Pecan Crusted Seitan...Day One

Lesson Learned- Read the recipe before planning to make.
As I prepped the ingredients for the Seitan recipe I realized I needed to marinate the seitan for three hours (or in my case- overnight).
I made the sauce and as I mixed all these ingredients together (orange juice and shoyu???) I was a bit skeptical of how it would taste.
I used all the ingredients the recipe called for except the umeboshi vinegar (used apple cider) and minced garlic (used garlic powder).

Now- I should know by now, with all the recipes that have proved my initial thoughts to be wrong, that this recipe would be delicious but I was still not sure. So I tried a taste and, of course, it was yummy! I added the seitan to the sauce and it now sits in the fridge until tomorrow night when I finish it up and serve it with noodles.

In the meantime we are going to enjoy a dairy free Amy's pizza!

To be continued...

Panini Party!

I had my doubts about the Waffle, Sausage, and Cheese Panini. Apricot jam and Vegenaise? Ummm...okay.
I found Tofurky sausages at the Co-op and ended up getting the whole grain Belgium waffles. Skipped on the sun-dried tomatoes when the only jars on the shelf were $8 and the jar was so small! Nope- I figured I would make do and I did!
Cooked up the sausage (smelled real good) and mixed up the sauce. I was so curious as to how the jam and Vegenaise would taste I just had to take a finger dip. Who knew? So good!
Put the sandwich together, per recipe directions, subbing the sun-dried for salsa (drained via spoon on the side of the jar), then got out the trusty George Foreman(see pic) and grilled me up one of the finest vegan sandwiches with a side of sweet potato chips! Mmmm, mmmm!
Concerns pre-recipe:
Waffle sandwich? Never heard of such a thing!
Jam and Vegenaise? How can that be good?
At-Easeness post recipe:
Waffle sandwiches--bring on the experimenting!
The man of the house not only loved the jam and Vegenaise sauce, he went back for the leftovers and smothered it on his sandwiches (yep- he ate more than one!).
Messy, messy, messy but the recipe says that is as it should be!

Anyone else attempted this recipe? I would love to hear about it!
Up Next: Pecan-Crusted Seitan!

Radacchio and Repeat...

I found out what saffron threads are today! They are thread-like (go figure)and make the food orangy in color and a little goes a long way. They are pricey but last a while. The fabulous gal that gave me the info recommended curry instead.
I had all intention to make the Couscous with Saffron tonight but I went to a spin class (Day 2 in my Tri training) and got home late so settled for another Radicchio Pizza. The recipe is so easy and tonight I added soy black beans to give it some flare (and protein). Mighty tasty!
I have yet to figure out a way to keep the toppings in their place. I grated the "cheese" to the bottom, then put the radicchio on that and then added the beans and sprinkled more of the "cheese", thinking it would hold it all together. Nope. But the toppings and crust are so good it doesn't matter. Love it together and love it apart. I didn't take a picture because the pizza looks the same as the other but with black beans.
Couscous tomorrow!!!

Rustic Pasta...the Rusticker the Better!

When I first scanned over the recipe for Rustic Pasta last night I could only think how late I was going to be eating due to a late meeting and the man wanting to go for a run (can't pass up a run when I just got new shoes!).
But, alas, the kindness of the universe fell upon me and the meeting was cancelled. I arrived home thinking I would have my work cut out for me, then read the recipe more thoroughly and realized it only looked lengthy because Alicia added in a nice lil note about making garlic bread to go with the dish!
As I waited for the water to boil for the pasta I chopped the veggies. Two whole onions (whew! cry!), garlic, celery, and cabbage (lots n lots of cabbage). I did not have the shoyu (where in the world do I get this?!?) and not having it only intrigues me more...
Pasta was boiled and waiting as I eagerly sauteed the onions. They cooked up a lot faster than the recipe stated (odds are it was more me and not the recipe) and I added all the other veggies in the order in which they appear in the recipe (like an kind cook would do). Now, the cabbage had me perplexed for a bit. There was a lot of cabbage and NOT a lot of room in my pan but it cooked and worked its way into a nice noodle-looking, smaller version of what it once and all was well in the world. Added the pasta, then the sauce, and stared, in wonder, at this crazy combo of good, healthy food. Rustic? Yes. Delicious? Absolutely. Surprised? Most definitely. Why? Because the thought of all these foods (the cabbage and onion to be exact...because I am not a fan) joining forces to make a dish this fantastic was not something I was prepared for upon my first bite.
This vegan is ready to be surprised again tomorrow!

On the menu for Wednesday- a recipe with saffron threads. WHAT are those?

Saving the World One Recipe at a Time...

I watched the movie Julie and Julia last night and thought "What a great idea!"...kept that thought even after watching Julie break down in the middle of stuffing a chicken (maybe because I knew I would never be stuffing a chicken with whatever I would cook). I thought about the kinds of recipes I would want to make from just one cookbook. Being just a few months vegan I knew it would have to be from a book that didn't have over 700 pages and wouldn't take me a year (like the one from the movie). I also knew it would have to be from a book I enjoy and have wanted to cook more out of but wasn't making the time...all these thoughts (and so many more) led me to the conclusion to cook through The Kind Diet.

The Kind Diet has roughly 109 recipes. I have already made the Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups numerous times (yum!) and the Raw Balls (yum again) but will make them again for the sake of this blog (like that will be such torture!). I figure if I make a main dish and maybe a dessert or drink with it almost every night I can cook all the recipes in about three months. I plan to make this enjoyable and informational for both myself and readers so I don't want to say I will cook a recipe every night...but will let you know how the leftovers are those "cookless" nights!

I hope you enjoy this journey with me!