Bryanna Clark Grogan’s Vegan Feast Kitchen/ 23rd Century Table

NORTE AMERICANO-STYLE VEGAN LUCUMA ICE CREAM

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Tue, 29 Oct 2024 16:02:00 +0000

BRYANNA'S NORTE AMERICANO-STYLE VEGAN LUCUMA ICE CREAM Servings: 12; Yield: 6 cups 2 cups soy or almond milk 2/3 cup lucuma powder (available in health food stores or online from amazon.ca) 2 cups (1 pint) your favorite plain vegan creamer (I like So Delicious Original Coconut Milk Creamer) 1/2 cup raw cashews OR raw, shelled sunflower seeds, soaked in boiling water for 10 minutes and drained 3/4 cup light agave nectar 1/2 Tbs pure vanilla extract 3/8 tsp Xanthan Gum or Guar Gum OR 1 1/2 tsp Instant Clear Jel (acts as a stabilizer) 1/4 tsp salt The night before or morning before serving the ice cream, place the 2 cups soy or almond milk into a blender along with the lucuma powder and blend until VERY smooth. Scoop the mixture into a jar and refrigerate for 8 hours. After 8 hours, mix the refrigerated lucuma mixture in the blender again with all of the remaining ingredients. Blend again until it is VERY smooth. Pour the mixture into a pitcher or bowl and place it in the freezer until it is very cold all the way through, but NOT frozen (check every so often). As soon as the mixture is very cold, scoop it into your ice cream maker and freeze according to directions for your machine. Scoop the finished ice cream into freezer container(s), cover and freeze for several hours before serving. Nutrition Facts:Nutrition Facts alculated using So Delicious Original Coconut Milk Creamer and Silk Organic Original soy milk. Nutrition (per 1/2 cup serving): 187 calories, 26 calories from fat, 3.1g total fat, 0mg cholesterol, 69.3mg sodium, 67.4mg potassium, 33.8g carbohydrates

Time to retire from my blog, The Vegan Feast Kitchen!

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Sat, 19 Oct 2024 15:51:00 +0000

I have been thinking about this for some time now. I kept it going for 17 years! I'm going to keep it online for anyone who is interested, though... there are heaps of information there for vegans, and it might inspire new vegans, or struggling new vegans. If you have any questions, ideas, etc., you can write to me at bryannaclarkgrogan@gmail.com Wishing you all the best, Bryanna ❤️❤️

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Sat, 30 Mar 2024 20:38:00 +0000

BRYANNA'S "FRIED CHICKEN" SALAD

This is a Southern-style salad that is a meal in itself. You can "fry" the Soy Curls® in the oven without fat, or panfry them...it's your choice. (Nutritional info is for Soy Curls® baked in the oven.)

12 oz. reconstituted Soy Curls® (use the largest ones you have) (4 oz. dry, soaked in hot chicken-style vegetarian broth), (See butlerfoods.com for where to buy or order Soy Curls in your area. See Cooking Tips, below, for more info.)

IF YOU HAVE NO SOY CURLS®, use 4 cups slices of "chicken" seitan
whole wheat flour for dredging
1/2 cup soy or nut milk curdled with 1/2 Tbs. vinegar or lemon juice

Panko Breading: (mix well)
1/2 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1 tsp garlic granules
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp salt
freshly-ground black pepper to taste

Salad:
6 cups organic baby greens
2 cups sliced roasted beets
1/2 cup "Blue Cheese" Sheese, crumbled (an alternative would be Tofu Feta from the Jun/Jul 05 VF)

Vegan "Honey"-Mustard Dressing:

(3/4 cup Eggless Low-fat Mayonnaise
http://veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2006/09/modernvegan-blt-sandwich-heaven.html
or Tofu Mayonnaise)
http://www.bryannaclarkgrogan.com/page/page/661699.htm #august18,2003
(or use Vegannaise, if you don't mind the calories!)
1/4 cup agave nectar
2 Tbs smooth Dijon mustard

PANKO BREADCRUMBS:
Panko are Japanese breadcrumbs noted for their crunchy texture, which is lighter and crispier than regular breadcrumbs. You can find them in most supermarkets now (look near the fish department in
some stores), or Asian grocery stores. Or but online from many online Asian grocery outlets, such as
http://www.mingspantry.com/

WHOLEWHEAT PANKO BREAD CRUMBS ARE AVAILABLE:
Look for Ian's Whole Wheat Panko Breadcrumbs. Amazon is one venue that sells them online.

TO MAKE YOUR OWN PANKO, see Cooking Tips below.

To cook the Soy Curls®:
Set up shallow bowls with the whole wheat flour, curdled soymilk, and Panko Breading
mixture in a line on your counter (see picture). Dredge the Soy Curls® in flour, then dip
in the curdled soymilk, and then roll in the Panko Breading mixture. Place each piece on
a cookie sheet, not touching the others. Oct/Nov/Dec 07 Vegan Feast 48

Now you can pan-fry the pieces in a little hot oil in a nonstick skillet, cooking until
golden brown on all sides, and draining them on paper towels,
OR you can bake them on dark cookie sheets, sprayed with oil from a pump sprayer (and
spray the top of the Soy Curl® pieces, too), at 500° F for about 10 minutes on each side,
or until golden brown and crispy.

While they cook, assemble the salads, dividing the greens between 4 salad bowls, and
distributing the beets and Sheese evenly around the edges of the bowls. Pile the hot Soy
Curls® in the center of each salad.

Whisk the Dressing ingredients together well and drizzle over the salad. Serve
immediately.
Serves 4

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 362.8 calories; 30% calories from fat; 12.5g total fat; 0.0mg
cholesterol; 898.0mg sodium; 512.7mg potassium; 48.9g carbohydrates; 7.6g fiber; 23.8g
sugar; 41.3g net carbs; 18.3g protein; 7.5 points.

If you used wholewheat panko, the Nutrition Facts are:
366.4 calories; 30% calories from fat; 12.7g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 881.7mg
sodium; 512.7mg potassium; 49.6g carbohydrates; 8.5g fiber; 24.1g sugar; 41.1g net
carbs; 19.0g protein; 7.6 points.

VEGAN CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT OR PECAN LAVA CAKES

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Thu, 22 Jun 2023 23:59:00 +0000

BRYANNA'S HAZELNUT OR PECAN PRALINE LAVA CAKES

These individual cakes usually have a soft center of chocolate fudge that erupts in a rich, dark puddle from the cakes. This recipe is an easier version of the cake that some of you might have seen before, though it is not in any of my books or newsletters. But I decided to try a caramelly hazelnut praline filling. It was a big hit with my guests.
Originally, lava cakes were flourless cakes with a batter based on eggs that formed a molten center when the cakes were baked. More often than not these days, a rich cake batter containing flour is used and a frozen chocolate mixture is placed between layers of batter before baking. This is the type that I started with to make a vegan version of this cake. This batter has very little fat in it, yet is rich, moist, tender and chocolatey. The hazelnut filling tastes rich enough that half a cake is plenty for a serving, along with a scoop of vegan vanilla "ice cream".

NOTE ON BAKING VESSELS: Use ramekins, bowls, little soufflé dishes, giant muffin tins, ceramic coffee cups-- anything that holds about 1 cup (8 oz.). I prefer bowls with a rounded bottom, but have used a variety of vessels successfully. They should be generously greased with vegan margarine and placed on two cookie sheets.

FILLING:

1/4 cup Earth Balance, or other good-tasting vegan margarine

7/8 cup hazelnuts or pecans, toasted and chopped

3/4 cup brown sugar

3 Tbs soy creamer, such as Silk brand, or nut creme

2 Tbs. vegan white sugar

CAKES:

Wet Mix:

1 cup (8 ounces) firm SILKEN tofu OR medium-firm regular tofu

2 cups brown sugar

1 1/4 cups strong liquid coffee or espresso

2 Tbs. oil

4 tsp Ener-G or Orgran Egg Replacer powder

1 Tbs. vinegar

1 Tbs. vanilla OR chocolate, coffee or hazelnut liqueur

Dry Mix:

1 1/4 cups pastry flour (you can even use whole wheat pastry flour with the rough bran sifted out)

1 cup organic unsweetened cocoa

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

FILLING:

1/4 cup Earth Balance, or other good-tasting vegan margarine

7/8 cup hazelnuts or pecans, toasted and chopped

3/4 cup brown sugar

3 Tbs soy creamer, such as Silk brand, or nut creme

2 Tbs vegan white sugar

TO MAKE THE FILLING:

Place the Earth Balance in a medium microwave-safe bowl or pitcher and microwave until melted, about 2 minutes. (Or melt in a medium saucepan over medium heart on the stovetop.)

Add the remaining ingredients and microwave on full power (or boil n the stovetop) for 3 minutes.

Pour the mixture into a flat baking pan lined with parchment and place in the freezer to cool until you can handle it like candy. Divide into 8 equal portions and roll each portion into a ball. Place, not touching, on the parchment and place in the freezer while you make the cake batter.

TO MAKE THE CAKES:

Preheat the oven to 350 ° F.

Have the 8 cups or ramekins for the cakes prepared as above under NOTE.

Mix the Wet mix ingredients in a food processor or blender until smooth.

Whisk together the Dry Mix ingredients in a medium bowl.

Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk briefly to make a smooth batter.

Divide the half of the batter evenly into the prepared cups or ramekins.

Gently place one of the hazelnut praline balls in the center of each and gently press down a tiny bit, and then top evenly with the remaining batter. Place the filled cups (or whatever you are using) in a large baking pan or on a cookie sheet with a rim.

Bake in the center of the oven until the cakes are puffy and set, about 35 minutes. Test on the side of one of the cakes with a cake tester or toothpick.

Let cool in the pan 10 minutes, then loosen carefully and invert onto parchment-lined plates or pans.

TO SERVE:

Cut each cake in half. Serve each half on a small dessert plate, still warm, with a scoop of vegan vanilla "ice cream", such as Soy Delicious, Soy Dream, or Tofutti.

NOTE: Leftovers can be refrigerated, wrapped in plastic wrap, and then reheated, uncovered in the microwave for a minute, or in a 350°F oven, covered loosely with foil, for about 10 minutes.

Serves 16

Nutrition Facts

Nutrition (per serving): 330.4 calories; 34% calories from fat; 13.4g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 202.8mg sodium; 400.3mg potassium; 52.2g

BRYANNA'S EASY CREAMY NO-OIL VEGAN MAYONNAISE

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Mon, 13 Feb 2023 17:56:00 +0000

BRYANNA'S EASY CREAMY MICR0WAVE NO-OIL VEGAN MAYONNAISE Mix A: 1 cup plain soymilk 3 T. cider vinegar 1/2 tsp. mustard powder 1/4 cup shelled raw sunflower seeds, soaked in boiling water for 5 minutes and drained well. OPTIONAL:add 1/2 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes. Mix B: 1/2 cup + 2 T. cold water + 4 T. cornstarch. Blend Mix A until very smooth. Set aside for a few of minutes. Add Mix B and whisk well. Microwave the mixture on High for 30 seconds. Whisk briefly. (Switch to a silicone spatula after 2 turns in the microwave). Repeat this about three times, or until thick and translucent-- even if this takes more than four 30-second intervals in your microwave. (Note:The microwave method works well with starch mixtures.) Scoop into a 3 cup jar and refrigerate. It will thicken up nicely in a few hours. .

NEW, EVEN TASTIER UPDATED VERSION OF MY STEAMED VEGAN "PARMESAN"

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Fri, 23 Apr 2021 17:31:00 +0000

This is a new and improved version of the vegan"parm" recipe I posted in November of 2019.

I've been a bit fed up lately with cashews, cashews, cashews when it comes to vegan cheese! For one thing, they are expensive, especially the fair trade, organic variety. For another, they can be ethically compromised (See https://bit.ly/2oLeHgM for more on these issues.) My aim for some time has been to make vegan cheese that is delicious, easy to make, inexpensive and made with easily-obtained ingredients, and without the need for cashews or culturing.

Some time ago I ran across Martine's groundbreaking recipe for Vegan Steamed Rice Cheese at lowcarb-vegan.net/vegan-steamed-rice-cheese/ I tried it right away-- it was easy to make and tasty!

BUT, it was made with white rice flour, which is not particularly low-glycemic (and I have to eat low-glycemic). So, back in 2019, I got a notion to use some sort of bean flour instead, along with some high-resistant-starch potato starch, and it worked beautifully. I added more nutritional yeast, along with some miso (for a fermented flavor), and onion powder and garlic granules. Even better!

My far-away Australian Facebook friend Fran P. was also working on such things and we shared our successes and failures. I hoped (and still hope) to make a cheese that melted, but I'm still working on that. But, in any case, one day I got the idea to grate this very firm, tasty cheese and it seemed to me to be a delicious and much less expensive alternative to commercial vegan "parmesan" products.

In this latest version, I boosted some of the flavor components, and it's even better! My husband was even slicing it and eating it out of hand!

I'm working on some other versions of this type of cheese, but I wanted to share this one with you right now because we're so pleased with it. Let me know what you think!

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA'S NEW UPDATED STEAMED VEGAN "PARMESAN"(Low-glycemic, high in protein and fiber, nut-free, soy-free) April 23, 2021

**Makes enough to fill at least two 142g shaker jars.

Low-Fat Option: I have made this cheese with NO OIL, using 1 cup + 1 1/2 Tbsps. water and it turned out just fine, but may not melt as well.

This very tasty cheese is high in protein from bean flour, and is low-glycemic. It's also a great source of resistant starch (which acts as a soluble fiber). Potato starch [not the same thing as potato flour, BTW] is also very high in resistant starch and makes for a VERY firm cheese, suitable for grating or pulsing in a food processor.

(See https://bit.ly/2PJhaU9 for info on resistant starch, which improves insulin sensitivity, lower blood sugar levels, reduces appetite and has various benefits for digestion.)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/3 cup/124 g chickpea flour (NOTE: I've tried several bean flours and this works best.)

• 1/4 cup/ 41 g slightly packed-down potato starch (NOT potato flour)

• 1 cup water

• 1/4 cup melted refined coconut oil (preferably Fair Trade, organic)

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 1/2 tsp salt

• 1 tablespoon dark miso

NOTE: dark miso gives a more fermented flavor than the white variety.

• 1 1/2 tsp. smooth Dijon mustard

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice OR sauerkraut juice

• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes

• 1 tsp. onion powder

• 1 tsp. garlic granules

Steps:

1. Pour 2 cups of water into your steamer pot, InstantPot or pressure cooker, equipped with a flat steamer basket in the bottom. 2.Place all the ingredients into the jar of your blender, and blend until it forms a completely smooth, milky mixture, without lumps or visible oil droplets.

This is the Pyrex mold that I use, lined with cooking parchment

3. Pour the cheese mixture into a greased or parchment-lined Pyrex, metal or ceramicmold. Choose a mold that will hold 2 cups, with about 1/2 inch of “head room”.

Place the mold onto the steamer basket. I fold a long piece of aluminium foil lengthwise into a wide strip and use it to lower the mold onto the steamer basket. This makes it easier to remove the hot mold from its close quarters after it's cooked, too!

4. Steam the cheese for about 45 minutes (or 25 minutes on Steam function in Instant Pot, or pressure cooker). Release pressure in the InstantPot or pressure cooker after cooling down for about 20 minutes.

Use the aluminum foil to lift the hot mold out of the pot onto a cooling rack.

After the steaming, the cheese will still be a bit soft. Don't worry, it will firm up once it cools. If a thin layer of water dripped onto the cheese from the pot's lid-- drain this off carefully. Let the cheese cool to room temperature and then cover it and put it into the fridge overnight to firm up.

Once it is firm, you can release it from the mold and store it in a lidded container for a week or so, or you can freeze half of it, well-wrapped. The cheese tastes best if you leave it to firm and develop flavor for a day or two before eating. You can grate the cheese on a box grater, if you wish, but I use a food processor. I cut the block into small squares and place them in a food processor.

Pulse until they are chopped and then process until it looks like commercial grated parmesan. Scoop the resulting "granules" into two shaker bottles-- I have used two 142g Earth Island/FollowYourHeart Vegan Grated Parmesan-Style Cheese shakers, but you can just use some clean, dry jars and scoop it out. Or, if you prefer, cut the block in half, process one half, and freeze on half, well wrapped, for grating later.

PS: I keep most of my grated "Parm" in the freezer, only leaving a small amount in a jar in the refrigerator and refilling as needed.

Enjoy!

HOMEMADE LOW-SODIUM, LOW-GLYCEMIC ASIAN COOKING SAUCES

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Tue, 16 Feb 2021 00:16:00 +0000

It's been a long, long time since I posted!! I've mostly been cooking from my own books and files, as well as some old favorites on my bookshelves. And, as those of you who still follow me may know, I've been altering my diet to according the vicissitudes of aging.

I love Asian cooking, but I am following a lower-sodium diet, as well as a low-glycemic one (very little sugar, and only low-glycemic carbohydrates-- you can check out some of my past posts on this subject). Checking out sodium and sugar content on the labels of the bottles of soy sauce and other commercial Asian sauces readily available in supermarkets and specialty stores was quite a shock!

My first challenge was soy sauce. I have used Kikkoman soy sauce for years, but, at 960mg of sodium per tablespoon, I knew that I would have to make a change. Soy sauce is one of the oldest condiments in the world, originating in China. It has a meaty, rich flavor which adds body to many Western meatless recipes. It is an essential for meatless cooking. Kikkoman makes a variety called “Less Sodium Soy Sauce”, which contains 40% less salt than ordinary soy sauce, with no loss in flavor, and it is widely available in grocery stores.

I figured that I could make my own low-sodium soy sauce, since the small bottles of Kikkoman Less-Sodium Soy sauce are expensive, and I can't find larger bottles in my area. I figured that I could somehow make my own and, low and behold, I found an easy recipe online at https://thewoksoflife.com/low-sodium-soy-sauce/, and had all the makings for it.

PS: For your information: 

      Many folks use a product called Bragg’s Liquid Aminos instead of soy sauce, mistakenly believing that it contains less sodium than ordinary soy sauce (or tamari or shoyu, other terms for soy sauce). 

      BUT, the truth is that Bragg’s actually has the same amount of sodium *per tablespoon* as ordinary soy sauce! 

      And, since Bragg's not a fermented product, it has a less complex flavor, so you often use more of it.  

     The serving size for the Bragg's product is only HALF A TEASPOON, containing 160 mg of sodium. 

     The serving size listed on the Kikkoman Soy Sauce bottle is 960 mg for 1 tablespoon, and 6 half-teaspoons of Bragg's makes 1 tablespoon, so it's the same amount of sodium with less flavor.

EASY HOMEMADE LOWER-SODIUM SOY SAUCE

Mix 1/2 cup regular soy sauce, 1/2 cup Chinese dark soy sauce (which I happened to have in my cupboard), and 1 cup water-- that's it! (Makes 2 cups) Regular Kikkoman soy sauce contains 960 mg sodium per tablespoon, and dark soy sauce contains 870 mg per tablespoon.

By mixing these two soy sauces with the water, you have a full-bodied, tasty, and very inexpensive lower-sodium soy sauce at 457 mg sodium per tablespoon!

**********************

The second sauce that I attempted was Thai Sweet Chili Sauce. We don't use it as often as soy sauce, of course, but it's great to have around to serve with my Thai-Style Corn Fritters, Shallow-Fried or Baked. It's also good for dipping chunks of crispy of fried (or air-fried) tofu, SoyCurls, seitan, vegetables, etc., or for adding to many types of Asian stir-fries that call for some sweetness and chili heat.

There are many homemade versions of this delicious, spicy sauce online, but I put together a quick and easy mixture, using agave syrup for the sweetener because it is much lower on the glycemic index than sugar (though, you should not overdo any type of sugar).

BRYANNA'S NOT-SO-SWEET THAI SWEET RED CHILI SAUCE
Makes about 1 3/4 cups

Mix together in a small saucepan:
1/2 cup UN-salted rice vinegar

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup agave nectar

3 tablespoons Vietnamese Chili Garlic Sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

Bring this to a boil, then turn down and simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.
Then stir in 1 Tablespoon potato starch mixed with 1 tablespoon COLD water. This will thicken the mixture quickly. Store in a jar or bottle in the refrigerator.

****************

The third sauce that I made this morning is a version of Chinese Vegan Stir-Fry Sauce. This is not the same product as Chinese Vegetarian "Oyster" Sauce or Chinese "Mushroom" Stir-Fry Sauce. (I plan to work on that one soon.) But just a little bit can add good flavor to a marinade or veggie stir-fry.

BRYANNA'S HOMEMADE VEGAN MULTI-PURPOSE CHINESE STIR-FRY SAUCE

Males 1 1/4 cups

Whisk in a small saucepan:

1/2 cup lower-sodium soy sauce (see above)
1/2 cup low-sodium vegan "chikn" broth or veggie broth

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 tablespoon agave nectar or your favorite sugar sub

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger (or a bit of ground ginger)
a good dash of garlic granules
1 tablespoon of dark Chinese (toasted) sesame oil

1 tsp UN-salted rice vinegar

Bring to a low boil, then turn down to a low simmer and cook until thickened. Allow to cool off, then store in a tightly covered jar or bottle in the refrigerated.

Enjoy!

DELICIOUS, TENDER LOW-GLYCEMIC WHOLE GRAIN SPELT, OAT, SORGHUM & BEAN FLOUR PANCAKES

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Sat, 10 Oct 2020 00:10:00 +0000

UPDATE: Last night I noticed that I had mistakenly typed the number of pancakes in the recipe as 14. That should have been 24! I have since corrected this mistake in the recipe and also posted a new Nutrition Facts label below the recipe. Sorry for any confusion!

Yikes! It's been 5 months since I last blogged! You might have thought that I'd be posting like mad during this pandemic time, when we're pretty much isolating here in the woods. It's not as though I'm not cooking! I cook quite a bit. But I've been mostly revisiting recipes from my own cookbooks and cooking notes, re-discovering (and sometimes improving on) dishes that I developed many years ago. Which has been fun, I must say. But I haven't been inventing new recipes very often, I confess. So, it feels good to post again, with a recipe that I'm quite proud of.

I've been making buckwheat pancakes for weekend breakfasts quite frequently these days. They are delicious (I'll post the recipe another day), but one day I wanted to try making pancakes more similar to the common white flour pancakes most of us in North America grew up with, but utilizing a combination of some of the healthful whole grain low-glycemic flours that I've been experimenting with lately.

The following combination of flours turned out to be a winner! We were so pleasantly surprised with the wonderful flavor of the pancakes, even without syrup. I don't think I've ever had such tasty pancakes! They are very simple to make-- I hope that you will enjoy them as much as we do.

Printable Copy

BRYANNA'S DELICIOUS, TENDER LOW-GLYCEMIC WHOLE GRAIN SPELT, OAT, SORGHUM AND BEAN FLOUR PANCAKES
Makes about 24 pancakes (3 to 4-inch size)

NOTE: Nutrition facts below recipe

DRY MIX:

Whisk together in a dry mixing bowl:

1 cup whole grain spelt flour
1 cup oat flour
***(I blend rolled oats in a dry blender to make oat flour.)
1/2 cup bean flour
***(You can use soy, yellow pea, white bean or chana dal flour.)
1/2 cup sorghum flour
***(I blend dry sorghum grains in a dry blender to make sorghum flour.)
2 tablespoons coconut sugar or equivalent of your favorite sugar sub
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

WET MIX:
Combine in a 4-cup pitcher:

6 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons ground flax (brown or golden)

After 10 minutes, add and whisk:

1 cup soy milk or plain hemp milk
1 1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

METHOD:

Add the Wet Mix to the bowl with the Dry Mix. Combine briefly with a large spoon, medium-sized whisk or a Danish dough whisk.

Cook as for any pancakes-- I make them about 3 inches across. I like to use my old rectangular electric skillet at 400°F (205°C). It will cook 5 to 6 pancakes at a time just perfectly. But a well-seasoned cast iron skillet or griddle over medium heat (heat up for about 10 minutes before cooking) is excellent, as well. Either way, wipe the pan with a bit of oil before heating. Cook the pancakes for about 3 minutes on the first side and about 2 minutes on the second side. Serve immediately with your favorite toppings.

NOTE: For a low-glycemic syrup, I use low-sugar jam mixed with some water to make a syrup.

© 2020 Bryanna Clark Grogan. All Rights Reserved.

Nutrition Facts
Serving size: 1 pancake
Servings: 24
Amount per serving
Calories	51
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 1.9g	2%
Saturated Fat 0.3g	1%
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 109mg	5%
Total Carbohydrate 6.7g	2%
Dietary Fiber 0.9g	3%
Total Sugars 1.5g
Protein 2.1g
Vitamin D 0mcg	0%
Calcium 37mg	3%
Iron 1mg	4%
Potassium 143mg	3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calorie a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Recipe analyzed by

Enjoy!

A NATURALLY VEGAN RECIPE-- SIMPLE BUT DELICIOUSLY SPICY CHICKPEA & TOMATO SOUP/STEW

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Wed, 29 Apr 2020 01:08:00 +0000

Yesterday I needed to make a quick soup for lunch, but couldn't decide on any of my own recipes. Flipping through various cookbooks for ideas, I ran across a recipe in Deborah Madison's tome, "Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone", for a Tunisian chickpea soup called "Leblebi". It sounded simple, tasty and nourishing, with ingredients that I had in the house.

Of course, I couldn't resist checking out a few other cookbooks, and found that there are various versions of this dish across the Middle East, some of which are more like a stew. So I wrote down the basic ingredients and the spices and herbs that appealed to me.

BTW-- if you don't have any of the Harissa I call for (it's a very hot North African red pepper paste-- see picture below for the brand I see most often where I live and which I use) there are many homemade recipes and commercial brands available online. And here is a link to an article about possible substitutes.

So, without further ado, here is my version of the Turkish version (called Zetinyagli Nohut Yemegi) of this deliciously simple spicy chickpea and tomato stew or soup. I can't think of a more satisfying meal (and my husband loved it, too)!

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA'S VERSION OF SPICY TURKISH CHICKPEA & TOMATO SOUP OR STEW (Zetinyagli Nohut Yemegi)

Serves 4 to 6, depending on appetites

STEP #1:
2 cups dried chickpeas (garbanzo beans)-- I don't soak them.
6 cups light vegetarian broth

1 small onion, peeled and left whole

1/2 tsp. salt

Place all of the ingredients in the insert of your Instant Pot, lock the lid and push the steam release handle toward the back, into "sealing" position. Set on "Manual" for 30 minutes. When the float valve sinks down all the way, open the pot, carefully remove the onion and discard it.
(If you use a stovetop pressure cooker, follow the directions for your pot and cook for 30 minutes. Then let the pressure come down. If you cook them in a pot on the stove, bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer, remove any foam, and simmer for about 1 1/2 hours. )

STEP#2:
1 T. olive oil

4 fair-sized cloves of garlic, minced

1 medium onion, chopped

2 bay leaves

1 tsp. ground cumin

(It's best if you can grind cumin seed in a little electric spice mill just before using)

1/2 cup to 1 cup fresh or canned diced or crushed tomatoes

1-2 T. harissa (see above for info and subs, if necessary)-- according to your tolerance for hot stuff!

In a small skillet over medium-high heat, saute the garlic and onion until they begin to turn golden. Add the bay leaves and cumin, and then the tomatoes. Stir-cook for a couple of minutes, then add cooked chickpeas and broth. Simmer for 30 minutes.

STEP#3:

Taste for seasoning, adding salt if needed, and more harissa (or sub), if you like. If it's too "stew-like" for you, add another cup or so of vegetarian broth.

Other additions, according to your taste:

lemon or lime juice

chopped parsley

chili flakes

chopped green onions or chives

To serve with this dish:

Pita or other flatbread (toasted or not)

or
your favorite crusty bread, in chunks

ENJOY!

BE READY FOR EMERGENCIES WITH VEGAN PANTRY, FRIDGE & FREEZER STAPLES

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Sat, 28 Mar 2020 03:35:00 +0000

PRINTABLE LIST

There's no need to hoard food in an emergency situation. And there's also no need to purchase everything on this list! I live on an island in the country, so I keep more in my pantry than I probably would if I lived in a city. Buy only what you like, need and expect that you can use up. If there are things on the list that you don't like, substitute what you do like. Keep a shopping list going while you isolate, adding to the list goods that you need to replace when you can make a foray to the stores.

If you have some vegan staples in your freezer, refrigerator, pantry shelves, kitchen cupboards, or even in a closet, you'll be fine. While we still have the privilege of going to a grocery store these days, even with restrictions, it might be helpful to make a list of what you have on hand and another list of what you may need to add to your next shopping list.

I made a few lists myself. I must admit that my lists might be longer than yours because 1.) I cook from scratch most of the time; 2.) I live on an island and can't just run to the store whenever I need something (though our little local general store has a pretty good selection!); and 3.) we like variety, but live on a fairly strict budget.

A friend asked me to share my lists with you, so I went into the pantry and peered into kitchen drawers with pen and notebook one morning, scribbling down names of beans, grains, flours, flours, condiments, etc., and then peered into the refrigerator and the (fortunately newly-defrosted!) freezer to list cold storage items.

Obviously, you don't need to have everything that I suggest. We all have our own likes and dislikes, allergies, etc. We shouldn't have items that we aren't sure we will use, especially if space is an issue-- and we want to avoid waste, too. We should carefully store leftovers and use them in the next day or two. This is a good time to practice old-fashioned frugality!

I am well-aware of the fact that those of us who can have full pantries, cupboards, fridges and freezers are privileged-- even seniors like my husband and I, who live on a pretty low income. People in our position can still afford to donate some dried, canned, packaged and/or jarred foodstuffs to organizations who help feed those who are struggling.

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So, here we go!

LIST #1: VEGAN PANTRY ITEMS
It's a good idea to store the following items in glass jars (which you can often find at thrift stores, or you can reuse cleaned and dried jars from storebought items), or in metal containers with lids, or rigid heavy-duty plastic boxes or containers with tight lids, so that pests don't get into them.

BEANS & LENTILS!

Dried legumes (beans, lentils, dried peas, dal, etc.) are essential for vegans, providing excellent protein, fiber and other nutrients, as well as tasty comfort food! It's handy to have some canned beans on hand, but I prefer to rely on dried legumes. They are cheap, and they last a long time when stored properly.

1 pound of dried beans makes up to 6 cups of beans! 1 cup of dried beans makes up to 3 cups of cooked beans. Dried beans are always available in grocery stores and bulk buying stores-- even in dollar stores.

Here are beans and other dried legumes that I always have on hand:

pinto beans
small red beans
kidney beans
Great Northern beans (or other small white beans)
Black beans
chickpeas
blackeyed peas
yellow split peas
green split peas
whole yellow dried peas
green or brown lentils
Gigante beans (large lima beans), if I can find some!
soybeans, to make my own soymilk

***In addition, you might like to have some Indian pulses and dal on hand. The following article is a good place to start: https://indiaphile.info/guide-indian-lentils/. And there are many, many excellent blogs and pages online to consult for making Indian pulse dishes-- just Google "vegan Indian food blogs".

PS: You'll find many delicious bean and pulse dishes on my Recipe Links page. Scroll down to "BEAN AND LENTIL (LEGUME) DISHES". The picture below is of my Spicy Vegan Basque Chickpea & Sausage Stew.

SOME VARIED SHELF-STABLE VEGAN PROTEIN SOURCES

nutritional yeast flakes
sprouted grain breads (See my recipe for making your own at home.)
textured soy protein (TVP)-- granules, chunks or slices that can be rehydrated in broth.

Here's my recipe for making burgers, burger crumbles or "meatballs" with TVP. And here's another vegan "meatball" recipe made with TVP that can be made in quantity and frozen. (They are purposely dry, so that you can cook them in a sauce or broth, where they "plump up" nicely.)

Butler Soy Curls (Used instead of meat or chicken. I rehydrate Soy Curls in a hot vegan broth before using.) List of Soy Curls Recipes and Soy Curls Info

Mori-Nu Silken Tofu in asceptic (UHT) boxes (firm, medium-firm, and extra-firm)
(Unfortunately not available in Canada anymore!)

Here are some tofu, tempeh, and simple seitan recipes I developed for Alive magazine.

soymilk or other vegan milks in 1 quart or 1 Litre asceptic or UHT (ultra heat treated) boxes.
"How long does unopened shelf-stable soy milk last at room temperature? Properly stored, unopened shelf-stable soy milk will generally stay at best quality for about 3 to 4 weeks after the date on the package when stored at room temperature."
From https://www.stilltasty.com/Fooditems/index/19077
(NOTE: Soymilk contains far more protein than almost all other plant-based milks, except pea milk-- see https://www.livekindly.co/which-vegan-milk-has-the-most-protein/)

One more:
Vital Wheat Gluten: This is what you need to make seitan or "wheat meat". Do not make the mistake of buying something called "Gluten flour". It sometimes is the same as vital wheat gluten, but sometimes it is gluten flour mixed with ordinary wheat flour.)

NOTE: Most vegans make use of tofu and seitan (made from high-protein vital wheat gluten), as well as beans and grains, but there are many more vegan sources of protein. Here's a good link: https://www.jessicagavin.com/vegan-protein-sources/

WHOLE GRAINS

To go along with your vegan proteins, for breakfast, or to add to soups, some of the best staples are whole grains, which are generally inexpensive. Here is a list of the ones I keep in my pantry:

Must-Haves:
rolled oats (These are the most versatile, but you may prefer quick oats or Scotch oats for a hot cereal. All can be ground into flour in a dry blender.)
cornmeal; corn grits; Italian polenta
bulgur wheat (medium is the most versatile)
pearl barley, which is quick-cooking, and/or pot barley, which takes longer
(Barley is great in soups and can be ground into a flour in your blender.)

Various kinds of rice are a must in my house:
converted (parboiled) rice, (Here's an article about the health benefits of converted rice.)
Basmati rice (you may be able to find a converted variety, as well, which is very good.)
Brown rice-- short grain, long grain, Jasmine and Basmati

A few more specialty rice varieties for the gourmet in you:

If you like making risotto, you'll need some Arborio rice or Carnaroli rice
Jasmine rice-- a fragrant white long-grain Thai variety
Red rice (See https://food.ndtv.com/news/healthy-rice-here-s-a-complete-guide-to-red-rice-benefits-recipes-and-more-2161315 for all the varieties of this healthful rice.)
Black rice--"There are various varieties and names for this medium-grain rice, including forbidden rice, Thai black rice, Nerone black rice and Venere black rice. All are high in fibre and have a mild, nutty taste. The grains are very high in antioxidants, containing as much or more than the levels found in blueberries..." From: https://www.foodrepublic.com/2017/03/15/all-types-of-rice/
Japanese short-grain glutinous rice or sweet rice, or "Sushi rice"
Thai or Chinese glutinous rice or "Thai sticky rice"

Other grain possibilities:
(P.S: you can easily grind any of these 3 into flour in a dry blender.)

millet
buckwheat
masa harina (special fine cornmeal for making tortillas)
quinoa (I just keep the white variety most of the time, but red and black versions are available.)
Note: Quinoa (technically a seed) is expensive, but is very nutritious and high in protein.
I like to cook it 1/2 & 1/2 with medium bulgur wheat. (1 cup of each with 3 cups of vegan broth-- bring to a boil, turn down to Low, cover and cook for 20 minutes. Leftovers can be frozen in portions for future meals.)

For extra nutrition and fiber, you might like to keep the following for adding to hot cereals, muffins, etc.:

oat bran
wheat bran
wheat germ

If you like to make your own flour and have a home flour mill or heavy-duty blender for grinding, stock up on:
whole hard wheat kernels
spelt kernels

PASTA

Pasta made with Durham Semolina (whether it is whole grain or not) is not only vegan (no eggs!), but is high in protein. It is essential in our household!
1 cup of cooked durham semolina pasta contains 6 to 7 grams protein and 2 grams of fiber. So, if your main dish consists of 2 cups cooked durham semolina pasta mixed with vegetables and a light sauce, you have an inexpensive and protein-rich full-meal-deal.

See https://www.seriouseats.com/pasta-shape-glossary for the most comprehensive photo gallery of Italian dried pasta shapes I've ever seen! Pick your faves and always keep a few packages in your pantry for quick vegan meals. Here is the proper way to cook dry Italian pasta: https://www.livestrong.com/article/554257-how-to-cook-durum-wheat-semolina-pasta/

And, by the way: "The way the carbohydrates and protein in pasta are bound means that pasta has a lower glycemic index, or GI, meaning it is digested more slowly than other refined carbohydrates, according to researchers at the University of Sydney and the University of Toronto. Therefore, it might keep you full and release blood sugar (glucose) into your body more gradually, which could help with weight loss. Cold pasta is also a source of resistant starch, which may also help you lose weight." From https://www.consumerreports.org/pasta-noodles/is-pasta-healthy/

What about Asian noodles? By all means, if you are a fan, keep some dried Asian noodles on hand for quick and tasty meals, especially when mixed with stir-fried vegetables and some vegan protein, such as grilled or fried tofu. But not all are winners in the nutrition department. Read this article for the characteristics, uses, and nutrition facts for 6 types of Asian noodles:
https://www.berkeleywellness.com/healthy-eating/food/article/6-asian-noodles-try

NUTS & SEEDS

Nuts and seeds are very nutritious-- full of protein, fiber and healthy fats. But they can be expensive. Vegans should have a few varieties of nuts & seeds in the freezer and eat a couple of tablespoons a day, if possible. (Those 2 tablespoons can be mixed in with other foods, or used in recipes.)

If money is tight, your best bet is to look for bargains in bulk buy stores, big box stores, co-op stores, discount stores and even dollar stores, and then store your purchases in jars in your refrigerator or freezer. Here is a good article on the pluses and minuses, and the dollars and cents of nuts and seeds! http://sweetspotnutrition.ca/cost-nuts-seeds/

Here is one quote: "Enjoy peanuts and sunflower seeds if you like them. I think people tend to look down on them because they’re commonly available and typically less expensive (under a dollar per 100g at nearly every store I checked). But peanuts have been linked to the same heart and longevity benefits as pricer nuts and sunflower seeds are a good source of antioxidants like vitamin E and selenium. They’re a veritable heart health bargain."

I always keep the following in my refrigerator or freezer-- most are reasonably affordable:
peanuts
walnuts
pecans
shelled raw sunflower seeds
shelled raw pumpkin seeds
sesame seeds
poppy seeds
flax seeds (brown and golden)-- 1 T. ground mixed with 3 T. water makes a great egg sub in baking.
Other options:
chia seeds
almonds

I wrote this blog post on replacing expensive nuts, and nuts that are not eco-friendly (or not animal-friendly):
http://veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2018/01/how-to-replace-expensive-sometimes.html

So, how can you make rich-tasting, creamy vegan dishes even on a tight budget and while trying your best to avoid humanitarian and ecological pitfalls? Peanuts and seeds! They are inexpensive, easy to find, grown in North America, and chock full of nutrition and good fats.

My three staples, often used in combination, to replace nuts (especially cashews) in cooking are:
raw hulled white sesame seeds
shelled raw sunflower seeds
unsalted dry-roasted peanuts

Nut and seed butters, such as peanut butter, and tahini, are also staples that can be stored for quite a long time and I always have them in my kitchen. (Yes, I know that peanuts are actually legumes, but they are used like nuts!)

Besides peanut butter sandwiches, peanut butter can be used in delicious spicy vegan West African stews and soups. (Just Google it and lots of recipes will come up. If necessary, you can substitute non-dairy milks for the dairy version, vegan broth for the other kind, and seitan strips or Soy Curls™ instead of meat or chicken.) (PS: I rehydrate Soy Curls in a hot vegan broth before using.)

Tahini (sesame seed paste) is, of course, used in hummus, but also in Middle Eastern sauces and in salad dressings. See this link for lots of ideas:
https://www.cookingchanneltv.com/devour/2013/08/25-ways-to-use-tahini (The list is not for vegans only, but you can ignore the non-vegan recipes [or "veganize" them!] and there will still be plenty to tempt you.)

FLOURS & STARCHES:

unbleached white flour
whole wheat flour
spelt flour (both whole grain and "white" or "light")
(You may also want to have some ordinary cake flour, pastry flour and bread flour.)
chickpea flour (high protein and GF)
yellow pea flour (high protein and GF)
potato flour (GF) (NOT to be confused with potato starch!)
coconut flour (use carefully-- it absorbs liquid quickly)

As I mentioned above, you can grind some of your own flours from other nutritious and inexpensive grains, such as oats, millet, buckwheat, and sorghum, as well as quinoa (more expensive) (all GF), and from seeds, in a good blender, which will save both money and freshness.
For those of you who need to eat a gluten-free diet, or a low-glycemic diet (or both), you don't have to depend on starchy white GF flour mixes. I bake muffins, cakes and quick breads with a combination of 2/3rds oat flour and 1/3 chickpea flour, with good results.

Starches (GF) for thickening:
cornstarch
tapioca starch (Note: If you are diabetic, note that this is very high-glycemic)
wheat starch
arrowroot flour
potato starch (NOT to be confused with potato flour! Potato starch, BTW, contains resistant starch, which can help lower blood sugar, but potato starch does not. See:
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/resistant-starch-101 )

CANNED, JARRED & PACKAGED STAPLES

instant baking yeast
baking powder
baking soda
salt (table salt and kosher salt)
guar gum and/or xanthan gum
agar agar powder
powdered egg replacer (Orgran "No-Egg" or Ener-G Egg Replacer)
(Here's a recipe for crispy meringues made with powdered egg replacer.)
psyllium husk (Can be used in vegan cheeses, smoothies and to thicken salad dressings.)
***See this article for how to use high-fiber psyllium husk or psyllium husk powder in cooking and baking:
https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/psyllium-husk-powder-health-benefits-uses-supplements-recipe

Olive oil
Chinese (dark) sesame oil (a little goes a long way-- has a smoky flavor)
your favorite vegetable oil for cooking
coconut oil (use sparingly, as it is high in saturated fat, but is essential when you need a more solid fat)

Good brand of soy sauce or tamari
Chinese mushroom soy sauce
Vegan broth paste, powder, and/or cubes
Marmite (adds "beefy" taste to stews, soups, etc.)
vegan gravy browner (for color)
dried mushrooms
liquid smoke
lemon and lime juice in bottles
Japanese rice vinegar
cider vinegar
balsamic vinegar (Kirkland brand from Costco is by far the best affordable brand!)

canned tomatoes (whole, diced, pureed)
canned tomato paste
canned beans of your choice
canned pumpkin
canned fruit of your choice (pineapple comes in handy for baking)
unsweetened applesauce
sauerkraut in jars

POPCORN!
shredded coconut
panko breadcrumbs
dried dulse flakes
sheets of Japanese nori seaweed

sugars and/or other sweeteners of your choice
maple syrup
agave nectar (dark and light)
molasses (both "fancy" and blackstrap)
brown rice syrup
dark cocoa powder for baking
dairy-free chocolate chips
dark baking chocolate
dried fruits, such as dates, prunes, raisin, cranberries, apricots, apples, figs, etc.
vanilla extract
lemon and other extracts of your choice

Herbs & spices of your choice
pepper
chilies and chili flakes
garlic granules (better than the powdered version)
onion flakes (These can be ground in a small electric spice/coffee grinder to make onion powder-- it's much tastier than buying stale old commercial onion powder!)
teas and coffee

Not essential, but helpful for tasty vegan meals:
canned jackfruit
canned vegetables of your choice
canned and packaged soups of your choice
canned Chinese vegetarian "Peking Roast Duck" (Mun-Cha'i-Ya)
canned Chinese fried gluten pieces ("Braised Gluten Tidbits" or Cha'i-Pow-Yu)
(The 2 items just above, usually available as  Companion brand, are widely available in Asian markets and in many large North American supermarkets. They are delicious!)

***I always have wine in the cupboard, even though drinking alcohol gives me a headache! But, I grew up in a California winery and my mom was a genius at cooking with wine. Just a little wine can boost some recipes from the "good" to the "great"!

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LIST #2: "COLD-STORED" PRODUCE; FROZEN & REFRIGERATED FOODS; CONDIMENTS

FRESH VEGETABLES & FRUITS THAT STORE WELL

Fresh fruits and vegetables are important for a healthy diet, but, for storage purposes, you need to rely on produce that will not deteriorate in a short time.

***This is a great article help you store your produce more efficiently:
"Fruits and veggies can rot quickly because of a pesky gas called ethylene. Here are the items you should never store together."businessinsider.com/what-foods-you-shouldnt-store-next-to-each-other-2016-8
***Here is another excellent article about produce storage from Cook's Illustrated magazine: https://www.cooksillustrated.com/articles/1561-how-to-store-fruits-and-vegetables

***NOTE about celery: Celery is a must-have in the kitchen, adding flavor to broths, soups and stews (the leaves are particularly flavorful), and used raw for dipping or for filling with spreads. I have just discovered that the best way to store celery for a longer time is to simply wrap it tightly in aluminum foil! Evidently, when you store celery this way, it will stay crisp for over a month.
See this article: https://food52.com/blog/14672-the-surprising-way-you-should-be-storing-celery
From the article: "Aluminum foil isn’t the most eco-friendly way to store produce, but it might be worth it in the name of preventing food waste. Plus, the aluminum foil could be reused multiple times to store a few rounds of celery if you’re carefully wrapping and unwrapping it. Then, once it starts to shred too much for wrapping celery, you can either recycle it or put it to use elsewhere, like cleaning your grill for winter storage."

Refrigerated items to eat first:
lettuce
green onions
tender greens such as spinach and chard
bean sprouts
snow peas
melons
berries
grapes

Later, eat these:
avocados ("Ripening of the avocado is slowed down greatly by refrigeration, so it is usually a good idea to let the avocado ripen fully at room temperature. Once it is ripe, it can be stored in the refrigerator for at least a week. This way, it is ready to use whenever you want it. See https://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/18917/will-avocado-stay-fresh-longer-if-stored-in-the-refrigerator)
asparagus
tomatoes
Bell peppers
fresh mushrooms
Brussels sprouts
green beans
eggplant
zucchini
kale
cauliflower
cabbage (green, red and Savoy)
celery (see Note about celery above)
apples (See https://appleforthat.stemilt.com/theres-an-apple-for/long-storage/ )
for how to store apples and which varieties are suited to longer storage.)

Longer storage produce:
sundried tomatoes
cucumbers (unlike most veggies, they will actually rot faster in the fridge)
potatoes
onions
garlic
sweet potatoes (these can be orange or purple)
beets
carrots
winter squash and pumpkin
turnips and rutabagas
daikon
parsnips
Jerusalem artichokes
yams (the flesh of these is usually whitish)
apples (See https://appleforthat.stemilt.com/theres-an-apple-for/long-storage/ )
for how to store apples and which varieties are suited to longer storage.)oranges
lemons
limes
grapefruit

FROZEN FOODS:

homemade & commercial vegan meat alternatives (vegan burgers, frankfurters, sausages, cutlets)
frozen corn
frozen green beans
frozen peas and/or peas and carrots
frozen edamame (green soybeans), both shelled and in the pods
frozen spinach and other greens
frozen berries and other favorite fruits
your favorite breads, buns, rolls, etc., storebought and/or homemade (sprouted grain breads are excellent)
tortillas and flatbreads (wheat, sprouted grain, ancient grains, and/or corn)
cooked grains and beans
homemade soups and broths
frozen cubes of aquafaba (chickpea broth) for baking and cooking-- See:
https://www.vegansociety.com/whats-new/blog/20-amazing-things-you-can-do-aquafaba
frozen cubes of cooked, pureed yellow split peas for use in baking as a fat substitute-- See
https://veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2017/01/first-adventures-with-yellow-split-pea.html
and
https://veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2019/05/new-moist-very-chocolate-y-low-fat-oat.html

REFRIGERATOR STAPLES, CONDIMENTS, FLAVORINGS, ETC.

homemade and commercial vegan meat alternatives
soymilk (which contains far more protein than almost all other plant-based milks, except pea milk-- see https://www.livekindly.co/which-vegan-milk-has-the-most-protein/)
other preferred plant-based milks

vegan cheeses and spreads
vegan butter substitute of your choice
(If you want to make your own vegan butter, try this easy and delicious recipe .)

vegan mayonnaise (here's my favorite homemade recipe-- low in fat!)
vegan yogurt (Here's my homemade soy yogurt InstantPot recipe.)
Your favorite tofu and tofu products
Packaged Asian deep-fried tofu squares (Great for quick stir-fries and can be frozen, and they actually are very low in fat!)
olives
marinated artichoke hearts

Miso-- see varieties here https://www.thespruceeats.com/what-is-miso-p2-3376832
NOTE: If you are looking for a vegan alternative to anchovies or anchovy paste in Italian recipes, or the fish sauce in many Asian recipes, light miso is an excellent substitute! You can add dulse or nori seaweed flakes for more flavor, too.

hot sauces (such as Sriracha, or see this link for info on hot sauces world wide: https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/the-worlds-most-important-hot-sauces-by-continent
chutneys
jams and jellies of your choice
pickles of your choice
ketchup
barbecue sauces
A1 Steak Sauce (It's vegan! This flavorful sauce contains tomato purée, raisin paste, vinegar, sugar, salt, orange purée, and a blend of spices. Try it on grilled veggies.)salad dressings (storebought and/or homemade)
sweet Thai chili sauce
Gochujang (Korean sweet red chile paste)-- Google "vegan gochujang recipes" for ideas.

Chinese cooking sauces and condiments:(See more at https://www.chinasichuanfood.com/chinese-sauces/ )
Hoisin sauce
Chinese chili oil
Chinese vegetarian "oyster" sauce (made from mushrooms)
Chinese fermented black beans (Dou-chi)
Chinese black bean paste or sauce (Here's a homemade recipe:
https://omnivorescookbook.com/homemade-black-bean-sauce/
Chinese broad bean paste (Doubanjiang)
Chinese brown bean paste
vegan Chinese "fish" sauce"-- See this recipe for a homemade version:
https://jamiegeller.com/recipes/vegan-fish-sauce/
P.S.: I use a medium sherry in place of Chinese cooking wine.

That's all, Folks!

All the best during this trying time!

NEW VERSATILE, TANGY VEGAN "CHEESE" SPREAD (GREAT FOR CHEESE "TOASTIES"!)

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Mon, 16 Mar 2020 02:57:00 +0000

I'm so happy with this new recipe! I wanted a cheese spread with a little more "bite" than my those I had devised in the past-- tasty as they may be! My priorities were that it be easy and inexpensive to make (with ingredients that are easy to find), reasonably low in calories and fat, versatile to use, more or less "meltable", and, most of all, full of flavor. This new recipe ticked off all the boxes! And I was thrilled that it even gets brown spots and a sort of "crust" on top when grilled, broiled or briefly air-fried. I hope you'll give it a try.

Tangy "Cheese" Toast

Printable Copy

BRYANNA’S NEW VERSATILE, TANGY VEGAN "CHEESE" SPREAD (GREAT FOR CHEESE "TOASTIES"!) (Updated on April 26, 2020)

Makes 2 cups; 16 servings (2 tablespoons each serving)
© Bryanna Clark Grogan, 2020. All rights reserved.

This spread is delicious for filling celery sticks, or scooping up with other raw vegetables. It’s also delicious on crackers, and it make the best “cheese toasties”! (See note at end of recipe.)

If you can't use corn products, omit the corn flour in the recipe (see highlighted note on this in ingredient list below) and use finely-ground millet flour instead, or 2 Tablespoons of potato starch (not potato flour).

NOTE: After 1 or 2 days in the refrigerator, the flavor will be even more delicious, and tangier, too.

8 ounces medium-firm tofu, drained (but not pressed)

1/4 cup hot soy milk, or other creamy plant-based milk (OR use 2 T. soy milk and 2 T. dry white wine; OR just add 1 T. white rum to the soy milk)
3 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
2 tablespoons coconut oil
[I haven't tried this yet, but you could try using olive oil instead of the coconut oil, OR, if you don't use oil, use 2 T. more soymilk instead. With no oil, I don't know if it will melt as well. I will try it out soon and let you know.]
2 tablespoons tahini
4 teaspoons fine corn flour

[Clarification: "Corn flour" in North America is made up of 2 words. It refers to finely-milled yellow cornmeal. (It is usually available in South ASian grocery stores, BTW.) This is what you should be using.
"Cornflour" in the UK & much of the British Commonwealth, is written as 1 word and refers to what we call cornstarch in North America. See https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/cornstarch-vs-corn-flour#processing ]

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 heaping tablespoon white miso

2 teaspoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon smooth Dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon garlic granules OR 6 soft, lightly roasted garlic cloves, peeled

Measure all of the ingredients into your blender and blend on high speed until the mixture is very smooth. You may need to stop the blender and push the mixture down at some point, especially if you aren’t using a heavy-duty blender.

Scoop into a 2-cup capacity refrigerator storage container, smooth it out and cover. (A container with a lid that locks in place is best.)

NOTE: Making “cheese toasties”. My method is to toast the bread slices lightly, smear with about 2 T. of the spread (or more, if you want it really “gooey”) and air-fry in my Cuisinart Air-fry Oven for a few minutes, on the wire basket. Watch carefully and remove when there’s a nice little “crust” with a few brown spots. You can use an oven broiler or a toaster oven on "broil", too.

Enjoy!

SUPER EASY, SUPER TASTY CRUSTY NO-KNEAD SPELT BREAD

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Sat, 01 Feb 2020 04:08:00 +0000

It's taken me some time to get this blog post done and I'm pretty thrilled with this bread! Let me tell you-- spelt has a wonderful nutty flavor! I've been experimenting with spelt flour in yeast breads because it has a lower glycemic load than wheat. I had success with Quick & Easy Spelt Burger Buns in my last blog post. But I really wanted to make a tasty, crusty bread, like the French loaves I used to make.

My first spelt loaf was a disaster, because I hadn't done my homework! It came out like a rock. I didn't know that you need to use less liquid with spelt flour, and that kneading the dough like a wheat loaf is not a good idea! That sent me to the computer to do some research.

For one thing, spelt is more water-soluble than wheat and it also has a higher level of gliadin, the protein that makes dough stretch-- another reason to use less water than with wheat dough. The high gliadin content makes the dough more fragile, which means that vigorous mixing and/or kneading should be avoided in spelt yeast breads. Some stretching and folding takes the place of kneading.

The following recipe is a good place to start-- there's a long rise at the beginning, but that can happen overnight, or during the day while you do other things. The rest of the breadmaking process goes quite fast, and the reward is a delicious, crusty artisan loaf!

Happy Bread Baking!

Printable Recipe (with photos)

BRYANNA'S SUPER EASY, SUPER TASTY, CRUSTY NO-KNEAD SPELT BREAD
Makes 1 loaf, but the recipe can be multiplied with good results.

NOTE: I do not advise using sprouted spelt flour in this particular loaf. If you do, the loaf will be crusty on the outside, and tasty and moist on the inside, but with a tighter crumb-- without the open and irregular crumb (the holes) of, for instance, a French loaf. See what I'm referring to below:

Here's the recipe:
1 cup whole grain spelt flour (fine grind if available, stirred before measuring)
2 cups white or "light" spelt flour (stirred before measuring)
Optional, but I used it: 1 Tbsp vital wheat gluten
1 1/4 tsp table salt
1 1/4 cups lukewarm water (OR you can use 1 cup water + a generous 1/4 cup of sourdough starter (refrigerated is fine)
1/4 tsp instant baking yeast
1 Tbsp agave syrup, or maple syrup

In a medium bowl, stir together the two flours and salt. In a smaller bowl or 2 cup measuring cup, mix together the water, yeast and syrup until combined. Add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients and, using a wooden spoon or spatula, mix until the dough comes together. Now, use your hands to mix the dough until the flour completely mixed with the liquid is a bit sticky.

Cover the bowl with a towel and let sit at room temperature until bubbley and the dough has just about doubled. ***(7-8 hours depending on your room temperature).

When this first rise is complete, place a heavy cast iron pot and lid, or a medium-sized Granite Ware roaster with a lid into your oven. Turn on your oven to 500 degrees F. Position the rack in the lower third of the oven. (***The pot needs to pre-heat for at least 30 minutes.)

Generously dust a work surface with spelt flour. (I cover my countertop with a baking or pastry mat.) Use a bowl scraper or spatula to scrape the dough out of the bowl and onto your work surface in one piece.

The Folding Process (this takes the place of kneading in spelt breads): Using lightly floured hands, gently pat the dough out into a rectangle. With your dough/pastry scraper or bench knife (pictures below), fold one short side of the dough into the middle and then fold the other short side on top. Then fold the dough in half the other direction. Dust lightly with flour, cover with plastic and let rest for 5 minutes.

(***While you are waiting, line a medium sized bowl with parchment paper, pushing the paper down into the bowl with one hand and using your other hand to crease the paper around the inside and top edge of the bowl.)

Repeat the folding process outlined above a 2nd time, then let the dough rest for 5 minutes, then repeat folding process a 3rd time.

Now, with lightly floured hands, pull the dough over on itself gently to form a ball or an oval loaf, pinching it together gently. Place it gently, seam-side-down, into the parchment-lined bowl, large loaf pan or oval casserole, depending on the shape you want). Cover the dough and let rest in a warm spot for 20-25 minutes for the second rise.

To test if the dough is ready, gently press down with the tip of one finger, about half an inch into the top of the dough. If the dent from your finger remains and springs back only slightly, the dough is ready to bake. If the dent fills in, give the dough another 5-10 minutes to rise and then re-test.

Remove the cover from your bread bowl. Using pot holders, carefully remove the hot pot that you have been pre-heating from the oven and remove the lid. Using both hands, lift the dough out of the bowl by holding all corners of the parchment paper, and lower it into the pot. The edges of the parchment paper will brown, but will be just fine in the hot oven.

Working quickly, spray a gentle mist of water over the top of the dough. Then dust the top of the bread lightly with spelt flour. Use a sharp pair of scissors to make 3-4 shallow cuts at an angle down the center line of the dough (see photo below). Cover the pot with the lid and place it back in the oven.

Reduce the oven heat to 450 degrees F and bake for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, remove the lid and continue baking for another 5-10 minutes until the bread is a crusty and browned. Using potholders, carefully lift the bread out of the hot pot (right in the baking parchment) and place it (without the parchment) on a rack to cool thoroughly before cutting with a sharp bread knife.

The round loaf on the left was baked in a heavy enameled cast iron lidded pot; the
oval loaf on the right was baked in a covered oval Granite Ware roaster.

Enjoy!

SUPER QUICK & EASY VEGAN SPELT BURGER BUNS

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Mon, 13 Jan 2020 01:05:00 +0000

It's been over a year since I wrote a new blog post! I just didn't seem to have the drive or energy to experiment or write, as I had a long, drawn-out case of shingles and I'm still on medication for the resulting nerve pain. The nerve pain from shingles really drained my energy and ambition, and I was basically making simple food

But, the good news is that I am feeling much better and regaining my energy and interest in cooking and writing. (I hope to get back to writing a blog post every week!) As you may have read in past posts from the summer of 2019, back to March of 2018, I was diagnosed with pre-diabetes, which inspired my interest in a low-glycemic diet. My blood sugar levels are now just over the line into diabetic. But, it's low enough that if I get back into dancing, walking and exercising more frequently, and keep learning about and implementing new information about low-glycemic living, I may be able to beat this.

Just one of the items of interest in my search is low-glycemic baking. I have always loved baking bread and I don't intend to give it up! For this last year or so I have been eating pretty much only sprouted grain bread (a Canadian brand from the Vancouver area called Silver Hills Bakery). The sprouted wheat can be ground and kneaded into a strong bread dough (see this blog post). The miraculous thing is that (to explain it in a very simple way), when there are just little white "beads" showing at the point of the grains, the sprouts have used up most, if not all, of the carbohydrate in the grains, making the dough low-glycemic. I definitely want to get back into making that sprouted wheat bread now and then, but I'm also investigating other low-glycemic grains to use.

In muffins and quick breads I've been using mostly a mixture of chickpea flour and oat flour (often with added oat bran, wheat bran and/or bean puree for added fiber and protein, which displace some of the usual carbohydrates). But my experiments with non-wheat yeast breads didn't turn out so well, to put it mildly! So, I have been exploring the world of spelt flour, which is a fairly low-glycemic relative of wheat, but one which many people who have problems with wheat, but aren't really allergic to gluten, are able to tolerate.

My first spelt bread, which I made using methods generally used for wheat breads, came out like a rock! So, I did my research, and learned that the glutens in spelt are different from wheat, and you have to use different methods than with wheat baking. 1.) You need to use less liquid per cup of flour than wheat. 2.) The dough should be soft-- even pretty wet, in some cases. 3.) You should not knead the dough for longer than a minute or so. And. 4.) Spelt dough doesn't need as much rising as wheat dough. All of this makes spelt yeast bread baking quite easy!

One of the first spelt breads that I successfully made was spelt burger buns. I made them when our neighbor came over for a casual dinner, because she suffers from IBS or something similar, and spelt is often a good option for some folks with stomach issues. The buns were so easy and quick to make, as well as being very tasty (spelt has a very pleasant "nutty" flavor) and having great crumb and crust.

This week I'd like to share the burger bun recipe with you! (Next week I plan to share a delicious crusty spelt bread recipe with you.)

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA'S SUPER QUICK & EASY VEGAN SPELT BURGER BUNS
Makes 7 buns-- can be doubled

NOTE: You may want to use sprouted spelt flour (though it's more expensive than non-sprouted spelt flour). If you do, you may have to use up to a third more of it than you would of ordinary spelt flour.

Flax Mixture (Let sit while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.)
3 T. water
1 T. flax meal (brown or golden)
Flour Mixture:
3 1/2 cups spelt flour (I used half brown spelt flour and half light spelt flour)
1 T. vital wheat gluten powder (optional)
1/2 T. salt

Liquid Mixture:
1 cup lukewarm water
1 T. instant yeast
1 T. brown sugar
1 T. oil

Mix the Flax Mixture with the Liquid Mixture in a medium bowl. Stir in the Flour Mixture with a stout wooden spoon or a dough whisk (see photo just below) for just a couple of minutes. Flour the dough lightly and pat it out into a long rectangle on a floured mat. Cover and let rise for 15 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 400°F.

With a knife or dough cutter, cut the rectangle into 7 equal parts (weigh them, if you want them to be of even sizes). Form the dough into round buns about 4" across. Don't make them too thick-- they will rise just enough. In fact, I pressed down gently in the middle of each one with the the heel of my hand after shaping them, to prevent them from having a domed top. Place the buns on a baking parchment-lined cookie sheet, leaving some space between them. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.

Bake the buns for 18 minutes. Let the buns cool on a rack.

Enjoy!

MY NEWLY UPDATED HOMEMADE VEGAN PARMESAN-- DELICIOUS, EASY TO MAKE, INEXPENSIVE

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Tue, 05 Nov 2019 04:48:00 +0000

UPDATED for a more robust flavor, April 23 2021.

Yikes! It's been months since I last blogged! But, I haven't stopped cooking or thinking about new recipes. As I wrote about in earlier blogs, I'm on a low-glycemic diet for early stages of diabetes, which sincerely I hope will not get any worse. So, being stubborn, I do alot of research and experimentation. Sometimes it's fun and we end up with something delicious, and sometimes it goes in the compost! A learning experience!

These last couple of months, I've spent quite alot of time working on some new vegan cheeses. To tell you the truth, I've been a bit fed up with cashews, cashews, cashews when it comes to vegan cheese! For one thing, they are expensive, especially the fair trade, organic variety. For another, they can be ethically compromised (See https://bit.ly/2oLeHgM for more on these issues.) My aim was (and is) to make a vegan cheese that is delicious, easy to make, inexpensive and made with easily-obtained ingredients, and without the need for culturing.

I ran across Martine's groundbreaking recipe for Vegan Steamed Rice Cheese at lowcarb-vegan.net/vegan-steamed-rice-cheese/ I tried it right away-- it was easy to make and tasty!

BUT, it was made with white rice flour, which is not particularly low-glycemic. I got the idea to use some sort of bean flour, along with some high-resistant-starch potato starch instead, and it worked beautifully. I added more nutritional yeast, along with some white miso (for a fermented flavor), onion powder and garlic granules, for more flavor. Even better!

My far-away Australian Facebook friend Fran was also working on such things and we shared our successes and failures. I hoped (and still hope) to make a cheese that melted, but I'm still working on that. But, one day I got the idea to grate this very firm, tasty cheese and it seemed to me to be a delicious and much less expensive alternative to commercial vegan "parmesan" products.

I'm working on some other versions of this type of cheese, which I will post very soon. But I wanted to share this one with you right now because we're so pleased with it. Let me know what you think!

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA'S UPDATED VEGAN STEAMED "VEGAN PARMESAN"
(Low-glycemic, high in protein and fiber, nut-free, soy-free) April 23, 2021
Makes enough to fill at least two 142g Earth Island/FollowYourHeart Vegan Grated Parmesan-Style Cheese shakers.

Low-Fat Option : I have made this cheese with NO OIL, using 1 cup + 1 1/2 Tbsps. water and it turned out just fine, but may not melt as well.

This very tasty cheese is high in protein from bean flour, and is low-glycemic. It's also a great source of resistant starch (which acts as a soluble fiber). Potato starch [not the same thing as potato flour, BTW] is also very high in resistant starch and makes for a VERY firm cheese, suitable for grating or pulsing in a food processor.
(See https://bit.ly/2PJhaU9 for info on resistant starch, which improves insulin sensitivity, lower blood sugar levels, reduces appetite and has various benefits for digestion.)

Ingredients:
• 1 1/3 cup/124 g chickpea flour (NOTE: I've tried several bean flours and this works best.)
• 1/4 cup/ 41 g  slightly packed-down potato starch (NOT potato flour)
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup melted refined coconut oil (preferably Fair Trade, organic)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tablespoon dark miso
NOTE: dark miso gives a more fermented flavor than the white variety.
• 1 1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice OR sauerkraut juice
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 1 tsp. garlic granules

Steps:
1. Pour 2 cups water into your steamer pot, InstantPot or pressure cooker, equipped with a flat steamer basket in the bottom.

2. Put all the ingredients into the jar of your blender, and blend until it forms a completely smooth, milky mixture, without lumps or visible oil droplets.

This is the Pyrex mold that I use.

3. Pour the cheese mixture into a greased or parchment-lined Pyrex, metal or ceramicmold. Choose a mold that will hold 2 cups, with about 1/2 inch of “head room”.

Use the aluminum foil to lift the hot mold out of the pot onto a cooling rack.

After the steaming, the cheese will still be a bit soft. Don't worry, it will firm up once it cools. If a thin layer of water dripped onto the cheese from the pot's lid, drain this off carefully.

5. Let the cheese cool to room temperature and then cover it and put it into the fridge overnight to firm up.

but I use a food processor. I cut the block into small squares and place them in a food processor.

Pulse until they are chopped and then process until it looks like commercial grated parmesan. Taste it-- if you like, you can mix the ground cheese with a bit more nutritional yeast for a stronger flavor-- but add it a little bit at a time.

Scoop the resulting "granules" into two shaker bottles-- I have used two 142g Earth Island/FollowYourHeart Vegan Grated Parmesan-Style Cheese shakers, but you can just uses some jars and scoop it out. Or, if you prefer, cut the block in half, process one half, and freeze on half, well wrapped, for grating later. PS: I keep my grated "Parm" in the freezer.

Enjoy!

MY "SAUCY NEATBALLS" RECIPE: EASY, VERSATILE, INEXPENSIVE

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Sun, 18 Aug 2019 03:07:00 +0000

Neatballs in sour cherry sauce

Neatball Pho containing baked and cooled Neatballs that have been browned and simmered in the Pho broth.

Neatballs coated with a curry sauce

This is a vegan "meatball" recipe that I developed over 10 years ago (yikes!) and meant many times to share on this blog, but, somehow, never got around to! The recipe was originally supposed to be included in one of my books, but that never happened.

I love "meatballs", not only because they taste good and are so versatile, but also because so many cuisines boast at least one, and often dozens, of delicious recipes featuring them. Real comfort food, the world over!

You can make several times the recipe at one time and freeze them for future meals. One time I was very ambitious and made 150 Neatballs in one morning! Here are some photos:

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA'S BASIC SAUCY NEATBALLS

Servings: 5

Yield: 25 neatballs

These Neatballs, when removed from the oven, resemble rather dry, round cookies. However, when they are simmered in broth, or in a sauce of your choice, they plump up and have a texture almost alarmingly meatlike!

You can add whatever appropriate spices and herbs that would go with the final dish you are making, or just make the basic version. The recipe can be doubled, tripled, quadrupled, etc., if you would like to freeze some for a later date. Serve with pasta, rice, bulgur, quinoa, etc., or bread.

Dry Mix:

1 1/2 cups textured soy protein granules (TVP)

3/4 cup pure gluten powder (vital wheat gluten)

1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs (not dried), packed down

1 1/2 tsp garlic granules

1 1/2 tsp onion powder

freshly-ground black pepper to taste

herbs and spices, to your taste

Wet Mix:

1 1/4 cups plus 3 T. cold water

3 Tbs soy sauce or tamari

1 1/2 Tbs ketchup

1/2 T. vegan gravy browner, such as Kitchen Bouquet (for color)

Flour for coating

Cooking spray or oil in a pump-sprayer

Optionals: For ethnic recipes, you can add some chopped vegetables (well-drained or squeezed, if very wet), grated ginger, fresh garlic, vegan parmesan, chopped green onion,

etc…..

Instructions:

Mix together the Dry Mix ingredients in a medium bowl. Whisk the Wet Mix ingredients together and pour into the Dry Mix, adding whatever optionals you like. Cover and let the mixture set for at least one hour. If made ahead, the mixture can be refrigerated for several hours or days before cooking.

Preheat the oven to 400° F.

Roll the mixture into 25 equal-sized balls, squeezing firmly. As you can see in the photo below, you can also shape the Neatball mixture into oval "kofta" shapes for Middle Eastern recipes. Dredge in flour to coat all over.

Place the balls on an oiled cookie sheet and spray with cooking spray or oil from a pump-sprayer. Bake 20 minutes-- smaller neatballs may need only 15 minutes cooking time.

The "Neatballs" will look quite dry, as I mentioned, but this is their advantage-- when cooked in a sauce, they become plump and tender, but don't fall apart. Cool thoroughly. They can be frozen at this point and then cooked in a sauce or soup at a later time, if you wish.

To cook the dry, baked Neatballs in a sauce:

Drop them into a pot containing about 5 cups of your preferred sauce (commercial or homemade-- homemade should be fully-cooked), mixed with 2 cups of water and brought to a simmer. If necessary, add a little more liquid to the sauce, in the form of wine, broth or juice. Simmer them for at least 20 minutes, during which time the Neatballs will "plump up".

OR, if you are planning to use them later in recipes coated in a sauce, or to use them in a soup, cook them in a pot containing simmering vegan broth of your choice to cover.

If they have been simmered in broth for future recipes, remove the Neatballs from the pot with a strainer spoon, rinse them off gently, and let them cool thoroughly. They can then be frozen. Otherwise, add them directly to a soup, or browned in a bit of oil and coated with a sauce of your choice, such as a curry sauce.

Baked, simmered (in broth) and cooled Neatballs that have been browned.

My Version of Italian "Wedding Soup" ("Minestra Maritata" or "Zuppa Maritata"), containing baked and cooled Neatballs that have been browned before simmering in the soup.

Try this delicious Vietnamese Pho recipe, using Neatballs instead of the vegan "steak":

http://veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2010/11/pho-chay-vegetarian-pho-noodles-with.html

Nutrition Facts (calculated using low sodium soy sauce and ketchup)

Nutrition (per serving; 5 Neatballs):
195.6 calories; 3% calories from fat; 0.8g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 404.9mg sodium; 86.3mg potassium; 19.7g carbohydrates; 0.7g fiber; 1.9g sugar; 27.4g protein.

Enjoy!

BRYANNA'S (UPDATED) LOW-SUGAR CHICKPEA CHOCOLATE SPREAD, TWO WAYS

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Thu, 27 Jun 2019 00:41:00 +0000

(UPDATED on June 30, 2020.)

I haven't been blogging lately, but I have been cooking and researching! My new doctor sent me to an internist a few weeks ago and I've been told that I am not pre-diabetic, as I was previously told by another doctor, but I am actually diabetic. It's not so bad as to need insulin, and my glucose levels have actually gone down, but I do need to be more strict about my diet and exercise. So, I am still on a low-glycemic diet, of course, but also counting carbs and sugars, and I am getting back into walking, weights and other exercise, now that my shingles nerve pain has lessened quite substantially (after 6 months!).

So, a lot of my time has been taken up with research and experimentation, as you can imagine! It's not that hard for me to resist the temptation of white bread (my husband's homemade, with some oats and wheat bran in it), pizza, and desserts, etc., because I am determined not to ever have to use insulin, to lose some weight, and to still make food that is delicious and health-promoting. Sprouted grain bread is my choice now, farinata instead of pizza dough (see https://veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2014/04/farinata-italian-chickpea-flour-pancake.html ), fruits for dessert, and the odd homemade low-sugar treat.

That said, I love chocolate and I don't want to give it up! I can have a bit of dark chocolate (at least 71% chocolate) for a treat, but I want to create some chocolate recipes at home, too. I had heard about chickpea chocolate spreads and, since I always have a supply of cooked chickpeas in my freezer, I decided to try making some. Below is my recipe and, with two options for sweeteners, and Nutrition Facts.

If you have to be very strict about sweets, you could use your favorite sugar-free sweetener. Personally, I really dislike stevia, so I would use sucralose (Splenda) for a sugar-free product. After much research, I don't see that using those products once in a while would cause any harm. The most important thing, in my opinion, is to work steadily towards curbing your taste for sweets.

Anyway-- enough chatter! Here's the recipe!

My husband and I are enjoying this yummy spread on toast, or on apple slices-- small amounts, of course. It's not as sweet as Nutella, for sure, but I now prefer less sweet. (You can check out the nutrition facts for my spreads at the bottom of the page,and there is a photo of the nutrition facts from a jar of Nutella just below.) UPDATE: You can make chocolate milk by blending 2 tablespoons of the spread with a cup of your favorite plant-based milk-- I used an immersion/stick blender.

BRYANNA'S CHICKPEA CHOCOLATE SPREAD, TWO WAYS
Makes 1 7/8 cups (2 cups when made with Date Paste)
15-16 servings-- 2 T. each serving

This delicious spread is a much more nutritious and dairy-free, palm oil-free option than Nutella, and also less expensive. (See Nutella nutrition label just below, to compare with both versions I have devised .) It's not as cloyingly sweet as Nutella, but the chocolate flavor is deeper and more pronounced, which is a plus, in my opinion!

See Nutrition facts for Chocolate Chickpea Spread made with syrups, or with date paste, at the end of this post. NOTE: When made with Date Paste, the spread is not quite as sweet, but calories, carbs and sugars are somewhat lower.

1 1/2 cups canned or cooked chickpeas, rinsed & drained (14-15 oz. can)

4 tbsp nut butter (I used peanut butter this time)

1/2 cup dark cocoa powder

1 cup Date Paste [about 5 ounces] -- see just below for Date Paste recipe
OR 1/3 to 1/2 cup of Splenda [sucralose-- a sugar alcohol]

1 tsp vanilla extract

OPTIONAL, if the paste is too dry: 1 tbsp water

Blend all of the ingredients in food processor until very smooth. Store in jar in the refrigerator in a tightly-closed jar for up to two weeks.

HOMEMADE DATE PASTE (Makes 3 cups)
NOTE: I use organic Deglet Noor pitted dates, but you can use pitted Medjool dates, if you like.
***You can also use the more inexpensive, tightly-packed block of pressed baking dates from your supermarket, but you will need to weigh the dates -- 15.25 ounces for this recipe. You may also need to add a bit more hot water when processing.***

2 cups (tightly packed) pitted, chopped dates (See Note above)
3 cups boiling water

Soak the dates in the boiling water in a COVERED heat-proof bowl or batter bowl for about 30 minutes.

In the bowl of a large food processor fitted with an "S" blade, combine the soaked pitted dates and water.

Process until very smooth, scraping down the bowl to make sure all of the dates are pulverized. Add a bit more water if the mixtured is too thick. It should be thick enough to mound up on a spoon, not runny.

Store the date paste in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks, or you can freeze it in amounts that suit your cooking or baking needs.

NUTRITION FACTS
For recipe using Date Paste:

Nutrition Facts
Serving size: 2 tablespoons
Servings: 16
Amount per serving
Calories	105
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 4.7g	6%
Saturated Fat 1.1g	6%
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 105mg	5%
Total Carbohydrate 14.7g	5%
Dietary Fiber 3g	11%
Total Sugars 6.4g
Protein 4g
Vitamin D 0mcg	0%
Calcium 11mg	1%
Iron 2mg	9%
Potassium 132mg	3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calorie a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Recipe analyzed by

For recipe using Splenda (sucralose-- a sugar alcohol):

Nutrition Facts
Serving size: 2 tablespoons
Servings: 16
Amount per serving
Calories	80
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 4.7g	6%
Saturated Fat 1.1g	6%
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 105mg	5%
Total Carbohydrate 8.1g	3%
Dietary Fiber 2.4g	8%
Total Sugars 0.8g
Protein 3.6g
Vitamin D 0mcg	0%
Calcium 11mg	1%
Iron 1mg	8%
Potassium 132mg	3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calorie a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Recipe analyzed by

Enjoy!

NEW MOIST & VERY CHOCOLATE-Y LOW-FAT OAT BROWNIES (CAN BE GF)

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Wed, 29 May 2019 23:40:00 +0000

I love brownies! You will find quite a few brownie recipes on this blog, but, because I was diagnosed with pre-diabetes last year, I've been working on a version that is not only very chocolate-y, moist and low in fat, but made with low-glycemic ingredients. (See this post and this one.)

I did devise a very good low-glycemic brownie last September, which included the addition of yellow split pea puree and unsweetened applesauce. (See about the low-glycemic advantages of split peas and other pulses here.)

In this new recipe I still use my favorite low-glycemic flour combination of oat flour and chickpea flour, but, in addition to split peas and unsweetened applesauce, this new recipe utilizes prune puree , which provides sweetness (thereby cutting down on the amount of sugar needed) AND a whole lot of other goodness. (It seems that prunes contain lots of fiber, which is slow to digest, leaving you satisfied for a longer time. Prunes also have a low glycemic index count, which means that they raise the glucose [sugar] levels in your blood slowly. See this article for more about the benefits of adding prunes to your diet.

Printable Recipe
BRYANNA'S NEW MOIST AND VERY CHOCOLATE-Y LOW-FAT OAT & CHICKPEA FLOUR BROWNIES
(It also happens to be gluten-free if you use GF oatmeal.)
Makes 18 brownies
This is the latest (and maybe the last!) recipe in my quest for a really delicious dark chocolate, vegan, low-fat, low-glycemic brownie. It's easy to make and, dare I say it, even healthful, despite being a delicious dessert item.
Oat flour and chickpea flour are both low-glycemic flours. Applesauce, prune puree and yellow split pea puree add plenty of fiber and nutrients, as well as moisture.

NOTE: I make oat flour by grinding oatmeal flakes in my Vitamix-- just make sure the container is absolutely dry!

DRY MIX:
3/4 cup oat flour
1/2 cup +1 Tbsp dark cocoa powder
6 Tbsp. chickpea flour (also called besan) (or other bean flour)
3/4 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. baking powder
WET MIX:
1 cup unsweetened smooth applesauce
1/2 cup Prune Puree (see end of blog for homemade recipe) OR babyfood pureed prunes in a jar
6 Tbsp. yellow split pea puree (see how to and store make below)
6 Tbsp. maple syrup or agave nectar
1 1/2 Tbsp. oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract
ADDITIONAL:
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

INSTRUCTIONS:
Turn the oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a 7 x 11" baking pan by lining with baking parchment.

Or, as I do, grease the bottom and sides of the inside of the pan lightly with my Homemade Palm-Oil-free, Non-Hydrogenated “Cake Release” (Pan Coating or Professional Baker's Grease) with GF Option.

Whisk the Dry Mix ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside.

In a larger bowl, whisk together the Wet Mix ingredients until smooth. Add the Dry Mix into the bowl and stir until smooth. Add the chopped walnuts and stir just to distribute evenly.

Scoop the batter into the prepared pan (using a silicone spatula to get as much as possible) and then spread it evenly into the pan with the spatula.

Bake for 18 minutes and cool thoroughly on a rack before cutting into 18 pieces.

HOW TO MAKE PRUNE PUREE:
Note: 2 cups of large pitted prunes, pressed down a bit, with make about 2 3/4 cups of prune puree.

In an appropriately-sized bowl, cover your prunes with hot water. (Make sure that they are completely covered with water.) Let the prunes sit until they are more or less lukewarm. Then pour the prunes and water into your blender and blend until VERY smooth. You can safely keep this in your refrigerator in a tightly-closed container for 2 or 3 days, or you might prefer to store it in 1/2-cup containers in the freezer.

HOW TO MAKE YELLOW SPLIT PEA PUREE (Makes 5 cups):
Mix 2 cups of dried split yellow peas with 4 cups of water in an Instant Pot and cook at high pressure for 10 minutes. (PS: You could use any other type of pressure cooker, OR you can simmer, covered, for 30 minutes in a medium saucepan on your stovetop.) The resulting soft mush just needed a few stirs to "puree", or, if it looks a bit lumpy, you can cool it off a bit and puree it in your blender.

I refrigerate the puree in a covered container for a day or so-- it will firm up considerably. You can press then the puree into silicone cupcake liners or large silicone ice cube trays in 1/4 cup portions, or into normal ice cube trays in 2 Tbsp. portions and freeze them. Then pop out the frozen portions, bag them up and place them back in the freezer for future use.
(See more about yellow split pea puree at this link.)

Enjoy!

NEWLY REVISED (2020), EASIER, CHEAPER CRUELTY-FREE, PALM OIL-FREE VEGAN BUTTER-Y SPREAD

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Fri, 10 May 2019 23:39:00 +0000

New version of Butter-y Spread made with liquid oil and a small amount of cocoa butter or a bit more of coconut oil for a more solid texture and no separating. This works well with either soy or non-soy versions.

In this post, have steamlined my easy, inexpensive Vegan Butter-y Spread and added a version using cruelty-free coconut oil instead of cocoa butter for those who cannot access affordable, organic, fair trade cocoa butter (especially here in Canada). It also includes a non-soy version.

I was going to post it in a revised version of the last post I did on this recipe, but I decided to keep this post relatively short and steer you to the older post if you want more info on cruelty-free coconut oil (and why that's important) and on cocoa butter.
So here's the post with all that info: What do I mean by "cruelty-free"?

A word about affordability:

Use organic, fair trade cocoa butter, if you can. If you live in the USA, this is a reliable vendor with decent prices-- Chocolate Alchemy.

Affordable prices are harder to find in Canada, so you might want to try using an organic natural, UN-deodorized cocoa butter, which is cheaper, from a health food store [wafers or chunks]. It's such a small amount that it may not make a difference.

Use Cruelty-Free coconut oil. In Canada, Nutiva seems to be a good buy. "Nutiva Organic Virgin Coconut Oil is unrefined, cold pressed, GMO-free, and made from fresh coconuts. All of their coconut oil products are human-picked, but look for the Fair Trade logo when purchasing."

"If you shop at Trader Joe’s [in the USA], you might be glad to know that their coconut oil is human-picked and certified organic. In their Trader Joe’s Organic Virgin Coconut Oil, the main ingredient featured is fresh coconuts that are cold-pressed."
(Both quotes from:
http://www.vildamagazine.com/2016/03/coconut-oil-cruelty-free/ )

So, without further ado:

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA'S NEW, EASY PALM OIL-FREE VEGAN BUTTER-Y SPREAD
Revised August 30, 2019
(Soy & Non-Soy versions; made with liquid oil and a small amount of either cocoa butter or coconut oil)

© Bryanna Clark Grogan 2019. All rights reserved.

Yield: 1 1/2 cups for cocoa butter version; 2 cups for coconut oil version

This is an inexpensive, delicious and easy-to-make butter-y spread to use on bread, toast, muffins, etc., in sauces on and cooked vegetables. It may not be firm enough to use in place of butter or solid margarine in some baking-- though it often works if used in a frozen state. Frozen, both are firm and can be scraped with a knife to use on toast, etc..

NON-SOY VARIATION:
Instead of soymilk, use a non-sweet (original) coconut creamer, or you can use a creamy sort of plant-based milk that has a pleasant taste. (Rice milk is too thin).
NOTE: Silk and So Delicious brands use cruelty-free coconut products.

**NOTE: March 2020 This is an amalgamated, revised and updated version of my three previous posts on making this easy and delicious homemade vegan Butter-y Spread; and also making the clean-up much less of a hassle!

#1.) Ingredient List for Cocoa Butter Version:(see recipe intro for non-soy version)Makes 1 1/2 cups

Mix A:
1/2 cup soy milk (I used Silk Organic Original)
3/4 tsp lemon juice
1/2-1 tsp. fine salt
3/4 cup neutral tasting oil of your choice
2 tsp liquid soy or sunflower lecithin
Mix B:
1 1/2 oz.(44g) steam-deodorized organic cocoa butter, melted to make 1/4 cup
(See note on cocoa butter above photo)
1/2 tsp guar gum or xanthan gum
pinch tumeric (optional)

#2) Ingredient List for the Coconut Oil Version:(see recipe intro for non-soy version)

Makes 2 cups
Mix A:
1/2 cup soy milk (I used Silk Organic Original)
3/4 tsp. lemon juice
1/2-1 tsp. fine salt
3/4 cup liquid oil of your choice
2 tsp. liquid soy or sunflower lecithin
Mix B:
3/4 cup cruelty-free refined coconut oil, melted (See approved cruelty-free brands here.)
1 1/2-2 tsp guar gum or xanthan gum
(NOTE: More of this gum is required for the coconut oil version than the cocoa butter version because cocoa butter sets much more firmly than coconut oil.)
1/8 tsp. tumeric (optional)

Important Note: I melt the cocoa butter or coconut oil in a 1 qt. Pyrex pitcher in the microwave for a few minutes at medium power. If you prefer, place the pitcher in a saucepan with hot water and heat over medium heat until it melts. Either way, remove carefully using a potholder.

New, easier instructions (and easier clean-up, too!):
Pour the milk, lemon juice, salt, liquid oil, and the lecithin into a 2 qt. Pyrex batter bowl, or something similar. Blend briefly with a hand/immersion blender. Pour in the melted coconut oil or cocoa butter, guar or xanthan gum, and optional turmeric, if using. Immediately blend the mixture with the hand immersion blender until it is creamy and thick (work fast with the cocoa butter because it sets faster than the coconut oil version.)

Use a small silicone spatula to scoop the mixture into small shallow glass refrigerator containers with lids. Smooth the tops. Cover and refrigerate for several hours before using. You can also freeze it, or freeze it until the mixture is firm and then refrigerate.
Clean your utensils and pitchers with hot soapy water.

Makes 24 Tablespoons

Nutrition Facts, made with cocoa butter (Serving size: 1/24 of a recipe/0.5 ounces/1 tablespoon.)
Calories 84, Total Fat 9.45g, Saturated Fat 2.5g, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 41.29mg, Sugar 0.13g, Protein 0.15g

Nutrition Facts, made with coconut oil (Serving size: 1/32 of a recipe/0.5 ounces/1 tablespoon.)
Calories 91, Total Fat 10.3g, Saturated Fat 4.8g, cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 56g, Sugar o.2g Protein 0.13g

Enjoy!

FINALLY ON THE MEND, WITH WHOLE GRAIN, LOW-FAT, LOW-GLYCEMIC LEMON, WALNUT, BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Thu, 09 May 2019 23:36:00 +0000

I'm happy to report that, over the last few days, my rotten cold is just about over, my nerve pain (from shingles) discomfort has eased quite a bit (after 4 months), and I have had much more energy in the last few days. I have managed to get some much-needed household and outside jobs done (in the morning, when my energy is highest)-- yay!

That said, I was moved to make some muffins a few days ago, and I made a batch of the same today, as well. I had stumbled upon a recipe I had written a few years ago that sounded just perfect for what I had available in my pantry and refrigerator. But, I tweaked it a bit to make it lower on the glycemic index. I was a bit worried that using low-glycemic whole grains in place of the original white pastry flour, but I needn't have done so. I used only 1/2 cup of wholewheat flour, and replaced the rest with my favorite low-glycemic flour mixture of 3/4 oat flour and 1/4 chickpea flour. It worked perfectly!

In my original recipe, I made a note stating: "Batter will be kind of runny-- it will be fine." I was a bit nervous about this, but decided to proceed anyway. Again, I needn't have worried-- the muffins turned out just fine-- in fact, nice and moist, but not soggy at all. I hope you'll give them a try!

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA'S NEW, MOIST LOW-FAT, LOW-GLYCEMIC LEMON, WALNUT, BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
Makes 12 muffins

WET MIX:
1 1/2 cups creamy plant-based milk (I use soy)
1/2 cup sugar of choice (for sugar-free, use 1/2 cup sucralose instead)
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 T. oil
grated zest of 1 lemon

DRY MIX:
3/4 cup oat flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup chickpea flour (or white bean flour)
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/4 cup oat bran
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp. baking soda
Additional:
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw them out!)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (or nuts of your choice)
Optional for topping: brown sugar or coconut sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and grease 12 muffin cups (or use cupcake liners or my Homemade Palm-Oil-Free, Non-Hydrogenated “Cake Release” (Pan Coating or Professional Baker's Grease).

Blend the Wet Mix ingredients together in a blender or with a stick blender, or a food processor. Set aside Mix the Dry Mix ingredients in a medium bowl. Add the blueberries and walnuts and stir to coat with the Dry Mix.

Stir in the blended Wet mix and stir well, making sure that there is no Dry Mix still at the bottom of the bowl. As noted in the intro above, the batter will be runny-- see pics below.

Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle with a bit of brown sugar or coconut sugar, if you like.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Place the muffin pan onto a cooling rack and cover loosely with a light cloth. Cool at least 10 minutes before serving.

Nutrition Facts (see below for Nutrition Facts for recipe without sugar):

Nutrition Facts for recipe without sugar-- for instance, using an equal amount of sucralose:

Enjoy!

TWO CREAMY CAPPUCCINO PUDDINGS AND MY SAD TALE

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Tue, 23 Apr 2019 03:56:00 +0000

It's been ages since I blogged-- 2 months, actually. I have been battling with nerve pain from a case of shingles for about 4 months now. I haven't mentioned it because it's not exactly a pleasant subject. It's not that I can't function, but it does affect my productivity and energy level. I hope to be back experimenting and writing before too long.

Until then, here I offer you two easy and delicious puddings that I developed for my old Vegan Feast newsletter. Either one will make a pleasant ending to a meal, or even a tasty afternoon pick-me-up.

Printable version of both recipes

BRYANNA'S CHAI CAPPUCCINO PUDDING

Serves 4

This spicy and unusual pudding would make a nice light dessert to follow a rich Indian meal, or any meal, really.

1/2 cup creamy nondairy milk

1/2 cup extra-firm silken tofu (can be Lite [reduced fat] variety)

1 cup strong chai tea (unsweetened)

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 pinch salt

Your favorite vegan whipped topping

Garnish: cinnamon sugar and cinnamon sticks for garnish

Whip the creamy nondairy milk and tofu together to make a smooth cream, using a hand immersion blender, or blender. Add the chai, sugar, cornstarch, and salt.

Scrape the mixture into a microwavable 1 1/2 quart bowl or pitcher and microwave at full power for 1 minute. Whisk and cook 1 more minute, or until thickened and translucent. Whisk in the vanilla.

Alternatively, you can cook the pudding, stirring constantly, in a small heavy saucepan over medium-high heat until thickened and translucent.

Pour the mixture into 4 small pudding dishes, tea cups, or cappuccino cups. Cover and chill for at least 4 hours.

Before serving, smooth 2 tablespoons of the whipped topping over the top of each serving of pudding. Sprinkle each with a little cinnamon sugar and insert a small cinnamon stick into each dish. Serve cold.

Nutrition Facts (using Lite [reduced fat] extra-firm silken tofu)

Nutrition (per serving): 214.1 calories; 21% calories from fat; 5.5g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 150.6mg sodium; 225.1mg potassium; 37.1g carbohydrates; 1.4g fiber; 28.9g sugar; 5.7g protein.

**********

BRYANNA'S CREAMY CAPPUCCINO PUDDING

Serves 4

This is good enough for company-- a perfect light dessert after an Italian meal.

1/2 cup nondairy milk

1/2 cup extra-firm silken tofu (can be Lite [reduced fat] variety)

1 cup strong espresso coffee (unsweetened)
(The espresso should preferably be freshly-made, but it can be made from a good Italian instant espresso powder, such as Ferrara, Medaglio D'Oro, Café Bustelo or King Arthur.)

1/3 cup unbleached sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 pinch salt

1 tsp vanilla

OPTIONAL: 1 tablespoon liqueur (such as Amaretto, or any that you prefer)

Your favorite vegan whipped topping

Garnish: grated dark chocolate, or cinnamon, or cocoa powder for garnish

Whip the soymilk and tofu together to make a smooth cream, using a hand immersion blender, or blender. Add the coffee, sugar, cornstarch, and salt.

Scrape the mixture into a microwavable 1 1/2 quart bowl or pitcher and microwave at full power for 1 minute. Whisk and cook 1 more minute, or until thickened and translucent. Whisk in the vanilla, and optional liqueur, if using.

Alternatively, you can cook the pudding, stirring constantly, in a small heavy saucepan over medium-high heat until thickened and translucent.

Pour the mixture into 4 small pudding dishes, small glass coffee mugs, or cappuccino cups. Cover and chill for at least 4 hours.

Before serving, smooth 2 tablespoons of the whipped topping over the top of each serving of pudding. Sprinkle each with a little grated dark chocolate, cinnamon, or cocoa powder. Serve cold.

Nutrition Facts (using Lite [reduced fat] extra-firm silken tofu)

Nutrition (per serving): 178.1 calories; 26% calories from fat; 5.7g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 155.8mg sodium; 261.4mg potassium; 26.9g carbohydrates; 1.4g fiber; 19.0g sugar; 5.8g protein.

Enjoy!

MY SEITAN "SALAMI" (WITH "PEPPERONI" VARIATION)

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Mon, 25 Feb 2019 01:29:00 +0000

I devised this recipe quite a few years ago, but never got around to sharing it until now. I grew up in San Francisco, in a district with plenty of Italian grocery stores and delicatessens, as well as a father who was half Italian. Salami and pepperoni on crusty San Francisco sourdough bread or rolls were favorites during those pre-vegetarian days. Unfortunately, even to this day, commercial vegan versions leave me unsatisfied.

Over a number of years, I worked on this recipe until I finally came up with one that satisfied my memory of real Italian salami. It's not hard to make and the ingredients are not hard to obtain. I hope you like it as much as we do!

Printable Copy

BRYANNA'S SEITAN "SALAMI" (WITH "PEPPERONI" VARIATION)

This is a recipe that I devised many years ago. I grew up in San Francisco and used to love the real Italian salami there. So far, commercial vegetarian/vegan versions don't do much for me

This recipe is baked (sort of like my seitan roasts, but it does not require all the kneading and resting.) The flavor is great, especially if you have the patience wait until the next day, and it slices very thinly, yet is moist. It freezes very well!

DRY MIX:

2 cups/10.4 oz./292g pure gluten powder (vital wheat gluten)

6 Tbs oat bran

2 Tbs instant (minute) tapioca (also known as "small pearl tapioca")
(See photos just below-- this is NOT the same thing as tapioca starch or flour!)

4 tsp paprika

2 tsp dry mustard powder

2 tsp onion powder

2 tsp WHOLE black peppercorns

1 tsp salt

WET MIX:

1 1/2 cup dry red wine (can be non-alcoholic)

6 Tbs soy sauce (Please do not use Bragg’s liquid aminos instead-- they are not fermented, which means that they don’t have all the umami flavor of fermented soy sauce,)

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup ketchup

2 Tbs dark (roasted) sesame oil

6 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled

1 tsp Liquid Smoke

COOKING BROTH:

1 3/4 cups water

6 Tbs soy sauce

1 Tbs olive oil

6 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Mix the Dry Mix ingredients in a medium bowl, or in the bowl of your food processor, blending well.

Mix the Wet Mix ingredients together in a blender. Add to the Dry Mix. Stir and then knead, or process until a soft dough forms. (If you have a food processor, use it-- it makes the mixing very fast and easy.) This just takes a few minutes-- it will seem too liquid-y at first, but will firm up.

Divide the dough into 2 equal portions and roll them on a clean countertop into 2 rolls.

Roll and tie the dough tightly in doubled-up cheesecloth, 16" long, as in the photo just below. (See about cheesecloth and twine, and wrapping the rolls, and photos of how to wrap, in MY NOTES at the end of the post.)

Place the rolls side-by-side in a small roasting pan (I use a 10 x 6" oval roasting pan with lid).

Pour the Cooking Broth over them. Cover the pan (use foil if necessary) and bake for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, turning after 45 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed. Bake longer, if necessary. (See ALTERNATIVE COOKING METHOD below.)

Cool the rolls for at least 8 hours before using (you can freeze them after that, if you like). The flavor improves upon standing. Slice very thinly.

VARIATION:

SEITAN "PEPPERONI":

Use only 2 tsp. of whole black peppercorns

and add 1 tsp. freshly-ground black pepper.

Add to the Dry Mix:

1 tsp dried red chile pepper flakes

1 tsp ground anise seed,

2 pinches ground allspice

To make "Pepperoni", proceed as above, but you may want to make 4 smaller rolls.

ALTERNATIVE COOKING METHOD
When I was first developing sausage recipes, Dori, one of my original subscribers, used the following slow-cooker method on this salami recipe in a trial run, and she really liked the results.

She wrote: "I put the cooking broth in my slow-cooker (the 5 qt. West Bend with removeable oblong pan and 5 heat settings) and set the temperature between 3 and 4."
(NOTE from Bryanna: I happen to have one of these-- it's old, but great for smaller jobs. Look for them it thrift stores. See photos below for the old one first, and then a newer version.)

Below is the newer version, and other brands make a similar product:

Dori continues: "I placed the wrapped logs into the slow-cooker (the broth was hot already). I let it cook covered for 2 hours, removed the lid and turned the logs over - they were already firm when I did this. Let it cook for 1 more hour uncovered - until the liquid was absorbed form the bottom of the pan."© Bryanna Clark Grogan 2019

MY NOTES:

Cheesecloth is loosely woven cotton gauze, originally used to wrap cheeses, but also used for crafts, cooking, straining and more. Cheesecloth is available in at least seven different grades, from open to extra-fine weave. Grades are distinguished by the number of threads per inch in each direction. Here's an article explaining all!

For wrapping the sausages, I use a double layer of ordinary, all-purpose, household cheesecloth (#10 grade), available in most grocery stores, or dollar stores. (See photos above.)

However, you can use a finer grade of cheesecloth if you prefer (#40 to 90 grade), in which case you will only need one layer. Kitchen Supply Co. is a popular brand and is available from kitchen and gourmet stores and many online kitchen supply stores. Unbleached varieties are now available. Beyond Gourmet is a popular brand and is available from many online sources.

White Cooking or Kitchen Twine is food-grade, biodegradable cotton twine. (There is also an unbleached variety.) It is indispensable for tying off small sausages and wrapping large sausages, seitan roasts, etc. before simmering. There are several common brands and spool sizes, and there are also convenient dispensers, such as spools and twine holders, available. Most kitchen supply and gourmet cookware stores will carry this product, and it is available widely online. Search kaboodle.com and amazon.com or .ca, etc. for a variety of brands, sizes, prices, and twine dispensers.

Enjoy!

EASY SCOTCH & ORANGE MARMALADE TRUFFLES MADE WITH UNSWEETENED BAKING CHOCOLATE & MAPLE SYRUP

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Fri, 15 Feb 2019 02:04:00 +0000

Truffles in the snow

I always make some chocolate truffles for Brian on Valentine's Day, but I was a bit worried because we are, for all intents and purposes, snowed in, and I had no semisweet chocolate chipsleft in the house, which is what I usually use to make them. Our long, uphill, windey driveway is knee-deep in snow. Our landlord's son tried to clear it with his machine and managed to clear the bottom area up to the first big curve, but his blade was too wide for the next part. So, no driving to the general store. Brian managed to trudge up the slippery hill to the mailboxes on foot and get our mail and precious bags of Books by Mail from the wonderful Vancouver Island Regional Library (which I worked for for 37 years), but we'll just have to make do with our (well-stocked) pantry, fridge and freezer for a few days.

Fortunately, I did have 6 ounces of UN-sweetened baking chocolate in my pantry, and I thought this might actually be a good thing, since I eat a low-glycemic diet and use very little sugar. So, I forged ahead and made a version of my usual truffle recipe with what I had available and what would suit my diet. (To find an organic and fair trade unsweetened baking chocolate in your area, see this list. You're sure to find at least one brand from this long list in a local natural food store or supermarket.)

I normally use some nut butter in my truffles, but I only had peanut butter in the house. But I didn't want the peanut taste in this particular batch, so I used the same amount of medium-firm tofu, well blended, instead. Instead of a liqueur, I used a little bit of Brian's Glenlivet Scotch, and, for more flavor, some of our friend Harold's delicious homemade orange marmalade. I used a small amount of maple syrup for the remaining sweetener, and decided to roll the truffle balls in ground walnuts (pecans would be excellent, as well). They are delicious, and I hope you will try them and enjoy them as much as we did.

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA'S MAPLE SYRUP-SWEETENED SCOTCH AND ORANGE MARMALADE CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES

Makes 17 truffles

6 ounces/170 g unsweetened baking chocolate (see link to list of fair trade, organic brands in text above, highlighted in yellow)
1/4 cup good-quality orange marmalade
1/4 cup real maple syrup (or dark agave syrup)
1/4 cup drained medium firm tofu OR extra-firm silken tofu
2 Tbsp. creamy non-dairy milk
2 Tbsp. good quality Scotch whiskey
ground walnuts (or other nuts of choice) for coating

Cut up the chocolate with a sharp knife into small pieces. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler over simmering water, OR (my favorite method) in a Pyrex pitcher or deep bowl in the microwave on High for 2 minutes, then stir and cook 2 minutes more. When the chocolate is fully melted, stir in the marmalade.

In a blender or with a hand-held immersion blender, blend the maple syrup, tofu, non-dairy milk and Scotch until smooth. Stir into the chocolate mixture until full mixed. Refrigerate for several hours, or until the mixture is firm.

Have ready the ground walnuts in a shallow bowl. (I ground them in a food processor in short bursts-- you don't want it too finely-ground.) Scoop out spoonfuls of the chocolate mix and roll into about 1" balls. Roll in the ground nuts to lightly coat. Place the balls on a plate with a little space between them. Refrigerate for at least another hour.

NOTE: I used to do my nutritional facts on Living Cookbook, but they just disappeared, with all my recipes on it (fortunately I keep copies in my files online and off). I have not found a satisfactory substitute yet, so I'm using https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076 for the time being.

Happy Valentine's Day! ❤️❤️❤️

VEGAN FRENCH TOAST (WITH NO NEED FOR EXPENSIVE EGG REPLACER PRODUCTS) WITH VERY LOW-SUGAR BLUEBERRY SAUCE

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Wed, 06 Feb 2019 00:41:00 +0000

My husband requested French toast for Sunday breakfast last weekend (I was out of ideas and asked him what would be a nice change from our usual tofu scramble). Thinking on it, I decided to go with French Toast and make a simple, very low-sugar blueberry sauce to top it off, since I have a big bag of the berries in the freezer.

Now, lately I've been making French toast with Follow Your Heart/Earth Island VeganEgg, and, before that was available, I used TheVegg, which is no longer available in Canada. The VeganEgg is good, but expensive in my area, so I decided to go back to my old tried-and-true French toast batter made with simple, inexpensive products that I always have in my house, and I'm pretty sure that most vegans have available.

Well, we enjoyed this just as well as the recipes using the more expensive options, so I think I'll stick with this easy and inexpensive recipe.

Printable Version

REVIVING MY OLD INEXPENSIVE VEGAN FRENCH TOAST RECIPE, WITH 3 COOKING METHODS AND VERY LOW-SUGAR BLUEBERRY SAUCE
Serves 2-3

Ingredients:
6 slices slightly stale bread of choice (I use sprouted wheat or multi-grain bread, such as Silver Hills brand.)
BATTER:
1 cup non-dairy milk, such as soy, nut or oat milk
6 T. more vegan milk plus 2 T. lemon juice (OR 1/2 cup orange juice)
1 T. whole golden flax seeds
2 tsp. powdered egg replacer (Ener-G Egg Replacer or Orgran No Egg™ Egg Replacer are easy to find.)
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract or paste
1/4 tsp. salt OR kala namak (aka black salt) for a more eggy flavor and aroma
A few gratings of nutmeg
OPTIONAL: 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. grated orange or lemon zest
BLUEBERRY SAUCE:
3 cups frozen blueberries, thawed
1 1/2 T. vegan sugar
2 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 1 T. water
OPTIONAL:
2-4 tsp. grated orange or lemon zest

METHOD:
Blend together the batter ingredients in a blender until smooth. Soak the bread slices in this mixture in a 9 x 13” shallow baking pan. Turn the slices over a few times to make sure they are evenly soaked.

Baking:
Preheat the oven to 500°F. Place the soaked slices on a nonstick or lightly-oiled DARK cookie sheet (dark pans brown better). Spray the tops with a little bit of oil from a pump sprayer, too. Bake 10 minutes in the bottom third of the oven (use convection, if you have it), then turn and bake about 5 minutes more, or until golden brown and a bit crispy on the underside.

Using an Electric Skillet:
This is my new favorite method, as it is an energy saver. I have a rectangular electric skillet that I found in a second-hand shop-- similar to this one:

It works wonderfully for pancakes and French Toast, and many other dishes, though I bought it originally to simmer batches seitan cutlets, etc.. Set the temperature of your skillet to High or 400°F. Spray the pan with oil and carefully add all 6 of the soaked pieces of bread to the skillet, if it's a large one-- otherwise you will have to cook them in two batches. When the undersides are nicely browned, turn the bread slices over and cook until that side is also browned. Serve immediately with the Blueberry sauce (below) or your favorite toppings, such as maple syrup.

Using a Skillet on the Stovetop: This is basically the same as the Electric Skillet Method above, except that you will need a couple of stovetop skillets (well-seasoned cast iron, if possible, or whatever is your favorite), and you will have to adjust the heat as you go, so that the toast doesn't get browned too fast, without cooking the interior properly.

WHILE THE FRENCH TOAST IS BAKING OR PAN-FRYING, make the simple Blueberry Sauce. Mix all of the sauce ingredients in a saucepan and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly; OR microwave in a medium, deep microwave-safe bowl (deep in order to avoid splashes) for about 2 minutes, or until thickened and bubbly. Serve hot over the French Toast.

NOTE: I used to do my nutritional facts on Living Cookbook, but they just disappeared, with all my recipes on it (fortunately I keep copies in my files online and off). I have not found a satisfactory substitute yet, so I'm using https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076 for the time being.

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 3
Amount per serving
Calories	387
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 6.8g	9%
Saturated Fat 0.8g	4%
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 564mg	25%
Total Carbohydrate 69.3g	25%
Dietary Fiber 13.2g	47%
Total Sugars 27g
Protein 14.4g
Vitamin D 0mcg	0%
Calcium 56mg	4%
Iron 3mg	18%
Potassium 448mg	10%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet.2,000 calorie a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Recipe analyzed by

Enjoy!

THE SPIRITUAL BACKGROUND OF VEGAN “MEAT OF THE FIELDS” AND SEA-MEAT SEITAN RECIPES

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Fri, 25 Jan 2019 02:35:00 +0000

THE SPIRITUAL BACKGROUND OF VEGAN “MEAT OF THE FIELDS”

Originally posted on Vegan Mainstream by Bryanna Clark Grogan on January 21, 2014
© 2019 Bryanna Clark Grogan. All Rights Reserved.

Here are some recipes that I developed for the Vegan Mainstream Cookbook Club as their "January Chef" in 2014. This entailed writing an article, with recipes and photos, and doing a video chat with the wonderful and patient Stephanie Redcross and Emma Laroque.
If you'd like to see the video of the live chat, it's available here. It was fun chatting with Stephanie, who is in Georgia (USA) and Emma, who lives across the Straight, not far from where I live!

I grew up in California, most of that time in San Francisco, within walking distance to Fisherman’s Wharf. The majority of the rest of my life has been spent on the West Coast of British Columbia (pre-and-post-vegan). My father was Peruvian, with an Italian mother. These facts alone might explain why I have seafood cravings to this day, 25 years after becoming vegan.

Some vegans, the ones who turn up their noses at any sort of replication of animal proteins, might say “get over it and eat some nori seaweed” (which I do from time to time), but inventing dishes is my craft, if you will. I can’t help being inspired by memories of the delicious meals of my past. I have a keen memory for outstanding meals—the tastes, smells and textures of certain dishes.

Don’t get me wrong—I love beans and grains, nuts and vegetables, and we eat them regularly and enthusiastically. But certain dishes of one’s culture, family background, holiday customs, and where we grew up stick with us, conjure up wonderful memories and feelings of comfort and pleasure. To deny these feelings, especially those of another vegan, out of some effort to be “pure”, even when no animal is harmed, seems misguided to me.

BACK IN TIME

Interestingly, (considering the “purity” angle), fine vegetarian cuisine developed first in Buddhist monasteries. The importation of Buddhism from India during the Han Dynasty (C.E. 58-75) influenced the development of a sophisticated vegetarian cuisine, since one of the five abstentions of orthodox Buddhism is an injunction against taking life. According to Hsiang Ju Lin and Tsuifeng Lin in their book "Chinese Gastronomy" (Hastings House, NY, 1969):

“Buddhists are vegetarians, consequently a small pocket of gastronomy has developed, fascinating in its attempt to create the ordinary flavours and appearance of fish and meat by using vegetarian ingredients. The Buddhists, whether monks or ordinary people, mingled freely with the non-vegetarians, and because the manners of Chinese society are all-embracing and diffuse, felt obliged to provide food which looked and almost tasted like meat. This was a sign of hospitality.”

Wealthy ladies would make pilgrimages to the city temples, having ordered a vegetarian lunch in advance. (This was apparently one of the few occasions on which wealthy women could go out by themselves.) The authors continue:

“The school of cooking which originated in the temple kitchens expanded and was taken up by the Yangchow cooks, specializing in delicate pastries and noodles. The challenge of simulating textures and appearance was irresistible. They were, in fact, able to reproduce even the intricate diamond pattern of duck skin, by lightly scoring smooth bean curd and filling in the cuts with a soy sauce mixture. Vegetarianism, which had originated for ethical reasons, finally became the gastronome’s business, and fell into the fine hands of the pastry cook.”

The pious Buddhist Emperor Wu (Wudi) of the Liang dynasty (also known as the Southern Liang Dynasty, C.E. 502-557), who donned monk’s robes several times throughout his reign, wrote an essay entitled "Forsake Alcohol and Meat", in which he urged Buddhists to become vegetarians. He modelled much of his rule after the Indian Buddhist Emperor Ashoka of the Maurya Dynasty (273 -32 B.C.E), establishing Buddhism as the state religion of China, and prohibiting monks from drinking wine and killing animals. From that time on, vegetarianism in China was linked with the Buddhist prohibition against taking life. To this day, many Chinese and Japanese Buddhists sects prohibit eating meat.

Although tofu and other Chinese soy products are strongly associated with Chinese vegetarian cuisine, it is less well-known that wheat gluten may have been introduced into Chinese cuisine as early as during the reign of Emperor Wu (see paragraph above). The making of a sort of proto-gluten is described in the Chhi MinYao Shu ("Notes on Miscellaneous Affairs"; C.E .544[Liang Dynasty]).

Eventually, wheat gluten was called mien chin, meaning “the sinew of flour”, and was a well-established term by the Sung period (C.E. 969-1279), mentioned in writings of the time. A passage about iron and steel from Shên Kua’s Mêng Chhi Pi Than ("Dream Pool Essays", C.E. 1086) reads: “Steel is to iron as mien chin (gluten) is to mien (flour). It is only after thoroughly washing the dough that gluten is revealed.”

Gluten was mentioned over the centuries by many writers and scholars, even in novels, such as Hsi Yu Chi ("Journey to the West", C.E. 1570) and Ju Lin Wai Shi ("The Unofficial History of the Literati"— C.E. 1740.). This indicates that gluten was accepted outside of the circle of Buddhist ascetics. Recipes for cooking gluten are found in the major culinary works of the Yuan to the Qing (Chhing) Dynasties (C.E. 1279- 1912).

Over the centuries, Chinese chefs devised ever more elaborate recipes for meatless “meats”, “seafood”, and “poultry”. Stella Lau Fessler, in her book "Chinese Meatless Cooking", wrote: “To a Chinese cook, imitating certain meat dishes with non-meat ingredients is not simply a matter of replacing the meat. It is instead an effort to show off the great culinary art of China, to make the impossible possible.”

So, this is nothing new, obviously, and we vegan cooks who devise modern homemade meat and seafood substitutes have a great example and proud lineage to follow.

IT’S ALL IN THE NAME

What do we call these products, anyway? “Meat analog” or “meat alternative” or “meat substitute” sound dull and unappetizing, and “gluten”? Well, I’ll let my friend David Lee, founder of the Field Roast Co. from Seattle, explain why he coined another term for it: “You know, gluten, the word for wheat protein, is kind of an odd word. I think it’s kind of an unfortunate word. I wish it wasn’t called gluten because gluten is kind of—you know, ‘glue-tahn’—it’s just kind of an ‘uhh’-sounding word. It’s a word that I actually try to avoid.”

As you probably know, David calls his products “grain meat”. He explained to me: “…meat wasn’t exclusively associated with animal meats, or animal flesh. As a matter of fact, I think you can find in any dictionary that the word ‘meat’ used to mean ‘food’ or ‘meal’, and also meant ‘substance’ (as in ‘the meat of the story’ or ‘the meat of the matter’). Think also of the word ‘nutmeat’ and how soy was called ‘the meat of the field’ in China.”

He also points out how milk is not exclusively dairy-based anymore—there are bean milks, like soy; grain milks, like oat and rice; seed milks, like quinoa, hemp and flax; and nut milks, such as almond, cashew, coconut and hazelnut. Soy why not “grain meat”, “nut meat”, soy meat”, etc.?

IN THE KITCHEN AGAIN

Delicious modern gluten/seitan/grain meat-based recipes abound on the Internet these days (often with the addition of other grain and legume flours), and in the pages of vegan cookbooks, but it’s difficult to find good recipes to satisfy those seafood cravings I was mentioning before. There are fewer seafood sub recipes online, and there are commercial products that I’ve read about, but they never seem to be available where I live. So I have had to devise my own recipes. There’s a “salmon” recipe in my bookWorld Vegan Feast (Vegan Heritage Press, 2011), but what I miss the most is shellfish—not only the taste, but the texture. The basic recipe I’m going to share with you below is satisfying to me, versatile, inexpensive, freeze-able and relatively easy to make. (I’m also including some favorite recipes using the basic product.) I hope you will enjoy these homemade products as much as I do, and devise your own recipes for using them.

Printable Copy
BRYANNA’S GRAIN SEA-MEAT

INGREDIENTS:
Mushroom/Kombu Broth: (Make this first and cool thoroughly.)
5 1/2 cups boiling water
10 medium-sized dried shiitake mushrooms or Chinese dried black forest mushrooms
1/3 cup dried boletus, mixed wild, or porcini mushrooms (or, if necessary, use about 16 shiitakes or Chinese mushrooms and omit the boletus or porcini)
1/2 oz dried kombu seaweed
Dry mix:
2 cup pure gluten powder (vital wheat gluten) (See this link for how to tell if you have the right product)
1/2 cup chickpea flour, white bean flour, soy flour, or urad dal flour
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic granules
Wet Mix:
1 1/2 cups cold Mushroom/Kombu Broth (see above)
12 oz extra-firm regular (NOT silken) tofu, broken up
1 tablespoon oil
1 teaspoon salt
Cooking Broth:
3 1/4 cups hot Mushroom/Kombu Broth (see above at top of ingredient list)
1 tablespoon vegetarian “oyster” sauce (see recipe and info for commercial brands below)
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic granules

DIRECTIONS:

Mushroom/Kombu Broth (Make this first and cool thoroughly):
Soak the mushrooms and kombu in the boiling water, covered, for about 30 minutes, then strain. Freeze the mushrooms for future use in recipes, if you have no use for them right away. Discard the kombu.

To cool off the broth quickly, place it in a shallow dish or bowl and place in the freezer until cool. DO NOT use hot broth in the Wet Mix! Hot liquid will make the seitan stringy.

For the Wet Mix, blend all of the ingredients until very smooth in a blender or food processor.

Mix the Dry Mix ingredients in the bowl of your electric mixer with dough hook attachment, or place them in the bread machine in the order given. Add the cooled Wet Mix and knead for about 10 minutes. (If your bread machine has a dough cycle-two kneads with a long rest in between, use that cycle. Otherwise, just run it through the kneading part and then unplug it and let it rest in the covered container, then plug it in again for another knead, then remove it.) Let rest for about 1 hour, covered.

Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Roll each one out on a clean countertop with a rolling pin to make a rectangle about 3/4-inch thick. Cut each rectangle into 4 squares (more or less). Roll the squares out to about 3/8″-thick. The pieces will be thicker after cooking. Repeat until you have rolled all the dough out this way:

Preheat the oven to 300°F.

Place the seitan squares in 2 oiled 9×13″ baking pans. The squares can overlap a bit. Pour half of the Cooking Broth over the seitan in each pan. Cover with foil. Bake 30 minutes. Turn the cutlets over, cover and cook 15-30 minutes more. (You just want to let the cutlets absorb all of the broth, not really brown them, so keep an eye on them.) Separate them carefully. Cool them before proceeding. (You can place them on a platter and cool them quickly in the freezer, if you wish.)

To cut the Sea-Meat Scallops:

Cut as many rounds as possible out of the cooled seitan squares with a 1″ wide or slightly smaller round cookie cutter. (I had to buy a set of round cookie cutters in order to obtain one of this size).

Grind the scraps coarsely in a food processor to use for Chopped Sea-Meat (clam substitute). NOTE: All seitan freezes well.

Nutrition (per serving): 98.3 calories; 22% calories from fat; 2.6g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 140.0mg sodium; 73.8mg potassium; 5.3g carbohydrates; 0.5g fiber; 1.3g sugar; 14.1g protein; 2.1 points.

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White "Clam" sauce using ground "Sea-Meat"

HOMEMADE VEGAN “SEAFOOD” SATISFIES SOME NOSTALGIC CRAVINGS

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA’S ITALIAN VEGAN PASTA WITH WHITE “CLAM” SAUCE

Serves 5

This is a “veganization” of an old favorite from my childhood. I cut the olive oil down as far as I could, but you MUST have some in this sauce! You can serve this with a vegan parmesan substitute, but this type of dish is normally eaten without cheese.

INGREDIENTS:
1 lb linguine, spaghetti or other pasta of choice (I used farfalle or bowtie pasta in the photo)
1/4 cup good extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
6 cloves garlic, minced
Optional: a few pinches of dried oregano or basil
1 cup Vegan “Sea Stock” (see recipe below)
1/2 cup dry white wine or white vermouth (can be non-alcoholic)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups (loosely packed) Chopped Sea-Meat (see this link)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
Optional: freshly-ground black pepper to taste, or pinch of red chile pepper flakes

DIRECTIONS:

Place a large pot of water on to boil for the pasta.

Heat the oil in a large heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. Add the onion, stirring, until starting to be golden, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, and optional herbs, if using. Cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is golden, about 2 minutes. Stir in the Vegan “Sea Stock” and wine, and boil, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until slightly reduced, about 3 minutes.

Cook the pasta in the pot of boiling salted water until al dente, then drain in a colander.

While pasta is cooking, stir the Chopped Sea-Meat into the sauce and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove from heat. Taste for salt.

Immediately add the drained pasta to the sauce along with the parsley, then toss until combined well. Add optional pepper, if desired. Serve immediately.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 551.0 calories; 22% calories from fat; 14.3g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 440.0mg sodium; 338.0mg potassium; 77.9g carbohydrates; 3.5g fiber; 4.3g sugar; 23.8g protein; 11.5 points.

This is a handy recipe for vegan “sea-meat” recipes.

6 cups hot water
10 medium dried shiitake or Chinese black forest mushrooms
1/2 oz dried kombu seaweed
2 teaspoons light miso
1 1/2 teaspoons vegetarian “oyster” sauce (see recipe and info on commercial brands below)
1 teaspoon salt

Simmer the mushrooms and kombu, covered, in the water for 30 minutes. Strain in a colander. Save the mushrooms for another dish, if you like. Discard the kombu. Stir in the miso, vegetarian “oyster” sauce, and salt. Dissolve thoroughly. Strain through a fine sieve. Refrigerate.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per 1/2 cup): 18.6 calories; 6% calories from fat; 0.2g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 318.5mg sodium; 75.3mg potassium; 4.3g carbohydrates; 0.6g fiber; 1.5g sugar; 0.7g protein ; 0.3 points.

Printable Recipe
BRYANNA’S ANGEL HAIR PASTA WITH VEGAN “SCALLOPS” AND EDAMAME

Servings: 6

This is deliciously simple Italian way to showcase your Sea-Meat Scallops. If you want a more “fishy” flavor, add a tablespoon or so of dulse or nori flakes to the sauce.

INGREDIENTS:

12 oz. Capelli d’Angelo (Angel Hair pasta– can be whole grain)
2 cups frozen or fresh shelled edamamé (green soybeans)
2 tablespoons good extra virgin olive oil
32 Sea-Meat Scallops (see recipe above)
1/4 cup Seasoned Flour (see recipe below)
2 green onions, chopped
4 teaspoon minced garlic (depending on your taste!)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary (or 1 teaspoon dried)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
1 1/2 cups Vegan “Sea Stock” (see recipe above)
1 1/2 cups dry white wine or white vermouth (can be non-alcoholic)
Optional:1 tablespoon vegetarian mushroom-based “Oyster sauce” (see recipe and info on commercial brands below) salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste)
Serve with:
lemon wedges
vegan parmesan

DIRECTIONS:

Place a large pot of water on to boil. When it boils, add the pasta and the thawed edamamé to the water and set the timer for 4 minutes. In a bowl, mix the Seasoned Flour with the Scallops until they are all coated.

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy nonstick skillet. When hot, add the Scallops, green onion, and the garlic and quickly stir-fry over high heat until the Scallops are slightly seared. Add the Vegan “Sea Stock”, wine, herbs and salt and pepper to taste (and the “Oyster” Sauce and seaweed flakes, if using) to the skillet. Cook briefly at high heat.

Drain the pasta and edamamé when done and add to the skillet. With a large spoon and a pasta rake, toss the contents of the skillet while it cooks. You want the pasta to absorb most of the sauce, with just enough left so that it isn’t dry. Quickly divide the pasta evenly into 6 warm pasta bowls. Serve with salt, pepper, lemon wedges, and vegan parmesan substitute.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 478.0 calories; 20% calories from fat; 11.2g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 338.8mg sodium; 602.4mg potassium; 61.2g carbohydrates; 5.5g fiber; 3.7g sugar; 55.7g net carbs; 25.5g protein; 9.7 points.

BRYANNA’S SEASONED FLOUR
Yield: 2 1/4 cups

Have some of this in your refrigerator at all times for costing vegetarian proteins before browning– it adds great flavor!

2 cups whole wheat, or other wholegrain, flour
1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1 teaspoon salt
OPTIONAL: 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon garlic granules and freshly-ground black pepper to taste. Other spices can be used, according to the type of recipe you are making.

Mix together the flour, nutritional yeast flakes, salt, and, optional onion powder and black pepper, if using. Store in a covered container in the refrigerator.

Nutrition Facts

Nutrition (per 2 tablespoons): 50.4 calories; 5% calories from fat; 0.3g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 105.7mg sodium; 89.6mg potassium; 10.2g carbohydrates; 2.1g fiber; 0.1g sugar; 8.2g net carbs; 2.7g protein; 0.6 points.

Printable Recipe
BRYANNA’S FRIED SEA-MEAT “SCALLOPS” ON ASPARAGUS WITH LEMON-GARLIC SAUCE
Serves 4

This recipe goes quickly, so make the sauce first and keep it warm, and have the asparagus steaming while you fry the “Scallops”.

INGREDIENTS:
Lemon-Garlic “Butter” Sauce:
4 teaspoons vegan butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups light vegetarian “chicken” broth (do not use a very salty type because you have to reduce it—try using 1/2 as much powder or paste as you would normally)
2 medium organic lemons, grated zest and juice
1/2 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with
1 tablespoon water
Optional Finish:
4 teaspoons vegan butter
Additional:
2 lbs. fresh asparagus, trimmed and steamed until tender, but not mushy
Fried “Scallops”:
32 Sea-Meat Scallops (see recipe above)
whole wheat flour for dredging
1 cup plain soy, hemp, or nut milk mixed with
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 cups panko (Japanese breadcrumb– look for Ian’s Whole Wheat Panko Breadcrumbs, if you prefer whole grain. Amazon carries them.)
oil for frying

DIRECTIONS:
To make the Lemon-Garlic “Butter” Sauce: Heat the first 4 teaspoons of vegan butter in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and stir with a wooden spoon JUST until the garlic begins to turn golden. Add the broth and the zest and juice of the lemons. Bring to a boil over high heat.

Turn down to a high simmer and cook it down to 1 1/4 cups (important!). Stir in the cornstarch mixture and stir until thickened. Stir in the remaining 4 teaspoons of vegan butter, if using. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm.

To fry the “Scallops”: While the asparagus is steaming, set up shallow bowls with the whole wheat flour, the milk and lemon juice mixture, and the panko breadcrumbs in a line on your counter. Dredge the “Scallops” in the flour, then the curdled milk, and then coat all over with the panko. Place on a parchment-lined cookie sheet, not touching.

Heat an inch or so of oil in a large heavy skillet. When hot, add the coated scallops, turn the heat to medium-high, and fry until crispy on both sides. Drain on paper towels.

To Serve: Distribute the steamed asparagus on 4 plates. Pile 8 fried “Scallops” over each pile of asparagus. Drizzle warm Lemon-Garlic “Butter” Sauce over each serving, and serve more on the side.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 321.4 calories; 14% calories from fat; 5.3g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 601.4mg sodium; 741.8mg potassium; 61.0g carbohydrates; 9.9g fiber; 11.7g sugar; 13.3g protein; 6.1 points.

Printable Recipe
VEGETARIAN “OYSTER” SAUCE:

Chinese oyster sauce is a favorite flavoring, thick, rich-tasting, and slightly sweet. I use the vegan version frequently to coat plain tofu for use in stir-fries and fried dishes instead of chicken, and, of course, it’s essential in some Chinese dishes. As well, it can add rich flavor to homemade seitan/grain meat. If you can’t buy it, it’s easy to make a very acceptable substitute.

You can find commercial vegetarian versions, made with mushrooms, in some Asian groceries and large supermarkets (and online, including at amazon). Sometimes it is labeled “vegetarian oyster sauce” or “mushroom oyster sauce”. It is also marketed as “vegetarian stir-fry sauce” (Lee Kum Kee brand). It keeps for a long time in the refrigerator. However, it can be difficult for people in some areas to find, so I am giving you a recipe for a homemade version.

BRYANNA’S HOMEMADE CHINESE VEGETARIAN MUSHROOM “OYSTER” SAUCE (ALSO KNOWN AS “VEGETARIAN STIR-FRY SAUCE”
Makes 18 liquid oz., or about the same as a commercial bottle

NOTE ON MUSHROOMS: For the dried mushrooms, you don’t need expensive shiitakes—just use the inexpensive dried Chinese mushrooms (or Chinese forest mushrooms) that are easily available. Snap off the stems and discard them, then grind the mushrooms to a powder in a DRY, clean blender or coffee/spice grinder.

1 1/2 cups boiling water
6 tablespoons ground dried Chinese mushroom (see note above)
6 tablespoons Chinese brown bean sauce or paste OR use 5 tablespoons mild brown miso + 1 tablespoon water
6 tablespoons soy sauce
6 generous tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch (can be organic) dissolved in
1 tablespoon cold water

(IMPORTANT: leave the plastic cap out of the center hole in the blender lid and cover it with a folded towel, so that the hot liquid doesn’t explode.)

Pour into in a medium saucepan and heat to boiling over high heat. Add the dissolved cornstarch and stir until thickened. Cool and store in a covered jar or bottle in the refrigerator. Since it is quite salty and sweet, it should keep for several months.

NOTE: You can, alternatively, microwave the mixture, with the cornstarch, in a medium bowl and cook on 100% power for about 1 minute, then whisk. Repeat until thickened and store as above.

Enjoy!

BACK ON THE BLOG (FINALLY), WITH YUMMY LOW-GLYCEMIC CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

noreply@blogger.com (Bryanna Clark Grogan) — Sun, 13 Jan 2019 23:06:00 +0000

It's been about 2 1/2 months since I last blogged. There are various reasons for this-- some "blogger burn-out", I suppose you could call it, after 12 years, first of all (13 years, actually). And then, there's been a fairly big change in my diet and how I cook now, since I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic last year and now eat a low-glycemic diet. (See blog posts from March 2018 and on, particularly this one.) I'm not on a low-carb, or no-sugar, or vegan keto diet. I've just been learning to cook with low-glycemic and high-fiber grains and flours, and fewer sweets, and also learned about "resistant starch"-- see this post.

Just as I was feeling like blogging again, I developed a case of shingles! This has laid me low for over a month now. It is improving, but my energy has been pretty low. I'm hoping that I'll be back to normal in a couple of weeks, but it's hard to predict.

But, at least I've had a little more interest in cooking again. Lately, I've been working on developing some truly good low-glycemic rolled biscuits, but I haven't got there yet! (Stay tuned.) I've also been working on a good high-fiber, low-glycemic, not too fatty or sweet chocolate chip cookie recipe. My goal was also to make it easy to make, using readily-available, inexpensive ingredients, and of course, to make cookies that still tasted like a treat!

So, I'd like to offer you my latest version, which I'm quite happy with (but, you never know-- I might refine them further). I hope that you will enjoy them, too!

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA'S LOW-GLYCEMIC CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Servings: 12 cookies

These also happen to be GF and soy-free, too, though I do not purposely avoid either of those things.

DRY MIX INGREDIENTS:

3/4 cup COLD chickpea flour (besan/gram flour) (Keep some in a jar in your fridge or freezer.)

1 T. oat flour (You can grind oat flakes or quick oats to a powder in a DRY blender.)

1 T. coconut flour

1/8 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. baking soda

WET MIX INGREDIENTS:

1 Psyllium "Egg":

Mix and let stand 5 minutes

2 tsp. psyllium husk (not powder)

3 T. water and

1/2 tsp. oil

(NOTE: If you have no psyllium husk, use 1 T. ground flax seed whisked with 3 T. hot water and then chilled in the fridge for about 5 minutes. Both psyllium husk and flax seed are inexpensive, high in fiber and easily available in large supermarkets, bulk food stores, or natural food stores.)

*********

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup oil

2 T. smooth UN-sweetened applesauce

1 tsp. vanilla extract

ADDITIONS:

1/2 cup dark vegan chocolate chips

Optional: 1/4 cup walnut pieces, chopped (Use pecans or other nuts, if you wish, or you can omit the nuts.)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large cookie sheet with baking parchment.

In a medium bowl, mix together the Dry Mix ingredients with a whisk.

Mix together the Wet Mix ingredients in a 2-cup measuring cup-- this works best with an immersion/stick blender.

Add the Wet Mix to the dry mix and stir with a spoon. Then add the chocolate chips and nuts (if using).

Scoop the batter out with a 4 tsp. measuring spoon, slightly rounded, and drop a the dough "blobs" a couple of inches apart on the parchment-lined baking sheet, using a small silicone spatula to scoop the dough out of the spoon.

Bake for 6 minutes,

then gently flatten each cookie a bit with a flexible stainless-steel slotted spatula (see below).

Continue to bake for another 8 minutes. Remove the baking sheet to a rack and cool for 5 minutes. Then remove the cookies from the baking sheet to the rack and cool for at least another 10 minutes before serving.

Nutrition Facts (using the walnuts) per cookie:

Calories: 134 ; Total Fat 8g; Saturated Fat 2.3g; Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 28mg; Total Carbohydrate 15.4g; Dietary Fiber 1.4g; Total Sugars 10.1g; Protein 2.1g; Calcium 9mg; Iron 1mg; Potassium 58mg

Enjoy!