Brussels Sprouts Grow on Trees!

Happy Halloween Everyone!

We woke this morning to a blanket of snow on the ground.  And it's early enough in the season for me to say that it was beautiful walking the dog in the fresh snow.  I'm sure I won't be quite as enthusiastic about the snow a couple of months from now, but today it was lovely.

We went to the local Farmer's Market yesterday and I bought this:

A Brussles sprout tree!!   Yes, this is how they grow, not acutally on trees but on long stalks.  Isn't that neat??  I remember my grandparents growing them in their garden.  So we got it home, I cut all the little sprouts off the stalk, washed and trimmed them.  Then I roasted them with some olive oil and salt and pepper.  Absolutely delicious.  I LOVE Brussels sprouts.  And if you've only ever had them boiled until they are mushy, you really must try them roasted.  Brussels sprouts get a bad rap because they are all too often improperly prepared.  Roasting brings out the sweet nutty goodness.

 So once your sprouts are roasted there are any number of things you can do with them:  toss them with some maple syrup and nuts and serve as a side dish, or pop them in your salad while they are still warm....  Today I decided to serve them on top of some ginger fried rice which I cooked with baby Bok Choy and the last of the Swiss chard from the garden.   I topped the whole dish with some toasted pine nuts.  Marvellous!!

I also attempted to make some potato knishes this weekend.  And I am sorry to say that it was not a happy ending.  Armed with a recipe from Vegan with a Vengeance (from which I have gotten some really great recipes), I prepared the stuffing for potato knishes and sweet potato knishes.  The filling was very tasty; however, the pastry destroyed the whole dish!  It was flat and tough and hard and just not nice.  I double and triple checked that I hadn't missed any steps or ingredients.  I kneeded until the dough was smooth, I rolled and floured....  How disappointing!  I love love love potato knishes.  Unfortunately they are not easy to find around here.  This is my second attempt at home made knishes, and both were flops.  I guess I will have to continue my recipe search.

I have the brand spanking new issues of Vegetarian Times AND VegNews to peruse.   And since American Thanksgiving is coming up, there are several meal suggestions for holiday dinners.   Too bad it's too late to help me with my Thanksgiving menu, but I just might find some smashing ideas for Christmas dinner!!!

Hohoho

Dumplings

Greetings Fellow Foodies!! 

It has been a very busy weekend and I have been cooking up a storm.  But I'm going to keep it short.  I just have two dishes to share today.  One is my Couscous Salad that is becoming quite popular!  With it's light, fresh taste, it's really not surprising.  I never get tired of it.  The couscous is cooked with some spices and broth.  Then I throw in some chickpeas, peppers, zucchini, shredded carrot, raisins and apple and toss it with a citrus vinegrette.  I used to chop the carrot, but it's much nicer shredded.

The second dish is a recipe that I recieved from a friend:  sweet potato and butternut squash dumplings.  I picked up some vegan wonton wrappers at my favorite Chinese grocery store in Ottawa, so I decided to give these a go.  They are pretty fun to make.  The filling is just mashed sweet potato and butternut squash that I had roasted, then I added some grated carrot, ginger, garlic and cilantro.  Then place the stuffing in the middle of your wonton wrapper and fold it up.  I like to braise mine in a little oil, but they can be baked, fried or steamed as well.   My friend says they are also good in a soup.  But that is an experiment for another day.

My teenaged daughter and my boyfriend both gave these a 9 out of 10.  The only thing to get a perfect 10 so far has been my spanikopita.   I have a recipe for potato knishes that I am anxious to try.  Perhaps that will be next weekend's experiment!

Also just another little tidbit...  my daughter's acne seems much better since we have eliminated all the animal products from our home.  But, shhhhh......  that's our little secret.



Multigrain Pilaf

It's a beautiful sunny October day, well it was....  the perfect day for a savory multigrain pilaf.  This version is chock full of my special brown and wild rice blend, lentils, kidney beans, black beans and quinoa and is flavoured with my homemade blend of garam masala.  All four of the kids that were hanging around at dinner time wolfed it down along with a side salad with balsamic vinegrette.  The ideal dinner for a cool autumn day.

And for desert, pumpkin spice muffins fresh out of the oven.  Heavenly.

Both of these items happen to be on the Zengarry Foods menu for this week, and both are true kid pleasers. 

Now after all that hard work, I think I deserve a nice glass of wine.

Cheers!

Portabello Madness

As you may have guessed from the title, I have become obsessed with Portabello mushrooms lately.  Portabello sandwiches hold a particularly dear place in my heart.  There is nothing better than frying up a marinated portabello with some onions and slipping it on a nice multigrain Kiaser roll with some fresh spinach, sprouts and hummus.  I'm drooling just thinking about it.  I recommend it highly.

Another great thing to make with these babies is Vegetable Strudel.  Fry them up with sliced peppers, button mushrooms, zucchini, and onions.  Add some oregano and basil, and at the end, a splash of balsamic vinegar.  Then roll out some vegan puff pastry and stuff it with your vegetable mixture.  Fold it up and over your veggies and score nicely.  Bake according to the directions on the box.  Here's a picture of mine fresh out of the oven. 

I also have plans for a mushroom barley soup.  My kids are thrilled with my latest obsession.  Mushrooms are on their list of the worlds most disgusting things.  Oh well, all the more for me.

It has been a very exciting week over here.  I have picked up two followers (Thanks gals!!)  and I have launched my new business venture:  Zengarry Vegetarian Cuisine.   Zengarry's goal is to deliver healthy vegan food to those who don't like to spend every waking moment thinking about, dreaming about and cooking food.  I think that if more people had easy access to healthy, delicious vegan food, they would eat better! Wish me luck and place your order at zengarry@gmail.com!    Our website is currently under construction by Francis the Great. 

I also want to mention the upcoming release of a new documentary called Forks over Knives.  Check the trailer out at ForksOverKnives.com .  This film promises to reveal the truth about the benefits of a plant based whole foods diet, and the dangers of consuming animal proteins.  It is narrated by Dr.Caldwell Esselstyn and Dr. T. Colin Campbell (one of the authors of the China Study). 

Now run out and get yourself some portabello mushrooms and let me know how you cook them! 

Cheers!!

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!  Let me begin by saying that I am thankful for having the opportunity to try so many new and amazing recipes and for being able to share it with so many fabulous friends and family!  I am truly blessed.

We had our family Thanksgiving dinner at my mother's home this year.  Seeing that this was my first Thanksgiving as a vegan, I brought lots of food with me.  I made Muhammara, a roasted red pepper and walnut dip and a pumpkin curry, both of which I found in The Vegan Table.  Unfortunately, besides myself and my boyfriend, only my uncle chose to try any of it.  I suppose it was a start.

My crock pot is becoming my best friend!  It has sat unused in the cupboard for months, but I have discovered that it is very handy when you are bringing food with you everywhere!!  Now I just have to figure out a better way of transporting it.  It tends to slosh around a bit in the trunk.

I have to rave about  a couple of recipes that I found in Vegan with a Vengeance.  Her 'Best Pumpkin Muffins' really are THE BEST!!  My advice is to stock up on pumpkin puree while it is on sale and make lots of these.  I can't keep them around.  The kids and all their friends love them!! The second one is her vegan Spanikopita.  I took them to a girl's night party and they were hugely popular, even with the teenagers!   And I remembered to take a photo of them before they disappeared!!

Not only were they delicious, they were fun to make!  I've never made anything with phyllo dough before, so I was a bit nervous about it, but now I want to wrap everything in phyllo dough!   These are stuffed with a beautifully seasoned tofu and spinach mixture, but I can imagine a tofu mushroom mixture or a tofu sun dried tomato mixture.  I have another batch of phyllo dough in the freezer, so I'll let you know how they turn out!

One Month In

It has been almost a month now since the beginning of my 'Vegan Experiment', and I am no longer thinking of it as an experiment.  There have been some challenges, some slip ups, and some cravings, but over all I'm going to call it a raving success!!

The challenges were finding new foods to replace some of the old go-to foods, being invited to meals at the homes of non-vegans, and eating out.  I have learned about tofu, and nutritional yeast.  I have tried several new recipes, bought new cookbooks, watched cooking videos on the internet, and found some great websites.  Just this weekend I was able to throw together a tofu scramble without guidance and my boyfriend and I were thoroughly impressed!  Brunch is a meal that I was sure was going to be a thing of the past, but it may just become my favorite meal of all.  I have been spoiled by a friend eager to try out a vegan dinner menu, and I have eaten out successfully on several occasions. 

There have been some slips as well.  Realizing there were eggs in my favorite Pad Thai, and lactose in my potato chips....  But listening to Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's podcasts where she admitted that even she slips up every once in a while was very comforting.  Nobody is perfect.  But this has increased my confidence in adhering to my newly vegan ideals. 

As for the cravings, they are becoming less frequent.  I do sometime still crave the creamy texture of dairy products in my food.  But I have found some very satisfying ways to feed them.  Hummus has that nice creamy texture, and it is my go-to snack food at the moment.  I discovered a tasty dip called skordalia prepared with potatoes, almonds and tons of garlic which is a nice replacement for my beloved tzatziki.  I have tried some cheese replacements, but I don't think they will become a diet staple.  In my opinion, nutritional yeast has more potential to fill that cheesy void.  But it's nice to have the option of enjoying some familiar food like pizza and brochetta.

I prepared an amazing salad this weekend with the rainbow beets and fresh organic greens from the market.  I roasted a bunch of rainbow beets with some chunks of carrot and halved new baby potatoes with olive oil, thyme and salt until they were tender and browned.  Then I served them warm on a bed of fresh greens with a drizzle of balsamic vinegrette.  It was absolutely delicious!!  I only wish I had taken a picture of it to share.  I think I'll keep my camera in the kitchen from now on.....