Tag Archives: veganomicon

Thomas makes Veganomicon Chickpea Quinoa Pilaf

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After all the holiday stuff settled down, I realized we were pretty low on ingredients. I was trying to think of what we could make that was delicious and based around quinoa and chickpeas when I remembered this tasty Veganomicon recipe that I made a while back. Thomas offered to make this easy recipe for us, and made a killer dinner. My edits to the recipe are to cut the oil way down or just mist the pot, used ground coriander instead of crushed coriander seeds and water + a bouillon cube for the broth. Easy, quick, satisfying. OH! If you want to serve this as a dinner (it’s actually a side dish) make sure to double the recipe. Otherwise it’s really only two dinner servings, and the next day when you’re craving it, you will be completely out of luck!

Every time I open this book I always wonder why I don’t cook from it more. It’s HUGE and has SO many amazing recipes. I always see something new that I want to try.

More Veganomicon Shepherdess Pie!

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I was just finishing up my lunch of leftovers and had to share! I made the awesome Veganomicon Shepherdess Pie last night, with the same tweaks as last time (1 tbsp. liquid smoke in the tempeh) and (nutritional yeast in the smashed potatoes), PLUS I threw a finely chopped, medium carrot in there too, and it was super yum! If you don’t own the Veganomicon, or lack someone nice enough to let you borrow it, you should probably add it to your wishlist or shopping cart, and stat! : )

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Veganomicon’s Tamarind Lentils, Curry Tofu and Cornmeal-Masala Brussel Sprouts w/ Basmati rice

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So I decided to hit up Veganomicon for some new recipes last night. First, I found the Tamarind Lentil recipe. Then I turned a couple of pages and found the Curry Tofu recipe that suggested I serve both together with some basmati rice. Somehow I ended up in the back of the book and found some meal plans, one of which was for an entire Indian meal with the addition of Cornmeal-Masala Brussel Sprouts. I’d never made basmati rice before, but it turns out brown basmati rice cooks the same as brown rice.

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How to cook Basmati Rice

rice:water  ratio is  1:2   (ie. 1 c. rice : 2 c. water)

Directions:Put both into a pan and raise to a boil. Let it boil for a couple of minutes, drop to low, cover and simmer for 45 minutes. Check to see if water remains, and if so check in 5 minute increments. Fluff with a fork before serving.

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The Tamarind Lentils were easy to prepare and absolutely AWESOME. They brought all the dishes together, and the brussel sprouts were good slathered in some of their sauce. I will definitely be making these over and over again. This dish had so much yummy flavor.

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I tried to buy fresh brussel sprouts at WF and the only ones they had were HUGE, so I was just going to skip it, but then I found a bag frozen petite ones, and figured, why not?! That being said, my results of the Cornmeal-Masala Brussel Sprouts were probably not typical, especially since I further strayed from the recipe by using a mix of yellow & blue cornmeal & cutting the fat down to a few sprays of olive oil instead of 8 tablespoons of oil. For being a vegetable I grew up hating, they turned out pretty well. They were toasty on the outside and kind of mushy on the inside (which I totally realize is from being frozen) but they mixed in with the rice and lentils very well.

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The Curry Tofu was super easy to make and so well seasoned. I cut the tofu into cubes so I could quick press it, and get it going. The best part was that the tofu & sprouts could cook together, because the oven temp (400*F) and timing (25-30 mins) was the same for both! We killed all this delicious tofu in this 1st meal, which was kind of a bummer, because it was so good. We both got to eat leftovers of lentils, rice and sprouts on day 2. The sprouts reheated really well in the toaster oven on the convection setting at 400*F for 5-7 minutes.

Repeat: Oven Fries & Veganomicon Chickpea Cutlets

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I made a double batch of chickpea cutlets per Thomas’s request. (previous blog entry!) This time I cut the oil down to a quarter, and used water for the rest. I still made them in the food processor using the metal blade for the chickpeas and oil/water, and the dough blade after adding everything else. I also used a splash of lemon juice instead of zest. The potatoes cooked along side the cutlets with a misting of olive oil & steak seasoning.

I highly recommend you google this recipe if you don’t own the Veganomicon, and see for yourself why everyone goes crazy over these!

Veganomicon Pineapple Cashew Quinoa Stir-Fry

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Flipping through the Veganomicon, this recipe caught my eye. It’s full of things I love… pineapple, cashews, garlic, ginger…mmm! It wasn’t until I read this post though, that I actually went out and bought what I needed. I thought the canned pineapple substitution worked great. It gives you just the right of juice needed to cook the quinoa, and the pineapple is already prepped for you! : )

I cooked the quinoa & edamame a couple days in advance, when I had the time. Per Isa’s recommendation, I prepped all the ingredients first. (Which is what I used to do when I first started cooking so I could focus on the cooking part & not burn things!) So everything was ready to go, and it goes pretty quickly.

Green onions & garlic, sliced chili pepper and ginger, red pepper and edamame

Mint and basil, toasted cashews, cooked and cooled quinoa, braggs, vegetable broth and mirin.

I used about 1.5 tbsp of peanut oil instead of the 3 called for.

I didn’t have to cook the last addition [of quinoa and pineaple] quite as long as the recipe called for before it was piping hot and ready, about 8 or 10 minutes.

I was a good girl and did what I was told for once, and even garnished it with lime wedges as she suggested!

This was a very satisfying dish. Lots of flavors and the squeeze of lime on top was nice too. Oh, and as is usual for most cookbooks, this 4 serving dish ended being about 3 big ones.

Veganomicon Black Beans in Chipotle Adobo Sauce (with cheezy rice)

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So I was super beat last night, and decided I could muster up the strength to make this fairly simple recipe from the Veganomicon. I’m just going to tell you right up front, if you are in a hurry and don’t feel like waiting 40 minutes for the canned black beans to simmer, don’t! I think it would have been just fine if I heated the rinsed black beans up and just put this sauce on top, because that’s really where all the flavor comes from. (I will do this next time!)  I had made this “cheesy” brown rice when I got home using some things that I know usually go into vegan cheese sauce/nutritional yeast sauce, and it made a tasty bed for this dish, so I’ll include the recipe below. PS – Want the *RECIPE*  ? Here’s the link to the sample page on amazon.com!

See all that foam? That’s the stuff in beans that creates gas. Be kind to yourself and others, and rinse your beans thoroughly first! ; )

So I read a bunch of reviews of this recipe before making it, and some of them said that the beans themselves were a little bland. The recipe calls for 2 cans of rinsed black beans, 1 bay leaf, 1 onion peeled & halved and 3 cups of water to be brought to a boil and simmered for 40 minutes. I added an extra bay leaf, a bouillon cube and 2 pieces of kombu (seaweed for tenderizing beans & reducing gas). At the end I drained the beans and removed the bay leaves, onion and kombu.

Hooray! Since you’re going to dirty your food processor to make the sauce anyway, why not use it to chop your onions and garlic first? I love doing this and saving myself the knifework and tears! And about 5 pulses later…

I just lightly misted a skillet with olive oil instead of using the 3 tbsps as recommended. I also started them out on a low-med setting and cooked them for double the time called for and then brought them up to medium to get some color on them before adding the peppers and adobo sauce.

Results: I sprinkled with some fresh cilantro and served over my cheezy brown rice. (recipe below!) The fresh cilantro was a nice fresh contrast against this very warm cooked dish. The sauce WAS delicious. I will definitely make the sauce again to serve over simply heated beans.

Cheezy Brown Rice

1.5 cups brown rice
3 cups [filtered] water
1 bouillon cube

*1/2 cup nutritional yeast
*1/2 tsp garlic powder
*1 tsp onion powder
*1 tsp dijon mustard
salt & pepper to taste

*measurements are approximations

Directions: Add rice, water and bouillon to a medium pot and bring to a boil. Boil for a minute or two, cover and drop to low heat to simmer for 45 minutes. Turn off heat and mix in all other ingredients, to taste.

Veganomicon Eggplant-Potato Moussaka with Pine Nut Cream

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Okay, the first thing I should tell you is that I made an almond cream, instead of the pine nut cream. Pine nuts are expensive, and I had about 1/4 c. of sprouted (soaked & dried) almonds just waiting to be used up. I did get the idea from them though; they mention somewhere else in the book that they used almonds for pine nuts in a recipe. I’d be curious to taste the pine nut version though, because I thought the cream sauce came out a bit too lemony, and my changing the flavor profile like that could certainly be why. If making this with almonds, I’d recommend dropping the lemon juice from 3 tbsp to 1 tbsp. Though it was less noticeable when everything was mashed up on the plate. ; )

The second thing is the cinnamon. I was free handing it, and I forgot this cinnamon shaker gets crazy sometimes, so I ended up with more like a 1 – 1.5 tsp. instead of the 1/4 tsp. called for in the recipe. You could definitely smell it as the sauce was simmering, but it ended being really good and not overpowering at all. Of course I like cinnamon in savory dishes, so it was a happy accident for me.

Third, I don’t know if I made 1/4″ slices or not. I was pretty confident that I was until I was assembling, and then I wasn’t so sure. Maybe they could have been thinner? It all worked out. Also, I weighed out the pound of eggplant and zucchini at the store, but I bought a big bag of potatoes. So I just kinda approximated the amount based on what the first two sliced up like. I ended up using 4 medium potatoes.

Last, I cut the oil down a bit. After misting the pot that I made the sauce in, I just used some of the veggie broth to splash in when the shallots got dry.

And on to the pix!

First I sliced up all the veggies and got them roasting. The potatoes roast a little longer than the other two.

As soon as the zucchini cool, squeeze out all the extra water.

Shallots & garlic!

The sauce after simmering.

Almonds and lemon juice for the cream sauce.

Two layers of eggplant, potatoes and sauce and then half the bread crumbs & the zucchini.

Last layer topped with sauce and bread crumbs.

Smothered in cream sauce.

Looking good and smelling amazing.

Results:

This was really good. Like a wonderful vegetable lasagna, without noodles. I had never made or even heard of mousakka before, and apparently it’s a Greek dish that’s traditionally made with lamb, tomatoes, eggplant and topped with a cheese sauce. I even dismantled a piece of the leftovers and used it to make an AMAZING pizza a couple of days later. The only thing I would change would be the lemon, but that’s just my personal preference. It was yummy and made a lot!

 

Veganomicon Chickpea Quinoa Pilaf

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So I decided to start flipping through the Veganomicon again. There are SO many recipes in that book, and with only great successes so far, I’m happy to keep on trying them out!  I picked out 2 recipes starring chickpeas/garbanzos to make this week.

The only adjustment I really made was using a large red onion, and ground coriander instead of crushing the seeds myself. What’s weird is that if you google this recipe, some people list it as having a finely diced medium carrot too. I’m not sure if this is in another edition, but it’s not listed in mine. It would probably make a tasty addition though. Even though they have it under side dishes, I served it as dinner last night. Between the chickpeas and the quinoa, it’s pretty hearty. It came out to two dinner servings and a little leftover.

I’ve started using my food processor to chop onions and garlic lately.

Here it is right before the broth addition. Onions, garlic, tomato paste, spices and quinoa.

Turned out really flavorful and yummy. Definitely a keeper recipe!!

Veganomicon Chickpea Cutlets, Oven Fries & Salad Dinner

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The Veganomicon’s Chickpea Cutlets are really divine. I made them almost the same way as last time (here!), but decided to try cutting the oil down this time and got excellent results! I always double this recipe, so I cut the 4 tbsp of olive oil down to 3, and used 1 tbsp of water. It didn’t compromise the texture or taste one bit. Next time I will probably use half oil and half water. I will also triple the recipe because it’s just that good, and doubling only leaves enough for lunch leftovers for 1 person in this house! ; )

I made the oven fries on a baking sheet right next to the patties for the last 30 minutes. Potatoes misted with olive oil and sprinkled with steak seasoning! Easy!

I really like using my food processor to make these, but you don’t need to. I mash the chickpeas and oil/water with the metal blade and then change to the dough blade before adding the remaining ingredients and do most of the kneading in there.

Then I knead this dough ball just slightly on the counter before dividing it into 8 patties.

Ready for BAKING. Use the baking method! It’s the best!

Veganomicon’s Pumpkin Crumb Cake

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I almost forgot to tell you how AMAZINGLY yummy this cake was! I brought this to christmas dinner and everyone loved it. They were also quick to tell me that they couldn’t tell it was vegan. hah! I used chopped almonds & raw pumpkin seeds in place of the pecans in the topping. It was moist and really nicely spiced. It’s excellent with some chai tea too, and made the house smell awesome! I was making a lot of stuff that day, so I only have this one picture for you, but seriously, try it!