Sweet Corn Risotto and More

Fresh fig and Peanut-butter toast in the backyard... Ah, America!

I tried to eat absolutely everything I can't get my hands on easily in Europe while staying in DC, and I think I nearly succeeded. Most important was sweet corn and vidalia onions, which were so delicious I could have cried. (Is it weird to like onions as much as I do? What happens to you if you eat too many?) I saw a recipe in the Washington Post for sweet corn risotto, so I decided to give it a whirl for an evening when my friend James came over to cram for the bar exam. (Majorly flashback inducing.)

Basically, you do your typical risotto recipe (which I have published on here so many times its crazy) and then at the very end add in 3 ears worth of corn kernels. Stir until corn kernels are plump, then serve, with green onions on top.

I thought it was good, although with such a light addition to the risotto the broth really shines through, so be sure to use a good quality one. In addition, I thought it might benefit from some heirloom tomatoes added in at the last minute. I served them on the side drenched in balsamic and it went together perfectly.

Another great dinner was my standard fare: rice and beans, cinnamon-baked plantains, and avocados. This time I kicked up the rice by adding some orange juice, but other than that it was the same old rice and beans, and they were delicious as ever.

For the plantains, its the same technique as I made for the chipotle plantain enchiladas, except I tossed them in maple syrup along with the cinnamon, salt and pepper, and paprika. These babies cooked up great in about 45 minutes at 375.

I'm sure my parents won't miss me destroying the kitchen for dinner every night, but it was so fun to eat all my favorites. And now its back to Berlin...

Song of the Day: Squeeze- Tempted

Cooling-rack pizza and Marinated figs over ice cream

My crazy friend Karen just returned from a summer-long tour all around Central America, punctuated by getting a concussion from a falling coconut. (This is so Karen. You just have to know her to love her.) When I found out she was coming back to town, I offered to cook dinner so we could catch up, ie, gossip. Pizza was obviously just the thing, being hand-held and allowing for maximum conversing. I also thought that prepping a simple dinner for a few hours would help me relax and get out of my head a little bit. Or yeah, take out my aggression on some dough. :)

I've never tried the pizza techniques in Vegan With a Vengeance, always being quite content with Joy of Cooking's classic recipes, but I decided to give it a swing the Isa way. And...WOW. The crust is phenomenal. Despite not having proper pizza pans and having to grill on a crazy cookie cooling-rack, the crust was perfectly chewy, crunchy and amazing.

I also tried the sauce and basil-tofu ricotta from VWaV with equally good results. That sauce is scrumptious, I could eat it with a spoon. And the ricotta is amazingly "ricotta-like", aside from just being yummy in its own right.

Having gotten this far, I know I should have just gone ahead and tried the "Isa Pizza" with pesto and olives and the like, but you know? It takes a special mood to make pesto. I have done it before, I'll do it again, but I have to be in a very particular mind-set to make it, for some reason. Its not something I'll just whip out on a whim.

At any rate, I topped mine instead with spinach, pineapples, broccoli, and thin sliced shallots. It was super, and Karen the non-vegan dug it too.


For dessert, I made up a really simple treat: they sell these marinated figs at the store now (marinated with such things as cloves and vanilla) in a little plastic case. I microwaved them for 20 seconds, and poured over scoops of vanilla soy-dream. Some crystallized ginger would be nice on top as well. Very rich but delish.

Song of the Day: Of Montreal- So Begins Our Alabee

Yes, We Can!

I had a long, lazy weekend ahead of myself this week, and I knew if left to my own devices I would simply read my new bookstore finds (Hannah Arendt and the new Antonio Negri!) rather than do anything productive. (Although, according to Negri, expending my mental energy is of course, productive...) But anyways, I've come across 3 mentions of canning lately, one in the Washington Post, one in Vegetarian Times, and one in the new Gourmet. A good rule of thumb for me is that if you tell me to do something 3 times, I will most likely do it. So I bought a boat-load of figs at the farmers market and got to it!

In case anyone is in the mood for some delectable home-made preserves, here are the basic steps for doing so. There are plenty of other step-by-step guides out there, but lest you get scared off, let me cut through the precautions and give you the basic outline:

1. The first step (aside from gathering your ingredients and equipment) is to boil and sterilize the jars and lids. You need to keep them hot while you prepare the recipe.
2. Prepare the recipe. This generally involves a good bit of chopping or peeling, but its not much more work the making a stew.
3. Once the jam/preserves whatever is ready, you carefully pour it into the hot jars. I used a ladle for this, but others suggest a funnel. Using gloves or a magnet, you carefully put the lid tops and screw tops on.
4. The final step is to boil the closed jars once more, usually for about 10-15 minutes. After letting it cool you can check to make sure the lids are on properly (they should be concave to the inside of the jar.) And you're good to go!

I would really encourage this project if you're one of those DIY people. I'm pretty sure I didn't save a lot of money, but when it comes to Christmas and Hannukah gifts, you can't beat homemade preserves. Think about it: if you handed someone a $3 jar of strawberry smuckers for a gift, they'd be like "wtf?" But a homemade jar of delicious preserves is a totally different story. You're still not spending much money, but people love it. My plan is to make several types of preserves and put them in little baskets- fig, strawberry, and apple butter I think. Plus its nice to know exactly what went into something you eat.

And here are some more delicious looking recipes:
*Caramel Pear Butter
*Mango Chutney
*Vidalia Onion Relish
*Blueberry Jam

In other news, I'm now carless! I moved to an area of town with ample public transportation, my bike is ready and raring to go, and I'm taking the plunge! I hope that this will at the least me save money, but more importantly I'm hoping that by "unplugging" from my vehicle I remove one of the screens that separate me from the world. Wish me luck lugging my law books around!

French Toast w/ Figs and Coconut yogurt

Its a beautiful day in the neighborhood and I woke up wanting something brunchy- without having to leave the house, of course. I always get tempted to make french toast, but most vegan recipes seem so needlessly complicated- if there's a food processor involved, I'm not likely to make it for breakfast.

But my college boyfriend used to make divine french toast using only soymilk, cinnamon, earth balance, and french bread. I remember sitting on his washing machine waiting for the next mini-pieces to come off the skillet and popping them directly into my mouth. No need for syrup!

So I tried to make something equally simple and jazz it up a little with some figs and divine coconut-milk soy yogurt I had. Sooo good.

EASIEST POSSIBLE French Toast
1. Take a piepan and splash in some soy milk and soy creamer. (About 1:2 ratio.) Add some cinnamon and whisk together.
2. Dip pieces of bread into the milk and fry over medium in a knob of earth balance.
3. Serve w/ figs, pecans, yogurt, or syrup or powdered sugar! You're done!