Tomato Curry Simmer Sauce

A while back, I started to try and make a conscious effort to take things that I am constantly buying at the store and make them myself. Case in point: Trader Joe's Curry Simmer Sauce. I was literally buying this stuff once a week, adding some coconut milk, whatever tofu and veggies were around. I was addicted...until I made my very own inspired version! And it is pretty stellar. Here is a great basic version that I think would be great with some peppers thrown in, maybe mushrooms, potatoes...go nuts! Although, I do like it just straight up with some tofu over brown rice. Rice noodles also make a great side.

The funny thing is, when you start building this recipe, it pretty much looks, smells and tastes like you are making a boring pasta sauce (minus the ginger added at the beginning). Until that magic moment when you add all of the spices...you will notice the color of the sauce turn from bright red to a rich, dark shade of red. The smell of pasta sauce transforms almost instantly into a warm aroma of an Indian curry! It is truly a delicious and magical meal.


what you will need:
1 can coconut milk
1 block tofu, pressed & cubed
1 - 28 oz. can tomatoes, puréed
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 medium onion, diced
1 tbsp. oil
2 tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped
3 - 4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. coriander
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. cloves
1.5 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. tumeric
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
salt to taste

Take a large pot and begin by warming your oil over medium heat. Add your diced onions, stir and let cook just until they start to become translucent. Add your ginger and garlic, let cook for 2 - 3 minutes, stir and let cook until the garlic and onions just start to turn a golden color in parts. Add your chopped tomatoes, stir it around again and gather your tomatoes that you have puréed, adding them to the pot.

Give everything a good stir and line up all of the spices you need. Next, one by one, add 1 tsp each of coriander, cinnamon and cloves. Stir. Mmm, smell that? The sauce is changing in front of your eyes. Next, add 1/2 tsp each of cumin, tumeric, paprika and the red pepper flakes. Then add your 1.5 tsp sugar, your 1 tbsp lemon juice and salt to taste.

Now, to me, the 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes is not spicy. But to you it might be. So, if you are worried about the spice level, start with maybe a 1/4 tsp first and go from there.

Let this simmer while you press and slice your block of tofu into cubes. If you want any other veggies in here, chop those up. Add to the sauce, and add 1 can of coconut milk.

And....let it simmer, maybe make some brown rice. The longer it simmers, the more yummy this stuff gets!

Eat and repeat.

Mexican Stuffed Portobellos

I don't know if it is the never ending rainy spring here in the Pacific Northwest or what, but if feels like I am stuck in some sort of time warp where it seems to stop and fly by all at the same time. Weird, right? Anyways, onto this tasty little dish. I had a craving for some sort of filling meal with a really bright, freshness to it. And the Mexican Stuffed Potobello is what came of my craving within my black hole time warp. Also, my love affair with daiya cheese has officially reached epic proportions.

Here is what you will need:

Salsa Freso
4-5 medium tomatoes
1 small - medium onion (about 3/4 c.)
1 serrano pepper (or whatever pepper that suits your spice level)
1 lime
1 c. lightly packed fresh cilantro
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. sugar

2 portobello mushrooms
1 avacado
1 c. daiya cheddar cheese
fresh cilantro for garnish
(optional: a side of rice)

Start by making the Salsa Fresco, so all of the flavors have time to mingle while you prepare everything else. Chop your tomatoes, onions, and pepper. Add to a bowl, stir to combine. Squeeze the juice of one lime over tomatoes, onions, and the serrano pepper. I left the membrane and seeds of the pepper and added everything to the salsa, because hey, we can take the heat, right?! Roughly chop your cilantro and add to the salsa. Sprinkle the 1/4 tsp. of both salt and sugar over the salsa, and again, stir to combine. The sugar will cut down on the acidity of the tomatoes a bit, but not enough to make it taste sweet at all. Set aside. Try not to eat all of this before you make the mushrooms, it will be difficult because it is so yummy just with chips alone!


Clean your portobello mushrooms, remove stems, and preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with either a Silpat mat, parchment paper or simply brush it with a bit of olive oil. Grab your salsa, and spoon in enough to fill your portbello mushrooms so you can't see the ribs anymore. Grab your delish daiya cheese, and sprinkle over the salsa. Throw these bad boys into the oven for 15 minutes. Check how things are going along, and then set it to broil for 2 - 3 minutes, just enough to crisp up the melted cheese a bit.


Slice up your avacados, serve with a side of salsa. Alternately, you can serve this with a side of rice, add some salsa fresco into the rice, served it with the portobello on top of the bed of rice/salsa mixture and garnish with avacados and cilantro. The salsa fresco should be enough to either make 4 portobello mushrooms or for 2 portobello mushrooms served with rice where you add the extra salsa into the rice.


Mmmm....here is a little shot of the inside so you can see all of the yummy layers of salsa and daiya cheese! I have my fingers crossed that this sunny meal with bring forth some real sunshine around here.

Enjoy :)

Hot & Sour Rice Noodle Soup

This is one of those dishes that began as a thrown together, this is all I have on hand kind of dish...but it turned out surprisingly good! And I kept making it again...and again...and again. So here it is, a spicy flavorful Asian inspired rice noodle soup that cooks up quickly and is perfect for an unexpected chilly night. Also, this is my disclaimer that this soup is kind of spicy (just how I like it!). But if this is not for you, start by gradually adding 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes until it is at a spicy-ness level that suits your mood.

What you will need:
12 oz. bag stir fry veggies, frozen
5.5 oz. canned baby corn
3-4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tbsp. fresh ginger, minced
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
8 c. veggie broth
1/4 c seasoned rice vinegar
7 oz firm tofu (1/2 block)
4 oz. thin rice noodles
salt/pepper to taste


I used a frozen bag of stir fry veggies, first because it is what I had at home, but then because I liked how many different veggies you can conveniently get in one handy bag! My stir fry veggie blend included: broccoli, carrots, sugar snap peas, green beans, mushrooms, celery, onions, and red peppers! Phew...that's quite the list of veggies! But my love of baby corns is strong, and I added a small can, cutting the baby corn into thirds.

Start out by pressing and draining your tofu. While that is going on, add the frozen veggies and baby corn into a large pot. Cook over medium heat until veggies are soft. Add the veggie broth, seasoned rice vinegar, red pepper flakes, ginger and garlic. (Remember at this step, reduce your amount of red pepper flakes if you don't want it too spicy!) Cut your tofu into small cubes, and add to the soup. Turn to medium low heat, cover and let simmer for 20 - 30 minutes to give the soup and tofu to absorb all of the yummy flavors going on.

Add 4 oz of thin rice noodles (this has usually been about 1/2 of a pack for me). Let simmer for 5 minutes until noodles become soft. This makes about 4 generous servings of deliciousness.


The end. It is that simple, and you have a wonderfully spicy, rice noodle soup to enjoy!

Part One: Mushroom Soup

More comfort food is all what seems to be on my mind lately, and the other day while experimenting with some new ideas in the kitchen, I got not just one...but two successful results! Which works out great, because I feel like it has been a while since the last post. So, this time around, I have two things to share with you! Mushroom Soup and Caramelized Onion Swirl Bread! A perfect pair...the rosemary in each really ties the flavors together. And who doesn't like a slice or two of delicious, hearty bread as a side to their soup? For the sake of not having one never ending post, I am splitting this up into two parts. Part One will focus on the Mushroom Soup and Part Two, a separate post, will be all about the bread.

Ok, onto the soup. It is a really yummy, savory mushroom soup but a whole heck of a lot lighter than those gross, condensed, cream of whatever soups. The focus is more on the mushrooms in a savory broth with a hint of soy milk to give it some weight. But not fatty, condensed cream of soups kind of weight.

What you will need:

1 lb. crimini mushrooms
1 lb white mushrooms
1 oz dried mixed mushrooms (mine were porcini, shiitake, and oyster)
7 c. veggie broth
1 c. soy milk
4-5 garlic cloves
3 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. flour
1 tsp. fresh, chopped rosemary
1/2 tsp. fresh, grated nutmeg
salt/pepper to taste

Begin by cleaning all of your fresh mushrooms, removing all of the stems. Slice or dice these guys up and set aside. Peel and chop your garlic. Add the olive oil to a large stock pot, 3 tbsp. or enough to coat the bottom of your pot. Add the garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until they just start to turn golden brown. Add your fresh mushrooms and let cook, while stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes just to soften them up. Add the flour and mix it into the oil, forming a sort of haphazard roux. Add your seven cups of veggie broth to the pot and let it come up to medium heat.

Take your dried mushrooms, and rinse them in a bowl of lukewarm water. The package said to them put them into very hot water for 10 minutes, and that the water would have a lot of flavor you could use in a soup or whatnot. So after rinsing, I decided to simply add them to my soup and do both things in one step.


Add your chopped rosemary, nutmeg, soy milk, and season with salt and pepper to your taste and simmer for 30-40 minutes. At this point, all of the flavors have had enough time to make really good friends, resulting in a super yummy and savory soup.

Serve with fresh Caramelized Onion Swirl Bread (recipe in following post), and share with friends since this makes enough for at least four servings. Yay comfort foods!

Vegan Mofo - Pantry Raid

Today I decided to make something really delicious, something that would use up odds and ends in my pantry, and something that falls into the "comfort foods" category. And what happened was a Chili Soup....something that almost wants to be chili, but is a bit more soupy.

What you'll need:

24 oz. canned diced tomates

24 oz. veggie broth

1 small can of tomato paste

1 green pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped

4 cups of your favorite beans

4-5 cloves of garlic, minced

salt/pepper to taste

hot sauce!

Also, out of extra comfort foodiness, I made this all in my crock pot. And this is the easier thing ever to make. Just add all of your ingredients into the crock pot, set it to high, and about 4-5 hours later...voila! A meal, ready for you and your loved ones! And it tastes extra good, since it has been simmering all day long, basically.

This is also a great basic recipe, since you can add whatever veggies you have on hand, whatever beans you have sitting around (I used garbanzo and black beans in mine...just what I had hanging around my kitchen). Each time, it can be totally customizable to use up your leftover veggies, as long as you have some canned tomatoes around. Which I always seem to have on hand too.

And I like the fact it has almost a double comfort food aspect to me...chili...and soup. Become one. Amazing!

Baked Mac and Cheese

Here is a sneak peek at a baked mac & cheese recipe I have been experimenting with. Gotta make it one more time, actually write down what I used and how much of each, and tweak a few things here and there.

This is a cashew based "cheese" sauce I am working with for this, look for this soon!

Carrot Ginger Soup

I did not have the faintest idea what to make for dinner yesterday, I checked the fridge and my cupboards, and then checked them again. And....again. Nothing. Then I realized I had a few key ingredients to make a really simple and delish soup...carrots and ginger. I have never made this kind of soup before, but I thought..."Hey, how hard can it be? You can figure it out!" So I did my best, and came up with a really tasty little soup.

This is a really nice, light soup but it is filling at the same time. I think normally this is made into a sort of cream soup, which is easy to veganize and do, but I wanted to avoid the heavy feeling of the creamy soups, and just have a really nice, clean and savory soup.

Here is what you'll need:
1.5 pounds of carrots
1 medium - large onion
4-5 cloves of garlic
2-4 tbsp of minced ginger (adjust to taste)
5 c. veggie broth (or use water with corresponding amounts of veggie bullion)
1 tsp of fresh grated nutmeg
2 tbsp Earth Balance or your fav. vegan butter sub.
salt
pepper

Start by slicing each onion, then chopping each sliced section into about thirds. The pieces will be kind of big, but you will be putting the soup into a food processor anyways. Add your Earth Balance or vegan butter to a large soup pot over medium high heat, and add your onions. While these cook, give your garlic a rough chop and toss them into the pot as well. Finely mince your ginger and add. Cook for 3 minutes longer, or until onions start to turn a golden color.

Add your veggie broth. While this comes back up to temp, start with your carrots. I used a mandolin slicer for mine, and sliced them at a 1/4 inch. Alternately, you can just roughly cut your carrots into slices. Just keep in mind, the larger pieces of carrots you cut, the longer you will have to let it simmer to soften them up. Add the sliced carrots as you go, and keep the soup at a simmer.

Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Check the tenderness of the carrots. If they easily come apart with a spoon or fork, you are good to go. If not, cook for 5 more minutes, check and repeat if neccessary.

You will notice at this state it just looks more like a vegtable soup than carrot ginger soup. Here is where the magic happens. Turn off your burner, so your soup can start to cool down a bit. With a slotted spoon or ladel, spoon out the slices of carrots, and if you get onions and garlic too, that is even better. Fill your food processor no more than 2/3 full, and pulse until it is a mushy mess and add it back into the soup. Spoon out the rest of the carrot/onion/garlic and food process again, add back into soup. I left some slices of carrots and onions in mine, I probably processed about 3/4 of all the carrots and onions in my soup.

Now, it should look more like a real carrot ginger soup. Since the consistancy is right where you want it, take the time to season your soup now. Add a bit of salt and pepper to your taste. Grate fresh nutmeg, and add to your soup. If you love nutmeg like I do, feel free do add maybe 2 tsp and adjust to your taste. Let simmer for 5-10 minutes, serve and enjoy!

Zucchini & Cherry Tomato Quiche version 1.1

So, for whatever reason, I had the biggest urge to try and make a vegan quiche the other day. It was an urge that stuck with me all day and dragged me out of the house and out to the store for supplies. I had never made a quiche before, but I knew of recipes that use tofu instead of eggs. So I just kinda added things until everything felt "right."

Having said that, this is more of a prototype recipe in this current state...and by that I mean: no amounts, no measuring, just a basic list of stuff I used. I will remake this very very soon because I want to eat more of it, and....I want to get a real recipe for this written down.

Ok, you have been warned! Enter at your own risk, but doing so may result in awesome deliciousness!

Things I used:
1 block of firm tofu
1 pint of cherry tomatoes
3 small zucchini
1 small onion
garlic - chopped
soy creamer
salt/pepper/all purpose veggie seasoning
nutmeg - fresh grated
nutritional yeast
grated veggie parmesan
1 tsp. curry powder
fresh basil
corn starch
olive oil
1 pie crust

ok...I hope those are all of the ingredients I used and am not forgetting anything. So, start out by chopping up your garlic and adding it to a hot pan with a bit of olive oil. While your garlic is cooking, slice your zucchini into about 1/4 inch slices, and then cut into halves. Add to your garlic. Finely chop up your onion, and add to garlic and veggies. Turn to a lower heat.

While veggies cook ( do not over cook since they are still going to cook in the oven), cut your tofu into managable sized chunks and put about 1/2 into the food processor. Or if you have a really big, fancy food processor...go ahead and throw all of the tofu in there. As if starts to look more like a paste, add your soy creamer....I would say I added maybe 1/4 cup to each half? Again...I'm sorry for my lack of amounts here...this was purely a test case! Back to the quiche.....add the soy creamer and blend so it is a nice, thick but creamy texture. Put this into a medium to large sized bowl, and repeat this for the rest of the tofu. Add to bowl. Turn off heat on the veggies and set aside.

I began by adding a tiny bit of curry powder, about 1 tsp, I mainly did this for the color and usually use tumeric for this, but I didn't have any and this worked fine. Season with salt, pepper, veggie seasonings to your taste. I also added a bt of italian seasoning for mine, which includes some hot pepper flakes...yum! Add your veggies to this mixture...and reseason if neccissary. Grate your nutmeg into the mixture, I would say I added about 1 - 2 tsp. to mine, but then again, I really like nutmeg....it's quite a strong flavor so be careful and try the mixture as you go.

I added maybe 1/2 - 3/4 of a cup of nutritional yeast. Stirred in maybe 1/4 cup at most of some grated veggie parmesan. Then I roughly chopped up about 6 or 7 large fresh basil leaves and mixed those in as well. And the final thing I did was add 2 tsp. of corn starch, so make sure it would thicken up as it baked. Mine turned out ok, but if you want yours a tab firmer, I would go ahead and add around 3 - 4 tsp. of corn starch.

As for a pie crust, mine needs some serious work and attention. I did however make a more savory pie crust using a mixture of flour and wheat flour, and adding spices and herbs into the crust as well. For things like this, I really like savory crusts a whole lot better than just a sweeter, store bought crust. Hopefully, I will soon have a good pie crust recipe to match my future, complete quiche recipe!

Anyways...back to the quiche......when everything is seasoned to your taste, pour it into your pie crust.


Also, you want to pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees. I topped mine with some additional slices of cherry tomatoes that I had set aside for this. I sprinkled the top with some veggie parmesan and put it in the over. Bake for about 40 - 45 minutes or until the top of your quiche looks like it has an almost crispy layer.

Let cool for a few minutes so it has a chance to set, and won't be a runny mess on your plate. If you want it to look all fancy, add a bit of fresh basil to each slice of quiche served...it looks really, really pretty against the bright red of the tomatoes.

Eat. Enjoy. Repeat.