Salisbury.Fake dinner, food

Stuffed Peppers with Bulgar

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Small update: I bought a house.  I’m still learning the limitations of my kitchen and the space I have at the moment, but I’ll be up and running better soon.  This recipe is pretty flexible.  You can use just about anything in it you’d like to.  I went for a rather basic approach this time around.  Bulgar wheat for the grain, black beans and TVP for the protein, and corn to round it out with a bit of sweetness to offset the heat of the chipotle powder.  This whole thing comes together within half an hour and is perfect for meatless Mondays if you’re trying to reduce your consumption of meat.

Ingredients:

6 bell peppers, cut in half, or you can leave them whole and just cut the tops off.
3/4 cup TVP
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can sweet corn, drained and rinsed
3/4 cup bulgar, cooked (I made mine like pasta, and just drained through a fine mesh sieve)
1 tsp garlic and onion powder
1 tsp chipotle powder
1 tsp Better than Bullion paste (no chicken veg base) Or you can use vegetable stock, or just water.
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 cup water
Salt to taste

Optional bread crumb toppin: 1 heaping cup of panko bread crumbs, 2 tbsp butter (I used Country Crock’s vegan butter).  Toast breadcrumbs in a skillet till golden brown, set aside.  I shredded in some Violife parmesan cheese as well.

Method:

Cook the bulgar and set aside.  In a large skillet, dissolve bullion paste in 1/2 a cup of water and add the TVP.  Allow this to cook over medium heat until the water is absorbed into the TVP, adding more water as needed to keep it from sticking.  Add in the remaining ingredients except the peppers and topping (if using) and mix well.  Cook for about five minutes until everything is fragrant and heated through.

In a shallow baking dish, spread peppers out so they are laying cut side up.  Fill each pepper half (or if you’re using the whole pepper, fill it entirely), leaving a little room at the top for the breadcrumb topping, if using.  Sprinkle with topping and bake at 375* F for 20 minutes, or until breadcrumbs are a deep golden color and the peppers are just starting to soften.

This recipe freezes well, and leftover filling can be used for multiple dinners as well.

Salisbury.Fake baking, food

Rye Bread

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If you’re after a hearty brown bread, this is it.  I’ve made a lot of bread in my life, and this is by far my favorite in terms of flavor.  I admittedly underbaked mine, so I recommend going to 40-45 minutes when baking, but the result is a chewy, delicious bread.

Another note: the coarseness of the rye will rip the gluten strands during kneading, but that’s why we add extra all purpose flour.  You could do this with bread flour, but I’d test the dough after the 3 cups are added.  You could also add in 2 tbsps of vital wheat gluten if you don’t have bread flour, but I didn’t use it in this recipe because I don’t know who all has such an ingredient.

The coarser flour tends to hydrate faster since there’s not as much gluten in it, so combining the white and the rye flour helps balance.  Test your dough after adding three cups and add in the fourth cup during the kneading process if you notice it’s still too wet.  I think in total I had 4 and 1/3 cups flour.  It might be different for you, though.  The dough should be slightly tacky, but not sticky.

Ingredients and Method:

1 tbsp + 1 tsp yeast (active dry)
2 cups warm water
2 scant tsps sugar

Combine these into a large bowl and whisk to dissolve the sugar and yeast.  Let sit for 10 minutes–really do let it sit for ten minutes.  The yeast needs time with this type of bread.

2 tbsp melted butter (I used plant based)
1 tbsp kosher salt
2 cups rye flour
3-4 cups all purpose flour

Stir in flours, salt, and butter, and mix until a dough forms.  Once dough forms into a ball, move to a well floured surface and knead for 10 minutes, adding more flour as needed to prevent dough from sticking to the surface.  This part could also be done in a stand mixer, but as I make bread by hand, I don’t have time measurements for how long to let it go in a mixer.  The dough should spring back when gently pressed.

Set dough in a bowl in a warm place, loosely covered, until doubled in size.  Since it’s a heavier bread, it’ll take longer than an hour.  Mine took about 1 hour and 45 minutes.

Gently fold dough out of the bowl onto a clean surface, floured if dough is tacky, and divide into loaves.  Grease loaf pans and let rise again for 45 minutes.  Preheat the oven to 400* F in the last fifteen minutes of the rise time.  Bake at 400 for 5 minutes, and then lower the temperature to 375 to finish baking.  This bread will take a bit to bake.  I recommend checking it at the half hour mark, but it’ll probably take closer to 45 minutes.

Remove from pans and let cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.  Makes 2 loaves.

Salisbury.Fake dinner, food

Vegan Lasagna Roll-Ups

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Hello!  This week? Lasagna roll ups!  These are about the same amount of work as a traditional lasagna, but they’re individually portioned, making for easier serving and portion control.  Serve with salad for a complete meal.  See my notes at the bottom for clarification on ingredients.  Otherwise? Let’s get you rollin’.

For the tofu ricotta:

1 block of firm tofu, drained and pressed*
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp plant milk (I used oat)
1 tsp  salt
1/2 tsp each garlic and onion powder
1/4 tsp citric acid*

For the “meat” sauce:

1 cup of TVP*
1/2 cup of vegetable broth
1 15 oz can of tomato sauce
1 tsp of dried basil
1 tsp of dried oregano
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of black pepper

Boil water and prepare 6 lasagna noodles according to package directions, cooking to al dente.  The pasta will finish cooking in the oven.

In a food processor, crumble the tofu and then pulse for about ten times.  Add in the remaining ingredients and process till the mixture is smooth.  Adjust for seasonings if you want more salt or more pepper, or add in more nutritional yeast if you’d like.  Honestly, this “ricotta” is the closest tasting to actual ricotta I’ve had yet, so I recommend making it as listed above.  Once it’s combined with the sauce and the pasta, the flavors work really well together.

In a small mixing bowl, combine the TVP and the vegetable broth and allow to rehydrate for about ten minutes.  Add in about 3/4 of the can of tomato sauce, and add in the remaining ingredients.  Combine, and set aside.

For the rolling, I used a baking sheet to hold the pasta so I wouldn’t make a mess on the countertop, but you don’t have to.  You’ll need a smaller baking dish for this, since there’s only six servings in this recipe.  I recommend glass.  If you want to make more, simply double the recipe and use a bigger baking dish.

Once the pasta is al dente, drain and return to the pot.  Take one noodle and lay it flat on the baking sheet (or countertop).  Spread the ricotta down first, using about 1/3 of a cup per noodle.  Spoon on some of the sauce, again about a 1/3 of a cup.  Roll from the bottom up, and place in a well greased baking dish.  Repeat with the remaining pasta till all is used.  You might have some ricotta left over.  Simply store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days.  Use the remaining tomato sauce in the can by mixing it with any leftover sauce in your mixing bowl.  Spoon onto each roll up.

I put some Daiya mozzarella style shreds on top of my roll ups, but you don’t have to.  Bake at 375* F for about 25-30 minutes.  Serves six.

You could also get this prepared and then freeze until ready to use.  I’d recommend only for a maximum of three months, though.

*Notes*

Ricotta:  Draining and pressing the tofu is a big step for this.  I usually don’t press my tofu, just squeeze as much water out as I can, but for this I pressed it.  Doing so gets rid of even more excess water and won’t make the tofu runny.  I also used citric acid because I didn’t want the flavor of lemon in my ricotta.  You absolutely don’t have to go out and buy citric acid to make this.  Use a tablespoon of lemon juice, or two teaspoons of apple cider vinegar instead.

Sauce:  Instead of TVP, you can use frozen “beef” crumbles, such as Gardein, etc.  Brown the crumbles first, though, before mixing into the sauce.  You can also use a jarred sauce you know you like instead of making the sauce above.  Personally, I don’t enjoy chunky sauces.

Salisbury.Fake dinner, food

Roasted Poblano and Split Pea Soup with Sunchoke

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A few notes before we get started:

  1. You can roast the poblano in the oven at 400* F for about 10-15 minutes, or until the skin is blistering.  You won’t have the same char effect as you would if you held it with tongs over the gas stove.  The main reason for roasting the pepper is to remove the skin anyway.  Or as much of it as you can.
  2. You can leave out the poblano entirely if you’d prefer to have it less spicy.
  3. This soup thickens quite a bit after it’s cooled, and oddly looks like custard once it’s been in the fridge.  To reheat, simply add enough water to reach your desired consistency and either reheat in a saucepan or in the microwave.  This soup will also freeze for up to 1 month.

Let’s get into it.

Ingredients

2 quarts (8 cups) vegetable stock — I used Better Than Bullion vegetable base NOT their vegetarian chicken broth base.
1 1/2 cups split peas, sorted and rinsed
1 poblano pepper, minced once it’s been roasted and peeled
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional, but it adds a bacony flavor to the soup)
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

Taste for salt, add if needed along the way.  I didn’t need any extra salt with the Better Than Bullion paste.

Method

Bring stock to a boil in a large pot.  Add in all of the remaining ingredients and lower to a simmer.  Continue to simmer until peas are starting to mush together, almost like mashed potatoes.  I know it sounds gross, but it’s what I’ve got.  Puree part or all of the soup, or leave as is.  This serves four in normal portions, three in not normal portions.

For the sunchoke — otherwise known as the Jerusalem Artichoke:

This works for any size sunchoke, but I recommend only preparing as many as you plan on serving.  Clean thoroughly before placing on a baking tray.  Pierce with a fork a few times, and then bake at 375* F for half an hour.  The fork should go through easily, but don’t go all the way through.  Once sunchokes are fork tender, smash with the bottom of a glass and sprinkle salt and pepper on top, adding a small bit of butter as well, if desired.  Put back in the oven for another 7 minutes before removing the tray and flipping the sunchokes over (carefully), and finish baking for the remaining 7 minutes.

Serve without intending for leftovers.  They don’t hold up well in the fridge after 2 days.

Salisbury.Fake dinner, food

Vegan Carbonara with Tofu Pancetta

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photo by c.m.k.

Happy Friday!

Today we’re talking carbonara.  Minus the eggs.  I’ve tried other recipes before, and found they lacked the same mouthfeel straight-up carbonara has, and I think I’ve cracked the code.

The secret to this sauce is aquafaba.  Using that mimics the feeling eggs give this sauce.  Add a few other flavorings and you’re all set for a classic good time.  We’re not going to go into a huge story here, just the recipe.  Perfect for a quick lunch or midweek dinner.  Serve with a salad on the side, and you’ve got an easy entertaining meal for friends on the weekend.

Vegan Carbonara

1 1/3 cup aquafaba
1/2 cup unsweetened plant milk
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 cup olive oil (or other neutral flavor)
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp salt (or to taste)
1/2 tsp white miso paste (optional, but highly suggested)
1/2 tsp black pepper (seems like a lot, but please feel free to use to your preference)

Heat aquafaba to simmering.  Add in remaining ingredients and heat to a slow boil.  Reduce back to a simmer, and allow to simmer for fifteen minutes.  Add sauce to al dente pasta and continue cooking till pasta has absorbed sauce.

Tofu Pancetta

1 block of extra firm tofu, drained and pressed

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photo by c.m.k.

2 tbsp liquid smoke
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce (vegan friendly)
1/3 cup soy sauce/tamari
black pepper to taste
2 tsp sweetener of choice (I used maple syrup)
3 tbsp oil for frying

Small dice the tofu into cubes.  Mix marinade (liquid smoke, worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, sweetener, black pepper) in a shallow baking dish.  Add tofu and allow to marinate for at least thirty minutes, but longer is fine.  I’d say overnight if you can manage it.

Line on a baking tray and bake for 15 minutes at 375* F.  Let rest for a few minutes before tossing in a skillet with reserved 3 tbsp oil, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce, and 1 tsp liquid smoke.  This just seals in more flavor.

Serve with your carbonara for a bit of salty crunch with your pasta.  If you don’t want to use all of the pancetta for your pasta, it works well on top of salads, and could also be used as bacon bits for potatoes.

I hope you enjoy!