Jackfruit “Carnitas” Again

I had the ingredients for Jackfruit “Carnitas” around since I didn’t get to use them for the failed potluck. So we had them for dinner, in flour tortillas this time instead of corn. I don’t think Kevin was too enthusiastic about them. I still dig them though and have been chewing on the leftovers for many meals. We ate the original meal with the Black Beans and Rice from the Miami Nights episode of Simply Delicioso. Definitely, simple, easy and yummy. Sometime soon I’m going to try one of her yucca recipes.

A first look at Vegan Soul Kitchen

A few weeks ago, I picked up a copy of Vegan Soul Kitchen. Lately I’ve been all about quick and easy food. So I picked the Spicy Smothered Green Cabbage to make first. It went nicely with some rosemary seasoned Pork style Match Meat patties with apricot sauce and steamed broccoli. The recipe turned out to be a really nice way to spruce up plain old cabbage with stuff I’m going to have on hand anyway. Next time you have a half a cabbage hanging out doing nothing, here’s a quick and easy way to use it up.

Spiced Match Meat Kebab

You know those spicy Persian ground meat kebobs? I’d been thinking for a while that Match Meat would lend itself well to this. So I decided to give it a shot. And I was right. Instead of making it into kebobs, I just formed it into patties and pan fried it. It would be even better on a grill. These were spicy and delicious. Here I’m eating it with Israeli Couscous from Veganomicon and some mixed veggies.

Spiced Match Meat Kebab

  • 1 lb. ground beef style Match Meat
  • 6 tablespoons grated onion
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 4 tablespoons paprika
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves
  • 2 teaspoons dried mint leaves, crumbled with your fingers
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. Combine Match Meat and onion in a large bowl; set aside. Heat oil in a 10″ skillet over medium-high heat. Add paprika, salt, cumin, oregano, mint, and pepper and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 45 seconds. Pour the spice mixture over the reserved Match Meat mixture and mix thoroughly with your hands.

2. Divide mixture into 4 portions and roll each into a thin cylinder about 10″ long and 1″ thick. Slide a flat metal skewer (see page 100) into each cylinder and press the Match meat around the skewer. 

3. Meanwhile, build a medium-hot fire in a charcoal grill or heat a gas grill to medium-high (alternatively, heat broiler and position rack 7″ from heating element or just form into patties and pan fry). Grill or broil the kebabs, turning once, until browned, about 4 minutes per side.

Adapted from this recipe.

Persephone Cupcakes

The quest to use up the POM Wonderful pomegranate juice continues! For our vegan potluck today, I made the Persephone Cupcake recipe I found while googling around. I made the recipe as written except I substituted soy yogurt & milk for the coconut yogurt and almond milk and I must say it needs some work. I forgot that I usually don’t like the results when using yogurt in a baked good. The texture seems a little gummy. But the flavor is lovely. 

The frosting also had issues. The pomegranate juice will not stay incorporated with the rest of the ingredients. Whip all you want, it’ll look all fluffy and mixed, then slowly the pomegranate juice seeps out. And it does appear to be just the pomegranate juice, not the soy milk. Of course, I wouldn’t be able to tell if the rose water seeped out since it’s clear. I’m sure there’s some chemical reason for this. Frosting still tastes okay, but looks funky. Also, to avoid an unappetizing color, I ended up using a drop or two of food coloring like I did with the Pomegranate Bars. All in all, I loved the flavor mix here and I’ll definitely be playing with it. I think I’ll start from scratch though and not bother trying to salvage this recipe.

Lemony Cashew-Basil Pesto on Pasta

Last night I whipped out this recipe from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan. You can find the recipe here. I admit that I drizzled in a couple more tablespoons of olive oil, but it still has way less than a standard pesto recipe.  And doesn’t it look like Spring? Yeah, I know basil is a Summer thing, but work with me here. Also, I only used half of the pesto on half a pound of pasta. The rest I froze in a bucket for an even quicker meal some time in the future.