, only occasionally opting for a spoon. Goldilocks definitely enjoyed her bowl of pho and so did the others and they lived happily ever after from that day on knowing they could have pho now whenever they wanted thanks to Terry Hope Romero!

The End

P.S. I know that was crazy cheezy but how could I resist looking at those bowls, right?!

Supper Tonight - Test Recipes for Terry Hope Romero

2011-11-04T22:05:00.000-04:00

Tonight I made three different recipes from Terry Hope Romero's test recipes for her upcoming book full of International recipes. I made a batch of preserved lemons (another test recipe) which required waiting two weeks and today was the day so I couldn't wait to break into them to make Braised Tempeh with Preserved Lemons and Green Olives. I saw that SaraJane over at Vegan Chicks Rock had tested this one already and served it with another of Terry's recipes, Fluffy Spiced Couscous. Her pictures and description convinced me this was the way to go so I made that as well. And apparently I was feeling fancy because I made Kale Salad with Preserved Lemon and Pomegranate as a starter (on a weekday no less!).

All three were so delicious and it was all tied together by the preserved lemons which are my new favourite thing! The salad was tart and crisp and I loved the pomegranate in it with their little bursts of tart juice that paired really well with everything else in the salad. The tempeh and couscous made for a delicious supper. I actually don't usually like green olives but in this dish they really worked and I actually found myself trying to find one for each bite. The tempeh was juicy and the sauce was citrusy and spiced. Again the preserved lemon was in this dish and it really made it something different than anything I've had before. It was all so healthy too but didn't taste like it, if you know what I mean. I am really loving this testing experience because it is definitely taking my palate places it's never been before, places it wants to go again!

Up next for tomorrow is Pho Noodle Soup with Bok Choy! I made the broth this afternoon and it smells out of this world good so I am really looking forward to it! Pre-vegan, I loved a good bowl of Pho and haven't had one since I went vegan so tomorrow we will be reunited!

More Projects for Joni's New Book

2011-11-03T11:01:00.001-04:00

I took a small break from blogging the past few days. I was all blogged out from MoFo and we had to concentrate on eating up that Candy Land. I can't believe how many people have checked it out and commented. It's really amazing to have all that love come at you for something you love to do. Thank you all, you definitely made my month!

This morning I got up and at it early and made myself some of Joni's recipes for her new book that I am testing for. I started off with a batch of Banana Nut Bread and followed with a batch of Candied Nuts. The Banana Nut bread is so quick to make and it looks so cute in the home made loaf pans Joni made for the book. I made these ones out of parchment paper but you can make them out of all kinds of papers depending on your use and preference. They are so easy to make once you learn the technique too! Mac helped me mix up the banana bread and patiently (haha!) waited for it to bake and cool so we could have a taste. He licked the bowl while he waited and assured me that it was going to be good. It is tasty too with raisins and nuts in there and lots of banana flavour too!

The Candied Nuts were so easy to make and seriously took about 20 minutes including the 10 minutes they spent in the oven and the taste is incredible! I can't believe how little effort I had to put in to make them to get such a delicious snack! I made a little square parchment box to put them in using the same technique as the loaf pans above. I think they would make a great home made gift for someone or a hostess gift if you are into that kind of thing. They would be great sprinkled on top of ice cream too!

My First All Edible Candy Land

2011-10-31T17:58:00.000-04:00

Over the past month I think I have played Candy Land with Mac about a zillion times. Boy loves his Candy Land. Then awhile back he said "we should make a Candy Land that you can eat" and I said "sure buddy" and then I started thinking...could I actually make an edible Candy Land? I decided I would go for it and try to make it as close as I could to the board game version we have. So over the past three days I have been baking and icing and I'm pretty sure I'm literally candied now. It's hard not to lick your fingers and take a little taste here and there, right?! For the final day of Vegan MoFo, my biggest challenge yet and here's the final product...

Here's a few close up shots...don't want you to miss all that detail I went to so much trouble to put in there. And you will notice, I paid attention during Top Chef Just Desserts and I didn't forget the back so it's a full panorama experience!

At the end of all of that...I made 12 batches of vanilla cake using the cupcake recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, I used almost 4 kg of icing sugar, 1 bag of Dandies, 3 packages of Earth Balance Shortening, 3 packages of Earth Balance Buttery Sticks, 21 ice cream cones, 3 bags of jelly beans, 1 bag of Enjoy Life Brand Chocolate Chunks, almost all of my natural food colouring, 1/2 a tube of marzipan, 1 recipe of gingerbread and about all of my patience and creativity! I'm drained but it is so worth it seeing it all finished and seeing how happy Mac is to see it "in real life" as he said. My personal favourites are Chocolate Mountain, which is made of Dandies treats, covered in Chocolate Chunks then I poured melted chocolate over top of those to get some real texture to it to make it look all craggy like the one in the game and I love the Ice Palace (mostly because I had no idea what I was going to do to make it just this morning and some how I pulled it out by custom made gingerbread and icing). Now I'm off to enjoy what's left of Halloween with my family and hopefully we will get a few trick or treaters!

Thanks to everyone who has read my posts over MoFo, I'm so happy somebody is reading this! I hope you stick around, I have lots more to share and now that I have finished this big project, it's back to recipe testing and more!!

My First Molecular Gastronomy Kit

2011-10-30T22:47:00.001-04:00

I know it's not every one's thing but Molecular Gastronomy is so interesting to me. I always used to ask for science kits and an Easy Bake oven for Christmas as a kid so it all makes sense right? I found this kit from Molecule-R in Montreal online and I immediately added it to my Christmas wish list. But I have it now you say...yeah, I'm crazy impatient and ended up talking my husband into getting it now instead of waiting til Christmas. The kit is so cool, even the packaging had me all geeked out. It comes with Agar-agar, Calcium Lactate (when I ordered I asked if it was non-dairy and they said yes but please check again for yourself before ordering since these things can change), Sodium Alginate, Soy Lecithin, Xantham Gum, a tool kit and an instructional DVD. I haven't had a chance to try it out yet but I did watch the DVD and look through the recipes they included. Good news to vegans, a lot of the recipes are already vegan or easily made so (eg. agave for honey or non-dairy milk for milk) though some are definitely not. I can't wait to get a moment to try this whole thing out. I really want to try making fruit noodles and there is a recipe on the DVD for a molecular egg and it's actually vegan...though it's made as a dessert with coconut milk. I think I might work on a savoury version too though since I have been seeing pictures of a vegan egg sandwich from Homegrown Smoker in Portland. I'll keep you posted!

Sorry for the cover picture...the salmon is the only thing on there
that I think is not-vegan and it's right on the front. I apologize if anyone
is freaked out by that.

Contents of the tool kit you get with the kit

My First Picture Post

2011-10-29T20:33:00.000-04:00

Totally copping out on this post but I'm up to ears in cake and dinner so hopefully you will forgive me! Here's some pictures from this week in our kitchen. Most are test recipes for Terry Hope Romero's newest book project! (And if anyone can give me some pointers on placing pictures in Blogger...please help me!!!)

Tomatoes Stuffed with Creamy Rice
- Test Recipe for Terry Hope Romero

Fennel Salad with Oranges and Olives
- Test Recipe for Terry Hope Romero

Crispy Eggplant and Zucchini with Garlicky Potato Dip
- Test for Terry Hope Romero

Gyro Roasted Seitan
- Test for Terry Hope Romero

Lemon Garlic Roast Potatoes
- Test for Terry Hope Romero

Crazy popcorn I bought at Rainbow Foods last week
because I just had to know what it would look like popped

Looked the same once it was popped though

Greek Village Salad - Test for Terry Hope Romero

Scramble Tofu Breakfast Bahn Mi
- Test for Terry Hope Romero

My First Frito Pie

2011-10-28T18:55:00.001-04:00

So over Vegan MoFo, I have been introduced to so many new blogs and new kinds of foods. I took a special interest in Lazy Vegan Smurf's blog post about Frito Pie. I had no idea this existed but once I did I had to try it! Today when I was doing the weekly restock, I spotted a bag of Fritos so it was fate that today be the day I tried out this dish. I decided to have it for lunch but only because I had a frozen bag of chili up in the freezer so I knew I could get it together pretty quickly. I mixed up a batch of cheesy sauce from Hearty Vegan (the one used in the Irish Nachos, it's my favourite), warmed up my chili, chopped up a bit of onion and pickled jalapeno and bust open that bag of Fritos like it was Christmas. Check out this plate of delicious!

I'm not really sure what one serving of this is supposed to look like but this was mine...all mine!!! I had a little Tofutti sour cream on the side because those jalapenos are hot (but I like it!). It is seriously one of the best junk food things I've ever eaten! I thought it would be just like Chili Cheese Nachos but the Fritos really make it special. It's crunchy and spicy and cheesy and sooo good, trust me you need this in your life! Next time I will definitely try the recipe for Texas Chili from the Sunny Days in Texas Zine because it looks super yummy and I hear is award winning! (by the way you should totally go buy a zine, I did and it is full of great recipes and adorable animal pictures if you get the colour version and all the money goes to Sunny Days Farms Animal Sanctuary!)

I ate up/inhaled the whole plate and then thought about my husband who was going to be very jealous that I had this for lunch without him...uh oh! I then realized I had enough left over chili and cheese sauce to make him up a plate later. But then something amazing came into my mind...Frito Pie Burgers! So, tonight I made some Gardein burgers (super yum!) and topped Ryan's off with a handful of Fritos, a big scoop of chili, smothered that in yummy cheesy sauce and sprinkled the top with chopped onions. Ryan took one bite, then another, then another...I'm like "soooo....?" and he says "Sorry I was too distracted with all this...eating...nom...." and he went back to eating. It's a hit! I did manage to scam a bite and it is really awesome as a burger too. It has a nice crunch from the chips and all that cheesy sauce oozing out the sides was just right. I know he will be requesting this one again and there will be no arguments from me!

My First Soft Pretzels

2011-10-27T16:36:00.001-04:00

Miso Garlic Butter = 2tbsp vegan margarine, 2 tsp yellow miso paste, 1/4 tsp garlic powder (smoosh together and microwave for 20-30 seconds to melt)

Today was a blah kind of day here. It's getting chilly and grey. The time of year where I want to hibernate. Bears really have it figured out. I figured we would need a little carbo loading to get ready so today Mac and I made homemade soft pretzels. I used Alton Brown's recipe from Food Network's website. It was pretty simple and the only change I made was vegan margarine for the unsalted butter (and reduced the salt a bit since our margarine is a bit salty) and used a bit of cornstarch mixed with cool water in place of the egg wash to keep the salt stuck. Mac was really excited for kneading the dough and even though I let the stand mixer do most of the work I did let him give it a turn or two. The only downside of a yeast dough to a four year old is the waiting. He wanted to eat them right then and wasn't real happy with me as I explained the whole rising process.

We decided we would shape them into letters, one for each member of our household. There's a giant D for Daddy, a N for Nana, one M for Mac and one M for Mommy. One M has cinnamon sugar rolled inside of it and Mac decided that could be mine. Score for me! The rest I made into traditional pretzel shapes. I decided to make a flavoured butter to dip mine in. I went with a miso garlic butter (recipe under photo as caption in case you missed it) and hot damn, it was tasty! Kinda like the Parmesan butter they pour over crazy bread at Little Caesars. It will definitely find it's way onto some bread sticks sometime soon and now I'm really craving pizza! I think this weekend we will have a pizza party!

Thinking deep pretzel thoughts

My First Projects for Joni's Next Book

2011-10-26T19:08:00.002-04:00

Confession time...I am a super craft nerd. I literally have a dresser in my room dedicated to holding all my crafting gear (please read this sentence like Rob Lowe's character on Parks and Rec because that is how I am thinking it). I have a crap ton of scrapbook paper, stamps, fabric, stickers, punches, glitter and as much as I love a kitchen gadget, I love my crafting gadgets too. Provo Craft has way too much of my money to prove that!

I never really thought my crafting and cooking loves would collide but that all changed when I saw a tweet from Joni Marie Newman looking for a few crafty vegans to help test for her newest book project. I don't think I could have typed up my email any faster to get in on this one. This book is so perfectly up my alley! So far, I don't know much, the working title is Vegan Food Gifts: Spread the Vegan Love DIY-Style with 100 Inspired Recipes for Homemade Edible Gifts, Baked Goods, Preserves and More so that gives you a general idea of what to expect. I know I would buy it just from the title. There is going to be all kinds ofrecipes as well as ways to package them up to give as gifts so you can givethem to family and friends. I made up two of the projects so far and wanted toshare a peek at them. I will keep posting as I make them and by the end I knowyou will be just as excited about this book as I am!

The two small mason jars are filled with Italian Spiced Parm-y Sprinkles (super yummy noochy/nutty parm) that I covered with some Amy Butler Midwest Modern fabric (for the quilt I was definitely going to make and then didn't know how to actually make). The two bags are actually made with the same technique, one with cellophane and one with brown kraft paper. They are tape and glue free yet hold together and you can stuff them full of all kinds of tasty treats.

I'm excited to see what else Joni has in store for this book...I think she is even working on a couple of themed baskets and you even make the basket! Love it!

My First Korean BBQ and Kimchi

2011-10-25T16:43:00.000-04:00

I have been intrigued by the idea of Korean BBQ and kimchi for awhile but had no idea how to make it. I had never had it and wasn't really sure what it ever tasted like but I liked the sound of it. BBQ is definitely not off limits to vegans, we love a good BBQ as much as the next, we just choose a different vehicle for our sauce. Now I'm sure it would have tasted much better had I gone out to grill it on the BBQ but the weather has gotten a bit cold here for that so I did the best I could inside on my cast iron pan on this one. The recipe was another test for Terry Hope Romero's newest book with a quick made kimchi (also a test recipe for Terry).

I will be honest and tell you I was scared to try the kimchi. Just washing out the food processor after making the red pepper paste made me choke up a little so I figured it was going to be hot and I can be a bit chicken when it comes to heat. It was hot too...but in that flavourful, good way not the burn your face off for no reason way. Mixing the kimchi with the Korean BBQ definitely made a magical pair too. Both were good but together they were delicious! I served it up and as suggested we ate them as a lettuce wrap. It was crunchy, salty, sweet, sour, spicy, complex and scrumptious (that's a taste bud I think...or maybe that's umami). It was everything I thought it would be and then more. I did a mix of tempeh and tofu and a few cloves of garlic too which really added a little oomph! Ryan and I both ~~inhaled~~ enjoyed this one and I will definitely be doing this again someday soon. It came together much quicker than I thought it would and the
flavours it delivered were worth every minute!

My BBQ is ready for it's close up

"Mommy, take my picture too!"

My First Pie from Vegan Pie in the Sky

2011-10-24T18:03:00.002-04:00

I was so happy this morning to find my copy of Vegan Pie in the Sky by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. I had been patiently awaiting it's arrival since I heard about it, then pre-ordered it and even more so since the email saying it had been shipped.

I immediately flipped through to see all the delights it held and as I flipped one page honestly just stopped and stared me in the face. The book was picking a pie for me and it seems this book totally has my number! It stopped on Curried Macaroon Pie and I was like..."HECK YA!". I love the combination of curry and coconut and couldn't wait to take a bite of this pie. I quickly went through the ingredients and thanked the pie gods that I had everything I needed on hand. One quick substitution was made in the gingersnap crust, Speculoos cookies! I had found a few packages last weekend and hadn't really done anything with them yet other than eat them (which is an excellent application for these cookies I might add) and I thought they would work perfectly as a sub for gingersnaps.

I grabbed my springform and went to work and in about an hour I was pulling the most delicious looking pie out of the oven. The smell while the caramel cooked was enough to drive me a bit mad and when I had licked the bowl after scraping most of the filling into the pan, I knew it was going to be good but once I saw those slightly caramelized coconutty edges and smelled the faint hint of curry powder I knew it was love. I patiently waited for a bit for it to cool and as soon as I thought it was okay, I sliced into that pie and served myself a little slice. Don't tell, it was before supper! It is so incredible! It is sweet and spicy but not too much, the curry powder blends so perfectly with the sweet caramelized coconut and the edges are seriously the most addictive thing ever. The Speculoos crust works perfectly with it as well and I now think all crusts should be made with them, always! What is in those cookies?!? As I took my first bite of it, Ryan came in the room and just looked in my direction (and my pie's direction) and I just said "no, it's all mine". I'm joking of course...maybe...I'll let him have a slice or two I guess! This is definitely a great first impression from this cookbook and I am definitely going to try out a lot more...don't worry Banoffee Pie, I hear you calling me!

Don't let it fool you...it's a complex tasting pie with a simple look

This is the bite you will fight someone for...trust me!

My First Homemade Vegan Chocolate Bar

2011-10-23T14:41:00.001-04:00

It took me awhile but I have finally made my first vegan chocolate bar! I have been thinking about doing it for awhile and this firsts theme for Vegan MoFo has finally pushed me to give it a go. I couldn't find a deep chocolate bar mould (like a Go Max Go kinda bar size) anywhere but I did find a silicone mould at C.A. Paradis here in Ottawa that would do the trick. As for the filling, my mom has been bugging me for ages to recreate a chocolate bar that she remembers from when she was little. She said it had caramel, peanuts and marshmallow all layered inside a chocolate coating. This gave me the perfect way to make something with Dandies for their MoFo contest! Here's what the final result looked like...

And here's how I did it...

Dandies Bars

1 package of Dandies

2 tbsp vegan margarine

400g of vegan dark chocolate, chopped up if not chocolate chips

3 tbsp coconut oil

1/3 cup of dry roasted peanuts (no salt or seasoning on them)

1/4 cup of crisp rice cereal

1 recipe of your favourite thick caramel sauce

(I used Dulce de Coco from Vegan Desserts by Hannah Kaminsky)

You'll need a deep chocolate bar mould as well. This is the one I used http://www.bakedeco.com/a/flexible-bakeware-c-13924.htm.

1. Combine the chocolate and coconut oil in a medium sized glass bowl and microwave for 1 minute, stopping and stirring every 15 seconds or so until it is mostly melted. Stir until completely smooth and let sit for a few minutes before using to coat the mould.

2. Meanwhile, melt the Dandies and the margarine in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Keep stirring and continue to heat them until they melt and come together. It will happen all of a sudden. When they are melted pour onto a greased half sheet pan and spread it out over half since you want it to be a bit thick. Using a hand held kitchen torch, brûlée the top of the Dandies, like seen below. Set aside.

3. Place your mould on a half sheet pan to help keep it stable while moving it around. Using a small spoon or pastry brush, coat the walls of the mould with the melted chocolate. Place in the freezer for a few minutes to get it to set up. Take out and coat again with chocolate. This time it will set quickly because it's so cold so you have to move quickly. Place in the freezer again for a few minutes to let set.

4.While your mould is in the freezer get the rest of the filling ingredients ready. Spray a pizza cutter or knife with spray oil and use to cut the brûléed Dandies into slices that will fit inside of the mould. Remove the mould from the freezer. Spoon in about a tablespoon of caramel sauce, top with a sprinkle of peanuts (5-6 halves), place a slice of Dandies in followed by a sprinkle of crisp rice cereal and then another slice of marshmallow. Repeat with the rest of the cavities. Pour melted chocolate over the top of each completed bar, smoothing it out on the top. You might have to add a bit more once it settles and fills in all the space. Place in the freezer again for a few minutes to set the chocolate. Remove from the freezer and then release each bar from the mould, trying not to touch the smooth tops or sides because you will leave fingerprints. Really no one will mind if you do leave fingerprints...they will forget all about that once they have a taste of these!

My First Test Recipe for Terry Hope Romero's New Book

2011-10-22T09:30:00.000-04:00

I'm so excited to be testing for Terry Hope Romero's newest book project. It is all kinds of dishes from all over the world and I am so ready to try out some new things! Tonight I made two of the recipes for one big Indian inspired meal. First was Golden Tandoori Baked Tofu.

It was so tasty! Creamy and rich, spicy and bold, just a really amazing combination of flavours. It was so easy too! I had it all prepped and in the oven in like 20 minutes then the oven did the rest.

Then I made Shredded Cabbage with Toasted Mustard Seeds which was also really delicious.

It went really well with the tandoori baked tofu but would also rock any picnic or party spread. These two made quite a first impression...both Ryan and I were in love with both of these and can't wait to try out more!

My First Soy Curls Experience

2011-10-21T09:45:00.000-04:00

Sometimes I feel like I'm living under a vegan rock...it's a Canadian rock since we tend to not have all the wonderful yummies the US is enjoying. We do usually get the same stuff but it takes awhile and usually involves mail order in my case. Thank goodness for Viva Vegan and Karmavore! So up until earlier this week I had never tried soy curls. I had ordered a bag from Viva Vegan and wasn't exactly sure what I was getting or what I was going to do with them but I had heard they were delicious. I kept seeing pictures of the notorious Macnocheeto from Homegrown Smoker and drooling all over my keyboard every time I did. I googled a bit to find how to work with soy curls and found mostly BBQ recipes so decided that's the way I would go too. I soaked them in vegan "chicken" broth instead of water and then pan fried them until they were a bit crispy on the outside. I then poured my made up BBQ sauce (apple butter, ketchup, worcestershire sauce, tamari, apple cider vinegar, cumin, ancho chili powder, coriander, garlic and onion powder and the kitchen sink) into the pan and let it get all thick and sticky and delicious. Man the house smelled amazing! Ryan came into the kitchen and said "I have no idea what you are making but it smells amazing and I want two!" so I knew I had a winner on my hands.

Now to go with the soy curls...I had been introduced to the idea of mac n' cheese with BBQ by Tamasin Noyes during the testing for the upcoming sandwich book and it fricken wowed me! It was one of those combos I had heard of but thought it wouldn't work and it sooooo works! I also like coleslaw with BBQ sandwiches so I did something a little nutty. I made Cheesy Coleslaw and put it on top of the soy curls on a buttered hamburger bun and oh my goodness....it was sooooo good together! It had the crunch from the coleslaw but the tang of a cheesy mac, all mingled in with the slightly sweet, smoky flavour of the soy curls. And I love the texture of these things, it's so perfect for this and immediately I started picturing what else I could make with them. I am totally trying to figure out if I can lightly bread and fry them crunchy on the outside to make a vegan version of this Chinese takeout I used to get, spicy crispy beef. Hopefully I can crack the code on the sauce. I also thought about making carnitas out of them, soaking them in a citrus-y, slightly sweet, cumin flavoured broth, that you then reduce down to make a sauce that you slather on and then broil to finish. All I know...I'm gonna need a bigger bag!

I don't have an exact recipe for the coleslaw but all I did was take shredded cabbage and carrot, poured about a cup of cheesy sauce (almost exactly the creamy sauce from the amatriciana sauce I posted earlier this month), about a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar, lots of pepper and some salt and stirred it all together and gave it about a half an hour to do it's thing and mingle all together before putting it on top of the soy curls. I seriously recommend giving it a shot! Here's the final product...

Happy Spirit Day!

2011-10-20T10:04:00.001-04:00

I'm going to take a quick break from my firsts theme to post this picture...

Today is Spirit Day and Mac and I are both wearing purple to show our support. It honestly is breaking my heart reading about young people taking their lives because of being bullied. I remember when I was in school being picked on because I was overweight and how much that stung but I can't even imagine what it is like to be picked on for something you cannot change or is fundamentally part of who you are. I hope that the world will change and we will all learn to be kinder and more compassionate to one another. I hope that because of something as simple as wearing a purple shirt, someone out there that is struggling will know that there people out in the world that care. Happy Spirit Day to everyone out there, be kind to one another, it can make a world of difference!

My First Veganized Recipe (From Everyday with Rachel Ray)

2011-10-20T09:16:00.002-04:00

For some reason I am super hooked on Food Network Magazine and Everyday with Rachel Ray. They are filled with food I won't eat (and don't particularly like to look at) but I like the way they think. I guess it's mostly comfort food which is what I love to eat and most of the time when I read through them I just think about how I could veganize it.

I picked up the October 2011 issue of Everyday with Rachael Ray at Costco a few weeks ago. I was reading through it and then I saw it...I stood up and ran over to Ryan to show him because I just couldn't believe what I was seeing. Right there in a recipe was "vegan mayonnaise"! The rest of the sandwich was far from vegan but just seeing it written there in this magazine was crazy to me. I have only been vegan for about a year and a half and I have even noticed in that time that veganism has become a little more widely accepted. I was still extremely shocked to see it in the pages of Rachael Ray's magazine. I decided right then and there that I had to make the sandwich but make the whole thing vegan. It wouldn't be so hard anyways and that's kind of my point I guess, it's not usually hard to change up a recipe to make it vegan.

The sandwich was sort of like a Thanksgiving supper on a bun with turkey, cornbread stuffing, cranberry sauce and strangely cheese. During my sandwich testing with Celine Steen and Tamasin Noyes, I had tested a recipe for Gobbler Slices which was a homemade "turkey" cold cut which were incredibly good! I knew these would be the perfect "turkey" for my sandwich and lucky for you Tami has posted the recipe for them on her blog so you can make them too! I also made another one the next day for lunch and used some "chicken-y" seitan sliced thin and it was also really great so you could go either way and get great results.

The recipe for the cornbread stuffing in the magazine relied on some store bought cornbread muffins but I decided to make my own. The recipe is below if you don't have access to vegan store bought cornbread and want to make them too. I went mini but only so they would bake more quickly. I made some cranberry sauce myself as well since I had some frozen cranberries up the freezer that weren't getting much love and never have cranberry sauce in the can. It was so easy to put it together and took three ingredients. Recipe for it is below as well. They mix the mayo with the cranberry sauce which I also did but on the second attempt I just went with the mayo and enjoyed it more. I guess it depends of course on whether or not you like cranberry sauce and I've always been on the fence on that. I definitely enjoyed the sandwich, it's especially good with the pickles added which I totally forgot the first day I made this but they really do make the sandwich. I used thinly sliced dill pickles in place of the cornichons in the recipe but only because I always have a jar of dill pickles in the fridge and have never had a cornichon in my life. I also really loved the stuffing part of this sandwich too. I always thought it was strange to have fruit in stuffing but the apples were really tasty in this and provided a nice bit of crunch too. I'm definitely converted to this kind of stuffing! Here's the recipe if anyone wants to give this one a go...I recommend you do!

Pilgrim Sandwiches (Veganized from Everyday with Rachael Ray)

Makes 4 sandwiches

1 recipe of mini cornbread muffins (recipe below)

1 tbsp olive oil

3 tbsp vegan butter/margarine

1 apple, diced (suggested are gala, mcintosh or honey crisp)

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 ribs celery, finely chopped (or if you are like me and never have celery, 1 tsp celery seed)

Salt and Pepper

2 tsp poultry seasoning

Fresh thyme, a few sprigs, just the leaves removed from the stem

1 cup vegetable stock or vegan "chicken" flavoured stock

1 cup whole berry cranberry sauce (recipe below)

1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise (I used Organic Vegenaise)

4 sandwich rolls, split

1 1/2 lbs. sliced Gobbler Slices or any "chicken-y" seitan sliced thin

Vegan cheese, optional

Thinly sliced red onion and sliced dill pickle (or cornichons), for topping

1. Preheat broiler. Take mini muffins and crumble or cut into bite sized chunks. Place on a sheet pan and broil on middle rack of your oven until slightly browned. This should take about 5 minutes, making sure you mix them up half way so all the pieces get equally crisped. Set aside.

2. Heat the olive oil and vegan butter over medium-high heat in a large skillet until the butter has melted. Add the apple, onion, celery and salt and pepper. If you are using the celery seed, add it when you add the poultry seasoning. Cook the apple/onion mixture until it is starting to soften but still crisp. Add in the cornbread muffin pieces, poultry seasoning, thyme leaves and celery seed if using. Stir to combine then add the vegetable stock to moisten to your liking. (I added about half a cup and found it to be enough). Continue to cook until the broth has been absorbed and the stuffing is browned a bit. Turn off the heat and set aside.

3. Mix the cranberry sauce and mayonnaise together in a small bowl (or don't like I said above). Spread the cran-mayo on the tops of the rolls. Assemble the sandwiches on the bottoms of the rolls, starting with cornbread stuffing, Gobbler slices and vegan cheese if using. Broil to melt the cheese (or if you aren't using the cheese, still broil it briefly to heat up the gobbler slices and rewarm the stuffing. Remove from the oven, top with onion and pickles and roll tops. Enjoy!

Mini Cornbread Muffins

Makes 16 mini muffins

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

2 tbsp sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup + 2 tbsp soy milk

1/4 cup non-dairy plain unsweetened yogurt

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1. Preheat the oven to 425F. Spray a mini muffin pan with spray oil.

2. Mix dry ingredients together in a medium sized mixing bowl. Stir with a whisk or fork to evenly distribute everything. Add the wet ingredients and stir to combine.

3. Using a mini scoop or small spoon, scoop batter into the mini muffin pan. Bake for 8-10 mins or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes in the pan, then move to a rack to cool completely.

Cranberry Sauce

1 cup frozen cranberries

1 tbsp frozen orange juice concentrate

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup sugar

1. Combine all the ingredients in a medium saucepan over high heat stirring until sugar dissolves. Cover and reduce the heat to low for 5 minutes until the cranberries start to split and soften.

2. Remove the cover and turn heat back up to medium-high and bring to a low boil/simmer for 5 more minutes or until it is thickened. It will thicken more once you let it cool. Remove from heat and let cool. Place in fridge, covered once cooled to let chill.

My First Double Post in One Day

2011-10-19T09:55:00.002-04:00

I received a wonderful comment yesterday from Kristen from Different Shades of Green that she was passing on the Liebster Award to me. I will totally admit I hadn't heard of it but when I went to her awesome blog and read about it I was really excited. It is definitely fun for me to write all of this on my blog but to know that someone (at least one person!) is enjoying it really is gratifying and makes me want to keep going and try harder! I have been trying my hardest to do the same for other bloggers by visiting as many as I can and commenting often since I know it makes my day when someone does. I now get to share the love to 5 other blogs by passing it on to them and I will be honest, it was hard to narrow it down to five since there are so many inspiring bloggers out there that I have found during Vegan MoFo.

The Liebster award is given to bloggers with less than 200 followers to show a little love to them. It looks like Kristen researched the word and found it was German for special friend or favorite. Very cool! Thank you so much Kristen! Go check out her blog and spread the MoFo love as well!

Here's how it works:

You show your thanks to the blogger who gave it to you by linking back to them.
You reveal YOUR top 5 pics for bloggers with less than 200 followers, and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.
Post the award on your blog. (Right click on the image, and select 'save image as'.)
Bask in the love from the most supportive people on the internet! And in this case, fellow mofo'ers.
Have fun, and spread the love! :)

So, now it's my turn to pick my favorite 5 MoFo blogs to share the Liebster with. So without further ado, I would like to give the Liebster Award to (in no particular order):

1. Miso for Breakfast - Celyn has a wonderful blog and is giving away things like crazy! She also has been a great support of my blog and it means a lot to me! Thank you!

2. Dorm Room Kitchen - I love all the bold, colourful photographs on this blog and the amazing sketches. You must go see! And you too will be craving Cinnamon Rolls like I have been since the other day when I saw them.

3. Veg-Am - I have really been enjoying the 1 food, 5 ways theme that Dawn has been doing on her blog. The ideas are amazing and so are the photos! And Banana Split Ice Cream is totally on my to-do list!

4. Cloudy With A Chance of Vegan Meatballs - I love the name, I love the step by step photos, I love Alex's and Joe's reviews after each recipe and I love the energy of the whole blog! You can really feel the joy coming off the pages.

5. Cookies for Alligators - I love, love, LOVE Alicia's photography. It has that dreamy feel to it that I really appreciate and I love the way she writes too!

Little note...when I went to get the URL for Alicia's site I saw that she too had nominated me for a Liebster award...too funny and thank you too! Does this mean I get to pick five more blogs?? I'm doin' it...hopefully there's not a Liebster Award police!

1. For the Love of Food - Sonnet (coolest name ever), has a wonderful blog that is filled with healthy recipes using fresh, local produce. I love a girl that loves from scratch cooking and I love this blog!

2. Passing Daisies - I love Rachel's About Me page, you must read it. I love all the memories she shares and I appreciate her honesty. Then go and read about all the delicious food she makes, make some Hot Buttered Apple Cider and maybe a Pumpkin S'Mores Cupcake and then write her a comment to thank her.

3. Naked Vegan Lunch - I have no idea how many followers they have but I love this blog so I'm sharing it! Crystal and Trevor are an awesome vegan couple from London, ON. My favourite posts this MoFo have been the Hungarian MoFo posts on Fridays...I need to make Kaposzta Galuska even though I have no idea how to say it!

4. Vegan Family Dinner - Courtney has also been super supportive of my blog so thank you! And everyone will love hers as well if you don't already. She has yummy pictures and has inspired me to try making my own pickles!

5. Growing Up Veg - I love Vegan Mom's blogging since they are totally an inspiration to me! You have to check out her recipes and homemade vegan Halloween treats!

Now there are lots of new blogs for you to check out! Share the love Vegan Mofo'ers. This month has brought me some amazing new blogs to read and be inspired by and I am so glad I decided to participate this year!

My First Winner!

2011-10-19T09:02:00.000-04:00

I know how exciting it is to win and now I know how exciting it is to give something away. It's true when they say it's better to give than receive...alright, they are at least on par with each other! I am so happy to say that random.org picked #46 which is Ashley F. (@las_dos_ashley) so you are the lucky winner of Vegan Diner by Julie Hasson so now you can try the veggie burger out!

And I decided that in honour of my 100th Twitter follower...I'm going to give away a second book. I took all the entrants from the Vegan Diner giveaway and picked another number from Random.org. This time I got #59 so pbandkelly (@LivinOnArugula) you win a copy of Sweet Vegan by Emily Mainquist.

Congratulations to both of you, please email your addresses to ryan_kelly@rogers.com and I will get your books packed up and out to you as soon as I can! I will definitely do another giveaway soon!

My First Homemade Soda

2011-10-18T09:45:00.001-04:00

I'll admit my focus at the library is usually pretty narrow. I go onto the website and search vegan and then request away. Sometimes I branch out a bit and look through the new releases and awhile back I found Homemade Soda by Andrew Schloss on that list (I put the Amazon page link there since it has the look inside feature, you can even get the recipes for some if you sign in). Strangely, I have never thought to make my own sodas but the idea was intriguing. It has 200 recipes for sodas of all kinds and then some recipes that use the sodas you've made as ingredients. Most of the sodas are naturally vegan (some have milk or honey but I'm sure you could sub soy/almond milk and agave as well) but the recipes are not. The book is quirky and informative, too telling you the history of soda and all about the methods and ingredients as well. There are actually three different methods to carbonate your sodas, one being just add seltzer/soda water to a syrup which is super easy and affordable so you don't have to buy a siphon. I definitely want to try out the cola in the book but it requires some ingredients I will have to keep hunting for like gum arabic and dried bitter orange peel. It also strangely uses Kitchen Bouquet which is something I have used in the past as a gravy browner. Turns out it's basically caramel colour which I have seen on the ingredient list on some sodas.

For my first homemade soda I decided to try something simple and fruity, Strawberry Pineapple Soda. The best part of the recipe is that it only takes a few minutes to make and there is four ingredients. You make a puree of fresh strawberries, pineapple juice and the smallest amount of sugar, strain and add the seltzer water. It is so fresh and tasty without the cloying sweetness you usually get with sodas. No artificial flavours or colours either which is another added bonus to me! I will definitely be picking this book up sometime soon since the library will want their copy back but I have so many more I want to try...like Cream Soda, Rooty Tooty Root Beer, Coconut Milk Fizz, Ginger Pineapple Coconut-Cream Float and Original Orange Crush.

My First Kid Approved Food Post

2011-10-17T10:04:00.000-04:00

So my son Mac is four. He's vegan and very proud of it. He will tell anyone that he talks to and says everything is vegan. But he's picky! Very picky and always has been! I read all kinds of blogs about families that are vegan and they show a plate with hummus or tofu bits or tempeh and I sigh...Mac will not eat those things. He says they can be for me and Daddy. So, I have to be a little more creative about how I get him to try new things or squeeze in those veggies.

Today I thought I would share the ways I have used (successfully) to get him to eat things even though sometimes he may not know he was eating it.

1. One trick I have used is that I get him to eat it a couple of times but I don't tell him he's eating it. Then when he says "I don't like almond butter" I say "You eat it all the time in your pita sandwiches" and then (luckily) he says "Oh...I like almond butter!" I can't say that it will happen for you since I don't know your kid but it has worked for me.

2. Spaghetti is your friend! Mac doesn't know that he likes spaghetti, he does however love spaghetti rice. Difference...we cut the long strands of whole wheat pasta into little tiny pieces since he likes rice but doesn't like pasta. We also use a jarred, organic primervera pasta sauce on it and he hasn't noticed the chunks of carrots somehow. Then we mash up a few spoons of beans or chickpeas or even tofu and mix it in with the pasta and he's never complained. We also sneak a little nutritional yeast in there since it adds some b12 and cheesy flavour. We also put his peas in his spaghetti and he eats more of them that way than if they were right next to them on their own. And it wouldn't work at all if there wasn't a piece of toasted ciabatta cut into a bunch of little pieces next to it. There's no real rule like "you have to eat 2 bites to get bread" just an understanding that he has to eat both and he went with a bite of pasta, a bite of bread, repeat. This is now his favourite supper and he will request it pretty much every night of the week and I don't have to feel guilty about him eating it on some of those nights. Oh...and don't forget the ketchup.

3. Mashed potatoes are also your friends...they are so yummy and most kids will eat them, especially with a little ketchup. I like to add some cauliflower florets to the pot while I am boiling the potatoes and mash it all together. I have also added a can of chickpeas while boiling as well and he was never the wiser. This works awesome as a filling for pierogi which I make in bulk and keep in the freezer for a quick supper even my husband can make.

4. Make the meal more fun and sometimes you can get them to try something new! Just this past weekend, we were reading Blue's Snack Party for about the three hundredth time and I said "How about for lunch tomorrow we have a Snack Party and we can make all the snacks they make in the story but vegan?" and he was sooooo happy! I was making the snacks and Mac actually came into the kitchen and wanted to help. He put together the apple cookie sandwiches while counting the apple slices and drops of agave. He freaked right out when he saw the vegetable race car I had made from a mini cucumber and some carrot slices and I don't think he could have been more excited for the "cheddar" letters made from Wheat Thins and Tofutti cheddar slices. He was having so much fun, he was literally bouncing and wouldn't sit down. He ate most of a vegetable race car and actually stopped Ryan from eating any of the carrot wheels because he wanted to. I usually can't get him to eat carrots and here he was fighting for the right to eat them all! It really didn't take much longer to make than usual lunch and the pay off of how happy he was and seeing him wanting to eat healthy snacks was so worth it!

4. Respect that they aren't going to like somethings but keep offering. I know Mac doesn't like cooked carrots but I still put a few on his plate when we have them. Same with broccoli and every time he would say "but I don't like that" and I would just say okay and eat it up. Then one day he just ate it and said he did like it. Other things like peanut butter, he really seems adverse to, I just let it go and tried almond butter and he was okay with that. I could stress myself out about what he won't eat but life's too short and instead I focus on all the things he will eat! As long as he is a healthy kid, I'm happy!

5. Be a good example. A big reason we ditched dairy and eggs in the first place is because of Mac's food allergies. When he was a baby, we ate what we wanted very carefully and kept it far away from him but as he got older he wanted what we had and we realized it just wasn't going to work. Around the same time, I had my aha moment with food so it made it really easy to give it up since we had a really great reason. Now Mac sees us eating our green beans and wants to try them. Some things he's still not sold on and it's just for grown ups but he does say when he gets bigger he will eat it too so maybe there's hope.

6. Serve something they do like with something they are less in love with. Mac loves potatoes so I know if I want him to try something new and I put it with a potato dish of some sort (mashed, baked, boiled, oven fries, tater tots) there is a better chance he will eat it. He has now come to love when Daddy makes supper because Daddy makes tater tots. It is a bit of a special occasion and while he's all happy about tater tots and corn (off the cob only!) then we slip in a Gardein Crispy Tender or two and he will eat them. This is also how I did get him to eat tofu a few times when I made my own tofu sticks but I just told him they were the same as what he was used to.

7. Last but not least, cook together and always let them lick the bowl! Mac loves to help in the kitchen. I will admit it was hard for me at first since I am a bit of a crazy perfectionist but I learned to let go and have more fun since he has been helping and to leave myself a little extra time to get things done so I'm not panicking about being behind. He loves to knead bread, roll out dough, stir up batters, measure out ingredients, cut things with a butter knife and taste test of course!

Anyways, those are some things that have worked for me with my little picky eater but strangely do not work on my pickiest (my mom!). Anyone out there want to share their tips? Leave a comment and let me know what works for you. Parents of picky eaters unite or we don't stand a chance!

My First Pop Tart...oh wait, Make That Failed Pop Tart

2011-10-16T11:18:00.004-04:00

A little while back my in-laws were in Toronto so I hit them up with my wish list from Williams-Sonoma. I have a bit of a problem with collecting kitchen gadgets and appliances, just ask my overstuffed kitchen/make shift pantry room (that is supposed to be our formal dining room). This time, I just absolutely needed a toaster pastry press and lucky for me, my mother-in-law indulged me and picked one up for me. I kept thinking I should try it but never found the time until I dreamt up the idea to make a S'mores Pop Tart recipe up for the Chicago Soydairy Contest to win a years supply of Dandies. I pictured a graham cracker like pastry with little pieces of Dandies and mini chocolate chips inside that would all mix together when I baked it and a drizzle of chocolate on top once it cooled. Sounds good in theory right but unfortunately didn't work in practice. Here's what I got when it baked.

Tasted awesome, even had the browned marshmallow part but the presentation leaves a little to be desired. Can't see it going in the toaster either. Ryan and I grabbed a fork and dug in but obviously I would have to go back to the drawing board. I had forgotten to account for the incredible growing power of the Dandies. My second attempt involved melting the Dandies with a bit of margarine like I was making Rice Krispie squares and then putting a big spoonful of it on the pastry. It looked like it was working at first but then it exploded out again. I am stumped about how to get it to work but I did come up with a new idea to try based on this whole experience...stay tuned!

And just like the old saying goes...when life gives you failed marshmallow experiments, make S'mores! I baked the rest of the pastry like graham crackers and spooned some of the melted Dandies on, topped with some mini chocolate chips (which melted from the heat of the melted Dandies) and another cracker. Mac had his without chocolate of course and this was his first S'more! Not very original but still very tasty and especially exciting to a four year old that loves marshmallows!

Mac's First S'more

And extra Dandies of course!

My First Gnocchi

2011-10-15T09:00:00.000-04:00

I have a little list in my head of all the foods I want to try making. Gnocchi was definitely on my list and now I can check it off thanks to the newest cookbook in my collection, Spork Fed by Jenny Engel and Heather Goldberg. I pre-ordered it and just got it in the mail yesterday and immediately flipped through to see what yummy recipes the Spork Sisters packed into their first cookbook. There are so many that are going to be made (Sopapillas, Tempeh Bacon Stuffed Potato Pom Poms, PB Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies, Toasted Pecan Spelt Coffee Cake, Homemade Tofu, Chive and Cheddar Skillet Omelets, South Carolina BBQ Tofu Sandwiches, BBQ Style Spelt Pizza...okay I will refrain from listing off the entire book but you get the point, lots of yummy!) but the first one that had to be made was the Potato Gnocchi with Basil in a Roasted Shallot Cream Sauce. The picture looked so enticing, they promised they were less tricky than you have heard and the ingredients (except the basil) were all things I happened to have on hand. It was like it was meant to be!

This was also an opportunity to use two kitchen utensils I had never before used...my potato ricer and gnocchi board. I picked up the gnocchi board one day at a local gourmet shop simply because I knew one day I would try them and it was like $3. And the ricer has been there forever waiting to be used but I have never actually picked it up. Ricing is so much fun, kind of reminded me of this Play-Doh set I had when I was little that was a barber shop kinda deal. It made short work of them too and the potatoes were all uniformly mashed even with the peel still on them.

They are definitely easier to make than I thought they would be with the most time consuming part being the shaping of the actual gnocchi. The sauce came together very quickly and so easy in the Vitamix to get it completely smooth. The shaping took the most time but was also fun and even attracted Mac's attention who soon became my assistant and helped me roll them down the gnocchi board. My assistant quickly became distracted with eating the dough (a favourite hobby of Mac's) and dancing...you know the gnocchi dance right? Every great chef does it I'm pretty sure. Anyways, a quick one minute boil and a saute later, the gnocchi get smothered in a deliciously creamy sauce and served. We served them with some peas and maybe a little toasted dinner rolls...you know some carbs with your carbs! They were so tasty, rich and delicious. The peas worked really well with them too, something about cream sauces scream peas or green veggies of some kind to me. The gnocchi themselves were surprisingly light (for some reason I thought they would be heavier) and tasty themselves since they are seasoned as well. I kept some aside from the sauce so I could try them later with pesto as well like the Spork Sisters suggest in the intro to the recipe.

I definitely recommend the book (and will be posting as I make more of the recipes) and the online cooking classes the Spork Sisters host. I've been a member for about six months now and I really enjoy the recipes and videos they put out monthly. I just wish I lived where they did so I could take more classes in person!

My First Macaron

2011-10-14T09:00:00.000-04:00

I recently borrowed Vegan Desserts by Hannah Kaminsky from the library. I had taken a peek at it before at the book store and quickly decided to add it to my Christmas list but I couldn't wait and lucky for me, the library had a copy. I waited patiently on the list and then my time finally came to borrow this beautiful book. I have to say first off, I'm really impressed with the overall look and quality of this book. Vegan cookbooks are definitely becoming more and more glossy and full of photographs and thank goodness! I love pictures and this book is full of Hannah Kaminsky's beautiful work. I went through the whole book in one go (which is impressive considering I have a four year old who wants my attention all the time) and immediately had at least ten things I seriously had to make right away. I decided the first recipe I would try is the Chocolate Mint Macarons. It was like Hannah's warning that they were tricky made them irresistible to me. I have been watching a lot of Top Chef Just Desserts and these macarons were all over the place. I have never ever had one so I have no idea what the craze is all about but they are seriously precious. I always love those photos where they have lined up all the different colours of them like a little rainbow.

I broke out the stand mixer and the food processor and collected up all my ingredients...I was ready to face this challenge! I mixed up the first batch and they didn't look quite right. I was looking for ribbons of lava and I had a thicker mix than that. I blamed it on my stand mixer which has never had the right bowl. Lucky for me, my mom has her own stand mixer and she lives with us so I grabbed hers and gave it another go. The second batch worked only slightly better but I decided to pipe them anyways hoping that I was wrong about it being wrong and maybe I would get the results I was hoping for in the end. They didn't look right at first but after a minute they settled and spread out a bit and looked more promising. They have to rest for an hour and a half so I patiently (yeah right) waited and looked and waited and wanted to pick at one but resisted and waited. The true telling point would be once they were baked. Unfortunately that batch didn't work either.

But I wasn't going to let that stop me. I went straight to Facebook, sent Hannah a message asking for some help and within the afternoon I had my answer. My super strength microwave was killing my egg replacer and it wasn't getting the body I needed (which I should have known right away because the thing is seriously on steroids). By this point it was too late in the day to start again but I went right back at it and this time used 50% power on my microwave and low and behold...it worked! I got a big fluffy bowl of meringue to which I added the ground almonds and icing sugar. I piped the little guys and went to play a game of Candy Land with Mac to distract me. Once they were baked I knew they were much better than my previous attempts. They even had the little "feet" that their non-vegan counterparts have! The icing for this recipe was minty and I'm not a fan so I just opted out of the minty extract, adding a bit more vanilla extract. They are so delicious and couldn't be cuter. Ryan is in love with them, even just the plain shells. He says that he loves the crunch of the outside and the chocolate flavour on the inside. They really are a special treat and I will definitely make them again. I might even get brave enough to play around with the recipe some day for different colours and flavours.

I do want to say again to Hannah...Thank you sooooo much for your help! I really wanted to try these and I really wanted them to work and I wouldn't have been able to do that without your help. I can definitely say that vegan cookbook authors are the best and most helpful (and available) people around! I'm pretty sure only vegans can say that they emailed the author of their cookbook and got an answer within an hour or two. I can't wait to try more recipes from this beautiful book and hopefully there's one under the tree for me this December too! (hint hint Mom, if you're reading this!)

My First Made Up Baked Good

2011-10-13T09:00:00.000-04:00

I'm definitely one of those people that cooks with a little bit of this and a dash of that, never measuring and usually making it up as I go along. I can usually recreate the dish again and again because I usually have the same instincts each time. Of course, I never bake like this since baking is an exact science. That is until today when I decided I was going to make up a baked good to use up some of my homemade pumpkin butter. I wasn't even sure what I was going for until I was done and I'm still not even sure what to call them. They are kind of like a mix of a light cake and a whoopie pie except they are so big that you couldn't eat two of them sandwiched together. I decided to keep them separated and poured a simple icing over the top to solve that problem. I'm taking suggestions for names but for now I'll call them Pumpkin Butter Mini Cakes and here's the recipe!

Pumpkin Butter Mini Cakes

Makes a bakers dozen

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/4 cups pumpkin butter (or apple butter would work I'm sure)

1/2 cup soy milk

1/4 cup vegetable oil of your choice (I used safflower)

1/4 cup dark brown sugar

1 tbsp molasses

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium sized bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. I usually mix it with a whisk or a fork instead of sifting.

In a large mixing bowl, combine pumpkin butter, soy milk, oil, brown sugar and molasses. Use a whisk to really mix it together. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir until just combined trying not to overmix. The batter will be on the stiffer side. Use a muffin scoop (1/4 cup) and scrape up the side of the bowl as you go to make sure they are level scoops. Place on the baking sheet with about an inch or two of space between them. Bake for 14 minutes, or when a tooth pick comes out clean.

Let cool on a cooling rack at least 15-20 minutes before putting on the icing.

Simple Pumpkin Butter Icing

1 cup icing sugar

1 1/2 tbsp pumpkin butter

(or you can use 1 tbsp of apple cider)

Just mix the two together in a small bowl until you have a pourable icing. Pour a spoonful over each little cake once they have cooled a bit making sure to put the parchment you used on the cookie sheet under the cooling rack to catch the dripping icing. Enjoy!

My First Slow Cooker

2011-10-12T09:00:00.000-04:00

So I'll admit it...I was a bit of a snob when it came to slow cookers. I never tried one and had rarely had anything cooked in one. I guess it's just not something I grew up with. Well, that all changed when I lucked into (or begged, how ever you want to look at it) a testing experience with Carla Kelly! Who knew this modest appliance could do so much! I clearly hadn't given it the credit it deserved. Carla has an amazing book coming out in January 2012 called Quick and Easy Slow Cooking and it is packed with 150 recipes that will make you fall in love with the slow cooker.

I can honestly say I have tasted a lot of what went into this book since I tested over 100 of the recipes for Carla. Not all made the cut because Carla always creates about double the recipes she needs for any given project, that's just how good she is! I have been bugging Carla to share some of the recipes that didn't make it into the book on her blog and maybe she will over MoFo (maybe you should go to her blog now and let her know you want them too!) Unfortunately I didn't take a bunch of pictures (lesson learned) but I do have a few to share and a few others that I have to tell you about even though I can't show you. Carla is still working on the editing and final cut of the book so I'm not sure which ones have made the cut but you should definitely pick up a copy of the book because I know there are loads of yummy meals waiting for you between the covers.

First up I have a picture of one that surprised me. This is Peasant Vegetable Sausage Stew!

It's super warming and delicious and hearty too! It has lima beans in it and this was my first try of these and I was admittedly a little scared of them. You always hear about the horrors of lima beans so I always thought they were gross but they so aren't, they are creamy and delicious! It has homemade Sun-dried tomato Seitan sausage in it (also Carla's recipe!) and all kinds of vegetables so it's also ridiculously healthy too! Always a bonus when something is healthy and tastes great!

Okay, please ignore my less than artful shot of this delicious Potato and Kale Frittata. I couldn't figure out how to get it out of the tin foil liner to take a picture of the whole thing while it was hot and wanted to eat it so badly. I'd never had a frittata before so I have nothing to compare it to but I can say that it tasted amazing! I ate up one slice with a garden salad and then went back for another! Great thing about this one is that it can be served hot or cold so you can make it ahead of time if you like. Also, it had a whole bunch of kale in there so it's a great way to eat up some greens!

This one is Soy Curl (I subbed Tofu) Vindaloo which I served with a Chickpea Roasted Onion flatbread I make all the time (the recipe was from Fine Cooking magazine with a few tweaks). I will preface my comments with this....Everything Carla makes that is Indian inspired was on my favourites list! This had just the right amount of spice, rich tomato sauce that was slightly thick from the lentils in there and because I didn't have access to soy curls, I subbed tofu and it soaked up all the yummy in that sauce! Fingers crossed this one made the cut!

This one is Meaty Mince Stew which was one of two minces I tried for this testing. This one was TVP base and the other was made from Adzuki beans. I made both so I could compare and pick a favourite but I really couldn't, they were both outstanding. I made this one and at Carla's suggestion added some veggies which really made it like Shepherd's Pie which is a favourite of mine.

I really loved this Pasta with Sun Dried Tomatoes, Red Wine and Sweet Pepper Pesto! I subbed the red wine with more vegetable broth since we don't really do liquor in our home. Carla, thankfully, puts all kinds of suggestions for substitutions for things like that. This pasta was seriously packed with flavour from the basil, roasted peppers, nuts and sun dried tomatoes. Sprinkled on top is Carla's Cheesy Mix.

I also tested two kinds of taco fillings for this book and also enjoyed both. I'm not sure which kind ended up being in the book (or maybe both will be in there!) but either way you are in for a treat. The ones in the picture are the Ground Beet Taco and no that isn't a typo! Carla is always trying new things out and this one really paid off. The beet was mixed with TVP and has all kinds of yummy spices added to make the perfect taco. The other ones were Bean Taco Filling and Carla was kind enough to make them at my request because that's the way I always made tacos (that is until tempeh came along). They were excellent too and I'm really curious if both or any of them made it into the book. Tacos are definitely a favourite supper around here!

Some others that I didn't get pictures of but seriously enjoyed were:

Bread Crust Stuffing - Totally changed my mind on stuffing. I never thought I would like stuffing with nuts and dried fruit in it and I loved this!

Miso Cider Onion Soup - Kind of like French Onion Soup but a little sweeter and a little miso-ier (that's not a word but I'm making it one)

Seitan Burgerz - These are seriously one of the best veggie burgers I've had. I couldn't believe how easy they were to make and that you could do that in a slow cooker.

Tomatillo and Tomato Tamales - Carla is a big fan of alliteration! These were my first attempt at making tamales and the first time I had eaten one as well. They were so delicious and this one I served to the in-laws and they enjoyed them as well! So creative that Carla figured out a way to steam them in the slow cooker!

Baked Artichoke Pasta - I was super curious to try cooking pasta in the slow cooker mostly because I was a little skeptical but it does work and this one had a rich creamy sauce mixed with some olives and peppers.

Carbonar-ish Pasta - I think all of the testers might have suggested Carbonara as a recipe we would like to try and Carla delivered. It has these little tofu nuggets that you cook in the slow cooker that taste like tofu pancetta cubes, then you make the sauce and later add them back in. This was a huge hit with Ryan and me. We were quite happy to have enough sauce for 4-6 people all to ourselves!

And tied for my absolute favourite would be the Roasted Cauliflower and Carrot Dal and Tandoori Baked Tofu. I seriously couldn't pick between the two and I think I joked about wanting to marry both of them at some point to Ryan. If these ones aren't in the book once it comes out I will personally campaign to Carla to put the recipes out on her blog or in another book because the world will be a much better place with them in the world! Trust me!

There were lots more that I loved (and another I will blog about soon) and I will remind everyone once the book comes out because this testing experience definitely changed my mind about slow cookers!

My First Vegan Banana Split

2011-10-11T09:45:00.000-04:00

It has honestly been years since I have had a banana split, vegan or not. I remember when I was little seeing it at Dairy Queen and thinking how gigantic they were. Back a couple years ago I got pretty hooked on Banana Split Blizzards from DQ but those went out the window with dairy obviously.

Mac has recently been on a Backyardigans kick where it is literally the only thing he will watch on TV and in one episode they have banana splits and he's been wondering what all the fuss is about since. I should also add that thanks to The Backyardigans, the other day for lunch Mac asked for a vegetable quesadilla, so it's not all bad! Anyways, I decided to try and recreate the classic dessert but all vegan and a slight modification for my little chocolate hater.

Mac's banana split, he told me, would include strawberry, vanilla and blueberry ice cream so I had to figure that one out! I have been testing some ice creams for Carla Kelly lately for a new project of hers and the vanilla was just right for this. I then thought I could probably alter the vanilla to be the other two flavours and I was right...and it was so easy! I just made her basic vanilla and added fresh strawberries with a little lemon juice to one batch and some frozen blueberries and lemon juice to another. Perfection, Carla is a genius! For the rest of us I went with the classic strawberry, vanilla and chocolate. For the whip cream I used Healthy Top from Mimic Cream. That stuff is wonderful, only takes a little bit of planning and so easy to use. I always have at least one container on the shelf at all times, you know, in case of emergency whipped cream needs (those happen, right?). I made the fruit sauces myself and will put my "recipe" (I use the term very loosely) below.

Mac was pretty impressed with the whole thing and even though it was three tiny scoops of ice cream and half a small banana it seemed like an all you can eat ice cream buffet to him! He decided that he didn't need sauce or whipped cream or cherries, he just wanted the ice cream and banana. He even walked away before it was all finished saying "it's just too much". I know he's mine but things like that make me question it. Good for him I say, to know when enough is enough. It seems like something he just came with. For the grown-ups, we went for a scaled down but all out banana split experience. Vanilla, strawberry and chocolate ice cream with pineapple, strawberry and chocolate sauce, topped with a little dollop of Healthy Top and a cherry of course!

It might not look that glamorous to us but I swear to Mac it was like Candy Land in a bowl! He freaked right out for this!

I will say that it was a fair bit of friggin' around to make all the ice creams and toppings but it was totally worth it since they were all so friggin' delicious! It is definitely a special occasion treat that requires a little planning but that's probably best. I don't agree with Michael Pollan all the time but that rule he came up with where you can eat whatever you want as long as you make it all from scratch and you then won't eat it everyday really does make a lot of sense and applies to this for sure! I earned this one!

Strawberry Sauce

2 cups sliced fresh strawberries (local if you can get them)

3/4 cup organic sugar (or not organic, it's up to you!)

1 tbsp lemon juice (fresh or bottled)

1 tbsp cornstarch mixed with a splash of cool water to get it liquid and no lumps

Put berries, sugar and lemon juice in a medium sized pot over medium heat. The sugar will start to dissolve and the juices will release from the berries after a minute or so, just keep stirring. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the berries have softened a bit and it looks like a runny jam. Blend with an immersion blender (carefully since it is really hot and might splash) but leave some little chunks of strawberries in there. Add the cornstarch that has been mixed with water to the strawberry sauce to thicken if you want it a little more jam like, making sure to keep stirring while you add it in. Cook until thickened. Remove from heat and let cool before storing in the fridge.

Pineapple Sauce

1-14oz can of organic pineapple chunks

3/4 cup organic sugar

1 tbsp lime juice (fresh or bottled)

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 tbsp cornstarch mixed with a splash of cool water to get it liquid with no lumps

Cut the pineapple chunks into smaller pieces so they will cook down a bit faster, especially the harder core pieces. Place the pineapple and all the juice from the can in a medium size sauce pan over medium low heat with the sugar, lime juice and vanilla extract. Let it cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the pineapple is softened. Blend with an immersion blender (careful of it spitting, it's hot!) but not smooth, you want to have some texture in there. Add the cornstarch slurry while stirring so you don't get lumps and cook until thickened. Remove from heat and let cool before storing in the fridge.

My First (Blogged) Vegan Thanksgiving

2011-10-10T09:00:00.000-04:00

So what does a vegan have for Thanksgiving? Well for us this year we can be thankful because we definitely had plenty. On Saturday morning, Ryan, Mac and I went to the local farmer's market and picked up some delicious locally grown veggies. We even found Brussels sprouts still on the stalk so I had to have those! The lettuce, tomatoes and the tomatillos weren't used for Thanksgiving but they will definitely get used in something soon.

The first vegan Thanksgiving I had, I remember being frantic about what to have. I wasn't sure how the non-vegans would handle the lack of "tradition" but then I thought about what really makes the holiday (or any holiday for that matter) and realized it's not about what you are eating, it's about being together. I maybe had to remind my mom of this a few times in the early stages of my veganism but I never minded because I know those familiar food memories run deep and can be hard to get past. I've never been one for strict tradition anyways...we've had lasagna for Christmas dinner before!

This year was a lot more relaxed for me. I know my family enjoys what I cook and I stress less about them missing something and just make something I know they can't resist! My mom and I were cooking and prepping for about a day and a half but it was all worth it because it tasted so good! We had French lentils with roasted vegetables (cabbage, mushrooms, rutabaga, carrot, onion and shallots), mashed caulipots (cauliflower+potatoes), carrots mashed with rutabaga (maybe a Newfie thing), green beans, dressing (or stuffing, dressing seems again to be a Newfie thing), homemade rolls, roasted vegetable gravy, Brussels sprout salad and pickled beets (the last two didn't make the picture but were so good too). Quite a plate, my eyes were definitely bigger than my belly too since I couldn't finish all that I took.

Then there was dessert of course! We had pumpkin pie which is a favourite of Ryan's but I had never tried it before or made it. I also made some apple fritters and maple pecan ice cream thinking that Mac wouldn't want to try the pumpkin pie (or in case I was right about it all this time) but he tried it and said it was good but only wanted one bite and then was looking for apple fritters. I served the pumpkin pie with some Healthy Top and candied pecans which worked really well with the spicy pumpkin filling. I'm totally a convert on this pie now. I was always a little afraid of it but in the spirit of trying new things I gave it a go and really enjoy it. The recipe I used for the filling (which was recommended to me on Twitter by @JoytheVegan) is by Bryanna Clark Grogan and it isn't tofu based and it's so deliciously spiced. It was like the best pumpkin spice latte turned into a pie! The pastry is from the Joy of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau which everyone should have a copy of. The fritters were a test recipe from Hearty Vegan that didn't make the book unfortunately. I was very happy to have saved the recipe in my testing binder so I could have them today.

Happy Thanksgiving to anyone who is celebrating it this long weekend! We definitely enjoyed our day of playing Candy Land, looking through photos, cooking and eating and spending time with our amazing family.

My First Tempeh Tacos

2011-10-09T09:45:00.000-04:00

So by now, maybe you've figured out I'm in love with tempeh! (And maybe tacos too!) I want to use it everywhere now and definitely have been going back through all the ideas/recipes I had seen before where people used it and I turned up my nose. One way I had heard over and over for tempeh to be used was tempeh tacos so now I had to try it!

Once a week my husband's parents come over for supper and when we asked them if they were up for trying tempeh, my mother-in-law said she was definitely in just based on how much I was raving about it on this blog! Too sweet and supportive! I knew they were in but I knew my mom would not want to try them so I decided I would make two kinds of tacos for supper, one batch of tempeh tacos and one batch of bean taco filling.

I started each with the same base of sauteed onions, then added some diced cremini mushrooms to both (more in the beans since the tempeh already has so much flavour on it's own) and browned those as well. I added the tempeh to one pan as well as some tomato paste and homemade taco seasoning and let the tempeh brown slightly to really get that delicious brown, toasty flavour and once it browned added some water and let it simmer and really absorb the flavours of the now sauce. For the beans, I added a mix of navy beans and black beans to the other pan, with the tomato paste and seasoning but immediately added water to the beans since they don't need to brown at all. I let them both simmer until the liquid had reduced down and thickened up and added just a tiny bit of tamari to boost the flavours a bit. I served them in hard shells with toppings (lettuce, diced tomato, homemade tomatillo salsa, homemade guacamole, diced onions, julienned radish, taco sauce and Tofutti sour cream).

My in-laws both went with one of each kind and liked both! My mom of course went with the beans and really enjoyed them as well! Ryan went with two tempeh ones, then a taco salad made with a mix of both so I think he liked them too...haha! I had the tempeh tacos and again...I love tempeh! It makes such a great taco since it has a bit of crunch/texture, nutty flavour and really absorbs the flavour of the seasoning. We had leftovers which I am so looking forward to today! I think this may be my new go-to taco!

I would love to share the tastes of this one with you so here's the recipe for the seasoning I used and the salsa I made which was really simple!

Taco Seasoning

2 tbsp paprika

1 tbsp onion powder

1 tbsp garlic powder

1 tbsp cumin

1 tbsp chili powder

1/2 tbsp oregano

1/2 tbsp ground coriander

1 tsp dried thyme leaves

2 tsp - 1 tbsp salt (it's totally up to you how much you add)

Mix all the seasonings together in a small bowl, stirring until well combined. Add to your beans or tempeh by generous pinch and keep tasting until you find the right level of seasoning for you.

Tomatillo Salsa

10-12 medium sized tomatillos (I got super lucky at the local market last weekend)

1 medium sized white onion

3 large cloves garlic, peeled

1 jalapeno pepper, washed and left whole

1-2 tbsp olive oil

Salt and Pepper

1 cup vegetable broth

Preheat the oven to 425F. Quarter the tomatillos and the onion and place on a large sheet pan. Add the garlic and jalapeno to the pan and drizzle the olive oil over all of it. Spread the oil onto all the ingredients with your hands, it's the best way! Place in the hot oven for about 45-60 minutes, until the skins of the tomatillos and the onions are browning a bit. Once this happens, remove it from the oven then add the tomatillos, onions and garlic to the jar of your blender. Since jalapenos are never consistently hot, I only added about half of the pepper at first without seeds. Blend on high until mostly smooth but make sure you leave a vent for that steam to get out or you might have a mess on your hands! Taste it...this is the most important part of cooking I think. I add some of the vegetable broth at this point to thin it out a bit without watering it down flavour wise. Blend again to combine and refrigerate it covered if you are making it ahead of time.

My First Loveletter...to a condiment

2011-10-08T10:00:00.000-04:00

I really love sauces. Call them what you like, condiments, dipping sauces, spreads, drizzles, reductions...I love them and I really don't eat anything without something! I found when I went vegan that as long as I could have the same sauce, it really didn't matter what it was on. I realized that even before I was vegan, I didn't love the steak part, I loved the sauce that came with it and the fried onions and mushrooms. I didn't love the chicken, I loved the spice rub on it and the side dishes. Once I figured that out, life got a lot easier. Most sauces or condiments rely on veggies or fruits for their flavour (think mushrooms, soy, garlic, shallots, tomatoes, etc.) and if not, some creative vegan out there has found a way to recreate it without it...trust me, vegans are wild when it comes to creativity in the kitchen!

This post though...it's all about one condiment that I have seriously fallen for. Let me introduce you to a favourite of mine, Cheezy Mayo from American Vegan Kitchen by Tamasin Noyes! If you haven't had it, get ready because your world is about to change! It is super simple to make yet incredibly complex flavour wise. It is full of umami flavour that makes you go "Mmmm!". Around here we use it whenever we can find a reason to. It is especially good on burgers (even more so with sauteed mushrooms) and completely replaces the need for any cheese. It works awesome on hot dogs and you don't even need anything else with it. I love it on baked potatoes in lieu of sour cream with minced green onions. I have dipped broccoli in it and green beans too. And recently we tried it on a different kind of potato. This one was in the latest edition of Food Network Magazine in that little booklet in the middle. The whole booklet is about stuffed baked potatoes and alot of them are easily veganized. The first one I saw had sauteed mushrooms and onions with sour cream on top and I swear as I was saying it out loud to Ryan and started to utter "Cheezy mayo", Ryan smiled and said "I was just thinking that". Sometimes we have those moments...it's usually inner fat kid moments like that one! And oh boy were we right!! Like you need to go preheat your oven right now and bake a potato to try it kinda right. Tamasin is so kind that when I asked if I could share the recipe for Cheezy Mayo, she gave me the go ahead.

Cheezy Mayo

Makes 1/3 cup

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon white miso paste

1/4 cup vegan mayonnaise

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Mix well. Cover and refrigerate until needed. Properly stored, it will keep for up to 5 days.

For a delicious baked potato, like the one we had the other night just take 8oz thinly sliced mushrooms (any kind you like, I used cremini) and saute them in a little bit of olive oil until golden brown. Set those aside and saute one medium sized onion, halved and sliced real thin maybe adding another little bit of oil because those mushrooms most likely soaked it all up before. Once you get the onions slightly browned (that's where the yummy is), add the mushrooms back into the pan to get them hot again. Now take the baked potato and cut a slit across the top then squeeze the ends together to get that perfect baked potato you get at restaurants. (I'll be honest I make my mom squeeze them all for us since she has self-proclaimed asbestos hands) Top with a good scoop of the mushroom/onion mix then top with a dollop of the Cheezy Mayo. A little pepper wouldn't hurt either and ENJOY!

Here's a picture of mine to drool over until you make these!

My First Puppy Post

2011-10-07T10:00:00.000-04:00

This is Roscoe*

This is Zuma

They are our puppy friends who let us take care of them. They enjoy treats, belly rubs and chasing each other around the house. They are also vegan just like us. They didn't exactly tell me that they wanted to be but I went out on a limb and tried them on a vegan dog food (this one) and they both are doing really well on it. Roscoe used to be really stinky and now he's only really stinky occasionally. Vegan diets can do a lot but they can't work miracles. Zuma has slimmed down a bit and has lots of energy. Both of their coats are much softer and less flaky. I have learned since that Roscoe loves pumpkin, lettuce, beets and tofu. Pumpkin we found out last year when he literally scraped off the face of my jack o'latern I had spent hours carving. We know that not everyone is on board with vegan diets for dogs but most people aren't on board with it for people either and it was hard to keep feeding them something we didn't think was good enough for us.

We feed them Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance Vegetarian Formula which on their site says it's a true vegan formula. From our reading about vegan dogs, we found there were two amino acids dogs need to stay healthy (L-carnitine and taurine) and both of these are found in this dog food. As for treats we use Fruitables (think fruit+vegetables=fruitables) and Crumps Naturals Sweet Potato Rawhides (just like those other ones except way less gross and made from Ontario sweet potatoes...that's it!) and our dogs freak out for them. Roscoe once walked on his hind legs with his nose stuck to the unopened bag all the way from the front door to the kitchen just to sniff a bag of Fruitables. They are incredible and tiny so they can have a few in a day and they don't put on extra weight. We never used to feed the dogs people food...alright I didn't, my mom is a sharer...but now I am a little more free with it. Roscoe and Zuma usually start circling once they see the cutting board out. Veggie time means snack time for them. I am always surprised what they love, like Roscoe loves the lettuce "bones" (crunchy stem part) and will bark at me to get my attention when I am making salad. He also comes running when he hears the tofu press coming out since he loves plain tofu. Zuma loves oranges, especially clementines and I swear as soon as you break into the peel and that first little spray of oil comes from the peel, Zuma comes running.

So there's my first puppy post though I'm sure it won't be the last, these two are too cute not to share with everyone!

* Roscoe looks so regal in this picture...in all reality, he's a big goof ball. These pictures were taken out on our front lawn while we were having a picnic and Roscoe is on guard making sure there's no one coming to steal our food...that's his job, after all!

My First Giveaway

2011-10-06T08:45:00.000-04:00

In honour of my first Vegan MoFo and my first cookbook review, I have decided that one lucky reader of my little blog will win a copy of Vegan Diner by Julie Hasson! You saw all the deliciousness that I made out of it and now it could be your turn to try out this wonderful book!

It's super simple to enter, all you have to do is comment below what recipe you would most like to try from Vegan Diner! You can even score another entry by following me on Twitter (@kellycvegan) and leaving another comment that you did. I will even do you one more, become a follower through Google Connect (at the top right of the page) and leave me another comment letting me know you did and that will get you another entry (and of course if you are already are doing either or both of those things you can leave a comment letting me know and it will count as well). I really want to give you this book! I will close the giveaway on October 18th, 2011 at midnight EST and head over to random.org and pick a winner so you have lots of time to get your name in there. Open to anyone who wants to win! (I'm springing for the postage, haha!) The winner will be posted on October 19th. Good luck everyone!!! I promise you, you want this book in your life!

And just to let everyone know, I bought both copies of the book and chose to do the giveaway because I enjoyed it so much!

My First Cookbook Review

2011-10-05T09:12:00.000-04:00

I cant even believe how many amazing vegan cookbooks there are out there right now! I know I have about 15-20 out on my bookshelf right now and about 10 more on my Christmas wish list. One book that caught my eye even when it was only available for pre-order was Vegan Diner by Julie Hasson. Julie is a busy woman! She and her husband run a vegan food cart in Portland (Native Bowl is totally on my to-do list), writes some kick butt cookbooks, family life, judging Vegan Iron Chef comps, and more! You can check out Julie's blog at http://www.juliehasson.com and check out Facebook for the Vegan Diner page.

When I first got the book in my hot little hands was literally giddy! I love the cover even, bright and clean with classic diner style. I flipped through and read each recipe name and the little blurb and felt like I could hear Julie's voice. I love when that comes through in a cookbook, making you feel like the author actually loves these recipes and wants to share them with you. The book starts out with a great intro to the ingredients you will find in the book that you may not be completely familiar with and a list of equipment as well. All the ingredients were pretty standard fare and I think the only ones I don't have in my pantry were soy curls and malt powder which I am now on the hunt for. Always a good start when you don't feel like you have to seek out a bunch of different products to use the book.

The day starts with breakfast and so does Julie. There is something for everyone in the section from granola to apple spice coffee cake to two different scrambles and even donuts! In my house breakfast is usually a sweeter one like waffles or pancakes so I decided to delve into the Crispy Banana-Cinnamon Waffles! I was intrigued by the secret ingredient of these waffles, crispy rice cereal, and the flavors of banana and cinnamon are a favourite around here. First off I loved that Julie went with a mix of whole wheat and all purpose flour and there is no sugar in them either! Now these are waffles I can feed my family and not feel any guilt about. And you know what's great...they taste awesome and are so quick to make too! I swear I had them together before the waffle maker had preheated, now that's quick! They taste like warm, crisp banana bread, the cinnamon was just right and even without anything on top they were perfectly sweet and tasty. The maple syrup we drizzled on top just heightened all the flavours and made them feel extra special. The recipe says it makes a larger batch and it does, I got 12 pieces out of one batch which is awesome because we had extras leftover that I put in the freezer for a few quick breakfasts down the road.

Mac taste testing the batter for the waffles

Crispy Banana-Cinnamon Waffles

Next up is a chapter dedicated to breads! Mmm bread! It had English muffins and burger buns, garlic dill bread and biscuits. I read through and was amazed at how quickly the burger buns went together so I just had to try them. How can 5-6 ingredients and like 40 minutes prep/rise and 15 minutes of baking produce a burger bun?! It just seems like that should be more complicated but it's really not! These buns are not like the ones I get at the store...they're better! They are soft and tasty and amazing! I won't be buying those buns with all those words I can't pronounce anymore for sure. These are so quick and easy I could easily make them the day that we are planning to have veggie burgers. My son helped me shape the buns and was quite impressed with himself as well. He opted for no sesame seeds and couldn't even wait til they cooled to try it. He had half of one with butter while it was still warm and really enjoyed it. He was enjoying it so much I had to try! Then at lunch time later on that day he asked for the other half of his bun with almond butter and jam. He's really diggin' these buns!

Soups, Salads and Sides was up next and I dove right into those All-American Beer Battered Onion Rings! I love onion rings and now only eat them when I make them. They are definitely a treat now but that's okay...they're supposed to be! Haha! Unfortunately I didn't catch a picture of these but that just shows you how good they were! I wasn't thinking about cameras or pictures, I was thinking about eating up some onion rings. The batter is lightly spiced which adds a nice flavour to the coating, nothing worse than a bland onion ring. The instructions are to deep fry them in a deep pot but I opted for using my deep fryer since I'm a little bit of a chicken when it comes to deep frying. I like that the fryer tells me the temperature of oil as well. I served these up and everyone dug in and loved them! They taste just like what you would get at any diner, they weren't overly greasy (hey they are fried after all!) and they were really easy to put together. A+ in my books!

For the Main Course, I decided to let my husband pick. He flipped through and he went with Philly Seitan Sliders. I have to agree...they look awesome in the picture so it wasn't a hard sell for me. Ours were less slider more sub bun sized since I wanted to make these for a weekday supper and it needed to be quick and that's what we had on hand but they were so delicious, I don't think it mattered what kind of bun it was on. It has thinly sliced seitan sauteed with onions and peppers all stacked onto a bun then drizzled with a cheesy sauce! I highly recommend the optional cheese sauce with the addition of umi plum vinegar. Without it, it was good, with it, it was perfection. Ryan really enjoyed these as they were something he always ordered pre-vegan when we were out somewhere. It's nice to be able to whip up a great vegan version of them anytime. They are so quick if you make the seitan ahead of time and the cheese sauce only takes minutes and a good blender to make.

Look at that cheesy sauce!? So good!

Now for the sweetest part, DESSERT!! Julie didn't just give you a few to pick from, she gave you 24 desserts! Come on now, that's awesome! I have a major sweet tooth so I'm happy when a cookbook doesn't skimp on the best part. I decided that I couldn't make just one dessert for this review...I had to make two! I picked one that I thought Ryan and my mom would enjoy and one that I though Mac would enjoy so everyone could have something sweet. I went with the Ooey Gooey Brownies for the chocolate lovers (aka Ryan and my Mom) and Oatmeal Raisin Cookies for the non-chocoholics (that's me and Mac). First I made the oatmeal raisin cookies and will admit I had a bit of trouble with them. I baked them and they spread like crazy so the next batch I halved the dough and didn't flatten them and then they worked perfectly. They taste great and are easy to put together for sure! Mac really loved them and happily shared one of the gigantic ones that spread with me. I even dipped mine in a glass of soy milk which I don't usually do but this cookie seemed like it would be even better if you did.

The Ooey Gooey Brownies went much easier. They are so quick to put together I think it took longer for my oven to preheat! They baked perfectly in 20 minutes and the icing was so easy yet so tasty. Got to love when it works out like that, tasty doesn't always mean complicated. I served them up to my in-laws as well as Ryan and my mom and everyone really loved them. They kept saying how fudgey and chocolate-y they were and they all had at least two so that's a ringing endorsement! I will definitely be making these again and again since they are one of Ryan's new favourites.

After all the yummy things we have tried from this book so far I can definitely highly recommend it to anyone who loves diner classics and pretty much anyone who loves food. Everything we tried so far has been delicious, quick and easy to make. I will keep cooking my way through all the recipes since it was honestly very hard to narrow it down to these few for this review. It would have been a very long (alright longer) post if I had made all the recipes that initially jumped off the page at me screaming "Make Me!"

Now go show Julie some love and pick up a copy of Vegan Diner, if you haven't already! Or maybe you will win one sometime soon...maybe from this very blog! (Check back tomorrow!)

My First Interview

2011-10-04T09:00:00.000-04:00

When I started thinking up ideas for my month of firsts for MoFo, one of the first ideas I had was to do an interview and right off the bat I knew who I wanted to interview. Celine Steen was pretty integral in my easy transition to veganism back in spring 2010. I had slowly given up meat and dairy and eggs went out together in one fell swoop. Problem was, I wasn't really sure what to make for supper now! I learned that vegan blogs were a great resource for recipes and product information and somehow I stumbled upon Celine's blog, Have Cake, Will Travel. It was full of beautiful photographs of delicious food and even better Celine was sharing recipes. Then one day, for the first time ever I might add, I commented on her post about recipe testing. I wasn't thinking anything would ever come of it and a little later I on I got an email from Celine extending an offer to test for Hearty Vegan. I swear I was literally jumping up and down I was so excited. I never even thought that would happen and I couldn't believe that I would be some how involved in the making of a cookbook. I quickly accepted and entered the test site and was in awe. This food was amazing! It was closer to what I was eating before I went vegan except it was all perfectly vegan. I couldn't have asked for a better intro into vegan cooking. I think if it had been any other book, it wouldn't have worked like it did. At the time, I was scared of new things and didn't know what to expect from vegan food. It looked like what I was used to and tasted like what I was used to so it was less scary I guess. I needed that in order to go from my previous diet to this one. I definitely have opened up since then but this was what I needed to get here. I still swear that it helped ease Ryan into becoming vegan as well. All it took was a little Irish Nachos and Ryan was convinced. I remember at the time thinking it was all magic...Vegan Magic that is! That experience alone would make a special place in your heart for someone but Celine also extended her friendship to me. She has been so supportive of me and encouraging of me starting up this blog. She really is an amazing person as well as a super talented photographer and cookbook author. I really could go on and on about her but instead I would like to share my first interview with you all so you can get to know a little bit more about Celine with me!

1. Can you tell me a bit about your first MoFo? I think I first MoFo'd when the very first MoFo ever took place. It wasn't as huge or well-structured as it is now of course, but it was fun! I probably had no idea what I was doing. I'm not sure I do now either.

2. What first inspired you to start blogging? Is Have Cake, Will Travel your first blog? Jess (http://www.getsconedpdx.com/) is actually the one who inspired me to start a veg blog back in 2005. We knew each other from LiveJournal, so when I became vegan and saw how great her blog was, I just went for it. The first blog I had was actually called, wait for it: celineyum. It is now defunct. Not that it was necessarily bad, but I don't know what I was thinking when I picked the name.

3. How did you come to write your first cookbook? The people of Fair Winds Press got in touch to see if I was interested in writing a book. I most definitely didn't start blogging with the idea of a cookbook lurking in the back of my mind, but seeing that I was blogging recipes constantly at the time, it felt right to do it.

4. Do you remember the first recipe you created? I believe that would the pumpkin brownie cake. I just threw stuff together in a bowl, hoped for the best and voila.

5. You were the first person to extend their friendship to me in the vegan world and really helped me transition to being a confident vegan cook. Who was your first? I think it's a whole plethora of my favorite authors that made me more kitchen-confident. Ellen Abraham, Laura Matthias, Sarah Kramer, Isa Moskowitz...But the person who inspired me to go vegan and cheered me on when I took the plunge was someone else I knew from LiveJournal, Julie S. from Ohio.

6. When and how did you first start photographing food? I started taking pictures as soon as I started blogging, so that would be back in 2005. I had never used a camera before then, so it was a bit of a challenge.

7. What was the first camera you owned? Do you have any pictures you took with it that you could share? It was a small Olympus Stylus. Celine sent me a few pictures or me to show that she took with it. And she sent me the link to the recipe for the cookie (first picture with the green icing), saying she adores them! http://vegweb.com/index.php?topic=6711.0

8. What was the first recipe that really challenged you when you were trying to veganize it or create it? To this day, I would have to say vegan cream cheese. I still haven't mastered the perfect replica to the awesomeness that is Tofutti.

9. What was the first vegan cookbook you owned? Do you still use it or did it inspire you to start your own collection of recipes? I believe it was How It All Vegan. I never get to cook from cookbooks anymore, and that's a shame. I wouldn't necessarily credit books for inspiring me to start writing my own recipes, but rather the vegan blogging community.

10. What's the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word "Vegan"? Scott Pilgram ruined me. "Chicken isn't vegan?" is the first thing that comes to mind these days. But really, the most important word association to me is: For the animals.

11. What was the first holiday you celebrated as a vegan and how did it go? I don't really celebrate holidays. My middle name might very well be Scrooge.

12. Who was your first vegan crush? (I mean you adore them for their work or ideals of course) Laura Matthias, I'd say. I don't see her cookbook mentioned as much as it should be, but if I had to save one and only one cookbook from my collection, I believe it would be hers. (I'd still cry a lot for leaving the other ones behind, though.)

13. Who do you go to first with your new ideas and recipes? Occasionally my mom, or Tami/Joni if we are busy writing a book together. I love getting feedback from all these ladies, because I know they won't hold back and tell me if my ideas blow.

14. What was your first recipe testing experience like? I think the first recipes I ever tested for someone else were for Joanna's zine. I have a hard time sticking to rules and accuracy is clearly vital when you're a tester, so while I remained faithful to the instructions and got amazing results because Joanna's recipes are gold, I just think I have an easier time creating recipes than I am at testing them for other folks.

Thanks again Celine for taking time out of your busy day to share this with me and my blog! I appreciate it since I know how busy you are right now and I truly appreciate and cherish your friendship! Show Celine some love now and go buy one (or all) of her awesome books!

My First Deep Fried Avocado Tacos

2011-10-03T09:35:00.000-04:00

I would have honestly never even thought to try battering and frying a wedge of avocado if it weren't for Seabirds vegan food truck but once I heard about it, I couldn't stop thinking about it (maybe even a few dreams about it). I desperately wanted to know what it would taste like but I am about as far away from California as I could get (slight exaggeration but it feels like it in December, trust me!) so I knew my only hopes of getting one of these bad boys in my belly was to do it myself. Then along came a test recipe for Carla Kelly's newest project (more details on this one when I can) that just seemed to call out for me to do it! Carla's recipe was a battered tofu (pictures and post about those another day!) that was amazing and will definitely get made again. I broke out my deep fryer for the tofu and figured while I had it out I would make some chips to go with it. I don't take it out often so I thought I would try the avocado out as well if there was leftover batter. Well there was leftover batter but at suppertime I was in too much of a hurry to eat hot tofu and chips so I kinda bailed on the idea. About an hour later after our company had left and the kid was in bed sleeping, I heard the deep fryer calling my name...it was taunting me for not even trying and I couldn't let it talk smack like that so I headed back down there, fired up the deep fryer and sliced up a firm yet ripe avocado. I dipped it in the batter and fried until golden and when they came out I placed them on a paper towel to get some of the oil off, then sprinkled with a bit of salt. I busted out some tortillas, browned them a bit in a pan, added some salad I had made in the fridge, a few slices of tomato and a little drizzle of tomatillo salsa and a squeeze of lime juice. They are seriously heavenly! There is an initial crunch of the batter followed by a creamy bite of avocado. They didn't go to mush or anything. I had always wondered what it would taste like and now I know...delicious! There isn't really a comparison that I could draw, it just tastes amazing and unique (in the best possible way). I made one for me and one for Ryan and we had a little taco party in the kitchen. I convinced my mom to come up and take a bite, though she was pretty skeptical, but she did like it! I will definitely try these again some time and can see why Seabirds has such a following!

My First Serious Post

2011-10-02T09:00:00.004-04:00

October 2nd is World Farm Animals Day in celebration of Mahatma Gandhi's birthday. It was started back in 1983 by FARM (Farm Animals Right Movement) and continues now with participants all over the US and over 2 dozen countries in the world. They hope to expose the suffering involved in the food business on all sentient beings and hopefully inspire change. Their website is http://www.wfad.org/index.htm if you would like more information. Other sites that you can check out if you are interested in learning more about the short life of farmed animals are Mercy for Animals, Compassion Over Killing and Farm Sanctuary's websites. They are all working tirelessly to change this world for both us and the animals. I'd like to share a few quotes from Gandhi on his birthday that really resonate with me.

"A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history."

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."

"An ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching."

I could go on and on and quote him all day but what I choose to do is practice instead of preach. Sometimes it feels like it's not enough but then I realize I made a difference in my life, my husband's life, my son's life just by living the way I do not by going on and on with facts and figures. Those figures do matter but I really believe living it is the best example I can set.

Thank you so much to Farm Sanctuary who gave me their blessing to use the photographs to show some truly beautiful beings that have been spared. Every time I feel like it's not enough or even just feeling a little blue I go onto their Facebook page or website and look at these beautiful photographs and read their stories about how they faced some of the worse things humanity has to offer and have still found love in their hearts to share with the brave, compassionate people that are working to help them and all the other animals out there.

My First Original Recipe

2011-10-01T10:00:00.002-04:00

I've been so excited for this to all start! I have planned out my posts, prewritten a bit on the advice of more experienced bloggers and now it's here! I'm so excited about sharing the next month of posts with you as I blog about some of my Firsts!

Up first....My First Original Recipe that I would like to share with the world. This is a recipe that I veganized for my mom. She really used to love the Chicken Amatriciana at East Side Marios. Like honestly every time we went there that's what she would order. I never really tried it since it really didn't sound like my kind of thing but she described it to me as a rose sauce with sauteed bell peppers, mushrooms and unfortunately chicken and bacon. When I went to veganize it I decided the chicken and bacon weren't something I was going to add. My mom isn't a huge fan of tofu and refuses seitan so that would make it tricky. I decided instead to go for a bold, creamy sauce with lots of veggies and hope it would hit the spot and it did...she really loves this one! And so does everyone else who's tried it. I have never written a recipe before so hopefully it's all clear and here it is! I will say I would have trouble saying how many servings this makes since my husband eats gigantic portions of pasta but I would guess it would be 6 servings since we usually feed us grown ups for supper and get two lunches out of it too (and it's always tastier the second day since all the flavours meld together overnight).

Pasta Amatriciana

Roasted Tomato Sauce

18 plum tomatoes, halved

2 small white cooking onions, quartered

5 large cloves of garlic, peeled

Salt and Pepper

2-3 tbsp olive oil

Cream Sauce

3/4 cup raw cashews (soak them if you are using a food processor or regular blender)

1 1/2 cups non-dairy milk (I used soy)

1 tbsp dijon mustard

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

2 tbsp light miso (white or yellow)

1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper

1 tsp Italian seasoning blend

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

2 tbsp olive oil, divided

8oz cremini mushrooms (or white button, your preference), cut into 1/4' dice

2 shallots, cut into 1/4" dice

1 green bell pepper, cut into 1/4" dice

Preheat the oven to 400F. On a large sheet pan, place all the tomato halves, onion and garlic and add the olive oil, salt and pepper. Use your hands to make sure all the pieces are well coated with the oil. Let roast for 45-60 minutes until the veggies are browned a bit since this is where all the yummy flavour is.

While they are roasting, combine cream sauce ingredients from cashews through to, and including pepper in a blender or food processor. Combine on the highest speed until it is smooth and creamy. If you have a Vitamix there is no need to soak the cashews ahead of time but you will find it helpful otherwise, even if it's just an hour. Once it's smooth, set aside in a medium bowl and rinse the blender jar/food processor bowl. You should get 1 3/4 cups of the cream sauce.

Once the tomatoes, onions and garlic are browned and ready to go, add them without the oil/liquid in the pan to your blender jar/food processor and blend on high. I leave some texture to it but it's up to your personal preference. Pour the roasted tomato sauce into a medium sized sauce pan and add the Italian seasoning, garlic powder and onion powder. Stir to combine and put over med-low heat so it just simmers.

In a non-stick frying pan over high heat, add 1 tbsp olive oil then the diced mushrooms and shallots. Stir and saute until they are evenly browned. Add these to the simmering tomato sauce and add another tablespoon of olive oil to the pan. Add the bell pepper and saute until softened and starting to brown and then add those to the tomato sauce as well.

Now add the reserved cream sauce to the tomato sauce in 1/2 cup increments until you find the perfect cream balance. I usually end up adding 1 - 1 1/2 cups of the cream sauce but it can vary based on the tomatoes and your taste. Serve on top of your favourite pasta, we usually do whole wheat spaghetti but this sauce would be great on anything, even filled pastas like ravioli. Also it goes great with greens so add some cooked peas or broccoli on top as well!

Roasted Tomatoes, Onions and Garlic when it's done!

Happy Vegan Baking Day!

2011-09-30T16:46:00.000-04:00

I'm really into any reason to celebrate or bake so I was definitely on board when I spied on Twitter that today was Vegan Baking Day. I never really pick what I'm going to make...I go to my little baking guru and get his opinion on what we should make. This morning when I asked "What would you like to bake today with Mommy for Vegan Baking Day?" this huge smile came over his face and he yelled "HOT CROSS BUNS!" My kid loves a good hot cross bun and we have been known to make them other times of the year, after all, they're not just for Easter anymore! Maybe they'll be the next cupcake or macaron!

The recipe I have been using is a modified version of Food Allergy Mama's. Modified after being made so many times that it slowly became customized to how we like our hot cross buns. (Disclaimer - Food Allergy Mama is not vegan and there are recipes for dinner entrees with meat in them on her site, she does however have a lot of baked goods/desserts that are vegan friendly since her son has food allergies to eggs and dairy as well as peanuts, tree nuts and legumes. The link above is direct to the recipe for the hot cross buns)

Mac and I got all of the ingredients out and got to work on our hot cross buns. He lost interest for a bit but always comes back when I'm kneading the dough because he loves to take little pinches off and eats the raw dough. As a dough eater myself, I can understand the compulsion. He also loves to help me knead the dough though it's more like poking it and trying to show me how strong he is as he tries to carry it around the room (Ack! Don't drop the dough!). He is also a little impatient with the whole rising time and baking time. He was ready to eat one as soon as we were done kneading and was a little disappointed that it would have to wait until later in the afternoon to taste them.

After patiently waiting/blowing bubbles, the dough had doubled in the warm place we made for it, we added chopped organic raisins, dried apples and dried apricots into the dough and shaped the buns. Another impatient rise/small nap and then off to the ovens with them! After they cooled, we poured our apple cider icing on top (really I just pour a bunch of icing sugar in a bowl then mix in some apple cider til it looks right) and we don't just go for crosses...not enough icing that way...we pour it on top and let it cover the whole top of them. Mac carefully chooses the one he feels has the most icing and then the best part...WE EAT! Mac always goes for the icing first, devouring the top part before he even moves on to the rest. He ate up a whole one then went looking for his next victim. He even started picking the icing off some of the other ones that were lurking much too close to the hungry four year old...they should know better!

He told me after we have to save some for Nana and Papa for when they come to visit us tomorrow and in his words "then they can eat vegan food and say it's soooooo yummy!" That's my boy!

Happy Vegan Baking Day Everyone!

BBQ Tempeh

2011-09-29T22:05:00.001-04:00

Here's my yummy supper from last night. It was so fricken good! I am so glad that through my testing experiences I have fallen in love with tempeh because I never would have made this otherwise. I just made a quick BBQ sauce from pretty much any condiment from my fridge door that sounded like it would work (apple butter, vegan Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, tamari, apple cider vinegar, cumin, coriander, garlic powder, onion powder) and marinated it for about an hour. I pan fried it until it was all yummy and caramelized on the outside, reapplying some sauce as I cooked. Served it up with some local corn and peas. Such a quick and delicious supper that will definitely get made again and again!

Mini Food

2011-09-27T17:32:00.000-04:00

I don't know what it is about miniature sized treats and food that make it so darn irresistible?! Is it because you can eat a couple of them and not feel guilty? I think it plays into the little kid in all of us. I know every time I see a picture in a magazine of a dessert table with all kinds of mini desserts I audibly swoon. I was watching Top Chef Just Desserts last night (US readers...we're behind yours up here in Canada) and they had this quickfire to make a single bite dessert that would possibly inspire a new flavour of dessert gum. I was seriously in love with all the little dishes they were given to serve in and wanted to jump into the TV to grab them. I love the idea too of having to pack in all the flavours into one little bite, intense! Inspired by that and my love of all things miniature, I made some mini muffins and some mini pancakes over the past few days. Here's some pictures! I think I might even attempt some other treats mini sized over MoFo, so keep an eye out for that.

Those mini pancakes are a recipe I use pretty much every week from Hearty Vegan by Celine Steen and Joni Marie Newman. If you don't own this book already, you totally should go order it right now even if it's just for these pancakes (although I know the whole book is awesome)!

Here's my regular sized ones. I always make at least a double batch and they freeze amazingly so it makes for quick, on-hand breakfasts!

Love these!

2011-09-24T21:09:00.002-04:00

Today when I was out shopping I found the most adorable set of measuring spoons! I know there is a matching set of cups out there somewhere but today all they had was this one set for just $3! I just had to have them! They are shaped just like mini Nordic ware bundt pans. I kinda collect measuring cups and spoons. Not all of them are cute but I have 4 other sets of spoons and three sets of cups up in my cupboard. I use all of them and by the end of some days I have used all the sets. I think I might end up with a cupboard just for them someday...maybe I'll end up on that hoarders show...50/50 shot!

Anyone tried this??

2011-09-23T11:56:00.002-04:00

I was browsing the new products at one of my favourite online stores, Karmavore, and found something that really piqued my interest but I'm curious if anyone out there has tried it. Its called VegeRen from Just Wholefoods. I will most likely end up ordering it just so I can try it since it's pretty inexpensive. It's funny too because I swear last week I was saying to my husband, "how come they can't just add the same thing to soymilk and separate curds and whey and make cheese?" and it seems like this is what this product is promising. Vegan cottage cheese? Vegan cheese curds....for vegan poutine?

More Tester Pictures from Sandwich Testing

2011-09-21T16:56:00.000-04:00

Today I was going through the pictures I have from sandwich testing and even though they weren't that long ago, it feels like forever since I ate some of these. I think it has more to do with how many sandwiches we have had since than anything. Here's a few more of my favourites!

These bad boys are Hot Brown Sandwiches! I had only heard of these on Food Network, never actually had one but these are fricken delicious! Those tofu bits you see on there are just about the best thing I have ever eaten...no joke! It was hard to keep any for the sandwiches since Ryan and I were both munching on them while I was prepping the rest.

After falling in love with tempeh while testing the Country Sausage Sandwich (pictured in my earlier post) I decided I had to try the Mediterranean Tempeh Sandwich! It was full of sun dried tomatoes, olives and the like that you would expect in a Mediterranean sandwich and then the nuttiness of the tempeh with it and then grill it....SO GOOD! It is like your mouth is having a party! Just typing this makes me wanna go make another one...

Forgive my slightly dark photo and let me introduce you to the One World Reuben. This is a take on the classic Reuben with flavours from all over the world and they all worked so well together! I had never had a Reuben before but I was excited to try out this one, especially since it features the "beefy" seitan that I have fallen in love with from this book. It's also on dark rye and grilled as well so you get a nice crunch on the outside! It might have been my first Reuben but it certainly won't be my last!

This super gigantic sandwich deserves two pictures! You know sometimes when you get a club sandwich and they hold it together with a toothpick...this bad boy needed a shish kabob skewer! It was so big that I only attempted to eat half of it but Ryan went all in and polished off the whole thing. I joked that you should get a t-shirt for finishing one on the test boards! It's called a Dagwood by the way, just like the Blondie comic strips where he used to make those leaning towers of sandwich. It has vegan cold cuts, tempeh bacon, lots of veggies and a quick spread and it is so tasty! I think anything with that tempeh bacon would taste great but it really did all work together and was obviously super satisfying!

Now, it's hard to pick favourites because seriously all of the sandwiches have been so good but this one is special. This is the Marinated Eggplant Tofu Sandwich and its scrumptious! I had always been a little intimidated by eggplant. It's a little tough and I had heard rumours that it was a bit bitter but this sandwich proved that all wrong. The eggplant is brushed with a spicy mix then browned and then you let it chill out for a bit. The tofu is marinated and browned and then it somehow tastes alot like chicken. Then you mix the two on a soft roll with a bit of mayo and lettuce and it makes sweet magic together. It is seriously addictive too! I was wandering around Costco the next day and found myself buying a big ol' pack of eggplant to make it again and did that next day! This is one that even my mom (albeit minus the tofu) is in love with.

Okay enough teasing with photos of delicious sandwiches for now...I'm off to make another one for supper that I'm sure you will be seeing soon!

Supper Tonight: Something Blackened This Way Comes

2011-09-19T19:13:00.001-04:00

Tonight I was testing sandwiches again for Celine and Tami. Tonight's test was Something Blackened This Way Comes which I was totally drawn to initally by it's name. It has a blackened "chicken" cutlet with a fresh tomato salad and spicy mayo all on a toasted bun! So delicious! And these "chicken" cutlets are like no other. When I made them the other day the house smelled like Thanksgiving. They are juicy and tender and tasty too! Something that I have never really found in a seitan cutlet before. This one was spicy for sure with that spice mix and the mayo but it was that good heat, the one that has flavour to back up the spice level. The salad totally helped take the heat down a little too. I served it with a fresh garden salad with ranch dressing (from American Vegan Kitchen) so that helped cool my mouth down too! Ryan had two so I think he loved it! Haha! Here's a picture so you can drool a little!

I Have A Theme!

2011-09-18T10:30:00.000-04:00

I have been brainstorming with my husband about a theme for my first Vegan MoFo and then it hit us...Firsts! In honour of my first MoFo, I am going to post a month's worth of posts about some of my vegan firsts. Some to expect will be my first interview, my first GIVEAWAY (it's a good one, I promise), my first veganized recipe, my first vegan themed pumpkin for Halloween and my first attempt at a vegan macaron. I have about 17 ideas so far...just a few more to come up with! All the first time fun will begin on October 1st and I'm really excited about it!

Recipe Testing: A Love Affair

2011-09-17T13:17:00.000-04:00

I'll admit it, I'm a bit of a recipe testing junkie. I LOVE the whole experience and I truly get geeked out about the whole thing. I have always loved cookbooks but I have never been apart of them like I have for the past year and a bit. I really enjoy the creative process and watching how the recipes evolve. I definitely appreciate all the hard work that goes into one now too that I have seen only a fraction of what goes into it. It takes a seriously creative mind to come up with a concept and follow it through, to come up with 100 recipes (or more!) and then write all the other parts of the book. I have always read cookbooks cover to cover but now I really make sure to do it since I know how much work an author puts into that part and I think they are worried we are all skipping it.

The other great part of testing is that these authors don't just say thanks and move on, they work with the testers, they chat with us and become friends. I have found that it is a wonderful community of people that love to cook and share and support each other. Usually when I tell someone that I am testing for a cookbook they ask if I'm being paid for it and nope I'm not. I do this because I love doing it. There's usually some sort of deal where you get a copy of the book when it's published and you usually get a thank you in the back of the book (which secretly is my favourite part!). I always think that being involved in the process is the best payment though.

I have found, through my testing experiences so far, that when you let go and just try something, usually you end up loving it. I would read through an ingredient list sometimes and think "I'm not sure I'm gonna like this" or "that with that??" but then I learned to shut out that part of my brain that thinks it knows everything and just try it. I can't say every time I was wrong and loved what I ate but most of the time, I did! I learned after thinking I didn't like tempeh that I LOVE tempeh, like seriously love it and crave it all the time now. I learned that I love eggplant despite its tough purple exterior that scared me off for years. I learned that I still dislike cilantro but love coriander which makes no sense to me since they are basically the same thing but they are different (maybe because cilantro tastes like feet?). And I never, ever would have tried haggis and then I did (vegan of course) and it was delicious!

I don't think I ever would have opened up like that if I hadn't been testing recipes. I know I never would have if I hadn't chosen to be vegan. I always giggle when I hear people say veganism is restrictive but, to be honest, when I first started I felt that way too. Strangely, I always had way more restrictions about eating meat than I have about what I eat now. It really has been a eye opening experience for me to try out new methods of cooking and new types of cuisine and it's all because of these experiences I've had testing recipes. Even if I never test another book, it will change the way I look at a cookbook and the way I cook altogether. Instead of flipping through a new cookbook and finding the recipes that most closely resemble what I already eat, now I will flip through and find the thing that is the furthest and give it a go! And now instead of making the same ten things over and over again, I always try to try out something new or invent something each week.

Food Network Friday: Chicken Stuffed with Smoked Mozzarella, Roasted Tomatoes and Broccoli Rabe over Potatoes with Marsala Sauce

2011-09-15T17:27:00.000-04:00

What you are about to read about is real...home cook Kelly Cavalier has no knowledge of the challenge she's about to face. Kelly has tackled some of the toughest culinary challenges in the world but can she conquer this one?

Alright, now I'm talking about myself in the third person and sound a little nuts but this Food Network Friday recipe is from Robert Irvine from Dinner:Impossible and I got a little into the whole theme of it. Maybe I haven't faced the toughest culinary challenges in the world but I have made cheesy pizza without cheese and tasty bacon bits out of coconut (little nod to AVK!) so I think it works!

When I first look at the recipe I always look through for the things I will definitely have to take out and what I can leave. So out the window goes chicken, smoked mozzarella, marsala wine and butter but hey that's only 4 out of 13, this won't be so impossible after all. I thought about how to do it as it was written and then I decided to change it up a bit. That's the fun of Food Network Friday after all, seeing how everyone interprets the recipe! I decided early on in my planning it was going to be a pizza with a roasted tomato sauce. I thought about using seitan for the chicken but then tested a sandwich for Celine and Tami (Marinated Eggplant and Tofu Sandwich...sooo good!) that had a marinated tofu steak in it that was incredibly like chicken so I decided to go with that instead. Also from testing, I decided to use a cheese that was used on a few sandwiches that was a little smokey. I actually had said to Ryan when I first tasted it that it was alot like a smoked gouda so I figured it would work perfectly here. I thought about it over the next few days and kept coming up with different ways to do it (rolling up the fillings in eggplant, stacking it instead of rolling it) but decided to stick to my original plan of pizza.

So last night I decide it's time to go for it but I wanted to have a little fun with it. I pictured it like an episode of Dinner:Impossible and thought what if he walked into a mission where he had to reinterpret a dish he's already made but it had to be...what for it....VEGAN! I also decided to set a timer just like on the show and I gave myself 2 hours on the clock to get it all done and on the table. I came up with the 2 hours mostly because the recipe says 2 hours and 20 minutes total time and I wanted show Robert up a bit. I have no clue how the man does what he does on that show ever and seriously felt a little pressured even though the timer was totally self-induced. It made me hustle a bit in the beginning but as I got about half way into it I realized I had loads of time and took it easy/checked my Facebook.

I started off by making the pizza dough. I used a really simple recipe that I have had lying around forever with just flour, yeast, salt, sugar, water and bit of olive oil. I set it aside to rise and got to work on my sauce. I quartered about 5 largish tomatoes and spread them on a sheet pan. I decided to toss a few halved shallots in there too and 4 big ol' cloves of garlic. I tossed all that with a splash of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, italian seasoning and S&P and put it in the oven at 400F not knowing exactly how long it would take but I wanted some caramelized yumminess on them so I figured about 30 minutes or so. I then steamed some small diced yukon gold potatoes...oh yeah, potatoes on pizza, don't think I was going to leave them out!? I steamed them a bit first then I put them in a cast iron pan with a little olive oil and crisped them up. When they were done I set them on a paper towel to get some of the extra oil off. While they were steaming I pressed and marinated my tofu which I decided to dice small like the potatoes figuring it would be a good pizza topping size. I then browned those in the same pan I browned the potatoes in and set them aside as well. Last up was the broccoli rabe but I will admit me and broccoli rabe, we're not friends. I never really liked it, always finding it a little bitter but I love broccoli so I just switched them out. I cut it small and set it aside. By this time my tomatoes/shallots/garlic has all browned up and looked good so I put it all in the Vitamix and blended it deciding to leave it slightly chunky instead of going super smooth. And that's when I decided I had a little time left and hadn't fully embraced the fanciness that the marsala wine sauce was bringing to this dish. I don't drink so I wasn't going there and I'm not schooled in the art of vegan wines so I decided I would come up with something on the fly that would give me a similar taste to the overall dish. I went with a balsamic reduction and boy oh boy am I glad I did. I have never attempted this and have only seen it on cooking shows and always thought it would be strange or unnecessary but it was so perfect. I quickly Googled to find some sort of ideas on how to do it and came up with a general idea and set off to it. I will warn you if you haven't made this before...you will need a good working hood fan. You have to bring the vinegar to a boil and it lets off some serious fumes while you do it. I put mine on to find out it was thinking about dying. See...just like on Dinner:Impossible, something always goes wrong! But I survived, we cracked a few windows and kept the small children and animals out of the kitchen (okay maybe it wasn't that bad but it's strong people...you've been warned).

With all the individual ingredients prepped, it was time to release the dough. It had risen up quite a bit and certainly was ready to go. I turned the oven up to 500F and got out a sheet pan deciding to go for a extra large family sized pizza. I sprinkled the pan with a bit of cornmeal and rolled the dough out to fit inside the pan. I spread the sauce, grated some of that smokey cheese on top, sprinkled the broccoli all over, followed by the tofu chicken bites and potatoes. I baked it for 14 minutes and the crust started browning, cheese melting, tofu chicken bites and potatoes crisp and browned too...and the smell...ah the smell! It filled up the kitchen mingling with the balsamic smell and it was heavenly! Both Ryan and I were ready for this one when it came out since it had been giving us that come hither look (or smell). When I pulled it out, I drizzled the balsamic reduction over the top, erring on the side of caution not knowing how it would all work together but about two bites in I was grabbing that pot and redrizzling since it was so good with it! I really loved the whole thing, it all worked together perfectly. So perfectly that neither Ryan or I could or would stop ourselves from having some more. I even found myself thinking about the few slices leftover in the fridge later that night. We both managed to keep enough for us to have leftovers for lunch today and it was just as good cold, maybe even better since the sauce was even tastier today having time for all the flavours to mingle. And...I forgot to mention...the timer beeped just as I set a slice on the plate...MISSON COMPLETED!

If you want to see the recipe as Robert Irvine intended, check it out at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/robert-irvine/chicken-stuffed-smoked-mozzarella-roasted-tomatoes-broccoli-rabe-over-potatoes-marsala-sauce-recipe/index.html

And if you want to see what everyone else did with this one, check out Tami's blog at http://www.veganappetite.com/ and you definitely should, it's always amazing what everyone does with these recipes! I checked and Tamasin has put the next Food Network Friday on hiatus for October due to Vegan MoFo but definitely play along some time, it's so much fun!

Mmm is for Muffaletta

2011-09-14T12:10:00.001-04:00

Last night I made yet another sandwich for testing! This time it was the Muffaletta and it was impressive both in taste and stature. It has a quick made giardiniera, vegan cold cuts, arugula and other veggies and is all built inside a round loaf. I had never had giardiniera before so I have no comparison but I know it was tasty! It added a nice crunch to the sandwich and it's pickling liquid was also the dressing for the sandwich as well. It always amazes me as a mayo lover when a sandwich can come together without it and not feel like it's missing something. I had a little fun with this one as I was assembling it. I looked at it once I put the top piece of the bread on and thought it looked like it had a mouth and then I remembered these little cupcake picks I had bought on the weekend and had to do it. My husband bust out laughing when I showed him which caught the attention if my son who came running and also bust out laughing! Hope it gives someone else a chuckle too! It is as close to eating something with a face as we will come! I am also posting a shot of the slice of Muffaletta so you can check out all the layers of goodness and check out just how impressive this sandwich is!

Quick Peek at some of my testing for Tami and Celine

2011-09-13T17:35:00.000-04:00

I know that Celine didn't know it when she asked me to help test a new project of hers that I love sandwiches but now she does! I absolutely adored sandwiches and would eat them often before I went vegan. Then I kinda didn't know what to do anymore. What does a vegan put in a sandwich anyways? Well, Celine Steen and Tamasin Noyes have teamed up to show you exactly how to make vegan sandwiches that will have anyone drooling! I have been lucky enough to be testing for this upcoming book and I have been taking major advantage of all of their great ideas and tasty recipes. I've made over 50 sandwiches so far and I only started testing in July. I actually had one day where I had one of their sandwiches for breakfast, lunch and dinner. They haven't just stopped at sandwich as a noun, they have also used it as a verb and I think it's wonderful! They have introduced me to tempeh which I had only had twice before and wasn't truly in love but now...oh wow, now...I'm smitten! I want tempeh all the time, especially the Tempeh Bacon from this book. I also learned that I love eggplant...who knew!? I think that's a great thing I have learned since becoming vegan, now I will try anything and have found so many foods that I snubbed before that I love now. It's been a real eye opener. Here's a few photos of the sandwiches I have been making, obviously not all of them or we would be here all day but these are some of my favourites so far.

Carnitas Sandwich made with jackfruit and avocado on the side....sooo delicious!

In a Pinch Subwich which has now become a staple in my house for quick sandwiches and is excellent when made with Field Roast Smoked Tomato Slices!

Country Sausage Sandwich which is the sandwich where my love for tempeh started. It's on homemade english muffins (recipe from Tami's blog) with arugula, an awesome sauce and hashbrowns!

Chow Mein Sandwich and I know you're thinking it's crazy and it is...crazy DELICIOUS!

Bananas Foster Cake Sandwich, just to show you it's not all savoury and this is the best kind of sweet! Just looking at this picture is bringing me back to tasting it and it was fricken amazing!

Tempeh Bacon frying up on the griddle...so perfectly smoky, sweet, crisp and delicious!There have definitely been more and I will be sharing those as well but here's the first taste. I'm telling you, I haven't tested one thing that has disappointed and Ryan has, on almost every sandwich occasion, taken two or three bites and started looking around if there was enough to make another. These are some serious sandwiches from two seriously amazing women!

Where to start...

2011-09-12T12:57:00.000-04:00

I have thought about blogging for awhile but have always got caught up in how to start and what to call it and what to blog about, basically got caught up in the details. I was recently encouraged to go for it by a few friends and my husband so I decided to let go and go for it! I am starting this blog up now so I can get in on Vegan MoFo this year, starting October 1st. Seems most people have a theme for the month and I’m still thinking of a theme to be honest. I have thought about posting everyday about something vegan that I love like products, ingredients, people/blogs, cookbooks, etc. I have considered trying to veganize a recipe a day but I’m not sure I can keep up with that pace! All I know is I’m excited to start and the planning is always the best part (for me at least, I’m making a list already)! For the rest of September I will be blogging test pictures from the cookbooks I am currently testing for and finally I will have somewhere to blog my Food Network Friday cook along results.