Our Veggie Kitchen

Each Thanksgiving for the last few years, I've made VeganDad's Seitan Turkey, not so much for dinner, but for day after sandwiches. Outside of my Sausage Stuffing, Turkey sandwiches were my favorite, and VeganDad got me through my first meatless Thanksgiving.

It struck me this year, that I could make gravy as well. I took VeganDad's 'turkey' spice combination and began playing with proportions. After a couple batches and a tester who's acutally had turkey in the last three years, and I arrived at a winner. If you like VeganDad's turkey, you'll like this. If you haven't had his turkey seitan, I highly recommend it.



Vegan Turkey Gravy
3 cups water
3 tbs Earth Balance Margarine
6 tbs flour
1 1/2 tbs nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp salt (to taste)
1/8 tsp liquid smoke

Combine the nutritional yeast and spices and set aside. Melt the margarine in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add the flour and stir constantly for a couple minutes, allowing the flour to cook a bit. Add the spice mix, stir and cook for a minute longer. Remove from heat and add in the water and liquid smoke. Return to heat and bring just to a boil over medium high heat, stirring constantly, probably 5-10 minutes Test for seasoning and serve.

This gravy is especially good with a few dried cranberries stirred in.

6 servings: 88 cal (6g fat, 7g carbs, 2g protein)

Gravy, no matter what the source, has three basic elements:  a liquid, a fat and a thickener.  When you remove the messy step of collecting drippings, it becomes incredibly simple.  And it can be done quickly in a microwave.



Five Minute Gravy
2 cold cups broth, divided (I use Better than Bouillon)
2 Tbs Earth Balance Margarine, or Vegetable Oil
3 tbs cornstarch
1/4 tsp Browning Sauce (for darker gravy), optional
salt and pepper to taste (I don't use any)

In a microwavable bowl, Combine 1 1/2 cups broth the margarine or oil and browning sauce, if using.  Microwave until the liquid boils, about 2-3 minutes.  In a separate bowl, stir together the remaining broth with the cornstarch.  Pour into the boiling broth.  Microwave for another minute or two, until the broth darkens.  Stir vigorously until everything combines.

Note:  The cornstarch acts as a thickener as it cooks.  Once it heats up, it will turn clear, the broth's color will become less milky and the mixture will have become gravy.  Depending on the broth (or other liquid) you use, and its saltiness, you can season with salt and pepper, soy sauce or whatever else.

4 servings:  79 cal (6g fat, 7g carbs, 1g protein)

I've had individual pot pies on my agenda for weeks.  Each week, I put them off for one more week.  The truth is, I've never made a pie crust, and I was deathly afraid.  I've done some research, and come up with a fool proof plan but I couldn't shake the gooey, doughy mess that haunts many a would be baker.  In then end, I weighed my options.  Every store bought brand I've found had either trans fat or lard.  I needed to tackle the elusive pie crust. It turned out flaky and delicious.  Here are some observations that I made during my pot pie forray:

Pie Crust:  From what I gathered, the biggest key to pie crust preparation is temperature.  I kept everything cold.  I chilled the flour, mixing bowl and the shortening in the freezer. I kept the water ice cold and when the dough balls weren't in use, they were left in the fridge.  I even froze my marble rolling pin.  In fact, it stayed in the freezer at least a month.  Like I said, I'm chicken. 

Chana Dal:  The chana dal is a small relative of the chickpea that's been dried and split.  It holds its shape better than lentils or split peas and tastes like a chickpea.  They need to be soaked and will double in volume after a couple of hours.  You could substitute yellow split peas or even lentils.

Scale:  This recipe was designed for individual pie dishes that were 6 inches in diameter (for the crust) and 1.5 cups in volume (filling).  You can scale the filling and crust to fit the volume and size of your dishes.  Also, the recipe has lots of excess dough.  This makes the dough more forgiving because you can discard any boo boos, especially if you can't roll dough into a circle.



Individual Pot Pies
 Crust:
4 cups all purpose flour, chilled
1 1/4 cups vegetable shortening, chilled
1 1/2 tsp salt
8-12 tbs ice water

Filling:
1/2 cup chana dal or yellow split peas, soaked for 2-3 hours
3 tbs Earth Balance Margarine
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup flour
3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup soy milk
1 medium potato, diced
1 carrot, diced
2 cups broccoli florets
1/2 cup peas
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp asafoetida (optional)
2 tbs nutritional yeast

For the Crust: 
Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and mix with the salt.  Add the shortening and mix with your fingers until the dough forms pea sized, or smaller, crumbs.  Add the water, a tablespoon at a time and mix together with your fingers.  You've added enough flour when the dough binds together, but is not wet.  Work the dough only as necessary, do not kneed.  Form into four balls, wrap in plastic wrap and chill until needed.

For the Filling:
Soak the chana dal in t cups water for at least a couple hours.  Drain, rinse and reserve.\  Melt the margarine in a medium sauce pan.  Add the onions and celery and saute until the onion is soft.  Add the garlic, stir once and add the flour.  Stir constantly for a couple minutes and slowly add the vegetable broth and soy milk.  Stir to incorporate the flour into the broth.  Add the diced veggies, peas and spices.  Bring to just to a boil and remove from heat.

To Assemble:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Ladle the filling into four oven-save bowls.  working one at a time, remove the plastic wrap from each dough ball.  Place the ball onto a lightly floured surface and press down with the palm of your hand.  flour the top of the dough and roll the dough into a circle.  I made much larger circles than necessary and I use the term circle very loosely.  Using a spatula, fold the dough in half, then place over the bowl.  Unfold and pull or cut off the excess dough.  Crimp the edges.  Continue with the remaining bowls.

Place the bowls in the oven and bake at 350 degrees for about an hour.  Remove and let the pies set for a few minutes and serve.  Makes 4 individual pies.

4 Servings:  1060 calories (57g fat, 114g carbs, 23g protein).

This gravy started out as an experiment, when I was playing around with yogurt dumplings. The dumplings weren't a hit, but the gravy was a keeper for sure. Before I added he liquid, I cooked down a cup of yogurt and it really added a nice undercurrent of flavor. You can chose to strain the mushrooms out, if you wish. I usually make my kids pick out the mushrooms themselves, but not always. It is a delicious anyway.

And, I think I've said this before, but it has always been true. The food pyramid is absolutely wrong. Gravy is its own food group.



Amazing Mushroom Gravy
4 tbs Earth Balance Margarine
1 lb mushrooms, washed & sliced
6 small shallots, skinned and left whole
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup soy yogurt
1/4 cup red wine
1 quart beef flavored broth
2 cups water, divided.
1/4 cup cornstarch

Melt margarine in a large sauce pan over medium high. Add the sliced mushrooms and shallots. Saute until the mushrooms are soft. Add the garlic and saute for just a couple minutes. Add in the soy yogurt and continue cooking until the yogurt has reduced by half. Stir in the red wine, broth and about 1 1/2 cups of water. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 5 minutes.

You can either leave the mushrooms in or strain the gravy. If you chose to strain it, pour the gravy through a colander now and add back to the sauce pan. Otherwise, leave them in. Whisk together the cornstarch and 1/2 cup cold water. Pour into the gravy and boil for a couple minutes. If necessary, mix a tablespoon or two more cornstarch with a small amount of water and pour into the gravy. Bring back to a boil. Makes about 6 cups.

12 servings: 74 cal (4g fat, 8g carbs, 2g protein)

A few weeks ago, I began chatting with Sam from Oh! Nuts. Oh! Nuts is a family owned store with five locations in Brooklyn and an internet store. They sell nuts, gift baskets baskets and an impressive assortment of dried fruit. They're not necessarily vegan, but I at least use bucket loads of nuts and I'm always one to promote small business, when I can, so I thought I'd give them a plug. Their website is at www.ohnuts.com

All this talk about nuts got me stewing about almonds, and I came up with this gravy that I spooned over fried tofu and mashed taters. It had a deep, rich flavor that wasn't overwhelmed by either the mushrooms or almonds. It was good. I made a second batch the next day and changed my technique a bit and it yielded a deeper brown gravy that looked more pleasing. Alas, the taters were gone, so I don't have an updated pic, but the color was more pleasing.



Almond Mushroom Gravy
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp mustard seed
1 onion, chopped
4 sprigs thyme
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 lb mushrooms, chopped
1/4 cup sherry
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup almonds, ground

Heat the oil in a sauce pan. Add the mustard seeds and cook until they begin to pop. Add the onion and cook over medium heat until the onion browns and begins to carmelize. Add the thyme, garlic and mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally until the mushrooms have given up their moisture. Stir in the sherry and let it cook down a bit. Then add the salt, pepper, almonds and water. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 5 minutes, then blend the contents, in batches if necessary. Makes about 1 quart.

For a richer color, dry fry the ground almonds in a frying pan. You may also add a touch of browning sauce.

8 Servings: 139 cal (12g fat, 5g carbs, 3g protein)

When I first started using soy products, I had a couple of disasters with tofu and tempeh. I eventually figured out the tofu game, but have been turned off on tempeh ever since. Recently, I decided to give it another try. I first took an idea from TofuMom, and simmered it in enchilada sauce until it fell apart, which left a pleasing texture and flavor.

I then turned my sights on to Vegan Dad's Italian Meatballs. I've made these a couple of times and made some changes, most notably, I bake them. It leaves them more unifromly browned, a little crispy, and they hold up better simmering in a sauce. . . and they taste delicious. And that inspired me to make Swedish Meatballs with mashed potatoes.



Swedish Meatballs
Meatballs:
12 oz tempeh
1/4 cup oatmeal
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 cup vital wheat gluten
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, grated
1 tbs vegan Worcestershire sauce
2 tbs steak sauce
1/2 tsp browning sauce
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp nutmeg
Sauce:
3 tbs Earth Balance Margarine
4 tbs flour
3 cups vegetable broth
1 cup soy creamer
1/3 cup cranberry sauce
1/4 tsp black pepper
salt to taste

Meatballs:
While preparing the meatballs, pour a couple tablespoons of vegetable oil onto a cookie sheet and put the cookie sheet into the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Boil the tempeh for about 10 minutes and allow to cool. Grate tempeh and onion and combine with all remaining meatball ingredients. Kneed until all ingredients are combined and the dough becomes sticky. Form into 1 tablespoon sized balls, making about 35 balls. Small sized meatballs hold together better and have a much better texture. Don't make them too big.

Pull out the preheated cookie sheet and swirl the oil around, just to coat. Place the meatballs on the sheet and bake for 20-30 minutes, turning the meatballs every 5 minutes or so, until the meatballs are evenly browned and slightly crispy.

Sauce:
While the meatballs are baking, melt the margarine in a large sauce pan. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring continuously, for a couple minutes. Gradually add the broth (best if room temperature or warmer) and stir or whisk until it is combined with the flour and margarine. Stir in the pepper, cranberry sauce, creamer and salt, if needed. Bring just to a boil and reduce heat. Add in the cooked meatballs, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes, turning occasionally.

Serve over pasta or mashed potatoes.

6 Servings: 374 cal (16g fat, 27g carbs, 31g protein)

Yesterday, was a day for sauces. I roasted red potato wedges in olive oil and finished it with a creamy, sweet basil sauce. It was smooth and rich and suitable to pour over, well, just about anything--veggies, pasta, rice, polenta?

The second sauce, pictured below, was a red wine & mushroom sauce poured over chickpea patties, although that was really only secondary. I would have been happy with a delicious 'pan' sauce that I could pour over worn denim . . . or a rusty tin can. It was really all about the sauce.



Red Wine and Mushroom Sauce:
3 tbs olive oil
3 tbs flour
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 1/4 cup 'beef' broth (1 heaping tsp Better than Boullion No-Beef & water)
3/4 cup dry red wine
1/2 oz dried porcini mushrooms
2 sprigs thyme
4 sprigs parsley
6 black peppercorns

Saute onions in oil until they begin to turn golden. Add garlic until aromatic. Add flour and fry for a couple minutes. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for about 15 minutes, until the alcohol has cooked off. Pour through a strainer, making sure to press as much moisture form the solids as possible. Return to stove and cook down to desired consistency, adding water if necessary.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

6 Servings: 125 cal (8g fat, 14g carbs, 2g protein)



White Bean & Basil Sauce:
1 tbs olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
15 oz can white beans, rinsed
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup water
1 cup basil leaves, loosely packed
1/2 lemon, juiced

Saute the onions in olive oil until translucent. Add garlic and cook until aromatic. Pour into a blender with all other ingredients, except basil. Blend thoroughly. Pour through a strainer back into the pan. Mince basil and add to the pan. Simmer for 10-15 minutes. Cook down or add water to attain desired consistency. Before serving, squeeze the juice of 1/2 lemon and stir thoroughly.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

6 Servings: 134 calories (3g fat, 21g carbs, 7g protein)

Sunday we had biscuits and gravy again. I've discovered that VeganDad's Breakfast Sausages are perfect for gravy. I make a batch, steamed in tin foil, and then fry them in water and maple syrup. Half gets chopped in saved for gravy. The other half gets served on the side. The syrup adds a perfect sweetness to the gravy.

I made the first batch with skim milk and it turned out perfectly. This batch was made with plain soy milk and it was a bit sweet, but still very good. Next time I'll use unsweetened soy milk.

9/26/08 Edit - I use unsweetened soy milk for my white sauces. The flavor doesn't interfere with sauces like plain does. Also, I minced the sausage, instead of chopping it for this pic. You could also run it through a blender.



Country Gravy
Sausage:
1/2 batch VeganDad's Breakfast Sausage
2 tbs water
2 tbs maple syrup

Gravy:
4 tbs Butter
1/4 cup Flour
1 quart unsweetened soy milk
1 small onion, halved
salt and pepper to taste

Prepare and steam the sausages as directed. When done, remove the links from the foil, chop or mince, and fry in 2 tbs each of maple syrup and water, until the moisture has cooked off and the sausages have browned a bit. Remove and set aside.

Meanwhile, pour soy milk and a small onion into a saucepan. Bring just to a simmer and reduce heat to keep warm. Do not allow to boil. Discard the onion before using.

Melt the margarine in another sauce pan and add the flour. Cook, stirring frequently for a few minutes, until the roux browns slightly. Remove from heat and whisk in the warm soy milk. Return to heat and add the sausages and salt and pepper liberally to taste. Continue simmering to desired consistency.

5 Servings: 272 calories (12g fat, 24g carbs, 18g protein)