Vegetarian Pot Pie

Although I am not currently eating vegetarian, when I cook, I prefer to cook vegan.  It's simpler for me, and I don't worry as much about food going bad.  So, if I could cook at home all the time, I would definitely be vegan;  It is just getting to the point of cooking at home all the time.  But that is a post for another time.

Anyhow, it has been some time since I made a pot pie.  The recipes I used were Veggie Pot Pie and Classic Crisco Pie Crust

When the children were little, I used to make pot pie all the time, because I found it was a good way to get them to eat a variety of vegetables, without having to inspect them too closely!  Homemade pot pie is so much better than the store-bought stuff (and I always liked those!) - I can do a double crust the way I prefer.

First, the "innards" of the pie:  The filling turned out quite well.  I used the carrots, potatoes and frozen peas I had on hand, as well as onion. (If it doesn't have onion in it, I don't like it as well!)  Also when served, Brian added some Mrs. Dash to the servings - this was delicious, and did not add any extra sodium.  When I cooked the filling on top of the stove, I did have a little extra liquid, so I added an extra TBSP of cornstarch.  It still looked a bit too "liquid-y" but it turned out perfect! Oh, I did mince up the garlic, but I forgot to add it, and didn't realize this until it was in the oven. It tasted good without it.

Pie crust has always been problematic for me.  I can never quite get the consistency right.  It is either too wet and mushy or too dry.  Tonight, I erred on the dry side, and the raw crust simply did not want to hold together.  I think I need a pastry mixing tool, to do it up right (I seem to have lost mine, so I used a fork).  I will use this recipe again, and see if I can do a better job of the crust next time.

The good news is that Brian and Nicole liked the pot pie, and I have some left over for lunch tomorrow!  It's a win-win!

Fire Brigade Stuffing

Fire Brigade Stuffing 

Changes I made:  I didn't use Granny Smith apples, because I didn't have any.  I think I used Macs or some other kind of red apple.  Also, I left out the cranberries, and didn't put in quite as many slivered almonds as called for.  Additionally, I only used whole wheat and pumpernickel bread, no rye.  And, let's see, I didn't make it in a pumpkin, because there were none to be seen at the grocery store.  Bummer.  I should have gone to the produce stand yesterday for that.  But for all those changes, it still looks to be pretty good.  It sure does smell good.

I'm also making vegan mashed potatoes.  I really should make some vegan gravy, because, well, I like it.  I will make the Brussels sprouts at my mom's house.

Update:  The stuffing was horrible.  Of course, it was cold when I finally ate it.  But it was really bad.  I didn't make any Brussels sprouts because Amy had already made squash and carrots.  She didn't get the squash quite done, but the carrots were very good.  I liked how she added yellow peppers and onions to the carrots.  The mashed potatoes were better when I heated them up in the microwave.

Vegetable Miso Soup

Another recipe from Isa Does It is a big hit with our family!  Tonight, Amy made the Vegetable Miso Soup.  Now, we didn't have any scallions or cauliflower (we used that up earlier in the week), but she added carrots and peas and tofu (seared in olive oil) and just a few drops of Sriracha, and it was delicious!

In other news, I took Moomoo the cat to the vet, because he's too thin and seems to be depressed.  The vet is trying him on a high calorie diet (only for him; the other cats are already jealous of the extra feeding time), and will see him back around December 20th to see if he's gained any weight and is feeling better.  I hope the change in diet does the trick.  Otherwise, then the vet will have to order some blood tests, which are expensive.  But can you put a price on life?

Smoky Fiesta Black Bean Tamales

Smoky Fiesta Black Bean Tamales

■2 cups masa harina

■1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

■1 sweet onion, diced small

■1 large carrot, diced small

■1 red bell pepper, diced small

■1 can diced green chiles or 1 Anaheim pepper, diced

■2 minced garlic cloves

■1 T. baking powder

■1 1/2 t. sea salt

■1 T. nutritional yeast

■1-2 t. liquid smoke (depending on your preference)

■1 t. red chili flakes

■1 t. mesquite powder (optional)

■1 C. cashews (soaked for 4-6 hours if you don’t have a power blender)

■1 1/4 C. water

■20 dried corn husks

Method: Place the corn husks in a large bowl of hot water. Cover with a plate so that the husks stay submerged. Next, make cashew cream, combine cashews with the water and blend until completely smooth. Set aside. Heat a non-stick sauté pan over medium heat, add onion, carrot, bell pepper and Anaheim peppers (if using). I used a dry pan (you may need to add a bit of broth or water to your pan if it starts to stick) and stirred occasionally until the onions were translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic cloves and red chili flakes and heat for a minute or two more. Set aside. In a medium bowl, combine masa harina, baking powder, sea salt, mesquite powder and nutritional yeast with a wire whisk. Add the vegetables (including the canned green chilies) to the masa harina and stir to evenly distribute. Now add the cashew cream and mix all to combine a nice moist dough. If dough seems too dry, add water a Tablespoon at a time. Using a 1/3 cup measure, scoop the tamale dough onto a corn husk. Roll up tightly like a burrito, tucking in the ends as you go. My batch made 15 tamales, but a few of my corn husks were small, so I needed to use 2 husks to get it to roll up properly (which is why I included 20 husks). Next, put a steaming basket inside a large lidded pot, add water, making sure the water doesn’t rise above the bottom of the steaming basket. Heat on stove until water is boiling. Add the tamales carefully to the steaming basket so they don’t unravel. Reduce heat to medium-low and steam, with the pot lid on, for 45-50 minutes. Tamales are ready when the dough is firm and holds together. Remove from heat and let cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Well, I can already say I forgot to put in the liquid smoke.  Because there's no place where it says in this recipe to add it.  The ingredients are not in order, so I had to figure out what to do with what was in the ingredients as I read the recipe.  Well, they won't be smoky, but hopefully will taste okay.  I will add liquid smoke to the leftover mixture tomorrow (I will have to remember to cut it in half)

Tamales are a LOT of work.  The kids were helpful, so that was good.  And if all else fails, well, we can have beans, vegetables and bread.  I am steaming them on top of the stove and in the rice cooker (which has a steaming basket for veggies)

Roman Beans and...Quinoa???

It actually works!  I made quinoa in the rice cooker, and used veggie broth instead of water.  One thing - the quinoa cooks faster than rice does, so I think I'm going to taste it next time and turn it off before the little buzzer goes off.  Otherwise, some of it burns a little bit.

I took the Roman Rice and Beans recipe and subbed quinoa for the rice.  DELICIOUS!  The kids like it also.  I have two lunches for next week already, and with the leftover Chinese food from yesterday, I should have four lunches for this week already.

By Request

Tonight, for the second night this week, we're having Roman Rice and Beans.  I made this with green pepper for the first time the other night, and Amy & Brian loved it!  They requested I make it again tonight, so I acquiesced.  I made sure I used the amounts of spices called for in the recipe (Diet For A Small Planet). AND I made sure I chopped the tomatoes almost in a dice, since Amy usually does not like tomatoes.  With bread, of course.  Frances Moore Lappé suggests serving with a salad, but this is enough food and veggies without the salad.  This is also one of the DFASP recipes that doesn't have to be veganized, because it's vegan already (if you leave out the parmesan). Viva homecooked meals!

Crockpot Black Bean Stew

Brian has a chorus concert tonight, and we very much need dinner to be ready by 5.  Hopefully, that will be the case.  The thing is, the crockpot recipes in the cookbooks cook in under 8 hours.  I have anywhere from 10-13 hours before we eat dinner, so I need something with a longer, not shorter cooking time.

 Soooooo....
This is one I made up all by myself.  Pretty much.  I cut up carrots, celery, and potatoes and put them in the crockpot.  Then I emptied a bag of dried black turtle beans into the pot.  I added ½ tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp cumin and 1 TBSP chili powder to the mix.  My greatest fear with this is that I may have added too many dried beans and not have enough water to cook them completely.  The pot is chock full to the brim.