Cornbread

I'm certainly cooking my way through 1,000 Vegan Recipes aren't I? I highly recommend this book by the way. It's got everything covered in simple straightforward format. This is the cornbread recipe which turned out perfect. Moist with beautiful corn flavor. I like to serve it with Earth Balance margarine and agave syrup. This will go perfectly with the big container of four alarm chili I made last night. Can't wait.

Breakfast in Bed + Ready Made Curry

This was my breakfast this morning, in bed while reading my Agatha Christie. I had a whole grain english muffin spread with Earth Balance margarine, a piece of orange blossom cake and hot ceylon tea (with a dash of soymilk and agave). I enjoyed this very very much. Only thing missing was fresh fruit which I didn't have today.


A close up of the cake. It was supposed to be sour cherry/orange blossom but the sour cherry flavor never came through. I used a half recipe of kittee's vanilla cake and used a mixture of water/sour cherry syrup for the liquid portion but I think I should have added more sour cherry, less water. Oh well. I will try to tweak it next time. But even so, this cake was delicious. Orange blossom is wonderful in desserts.


Sorry about the bad lighting but by the time I got around to eating this, it was late and the light was terrible. This is Trader Joe's Choley curry with toasted and "buttered" rolls. I served it with a side of cucumber salad. Yummy.

Bread Pudding!

Used up the leftover french bread from last night to make this treat which I had for breakfast. I never made a vegan bread pudding before so I went online and looked at several recipes and came up with this.

Bread Pudding

1 small loaf of day old french bread, sliced
2 cups soymilk
2 TB cornstarch
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
cinnamon
dark raisins
sultanas

Preheat oven to 350 F. Layer bread in a oiled baking dish, overlapping slices and sprinkle raisins on top as well as in between slices. Combine soymilk, cornstarch, vanilla, sugar and a pinch or two of cinnamon. Whisk together. Pour mixture over bread slices and make sure to soak every piece. Sprinkle more raisins and cinnamon on top and let soak for 5-10 minutes. Bake in preheated oven for 25-30 min. or until golden.
Variation: For extra richness, spread each bread slice with Earth Balance margarine before layering. I would have done this if I had some margarine but I didn't!

Moroccan Tagine of Chickpeas

I got this recipe from a cookbook I just bought called 'Food of Morocco'. It has mostly meat recipes but a few were vegetarian or vegan. The Tagine of Chickpeas recipe was completely vegan to my delight. This stew is beautifully flavored with a medley of spices: paprika, turmeric, cumin, ginger, cinnamon and harissa (a North African red chili paste) and is bathed in a rich tomato sauce. I didn't feel like couscous tonight and I don't know where to get Moroccan bread, so I enjoyed it with a loaf of Iranian Barbari bread (wheat flour, water, yeast, salt) that I picked up from Payless Produce on the way home from work today.

Pesto on Pizza and Baked Goodies.

Everytime I order a pizza delivery, I always always make a pesto sauce to dollop on top. It's so yummy and will probably always be the way I eat delivery pizza forever. Husband called me up from work and suggested pizzas for dinner. I said yes but then thought "Oh no! I have nothing to make pesto with!" No basil, no spinach... So I got creative with some edamame and cilantro. The result was lovely. I think this sauce will go really well with pasta.


Edamame Cilantro Lime Pesto

1/2 cup cooked edamame, shelled
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup walnuts
handful of cilantro leaves
juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup olive oil or more
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a blender and process to desired consistency. Add more olive oil or water if you want a thinner pesto.


Tomorrow we are visiting some friends who we haven't seen for a while and I wanted to bring something for them for the holidays. I made Isa's Mocha Chip Muffins (but made them into a loaf) and also her Chocolate Chip Cookies. I haven't tried either of them yet as they are gifts but they are so beautiful. Check it out!





EDIT: I just sampled one of the cookies. OMG! Heaven....

Mushroom Curry, Farmstand Grapes and Molasses Raisin Bread Gone Wrong

Last night's supper. Mushroom, Chickpea, Potato Curry made creamy with the addition of soymilk in the sauce. 'Twas Good!


Check out these babies! My mom got them from a friend of hers that visited a farm. Here she is holding them up to be photographed. They are so sweet and most perfect.


This is Vegan Planet's Molasses Raisin Bread which didn't turn out that well for me. My oven was way too hot and I overcooked the poor thing! It was not very moist at all and while it looked beautiful and didn't taste too bad, I was still disappointed. Note to self: Get an oven thermometer!


Inside shot. There is cornmeal in the recipe as well which added a crunch I did not want.

VeganMoFo: French Toast & Welsh Rarebit

I woke up carb hungry today. All I could think about was eating bread and lots of it. This morning instead of my usual cereal or oatmeal, I decided to make french toast. It is the same recipe as in this post. I can't think of a more perfect thing to eat for breakfast on Saturday. I seriously don't miss french toast made with eggs at all. This is a much healthier yet very tasty option.




For lunch I wanted more bread but how to eat it instead of the usual sandwich? I went online and came across a recipe for Welsh Rarebit, a common dish served in Great Britain that consists of melted cheese sauce made with ale or beer, milk and spices and served on toast. I looked at many recipes and came up with something that was loosely based on those recipes. I served it on Ezekiel sesame toast which was a good call. The nuttiness of the sesame seeds was a perfect accompaniment to the rich melty flavored cheez sauce.



Vegan "Welsh Rarebit"

1 tsp Earth Balance margarine
1 tsp flour
1/4 C plain unsweetened soymilk
3 TB Colby Chedda Cheez (recipe from The Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook) OR you can use Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet Cheddar OR Daiya Cheddar Style
splash of beer
1/2 tsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp ground mustard powder
pinch of paprika

Preheat broiler and pop a couple slices of bread to toast.
In a small saucepan on medium heat melt the Earth Balance. Add the flour and quickly stir with a wooden spoon. Keep stirring until it is blended together and starts to thicken and bubble. Slowly add the soymilk while continuously stirring. It will start to get thicker. Add the cheez and break it up with the spoon and keep stirring all the while to make it smooth. You may add more cheez if desired. Add the beer, soy sauce and spices and keep stirring, stirring, stirring until it gets nice and thick.
Spoon over toasted bread slices and place under broiler until cheese gets bubbly. EAT!