The Proof is in the Pages...

I’m not the sort of person who makes recipes from magazines. I never have been. I know there are a lot of food magazines out there, and I’m sure they have great ideas, people sure seem to love them anyway but it’s just never been my style. Food Magazines, Grocery Store Recipe Cards, recipes on the back/side of food packaging - I don’t know, call me a snob but it’s not for me.

Last week however I picked up the latest copy of VegNews Magazine because their feature was Artisan Vegan Cheese. I’ve actually been wanting to purchase the book by Miyoko Schinner but wasn’t sure if I should spend the money. After all the last thing I need is another cook book I’m never going to use. The recipes upon first glance seemed so involved and a bit sensitive that I wasn’t sure I’d be up for it. So I bought the magazine which features six recipes from the book, as a sort of compromise. If I can make those six recipes or even two or three of them then the book might be worth getting.

Now as it happens this post isn’t about vegan cheese. I haven’t yet tasted the fruits of my effort - I chose to make the Brie which takes a few days to age. I did however get lured in by some lovely photographs of Chipotle Sloppy Joe’s, Crispy Chickpea Crepes, and Pesto Piadina. Since I was at a loss for what to make for dinner this week, and cine all of the above recipes were quick and easy and utilized ingredients I already had I thought why not try them? Well each one turned out extremely delicious, especially the chickpea crepe and the piadina. Piadina = my new favorite thing! So that took care of Sunday, Monday and Tuesday leaving me with a void to fill Wednesday. Well since I had such luck with those magazine recipes I decided to dig out the few old copies of VegNews I have lying around to see if I could drum up any inspiration.

In the April 2011 Issue I came across this delicious recipe. BBQ Lentil and Mushroom Tacos with Dijon Coleslaw. Sounded great and it tasted even better. My husband and I wolfed down five of these scrumptious tacos a piece and had several more of them this afternoon for lunch. They were a perfect blend of bbq lentil mushroom goodness and that tangy Dijon slaw on top finished off with a bit of creamy avocado was heaven! The perfect meal and I’ve got a little left over for lunch tomorrow too!

In the December 2011 Issue I came across a recipe contributed by Hannah Kaminsky of “My Sweet Vegan” fame. The recipe is for Sugar Plum Scones. Now I love scones, I’m a scone fiend actually and if you leave a vegan scone lying around near me it’ll surely be gone by the time you get back. Combine that with the tantalizing promise of a little sugar, and plums which I love and always have on hand and you’ve got an instant winner for breakfast.  I made the scones yesterday for breakfast and we ate them warm out of the oven with some of the home-made Blueberry Lavender Jam I made a couple of months ago. Combined with the jam it was the perfect breakfast, but I think these scones would have been good with any sort of jam.

So, the lesson of this post is - don’t turn your nose up at a recipe just because it came out of a magazine. You never know what you might be missing!

PS: Sorry I don’t have pictures for all of the dishes but I only had the forethought to pull my camera out on Wednesday.

PPS: Don’t forget to pick up the latest issue of VegNews Magazine because it rocks!