Tofu with Steak Sauce and Onions(Vegan); Three-Cheese Pasta with Spinach

Hi, there, it's sure been a while since I last posted, and I didn't realize just how long until I got here. For a while, I just didn't feel much at all like cooking, as I've been pretty depressed, very tired, and probably you can understand, right?

A couple weeks ago, I had my second appointment with my rheumatologist, and he gave me two shots of cortisone in my lower back, on either side of my spine. It took a couple weeks to take effect, but boy howdy, I can sure tell the difference at work now. As to how long they will last, I of course have no idea , but I'm enjoying it for now. The results of the lab work and x-rays showed that my problem is "a touch" of arthritis, some degenerative discs, caused by the arthritis, and from the questions he asked me and the places he poked and prodded, he determined I also have fibromyalgia. No surprise there. Y'know, I think I've already told you this, tho. Anyway.

The flexeril and the lyrica together have helped me sleep...too well, in fact, so I've cut the flexeril in half. My insurance, however, has run out for the BC/BS fiscal year, and this time, it included my prescription plan!!! Some of my meds are extremely high, over $100, so I don't quite know yet what I'm going to do. But, in the meantime, I sure don't hurt as bad as I did. Even tho I'm not going to stop working, I will start receiving the early Social Security retirement checks, starting towards the end of this month, so that will help some, I'm sure.

Ok, let's get to the important stuff, right? The food, lol. This recipe came from about.com's vegetarian pages, and it's really good. I made it last night and loved it, and will make it again.

.......................................Tofu with Steak Sauce and Onions........................................

1pkg.firm or extra firm tofu, well pressed

2Tbs. olive oil

1 onion, sliced

2Tbs. balsamic vinegar

1 Tbs. steak sauce

1/3C water

1Tbs. flour

Slice tofu into 5 or 6 strips, about 1/2 inch thick.

Saute onions in oil until they turn brown and begin to carmelize, then add tofu and allow to cook until lightly golden brown. Add balsamic vinegar and steak sauce and stir to combine. Add next the water and flour and whisk to combine . Allow to cook until the sauce thickens.

Serve over rice, or hamburger buns.

First of all, I used a vacuum-packed firm tofu, and I think that I should've used a water-packed extra firm, pressed. The flavour most likely wasn't affected, but the tofu simply crumbled, so the strips didn't happen. Actually that was ok with me, as I was able to cut it into cubes. The steak sauce is your own choice, of course. Mine was the Kroger brand knock-off of A-1, which I really like. Instead of rice, I used toasted hamburger buns, and really enjoyed this a lot. My sides were plain boiled potatoes, and green beans with bacos sprinkled over.

This next recipe isn't really a recipe at all, it's just a general idea of the ingredients and sort of guessing at the amounts. You can adjust this to fit your own likes, and what your family likes. Basically, it's failproof, and quite easy. It came about because I needed to use up about three ounces of garlic and herb goat cheese before it went bad.

...............................................Three-Cheese Pasta with Spinach.................................

Set a large pot of water to boil, well salted. While the water heats, melt about three tablespoonsful of butter in a medium-sized skillet, or a sauce pan if you prefer, over fairly low heat. I like my skillet. When the butter melts, stir in a couple tablespoonsful of flour with a whisk, and let it heat for a few minutes, to take out the raw flavour of the flour. Then add about a cup of cold water(use milk or soy milk if you prefer, I just didn't have any milk), stirring constantly with that whisk. Once this is all stirred in, add another cup of water, and turn up the heat to a little less than medium. Stir often. When the sauce starts to simmer, it may thicken up more, so you can add more water or milk if you prefer.
When it reaches the consistency YOU like, start adding your cheeses. I used the three ounces of garlic and herb goat cheese, one slice of smoked provolone, and a few good shakes of Parmesan. Keep stirring, because this has a tendency to scorch, and stirring helps the cheeses to melt. If you want to...and I did...you can season the sauce with black pepper, thyme, and just a dash of nutmeg. Your water should be boiling by now, so turn the heat down on the cheese sauce, and add as much spaghetti as YOU want to the pot. Try not to add too much at a time, as the water should stay boiling, or at least at a simmer, as you add it. Stir the spaghetti around and around until it's all under water, and let it justkeep boiling until it's done as much as YOU want. I like my spaghetti really soft, you may prefer al dente. Your choice. Ok, while the s'getti boils, take some frozen chopped spinach from the freezer, and add a couple good-sized handsful to the cheese sauce, and stir it well, to make sure the spinach isn't in large clumps, and that all of it is coated with cheese. It won't take but about five minutes for it to thaw, get hot, and be tender enough to eat. Drain the s'getti thoroughly, and put it back into the empty pot you cooked it in, pour the sauce over it, mix it all together, and that's it. It's done. Your sides can be whatever YOU want...I don't think I bothered with a side, just ate the pasta. After all, it had spinach in it, so there was my veggie, right? I really thought this stuff was great, and I hope you enjoy it, too.

Ok, I was going to post a couple soup recipes, but I'm tired and hungry, to they'll just have to wait. Until next time, Happy Eating!!!

Alfredo Pasta Sauce(non-vegan, but might be able to veganize ot)

There's a little story behind this recipe, a story that proves that at least one large corporation listens to its customers. I've browsed the Kroger website time and time again, and have never been able to find the vegetarian products on their site that I know darned well they sell. They have recipes and menu plans for other products in the store, but nothing about the vegetarian products. So, in their comment box, I typed them a message telling them that I felt like they were discriminating vegetarians, and that I wished they would post vegetarian recipes on their site. And yes, I was nice about it. Really. Well, I got an email thanking me for my comment, and telling me that someone would be in touch with me concerning it. Yeah, right, was my thought. HA! I got an envelope in the mail from Kroger, and when I opened it, there were three pages of vegetarian recipes using tofu. Plus, someone had clipped a piece of paper to the front page, giving the source of these recipes: www.soybean.org. So, that's the story behind this recipe. I made it for my supper last night, and loved it.

................................................................Alfredo Pasta Sauce.....................................................................

1(12 oz.)package soft tofu, drained

1 tsp. minced garlic

1/4C Parmesan cheese, grated

1/4C Romano cheese, grated

1 Tbs. soybean oil

1 1/2 tsp dried basil

1 Tbs. dried parsley

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. onion powder

Combine all ingredients in food processor or blender. Blend until creamy and light, about 1 1/2 minutes. Heat sauce in microwave or stove top and serve over hot pasta.

Ok, of course I didn't follow the recipe exactly, but I came awfully close. The only tofu I had wasn't soft, and it came in the vacuum-pack box, so it made a very thick sauce, which I didn't mind. I also didn't have any Romano cheese, so I used all Parmesan instead. I don't like basil, so I used Italian seasoning blend instead. And, I thought this stuff was wonderful, I really did. It's very easy, and I usually have the necessary stuff to make it...with my substitutions, that is. I think that if you didn't heat it, it might make a good dip or spread for crackers and chips. If you live where you can buy vegan "cheeses," then I think you could make this as a vegan recipe, altho I'm not really sure what's available out there.

Anyway, that's it for today, and until the next time, Happy Eating!!!

Tofu "Fish Sticks"(vegan); JB's TVP "Fish Cakes"(vegan)

The other night I decided I wanted to try these tofu "fish sticks." The recipe looks good, I think, it wasn't all that difficult, so, I headed out to the kitchen to make them. Here's the recipe, compliments of www.about.com

TOFU "FISH STICKS"(vegan)

2 blocks firm or extra-firm tofu, pressed
1/4 cup soy milk
2 Tbs. EACH soy sauce; lemon juice; crumbled nori seaweed
1 cup bread crumbs
1 tsp. lemon pepper
Preheat oven go 350º F.
Slice tofu into strips and coat well with flour. In shallow bowl, whisk together soy milk, soy sauce, and lemon juice. In another bowl, combine bread crumbs, nori, and lemon pepper. Carefully dip tofu in soy milk mixture, then coat well in bread crumbs.
Bake 40-45 minutes, turning over once, until crispy and golden brown. Or, panfry in a bit of hot oil, until golden on both sides.
Serve with vegan tartar sauce, ketchup, bbq sauce, etc.

Ok, there ya have it. Were they good? I have NO clue, none at all. First of all, I had the crumbs all ready, and I decided to panfry mine, instead of put in the oven. So, I poured some oil in my skillet, and just left it there, no heat under it, while I pulled out my firm tofu, to drain and press. Can you tell when tofu has gone bad? Oh, yes, believe you me, you most certainly can. How? IT STINKS! And it stinks really, really nasty, nauseating, to be exact. Soooooo, what to do? The oil was waiting in the pan, the bread crumbs were ready, and no tofu. I was, uh, angry, to say the least. Ok, here's the end results of that fiasco:

JB's TVP "FISH CAKES"(vegan)

One cup of TVP granules, soaked for about 15 minutes in one cup of almost boiling water.
One cup bread crumbs, and by this time, I had seasoned them with garlic powder and just a dash of cayenne pepper.
About 1/4 cup of crumbled wakame, as I have no nori
juice of half of a large, fresh lemon

I mixed the bread crumbs, the TVP, and the wakame all together in a large bowl, and squeezed the half lemon all over it, mixing that in, also. Then I formed five patties, and panfried them in about 1/4 inch of hot canola oil. That's it. OH!!! Sorry...when I added the boiling water to the TVP granules, I also added a teaspoonful of liquid smoke. Ok, that's it, lol.

Were these good? OMG, yes, they sure were! I ate three of them for supper, and then the next afternoon, I ate the other two right out of the 'fridge, lol. They aren't difficult to make, and I know I will make them again some time. The next time I make them, I think I'll add some minced onion to the mix, and hopefully will have the ingredients to make a tartar sauce. They were good without a sauce, but I think tartar sauce would've set them off to perfection. Live and learn, right? What started out as almost a failure, because of the rotten tofu, turned into a wonderful, wonderful meal!!! I was very pleased with myself, lol.

Until next time, Happy Eating!!

Rainy day, which is fine with me, as long as I don't have to go out in it, and I don't! I don't have to leave the house again, if I don't want to, until Saturday afternoon, around 1:45pm, as I have another doctor's appointment. And, since my boss gave me the option of taking either Saturday or Sunday off this week, and since I chose Saturday, I have three days off in a row this week, sort of a mini-vacation!!!

This week I have a recipe for you that I think is great: Tofu Sloppy Joes. I made it Tuesday for my supper, and loved it, and will most definitely have it again. It came from the Savvy Vegetarian site, and with all due apologies to the owner of that site, I don't have the URL for this. This is one that I copied by hand, when I first started hunting for vegetarian recipes to try, and at that time I didn't stop to think that it would be a good idea to provide the URL and a link. So, again, I'm sorry for this.

Tofu Sloppy Joes

Makes 4-6 buns worth:

1 lb. firm tofu
2 Tbs. oil
1Tbs. chili powder
2 Tbs. EACH minced green pepper, onion, and parsley
1 tsp. prepared mustard
1 C water
1/4 C ketchup
2 tsp. EACH cider vinegar and brown sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Mash tofu, and mince onion, green pepper, and parsley.
2. Heat oil in large frying pan, and fry tofu withe chili and veggies for 5 minutes, on high.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer 10 minutes.
Serve over buns with fixin's.

Ok, first of all, there's no mention of draining and pressing the tofu, but I did it anyway. You do what's easiest for you. The oil I used was half olive oil and half Earth Balance "butter." My tastebuds say that the dish needs more of both the vinegar and the brown sugar, but again, whatever works for you. My side dishes were mashed potatoes and spinach, so I didn't use the buns. Maybe another time I will, but I really liked it with the potatoes. Bread would be good, too, I think.

Now a little news to share with you, which you may or may not already know. I don't make scratch biscuits, I think you've read that here, and instead of scratch, I've been using a box mix: Pioneer Buttermilk brand, and love it! But, for you vegans, it's not vegan. I read on a vegan site the other day, tho, that Bisquick IS vegan. Yesterday at Kroger, I checked the ingredient list for Bisquick, and yup, it's vegan. It's quite a bit more expensive than the Pioneer brand, tho, so I'm not sure if I'm going to change to Bisquick or not.

The other thing I wanted to share with you is about Blue Bonnet margarine, which as I think you already know, is what I use. It's not vegan, tho, but I do NOT like Earth Balance, so haven't changed margarine brands. But. On the same site that I found the Bisquick information, I also read that Blue Bonnet LITE margarine is vegan. Yesterday at good ol' Kroger I checked the ingredient list on the LITE, and yup, it's vegan. So, if you choose to do so, you vegans can use the Blue Bonnet LITE, which is a WHOLE LOT cheaper than Earth Balance. And, it's good, too!

I can't think of anything else to say, and I'm hungry, so, until next time, Happy Eating!!!

Falafel Plate(can be veganized); TwoCheese Potato Casserole(non-vegan)

Good morning, welcome back. How was your week, did it go well for you? Mine was good, I actually had FOUR good days in a row at work, paid the rent and all the utilities in full, bought groceries, and paid the full 20% co-pay for a medical procedure yesterday, so I seem to be doing well.

Today is 43 days, 1274 cigarettes NOT smoked, $243.81 and 9 days, 7hours of my life saved. Not bad, eh? I love the way the quitnet.com calculator can do that, lol. I sure couldn't figure it out, even if I sat down for a couple hours with my own calculator!!!

The medical procedure yesterday was a renal ultrasound. As soon as my pc doctor gets the results, he'll call me, and then he'll refer me to a kidney specialist. I'm not to pleased about this, believe my. It's a weird sensation knowing that my kidneys may be shutting down, but hopefully my doctor has caught it in time that the specialist can do something to keep it from getting worse, and to keep me from having to have dialysis. My other medical problem is treatable with medication, and I started taking yet another drug this past Tuesday...this makes five prescriptions I'm on now. "The road to better living thru chemicals." I guess I should be grateful for the chemicals, they are probably keeping me alive, eh? Two are for high b/p, one is a pain pill, one is Zoloft(antidepressant), and the new one is for an underactive thyroid. Probably the specialist will prescribe another one, too, sigh. But, I don't know that for sure, so I'm just gonna keep it in the now. And ask you to keep me in your prayers, please. Thanks.

Ok, I've got some real recipes for you this week, well, sort of: one of them comes from a box mix, lol. The other one is real, tho, and very good, too. The first one is for a falafel plate, and it came from the May 5th, 2009, issue of Woman's Day.

Falafel Plate

1 box(6oz.)falafel mix[they used Near East, I used Fantastic Foods]
1 cup plain yogurt
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and shredded
2 tsp. white vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. each pepper, salt, and sugar
1 small red onion, thinly sliced, 1 cup green lettuce, 2 plum tomatoes, sliced thin
4 pita breads

1. Heat oven to 375ºF. Prepare falafel according to package directions for baking
2. In a medium bowl, combine yogurt, cucumber, vinegar garlic, pepper, salt, and sugar. Set aside.
3. Place onion in a glass bowl with water to cover. Microwave for 1 minute or ujntil onion softens. Drain.
4. Arrange falafel on a platter with cucumber sauce, lettuce, onions, tomatoes, and pitas. Serves four.

Ok, the Fantastic Foods box didn't give baking directions. The mix made seven flat patties, which I put in the oven for about ten minutes. They seemed to be done enough, and not too done, so I guess I judged the time ok.

I don't use dairy products, so instead of yogurt, I used the Tofutti brand of "sour cream" for the sauce, and quite frankly, the sauce turned out to be the best part of the whole thing!!! The next day, I diced up a tomato in the leftover sauce and ate it with some buttered sourdough bread, and it was great, absolutely great. Much better than the falalels, which I didn't really care for, and no, won't be making them again. I WILL made that sauce again, tho, and use it as a sort of side dish or even a sandwich spread. It's that good!!!! Oh, btw, using the Tofutti brand sour cream was what veganized it.

Two Cheese Potato Casserole[could possibly be veganized, by using vegan cheeses]
4 cups potatoes, peeled and cubed
8 oz. cream-style cottage cheese
8 oz. sour cream
1/2 green onion, chopped, or more to taste
1 Tbs. fresh parsley, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
Paprika

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease a 1 1/2 qt. casserole dish.
Boil potatoes in salted water until tender, about 15 minutes, and drain well.
In large bowl, combine next 6 ingredients, and mix well. Stir in the potatoes, and spoon all into the casserole. Bake for 25 minutes. Sprinkle the cheddar and paprika over the top, and bake 5 minutes, or until cheese has melted.

This was to die for, no kidding, even tho I had to make some substitutions along the way. First of all, I didn't have any cottage cheese, so I had to fake it: 8 ounces of firm silken tofu, crumbled up, salt and pepper and a teaspoon of cider vinegar, and let it sit a couple minutes, to sour it a little. It was a pretty good substitute. The sour cream, of course, was the Tofutti brand. Now, here's where I went off on my own, lol: I mixed in maybe two tablespoonsful of chevre goat cheese, flavored with dried tomatoes and basil, just to give the "dairy" base a little boost of flavor, as it was really pretty bland. I baked it in a ten inch glass pie plate, turning the oven 25º lower than the recipe called for. When it was time to sprinkle it with the cheddar, I just laid four slices of my beloved smoked provolone vegetarian cheese over the top, and put it back in the oven for about ten minutes, I guess. Totally forgot the paprika!!! Loved it, I really loved it, but don't imagine I'll make it often at all. It's one of those things that's just a "tad" too much work, lol. We all know I'm lazy, right?

I've discovered another good "meat" product, too, and ate it with the Cheese and Potato Casserole last night: Gardenburger brand "BBQ Riblets." Very, very good, and when I can afford them, I'll buy them again. The flavor is a wonderfully deep and rich smoky bbq sauce flavor, and the ribs are a very meaty texture, and actually taste sort of meaty, too. Wish I could figure out how to do that here at home. If you know how to do it, please email me and tell me, would you? My email is on the left side of the page, quite a ways down, btw.

This has made me hungry, so I'm going to go find something for breakfast. Until next time, Happy Eating!!!

Broccoli and Tofu in Garlic Sauce, vegan

Hello, again. Another gorgous day here in the Sunny South, and so was yesterday: sunny, light breeze, and the temps went up into the 90's, which is really just too high for me. Today promises to be about the same. Last night we had some wicked storming going on, hail, lightening, thunder, heavy, heavy rain, wind, and the warning sirens going off all around me. Fortunately, my little house and I came thru just fine, and so did my neighbors. I admit to being a little scared, tho, because that hail really pounded on the roof and on the skylights. Believe me, I did some serious praying...and my prayers were answered.

Today is 36 days, 1069 cigarettes NOT smoked, and $204.12 and 8 days, 3 hours of my life saved. I'm impressed. The best part is that the urge to smoke hits me less and less the longer I stay quit. It still feels very weird, tho. I smoked for around 47 years, and now, well, it's certainly different, lol. Right this moment, I guess I like it...ask me again in an hour or so, tho, ok?

The recipe today comes from www.about.com, in the vegetarian section. If you've never checked out the veg section over there, I think it's worth your time to do so. Anyway, here's the recipe:

Broccoli and Tofu in Garlic Sauce...vegan
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3Tbs. olive oil
2C broccoli, chopped
1lb. firm or extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
1 1/2tsp. ginger powder
1/4tsp. cayenne pepper
3TBS corn starch
1/4C soy sauce
1C water

Cut tofu into 1 inch cubes.
In large skillet, saute onions and garlic in oliver oil until onions turn clear, about 3-5 minutes.
Add tofu, broccoli, ginger, and cayenne to pan, and cook until broccoli is done, about 6-8 minutes.
In separate bowl, mix together the corn starch, soy sauce, and water, and add this mixture to the tofu and broccoli. Cook until sauce thickens, then remove from heat. Serve over rice or grains.

This is wonderful, it really is, and yes, I will most definitely be making it again some time. It makes quite a lot, and altho about.com didn't give serving amounts, I think probably four would be about right. The 1/4 tsp. of cayenne looked a little much to me, so I cut it down to 1/8tsp, but even that gave a little too much heat for me...not enough to ruin my enjoyment of this dish, but my mouth felt pretty much like it was on fire, lol. If you like it hot, fine, go with the full amount or maybe even more, it's your call. The night I made it, I put it over couscous, and the next night, I had green beans and biscuits with it. And there's enough for one more meal, lol.

See you next week. Until then, Happy Eating.

Tofu Taco Filling(vegan); JB's Burritos(non-vegan)

Another rainy day in Georgia, and again, I'm delighted and hope it will rain some more tonight and/or tomorrow. It never bothers me when it rains on my days off, because, and I'm pretty sure I've said this before, I love rainy days, and always have.

Ok, I have to make a public confession and apology here, altho it's not about anything too awfully serious. Last week I said that my number of cigarettes not smoked was 900+, but I was wayyyyyyy wrong, lol. The number for that day last week was only 222, which really sounds more logical, right? The figures for this week, as of yesterday evening, are: not smoked, 386; lifetime saved, 2 days, 22 hours; money saved, $73.71. By 9:30 this evening, I will be smoke-free for a full two weeks. Yesterday at work, I came awfully close to relapsing, but didn't, managed to white-knuckle it thru the whole day, but it was really hard. Never realized how much anger could influence the urge to smoke, but it does. I honestly don't remember ever being that angry for that long, at work, ever before, because of my boss and a female co-worker. It's too long a story to go into here, even tho I'd really love to vent...again...but if I did, I'd just get angry all over again, so, guess I'll just talk about cooking, lol. About making my homemade burritos...not the tortillas, please understand, but the filling and rolling and heating. The Tofu Taco Filling recipe is from someone named Wendy O, who sent it in to recipezaar.com. Recipezaar has a pretty good vegetarian section, if you didn't already know, and is worth checking out sometime for new recipes.

TOFU TACO FILLING

16oz. firm tofu, frozen and then thawed.
1Tbs. EACH soy sauce and Mrs. Dash Original Blend
2Tbs chili powder
1tsp. oregano, 1/2tsp. garlic powder, 1/8 tsp black pepper
1C canned corn
2C salsa

Directions:
1. Wring out and crumble the thawed tofu.
2. Heat the oil in a skillet and brown the tofu[Either she didn't give the amount of oil to use or I didn't copy it down, take your pick, but I used about 1Tbs. olive oil and 1Tbs. of margarine with good results. Vegans just use the oil.]
3. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook to heat thru and combine flavors.

That's it, easy peasy, and pretty darned good, too. Now, I only used one tablespoonful of chili powder, and it was plenty for me, almost too much, in fact. So, use your own discretion here, ok? I didn't have any of the Mrs. Dash, and have never used it at all, so I don't know how that would affect the recipe. And on top of that, I literally forgot the soy sauce, lol. Even without those two ingredients, tho, it was good. So, what did I do for the rest of the burrito fillings?

First thing I did was rinse and drain a can of pinto beans. While they were draining, I diced up a small onion, and started sauteing(did I spell that right?)it in my usual combination of olive oil and margarine, about two tablespoonsful. When the beans were drained enough to suit me, I dumped them right in on top of the onions...I had let the onions saute for about five minutes, I guess...and started mashing them with my potato masher. After it was mostly mashed, I let it brown a little on the bottom before turning it and letting the other side brown a little bit, too. While the beans were browing, I spread a tortilla with some chevre goat cheese, and put some of the tofu filling on top of the cheese. Then I put two slices of smoked provolone vegetarian "cheese" on top of the tofu, and spooned some of the now-refried beans on top of that. A few pieces of diced tomato, and I rolled it all up, and put it on a hot griddle to heat, took about four minutes to get it warm and slightly brown all over. Oh, man, it was super, it really was. I ate it with some Tofutti "Sour Supreme" sour cream, which just set it off to perfection, lol.

There was enough of the beans and the tofu filling for me to have two burritos, and enough tofu leftover to freeze about a good cupful, I think. My plans for it are to let it thaw, see if I can't refry it and crisp it up some, and then add it to homemade vegetarian chili...I'm getting the urge for chili again.

Until next time, Happy Eating!!!

Tofu Veggie Burgers

My only day off until next Wednesday and Thursday, darnit! Tomorrow, Friday, I don't have to go in until 10am, instead of 7am, but still, that's not the same as a full day off, now is it? My schedule has changed, because one of our first shift associates has left, after working a two week notice, and I'm moving into his schedule at the manager's request. Fine by me, as it gives me Fridays now, which are usually busier than M-T-W, which is what I've been working.

Got up late this morning, around 8, which was ok, because I had actually slept for about nine hours without waking up one single time...that I can remember, anyway. I did that Wednesday night, too, I think. Highly unusual, but I'd like to do it more often. Anyway, I got started late, and then had company: Old Man, who had to move out in January of '08 because of a major stroke, came by. He drove to Florida and back about a month ago(and has recovered really well from that stroke, thank God, or he wouldn't have been able to drive, by himself, all that way!)and had brought me back some rusty stuff. I LOVE RUSTY STUFF! Don't know why, but I do. He brought me an old cowbell, which is already hanging on my front door, and an old, old meat grinder. It's not like the meat grinder my grandmother used, but I'm not even going to try to describe it, lol. I also have an old plowshare he brought back a few years ago, and I need to try and figure out a way to display them together, and where.

The other day, I cashed my income tax refund check, and bought(and have sent)the money orders for ALL my utilities, the old bills that have been hanging over my head for months, and subscriptions for six of my favorite magazines: "Martha Stewart's Living," "Family Circle," "Woman's Day," "House Beautiful," "Real Simple," and "Vegetarian Times." All this came to...ready for this?!?!?...$835.81~!~!! That included the $16 for the money order fees and ten postage stamps. I'm delighted to have been able to do this, believe me, and am sooooo looking forward to having the magazines delivered to me instead of having to buy them every month!!

I've managed to swish and swipe the bathroom, make the bed, get most of the dishes washed, water my plants, and do laundry, in spite of my late start. The white load is in the dryer now, and the dark load is about to finish washing, and I will probably hang the dark load here in the house to dry. I don't like to hang them outside any more, because there are too many flying things that have settled in them while they're drying, there's too much traffic in front of my house, and in the spring, they turn green from all the pollen around here. Yuck!

Yesterday after work, my friend Pam and I went to Kroger, and I bought a few groceries, but first, we went to a man's house so she could buy a couple bar stools she'd seen on craigslist.com. The man sells all kinds of neat stuff out of his basement, and of course I made the mistake of getting out of the car and going in to look around. Sigh. Wouldn't you think I'd have known better, eh? LOL! Anyway, I did really well for $6! I now have a beautiful, large, glass, burgundy coloured Pyrex Dutch oven and lid...$3.00!!!...a tall glass canister w/a canning jar type lid to store my spaghetti in, a bottle of Murphy's Oil Soap(wonderful stuff, and for only $1.75), and a four-tier stacking clear plastic tray w/attachable bowl for dip and crackers, etc. I'm going to use that for all the little things I pick up and save for doing craft/altered art type stuff. Anyway, I feel like I did really well with my six bucks. And none of this has anything to do with cooking, I know, lol.

This recipe comes from about.com, http://vegetarian.about.com/od/tofurecipes/
and I have no idea if that link will work or not. If not, copy and paste into your address bar. There's a whole really wonderful section at about.com for vegetarian cooking, as well as videos and a forum to post on. Really great website, all in all.

TOFU VEGGIE BURGERS

1/2lb. firm tofu, drained an mashed
1 onion, diced
2Tbs. each wheat germ and flour
2Tbs. soy sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
Oil for frying

Mix all except the oil in a bowl. Form into patties. Fry in oil over medium high heat until patties are brown and crisp.

Ok, here's my take on these. First of all, the only change I made was that I didn't use soy sauce, because I don't care for the taste of it except in fried rice or in other Chinese foods. So, I used a tablespoon each of Teriyaki sauce and water. Other than that I didn't change a thing. This made four medium sized patties, and I ate two of them, and shamefully, didn't keep the other two, as I didn't think they'd be very good cold. Anyway, I liked these quite a bit, they were easy and fairly quick to make, and I'll make them again. The next time, tho, I think I'll try to season them, like maybe some oregano, thyme, tarragon, and maybe either red wine vinegar or Balsamic vinegar. And instead of putting the onions in the patties themselves, make some caramelized onions, which I love, and make pattymelts with non-dairy smoked provolone cheese, the onions, and sourdough bread. That just sounds really, really good.

So until next time, Happy Eating.

Italian-Style Tofu(Vegan); Coconut Rice(vegan)

It has rained just about all day, thank goodness, because we still need it desperately. I love the sound of the rain on the skylights here in my little house, but it made me sleep late again this morning, lol. Woke up around 5:30, heard the rain, and rolled over and slept until just about 8, sigh, and didn't want to get up then, really. The ol' back and hips made that decision for me, tho, so I crawled out. And that's just about how my day has been today: Just crawling along, lol. Finished a book, finished the laundry, but couldn't use the computer too much this afternoon because it started thundering. But, life went on anyway!

The two recipes I'm going to post are both from "Vegan with a Vengeance," by Isa Chandra Moskowitz. Both of them are easy, and they both turned out good, much to my delight.

Marinated Italian-Style Tofu

1 lb. firm extra-firm tofu, drained and pressed
1/2C white cooking wine
2Tbs. EACH olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Bragg Liquid Aminos or tamari, fresh lemon juice.
2 cloves garlic, smashed
A big pinch each dried basil, marjoram, and thyme

Preheat oven to 400ºF.
Cut the tofu widthwise into eight equal pieces. Marinate for an hour, flipping after 30 minutes.
Place tofu on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Flip over and bake another 10 minutes. Place in the broiler for about 3 more minutes for extra chewiness.

I have to tell you that I made a mistake when I got the tofu ready to marinate: I only cut it four ways, and don't know how I misread "eight." The recipe still came out ok in my opinion, tho. Another change I made was to use oregano, as I don't like basil, and I used mint, because I don't have any marjoram. The thyme I had and used. All in all I thought it was good, I'll make it again, and since I have two pieces left, that's what I'm going to have for dinner tonight.

Isa makes one suggestion about the marinade: "Don't throw it out. Reserve the marinade and get creative. Mix in a little water and arrowroot or cornstarch, then heat it up, and you've got yourself a gravy. Or, use it to stir-fry broccoli or asparagus for a nice, fast side dish: heat up some vegetable oil over high heat, then add your chopped vegetables, pouring on splashes of the marinade as you cook."

Since I'm going to bake a potato to go with the tofu, I'm going to try to use cornstarch and water to make the gravy, and see if I like it on the potato. I dunno, it's pretty intense. Possibly the 1/2C of white wine was a bit much, especially since I don't drink, and, um, have to admit, that wine has been in my cupboard a long time, lol. Oh, well, live and learn, right?

This next one just plain sounded good, so I bought some jasmine rice and decided to give it a shot. My version is much, much simpler than this one, tho.

Coconut Rice with Toasted Coconut

2C jasmine rice, washed
1(13.5 oz)can coconut milk
1C water
1 cinnamon stick
1/4tsp. salt
Finely grated zest of 1 lime
12C unsweetened shredded coconut

Combine the rice, coconut milk, water, cinnamon stick, and salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover pot, and simmer 20 minutes. Add the lime zest and stir with a fork. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit 10 more minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the shredded coconut:
Heat a skillet over low-medium heat. Add the coconut and toast, turning frequently, for about 3 minutes, or until the coconut is browned and toasty.
Remove the cinnamon stick from the rice and serve, sprinkling the toasted coconute over each serving. Garnish with lime wedges if you so desire.

Like I said, mine was much simpler. For one thing, altho I had fully intended to buy cinammon sticks, the price was just more than I could deal with. Outrageous, in fact...or at least, for my wallet. Maybe not for yours, I dunno. Plus I forgot the shredded coconut, lol. Duh, right? So, I used the coconut milk, water, and a little margarine, and that's all. Long story short, it was pretty good, and I enjoyed it. There's some leftover in the 'fridge, and one of these days I'll heat it up and eat it.

Now it's time to heat the oven for my baked potato, and see if I can make a decent gravy out of that marinade. Until next time, Happy Eating, and God bless.

Scrambled Tofu Burrito; Four-Cheese Pasta Bake

Thursday evening, in an attempt to stop wasting food, I came up with a way to use the leftover scrambled tofu, and I was delighted with the results. I made burritos...or wraps, if you prefer. There is no actual recipe here, it's the sort of thing you can do "to taste," any way you like it. I used a couple good handsful of frozen spinach to mix in with the tofu, and heated that up until it thawed, and everything was hot. In the meantime, while the tofu and spinach were heating, I put a piece of vegetarian smoked provolone "cheese," broken into three strips, down the middle of a tortilla. On top of that I poured some salsa, and on top of that, I spread some goat cheese crumbles. I did this on two tortillas. When the tofu/spinach mixture was good and hot, I spooned some over all the other stuff on each tortilla, rolled them up, and put them in a dry skillet over medium heat, just long enough to get the wraps lightly browned all over. Then I put some Tofutti brand "sour cream" in a bowl, and beside it I poured some more salsa, and then, I chowed down, lol. They were wonderful, and while I ate them I felt very smug, because I hadn't wasted the tofu leftovers!!

Friday night I decided I wanted some macaroni and cheese, and again, no actual recipe, just "to taste," again. I put some water on to boil for the pasta, which happened to be rigatoni, and while I waited for it to boil I made a plain white sauce: about 2 good tablespoonsful margarine, about the same amount of flour, and let it brown just a tiny bit, to get the raw flour taste out. Then I added soy milk, ended up using two cupsful, I think. When it started getting thick, I put the cheeses in: 4oz log of herbed chevre, a couple handsful of goat cheese crumbles, and several good shakes of the "Parmesan" cheese, too. The water was boiling, so I put two handsful of rigatoni into it, some salt, and let it boil until the pasta was pretty much done. When the pasta was done, I put it into a buttered casserole dish, and mixed the cheese sauce in with it. Then on top, I broke three slices of the "provolone" cheese into three strips, and layered those on the top. Put the whole thing in the oven, 350ºF, for about 15-20 minutes, or until the provolone browned, and the pasta and sauce was bubbling. My side veggie was a frozen mix of broccoli/carrots/cauliflower. It was a really good meal, very nice on a chilly night, and something that I'll do again sometime, I know.

Tonight? Well, I think I'll add some water to the leftover tempeh/white bean gravy, as it's just way too thick, and have that with a baked potato, and some kind of veggie. Easy. And uses up the last of the gravy, so, here again, no wasted food!!! Ahhhhhh, I just feel sooooo virtuous!!!...snicker.

Until next time, Happy Eating!

Tempeh Sausage and White Bean Gravy; Rich Chocolate Vegan Brownies

Today is my day off, so of course I've done some cooking. Most of this past week has just been cereal or maybe a grilled sammich. Just haven't been in the mood for cooking. Work has been getting on my one last nerve, so I've been sorta stressed, and that wears me out. Retirement is looking better and better, and I've only got to wait another seven months before I semi-retire. That's good enough for me, the social security will pay the rent, and I can cut back to four, or possibly even just three, days a week. Ahhhhhhhh...really looking forward to it, too, I am, I am.

The tempeh recipe is from "Vegan With A Vengeance," by Isa Chandra Moskovitz, one of my favorite cookbooks. I tried the recipe because it sounds good, and as I've said elsewhere on this blog, I'm on a quest for recipes that will let me like tempeh. This one came pretty close, but still not quite there yet. But, it's the first one that I've basically enjoyed, and I actually ate two helpings of it. Ok, so I guess I like it, lol. Anyway, it takes two recipes to make this, so let's get down to business here, ok?

Tempeh Sausage Crumbles and White Bean Gravy

Tempeh Sausage Crumbles

1(8-ounce)package tempeh
1Tb. fennel seed
1tsp.dried basil
1tsp.dried marjoram or oregano
1/2tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2tsp.dried sage
2 cloves garlic, minced
2Tbs.tamari or soy sauce
1Tbs.olive oil
Juice of 1/2 lemon

In a small pan, crumble the tempeh and add enough water to almost cover it. Over medium-high heat, simmer the tempeh until most of the water is absorbed, about 12-15 minutes. Drain the remaining water and add the rest of the ingredients and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 10 minutes.

White Bean and Tempeh Sausage Gravy
Tempeh Sausage Crumbles...recipe above
2C cooked white beans or one 15-ounce can, drained and rinsed
2Tbs. olive oil or margarine, softened
1/4C vegetable broth or water
1/2 tsp. salt
A few dashes fresh black pepper
10-12 leaves fresh sage, chopped

Prepare the Tempeh Sausage Crumbles and keep them warm in the pan.
Puree the white beans with the olive oil and vegetable broth in a blender or food processor until relatively smooth. Add to the tempeh crumbles along with the salt and pepper. Heat through for a few minutes. If you want to make the gravy thinner, add a little more vegetable broth. Mix in the sage and cook for another 2 minutes. This makes enough to cover 12-14 biscuits.

So, I had to make a couple changes, because I don't use basil nor do I use fennel, so obviously I left those out. I also used only 1Tbs. of soy sauce, as I don't like a strong soy sauce taste...unless it's in my fried rice, that is. When I added the bean mixture to the gravy, it wasn't even close to thin enough, and altho I didn't really measure, I think I added at least another cup of water. It was still thick, but only like a gravy, not paste, so that was ok. I put it on buttered biscuits, and like I said, ate two helpings of it. Will I make it again? I'm not sure, maybe, maybe not. There's a lot leftover, and I'm not sure what I'll do with the leftovers, either...probably freeze them, and then the next time I want biscuits and gravy, all I have to do is thaw and re-heat and make biscuits. I can live with that!!

In case you're new to vegetarianism, here's a quick rundown of what tempeh is. It's made from soybeans, and somehow, they've been inoculated with a mold to cause them to ferment, and then formed into a elongated patty, usually about 1/2 inch thick. It is very high in protein, and because of the soy, it's also high in fiber, as well as B vitamins and some other nutrients. That's not the most exact description of tempeh(pronounced tem-PAY,btw)ever written, but hey, I'm no scientist or food expert. If you want to more specifics about it, I imagine you can google it.

Now for the brownies. I found the recipe on the Care2Green website...and being the chocoholic that I am, I decided that today would be just the perfect day to try it. All in all it's very moist, chewy, very chocolatey, and I'm enjoying it right now, lol.

Rich Vegan Chocolate Brownies

1Cflour(you can use half whole wheat flour if you wish)
3/4C cocoa powder
1 1/2C sugar(or Sucanat)
1/8tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4C chocolate chips
1/4C walnuts(optional)
1/3C soy milk
1/3C extra light olive oil
1/4C silken tofu
1Tbs.vanilla extract.

Preheat oven to 350ºF
In large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients, walnuts, and chocolate chips.
In blender, blend soy milk, oil, tofu, and vanilla.
Add blended mixture to flour mixture in bowl, stir just until combined. Batter will be thick(she ain't jokin', either!)
Spread batter evenly in 8 inch square oiled baking pan.
Bake 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the mmiddle comes out clean.

Ok, these turned out very tasty, they really did. The batter is as thick as bread dough or cookie dough, and it took me a long time to incorporate all the ingredients together. I don't have an chocolate chips, no way to get to Kroger to buy them, so baked without them. My oven may not be calibrated correctly, and I have no oven thermometer, so I'm not sure, but by the time 35 minutes was up, the crust around the edge of the pan was rock-hard, while the middle was still kinda gooey. There's no eggs to worry about, so the gooeyness shouldn't be a health problem, and as it sits, the stiffer it becomes, sorta like a really fudgy fudge...I hope that made sense to you, 'cause it did to me, lol. Anyway, I like them, and will bake them again...oh, I think 1 Tbs vanilla is too much, btw, as I can taste it a little bit, so the next time, I'll try only one tsp.

And that's it for now, so, until next time, Happy Eating!

Pumpkin "Cheesecake;" Mushroom/Pumpkin/Leftovers Soup

My day off is almost over, back to work in the morning, which means I have to set my alarm when I go to bed tonight. I'll be up at 4:45AM, but these last two days I have slept until a little past seven. Sure was nice!!

I made the Pumpkin "Cheesecake" I mentioned earlier, and am very pleased, very. The recipe came from a vegetarian starter kit I ordered, free, from ChooseVeg.com, I think. It was free...um, sorry, I already said that...and had recipes in it, which is why I sent for it. So, here's the cheesecake recipe:

Pumpkin Patch "Cheesecake"

12-oz. firm silken tofu, pureed
8-oz. nondairy cream cheese(try Tofutti brand)
1C canned pumpkin
1C granulated sugar
3Tbs. flour
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2tsp. nutmeg
1 1/2tsp. cinnamon
1/2tsp. salt
1/4tsp. baking soda
1 prepared graham cracker crust

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Puree all the ingredients(except the crust...duh, right?)in food processor. Pour the filling into the graham cracker crust and bake for 50 minutes.
Allow to cool for 30 minutes, cover with plastic wrap or the top of the pie container and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight before eating.

Now, did I wait 6 hours?!?!? Hell, no, I didn't, I started munching as soon as it came out of the oven, of course. And don't tell me that you wouldn't have, ok? I actually followed this recipe exactly, except for one minor detail: I forgot to buy a pie crust this week, so I made my own graham cracker crust. No big deal, and it was good. Will I make this again? Probably. Most likely, in fact, it's really good.

The best part of it was that there was quite a lot of the batter left in the blender top, so I ate a lot of that, right out of the blender, lol. Yum! When there was about a quarter cup left, I did something strange, an experiment, if you will, that fortunately turned out good.

In the 'fridge, I had a little bit of Zandra's Veggie Noodle Soup, a little bit of the Mushroom and Buttermilk Stroganoff from the other night, about a tablespoonful of the mushroom mixture from last night's burrito, and about four little Brussels sprouts. Figured out where I'm going with this? Are you saying, "Eeeeuuuuuw, yuck," yet? LOL! Yup, I did, I really did...all those little bits of leftovers went right into the blender with the pumpkin mixture. Not only that, but there was half a can of the pumpkin left, so I threw that in there, too, and pureed away! Poured all that into a saucepan, stirred in some soy milk, and heated it in the top of a homemade double boiler, because it was so thick I was afraid I'd scorch it. It was excellent, so good that I've frozen the leftover soup for another time. With it I had saltines with margarine and/or chevre goat cheese. The earthy, tart flavor of the chevre was wonderful with the sweetish soup, too. Would I make it again? Well, I would if I should ever happen to have those exact leftovers in the 'fridge, lol.

Until next time, Happy Eating!

Seriously Easy/Quick Dinner Ideas; My new cookbooks!!!

I am thrilled to pieces, because as of yesterday, I have three of the four cookbooks I wanted the most: "How To Cook Everything Vegetarian," by Mark Bittnam; "Veganomicon," by Isa Chandra Muskowitz and Terry Hope Romero; and "The NEW Vegetarian Epicure," by Anna Thomas. The only one I'm still missing is on backorder at Barnes & Noble's online site, "Vegan With A Vengeance," by Isa Chandra Muskowitz. So now, of course, I can't wait to go grocery shopping this week, as I've already found some recipes I want to try.

The ideas I'm posting here came from a Woman's Day magazine. I've only tried one of them, the garlic couscous one, but the others sound pretty darned good, easy, and quick. One of the hardest things about being a vegetarian is that it's not usually a quick process to fix something to eat...or at least, it's not for me. Some of the cookbooks I've read have had a section for what they call "fast food," but the time involved is usually about 45 minutes. Now, I don't know about you, but I don't call 45 minutes all that fast. As far as I'm concerned, fast means 30 minutes or less. That's just my opinion, yours may differ, it's fine by me!

None of these are actual recipes, they are literally ideas, and you'll have to figure out the seasoning amounts for yourself and your family. Basically everything will be "to taste." So, here we go:

Prepare garlic couscous as the box directs. Saute in olive oil onion, red bell pepper, shredded carrot, raisins, and cumin until onion is soft. Mix and fluff w/couscous. I used 1/2tsp. of cumin, and added 1/2tsp. of cinnamon and a whole TBS. of powdered ginger. It was fantastic...and yes, actually fast. Seems like it took less than 20 minutes to get it all together, including dicing the onion and shredding the carrot.

Next one: Mix tofu w/hoisin sauce, scallions, and ground ginger. Heat in a skillet. Can add minced garlic, red bell pepper, and shredded carrots. Haven't tried this one yet, but it does sound good.

Another one: Simmer diced zucchini, chopped onions and canned diced tomatoes w/herbs until zucchini is tender. Serve over hot rice, with goat cheese crumbled on top. Sounds good to me, haven't tried it yet.

One more: Saute sliced apples and onions in oil until tender. Stir in sauerkraut until hot. Pour over grilled tofu slices, seasoned w/sage, salt, and pepper. Spread brown mustard on bread, and make sammiches. Sorta kinda like a Rueben, and I think I'd like it if I ever actually tried it...which I will, some day.

Last one: Saute sliced bell peppers and onions in oil until tender, stir in unsweetened coconut milk, frozen peas, curry powder or paste, and salt. Boil, then simmer until slightly thickened. Serve over rice, noodles, or potatoes.

So, there ya have it, and until next time, Happy Eating.

Marinated Tofu w/Cabbage, Tomatoes, and Sour Cream

Not a bad day at work at all, thank God. We weren't all that busy for a Sunday, but still stayed steady, and I made good money. And we had three dozen assorted doughnuts, as well as a huge plate of chocolate brownies that had nuts in them, and swirls of yummy caramel. I've brought home a lot, so I can have some with my coffee in the morning.

Friday I cooked the Woman's Day recipe of Marinated Shrimp...without the shrimp, of course. Instead, I used a block of tofu, cubed. So, here's the recipe, along with the Cabbage with Tomatoes and Sour Cream from Mark Bittman's cookbook, "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian."

Marinated Tofu in Cabbage with Tomatoes and Sour Cream
1pkg. firm tofu, drained with a 1lb.can on it for about 20 minutes, and then cubed
1/2C olive oil 1/2C lemon juice 1/2tsp. each minced garlic and hot sauce
1tsp. salt and pepper.

Mix the oil, juice, garlic, hot sauce, salt and pepper in a good-sized bowl, and add the tofu cubes. Stir the cubes in well, and marinate for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to be sure that all the cubes get covered with the marinade.

Now for the Cabbage, etc.

2Tbs. butter(oil for vegans) 1 med. onion, chopped 1Tbs. minced garlic
6C shredded cabbage, preferably Savoy(about 1 small head){I used plain old green cabbage, and it was fine.}
salt and pepper to taste 2C chopped tomatoes(drained, canned are fine){I didn't drain them, and it was fine.}
1Tbs. caraway or cumin seeds(optional) 1/2C sour cream{Tofutti Sour Supreme}

1. Melt butter in large deep skillet. Cook onion and garlic, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. {I added the tofu cubes here, with the onions and garlic} Add cabbage, raise heat a bit. Cook, stirring, adjusting heat so cabbage doesn't brown, until it softens, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

2. Add tomatoes, and the seeds of you're using them, and cook over lively heat, stirring, until mixture is saucy but thick, about 10-15 minutes. Lower heat to the minimum, then taste and adjust salt and pepper. Stir in sour cream and cook another couple minutes, stirring. Serve hot.

What I should have done, I realized too late, was to fry the tofu cubes first, to get them nice and brown and crispy, and then added the onions and garlic. I also cooked the cabbage separately, letting it simmer for about 30 minutes in a pot of salted water, because I like my cabbage very tender, not crisp-tender. While the cabbage was simmering is when I did all the rest of it, and the whole thing turned out very, very well. I really enjoyed this, and will probably make it again...I know I'm having the leftovers for my dinner tonight, lol. Friday night I had some leftover cornbread, so I sliced it in half, buttered it, and cooked it in a frying pan, nice and brown and crispy...my version of polenta, which I think would have been good with the cabbage and sauce. Tonight I'm just going to have a baked potato with it, and "maybe" a green veggie, depends on my energy level by dinner time.