Kirsten's Kitchen: of vegan creations

Eponym

2014-06-21T23:28:00.000-03:00

Its been sometime since I have been able to sit down and recollect my thoughts and images that float around in my head. I find it hard to sit down and type...I never use to. Things are different.

Life is full.

Magical. Everything is. Its hard not to believe in something much greater then us...when we are surrounded by life.

Time...just wish for a little more of it.

But then life gets in the way.

Harvest time

2013-10-14T16:34:00.003-03:00

It is Thanksgiving weekend in Canada, which means I was able to close down the restaurant for a couple of days. A nice break. Hanging out with my three favorite people is pretty awesome. We made our way to the pumpkin patch, sort of a tradition.

I know I don't post very much anymore....I miss it. I always think of this space as a personal journal so-to-speak. I enjoy visiting it from time to time and looking back at photographs.
Juggling the restaurant and the family, I don't have much time to get the camera out, mostly everything is done on the ol'iphone. Convenience.

I would like to say I made some crazy amazing meal, but no. I did not. We were invited over to eat at someone else house :) Honestly I don't cook all that much at home anymore, mostly all the cooking I do is at Wild Leek, I bring home things. Which is kinda nice.

I hope all my fellow Canadians had a great weekend with loved ones. I sure did!

Progress

2013-06-23T08:25:00.000-03:00

I have to admit I don't think about blogging lots lately, kinda sad.. I know. I love 'this' space of mine. Sometimes I look through my family section like an old photo album, that is why I loved blogging so much. I could record my life and look back.

Since April the girls and I moved into an apartment in the city, which was a huge change for us. Good change though. I believe everything happens for a reason, and the universe was pushing me in this direction.

When I opened the restaurant I had to put my daughters in daycare. It was hard at first...it was upsetting leaving when Simone was crying. Now she just walks right in and does her thing. Kinda neat how adaptable children are. Leeluu starts school in September, amazing!

Starting a business, my thoughts. I love cooking, getting to create specials everyday, and designing a menu every month is really cool. Talking to the customers, connecting with the community, it is all super fun. It's hard work, trying to keep up with everything though. I am still wrapping my brain around how to get everything done that needs to be done in a day. I think with time it will become a little easier juggling family and work, I was able to go to the beach last weekend...I hope to sneak away there again soon.

Wild Leek Food & Juice Bar

2013-05-26T08:28:00.001-03:00

I have been MIA as of lately, I miss blogging. I have a new love...all my time and energy is spent with that. I thought I would share some photos of the progress of Wild Leek Food & Juice Bar.

So far everything has been pretty smooth. I am SO excited to get into the kitchen and start cooking! The restaurant is looking great, and I have learned so much, floor sanders are cool ( quite a bit different than using a mixer haha).

I met a cool new friend that is going to work with me..her name is Andie. I can only imagine the kinds of things we are going to create together. The other day we tested out all the juice and smoothie recipes...mmm.

I hope some of you will stop by if your in town... and if you are not local, I will post pics as often as I can. You can follow the daily specials here or here or here!

Dreams really do come true

2013-05-01T07:18:00.000-03:00

So the news that I have been hinting at the last couple of months? Guess where I am? In my own restaurant kitchen!!

I have been working on this for the last nine months..getting everything together. I am opening a small neighborhood restaurant in Halifax. It is going to be wonderful..tasty, fresh and fully VEGAN! I can hardly wait to get back into the swing of it!

Crazy to think back to my first post on Kirsten's Kitchen! Wow its been a journey to get to this point...but I am HERE and so happy! I will keep you updated on the progress of the renovations I am doing.

So with great pleasure I will open the doors to Wild Leek Food & Juice Bar this May!

First day of Spring { asparagus quiche }

2013-03-20T14:58:00.000-03:00

It official the first day of spring has arrived, with a snow storm! Boo. That didn't stop me from baking up this delicioso 'vegan asparagus quiche'. Even with the snow, I can feel spring is going to pounce upon us with sunshine, buds on the trees, birds singing but until it comes I will be opening my front door to rubber boots filled with snow!

But inside the house we are drooling over this 'egg-less quiche'. Yes, that is right there are no eggs in this, but how you ask? TOFU! I once read that you should treat tofu like flour, if its not seasoned or done something with it will just be flour. Well same goes for tofu. Lots of good things went inside this quiche... sautéed onions, Daiya cheese, nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar, and asparagus!

Cobb salad { vegan }

2013-03-04T13:41:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone, I have great dish from the secret recipe club again! A veganized Cobb salad, this was super easy to prepare and very tasty. It comes from fellow blogger, the daily dish recipes. Nicole makes some yummy looking recipes.

There are a few stories of how the Cobb salad was invented, I like the one were the Chef hadn't eaten until midnight so he threw some left overs together and behold this delicious creation! I had to omit a few of the traditionals because...well they are not vegan. HA. So instead I used almonds, Daiya cheese and oranges.

Cobb Salad
serves 4
I used my own maple balsamic vinegerette recipe.

3 cups mixed greens
1 carrot-peeled and shredded
1 green pepper- small diced
1 tomato- small diced
1 orange- segmented and small diced
1 avocado- small diced
1/4 cup almonds- chopped roughly
1/4 cup Daiya- -pepper jack cheese

Assemble in a salad dish and enjoy!!

Ginger chocolate mousse {gluten free}

2013-02-13T15:43:00.000-04:00

It's Valentines day tomorrow and I thought it would be nice to make a vegan inspired dessert. I decided to go with chocolate (of course) and put a twist on it...ginger! The both pair very nicely together, so....'vegan ginger chocolate mousse' it was!

I love candied ginger but I have never made it before, I found this recipe and I really like how simple it is. I didn't weigh anything out, just eye balled it. Now that I have done it, and tasted it fresh, I don't think I can go back to store bought. Have you ever candied anything?

I had some friends over with there daughter for lunch this afternoon, they were the taste testers for this...and I think it was a hit! The crust is coconut and dates with a little maple syrup, and the mousse was infused with star anise, peppercorns and ginger! I melted the chocolate and made the chocolate hearts free form with the back of a spoon. It was a fun morning. I hope everyone gets to spend some time with someone special!

Vegan 'Sfeeha'

2013-02-04T12:00:00.000-04:00

As I sit here and write this post I am eating yummy 'vegan sfeeha' other wise known as 'meat' pies. I put my own twist on this traditional recipe by veganizing it!!

This little delicacy comes from Lebanon. I recently joined 'the secret recipe club', where you get sent a blog that you may have never discovered otherwise, and have to pick recipe from their collection, and make it. Lucky me I to get chef in disguise, this lady rocks! Orthodontist by day/chef at night. And she has great recipes that I am looking forward to veganizing more of.

After scrolling through her delicious looking photos, I settled on the 'sfeeha'. Little pastries filled with savoury goodness. I thought it would be a good first attempt, and I was right! These taste like awesomeness. I didn't have some of the ingredients that Sawsan used but I thought I could manage to make it tasty with what I had on hand....I kept the recipe for her dough, which is amazing.

'Sfeeha'- Veganized
makes 12

Dough:

3/4 cup warm water
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp yeast
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil

Filling:

3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion
2 stalks celery-minced
1 clove garlic
1/2 package of Yves veggie ground round
1 tsp sage
1/4 tsp allspice
1 tsp chilli powder
1/2 cup rolled oats
2 tsp molasses
1 tbsp tahini
3-4 tbsp of water
freshly ground pepper
sea salt to taste

For the dough sprinkle the sugar into the water in a small bowl, add yeast. Let sit for about 10 minutes and foam. In a medium sized bowl combine flour and salt, pour the water into the flour and mix with a spoon until forms a ball. Flour surface and knead dough for 7-8 minutes, unitl smooth. Pour olive oil into a bowl, place dough in and give it a spin, to coat. Cover with a towel and let rise until double its size. ( appox 2 hours).

Once dough has risen, roll into golf ball sized portions and set on a tray. Allow to sit for 10 minutes.

For the filling. Heat pan and add oil. Saute onion, garlic and celery until soft. Add veggie ground round and stir until well combined. Add the rest of the ingredients and contiune to cook until soft and hot. 6-8 minutes.

Roll out the balls of dough, to form small circles. Place a scoop of filling in the middle, with water pinch the sides of the dough to form and X. Brush pastry with olive oil

Place on greased cookie sheet at 400 for 20 minutes.

Teriyaki noodles with Chinese broccoli

2013-01-29T18:53:00.001-04:00

I feel like I have not been in my kitchen in for-EVER! I mean I make toast and things like that, but I have not been cooking like I usually do. My upcoming plan is in full swing, with hopes that everything goes as it should...I will release the news soon!

Tonight was a good night to be inside cooking its pretty chilly outside and I really do find my qi when I am in the kitchen. This was a quick week night meal that turned out pretty tasty.

I find Chinese broccoli at my local grocery store, and I like that its leafier than regular old broccoli, but if you can't find it, the normal stuff with do just fine.

Teriyaki noodles with Chinese broccoli

cooked noodles- udon, soba, rice or whatever you prefer

1 tbsp sunflower oil
1/2 block tofu cubed
1 garlic clove-minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger-minced
6-8 mushrooms-sliced
8-10 stalks of Chinese broccoli
black onion seeds- optional

sauce:

3 Tbsp tamari
2 Tbsp palm sugar
1 Tbsp corn starch
2 Tbsp water
1/4 tsp sesame oil

mix together and set aside

In a cast iron pan or non-stick heat oil add tofu. let brown.
Add garlic, ginger and mushrooms. Allow to sauté for a few minutes
Throw in broccoli, just allow to green up a bit
Pour sauce over and allow to thicken a bit
Serve over noodles.

Insanity

2013-01-21T08:54:00.000-04:00

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

~Albert Einstein

Root vegetable soup

2013-01-17T11:34:00.000-04:00

I have not been around here lately, things in my life have been a little crazy. My oldest daughter Ocean, is in the hospital. Since she is hopefully on the mend, I thought I would take her some home-made soup. I made this "root vegetable soup" to compensate for the yucky hospital food.

Picked up a bag of stewing vegetables at the grocery store yesterday. It's just handy and pretty inexpensive. I also grabbed a can of kidney beans, and whipped this together this morning.

Root vegetable soup

2 tbsp sunflower oil
1 onion-small diced
1 clove of garlic- minced
2 carrots- peeled and sliced thick
1 potato- peeled and cubed
1 turnip- peeled and sliced
1 small rutabaga- peeled and cubed
5 cups water
1/4 cup rice
1 can of kidney beans- rinsed
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
a few leafs of kale- chopped
dried oregano
sea salt
freshly ground pepper

In a large pot, gently heat oil, add onions and garlic. Sauté until soft.
Add veggies and continue to sauté for 4-5 minutes.
Add water and rice.
Bring to a boil. Turn down to simmer.
Add beans. Season with vinegar, oregano and salt and pepper
Stir in kale once ready to serve.

2013

2013-01-01T20:24:00.000-04:00

With every new year...

love

adventure

and happiness!

Wishing everyone...

2012-12-25T13:51:00.000-04:00

Hope everyone is having some holiday cheer with friends and family. I will be back in the new year. xo

DIY { children's field study bag }

2012-12-19T13:20:00.000-04:00

I made this for Leeluu for Christmas. A little messenger bag, for field study ( other wise known as a bug bag). I used a pair of old man pants that I bought at the thrift store, and I picked up a cute little print that has sticks and squirrels on it at the fabric store. As you can see I haven't sew'n the buttons on yet...I don't have a needle kicking around. I am pretty happy with it. I am o.k. using the sewing machine, but I didn't have a pattern, and I don't use pins. I pretty much just wing it.

She loves being outside, finding frogs, worms, bugs and butterflies. I filled it with a notebook and pencil, a magnify glass, and some binoculars. I am on the hunt for a small flash-light, and would really love to find one of those small containers with the magnify on the lid....What have you made lately?

12 12 12

2012-12-12T10:11:00.000-04:00

My religion is very simple.

My religion is kindness.

~Dalai Lama

Lemony poppy seed shortbread cookies

2012-12-11T13:24:00.000-04:00

Only two weeks to go before Christmas. I thought it would be a good idea to do some baking, since that is what I love so much about the holidays! I also really love vegan shortbread cookies, these are easy to make with only 4 ingredients! You can add things like I did... poppy seed and lemon zest, maybe even some crushed up candy cane would be nice.

Vegan Shortbread Cookies

1 cup vegan butter
1 cup icing sugar
2 cups flour
1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 325
Using an electric mixer beat butter and sugar. Slowly add the flour and salt. If it seems a little dry add a tbsp of rice/soy milk. Roll out and cut into shapes. Bake for 12-15 minutes.

BIG chime!

2012-11-30T14:59:00.001-04:00

Hey all! I hope you have not missed me. The winter has fast approached us and I am not looking forward to the snow...at all. Yeah I know its pretty, but it is also pretty freakin cold and I do not like shovelling (especially at 6am)! I am a Caribbean girl at heart.

I have been working on a pretty big venture. I will keep you posted. That is why I have been neglecting my blog. I thought that it would be fun to have some cool guest bloggers, so if you are interested leave me a comment or email me. You can find my email in the contact tab under my banner.

In the meantime stay warm and cozy. xo

2012-11-18T10:07:00.000-04:00

Sunny Sunday

~shell~

2012-11-15T09:01:00.000-04:00

“We are bound to our bodies like an oyster is to its shell”

~ Plato

Barley salad with roasted sweet potato & maple vinaigrette

2012-11-12T09:02:00.001-04:00

It is getting chillier these days, the frost is here and the snow will be very soon. With the colder weather comes heartier dishes. Barley is one of those foods that reminds me of that we are soon approaching winter, I usually add it to root vegetable stews and such. I thought I would try something new with it...a salad!

Barley cooks up like rice, and has a nutty flavour, it also packs a descent dose of iron and fibre. I thought it would pair nicely with sweet potato, fresh parsley, and some red onion. I made a big bowl and by morning the next day it was devoured....mostly by me.

Pretty simple to make, you could add pretty much anything you want to barley. Even some roasted zucchini would be nice!

Maple vinaigrette

1/4 cup olive oil
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp dijon
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
sea salt
black pepper

Combine all ingredients into a mason jar. Place lid on and give a good shake.

Sixteen candles

2012-11-11T08:17:00.000-04:00

You came into my life...

and what a beautiful gift you gave to me.

You made me a mother.

You are such an amazing human.

So full of love.

Your compassion and kindness

radiates though your very soul.

Growing up together.

has made me appreciate you, in every moment of every day.

You are the light of my life.

My best friend,

and travel buddy.

The best big sister!

You shine from the inside out.

growing...

into an extraordinary women!

Happy 16th birthday girly.

You are truly amazing.

Shinin' in the sun

2012-11-06T13:16:00.000-04:00

Ol' man Simon, planted a diamond.

Grew his self a garden the likes of none.

Sprouts all growin' comin' up glowin'

Fruit of jewels all shinin' in the sun.

Colors of the rainbow.

See the sun and the rain grow sapphires and rubies on ivory vines,

Grapes of jade, just ripenin' in the shade, just ready for the squeezin' into green jade wine.

Pure gold corn there,

Blowin' in the warm air.

Ol' crow nibblin' on the amnythyst seeds.

In between the diamonds,

Ol' man Simon crawls about pullin' out platinum weeds.

Pink pearl berries, all you can carry, put 'em in a bushel and haul 'em into town.

Up in the tree there's opal nuts and gold pears- Hurry quick, grab a stick and shake some down.

Take a silver tater, emerald tomater, fresh plump coral melons.

Hangin' in reach.

Ol' man Simon, diggin' in his diamonds,

stops and rests and dreams about one... real... peach.”

~Shel Silverstein

Vegan black bean soup with cornbread muffins

2012-11-04T18:10:00.000-04:00

The other day I was at the doctors office, and I was looking through a reader digest, I came across a recipe for black bean soup. It looked simple and tasty so tore it out of the magazine ( yes I am one of those people) and taped it to my fridge. Easy one pot meals really appeal to me these days..maybe it is the lack of wanting to tidy up after or just the ease of it all...anyhow this was amazing!

I thought no bean soup would be complete without some cornbread! These cornbread muffins were perfect, hot out of the oven and smothered with butter. I mixed in the last of my chives from the garden, and boy did they ever make the house smell good!

The warm days are over...or are they?

2012-11-02T10:59:00.000-03:00

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