Almond Biscotti

There were from Vegan Italiano. They are a great, easy and impressive dessert to serve company.

Chanukkah!

Latkes are the traditional Chanukkah food! Who could resist deep fried potato pancakes? with apple sauce, or sour supreme, they are delicious. My Mom and my husband made these. Hubby insists on hand grating the potatoes, whereas my mother insists on using the Cuisinart to grate the onions (lack of crying). We used the recipe from www.vegcooking.com. 

Enjoy. 

  

smoked Tofu saute

I love smoked tofu in a stirfry, now I love it in a saute!

1 cup cooked Quinoa

1 large bok choy, cut up

broccoli  (about 2 cups)

2 portobello mshrooms

1 pkg smoked tofu

Sauce:

1 clove garlic minced

1/2 cup white wine

1 tbsp corn starch

1 tsp powdered broth (your choice)

1 cup water

1 tsp sage

1 tsp thyme

1/4 tsp fennel seed

1 tsp salt

a few twists of fresh ground pepper

mix together all sauce in a bowl. Set aside

heat up a frying pan (I use a cast iron one) with 2 tbsp of oil in it (if after this, the food sticks, just use water).  First put in the bok choy and broccoli, saute fro 5 minutes. Add mushrooms, saute for 5 more minutes. Then add tofu and sauce. saute for 10 more minutes, or until sauce thicken (you can add water during cooking if the sauce is ready before the veggies are. 

Goddess Garbonzos!

This is  out of Dreena Burton's "eat, drink and be vegan".   It's kind of a vegan version of Tuna salad. It's great in pita (add tomato and greens) or on a sandwich (with pickles and onions, obviously).  

Fair Verona Hummus

This is another take (Norhter Italian-esque) on hummus...be sure to leave in the fridge overnight so that the flavours may blend. 

1 can Romano beans

1 tsp coriander

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp sage

1 tsp tarragon

1/8 cup tahini

2 tbsp cashew-macadamia butter

2 tsp salt

juice of half a lemon

1 tsp oregano

1 tbsp white wine vinegar

water to desired consisancy

1 clove garlic

First, process garlic. Then add all other ingredients and blend. 

Lentli Barley Stew

It was bound to happen: I caught a cold in the middle of exams. In interest of getting over it asap, I made this lentil barley stew and plan on downing a few wheatgrass shots later...

Lentil barley soup (this is for an oval 6 quart slowcooker) 

2 leeks, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

one onion, diced

3 parsnips, chopped

2 potatoes, cubed

2 cups green lentils

1 cup pearl barley

9 cups water

2 vegetable broth cubes

1 tsp marjoram

1 tsp sage

1 tsp thyme

2 tbsp tarragon

2 bay leaves

2 tbsp salt

a few sprinkles fresh ground pepper

combine all ingredient into slow cooker. set on low for 8 hours. 

Sun dried Tomato Hummus

I forgot to take a photo of this, but it seemed to b quite the hit at the pot luck I just returned from.

1 clove garlic

4 oil packed sun dried tomatoes

1 tsp each sage, thyme and oregano

1/2 tsp cumin

1 can chickpeas (drained and rinsed)

1/2 cup tahini

1/4 cup olive oil

salt to taste

1 tsp capers

juice of half a lemon

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

2 tbsp water

firs, process garlic in food processor. Then add sun dried tomatoes. add all other ingredients and process until smooth.

I used to hate bananas... until I ate this!

This is the most awesome thing ever! so simple, so healthy, so tasty!

Just slice up a banana, mix in to some sol vanilla solgurt and some granola. 

Cookies!

Okay, so I also celebrated by baking cookies. Did I mention that they were amazing sparkled ginger cookies from Vegan with a Vengence? and that I had them with Chia? 

literally like tasting heaven. 

2 Down celebrtion

I had a Contracts exam and a memo due today. So I decided to celebrate by going to the gym, followed by a delicious skillet toss!

Just cube up extra firm tofu and a potato, dice and onion and fry up in a skillet. add 1 tbsp chili powder and cumin...add toast or a bagel. perfect!

An autumnal pilaf

I have to admit: I LOVE my slow cooker. 

It is a lifesaver on busy days. just dump in your ingredients and turn it on, when you get home, your food is ready! This week, I made a kamut pilaf from "Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker" by Robin Robertson. It is awesome, because it has a combo of root vegetables and cranberries in it! Awesome alone or along side your favorite protien (tofu, chickpea cutlets, tempeh... you catch my drift...). It is very seasonal, and um, did I mention how much I value cheapness?

Pre Shang De dinner

There is one hour between getting home from the library and Shang De. What can I eat? Answer: pasta. It is one of the perfect foods. I choose whole wheat pasta because it has a high fiber and protein content. I boiled it, mixed in some arugula and tomato sauce, a ta-da, dinner is served (don't forget the fresh ground pepper, it is essential!)

Afternoon Snack!

I got home from class starving and with many more hours of work in front of me. So, I decided to mix up some random stuff in an attempt to have a snack. You should know that I usually don't have snacks...I generally drink coffee instead (I know...  not the best choice...)

This one admittedly needs work, it is my first attempt at a healthy pumpkin pudding. So far I add vanilla protein powder to pumpkin puree along with some pumpkin pie spice and mix...not bad, but not great (of course, I shut up and ate it) 

I invite any suggestions to jazz this up...I was thinking dried cranberries might help...

Curry Hummus and Black Bean Orange Hummus

These are both out of Eat, Drink and Be Vegan by Dreena Burton. Both are awesome at parties, at home, in a pita... you get the idea...

The curry hummus is especially good in a wrap with slices of green apple and raisins.

Pumpkin Cranberry Scones

I made these on a study break, they're in V-Con, and they are awesome. You should totally give them a shot!

It Snowed Last Night!

A blanket of snow covered Edmonton overnight. For some weird reason, it makes me homesick from my life out East, before Law School and general lack of time. So, when I woke up this morning, I decided to make a somewhat Montrealais breakfast. (Okay, so the only real difference is bagels instead of toast, and orange slices, but still, I feel better now...)

Spaghetti and Beanballs!

I kept looking at this recipe (in V-con) really thinking about making it. What stopped me was the steps: making pasta, sauce and beanballs? Do I really have time for this? The answer was a resounding "Yes!"

These bean balls were awesome (I fried them this time, next time, I'll bake them for firmer results) The sauce was surprisingly fast (and reminds me of Casse-Croute tomato sauce that I often crave) it only took 20 minutes from start to finish. Also, you can make subs with the leftover beanblls. How perfect is that?!

MMMMMM.....East Indian Food......

This week, I had the pleasure of dining at New Asian Village on Saskatchewan Drive. They are in the process of renovating, but it is definitely worth waiting, or taking the fore-thought to make a reservation. This place is veg*n gold!

First, we were seated in our Maharaja Room, which separated us from other parties with East Indian fabric (which was also draped all around), this created a funky, yet intimate atmosphere.

Then, we were offered a trip to the beer fridge. And this was no ordinary beer selection: The restaurant has over 200 varieties of beer that you could choose from. I had a Fish Tale Organic Amber Ale. I later had a glass of the house wine (a Shiraz from the Niagara region) , which also complimented the food well.

We started out with the Mushroom Pakoras, which came with a tamerind and a spicy, green (no idea what that was) sauce. Both thoroughly enjoyable. We then had soup, I had the Mulligatawny, which was spicy, with nice overtones of cilantro and rice, which gave the soup thickness.

After that (hey, we were starving) we had the Vegetable Pulav, (which is rice with saffron and vegetables) it was delish and totally worth the price (It is one of the more expensive items on the menu). We also ordered Vegetables Vindaloo (make sure to ask for no paneer) which was spicy, but not overly so, and had a great variety of fresh vegetables in it. The Chana Masala was perfect: loads of chickpeas, with just enough sauce, and a great balance of smokey and spicy flavours. For bread, we had Missa Tandoori Paratha, which is a flat bread made of lentil flour. This was great, hearty, yet not heavy. It is nice when you want to try something beyond nan. Bhindi Alu, is a dish I think everyone must try. In my opinion, it redeems okra, a usually slimy vegetable by grilling it up, so that it is crisp and yet chewy, no slime factor in sight!

Black Sabbath?

That's right. I made a seitan roast for Shabbat this week! I was lazy, so I just quickly whipped up some seitan and put it in the middle of some colourful organic potatoes and carrots. Simple, yet such a high yum factor, that it didn't even make it to sandwiches the next day!

Stir fry!

Yes, stir-fry is quick, easy, and healthy. I really like this variation, I got it from the "Skinny Bitch in the Kitch" book, which is a great resource for easy, healthy meals. The smoked Tofu is definitely worth seeking out on this one.

My Culina Highlands Experience.

I decided that the population of Edmonton is missing a vegan restaurant reviewer (no, really?). So I have taken this upon myself. 

Last night, I had a hot date (don't call the tabloids, it was with my husband). We wanted to go to one of our preferred restaurants in Edmonton , Bacon. This restaurant was on 112 street, a little far, but worth it for the ambiance, wine selection and creative vegan food (as well as omnivorous, "local, sustainable" food). 

You could understand my disappointment when I called to make a reservation only to find that Bacon is gone and replaced with a new branch of Culina (highlands). Regardless, I figured that we would give it a shot. 

We showed up at 8:00, to find that our table wasn't ready.  We decided to wait for "our" table, as it was "nicer" than the other offerings. We finally sat down about 15 minutes later (hey, remember the Seinfeld episode where they go to the restaurant and have to wait even thought they made reservations?)

The good news:both the alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks were creative and enticing.  The wine-by-the glass selection was good (I had a great pinot from the Okanagan). Ky had a ginger beer (he is still on antibiotics). both were enjoyable.

We then ordered appetizers. I had the olive and prune tapenade with grilled bread, Kyle had the Quinoa salad (sans Feta).

I would recommend the quinoa salad to anyone. The dressing was fab, and there was a good balance of texture and flavors, and passed the "seasonal" test. 

Though the actual tapenade was good the state of the grilled bread was disappointing.In my opinion, if you are going to do a grilled bread, it has to be served warm, or else it just tastes like cold toast. Alternately, serve with crackers. either would have been preferable here.   

    

Now, here is where I get rant-y. There was one vegan main dish on the entire menu. One vegan dish. And though there are multiple problems with this in itself, which I will discuss at another time, I also had problems with the dish itself. 

Firstly, it was a, you guessed it, portobello mushroom based dish (yawn). Though I commend the creative effort of serving it over a cashew "cheese" there was too much garlic in the cheese, and it overpowered the palate, distracting from other qualities.  

The baked wild rice filling was rather bland. It merely matched the umame taste of the mushroom, making it into a muddle of flavor, with nothing that really "wowed".  The roasted carrots and potatoes served with it were cooked perfectly, but were also bland. Also, the green salad had these salt flakes on it (I'm assuming fleur de sel) which killed the flavor of the greens. 

Also, there was no vegan dessert or palate cleanser. Is a compote really that difficult? 

Also, I felt that the decor and the attempted atmosphere didn't match the space. Th space is small, and the white and black decor with large print art made it feel like a dinning room gone through a compactor.

  This is an old pizzeria, (there is still a pizza oven visible in the open kitchen) and I agree with a fellow patron who mentioned to his date as they left that it is a shame to use it as storage. 

Another thing that was a let-down was that almost everything including the borsht included sour cream and butter. Also, I have more than a purely vegan problem with this...which I will discuss at another time. 

So if you are vegan, and want to give this resto a try, have a glass of wine and the Quinoa salad. 

East Indian Crock pot

I made this last week. It was really good in terms of taste, time and cheapness. I would recommend you try it out on one of those psychotically busy weeks. 

This recipe is from Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker by Robin Robertson. It's called Indian cauliflower and Kidney bean stew with coconut milk. I left out the tomatoes, because I forgot to buy tomatoes... it was still good, though!

Solgurt!

Well, I was exhausted and hungry, browsing the refrigerated section at Planet Organic, when I came cross a new brand of soy yogurt. It's by Sol cuisine (the same company that makes the tofu ribz) and it is wicked awesome, with just the right amount of Cow bell (a.k.a. none). It does have that tangy taste that you get with dairy yogurt, and has minimal odd after taste. I had both straw and blue berry flavours. Both were good. 

Like Hummus!

My food processor still works! This is plain ole-hummus. Because sometimes you just want plain ole hummus.

Breakfast for Dinner!

One of the best ways to have a fast, healthy and delicious dinner, is to make breakfast foods for the evening meal. Here is some random scrambled tofu that I whipped up. Added some toast and Yves veggies sausage patties. Ta-da! Dinner!

Chili Mac!

I rushed home on Monday night only to rush back out 45 minutes later. So, I made Chili Mac for my husband and I . "What is this magical mac?", you ask? Well, it's boiled noodles with some chili mixed in (you can use homemade or a vegan canned version). I like it for 3 reasons: it's easy, it's cheap, it's healthy and it's yummy (okay that's 4 reasons...)

Here is how I make mine:

1. boil noodles (I like any spiral shape, really)

2. drain noodles (duh)

3. put chili in pot you used to boil noodles

4. mix noodles into the chili

5. let stand a few minutes and stir.

See, it's that easy also, if you are feeling fancy you can then put the chili mac into a prepared casserole dish, cover with vegan cheese and bake in the oven. so many options... 

Hummus... from Thailand?!

Thai food is delicious. Hummus is delicious. So, Thai hummus must be double delicious!

Thai Peanut Curry Hummus

1 inch fresh ginger

1 clove garlic

4 tbsp Peanut butter

2 tsp red curry paste

1 can chickpeas (19oz) drained and rinsed

juice of 2 limes

1 tsp of salt

1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves (packed)

2 squirts thai chili sauce

2 squirts agave

2 tbsp peanut oil

4 tbsp water

first process ginger and garlic. then add everything else and process. feel free to add more water to customize the consistency of your hummus. 

 

My New Coffee Maker!

As a law student, I pound back a lot of coffee. Coming from Montreal (my hometown), I will admit to some coffee snobbery. I insist on fair trade organic (preferably Italian) beans that I grind in my little grinder (this saves money AND improves the taste of your coffee). And, up until now, I either peculated espresso in my stove-top peculator or used a French Press. 

Anyway, since I've gone back to school, there are always coffee grinds all over my counter and I act like a complete ho-bag (this is the female equivalent of douche-bag, if you want to get technical) for the first half-hour of the morning (this is before the coffee is ready). Something had to give...

 So on Monday, I bought one of those coffee makers with "Delay Brew" function. This means that I can program the coffee maker (once loaded with water and coffee, of course) to turn itself on at the time of my choosing! I happen to chose 6:30 am ( I have Crim at 8 am on Monday and Wednesdays). Anyway, I was all excited about this last night, I set the coffee maker and went to bed. But alas! I woke up and there was no coffee to be had! Unfortunately, I have to report that some ho-baggery did ensue. I am trying again tonight! Here's hoping...  

I wuv Pumpkin!

If you didn't notice, I am obsessed with pumpkin. So, I figured that a pumpkin obsessed hummus-a-holic should make, what else? Pumpkin Hummus!

 It is so good, I would sell (okay, maybe rent out) my mother for it.

Pumpkin hummus

2 cloves garlic

1 inch fresh ginger

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

1 can chickpeas

juice of half a lemon

1/2 cup tahini

2 tbsp olive oil (walnut or hazelnut oil would make a good substitute)

1/4 cup water

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp salt

1/16 tsp cloves (ground)

1/8 tsp cardamum

1/4 tsp nutmeg

First process ginger and garlic until unrecognizable. add other ingredients and process again. You can eat it now, but i find that all hummus benefits from a night in the fridge (just sayn', you can do what you want...)

The Best Pumpkin Muffins!

These are from VwaV. They. Are. The. Best.

later rumblings...

I know, after all that I was hungry just a few short hours later... What a pig!

 So I whipped up this Strawberry-Banana Smoythie. 

If you liked the yogurt flavor, you will love this!

1 ripe banana

1/2 cup sliced frozen strawberries

1/2 cup soy milk

1/4 cup vanilla soy yogurt.

Blend ingredients. You know what to do.

Stuffing my face...

Okay, so, I got home after a 6-hour research session in the library nearly passing out with hunger. I knew that only a huge meal would do. so, I warmed up some leftover casserole(broccoli chickpea casserole from VwaV and my own pumpkin curry noodle casserole) that I had from Shabbat (gotta love the Shabbos leftovers...) and cut up a tomato that one of my hubby's co-workers gave to him from their garden. Soooo gooood....

Peanut Butter-Banana Cup Smoythie

I woke up Friday morning feeling all sparkling clean from Yom Kippur: I figured that I had earned some sinful deliciousness, and whipped up this smoothie! The healthiness of it will mitigate the guilt...

Peanut Butter Banana Cup Smoythie:

1 scoop chocolate flavored soy protein powder

1 cup soy milk

1 frozen banana

2 -3 tbsp PB

1/3 cup cooked oatmeal

1 tbsp flax seed (ground)

Blend all ingredients together. sip and smile.

A muffinable story

I won a coffee and a muffin (not one that I could eat, but that's besides the point) by sending this story to my Property Proff. It is about vegan food, and is hilarious:

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3605773,00.html

Lupini Bean Hummus

Something you should know about me: I am a hummus freak. If it was suddenly unavailable, I would have to go to some sort of Hummus-a-holic support group.

I could eat it 3 meals a day, everyday (and have somedays, actually). I keep things exciting by making different types of hummus with different types of beans. When I want to be really adventurous, I pick out a can of beans that I have never heard of or tried before, and make a hummus with them. And now that you can estimate the extent of my nerddom, here is the recipe

 

Here is what I created from a can of Lupini Beans.

It's kind if Italian...

1 clove garlic

1 can lupini beans

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup tahini

1/3 cup water

6 sun dried tomatoes in oil

1 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon Oregano

1 teaspoon salt

First chop garlic in food processor. Add drained and rinsed beans. process. Add oil and tahini, then process. Add sun dried tomatoes, process them and then add water (you could also add the water throughout the process, starting after you process the beans). Put in herbs and salt, process one last time.  Empty into container and  refridgerate overnight.  

Chocolate Pumpkin Smootie

Wow, that last post was poop! Sorry about that!

Anywho... I got home from Shange De famished. This smoothie really hit the spot: it was like drinking pudding! I was inspired by Vegan Dad's Chocolate Pumpkin Pudding Cake. 

Chocolate Pumpkin Smoothie

2/3 cup of pumpkin puree

1.5 cups unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk

1 tbsp dutch cocoa (makes it taste even more decadent and has a good amount of iron)

1 scoop chocolate soy protein powder

dash of cinnamon

1 frozen banana cut into pieces

Put all ingredients into belender. blend until smooth. slurp it up!

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

I baked these omega-3 packed cookies for my study group tomorrow. I took Isa Chadra Moskowitz's Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies from her Vegan with a Vengeance cookbook.  

The changes I made cut fat and made the cookies a little more "Fall-like". Fall is in full swing here in Edmonton ( as you can see from the photo) the plus: I get in more autumnal baking!

 The Con: Summer is O-V-E-R. 

Here are the  changes that I made:

I replaced 1/3 cup of oil with apple sauce (so now it was 1/3 cup oil, 1/3 cup applesauce)

I added 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/4 teaspoon ground clove, 1/2 teaspoon allspice.

I also replaced the raisins with cranberries. 

Another bit of advice about these: the flaxseed is a must!

Mexican Morning

 

There is this amazing coffee from Just Us! called Mexican Morning that I used to guzzle when I lived in Hali... but this smoothie has little in common. 

As per usual, I have no food, so I went into my freezer and cupboards to throw this post-run concoction. It wasn't bad if I do say so myself...It reminds me of these Mexican lollipops that one of my dad's old girlfriends used to give me. They were either little candy watermelon or corns covered in this spicy powder... odd but delish.

Mexican Morning Smoothie:

1 heaping Tablespoon brown rice protein powder

1 over ripe mango

3/4 cup pineapple juice

1/4 frozen ripe avocado

1/2 cup frozen peaches

1/4 teaspoon coconut extract

pinch cayenne pepper

(I think some agave wouldn't hurt if your mango isn't very ripe...)

Put all ingredients into a blender. Blend it. Drink, and be transported!