6 Layer Bean Dip from Disposable Aardvarks Inc.

Dippers were hemp and veggie tortilla chips with flax seeds (hey, you gotta get in those Omega-3s!), and some veggie crudite.  This was good, but I put on way too much sour cream.  I think we all would have liked it better if I’d not been so heavy handed with the sour cream, especially since it has the same consistency of the beans and it was pretty impossible to scrape off.

While on the topic of sour creams, I tried a new brand that I’m not sure I’ve blogged about before:  Vegan Gourmet Sour Cream Alternative.  It was good and I would use it again, but I think I still prefer Tofutti.

Next up are Mini Samosa Wraps from The Veggie Guy.

I left out the crushed red pepper.  Even with that, these still had a little kick to them (good for me because I like spicy).  Emma even tried a few bites and, while she wasn’t wild about them, she didn’t spit it out.  These were good, but it was too much of the same texture for me.  Mushy potato inside and soft tortilla outside.  I was really missing the deep-fried crispy texture of a traditional samosa.  Flavor-wise, these were spot on.

Sloppy Joses over Polenta from One Frugal Foodie.

The original recipe calls for ground turkey, so I substituted a vegan ground “beef.”  Also, I couldn’t find polenta in a tube for some reason, so I had to make my own and it actually turned out really good.  To make the polenta, I used 2 cups of veggie stock and 2 cups of plain, unsweetened soy milk and 1 cup of polenta.  Yum!

This recipe was really tasty (and made excellent taco filling for a leftover night), but my hubby had the brilliant idea of just using corn bread in place of the polenta next time.  So much easier and a better texture.

Chili from Vegannifer.

I didn’t follow the recipe exactly, but I think it still turned out pretty close to the original.  Changes I made to the original recipe:

1. I omitted the cubanelle pepper and tomato.  I just used 1 onion and 2 green bell peppers and added some chopped celery because I had some that needed eating.
2. In place of water, I used veg stock.
3. In place of pineapple juice, I used a tropical carrot juice.
4. I don’t know what Vegebase is and I didn’t have any, so I didn’t use it.
5. I didn’t have red beans, but substituted one 15 oz. can of black beans and one 15 oz. can of garbanzo beans.
6. I omitted the rice.
7. I didn’t have cilantro flakes or chipotle powder and omitted those as well.
8. I had leftover Sloppy Joses and threw that in the pot too (just the beefy part, not the polenta).

After all those substitutions and omissions, this chili recipe was pretty good.  Next time, I won’t add the seitan chicken.  It’s good with it, but we’ve been indulging a little too heavily in the fake meats lately and I feel off.  I’d rather not eat those as often as we have been.  Later this month, I think I’m due for a fast/cleanse of some sort.

Spicy Jalapeno Pizza from Tofu N Sprouts.

I prefer a veggie heavy pizza as opposed to a cheese heavy pizza.  I think this pizza is a good blend of the original recipe and my personal pizza preference.  Please do read through the original recipe as there are LOTS of great vegan pizza making tips.  One such tip: prebaking the pizza dough and then broiling the cheese.  From now on, I will prebake my dough then broil the cheese to melt it, then put the veggies on, then broil some more.  When you try to make a pizza with lots of veggies and vegan cheese, the water in the veggies makes the cheese too wet and it’s not the most pleasant thing to eat.  But, if you broil it first to melt the cheese, then add the veggies, it makes a perfect pizza.

It’s probably also worth mentioning that I just used the Pepper Jack rice cheese and jalapenos.  I didn’t add any of the other stuff to the dough… as I mentioned previously, I am lazy.

For those of you unsure of what to do with tofu, think it’s weird or think you don’t like it, you’ll have to try the recipe for Blackened Tofu from ED&BV. I’ve never tried the recipe before, but it turned out great. While it was cooking, it sort of had a slight fishy smell to it (not in a gross fishy way, but like I was cooking fish) and I found it had a meaty quality while eating it. I’ll definitely be making this again! If you don’t have the book and would like to try it, here is a recipe for a very similar spice mix for the tofu.  Be sure to use extra firm tofu (it usually comes in the vacuum-sealed packs, not packed in water).

Believe it or not, Emma helped me make this whole meal.  After putting away all of the silverware out of the dishwasher (and she actually put them in their proper slots), she helped me measure all of the spices for the spice mix and wash and chop the potatoes.  It went much smoother than I thought it would and she really enjoyed herself.  I think we’ll be cooking together more often.  She even enjoyed washing the dishes.  I know that won’t last for long, so I’ll take advantage of her services while I can.

Alongside the tofu, we made some mashed potatoes.  Since I used organic pototoes, I left the skins on mine.  If you aren’t using organic, you’ll want to peel them since potatoes are one of the dirty dozen.  After srubbing and chopping, I boiled them up.  During the last 2 or 3 minutes of cooking, I threw in a big handful of chopped kale.  When the potatoes are tender, drain them and return them to the pot.  At this point, I threw in a big handful of chopped spinach.  Mash with whatever add-ins you like– we used rice milk, a little Earth Balance and some Tofutti sour cream.  These were super good.

I wanted to try a more chicken-y approach to the seitan recipe that I tried earlier in the week. By this, I mean that I wanted to try marinating it and grilling it, the way that one might prepare piece of chicken. So… I used the same recipe (except that I had all of the ingredients this time, minus the poultry seasoning) and I prepared it exactly as the recipe states. After it was done steaming, I marinated it in some lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, olive oil and grill seasoning for about 2 hours. Then I fired up the grill. When they were done grilling, I cut into one of the cutlets to test the firmness of the inside. You’ll recall that my chief complaint about seitan is the sometimes mushiness of the center. Yep, these were a little mushy in the middle, so I decided to remedy that by sticking them in the oven while I finished preparing the side dishes. The result was a less chewy center with a very crispy outside. Hmmm… not exactly what I was going for, but not totally inedible either. Emma even choked down a few bites, which really surprised me.

I’m not giving up on this, though. I think it’s totally do-able, but I just need to practice a little with cooking the seitan. Once I figure out the best cooking method or combination of methods, we will be in business.

On the side, we had some kale that I cooked in veggie stock. Boy, do I LOVE kale. We also had some dilly potatoes. I took about 7 baby yukon gold potatoes (my favorite) and quartered them. Boil for about 3 minutes and remove from the water. In a skillet, heat 2 TB non-dairy butter and add the potatoes. Allow them to brown up a bit, then add about 2 cloves of chopped garlic. When the garlic has cooked (and the potatoes are tender), sprinkle in about 2 TB of chopped fresh dill and season with S&P. Delish!

Needless to say, I was both excited and scared to try out this sausage recipe. I was excited because (a) everyone seems to love them and (b) the combination of spices sounded like it would make a really tasty sausage. I followed the recipe exactly and, after they were done steaming, I put them in the fridge until dinner. When it was time to eat, I fried them up in a little bit of olive oil, just to give it a little extra crispiness on the outside. Since I was incredibly afraid that the texture was going to be super funky, I made some oven roasted potatoes to go with them and some steamed carrots. Carrots were about the only other veggie we had in the house, so that’s what I had to go with. I also decided that I needed to make a tasty, filling, and nutritious dessert just in case.

I make oven roasted potatoes all the time because they are so yummy. I’ve always made them the same way: scrub up your potatoes and cut them into bite sized pieces. Put them on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle on some salt, pepper, garlic powder and Mrs. Dash table seasoning blend. Bake in a 425 degree oven for about 20-30 minutes, flipping them a few times to brown evenly.

Isn’t this the worst photo you’ve ever seen of a plate of food? I think so. OK, so now for my review of the sausages… they weren’t bad. The flavor was great and I love the spiciness of them. The texture is still something that I need to get used to, but it wasn’t so bad dipped in a little ketchup. I served the sausages with some caramelized onions on top, for a little sweetness to balance the spiciness. To my complete shock and amazement, Emma even ate a few bites. She seemed to really like them, but got a bite with too many peppers and that was it for her.

Since I was so unsure of how my sausage would turn out, I wanted to make a hearty dessert just in case our main course consisted solely of potatoes and carrots. I thought immediately to make some sort of sweetened quinoa topped with apples and came up with this recipe:

Quinoa “Cake” with Spicy Apples

1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained

2 cups unsweetened vanilla soy milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/3 cup raisins

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup maple syrup

pinch of salt

Bring the soy milk to a bubble and add all of the ingredients. You will have to whisk the cinnamon in to avoid clumping. Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook for about 15 minutes or until the quinoa has absorbed the liquid. Spoon about 1/2 cup the cooked quinoa into lightly greased ramekins and chill in the fridge. When cool, slide a knife around the edge to loosen and invert the “cake” onto a plate.

For the apples, which I make all the time as toppings for oatmeal, pancakes, etc., peel and core 2 to 3 apples. I used golden delicious for this recipe, but you could use any kind that you have on hand. Slice them and put into a dry non-stick skillet over medium heat. Cook the apples for about 5 minutes, allowing them to brown a little on both sides. When the apples are getting tender, add about 1/2 tsp of cinnamon, 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg, a pinch of ground cloves and a pinch of allspice. Pour in about 1/2 cup of juice and let the apples simmer until the juice has reduced to a syrup. Top the quinoa cakes with the apples and top with a few walnuts. I also made a caramel drizzling sauce to pour over the apples, for a little bit of added sweetness.

The dessert turned out pretty good. The quinoa cakes were a little on the bland side, which was my intention since the apples have a lot goin’ on. I ate the leftover quinoa the next morning mixed with some oatmeal and it was pretty tasty!

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