Seitan, Onion, and Mushroom Pasta

You can use any type of pasta in your cupboard. The first night I used  penne; the second night, I used spaghetti. They were what I had in my pantry. The sauce is what makes this dish. Now if only I could figure out how to take food photos as well as I do scenics, you wouldn't have to take my word for how good this recipe tastes.

Seldom does any dish, vegan or otherwise, taste so good I make it two nights in a row. That all changed when I created the following recipe. You can call it good luck or blessed endeavor. I call it serendipity. I had no idea what I was making when I began throwing things together and nobody was more surprised at how it turned out than me.

While there have been many times in my life that I've eaten the same thing twice in a row because of leftovers, never have I purposely cooked the same thing twice. From someone who hates to be in the kitchen as much as I do, my belief is that every meal should be something quite different than the one before it or else why bother cooking at all?

I suppose that belief came out of living with my husband of 53 years who never ate a leftover in his life until he married me. He came from such a poor family that there was barely enough food to go around, let alone have any left. So when I placed leftovers on the dinner table just a few weeks into wedded bliss, he kindly informed me not to do it again. That began my quest to turn leftovers into something entirely different by dragging things out of the frig and cupboards to disguise the original meal. I got really good at it. And even though Jim figured out what I was up to, he didn't mind because the whole result tasted far different than what I'd started with.

Now all of that to say that when I looked in my frig this week and saw a bunch of mushrooms that needed to be used and a package of seitan, which I'd yet to try, I decided to put them together. The dish was a process of tasting and adding and then declaring it good. Truthfully, the result tasted like I had put meat in it. Perhaps pork or chicken. But it was just a seitan trick to fool my palette. A vegan friend had informed me that seitan tasted nasty and that's why I had let mine sit in my frig for so long. However, the store bought seitan I used was to the point of being delicious. Figure that one out.

The recipe is so simple, you may laugh at me for bragging about how it turned out. Considering I've been a vegan for only 5 months, I ended up patting myself on the back for creating something that was not only edible but enjoyable. Give the recipe a try and see what you think. Then let me know. The people I served it to the second night I made it devoured it with relish and declared it one of my best vegan meals yet. Who knew?

SEITAN, ONION, AND MUSHROOM PASTA

This recipe involved cooking the pasta, making the bechamel sauce, and sauteing the vegetables. You can choose the order in which you build the meal.

In a saute pan put:

2 Tbs. olive oil

1/2 of a medium onion, minced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

Cook till the onions are translucent. Turn them onto a place to cool.

In the same pan put:

2 Tbs. olive oil

1/2 of an 8 oz package of purchased seitan, cut into thin strips

Brown the seitan till it resembles meat. Set aside with the cooling onions.

Wipe out the saute pan so it's dry.

Add to the pan:

1/2 lb. of brown mushrooms, chopped. I used criminis.

Cook on low till all the water is evaporated and the mushrooms are completely dry. Do NOT salt the mushrooms and do not use oil for browning. It will make the mushrooms slippery.

Into the saute pan place:

All the onion and garlic mixture, the seitan, and the mushrooms. Add salt and pepper to taste. Put the pan on a back burner to stay warm.

COOK THE PASTA

While the above ingredients are cooking, set a pan of salted water on the stove to come to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions. I used 8 oz. for this recipe and it was plenty.

BECHAMEL SAUCE

4 Tbs. olive oil

4 Tbs. flour

Heat the oil in a saucepan, add the flour and cook about 3 minutes or until the flour comes together. The mixture will be lumpy. That's normal. Do not shorten this step or the raw flour taste will ruin your sauce.

Using a whisk, slowly stir in:

2 cups of creamy soy milk, either warm or at room temperature. Do not use it cold as it won't whisk in well.

Cook the sauce, whisking continuously until it begins to thicken. Lower the heat and cook a minute or so longer. If the sauce is too loose, let it cook another minute or so; too thick, whisk in more soy milk.

When the sauce is the consistency you wish, grate fresh nutmeg into it and add salt and pepper to taste. I also added a tiny pinch of cayenne because I like spicy.

Add the sauce to the saute pan with the seitan/vegetables/mushrooms in it. Mix well. Now add the pasta, along with a bit of the pasta water if need be. Stir everything together and let it cook a minute or so to blend flavors. Serves 3-4

Chopped Salad

"We have ten fingers and ten toes," she said. "That may explain why we like to do things in tens."  My friend was an elementary school teacher. She taught her students that they could remember ten things by using their fingers and thumbs as props. I have applied this idea to today's salad. You don't need to dig up a cookbook, you can remember how to make this salad using your fingers and thumbs. On the Left hand count off the Greens, on the Right hand count off the Others (that sounds ominous). I'm calling it:

 Fingers and Thumbs Chopped Salad

a complete meal

On the Right Hand we have:

1. romaine lettuce

2. arugula

3. cucumber

4. brocolli
5. herbs

and

On the left hand
6. carrots

7. red pepper

8. red cabbage

*9. quinoa

10. dressing 

Measure? How many are you serving? Eyeball it. This salad will keep for a couple of days, so if you over do it a little, it will be an easy lunch tomorrow.

*You can prepare the quinoa ahead of time. Follow the simple instructions on this video. (I never add salt.)

Chop, chop, chop, chop, all of the vegetables. You want end up with a salad that shares all of the ingredients in every bite. As you finish chopping an ingredient, add it to the bowl to form layers. When all of the vegetables and the quinoa are in the bowl, toss everything together. Pass the dressing at the table.

This is a great summer salad that will cheer you up, cool you off, fill you up and keep you going for hours.

Tofu Stir Fry on Soba Noodles

Tonight, I felt like I went out to eat, so foreign was this type of food to my kitchen. Just buy a few Japanese ingredients. That's the trick. I altered a recipe I found in a magazine. From skewers into stir fry. It all comes together fairly simply and definitely in under an hour. Talk about healthy! These buckwheat noodles have all eight essential amino acids and have antioxidants too. Here it is 2 hours later and I'm still full. Well, I need to contemplate appropriate portions and NOT double back for seconds so fast. Nothing bigger than your fist, someone told me, right? RIGHT. Tonight I ate two jazz hands worth of food!

Tofu Stir Fry on Soba Noodles

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup Mirin (sweet rice wine)

2 teaspoons sesame oil

10-12 oz firm tofu cut into cubes

1 lb sliced shitake mushrooms

4-6 green onions

8-10 oz bean sprouts

1-2 cloves garlic

2 tablespoons oil
12 oz dried soba noodles
2/3 cup vegetable broth
2 teaspoons wasabi paste
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/4 cup lemon juice

1. Mix soy, mirin, and sesame oil. Add tofu to marinate 10 minutes.
2. Drain the tofu, reserving the marinade. Mix the broth, wasabe, lemon zest, and juice into the marinade. This side sauce pours over the bowls of noodles for a soup like meal.
3. Heat pot of water for noodles. Boil noodles until al dente, or by package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water.
4. Chop mushrooms and green onions.
5. Heat wok pan and add oil. Quick fry mushrooms on high heat. Stirring often. After a few minutes, add green onions. Add tofu to the pan then the bean sprouts and garlic put through a press get to join in. This should all happen under 10-15 minutes.
6. Serve up the noodles in a shallow bowl, spoon a huge scoop of stir fry on top. Then pour the broth marinade sauce into the mix.

It's a little messy to eat. I wasn't sure if we needed forks or spoons, so we used both. The Japanese direct the food into mouth with chop sticks and sip the soup mixture holding the bowl up to their mouths. However, that takes practice, and we were much too impatient to eat to try out a new skill. Hope you will.

Fanatacism

By now you have probably figured out that I am obsessed with summer tomatoes. My last few columns have been about fresh, locally grown tomatoes. A few columns back in the winter were about longing for a good tomato. I dream about tomatoes and look forward all week long to visiting the local farmer's markets to see what new varieties are available. I buy more tomatoes than I need and give them to friends, neighbors and complete strangers. I have tomatoes for breakfast.I post photos of them on Facebook. I am obsessed.

Tomato testing at the Botanical Gardens of the Ozarks.

The editors of  The Washington County Observer,the local paper I write for are gracious enough to put up with my obsession. I imagine though they think I am a bit of a fanatic. After all, how many columns does one really want to read about tomatoes? The Maginots of Beyond Organics Farm in West Fork have been writing a few columns lately in the same paper about how to grow them. They give useful information like when to plant, how much to water, when to harvest and what to do when those prehistoric looking green tomato horn worms attack. The grow some incredible varieties and I am at the West Fork Garden Market every Saturday morning to see what lovelies they have to offer. Sometimes I'll show up at their farm during the week with a jar of honey or a bundt cake; a gesture of neighborly love. They are not fooled though. They see me peering over their fence and coveting their Chocolate Striped, Purple Cherokees, Arkansas Travellers and Black Krim. They know what I am after. They can identify a zealot when they see one.

So, this week I decided no more columns about tomatoes. Enough is enough. Then I heard about the Ozark Slow Food tomato tasting at the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks. Sixty varieties of sweet summer goodness to be sampled. Sixty! Tomato heaven! According to their website, Ozark Slow Food's mission is “to promote a sustainable farmer/consumer community and the celebration of healthy foods.” What's not to like about that? Eat local, eat slow, eat your veggies. A celebration! I even brought my own salt shaker!

Turnout was heavy with lines out the door waiting to get in. Seems there is big interest in tomatoes these days! Informational kiosks, complimentary recipes, television cameras and free tomatoes were everywhere. Varieties I had never heard of like Sun Gold, Parks Whopper, Mountain Fresh and Black Cherry were sampled. Lectures were offered. There was even balloting to name the tastiest variety. What fun! And, it's nice to know I am not the only fanatic.

But, that's it. No more columns this year about tomatoes. Enough! Besides, okra is coming into season. Think of it, fried okra, gumbo, pickled okra, okra with tomatoes. The possibilities are endless. Now, I am an okra fanatic. After all, why do anything if you can't do it to excess?

To learn more about Ozark Slow Food, please visit www.ozarkslowfood.org

Kabocha--The Ugly Squash You'll Love To Eat



By the time this plot of squash was finished spreading its tentacles, it covered half of my small backyard and part of a sidewalk leading to the gate. Squash blossoms were prolific and so was the resultant fruit. My biggest surprise was that of the two seeds that had sprouted, there were two varieties. I ended up with more kabocha than acorn and if you read the story, you'll find out why.

My summer garden flourishes. I have tomatoes and onions ready to eat and herbs aplenty for seasoning. What I thought was an acorn squash plot (Acorn Squash or Pod People) turned out to be a surprising mix of  both acorn and kabocha squash. Heavy on the kabocha. As it turns out, the nocturnal critters that live in the huge canyon across the street have a real taste for acorn squash. Out of all the fruit that set, I harvested only four. And while they were large specimens crammed with more flesh than any I've ever purchased at the grocery store, I'm still pouting that the raccoons and possums got to dine so regally on my supposed winter stash. Just so you know, I'm working on being thankful that at least the kaboacha survived the midnight raids, probably because of its hard, thick shell. Thank God for small miracles.

The squash plants spread out across my grass, rooting wherever a runner touched the soil. I decided to ignore its ability to take over the yard, more interested in seeing how many squash I'd harvest. If my property hadn't been invaded by furry thieves, I'd have at least a dozen more acorn squash than I do.

My dad always grew Hubbard squash when we lived in Minnesota. My sisters and I loved the smooth, sweet flesh, which mom baked and then whipped with butter and cream till it looked like orange mashed potatoes, but with more flavor. Once I began keeping my own home, I began searching the stores for Hubbard squash. Alas, in more than 50 years I never found it in any grocery store or farmer's market. Then came the day I gathered up my courage and complained to a produce manager about the lack of my favorite winter vegetable. He smiled and handed me a kaboacha. "This is as close to a Hubbard as you'll get around here," he said. Reluctantly, I took one of the ugly squashes home, cut it in half, removed the seeds and baked it in the oven. I was hooked.



When these large squashes began appearing, I wasn't sure what they were. It took me a while to figure out they were kabochas, also known as the Japanese pumpkins. The fruit is attractive when it's immature, but once ready for harvest, the outer shell becomes a blackish green, mottled, and bumpy. Not the beauty you'd gravitate towards in the grocery store, but trust me, if you like winter squash, you'll love this one.

 If you're unfamiliar with this particular winter squash, give it a try. The flesh is dark orange, dense, sweet, and teases the palette with a hint of nuttiness. I've eaten it roasted, whipped, stuffed and steamed. Roasted is my favorite, followed by stuffed with a mixture of sausage and rice. You can find all manner of recipes via Google. Or you can use my tried and true family recipe. And even though my mom used Hubbard, the kabocha is a near-perfect substitution. Just proves the old adage that you can't tell a book by its cover. (Ewww, pretend I didn't say that.)

ROASTED KABOCHA SQUASH

Cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds, and lay the squash cut side down on a baking sheet. Roast at 375 degrees for 30-45 minutes, depending on the size. This particular squash tends to be dense. It is done when you can pierce the flesh easily with a skewer or a long, thin knife. Be careful not to overcook or the flesh will be too dry.

About 10 minutes before serving, turn the squash over and put 2 Tbs. of  brown sugar, a pinch of cinnamon and a light grating of fresh nutmeg into the center well. I always add a bit of butter but you can use vegan margarine if you choose. Return it to the oven long enough to melt the toppings--about 5 minutes. Serves 4.

 Kabocha squash is heavy for its size, with most weighing 3-5 pounds. Kabocha is low in carbohydrates, high in fiber, and an excellent source of beta-carotene. One serving  provides 70 percent of a day's recommended requirements. Both squash varieties were easy to grow. I did nothing except water once in a while. Both plants spread out across the grass but didn't kill it. Worked so well I'll do it again next year. This photo shows some of my kabocha and my last two acorn.

Copyright 2011 by Sandra L Keith, All rights reserved

Photos are the property of the author and may not be reproduced

Falafel Failure

By the looks of this picture, you can't tell what I've been through. My first effort failed miserably. I even suggested to my husband that he make himself a *-%-#-&-$- sand which if he was so hungry. Eating dinner at 8:00 isn't extraordinarily late, especially in the summer, but he wanted to get out on his new Kayak. I call it his mistress. He takes her out on dates and overnight get-a-ways. When he talks about his latest ocean escapades, his eyes sparkle and he wears this dumb grin on his face. He is shameless!

I am racked with guilt on the other hand, because tonight I had to resort to using a chicken embryo in my falafels. My first batch slowly melted into the fry pan of oil. When I tried to turn them they just rolled out of their bottom layer.That's when I noticed the oil was turning greenish and turgid. Soon I had gooey and fragrant boiling hot oil.

Okay, regroup. My inspiration, Anne Burrel of the Food Channel, boiled chick peas from scratch to make falafels. Sorry, but I can't be bothered to soak beans overnight, and boil them in fresh water with carrot, onion, celery, sage, and bay leaves. PLEASE. They make canned garbanzo beans for our convenience. Although, I did taste test three differently priced labels out of curiosity. Yes, when you pay more, the beans are bigger and better tasting too. So how did I go wrong?

I thought I saw her loading the cooked chick peas into her food processor. Toasting 1 1/2 teaspoon each cumin and coriander seed in a dry pan, then grinding them in a coffee grinder (reserved only for spices-like I have one of those handy,right!) Then she grabbed some parsley, cilantro and chopped onion to add. With a little lemon zest, cayenne powder, and 1/4 cup bread crumbs, she began pulsing the mix. Lastly, she drizzled olive oil into the processor. I couldn't find the exact recipe on her website, but here is what I used to remedy my disaster.

Falafel
2 cans garbanzo beans
1/2 cup flour plus 3-4 tablespoons, if needed
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1/2 cup fresh parsley
2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 large egg
salt and pepper to taste

Pulse in a food processor until almost smooth. Transfer to bowl, add more flour if necessary to firm up mixture. Shape into balls and fry about 8 minutes, until crisp and brown. Drain on paper towels.

Tahini Sauce
1 cup sesame paste
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/3 cup FRESH lemon juice
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
Put all into food processor and mix until smooth. Drizzle 2 tablespoons olive oil into blender and salt and pepper to taste. Blend some more. Add some water if too thick. Think dipping sauce.

I served them on a bed of salad. I bet many types of vegetables would pair with falafels and tahini sauce. Maybe there is a good egg substitute that can make these vegan. Maybe you can find the recipe I thought I watched on the food channel. Anyhow, falafels were one of the first popularized hippy foods I remember from the college town of Isla Vista. Then after a time you could buy a falafel mix in regular grocery stores, but they never tasted as good as Baba's Falafel stand. It took me decades to finally figure out that they were made of garbanzo beans!

Zesty Corn Salad



I served this salad to company and was barely able to save enough for a photo. I kept what was left and surrounded it with flour tortillas warmed over an open flame and ate it for lunch the following day. The spicy juice was every bit as good as the zesty veggies and I used up my last tortilla as a dipper. Yum.

 Since becoming a vegan, I think I've seen at least a dozen recipes for corn salad and every one of them includes black beans. While I adore black beans, sometimes I just want a vegan recipe sans beans of any kind. From time to time, my mouth hungers for something out of the ordinary. Something zesty that will titillate my taste buds. Something for my own table or a family potluck or a church dinner that will cause people to seek me out and beg me to tell them how to make it.

I can't tell you where I got this recipe because I've had it for so long I've forgotten. Most likely, it was at one of those family gatherings or church potlucks where, ego in check, I begged for the recipe myself. Wherever it came from, I think you'll enjoy it. With summer's bounty hitting the grocery stores and Farmer's Markets, there is no better time than now to seek out vegetables fresh from the fields. Once the produce is picked, it takes but a few hours for their  natural sugars to convert to starch, so the sooner we get them on the table, the happier our taste buds will be with the party that's going on in our mouth.

ZESTY CORN SALAD 

In a medium size bowl, combine 2 Tbs. Mexican Spice Mix (recipe follows) with 1/4 c. of  olive oil and 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar. Whisk together.

Add to the bowl:

2 cups of cooked corn, kernels cut from the cob taste best

2 large tomatoes, cut into bite size pieces

1/2 cup sliced black olives
1/2 cup diced chili peppers (I use either fresh Anaheim or Pasilla, sometimes called Poblano, as they are the mildest. If you like spicy, toss in some jalapeno.

The seasoning mix contains salt, so I didn't add any extra, but if the salad isn't just right for your palette, add salt and pepper to taste.

Stir everything together, cover with plastic wrap and leave it in the refrigerator at least two hours. Overnight is better. Before serving, sprinkle the salad with 3 Tbs. chopped cilantro. Approximate servings: 4

This dish is good as a stand alone salad, but it serves well as a filling for avocado halves, topping for a veggie-burger, wrapped inside a warm flour tortilla, or stuffed into a giant baked potato. Happy Summer!

Fresh corn is low in saturated fat, very low in sodium, and has no cholesterol. It is high in dietary fiber, magnesium, phosphorus, thiamine, and vitamin C. When purchasing fresh corn on the cob, look for tight husks, healthy silks, and plump kernels. It is best to eat fresh corn the day it is purchased but if it has to be stored, leave it in the husks to prevent drying out. The longer corn sits before cooking, the less sweet it will be because the natural sugars will convert to starch. If the corn had to sit too long after dad brought it in from the field, mom's trick was to add a bit of sugar to the water she boiled the corn in. Worked every time.

MEXICAN SPICE MIX

1 Tbs. chili powder

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. onion powder

1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. paprika

1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. sea salt (I used kosher)

1 tsp. black pepper

Mix everything together and store in an airtight container. This blend of ingredients is less costly than the seasoning packs from the grocery store and is easy to toss together. The blend is shelf stable for a good 3 months. Probably longer, but it usually gets used it up before then.

Copyright 2011 by Sandra L Keith, All rights reserved

Play With Your Food

TV is my muse; my creative inspiration. When I'm relaxing at the end of the day the Food Network offers me just what I want. I tape the shows that teach food chemistry and cooking techniques. I'm entertained by food challenges: cupcakes wars, master chef, iron chef. Not so much the kitchen dramas. When pans begin to crash to the floor and tempers run hot, I turn the muse off.

The stars of food TV are the guys and gals that can smell and taste and adjust to create a culinary masterpiece. That's what I aspire to. When I'm in my kitchen, I put on my superhero apron and do my best to be them.

For a couple of weeks I have been struggling to make a rice ball that is flavorful, doesn't fall apart and entices a 6 year old. It has to be gluten free and vegan. It has to be colorful. It has to be crispy on the outside. It has to be delicious hot or cold. And it can't cause indigestion like the batch I made with onions and spinach. I think it might have been the onions.

Inspired Rice Balls

(play with the recipe - change up the herb or the veggies and please, let me know your results)

mix together in a 1 quart bowl:

1 cup cooked short grain brown rice

1/2 cup quinoa flakes

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

whisk together in a small bowl:

1 tablespoon flax meal

3 tablespoons water

let this sit for a couple of minutes - this is the egg that will hold things together

then add this to the bowl and mix well: 

2 tablespoons shredded carrot

2 tablespoons shredded baby zucchini

add the contents of the small bowl to the contents of the larger bowl and mix well with your hands.

it should be sticky

when well mixed, form into balls about 1 inch in diameter

it helps to have clean but wet hands when you do the ball forming

fry, browning on all sides, in hot canola oil in frying pan

if you use a 10-12 inch frying pan they will all fit without crowding

Inspired Rice Balls are only OK. I haven't thrilled the 6 year old. I think I'll invite her into the kitchen for a cooking play date. I'll fix up a mystery box -  she'll open the box and find everything she needs to make a rice ball except the vegetable and the spices. I'll have her go to the refrigerator and the herb garden to select her favorites. If I get it on film, I'll share it with you later. Child's play can lead to a life of healthy eating.

Jamming with Tree Fruit

Ripe fruit trees practically stone us with their bounty. If you own any your feet must be sore. Plums, peaches, apricots. Before they are ready for picking, you better be ready for jamming.

My childhood friend owns about a dozen trees that produce summer and fall fruit. She shops and stock piles large quantities of sugar, glass canning jars, brand new lids every single time she cans, extra large stock pots, canning tongs, funnels, ladles, etc. She sterilizes the jars ahead of time, and checks the ripeness of fruit every day. Usually the whole tree or multiple trees are all ripe at once. Therefore, be ready to cook the fruit over a hot stove, along with boiling the lids and jars separately in other pots, bellowing the steam into your face on a hot summer's day!

After picking a peck, wash, cut in half, and pit the fruit. In days of yore, fruit was actually peeled, but now we all know all the fiber and nutrition lies in the skin. Another faster method of separating the pits is to wash whole fruit and cook them 10-15 minutes in a stock pot with just 1/2 cup water. Remove from heat and let cool an hour or two. Then gently smash down with a potato masher, eventually digging down with your hands plucking the pits out by handfuls.

Recipes for jam, and jellies are included in the Certo brand box of pectin. 4-6 cups of pitted fruit will require 7-8 cups of sugar! There is no doubling up on ingredients. One batch at a time, no matter how much fruit you have. However, there is a freezer jam option included by Certo in case you run out of canning jars, time, or stamina. All of this my sister form another Mr. described to me as she handed me her golden jars of peach and apricot preserves.

Summer In A Bowl

With summer's plethora of fresh vegetables, vegans are always on the hunt for additional ways to use them. However, you don't have to be vegan to enjoy this week's recipe. It's so good even veggie haters will like it.

I hate to cook. I hate it when the weather is cold and when the weather is hot. Particularly when it's hot. And while being in the kitchen is the ultimate happiness for some, it is the bane of my existence that food needs to be prepared at all. No matter what my feelings on the subject, the truth is I'm an excellent cook. I figure it this way: if it has to be done, it better be worth remembering.

I've heard many a friend or television cook claim that their food was prepared with love and that's why it tastes so good. That statement is beyond my ability to fathom. Prepared with love? My food is plopped into a pan or oven or crock pot with great impatience, praying it will cook itself so I can ignore it till serving time. I also hear some chefs claim that food is sexy? Now that one really passes me by. I've never known anyone who got hot and bothered just looking at a bowl of soup or a plate of tofu. Utter nonsense.

Food is food and whether it tastes good or not, it will fill our stomachs and fuel our bodies. That is its purpose. Too often our pesky taste buds get in the way. And we all know what happens when that's the case. Ever notice a baby being fed peas? In the mouth; out of the mouth. My daughter was like that. I honestly believe she was born hating peas. No matter how often I tried getting them into her tummy, they'd make the "baby-food loop" and come right back out on the tip of the tiniest tongue I'd ever seen.

Perhaps it was during those days as wife and mother that I determined to make my food so good no one would ever spit it out or send it to the trash can. And while my oldest child loved vegetables of all sorts, my daughter was as picky as they come. The one saving grace was that she adored beets, eating them with seeming relish. Beets became my hiding place for the other things she needed but wouldn't swallow--like green beans and all baby-jarred meats.

All of that history to say that in my kitchen, food has to be easy to prepare and taste so good that even those who think they hate vegan offerings will love it. As I did last week, I'm passing onto you a family recipe that's been around so long I honestly have no idea where it came from. It was a staple on my mom's table every summer and it's long been a favorite on my table. My mom used whatever was ripe in the garden; I use whatever is in the frig that looks cold and crunchy. Happy chomping.

MARINATED VEGETABLES PAR EXCELLENCE

Make the marinade:

1/3 cup high quality extra virgin olive oil 

3 Tbs. Japanese seasoned rice wine vinegar

1/2 tsp. basil

1/4 tsp. dry mustard

1/4 tsp. ground cumin

1/4 tsp. crushed garlic

1/8 tsp. black pepper

Whisk everything together and set aside.

Prepare the vegetables:

1 medium red onion, sliced thin

3 cups of thin sliced zucchini

3 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and sliced thin.

Pour the marinade over the vegetables and mix well. It will look like there isn't enough marinade. Don't be fooled. Juice will come out of the vegetables and mingle their own flavors with the marinade. Cover well with plastic wrap. Allow to sit at least two hours. Overnight is better. Easy dish to make ahead.

When I make this salad, I use shredded carrots, diced celery, diced cucumber, sliced radishes, diced green onions--white and green parts, broccoli cut into tiny florets, and if there is leftover fresh cabbage, I'll slice it thin and throw it into the mix. I also toss in a diced and seeded jalapeno or two, depending on how hot they are. Since I don't care for raw zucchini, I substitute the veggies I do like and if I want this salad to fare well for a couple of days, I leave out the fresh tomatoes and use diced red peppers instead. The peppers will remain crisp while the tomatoes turn to mush. 

As long as you keep the ratio of marinade to vegetable mixture accurate, you can make a small batch to a giant batch and use any combination you wish. This summer salad keeps well and I use it as a stand alone salad or atop a veggie burger or tofu dog or black bean taco. My guess is you can find other ways to use it that I haven't thought of.

If you substitute any other vinegar for the Japanese seasoned rice wine vinegar, you will need to add sugar to cut the marinade's acidity. If you choose this route, add honey or sugar to taste, but why not splurge and buy the preferred vinegar. It's not that costly and the taste if worth it.

This summer salad is good just the way it is but if you like a bit of spice, toss in some jalapenos or Serrano peppers. Just remember to remove the seeds and ribs as that is where most of the heat hides.

Copyright 2011 by Sandra L Keith, All rights reserved

Fruit Salad with Basil

Food is such an important part of American gatherings. This simple peach salad titillated our taste buds at a family reunion last month. My Aunt Barbara tore the recipe from a Martha Stewart magazine. Thinly slice peaches, and sweet onions. Chop a large handful of basil. Combine all, then squeeze the juice of a lemon over it, drizzle olive oil over it, salt and pepper to taste.

Some families spread out over United States, and rarely come together. When this happens, as with my mom's. It gets tricky planning and coordinating a get together. At first, her cousin offered their house to all her nearby siblings. Then it snow balled into almost everyone, except for brother Don. When he was called two weeks prior, brother Larry was told of his passing only two hours ago that very day!

Now this reunion carried the import of a memorial. Soon we descended upon the 85 year old cousin and his wife. At least six of us got nearby hotel rooms. Still, four overnight guests, plus eleven more showing up for lunch and dinner is much. God Bless you Herb and Jan. You handled all of us with grace and generosity!

I made another version of it a week later that was gobbled down at a friend's dinner party. It was deeeelish!

2 lbs. unbruised peaches
2-4 oz. fresh basil
Sweet vinaigrette:
1/4 c. lemon juice
1/4 c. white wine vinegar
3 T. sugar
1/3 c. olive oil
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper

Then over the 4th of July, I made still another fruit salad, also just as good. I had a grocery bag of stone from the farmer's market. I just needed to get some basil and make another vinaigrette after slicing all the plums, peaches and apricots. Wow. There are endless variations. You will be amazed at how well basil goes with fruit!

You like Tomato, I like Tomatoh

The time of year we have all been waiting for is finally here. Cherry, Roma, Beefsteak, Green Zebra, Purple Cherokee how we have missed you so! Time to put those pale supermarket imitations we have had to rely on for so many months in their proper place; the dumpster! Don't even open those plastic wrapped styrofoam packages. Just head to your local farmer's market. We only have a few months of this sweet bliss so let's make the best of it!

Native to South and Central America, the tomato was cultivated by the Incas and Aztecs. The word “tomato” is derived from "tomatl," its name in Nahuatl, the ancient language of the Aztec people.Their was a time of course when tomatoes were shunned by the English speaking world. Thought to be poisonous(their leaves and roots are) they were grown strictly as ornamentals by the Northern Europeans until the 17^th century. The Spanish and Italians embraced the tomato in the sixteenth century and adopted it wholeheartedly into recipes.

What a trip the lowly “love apple” has taken! From the new world to the old world and then back again. Somewhere along the way something went wrong. Most tomatoes you buy in the grocery store nowadays are grown in Florida, California and Mexico. Picked green when they are just starting to change color, they are stacked on pallets, put into a large room for a few days and ethylene gas is piped into the room. Ethylene gas is derived from petroleum. You know, the stuff you heat your house with and run your car on. The tomato turns a lovely pink color but is still firm and ships easily and without bruising. Voila! You go to the store and purchase a lovely pink and crunchy tomato. But really, who the hell wants a crunchy, pink tomato?

So we look forward to this short season for most of the year when we can get tomatoes that taste like tomatoes. And it's just starting. Hurry down to your local Farmer's Market where the tomatoes taste like tomatoes. Grab a slicer, a loaf of bread, the salt shaker and make yourself a sandwich. Can all you can get hold of for those winter months that we know are coming. Cherish the sweet juicy taste while it lasts. Shun those crunchy ones! As for me? I'm making some gazpacho; as often as I can for as long as those lovely local tomatoes are in season. I'm riding this tide!

Gazpacho

1 large cucumber(or a bunch of those small picklers) halved lengthwise, peeled,

seeded, divided

2 large tomatoes, chopped and divided

1 bell pepper, chopped and divided

1 medium onion, chopped and divided

1 roasted red pepper(canned ones are okay)

3 cups tomato juice, divided

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

3 cloves garlic minced or smashed

Tabasco sauce, ground black pepper and salt to taste

Puree half of the cucumber, tomato, bell pepper, onion and the roasted red pepper

in a blender with one cup of the tomato juice. Pour into a bowl, add the remaining

ingredients and chill for at least two hours. Taste for seasoning. Serve cold and

garnish with croutons. Enjoy your summer.

Hippocrates

This is a short post about why I decided to try Vegan once a week.

"Let food be your medicine." Hippocrates

My friend tells a funny story about being at a fancy banquet, sitting next to a fancy lady. The fancy lady pushed the bread basket away and declared that she had a gluten allergy. My friend asked her what happened if she ate bread and the fancy lady said, "Explosive diarrhea."

The commercials for antacid products never mention allergies. They do show humans eating spicy food, pizza, hot dogs and in general being gluttonous. Any bells ringing? Any clues here?

A nurse practitioner was the first to apply science to my complaints of fatigue, rash, indigestion and foggy head. Twice. The first test she gave me was a blood test. It came back showing a long list of allergies. I casually tried to change my diet. I needed a second test years later, showing the same food allergies, to convince me that food was the culprit. Since then I have been gluten, dairy, egg and soy free. And I am happier.

Here's the thing that isn't usually mentioned. Food allergies can cause depression. I thought depression meant you were sad and troubled. But I didn't have anything to be sad or troubled about. I couldn't be depressed. And thank goodness my RNCNP didn't suggest taking a mood enhancing drug.

Food is my medicine. My rash is gone, indigestion is a thing of the past, my head is clear, I sleep better and I have more energy. Food. Chemistry. My personal chemistry kit is balanced. Vegan once a week is part of the fine tuning process. I am finding the best me with food. Imagine that.

Chia Pudding

You remember these guys. The chia pets. I bet just seeing this picture starts the jingle, ch-ch-ch-chia, singing in your head. In the 60's home cooks were beginning to experiment with sprouting seeds and beans in the kitchen. I experimented with sprouting mung beans, radish seeds, and alfalfa seeds. Looking at this Chia pet makes me wonder why it never occurred to me to sprout chia seeds. I think because they weren't readily available

This article  warns us of salmonella and E. coli outbreaks from sprouts because of contaminated seeds. Be informed. This website is an online source for sprouting.

Sorry for the side track. I don't really want to talk about sprouting. I want to talk about Chia seeds. I found this article about the benefits and side effects of eating Chia seeds. I think that if you buy your seeds from a reputable source and eat them in moderation you have nothing to fear. I was frankly surprised to find these warnings and cautions online. 

This chia seed pudding is my own concoction. I encourage you to expand on this theme. It's a no cook recipe. Just mix everything together, give the seeds a couple of hours to expand and you're ready to call in the spoons.

Simple (yet versatile) Chia Seed Pudding

This recipe will serve 6. The texture reminds me of rice pudding. 

Prepare 3 hours before serving.

Combine all ingredients in a 2 quart bowl:

1 16 oz can of coconut milk (the original one - it will be very thick and the can will not read 'lite coconut milk')

1 cup rice milk

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 to 1 cup raisins

5 tablespoons chia seeds

Stir everything together thoroughly. The Chia seeds may clump, so keep stirring. Refrigerate. In 30 minutes, stir again. Refrigerate. In another 30 minutes, stir again. Now you want to check the thickness of your pudding. If it is too thick, add more rice milk and stir thoroughly. Refrigerate another 2 hours.

You may want to add fruit, nuts, maple syrup, cinnamon or mint at serving time. You can skip the coconut milk and make this pudding using 2 cups of rice milk to start. Ohh, chocolate - yes, chocolate rice milk would be good to try. If you liked the texture of the rice pudding you had as a child, you will like the texture of this pudding.      

Bell Ringing Bean Salad

In the wake of September 11, the Liberty Bell was moved to closed and guarded quarters, that it might remain safe from any attack.

The summer I was eleven, my parents decided it was time for the three of us sisters to get in touch with our country's origins. Our family would drive to New York to see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Along the way we'd stop in Philadelphia to visit Independence Hall where the Declaration of Independence was signed.

Independence Park itself is comprised of four city blocks and includes outlying areas that include Carpenter's Hall where the First Continental Congress met, Ben Franklin's home, the Gaff House--where Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, and City Tavern, the center of revolutionary war activities.

My favorite landmark was the Liberty Bell. I was entranced. I took out the small Brownie camera I carried and shot photo after photo. For someone who loved history as much as I did, it was the star of the summer. There it sat, right out in the open, almost within a hand's reach. How I would have loved to hear it ring.

It has been said that "it's chime changed the world." Dramatic interpretation perhaps, but when the Liberty Bell rang out from the tower of Independence Hall during the original reading of the Declaration of Independence on July 8, 1776, everyone who heard it knew change was on the wind.

Originally cast in 1751 by the Whitechapel Foundry in England, the bell was intended to be nothing more than a State Bell to commemorate Pennsylvania's Charter of Privileges which set forth the rights and freedoms valued by people the world over.

History did not record why or when the bell cracked, only that once it did it was re-cast in America and then again in England. What we do know is that the bell rang to call the Pennsylvania Assembly together, to summon people for special announcements or events, when King George took the throne in 1761, to summon folks to discuss the Sugar Act of 1764 and the Stamp Act of 1765. By 1772 the people in the nearby vicinity had had it with all the noise and petitioned the Pennsylvania Assembly to "stop ringing that bell." 

When the British occupied Philadelphia in 1777, the bell was spirited away from the city and hidden beneath the floorboards of a church in Allentown, Pennsylvania. No small feat. The bell weighs 2,080 pounds, bears a lip circumference of 12 feet and stands nearly 5 feet high. The yoke is fashioned of Slippery Elm, and in itself weighs 200 pounds.

Today the bell is owned by the city of Philadelphia and is on display in Independence National Historic park--crack and all. Guess they really did ring it one too many times.

BELL RINGING BEAN SALAD

This is a wonderful salad for a backyard BBQ or any other place you  get together with friends to celebrate America's birthday. This recipe makes a lot and gets better the longer it marinates. Even better, no worries over contamination if it sits un-refrigerated. My suggestion is to make it a day or two ahead. I've eaten many a marinated bean salad in my day, but this is the best of them all. It's a real bell ringer.

1 can red kidney beans, drained

1 can cut green beans, drained

1 can garbanzo beans, drained

1 can black-eyed peas, drained.

2 1/2 cups chopped celery

1 cup finely minced parsley (important to the flavor)

1 bunch green onions, chopped

1 3 oz. jar stuffed green olives

1 can chopped black olives

In a separate bowl combine:

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

2 Tbs. brown sugar

1 clove garlic, crushed

Whisk together and pour over the bean mixture, tossing lightly. Cover and refrigerate at least over night. To serve, mix well and arrange in a bowl lined with crisp romaine leaves.

"Cheers for the sailors who fought on the wave for it,
Cheers for the soldiers that always were brave for it.
Tears for the men that went down to the grave for it.
Here comes the Flag!

Author unknown

Copyright 2011 by Sandra L Keith, All rights reserved.




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