Posts tagged with potatoes
Back in the day, before I was veg*n, when I was poor and living in my first apartment alone, I used to rely heavily on those giant bags of frozen fish sticks, instant potatoes and frozen peas n corn. Oh yeah, that was also before I really knew how to cook too.
Anyway, every once in a while I think some trashy fish sticks would be good. You know, without the actual fish part. I’ve been eyeballing this recipe in Vegan Lunch Box for years but this is the first time I’ve made it. Of course I whipped up a little tartar sauce to go with it out of veganaise, sweet relish, lemon juice, salt & pepper. Oh wow were these good! Not the bland little fried bits I remember. Heck, not fried at all! On the side, roasted russet potato slices tossed with olive oil, smoked paprika, salt & pepper and Trader Joe’s frozen green beans.
I’ve never been to Rosetta’s Kitchen in Asheville, NC but everyone raves about it and especially the Peanut Butter Baked Tofu. [oh man, sorry folks, that link went bad.] The recipe is crazy simple. My only complaint is that it came out pretty salty, even for me, and I like salt. It’s probably because I used tamari instead of regular soy sauce. Next time I’ll try soy sauce and if it’s still too salty cut the soy sauce with stock for the third try. Bonus, the leftovers made a nummy sammich.
So, I’m copying people again. But hey, isn’t that what VeganMofo is all about? Well, partly about. Getting yummy new ideas from other people. I impulse bought a delicata squash and needed something to do with it, then I saw this. Perfect! Is there anything more comforting on a cool day than some lovely roasted vegetables? This recipe is pretty simple, but amazingly tasty. For the herb option, I went with rosemary and thyme. To go with it, I made polenta. Creamy polenta, roasty vegetables. Mmmm….
Also, if you haven’t tried delicata squash yet, you must. It’s a great lazy squash because the skin is fairly thin and you don’t have to peel it. See the little striped bits? Tasty!
I realize I’m the last vegan in the world to try the Chickpea Cutlets in Veganomicon. But I’m a Chickpea Cutlet virgin no more. From all the hype on the intarwebs, I sort of expected nothing short of a multiple orgasm upon tasting these things. Eh, not so much. I mean, they’re good. And I’ll make them again. They’re similar in texture to these Ultimate Veggie Burgers which I like to keep around in the freezer. The mustard sauce did take the cutlets up a notch, that’s for sure. So I’d make that too if you planning on eating as a cutlet rather than on a bun.
How did I go this long before making the Tempeh Wingz out of the first issue of the Don’t Eat Off the Sidewalk cookzine? Maybe it’s because I never ate chicken wings. Ew. Or maybe it’s because I still find tempeh to be a little odd, even though I like it every time I make it. Whatever the reason, it doesn’t matter now because these were a big hit! Messy to make and tasty to eat. Crunchy like they’re fried, but they’re not! Of course, the Earth Balance in the sauce might make up for the lack of frying. But I’m going to ignore that. Here they are in all their glory, sharing a plate with lemon roasted fingerling potatoes and a little pile of spinach.
Before Cosmo’s Vegan Shoppe moved OTP (outside the perimeter for you non-Atlanta folks) I stocked up my freezer with fake meaty goodness. Sunday night we broke into the package of Pork Match Meat and made schnitzel. I skipped the cabbage part of the recipe and instead we ate it with mashed potatoes and roasted asparagus. I did make the sauce though and it rocked on the schnitzel and the taters. Half the package made 4 good sized schnitzel patties.
I thought yesterday morning was cold. Especially when Grover escaped as I was letting when I let Tak out for her first pee. Chasing him around the yard for ten minutes all bleary eyed at 5:30am was not much fun. He runs, he meows, he runs some more. I think he finally let me catch him when he realized he was cold. It’s a good think he’s a handsome cat. See?
I'm too sexy for my fur, too sexy for my fur...
On to food. If you haven’t made the Cholent from Veganomicon, this is the perfect time for it. After chasing Mr. Short Bus cat around the yard, I swear I would have eaten this for breakfast if I’d had any left. So warming and satisfying. The tvp chunks have the perfect chew to them. It’s like the stew my mom made growing up without all the death. Hell, next time I might even make it with biscuits on top like she did if I don’t make it into a pot pie form.
Friday, I bought a package of Soyrizo on a whim with no particular plan of what to do with it. Then I remembered this old Vegetarian Times recipe for Stuffed Poblano Chilies with Garlic Mashed Potatoes. Perfect! So I loosely followed this recipe from memory. I mean, it isn’t exactly complicated.
Roasted poblanos before skinning
Everything in progress
But, to incorporate the Soyrizo, I sautéed half the package with half an onion until the onion was soft and the Soyrizo started to brown.
Soyrizo and onions
Then I just mixed that in with the mashed potatoes before stuffing the peppers. I also mixed a little Teese in with the mashed potatoes and sprinkled it all over the top. Since I didn’t go by a recipe or measure anything, there was extra mashed potato mixture. So I put it down in the casserole, then plopped the stuffed peppers on top.
All melty from the oven
We ate it with a side of refried beans. Hey, the chili was green, that counts, right?
I’m usually too lazy to cook something that involves this many pots & pans. So it should be considered a treat. This is the Cajun Tofu from Yellow Rose Recipes. It’s actually baked, not fried, so it’s good for you and shit. The potatoes are your basic red & purple potatoes, chopped up, tossed with olive oil, salt & pepper and roasted til they’re done. The spinach is just sautéed with garlic, onions, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Also in olive oil. And look, there’s one of those sourdough biscuits! By the way, the leftover tofu on one of the biscuits made an amazing little sammich.
I saw this recipe for Jackfruit “Carnitas” Tacos a while back and knew I’d eventually get around to trying it. I was right! I ate them with sautéed mustard greens, taking advantage of the opportunity of Kevin being out of town to enjoy some bitter greens. I’m post the recipe of what I did because it deviates a bit from the one linked to above. The spice amounts are approximate as I just eyeballed it and starting tossing stuff in there. I felt like it was a little acidic, so a vegan cheese or sour cream might be especially nice. I just “suffered” with avocado.
Jackfruit “Carnitas” Tacos
- 2 20 cans young green jackfruit in brine rinsed and drained
- 1 7oz can mexican green sauce
- 1 11oz can whole tomatillos drained
- ½ large onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon chile powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
- 18-24 small corn tortillas
- 2 avocados
Drain & rinse the jackfruit throughly. With your hands, press the moisture out of each piece & add it to the crock pot.
Toss all of the spices in the crockpot with the jackfruit. Stir around until jackfruit is coated.
Add onion and garlic to the pot. Dump in green sauce. Add tomatillos squeezing between your fingers to bust up as you add them. Stir everything around.
Cook for 7-9 hours on low. Before serving, smash jackfruit with a spoon. It’ll shred into stringy pieces. No need to be thorough, just want to smack the chunks down a bit.
Dry fry tortillas in a cast iron or other heavy pan until they get some brown spots on each side. Spoon some jackfruit “carnitas” into a tortilla all soft taco like, squeeze a little lime juice on top, toss on a few pieces of avocado and then add whatever it is you like to add to tacos.
I have many pieces and parts of food around but no planned meals. I know a lot of people roll that way every day, but it’s very unlike me. I plan out what I’m going to eat for a week, go to the store and get ingredients, and repeat in a week. But Thanksgiving threw things off. I haven’t quite recovered from braving the DeKalb Farmer’s Market pre-holiday crowds. Noobs.
So time to improvise. Here’s what I came up with:
Seitan O’ Greatness Hash
1 tablespoon canola oil
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 medium yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1 cm cubes (yeah, I used metric, sue me)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1 cup Seitan O’ Greatness, cut into 1 cm cubes
Salt & pepper to taste
Heat up oil over medium high heat in a saute pan. Add onions and fry for a minute or so. Add potatoes and turn heat down to medium. Cook stirring from time to time until potatoes are almost done. Add garlic, bell pepper, seitan, salt and pepper and continue cooking until potatoes are done. Note, I didn’t need any pepper because I used the higher amount when making the Seitan O’ Greatness. Also, the seitan is totally optional. Makes 2 big portions. I ate mine with a big pile of green beans.
Anyway, that’s about as close to a recipe as you’re going to get out of me. Well, unless I veganize the chocolate doughnut recipe that came with my pan for the Holiday Bake Off at Cosmo’s Vegan Shoppe.
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