Counter Culture Coffee

Blog #21 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

It is the last day of the challenge and I met, and exceeded, my goal. I promised myself that I would post 20 blogs during the month of November to support the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge and I did it! Today is blog number 21.

In my last MoFo blog, I am focusing on coffee. There is an awesome roaster headquartered in Durham, NC called Counter Culture Coffee. They roast sustainable, organic, fair trade, and direct trade coffee. They go above and beyond most other roasters. They spend time with the growers on their farms to build long-lasting relationships. Through this they encourage ecologically responsible cultivation methods and excellent working conditions. They pay a high price for their coffee so they can get the best organic beans. In addition, they care about their carbon footprint by purchasing shade-grown, certified organic, and sustainably produced coffee and have also set goals for carbon neutrality by 2015.

Unroasted coffee beans

As if all of that wasn't enough, they also make the best coffee I have ever tasted! They pay special attention to the way in which the bean is roasted and brewed. Every detail from the type of machine used to the filtration of the water is important to them. And, it shows!

A friend works at Counter Culture and she informed me of the cuppings that they hold every Friday at 10am. I recently went with John, my Mom, and brother and found the cupping to be fun and informative. If you are in Durham or near any of the other training centers, I highly recommend that you attend a cupping to learn more about the nuances of roasting, brewing, and tasting.

Mom, bro-David, and John at the cupping

Me, be-David, and John at the cupping

The Counter Culture folks are crazy about coffee and it shows. This is the one thing that I enjoy every day and I want the time and attention paid to the beans that I drink. They have made two new customers out of me and John. I can't possibly imagine buying any other coffee after knowing what I know about the practices they use and the taste of the coffee! Lucky for us, Whole Foods carries their coffee in Durham.

Free shot of awesome espresso. Underneath it is my cupping form.

Check to see if a local store near you carries their coffee. If you can't find it, you can also order coffee directly from them on their website! Happy sipping!

Tofu Fried Rice and Stir Fried Broccolini

I love Asian food. I think I could eat it almost every day. I can't think of an Asian dish that I haven't liked. Since going gluten free, I have found it difficult to eat Asian food out because soy sauce is in most dishes and it contains wheat. I have been pretty sad about Thai food because that is my absolute favorite type of food!

Even before going gf, we never went out for Chinese food. I enjoy the flavor, but it usually has too much oil or more sauce than I would like. I always feel very full and heavy after eating American made Chinese food. We make a fair amount of stir fries and noodle dishes at home and enjoy them more than going out. We usually don't use a recipe and make it up as we go along.

Now that Thanksgiving was over, we decided to decorate. John suggested that if I cooked dinner, he would get down all of the Christmas decorations and set up our faux Christmas tree. I gladly accepted because I would rather decorate than get out boxes and set up the actual tree. So, while he decorated I cooked. The following are the recipes that I came up with.

Tofu Fried Rice

• 2 cups of brown rice
• 2 cups of water
  
• 1 package of extra firm tofu, cubed
  
• Vegetable oil or spray
• 3 scallions, chopped
  
• 3 carrots, chopped into small pieces
  
• 1/2 cup frozen or fresh green peas
• Gluten free, reduced sodium soy sauce

Prepare the brown rice per package instructions. We used a rice cooker and steamed the rice. Heat up a wok or a large frying pan on medium high heat. Non-stick works best. Add a small amount of oil or spray and add in the tofu when the pan is hot. Cook for several minutes and then add the scallions and carrots. Cook until the tofu is golden brown and the carrots are tender. When finished, remove the tofu mixture from pan and set it aside.

When the rice is finished cooking, set it aside and prepare your wok again. Heat the wok to medium high and add oil or spray (don't use too much or your rice will be greasy). Once the oil is very hot, add in the rice. Allow the rice to cook about a minute or so before stirring. When your rice is starting to get crispy, add in soy sauce. We don't like very salty foods, so we add in less than a tablespoon. The rice will continue to get crispy. When it is crispy enough for your taste, add back in the tofu mixture and add more soy sauce as needed. About a minute before the rice is finished, add in the peas.

Remove from heat and serve with vegetables!

Stir Fried Brocolini

• Vegetable oil or spray
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
  
• 1.5 inch chuck of fresh ginger, grated
  
• 1.5 teaspoons of cornstarch
• 1/2 cup of homemade, no salt vegetable broth or water
• Gluten free, reduced sodium soy sauce
• 2 bunches of broccolini or broccoli, chopped stems included
  

Heat a wok or non-stick pan to medium heat. Add in a small amount of oil or spray. Less is better here. When the oil is hot, add in the garlic and ginger and let it cook for several minutes to become aromatic. Add in brocolini and cook for about 3-5 minutes. The broccolini should just become tender at this point.

In the meantime, mix the cornstarch with the broth. Whisk or stir to combine. When combined, add soy sauce to taste. We probably added about a teaspoon. When combined thoroughly, add it to the broccolini and cook for several minutes longer.

Remove from heat and serve!

We enjoyed the stir fried broccolini over the fried rice. We both enjoyed the meal and agreed to have it again soon.

Pumpkin Polenta

Blog #19 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

I love Autumn and making meals with pumpkin. I came across a recipe for pumpkin polenta from a gluten free blogger and was enticed. It had a combination of coconut milk and pumpkin, topped with a tomatillo salsa. The pictures on the blog were so beautiful and the pairings of flavors sounded delightful. I am not a huge fan of pumpkin, or any squash for that matter, being made with a sweetener, so lessened the amount of agave nectar.

I got out all of my ingredients and got to work following the instructions. The recipe called for a full tablespoon of agave nectar, but I only used about a teaspoon. The end result of the polenta was just beautiful. It looked so rich that I couldn't wait to try it.

I then got to work on the tomatillo salsa. This recipe also called for agave nectar and I did not want to add it here either. I am sure it tastes great just as the recipe was written, but was not in the mood for a sweetened salsa. So, I just added a dash of the agave nectar.

After all of the preparation, I placed the polenta in a bowl and served it with several spoonfuls of the salsa. I thoroughly enjoyed the flavor of the polenta and salsa, but not together. I ate all of the salsa off of the top and then enjoyed the polenta alone. It had such a rich pumpkin flavor and warmed me inside. I can certainly see us making the polenta for a meal again. I also see us making the salsa in the summer to serve with chips.

Sometimes recipes and meals don't always work out as planned, but we learn from the ones that aren't perfect. After cooking for so many years, I tend to know what I like and when to leave out an ingredient. I am almost certain that if I would have put in the full amount of agave nectar, I wouldn't have liked the meal at all. My point is that the more you take the time to make meals, from scratch, the more you will learn.

Happy vegan and gluten free cooking!

Sugar Free and Raw Cranberry Sauce

Blog #18 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

A friend told me about Dr. Furhman's recipe for raw cranberry sauce and I decided to give it a try the day after Thanksgiving. I watched the YouTube video, giggled a bit, and then made the sauce.




The preparation for the sauce made the house smell lovely and reminded me of fall. I love cranberry sauce and am always looking for a new recipe. I was enticed by this one because it has three ingredients, is raw, and takes less than 10 minutes to prepare.

I got out all of the ingredients and put them into our food processor. Note that this can be a bit messy as some came out the top of the processor.

The end result was a vibrant and beautiful sauce for our family to enjoy. My Mom liked it but, felt that there was too much orange peel. John and I loved the sauce! It was fresh and bursting with flavor. I agree with my Mom's suggestion and plan to make it again with only using about half of the peel that I used. My niece, Helena, loved the sauce. She had several scoops of it. Upon first bite, she made a strange face, but then begged for more. It is a bit tart, but the tartness is what I love and expect from a good cranberry sauce.

This is the type of sauce you can feel good about. It is raw, has few ingredients, is sugarless, gluten free, healthy, and full of vitamins!

Chocolate Chip and Blueberry Pancakes

Blog #17 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

I have posted about blueberry pancakes before, but felt it was time again. Before going gluten free, we used to make pancakes from scratch with wheat flour. Now that I have made the switch to gf, we buy Bob's Red Mill Pancake Mix. I prefer to make food from scratch, but it has gotten more complicated at times and it is sometimes nice to use a mix that is premade. With this mix, you just add in your favorite non-dairy milk, a little oil, and egg replacer. To make these cakes my own, I add in blueberries, chocolate chips, a dash of cinnamon, and vanilla.

The process is quite simple. You mix the egg replacer with water and mix it in with the remaining ingredients. I usually use organic frozen berries, so the mix turns a purplish blue. When the pan is nice and hot, you pour enough batter out for your first cake. Then, you let them roll.

The best part is taking them out of the pan and onto your plate to enjoy. We serve them with fresh fruit, vegan margarine, maple syrup, cut up raw veggies, and sometimes tofu or tempeh bacon. It is a sweet treat that we don't eat often, but when we do we love them!

Even if your not gf, give this mix a try sometime. It makes fluffy and rich pancakes and you would never know that they were gluten free!

Adopt a Turkey

Blog #16 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

Thanksgiving week is a difficult week for me. I am always reminded of my grandfather's death on Thanksgiving in 1999. It is also not in my list of favorite holiday weeks because I am saddened by the staggering number of turkeys that are slaughtered for this holiday. Several sources, including PETA, share that nearly 45 million turkeys are killed for Thanksgiving alone. That is just for one day!

I am always so disgusted that our way of giving thanks is by senselessly slaughtering millions of innocent birds. What a sad and disrespectful way to give thanks. I would think that we should be honoring life.

To do my part to reject this ridiculous tradition, I attend the Triangle Vegetarian's Society Vegan Thanksgiving celebration. This celebration welcomes over 800 people to share in an all vegan, cruelty-free meal. It is a pretty awesome event with wonderful food and great people.

John and I thought we needed to do more this year, so we decided to Adopt-A-Turkey through the Farm Sanctuary. The Farm Sanctuary rescues turkeys and places them into loving homes. Now, we didn't actually get a turkey to come and live at our home, we just donated money to have a turkey saved. The organization also has adoption events, educates the public, and provides resources for cruelty free holiday eating. I hope next year to save two turkeys, but this year we started with one.

As you think about giving thanks this year, consider adopting a turkey, eating a vegetarian/vegan Thanksgiving meal, and taking a stand against animal cruelty. I'll leave you with a quote from Bruce Friedrich from The Huffington Post.

"Vegetarianism allows me to live my values -- to "pray ceaselessly," as St. Paul puts it: Every time I sit down to eat, I cast my lot: for mercy, against misery; for the oppressed, against the oppressor; and for compassion, against cruelty. There is a lot of suffering in the world, but how much suffering can be addressed with literally no time or effort on our part? We can just stop supporting it, by making different choices"

Zucchini Pancakes (GF)

Blog #15 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

I have fond memories in my childhood of going to Pittsburgh in the summer for a week to visit my great Aunt and other extended family members. My Mom, grandma (also known as Ma), Aunt Marcia, and several cousins used to join us there. My Aunt lived in an old city row house in the section of Pittsburgh known as Bloomfield. It was known for being the Italian section of the city. I have so many wonderful memories with my family. This was the Italian side of the family, so good food was always present and delicious! My great Aunt and great Grandma used to make gnocchi, homemade sauce, polenta, pizzels, aglio oglio, and many other special dishes that came from my ancestors in Italy.

One of my favorites were zucchini pancakes. It wasn't really a pancake, it was more like a zucchini blob. It was a tasty blob though! It had flour, eggs, zucchini, parmesan, milk/water, and spices. I used to help my great Aunt make them and they always remind me of her when I think of them. She passed away last Christmas.

I wanted to have them again and thought that it would be easy to veganize the recipe. However, when I learned I had to be GF, I thought that possibility of that was gone. Then I came across a fellow Vegan MoFo blogger named Mandee, from Australia. She runs a great little blog called Cupcake Kitteh. And guess what? She had a recipe for zucchini pancakes! I was so inspired by her blog and decided to use her recipe with several changes to remind me of the zucchini cakes I grew up with.

Following guidelines from her recipe, I tripled the portion because I wanted leftovers for lunch for me and John. I added a bit more liquid than her recipe called for and left out the salt. My additions included pepper and a pinch of Italian spices (basil, oregano, and parsley). I also added about a tablespoon of vegan parmesan.

The result reminded me so much of my childhood. The flavor took me back to a Pittsburgh summer, sitting around the kitchen table with family. I was in love with the pancakes and so was John. We both agreed that this recipe would come back in our dinner menus. I am excited to share this recipe with my Mom because I think she would enjoy it as well. I was pleased with Mandee's use of garbanzo bean flour. It gave the eggy flavor that I remembered from the ones I enjoyed as a child.

Goodbye great Aunt Sue- the happy and loving memories of you will live on in our kitchen in a vegan, gluten free way!

Fresh Rolls

Blog #14 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

Thai is my favorite type of food (Indian is a close second) and I love eating in Thai restaurants. Since going gluten free, it has been more challenging to find Thai places that can cater to me. I have not yet tried to go to my favorite Thai place because I am scared that my favorite dishes won't work for me any longer and then I'll be crushed.

I am not great at making Thai food as a whole, but I think we have Pad Thai as well as a few others down. Generally, we like it much better out. One of our favorite things, however, is to make are fresh rolls, also known as summer rolls, with tofu at home. We often make sushi, fresh rolls, and miso soup and call it a dinner.

We were recently craving these rolls and decided to make them for dinner. We generally vary our ingredients each time we make them. In this particular instance, we used the following for our rolls.

• Rice paper wrappers
• Thin bean thread rice noodles
• Extra firm tofu
  
• Carrots
• Green leaf lettuce
• Mint
• Cilantro
• Sauce- made of up gf tamari and agave nectar
  

In case you have never made them before, here is the process we use. Begin by cutting the tofu into strips, spray a little Bragg's amino acids on the tofu and bake until just starting to brown. While the tofu is baking, wash and prepare the herbs and lettuce and set them aside in separate containers. Follow the instructions on the package for the noodles. In the meantime, warm water in a tea kettle or on the stove. When it is hot, but not too hot to touch, pour it into a large bowl. The bowl should be big enough for the rice paper wrappers.

Now you are ready to begin putting the rolls together. Start by dipping the wrappers into the warm water. When they soften, pull them out. You don't have to let them get too soft. It takes about 10 to 15 seconds depending on how warm the water is. If you notice the wrappers are taking longer to soften, warm up more water and add it to the bowl.

Place the softened wrapper on a hard surface, and place the lettuce down and then top with the other ingredients. We usually do- lettuce, noodles, carrots, tofu, and then herbs on top. Any order will work, you just have to try it and see what works best for you. Make sure you place all of the ingredients in one section of the wrapper, close to the edge. Once all of the goodies are in place, it is time to fold.

I didn't take a picture of my best work here. The ingredients should be more towards
the edge of the wrapper towards the bottom of the picture

Fold the sides on the left and right over about an inch in. The sides folded in should not touch. Note that if you have too much on the inside, it will rip or fall apart. It might take you a try or two to get the amount correct. Don't worry, you can just keep using the same wrapper.

Again, not my best work. The ingredients should be more towards
the edge of the wrapper towards the bottom of the picture

Next, begin folding the end with the ingredients over toward the opposite side that is empty. When you get to the end, you don't need to do anything as the wrapper will be wet and sticky enough to hold together.

I usually tuck in any folds that are sticking out before serving.

Then repeat until you have finished all of your ingredients. It is good to let them sit for about 15 minutes before eating. You can use this time to mix your dipping sauce. Sometimes we use a peanut sauce. This time, we used a soy based sauce. I mixed a tablespoon or two of low sodium, gf soy sauce with a little agave nectar. Get creative and add in what you like to taste on your rolls.

And there you have it- completed fresh rolls! Enjoy!

Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Buttercream Frosting

Blog #13 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

Anyone else out there as obsessed with vegan cupcakes as I am? When I found out that I had to go gluten free (gf), my heart broke. I instantly thought to myself "no more vegan cupcakes!" At that point, I was trying to work my way through Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World and was crushed to learn I'd have to give that up. I had gotten about seven or eight recipes in, even though I only blogged about four of them.

In taking a closer look at the cookbook, I located two gf recipes. So, I decided I would try the chocolate cupcake one. Most of the frosting recipes are gluten free, so I went with one of my favorites- Peanut Buttercream. I paired that with the chocolate gluten free cupcake recipe and we were good to go!

I have learned not to be optimistic about gf baking. It is so difficult, especially when you add in the vegan element. We have had our share of failures since trying vegan, gf baking. Luckily, this is a post about a success!

I had some female friends over for a clothing swap and I made the cupcakes for the group. Before deciding whether they were edible, John and I split one to make out own assessments of this experiment.

Hello! This cupcake is amazing! I would never be able to tell that this cupcake was gf!! I decorated the top with a carob chip and set them out for my friends. I got very positive reviews and compliments about the cupcakes. I am sure to try Isa's other gluten free cupcake recipe. Thank you, Isa!

Leek and Artichoke Risotto

Blog #12 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

Risotto is a dish that I enjoy, but never order it when out. Many restaurants refuse to make it vegan. (I say refuse because it is extremely easy to make vegan). Even one a local vegetarian restaurant has a risotto dish and it is the only dish on the menu that isn't/can't be made vegan. I have yet to find a vegan risotto on a menu.

Several years ago, we started making risotto. Since then, we have the main concept down and often make it without a recipe. It is made with about four to five cups of hot vegetable broth to one and a half cups of uncooked arborio rice. We have several favorite risotto's that we make such as leek and artichoke, sun dried tomato and basil, and pumpkin and sage. I tend to like risotto on a cool evening.

It had been a while since we made leek and artichoke risotto. The recipe is adapted from the weight watchers vegetarian cookbook. We used homemade vegetable broth, frozen artichoke hearts, two fresh leeks, rosemary, and vegan parmesan cheese. As a side to the dish we had sauteed garlic, lemon, and butter tempeh along with cut up bell peppers. I love the creaminess of risotto and it goes especially well with the sweet artichoke hearts.

Don't be afraid to get creative and put your favorite combination of vegetables, herbs, and spices together.

A Vegan MoFo Blogger Survey

Blog #11 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

Many of the other VeganMoFo bloggers have posted answers to a MoFo survey and I thought that I would do the same. It is kind of fun!

What is one food you thought you'd miss when you went vegan, but don't?

Cheese. After learning about all of the horrid treatment that dairy cows go through, it is hard to miss cheese. I can't even picture eating it without gagging.

What is a food or dish that you wouldn't touch as a child, but enjoy now?

I liked a lot of foods as a kid, but the one thing I disliked was kidney beans. I have learned to really like them as an adult.

What vegan food or dish do you feel like you should like but you don't?

This is a tough one, I like most all vegan dishes. The one thing I keep trying to like is sweet potatoes. I am getting much better at it and have been eating a lot of them recently. Yay for fall!

What beverage do you consume the most of each day?

Water and a bit of espresso in the morning!

What dish are you famous for bringing to gatherings?

Cupcakes. Since becoming gf I have found it more difficult, but I'm not giving up. I made killer vegan gf cupcakes last night for a gathering.

Do you have any self-imposed food rules (like no food touching on the plate or no nuts in sweets)?

Not at all. I don't mind my food touching or mixing. I am pretty weird about texture though.

What's one food or dish that you eat too much off when it's in your home?

Mac n Cheeze!

What ingredient or food do you prefer to make yourself despite it being widely available repackaged?

Vegetable broth. It is such a rip off in the store when it is virtually free to make at home and a lot healthier b/c I can control the ingredients.

What ingredient or food is worth spending extra money on to get the good stuff?

Organic berries and fair trade, organic coffee

Are you much of a snacker? What are your favorite snacks?

Ohh heck yah I am! I snack way too much. I love tortilla chips and salsa, gf pretzels, pickles, olives.

What are your favorite vegan pizza toppings?

Diaya cheese, pineapple, onion, and pickled hot pepper rings. It is the best combo!

What's your favorite fruit and vegetable?

Raspberries and spinach

What is the best salad dressing?

I adore goddess dressing. I am so happy to have found a gf version.

What is your favorite thing to put on toasted bread?

Soy cream cheese and tomatoes

What kind of soup do you turn to on a chilly day or when you don't feel well?

Lentil

What is your favorite cupcake and icing flavor?

I have several. Chocolate cake with peanut butter icing, pumpkin chocolate cupcakes with cinnamon drizzle.

What is your favorite type of cookie?

Oatmeal raisin

What is your most-loved weeknight meal?

I don't have a favorite. I crave variety. We are always eating new things.

What is one food or dish you enjoy but can't get anyone else in your house to eat?

I can't think of any. John likes pretty much everything.

How long on average do you spend in the kitchen each day?

About 1.5 to 2 hours.

There was my survey! I would love to read yours too.

Vegetarian Restaurants- Asheville

Blog #10 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

Several weekends ago, we went to Asheville with vegetarian friends. Asheville is one of my favorite places because it is so very vegan friendly. There are a few vegetarian restaurants and many veg friendly places in the area. I'm not going to spend a lot of time talking about each place, but provide the highlights. I recommend you try all of those listed below, if you ever find yourself in Asheville, NC.

Firestorm Cafe. This is a book store, cafe combo. It is all vegetarian, it would be all vegan except they do offer milk as an option for their coffee drinks. Otherwise the rest of the place is vegan. This is a lovely tempeh sandwich that several of us ordered. Mine was made on vegan, gluten free bread. The picture shows the gluten bread.

Laughing Seed. This is a full restaurant with a lunch, dinner, dessert, and brunch menu. We went here twice while in Asheville. They are all vegetarian and mostly vegan. Almost everything on the menu can be made vegan. Many options are gluten free or can be made that way. I have never had a bad meal here and am always glad to return here. I will warn though that I ordered a gluten free dish one night and got sick afterward. I believe it was because they fried some of my dish in oil that wasn't gluten free. I would still eat there, but will ask more follow up questions even when something is labeled gf. The pictures below are from our brunch on Sunday.

Rosetta's Kitchen. Rosetta's has a counter where one walks up and orders. When the food is ready, it is brought to the table. They have a lot of American favorites that they have veganized. The food is all vegetarian and I think everything can be made vegan. They have a list of the food that is gf or can be made gf. I truly love this place. This is a place that I would recommend when you want comfort food. Pictured below is a grain burger with sweet potato fries, their vegan mac n cheeze, and my personal favorite- their pad thai with a peanut sauce. All around awesomeness!

Lentil and Spinach Soup

Blog #9 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

I love lentils and spinach. I don't have a favorite food, but if I were to rank order my favorites I am sure they would both be in the top ten. Not only do I LOVE the flavor, I love how many vitamins and minerals that they provide our body. Spinach contains vitamins A, C, K, iron, calcium, magnesium, and folate. Lentils are high in protein, folate, iron, thiamine, magnesium, and phosphorus. They also contain other vitamins and minerals not listed here. Neither contain any saturated fats, they are not high in sodium, and don't contain any cholesterol.

For as long as I can remember, I have always enjoyed spinach. I think I was the only grade school kid who would proclaim "SPINACH!" when asked "what is your favorite vegetable?" Maybe I am a descendant of Popeye or maybe I knew good, healthy food as a kid. Even though my parents are not vegetarian (my Dad is not even close), we always had two to three vegetables at dinner along side meat. Vegetables were way more of a focus than meat and they were commonplace to me. When I became a vegetarian at age 14, I had a head start because I already liked my vegetables.

Lentils came into my diet after I became a vegetarian. I also loved them from first bite. It wasn't until I was in graduate school that I started cooking with them on a regular basis. I enjoy experimenting and pairing them with many other foods.

Now that the weather has started to get cold (although you wouldn't know it this week), I have been craving warm soups. They are hardy, easy to cook, and provide food for several meals. So, when we planned our meals last week, we were excited to incorporate a lentil soup into a dinner. There are really so many ways to make a lentil soup. Instead of posting a recipe, I'll just highlight the ingredients we used. You can get creative, put any vegetables and grains into your soup and let it simmer until ready to serve.

On this particular night, we used:

• Homemade vegetable stock, no salt added
  
• Onions
• Carrots
• Celery
• Lentils (any color will do)
• Spinach
• Black pepper
• Cumin

The soup was delicious and provided a dinner and several lunches for us. Go on now, get your soup on!

Gluten free and Vegan Mac n "Cheeze"

Blog #8 for the vegan MoFo 2010 challenge!

Do you ever just want comfort food? I don't think it is a good habit to eat it on a regular basis, but sometimes it is fun to have. Sometimes you want fattening food, knowing it is fattening. Like many of you, I want the comfort food without the cruelty. I love it when I am able to recreate a classic comfort food to be vegan. My go to classic is Mac n Cheeze. I want it cheezy, warm, and baked! We recently came across and perfected a recipe that we love. I guess I can technically call it our recipe since we made changes. Note that it is adapted from The Virtuous Vegan cookbook.

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces of gluten-free or regular pasta, we used Quinoa spirals
  
• 1.5 cups shredded vegan Cheddar Cheese
  
• 1.5 cups shredded vegan Mozzarella Cheese
  
• 2 tablespoons vegan butter
• 2 cups unsweetened vegan soy or almond milk
  
• 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• Couple of dashes of hot sauce
  
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
  
• 1/4 cup vegan parmesan cheese
• Slice of gluten free bread, ground to make crumbs

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Cook the pasta for only half of the time listed in the instructions. Drain the pasta and set it aside. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter. When melted, add in the soy milk and 3/4 cup of the cheddar and 3/4 cup of the mozzarella. Cook on low-medium heat until melted, stir frequently. When this is melted, remove from the burner and add the spices, nutritional yeast, and hot sauce. Pour the pasta into the sauce and mix together. Then add in the remainder of the cheese and stir. When combined, transfer the mixture to a prepared 8x8 pan or casserole dish. Top with the bread crumbs and back for 30 minutes uncovered. The top should be slightly brown and bubbly. Remove from the oven and top with the Parmesan.

The end result is a warm, comforting bowl of baked heaven. This is the closest recipe to conventional baked mac and cheese that we have made. You can add more heat or spice to this recipe. It is also tasty with lightly steamed broccoli. Make sure to cut the florets small though.

Whatever you do, just enjoy it and remember that it is ok to indulge in comfort food!

The Green Owl- Madison, WI

Blog #7 for the vegan MoFo 2010 Challenge!

In September, I went on a work trip to Madison, WI. I have mentioned before that I like this particular trip and client (actually, I like all of my clients). Madison is a nice city. It is a college town and a capitol all in one. It is also particularly vegan friendly. There are several restaurants that have large vegan menus. When planning for my trip this year, I found an all vegetarian place, mostly vegan called The Green Owl.

In between planning for the trip and getting ready to leave, I received the news that I had Celiac's and had to follow a strict gluten free diet. It was one of my lowest times. I felt despair, wanting to crawl up in a ball and hide. Reality set in and I had to go on this work trip. The trip was extremely difficult, but The Green Owl felt like a safe haven for me. Not only was the place mostly vegan, they had a huge gluten free menu.

I walked a couple of miles from the hotel to the restaurant. Madison is such a nice city to walk around and I have always felt safe there. I got to the place without any trouble and was greeted by a friendly wait staff. After being seated, I began to review the menu and was so delighted about all of the gluten free, vegan options.

For my dinner, I ordered the BBQ Jackfruit on their homemade gluten free bread. The sandwich was described as young jackfruit, to imitate pulled pork, simmered in a BBQ sauce served with a layer of dill pickles and topped with creamy vegan slaw. For my side, I chose the crunchy kale chips. Before long, my food came out. The kale chips were crunchy and slightly salty. I could see these chips becoming addictive! I loved the texture of the pulled jackfruit and the flavor of their BBQ sauce. In addition, their homemade bread was better than any commercial gf bread that I have tried. It didn't crumble and that says a lot for gf bread.

During dinner, the woman next to me struck up a conversation as we were both dining alone. We chatted for most of dinner. I even ran into her again during my second night in Madison. I wish I would have gotten her name to keep in touch. She seemed like such a nice person. She recommended that I try a dessert. Surprisingly, they had a vegan and gluten free dessert that night.

I asked for my dessert to go because I was too full to enjoy it at the restaurant, but I knew when I finished my walk back to the hotel, I would dig in. The dessert was a coconut cream pie with a gf nut crust. The toasted coconut on top of the pie was a perfect pairing with the creamy coconut pie filling. The crust was rich and crumbly as any pie crust should be. I hardly noticed that it was not a traditional gluten crust.

I had such a nice dinner at The Green Owl, that I am sure to go back next time I find myself in Madison, WI. The wait staff was very kind and accommodating and the fellow customers were friendly. The atmosphere was modern, clean, and cute! I highly recommend this restaurant and am looking forward to my 2011 visit to Madison!

Chilly Night for a Warm Bowl of Vegan Chili

Blog #6 for the vegan MoFo 2010 Challenge!

Close friends of ours have been having a rough couple of months. As a friend, there is not much I can do except be there to listen. Things have gotten a bit overwhelming for them and we decided to make them a comforting dinner. I had been planning on doing it for a while, but then a sign up was started and I knew it was my cue.

The two are not vegetarian, but have expressed an interest in eating vegetarian more. A while back, they were trying to incorporate two vegetarian meals into each week. So, I was excited to make something for them that they could add back in when things in life improved. After hemming and hawing about what to make, I settled on a veggie chili and cornbread muffin biscuits (both vegan, of course). Even though I can't eat foods containing gluten, I don't mind making them for others.

We have some wheat flour leftover from my gluten days, so I decided to make the biscuits with wheat. At some point I will try them with a non-wheat flour. I followed the recipe found in Vegan Brunch for Cornbread Biscuits. As I was making them, I imagined what they would taste like. When they were finished, I gave one to John to taste so that he could make sure they were decent before passing them on to our friends. He really enjoyed them and asked for another. I said no.

Then, it was on to the chili. A friend suggested that I make traditional chili with just beans and not veggies because it would mirror meat chili. I thought about it and then decided not to go that route, I added veggies! I was sure to be careful to accommodate their allergies and likes. One is allergic to mushrooms and the other does not like peppers. We had some vegan Bocca crumbles in the freezer from my gluten eating days and wanted to use it for this chili and for our friends. I used it as the last ingredient so that I could taste it throughout and make sure the flavoring was right

Here is my recipe:

• 32 oz of chopped tomatoes, with the juice
  
• 3 oz can of tomato paste
• 1 cup of corn (frozen or fresh)
• 2 zucchinis, chopped
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 1 large onion
• 3 tbs chili powder
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp oregano
• Black pepper to taste
  
• 15 oz of black beans
• 8 or 12 oz package of Boca vegan burger crumbles
  

Place all of the ingredients, except the beans and crumbles, into a soup pot, cover, and simmer for an hour. Add beans and simmer for an additional 30 minutes. Test seasonings and add more as you desire. Add in burger crumbles, stir, and serve!

I tried the chili without the crumbles and really enjoyed the flavor. John tried it with the crumbles and also enjoyed it. I gave it to my friends and the next day and the day after they informed me that they liked it quite a bit! I was so excited! They even rationed out the biscuits so one would not get more than the other. That made me smile.

I was so glad to give them a little bit of comfort, warmth, and friendship in this meal.