Sweet and Sour Soba Noodles With Tofu

Tofu loves to be paired with spicy flavors. I love adding tofu to curries or in a stir-fry.

This dish is more of a Chinese/Japanese mix-up prepared by a Italian/Scandinavian mix-up for her Ukrainian/Polish crack-up!

I made it up on the fly and it worked.


My favorite kind of miracle.




Ingredients:

Sweet and Sour Sauce:
3 tablespoons tamari soy sauce
1-2 tablespoons brown sugar
3 garlic cloves minced
1+ tablespoon catsup
1+ tablespoon hot chili sauce (like sriracha)
1 teaspoon ginger (fresh diced or in powder)
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons canola or sesame oil
2 green onions diced (all of the white part and a bit of the green)
juice of half an orange

whisk all ingredients in a bowl and set aside

Veggies:

I used what was left in the fridge(not much):
cabbage (half a head)
onions (1 yellow and 1/2 red) sliced
garlic - 3 cloves sliced
ginger - 1 teaspoon
carrots - 2 shredded
green peas - half a bag of frozen
2-3 tablespoons of canola oil
1-3-4 oz. of soba noodles cooked as per package instructions
4 green onions diced

Instructions:
Heat the wok or pan with a little canola oil and crumble the tofu in. Cook the bite sized crumbles for 3-4 minutes then remove from wok.
Add another tablespoon of canola oil to the wok and saute the onion for 2-3 minutes then add garlic and ginger. Cook for another minute or so then add whatever sliced veggies you have in the fridge chopped or sliced into bite sizes. Add one veggie at a time - cooking each for a minute or two on it's own. Add a little tamari/soy sauce with each new veggie to layer the flavors. Cook veggies through 7-10 minutes.

Add the tofu back to the wok and toss with veggies. Add noodles and sweet and sour sauce and toss to coat.

Top with green onions.

Enjoy.

serves 2-4

Creamy Mushroom-Barley Bisque

Another rainy Saturday afternoon here in Western Oregon. What better than a hot bowl of creamy mushroom bisque to warm us up?

It was delicious and fairly simple to make.

Looks like we're not the only ones craving something warm. This sweet doe looks very interested in our soup du jour:




Mushroom Bisque: (totally vegan - but it can obviously be made with dairy if one is so inclined)

Ingredients:
1 onion diced
4 cloves of garlic - chopped finely
3 cups of chopped mushrooms (I used cremini)
3 tablespoons of canola butter (Earth Balance is great)
1-2 tablespoons of olive oil
3 tablespoons of whole wheat flour
2 cups of plain soy milk
1 teaspoon of dried thyme
7-8 cups of vegetable broth or water
1 cup of barley (rinsed)
1/4 cup chopped parsley (optional)
1/4 cup of sherry or Marsala (optional)
salt and pepper to taste



Instructions

Saute the onion in olive oil until translucent
Add chopped mushrooms and saute for another 2-3 minutes
Add half of the garlic - saute until mushrooms begin to sweat
Season with a pinch of salt, thyme and pepper to taste
Add barley and saute for one minute
De glaze pan with sherry at this point or simply add broth(water) and bring to a boil
Lower to a simmer, cover and simmer for 40-50 minutes to cook barley.

Meanwhile make the roux:
Melt canola butter in a small saucepan
Add remaining garlic and saute for a minute
Add flour and whisk
Cook the flour for a minute then whisk in milk
Continue to whisk as the sauce thickens (4-5 minutes)
Add salt and pepper to taste
Set thickened rue aside until needed

After 40-50 minutes the barley will have cooked and the soup will have reduced and filled the kitchen with a glorious smell
At this point lower heat and stir/whisk in the creamy rue
Adjust seasoning to taste
Top with parsley


Serve hot!

Mock Egg-Salad Sandwiches

I needed an excuse to bake some bread.

These babies hit the spot.




I followed Lee's "Tofu egg salad" recipe from the PPK website but added a tablespoon more of country Dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons of chopped red onions, a tablespoon of nutritional yeast, and a handful of chopped Italian parsley for more flavor. They were delicious. Creamy and tangy with a good "egg-y" texture from the firm tofu. I was really impressed.

For the bread I followed the recipe for whole wheat bread straight off the Bob's Red Mill website. I used Bob's Organic Whole Wheat Flour and I was really pleased with the taste and crumb of these loaves. Not as sweet as my beloved honey whole wheat bread (King Arthur Recipe) but I think for savory sandwiches like this one, the honey sweetness wouldn't be right.

This bread tastes great. It tastes just the way whole-wheat sandwich bread should taste and even better slightly toasted.


Now what sandwich should I make next?

Valentine...

We've been vegetarians for just about 3 years now and this past year I've tried to add more vegan recipes to my repertoire. Cutting back on eggs and dairy while incorporating more vegan products (besides veggies, grains and legumes) into the mix.

It's challenging.

But fun - like a science experiment with your taste buds. Who would have thought something called nutritional yeast would finally make tofu taste good?
And vegan curries rock.

We happen to live in one of the best places in the world for vegans/vegetarians. Vegan blogs profess our big city neighbor to the north as "Vegan Mecca" for crying out loud. And we certainly have more hippies per capita than Stumptown!

Veganism aside, it's fun trying new things and even better when they turn out to be delicious.

Last night J took me out for the big V-day holiday. This is the one night a year that he gets to call the shots on dinner. It's always a surprise. I never know where or what or when.

Last night he made reservations for us at a new Vegan/French restaurant in town. A sweet little bistro style place downtown. The menu was full of some interesting vegan appetizers and entrees as well as a couple vegetarian (i.e. with cheese) options. Sticking to the spirit of the evening, we ordered all vegan:

sesame crusted mushrooms
mixed greens salad with walnuts
french lentil filo stack with cashew creme sauce
black bean empanadas


Well, the food was so-so. Appetizers good - entrees mediocre. But I don't think it is because the food was vegan. I think the flavors just didn't meld well. The chef was bold with his choices and I applaud that. But bold doesn't always mean good.

One thing I love about some of the better restaurants in town is that I often come home and try to make a few of the dishes myself - and I usually make them a bit healthier.

Not after last night.

We came home and raided the pantry for my chocolate chip banana muffins :)

Spinach Power Salad!

Okay, after a beer and chocolate post I thought it would be appropriate to post a healthy vitamin packed recipe. It isn't quite salad season, but who cares? It's the Chinese New Year and temple food (as Ms. Lawson likes to call it) is called for. Here goes:

Super Spinach Power Salad
serves one

Baby Spinach - 1-2 cups
Napa Cabbage - 1/2 cup cupped
Romaine - 1/2 cup chopped
Roma Tomato -1 chopped
Onion- 1/4 small red diced
Olive oil/brown rice vinegar (just a teaspoon or so of each) with salt and pepper to taste

Chickpea Fritters (Mark Bittman's falafel recipe again!- chickpeas, onion, garlic, parsley, cumin, coriander, salt, pepper, lemon juice, baking powder)


Take that Dr. Oz!

I had this with a yummy soy-blueberry-banana smoothie. I'm on vitamin overload right now. Ready to do anything :)

Soups for the Sick!

J gave me that nasty cold he had. Time for soup.

The first soup is a Chickpea Noodle Soup from Veganomicon

I ordered this book just before our trip down south and I am so glad I did. This recipe was a winner. The soup is mellow and filling and I added spinach at the very end to bump up the vitamin count. I must say that I am feeling quite a bit better this morning.

The split pea soup is a pretty basic recipe. I added brown rice and left-over potatoes (both Yukon gold and sweet). It is a carb-and-protein-heavy bowl of pure comfort.

Drink: Hot herbal tea with lemon and honey.

Listening to: Cowboy Junkies, Black Eyed Man

Naan Veggie Burgers

What to do with left over naan?

Veggie Burgers!

J loves Amy's Bistro Burgers and I'm a traditionalist - I love my Gardenburgers.

Friday Night Falafel Night!

I made some whole wheat naan and some falafels tonight. It was a hit!

Add some yogurt, peppers, tomaotoes, red onions and parsley and we're golden.

Soup for lunch (again)

Red lentil curry with cauliflower, potatoes and brown rice.

So satisfying and so ugly.

Delicata Squash is My Hero...

...and my favorite new veggie.


I picked up some delicata squash for the first time this year actually by mistake. I went to the market looking for spaghetti squash and blindly believed the labels the market had put up.

Lucky for me I had never bought spaghetti squash before, so I didn't know what to look for. I brought the squash home and roasted it in the oven. When I sliced the cooked squash in half I quickly realized that this was not spaghetti squash at all and I had to change the plan for dinner. I chopped up the squash and made a yummy mild curry with tofu and veggies. It was delicious. So the next day I roasted the rest of the squash and we had it as a side. What a lovely vegetable. Sweeter and firmer than pumpkin, but not as dense as butternut squash, and so easy to prepare.

Why do we not see more recipes calling for this yummy treat?

No offense to butternut squash fans out there, but butternut squash can be very dangerous.

Both my husband and myself have sliced our fingers handling that massive gourd.


But not anymore!


Delicata Squash has saved the day.


Monday I roasted up a couple of them beauties and smashed their sweet flesh along with some melted (vegan) butter, rosemary, nutmeg, brown sugar, vegetable stock, salt and pepper. I tossed this with some whole wheat spaghetti, put it all in a casserole dish and topped it with some more herbs, bread crumbs, a little olive oil and some caramelized onions. Baked it for 30 minutes and we were in heaven.(This is an adaptation of a Veganomicon recipe based on what I had in the house!)


I'll bet it delicata makes for a great pie too.

Something to try this Christmas :)

Eat Your Veggies! (and Happy Birthday Mom!)

So we ate, (gasp), just veggies tonight!

But they were incredibly filling. I didn't miss a thing.

Delicata squash, mushrooms and spinach, brussel sprouts, and roasted potatoes.

mmmmmmm...




Walrus loves brussel sprouts!

amy's ...mmmm

Since moving up here to the beautiful Pacific Northwest, I have falling in love with Amy's Burritos (the non-dairy ones).

They are amazing and simply delicious. Easy to cook up in the ole microwave - and greatly satisfying.

Funny thing is Amy's is based in Petaluma, CA. Not up here in Oregon. But I never came across their products in California. Not until my old man and I went veggie and explored the "health food" aisle in the grocery stores up here did we know about the yummy products from Amy's.


I just had one of these burritos, so this is why my first blog entry speaks of that mix of whole wheat and pinto bean goodness that is the Amy's non-dairy burrito.

So thank you, Amy's. I have yet to grow tired of your fine product. And the folks at Amy's even have a blog: www.amys.com/journal


(old man enjoys the 'rito...dog looks on)