First Apple Pie of Autumn

In honor of my super-awesome new Cranberry Stone Pie Plate from Pampered Chef, and the luscious bag of Honey Crisp Apples I scored at the Farmer's Market, I give you my first pie of the season:

Another iPhone pic, sorry

I don't know about you, but I can not WAIT for Isa and Terry's new cookbook: Vegan Pie in the Sky to come out in October.  The PPK website has shown us a few mouth watering previews of what's to come, and THIS pecan pie recipe ALONE has sold me on the book.  But, alas, none of the previews have included the actual pastry pie CRUST recipe.  I realize they can't give too many recipes away in advance, but I, for one, am VERY interested to see what their secret is!

In the past, I've used this Flaky Pie Crust recipe, with excellent results.  But, I've had Vegan Pie in the Sky on the mind, so I went back to Veganomincon to see IF there was a pie crust there...  and there was!


Veganomicon's crust has a couple extra ingredients that my original pie crust recipe does not:  a bit of baking powder, and a touch of apple cider vinegar.  Both of these ingredients ensure a bit of tenderness to the flour for the ultimate "tender, yet flaky" pie crust perfection. (Alton Brown is my hero...)


I am not sure I tasted a huge difference between this crust, and my old stand-by, BUT I am definitely willing to try this recipe again... (I did also purchase a pie shield for my next attempt).  Reviews of the pie were  favorable, overall, but the edges of my crust did get a little bit dry for my liking.

Now for the apples:

My usual "go-to" mix of apples for pie are half Granny Smith and half Golden Delicious.


When I made this pie, I had on hand, a beautiful bag of Honey Crisp from a local orchard here in Rhode Island.

I googled a bit about the use of Honey Crisp in apple pie, and found some mixed results: Some say NEVER, some say they have inconsistent results, and some say AMAZING.  

I, however, decided to go for it:  ALL Honey Crisp, five (5) apples in total.  I did add 3 TBSP of flour instead of my usual 2, because Honey Crisp are super juicy, and I didn't want a runny pie.  I also used 1/4 cup organic white sugar and 1/4 dark brown. MY RESULTS:  I loved it, Two thumbs way up! The apples baked up nice and tender, with the perfect hint of cinnamon-y sweetness.  No runny pie at all! ^_^


What are your favorite apples to use in pies?

Friday Night Cookin' Part II: Garden Bruschetta

Toasted Baguette, topped with Cashew Ricotta, Basil Pesto, Baby Spinach Leaves and Rosemary Oven Roasted Plum and Cherry Tomatoes...

(party in my mouth) ^_^

 How we did it:
Friday afternoons, we have a small but amazing Farmer's Market here on the campus where I work. It is literally two steps outside of my building, which is so very convenient. If you get there early, they usually have freshly baked baguettes for sale: perfect for bruschetta!

As an unexpected BONUS, Kathy harvested a bunch of fresh basil from her garden, and brought packages of PINE NUTS, the coveted dream ingredient for the perfect pesto. Pine nuts are pricey, to say the least, and I almost NEVER have them on hand. Most of the time, I make my pesto with toasted walnuts instead, so this was a nice treat!

I have to say, this was one of my better efforts!  I made it in my blender, so I used a bit more olive oil than I usually do.  But, I have to say, I really liked the consistancy of the pesto from the blender a bit better than the food processor.  Go figure...

And now for these gorgeous tomatoes!!

We decided to oven roast them at 450 for about 20 minutes, along with a head of garlic.  I had some lovely rosemary branches from another friend's garden, so Kathy pulled some of the leaves off and skewered the giant cherry tomatoes on the fresh rosemary branches.  This imparted the most WONDERFUL rosemary flavor, and made my kitchen smell absolutely divine!  It also looks really classy too.

Out of the oven!

So now we build our Bruschetta: 

Slice your baguette around 1/2" thick

Lightly brush with olive oil and spinkle with a bit of salt and pepper.

I usually broil the bruschetta on high for 3-5 minutes, but since we already had the oven set to 450, we toasted them on the top shelf for 10 minutes or so.

Remove baguette slices and then rub each piece with a garlic clove.

Spread each slice with tofu ricotta and top with a spoonful of fresh basil.

Top each slice with a baby spinach leaf (or two), and then finish it off with some oven roasted tomatoes

Kick back with a glass of red wine, and pat yourself on the back for creating: Bruschetta of the Gods

Friday Night Cookin' with Becky & Kathy

Another fabulous Friday of cooking with my favorite vegan friendly omnivore!

In an attempt to highlight the bounty of tomatoes and herbs from Kathy's garden, we planned a night of Bruschetta, and Homemade Garden Tomato Soup.


Kathy was kind enough to bring most of the ingredients right from her garden (YES!).  She only requested I make ricotta cheese, (or "some ricotta cheese vegan thing-y", as she calls it), which, I could gladly oblige.

This one came out really well. I was pleased!

My new favorite method for making vegan ricotta is actually a mix of the Tofu Ricotta AND the Cashew Ricotta recipes from Veganomicon.  The texture of the tofu is a perfect base, and the pureed cashews, lemon juice and olive oil add just the right creaminess. I also like to add nutritional yeast to taste, which gives the ricotta that extra nutty, cheese-like flavor.  The addition of nutritional yeast is only in the TOFU Ricotta recipe, and not in the Cashew version.  I like to live large and add it anyway.

And now for the soup:  I think Kathy harvested every plum tomato she had!  So we went to work washing and scoring the bottoms with a little "x", then dropping them into a pot of boiling water.  About 20 seconds later, we plunged them into a giant bowl of ice water and started peeling!  I must say, this task is much more fast and painless with two rather than one! :)  And boy was it worth it.

No fancy recipe, just taste as you go!

GARDEN FRESH TOMATO SOUP

Half a large onion, diced

2-3 cloves, chopped garlic

3 pounds plum tomatoes, peeled and chopped

Olive oil

Vegetable Stock

Fresh Rosemary and Oregano

Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper, to taste

Sautee onions and garlic for 5 mintues until tender.
Add tomatoes and stir well.
Simmer for about 20 minutes, and puree in a blender to dseired consistancy. 

A stick blender would have come in really handy here.  I'll get one of those someday...  We decided to leave the soup with a bit of texture instead of pureeing it totally smooth - mostly because it was molten hot, and we were too hungry to wait for it to cool and safely blend it all the way.


Place 1 large spoonful of cashew ricotta in the middle of your soup bowl, then ladle in the garden fresh tomato goodness...DELICIOUS! ^_^

My Favorite Pesto

Now that I have a food processor, I find that making pesto is SO much easier than when I used my blender. This pesto contains no cheese, but the nuttiness from the toasted walnuts and the nutritional yeast give it the perfect balance of flavor. Nutritional yeast makes an excellent vegan substitute for Parmesan because of its slightly salty, cheesy and nutty flavor.  It is low in fat, high in protein and B vitamins, and it is not made with any animal products. I do like to take the extra time and toast the walnuts in the oven to really bring out their flavor. You may, of course, use pine nuts as well, but I find I have walnuts on hand more often, since they are a bit less expensive.  The pesto pictured about was made with minimal olive oil (roughly 1/4 cup) and so it is quite thick - perfect for tossing into warm pasta.  I do sometimes add more oil (1/2 - 3/4 cup) to make the pesto more spreadable (or drizzle able), in order to top grilled bread, or use as a garnish.


MY FAVORITE PESTO
Recipe
3 cups basil leaves
1/2 cup walnut halves (or the traditional pine nuts)
2 garlic cloves, smashed
1/4 cup olive oil, or more to get the blended consistency you like
2 teaspoons lemon juice (optional)
1/8-1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon salt


Directions:
To toast walnuts:  Preheat oven to 350
Spread nuts on baking sheet and toast for 5-10 minutes, or until fragrant.
Add toasted walnuts to food processor, and pulse until crumbly.
Add basil leaves and garlic and pulse to combine.
Add remaining ingredients and blend until smooth, be sure to scrape down the sides of your bowl to combine evenly.
Check for salt, and adjust as needed.
Pesto can then be used in your favorite pasta recipe, or stored in the fridge an airtight container for up to a week.
You may also freeze your pesto in ice cube trays, and then transfer the cubes to zip lock bags, to enjoy the bright beautiful taste of pesto throughout the Winter!


** For my Italian heritage, a bit of history for you ^_^
Traditional pesto hails from the Liguria region in Northwest Italy.  It is here, in the thriving port city of GENOVA, where the infamous 'Pesto Genovese' gets its name.  One reason this sauce was (and still is) so popular in the region of Liguria is because of the mineral-rich seaside soil and temperate climate, perfect for growing beautiful, green basil. Old Italian legend has it that pesto got its name from the way it was traditionally prepared: with a mortar and pestle (mortaio e pestello).  With a gentle turn of the wrist, sweet basil leaves are squeezed with garlic, pine nuts and olive oil against a ceramic mortar and wooden pestle.  While this slow, yet deliberate process gently coaxed the flavors from the basil, oil, and pine nuts, most modern day cooks prefer the help of a blender or food processor.


I actually do have a lovely marble mortar and pestle.  It sits on my counter, more as a decoration than a kitchen tool.  Perhaps one day, when I am feeling a bit rustic, I will bust it out, and grind me some pesto the authentic way!  ^_^

Roasted Peanut Slaw

So, I rescued a giant cabbage from my mother's fridge, before she went away for a week.  Feeling a bit sad that this beautiful red cabbage might meet its impending doom, rotting away in the bottom drawer, I stole it away with the intent of using it in....something.

Fast forward a couple days, as I sit and flip through the TV channels... Switching between cooking shows and Criminal Minds... I spied a perky little blonde called Kelsey, on her show Kelsey's Essentials, making a fresh and simple dish she called Roasted Peanut Slaw.

With a few modifications to suit my own taste, and to accommodate what I had on hand, I came up with this recipe, and gave my cabbage a meaningful existence.

iPhone pic

Roasted Peanut Slaw
Adapted from Kelsey's Essentials (Cooking Channel)

1 medium head purple cabbage, shredded
5 scallions, thinly sliced
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 cup roasted unsalted peanuts, plus more for garnish
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
1/2 cup rice vinegar
4 teaspoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons smooth peanut butter, unsweetened natural
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup canola oil



Toss the cabbage with the scallions, jalapenos, basil and peanuts. Season with salt and pepper.
In a small mixing bowl, whisk the vinegar, soy sauce, peanut butter, sesame oil and sugar together. Slowly whisk in the canola oil until dressing is emulsified.
Toss the dressing with the cabbage and garnish with roasted peanuts before serving.

Changes I made, and why:
My cabbage was purple, hers was Napa.  She used cilantro, which I'm sure would have been amazing.  I, however, has just gotten a giant zip lock bag of fresh basil from my boss, and had no cilantro... I had a bag of jalapenos from Trader Joe's that were burning a hole in my veggie bin, so I minced up a couple and hoped for the best. She recommended JIFFY as the brand of smooth peanut butter.  I have never bought Jiffy peanut butter in my life, and used unsweetened natural peanut butter.  She used 1/2 cup of oil, but I got away with half that amount.  And for "ha-has" I splashed in some Shaoxing rice wine along with the regular rice wine vinegar.

The end result: Delicious! A crisp, sweet and spicy salad, that I've been taking to lunch with me all week cuz it made a TON!! ^_^

Mango Fruit Salsa

Last month, I attended my friend Jess' Pampered Chef Party!  Usually, I am not one for "overly-specific" kitchen gadgets, but any party that involves food, and is centered all around cooking is fine by me!

(In all fairness, I do have quite a few Pampered Chef items, and I use them ALL the time; Some, almost every day). 

Almost can't live with out this!

I had so much fun at Jess' party, that I decided to have one of my own: VEGAN style!  My Pampered chef consultant was rather excited to do an all vegan version of her Pampered Chef demo, especially since she had never done anything like that before.  We decided on two recipes:  Mango Fruit Salsa, to highlight the new Manual Food Processor, and Mediterranean Hummus Flat bread Pizza - no cheese needed!

This salsa recipe is so simple to prepare,  and tastes wonderful. I even made this for two cookouts this Fourth of July, and it was a huge both times.

Don't worry if you don't have the Pampered Chef manual food processor. I find that I can dice the fruit with my knife just fine, and it even comes out a little neater looking; The manual food processor just saves time. Please feel free to use lemon OR lime, for juice and zest. I've used both, and they both work well. Depending on the sweetness of the fruit, I add agave nectar to taste, no more than 1 tbsp usually. Serve with Stacey's Cinnamon Sugar pita chips, or your own home made pita chips. This is also amazing served over ice cream! I believe 1/2 cup salsa = 2 Weight Watchers Points

RECIPE:

1 cup strawberry, hulled and diced
1 kiwi, peeled and diced
1 mango, ripe
1 teaspoon lime zest
1 tablespoon lime juice
agave nectar, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. If not using the Pampered Chef Manual Food Processor, try and chop your fruit into uniform 1/4 - 1/2" cubes.
2. For the mango, I usually peel the skin off first with my vegetable peeler, and chop a small slice off the top and bottom. That way it stays flat on my board as I slice around the pit.
3. The pit of the mango is large and flat. When you slice off a bit of the top and bottom, you can see its shape. I usually cut down the two wide sides of the mango first, and then carefully slice down the thinner sides to make sure I get all of the beautiful yellow mango off the pit.
4. Ripe mango is very slippery, so carefully slice fruit and dice into cubes.
5. Add all fruit to a large bowl.
6. Add lime (or lemon) zest and juice.
7. Taste, and add agave nectar, up to 1 tablespoons.
8. Serve with cinnamon pita chips.



My gift for hosting a show was this awesome Cool 'N Serve Tray, that has two green panels that you can put in the freezer. When you take your yummy salsa to a cookout in the sun, your fruits and veggies stay nice and cool ^_^

Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits

Pillsbury "GRANDS", step aside. There's some pure, non-hydrogenated goodness  coming from my kitchen.

I follow a lot of vegans on Twitter, and occasionally, a recipe pops up in my Twitter feed that really catches my eye.  The recipe for the flaky, fluffy pillows of goodness pictured above, comes from the blog: Where's the Revolution.  I posted a direct link to it so you can check it out and try them; I guarantee, you will NOT be disappointed!! 

I'm not on Twitter a lot, so I am quite surprised that I even caught Bazu's tweet. It must have been fate, because at the time, I just so happened to be looking for a simple, yet mind blowing, flaky biscuit recipe!! So I marked it with a star, and vowed to get back to it later... (it ended up being months later, but better late than never...)

Now, some background on me and biscuit making:

I have tried the Vegan with a Vengeance Biscuits and Tempeh Sausage gravy recipe:

Gravy was two thumbs up for me, but not so much for L (who is an avid tempeh hater, and devout sausage gravy fan...) Probably not the best gravy to make for her, but, oh well, I tried.

The biscuits turned out pretty well too, except for the fact that I did not have biscuit cutters at the time, and resorted to using a glass. Definitely not the best move on my part, as you can see:  I committed the cardinal sin of biscuit making by twisting the glass to cut through my dough, resulting in no fluffy, flaky sides at all :(

So, one Pampered Chef party later, and I had me some brand new biscuit cutters in FOUR sizes!!

 These work wonderfully! Can you see the difference between the ones above and these?

I though so!

So, for a change of pace, one weekend morning, treat yourself to some home made baked biscuits.  I serve mine piping hot from the oven, with lots of Earth Balance vegan margarine, and blackberry or strawberry jam. A batch of ten can usually serve TWO in my house ^_^