Baking Powder Biscuits and White Bean Tempeh Sausage Gravy

Have I ever mentioned I grew up on a farm? Or that my family hails from the South? Not quite Confederate Flag south, more like peach cobbler, dirt roads and biscuits and gravy south. And, it is upon the last of those loves that I focus.
My sweetheart loves biscuits and gravy and I recall having seconds (and thirds) of that particular dish myself. So, having learned to trust anything Isa suggests, I jumped at the chance to make this. And, as usual, she was right on the money. It was SUPER easy to make and absolutely delicious! The sausage was easy to make (I used ground tofu). I was concerned at first that the spices might be a bit much. My sweetheart has Crohn's disease and can't handle too many spices or fiber (from whole seeds). The recipe calls for fennel which is a classic problem food for him. But, knowing I would be 'diluting' the sausage mixture with pureed beans, I plowed ahead. And the gravy turned out wonderfully! Guests would NEVER guess the gravy base was made of pureed beans and it didn't bother him at all.
The sausage crumble recipe is very flexible and can be substituted anytime a recipe calls for sausage. However, as a precaution toward my sweetheart's digestive tract, anytime I make this sausage and don't use it for gravy (when the bean puree 'dilutes' the spices), I only use half the fennel. It doesn't seem to bother him and we both like it!
Anyhow, the gravy is perfect and the biscuits follow suit. I followed all the standard crust-making rules (keep everything cold, handle as little as possible, etc) and the biscuits turned out kick-ass! Soft and flaky and melt-in-your-mouth. I know vegan food is good and that, often it's difficult to tell the difference. But this is so dead-on, so reminiscent of the food of my youth, I can hardly believe it. I made it for brunch for my scared-of-anything-healthy-sounding family and they ate every last bite.

THAT'S southern comfort food.

Stats:
vegan
Makes: About a dozen biscuits and gravy to cover it
Find it: On pages 26 & 27 of Vegan with a Vengeance
Taste: Better than the real deal

Taco Soup

So I'm back to slow cooking and I can't remember why I stopped. I love it. I got back in the saddle with Taco Soup from A Year of Slowcooking. She is delightful and her vegetarian recipes are great! Anyhow, I tried out her Taco Soup which isn't really a soup but more like ...Taco Casserole? But soup sounds better. And either way, it tastes great and could not be more easy. I added a few things to the recipe (Heaven forbid I just leave it alone!). To start with, I halved the recipe. I browned an onion and a few cloves of garlic and I used frozen corn instead of canned. I also added a cup of stock to compensate for the lack of moisture from the missing canned corn. Lastly, I used TVP (the crumbled tofu that looks like ground beef) to replace the meat.
It's pretty good. I served it with nutritional yeast on top (for a cheesy flavor) and some crumbled chips. The chips give it the real 'taco flavor' and add some texture.
Next time, I might add some raw onion or diced tomatoes as a garnish or I might throw in a jalapeno. The recipe calls for two cans of diced tomatoes: One with chilies and one without. I used the can with and I still think it could use some more kick. But then I like things spicy. Also, next time I'll probably use chili powder and ground cumin instead of a taco seasoning packet just because they're so high in sodium.
Still, with all those potential changes, this was really good and really easy. I imagine it's an all around winner if you have a big family.

Stats:
Vegan
Calories: 260 per 1 cup serving (not including any garnish)
Makes: 6 cups (remember - I halved her recipe)
Find it: Here
Tastes: Pretty good: B+

Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies

I'm not a big fan of chocolate, but I made these twice in the span of one week. My mother used to make non-chocolate thumbprint cookies when I was small with a little dot of frosting in the middle. As I recall, she used her actual thumb which I think leaves a special little trace of love (gag!). So I was happy to try these even though I wimped out and didn't use my thumb (they're hot!).
At first blush, I thought I'd messed up as the batter is quite thick, but they turned out perfectly the first time (the second time was a different story). I used several types of jam (surprise!) to try them out: Red raspberry, apricot, black raspberry and strawberry. That's the order in which I liked them and will use again.
Feel free to add more flour if the batter is in any way runny. You need it to be quite thick and able to hold the shape of a ball before baking. About halfway through baking, you pull them out and make an indentation (if you're tough you can use your thumb, if you're me you use the back of a melon baller), drop in a teaspoon of jam and pop them back in for 5 more minutes. Done.
And wonderful.
Eating them is a delightful, moist bite of chocolate and then a surprising little blast of jam. The red raspberry and the apricot play off the chocolate so well. You might want to make a double batch to ensure that someone else gets one. Just one.

Stats:
Vegan
Makes: 2 dozen
Find it: On page 205 of Vegan with a Vengeance by Isa Chandra Moskowitz
Taste: Great!

Hot-and-Sour Asian Vegetable Soup

I want to like hot and sour soup. I found another recipe for it here that I'm going to try. I guess I want to like it so much because everyone is always raving about it. And it seems so..exotic? Fancy? to me. But I tried this. And I tried to love it. But it was only okay. In fact, I probably won't make it again. And I feel really bad about that. I'm pretty sure the soup was really good, it just wasn't my thing. So, you can try it. And you can try to love it. And then we can chat about how we just didn't. Or you can join the ranks of the elite and truly love it. Either way - here are its stats:

Vegan
Makes: 6 servings
Calories: 134
Find it: On page 45 of Vegan Soups and Hearty Stews
Taste: Probably very good. Provided you like hot and sour soup.

African-Inspired Quinoa-Peanut Soup

So good. So, so good. I made this several times over the course of as many weeks. And bragged about it to people at work. Creamy sweet potato, peanut butter base, quinoa and smooth zucchini blend together in a wonderful, delicious and filling soup. It's only flaw is that it needed a kick of salt to bring it together. I generally dislike adding salt to dishes but this needed it. And it was oh so good afterward that I forgot I cared about salt.
Make this. And don't share with your family - there will be more for you!

Stats
Vegan
Makes: 6-8 servings
Calories: 242
Find it: On page 47 of Vegan Soups and Hearty Stews
Taste: Wonderful. Make some!

Curried Lentil, Potato and Cauliflower Soup

I've always been taught that soup needs to simmer all day before it tastes good - preferably sitting in the fridge overnight to meld. So I was highly skeptical when I bought a new cookbook, Soups and Hearty Stews for All Seasons by Nava Atlas, and saw that many of her cooking times are 20 - 30 min.
Who'd have thought a published cookbook author would know more than I do about soup?! I've tried several of her recipes and the cooking times seemed dead on as far as texture and taste go.
This soup was okay. Not awesome but decent. I might make it if I have cauliflower on hand and need to use it up (because I always have lentils and a potato or two around). But there are so many awesome soups out there that I don't want to spend time on 'okay' soup. Nonetheless, it was decent so maybe it will score higher on your scale. Who knows.

Oh! One other big plus to this cookbook - she provides nutrition information! THANK YOU!

Stats:
Vegan
Makes: 6-8 servings
Calories: 250
Find it: On page 72 of Vegan Soups and Hearty Stews for All Seasons by Nava Atlas
Taste: Okay. Not bad by any means. Just not awesome.

Chinese Black Bean Chili

Tasty. And interesting in a I'll-have-another-bowl-to-figure-out-what's-up-with-that kind of way.
You know I love garlic, chili, Chinese food and a slow cooker. This recipe combines them all.
It makes for a great tasting dish and, with the green onion and chow mein noodle garnish, a dish with various textures. In fact, I'd go so far as to say you NEED the garnish to pull this dish together. It takes 4-6 hours in the slow cooker and is a great meal to come home to after work. It's so easy: Just open the cans, dump everything in the slow cooker and listen to your family tell you what a great cook you are. I'll absolutely make this again. And again. And again.

Stats:
Vegan
Calories: 280
Makes: Serves 8 according to the recipe
Find it: Here: Vegetarian Times Issue: January 1, 2006 p.30 or Here
Tastes: Really good.

Bakery-Style Berry Muffins

Best muffins I've ever made. Just a touch of sweet and moist, almost creamy muffin. Plus, the recipe calls for you to fill the tin up so they explode over the top and make for towering muffin tops. So good. The recipe allows for most any type of berry. I've made this with mixed (excellent) and blueberry (superb). Both muffins were delicious with the berry acting as bonus goodness. If you only make one muffin from this book, let it be this one. Until, of course, I try out all the others and let you know.
The recipe does call for soy yogurt. Which I substituted for with sour cream. Which I left at work (I bought groceries on the way to work so as to avoid the rush afterward). So then I substituted with buttermilk. Which I then substituted for with rice milk and a splash of apple cider vinegar. Turned out great!

Stats:
Vegan
Makes: 12 huge muffins
Find it: On page 160 of Vegan Brunch
Taste: Like straight-from-the-bakery muffins

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

So good. They have a nice, lemony zing to them. Be sure not to over cook them as you want these nice and moist. It also helps if you have a lemon juicer as you need 1/4 C of lemon juice which ended up being the juice from one lemon. You'll also need 2T of zest, which I found to be the zest from about two lemons. So you'll have one (zestless) lemon left over to do something with.
Excellent for a true lemon poppy seed lover.
Stats:
Vegan
Makes: 12 muffins
Find it: on page 159 of Vegan Brunch
Taste: Good! B+/A-

Chesapeake Tempeh Cakes

Okay. I've never had crab cakes. I can't personally tell you how these stack up. But I did have a crab cake lover tell me these were good. So I guess if you trust him...
I made these for our monthly sibling/cousin brunch. They were a hit. I knew they were good when I couldn't (fine - didn't want to) stop eating the uncooked batter.
Jewel didn't have the panko bread flakes so I used bread crumbs and then only 2 cups instead of 3. Otherwise, I made no variations. I'm not sure the nori sheets really added a whole lot of 'fishy-ness' to the dish. But I super chopped them in the food processor and put them in anyhow.
The remoulade she has you make is the PERFECT topping for these bad boys. I imagine that this is really what crab cakes are like. Even the tempeh helps out by reamaining in chunks that fall apart easily - reminicent of crab meat. They weren't 'lick the platter clean' but they were good and a fun, fancy change of pace. I'll definetly make them again should I have company. I might try putting in some Old Bay Seasoning to make it taste more 'fishy'.

Stats:
Vegan
Makes: 10-12 2" patties
Find it: On page 132 of Vegan Brunch
Taste: Pretty Good. B+

Roasted Potatoes

I made use of a variation of this recipe and made Garlic Roasted Potatoes. Shocking, I know.
It is such an easy recipe. I made a big, fancy brunch recently and this easy, simple, no-brainer dish was the most raved about. And it's so easy. When someone asked for the recipe, I was almost embarrassed to give it out. But if you're having brunch, you gotta have potatoes. And not only are these divine, they'll make people think you're a fancy chef. Don't worry, I won't tell if you don't!

Stats:
Vegan
Makes: Enough for 4-6 people
Find it: On page 112 of Vegan Brunch
Taste: Like seconds

Classic Broccoli Quiche with Basic Pastry Crust

Excellent. I could barely stop myself from eating the filling before it cooked. And by barely I mean I didn't. Starting with the crust: All the basic crust making tricks apply; Be sure that everything is stone cold, mix as little as possible, etc. Also, be sure you don't add too much butter. Dark waves of smoke will emit as the excess butter drips out and burns. Ask me how I know.
As far as the filling goes, it was so, so delicious as is. It's smooth and tasty with just enough bite from the broccoli chunks to make it toothsome. I've never had egg-quiche so I'm not sure how they compare but I found this to be delicious. Plus, I now have a great crust recipe for pie!
Also, making this gave me a great excuse to use my fancy quiche pan.

Stats:
Vegan
Makes: One quiche
Find it: On page 41 of Vegan Brunch by Isa Chandra Moskowitz
Taste: Excellent - fancy enough for guests

Tempeh Bacon

I used to love bacon as a kid. I liked it cold and burnt. I can't remember the last time I had from-the-pig-bacon. And, to be honest, I don't really miss it. But I did jump at the chance to try this Tempeh Bacon recipe.
I made a whole batch but only made a few strips, putting the rest in the fridge to use for a good breakfast for the next several days.
It was really easy to make even if I had to wait at least an hour before I could eat it (for marinating purposes). I knew it was a good recipe when, after turning the strips in the marinade, my hands smelled TERRIFIC.
Don't think this is a replacement for bacon - you'll never fool a meat eater with this. But it IS quite good and certainly earns a place on your brunch plate.
Isa recommends taking the garlic bits out (I minced mine) but I left them in. This is the first time I've ever used liquid smoke and it's an invaluable ingredient. It really adds that BBQ-ed/smoked layer to the bacon.
I also sliced my tempeh a bit thin (remember, I liked bacon burnt) so I got more servings than Isa suggests. But it seems to have turned out just fine.

STATS
Vegan
Makes: About 12-15 strips depending on how thin you slice it
Cooking Time: About 10 minutes (plus a minimum of an hour to marinade)
Find It: On page 23 of Vegan with a Vengeance
Taste: Excellent

Basic Gravy with Variations

Just in time for Thanksgiving! Considering last year's scant vegetarian offerings (cookies and bread), you'll understand why I'm arming myself with plenty of vegetarian options for this year - including bringing my own gravy. This gravy is really good! I'll keep shopping around for other gravies but this one is exactly what the title says: It's a nice, basic gravy.
It's pretty easy to make even if I tend to be a bit impatient when browning the flour. And I beg of you to pour the stock in SLOWLY and make a bit of a paste first before dumping in the rest of the stock. Otherwise you'll have little, undissolved flour bits floating around. The ingredients are all things I tend to have on hand so it's super easy to make. The only change I made was to saute some finely diced onion and red pepper (about 2T each) to add in at the end. It makes a really nice addition. Oh, I think I threw in a dash or two of Spike for seasoning. Delicious!
The recipe yields two cups and I see no reason why you can't 'volunteer' to bring the gravy to Thanksgiving dinner. No one will be disappointed with this gravy and it's vegan! Now if I can just take over the making of the potatoes...

STATS
Vegan
Makes: About 2 Cups
Cooking time: About 15 minutes total
Find it: On page 117 of Vegetarian Meals for People On the Go
Taste: Excellent

Slow Cooking

I bought a slow cooker. Actually, I already owned one. My aunt gave me one as a bridal shower gift. A huge, Rival, 7 quart, oval beast of a slow cooker that she purchased thinking it was the perfect size to hold a roast. And it is.
I kept it, not thinking I would ever use it but I can't just throw that thing away. But I wanted a slow cooker that was more a size I could use. So I purchased a Hamilton-Beach 3-in-1 Slow Cooker. I guess because I like hyphens so much.
It's a heating base that has three different bowls that come with it. A two quart, a four quart and a six quart bowl.

The Pros:
It only cost $30 ish dollars and I have three slow cookers.
No matter what size slow cooker the recipe calls for, I have it!
Slow cooking is awesome (more on that later)
The bowl is removable thus making cleanup a snap.

The Cons:
There is no built in timer
There is no automatic 'keep warm' setting after cooking is finished
The cooking base automatically selects the six quart size if, after switching on, a different size is not chosen
When using the six quart size, it can only be filled up about half way, MAYBE a little more, because the base only comes up so high and thus can only cook the food that is as high as it can reach. So, when I'm making a full six quarts of something, I need to use the 7 quart slow cooker from my aunt to ensure the food will all cook.

The results:
I LOVE slow cooking! I used to be afraid a fire would start when I was away from home but I suppose my love of a home-cooked meal overrides my fear of fire. I bought a timer to program the slow cooker on and off. Because there is no automatic 'keep warm' setting, I have to set the slow cooker to cook and, after it is done, switch off for about 30 minutes, switch back on for about 30 minutes, and so on and so forth until I get home. It's not as hard to program the timer as I thought it would be so it's not so bad. One problem unique to the Hamilton-Beach 3-in-1 Slow Cooker is that, when programming it to switch on after I leave the house, the base requires me to push a button when it clicks on to select which bowl size I'm using. Hard to do when I'm not at home. So, my solution is to wedge an Altoids box between the wall and the base on top of the correct button, so that the button is depressed, thus selecting that button as soon as the base clicks on.

Aside from the mechanics of it, I have to say, it's wonderful to ride my bike home in the freezing cold...okay THAT part isn't wonderful but the walking in the front door and smelling delicious food waiting for me is! It's even nice, during the day to look up at the clock and think, "My dinner is starting/cooking/finishing, now!". Slow Cooking is pretty easy: Easy prep, easy clean up. Many slow cooking recipes either require (or should!) browning veggies ahead of time which TECHNICALLY declassifies it from a 'one pot meal'. But it's worth the extra 10 minutes. Trust me.

Overall, it's perfect for me. I have lots of extra time in the mornings and get to come home to a ready meal. And since I'm the type that wants to eat RIGHT NOW when I get home, it helps stop me from eating a lot of junk while I make dinner.

Survey says: Buy a slow cooker!

Vindaloo Vegetables

Great. This dish was spicy! It had really interesting layers of spice and heat that would build up. It was so good. I think it was the very first thing I made in my new slow cooker, too. I highly recommend making this dish. I love that it's so easy and it's flexible, too. You can put all kinds of veggies in here and it will still work. This is also a good dish to introduce someone to cauliflower in a way that isn't that mushy, steamed junk so many of us were served as children. This dish was lovely and the only thing stopping me from making it more is all the new recipes I want to try...

STATS
Vegan
Total Calories: 1321
Makes: About 7 cups
Cooking Time: 6 hours on low
Find It: On page 80 of Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow-Cooker
Taste: Spicy and excellent.

Slow and Easy Mushroom and Green Bean Stroganoff

It sounds so good, doesn't it? Well, it's not. At all. I hate wasting food but I did NOT finish this. I threw it all away. I can't really even say much more on it. It was not good - I will not be making it again.

STATS
Vegetarian (vegan if tofu sour cream is used)
Total Calories: Since I'm never eating this again, I'm not going to calculate it
Makes: A lot of garbage
Cooking Time: 6 - 8 hours on low
Find it: In my garbage can. And also on page 83 of Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow-Cooker
Taste: Don't

Sloppy Lentils

Sloppy Joes. I used to love 'em as a kid. So I tried this.
Not the same.
I managed to finish the pot so as not to waste food but it wasn't completely enjoyable. Part of the problem was that the lentils maybe weren't done all the way so they weren't super soft. I've heard red ones are creamier and fall apart more easily so I might try that. They certainly have potential, though. I'll be making these again - probably with red lentils, more water to make the lentils softer, more mustard (I like 'em tangy) and plenty of onions. I served it on toasted rolls split in half. It was a nice, one-pot meal that I think will turn out better next time.

STATS:
Vegan
Total Calories: I'll get back to you on that
Makes: A lot
Cooking time: 8 hours on low
Find It: On page 104 of Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow-Cooker
Taste: It has potential. C+/B-

Sunny Blueberry-Corn Muffins, Carrot-Raisin Muffins, The Best Pumpkin Muffins

MUFFINS!

I got invited to a brunch and, thanks to my mom, it's impossible for me to show up to an invited meal empty-handed. So, I made some muffins.
First up, Sunny Blueberry-Corn Muffins.
Good. Not great. But good. I think next time, I will coat the blueberries in sugar instead of flour as they needed a little boost. Also, I would like to try it with smaller blueberries next time. But they were still good. In fact, they were my sweetheart's favorites - much to my surprise. I also substituted about half the required oil with applesauce to reduce the calorie content. I don't think it made a noticeable difference and they were very moist.

STATS
Vegan
Total Calories: I'll get back to you on that
Makes: About 13 muffins
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Find it: On page 50 of Vegan with a Vengeance
Taste: Good. I give it a B

Next up, Carrot-Raisin Muffins. Excellent. I actually substituted dates for raisins and I think they came out just fine. I thought there might be too much carrot in here but it's just right. These are delicious. The spices are just right, too. Enough to notice but not enough to overpower anything.

STATS
Vegan
Total Calories: I'll get back to you on that
Makes: About 13 muffins
Cooking Time: About 30 minutes
Find it: On page 47 of Vegan with a Vengeance
Taste: Excellent! Make them for breakfast!

Last up - The Best Pumpkin Muffins. I made these because I'd heard they're good and also because my sweetheart loves pumpkin donuts. I thought he might really like them and he did, but he liked the blueberry ones better. I thought these were out of this world. Again, I used applesauce (and didn't do my homework so I used a 1:1 ratio instead of a 2:3) and they were a little more dense than I suspect they were supposed to be. But no harm done and that's easily fixed next time. These, too had excellent spices to accompany the pumpkin. SORT OF like a pumpkin pie...but not. They were really good.

STATS
Vegan
Total Calories: I'll get back to you on that
Makes: About 13 muffins
Cooking Time: About 30 minutes
Find It: On page 52 of Vegan with a Vengeance
Taste: EXCELLENT!

I actually only baked about 3 of each muffin and, as per Isa's advice, froze the rest in separate muffin wrappers. So now, when I want a muffin, I don't have to bake (and then eat) a whole batch, I can just pop one in the toaster oven (in a tiny bowl) and have a fresh baked muffin in about 20 minutes. I tried it this morning and it worked great!

Isa Pizza - including Pizza Dough, Pizza Sauce, Basil-Tofu Ricotta and Classic Pesto

My goodness, is this good! I think it might be better than PV's Greek Style Pizza...but I don't know. I guess I'll have to make it a bunch more to decide!

This is one of those annoying recipes that is five recipes in one (see title). But I was able to put everything else together while the dough was rising and, as usual, once you've done it a couple of times, it's not so hard.

The dough was easy to make but this is coming from someone that has made dough before. Still, Isa's directions are great and can walk even the most naive of virgins successfully through it.

The Ricotta was easy to make. It's okay. I'm sure I'll use it for something in the future but it wasn't "eat me out of the bowl before the dough is ready" good. Like the pesto.

I've never had or made pesto before. But this was SO GOOD I was eating it out of the food processor before the dough was even close to ready.

The sauce was easy as (pizza) pie and is a great, basic sauce.

I didn't use mushrooms or olives but I did throw on some onions. I'm not sure the pizza needed it. It was interesting enough without them. I really can't say enough great things about this pizza. My only word of warning is that the pesto came out a bit salty and I may omit the 1.5 teaspoons called for in the recipe. Additionally, I'll be spreading the pesto on a bit more thin next time.

But no complaints. This pizza is DELICIOUS! And it's vegan.

STATS:
Vegan
Total Calories: I'll get back to you on that
Makes: Two 14" pizzas
Cooking Time: 1.5 hours (mostly waiting for the dough to rise)
Find It: On page 131 of Vegan with a Vengeance
Taste: Quit reading this and make it now!