Seitan No-Chicken Piccata

I have always loved veal and chicken piccata. So I began wondering if I could re-create the flavor in either tofu or seitan. The tofu was alright, but not a recipe I felt that I could pass along with any sort of honesty. However, the seitan version turned out well. The mind and mouth both knew it wasn't chicken picatta, but the flavors I love were there so I called it a success. Give this recipe a try and then tell me your thoughts.

SEITAN PICCATA

8 oz. of home made seitan (you can use purchased, but it isn't as tasty)

2-3 Tbs. olive oil, depending on how large your skillet is

1 small onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp. basil (I used dry, but you can use fresh if you have it)

1 tsp. thyme

1/2 cup good white wine

1/2 lemon, juiced

1 Tbs. chopped parsley

1-2 Tbs. capers, depending on how much you like these pickled flower buds

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup water (club soda gives the crust a flakier texture)

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 lb. diced mushrooms (I left them out as I had none on hand)

Mix the flour, water, and salt in a medium size bowl. It will be a thick-ish paste. That is what you want.

Dip the sliced seitan into the batter and fry in a hot skillet until nice and crisp on each side. Remove to a plate, cover with foil to keep it warm.

Do NOT clean the drippings out of your skillet. They are all flavor.

Into the skillet put another TBS of olive oil if needed and cook the onions, salt and pepper until the onions become somewhat soft. (If using the mushrooms, add them here)

Add the garlic, parsley, basil, thyme, and a dash more black pepper and cook for about 2 minutes.

Now add to the skillet:

1 cup vegetable broth (I used No-Chicken broth for a better taste)

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 Tbs. lemon juice

Cook on low heat until the liquid reduces by half. Stir in the capers and 1 Tbs. vegan margarine to give the sauce a glossy finish.

Serve the seitan with the sauce spooned on top and sprinkled with the diced parsley.

Serves 4

Easy Mushroom Risotto--Honest

I love rice. Always have. I like all kinds of rice, all colors of rice, and any recipe that includes rice. I especially like those recipes that involve tossing the rice into the oven to let it do its thing without me having to set a timer or keep watch. That's why I was thrilled to hear Ina Garten on the Food Channel say that she had found a way to make risotto in the oven.

Now I am partial to risotto. It's thick and creamy and stands up to anything you can think to put in it. But making a good risotto involves standing at the stove, spoon in hand, stirring, stirring, and stirring. It also includes having a pot of some kind of warm liquid on the back burner so that when the rice gets dry, I can add in another ladle or two. And then continue with the endless stirring. For at least 20 minutes. Sometimes 30.

Bah, Humbug.

Patience has never been one of my virtues. Hence, when I saw that Ina's oven risotto turned out perfect, I was sold. I tweeked her recipe to make it vegan and then served it to company. We all declared it a prize winner. And while I used assorted mushrooms as my vegetable of choice, this risotto could be made with all manner of roasted veggies or veggies and faux meat or an assortment of cooked and fresh vegetables so that the dish would be both creamy and crunchy. If you are a rice lover like me, give this recipe a try. I bet you'll be smacking your lips over its taste and tap dancing at its ease of preparation.

EASY MUSHROOM RISOTTO

1/2 pound of fresh mushrooms of your choice

1 oz. package of dried mushrooms. 

5-6 cups of no-chicken broth

6 Tbs. olive oil

1/2 cup chopped shallot (I used sweet onion)

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

1/2 cup dry white wine

Saffron, the world's most expensive
spice. A little goes a long way.

1/2 tsp. saffron threads

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/2 cup nutritional yeast

1 cup frozen peas

Reconstitute the dried mushrooms according to package directions.

If your fresh mushrooms are large, slice them; if they are small, leave them whole.

Put the reconstituted and fresh mushrooms into a Dutch oven with the 6 Tbs. of olive oil. Add the shallots and cook until the ingredients are lightly wilted but not browned.

To the Dutch oven add all but the frozen peas and 1 cup of the broth.

Cover the pot with a tight fitting lid and bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Most of the liquid will be absorbed and the rice will still be a bit too firm. Remove the pot to the stove top to finish cooking.

Add the last cup of broth and give everything a good stir. It will take about 3-5 minutes for the liquid to be absorbed by the rice and the whole mixture to become thick and creamy.

Taste the risotto. If the rice is still too firm, add a bit more broth, about 1/2 cup at a time.

Just before serving, add the peas and continue cooking until the peas are no longer cold. Serve the dish hot. You can sprinkle the dish with vegan Parmesan or minced parsley. I served a side of Caesar salad and garlic toast.

Vegans who don't like to cook are always on the lookout for oven recipes. I'm one of them.

Friends don't let friends eat bad food.

Meet my friend Judith Levine. She is someone who always lights up a room with an abundant smile and a quick wit. She is a native of Fayetteville who lived for a number of years in France before coming home to marry the love of her life. Her life is lived with passion and flair and she possesses a curiosity in everything around her. Not only that, she is a fabulous cook. And I do mean fabulous. Every meal is an event and an adventure. And she never picks up a cookbook or uses a recipe!

Judith and I recently started a business together called www.conegratulations.com . We sell petal tossing cones to brides and florists along with display cases. Lest you think this is just a shameless plug(okay, it is...) there is a food connection. The cones are food grade and perfect to hold snacks, canapes, pannise(great vegan treat by the way), hors d'ouvres, candy and the like. Perfect for parties and catering. So every week, Judith and I hold a strategy session at her house and she makes lunch. Sometimes it is more lunch than strategy but really, you should not mix business with food anyway right?

Today my sweet friend made us a lovely soup with ingredients she had on hand. There was no recipe, no prior planning and it took all of ten minutes to make. Coincidently it was vegan(she is not) and it was incredible. I never even thought to ask if it had a name and am constructing a recipe on the hoof.  Come to think  of it, I don't even know if it has a name.It is a delicious quick vegan meal and I urge you to try it.

Judith's Mushroom and Tofu Coconut Soup

1 container silken tofu, drained
1 can unsweetened coconut milk
   juice of one lemon
6 cups or so vegetable or No Chicken stock
1 oz shredded dried shitake mushrooms
a handful of scallions, chopped
a handful of cilantro, chopped

Bring the liquids to a boil with the shitake mushrooms. Simmer five minutes. Add the tofu and simmer a few more. Throw in the scallions and cilantro and serve. Now how easy was that! And oh, so good.

Thanks for the wonderful meal my friend. I hope we have many more together!

Faux Chicken And Dumplings

My aunt made the best chicken and dumplings I've ever eaten, although I've learned to make a dish that tastes reasonably like hers. The chicken and vegetable part is easy. It's getting the dumplings to cook up into huge fluffy clouds that are dry in the center, but saucy on the outside that stumped me for a time. After a lot of experimentation, I finally figured out her secret. Read on....

Noodle-like dumplings

Through the years, I've tasted many chicken and dumpling offerings. For the most part, the broth and veggies were fine. The problem has always been the dumplings. Now I know a dumpling war rages, with some people liking those flat, thin things that look like dried pasta and taste just about as good. Others like those tiny balls that resemble gnocchi except that they are firm to the tooth and bear no semblance to anything fluffy or cloud-like.

Gnocchi-like dumplings

But I wasn't raised on those versions. I come from the other side of the dumpling tracks and for me, nothing but what I consumed as a child will do. So here's what I'm saying: Begin your soup as I suggest and then try my light as air dumplings and see if they please your taste buds. Made right, their consistency will remind you of those huge bakery muffins we all relish, albeit savory. If the other kind suit you better, you can always make this dish again and use your dumpling of choice.

Since chicken and dumplings has always been a favorite dish, I've been working on a vegan version for nearly a year and with the inspiration of a few vegan cookbooks, I finally came up with a recipe that's heart-warming, filling, and reminds me of those cold winter days in Minnesota when all a body wanted at dinner was something hot to warm you from from the inside out. This recipe does that for me. My hope is that it not only warms you up but makes you smile.

FAUX CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS

Soup part:

1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup pea and carrot mix (I used frozen)
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 Tbs. poultry seasoning
1 tsp. dried parsley (fresh if you have it)
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. curry powder
2 Tbs. nutritional yeast (a must for flavor)
1 cup non-dairy milk
1 cup drained and rinsed garbanzo beans, often called chickpeas
dash of hot sauce
salt and pepper

Brown the vegetables in 2 Tbs. canola oil. Add the spices, milk, and beans, along with 1 1/2-2 cups of No Chicken Broth from the Health Food Market. Use Vegetable stock if the above isn't available. Set the pot on a back burner, cover, and simmer about an hour. Taste for seasoning before adding the dumplings to the broth. If the broth has gotten too low, add more stock. Dumplings need a good bath of liquid to cook right.

Once the pot is bubbling, drop the dumplings by teaspoon-full into the hot broth. Adjust the burner so the liquid simmers and leave the pot uncovered for ten minutes. Then cover and simmer another ten minutes. No cheating on the time or the dumplings will not turn out right.

NO PEEKING ALLOWED! If the built up steam escapes, the  dumplings will not be fluffy. Trust me on this. It's where I made my mistake. When the time has elapsed, uncover the pot. Put one or two of those big fat dumplings in a large bowl and ladle the soup over the top. Sprinkle with minced green onions or fresh parsley. Go back for seconds!

Serves 3-4

DUMPLING DOUGH

1 cup white flour (wheat just doesn't make a good dumpling)

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

2 Tbs. vegan margarine, melted

1/2 cup non-dairy milk

Stir all ingredients together with a fork until the dough just comes together. It will be wet and sloppy. That is how it should be. Drop by rounded teaspoon fulls into the bubbling broth. They will look small now, but will be huge when finished as they expand a lot. Cook as directed above. Serve immediately. 

And on the Seventh Day...

Not only did I rest but, I got nothing much at all accomplished.Today was my day to  do cement work on the cabin foundation, go to the farmer's market at the Botanical Gardens, make Sandy's dill pickles and then go swimming at Devil's Den State Park. Instead, I got up and had coffee, went back to bed, got up and  had lunch and then took a nap. If I stay awake until nine tonight, I will be surprised.The temperature is once again in the hundred degree range and the last thing I want to do is cook. But surprisingly, all this heavy duty laying around has made me hungry.

I am lucky to have an extensive cookbook collection. To me browsing through cookbooks is every bit as fun as cooking. And if you love to cook, most likely you have a few old standbys. This is one of my favorites for when I want something healthy and delicious but don't want to spend a lot of the time in the kitchen. I adapted it from a pork lo mein recipe from Better Homes and Gardens' Fresh and Simple 20 Minute Suppers. Being vegetarian I obviously had to nix the pork and I spiced it up a bit with minced fresh garlic and ginger. I did not have lo mein noodles in the pantry so I substituted spaghetti which worked very nicely. It is substantial and tasty but not too heavy for a hot summer night!

Shanghai Tofu Lo Mein

Two dinner servings and ready in less than 20 minutes

8 ounces spaghetti or lo mein cooked until al dente. Rinse in cold water, drain and set aside
8 ounces extra firm tofu, pressed,drained and cubed. Saute in olive oil over high heat until browned. Set aside
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 teaspoons ginger root, peeled and minced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 cups bok choy, sliced
3/4 cup No Chicken Broth
1/4 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 11 ounce can mandarin orange segments, drained

In a  large skillet or wok over high heat, saute the bok choy in the olive oil until crisp tender, about three minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and saute for a minute or so until fragrant. Add the tofu and cook for a minute until heated through. Add the broth,orange juice, soy sauce, sesame oil and red pepper flakes and bring to a boil. Stir in the cooked spaghetti and heat for a minute, stirring occasionally. Stir in the orange sections and grab your chopsticks. Yum!