I should open by saying that I simultaneously would love to be a vegan and I'm afraid of veganism. I think that veganism is the just thing to do vis-a-vis the treatment of animals, efficient land usage, personal health, the like, and it just seems too hard for someone as lazy as I. It would take a lot of work to drop my addiction to dairy products, and I just don't think that I'm motivated enough and certainly not strong enough right now. Perhaps in the future.
So with all that said, tonight's meal was pretty good...for being vegan. A few of the dishes I liked, a few I liked less, but I feel pretty healthy at the end of the night. All in all, not bad. Now for the reviews:
Fruit and Tender Greens Salad--this was one of the better dishes for me, but I love fresh, juicy fruit, especially this time of year. This salad was chock full of ripe melons, kiwi, apples, and stone fruit, all mixed in with spinach and red leaf lettuce. Perhaps most interesting was the dressing, which looked like a smoothie with its melon and orange base (and one man actually poured himself a glass of it to drink, then tasted the vinegar) and it was quite refreshing. I want to have more of it right now, so I give it a score of 6 bucks.
Triple Grain Spinach and Mushroom Pilaf--I like a good pilaf, full of lots of stuff in it, and this one was pretty good. The three grains were quinoa, millet, and barley, which worked really nicely together, and the spinach and mushrooms were cooked to perfection. I think that the only thing that didn't work for me was the seasoning, and as I review the recipe now, I see that the group did things a bit out of order, and that may well have impacted the flavors. In any case, it was good, but not great, and I give it a score of 5 bucks.
Thai Style Shredded Pumpkin--this dish wasn't bad but I've forgotten about it already--not a sign that I'll ever be making it again. I know that some people really liked it so I'm having a bite of the left-overs right now. Texture is nice, well cooked, but either a bit too much ginger or not enough of something else. Potential is there as a side dish accompaniment to something else. I give it a score of 3 bucks.
Tofu Nuggets--while some people liked it, this dish was the big loser of the night. One vegan said, 'I really think that tofu gives vegetarians a bad name', and while I don't necessarily agree, this dish was no ringing endorsement...on several levels. First, it was a rather involved recipe that made a big mess. When they came out of the oven, the smelled nice and had a nice crunch to them, but they tasted too floury. It's possible that this can be blamed on the fact that they changed the recipe to make it gluten and garlic/onion-free, but I'm not sure that the result would have been great either way. So while this dish has the high-end potential of five bucks, the most that I can give it is a score of 2.5 bucks.
Cherry, Chocolate Chip, and Almond Cookies--desserts rarely disappoint, but I have to say that when I think of baked and vegan, I'm skeptical. But I need to start rethinking my stance since these cookies were really good in taste, texture, and ease of preparation. I would absolutely recommend them to any vegan and maybe, possibly to everyone else. Is it that they were moist and chewy and had both dried cherries and chocolate chips (and don't be scared off by the idea of vegan chocolate chips--nearly all semi-sweet chocolate chips are vegan, including the ones from Trader Joe's)? Maybe so, but I think that I much prefer these to a heavier dessert like a bowl of ice cream or a rich chocolate cake. I feel much lighter and I want to keep eating more and more. I give it a score of 6.5 bucks.
Overall--so, on the whole, not a bad meal, though not a great one either. The total score is 23 bucks, which is a big drop-off from last week, but not every week can be outstanding. At least everyone got their money worth, and we're likely a bit healthier for our efforts tonight. Now for the recipes:
Adapted from www.veganchef.com
Salad Ingredients
1 T lemon juice
1 T water
1 ½ cups Fuji apples or other apple of choice, cored, and diced
2 cups cantaloupe or other melon, cut into balls with a melon baller
2 cups peaches or nectarines, peeled, pitted, and sliced
1 ½ cups kiwi, peeled, cut into quarters lengthwise, and sliced
8 oz. spinach, triple washed, patted dry, de-stemmed, and torn into bite-sized pieces
6 cups Boston or Bibb lettuce, washed well, patted dry, and torn into bite-sized pieces
1 cup sliced almonds
1 recipe Melon-Orange Vinaigrette (below)
Salad Instructions
1. In a large bowl, stir together the lemon juice and water. Add the diced apple and toss well to thoroughly coat the apples with the mixture to prevent browning. Add the cantaloupe, peaches, and kiwi, and toss gently to combine.
2. In another large bowl, place the spinach and lettuce, and toss them together. Add the fruit mixture and almonds and toss gently to combine.
3. Drizzle a little of the Melon-Orange Vinaigrette over individual servings.
Dressing Ingredients
1 cup cantaloupe, cut into cubes
2/3 cup orange juice
2/3 cup cider vinegar or white wine vinegar
1/3 cup unbleached cane sugar
½ t salt
¼ t ground ginger
Dressing Instructions
1. Combine all of above the ingredients in a bowl.
2. Using a stick blender, process for 1-2 minutes or until smooth and creamy.
Serves 6-8
Adapted from www.veganchef.com
Ingredients
6 cups vegetable broth, divided
1 cup pearl barley, rinsed and drained
¾ cup millet, rinsed and drained
¾ cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
1 t salt
1 ½ cups green onions, thinly sliced
1 cup onion, diced
2 T olive oil
12 oz baby bella mushrooms, washed well, halved, and sliced
1 ½ T garlic, minced
2 T sesame seeds
2 T toasted sesame oil
6 cups spinach, triple washed, de-stemmed, and roughly chopped
1/3 cup freshly chopped parsley
2 T freshly chopped thyme
2 T tamari
½ t freshly ground black pepper
1/8 t cayenne pepper
Instructions
1. In a saucepan, place 3 cups vegetable stock and pearl barley, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 45-50 minutes or until barley is tender. Remove from heat, drain off any excess water, and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, in another saucepan, place the remaining vegetable stock, millet, quinoa, and salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes or until the grains are tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed. Drain off any excess water, leave the grains in the saucepan covered, and let sit for 5 minutes to allow the grains to steam.
3. In a large non-stick skillet, sauté the green onions and onion in olive oil for 5 minutes to soften. Add the mushrooms and sauté an additional 3 minutes. Add the garlic and sesame seeds, and sauté an additional 2-3 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Add the toasted sesame oil and all three cooked grains to the skillet, and sauté for 3 minutes to heat through. Add the remaining ingredients and continue to sauté until the spinach wilts. Taste and adjust the seasonings, as needed.
4. Transfer the pilaf to a large bowl to serve.
Serves 8-10
Adapted from www.veganchef.com
Ingredients
¾ cup vegetable broth
1 T Sucanat
1 T tamari or soy sauce
2 t toasted sesame oil
2 T peanut oil
1 cup green onions, thinly sliced diagonally
1 ½ T ginger, minced
4 cups pumpkin, peeled, and coarsely shredded
3 T freshly chopped cilantro
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
1. In a small bowl, place the vegetable broth, Sucanat, tamari, and toasted sesame oil. Whisk well to dissolve the Sucanat, and set aside.
2. In a wok or non-stick skillet, heat the peanut oil. When hot, add the green onions and ginger, and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes to soften the green onions. Add the pumpkin and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add the reserved broth mixture, cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 5-7 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender.
3. Stir in the chopped cilantro and season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Transfer to a bowl or platter for service.
Serves 6
Adapted from www.veganchef.com
Ingredients
1 lb firm tofu
2/3 cup soy milk, rice milk, or other non-dairy milk of choice
1 T lemon juice
1 cup whole wheat flour
½ cup cornmeal
¼ cup nutritional yeast flakes
1 T dried parsley
1 t onion powder
1 t garlic powder
1 t dried basil
1 t dried oregano
½ t paprika
½ t salt
1/8 t freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
1. Wrap the block of tofu in a clean, lint-free towel, place it in a colander, and place the colander in the sink. Place a plate over the towel-covered tofu, them a heavy can or other weight on top, and leave to press for 30 minutes. Remove the tofu from the towel, cut into 1-inch cubes, and set aside.
2. Lightly oil (or spray with a light mist of oil) a non-stick cookie sheet and set aside.
3. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the soy milk and lemon juice, and set aside for 10 minutes to thicken.
4. Place the flour on a large plate and toss the tofu cubes in the flour to thoroughly coat them. Remove the cubes of tofu from the flour and set aside.
5. Add the remaining ingredients to the flour, stir well to combine, and set aside.
6. Dip the floured tofu cubes into the soymilk mixture and then toss them with the seasoned flour mixture.
7. Place the tofu cubes on the prepared cookie sheet and spacing them so that they aren't touching. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned, flip over the tofu cubes, and bake an additional 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned all over.
8. Serve with a mixture of maple syrup and mustard, ketchup, or other dipping sauce of choice.
Serves 4
Adapted from www.veganchef.com
Ingredients
½ cup soy milk, water, or apple juice
½ cup maple syrup
½ cup safflower oil
1 t vanilla
¼ t almond extract
1 cup unbleached flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 t baking powder
½ t baking soda
¼ t salt
¾ cup vegan chocolate chips
1/3 cup dried cherries
1/3 cup sliced almonds
Instructions
1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the soy milk, maple syrup, oil, vanilla, and almond extract, and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, place both types of flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and stir well to combine.
3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir well to combine. Fold the remaining ingredients into the cookie dough.
4. Lightly oil (or spray with a light mist of oil) two non-stick cookie sheets.
5. Drop the dough by teaspoonfuls, spacing them 2 inches apart, onto the prepared sheets.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes, or until cookies are set and lightly browned on the bottom and around the edges.
7. Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheets for a few minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.
8. Repeat the baking procedure for the remaining cookie dough.
Makes 24-30 cookies
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