Chik'n and Dumplings

This was my third time making gnocchi and I swear it only gets easier each time. This is a classic comfort food recipe but it has a slight twist. The twist being that gnocchi is used instead of plain ol' dumplings. This meal is served over a homemade basil pesto that is filled with mushrooms, carrots and celery. Definitely better than any chik'n and dumplings I've had in the past. Did I mention that the gnocchi is also lightly tossed in lemon butter? Yeah, this is a must try for anyone that loves Italian food.

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Serves 4

Ingredients

* 5 Tb extra virgin olive oil, divided

* 1 package of Morningstar Chik'n Strips

* 4 Tb vegan margarine, divided

* 10-12 large button mushrooms, sliced

* 1 cup shredded carrot, about 2 carrots

* 4 ribs celery, thinly sliced

* salt and freshly ground black pepper

* 3 Tb all-purpose flour

* 3 cups vegan "chicken" stock ( try Better than Bouillon ) or vegetable stock

* 1 cup basil leaves, chiffonade

* 1 clove garlic, minced

* 1 handful parsley leaves, chopped

* 1/4 cup vegan Parmesan

* 1 lemon, zested

Gnocchi

* 3 medium sized russet potatoes

* 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 425 F. Pierce the potatoes several times with a fork than wrap in foil and bake for 60 minutes or until soft.

While the potatoes cook, start making your sauce

2. Heat a pot with 1 Tb extra virgin olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chick'n and saute for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once done, remove from pan and set aside in a small bowl.

3. Add another tablespoon of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of margarine to the same pan and heat. Add mushrooms, carrots, celery and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Sprinkle in the flour, stir to coat all the vegetables and cook for another 2 minutes.

5. While this cooks, your chick'n should have cooled down by down. Roughly chop the strips into bite sized pieces.

6. Whisk in 2 1/2 cups of the stock, slide the chick'n back into the pot and simmer to allow the sauce to thicken.

7. Place the remaining 1/2 cup of stock in a food processor, along with the basil, parsley, garlic, Parmesan, salt and pepper. Turn processor on and drizzle in two tablespoons of olive oil.

8. By now your potatoes should be done baking. Cover and place the pot of sauce on low heat and keep aside.

9. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.

10. Remove the foil from the potatoes and start peeling away the skin. Do not allow them to cool, you must work with them hot. I suggest using a towel to protect your hands from burning. Using a knife, such as a paring knife, worked best to help me peel away the skin.

11. Place the potatoes in a ricer or food mill and mash. If you do not have one, a fork will work just as well. Spread them out onto a cutting board and allow them to cool for 2 to 5 minutes.

12. Gather the potatoes and sprinkle half a cup of flour over them. Mix by hand until the dough is smooth. Add more flour if the dough feels too sticky.

13. Divide the dough into about 5 pieces. Grab each piece and roll them out into 1/2 inch thick log shapes.

14. Cut the logs into 1 inch pieces and dust with flour. To shape the gnocchi, roll each pillow on the tines of a fork or a gnocchi board. Place all the shaped gnocchi on a lightly floured plate.

15. By now your water should be boiling. Add the gnocchi, a couple at a time, and cook for a minute or two, until they float to the surface. Allow them to stay in 30 seconds longer and then remove using a slotted spoon. Drain well.

16. Melt 2 tablespoons of margarine in a skillet over medium heat with the lemon zest. Toss the gnocchi in the lemon butter and cook until golden brown on edges, about 3 minutes.

17. Turn off heat on the chick'n and stir in the pesto sauce.

Serve the chick'n in shallow bowls and top with gnocchi.

On a side note, I've been playing around with a new Mamiya Polaroid camera and of course the star of the show is my Taffy. Here's a recent one of him...I love how Polaroids make every picture look so vintage.

Deep Dish Pizza

Last week I was scrolling across Quarry Girl's blog and I came across her deep dish pizza post. I looked up how to make them and noticed that it isn't that different from making a regular pizza. Only a couple changes needed, such as adding semolina flour to your pizza dough and obviously changing your pan to a deep dish pizza pan.

I don't know how many of you own deep dish pans but I sadly do not. I substituted it with my 9 inch cake pan and the result came out fine. This recipe took me an hour and a half to make, which really isn't that bad, considering that the dough and sauce are all made from scratch.

Feel free to change around the toppings to any veggies of your choice. Now go ahead and impress your friends with your very own Chicago style pizza!

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Ingredients

Pizza Dough

* 3/4 cup warm water ( 110 F )

* 1 ( 1/4 ounce ) package of active dry yeast

* 1/2 tsp sugar

* 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

* 1/4 cup semolina flour

* 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

* 1/2 tsp salt

Pizza Sauce

* 1 Tb extra virgin olive oil

* 1/2 cup onion, chopped

* 1/4 cup celery, chopped

* 1 garlic clove, minced

* 1 ( 8 ounce ) can tomato sauce

* 1 ( 6 ounce ) can tomato paste

* 1 tsp dried basil

* 1 tsp dried oregano

* 1/2 tsp salt

* 1/2 tsp sugar

* 1/4 tsp black pepper

* 1 small bay leaf

Toppings

* 1/2 pound vegan mozzarella cheese, shredded ( I prefer Daiya Italian cheese )

* 4 ounces mushrooms, sliced thinly

* 1/2 green bell pepper, sliced thinly

* 1/2 yellow onion, sliced thinly

* 1/2 pound spicy Italian sausage, crumbled, cooked as directed on package ( I used Field Roast Mexican Chipotle sausages )

Directions

First prepare the dough...

1. In a small bowl, combine water, yeast and sugar and stir to combine. Let sit for about 10 minutes or until the mixture is foamy.

2. In a large bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, semolina flour, oil, salt and yeast mixture. Stir well to combine.

3. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead for about 5 to 10 minutes, until a smooth dough has formed. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and turn to cover the entire dough with oil.

4. Cover with a damp towel and allow to rise in a warm area until double in size, about 45 minutes.

While the dough rises, start making your sauce...

5. In a medium sized sauce pan, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onion, celery and garlic and saute until soft and the onions are transparent.

6. Add tomato sauce and tomato paste and stir until smooth.

7. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a slow simmer. Simmer for 30-60 minutes. Remove bay leaf.

Preheat oven to 420 F

8. Oil a 12 inch round deep-dish pizza pan with extra virgin olive oil. Place the dough in the pan, pressing to the edge and stretching about 1 1/2 inches up the sides. Let rest for 5 minutes.

9. Layer half of the mozzarella all over the bottom of the pie.

Top with the sausages and onions

bell peppers

mushrooms

Ladle the sauce evenly over everything.

Sprinkle the rest of the mozzarella evenly over the top of the pie.

10. Bake until the top is golden, cheese is bubbly and the crust is golden brown, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven, slice and serve hot.

On a side note, here a recent shot of my boy..nothing like a good rub down to start off your day!

Barbecue Baked Tofu

Sorry I haven't been blogging much lately. I've been so busy and then I got the flu..I stopped cooking for about half a week and now that I began to feel a little better, I chose to make my favorite barbecue sauce from Veganomicon's cookbook.

After trying this sauce a year ago, I have never bought barbecue sauce again. Really cheap to make and a lot tastier than many sauces that I have tried in the past. I hope you guys enjoy this recipe as much as I do.

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Makes 8 cutlets

Ingredients

* 2 pounds firm tofu, drained and pressed, cut widthwise into fourths

* 4 cups store bought barbecue sauce or homemade ( see recipe below )

* 4 Tb peanut oil

* 2 Tb tamari

Barbecue Sauce

* 1 Tb canola oil

* 1 yellow onion, diced finely

* 4 garlic cloves, minced

* 1/4 tsp salt

* 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

* 1 ( 28 ounce ) can crushed or diced tomatoes

* 1/3 cup molasses

* 1/3 cup white vinegar

* 2 Tb brown sugar

* 1 Tb yellow mustard

* 1 tsp liquid smoke

Directions

First prepare the sauce...if using store bought, skip to step 6

1. Over medium heat in a saucepan, heat the oil and place the onions in the pan. Saute until browned, about 7 minutes.

2. Add the garlic and saute for another minute.

3. Add the salt, red pepper flakes, crushed tomatoes, molasses, white vinegar and sugar. Cook for at least 30 minutes or up to 1 hour, uncovered, stirring occasionally.

4. Add the mustard and liquid smoke. Cook for 5 more minutes.

5. Puree using an immersion blender if desired.

6. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

7. In a large baking sheet, dredge the tofu in the peanut oil and tamari to coat on both sides. Bake for 15 minutes, then flip the slices and bake for 15 more minutes.

8. When the tofu is done baking, pour the sauce over it, smothering it all over. Return to the oven and bake for 15 more minutes. Remove from the oven and serve.

I just wanted to share some recent shots of Taffy. He found a new spot in the yard and has been sleeping cuddled up by this tree for the past couple days. Oh and I also created him a facebook, if anyone wants to add him, here's his link : ]

webcam fun!

Goulash

Goulash can either be a soup or a stew but in this case more of a stew. It's a traditional Hungarian recipe but there are many other variations that exist in other countries such as Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Australia and even here in the US.

This recipe would be the most similar to the Australian version. I used shredded tempeh to substitute the ground beef that is traditionally used. For a soy-free version, substitute the tempeh with 1 to 1/2 cups of lentils. Just increase the water used to 2 cups because the lentils will soak up most of the cooking liquid.

It took less than a hour to cook this. The only real work needed is a little chopping of the onions and shredding of the tempeh. Other than that, this is one of those meals that does all the cooking for you. Enjoy!

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Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

* 1 Tb olive oil

* 1 to 1 1/2 pounds tempeh, shredded ( about 2 to 3 packages )

* 1 yellow onion, diced

* 1 cups water

* 1 ( 15 ounce ) can of tomato sauce

* 1 ( 28 ounce ) can of diced tomatoes

* 2 cloves of garlic, minced

* 2 tsp dried basil

* 2 tsp marjoram

* 2 tsp dried oregano

* 2 tsp dried rosemary

* 2 tsp thyme

* 2 bay leaves

* 2 Tb tamari

* 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

* 1 1/2 cup dried macaroni pasta

( I used a little shredded Daiya mozzarella cheese and minced parsley for garnish but this is not necessary )

Directions

1. In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Saute garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the onions and saute until tender, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the shredded tempeh and saute another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Add a little of the water to deglaze the pan and scrap up all the brown bits. Pour the rest of the water, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, spices, bay leaf, soy sauce and pepper. Stir well, bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 25 minutes.

4. Add the macaroni, stir well, cover and simmer for another 20 minutes.

5. Turn off heat and remove bay leaves. Season to taste with more black pepper and salt, if desired.

The weather has been so cold lately that Taffy has been laying in the sun all day. Really can't blame him : ]

Pumpkin Cheesecake

I've always loved pumpkin and now that its the right time of year, I've been baking a lot of pumpkin desserts. I saw this recipe for pumpkin cheesecake from a Williams Sonoma cookbook and figured it was pretty simple to transform the originally recipe to vegan.

I baked mine for 40 minutes, which left the top hard but still jiggly. When I inserted a knife, it did not come out clean. I didn't know what to do because the top was already beginning to burn, so I figured I should allow it to cool in the refrigerator and see what happens. I let it cool for a little over and hour and then went back to check on it. The filling did harden and it wasn't as watery as it was straight from the oven.

This was my first time baking a cheesecake and I don't know if it was the Tofutti brand cream cheese or if something was missing but the cheesecake had a slight sour taste. Nothing drastic, just a hint of sour. I know it won't taste exactly like how I remember dairy cheesecakes to taste but I think next time I might add only 1 package of Tofutti and replace the other with a medium firm tofu. ( Update : After allowing it to sit in the refrigerator a few more hours, the sourness I originally tasted went away..phew! ) But either way, this was really fun to make and I did learn a couple things in the process.

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Serves 10 to 12

Ingredients

Crust
* 1 3/4 cups graham crackers crumbs
* 1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
* 4 Tb melted vegan butter

Filling
* 3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
* 1 tsp ground cinnamon
* 1/4 tsp ground allspice
* 1/4 tsp ground ginger
* 1/4 tsp ground cloves
* 1 pound vegan cream cheese, at room temperature
* egg replacer, equivalent of 3 eggs
* 1 cup pumpkin puree ( not pumpkin pie mix )

Toppings
* 1/2 cup pecan halves
* 1 Tb vegan butter
* 2 Tb sugar

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly butter a 9 inch springform pan.

2. To make the crust - In medium bowl, combine crumbs and sugar. Add melted butter.


3. Press down flat into a 9-inch springform pan. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.


4. To make the filling - In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, cinnamon, allspice, ginger and cloves. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Using a rubber spatula, occasionally scrape down the sides of the bowl.


5. Gradually add the brown sugar mixture, beating until smooth.


6. Add the pumpkin puree, beating until smooth. Using the rubber spatula, scrape the batter into the chilled crust and smooth on top.


7. Bake the cheesecake until set or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

8. To make the toppings, set aside 10 pecan halves and coarsely chop the rest. In a small frying pan over medium-high heat, melt the butter. Add all the pecans, sprinkle with the granulated sugar, and cook, stirring, until the sugar melts and the nuts are toasted and caramel coated.


9. Transfer the nut mixture to a plate and let cool completely. Store in an airtight container. Just before serving, sprinkle the chopped pecans over the cheesecake and arrange the halves evenly around the cheesecake.


The weather has been cooling down and Taffy has found his way back to his little bed. Took these shots this morning of him and his matching bed.