Missing out

I am going back to work today after being furloughed for a week.  You'd think I would have found time to do a lot of things.  Not really.  I was quite lazy, and caught up on all my episodes of Columbo.  I didn't wax creative in the kitchen, though I did practice flute some.  I feel better going back to work. 

I also missed out on the vegan month of food this year.  For some reason, they decided to have it in September, and I just wasn't ready.  I was simply not inspired to cook ANYTHING.  Oh, I'm still vegan, but I just didn't feel inspired to go all out in the kitchen.  I really need a new kitchen.  Mine is old, crowded, and a mess. The counters are so crowded, I am surprised I can find anything.  And I need a dishwasher.  Washing dishes by hand is really tedious.

And those are my first world problems for today.

I'm grateful I have a house to live in, and indoor sanitation, as well as a washer and dryer and, now, a new water heater.  Life really isn't bad.

Rotini in sauce with faux sausage

Amy made a delicious meal this evening.  Spaghetti sauce combined with "Don't Be Piggy" faux sausage from Wegmans, along with roasted Brussels sprouts and roasted zucchini slices.  Delicious!  And I made fast bake bread in the bread machine.  Excellent dinner.  And very simple.  All done and cleaned up.

Chipotle Mac and Cheez

Chipotle Mac and Cheese This turned out great!  My blender did the trick with the cashews - though it was still a tad grainy, it was a lot better than the last time when I made cashew cheez in my food processor.  The Brussels sprouts really set it off.  And I used white miso, instead of chickpea miso and only 2 chipotles instead of 4.  I have never seen chickpea miso, so I don't know if I can even get it at Wegmans.

Anyhow, the kids liked it - we saved some so Brian can have a snack after the concert.

Vegan stroganoff

I have resolved to make more meals at home and try a lot of new things.  One thing I definitely wanted to make was goulash.  I had the recipe from Vegan on the Cheap in mind, but when I got ready to cook yesterday, I realized it was a slow cooker recipe, and that it wouldn't work on the stovetop.  So I switched to stroganoff and after some searching (I still have some vegan sour cream in my fridge that I made from VotC) I found a stroganoff recipe in Vegan With A Vengeance.  Now, my kids hate mushrooms.  So those were out, and the original recipe calls for both porcini and small white mushrooms.  Besides, when I looked in the fridge for the mushrooms I had (bellas), they were nowhere to be found, and,  I suspect, had been thrown out by my ambitious kids when they cleaned out the fridge the other day.  Anyhow, another problem I had was that the original recipe calls for a cup of red wine.  Alison found a great substitute: cranberry juice with a dash of vinegar!  That really saved the day.

One of my triumphs yesterday was the seitan I made from Veganomicon (that recipe is simpler, and tastes better than the one from VWAV and is similar enough to the one in VotC).  Anyhow, the seitan was very meaty, and not brainy at all.  Chris said it tasted like ground beef to him - and Chris is a very picky eater.  Also, I used farfalle instead of eggless noodles or fettucine.  I think I would go with the fettucine if/when I make this again.  The farfalle were too thick.

You can imagine from just reading this post that I did a lot of cooking yesterday.  And that is quite correct: I was busy for two hours.  But the recipe, despite smelling kind of odd after I added the nutritional yeast, or nooch, actually tasted very good.  I will definitely make it again (perhaps sneaking in the mushrooms if I can!).

I am hoping that if I stay motivated in the kitchen, I can cut my eating expenses in half.  That, and truth be told, I am tired of eating out and not having any interesting food, because I don't eat meat and dairy.  Hopefully, our kitchen will become proof that, yes, you can cook without meat and dairy, and make delicious, interesting, enjoyable meals.

Belated Birthday post

I almost forgot to post something about my birthday.  It was a wonderful day.  Amy gave me a little book, a copy of The Tale of Peter Rabbit, which is a favorite of mine.  Marcus gave me a Le Creuset baking dish - very very nice.  I will definitely use this!
Amy made a feast of Spaghetti For Peanuts (veganized, from Diet For A Small Planet) and roasted Brussels sprouts.  She also made a veganized Red Velvet cake.  YUM!  We had some really good eating today.

Later, Marcus took me out to dinner and we went to Tito's Diner.  I had their hummus and a veggie burger and sweet potato fries.  YUM.

All in all, it was a very fun birthday!

Family meals together

Marcus arrived on December 4th, and it has been pretty hectic.  We finally put up the Christmas tree on Monday night.  I had to beg off of church choir rehearsal that night, and I'm supposed to play flute this Sunday!  I still can't find the music I am supposed to play.  I have no idea where it is.  I'm going to try to look under the piano.  I didn't go to choir because I had to go to the bank's atm at short notice.  This time of year always bites financially.

Anyhow, we've enjoyed some truly singular vegan meals lately.  First of all, I've veganized the Irish Soda Bread recipe from Recipes for a Small Planet.  This is easily done, with applesauce in place of the egg, molasses in place of honey, and soured soy milk in place of buttermilk or yogurt.  I may eventually try this recipe with soy yogurt just to see if it works.  I've made this bread the last two nights and Marcus seems to like it okay.  It's a bit too crusty for the kids, but I intend to make it again and again! 

Sunday, I made Leek and Bean Cassoulet from Veganomicon.  There was enough left over to freeze for two or three days worth of lunches.  Monday night, I made vegan chili using TVP for the first time.  That stuff definitely gives a meaty texture to vegetarian dishes.  I will definitely use it again.  Last night, I made Roman Rice and Beans from Diet for a Small Planet, something I've made time and again, because it's easy and it's vegan without the parmesan.  Marcus, Amy, Chris and Brian all like it.  Somehow, I made it with green peppers last week, and Amy just raved about it.  Last night's rendition contained orange and yellow peppers but it was still VERY good.

Interestingly enough, I much prefer cooking at home now to going out.  Marcus and I are still going out for my birthday Sunday night, but to tell the truth, if he decided to make me a good dinner at home, that would work just as well.  The kids are making brunch for Sunday  noon.  Alison is coming up and she and Amy will probably cook the brunch, though I suspect I will probably take part also.

I think Saturday, I will try making the Almost All-American Seitan Pot Pie from Veganomicon.  That is really good, and I think Marcus would like it.  Yes, I want to make food my husband enjoys.

Who knew? Vegan brown bread

Amy told me an interesting fact.  Seems if you put a wooden spoon on top of a pasta pot, it won't boil over.  Hmmm.  I have got to try this.  Three peppers and an onion later - too bad the spaghetti sauce she's making has meat in it.  I will be eating leftover vegan lasagne.  But hey - dinner is being cooked! 

Oh, I am making vegan brown bread:

Brown Bread

·         2 cups soy milk

·         2 Tbsp. vinegar

·         4 cups whole wheat flour

·         2 cups all-purpose flour

·         2 Tbsp. vegan margarine, at room temperature

·         1 1/2 tsp. salt

·         1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

1.       Preheat the oven to 425°F.

2.       In a small bowl, combine the soy milk and vinegar. Set aside.

3.       Sift together the flours in a large bowl. Using your fingers, rub the margarine into the flours, forming a crumbly mixture. Add the salt and baking soda.

4.       Make a well in the center and gradually add the soy milk mixture, mixing constantly. Add only enough to make the dough soft but still manageable.

5.       Knead inside the bowl for 30 seconds.

6.       Remove to a lightly floured baking sheet and use the palm of your hand to flatten into a 1 1/2–inch-thick disk. Use a knife to score a cross in the center.

7.       Bake for 25 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350°F and bake for 15 minutes. If the crust is too hard, cover it in a damp tea cloth. Let cool.

Makes 4  servings

Homemade vegan lasagne!

Brian decided last night that he wanted lasagne!  SO... he sautéed a bag of stir-fry veggies, and added pasta sauce to them.  I came home and made tofu ricotta (so easy, just took a fork and stirred up the tofu with basil, oregano, salt and pepper).  Brian layered the tofu ricotta and the sauce with the noodles and topped with Mozzarella and Cheddar Daiya.  We baked it for about a half hour or a little more.  It was delicious!  Nice job, Brian!  We will definitely have this again!

This is the Almost All American Seitan Pot Pie from Veganomicon.  If it tastes as good as it looks, then I will have been successful!  Amy rolled out and patted in the crusts so I had a lot of help.  It's pretty work intensive, but it was a work of love!  Time to eat!

Muffins for church

Tomorrow is the third Sunday of the month.  We have fellowship after the service, and Brian wanted us to bake something for this.  So, we are baking the Banana-Wheat Germ Muffins from Veganomicon.  This is an entirely new recipe for me, so I am eager to see how they turn out.  They are baking as I write this.  I don't want to eat any of them tonight, but I am thinking we should try them just to see if they are good.  Maybe I will have Brian try one.

The rest of today's meals were good - pancakes from Vegan With A Vengeance for breakfast.  Lunch was General Tso's Tofu at Hunan Garden.  Then for dinner I made beans and rice (Amy cooked the rice a few days ago), and Roasted Brussels Sprouts for dinner.

This morning, after I dropped off the kids at the school (it was Tag Day where they go out and get donations for the music program), I had to take my mom to the medical lab to get blood work done.  For some reason, I was really jittery.  I finally had to leave her there, and go back to her house & get Chris to go pick her up.  It was kind of scary, and I'm not sure exactly what caused it.  One other negative thing - I haven't gotten to do any more water aerobics this week.  Next week I will do better.  Amy and I are both looking forward to Monday night. 

Teens cooking vegan

My son Brian and daughter Amy made a delicious shepherd's pie last night.  A nice touch was the topping of Daiya, which was Brian's idea.  Mmmm.  I would like more of it tonight, but I doubt we have time.  I could eat shepherd's pie just about every night of the week if I had to.  It is so easy to make, I only had to give them minimal instructions (I was ill last night when I arrived home, and still had to take my other teen, Chris, to the pharmacy to pick up some meds).  We have grown used to cooking vegan - to tell you the truth, they don't like overdoing the meat these days, though Brian & Amy still eat it.  Chris has been vegetarian now for, oh, I believe 7 or 8 years.  He still hasn't taken the vegan plunge.  He's very resistant to that.  Oh well, give him time.  I know it took a lot of years for me to take the plunge.

My other blog

I have an allrecipes.com blog that I use exclusively to talk about traditional recipes I have veganized and how they turned out.  However, THIS blog is the one I post in all the time.  I did have a blog at livejournal, here but I do not use that anymore.  I realize most of what I post is about vegan cooking and living.  But there are other things that go on.

For example, I was a professional clarinetist with the U.S. Navy fleet bands for fourteen years before I was forced to retire because of illness.  Music is my lifeblood in many ways.  I am just now, after several years, getting back into playing and teaching.  Hopefully, I can eventually do music full time again. I like my job with the gov't, but I miss playing music SO MUCH.  It is gratifying that three of my four children love to play instruments (Chris plays guitar, and Brian and Amy play clarinet).

I will say this, referring to being vegan:  Since I have begun eating and living vegan, my depression has lifted a VERY great deal.  I want to be alive again, and I feel like I am finally on the road to getting my life back.

I can't believe I forgot...

...to mention that I also made, over the weekend, a shepherd's pie.   Pretty simple.  Vegan mashed potatoes - mmm, yummy.  I like them better than the old dairy-laden ones - topping innards consisting of bagged frozen veggies thawed & sautéed with tempeh to make a satisfying filling.  My mom LOVED them.  I am definitely making this and using tempeh again.

Thanksgiving

We had a lovely Thanksgiving.  The spread wasn't as big as I originally planned.  I made gluten-free pumpkin bread, which was very crumbly.  We also had gado-gado, rice noodles, Brussels sprouts (the only thing that didn't turn out all that well; they needed to be roasted a bit longer and at a higher temperature), broccoli, a shepherd's pie, and Alison brought a ham roast for the omnivores (truthfully, it did NOT look tempting; she didn't like it very much).   

Learning point for gluten-free cooking:  When baking using gluten-free flour, you need more moisture in the mixture.  Now one suggestion is upping the oil, but that is way too much fat.  As it is, the recipe for the pumpkin bread called for an entire CUP of vegetable oil.  Perhaps sub applesauce or something like that?


Later in the day, Alison's Aunt Susan Spillane came to visit; I had not seen her in a number of years, and it was wonderful to catch up and take some pictures with the family.  My kids are growing up.