Vegan Mofo: Pumpkin Fries at SY's

I have a friend named SY who is very funny and talented, being equally skilled at feng shui, explaining German culture to beginners, booty dancing, and cooking wonderful food. She also has many nicknames which I like to taunt her with, including "Mamph-Mamph" (German for "yumyum!") and "Sookie Younhouse." (Having never seen True Blood she is less than thrilled with the last one, but tolerates it.)

ANYWAYS. I'm at her house today "working" and she made a lovely lunch centered around a Hokkaido Pumpkin, sliced, drenched in pungent pumpkin oil, and baked, kind of like "Pumpkin Fries".

It was delish and maybe a good idea for mo-foers looking for a way to consume their October pumpkin bounty.

Song of the Day: Against Me! -Thrash Unreal

Vegam Mofo: Enchiladas and Tacos

Potato Spinach Enchiladas with Chipotle Sauce

 One of the nice things about having a repetoire of dishes that you've made dozens of times is that , if the dish is flexible enough, you can tweak it to include just about anything. That's how I feel about Enchiladas. I've got this so down that so long as I have some diced tomatoes and tortillas, I can make an enchilada out of just about anything. This week? I used chipotle for spicing up the sauce, and potatoes and spinach for a filler. Topped with a bit of vegan yogurt for cooling and its pure comfort food.

The leftover tortillas I used as a vehicle for using up some of the other veggies hanging out in my kitchen. Acorn squash, baked with some thyme and olive oil makes a nice, mashable base for  a simple sofrito from extra onions and peppers. Garnished with some hot sauce and guacamole and you've got a very serviceable quick and easy Friday dinner after a week of cooking up a storm.

Song of the Day: Metric- Synthetica

Vegan Mofo: Choco-Raspberry Cupcakes

 

Chocolate cupcakes with buttercream icing and homemade raspberry preserve filling, a birthday treat for a friend. Maybe not soul-food, but definitely heavenly. 

Song of the Day: The Shoes- Time to Dance

Vegan Mofo: Black Eyed Pea Stew and Battered Okra

Hey guys! Its day 3 of Mofo and so far I made something Southern, something Latino, and today I continue my journey of soulfood with a dish from Carribean Vegan, the Black Eyed Pea Stew. The author, Taymer Mason, specifically mentions that this is a good dish for recovering from a cold because its hearty and nearly fat-free. Since I'm recovering from a cold, that really spoke to me. Its even extra perfect because I have a special love for black-eyed peas. Who wouldn't love a bean that is tasty, renowned for bringing good luck, and much faster to cook from scratch than your average bean? In this stew its also souped up with some carrots, tomato, and bajan seasoning- a must for cooking from this cookbook that I will demonstrate in a later post.

On the side I decided to have something fatty after all- battered okra. I know some people are totally icked out by Okra but ever since I discovered its wondrous properties in gumbo I'm all about it. For this I soaked it for a minute in soymilk, then dredged in a mixture of cornmeal, flour, salt and pepper and garlic powder. Then I fried it in a couple inches of oil. (I was kind of thinking about hush puppies.) Worked like a charm!

All in all, a totally soulful and satisfying Wednesday supper. Now it would only be more delicious if I could eat it alongside the Presidential Debate tonight in the US, but alas, I will have to enjoy that event with my morning coffee here in Gerrrrrmany.

Song of the Day: Portugal, the Man- So American

Vegan Mofo: A Tale of Two Chard Soups

Creamy Chard Soup w/ Tostones, from The Inspired Vegan

 I have this vision that comes to me when I'm feeling under the weather. Since I'm already compelled to eat lots of garlic, my Dayquil-addled brain reasons, why not just roast a shitload then make it into a soup? Yes, roasted garlic soup! With some greens! Why not? It should work!

Roasted Garlic Soup (kinda)

But you know, it kind of doesn't. I mean, its not horrible or anything, but I've never successfully managed to bring out the rich, velvety flavor of roasted garlic without drowning it in broth. Well pas failures aside,  I tried my old trick again this week, this time spicing it up with some swiss chard, mushrooms, and a bit of miso. (And then, since I was sick and couldn't taste it anyways, I squeezed a bunch of lemon juice and put a bunch more diced up garlic in there too.) It was fine. It got the job done- the job being "transporting nutrients to my system"- but one couldn't really call it "Soul Food."

I will perfect this one day, troopers. But this week, I had to make room for another Chard soup, this one from Bryant Terry.

I actually spend a lot of time on this blog discussing how much I like Bryant Terry, I realize, but he actually is so freaking cool that he sort of deserves it. His cookbooks are packed full of exactly what I would describe as "Soul Food"- vibrant, multi-ethnic dishes with history and flavor that doesn't come from using fancy ingredients. His Creamy Chard Soup with Tostones (pictured above), for example, has very few ingredients- some chard, coconut milk, a pinch of cayenne, some plantains- but its all about the technique and the mix. He says its inspired by a Carribean dish, with Tostones naturally being a Latin American addition that brings some crunch to the subtle soup. (They are also a fun way to release aggression, I have learned.)

So thanks to Terry for saving the day. And now on to the next culinary soul food adventure!

Song of the Day: Sister Nancy- Bam Bam

Vegan Mofo: Jambalaya

Jambalaya! I feel like there was a dorky commercial in the nineties advertising some instant Jambalaya-flavored rice mix, where a couple danced around the kitchen while a brass band plays, instantly transporting themselves from their hum-drum lives to the spicy streets of New Orleans.

Well, that commercial may have been stupid, but it got one thing right: something about the food of New Orleans makes people feel festive! Its interesting, because so much of said food is like, rice, gravy, and boiled crustaceans, but somehow the people there know how to transform humble beginnings into rarefied gourmet delicacies. Jambalaya is no different- you can't help but feel a little bit special when you make it. Just please don't make me cringe by dancing around your kitchen shouting, "Jamba-LAYA!"

Note: I don't pretend to be an expert on Authentic Cajun cooking (and certainly, vegan food tends to not be very "authentic").  This recipe is loosely inspired by several in the Southern Foodways Alliance Cookbook but they also have widely different ways of preparing it, including one version where the dish is baked. Of course, if you have alternative suggestions please feel free to chime in in the comments.

Vegan Jambalaya 
1- 2 Servings Vegan chorizo, (or other sausage) sliced (A cups worth is great)
1 medium onion, diced
1 Green pepper, diced
3 stalks (or so) celery, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup mushrooms, diced
2 cups rice
3 and 3/4 cups veggie broth (or water + bouillon, or faux-chiken broth)
1 tbs. Creole/ Cajun seasoning
2 Bay leaves
Sprig thyme
1 14oz. can diced tomatoes (with green chiles is good)
Liquid Smoke
Paprika
Tabasco sauce
Salt and pepper
Oil

1.) In a large pot, saute your sliced soy-sausages in oil. If they are chorizo flavored, you're good to go, but if they are plain, then soup them up generously with the following: paprika garlic powder, liquid smoke. After they are good and browned, remove them with a slotted spoon to a separate dish, and keep the flavored oil.
2.)  Add in the onions, celery, and pepper and cook for 5 minutes. Then add in garlic and mushrooms and cook until softened, seasoning with salt and pepper.
3.) Add in water or veggie broth, tomatoes, Bay leaves, thyme and Cajun seasoning. Bring to a boil, then add in rice. Stir to combine, lower heat to a simmer, and cover until rice has absorbed most of liquid and is soft (you might need to add in more liquid if its too dry). Stir sausage back in and a dash of liquid smoke. Season to taste with Tabasco sauce and serve, alone or as part of a Cajun dinner.

Vegan Mofo and Winter are coming! Better bulk up!

Its the end of the September, and that means two things: 
1.) Time to start breaking out super-star winter breakfasts, like the banana pancakes above, bedecked with toasted walnuts, raspberries and maple syrup. Packing on the pounds this time of year isn't a no-no, its practically a an obligation. Especially if you have a cruel husband who refuses to turn on the heating until November.
2.) Its almost Vegan Mo-Fo!

And what IS Vegan Mo-Fo, asks no one? Well, in case you missed out the last 3 years, it is a month long blogging event wherein food bloggers all over the world write a blog post every day of the month about, you guessed it, vegan food! Sometimes people have themes and only blog about e.g., orange food, or sauces, or ice cream recipes, but it is not necessary to have a theme to participate. It is really fun because vegan bloggers are in hyper-blogging mode for a whole month so there is tons more food porn, recipes, and cool ideas that you never thought of before from blogs that you may never have heard of before. On top of all that, the Vegan Mofo Headquarters webpage has a list of all participating blogs for your perusal, and will highlight cool posts, as well as run some competitions and giveaways.

Its just good old fashioned fun.

SO of course I will do it again this year, although I usually run out of stamina at one point. And I have a theme, kind of! I will be blogging about recipes from my cookbooks, but focusing on what I consider Soul Food- vibrant, creative comfort food. I especially dig stuff from Latin American, Caribbean, and Southern traditions. Most of my cookbooks are vegan but for those that aren't I may also veganize a few recipes. In sum, you can look forward to some highlights and experiments in my version of Soul Food.

Here's some of the cookbooks I'll be using:

 So, I am super excited for another successful Mo-Fo! The deadline for sign-up is tomorrow, so if you are interested head on over to Vegan Mofo HQ to read more and sign up if you like! If not, you can still follow along at home, because I'm willing to guess that many of your favorite bloggers will be participating. See you next week!

Song of the Day: Grouplove- Tongue Tied

Sauteed Veggie Sandwich, Cupcakes, Eggplant Accras

Ahh, the ex-pat life. Where one day offers exhilarating discoveries (OMG Markthalle Neun has a vegan milkshake stand!) and the next day has you sobbing over ridiculously trivial challenges (OMG I can't understand my yoga teacher... wie sagt mann "Downward Facing Dog" auf Deutsch?!)

Now that I am really kind of a Berliner, by marriage and passport, I am feeling the pressure to get my sh*t together and stop being intimidated away from things like dentists and the metric system. Its time to face the German music (just not Wagner, please) and make a grown-up life for myself here.

However, one area where I am pleasantly caught up is in the kitchen. I know where to buy agar agar and miso, where to find vegan tamales, and how to navigate the baking aisle. I am even a regular at several farmer's markets. Thus, after a day of blustering through phone conversations or awkward interactions with librarians, I can still come home and enjoy something that reinforces that, to a very small extent, I know what I'm doing.

Above, for example, is a new sandwich creation. You know the magic sandwich, right? With the margarine+ nooch+ herb crust and various fillings? Well, above is a new take, with quick-sauteed spinach, mushrooms and peppers with a bit of balsamic as a filling. Totally takes lunch to another level. (Plus, hot sandwiches are crucial for your winter arsenal.)

 And clearly enough time in the kitchen leads to cupcakes. These ones were vanilla on vanilla, with fig filling and baby apricots on top.

I also recently acquired Taymer from Vegan in the Sun's cookbook, Carribean Vegan. It is totally jam-packed with things you will want to make, like jerk seasoning and Trinidadian doubles, but I had to start out with the eggplant accras- a riff on the little fried fish balls that are popular in that region, except with eggplant to sub for the fish. Taymer herself calls them her signature dish, and you can find the recipe on her website, here.  I made these for me and S. the other night and we dipped them in a little ketchup with lemon... it was like, restaurant quality. I highly recommend. They could be a great appetizer, but they would also be great for dinner with a side salad.

I'm definitely looking forward to making more from that cookbook, and continuing to reassert myself in the kitchen (before reasserting myself all over the rest of this country!!!)


Song of the Day: Dinosaur Jr. - Start Chopping

Back in Form: Cupcakes and Hoppin' Jimmy

 

Chocolate-Raspberry-Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Icing

Whew! After what now seems like several years of wedding-related madness (but was actually only a few months) S. and I are finally, really and truly, married and legally resident and official and all that jazz. I am allowed, by God, my parents and the Ausländerbehörde, to stay in Germany for the time being and start living a normal, somewhat less precarious existence. This doesn't mean that everything is stabilized (still looking for a steady job, after all) but things are calm enough that I can actually do that ultimate house-wifey activity: cook!

My first and foremost obsession of late has been cupcakes. I received a handheld mixer as a wedding gift so I can finally make American-style icing, not this glorified whip cream that Germans dig so much. The other day my friend K. finished her final law school exams and held a big party to celebrate, so I whipped up some marvelous cupcakes inspired, natch, by the PPK cupcake tome we all know and love. I made one batch of chocolate and one of vanilla, filled with homemade raspberry compote and topped with lemon cream cheese icing. Big hits (especially with me- I ate like 10 in two days.)

I've also been really into Southern food lately, following our sojourn in the US South. I got a couple of neat Community cookbooks (more on that in later posts) and also brought back some crucial ingredients- liquid smoke, molasses, and creole/ cajun seasoning.

Hoppin' Jimmy with garlicky-spinach

So far, the most popular of my "experiments" (don't ask about Peanut-beurre-blanc) is my version of Hoppin' John. I really like this for a weeknight meal because, unlike with other beans, black-eyed peas only require a quick soak and not the night-before treatment. Also, you can jazz it up with loads of spices or keep it simple as a side dish for more elaborate meals. The authentic Hoppin John would be bare bones, with the inclusion of an actual bone, a ham hock, or some other meaty thing. Mine, obvs, isn't authentic because I added a sofrito and additional spices, so we will call it Hoppin' Jimmy after my vegetarian little brother who lives for beans.

 

 *****

Hoppin' Jimmy

1 cup black-eyed peas, rinsed and soaked for at least one hour

3/4 cup white rice

1 large onion, diced

2 bell peppers (any color) diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

2 tbs. tomato paste

1 tsp. liquid smoke

1 tbs. Cajun or Creole seasoning 

oil, water, salt, pepper

1.) In pot, bring black-eyed peas and enough water to cover them to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Let simmer for ca. 1 hour, skimming off foam occasionally and adding more water if necessary, until beans are cooked through and soft.

2.) When beans are cooked to your liking, add rice and 1.5 cups of water to pot (less if there is still a lot of bean-cooking water.) Add some salt, bring back up to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer and cover.

3.) While the rice and beans are simmering away, add your onion to a medium sized, heavy bottomed pan with plenty of oil heated up to medium-low heat. When onions have slightly softened, add in chopped bell peppers and garlic and season with salt and pepper, plus the Cajun seasoning. Cook over medium heat until all vegetables have softened.

4.) Now, we combine. Give rice a check for done-ness, then a stir before adding in liquid smoke, tomato paste, and onion-pepper mixture, stirring gently to combine. Simmer for 5-10 more minutes until most of the liquid is cooked off and taste-test for any seasoning adjustments. 

Serve with greens and hot sauce.

*****

Song the Day: Soko- I'll Kill Her

Birthday Lecsó

If there's anything you take away from this blog, I want you to be able to look at this photo and think: Lecsó! That is, I want you to face the inevitable onslaught of late summer tomatoes and peppers armed with this delicious Hungarian dish, which combines those two ingredients with a soy sausage of some sort and spices for a saucy, rich, homey stew that is perfect to serve to a big gang of friends.

Which is exactly what I did, this weekend! It was my birthday and I decided to go low-key and have some friends over to sit on our rooftop, listen to music, and eat a bunch of Lecsó (pronounced Lecho) with some good Turkish bread. As a condolence to some of the more militant meat-eaters I let S. make a batch with German sausage, while mine was made with soy-rizo from the local Bio-markt. Interestingly, though, mine turned out better and when both were empty, people passed around the vegan lecso pot to soak up the sauce with leftover bread. :)

You can find my recipe for vegan here, but I don't mind repeating it for those of you who don't feel like going through the archives. I also sometimes add a pinch of cayenne pepper, because I am a heat monster.
************
Lecsó ("Leh-cho")
(Note: this is an approximation, just keep to the rule of thumb of twice as many peppers as tomatoes and you'll be fine. Also, you can sub other peppers for Hungarian yellow paprika, but you may want to adjust the flavorings .)

-olive oil
-1 big onion (or two small) diced
-1 Hungarian-style vegan sausage (or sub about 3/4 cup some other type of crumbly sausage or even soy hot dogs and add 1 tablespoon smoked or sweet paprika as it cooks with the onion)
-8 Hungarian yellow peppers, cut into chunky dice
-4 tomatoes, diced
-salt and pepper, sugar (optional)

1.) In a large non-stick pan, saute onion and sausage in a little olive oil over medium heat until onion is soft and flavored by sausage. (If using paprika powder, add it now.)
2.) Add in peppers and cook for 10 minutes. Then add in tomatoes, salt and pepper (and an optional pinch of sugar.) Cook for 20-30 minutes, or until saucy and peppers are cooked to desired "done-ness."

Serve w/ rice or crusty bread.
****************

All in all, it was a lovely birthday celebration with my good German friends, who as you can see above, are starting to get the hang of American English. :)

Song of the Day: Ben Folds Five- Where's Summer B.?

Recipes from The Inspired Vegan- Beans, Greens, Yams, Molasses Cake

I believe I have expressed my fondness for Bryant Terry on this blog before, and his first cookbook Vegan Soul Kitchen is now somewhat of a classic (according to me.) SO when I heard he had come out with a new cookbook, The Inspired Vegan, I knew I had to rush out and get it. (And/ or, wait 6 months until I was back in the US to grab it.) Happily, while on my honeymoon I had the chance to go to one of my ALL-TIME-FAVORITE places in the whole country, Charis Feminist Bookstore in Atlanta, GA, and they happened to have a copy sitting on the shelves! And that's not exactly a coincidence, because much like Charis, the book is packed with fascinating info about art, music, and social justice. The menus are dedicated to different themes and people that interest Terry, like Shirley Chisholm, Grace Lee Boggs, and Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, and interspersed with his own memories and interests, while giving information for those who are interested in further reading or volunteering for different causes. In this respect, it is much more than a cookbook. But just in case you have no interest in politics, history, music, the environment, or history (HA), you can still enjoy the recipes, which range from Southern soul food to Asian fusion to African cuisine. For me, being interested in all of those things (and how!) its the perfect drool-worthy cookbook that also inspires you to go beyond the pages and find out about all the cool people and movements he mentions.

I picked out a few recipes to cook for me and S.'s one month anniversary: black eyes peas in garlic ginger braised mustard greens, (or in my case, chard) and molasses, miso, and maple candied sweet potatoes. I served it with white rice rather than the suggested forbidden black rice, and it was totally delicious. The greens and beans were spicy and flavorful but still subtle in comparison to the juicy sweet potatoes that were bursting with strong flavors. Despite being an objectively healthy meal, this was still special occasion-type food that was really exciting to prepare and eat. We ate the meal with 'Dark & Stormy' cocktails, a mix of strong ginger beer and dark rum that is my new favorite special occasion cocktail.

For dessert I made another recipe from the book, ginger-molasses cake. (Its supposed to have walnuts but I didn't have any so I served it with peaches.) This was super easy to make with ingredients that most vegans would have on hand, and turned out really moist and delicious while still tasting very sophisticated and "different." It also looks like chocolate cake so its a fun way to trick guests. :)

I have no doubt that I'll be cooking plenty more from this tome and I hope that Terry keeps 'em coming.

Song of the Day: Fela Kuti- Water Got No Enemy

Honeymoon Highlights

Sorry for the long hiatus, buts its for a good cause. My darling S. and I were finally married! Its actually a pretty funny story. In Virginia, where we were, there was this HUGE, HUMUNGOUS, MONSTER storm the night before the wedding, knocking out power all over VA and knocking down more than one tree in our neighborhood and elsewhere. Our guests, who had flown in from Germany and all over the US, were suddenly in a high-rise hotel with no power and no water and most crucially, no air conditioning. This was huge because it was like 100 degrees outside.

So obviously, we were rather concerned. A wedding in 100 degree heat with no food, music or lights might be considered a little too rustic, even for my tastes.

Somehow, however, the venue we were marrying at had retained their power and the wedding was able to go off as planned, despite some disgruntled and unshowered guests. Luckily, the crises made everyone let loose even more and it ended up being really fun. No, scratch that- it was perfect!

Anyways, after one more night sleeping in my parents house with no AC (no marriage suite, alas, as the hotel was shut down) we scuttled off for our honeymoon, which was basically a tour of the South. I didn't manage to take many food photos, but here are some highlights.

Gorgeous Spanish moss on Tybee Island, GA

A romantic river view 4th of July in Savannah, GA

Climbing (or rather, walking and panting) Stone Mountain with good pals in Atlanta, GA

An impromptu jazz band concert in New Orleans, LA

It was good stuff alright! And now I will return to your regularly scheduled food blog. :)