Spicy South American Seitan “Sloppy Joe” Stew

Last night, I tweaked the Smoky South American Seitan Stew from Grub and realized as I was eating it (and chugging apple cider in between bites — did you read spicy up there in the title?) that it would make a perfect filling for sloppy joes. So I made Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s Olive Oil Bread and turned the leftovers into sloppy joes. It’s definitely not the traditional sloppy joe sandwich, as it has potatoes and yams, but I personally love potatoes (or french fries ) on sandwiches. I think you’ll agree.

P.S. Isa’s Olive Oil Bread is the bomb. It’s got a crusty exterior, which I’ve always had trouble creating with homemade breads. Perfect for dipping into soups, spreading butter and jam and making sloppy joes! Bonus: it is super easy to make. I’m talking to the people who find themselves too lazy to make homemade bread. I feel ya, and I’m telling you, it was surprisingly easy!

Spicy South American Seitan “Sloppy Joe” Stew

If you are making the stew first and using the leftovers for sloppy joes, when you reheat the stew, let it simmer for a while to thicken before you make the sloppy joes. If you are making this directly into sloppy joes, let it cook down more than the recipe says until it looks sloppy joe-worthy.

I like to roast the potatoes and sweet potatoes before adding them to the stew for a richer flavor, but you can also just add the chopped potatoes/sweet potatoes to the stew along with the seitan in step 4 for ease and convenience (and fewer dishes).

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 1 chipotle chile, canned in adobo sauce, finely chopped, seeded (only if you don’t like a lot of heat, otherwise keep ‘em in)
• 24-oz. jar organic strained tomatoes (I used Bionaturae brand)
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 cups vegetable stock
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 big or 2 medium potatoes, washed and cut into 1-inch pieces (no need to peel)
• 1 medium sweet potato or yam, cut into 1-inch pieces (no need to peel)
• 1 6-oz. package of chorizo seitan (I used Upton’s Naturals)

1. Preheat oven to 400 and grease two baking sheets.
2. Saute onions and chipotle chile over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook for 5 more minutes.
3. Add the tomato puree and bay leaves and stir constantly over medium heat until mixture thickens, about 10 minutes.
4. Add vegetable stock and salt. Crumble in seitan. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes. Remove bay leaves.
5. Meanwhile, place chopped potatoes and sweet potatoes on two baking sheets, separately, and bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove from oven. The potatoes are done. Flip sweet potatoes and bake for 10-15 minutes more (they should be soft, not crispy). Remove from oven and add both potatoes and sweet potatoes to stew. Stir and cook for 5 more minutes. Serve or thicken a bit more if making into sloppy joes. Enjoy and make sure you have a tall, cold glass of something handy before you start eating.

Yield: 4 servings

ExtraVEGANza Continued: Cashew Gravy

I had a few biscuits left from this morning but no adzuki bean gravy to dip them in, so I made another gravy, this time with cashews. It was delicious! And, more importantly, super easy! Perfect to smother biscuits in.

Creamy Cashew Gravy — adapted from Smoked Almond Gravy in Vegan Brunch

• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 cup raw cashews
• 1 1/4 cups water
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

Chop the garlic in a blender. Add cashews and process into fine crumbs. Add the remaining ingredients and process until smooth. Transfer to a saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently, and let cook for five minutes until thickened.

Yield: 2 cups

Saturday Morning Brunch ExtraVEGANza: Baking Powder Biscuits and Adzuki Bean Gravy, Citrus Collards with Raisins, and Mango Lassi

Saturday mornings are one of my favorite times of the week. I still have the rest of Saturday and Sunday and I can just relax and cook a big breakfast. This morning, I made biscuits and gravy and collards (two of Dyl’s personal favorites) and a mango lassi (my first time making one, with good results). After trying this lassi (and a cup of cardamom-spiced coffee at Zooroona the other day), I’ve decided that cardamom is my favorite spice. What’s yours?

Here is everything you need for a fantabulous weekend morning brunch – and a pretty healthy and balanced one at that!

Baking Powder Biscuits — adapted from Rosemary-Butter Biscuits in Grub: Ideas for an Urban Organic Kitchen

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons nonhydrogenated margarine, broken into bits
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil (or more margarine)
• 3/4 cup nondairy milk (I used cashew milk)

Preheat oven to 400. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Cut the margarine (and coconut oil, if using) into the flour using two knives or a fork, until the mixture resembles sand. Pour the milk in and stir until just combined. Flour your hands and gently knead the mixture until it forms a dough. Form 1/2-inch thick, 2-inch diameter discs and place on ungreased cookie sheets (you should have enough for 10-12 biscuits). Bake for 15 minutes. Serve warm with vegan butter and jam or gravy.

Yield: 10-12 biscuits

Adzuki Bean Gravy – adapted from Navy Bean Gravy in Vegan Brunch

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 small onion, roughly chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 3 teaspoons dried thyme (if you have fresh thyme, use 3 tablespoons, chopped)
• Black pepper, to taste
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups cooked adzuki beans
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup water (or more vegetable broth)
• Salt, to taste (if needed)

In a saucepan over medium heat, saute the onion and garlic for five minutes. Add the thyme and black pepper and saute about a minute more. While the onion/garlic mixture is cooking, dissolve the flour into the vegetable broth.

Add broth mixture, beans and soy sauce to saute pan and use an immersion blender to puree everything. Cook the gravy on medium for ten minutes, stirring occasionally. (If you don’t have an immersion blender, puree the mixture in a blender and return to saute pan to thicken.)

Once the gravy has thickened, reduce heat to low. If you’d like a thinner gravy, add between 1/4 and 1/2 cup water or more vegetable broth. Cook over low for 20 more minutes to let the flavors develop, stirring occasionally. Taste for salt. Serve warm.

Yield: 2 cups

Citrus Collards with Raisins – adapted from Grub: Ideas for an Urban Organic Kitchen

• 1/2 tablespoon + 1/4 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1 large bunch collards, cut into chiffonade
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons raisins
• 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice

1. Bring large pot of water and 1/2 tablespoon of salt to a boil. Add collards and cook for 8-10 minutes. Drain and immediately plunge into a bowl of ice water to cool. Drain.
2. Saute garlic in olive oil over medium heat for about a minute. Add collards, raisins and 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and saute for 3 minutes more. Add orange juice, stir and remove from heat. Serve warm.

Yield: 2 servings

Mango Lassi — adapted from Vegan Brunch

Since there are so few ingredients in this recipe and the milk choice really makes a difference in the flavor, I recommend using a homemade nut milk, but you can use a store-bought nondairy milk of your choice, if you choose. Just a warning, this is very delicious and addictive.

• 1 1/2 cups frozen cubed mango (or 1 mango, peeled, cubed and frozen)
• 1 cup homemade cashew milk
• 1 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth, adding a touch more milk if you need to for desired consistency. Serve cold with a sprinkle of cardamom on top.

Yield: 2 servings

Mr. Pancake and Green Smoothie Monster

Last night, along with my two dogs, Pavel and Henrik, we house-sat Dyl’s mom’s dog, Bear, and “house-sat” a dog who followed my neighbor home earlier this week. That is to say, I didn’t get much sleep. I was doing okay with the lack of sleep up until a few minutes ago when I decided to cuddle with Svetlana (what we’ve been calling the found dog) and came as close to sleeping as I could get without actually sleeping. I’ve never been fond of naps, as I always wake up feeling groggy and disoriented afterwards, but I might need to make an exception in this case, as I feel pretty groggy and disoriented anyway. Sitting by the fire and eating pancakes and a giant green smoothie helps, though. You can find the recipe for the Puffy Pillow Pancakes at the PPK blog here. I adapted the green smoothie recipe from the Drink Your Greens Smoothie in Eat, Drink & Be Vegan. Just make sure to add enough water at the end so you can actually drink it (or sip it through your very own resusable straw), because the avocado and banana make it pretty thick and creamy.

Green Smoothie Monster — adapted from Drink Your Greens Smoothie in Eat, Drink & Be Vegan

• 1/2 cup (preferably fresh-squeezed) orange juice
• 1/2 cup water (plus more as needed to thin to desired consistency)
• 1 cup greens (I used collards), washed, stems removed and chopped
• 1 banana (preferably frozen)
• 1 avocado
• 1/2 cup mango chunks (preferably frozen)
• 1/2 tbsp. agave nectar (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until completey smooth (this might take several minutes). Add more water until desired consistency is reached.

Yield: 1-2 servings

I’m off to succumb to that nap…

Slow Cooker Aloo Gobi

This was my first time cooking from The Indian Slow Cooker, a book I heard about on Get Skinny, Go Vegan. Aloo Gobi has always been a favorite of mine, so naturally I chose to make that recipe first, but the book has a very good selection of vegan recipes and most of the others could be veganized pretty easily. I was amazed at how easy the aloo gobi was to prepare, with such delicious results! Especially because I’ve always been a little intimidated by Indian cooking. It took me less than twenty minutes to chop the veggies and throw everything into the slow cooker (and it would have taken me ten if I hadn’t been interrupted a few times by my beloved puppies). I think I overcooked it slightly, because my neighbor knocked on my door needing help with a stray puppy right before it was ready and I added some extra minutes to the cooking time while I was dealing with that. Oh well, it was still a successful (and lip-smacking) first attempt with the slow cooker!

If you haven’t jumped on the slow cooker bandwagon yet, I recommend them (and The Indian Slow Cooker), if my seal of approval means anything to you. I think I’ll attempt to veganize the Chicken Tikka Masala using tofu next. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

I’m off to deal with the stray puppy now. We’re letting her sleep in our spare bedroom tonight. Trying my best not to get attached, although Dyl and I have already started discussing names. I like Bernadette, he likes Angie. I promise I’m not getting attached. I actually find her adorable puppy-ness a little repulsive.

Banana Chocolate Chip Bundles (AND MY 100TH POST!)

Bundles are a great “anytime” treat I learned about in Dreena Burton’s Vive le Vegan! A cross between a muffin and a cookie, you can enjoy them for breakfast, a snack or even dessert. This recipe is wheat-free, using rolled oats and oat flour, and doesn’t take long to prepare. I adapted the recipe from the Banana Oat Bundles in Vive le Vegan!

Banana Chocolate Chip Bundles – wheat-free, adapted from Banana Oat Bundles in Vive le Vegan!

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup oat flour (I grind the flour myself using rolled oats and a spice grinder)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 cup pureed overripe banana (about 2-3 bananas; use a food processor/blender for this)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3-3 1/2 tbsp. nondairy butter (I used Earth Balance) or canola oil
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease two cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
2. Combine rolled oats, oat flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in a large bowl. In a separate smaller bowl, combine pureed banana, vanilla and nondairy butter/canola oil until smooth. Add wet ingredients to dry, and mix until just-combined. Fold in chocolate chips.
3. Drop by spoonfuls onto cookie sheet (should have 12 bundles). Bake for 12 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer to cooling rack. These taste great warm out of the oven! Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Yield: 12 bundles

 P.S. If you didn’t notice in the title, this is my 100th post! In honor of that, I’d just like to say that I’ve enjoyed running this blog for the past 100 posts and I appreciate everyone who visits the site, especially when you leave a comment. I love to hear from you! I’m looking forward to the next 100 posts.

Oatmeal Maple Syrup-Sweetened Chocolate Chip Cookies

I adapted this recipe from the Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies in Terry Walters’ Clean Food, a beautiful, bright green cookbook I picked up a week ago. It’s my new favorite cookbook with 200+ healthy, whole foods vegan recipes divided by season. I’ve already tried the Carrot Ginger Soup, which was delicious, and I’m making the Millet Black Bean Patties with Corn today for lunch. I cut the cookie recipe in half and used vegan butter instead of canola oil, resulting in twelve mouth-watering, chocolate-y, maple-y, cinnamon-y cookies without the blood sugar spike that normally accompanies chocolate chip cookies. They were halfway gone within a few minutes of being taken out of the oven, I’m embarrassed to admit.

Before I get to the recipe, I have news! I’ve relocated to Kalamazoo, Michigan, where I lived for four years in college. It’s colder up here compared to St. Louis, but I’m used to it from my time here before, and it doesn’t seem as cold as I remember with a gas fireplace in my apartment. I’ve been enjoying running into old friends and revisiting old hang outs (yes, my favorite “hang out” is a grocery store — predictable, huh?). Tonight I am trying the brand new (and first) vegetarian restaurant in town, Fuel, and seeing an old friend, Fiona Dickinson, perform at Louie’s Trophy House Grill.

Oatmeal Maple Syrup-Sweetened Chocolate Chip Cookies – adapted slightly from Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies in Clean Food

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tbsp. cinnamon (optional)
• 1/8 tsp. sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 6 tbsp. (1/4 + 1/8 cup) maple syrup
• 1/4 cup nonhydrogenated vegan butter (I used Earth Balance)
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whip maple syrup, butter and vanilla until mostly smooth. Pour wet into dry and combine (you might need to use your hands to form a dough). Fold in chocolate chips. Form into 12 equal balls and place on two cookie sheets. Bake for 11-13 minutes, until lightly browned. Transfer to wire rack to cool.

Yield: 12 cookies