Archive for the ‘Vegan’ Category

Fiesta Flatbread

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

FiestaFlatbread

If you can recall my last post, I made pita bread as part of a Middle Eastern meal…well, I still had a ton of light whole wheat dough leftover from that. I decided to make a pizza/flatbread, using whatever I could find in the fridge! I had recently seen a pizza that used caramelized onions as a base, and I thought that was great, flavourful idea. My onions were burnt extra caramelized! It still turned out fantastic, and like my mom said ‘it’s like a fiesta in your mouth!’ *hides head in shame* Just so corny! Regardless, the comment is true. Try it for yourself!

Light Whole Wheat Dough (adapted from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day)

  • 3 cups lukewarm water
  • 1 1/2 tbsp granulated yeast (2 packs)
  • 1 1/2 tbsp Kosher salt
  • 2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 4 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Mix the yeast and salt with the water in a stand mixer bowl. Mix in the remaining ingredients, without kneading, using the dough hook on your mixer. Cover (not airtight) and allow to rest at room temperature approximately 2 hours. Use the dough immediately after this, or, refrigerate in a lidded (not airtight) container for up to 14 days.

I made one batch of this dough, and got some pita bread, and 3 pizzas out of it. Each pizza will take one grapefruit sized piece of dough.

FiestaFlatbread2

Fiesta Flatbread

  • 1 grapefruit sized piece of light whole wheat dough
  • 1/2 onion, sliced
  • olive oil
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 cup corn
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 1/3 cup salsa
  • chilli powder
  • dried basil
  • mozzarella cheese
  • cheddar cheese

With a baking stone in your oven, preheat your oven to 500 degrees F. Dust your table surface, rolling pin, and the top of your dough with flour. Stretch your dough into a round ball. Roll out your dough to 1/4 inch thick. Grease a pizza peel, and place your dough on top.

Drizzle olive oil in frying pan and heat, toss in onions and balsamic vinegar and caramelize. Put the onions onto the dough, add the other ingredients on top. Top with a sprinkle of chilli powder, dried basil, mozzarella and cheddar cheese. *Keep in mind that I estimated the amounts that I used, and if you make your pizza larger, add more toppings! If you want this to be vegan, simply exclude the cheese and it will still taste delicious! I was making this with my cheese-eating family in mind.

Bake on the pizza peel on top of the baking stone for 10 minutes, until crust no longer feels doughy.

FiestaFlatbread3

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Posted in Main Meals, Vegan, Vegetarian | 8 Comments »

A Middle Eastern Meal

Saturday, March 6th, 2010

MoroccanMeal

Earlier in the week, in one of my culinary classes, we were all asked to bring in a dish that represents comfort food for us. We then headed to the kitchen and go to explain the dish we brought, and then share it with the class. One of my favourites was what my Chef brought in. He is from the Middle East, and he made beautiful, soft, homemade pita bread with hummus, a fava bean dish called Fool Meudane, and wonderful falafel. I was so impressed and inspired that I wanted to make the very same meal for my family! I decided to add a cumin-carrot salad to the meal, as well. Something I love about these dishes is that they all happen to be vegetarian- yum!

I’ll be sharing the recipes over the next little while, and I’d like to start with a basic hummus recipe that gets topped with the fool meudane. My chef informed me that this is not a traditional way of serving it, but hey, he did it….and I liked it!

Hummus2

Basic Hummus

  • 1 19 fl oz can of chickpeas
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 3 Tbsp tahini
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • pinch of salt and pepper
  • 3 Tbsp finely chopped parsley

Combine all the ingredients, except olive oil in a food processor and blend until smooth. Drizzle in olive oil and blend. Stir in parsley and top with paprika.

Fool Meudane (original recipe can be found here)

  • 2 cups frozen fava beans
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice (add tbsp by tbsp, until you get the amount you want- a 1/4 cup may be too much for some people)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp parsley, chopped
  • 1 small tomato, diced

In a frying pan, heat the olive oil and add the garlic, stir until fragrant. Add the fava beans, lemon juice, and salt. Cover and cook for a minute or two. Add the diced tomato, cover and simmer 2-3 minutes. Turn off the heat, and mash the ingredients with a fork until chunky. You don’t want this dish to be perfectly smooth. Garnish with parsely and drizzle with olive oil.

To serve these, spread the hummus in a bowl leaving a hole in the middle, add the fool meudane in the centre, sprinkle with smoked paprika, and drizzle with olive oil.

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Posted in Light Meals, Middle Eastern, Sides, Snacks, Vegan, Vegetarian | 6 Comments »

Homemade Veggie Burgers

Saturday, February 27th, 2010

VeggieBurger

I love veggie burgers because they are so easy to make, healthy, and filling. For a long time I have been wanting to make my own veggie burgers- avoiding soy, preservatives, and unneccessary ingredients. Many people think that when they are buying packaged veggie burgers in the grocery store, that they are ‘veggie, and therefor healthy’, but that’s not true. A lot of brands use nasty ‘improvers’ to help flavour the burger, and they can be really awful for your body. Not to mention extra sugar, and artificial colours.

I based this burger around two kinds of beans- chickpeas, and red kidney beans for healthy fibre and vegetable protein. I added vegetables, spices, and seeds for extra yummy flavour, and used chickpea flour to bind the burger together. I lightly coated the outside of the patties in panko bread crumbs and baked them in the oven with just a small drizzle of olive oil on each one.

I loved these burgers, and my meat-eating family enjoyed them too! I put mine in an wrap with ketchup, mustard, avocado, and lettuce. Yum!

These almost remind me of a burrito in burger form! So without further ado, here is the recipe:

Veggie Bean Burgers

  • 2 19 fl oz cans of beans- I used chickpeas and red kidney beans
  • 1/2 red pepper, chopped
  • 1/2 red onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 3 Tbsp ground flaxseeds
  • 1 Tbsp sesame seeds
  • 1 Tbsp pumpkin seeds
  • 2 Tbsp crushed pecans, chopped
  • 1/4 tsp each smoked paprika, cumin, coriander
  • pinch of salt and pepper
  • 3/4 cup oats
  • 3 tbsp chickpea flour
  • 1 Tbsp cilantro, finely chopped
  • Panko bread crumbs
  • olive oil to drizzle

Combine all but the last three ingredients  in a food processer and pulse until a chunky paste is made (ie. a few whole chickpeas should still be visible)

Remove the mixture to a bowl and stir in oats, chickpea flour, and cilantro until mixed. To make the patties, spread panko crumbs onto a plate. Take 1/4 cup of the burger mixture at a time and make into a ball. Press down on the ball to make an even veggie patty. Coat top, bottom, and sides in panko. Place on a parchment-line sheet tray and drizzle a bit of olive oil on top. Repeat with the rest of the mixture.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and bake for 12 minutes, flipping halfway through. Serve in a bun or tortilla, with all your favourite toppings!

VeggieBurger2

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Posted in Main Meals, Vegan, Vegetarian | 10 Comments »

Vegetable Pasta- Raw!

Monday, February 22nd, 2010

RawSpaghetti

So I have dabbled in a couple of raw food dishes, such as the raw cheesecake I tried in the summer. I’m feeling a bit less than myself lately and was sick over the past week or so. Because I am in pastry school, I find myself consuming a lot of sugar, and I basically went from a near zero sugar diet, to one where I’m bringing home cakes, pies, tarts, and bread several times a week, and while a lot gets shoved in the freezer right away, it’s the odd bites that catch up to us. I want to start cleansing my diet again, as my school winds down, and wean myself off the sugar once more. I thought a good place to start would be a raw food dish, and though I don’t necessarily think that having a completely raw diet is the best diet, I know that I can count on raw food recipes to provide light, healthy nourishment. I got the recipe from here and only slightly modified it. I really enjoyed the dressing and used it on several salads I had in the following day or two. This was a very nice lunch, and also a great side dish at dinner. Enjoy!

RawSpaghetti3

Raw Vegetable Pasta

Dressing:

  • 1 inch ginger
  • 3/4-1 cup olive oil
  • 2 tsp sesame oil (toasted)
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 4 tbsp mellow white miso
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • zest of one orange
  • 1/3 cup water

Blend in a blender or food processor until creamy and emulsified.

Pasta:

  • 1 large zucchini, sliced with a vegetable peeler
  • 1/2 red pepper, sliced into matchsticks
  • 1 carrot, sliced into matchsticks
  • 1/2 small cucumber, grated
  • Scallions or green onion to garnish
  • Sprinkle of raw sliced nuts of your choice
  • handful of cilantro, chopped

Prepare and mix all veggies, save the scallions or green onion. Toss them with 1/4 cup sauce, adding more if necessary, and sprinkle with scallions. Sprinkle with sliced nuts and cilantro.

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Posted in Appetizers, Brunch & Lunch, Light Meals, Main Meals, Raw, Salads, Sauces & Condiments, Sides, Snacks, Starters & Light Meals, Vegan, Vegetarian | 8 Comments »

Sesame Sweet Potato Wedges

Saturday, February 13th, 2010

SesameYams

I’m totally obsessed with yams and sweet potatoes, as ya’ll probably know, and here’s one more recipe for when I have to satisfy my craving! These are sesame baked yam fried and they are served with an almond butter dipping sauce. I recently made an almond butter dipping sauce to use with my spring rolls, and it was quite different to the one used in this recipe. This one, to me, tasted just like ketchup, so I added some ginger to try and make it taste a bit more interesting without being overpowering. This made a great 2 am snack ;)

Sesame Sweet Potato Wedges with Almond Dipping Sauce

  • 4 medium sweet potatoes, cut into wedges
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp sesame seeds
  • sea salt
  • chopped cilantro

Preheat oven to 400F.

Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on a lined baking tray. Drizzle with the olive oil and sesame oil, sesame seeds, and salt.

Bake in the oven for approximately 35 minutes until tender.

Almond Dipping Sauce

  • 2 tbsp almond butter
  • 1 tbsp lime juice
  • red chili flakes, to your liking
  • 1-2 tbsp tamari
  • 1 tbsp ketchup
  • 1-2 tsp fresh grated ginger
  • sea salt and pepper

Whisk all ingredients together well, and add 1/4 cup of hot water, blend until smooth. Pour into a saucepan and heat gently.

Sprinkle the cilantro over the potato wedges, and serve with dipping sauce. Enjoy!

SesameYams2

Posted in Sides, Snacks, Starters & Light Meals, Vegan, Vegetarian | 8 Comments »

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