4 c powdered sugar
1/2 c cocoa powder
1/2 c safe milk
2 T shortening
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 c chocolate chips
1 c mini-marshmallows
opt another 1 c mini-marshmallows
Spray 9x9 pan with pam and set aside.
Sift sugar and cocoa into large mixing bowl, add chocolate chips and set aside.
In a small saucepan, heat milk and shortening to boil over med-high, stirring constantly to avoid buring. When the milk is at a steady, strong boil, add 1 c marshmallows. Stir until well dissolved.
Pour over sugar mixture and stir well until everything is well combined and melted.
Stir in vanilla.
Stir in additional marshmallows, if desired.
Spread fudge in pan and refrigerate until firm.
GK's notes: I have used both hemp and rice milk. Both work just fine. I use spectrum shortening, though I don't see why Crisco or lard wouldn't also work fine. I use Enjoy Life brand chocolate chips because they are soy and dairy free, but I'm sure any will do--I especially like that they are mini-chips, though, and I would recommend whatever brand or flavor you buy, get mini ones if you can.
It's been a very long time since I have had "real" fudge, so I can't say if this is much like it, but I love this. Actually, my whole family loves it. It's good! I'm starting to lean toward the idea that some chopped pecans or peanuts would be very good in it. *sigh* I may give it a shot with chopped sunflower seeds one of these days, though I think it would be ill received in my house. *sigh* again. Although, a whole pan of fudge to myself...hmmm...lol! We really like it better with the additional marshmallows. It kind of breaks up the intense richness a bit.
8/31/2010
8/29/2010
The Best Vegan Mac & Cheese
For the sauce:
4 tablespoons oil
4 tablespoons bob's ap flour
2 1/2 cups plain hemp milk
1 rounded tablespoon Athenos roasted garlic hummus
2 heaping tablespoons nutritional yeast
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1-2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sea salt, to taste
A dash or two of Simply Organic Garlic Powder
A dash or two of Simply Organic Minced Onion
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
3 tablespoons white wine
Optional: 1/2 teaspoon turmeric for yellow, or paprika for orange color
cook the pasta.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat, and stir in the flour
(I like to use a whisk to do this). Cook and stir the flour for a minute or so, then
slowly add in the hemp milk, whisking to blend the flour paste (called a roux) and hemp milk.
Bring the mixture to a bubble (it will thicken as it heats) then reduce the heat to low.
Add the hummus, nutritional yeast, Dijon mustard, balsamic vinegar, sea
salt, wine, a dash or two of Garlic Powder and Minced Onion, and nutmeg. Add turmeric or paprika for color, if desired. Mix well with a whisk.
Remove from heat and combine pasta and sauce.
GK's notes: I don't think this is the original recipe I found online, but I have more substitutions to suggest. I recommend Athenos brand hummus because it's our favorite, and it's what I've used in this recipe. You can use what you like, obviously. Originally, the recipe called for tahini, which we didn't like the first time I made this. I have made it since, when I was out of hummus and used tahini, and we thought it was better, sort of more sophisticated, if that makes any sense. Apparently eating allergen-free can be an acquired taste...
You can use whatever alternative milk you want. I like Tempt Hemp milk best, but rice milk works. Just don't use a flavored milk, lol! We wanted mac and cheese pretty badly one day and all I had on hand was vanilla rice milk. It was just edible. *sigh* Oddly sweet...not horrible, just not right.
Um, regarding the wine: I don't keep white wine on hand as a regular member of my kitchen, but I do keep Sherry. It is what I usually use. It works great.
Last one, I swear. The paprika/turmeric thing? I use both, because then it comes out a pleasant shade of orange not too terribly far from the beloved box mac and cheese of old. Don't get me wrong. This dish is nothing like that crap, I just like the color. Plus, I think they add a sort of pungency that is pleasant with these other flavors. *shrug* We like it.
4 tablespoons oil
4 tablespoons bob's ap flour
2 1/2 cups plain hemp milk
1 rounded tablespoon Athenos roasted garlic hummus
2 heaping tablespoons nutritional yeast
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1-2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sea salt, to taste
A dash or two of Simply Organic Garlic Powder
A dash or two of Simply Organic Minced Onion
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
3 tablespoons white wine
Optional: 1/2 teaspoon turmeric for yellow, or paprika for orange color
cook the pasta.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat, and stir in the flour
(I like to use a whisk to do this). Cook and stir the flour for a minute or so, then
slowly add in the hemp milk, whisking to blend the flour paste (called a roux) and hemp milk.
Bring the mixture to a bubble (it will thicken as it heats) then reduce the heat to low.
Add the hummus, nutritional yeast, Dijon mustard, balsamic vinegar, sea
salt, wine, a dash or two of Garlic Powder and Minced Onion, and nutmeg. Add turmeric or paprika for color, if desired. Mix well with a whisk.
Remove from heat and combine pasta and sauce.
GK's notes: I don't think this is the original recipe I found online, but I have more substitutions to suggest. I recommend Athenos brand hummus because it's our favorite, and it's what I've used in this recipe. You can use what you like, obviously. Originally, the recipe called for tahini, which we didn't like the first time I made this. I have made it since, when I was out of hummus and used tahini, and we thought it was better, sort of more sophisticated, if that makes any sense. Apparently eating allergen-free can be an acquired taste...
You can use whatever alternative milk you want. I like Tempt Hemp milk best, but rice milk works. Just don't use a flavored milk, lol! We wanted mac and cheese pretty badly one day and all I had on hand was vanilla rice milk. It was just edible. *sigh* Oddly sweet...not horrible, just not right.
Um, regarding the wine: I don't keep white wine on hand as a regular member of my kitchen, but I do keep Sherry. It is what I usually use. It works great.
Last one, I swear. The paprika/turmeric thing? I use both, because then it comes out a pleasant shade of orange not too terribly far from the beloved box mac and cheese of old. Don't get me wrong. This dish is nothing like that crap, I just like the color. Plus, I think they add a sort of pungency that is pleasant with these other flavors. *shrug* We like it.
Hobo Dinner
1 pound ground meat- divided into 1 /4 pound portions
1 pound package of baby carrots- divided into 4 portions
4 medium baking potatoes, sliced
1 medium onion, sliced and divided into 4 portions
salt and pepper to taste
4 large sheets of aluminum foil
Divide meat into 4 equal portions, and form into patties. Place in center
of aluminum foil sheet, add divided portions of carrots, potatoes, and onion.
Season as desired. Fold foil, around contents and place on large cookie tray.
Bake at 375 degrees for or hour or until meat is thoroughly cooked and
vegetables are tender. This dish can also be prepared over a camp fire or on
a grill.
GK's notes: We LOVE this dinner. Coincidentally had it tonight. It's so simple and tasty.
1 pound package of baby carrots- divided into 4 portions
4 medium baking potatoes, sliced
1 medium onion, sliced and divided into 4 portions
salt and pepper to taste
4 large sheets of aluminum foil
Divide meat into 4 equal portions, and form into patties. Place in center
of aluminum foil sheet, add divided portions of carrots, potatoes, and onion.
Season as desired. Fold foil, around contents and place on large cookie tray.
Bake at 375 degrees for or hour or until meat is thoroughly cooked and
vegetables are tender. This dish can also be prepared over a camp fire or on
a grill.
GK's notes: We LOVE this dinner. Coincidentally had it tonight. It's so simple and tasty.
12/04/2009
Split pea soup
I posted another split pea soup recipe before, but it was a curry one. I may or may not have mentioned that we liked that one, but it was very, very similar to this one when it was done, and it was a lot more work. This one is very simple, really easy and delicious. If you want a vegetarian one, simply use vegetable broth. If you can use it, I strongly suggest the Better than Bouillon vegetable broth. It is spectacularly delicious. I wish we could still use it. =(
2 c beef broth
4 c plain water
1 c dry brown rice
1 c dry split peas
1/4 tsp dried marjoram
1 bay leaf
several chopped carrots
1 med-large onion, chopped
1/4 tsp celery seed (the original calls for cut up celery, but we aren't big fans, so we never have any on hand. I think the celery seeds do fine...)
salt and pepper to taste
In a large saucepan, combine broth, peas, marjoram, bay leaf, water and a dash of pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for about 45 minutes. Add vegetables and rice and cook for another 45 minutes--until peas and rice are soft and veggies are tender. Discard bay leaf.
GK's notes: I tripled this the other day and it worked great, so it's very expandable. We were quite surprised that such a simple recipe is so flavorful. The original calls for chicken broth (instead of beef) and a ham hock, which I think would taste pretty different. I'm sure it would be fine, but we can't do those. It also didn't call for rice, but we like it--it makes it a bit heartier, and gives a nice, toothsome texture. If you don't want to use it, reduce the water by 2 cups.
2 c beef broth
4 c plain water
1 c dry brown rice
1 c dry split peas
1/4 tsp dried marjoram
1 bay leaf
several chopped carrots
1 med-large onion, chopped
1/4 tsp celery seed (the original calls for cut up celery, but we aren't big fans, so we never have any on hand. I think the celery seeds do fine...)
salt and pepper to taste
In a large saucepan, combine broth, peas, marjoram, bay leaf, water and a dash of pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for about 45 minutes. Add vegetables and rice and cook for another 45 minutes--until peas and rice are soft and veggies are tender. Discard bay leaf.
GK's notes: I tripled this the other day and it worked great, so it's very expandable. We were quite surprised that such a simple recipe is so flavorful. The original calls for chicken broth (instead of beef) and a ham hock, which I think would taste pretty different. I'm sure it would be fine, but we can't do those. It also didn't call for rice, but we like it--it makes it a bit heartier, and gives a nice, toothsome texture. If you don't want to use it, reduce the water by 2 cups.
11/18/2009
Che Dau Trang (Vietnamese Pudding with White Beans and Sticky Rice in Coconut Milk)
This is very tasty. A lot of my friends said it looked gross or sounded too weird to eat, but it was exactly what we needed. AND it is delicious! MMMMM.....
For a 2-quart pot, you'll need:
1/2 cup dried black-eyed peas, soaked overnight
1 cup glutinous rice
2 cups water
1/2 cup sugar
1 15-oz can coconut milk
Optional: Crushed peanuts for serving.
Soak 1/2 cup dried black-eyed peas overnight. Or if you're in a hurry, you can use canned beans,
just make sure they're unsalted.
Rinse beans and add to pot with 2 cups of water. Turn heat to high and when it boils, turn the
heat down to medium-low to simmer for about half an hour for the beans to soften. Obviously,
you can skip this step if using canned beans since they'd already be soft. Add 1/2 cup sugar,
1 can of coconut milk, and 1 cup uncooked glutinous rice and let simmer for another half hour to
cook the rice until soft. I like my rice to be the consistency of rice porridge. Taste and add more
sugar if you've got a sweeter tooth than mine.
Serve warm or cold. Add a sprinkle of crushed peanuts on top if you wish.
Enjoy!
GK's notes: Obviously we skipped the peanuts, but I bet they would be good. *sigh*
I added probably 1/8 c more sugar than she calls for, but that's obviously optional! In addition, I used brown rice, because A: I like it and B: it's healthier. Dh wants me to try the sticky rice, so next time I will. I'm sure it will be good, too. =) It took much longer for my beans to get done, like an hour and a half, but they had been left out of the water for a whilebetween soaking and cooking, and may have dried back up some. Soak those beans really well, folks!
For a 2-quart pot, you'll need:
1/2 cup dried black-eyed peas, soaked overnight
1 cup glutinous rice
2 cups water
1/2 cup sugar
1 15-oz can coconut milk
Optional: Crushed peanuts for serving.
Soak 1/2 cup dried black-eyed peas overnight. Or if you're in a hurry, you can use canned beans,
just make sure they're unsalted.
Rinse beans and add to pot with 2 cups of water. Turn heat to high and when it boils, turn the
heat down to medium-low to simmer for about half an hour for the beans to soften. Obviously,
you can skip this step if using canned beans since they'd already be soft. Add 1/2 cup sugar,
1 can of coconut milk, and 1 cup uncooked glutinous rice and let simmer for another half hour to
cook the rice until soft. I like my rice to be the consistency of rice porridge. Taste and add more
sugar if you've got a sweeter tooth than mine.
Serve warm or cold. Add a sprinkle of crushed peanuts on top if you wish.
Enjoy!
GK's notes: Obviously we skipped the peanuts, but I bet they would be good. *sigh*
I added probably 1/8 c more sugar than she calls for, but that's obviously optional! In addition, I used brown rice, because A: I like it and B: it's healthier. Dh wants me to try the sticky rice, so next time I will. I'm sure it will be good, too. =) It took much longer for my beans to get done, like an hour and a half, but they had been left out of the water for a whilebetween soaking and cooking, and may have dried back up some. Soak those beans really well, folks!
burmese style tofu
This is very exciting. I love tofu, in all its glorious splendor, but my darling son is allergic to soy. I discovered garbanzo bean based miso, which is wonderful, but I never dared to dream there might be such a thing as soy-free tofu. Who knew? My nephew's wife sent me a recipe, which is not the one I'm sharing here. This one seems to be a bit more nutritious, which is always my goal. I don't like eating stuff that's supposed to be real food that has little nutritional value (but I have no problem eating junk food. I am human, after all). So after niece-in-law's email, I got curious and went a-lookin'. I haven't tried this recipe yet (I found it at netcooks), but you can rest assured I will very, very soon, and I will get back to you, dear imaginary reader.
By the way, I am eternally indebted to my wonderful niece-in-law. I don't know how she found out about this, but I'm shoutin' it from the mountain top: THANK YOU!!!
3 cups Chick-pea flour(Pare Hmont)(Garam Dhal Powder)
15 cups water
1 tsp. vegetable oil
1/4 tsp. ground tumeric (yellow powder)
1 tsp. salt
Mix the chick-pea flour and water together with a whisk or eggbeater. Let stand overnight, about 12 hours.
Next day, strain the mixture through a thin cotton cloth slowly. Scrape out the residue from the cloth and discard it. Let the balance of the liquid settle for 3 hours.
With a soup ladle, carefully remove 6 cups of liquid from the top of the mixture without disturbing the balance. Discard the 6 cups liquid you have removed.
Rub the bottom of a large pan with the oil. Pour in almost all of the balance of the liquid (9 cups) and add the turmeric and salt. What remains in the original pan is thick chick-pea sludge, about a cup. This should be reserved in a bowl for future use.
Bring to a boil the 9 cups of liquid and cook over moderate heat for 30 minutes, stirring continuously. At this time, add the chick-pea sludge, which is a thickening agent, and continue to cook over low heat for 10 minutes more, stirring the thick mixture firmly. Remove the pan from heat.
Turn out the mixture into a tray 12x4 inches and 3 inches deep, lined with a clean, cotton cloth. Cool completely, uncovered, overnight. At this stage, you may slice the firm tofu into pieces of whatever size you wish. It is ready to use.
To make a salad- A few pieces of tofu, some shredded cabbage, onion slices, crispy onions, and the oil, fish sauce, tamarind paste, toasted chick-pea powder ad mix everything together. Sprinkle chopped coriander leaves on top.
To fry- Cut the tofu into 2 inch square pieces 2/3 inch thick and deep fry them in oil for a few seconds.
By the way, I am eternally indebted to my wonderful niece-in-law. I don't know how she found out about this, but I'm shoutin' it from the mountain top: THANK YOU!!!
3 cups Chick-pea flour(Pare Hmont)(Garam Dhal Powder)
15 cups water
1 tsp. vegetable oil
1/4 tsp. ground tumeric (yellow powder)
1 tsp. salt
Mix the chick-pea flour and water together with a whisk or eggbeater. Let stand overnight, about 12 hours.
Next day, strain the mixture through a thin cotton cloth slowly. Scrape out the residue from the cloth and discard it. Let the balance of the liquid settle for 3 hours.
With a soup ladle, carefully remove 6 cups of liquid from the top of the mixture without disturbing the balance. Discard the 6 cups liquid you have removed.
Rub the bottom of a large pan with the oil. Pour in almost all of the balance of the liquid (9 cups) and add the turmeric and salt. What remains in the original pan is thick chick-pea sludge, about a cup. This should be reserved in a bowl for future use.
Bring to a boil the 9 cups of liquid and cook over moderate heat for 30 minutes, stirring continuously. At this time, add the chick-pea sludge, which is a thickening agent, and continue to cook over low heat for 10 minutes more, stirring the thick mixture firmly. Remove the pan from heat.
Turn out the mixture into a tray 12x4 inches and 3 inches deep, lined with a clean, cotton cloth. Cool completely, uncovered, overnight. At this stage, you may slice the firm tofu into pieces of whatever size you wish. It is ready to use.
To make a salad- A few pieces of tofu, some shredded cabbage, onion slices, crispy onions, and the oil, fish sauce, tamarind paste, toasted chick-pea powder ad mix everything together. Sprinkle chopped coriander leaves on top.
To fry- Cut the tofu into 2 inch square pieces 2/3 inch thick and deep fry them in oil for a few seconds.
11/13/2009
lentils and couscous
The original recipe is from The Meatless Gourmet, by Bobbie Hinman. I altered it some, of course. Here's the original, followed by my changes.
1 c lentils, uncooked
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/16 tsp gr. cinnamon
1 bay leaf
3 c water
2 tsp veg oil
2 c onion, cut vertically into very thin slivers
1 c water
1/2 c couscous
Place the lentils in a medium saucepan. Add garlic, spices and 3 c water. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 40 minutes, stirring once halfway through.
While lentils are cooking, bring the 1 c water to a boil in a small saucepan. REmove from heat, stir in couscous, cover and set aside for 15 minutes.
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently until onion is nicely browned, about 10 minutes. (Crisp, very brown onions are one of the secrets to the flavor of this dish, but be careful not to let them burn)
Add lentils to skillet and mix well. Remove and discard bay leaf.
Serve lentils over couscous.
GK's notes: I sweated the garlic and cumin before I added the broth and lentils. I couldn't stand the thought of just plopping raw garlic into the broth.
Because I used store bought, prepared rice couscous that had a flavor (Lundburg brand Roasted Brown Rice couscous--Mediterranean Curry flavor), I dropped the cinnamon, because I thought those flavors would clash (I've tried cinnamon and curry together before. It was gross.)
Instead of plain water, I used broth for extra depth of flavor. I used beef broth in the lentils and vegetable broth for the couscous.
I didn't have enough onion to make up quite 2 cups, but they MADE this dish. Next time, I will probably go for at least 2.5 cups, because they were really, really nice. But we adore onions, so take that into consideration. =)
Also, we are huge garlic fans, so I usually don't bother measuring the garlic--I just plop a generous amount in (I don't use fresh, I use the minced stuff from the produce department.) that is at least what they ask for.
Also, I added a 1 lb bag of frozen carrots to the lentils at the beginning of the cook time. The carrots and the onions added a lovely, sweet counterpoint to the savoriness of the beans and couscous.
This turned out SO GOOD. It's been a long time since my husband and I have waxed poetic over a new recipe, but this one took the cake. Mmmmmm......and it is so surprisingly not complex--not precisely simple...just not particularly sophisticated, for as rich and delicious as it turned out.
1 c lentils, uncooked
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/16 tsp gr. cinnamon
1 bay leaf
3 c water
2 tsp veg oil
2 c onion, cut vertically into very thin slivers
1 c water
1/2 c couscous
Place the lentils in a medium saucepan. Add garlic, spices and 3 c water. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 40 minutes, stirring once halfway through.
While lentils are cooking, bring the 1 c water to a boil in a small saucepan. REmove from heat, stir in couscous, cover and set aside for 15 minutes.
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently until onion is nicely browned, about 10 minutes. (Crisp, very brown onions are one of the secrets to the flavor of this dish, but be careful not to let them burn)
Add lentils to skillet and mix well. Remove and discard bay leaf.
Serve lentils over couscous.
GK's notes: I sweated the garlic and cumin before I added the broth and lentils. I couldn't stand the thought of just plopping raw garlic into the broth.
Because I used store bought, prepared rice couscous that had a flavor (Lundburg brand Roasted Brown Rice couscous--Mediterranean Curry flavor), I dropped the cinnamon, because I thought those flavors would clash (I've tried cinnamon and curry together before. It was gross.)
Instead of plain water, I used broth for extra depth of flavor. I used beef broth in the lentils and vegetable broth for the couscous.
I didn't have enough onion to make up quite 2 cups, but they MADE this dish. Next time, I will probably go for at least 2.5 cups, because they were really, really nice. But we adore onions, so take that into consideration. =)
Also, we are huge garlic fans, so I usually don't bother measuring the garlic--I just plop a generous amount in (I don't use fresh, I use the minced stuff from the produce department.) that is at least what they ask for.
Also, I added a 1 lb bag of frozen carrots to the lentils at the beginning of the cook time. The carrots and the onions added a lovely, sweet counterpoint to the savoriness of the beans and couscous.
This turned out SO GOOD. It's been a long time since my husband and I have waxed poetic over a new recipe, but this one took the cake. Mmmmmm......and it is so surprisingly not complex--not precisely simple...just not particularly sophisticated, for as rich and delicious as it turned out.
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