Vegan Lemon Rosemary Crumb Cake

Think Spring! with this Lemon Rosemary Crumb Cake

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup vegan sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup chilled Earth Balance buttery sticks, thinly sliced
• 3/4 teaspoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• scant 1/3 cup plain soy milk
• 1/8 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoon EnerG egg replacer mixed with 2 tablespoons warm water
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
• 3/4 teaspoon water
• Cooking spray
• Fresh rosemary sprigs (optional)
• Lemon slices (optional)

Steps

1. PREHEAT oven to 350F.
2. COAT 8" round cake pan with cooking spray.
3. STIR together 1/3 cup of soy milk and 1/8 teaspoon of vinegar, set aside.
4. COMBINE flour, sugar and salt in a bowl.
5. CUT "butter" into flour mixture using a pastry blender or two knives until crumbly.
6. SET ASIDE 1/2 cup for topping.
7. ADD rosemary, baking powder and baking soda to bowl, combine well.
8. ADD soymilk/vinegar mixture (now "buttermilk"), lemon juice and egg replacer.
9. BEAT with electric mixer until blended.
10. SPOON into prepared cake pan.
11. ADD lemon zest and 3/4 teaspoon of water to reserved 1/2 cup of flour crumbles, and mix with a fork.
12. SPRINKLE crumbs over top of cake.
13. BAKE for ~30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
14. COOL on wire rack.
15. GARNISH with fresh rosemary and lemon.

Vegan Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto

This recipe is inspired by the old days at Strawberry Fields. Life-alteringly delicious on their seeded sourdough baguettes still warm from the oven, it was. Ok, maybe it wasn’t radically transformative, but it was central to dating life with Mr. VegPantry.

This dish turns out differently every time I make it because I don’t really measure any of the ingredients. And yet, each time, we’re transported back to 1995 (good for the marriage, even without baguettes ;-).

Here’s my best shot at the recipe. I can’t promise it will improve your sex love life, but give it a go and let me know!

Vegan Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, rehydrated
• 1 cup toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped
• 3/4 tablespoon fresh garlic, minced and toasted in a little olive oil
• 3/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 2 tablespoon fresh sage, chopped
• salt to taste
• 1/2 cup olive oil

Steps

1. PULSE sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, basil, sage and salt in food processor.
2. DRIZZLE in olive oil as it blends.
3. CLEAN off the sides of the bowl.
4. ADD walnuts.
5. PROCESS for about 15 seconds more.
6. SERVE on everything from bread to pizza to pasta (with a little extra oil added).

Creamy Vegan Potato Mushroom Soup

I adore my new brother in law. Not just because he’s made my little sister so happy, or even just because he loves to make my toddler laugh, but also because he proclaimed my Potato Mushroom Soup to be “the best soup I’ve ever had!” and went back for multiple bowls.


Here are three VegPantry secrets to making a "good" soup "the best":

1. Herbs: Fresh is always best!
2. Mushrooms: A mixture of wild, or even tame (button and baby bella) mushrooms, will enhance the flavor of the most bland meals.
3. Truffle oil: Just one tiny cap full will rock your culinary world!

Now let's see those secrets in action!

Creamy Vegan Potato Mushroom Soup (Makes ~5 large servings)

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 6-8 potatoes (Yukon gold, red or white, peeling optional) - diced
• 1 large carrot, or 2 small ones - sliced
• 2 yellow onions – diced
• 3-5 cloves garlic – minced
• 1/2 lb. mixed variety of wild mushrooms (tame mushrooms work, too) - sliced
• 1/3 - 1/2 cup tamari soy sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoon dried dill (~1 tablespoon, fresh)
• 3/4 teaspoon dried rosemary (~1 1/2 teaspoon, fresh)
• 1 cup water
• 4 cup veggie broth
• 2 cup plain soy milk
• tiny cap full of truffle oil (optional secret ingredient)
• pepper to taste

Directions

1. In a large soup pot, heat oil and add onions. Saute for ~5 minutes.
   
2. Add garlic and carrots. Saute for ~5 more minutes.
3. Add mushrooms, tamari, dill and rosemary. Saute for ~5 minutes until the onions are translucent and carrots are soft. Add 1 cup of water if it starts to bubble so much that the veggies start to stick.
4. Add diced potatoes to the pot, along with the veggie broth (and water if it not added already). Bring to a boil and simmer until potatoes are soft, approximately 15-20 minutes.
5. Add soy milk and heat just to warm through. Add truffle oil and pepper.
   
6. Serve and yum!

Vegan Pantry Spotlight: Foods Rich in B Vitamins

Finding vegan sources of key nutrients can seem challenging unless you know where to look. Happily, by stocking your pantry with just a few power foods, many concerns of vegan diet skeptics can be assuaged (provided, of course, you eat them ;-).

Today's spotlight is on B vitamin-rich foods in my vegan pantry.

• Crimini Mushrooms - Raw is best, but I keep dry ones on hand in the pantry for throwing into soups, sauces and sides. Mushrooms are an excellent source of vitamins B3-niacin, B5-pantothenic acid, B2-riboflavin, B1-thiamin and B6


• Sea Vegetables - Grind kelp or a combination of various seaweeds (arame, wakame, or nori) in a spice grinder and keep on hand for seasoning dishes with taste of the sea. Excellent sources of B3-niacin and even a little B12


• Sunflower seeds - Toss them into muffins, breads, salads or just eat them raw. Great way to get B5-pantothenic acid and B1-thiamin


• Nutritional yeast - what's a vegan pantry without it?? Personally, I think it's one of the strangest things in my pantry. And yet, over the years it's grown on me - like the fungus it is ;-). If you want to give something a "cheese-like flavor", try throwing a bit of this in (but go easy at first...the flavor takes some getting used to). My toddler's favorite (daily) meal is noodles with Earth Balance and nutritional yeast, so I rest easy that his all-important B12 requirement is met.


• Yeast extract paste - speaking of weird, don't forget your Marmite or Vegemite for spreading on toast with Earth Balance and perhaps a slice of vegan cheese. A tiny amount is all you'll need (or want, IMHO) to get a kick of B3-niacin, B2-riboflavin and B1-thiamin. Marmite is easier to find in the U.S. and is fortified with B12. Vegemite lacks B12, but given my taste for Australians, I find it more to my liking than Marmite ;-).


• In lesser amounts, you can find also find B vitamins in these pantry items:
  
  
  • Tamari
  • Peanuts
  • Soybeans
  • Almonds
  • Oats
  • Split peas
  • Lentils
  • Navy beans
  • Lima beans
  • Pinto beans
  • Sesame seeds
  • Kidney beans
  • Cayenne pepper
  • Tumeric
  • Blackstrap molasses
  • Flaxseeds

Then, of course there's a huge number of fresh foods that can help ensure your getting your B vitamin fill. For the complete list of these, explanations of what these vitamins do, and how you can tell if you're getting enough, visit the George Mateljan Foundation website of the World's Healthiest Foods and search for your nutrient of choice.

Be well!

Vegan Pizza Night

It's Friday night! Time to crack open your favorite beer (we'll be having a New Belgium Fat Tire, watch a movie (TBD) and chow down on some 'za!

Here's a quick, easy recipe for when you'd rather spend time chillin' than cookin' ...


Mediterranean Pizza

Ingredients

• 1 can (14oz) artichoke hearts in water, drained
• 1/4 cup olive oil + 1 tablespoon for sautéing
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, rehydrated and cut into thin strips
• 2 tablespoons of pine nuts
• 1/4 pound (4 ounces) mushrooms, sliced
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1 vegan pizza crust
• 1 cup shredded vegan mozzarella (optional - I make mine without, but if I could afford it, I'd make it with Teese)
• vegan Parmesan grated topping
(optional)

Steps

1. PREHEAT oven to 400° F (or crust instructions).
2. PUREE artichoke hears and 1/4 cup of olive oil in food processor
3. SAUTE garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, pine nuts, mushrooms and basil for ~5 minutes over med-high heat.
4. SPREAD artichoke puree over entire pizza crust (we only use 1/2 of the puree because we don't like tons of sauce; and we freeze the rest for pizza another night) and top with veggies, nuts and cheez (if you're using any)
5. BAKE for 10-12 minutes (or according to package instructions), directly on oven rack.
6. SPRINKLE with Parmesan and
7. Enjoy!

Vegan Beet Burgers

I'm not a huge fan of tubers, but I'm married to an Australian. Wait! That didn't come out right! What I mean is that some Australians (for reasons I'm sure someone will one day explain to me) like beets on their burgers (eggs too, but we'll not go there).

Anyway, here's how to satisfy your mates without harming an animal.


Vegan Beet Burgers
Adapted from Recipes from America's Small Farms

Ingredients

• 2 cups raw beets, peeled and grated
• 2 cups raw carrots, grated
• 1 cup rice, cooked
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds, toasted
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted
• 1/2 cup sesame seeds, toasted
• (optional) 1/2 cup walnuts, toasted
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1 tablespoon EnerG egg replacer mixed with 4 tablespoons warm water
• 1/2 cup onion, grated
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons tamari
• ground pepper to taste

Steps

1. PREHEAT oven to 350° F.
2. GREASE baking sheet.
3. COMBINE all ingredients in large bowl.
4. FORM into patties.
5. BAKE for 25-30 minutes, flipping each patty over half-way through baking.

Vegan Household Chocolate Chip Cookies

I think I've tried at least a dozen vegan chocolate chip cookie recipes. But each and every one seriously disappointed me. While the recipes, standing alone, were quite good; they never lived up to the heights of cookie greatness that is the Nestle® Toll House® Chocolate Chip Cookie (NTHCCC).

I'm ashamed to admit it, but I loved those cookies. Now, I wouldn't buy a Nestle product even if it didn't have animal products in it, but there's no reason I shouldn't try to make their cookie recipe my own.

Why it took me so long to come up with this strategy, I can not possibly say. But today, I took the plunge and am here to say, "You've gotta do it if you're jonesin' for the good ol' chocolate chip cookie days of your youth!" Veganizing the original NTHCCC is fun and easy!

Vegan Household Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) Earth Balance vegan buttery sticks, softened
• 3/4 cup vegan granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed vegan brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon EnerG egg replacer mixed with 4 tablespoons warm water
• 2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) vegan chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped nuts

Steps

1. PREHEAT oven to 375° F.
2. COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl.
   
3. BEAT buttery sticks, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy.
   
4. ADD egg replacer and beat well.
   
5. Gradually BEAT in flour mixture.
   
6. STIR in chocolate chips and nuts.
   
7. DROP rounded 1 1/2 teaspoon onto baking sheets covered with parchment paper.
8. BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown.
   
9. COOL on baking sheets for 2 minutes.
10. REMOVE to wire racks to cool completely.

It's OK, go ahead. Nibble a warm one and wash it down with an ice-cold glass of your favorite animal-free beverage. Aaaaaah!

Vegan Side Dish: Balsamic-Roasted Broccoli

In general, I'm not big on side dishes. If I can't get a full meal in one dish, forget it. However, every now and again I get a little crazy and serve up something that requires separate dishes to make the meal complete.

Thankfully, Mr. VegPantry has the cure for side-dish blues ...

Balsamic-Roasted Broccoli

Ingredients

• 12 oz. or 4 cups fresh broccoli florets, chopped into bite-size pieces
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cloves (1 teaspoon) fresh garlic, finely diced
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Whisk oil, garlic, balsamic and pepper together in a small bowl.
3. Pour over broccoli and toss to cover evenly.
4. Place on ungreased baking sheet.
5. Bake for 7 minutes (or until broccoli turns bright green).

Green Rice

Toddlers are notoriously picky eaters. Mine is no exception. Well, with the exception that collard greens are his favorite vegetable. In fact, they are about the only veggie he'll eat. But I'm not complaining.

Look at that nutritional data.

Vitamin A, C, K (wow!), folate and calcium! It's a beautiful thing.

So, give this recipe a try and let me know if it works for you.

Green Rice

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cube Not-Chick'n Bouillon


• 2 1/2 cups water


• 1 cup brown rice, rinsed


• 2 cups collard greens, stems removed and finely chopped


• pinch of salt

Alternative cooking liquid: home-made vegetable broth

Alternative greens: kale or broccoli

PROCEDURE

1. Put water and bouillon cube into saucepan and bring to a boil.


2. Prepare collard greens by rolling the leaves into a tube, slicing finely, then chopping. Add rice and bring to boil again.


3. Stir in collard greens and pinch of salt.


4. Bring to boil and reduce heat.


5. Cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes (or until all of the water is absorbed).


6. Fluff and serve.


7. Enjoy!

I Can't Believe It's Vegan!

There are so many things that fall under the "I can't believe it's vegan!" category, but one of my favorites is Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry (PFPP). Rarely will you hear me shouting from the rooftops about an overly-processed food such as this. However, these miraculous sheets of dough are so light, fluffy and delicious, I can't help myself. For quick, easy, beautiful and yumlicious fruit turnovers, look no further than these ...

Fruit Turnovers

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Sheet PFPP
• 6 Tablespoons Raspberry Jam
• 4 1/2 Tablespoons Crushed Almonds (optional)

Alternative filling: 2 Tablespoons Softened Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks, mixed with 1/4 Cup Vegan Brown Sugar and 2 Teaspoons of Cinnamon

Cut a sheet of PFPP into 9 small squares. If you want them fancy, lightly press tiny cookie cutters in to the lower right-hand corner of the dough. I used these Pampered Chef cookie cutters. Turn each square over so that the design is upside down, and now on the upper left corner.

Put approximately 2 Teaspoons of Jam and 1 1/2 Teaspoons of Almonds (or 2 Teaspoons of Alternative) into the center of each square. Fold upper left corner over, down to the lower right corner to make a triangle shape. Press dough together with a fork on the two open sides. Bake on un-greased cookie sheet according to Pastry box instructions.

ICING

• 3/4 cup Organic/Vegan Powdered Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Soy Milk
• Tiny splash of Almond or Vanilla Extract

Mix until smooth, and drizzle over cooled pastries.

Easy Vegan Recipes

One of the strategies we talked about for making a vegan meal from the ingredients that are in the pantry right now (right now!), is to make simple meals with few ingredients. As a bonus, simpler meals are usually easier to make, take less time, and are good for you. Living simply is just an all-round great goal. So, let’s look at some simple vegan recipes.

We’ll start with the basic …

Seitan Patties

Ingredients

• 1 cup wheat gluten
• 1 1/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons tamari
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Optional:
• 1/2 medium onion (diced)
• 1 clove garlic (minced)
• pepper (to taste)
  
• 1 teaspoon cumin or oregano
  

Procedure

1. Stir the tamari into the water.
2. Mix the dry gluten with any of the optional ingredients.
3. Steadily pour the dry mixture into the liquid and stir to make a sticky dough.
4. Knead a little (not too much!) and form into patties. The number depends on what size you like your patties.
   
5. Heat the olive oil to medium high in a non-stick frying pan.
6. Sear the patties on both sides for 5 minutes or until golden brown.

Wrap between two thick slices of whole wheat bread and whatever salad you have on hand, maybe a little relish, and you’ve got a tasty sandwich.

Quick, easy lunch or dinner right there, and the only thing you could run out of is gluten or tamari. Even the olive oil is optional really, although you should be careful not to run out of good quality olive oil, since it is one of the best gifts that the Earth gives to us. If you doubt this fact, then simply, you have never had good olive oil, and should make it a priority in your life to taste some.

Add a microbrew and bright sunshine, and it’s another day in paradise. Ha, sorry, I’m just jonesing for Summer. I don’t know about you, but it is damn cold where I am right now. I guess we should talk about some Winter vegan food next time ;)

Pantry Spotlight

Today's Vegan Pantry Spotlight is on black walnuts. Now don't confuse these with your average, run-of-the-mill, English walnuts. Boring!

No, what I'm talking about are these gorgeous, home-grown American nuts. And I am completely mad for them. They are my favorite thing in Jumbleberry Pantry right now.

Apart from having all manner of nutritional benefits including the elusive Omega-3 polyunsaturated fat, the flavor is uniquely outstanding. While they make everything taste better, black walnuts have the extra-special ability to transform a good banana bread into "the most delicious thing I've ever tasted!!"

It helps to have a yummy banana bread recipe to start with, of course. But, I can't share that with you right now. You see, I've just discovered my favorite vegan banana bread recipe, but it hasn't been published yet. I'm currently testing recipes for an new Little Things Are Big cookbook, and wow! Does she have an excellent one. I'll let you know as soon as her cookbook is available.

In the meantime, pour yourself a steaming cuppa joe or tea, and join me in a virtual slice of Black Walnut Banana Bread.

Out of Ingredients for Vegan Recipes

If you’re like me, then you are always running out of ingredients for vegan recipes. Just when you’re ready to make your favorite recipe, or even half way through making it, you discover that you’re out of some key ingredient. It’s a downer. So what can be done to avoid this situation?

Well of course, you could just have a huge pantry, stocked at all times with 6 months of food. And actually, vegans are ahead here. Grains, seeds, nuts, flours, cereals, pastas, dried fruits and the various spices all store really well. But not everyone has, or wants to have, that sort of space dedicated to a pantry. And most urban vegans don’t really have a choice. Living downtown has lots of advantages, but huge kitchen pantries aren’t typically one of them.

So what about us just-in-timers? Ingredient substitution comes naturally to vegans, so let’s have a look at that first. And I’m not talking about substituting Chikenx™ into your uncle’s favorite Chicken Noodle Bake recipe. Actually, let me go off on a rant here ... don’t do the whole fake meat thing. It’s less popular than it once was, but I still see supermarket refrigerators filled with the stuff. I’m not buying it, but someone is. Why shouldn’t you buy it? Well, first off, it doesn’t taste good. That’s a pretty big minus right there. But more, the recipe isn’t designed for it. Recipes are works of art. Even the simplest recipes. You wouldn’t splice electronica into the middle of a symphony, so you shouldn’t expect anything but mud to result from a Frankenstein recipe. Part of the reason you became a vegan was to re-establish some sort of harmony with nature. Fake meat doesn’t do that.

Okay, enough ranting. So how can ingredient substitution help us out when the cupboard is bare? Well, if you’re out of arrowroot, most of the time you can substitute cornstarch. If you’re out of egg replacer, then sometimes you can use arrowroot, sometimes milled flax seed, and sometimes even a mashed banana will do (it depends on the recipe). You can sometimes even substitute in different spices. You have to be careful. It will change the flavor, but not always for the worse. Safe ingredient substitutions. Hints, tips and an idea of the results. I think that will be one good topic for this blog.

But of course, ingredient substitutions only work if ... you have the substitute ingredient. What can you do if you’re just plain running low on stuff? This is a tough question, but one strategy is to have a backup collection of very simple vegan recipes. If the number of ingredients is small, then there is less chance you’ll be out of one of the ingredients :D So I think that’ll be another good topic for this blog, simple vegan recipes (and recipies ;).

Vegan Recipes

I'm always collecting new vegan recipes (and vegan recipies :D why do I always misspell that?). I have a shelf full of vegan cookbooks, and folders full of vegan recipes given to me by friends and downloaded from the web. I'm usually a pretty good meal planner. I usually have a pantry stocked full of everything you need to make a great vegan dish - chickpeas, lentils, grains, greens and dozens of spices. But sometimes ... sometimes I take a look at the recipe for the meal that I have planned, and I'm missing some key ingredient. Ughh. Frustration. Then I'm faced with a shelf of cookbooks and folders, or its back to rice and beans ... again.

Some people are amazing cooks. They can just go to their pantry, and instantly, a recipe forms in their mind that only uses the ingredients in front of them. I wish I could do that. I really wish I could do that. So I'm starting this blog.

The idea is to find a way to put together a great vegan recipe with whatever is in the pantry and whatever is in the fridge right now. I know that, together, we'll find a way to do just that.