speedvegan

Couscous and Veggies, originally uploaded by cloudmonkey.

At some point during our relationship, Geoffrey and I established a “dinner and movie date night” tradition. For dinner, we go to Tarpon Bend in Downtown Ft Lauderdale. The only veg option in the menu is a surprisingly delicious wrap filled with couscous and roasted veggies. Conveniently, the movie theater is only a short walk from the restaurant and there are plenty of bars with live music in the area for those times when we’re feeling extra adventurous.

I recently attempted to make something like the filling in the wraps and was pleasantly surprised with the results, so I’ve decided to share the recipe. I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as we do.

2 large portobello mushrooms, chopped
1 medium zucchini, chopped
1 medium summer squash, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cup couscous, uncooked
salt and pepper (to taste)

Pistachio Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup pistachios, shelled
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/4 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped
salt and pepper (to taste)

1. To make the vinaigrette, toast pistachios for 5 minutes. Allow to cool. Place pistachios and remaining ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth. Set aside.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

3. Pour vinaigrette over veggies and stir until well coated.

4. Roast marinated veggies for 30 minutes.

5. In the meantime, cook couscous according to package instructions.

6. Transfer couscous to a large bowl. Fold in the roasted veggies. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.

Banana Rum Cake, originally uploaded by speedvegan.

One of my co-workers brought in a banana rum cake for an office birthday one year. I suffered as I stood watching everyone savor the yummy dessert. I made a mental note to try making a vegan version at some point. My first few attempts were miserable, but I’ve finally found a winner !

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup non-hydrogenated vegan margarine, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
replacer for 2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 cup vegan sour cream
1/4 cup dark rum
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped and toasted

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Sift flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, cream margarine and sugar. Add egg replacer and beat until smooth. Then add mashed bananas, sour cream, vanilla extract and rum. Mix well.

4. Dump the dry ingredients into the banana mixture. Use a wooden spoon to mix until just combined. Fold in the walnuts.

5. Pour mixture into a greased flute pan and bake for 45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Women’s Lib Casserole, originally uploaded by cloudmonkey.

I modified this recipe from a postcard Geoffrey gave me some time ago. It is, by far, the best vegan Macaroni and “Cheese” I’ve ever had.

Even though the original recipe “officially” calls for macaroni pasta, I used my favorite, spiral. Feel free to choose your favorite too ! After all, isn’t that what liberation is all about ?

8 oz of your favorite pasta, cooked
1/4 cup vegan margarine
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups plain soy milk
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 tbsp tamari
1/2 tsp stone ground mustard
few dashes of Mesa Rosa Chipotle Southwestern Smoky Blend, optional

Topping:
1 tbsp vegan margarine, melted
1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

1. To make topping, combine all ingredients. Set aside.

2. In a large pan, melt margarine over medium heat. Saute garlic for a minute. Beat in the flour to make a roux.

3. Add soy milk and continue to cook until thick and bubbly, stirring constantly.

4. Stir in the remaining ingredients until smooth. Add water if mixture becomes too thick.

5. Mix in the pasta. Transfer to a casserole dish and sprinkle with topping. Broil until topping is golden crispy. Serve immediately.

Quick vegetable paella, originally uploaded by cloudmonkey.

This is a “quick” variation of a vegetable paella recipe I posted in the past. I was in a hurry and used frozen veggies instead of fresh.

1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 cup arborio rice
1/4 tsp saffron strands
1/4 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
fresh ground pepper, to taste
1/4 tsp Mesa Rosa Chipotle Southwestern Smoky Blend, optional
3 cups frozen veggies
2 cups water
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cube vegetable bouillon
half a lemon

1. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large pan and saute garlic for a minute.

2. Add the rice and spices. Continue to saute for another minute, stirring constantly. Stir in frozen veggies.

3. Add water and white wine. Bring to a boil for two minutes, then reduce heat to simmer. Crumble and stir in the vegetable bouillon. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Add more liquid, if needed, to prevent sticking. Cover and cook another 5 minutes or until rice is al-dente, not overcooked.

4. Remove from heat and adjust seasoning, if needed. Squeeze lemon over the paella and serve.

The stuffing, originally uploaded by cloudmonkey.

We made a seitan roast for Christmas dinner using Vegan Dad’s recipe, but modified the stuffing recipe a bit to fit our specific tastes.

We coated the roast with olive oil and a blend of fresh sage, thyme, orange zest, salt and pepper. We then baked it with fingerling potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots and cremini mushrooms. It was absolutely delicious and made for quick and easy leftover meals.

Christmas Dinner, originally uploaded by cloudmonkey.

Here’s the modified stuffing recipe. It will yield enough stuffing for the roast as well as a small side dish.

1/2 cup pine nuts
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp margarine
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 onion, diced
1/4 cup water
1 tsp fresh sage, chopped
1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 tsp salt
1 cup dried cranberries
1 red pepper, seeded and chopped
12 roasted chestnuts, chopped
4 slices of toasted whole-grain bread, cut into cubes

1. Toast pine nuts and set aside.

2. In a large skillet, heat olive oil and margarine. Saute garlic and onion until translucent.

3. Add water, spices and dried cranberries. Cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until dried cranberries soften.

4. Stir in red pepper, chestnuts and toasted pine nuts. Cook for a few more minutes.

5. Transfer to bowl. Add bread cubes and mix well.

6. Place in the fridge to cool until ready to use.

Raw Chocolate Dessert, originally uploaded by cloudmonkey.

Geoff made this raw chocolate-chocolate chunk “ice cream” the other night. It was divine. I complimented it with some raw chocolate mousse using a special recipe from our favorite raw food spot in Miami. We can’t give you the ice cream recipe, but here’s the mousse recipe which was featured in the local paper recently:

This creamy dessert is a chocoholic’s dream. Agave nectar (a sweet syrup from the plant of the same name), raw cacao and coconut oil are available at natural-foods stores.

2 cups mashed, ripe Florida avocado flesh
1 cup agave nectar
1 cup raw cacao
2 tablespoons coconut oil

Blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Spoon into martini glasses or dessert dishes. Chill at least 1 hour before serving. Makes 8 servings.

Source: Adapted from Om Garden chef Cynthia Olmsted.

Per serving: 310 calories (47 percent from fat), 16.9 g fat (8.3 g saturated, 6.3 g monounsaturated), 0 cholesterol, 3.7 g protein, 39.6 g carbohydrates, 5.8 g fiber, 2 mg sodium.

Orange Cranberry Muffins, originally uploaded by cloudmonkey.

2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup soy milk
1/3 cup canola oil
zest of 1 orange
replacer for 1 egg
1 cup cranberries

Icing:
2 tbsp vegan margarine, melted
1/2 cup powdered sugar
3 tsp orange juice

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease or line a 12 muffin tin. Set aside.

2. Sift flour, baking powder and baking soda into a large bowl. Stir in the sugar.

3. In a separate bowl, combine soy milk, oil, orange zest and egg replacer.

4. Pour wet ingredients into the dry mixture. Combine until just mixed. Fold in the cranberries.

5. Spoon evenly into muffin tin. Bake for 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

6. In the meantime, make the icing by combining the melted margarine with the rest of the ingredients. Pour over muffins once they are cool.

Sweet ending, originally uploaded by speedvegan.

Geoff made these last Wednesday. We were inspired by I Am Gluten Free’s Almost Raw Chocolate Balls of Deliciousness. We tweaked the recipe a bit and came up with the following.

1 cup raw almonds
1/4 cup raw cocoa powder
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, plus more for coating
7-10 whole pitted dates, chopped
3 tbsp agave nectar
1 vanilla bean, scraped
pinch salt (we use Himalayan)

1. Coarsely chop almonds in food processor.

2. Add remaining ingredients and process until everything is combined.

3. Shape into small balls/logs and coat with coconut.

You can use a mixture of nuts if you prefer. We made these again using a half almond, half walnut mixture which worked great too. They are a bit soft at first, but will firm up in the refrigerator.

Ginger Scones, originally uploaded by speedvegan.

Geoff is from New Zealand. He loves scones. I panicked when I found out because I never had a non-vegan scone and my attempts at making vegan ones have been pathetic (at best). After a successful shot at Isa’s orange scones, I decided to make some with my all time favorite spice. I’ve made these a few times and this morning Geoff made a perfect batch of them.

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/4 tsp grated lemon peel
3/4 cup chilled non-hydrogenated vegan margarine, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup, plus 2 tbsp soy creamer
2/3 cup crystallized ginger, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Blend flour, sugar, baking powder and lemon peel in a food processor.

3. Add margarine and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal.

4. Transfer mixture to large bowl. Make well in center and add 3/4 cup soy cream. Combine until just moist. Mix in the ginger.

5. Transfer dough to floured surface and gently knead until smooth. Divide dough in half and pat each portion into 3/4-inch-thick rounds. Cut each round into 6 wedges and transfer to greased baking sheet, spacing 1 inch apart. Brush tops with remaining 2 tbsp soy creamer.

6. Bake for about 18 minutes or until light brown.

Zucchini noodles with pink sauce, originally uploaded by speedvegan.

We made this tonight and it was delicious.

4 zucchini
1 tbsp cold pressed olive oil
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 tsp Italian seasoning
dash salt
1/2 cup macadamias
1/2 cup cashews
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tbsp Nama Shoyu
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tbsp water
1 red pepper, seeded and chopped
fresh ground pepper (optional)
crushed red pepper (optional)

1. Use a mandoline or spiral slicer to make pasta out of zucchini.

2. Place “pasta” in a large bowl and add olive oil, garlic, Italian seasoning and salt. Mix well.

3. Place nuts in a food processor and blend to a powder-like consistency. Add nutritional yeast, Nana Shoyu, lemon juice and water. Blend until a creamy texture is achieved. Add red pepper and pulse to desired consistency.

4. Pour red pepper sauce over noodles. Adjust seasoning and/or add optional ingredients. Toss and serve.