Magical loaf studio

Well, it's been far too long and since volunteering at Stampede I began eating meat again. I'm beginning to wean it out of my diet again and am looking for tasty treats to tempt me back to the dark side of vegetarianism and hopefully eventually veganism.

Re-discovering the magical loaf studio may be one way to start, found from the Vegan Lunch Box blog (many thanks for all your work and everything you do!).

I'll try different possibilities and post. Feel free to post any combinations that really work well :)

Seitan's little tofurkey

After looking at a few recipes, this one stood out. I don't know if it is more or less work, but I have been pleased with the seitan I've made so far. I made it in a medium sized roaster with parchment paper under it and 'stuffed' it with stuffing. The dough shape just was what it was. It wanted to be that shape so I didn't fight with it. All my energy was taken up by kneading the thing for 20 minutes, once before it rested and once after - said jokingly, of course.

The recipe says that seitan is best made the day before, allowing it to cool, then reheating it. That is what I am doing and why I made it yesterday, for the Canadian Thanksgiving. I'm also making a pecan pie, focaccia, sweet potatoes, and wild rice.


Here is the recipe straight from Bryanna's website:

BRYANNA'S NEW VERSION OF SOY AND SEITAN "TURKEY" (WITH STUFFED"TURKEY", STUFFING RECIPE, AND FAT-FREE GRAVY)
(March 15, 2002)
Makes about 3 lbs.

The combination of tofu and soy or chickpea flour with the gluten makes a seitan that is tender, not rubbery, and which slices easily, even in VERY thin slices. The long kneading, resting, and slow-cooking method partially adapted from recipe by Ellen from http://www.ellenskitchen.com gives an incredible juicy, tender meat-like texture. This recipe makes outstanding sandwich material.

DRY MIX:
2 c. pure gluten powder (instant gluten flour; vital wheat gluten)
1/2 c. full-fat soy flour or chickpea flour
1/2 c. nutritional yeast flakes
2 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. garlic granules
1/4 tsp. white pepper

WET MIX:
12 oz. firm regular (NOT silken) tofu
1 and 1/2 c. water
3 T. soy sauce
1 T. olive oil

BASTING BROTH:
2 c. hot water
1/3 c. "chicken-style" vegetarian broth powder
2 T. olive oil
OPTIONAL: 4 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2-1 tsp. poultry herbs (sage, thyme, rosemary), crushed well

1) For the Wet Mix, in a blender, blend all the ingredients until very smooth.

2) Mix the Dry Mix ingredients in the bowl of your electric mixer with dough hook attachment, or place them in the bread machine in the order given. Add the Wet Mix and knead for about 10 minutes. (If your bread machine has a dough cycle-two kneads with a long rest in between-use that cycle. Otherwise, just run it through the kneading part and then unplug it and let it rest in the cover container, then plug it in again for another knead, then remove it,) Let rest for about 1 hour, covered. You can make your Cooking Broth at this time and have it ready. Then knead it for 10 more minutes.

3) (NOTE: You can knead by hand, too, but it's tougher than bread dough. You may want to let the seitan dough sit for a while to soak up the liquid more thoroughly before you starting hand-kneading.)

4) The dough should be quite shiny and smooth. Avoid breaking it up when you take it out of the bowl. NOTE: I like to line the pan with cooking parchment to avoid sticking and tearing, and make the loaves easier to turn, by whichever method.

5) COOKING METHOD #1.) Flatten the dough out into a long piece. Form the dough into one large loaf. Place into a oval greased clay cooker or claypot that has been soaked for 15 minutes in cold water (bottom and cover), and lined with cooking parchment. DO NOT PREHEAT OVEN. Pour the cooking broth over the roast, and cover. Place in oven and turn to 325 degrees. F. Bake for 3 and 1/2 hours, turning the roast over twice (ALTERNATE TO THIS METHOD: If you don't have a clay cooker, you can use an ordinary oval meat or turkey roaster, medium size, with a cover. PREHEAT THE OVEN FIRST WITH THIS PAN.)

6) COOKING METHOD #2.) Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Flatten the dough out into a long piece and cut in half equally to make two rectangles. Form into 2 loaves. Place each loaf in an oiled 8 and1/2" x 4 and 1/2" loaf pan and press down a bit with your hand. Mix the Cooking Broth ingredients in a small bowl and pour 1/2 over each loaf. Cover each loaf pan with foil and place in the oven. Immediately reduce the oven heat to 200 degrees F. Bake for 3 hours. Turn the loaves over, carefully loosening around the edges and from the bottom with a small, thin spatula first. The loaves will have puffed up quite a bit by now, but they will flatten out as they cook further. Turn heat back to 325 degrees F. Cover loaves and bake for 30 minutes. Turn them over again, cover and bake 15 minutes. Turn them over again and bake 15 more minutes, covered. Turn them over one last time and bake 5-10 minutes (covered).

7 ) Either way, the loaves should almost completely soak up the broth by the end of the cooking time. If they don't, cook until they do. There will be a bit of sticky "sauce" left in the bottom, which you can use to glaze the loaves. Remove from the pans and serve, or let cool. Seitan is generally better when cooled first, then reheated-- it firms up when cooled. So, it's a good idea to make it a day or more before serving. Can be frozen. To reheat, wrap the the loaves (thaw them thoroughly first, if frozen) in a double wrapping of foil (drizzle the loaves with any remaining basting broth) and bake again in a roasting pan at 350 degrees F for 45-60 minutes.

8) IF YOU WANT A "SKIN" ON THE "TURKEY", bake the "turkey as directed above. Then it has to be bake again with the "skin", but the pre-baking can be done several days ahead of time.

You will need 2-4 large sheets of dried or fresh (probably frozen) Chinese beancurd skin (yuba in Japanese). This product is simply the "skin" that forms on the top of soymilk when it is heated (just as it does with ordinary milk). The "skin" is lifted off and dried, and is considered a delicacy in Chinese and Japanese cuisine. In its dried form, it keeps for a long time, as long as it is stored airtight. When reconstituted, wrapped around tofu or other fillings, and baked, it becomes delicately crispy.

Soak the dried beancurd skin in warm water to cover while you make the assemble the "turkey". If you are using fresh or frozen, fresh yuba, thaw it out, if necessary. If it is pliable, you can use it "as is". If it seems a bit dry and hard to fold, etc., then dip it in warm wate for a minute—just to soften. If you leave it in the water too long, it will start falling apart.

Oil a baking pan that the "turkey" fits into with a little room to spare, or a cookie sheet with sides (jelly roll pan) with the Chinese sesame oil. Line another pan, such as a cookie sheet, with the prepared beancurd skin, overlapping if necessary to make it big enough to cover the whole "turkey". (There will be overhang—this is good.) Place the roasted "turkey" on top. Fold the overhanging beancurd skin over the "turkey" to cover. Brush with olive and/or Chinese roasted sesame oil. Now invert th ewrapped "turkey" onto the prepared baking pan. If made ahead, cover the pan and refrigerate until baking time.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake the "Turkey", uncovered, for about 1 hour, or til golden and crispy, basting now and then with oil (olive/sesame oil combination). Loosen the edges carefully and slide it onto a serving plate.

It’s best to bake stuffing on the side, in another pan,UNLESS YOU ARE MAKING A ROULADE (see below).

9) TO MAKE "TURKEY" ROULADES:

Cut the dough in half. Roll each half of the dough on a clean kitchen counter covered with a large pieces of plastic wrap (don’t use flour—if it sticks, it’s better to wet the counter, plastic wrap, your hands and the rolling pin with a bit of water) into a 10 x 15" rectangle. Spread 2 to 2 and 1/2 c. of your Stuffing over the dough, leaving a 1/2 an inch of dough uncovered on the short sides and 1 inch of dough on the long sides. Press the stuffing down into the seitan a bit and spread evenly. Using the plastic wrap as a guide, but not getting it wrapped up in the roulade (!!), roll the seitan and the stuffing into a tight roll. Smooth the "seam" so that you can hardly see it, using wet hands, and pull the seitan on the ends up, pinching together and smoothing so that there are no gaps or tears (you don’t want the Basting Broth to soak into the stuffing through any holes in the dough—make sure that it is "watertight")

Bake in two pans as directed above in method 1 or 2.

(Pack whatever extra you have after stuffing the seitan roulades into an 8" tube pan oiled with Asian sesame oil. You can use any sort of casserole or loaf pan, actually. Pack down and drizzle the top of the stuffing with more sesame oil. Cover with foil. This extra can be baked with the seitan roulades during the last 45 to 60 minutes of cooking.)

To reheat the roulades whole, wrap them in a double wrapping of foil and bake again in a roasting pan at 350 degrees F for 1 hour. Another way to serve it is to slices the roulades into even pieces about 1/2" thick and arrange them in a pleasing pattern on foil-covered baking pans (if your serving platters are round, use pizza pans). Cover with double foil and bake at 350 degrees F. for 30 minutes, or until heated through. You can shift the slices onto serving platters by carefully lifting and sliding them along with the bottom layer of foil. Cut the excess foil from around the outer edge of the slices.

YOU CAN ALSO ENCASE THE ROULADES IN A YUBA "SKIN" AS DIRECTED ABOVE.

What a crock

Well, I took the plunge and after pining for cheese, I got out The Uncheese Cookbook by Joanne Stepaniak from the library, a second time. What is interesting (if only for me) is that I was looking at moving towards less dairy, etc before I learned I was intolerant to every dairy form under the sun. I must have known deep down that something was up with my body. It's kind of like how others knew I was a vegetarian long before I became one. I got annoyed with people, for years, asking if I were a vegetarian. My response was always no, I just don't eat much meat. And in perfect honesty, I liked the taste of meat. How cold and insensitive of me. Well, at the end of the day I did give it up.

At any rate, I had a hankering for cheese, as the post began. I decided to go onto the forums to see what might be good to make. I learned that most people love this thing called "Crock Cheeze". Well, I have never had the real crock cheese, so I didn't really know what I was getting myself into, but I found a recipe online and made it. Any of the websites with the recipe will do really.

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb firm tofu, rinsed, patted dry, crumbled
• 3 T nutritional yeast flakes
• 2 T tahini
• 2 T fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 T miso
• 1 t onion powder
• 3/4 t salt
• 1/2 t paprika
• 1/4 t garlic powder
• 1/4 t dry mustard

Directions

• Place all the ingredients in a food processor fitted with a metal blade and process until very smooth. Chill for at least an hour before serving.

This is what the websites say. I followed the directions more or less. I guess the 'real' crock cheese comes in a crock, hence the name. So, if you make this and happen to have a crock handy, throw the resulting mixture into it and let it firm up.

My opinion? It's ok. Does it taste like cheese? Somewhat - or more like processed cheese, so if that floats your boat, get your mitts into gear. Will I make it again? I don't see why not. It's a spreadable cheese-like pate, in my estimation. I'd throw things into it, like chopped olives, capers, or artichokes and see what happens next time.

Today, I made buffalo mostarella and my own tofurkey for Thanksgiving tomorrow (not tried either yet so no comments yet). The recipe says the tofurkey is best made the day before and reheated. It's nice to be in the kitchen again after such a busy time volunteering.

Seitan's first touch

The original recipe can be found here.

Ingredients:
DRY
1 1/2 cups wheat gluten
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 tsp salt
2 tsp Spanish paprika
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cumin
2 tsp pepper
trace cayenne pepper (I didn't have enough to sneeze at, so I put in 2 tbsp of hot pepper flakes)
1/8 tsp allspice
2 tsp garlic powder

WET
3/4 cups water
4 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp braggs
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp vegetarian Worcestershire sauce

Method:
This is one of those special cases where I basically followed the recipe, if only because this was a first for me and I thought I'd better try to be a good girl and make the recipe as posted. So, I threw all the dry ingredients in one bowl and in the other I put the wet ingredients and whisked due to the tomato paste (which is why I had leftover tomato paste to put into the crustless quiche) - whisk until there aren't huge tomato paste blobs.

When done whisking, pour the contents of the wet bowl into the dry bowl. Mix with a spoon but roll your sleeves up. I kneeded for about 5 minutes because things weren't sticking nicely. I made the blob of dough into a log and stressed a bit that there was part of the log that wasn't sticking together and thought I'd have air bubbles. The stress was for naught.

Wrap the log in tin foil or parchment paper then tin foil (as you wish) twist the ends like a candy. I baked for 90 minutes, as the directions dictated, at 325F in a preheated oven. I baked it in my toaster oven and think 90 mins was a bit long because the log ended up slightly dry. The log expands in the foil and when it comes out, and as you can see above it does look like some sort of meat you'd find in the deli. I took it out and did not let it cool before cutting off a piece to try. I didn't like the first taste, to be honest with you. After the log cooled, I cut it into slices and put it in a container in the fridge. The taste is much better after it has cooled. With the hot pepper flakes, I suspect it tastes similar to pepperoni, without the fat (or meat obviously).

I'm going to try other recipes and will post them and give my opinion.

I'm pleased with my first brush with seitan.

Crustless swiss chard quiche

The original recipe can be found here. Again, I don't seem to be able to follow a recipe. As you can see below. I have to use up the cheese that is still in the fridge before I swear off cheese and this is certainly well worth making - I would even say this is a jaw dropping recipe. I shall miss it.

Ingredients:
1 healthy dollop of olive oil
1 white onion
3 big leaves of swiss chard (any green leafy veg will do)
2 1/2 cups cheese (I used mozzarella and old cheddar)
6 eggs
1 cup almond milk with some of the ground almonds
3 healthy squirts of braggs
several shakes of frank's hot sauce
salt & pepper
fresh or dry herbs (I used fresh basil, oregano, thyme, sage, and rosemary)
a bit of leftover tomato paste
1 can mushroom stems/pieces

Method:
As is the rule, do everything to your taste, not to a recipe. I threw olive oil into a frypan, chopped up the onion and let it cook for about 30 minutes (everyone who knows me knows how lovingly I cook and coddle onions) on lowish heat. I salted and peppered it about 20 minutes into the venture. Between turning the onions, I cut up the swiss chard, separating the stem from the leaf and cutting the stem into easily chewable pieces, then the leaf split down the middle, then into ribbons. I grated the cheese and set it aside. Whisked up the eggs, added the fresh almond milk (and some of the ground up almonds from the milk maker), added the tomato paste, then squirted in the braggs and shook the hot sauce in. It took some whisking to get the paste into a less paste like state but was successful in the end.

After the onions were ready, I threw in the stems of the chard and let them cook a minute or two before I threw in the leaves and cut up the herbs into the pan. Once that was done, after initially bringing out the glass pie plate I had a heart to heart with myself about the absence of the kitchen police and put the pie plate back. I brought out the 9x9" pyrex dish and sprayed the sides. I wonder what it is about quiche that forces people into thinking it must go into a pie plate, or at least made me mindlessly grab the pie plate. Last time the pie plate was brimming to overflowing because I almost always throw in more than I should. It fits very happily in a 9x9.

At any rate, I almost forgot to put in the canned mushrooms, debated if I wanted them, decided I did, and in the blink of an eye they got mixed into the pan. So, I put the stuff from the pan into the 9x9, then folded the cheese into the egg mixture, then put it all into the 9x9. I took a knife and shimmied things about so everything was well mixed and put the 9x9 into the preheated toaster oven.

This would make between 4-6 lunches or, if you're as pleased with your cooking as I am at times, it will last you two days eating it for lunch and dinner. By the third day you are pleased not to be eating it, but sad that you've eaten it all - if that makes any sense. It's that good.

Oven: 375F
Time: until a knife comes out clean - this will depend on how much stuff you put in it. Approximate time? 35-45 minutes

Further suggestion? Fake bacon bits. Awful for you, very salty, but man alive do they taste great along side this dish!

I just ate dinner and it is superb. I would recommend letting the quiche cool a bit but I couldn't wait. It's great cold (as per the last time I made it). All you non-vegans, if you like quiche start your engines.

Chickpea, corn, & jalapeño salad

Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas
1 can corn
1 large jalapeño (no seeds=less intensity - please your palate)
1/2 cup greek olives (the real ones in brine that you don't have to refrigerate)
1 squirt of lime juice
1 drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
fresh/dry herbs, whatever you have on hand. I had fresh Thai basil, regular basil, oregano, silver thyme, and lemon balm

Method:
Rinse chickpeas well in a colander and put in a bowl. Add corn and throw in olives. I washed the jalapeño, cut off the top and just cut it up into the bowl into ring slivers seeds and all. No, I did not wear gloves. Yes, later when I rubbed my nose the blood under the skin was rushing to and fro - it felt like rubbing vicks on in cold season. I gave a good, healthy squirt of lime juice and a drizzle of olive oil. After mixing well, I tasted it to see what my base was, then salt/peppered it and cut up the leaves of the herbs directly into the bowl. Mixed again, tasted, and thought it was divine - hot, but good. Perhaps next time I'd go with 1/4-1/2 pepper.

Makes 2 meals or 4 side salads. Keeps extraordinarily well if it is only for yourself and you don't feel like having it as leftovers the next day. All of the measurements are rough and can be modified as your fancy takes you. There are no kitchen police standing over you.

This is not how I thought it would end up

Let me answer common questions at the outset. I never desired to be a vegetarian or vegan - ever. I was actually quite annoyed when people, all through my life, asked if I was a vegetarian. Up to a year and a half ago, I would say "No, I'm not but I don't eat that much meat." I believed that eating a lot of meat was detrimental to one's health but my eating halal lamb once or twice every month or two wouldn't cause too many health problems and the tuna in olive oil was good for me. Really, I still feel that is the case from a health perspective, but an argument was posed to me by someone I respect that turned me into a vegetarian, despite the fact that he wasn't. The argument went something like this: It was necessary at certain points in human history (and still is for some) to eat meat. This mainly is for those who do not live in environments that are hospitable to growing/foraging for food (like those who lived in the last ice age), but in our day and age, for most, it is unnecessary to eat meat. It is that simple.

I do not judge those who eat meat. I am not one of those people who will never wear or use any animal products due to the cruelty of the system that kills so many animals, arguably needlessly. It seems that using human made materials is mainly not working within nature since those man made materials will take so long to break down in landfills. My concern is for the longterm future of the earth and supporting a natural balance of all things within that closed system. You can do as you wish, I need to follow my own conscience because I'm the only one who has to live with myself.

So, to answer any question about when I became a vegetarian, it was March 2007. Recently, however, I decided to get tested for a few things and one of the things I was tested for was food allergies. I learned, much to my dismay, that I am highly intolerant to all things milk related (cow/goat milk, cheese, whey, casein, etc). Funny thing is that I had no idea. I did not have any symptoms other than I had to clear my throat frequently after having milk in my coffee. Cheese has had an important role in my life, and as a child I was nicknamed 'rat' due to the amount of cheese I consumed. So, at present I am finishing up the cheese I have in the fridge and will finish the whey protein powder I have because I am not made of money and want to have smoothies that are protein packed. I also learned that I have a mild intolerance to eggs. So, I suppose I am going to be moving towards veganism. Not by choice.

With that said, because I did not become vegetarian due to a distaste for meat, I have now begun to seek out meat alternatives and decided to document what I do. Mainly because I have found a few places that are very helpful and would like to bring those sources together for myself into one handy reference place. If anyone else finds it useful, all the better.