Weeds and feeds

©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

I was really meaning to create a good recipe for a post today but I’ve been gardening to exhaustion, and we ended up eating leftovers of a not so great dinner. I would like to be planting and refining new garden spaces, but what I’m doing is WEEDING. I’m sure I’ve mentioned our invasive-vine woes before, but really, it’s so depressing. Every time I think progress has been made, new shoots of these hideous stucco-wreckers start emerging from the ground. There are thick roots deep under the ground and no matter how I dig at them, they won’t budge. Sometimes I manage to withdraw a large section of root and spray myself with a pound of dirt in the process. Last year we paid professionals to remove them and they rototilled the perimeter of the house, and removed a startling quantity of roots, but many large roots are still there. I’ve got a bunch of plants ready to go into beds but we still have a lot of pre-planting work to do. Actually, I think my husband is still out there digging.

Since this is a cooking blog and not a gardening blog, I won’t bore you with pictures of evil, inedible weeds. I’m posting some of the stuff we’ve cooked and eaten lately. We had some fantastic marinated tempeh that was made from a recipe from “Lorna Sass’ Complete Vegetarian Kitchen.” Also, a delicious coleslaw that came from “Vegan Deli” by Joanne Stepaniak. These two dishes were served with linguine with green pea pesto. (We won’t be making the pesto again because it tasted too much like . . . green peas, but that’s my personal taste preference.)

©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

My son made his excellent black bean burgers and potato salad. We had sweet potato fries with a simple tofu and broccoli stir fry and we made a great stir fry with mushrooms, kale and rice noodles. (The fries were roasted with lots of rosemary which added a fantastic flavor.

©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

I baked a 100% white whole wheat no-knead bread with toasted black sesame seeds.

©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

One night, too tired to cook, we got salads from a nearby Middle Eastern restaurant, called Lulu’s. They have a deli service at the back of the restaurant and we purchased tabouli and fattoush.

©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

I would love to pass along the marinated tempeh recipe but I don’t have permission to do that so I’ll just say what was in it and a offer bit of prep info. For Marinated Pan-fried Tempeh, a package of tempeh is cubed and marinated for several hours in lemon juice, apple juice, tamari, dry mustard, fresh grated ginger and minced garlic. It’s then fried in a small amount of oil until browned. Everything we make from the Lorna Sass cookbook turns out great, and I highly recommend it as a basic vegan cookbook.

…………………………………………………………………

If you are a fan of Silk soymilk and Whitewave tofu and tempeh (owned by food giant Dean Foods), you might want to read this disturbing report from Organic Consumers Association and Cornucopia Institute. Most Silk products are no longer organic and the soybeans used for production are now mostly from China, not North America. Dean Foods is also heavily into inhumane factory farming. Thanks to LK Sisters for blogging about this.

©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

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FRUITY TABOULI! (AND SOME INFO ABOUT BULGUR WHEAT)

This post was updated on Sunday, May 31, 2009.
NEWS FLASH! For those of you with a wheat sensitivity (NOT a gluten allergy, though), there is now a Kamut® Bulgur on the market! Check it out! It could be used in place of couscous, too. amazon.com carries a different brand of organic kamut bulgur, in coarse, medium, and fine varieties. (If you are gluten-free, substitute quinoa for bulgur and couscous. or, check out Carol Fenster’s recipe for “Rice Couscous” halfway down this page. It could be used as a “bulgur rice”, too!)

Kamut® Bulgur

This time of the year almost always keep a grain salad on hand for snacking. Grain salads are hearty, filling, nutritious, and, the way I make them, low in fat. Tabouli (also spelled tabbouleh or tabbouli), the lemony Levantine bulgur wheat and parsley salad, is well-known to vegans and omnis alike. Sometimes it’s the only thing we vegans can eat at a potluck! But I never get tired of it.

The other day I was craving some tabouli, but I didn’t have any tomatoes. I’ve made other versions before– I guess you can’t really call them tabouli, but I do, anyway!– but I decided to use chopped fresh orange and mango instead of tomatoes and green peppers, and add a few kalamata olives for a savory touch. The result was delicious and I was sorry when there was no more left! (See the recipe below.)

“Also known as bulgar, bulgour, or burghul, this very versatile food, is believed to have been first eaten in the Euphrates Valley as far back as 5000 BC. Since then, it has been on the daily menu of the people of the Middle East,” writes Canadian cookbook writer and historian Habeeb Salloum in his article “Bulgur, the noblest food achieved by wheat” in the Vegetarian Journal, Jan/Feb 2004. In this article he describes how his Syrian immigrant family made their own bulgur on the Saskatchewan prairie. He and his young siblings did not appreciate the hard work involved in making bulgur, but he now appreciates the value of bulgur to Middle Eastern cuisine, and even modern, Western cuisine. He writes, “Simple to prepare, this ancient food is an inexpensive, succulent, and versatile cereal. It is cooked in the same fashion as rice, which it commonly replaces, and takes about 20 minutes to prepare. It can be used in all types of dishes, and it can be employed in every course and every meal of the day.”

Bulgur pilaf was one of the first dishes I learned to make as a child. I learned it from Rosie, a good friend of our family who was an Armenian refugee in California. Now I always have 3 types of bulgur in my kitchen– coarse (#3), medium (#2), and fine (#1)– ready to make a nourishing, quick meal at any time. (There is also an “extra-coarse” grade [#4], but I’ve never used that.)

L to R: fine, medium, coarse, and extra-coarse bulgur (photo by Craig Lee, SF Chronicle)

What about the nutrition in bulgur? Bulgur is made by pre-cooking whole wheat kernels, drying them, and then cracking them. That’s why it cooks so quickly. According to this interesting article on bulgur, “Bulgur Wheat is a natural whole grain food in that no chemicals or additives are used in processing the product. Many of the wheat’s naturally occurring vitamins and minerals permeate the kernel during cooking thus maintaining more nutritive content than other forms of processed wheat products.“

This is similar to what happens with “parboiled” or “converted” rice.

This article also reports: “The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) published two posters in 1992 describing the nutritional characteristics of bulgur wheat. The first, titled ‘Nutrition Scoreboard’, listed bulgur wheat as the number one grain in terms of nutrition scoring. Bulgur (69 points) outpaced wheat germ (61 points), pearled barley (60 points), brown rice (45 points) and pasta (45 points). It beat oatmeal and the highly touted Wheaties cereal (both 38 points) by 31 points!

The second poster from CSPI, titled “Rough It Up”, listed bulgur wheat as the third highest grain item in the Grains and Pasta category in terms of fiber content. In this category bulgur wheat beat out whole-wheat spaghetti, buckwheat pancakes, and had more than double the fiber of cous cous. The Food Research & Innovation Enterprises says “cereal foods like bulgur should be the cornerstone of our daily diet.”

Cooking Light magazine published (June 2004) an excellent comparison between bulgur and brown rice, showing that a cup of bulgur has fewer calories, less fat, and more than twice the fiber of rice!”

Here’s an interesting food article on bulgur wheat.

(PS: read more about Habeeb Salloum’s prairie childhood and his mother’s recipes in his fine book “Arab Cooking on a Saskatchewan Homestead: Recipes and Recollections”. It was the Silver Winner of the 2006 Canadian Culinary Awards, Canadian Food Culture Category. It’s not a vegetarian book, but there are many fine vegetarian recipes, and the cooking lore and history is fun to read. It’s one of my favorite cookbooks.

Habeeb is also the author of “Classic Vegetarian Cooking From The Middle East And North Africa”, a book that should be in every vegetarian kitchen, and is co-author of From the Land of Figs and Olives, another excellent cookbook. He’s also written many articles for The Vegetarian Journal, and a variety of articles on Canadian, Arab and Latin- American history, travel and the culinary arts in various journals.)

Okay, enough talk! Here’s the recipe!

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA’S FRUITY TABOULI
Servings: 5

Very refreshing!

3/4 cup medium bulgur wheat (See “News Flash!” at the very top of this post for wheat-free and gluten-free alternatives to bulgur wheat)
2 cups boiling water
2 medium oranges
1 large, ripe mango
1 1/4 cups English (European) cucumber, diced small
1 cup minced, fresh parsley
3/4 cup chopped fresh mint
1/2 cup chopped green onions
8 kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
Dressing:
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup Oil Substitute for Salad Dressings
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly-ground black pepper to taste
OPTIONAL:
1 tablespoon agave nectar or unbleached organic granulated sugar

Place the bulgur in a medium bowl and pour the boiling water over it. Cover and let stand for 1/2 an hour while you prepare the vegetables and Dressing.

Shred the zest of 1 of the oranges and set aside.

Peel the two oranges (seed if necessary) and separate into sections. Cut each section in half or in thirds. Set aside.

Peel and dice the mango and set aside. (Here are video and photo instructions for different ways to cut a mango.)

Dice the cucumber and set aside.

Chop the parsley (I use a dry food processor), mint, and green onions, and set aside.
Whisk the dressing ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside.

Drain the bulgur in a sieve and place the drained bulgur in a serving bowl. Add the diced fruit, vegetables, and herbs. Pour the dressing over the mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate until serving time.

Nutrition (per serving): 204.1 calories; 32% calories from fat; 7.6g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 298.0mg sodium; 414.9mg potassium; 33.6g carbohydrates; 7.0g fiber; 12.2g sugar; 26.6g net carbs; 4.2g protein; 3.9 points.

Enjoy!

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No Chicken ‘n’ Dumplings

Growing up I used to adore my mom’s chicken ‘n’ dumplings. But I’ve got to say: ‘sorry mom, mine is even better!’ It is just as savory, buttery and delicious but without any animal cruelty! Pure vegan deliciousness, enjoy!

Ingredients
2 yellow onions diced
3 cloves garlic diced
15 cups water
5 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1 Tbsp dried thyme
1 Tbsp onion salt
1 Tbsp dried sage
1 Tbsp turmeric
1/2 Tbsp paprika
1/2 Tbsp garlic powder
2 and 1/2 cups dried chunks of TVP
1 can of biscuits
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
5 Tbsp vegan butter

- In a large soup pot saute the onions and garlic in a drizzle of olive oil until soft and tender.
- Add the water, spices, nutritional yeast, 3 Tbsps of butter, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce and the TVP
- Simmer for about 20 minutes, until the TVP is tender, and then add the can of biscuits, pinching off bit by bit and dropping each bit into the simmering water
- Cook for another 5 to 10 minutes, until the biscuits are like fluffy buttery clouds (my favorite part!) and then add the final 2 Tbsps of butter and EAT!

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Sausage Sandwich and Potato Salad Redux

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Black bean and tomato stuffed sweet potato (the day I became a vegetarian)

©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

We were listening to a re-broadcast of an interview by public radio host Joy Cardine with Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, author of “The Face on Your Plate,” “When Elephants Weep,” and “The Pig Who Sang to the Moon.” The host said she was a vegetarian, and proceeded to relate a brief story of the moment she knew she could no longer eat meat. It got me thinking of the moments we remember in life — usually traumatic national events that we can never forget. But what about the other, more personal life-changing events we experience, like deciding to become vegetarian, for example. Do people remember “the day they decided not to eat meat anymore?” Well, I do.

I was in my 20s and had been going through dietary changes for a while. First I decided to eat healthier. I’d been reading about diet and health and the dangers of the “Standard American Diet” and decided to make a clean sweep of all the unhealthy food in my (and by default, my husband’s) diet. I went through the pantry and bagged up all the white stuff — you know, white flour, white pasta, white sugar — all of it. Being a frugal person by nature, I was filled with anxiety about what to do with all this stuff. I didn’t want to contribute to another’s ill health, but I hated just throwing it away. So, I hauled it across the street to my friend Suzanne’s apartment, explained that I wanted to improve my diet and not eat this stuff anymore because I believed it to be unhealthy, and asked if she wanted it. After all, everyone has their own ideas about what’s healthy, and can make up their own minds. I told her what I knew. She looked at me intently for a moment, and then said, “SURE!” Then, with great enthusiasm, she started unpacking the bags. I assuaged my guilt by thinking that she would just go out and buy this same stuff anyway.

Eating healthy was going well, and I began to think about a vegetarian diet. We’d been attending meditation retreats where there were lots of vegetarians, and I’d been doing more reading and thinking about food issues. Then we went on a camping trip to Canada, and one evening we attended the nature program at the campground where we were staying. A film was shown about the plight of prairie dogs. One of the struggles facing this little animal was its misfortune to be living on cattle ranches, where the prairie dog tunnels cause injuries to the cattle who step into the holes. There were graphic shots of ranchers blasting the prairie dogs with their rifles; no gory detail was spared, and it was horrible. You can probably see where this is going. Anyway, I just couldn’t get those images out of my mind.

We were in the supermarket checkout line after our return home, and I was staring at a package of stew meat in our cart. I picked it up. “Do we really want this?” I asked my husband? “Probably not,” was his reply, and I took it back to the meat counter. And that was it —the day I decided to be a vegetarian. And do I remember the day I became vegan? Of course, but that’s another story for another day.

My first attempts at cooking vegetarian food were pretty grim. The very first dish, chuck full of brewers yeast, got ditched. But it’s a lot easier to be vegetarian now, and even vegan, than it used to be. There are countless amazing cookbooks and blogs with recipes and ideas. I recently reviewed Peta’s Vegan College Cookbook, and although it wasn’t generally suited to my style of cooking, there were a few recipe gems that I really enjoyed cooking and eating. This recipe was inspired by one of them. If you use canned beans and tomatoes, you can throw it together with almost no effort. Or, if you prefer, you can cook dried beans and roast your own tomatoes. I like to make the bean and tomato mixture pretty spicy because I love the contrast between the spicy beans and the sweet potato, but you can just leave out the chilies or jalapeños if you don’t care for spicy food.

©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

Black bean and tomato stuffed sweet potatoes

• 4 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed
• 1 15-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained (or 1-1/2 cups cooked black beans)
• 1 15-oz.can diced tomatoes with green chilies, (or a can of tomatoes plus 3 tablespoons of diced green chilies from a can, or 1-2 finely chopped fresh jalapeños)
• 1/2 cup sliced green onions, white and green parts
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley or cilantro (opt.)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (if needed)
• fresh ground pepper, lots
• 1 small avocado (or vegan sour cream)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

1. Slice a very small piece from the end of each potato. (Or, you can prick them all over with a fork.) Bake at 425˚F for about 40 minutes or until nice and soft all the way through. You can bake them right on the oven rack. I like to use the toaster oven for this unless I’m using the big oven to make other stuff, too. When they are ready, place them on a plate to cool slightly while you finish up the filling.
2. Cook the the onion, garlic and oregano (and jalapeños, if using fresh) in the oil for one minute. Add the beans, tomatoes, canned chilies (if using), salt and pepper. Heat gently until hot. Stir in the parsley or cilantro. Taste for seasoning.
3. Open the avocado and scoop out the pulp. Mash and mix with lemon juice, a tiny pinch of salt and fresh ground pepper.
4. Split the potatoes lengthwise and gently push the ends towards each other to create a pocket.
5. Fill the pockets with the bean mixture and top with avocado or vegan sour cream.

©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

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Wow! Another dairy-free ice cream cookbook!

Vegan ice cream recipes are popping up all more than the location. I just discovered out about however another dairy-free ice cream cookbook, this 1 published at the end of final year. I do not however possess a copy, however it appears fascinating.

The Ice Desire Cookbook says it consists of “dairy-free ice cream alternatives, with gluten-free cookies, compotes and sauces.”

I do not know a lot else about the book. 1 evaluation on Amazon states: “The Ice Desire Cookbook also focuses on reduced glycemic, utilizing a mixture of agave nectar and stevia in most of the ‘ice cream’ recipes. As greatest as I can tell, this really is also a soy-free cookbook; the ‘ice creams’ are mainly coconut milk or nut-based. All of the recipes are vegan-friendly, but I would like to be aware that there are options provided, for example honey or agave and gelatin or agar agar.”

This sounds like it might be a winner for individuals with gluten allergies and individuals that are searching to prevent utilizing cane sugar. And there are recommendations for stevia, that is excellent simply because I get these concerns all the time and I’ve no concept what to complete with stevia. (My husband hates it and I am none as well fond either.)

Sadly, the cookbook is not all vegan–see the be aware about honey and gelatin above–but we vegans are absolutely nothing if not innovative, and it seems that you are able to function close to any non-vegan recommendations. I ought to also be aware that the author is clearly not vegan (her weblog has all the standard bullshit about the wonders of grass-feed meat).<br> And I usually choose to assistance fellow vegans when I invest my cash, so I am not certain if I’ll purchase this book.

But, wow. I am so excited that there are much more and much more vegan/dairy-free ice cream products–from hemp ice creams to cookbooks to new dreamy flavors in the supermarket.

Now if I can just get my butt in the kitchen and really make some ice cream, that will be even much better.

Popularity: -1% [?]

Why you must see Food, Inc.

I was capable to catch an early, pre-release displaying of the new documentary, Foods Inc., last night in the nearby town of Ojai, California. The film actually hits theaters in June, but the early showing was hosted as part of the mini festival put together by an Ojai organization known as Food for Believed, that is dedicated to teaching nearby kids about foods and helping schools serve healthy lunches. The film’s producer and director, Robert Kenner, was on hand to answer questions and to sign books (Food, Inc., the book, is a companion to the movie.)

I’m certain you’ll hear this opinion much more as reviewers see this documentary, so allow me be the very first to express it. This really is a excellent documentary. Seriously great. Like Oscar nomination great. The cinematography is stunning. The investigative journalism impeccable. Eight many years in the producing, this extremely important movie grabs you in the opening frames and does not allow go till the end.

One may anticipate PETA-style shock-and-awe to pound you more than the head with shrill and strident anti-establishment dogma. But Food, Inc., delivers quite the opposite. Each and every stage is presented pretty and responsibly — understated, if anything, and never overstated.

There are heroes and villains in this film, but only simply because there are heroes and villains in real existence. The villains (Monsanto, et al) are treated gently and fairly and given each and every feasible consideration. This isn’t “gotcha” journalism. Both sides are provided the chance to have their say, and the viewer — no matter how skeptical or invested in the status quo — will be convinced. The dots are connected on this film, and the inescapable reality is laid bare.

One of the reasons individuals do not comprehend what’s so bad about industrial foods is that the story is so complicated. Foods, Inc., presents that story in a way that only film can, enabling viewers to easily grasp complex realities such as how E. coli-infected spinach is caused by the feeding of corn to cows, how federal government food subsidies increase illegal immigration and why almost all the soy grown in the US is the intellectual property of Monsanto.

If you’re common with the work of Eric Schlosser (“Fast Foods Nation”) and Michael Pollan (“The Omnivore’s Dilemma”), then you will be familiar also with the themes of this film. Schlosser and Pollan make their respective cases at numerous points in the film, which serve as the structure and foundation.

The documentary is about our broken foods program, yes. But it also exposes the outrageous energy of a tiny handful of foods companies, energy they wield to silence critics, intimidate farmers into submission and dictate public policy. This energy remains unchecked by the FDA, by lawsuits, by state and federal governments.

Perhaps the most astonishing thing about this movie, nevertheless, is its pleased ending. The most essential fact in the whole film is how a lot power buyers have to impact change. And it is true: We can change the whole program, right all the wrongs, conserve the environment, reverse the health epidemic and finish demonic animal therapy by simply making informed and self-interested foods choices.

By the closing credits, you will wish to jump up and go do some thing. The film ends with a list of exactly what you can do.

Go see this film. Inform your friends to determine it. Tell your Congress person to see it. The food system should be fixed. Go right here to see where it is playing, and when.

Food, Inc.

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Food, Inc. [Blu-ray]

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The Future of Food (Two Disc Special Edition) / Food Inc. (2 Pack)

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Sweet Misery: A Poisoned World

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LUSCIOUS VEGAN PECAN MOCHA LATTE CAKE!

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA’S ALMOND (OR PECAN) CAFÉ LATTE CAKE
Servings: 16
Yield: Makes an 8″ two-layer cake

This recipe is based on my Vegan Genoise Cake recipe, but, for some reason, this version even more tender and fluffy than usual. I wanted just a little chocolate in this cake– my goal was for the coffee flavor to come through. So, I used a mocha-chocolate ganache filling, but only coffee (espresso– no chocolate or cocoa– in the cake itself and in the frosting.

I changed the mixing method in this version of my cake, just to see if it would make a difference, but it seemed the same to me. I find that, for some reason, this version of my Vegan Genoise cake is very light and fluffy.

Creamed Mixture:
1 1/2 cups organic unbleached granulated sugar
6 Tbs Earth Balance
1 Tbs coffee liqueur (such as Kahlua, which is what I used this time), or Amaretto liqueur, or almond or coffee-flavored syrup (see Cooking Tip below)
1 Tbs pure vanilla extract

Dry Mix:
2 1/2 plus 2 T. white pastry or cake flour
NOTE: To measure the flour, stir the flour in the bag or container, then spoon it out into the cup measure and level off with a knife. Do not sift or pack down.
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt

Wet Mix:
1 cup soy milk
3/4 cup freshly-brewed espresso, or made from instant espresso powder

Finishing the Cake:
1 recipe Bryanna’s Mocha-Soy Ganache Filling (see below)
1 recipe Bryanna’s Vegan Coffee Buttercream Frosting (see below)
1 cup toasted slivered almonds or whole pecans
1/2 cup grated or chopped dark vegan chocolate for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Prepare the pans by greasing two 8″ round cake pans with non-hydrgenated shortening and then coating with flour (shake excess off). If you like, you can also line the bottoms of the pans with cooking parchment cut to fit the bottom.

To the bowl of a stand mixer, add the Creamed Mixture ingredients and beat together for about 3 minutes, stopping the machine and scraping down the sides a couple of times.

Mix the Dry Mix ingredients together with a whisk in a large mixing bowl.

Mix together the Wet Mix ingredients in a pitcher or large measuring cup.

Add the Dry Mix and the Wet Mix to the Creamed Mixture in the stand mixer alternately, using about 1/3 of each mix at atime, starting with the Dry Mix. Beat on medium in the stand mixer just until mixed. Do not over-beat. NOTE: This batter is runnier than ordinary cake batter, so don’t worry!

Divide equally between the two prepared cake pans. Bake 30 minutes, or until cakes tests done.

Cool the cake layers in the pans on racks for 10 minutes. To remove from pans, first, run a thin knife to loosen the edge of the cake layer from the pan. Then, place a wire cake rack over the top of it and with a hand on each side of the baking pan and rack, quickly invert. Gently shake or tap the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon handle to help remove the cake layer . Carefully peel off the parchment liner, if you used one, and turn cake layer right-side-up to cool on the rack. Cool thoroughly before icing.

While the cake layers cool, make the Mocha-Soy Ganache and the Coffee Buttercream Frosting and refrigerate them. Toast the nuts and grate the chocolate And set aside.

To assemble the cake:
Place the bottom layer on a plate with a slight raised edge, with the bottom, flat side of the cake layer facing up. Spread evenly with the Mocha-Soy Ganache. Top with the second layer, flat side down.

Ice the whole cake with the Coffee Buttercream.

Sprinkle the top of the cake with the toasted almond slivers, leaving a circle in the center. Sprinkle the grated chocolate in the center.

Refrigerate until serving time.

Nutrition Facts (this includes the Filling and Frosting)
Nutrition (per 1/12th of the cake)): 462.1 calories; 36% calories from fat; 19.2g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 256.4mg sodium; 233.6mg potassium; 68.8g carbohydrates; 2.4g fiber; 41.1g sugar; 66.3g net carbs; 6.0g protein; 10.4 points.

Cooking Tips
FLAVORED SYRUPS:
Italian flavored syrups meant for flavoring fancy coffees and fizzy sodas can be used instead of liqueurs. Monin syrup is available in health food stores. It is vegan because they use unprocessed cane sugar. It is a bit expensive but delicious. Here is the website: http://www.monin.com/us/en/syrups.html

BRYANNA’S MOCHA-SOY GANACHE FILLING
Servings: 12
Yield: 1 and 1/2 c

A ganache is a rich, fudgy chocolate icing that firms up when cooled. It is usually made with heavy cream, but rich, full-fat soymilk blended with silken tofu makes a wonderful substitute. Remember that the quality of your ganache depends upon the quality of the chocolate you use. Make this well-ahead of time so that it is spreadable by the time you ice the cake. If it gets too firm, leave it out at room temperature to soften.

6 oz excellent-quality dairy-free semi-sweet eating chocolate or chocolate chips
1/4 cup full-fat soymilk or nut milk
1/4 cup espresso, freshly-brewed or made with instant espresso powder
1/3 cup extra-firm SILKEN tofu
1/2 tablespoon vanilla OR 1 tablespoon coffee liqueur (such as Kahlua), or Amaretto liqueur

Break the chocolate up and process it finely in a dry food processor. Leave the chocolate in the processor.

Whip the soymilk, espresso, and silken tofu together in the blender or with a hand blender until VERY smooth. Heat it in the top of a double boiler over simmering water until almost to the boiling point, OR microwave it in a microwave-save bowl for about 1 minute at 50% power, or until very hot, but not boiling. (If the mixture seems to curdle at all, blend it again until smooth.)

With the motor running, pour the hot soy creme in through the feed tube. Process until the mixture is smooth. Refrigerate until time to ice the cake.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 75.1 calories; 47% calories from fat; 4.5g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 9.6mg sodium; 27.2mg potassium; 9.4g carbohydrates; 0.9g fiber; 0.1g sugar; 8.5g net carbs; 1.3g protein; 1.7 points.

BRYANNA’S VEGAN COFFEE BUTTERCREAM FROSTING
Servings: 12

1/4 cup Earth Balance from the tub (NOT the whipped version)
1/4 cup Earth Balance stick or Earth Balance non-hydrogenated shortening
3/4 lb organic powdered sugar
5 1/2 tsp nondairy milk
3/4 Tbs instant coffee or espresso powder
1/2 Tbs coffee liqueur (such as Kahlua) or Amaretto liqueur +
1 tsp vanilla
OR use 2 tsp. vanilla plus 1/2 tsp. pure almond extract

In the large bowl of an electric mixer, cream the Earth Balance and Earth Balance stick or shortening until smooth. Add 2 c. of the powdered sugar and the remaining ingredients. Beat until creamy. It may look curdled-don’t worry! Add the remaining sugar, a little at a time, as you beat it, until it holds it shape well and you can see “trails” in it from the beaters. Adjust sugar or liquid (TINY drops at a time!) as needed. It will firm up when refrigerated. Refrigerate until it’s time to ice the cake.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 182.0 calories; 36% calories from fat; 7.4g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 81.7mg sodium; 10.2mg potassium; 28.8g carbohydrates; 0.0g fiber; 28.2g sugar; 28.8g net carbs; 0.1g protein; 4.3 points.

Mmmmmmmm…enjoy!

Bryanna Clark Grogan, author of 8 published vegan cookbooks and The Vegan Feast quarterly cooking newsletter. Moderator of the beginners’ vegetarian forum on vegsource.com.

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That baking time of year

Over the weekend I played around with a scone recipe to make it vegan, gluten and sugar free. Four batches later, I think I have it!

2 cups spelt flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup Soy Milk
about 50 grams Vegan margarine
1 tablespoon vanilla (I like lots!)
1 tablespoon Maple or Agave syrup

Combine dry ingredients then add margarine and kind of mash it into the mixture with a fork (does that make sense?!) Add wet ingredients and combine. Roll out onto a floured surface and break off small fist fulls to make the scones, makes about 10. Bake on an greased tray for 20 Minutes at 180 degrees Celsius. Best served with a good quality jam that doesn’t contain added sugar and a big mug of Chai tea.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Africana restaurant review

okra sauce, maffe (peanut sauce), tomato sauce
©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

In the distant past, we’ve been members of two different vegetarian dinner groups. The first one was a macrobiotic group, and we met once a month for a potluck, usually at our house. It was a lot of fun and the food was always wonderfully delicious and healthy. And I loved that our kids could take part, and see that yes, there were other people who ate like we did. After the demise of that group, we joined another one that alternated between potlucks and restaurants. It was organized by a woman who was upset that we wanted to bring our children. (always well-behaved) An informal vote was taken and everyone wanted the kids included except for the leader. We tried to compromise by only bringing them once in a while, but the leader eventually decided not to come anymore, and guilt caused me to assume the role of organizer. She’d said it was a lot of work to keep the group going, and she was right. There just weren’t enough interested vegetarians around to have more than 8–10 people show up for events, and even that was hard. We didn’t have the benefit of a Web site, and organizing an event involved LOTS of phone tag. Eventually I passed on the “leader” role to someone else, and he gradually gave up. Many of the regulars moved away and it was hard recruiting new members.

We finally, now that we’re just about to move away ourselves, found a new veg group with lots of members. We read about it in the local paper, which just goes to show you how (almost) mainstream vegetarianism has become. We recently attended our first event — a dinner at Africana that attracted 50 people! Africana is a restaurant specializing in West African cuisine. The food was interesting and tasty but there were a few rough spots concerning quantity, menu substitutions and slowness. I think the restaurant staff may have been overwhelmed with serving so many diners at once. The main dishes were basically sauces with a few veggies, served over rice and/or couscous. There was a 45 minute wait between finishing the first entrée and beginning the second, which made for a very long weeknight event.

alloco (fried plantain)
©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

For an appetizer we had alloco, or fried plantain, which tasted good but was very greasy. Then we were served three saucy dishes with rice and couscous. There was maffe which is a peanut-based sauce with veggies, okra sauce, and a piquant tomato and onion sauce with veggies. The last dish to arrive (after a 45 minute wait) was a vegetable stew.

vegetable stew
©Andrea’s easy vegan cooking

Everything was vegan, which is always a treat in itself. Would I recommend Africana? If you are dining with omnivores, it might be a good place to go because of the wide variety of interesting food choices, but it doesn’t specialize in providing vegetarian food, meaning the meat dishes look a whole lot better than the vegetable ones! The dishes were tasty, but basically seemed like sauce over rice. There wasn’t anything to compensate for the lack of meat, like chickpeas or other legumes, and the veggies were a bit scarce.

Popularity: unranked [?]