Showing posts with label Weekend Cooking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Weekend Cooking. Show all posts

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Review: Vegan Pizza by Julie Hasson

I haven't done a weekend cooking post for a long time but I have more vegan cookbooks to review, so I thought this would be a perfect place to post them. 

Bill and I LOVE pizza, so I make it a lot!  However, since I received the Vegan Pizza Cookbook by Julie Hasson, I have been making a pizza every week!  Don't get me wrong, I always made good pizza, just not restaurant quality pizza.

 It cost me a total of $80 but now I make restaurant style pizza.  It now tastes like it came out of a brick oven and it has the crispy texture I always longed to create.  The secret is a pizza stone and pizza peel.  The pizza stone goes directly in the oven and the pizza peel is the paddle you use to get the pizza on and off the stone with out burning yourself.  You can keep the stone in the oven and put your cookware right on top of it as well.  Since I started doing that, everything I have put in the oven has cooked more evenly.  Let me tell you, both the stone and peel were well worth the investment.

 The other trick to perfect pizza is the recipe.  There are several recipes in the book but my favorite is the basic.  It is quite a bit wetter than the dough I use to make, but that is the other trick required.  Use just enough flour to be able to roll the dough out. Then put it on parchment paper and on the pizza peel.  Put all your topping on and then put the pizza that is on the parchment paper directly on the pizza stone, in the oven. 

Have you ever thought to put potatoes on a pizza?  I know, sounds crazy but trust me it's not.  I made the
Potato and Wild Mushroom pizza from the book.  OMG, it was so good. In fact, there was only one lonely peace left for me to take a photo of.

 I highly recommend the Vegan Pizza Cookbook!  You don't even have to be vegan to love it!

 5/5

 I received the ebook version of this cookbook from Net Galley for my honest review.


Posted by Teddy Rose at 10:18 PM 6 comments  

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Saturday, April 30, 2011

Vegan Basil Potato Alfredo

I follow a vegan blog called Happy Healthy Life by Kathy.  It's 100% vegan and the recipes she shares are often unique and very tasty.

Last week she shared her recipe for Verde Potato Alfredo.  This was such a unique take on Alfredo that at first, I kind of wrinkled my nose at it.  However, I decided to give it a try anyway.  

What's so unique about it, you ask?  It has dehydrated potato flakes in it.  Strange, right?  I thought so but it was actually quite delicious!  You can get the recipe, here.

For my version, I used fresh basil but no other greens, so it wasn't as green.  I some fresh spinach would be nice. I used the full amount of optional nutritional yeast because I like the flavor.  I omitted the beans, not by choice, but I forgot them. LOL!  I also used all almond milk and no soy creamer. 

Even without the beans, the sauce was smooth and think. We had plenty of leftovers and Bill and I both agreed it was even better on the second day.  Perhaps next time I will remember to add the beans.  LOL!  This recipe is a keeper.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 9:05 PM 2 comments  

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Sunday, April 24, 2011

Vegan Quiche Lorriane

Back in march, Annie of Meet the Shannons: The Betty Crocker Project, posted her recipe for Quiche Lorriane (click for the recipe).  Annie is on a mission to veganize recipes in the Betty Crocker Cookbook.
Of course, I had to try it, so I made it for dinner this evening.  I made the pie crust exactly as the recipe stated.  However, for the filling, instead of 1 tablespoon of  Soy Coffee Creamer, I used almond milk.  Also, it seemed a bit dry so I add an additional tablespoon of almond milk.

That was a mistake.  Don't get me wrong, the quiche was delicious, it just wasn't as firm as I would have liked.

I had quite a bit of pie dough left so I also made my hubby a mini Veggie Pot Pie.  I just used ingredients that I had on hand.  Here's what I did.  Sorry, I don't have measurements.

Ingredients:
Frozen shredded hash browns
Frozen mixed veggies: Peas, Corn, Carrots, and green beans
Olive oil
Sea salt and Onion Powder

Gravy:
Whole Wheat Flour
Nutritional yeast
Tamari
Sea Salt, pepper
Olive oil
Water

First I sauteed the hash browns and mixed veggies in olive oil and added in the seasoning.  I set that aside and made the gravy by first heating the flour and nutritional yeast until browned a bit and fragrent.  Then I wisked in the rest of the ingredients.

I mixed the gravy into the veggies and put it into the pie crust.  I didn't have quite enough crust to tope the entire pie, but I made do with it. 

Posted by Teddy Rose at 11:24 PM 2 comments  

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Sunday, April 17, 2011

Blueberry Key Lime Crumb Cake

Besides book blogs, I also follow some vegan blogs.  Hey books and food go well together, right?

One of the vegan blogs I follow is called Strawberry Pepper by Eva.  Back in March she came up with a recipe for Blueberry Key Lime Crumb Cake(Click for the recipe).  I printed out the recipe and finally got around to making it yesterday.

The recipe called for vegan sour cream.  There is a vegan sour cream product on the market but I prefer to make my own.  I think it tastes more like sour cream and is much lower in fat.  Here's how to make it:

1 12 oz. package of Mori Lite Firm Silken Tofu
1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
3/4 teaspoon Nutritional Yeast
2 Tablespoons Fresh Lemon Juice
1 Tablespoon Brown Rice Vinegar

Blend well, scrap down the sides blend a bit more and then put in a container to chill.

For the cake, I didn't bother chilling the 1/2 cup I needed, I just threw it in, as is.  I didn't have a Key Lime, I've honestly never seen them here, so I used a regular lime.  The recipes calls for 1-2 Tablespoons and I used two.  You can't really taste the lime in the cake, perhaps a key lime would have made a difference but I think you could substitute water if you only have a regular lime available.

I made it in a spring-form pan and the cake turned out perfect.  I cut it up and put half in the freezer, since it was for just two of us.  Bill and I ate two good size peaces with tea and I saved two more for a later date, probably tomorrow.  It was delicious!  I made the crumb topping with the pecans and the topping really makes the cake.  Try it sometime, you'll like it too.  Be sure to let me know how it turns out.


Posted by Teddy Rose at 3:55 PM 2 comments  

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Sunday, April 10, 2011

Vegan Spinach Lasagne Casserole

Tonight for dinner I made Vegan Spinach Lasagne Casserole.  I used my regular Spinach Lasagne recipe with penne pasta instead of lasagne noodles.  It tastes the same and is much quicker to prepare because there is no layering involved.  You can do this with lasagne recipe.

Here's the recipe:

Preheat oven to 350

about 400 grams penne, cooked
medium firm tofu, water squeezed out
frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and water squeezed out
1/2 c. Soy Co Parmesan (vegan)
1/2 cup vegan margarine, melted (I use Earth Balance)
garlic powder, salt, and pepper to taste
1 1/2 -2 cups Dayia Italian Cheese (vegan)

Crumble the tofu into a large bowl.  Mix in the remaining ingredients, including the penne, reserving about a 1/2 cup of Italian cheese for topping.  Be sure to mix well, so you get all the ingredients in each bite.  Put it all in a sprayed or oiled casserole dish and bake, uncovered for 30 minutes.  Enjoy!

Note: If I am making dinner for company, I like to use lasagne noodles and do the layering.  It does look nicer, IMO.

Posted by Teddy Rose at 9:59 PM 6 comments  

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Sunday, April 3, 2011

Hot Fudge Peanut Sundae

I didn't get much cooking done this weekend.  Saturday we went to see Jets Over Head in concert.  They are an awesome band from here in Canada.

Check them out:




I made a vegan pizza tonight for dinner.  However, it was only after hubby and I devoured it that I realized I forgot to take a picture.  I make pizza often so I will share a photo eventually.

We had hot fudge peanut sundaes for desert and I managed to take photo of that.

To make the hot fudge:

1 large handful of semi sweet chocolate chips
1 Tablespoon of soy milk or other non-dairy milk

Put in the microwave for 45 seconds, then stir.

I used store bought vanilla soy ice cream and topped it all with Spanish peanuts.

I hope all of you had a wonderful weekend.  It ended a little too soon for me.  How about you?


Posted by Teddy Rose at 8:48 PM 2 comments  

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Sunday, March 27, 2011

Vegan Macaroni and Cheese

There are lots of vegetarians who have thought about going vegan but the hardest part for most is giving up cheese.  There is a new product on the market that has made it so much easier to give up real cheese.  It is a cheese substitute called Diaya.  It comes in Cheddar , Italian, and coming soon, Pepper Jack.  It melts, stretches, and tastes just like the real thing.  Honest, I have fooled friends with it!  It's also safe for people with lactose intolerance.

With Diaya, I now make a more traditional baked mac and cheese.  It is hubby's favorite.

Here's my recipe:

1 lb Dry Macaroni or small shells, cooked
2 Cups Hot soy milk, almond milk, or substitute of your choice
4 T. Earth Balance (or other vegan margarine)
4 T. Flour
1/4 t. Salt
1/8 t. Pepper
2 Cups Diaya Cheddar Cheese

Preheat oven to 400 F.  
Scald the milk.  Melt the Earth Balance in a saucepan over low heat.  Add flour and stir constantly until it turns one shade darker.  Whisk in the hot milk gradually and cook siring constantly, until it thickens.  Add the Diaya and stir until smooth and melted.  
Combine with the cooked pasta.
Put mixture in a sprayed or oiled casserole dish.  You can sprinkle a bit of Diaya on top if you like.  Then heat in the preheated oven for 15 minutes.  Enjoy!


Posted by Teddy Rose at 9:42 PM 8 comments  

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Sunday, March 20, 2011

Winter Vegetable Stew With Moroccan Flavors

Awhile ago, I downloaded an new cookbook to review from Net Galley, Fresh and Fast Vegetarian: Recipes That Make the Meal..  I will be reviewing the cookbook soon.  Tonight I made one of the recipes in it, Winter Vegetable Stew With Moroccan Flavors.

On most weekends I prepare a menu and grocery list for the upcoming week's meals.  This weekend, Bill did the grocery shopping.  However, he mistook watercress for cilantro.  LOL!  I didn't discover this until I went into the refrigerator to get the cilantro and  thought to myself, "this is funny looking cilantro."  I tasted it and realized it was watercress.  Sometimes little things like this happen when Bill does the shopping.  Oh well, I through the watercress into the stew.

I also used a potato instead of a turnip and parsnip, which is an option mentioned in the recipe.  The winter squash of choice was also in the recipe and I used an acorn squash for that.  I decided to roast the squash first because it's easier to peel.  I did this earlier in the day, so I could throw dinner together quickly later.  However, while trying to cut the squash in half, I got into an fight with it and it won! 

My finger was cut, pretty deep. The stew almost became non-vegetarian.  LOL!   I drove to a walk-in clinic and the doctor debate giving it stitches but, much to my relief, he used surgical tape to pull it together instead.  He told me not to get it wet and not to bend it.  So, later I ended up finishing preparing dinner with a rubber glove on my hand.  I am not typing this post without my right pointer finger.

I served the stew over cooked millet, instead of couscous.  It turned out pretty good despite the roadblocks. 

Posted by Teddy Rose at 9:21 PM 5 comments  

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Saturday, March 12, 2011

Summer Berry Cobbler with Vanilla Whipped Creme

Many of my blogger buddies have been participating in this cooking meme.  I've been wanting to do it for awhile now, so I decided to try it out this weekend.

I do a ton of cooking and baking, all vegan style.  That means no animal products what so ever.  Vegans and non-vegans both love it when I cook and bake for them, which just goes to show that vegans eat very well.

Tonight, for desert I made Summer Berry Cobbler with Vanilla Bean Whipped Creme.  It does not have to be summer to enjoy this treat.  In fact, hubby and I like to have it when it's still warm. I always buy flats of berries when there in season, and freeze them so I can make this recipe and others, year round.  I got this recipe, here.

I must confess that I forgot to take a picture of them with whipped creme on top but the good news is this makes 4, so we have 2 left.  Heres a photo without the whip. 

I do a couple things a bit different than the original recipe does:

For the sugar/berry mixture, I use 1/3 cup sugar instead of 1/2 cup.  I followed the exact recipe the first time I made it and we thought it was way too sweet.

Tip:  When using frozen berries, I find it easiest to make if the berries are slightly thawed, rather than thawed all the way.

I don't sprinkle any almond milk or sugar on top.

For the Whipped cream:
First let me say, that this is the best vegan whipped cream recipe out there, by far!  I have tried a lot of other ones but they all pale in comparison.  

I use two heaping tablespoons of the powdered sugar, rather than 2/3 cup.  
I use a teaspoon of organic pure vanilla extract instead of the vanilla bean.
I like this best in ramekins, rather than the 8X8 pan but I use 4 ramekins instead of 8.  Just be sure to place them on a cookie sheet to bake, in case they boil over a bit.

If you want to eat them warm, be sure to let them cool for a good half hour first or you will burn your mouth.

The way I make this recipe, there are 4 bigs servings rather than 8 small servings. :)

If you give this recipe a try, be sure to let me know how you likes it.  I actually served this as one of the desserts at Christmas and my family begged for more.  Seriously, and they are not vegans like hubby and I.


Posted by Teddy Rose at 10:52 PM 6 comments  

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