Thursday, September 30, 2010

katie's seitan reuben recipe

katie's seitan reuben (makes 2 open face sandwiches. probably enough for 2 people but i usually eat the whole darn thing myself).

ingredients:
-1/2 small yellow onion 
-2 oz (approx 1/4 package) of Westsoy Seitan strips
-1 tsp (or a nice, healthy squirt) Bragg's liquid aminos
-1 slice of swiss cheese
-2 slices of rye bread
-mayo/ketchup or mustard
-sauerkraut 

directions:
  • thinly slice half a small onion and saute in a nonstick skillet (with a little olive oil or cooking spray) over medium heat - for about 10 minutes, or until the onion gets nice and brown.
  • add the seitan and the liquid aminos and cook 2 minutes.
  • meanwhile, toast the rye bread and coat with a thin layer of "secret sauce" (mayo + ketchup) or mustard. 
  • turn down the heat & put the cheese over the seitan/onion mixture. cover and cook until cheese is melty - about a minute.
  • put that on the bread and top (or serve with) sauerkraut. 
notes: i am fortunate enough to have a husband who makes his own sauerkraut, so our fridge is usually stocked with the stuff. for you "regular" sauerkraut-less folks, i suggest Bubbies.

Monday, September 27, 2010

vegan potluck & blueberry buckle recipe


last week, we were invited to a vegan potluck dinner in honor of a friend's birthday. the food spread was unbelievable - lentil stew, cashew cheese, samosa pie, spicy greens, beet chocolate cake, brownies, lemon cookies... the mister contributed chana masala and i brought this blueberry buckle. recipe can be found here
(notes: i used frozen blueberries instead of fresh - i don't think they were defrosted enough and as such, the batter was really cold. consequently, this needed to bake WAY longer than called for (like, 30 minutes more). the next day when i removed it from the springform pan, it still didn't seem done enough, so i put it on a cookie sheet and cooked for 20 MORE minutes.  leftovers were stored in the fridge - really good warmed up in the toaster oven w/ a little earth balance).

Saturday, September 25, 2010

eggless french toast

i'm not crazy about eggs, so i looked around for recipes for "eggless french toast".


single serve (2 slices) eggless french toast (adapted from various online sources. can be vegan depending on your bread):

ingredients:
-1/2 banana
-1/4 cup almond milk
-big dash of cinnamon
-sprinkling of cornstarch
-little bit of vanilla
-2 slices of bread

directions:
  • combine the first 5 ingredients in a small food processor for a minute. 
  • pour mixture over 2 slices of bread - smush the bread slices together so that the bread soaks the mixture in a little.  
  • cook in nonstick skillet (coated w/ cooking spray over medium heat) until brown (approx 5 minutes each side - until the bread firms up a little and gets nice and toasty).  
  • top with your favorite toppings. i used powdered sugar, more cinnamon and earth balance. nutella or maple syrup would be delicious too. 

Thursday, September 16, 2010

salt & pepper shakers

and now for an update on my salt & pepper shaker collection. i've run out of room atop my kitchen cabinets, so i've been more selective about purchasing/displaying them. my dad (bless his heart) buys me gas station s&p shakers whenever he goes on road trips, but i don't have the heart to tell him i am only interested in old ones. anyway...my interests now lean toward the weird, bizarre vintage ones.

not that weird, but cute: 

mama polar bear holding her cub (estate sale, murfreesboro, $2)

Can't really tell what's going on here:
cats? with monocles? (estate sale, murfreesboro, $2)

JFK on Rocking Chair (yes...this is meant to be JFK. it says so on his rocking chair)
i like how his eyes make him look slightly doofy (antique store, nolensville, $12)

Sunday, September 12, 2010

(vegan) lemon poppy seed muffins

i've made a few things from isa chandra moskowitz's "vegan brunch" cookbook & they've all been great (pumpkin bran muffins, zucchini spelt muffins). some other vegan baked goods i've made have turned out too gummy and you could definitely tell that something was amiss; not so with the muffins in this book. these are as easy as can be and delicious!  and you don't even miss the eggs and butter (i promise).

recipe can be found here.

ps: i might have asked/pondered this before, but what are the 'rules' about posting a recipe from a cookbook? do you have to ask permission? can you get in trouble if they were to find it?