This Food Is Good!

Banana Pineapple Spinach Smoothie
2 large handfuls of fresh, washed Spinach
2 Bananas
1/2 c. Frozen Pineapple
2/3 c. Coconut Milk
4-5 Ice Cubes
1 c. Water

Put them into a blender, run it til it's smooth and you're done. You will only taste the fruit but you will also get the health benefits of the spinach. I usually throw in a teaspoon of ground flax seed as well, but chose not to do that today. Also, you can substitute frozen strawberries instead of pineapple, though the color won't be quite as nice :)

Finding vegetarian Indian recipes is not hard to do; less than 30% of India's population regularly consumes meat. As the food relies heavily on spices, cooking Indian dishes can seem intimidating. Fortunately, you need not be scared. Madhu Gadia's book, The Indian Vegan Kitchen is great for everyone, but the overview of Indian cooking and spices that it has (about 50 pages worth) are especially helpful for newbies.

My favorite dish (aside from the ever popular and tasty Samosas) is Matar Paneer. Paneer is a cheese... and I was pleased to find that tofu makes a very good substitute for the Paneer in this recipe, now appropriately called Matar Tofu, or, Pea and Tofu Curry. It has heat to it, but is not *so* spicy. I've changed a few things from the book to suit my cooking preferences, if you want Gadia's version, you'll have to get the book.

Matar Tofu

1 Lb. Extra Firm Tofu (cut in half inch squared and drained on a towel to remove extra water)
2 c. Frozen Peas
1 c. Yellow Onion
1 T. Ginger
1 t. Garlic
1/2 t. Cayenne Pepper
1/2 c. Tomato Paste
1 t. Cumin Seeds
1 T. Poppy Seeds (I use white, black will work the same)
1/2 t. Turmeric
2 t. Ground Coriander
3-4 T. Vegetable Oil, divided
1 t. Salt
2 1/2 c. Water
1 t. Garam Masala

Heat 1-2 T. of oil in a skillet on med-high heat and add the tofu cubes. You want them lightly browned on each side, so flip them every so often and set them aside in a bowl once they are finished.

While the tofu is frying, toss the onion, ginger, garlic, cayenne pepper, tomato paste, cumin seeds, poppy seeds, turmeric and coriander in a blender. If it seems too stiff and not smooth you can add 1-2 T. of water).

Add your blended mixture to the skillet that the tofu just occupied, and add 2 T. of oil. Cook until the oil starts to separate from the mixture, and add the 2 1/2 c. of water.

Now add the tofu, peas, salt and garam masala. Bring it all to a boil, then turn the heat to low and simmer until you are ready to eat. Serve over Basmati rice and with warm Naan bread.

Go to Amazon, and buy their $65 Nesco dehydrator... you will fall in love with it. I've been having fun making sweet potato and carrot chips, as well as dried bananas, kiwis, pineapples, plantains and apples.

Let's discuss the apples. As you can see in the photo, I used a mix of red and green apples for variety. I removed their cores, and sliced them in the mandolin slicer at 1/16th of an inch. Next, I tossed them with lemon juice and cinnamon. Then I dehydrated them at 104 degrees for about 8 hours.

They end up being crisp but not crunchy... and they are a bit tart, but the cinnamon balances that out nicely. Note that I just used ground cinnamon, not cinnamon sugar. The apples are sweet enough on their own, there is no need to add to that.

Every so often, I need a certain blend of spices for a recipe and have to decide which is more practical - to buy it, or to make it myself. I take pride in my large collection of spices, so I'd rather create the mix myself... but if I am missing a few, it's usually more economical to spent $5 on the blend then to drop $10 on spices that I am not likely to need again for a while. When I needed some Old Bay Seasoning for a corn fritter recipe, and could only find it for $7, and had the ingredients... it was a no-brainer to just make it.

Old Bay Seasoning

1 tablespoon ground bay leaves
2 teaspoons celery salt
1-1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon sweet or smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground celery seeds
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/8 teaspoon ground mace
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

I didn't have the white pepper or the mace... so I left them out. No big deal, because everything turned out great. I mixed everything in a small container, and since the recipe was a hit, I've made it a few times since.

Spices also lose some of their kick after a while, so it is good to use them up in a reasonable amount of time. Buying them at small international groceries is usually a lot cheaper than buying them in a small glass jar at a large store.

Vegan Chocolate Cupcakes with a Fresh Orange Glaze

This is without a doubt my favorite chocolate cake recipe. It is easy, makes great cakes and even better cupcakes. It has a very rich yet fluffy texture... the end result will look like you were in the kitchen forever making it. But in reality, you threw it together in about 5-10 minutes. Here's the recipe:

Preheat oven to 350.

Put these in a bowl and mix:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 t. salt
1 t. baking soda
1/4 cup cocoa powder (unsweetened)

Now push everything to the sides of the bowl so you have an empty spot in the center. Add these:
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 T. white distilled vinegar
1 cup cold water (cold coffee will also work very well)

Mix everything together (don't over mix, though) and bake for 15 minutes.

For my glaze, I mixed 3/4 cup confectioner's sugar, 2 T. of fresh orange juice and the zest/peel from that orange. I left the pieces of zest a bit long, but you could mince them as well and it would still look nice :)

This is a great smoothie to pair with a light salad at lunchtime or for an afternoon energy boost.

Strawberry-Banana-Kiwi-Flaxseed Smoothie... now with shadow of doom behind it!

1 c. Frozen Strawberries
1. Ripe Banana, not frozen!
1. Fresh Kiwi, peeled and cut in half
1 t. Ground Flaxseeds
1 c. Almond, Soy or Rice Milk

Add everything to a blender, and pulse it until it is smooth. It's that easy. Make sure you use an unsweetened milk, whichever one you choose. There is enough sugar in the fruit that you will not need any more. You won't taste the flaxseeds if you just add a teaspoon, but they're a really healthy addition. I add them to all of my smoothies. Make sure you fill the blender jar with water right away, even if you are just going to leave it in the sink for a while. You'll be glad you did that later on when you go to do the dishes. Plus it's less than a dollar to make, and serves 2.

First, a thank you to my lil' sis for the shout out on her blog - Today I Made Risotto . She makes super good food, especially desserts. When she's not cooking, she is working toward becoming the first female member of the Blue Man Group. Or the second...

Now... the food...

Today I give you: The Black Bean Seitan Burger


Remember the Italian Seitan Sandwiches? There was extra seitan, so I froze it until it was needed.

1 1/4c. Seitan
1 15oz can of Black Beans (rinse them, the can juice isn't needed)
1 T. Dark Soy Sauce
1/2 c. Bread Crumbs
2 T. Flour
1/2 c. Corn
1/2 t. Red Pepper Flakes
1/2 t. Cumin
1/2 t. Chili Powder
1/4 t. Salt
1-2 T. Veg. Oil

It really is this easy: Throw the seitan and black beans into your food processor and pulse them until they are completely mixed. Put the mixture into a bowl, add the other ingredients and mix them with your hands.

Heat up a skillet - while heating, prepare your patties... between 1/4 and 1/3 cup is a good amount for a patty. Add some oil to your skillet, then add the burgers. They cook quickly, and I recommend letting them get pretty dark on each side. Put them in a bun with all of the fixings and it is fantastic! I added portobellos, onions, lettuce and tomatoes. They have some heat to them from the spices, but not so much that I'd call them spicy.

First of all, I would like to point out that I got this container of organic greens on clearance for $0.50. They were not about to expire - the store just had too many. Sometimes cheap produce is cheap for strange reasons, you just have to be on the look out.

But that isn't what this post is about. You will notice that there is broccoli in the lettuce container. This may remind you of all of the times a relative has sent you home with leftover food in a plastic sour cream container. Well, that's exactly what this is... reuse your containers, people! I have about a dozen plastic containers that I purchased and many more that I have just saved from other things.

Reusing your containers is good for:

• Storing chopped onions. Plastic absorbs the onion smell, so reusing the same one for onions each time will keep the rest of the containers smelling pretty. Keep a sharpie nearby so you can mark containers like that. You still have to wash them each week, even if the smell won't completely go away.
  
• Storing food in the freezer. The sturdier containers are perfect for this. Don't throw out leftovers... keeping containers in a variety of sizes will enable you to freeze food without taking up more space than you need to.
  
• Sending food with others. I know that if I send food with my bf to work, it is unlikely he will bring the container back. If I reuse a container for it, I am not out any money and won't have to go buy a replacement sooner.
  
• Cutting consumer spending. The more people reuse things, the less they have to go out and buy. This is not a new concept, but it is a great one.
  

You will thank me for this one.


There are a lot of great options out there for when you are craving a certain taste but don't want the meat, however... Italian beef sandwiches were one thing that I had figured just weren't going to happen. I didn't crave the meat part - just the juicy, spicy, well-seasoned bread that came with it. I haven't cooked with seitan much, but I've always enjoyed it at restaurants and prefer it to tofu. Then I discovered this recipe, and adjusted it to my liking.

This is what you need to gather:
1 and 1/2 lbs. of thinly sliced seitan
3-4 c. water
3 vegetable bouillon cubes
2 t. dried oregano
3-4 cloves of garlic, crushed
1/2 t. red pepper flakes
2 t. fennel seeds
1 t. salt
1/2 t. ground black pepper
2 chopped up red bell peppers

Put everything in a pot, stir it, cover it, and simmer over medium heat for about an hour. After an hour, turn the heat to low and keep it covered until you are ready to serve it.

Serve with rolls. I got 5 for $1 at the Vietnamese bakery across the street and they were amazing. They were served in a bowl, sliced, filled with the seitan and then I poured the juice over them. Perfect!

It looks basic, and it is, but the flavor is very satisfying. First though, I have to give credit to my friend Melvin, who told me how he makes his salsa... and I based my recipe on his. Having said that... it's cheap, easy and healthy. You can prepare it in just a few minutes, and it's easy to make it in large quantities.

SALSA

3-4 Tomatoes
1/2 c. Red Onion
1/2 c. Sweet Corn
1/4 c. Cilantro
2 T. Lime Juice
Adobo Seasoning with Pepper

Dice the tomatoes and onion and toss them in a bowl. Add corn. Chop up the cilantro and add it. Add the lime juice and then shake on the Adobo to taste. Mix it all up and you are done. If you would like, you can mince a clove or two of garlic and add that.

TIP: I use about 1/2 of a can of sweet corn to make this. Take the rest of the corn from the can, put it in a small freezer bag, and freeze it until the next time you are making salsa, soup or a stew. Don't fall into the habit of throwing out extra food that can just as easily be frozen and used in the future.