nothing ventured, nothing gained

So, I've been thinking of baking on and off for a couple of months.  Obviously, the best time to do so is during the first May heat wave in years.  Let's back-track, though.

A few times recently the Baking Bug bit me, only for me to open my cupboard and discover (repeatedly, since I don't learn the first time) that I have less than one cup of flour.  Not too many things you can make with that little flour.  A few times recently, Mister's been up to his old tricks, wandering into the kitchen, wanting "something," only to be thwarted by the fact that neither of us has replenished the flour, so again - no baking.

This past weekend I was around cakes almost every waking hour.  I watched batter being made in large quantities and enough frosting (they call it "icing" in the South) to fill a plastic storage bin other people would use for their winter clothing or to corral cleaning supplies.  I was surrounded by the heavenly scent of cakes baking - chocolate, almond pound, vanilla - and watched as they were prepped for icing and then decorated efficiently and skillfully.  I was even lucky enough to have some batter slung at me while I was eating my breakfast, as a sister-in-law reacted in time to save a full cakepan from overturning but too quickly to put down the spatula first.

Needless to say, after a weekend like that, all I wanted to do last night, my first night home, was bake cupcakes and even decorate them.  It's rare that I bother with icing my cupcakes, as I explained over the weekend, because you have to be patient enough to let them cool and I just want to eat them while they're still warm.  Nevertheless, when I started daydreaming about what I would make and how I would decorate, I was rudely awoken to the continued Lack Of Flour in my cupboard.

~*~*~*~*~

Over the weekend, we moved the retail and service portion of our flagship store (which is currently our corporate headquarters) into a new location, just two doors down.  Despite the move being so close we didn't even need movers' assistance, and despite a bunch of hardworking individuals pulling a 14-hour day while I was sitting in Georgia sniffing cake batter, things are still a little crazy as everyone gets settled.  A little (okay, a decent bit) of that chaos is leaking back into the "old" building, where me and other administrative folks are still in residence.  By the end of today, one of my colleagues was clearly in need of some TLC and good, old-fashioned, female-tilted relaxation.  

I hatched a plan on my walk home: moist dark chocolate cupcakes, topped with something decadent.  Maybe I would get a decorator tip and food coloring and make a red rose topping (a wee bit ambitious for someone who has never actually decorated a cupcake outside of smearing an improvised "cream cheese" icing on top and carefully placing chocolate chips to look randomly sprinkled on).  No.... I try to stay away from artificial ingredients, so why would I use food dye?  Ah!  Strawberries!  Yes, I would puree fresh strawberries and then make a pink "buttercream" to frost the tops of these decadent chocolate cupcakes.  Hmmm.... suddenly, the light flavor of a strawberry creme topping seemed better suited to vanilla cupcakes, which I had no interest in making.  Then I remembered a comical conversation about Tequila-tinged cupcakes and rethought the strawberry theme - I'll stop at the liquor store, pick up some Pinnacle Whipped and macerate some berries in it, then plop them on top of a chocolate frosting!  But then there's the issue of transportation... thinkthinkthink... I've got it! 

~*~*~*~*~

As I sit here, telling ridiculous stories and dragging this post out as long as possible to make up for all the words I haven't been sharing, I am breathing in the thick, delicious aroma of newly baked chocolate cupcakes.  I used Dynise's recipe for Funeral Cake in her new book Celebrate Vegan.  I actually tested this recipe for the book, so I knew its intense flavor was exactly what my colleague (and I!) need to make it to Friday.  It is taking every ounce of my imaginary self-control to stay away from the cooling cuppers (though I think the large amount of batter I scraped from the sides of my mixing bowl and ate while they baked helped...)

I know, I can feel your sarcasm seeping through the computer as you think "Wow, Natalie, you made chocolate cupcakes?  Good freakin' job."  No, no, friends - it gets far better.

When I stopped to get flour on my way home (and strawberries, just in case I changed my mind), I also picked up a bottle of sweet red wine.  Again, nothing much new here, so let's skip right to the Big Innovative Moment this has all been leading up to:

If I actually let the cupcakes cool without eating them, I'm going to whip up a glaze using that wine.  The cupcakes alone are enough to give you a foodgasm, (have I mentioned you need to get the book??) but if the icing comes out even half as well in real life as it does in my brain, the complementary flavors will kick these sweets up a notch and a half.  Current plan is to do a cup of confectioners' sugar with 2 Tbsp of the wine, then more or less paint the glaze on or possible dip the nicely domed tops of the cupcakes to allow a little Hershey Kiss-shaped action on top.

No pictures tonight, sweetpeas, nor confirmed recipes - I promise I will return tomorrow with pictures, recipes, and reactions, but for now it's time to get to sleep so I can get up early and ice my cupcakes!

sweet and simple success

So, despite last night's relative failure (not really, but it didn't live up to my hopeless perfectionism, so...) I strapped on my holiday-appropriate red-n-white striped apron again.  I guess it's kind of like getting right back in the saddle after being thrown?

Well, maybe not as painful, although you may find it painful to observe my "clashing" stripes.  By pure lucky coincidence, I happened to be wearing horizontally-striped socks and I thought it was a funny combination with the vertical stripes of the apron.  If you disagree, remember what your mother taught you about what to do if you don't have anything nice to say.

I have plenty of nice things to say tonight - we'll start with the cookies.

My first "nice" statement is to point out how lucky my colleagues are that I am a woman of my word (and that by telling them I was baking I created built-in accountability).  Mister and I each had one small cookie to test their quality and were completely impressed.

In addition to being attractive on the outside, these cookies are "charming and delightful" and a pleasure to be around.  I do not expect them to last very long tomorrow - they are just the right amount of sweet, aided, in part, by the cinnamon sugar in which I rolled them before plunking them down on the baking sheets.  However, the generous amount of Earth Balance that began the batter contributed to an incredibly buttery taste and texture - you could liken these to a combination of those Dutch butter cookies so much like shortbread, and honest to goodness sugar cookies.

They are, in a way, sugar cookies - The recipe, filched gracefully from realsimple.com is for Brown Sugar Drop Cookies but my increasingly OCD self couldn't deal with the ugly little deposits of dough on the sheets, so I rolled them into buttery little balls and then dunked them into cinnamon sugar before pressing the down a little onto the sheet.

Time to pack them up! Before Mister and I eat them all...

in pursuit of the perfect brownie

I know you're not expecting this, but OMGMyHomeSmellsSoGood!


'Twas the week before Christmas
and all through the house,
not a creature was stirring
'cause Angst killed the mouse

I suppose I could probably rewrite the poem to be clever, but why mess with something that time-honored. Besides, I've got brownies to wax poetic about.

Thanks to Isa and Terry, I've got vegan cupcakes and vegan cookies down, but brownies continue to be that impossible-to-replicate baked item.  I have a few recipes and I've gotten some decent feedback on them, but to me, they've fallen short of "the real deal;" dense, fudgy brownies with the crinkly top.  When I stumbled on this new post from a fellow Prodigal Blogger, I decided this recipe would answer all my prayers - after all the post's title is "The Best Vegan Brownie You Will Ever Eat."

I hope that's not true.

To be fair, it is the best vegan brownie I've eaten so far - so in a way it is true.  However delightful it made my kitchen (and therefore, entire apartment, possibly the better part of the building) smell, and no matter how crinkly the top was, and regardless of the fact that this is the first vegan brownie I've had that's resulted in me chugging soymilk to settle the sweetness, it's still not all that I wanted it to be.

It's very chocolatey.  It's very sweet.  It's the closest I've been to the moist, dense, fudgy brownies I remember from the not-too-distant past, but it fell just a little short.  My main grudge against vegan brownies is that they crumble.  Brownies are not meant to crumble - we'll leave that to shortbread and biscotti.  Brownies hold together by the sheer weight of their fudginess.  You could, conceivably, eat a brownie without a plate.

When I was mixing the wet and dry ingredients together, I thought it would be fun (and a little extra decadent) to include a handful of peanut butter chips (and it was).  As I was "pouring" the batter into the prepared pan, I found that I had to "spread" it to the corners - not a quality I usually look for in brownie batter, but the recipe did state that the batter would be thick.  It certainly was.  I kind of think that if I hadn't pushed it into a perfect rectangle with my spatula, it would have been perfectly content to be a little oblong brownie.

That's another thing.  I don't know what's up with all these "brownie bites" you can buy in grocery stores, but brownies are square or rectangular.  They are not round.  When you pour brownie batter into a mini-muffin pan and bake it, what comes out of the oven are mini-muffins, not round brownies.  There is no such thing as a round brownie.  Are you listening, Superfresh?


Okay, back to tonight's baking adventures.

So, my intention was to make these incredibly dense and moist and fudgy brownies, spiked with little bits of peanut butter, and then carefully pack them between layers of wax paper and deliver them to colleagues tomorrow so they could ooh and aah and exclaim their surprise about how fudgy and perfect my vegan brownies were.  I'm not sure they'll make it in and it's not necessarily because Mister and I can't keep our hands off (though they really are very tasty).

My brownies are crumbly.

I feel like I should have known that when I was forcing the batter into the corners of the pan.  At least three times before I put them in the oven I thought, "maybe I should add a little more liquid?"  Because the flavor is so good, I may make a second attempt and follow my heart on that, but it's too late tonight.  No brownies for you, faithful and persevering colleagues, or at least not tomorrow.  Tomorrow night will find me in the kitchen again "after hours," either perfecting this recipe or making cookies.  I guess you'll have to stay tuned to find out...

snowtober??

One thing I have to admit I love about news & weather websites/TVstuff is how easily and frequently they sensationalize any possible divergence from "normal" weather.  Last winter, we had a "snowpocalypse" and I will admit, last January saw way more snow than I can remember in the last 15 years - in fact, the only time I remember more snow was January 1994 when they were cancelling school by the week and I actually only had three days of school in January.  That was, as you say, epic.

So, enter today.  Well, last night, actually, weather.com started predicting a snow storm with actual accumulations along the northeast corridor, including Philadelphia.  By the time I left work, they had updated it to the season's first Nor'easter.  If you are unfamiliar with the term, let me break it down like this: really really sucky windy storm that usually comes down from Canada to mess things up real good between Virginia and Ohio and up to Maine, generally involving heavy cold precipitation of some sort.  Now, I like snow a lot, but a nor'easter was not what I wanted to hear.

So I wake up this morning to my alarm, believing I can probably head out to the suburbs and teach before anything serious starts, if it's even more than just crappy rain.  I'm lying there for just a minute before rising and I hear it:  tap, tap, ping, tap, etc.  I think to myself, "No...it's not freezing rain.  Not yet," and get up, pulling my bathrobe warmly around me as I head into the kitchen for breakfast.

Angst is in the window, smacking at the snowflakes.

Yup.  Snowflakes.  In October.  I mean, for heaven's sake - it's not even Halloween yet!  Everyone was freaking out all over Facebook, swearing they were going to move if we were in for another winter like last year, or worse.  Me?  I'm kinda hoping for it :)

Anyway, because it's so unusual for snow to start so early in the season ("normal" first snowfall in Pennsylvania - with any accumulation likely - is mid-December), everyone, including weather.com, is now talking about Snowtober.  I guess that's kind of clever.

In case you were wondering, I did not ride the train a half hour out to the suburbs for the privilege of teaching at least three students who didn't bother practicing.  Instead, I watched really awesome make-up tutorials on YouTube by this angelic little English girl, Klaire de lys, and then completely neglected to paint my own face.  Poor Mister.

Eventually, I got it together to make dinner, which really couldn't have been anything other than Black Bean Soup with Kale and Rice from Vegan on the Cheap.

I was so relieved when the soup came out so chunky and substantial, because I know Mister's not a fan of soup dinners and he didn't eat much all day, but he seemed pretty happy about everything except eating his dinner with a spoon.  I had forgotten how rich the broth is, and what a fabulous mouthful all the ingredients come together to make.  Some sweetness from the carrots, creamy black beans, chewy rice, bitter kale, and tangy tomatoes were all brought together and spiked with a savory broth with simple spices.

Nevetheless, I knew Mister would be craving something more to eat later on, so when I was washing up the pot afterwards, I put a stick of Earth Balance out to soften.

Right now, my home smells incredible.  I started out with the intention to make Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting, also from Vegan on the Cheap, but decided I had very little interest in the frosting.  I started to just make chocolate cupcakes, but then decided to "doctor" them a little, resulting in a cupcake version of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, which were always among my favorite [Trick or] Treats.

It was a simple alteration, really.  I started by filling each cupcake tin about 1/3 of the way

then I dropped about a half teaspoon to a scant teaspoon of peanut butter (I used chunky 'cause that's what we stock, but you can use whatever makes your little heart sing) into the center of each future cupcake, pressing down very lightly to set it in place.  The dough is actually pretty stiff, so you shouldn't have trouble.

Once the PB was safely nestled in a little chocolate nest, I plopped the rest of the batter on top, filling each cupcake paper almost to the top, taking care to ensure it fell completely around the glop of PB, encasing it.

After teasing Mister and I with a luscious smell for about 25 minutes, these little beauties were finished cooking and ready to cool as much as we would allow them to...

Back to Klaire de lys for a few minutes...ah, so that's how they did the make-up for Black Swan.
And other stuff I don't really need to know.  Thank you, YouTube!

Okay, back to the cupcakes.

So good.  Seriously.

There were a couple of things I'd like to tweak in order to make this recipe completely my own and utterly scrumptious.  Cooking Light got me in the habit of mixing up my flour to lighten it and then gently spooning it from the bag to my measuring cups before leveling them off.  The idea here is that you use less flour = less dense baked goods = fewer calories.  I think I need to abandon that for these cupcakes, in order to make them the dark, dense, fudgy outside I want them to be.

I think they could hold a little more peanut butter, too.  I think a full teaspoon, maybe even heaping, would be in order here.

I also need to remember to check how much cocoa powder I have before committing to a chocolate cupcake recipe.  I didn't have exactly a half cup of it left and I think that was to the cakes' detriment.

Believe me, these will be made again.  And again and again and again, especially if we have a really snowy winter.  Once I've "perfected" them, I'll share a recipe.

a menu for Mister (+1)

With some favorite cookbooks nearby for inspiration, I made Mister a present last night: his very own menu.  I put my mind to making a whole week of meals that are Mister-approved: pasta, Italian-inspired, our favorite rice-n-beans recipe, and the chickpea stew that never stops being a near-existential experience.  I was so pleased with myself by the time I got to the end that I interrupted Mister at his computer to proudly display my masterpiece; he was thrilled and recognized that I did it just for him.  Here is Mister's Menu:

1. Penne with Roasted Red Pepper Marinara Sauce from Vegan Italiano.

2. Chickpea Stew with Fried Polenta from Vegetarian Times Complete Cookbook.  I have managed to hold off temptation for a few weeks, but now it is time to make this hearty, satisfying dinner and experience some mid-winter zen.

3. Seitan Cacciatore from The Accidental Vegan.

4. Cajun Red Beans and Rice, also from The Accidental Vegan but with a twist this time... you'll just have to wait and see.

5. Lemony Garlic Chickpea Patties from Vegan on the Cheap, served with Greek-seasoned roasted potatoes.  They're like big falafel I get to use my burger press to make; best of all worlds, especially with the potatoes.

6. Pasta Con Broccoli from Appetite for Reduction.  Yes, I just made this a couple of weeks ago, but it's really good and Mister really enjoyed it.  I really enjoy having Italian pasta dishes that don't include red sauce once in a while.  Unfortunately, it appears that since we've overcome our Spinach Famine, we are now experiencing a vegetable broth drought.  There was not a single drop to be found in Superfresh or Essene, which means at some point this week, I'll have to try Whole Foods.

Tonight, I asked Mister what he wanted me to make first and I didn't have any trouble getting a response.  In my brain, I had silently placed a bet with myself that he would start the week with the very first item on the menu, because although he loves the whole menu, I think he'd be most enthusiastic about simple pasta with red sauce.

I won!  He absolutely chose Penne with Roasted Red Pepper Marinara Sauce to start the week.  I made a few tweaks to the sauce; despite many Americans finding dozens of creative ways to avoid adding salt to their diets, I was very surprised that the recipe I followed didn't add even a little bitty pinch of salt, so I took it upon myself to "write in" about a teaspoon.  Also, to balance out the oregano that I really had to pep myself up to add, I sprinkled in a generous teaspoon of marjoram and a glug of balsamic vinegar.  I don't normally simmer my marinara as long as I did tonight, but ice cold water takes longer to bring to boiling (more in a minute).  I'm glad I did, though, because at the beginning, the sauce was watery and thin, but after about 30 minutes of simmering, uncovered, it had reduced enough to be slightly more opaque.

As you can see, I also subbed rotini primavera for the penne in the title.  I don't know what's so special about rotini primavera, but it's the only dried pasta I can find in a 12 oz box - even regular rotini is 16 oz.  This was actually a much bigger decision than it needed to be due to the conversation in my head:

"I only need 12 oz."
"But I can get 16 oz for the same price, making this the greater value."
"We might be moving soon and I don't want to pack a bunch of half-used boxes of pasta."

Eventually, it was that line of logic that deposited the smaller box of pasta (for the same price) into my basket.

So, when I got up this morning, I went to the coffeemaker, presuming to make coffee and learned something.  I'm happy to learn something new every day, but I do think sometimes it's a little too early to start the lessons.  Here's what I learned before coffee or tea or breakfast: we take for granted that when we pop the faucet, water will come pouring out of the nozzle.  This is not always true.  This was not true in my home this morning.  I flipped up the magic wand that would fill my waiting coffee pitcher with water to make Mister's favorite beverage and nothing happened.  Kind of like when I turned the key to my car's ignition on the morning of my wedding, but that's another story from another time.

Apparently, the water pipes froze in our single-digit temps last night and it took until late afternoon to get the cold water back.  There's still no hot water, which is why I'm sitting at my computer typing away instead of cleaning up the huge mess I made of the kitchen even though I knew there was no hot water.  A few times, during the baking process (yes, baking...that's the +1) I had to rinse my hands off.  Let me tell you what it felt like: Right now, the temperature in Philadelphia is 17 degrees Fahrenheit with a "real feel" of only 8 degrees.  The water coming out of my tap feels the way it would feel if you could turn Outside into liquid form and pump it through some pipes.  It was like rinsing my hands under melting ice cubes.  I don't see this improving any time soon, either, since tonight's low is also in the single-digits (I've already washed the apple I'm having with tomorrow's breakfast because I don't think there will be water in the morning).

If you ask me, all this cold is perfect weather for baking...

Cinnamon-Date Scones

So, I cranked up my oven, pushed my sleeves up at least halfway to my elbows, and tied on my apron to make a good old-fashioned flour mess in my kitchen.  The minute I saw the recipe, waiting to be tested for the upcoming UV2 cookbook for which I have the privilege of testing, I knew I'd have to jump on it before everyone else did.

I haven't had a date in years.  Wait - that didn't come out the way I meant it.  The last time I ate a date, I was living in my parents' house and my aunt was still married to my uncle.  I remember this because every Christmas, when she came to visit with us and brought her two beautiful collies, she also brought a Hickory Farms gift box full to overflowing with edible treasures: summer sausage, port wine cheese, gobs of these little hard candies dressed up in wrappers that looked like strawberries, and dates.  They were so strange and rare that although my mother can attest to what a picky child I was, I couldn't resist trying the dates and I found that I liked them very much.

Unfortunately, back in the real world, they're a little expensive to be a regular part of my cupboard neighborhood, but I decided no amount of expense would prevent me from picking up just enough for this recipe.  In the searching, I discovered that they aren't as expensive in some places as they are in others... and that brought me joy.

so did this

With a rustic, crunchy outside but a soft and cupcake-like interior, these scones will find their way to our table again.  I envision us, sitting at the table beside the big, bright window in what I hope is our next home, celebrating the first snowfall in our new home by brewing a pot of tea or coffee and sharing a pile of these sweeties.  Throughout a soft and not-too-sweet body, there are little bites of sweet, moist dates, adding a little wow factor to what would be a perfectly palatable scone with just the cinnamon.  Maybe on a future making, I will include a scant handful of cinnamon chips or sprinkle the tops with coarse cinnamon sugar for a little extra oomph.

Trust me, folks - you can't wait until this cookbook hits the shelves.

renaming recipes

I like a well-named recipe.  When I'm flipping through my cookbooks, it is the name of the recipe that catches my eye, luring me to the ingredients list and finally to the preparation methods.  The first step, though, is always the recipe - if it has a boring name or lists an ingredient (as a main) that Mister and/or I won't eat, it doesn't get a second glance.

Because of the importance I place on the title of a recipe, it is often difficult for me to come up with my own recipe names: I want them to jump out and say "pick me!"  Every once in a while, though, I come across someone else's recipe that I really feel compelled to give a new name.

Tonight's dinner was appropriately named Corn Chowder.  I think I have at least half a dozen recipes for a chunky, hearty corn and potato-based "chowder," and they're all named similarly.  I'm not in the habit of marking up my cookbooks (I really need to get over that), so sometimes it's difficult to remember which one is which and how I felt about each of them.  More importantly, considering his aversion to soup dinners, I want to remember how Mister felt about each of them.

Tonight's Corn Chowder came to us from Vegan With A Vengeance and I couldn't tell you the last time I made this.  That is a certifiable pity because this chowder is freaking amazing.  Hearty and thick and full of various flavors, it is by far the winner of the multiple other Corn Chowders for which I have recipes.  If I'm ever babbling about corn chowder in the future, would someone please leave me a comment reminding me that this one is the amazing one?

I would like to rename this Corn Chowder: Nothing Left Chowder.  I put it on the table, Mister and I sped through our first bowls as quickly as the heat would allow, still taking the time to savor and appreciate the flavor profile created by combining mainly corn and potatoes with a diced red pepper and a few diced carrots.  I think the thing that really sets this one apart from the others, I think, is that it simmers for nearly an hour with a big, fat Turkish Bay Leaf.  Regardless, Mister had gone back for seconds before I finished my first bowl and then we rose simultaneously to refill (my second helping, his third).  Yes, that's right - Mister had three servings of soup dinner.  Win!

Because it's Sunday and I had plenty of time to start dinner early, I had plenty of time for baking projects after dinner.  Despite Angst's reticence to help, we had us a little bake-a-thon.

here he is, crammed onto Mister's expensive messenger bag,
being grumpy because he knows he has to move when Mister comes in for dinner.

Our first baking project was Banana Coconut Cookies - I was directed to this recipe via a VegNews e-newsletter.  I had been saving two nearly rotten bananas for this and when I removed them from the banana hanger on the fridge to make way for the new bananas I picked up this afternoon, I realized that they were not going to wait another day to be turned into something.  

Not a bad thing to turn into, wouldn't you say?  They are soft and chewy with a little bit of structure provided by the oats.  I made them a little big, so they didn't make the 18 the recipe said they would, but if that means I get to eat share bigger cookies, then that's good enough for me.

Currently, baking project number two is in the oven, smelling up my home something [delightfully] fierce.  While I wait for the Seed Cake I'm testing for the new Urban Vegan cookbook to gestate, let me share the new menu:

1. Chickpea and Spinach Curry from VwaV - I still haven't made this because there still isn't spinach.  Does anyone know something I don't know?  Regarding the Spinach Famine, that is.

2. Chickpea Piccata served on Caulipots, both from Appetite for Reduction.  You thought I was kidding, didn't you?  I had asked Mister, when I first got the cookbook and wanted to make this, if he liked capers.  He didn't remember because he couldn't remember what capers were.  When we were at Horizons, I separated one from my appetizer to show him.  He promptly remembered that he does like them, so this was pretty much fated to be on the menu.

3. Quinoa Bulghur, White Bean, and Kale Stew also from Appetite for Reduction.  Mister doesn't like quinoa, so I'll be substituting bulghur because it cooks nearly as quickly and Mister is ambivalent to it.

4. Salsa Rice and Red Beans from Vegan on the Cheap.

5. Barbecued Black Bean and Tofu Burritos, also from Vegan on the Cheap.  I made this before, but I want to try something different with the tofu.  Besides, it was pretty good the first time around.

6. Farfalle with White Beans and Cabbage, also from Vegan on the Cheap.  I'm really into cabbage right now...if you didn't notice.

Fresh out of the oven, here is Seed Cake from the forthcoming UV2.  As you can imagine, it got its name from the tiny little caraway seeds speckled throughout the inside.  It's a light spice cake and mine has quite a crunch to it.  I could very well have messed up, or maybe I just need to rethink my idea of cake.  This was possibly a little more like a coffee cake, especially with its optional dusting of powdered sugar, which makes a bit of sense since Dynise recommends eating yours with tea.

I think it needs just a little tweaking, but I am fully confident that by the time this new cookbook hits the shelves, this will be one of the recipes people are stumbling over each other to make for a Sunday brunch, elbowing each other in the spice aisles, trying to get the last bottle of caraway seeds.

sweet and spice-y takes the cake

As I type this, my kitchen smells increasingly delightful - the way you might imagine December would smell, if it had a designated scent.  I have muffins in the oven, so I'll be excusing myself shortly to retrieve them (but you'll never know, will you?).  One thing I love about Sundays, besides having plenty of time to make dinner, is that if dinner doesn't take too long and we eat early, there's time to bake.

The beginning of a new menu is always a little difficult for me.  There are so many choices!  Last night, the toe-numbing, foot-freezing, face-hurting cold made my decision for me, as did a helpful husband who didn't mind leaving home for the first time all [horrendously cold] day to get me a huge can of chickpeas.  That meant that the first time I really had to choose what to make was tonight, since I have a stocked fridge and cupboard.  I chose more or less by process of elimination... no to the Corn Chowder, since I made the Chickpea-Cabbage soup last night.  No to the Chickpea-Spinach Curry because it comes together very fast, making it a more appropriate choice for a work night when I don't feel like spending a lot of time on dinner.  Also, we are still in the midst of the Great Spinach Famine of 2011.

My eyes fell upon Tropic of Tempeh Tofu (Vegan on the Cheap) and I remembered that we didn't have leftovers last time I made it.  Since we're still eating our way through the leftovers from my week off, I didn't think we needed a meal that would contribute to the Kingdom of Tupperware currently set up in our fridge, and I knew the other two options would most certainly do just that.

Since I'm using tofu instead of tempeh, I saute it for about 10 minutes, maybe more, to create that crispy outer "shell."  I might have overdone it a little, because it seems like the tofu was a little tough...chewy.  The rest was wonderful - you can definitely taste how the rice wine vinegar draws out the sweet-tartness of the pineapple, and I took my own advice this time, adding an extra Tbsp of tamari to the sauce to tone it down a little.  It changed the color of the sauce significantly; its effect on the sauce was minimal, but helpful in toning down what might otherwise be a sauce that is too sweet for dinner.

What a great way to transition to the sweet conclusion to tonight's meal.  See, you didn't even miss me while I was pulling these beauties out of the oven:

They don't look quite like the pictures on the recipe, but the Gingerbread-Nut Muffins taste so good it wouldn't matter if they were green and oozing something.  Well.  Okay.  Maybe the visual would interfere with the overall experience, but what I'm trying to say is this: they are really good.

kind of looks like a gingerbread rock, doesn't it?

They are super spice-y, thanks to the total two teaspoons of strong spices in them.  I have very little doubt that the scant bit of vanilla and the generous helping of molasses contribute to the dark and complex flavor of these little nuggets.  The best part, though?  I just realized they're fat free.  Here's a cute cat to entertain you while I sneak off for another.

baking in the witching hour

Some time over the summer, a friend helped me name my imaginary public access cooking show (which will result in unimaginable fame and wealth, eventually).  Because he couldn't believe how frequently I bake at night (probably 95% of the time), he suggested "Late Night Baking with Natalie K" but I think I prefer the title to this post.

Although I suppose there could be some debate over the exact time of the witching hour, my scones were safely baking as the clock struck midnight, foisting my baking adventures officially into tomorrow. 

Banana Chocolate Chip Scones

Let's build up to the scone/overinflated cookie story, though, shall we?

After a deeply satisfying night of sleep (the first of many, I hope), I wandered, sleepy-eyed and wanting coffee, into my kitchen.  Once I had gathered my wits and looked out the window, I was profoundly disappointed to see not a flake of snow floating gently down from the sky.  There was a light dusting on the street, but not at all what I was expecting.

Never fear, rapt readers - it did not take long for snow to join me in welcoming the day.  Before I poured my second cozy cup, little glittery flakes had begun their descent from the low, grey cloud cover to cold, black pavement.  This continued throughout the day and I watched giddily as the snow began to accumulate on sidewalks, cars, and my husband upon his return from Steve's Steaks, veggie cheesesteak in a brown bag, canister of lemonade mix under his arm.

It seemed fitting that the only item left on my menu (and by default, the only thing I had the ingredients to cook, which is why Mister went out for lunch) was Warm Chickpea Ragout with Swiss Chard, Carrots, and Harissa from Vegetarian Times: Fast and Easy.

The advantage to having such an extensive (and growing) cookbook collection is that I repeat dishes so infrequently that I'm [almost] always as pleasantly surprised as I was the first time I made something.  This was no exception.  The heat of the harissa is just right - it intensifies the flavors of the dish without traumatizing my tastebuds too severely (unless I accidentally inhale an unmixed dot of the stuff...then I choke and my eyes tear and Mister laughs at me... no matter how sick he is). 

I served it over what was left of the Coconut Rice I made with the Jerk Seitan oh-so-long ago.  Between the subtle sweetness of the rice and that which is coaxed out of the tomatoes as they were fire-roasted, the whole dish has a surprising but perfect undercurrent of dulce.  It balances the heat of the harissa and the creaminess of the chickpeas in a way that made me contemplate every single bite I took.  This, surely, is the road to mindful eating.

After dinner, the snow was still going strong, despite my newly kindled internal fire.  Every time I hear a plow or shovel outside, I want to chase away the one who wields it, screaming something insane like, "Leave my snow alone!"

Instead, I occupied myself by making these incredible scones.  VegNews directed me to the recipe and I thought it seemed very much like single-serving banana bread, so I jumped on it.  I was a little worried when I started plunking down the batter - I can't call it dough - it spread a little much for my comfort level.  In the end, they came out looking like huge banana-chocolate-chip cookies.  The texture is somewhere between a nice, soft, right-out-of-the-oven cookie and the top portion of a muffin.  Divine. 

I really shouldn't have another....should I?

something sour this way comes

By way of introduction, I would like to strongly encourage you to read Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury, if you have not had the opportunity to do so yet in your life.

Dinner last night was completely unremarkable - I merely reheated the 48 oz of Pasta e Fagioli leftover, moistened with what was left of the Bertolli marinara.  I did buy an almost-fresh loaf of sunflower bread from Essene, initially with the intention of turning it into multi-grain garlic bread, but it was so squishy and soft with perfect bits of crunch from the seeds mixed generously into the body of the bread, so I just sliced it and served it plain.

Tonight, I made Barbecued Black Bean and Tofu Burritos from Vegan on the Cheap.  It cooks up very quickly, so if you make it yourself, be prepared for it to be ready in about 10 minutes from the time you begin cooking.  The barbecue sauce is very flavorful, so it is well-balanced by the relative blandness of the tofu.  I think the tofu will be better next time if I slice it slightly larger and marinate it in something for 5-10 minutes.  I served the beans and tofu in red chile tortillas from Whole Foods, which added a fun twist.

What was really fun, though, was last night's dessert!

Lemony Vanilla Cashew Cookies
yield about 2 dozen cookies

2 cups of flour, lightly spooned and leveled
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup vegetable shortening, room temperature
1/2 cup raw agave nectar
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 Tbsp coconut milk
2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup raw cashew pieces

Preheat the oven to 350.  Combine flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
With an electric mixer, cream together shortening and agave until thoroughly combined, about 1-2 minutes.  Add lemon juice, coconut milk, and vanilla and mix to combine.  Slight curdling will occur - don't worry.
Add the dry ingredients in two batches, mixing well and scraping down the sides in between.  Fold in cashew pieces with a spatula.  Scoop batter by the tablespoon and place on baking sheets.  Pat down lightly with your hand - the cookies will not spread much at all in the oven.
Bake in 350 oven 18-22 minutes, until lightly golden and beginning to darken at the edges.  Cool for a minute or two on the sheets then move to a rack to cool completely.

These cookies grew in my brain when I was trying to figure out a way to capture the taste of my loved-and-lost Clif Nectar bars.  Because the vanilla is subtle yet noticeable, the sensory emphasis remains on the taste of the lemon.  It doesn't strike you all at once, but rather accumulates as you make your way through this tender and chewy cookie.  Although I loved the [four] I had right out of the oven, I believe they were even better after sitting overnight. 

As always, please let me know how it goes if you make these yourself!

we interrupt your regularly scheduled B*tch session...

...to bring you a few pictures of delectable food and the upcoming week's menu, so you know what I'll be doing when I'm not trying to convince the people of the world to spend 12 hours of their precious time reading Skinny Bitch.

On Friday night, I made Moroccan Mishmash, and it was just as fun and savory as I remembered it.  I nearly added some mint, just to see what would happen, but at the last minute I chickened out.  Tofu-ed out?  Seitan-ed out?  Anyway, I served it atop salt-n-(white)pepper rice, which complemented the flavors perfectly, drawing out the more umami notes, which I always love in dinner.

Saturday night, Mister didn't feel much like eating, so I made a quick pitstop up to SuperFresh so I could make myself a little veggie-tofu bowl with the tofu I had left over from....well, I don't quite remember, but it was earlier in the week (which should be enough of a hint about my lack of memory).  I came back with this sucker:

I'm not a big fan of frozen broccoli...or carrots, but I allowed myself to be fooled into thinking that "Perfectly Cooks in the Bag!" meant that it would taste fresher than "ordinary" mixed frozen veggies.  I was horribly mistaken.  Although the light seasoning was tasty and the vegetables probably maintained at least 50% of their original nutrients through the freezing, bagging, and microwaving process, they maintained absolutely none of their characteristic crunch.  Once I remembered they were frozen veggies I "steamed" in a bag in my microwave, I didn't feel so bad about the whole situation.  Besides, the tofu (braised in a blend of apple juice, olive oil, tamari, and garlic powder) was divine.

Last night, we had Thai Pineapple Stir-Fried Rice from Vegan Express.  As I was preparing everything, it dawned on me how Way-Too-Much-For-Two-People the recipe would make if I used the full cup and a half of rice called for in the recipe (remember kids, rice multiplies its size by three when cooked!), I cut it down to one cup without even bothering to think that I should also reduce the amount of coconut milk I added at the end.  As a result, it was a little brothy, but fortunately, Mister decided I had actually made a pineapple curry, so I just let it go at that.

Tonight, I reprised Granada Paella from The Urban Vegan, because we both just love that dish so much - I've mentioned before that it's the only paella recipe I have that actually cooks the rice in fewer than two hours.  It never looks any different, though, so if you want a pretty picture, click the link :)

Following my heart through the pages of The Urban Vegan, I felt compelled to welcome September (one of my favorite months) with its signature fruit, cleverly disguised as dessert (rather than breakfast).  I made Double Apple Cake and it was moist and a little dense and each little cube of apple was a pleasure to bite into.  There was an unexpected shock of ginger with each bite of apple, since the little cubes were coated with powdered ginger, cinnamon, sugar, and lemon juice.  I'm considering baking my way through the alphabet this fall...thoughts?

Speaking of thinking, we'll be back to my in-depth "book report" tomorrow, but for now, feast your minds and eyes on this week's menu:

1. Curried Bulghur Casserole with Garbanzo Beans from The Complete Vegan Cookbook.  I've made it before and felt it wasn't quite noteworthy "as-is," so I'll be embellishing a bit this time around.

2. Tomato Pie with Beans and Greens, both from The Urban Vegan.  I'm altering the recipe for the tomato pie so significantly, it will barely follow the author's notes, but I wanted to give her credit for inspiring me.

3. Clara's Pasta e Fagioli, also from The Urban Vegan.

So, there you have it - short week, short menu.  Stay tuned for your regularly scheduled programming, returning tomorrow night with another B*tch session!

Happy July! Let's bake!

It's safe to say that most people in the Northern Hemisphere anticipate sweating to be involved in welcoming July.  The only sweating in my house was the condensation on the water glass I left beside the oven while I baked last night.

Despite at least one week of 90+ degree days wishing June a fond farewell, July swept in quietly on the gentle breeze of a 60ish degree Midnight.  It was approximately then that Mister and I greeted the new month with Blueberry Ginger Spelt Muffins from Vegan Brunch.

If you live in Philadelphia, you may have recently observed that blueberries are taking over the world.  I might have mentioned in passing that I got a great deal on some blueberries last week when I was shopping: 2 lbs for $5.  That is a serious bargain when you consider that only one short month ago, you could pay $5 for a pint.  Blueberries are serious business when you live this close to New Jersey (so are tomatoes and corn, but those are more successful...a month from now).  I was so excited about the bargain I was getting, as well as enthralled by how perfectly ripe, sweet, and huge the berries are right now, it didn't even occur to me how much I would have to increase my blueberry consumption in order to eat my bounty before it spoiled.

Enter Baking With Blueberries.

I'm not the only one doing it, either - even though she must know, in her heart of hearts, that baking in July makes very little sense, Dynise was also bewildered by the blueberry monster and whipped up a batch of muffins from VwaV.  I had just about flipped a coin to decide which recipe to make, so I'll be following her lead as soon as I get my hands on a lemon and some more vanilla soygurt.

brookies? cownies?

What would you call a cookie-brownie hybrid?

I have recently taken to bribing thanking people I work with by bringing them baked goods.  Thank you for mentoring a new hire.  Thank you for assisting me with training.  Thank you for helping me get promoted.  Thank you for making the website work....and please keep doing so.  There are a few people who get to share in the baked goodies simply because I like them and they like my "food."

Bribing, er, thanking people with baked goods is not completely selfless - it allows me to make tasty treats but not have to bear the horrible burden of eating them all.  Despite what may present itself as an overwhelming desire to do just that, I hate clothes shopping too much to allow for the inevitable weight gain behavior like that brings.  I make a batch of cookies or brownies or a small cake, I have a cookie (or five) or a brownie (or two) and take the rest to work - I guess it's kind of like a group of ladies sharing a dessert at a restaurant, but ever so slightly less expensive.

I stood in my kitchen tonight with two recipes in hand - one, my banana blondies recipe, and the other the Banana Everything Cookies recipe from VCIYCJ.  I couldn't decide which to make and the two bananas threatening to dive off of the banana "tree" atop the fridge were not helping.  I tried to get Mister to decide, but his sage advice was "make the fun one."  Thanks, darling.

I did what any half-insane, sleep-deprived person would do when they want to bake something at 11 PM on a work night - I created my own hybrid recipe.  Lucky you!

Coconut Oatmeal Brownies
makes 9 (or more, depending on your preferred brownie size)
 
dry ingredients
2 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 cup sweetened, shredded coconut

wet ingredients
2 large ripe bananas
1/3 cup canola oil
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly oil an 8x8" baking pan and set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients. 
Combine wet ingredients in a food processor or blender and puree until smooth and a little foamy - about one minute.
Pour wet mixture into dry mixture and stir until completely moistened and sticking together.  Scoop batter into the prepared pan.  With an offset spatula, press down so the batter is evenly distributed and pushed into the corners and to the sides.
Bake 25-30 minutes, until a tested inserted into the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool in the pan or turn out onto a cooling rack after 10 minutes.  When cool, cut into 9 (or more) squares to serve.

one down, one to go

Work days, that is. In a stroke of good fortune, as well as possibly the stupidest combination of responsibilities, there are only 2 [very very busy] days in my work week this week. I managed to get through today...well, I should rephrase that and let it read more like this: today completely took over and before I could blink I was 75% through my work day and upon completing aforementioned blink, the imaginary whistle was blowing and it was time to go home. I imagine tomorrow will be very much the same way and despite the joy it brings me to just work my normal workday, there is a part of me that thinks I should head in early tomorrow so I can leave on time, and I don't see HOW Monday will happen without overtime. Did I mention I was a little busy?

I was also kind of a babbling idiot by the time I got home from work tonight and my mind just stopped spinning with myriad thoughts about 15 minutes ago after forcing myself to focus on providing my sister with an answer to her question about Jews, Muslims, and pork (as well as their apparent mutual exclusivity). Fortunately, dinner required almost no thought and relatively little effort. I think the total hands-on time for the Lentil-Edamame Stew was approximately 5 minutes, including the time to put it in bowls and set them on the table. This is a great recipe for those days when you simply cannot focus on a dinner that requires constant attention.
Speaking of dinners which require all of your attention every minute - I made that one last night. The first meal of the "week" is always the hardest because I have everything I need for all of the recipes and can choose any one I want, really. Once you pick one, though, the rest are easy. I consulted with my tastebuds to see what we were feeling - the answer was a resounding "umami" so I decided to go with the Seitan Stirfry with Black Bean Garlic Sauce.
It was very good and quite simple as well = a pound of seitan, a pound of green beans (I'll admit, I used frozen), a wok. I added some bok choy because I had some leftover for reasons I'll probably never know. Also, I finally broke down and bought Cooking Rice Wine. I have dozens of recipes that call for it, which I have generally overlooked because I thought, "What an esoteric ingredient! I'll end up with a huge useless bottle to use only when I make that recipe....a few times a year." Somewhere along the line, though, I realized that I have a bunch of recipes like that, so it might not be quite as esoteric as I thought...it smells really good.

By the way, I'm still trying to figure out where November went. Anyone?

Finally, I did make cookies last night and I'm proud as hell that they made it to my work potluck because they smelled SO good baking. I think Mister and I deserve some serious kudos for only doing our quality analysis on two samples... I made Banana-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies from the July 2009 issue of Cooking Light.
I veganized the recipe very easily. I mean, seriously? Banana-anything cookies/muffins/cake beg for another banana to replace the eggs, so that was a no-brainer. I also replaced the butter with 1/4 cup canola oil. They were a big hit - they smelled just like banana bread, but had the toothsome texture of whole oats and the squishy sweet surprise of dark chocolate chips. Hopefully, they provided a healthful polemic to the Turducken one group brought in. The smell of the turducken = utterly revolting and at least somewhat nauseating. Not one, but 3 roasted corpses, each one crammed into the next size up...mmmm..... NO.

Actually, that is probably the best segue I'll have to throw out this little thought-nugget: my sister emailed me an article from the New York Times. It's an Op-Ed by Gary Steiner, a vegan professor at Bucknell University. In the [very well-written] article, Professor Steiner points out the stunning dichotomy present in the growing concern over how Thanksgiving turkeys lived prior to having their heads chopped off, feathers plucked out, and being roasted in an oven for a bunch of gluttonous Americans to eat. Free-range poultry is all the rage, as omnivores everywhere try to assuage their consciences of any guilt that might be associated with killing a big bird that you know you won't finish, so you make sandwiches and soups and other stuff from the plethora of recipes that come out about this time of year to help you use up the leftover turkey. How often, though, does someone stop and think about how little it matters whether the turkey was happy before you ate it because it was bred, born, and raised specifically to DIE and be roasted on the fourth Thursday of November?

That's enough from me - I'll let the good professor [angrily] make his point.

cardboard cask...classy

Due to several factors, I was actually off from work today. The first part of the day (after the coffee and strawberry/yogurt oatmeal part) was quite full of angst and Angst. It involved him hiding from me and me banging on things to try to get him to stop hiding - probably not the most effective strategy in hindsight. Anyway, after I gave up on trying to "unhide" the cat, I went on my food shopping adventures.

And so, faithful readers, in this post we will:
1. see this week's menu
2. see tonight's dinner
3. babble about wine (2 glasses in)
4. discuss neighborly behavior

Starting from the bottom up (no pun intended), I will now tell you the previously alluded to story of what it means to be a good neighbor. When I had my hair done last week, it took three hours to put two colors in and cut it. That's a lot of time to talk to the person slopping your head up with colored goo. In our conversation, Candi related a tale of not-so-neighborly conduct by some girls who work at a salon across the street, located in a gym, strangely enough. We shared our ridiculously out-of-fashion ideas of how new neighbors were greeted to the neighborhood "back in the day." I can remember being a child and accompanying my mother with a plate of brownies or chocolate chip cookies to the still-disheveled home of a new neighbor just moving in. Anyway, today I made 2 dozen ginger-coconut-carrot muffins and packed half of them up in a shiny gold shoebox, then marched them across the street to "welcome" Candi to the neighborhood. So, I'm feeling like a good neighbor right about now.

I bought wine today. I'm very amused that I can't say "I bought a bottle of wine" and the reason is that I bought a cask of wine. Or at least, that's what the manufacturers decided to call the cardboard box that houses the bag that holds my wine. Either way, it's 3 liters of delicious Pinot Noir - as summer ends, so does my affair with Riesling. I have had this wine before - it marks a brilliant crossroads between dry and fruity and the fruitiness is primarily a darker variety - cherry and blackberry - so it fits well with the drier qualities. Nevertheless, the whole reason I ever tried this wine was its name: Pinot Evil (see no evil, ha ha ha). It even has the three monkeys.
According to the box...er...cask of wine, those 3 liters represent 4 bottles of wine, so hopefully it will last me a while!

Tonight I made Polenta & Vegetable Bake for dinner.
It was wonderful - good enough for Mister to have thirds. It was perfectly hearty and very rich without being overly so. It was also extraordinarily easy to make and came together much more quickly than I thought it would. Mister doesn't like eggplant, so I just diced two zucchini. I also added two cloves of garlic because I just felt like it needed it. It was a little watery and was difficult to transport from the baking dish to our eating dishes, but it tasted amazing. I will definitely make this again. As a side note (hearkening back to that wretched Cavit Pinot Noir), my pretty glass of Pinot Evil was the perfect match to dinner's flavors.
Now for this week's menu (my refrigerator and cupboards are full of fun ingredients!):
1. Stewed Lentils with Soy Sausage; with Fingerling Fries (both from Vegan Express by Nava Atlas - I just can't get away from this book!)
2. Pasta Jambalaya (also from Vegan Express)
3. Pasta with Beans and Chard (also from Vegan Express)
4. Double Pea Soup with Roasted Red Peppers (from Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero)
5. Roasted Yellow Pepper and Corn Bisque (also from Veganomicon)
6. French Lentil Soup with Tarragon and Thyme (also from Veganomicon)
7. Tuscan Vegetable Ragout (from Vegetarian Times Fast & Easy) This is another one of those old favorites you can lean on when you want something savory and simple. The whole book is great, but a little tofu-heavy. I like tofu now, but when I first got the book, I really wasn't a fan.

You'll notice I've cited sources for all recipes on this week's menu, which means they aren't mine. Now that the weather is cooling down (to my ineffable delight), I want to make soups and baked dishes. The same way that I learned to create skillet suppers and sautes over the summer, I will learn to create savory baked dishes and soul-warming soups: by recreating other people's for a few weeks. I figure I'll spend September, maybe the first part of October "researching," and then I'll get another creative streak like I did in early August and pump out a bunch of casserole and soup recipes. So, for now, I will make what has been made before and I will focus every last tastebud on the purpose of discerning what makes this dish or that dish taste so good. And then I'll let you know!

One last thing: I have added a poll on the right side of this page because I want your opinion. If you think the name I've quasi-settled on is stupid, please leave me a comment and either tell me why you think it's stupid and/or what better name you would suggest. Thank you!!!