Roast Seitan With Spring Vegetables...

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!  Though I normally go 'all-out' when it comes to holiday cooking, I just don't really have that level of dedication in me these days. Most often I'm looking to cook something simple and quick that's healthy and tastes good, and on those days where I like to spend a little more time on something I typically only make one really nice dish rather then a dozen.

So this year we kept Valentine's Day low-key. At first I struggled with what to make, and then I decided to make something French (of course!)  Last year when we were in Paris I bought a cook book, it's non-vegan but I wanted it because it was full of 'traditional' French recipes as opposed to 're-imagined' French-fusion. I love the idea of French food, even if I can't eat most of it, and I bought the book with the intention of trying to veganize some of the less common recipes.

As I was thinking about what to cook, it occurred to me that Valentine's Day was the perfect opportunity to try something new, so I dug the book out and flipped through it. Suddenly a recipe for Roast Lamb with Spring vegetables caught my eye. I have no idea what makes this dish inherently French, or if you can really consider it much of a recipe but something about the photo was appealing to me. All those tasty spring vegetables I imagined sitting around a Seitan Roast and it just seemed perfect. I'm tired of winter, tired of winter food, lets bring on the Spring already!  So here's my version of it, you could use any seitan roast you desire I suppose, but I made my own. I used the 'Moo-Free Seitan" recipe from "Vegan Sandwiches Save the Day" cooked it in the slow cooker then left it in roast form rather then slicing it as the book suggests. If you make your own roast for the recipe or buy a roast I suggest buying or making one that's beef flavored as opposed to chicken flavor. Beef and Lamb taste little alike, but Beef Seitan is as close as I'm coming to lamb in this life. I also used the original cooking liquid from the seitan roast as my stock, but you could use any vegan beef stock. Also take into consideration that a store bought roast will be much drier then a homemade one, so cooking time may vary.

Roast Seitan with Spring Vegetables

1 Large Seitan Roast
3 Sprigs Rosemary
3 Sprigs Thyme
6 Garlic Cloves Sliced Thin
1 Pound Baby Potatoes Cut in Half
8oz Baby Carrots Left Whole
2 Medium Sized Zucchini Cut into Rounds
6 Small Leeks or in lieu of that 6 Large Green Onions
2 Tbsp All-Purpose Flour
1/2 Cup Red Wine
2/3 Cup Vegan Beef Stock
Earth Balance as needed
Sea Salt, Black pepper and Garlic Powder to taste

- Pre-Heat Oven to 350'F

- Spray a large roasting pan with a little non-stick spray. Place the roast inside. With a small knife make several incisions in the top of the roast. Slip the sliced garlic into the incisions. Lightly season the roast with sea salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. Add two small dollops of Earth Balance to the pan and place the roast in the oven.

- Cook for 15 minutes. Add the Potatoes to the pan remove the Rosemary and Thyme from their sprigs and scatter it over the roast and potatoes. Season the potatoes with a little salt and pepper then return to the oven and cook another 15 minutes.

- Flip the Roast over, season the underside with salt and pepper and garlic powder. Add the carrots to the pan along with another 2 dollops of Earth Balance. Return to the oven and roast for 20 minutes.

- Flip the Roast Over once more.  Add Zucchini and Leeks to the pan. (If using Green onions instead do not add them yet) Continue to roast until all the vegetables are fork tender.

- When the vegetables are fork tender add in the green onions if you're using them instead of leeks and roast for an additional five minutes until they are wilted and browned a little.

- Remove the whole pan from the oven. Transfer the Roast to a carving board and spoon the vegetables into a serving dish. Making sure to leave behind any juice

- Now to make the gravy. Heat your roasting pan over medium heat on the stove top. If there wasn't a lot of juice left over in your pan at the end of cooking add in two nice dollops of Earth Balance and wait for it to melt.

- Add the flour and whisk the flour around in the juice and EB until it has become a roux.

- Slowly pour in the stock, and then the wine, whisking the whole time. Season lightly with salt and pepper if you like and whisk slowly until the gravy has thickened to your liking.

-Slice the roast, divide it amongst plates, add a scoop of vegetables and drizzle with gravy. Enjoy with some nice red wine.

Vegan Mofo #22: Seitan Stew from The Hague...

When we were in The Netherlands back in March we stopped in the Hague on our way from Brussels to Amsterdam. It was it was only scheduled to be a pit-stop, a one day adventure, a chance to see the Peace Palace, some other historical landmarks and the Girl with the Pearl Earring. I had not intended to fall in love with The Hague, but I did. The people there - and everywhere in The Netherlands really - were so friendly, the city was so calm and peaceful, a really nice change of pace from busy Brussels and crazy Amsterdam. I wish we had been able to stay their longer, and I wish we could have eaten more of the local food.

Our trip to The Netherlands inspired me to check out some books on Dutch cooking, and in one of those books I found a recipe for ‘Duck Stew from The Hague’ That sounded interesting to me, and since I’d already tailored my go-to seitan Chicken recipe to be a bit richer as a stand-in for Duck I thought I’d give this stew a try. It didn’t turn out quite like I thought it would, but it was still good. I have the feeling that it is lacking something though I can’t quite put my finger on what. I’ll have to play around with it in the future to get it just right, but overall I thought the experiment went well. The stew was tasty, and rich, and I liked the combination of red wine, olives, mushrooms and onions. Put olives in anything and I’m bound to eat it.

Seitan Stew from The Hague

Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Nondairy Butter
1 ½ lb’s Chicken Style Seitan
1 Large Onion Diced
2 Cups Vegan Chicken Broth or 2 Cups Water + 2 Vegan Chicken Bouillon Cubes
1 1/4 Red Wine
1 tsp Dried Tarragon
1 tsp Dried Thyme
1 tsp Sea Salt
Ground Black Pepper to taste
1 ½ Cups Pitted Green Olives
1 Leek (White and Light Green Part Only) Sliced
2 Cups Button Mushrooms Sliced
6 Garlic Cloves Minced
1/4 C All Purpose Flour
½ Bunch Parsley Minced

- Heat a splash of olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add seitan and brown on all sides. About 8-10 minutes. Remove from heat.

- Melt the nondairy butter in the pan, add the onion, and leek. Saute for 5 minutes until tender.

- Add the Mushrooms, and Garlic, saute for another 5-10 minutes until veggies are soft.

- Add in the flour, and stir to combine, coating all veggies.

- Add in the stock, wine, olives, seitan, tarragon, thyme, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine, bring to a boil then reduce heat and let simmer for 40 minutes.

- Add parsley and stir to combine. Serve in large bowls with toasted bread and extra parsley for garnish.

Vegan Mofo #19: Irish Leek and Cheese Soup...

Leek and Cheese Soup is kind of like the Irish version of French Onion Soup. Quick and easy to make using staple ingredients; warming on a cold night and comforting any time of year. I don’t really know where it comes from, but it’s probably been around in one form or another for ages. All I know is that I was interested in making it from the first moment I saw it listed in an Irish cook book.

Irish Leek and Cheese Soup 

3 Large Leeks, Washed and Sliced
1/4 Cup Non-Dairy Butter
*** 4oz your Favorite vegan Cheese
2 Tbsp All Purpose Flour
1 Tbsp Whole Grain Mustard
6 Cups Vegan Chicken Stock or Water mixed with Vegan Chicken Boullion Cubes
1 tsp Poultry Seasoning
1 tsp Sea Salt (More or Less to taste)
1/4 tsp Black Pepper
Additional Grated Vegan Cheese for Garnish (Optional)
Sliced Green Onions for Garnish (Optional)

- Melt the nondairy butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the Leeks and saute for 10-15 minutes until softened.

- Add in the flour and stir constantly for about 2 minutes until leeks are well coated.

- Add in the salt, pepper, poultry seasoning, and mustard. Stir to combine.

- Slowly add in the stock, stirring to blend. Increase the heat and bring the soup to a boil. Then Reduce heat, cover the pot and let simmer gently for about 15 minutes.

- Add in the cheese. And let simmer an additional five minutes. If the cheese melts and blends in so be it, but if it doesn’t fully melt it’s kind of nice to have strands of gooey cheese within the soup.

- Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Then serve garnished with additional vegan cheese and green onions if desired, serve with a hearty brown bread that you can use to sop up the soup.

*** Note - The Original recipe uses Irish Farmhouse Cheese, and specifically suggests Cashel Blue. However you can use any flavorful, sharp vegan cheese you can find. I used Provolone. I bought the slices and just broke them up into little squares. The squares somewhat clumped together to form little cheese lumps in the soup which I liked, as it very much resembled the picture of the original soup. But, use whatever vegan cheese you like, shreds or slices, doesn’t really matter either.***

Vegan Mofo #3: Brotchan Foltchep...

Yes, another Irish Soup. What can I say?  I love Ireland, and I love Soup! Back in 2009 My husband and I traveled a good portion of Ireland, we hit 14 Cities and numerous natural wonders from the Dublin and the Wicklow Mountains, to Belfast and the Giant's Causeway, to Galway and the Cliffs of Moher to the Aran Islands, to Cork. We by no means saw it all, and I would love to go back some day because it was one of the most enjoyable travel experiences we've ever had. The people are some of the most helpful, good natured and genuinely friendly of anyone I've met anywhere. The country itself is bursting with overwhelming beauty and natural wonder, the cities and towns have a calm and peaceful vibe, and say what you will about food in that part of the world, but I never met an Irish Soup in an Irish Pub that I didn't absolutely love! Especially on those cold, drizzling days.

So, this soup is called Brotchan Foltchep (Also known as Brotchan Roy) and it’s a simple soup that utilizes some of Ireland’s staple foods, oatmeal, leeks and milk. It might sound weird to you to put  oatmeal in a soup, but trust me it’s delicious! Not to mention warming, and filling, plus it comes together really easy, what more can you ask for out of a meal?

Brotchan Foltchep 

2 Tbsp Vegan Butter
4 Large Leeks (White and Light Green Part Only Sliced)
3 Tbsp Steel Cut Oats
3 Cups Vegan Chicken Broth or 3 Cups water + 2 Vegan Chicken Bouillon Cubes
2 ½ Cups Non-Dairy Milk (Soy or Almond)
1 tsp Sea Salt
½ tsp Black Pepper (or to taste)
Pinch of Ground Mace
½ Bunch Minced Parsley

Optional but Recommended (If you have any broth leftover from making home-made chicken style seitan add 4 Tbsp to the soup. Or, whisk together 2 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast with 4 Tbsp of Water and add)

- Melt Vegan butter in a large stock pot over medium heat.

- Add sliced leeks and saute for 10 minutes until leeks are soft.

- Add Steel Cut Oats, Broth and Milk. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer. Let simmer for 20-30 minutes until Oatmeal is tender.

- Add in salt, pepper, mace, and the optional seitan liquid or nutritional yeast mixture. Let simmer an additional 10 minutes.

- Stir in the minced parsley. Let stand 5 minutes then serve with a nice brown bread, and enjoy!

Cream of Leek Soup with Pink Peppercorns...

Believe it or not I came up with this recipe on the plane from Brussels to Chicago. It was partially inspired by a side dish of curried leeks I ate while in Luxembourg City. I was thinking about that dish on the plane ride home, and thinking how happy I was that spring was finally upon us. Leeks seemed to be a pretty popular meal item most places we went in Europe, which was fine by me since I love them so. You might think that after weeks of eating them I might be bored of them, but that wasn’t the case at all, in fact I only wanted more, and for whatever reason I kept thinking curry, coconut leek soup. This idea just wouldn’t leave my brain the entire plane ride home, and somewhere over the Atlantic I came up with the idea of adding fancy pink peppercorns and tarragon into the mix. Sounds crazy I know, but damn if it wasn’t delicious! This made a nice sized pot of soup, but my husband devoured most of it in one sitting. I wouldn’t be surprised if you did as well.

Cream of Leek Soup with Pink Peppercorns 

3 Medium-Large sized Leeks
6 Cloves Garlic Minced
1 Tbsp Coconut Oil
1 tsp Curry Powder
1 tsp Tarragon
1 15oz Can Coconut Milk
2 C Vegan Chicken Broth
½-1 tsp Pink Peppercorns crushed
Green Onions or Chives to Garnish
Sea Salt to taste

- Thoroughly wash the leeks and slice thinly.

- Melt the coconut oil in a pot over medium heat. Add sliced leeks, garlic, and curry powder and saute for 6-10 minutes until leeks are bright green, soft and fragrant.

- Add the Vegan Chicken broth and simmer for about 10 minutes.

- Carefully remove leek and broth mixture form the pot, place in a high-speed blender and blend on high until completely smooth.

- Return the soup to the pot, and add in the coconut milk, tarragon and ½-1 tsp of Sea Salt - or to taste. Stir until the coconut milk is completely blended into the soup, then let simmer for about 5 minutes.

- Turn off the heat and stir in the pink pepper corns and green onions or chives. Saving a little of each to garnish each bowl. Serve and enjoy.

Summer Leek and Lemon Noodle Soup...

I don’t know about where you live but the weather here has been weird lately. One day it’s hot, humid and sunny as the tropics and the next day it’s cool, windy, overcast and drizzly. Now since I’m a Vancouver girl a drizzly or even a full on rainy day doesn’t get me down - even if it’s in the middle of summer - because it reminds me of home. For me rainy days are days to laze on the couch and read a good book with the windows open so that you can listen to the rain splatter against the pavement. Rainy days are days to get things done that you never seem to get around to when the weather is nice - like organization or hard-core baking. Rainy days also mean soup. Now, it wasn’t exactly cold today, but it was cool and so I really felt like a bowl of soup. Really there’s nothing better then a steaming bowl of soup on a grey day, is there?

Of course even if the temperature is a little cool, it’s still the middle of summer, so I didn’t think a thick hearty soup would be appropriate. I was craving something ‘chicken-noodle’ style, with lots of broth and wholesome veggies, but I also wanted it to represent summer. I wanted a fresh and light soup that you could really eat anytime of year and feel good about. Lemon, summer savory, and tarragon all give this soup that summery feel, and they paired extremely well with the leeks I had in my fridge. The great thing about this soup is that it’s pretty quick and easy to prepare and if you really want to utilize summer’s bounty you can substitute fresh herbs for the dried.

Summer Leek and Lemon Noodle Soup

2 tsp Olive Oil
2 Large leeks cleaned and sliced
3 Stalks Celery Diced
4 Carrots Diced
10 Garlic Cloves Minced
4 C Low-Sodium Vegetable Broth
1 ½ C Water
*** 2 Bunches Soba Noodles
1 tsp Dried Basil
1 ½ tsp Dried Oregano
1 tsp Ground Thyme
1 tsp dried Tarragon
1 tsp dried Summer Savory
1 tsp Smoked Paprika
1/4 tsp Ground Ginger
1/4 tsp Dried Rosemary
Sea Salt and Black Pepper to taste
1/4 C Lemon Juice
2 Tbsp Bragg’s Liquid Amino’s

- Heat the olive oil in a medium-large sized pot over medium-high heat. Add the sliced leeks and garlic and saute for 3-5 minutes. Add in the celery and carrot and saute for 3-5 more minutes.

- Add in the vegetable broth and water and bring the mixture to a boil. Boil for about 10 minutes then add the basil, oregano, thyme, tarragon, summer savory,. Smoked paprika, ground ginger, rosemary, sea salt and black pepper. Reduce to simmer and simmer for about 10 minutes.

- Add in the Soba noodles and simmer for an additional 5-10 minutes until the noodles are soft.

- Turn off the heat and stir in the Bragg’s Liquid Amino’s and the Lemon Juice. Let stand ten minutes and serve dished up into large bowls.

*** Note - Packages of Soba Noodles usually come separated into bundles. Each small package has about 3-4 bundles of noodles, and each large package has about 8 bundles of noodles. I just grabbed two bundles and didn’t exactly measure the dry weight. Though if your noodles don’t come packed in bundles I would say somewhere between 4-6oz would be appropriate for this soup. Also if you would prefer you can use a gluten-free noodle instead of the Soba to make this gluten-free*** 

Irish Seitan and Guinness Stew With Champ...

The Irish have a long standing tradition of cooking meat in beer. Soups, stews, casseroles you name it, there are a whole slew of Irish recipes that use stout - typically Guinness - as a flavor enhancer. They’re certainly not the only culture to use beer as an ingredients in their dinner, however I think they make better use of it and get more creative with it then some. This particular recipe appealed to me because it was cold and rainy all day yesterday, which made me want something hearty, chewy, heavy and comforting. While this dish may not be one of those extremely clever uses of stout that I just mentioned it is super satisfying. Flavor wise it’s reminiscent of a more traditional beef stew but with a subtly sweet edge a slight acidic tang, and robust undertones of roasted barley and hops. There’s something really pleasing to my palate about this combination, and the smell of simmering beer made me feel ‘home-sick’ for Dublin. Don’t be surprised if as you’re cooking this stew you begin having daydreams of cobble stone streets, and rowdy overflowing pubs.

Now my version of this recipe differs a little from those that you might find in Ireland because rather then strain out the leeks, onion, carrot and celery after a long cooking time I leave the vegetables in. Traditional recipes also use bacon as a flavoring agent. I originally considered using  a vegan bacon substitute in this recipe to achieve the same effect, however I opted to use liquid smoke instead. It's cheap, fast, effective and imparts the perfect smoky-bacon flavor. Of course if you prefer you could use whatever vegan bacon you like, 4oz is the typical amount called for.

Lastly, Guinness - of course - is the recommended kind of stout to use for this dish, however since Guinness - like so many other types of beer and wine - is filtered through the bladders of fish it’s avoided by those who are vegan for animal-rights reasons. In that case any Irish stout will do, but if you’re a little less strict about it then Guinness works perfectly. The Irish say that Stout Beer and Beef are natural partners - which I suppose is why they’re paired so frequently in Irish cooking - but really, you don’t know the magic of stout until you’ve paired it with a good, chewy, home-made Seitan! Forget about beef, Seitan and Stout were meant to be together and I mean that.

Irish Seitan and Guinness Stew

1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 lb Irish Style Seitan Chopped into cubes
1 Small Yellow Onion Roughly Chopped
1 Large Leek Sliced
3 Carrots Roughly Chopped
3 Stalks Celery Roughly chopped
6 Garlic Cloves Minced
1 1/4 C Water + 1 Vegan Beef Bouillon Cube
1 Bottle of Irish Stout Beer
1/4 C Earth Balance
8oz Cremini or Baby Bella Mushrooms Quartered
3 Large Shallots cut into quarters or sixths
1/4 C Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
Celtic Sea Salt and Black Pepper to taste
2 tsp Liquid Smoke
Sliced Green Onions to serve (Optional)
Minced Fresh Parsley to Serve (Optional)

- Heat the oil in a pot over medium-high and add the carrot, celery, onion, and leek. Saute for five minutes until the vegetables are bright and just beginning to become tender.

- Add the minced garlic, the stock, the stout, and season with salt and pepper. Cover and simmer gently over low heat for 20 minutes.

- Meanwhile melt the Earth Balance in a frying pan. Add the cubed seitan, quartered mushrooms, and chopped shallots. Saute over medium-high heat for 5-8 minutes until seitan is nice and brown and shallots and mushrooms are tender.

- After 20 minutes add the browned seitan, mushrooms, and shallots to the pot. Simmer for another 10 minutes.

- After 10 minutes add the flour and stir to combine. Simmer for five minutes to let thicken and then add the liquid smoke and simmer an additional five minutes.

- Remove from the heat and let rest for 10-15 minutes to let flavors mingle. Then serve in large bowls with a heaping scoop of Champ and garnish with Fresh parsley and green onions.

Typically and Irish Seitan and Guinness Stew would be paired with a hearty scoop of Mashed potatoes smothered in butter. However I decided to jazz things up a little and so rather then serve my stew with plain old mash, I decided to make Champ. Champ is a traditional dish that’s basically a glorified form of mashed potatoes. It’s a common side-dish in Ireland and is typically paired with stews, sausages or other grilled meats. It’s most associated with Northern Ireland but you can find it all over the country. What makes it different then a traditional dish of mashed potatoes is that the potatoes are mixed with fresh spring onions that have been simmered in milk, and often other fresh herbs are thrown into the mix for good measure. Chives, Parsley, and Basil are all common addition, and even green peas can be thrown into the mix. For my version of Champ I decided to keep it basic and traditional, after all it was going to be soaked and smothered in Seitan and Guinness stew anyway. Make sure each serving of champ is accompanied by a good dollop of non-dairy butter, as the traditional way of eating champ is to make a well in the center, fill it with butter, then dip your champ as you eat. Yum!

Champ

6 Medium Sized Russet Potatoes peeled and cubed
4 Baby Yukon Gold Potatoes peel left on and cubed
1 Bunch Green Onions
1 1/4 C Unsweetened Almond Milk
1 tsp Garlic Powder
½ Tsp Celtic Sea Salt
1/4-1/2 tsp Black Pepper
Earth Balance to serve
Fresh Minced Parsley to serve

- Fill medium sized pot with water and bring to a boil over high heat.

- Once boiling add the potatoes and cook until fork tender and soft. Once desired doneness has been reached drain the potatoes and return them to the pot.

- While potatoes are cooking simmer the green onions and the milk in a small saucepan over medium heat. Simmer for 5 minutes until onions are bright green and tender.

- Add the simmered milk and green onions to the potatoes, season with garlic, salt and pepper and then mash, or use an electric hand mixer to whip the potatoes into a creamy consistency.

- Serve alongside Seitan and Guinness Stew, and garnish each serving with a generous dollop of Earth Balance and a sprinkling of fresh minced Parsley.

Arugula Risotto with Leek and Fresh Herbs...

Risotto is one of those pain in the ass Italian dishes that everyone loves and noone likes to make. Well, actually I don’t mind making risotto, yes it’s usually a lot of prep work, and it’s definitely a lot of stirring, but there’s something about it that I kind of love. I love watching the rice go from small hard granules to this very rich, and creamy aromatic concoction. There’s something really satisfying in witnessing this transformation, and risotto is universally perfect for cold winter nights and late summer evenings. It’s the kind of dinner you decide to make when you just want to chill by the oven and daydream. You put on some good music, open a nice bottle of wine to sip, and you daydream about far away places.

Anyway this particular recipe was inspired by a recent trip to the library. I was browsing through the cook books as I so often do when I’m there and book entitled ‘La Tartine Gourmande’ caught my eye. This is by no means a vegan cook book, or even a vegetarian cook book, I wouldn’t say that it’s even particularly vegan friendly but the cover photo was so beautiful and I was intrigued by the French so I picked it up and started flipping through it. Now it’s not very often that I find myself inspired by non-vegan recipes but when I saw the author Beatrice Peltre had made a risotto utilizing Arugula I knew I would have to try the combination. Ever since my trip to Europe I’ve been obsessed with Arugula I use it frequently these days and throw it into all sorts of dishes. I’m always on the lookout for creative ways to use this new favorite green of mine, so when I saw this recipe I knew it was a must.

Initially I wasn’t sure how arugula would go In a risotto since it has the tendency to be bitter but it worked out perfectly and wasn’t bitter at all. I love the accent from the lemon and subtle flavor of the wine and the leek. The parsley and basil make it almost reminiscent of a light pesto, and the miso gives it that rich, tart flavor that cheese would traditionally provide. However if you prefer you can leave the miso out and I’m sure it would be just as delicious! So here is my recipe adapted from ‘La Tartine Gourmande’ No matter how you decide to make it, just make it!

Arugula Risotto with Leek and Fresh Herbs

4 C Packed Arugula
1 C Packed Fresh Basil
1 C Packed Fresh Parsley
1-2 Tbsp Fresh Minced Rosemary
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Large Leek Sliced thin
½ Red Onion chopped
Zest of 1 Lemon
1 tsp Garlic Powder
½ tsp Sea salt
1 ½ C of Arbrorio Rice
½ C Dry White Wine
2 C Vegetable Broth + 2 C Vegan Chicken Broth
1 Tbsp Earth Balance
1 ½ Tbsp White Miso mixed with 3 Tbsp water
Black Pepper to taste
Fresh Minced Parsley for garnish

- Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Once boiling add the Arugula, Basil, and Parsley. Blanch for one minute then drain and run under cold water.

- Once cool enough to handle squeeze all the excess water from the arugula and herbs. Then place on a cutting board and finely chop and set aside.

- In the same pot you used to blanch the arugula heat the vegetable/vegan chicken broth and keep warm.

- Meanwhile heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the leek, and red onion. Saute for 4-5 minutes then add the lemon zest and garlic powder. Saute for another 2 minutes then add the rice, and saute for 1 minute, stirring constantly.

- Add the white wine, and cook stirring until the liquid has been absorbed.

- Add the salt and minced Rosemary along with 1 cup of warmed broth and cook stirring occasionally until the liquid has been absorbed. Repeat this process until you have no more broth left and the rice is thoroughly cooked and creamy. This takes roughly 20 minutes or so depending on your oven. Depending on how hot your burners get you may need to readjust the heat to a lower setting. Either medium, or even medium low so that the rice doesn’t cook too quickly.

- With the last cup of broth add in the chopped Arugula and herbs. Stir to thoroughly mix the arugula and herbs in. Once the liquid has been absorbed turn off the heat and stir in the tablespoon of Earth Balance, along with the white miso/water mixture, and black pepper to taste. Stir until fully incorporated.

- Taste for flavor and adjust seasonings as needed. Garnish with fresh minced parsley.

Enjoy on a cold winter night with some crusty bread, a glass of wine and dreams of a warm Mediterranean climate.

*** Note - If you prefer you can use all vegetable broth or all vegan chicken broth. I used half and half because I only had 2 cups of vegetable broth left, so I subbed in 2 cups of water with one vegan chicken bouillon cube. Also if you need to be soy-free you can use a soy-free barley miso or chickpea miso instead, or as I already suggested you can leave it out altogether.***

Sauteed White Kale with Hot Chili Oil, and Pickled Ginger...

Happy New Year Everyone!

I hope everyone had an enjoyable New Year’s Eve, and New Years Day. After an extremely busy December I’m thankful to have some peace, quiet and relaxation today. I’m looking forward to 2013, because I know it’s going to be a good year. I’m not the type to make New Years Resolutions. I think they’re a waste of time, because as I always say if you want to change something about your life just do it. I do have a couple of goals for this year though. The first one is just to live simpler. The second one is that I’d like to develop a good daily routine, so I can better manage my time and fit in everything I need to fit in. 3) More disciplined spiritual practice, and by this I mostly mean daily meditation. 4) I would like to work on developing greater muscle definition, particularly in my abdomen and upper arms.  Finally I’d like to significantly decrease my sugar consumption. Now I say these are goals rather then New Years Resolutions because in truth I’ve already been working at them for the past couple of months, but now that a new year is here I want to really get serious about them.

So today I kicked off the New Year right, but cooking up a big bowl of delicious veggies for lunch, and dinner tonight is going to be the New Years Soup from “Clean Start” which is basically a Black Eyed Pea and Collard Green Soup. Simple, delicious and satisfying, but back to lunch. A few days ago when I was shopping for my groceries I came across a type of Kale I’d never seen or heard of before. It was called Ornamental Flowering Kale, and it came in white and purple. They were so pretty both in color and in design that I couldn’t help but buy some. They look like big flowers you might find in someone’s garden, but they’re edible. I really don’t know that much about this variety except that it’s supposedly not as tender or tasty as the regular varieties of kale, and that it comes in many other colors besides purple and white.

Since I was looking to make something quick and simple for lunch today I decided just to saute the kale in a big ‘ole pan with some leeks, garlic, and hot chili oil. The flavor of the overall dish was really fantastic, and as for the kale itself. I didn’t think it was any less delicious or any less tender then other kales I’ve eaten. It was perfect. Though unfortunately there isn’t a lot of color contrast in the finished dish for you to ooo and awe over, and I forgot to take a picture of the head of kale before chopping it up. Sorry, next time I promise. So here’s to starting the New Year off right! Do you have any resolutions or goals for 2013?

Sauteed White Kale with Hot Chili Oil, and Pickled Ginger 

1 Head White Ornamental Flowering Kale Torn into bite sized pieces
1 Large Leek Sliced
4 Garlic Cloves Minced
2 tsp Hot Chili Oil ***
2 tsp Vegetable Broth
2 tsp Tamari
A few Drops Ume Vinegar to taste
Minced Picked Ginger to taste

- Add the leek, garlic and chili oil to a large frying pan and saute over medium-high heat until leeks are just becoming tender. Roughly 5-6 minutes.

- Add in the Tamari, Vegetable Broth and Kale. Saute for 5-6 more minutes covered, until Kale is tender.

- Add in the ume vinegar and give the mixture a good stir.

- Serve with minced pickled ginger on top.

*** Note - Depending on how hot your Hot Chili Oil is you may want to use more or less. 2 tsp made my dish quite spicy, so you may want to start with 1 tsp and go from there. Or if you would like to make this oil free, saute in water and add 1 tsp of Red pepper Flakes instead.

Memories of Ireland, Potato and Leek Soup

When my husband and I were in Ireland in 2009 we ate a ton of Potato and Leek soup, we probably ate it once everyday, served with a few slices of thick dark bread. It was the main staple of our diet on that particular trip, and not because we were vegetarian - at the time neither of us were - but because it was cheap, abundant, delicious and filling. My husband and I have never been the kind of people that travel for the food. We don’t seek out exotic culinary delights, or spend copious amounts of money on fine dining. When we travel we spend our money on seeing and doing amazing things, because if you’re not going to get the most out of your trip then what’s the point in going right? Which explains the potato and leek soup. You see, it’s a pretty standard offering in most pubs and restaurants in Ireland, and when we were there you could get a nice hearty bowl of it with bread for between four to six euro, four to six pounds if we’re talking about Northern Ireland. That makes for a pretty cheap lunch or dinner for two people while traveling and because potatoes are so heavy one bowl really is sufficient. If you’re extra hungry you might want to throw a three euro side salad into the mix, but it still keeps the cost pretty low.

We traveled to fourteen different cities in Ireland, and we ate Potato and Leek soup all the way from Dublin to Belfast, to Derry, to Galway, to Killkenny, to Cork, to Waterford, back to Dublin. No matter where we went the soup was always phenomenal, and I just fell in love with it - as I did so many other things about Ireland. After we returned home, despite having eaten it every day for the duration of our trip I wanted more potato leek soup. So began my mission to make a potato leek soup from scratch that was just as good as those I’d sampled in Ireland. For the past 2 and a half years I’ve failed at every turn and I have tried so, so many recipes. Whether the recipes be vegetarian or vegan I was never able to find a good recipe, not online and not in any cook book. Every recipe I’ve tried the soup was too bland, too thick, too much potato, too much thyme. The consistency was never right, the flavor was never spot on, it was never quite rich enough or creamy enough, and for a while I thought all was lost.

Then Friday I woke up to cold weather as one so often does in Chicago at the end of November, and I found myself with a hankering for potato and leek soup! I looked through a handful of my cook books trying to find recipes for said soup that I hadn’t yet tried, but to no avail. Nothing was catching my eye. After some moments of impatient contemplation I realized I didn’t really need a recipe at all. All I needed was my own creativity and knowhow, and so I went to the kitchen and set myself to work, with nothing to guide my endeavor except countless memories of Irish pubs and magical landscapes.

After having tried so many recipes - some from very renown people in the culinary profession - I had no hope that my little effort would yield anything palatable, but I had to try, and in the end, when I tasted what I had created I knew I had come as close to the perfect Irish bowl of potato and leek soup that I ever would. This soup turned out so rich and creamy, and bursting with flavor. It is everything a good potato and leek soup should be, and it’s fairly quick and easy to prepare. If you’re a potato leek soup fan I urge you to try it, and serve it a long a nice thick slice of pumpernickel bread.

Memories of Ireland, Potato and Leek Soup

2 Tbsp Earth Balance or other Vegan non-dairy Butter
1 Very large leek, washed and sliced.
3 medium sized Yukon Gold Potatoes skin on chopped
2-3 Celery Ribs chopped
4 Garlic Cloves Minced
2 Bay Leaves
1 tsp Thyme
½ tsp Sage
½ tsp White Pepper
1/4 tsp Smoked Paprika
Sea salt and Black Pepper to taste
1 ½ C Vegetable Broth
1 ½ C Water + 1 Vegan ‘Chicken’ Bouillon Cube
1 Bunch Parsley Minced
2/3 C Cashews + additional 1/3 C Cashews as needed
1 C Water
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1 Tbsp White Miso

- Melt Earth Balance in a pot on the stove over medium heat. Add in the leek and celery. Saute for 4 minutes then add in the garlic, bay leaves, thyme and sage and saute another 4-5 minutes until leeks are tender and bright green.

- Add in the potatoes, the vegetable broth and the water with the bouillon cube. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a good simmer. Allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork.  Around the last five minutes of simmering add in the white pepper, smoked paprika, black pepper and salt. Stir to combine.

- While the soup is simmering combine the cashews, the water, the lemon juice and the white miso in a high speed blender and process on high until completely smooth. About 1 minute. If the mixture looks a little to watery you can add in up to another 1/3 cup of cashews for a thicker cream.

- Remove the cashew cream to a measuring cup and set aside. It should have yielded roughly one and a half cups of cream.

- No need to clean the blender out, instead remove the bay leaves from the soup and discard then transfer the hot soup to the blender being careful not to spill any or burn yourself. Once all of the soup is in the blender blend on high until completely smooth and creamy. Return the soup to the pot.

- Stir in 1 cup of the cashew cream. Stir in minced parsley, and season with any additional salt and pepper.

- Ladle the soup into bowls and serve with an additional swirl of the cashew cream, and a few twists of a black pepper mill. Enjoy!

PS: You can make this soup oil-free by using water to saute instead of earth balance. You can make the soup soy-free by using a chickpea or barley based miso instead of a soy one, or just leave the miso out altogether.

PPS: If you’ve never been to Ireland you really must go. It is one of the most spectacular places I have ever been! 

Umeboshi Noodles with Black Soybeans and Collard Green Ribbons in Soy Broth...

I know with all the toppings it's kind of hard to see all
the awesomeness in this bowl

If you know me, or If you’ve been following this blog for any length of time you probably know that Asian Cuisine is one of my favorites. I love the duality between the simple fresh ingredients and the bold complex flavors that are so characteristic of Asian cooking. I also love bowls and one pot meals, especially on cold days. Well, today was a cold day, and I was feeling particularly inspired thanks in part to the reading I’ve been required to do for my Chinese Medicine class, as well as my most recent trip to Mitsuwa, the Japanese Market in Arlington Heights.

My last trip to Mitsuwa was a couple of weeks ago, and I was on a mission for Miso and a variety of Japanese noodles. These are things I can find easily in the health food stores in my area, however they’re roughly half the price at Mitsuwa, which is way more economical considering how much miso I go through. As for the noodles I found exactly what I wanted, a ton of Udon, Soba and Somen, and then I found some packages of Green Tea flavored noodles, and Ume flavored noodles. Ume of course referring to Umeboshi, the tart, sour, slightly sweet plum typically used as a paste or made into vinegar in Japanese cooking. I’d never seen Ume noodles anywhere else before, nor had I even heard of them, but they were bright pink and beautiful, and contained no weird or nefarious ingredients and so I bought a package.

I really had no idea what I was going to do with them once I got them home, and so they’ve just been sitting in my pantry for the past couple of weeks. Until today. Today, for whatever reason was the day I decided to give them a try. Initially I was a bit stumped as to what to pair them with, or what kind of dish to put them into because I wasn’t sure what their flavor would really be like. Eventually I decided to go with traditional Asian seasonings such as garlic, ginger, sesame, and tamari, and picked my vegetables according to what I had on hand and what I thought might make the most startling contrast. Green, orange and black I thought would all look fantastic against the bright pink noodles, and I had really been trying to find a use for the solitary can of Black Soybeans left over in my pantry from a squash stew I made a couple of months ago.

Now, I’ll be honest, at first I wasn’t sure how this would turn out. I was kind of just flying by the seat of my pants so to speak. Whenever you just start tossing things together there is always the risk that you’ll under season or over season whatever your making, or just make a bad call on an ingredient. So when we sat down to eat I was a little hesitant and a bit skeptical, particularly of the noodles since I had no idea what to expect from them. Turns out there was no real need to worry because this delicious hearty bowl really blew me away. The flavors were exactly what I was looking for, rich - complex - and warming, and the entire thing came together in the most delicious way. The Ume noodles in particular were fantastic, and now I can’t wait for my next trip to Mitsuwa so I can buy myself some more packages. If you see Ume Noodles in your area pick some up, and make this dish!

Umeboshi Noodles with Black Soybeans and Collard Green Ribbons in Soy Broth.

8oz Umeboshi Noodles
1-2 Tbsp Toasted Sesame Oil
6 Garlic Cloves Minced
1 Thumb Sized Piece of Ginger grated
1 Medium Sized Leek sliced
1 Bunch Collards - ribs removed cut in ribbons
4 oz Enoki Mushrooms
1 15oz can Black Soybeans
A Few Dashes of Ume Vinegar
1 tsp Japanese 7 Spice

For Broth 

1 1/3 C Low-Sodium Vegetable Broth
2 Tbsp Low-Sodium Tamari
½ Tbsp Agave nectar

For Garnish 

1 Large Grated Carrot
½ Tbsp Brown Rice Vinegar per bowl
2 tsp Sesame Seeds per bowl

- Cook Ume Noodles according to package directions. Then drain in a colander and rinse with cold water to stop cooking and set aside, until ready to serve.

- While Noodles are cooking heat 1 Tbsp of sesame oil in a large skillet. Add the minced garlic, grated ginger and sliced leek. Saute over medium-high heat until the leek has softened, and garlic is fragrant. About 5-7 minutes.

- Add in the collard green ribbons, then cover and cook for three minutes. Then add in the enoki mushrooms and cook another 3-5 minutes until the mushrooms are soft and the collard greens are bright green and tender. If the pan starts looking dry during this time you can add an additional 1 tbsp of toasted sesame oil.

- Lower the heat and stir in the black soybeans, ume vinegar, and 7 spice seasoning. Replace the lid and let sit over low heat until the soy beans are warmed through then turn the heat off. And set the pan aside until ready to serve.

- To make the broth whisk the vegetable broth, soy sauce, and ume vinegar in small sauce pan. Then bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. Let simmer one minute then turn off the heat.

- To serve divide the noodles into two bowls. Then divide the broth and the collard green mixture evenly among them. Top each bowl with grated carrot, sesame seeds and the rice vinegar.

PS: Black Soybeans by the way are pretty interesting. They look like a black bean but a bit lighter, and taste a regular soybean or maybe a blander edamame. Outside of health food or specialty stores I don’t know how easy it is to find them, the brand I used was Eden Organic’s but if you can’t find them you could always sub in regular soybeans, edamame or black beans if you want to keep the contrast. Shiitake mushrooms would also be good if you don't have Enoki.

Once I mixed it all up you could better see those lovely
Pink Ume Noodles!