Stewing

An enormous bowl of vegetable stew

Two more days, two more meals. Sunday night we had a huge bowl of vegetable stew, just lots and lots of vegetables; potatoes, swedes, carrots, onions, green beans, bean sprouts and leafy greens along with a handful of red lentils to thicken the broth. Seasoned with the traditional vegan flavour kit of nutritional yeast, chilli sauce and soy sauce it was warming and good.

Last night, a very similar meal but this time using Thai flavourings, some commercial green curry paste, lemon grass, ginger, kaffir leaves and coconut milk. We topped it with some cubes of fried pumpkin rice cake, of which more tomorrow.

Friday Night, Saturday Morning

Food in a Japanese Idiom

We like Japanese food a lot but although Mr. Stripey has travelled to Japan a few times I've never had the opportunity so my attempts at Japanese cookery are well meaning but probably totally inauthentic. Still we enjoyed this supper of inarizushi, tofu with bean sprouts, edamame and some griddled parsnip wafers.

The weekends are always a struggle when we're trying to live clean and frugal. Today we skipped breakfast (apparently a hearty breakfast isn't the way to lose weight) and had a light brunch followed by this rather large comparatively low fat lasagne.


A huge pan of lasagne

I made the pasta myself, which wasn't that much harder than using bought sheets and filled it with two layers of a pumpkin/onion mixture with a central layer of thinly sliced tofu. Some of the last of the home grown tomato passata from the freezer was used top and bottom with a splash in the middle for the tofu.

The topping was interesting (well, for small values of interesting) made from a handful of oven dried okara mixed with sunflower seeds and nutritional yeast and a small splash of oil. The okara worked well like this and could become a regular topping item in place of bread crumbs.

A couple more items to come from the planned menu and then I'll have to think of another one. A problem of planning ahead is that it stifles creativity a bit. We eat well but it's all things I've experience making. Next week I'll try and find some new recipes to share.


Pumpkin Tofu Lasagne with Okara topping

The third day

Leek and Mushroom Roly Poly

Happy Chinese New Year. I don't really know what came over me when I said there was nothing much going on in February. Not only does the Year of the Rabbit start, pretty important in this household for one reason or another but there's Valentine's Day and we've picked up a dinner date already. Still I won't give up.

Last night we had a thoroughly unhealthy Leek and Mushroom Baked Roly Poly with oven roasted veg and a thick miso gravy. It was great but we managed to keep the portions small and I watched the oil content carefully so I don't think anything bad will happen from it.

Tonight we had Lettuce wraps filled with home-made tofu, home grown quinoa, celery, mushrooms, onions and tomatoes. Everything but the quinoa was stir-fried together in a tiny splash of oil, then the cooked quinoa was mixed in. Seasoning was black pepper and splashes of soy sauce and balsamic vinegar. A final sprinkle of lemon juice reduced the need for salt.

That was so virtuous we had room for some Banana icecream and cherries.

I have a menu plan for the rest of the week but you'll have to wait, it's a surprise!


Lettuce wraps; eat with your hands

It's that time again

Yes, it's February.

In the Stripey household February is the preferred month for a time of abstinence. Its main virtue is shortness. Shortness and an absence of celebrations. Amongst its virtues are shortness and an absence of celebrations, also pecuniary shortfalls. I'll come in again...

It's a bloody good time to give stuff up. Firstly we're low on money after the spending season, secondly there are no birthdays or anniversaries to break the rule and it's not too long, a nice neat four weeks to mark off on the calendar. So, healthy eating here we come.



But, it's 9 a.m. on the first day, I have nothing to report so here's a recipe from one of our xmas book presents, Vefa's Kitchen. It's for the biscotti like things, the candied peels and orange jellies came from recipes here and here.

This is a naturally vegan recipe so it was bound to be amongst the first I chose to try from the book. It works well although I thought the biscuits were just a little bit dull. However, they perked up considerably with a glass of brandy. Just as well they're all gone now or my month of abstinence might be doomed.

Greek 'biscotti' are known as paximadia.

170g vegetable oil
120g dry white wine
2 tsps ground cinnamon (get fresh, mine wasn't)
the zest of one big orange
pinch of ground cloves (less is more!)
10g baking powder
2g baking soda
150g fine sugar (granulated works, caster would be better)
50g finely chopped nuts. (Vefa calls for hazelnuts, I used brazils and pine nuts would be great)
450g plain flour
sesame seeds for garnish

Makes about 40

Heat the oven to 180C

Sift the flour with the baking powder and soda. Add the sugar and nuts and stir in.

Mix the wet ingredients with the spices and zest. Add to the dry mix and stir until you have a pliable dough. It will look very soft and oily.

Divide the mixture into three parts and shape each part into a flat log about 5 cm across, just under 2cm high. I didn't measure mine but they were probably 20cm long. Use your hands, the oil stops the dough sticking to you. It's easiest to work straight onto your large baking sheet, all three logs can share one sheet as long as they're separated by a couple of cms. They don't spread much.

When the logs are shaped sprinkle sesame seeds along the tops and gently press in with the back of a spoon. Use a sharp knife to mark divisions about 1 cm apart along the length of the logs. Don't go all the way through but this will make it easier to divide the paximadia for the second cooking.

Bake for about 40 minutes then remove from the oven. Reduce the oven heat to 150C. Allow the cooked logs to cool slightly, then finish cutting the slices into individual biscuits.

Arrange them on their sides on baking trays (you'll need two now) and return to the cooler oven for 15 minutes. Take them out and turn the biscuits over before returning them to the oven for a final 15 minutes drying time. I just turned the oven off and left them to cool instead of timing the second drying period.

Store in an airtight tin.

Boiled Burger?

This is from a recipe I found on a French Canadian (I think) omni blog, La casserole carrée. What interested me most about it was that it uses a novel approach to burger cooking, the burgers are simmered in stock for 25 minutes which dramatically reduces the fat content and creates a much moister, dare I say it, meatier feel to the end product.

Perhaps it's slightly more difficult to plate up than traditional veggie burgers but frankly the change from disks of scorched carpet underlay to toothsome patties of oats and walnuts is very welcome.

150g rolled oats
70g fresh bread crumbs (wholemeal is best, about one slice)
200g shelled walnuts (they will be chopped so broken pieces are fine)
100g onion, chopped. (I think next time I would increase this by 50-100%)
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
Bunch of fresh herbs (I had parsley and dill)
175g soy milk (or other vegan liquid)
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pepper to taste
Olive oil
300ml vegetable stock

Start by weighing out the oats and bread and give them a quick spin in the food processor to make crumbs. Add the walnuts and give it another five second spin to combine.

Add the onion, garlic and herbs, roughly chopped and turn on the motor again. As everything begins to get chopped finely add the soy milk slowly through the funnel or chute or whatever you call it. You may not need all the liquid, stop before it's all in and test the mixture. It should just hold together nicely without being too sloppy.

Season with salt and pepper (quite important to do it at this point, later doesn't seem to be so effective) and mix well, then form into burger shapes with damp hands. This will make about 5 burgers. They should be about 1.5 cm thick.

They need to chill for at least an hour before cooking to help them firm up and gather some strength for the cooking process. I open-froze mine on a parchment paper lined baking sheet for a couple of hours, took two for the meal and packaged the rest back into the freezer for another day.

In a frying pan that has a lid, heat a little olive oil and gently fry the burgers on each side until they are browned. Then add the hot stock (it will boil and splatter), put on the lid and allow to cook very gently at a simmer for another 25 minutes.

Use a metal slice to gently lift them from the pan and serve on toasted baps with the usual burger trimmings. We had chips and celeriac remoulade.

I really like this recipe and think it will be a good starting point for other flavours and styles.

Happy New Year

Last night's celebration dinner...


Green Pea Soup with Bagel Chip croutons

We chose Pea Soup over more exotic ingredients like asparagus in order to remain true to the season.


Chestnut Cranberry Rounds with Roasted Garlic and Squash, a Beetroot Confit and a Red Wine and Forest Mushroom Sauce

This rather traditional range of flavours went together very well. The chestnuts were fresh, cooked and peeled before combining with vegetables, flour and stock. The rounds were cooked in small patty trays but were rather fragile and difficult to turn out.


Raspberry Sponge with Caramel Sauce and Icecream

This sponge was brilliant, if I say so myself, made with coconut milk and frozen raspberries but the caramel sauce was still too hard and chewy when it cooled. The ice cream was Swedish Glace, one of the few short cuts we took with this meal.


Handmade After Dinner Mints

A simple faux fondant forms the middles of these pretty and easy chocolates. They are incredibly rich but rather delicious.

Thanks to Mr. Stripey for taking the pictures.

Happy New Year to all my readers, I hope you have success and happiness in the future and that we can continue to share our cooking and lives through our blogs.

We like Pie

A great big vegetable pie

I hope everyone had a lovely festive season. After the parties and gatherings and potlucks and snacking we were left with some root vegetables and a portion of puff pastry to use up. We like pie, so we made one.

This pie is ultimate simplicity. Line a loose bottomed cake tin with pastry, fill it with vegetables, I used raw cubed swede, potatoes, onions, celery and a handful of green soy beans. Season with salt and pepper and put on a nice pastry lid. The real trick is to cook it for a good long time. This one took an hour and ten minutes at 180C which allowed all the vegetables to cook through. If the top browns too quickly cover it with a bit of baking paper but it shouldn't be a problem.

Now at the planning stage, New Year's Eve dinner. Come back soon.

Pudding

No, not a Dickensian Christmas pudding but my current pudding of choice for celebrations and parties.

This is based on a recipe I found on Rawmazing. It's tremendously rich and calorific, nothing to worry about if it's forming part of a diet that is largely composed of dehydrated grass and green smoothies, but something to be quite wary of if you're intending it to follow a traditionally cooked main course.

My version no longer qualifies for the raw label, I have used ready made biscuits, real sugar and prepared chocolate instead of the original raw ingredients, but that's not a problem for me. Just remember that this cake will serve at least 12 portions and is extremely filling. If you use a slightly larger tin you may need a few more biscuit crumbs but there will still be plenty of topping so you shouldn't need to increase that.



Orange Chocolate Cashew Cheesecake

Serves 12

Crust:
150g digestive biscuits
75g margarine
50g golden syrup
100g dark chocolate (save one square back to grate over for decoration if liked)

Smash up biscuits in bowl with a heavy item like the end of rolling pin. Melt margarine and syrup together and mix into the biscuit crumbs. Press mixture into the bottom of a greased 18cm (7 inch) loose bottomed pan. Melt the chocolate, about 30 seconds in the microwave or over a hot water bath. Spread over crumb base. Place in refrigerator to set.

Filling:
2 big Oranges (make sure you have very good unwaxed oranges)
75g caster sugar (or to taste)
300g Cashews (soaked in plain water for at least 3 hours then
drained)
150g Virgin Coconut Oil (from health food shops. This sets hard at room temperature so sit the jar in some warm water if it's too solid to get out of the jar)

Grate the zest from the oranges. The zest is important to the flavour. I left it out of this cake because I could only get waxed oranges but the flavour was lacking. The zest also puts some nice orange speckles through the mixture. Be careful to only get the orange part as the pith (the white) is bitter. Squeeze the juice out of all the oranges.

Place cashews, sugar, coconut oil, zest and orange juice in a food processor and process until very smooth. Pour over crust, smooth and bang down a bit to settle and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. Grate a bit more chocolate over to decorate at serving time. Keeps well, covered in the refrigerator, for a couple of days if necessary.

We served this with the Brown Brother's Orange Muscat and Flora dessert wine which went splendidly.

Cuban

We were going to have a party last weekend. At midday on Saturday the skies were blue and the roads were clear. By 2 p.m. there were 3 inches of settled snow and it was still snowing heavily. We cancelled.

Now we have food for an army and only the two of us to eat it. I expect we'll manage. I had planned a gentle Cuban theme to the meal, based on recipes from "A Taste of Old Cuba"

This is an interesting book, which I hope has truly authentic recipes from Cuba even if they are rooted in a period before the Cuban revolution. Many of them are impossible to veganise effectively as they rely on meat as their principal ingredient but the poor people's food is based on rice and beans and what good socialist vegan could eschew those?

Black beans, plantains, rice, all these things are well represented across the internet but there was a recipe for a side salad which appealed to me for its novelty and style, Guacamole Cubano.




To make enough salad for six to eight servings you will need;

1 ripe pineapple
2 large avocados (ripe but not mushy)
a small red onion (or part of a larger one!)
Olive oil
Lime juice
Salt

Peel, core and divide the pineapple flesh into small cubes. I don't have recommendations for the best way to tackle a fresh pineapple but I usually take off the top tuft and bottom to make flat ends, peel by slicing downwards from top to bottom with a very sharp knife, pick out any 'eyes' that are left and then slice into quarters to make removing the core easy. Catch as much juice as you can. I wouldn't use tinned pineapple for this dish.

Cut the avocados in half, remove stones, peel and dice into similar sized pieces to your pineapple bits.

Slice the red onion finely.

Mix all the fruit and vegetables into a bowl and then dress with equal parts of good olive oil and lime juice whisked together. Add salt to taste.

It seems to me that this very simple preparation could do with a little jazzing up in the form of some chilli pepper but actually served with black beans, rice and fried sweet potato chips (no plantains in Sainsburys this week) it adds sweetness and variety without being overpowering so bear that in mind when making it as part of a full menu.

If you'd like to learn a little more about life in present day Cuba try reading the Havana Times, written by Cubans about themselves.

Crackers

Khara Biscuits and Moroccan Cookies

Every day I look through my blog feeds and scan through Foodgawker looking for interesting ideas and recipes that I might like to try. In the last week or so I spotted two recipes on very different sites, from very different countries and was intrigued to see how closely the methods and results of the recipes were similar whilst still remaining true to the cultures that created them.

These recipes produce old fashioned, crunchy, almost rusk like biscuits, rather dry and simple and yet taken with tea ideally suited for a light snack or restorative break.

The Khara Biscuits are spicy, fragrant with ginger and curry leaves and originate in Bangalore. Enjoy them with chai or another spicy brew. I based my recipe on the one at Red Chillies.

200g plain Flour
50g vegan margarine
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt (I thought even this much was a bit too much so go carefully)
3 tsp sugar
10ml water
Spice/Herb mix.
You need about 1 mixed tablespoon of grated ginger, grated green chilli, grated lemon grass and finely chopped curry leaves. I made mine from a thumb sized piece of ginger, half a large chilli, 1 thin stem of lemon grass (just the tender bulb end) and about 10 curry leaves. The original recipe calls for green coriander but I didn't have any so substituted the lemon grass. If the chilli is frozen it grates really easily on a microplane.

Heat the oven to 180C. You'll need one large baking tray.

Mix the dry ingredients together well.

Rub the margarine in with your fingers as if making short crust pastry. You should be aiming for a finish rather like bread crumbs.

Add the spice paste. This is moist and should start to form a dough in the bowl as you mix it in. Make sure it is evenly distributed then add about 1 teaspoon of water. You should now be able to form a stiff dough. Press the loose crumbs together firmly and gather everything up into a smooth ball. If you really need to add another teaspoonful of water but try to add as little as possible. It needs to be very stiff.

Roll the dough out to about 1/2 cm thick, prick all over with a fork and cut the shapes required. I used a pizza cutter to form (not very) squares but the mixture is stiff enough to use cutters if you'd like to. Gather up the offcuts and re-roll until it's all used up. Arrange the biscuits on the baking sheet, brush with oil and bake for about 20 minutes until golden.

Yield: about 24 depending on size chosen.

The Moroccan cookies seem to be big in Israel. I found the recipe on Food Bridge although it made an enormous quantity which I've reduced to a quarter. Researching later I also found a twice baked version called Fekkas which like biscotti are cooked, sliced and cooked again. It looks interesting enough to try another time but this much simpler form will give you a taste of the delights that can be yours.

250g plain flour
20g ground rice
1 tsp. baking powder
50g sugar
20g sesame seeds
2 tsp. anise seeds (or fennel at a pinch)
1 tsp. grated orange zest
60g oil
100ml water or orange juice

Preheat the oven to 180C. You will need one large baking sheet.

Mix all the dry ingredients, flour, ground rice, baking powder, sugar, sesame seeds, anise and orange zest in one bowl.

Combine the oil with about half the water or orange juice and whisk well. Mix this into the dry ingredients with a fork then slowly the rest of the liquid kneading with your hands so that the mixture forms a firm ball. You may not need all the liquid, try not to add too much more than 100ml. This dough needs to be firm.

Roll the dough out to about 1/2 cm thick. Prick all over with a fork. This biscuit is traditionally shaped as a narrow rectangle but you can use any shape you like. Gather up the trimmings and repeat until all the dough is used.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. They should be lightly golden and crisp when cooked.

Delicious with mint tea. Yield: about 25-30 depending on size chosen.

Both sorts of biscuits store well in an airtight tin.