Lemony Greek Potatoes

Eeeeeee!  Last night I made a new recipe from The Food Network magazine, and it was so fantastic!  It's a great end-of-winter dish, and finally something new with potatoes.  Note that the vinaigrette that the potatoes are tossed in is so yummy I would be perfectly happy using it as dressing for a green salad.  Make it and see what you think!

Ingredients:

1/2 c. extra virgin olive oil

3 T. freshly-squeezed lemon juice

1 small shallot, quartered (use regular onion of the same size in a pinch)

1 clove garlic, peeled

2 sprigs fresh oregano, leaves only

1/4 c. fresh parsley leaves, plus 1 T. chopped fresh parsley for serving

salt and freshly-ground black pepper

3 lbs. large russet potatoes, cut lengthwise into wedges

Method:

Preheat the oven to 425 degress F.

Put the olive oil, lemon juice, shallot, garlic, oregano, and 1/4 c. fresh parsley into a food processor.  Add a rounded 1/2 t. salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste.  Purée until mostly smooth.

Toss the potatoes with 1/2 c. of the prepared vinaigrette in a large bowl until wedges are coated.  Arrange potatoes in a single layer on a large rimmed baking sheet.  Reserve the remaining vinaigrette.

Roast the potatoes until tender and golden, turning occasionally, 45 - 60 minutes.

Transfer the potatoes to a platter and drizzle with the remaining vinaigrette.  Season with salt and garnish with the chopped parsley.

Serves 6.

Irish Chocolate Potato Cake

Here's a confection for your St. Patrick's Day celebration.  Scott made this yesterday with a caramel drizzle, and it's DEE-licious.  Since the cake contains dark chocolate, potatoes, and almonds, I like to think of it as sort of "healthy" for cake.  (Disregarding, of course, the 1/2 lb. of butter and 1 lb. of sugar!)

The cake recipe came from www.europeancuisines.com, and the icing came from a decade-old issue of Vegetarian Times.  We served it after a "St. Patrick's Eve" meal of vegetable and tofu pot pie (recipe here) and boiled cabbage for an Irish-feeling meal.

Ingredients:
1 c. cooked potato (see below for specific instructions on the potatoes)
1 1/2 T. AP flour
1 1/2 T. cocoa

2 1/2 c. AP flour

1/2 t. cinnamon

2 rounded t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

1/2 lb. butter or vegan margarine (I like to use Earth Balance vegan margarine.), at room temperature

2 1/3 c. (1 lb.) granulated sugar

4 eggs

9 rounded T. finely-grated chocolate

5 rounded T. ground almonds

2/3 c. plant-based milk

1 batch caramel icing (recipe below)

Method:
Be sure to prepare the potatoes in advance and allow them to cool COMPLETELY.  Do not add them to the batter if they are even slightly warm.  If you do, the result will be a heavy cake that may fail to rise or rise only partway.  To prepare the potatoes, peel and chunk 2 medium potatoes and boil until soft when pierced with a fork.  Drain them completely, and dry them briefly over low heat.  Remove from heat.  When completely cool, mash well with a potato masher or ricer.

Mix 1/2 T. flour with the cocoa in a small bowl.  Prepare a tube pan (like a Bundt pan) by spraying it well with non-stick spray.  Be sure to cover every crevice and fluting.  Now add the flour/cocoa mixture to the pan and shake it around until every surface is coated.  Failure to proper cover every crevice and surface may result in a cake that does not unmold properly, so take the time to do this part correctly.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Sift the 2.5 c. flour once by itself.  Sift it a second time with the cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.

Separate the egg whites from the yolks and set the yolks aside.  In a small mixing bowl, whip the egg whites until stiff but not dry.  Set the whites aside in the refrigerator until ready to use.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the egg yolks, one at a time, to the creamed mixture, beating well after each addition.  Stir the grated chocolate and ground almonds into the butter mixture.  Add the potatoes and stir again.  Add the flour, alternating with the plant-based milk, beating gently after each addition.

When the flour and milk are fully incorporated, fold the whipped egg whites carefully into the cake batter.  Spoon the completed batter into the prepared cake pan.  Tap gently once on the counter to settle.

Bake for 1.5 - 2 hours.  With a wooden skewer, start testing for doneness at 1.5 hours and periodically after that until the skewer inserted through the tallest part of the cake comes out clean.  Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 20 minutes in the pan.  Invert on a baking rack and remove from pan to cool completely.  Drizzle with caramel icing (or the icing of your choice), and serve.

Caramel Drizzle Icing

Ingredients:
1 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 c. plant-based milk
2 T. vegan margarine
1/4 t. salt
1 t. almond extract
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar

Method:
Combine brown sugar, plant-based milk, margarine, and salt in a medium saucepan.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly.  Reduce heat to low and cook until mixture is slightly thick, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat.  Stir in almond extract and gradually beat in powdered sugar.  Stir until smooth and creamy.  Let icing cool slightly, and pour over cake.  Icing sets as it cools.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

Yesterday I set out to make some muffins for breakfast, and I thought I'd make the cranberry pumpkin muffins I previously posted (recipe here).  However, when I started getting out all the ingredients and getting everything ready, I just felt like it was too heavy, too autumn if you will.  I was feeling more spring.  My eyes noticed the poppy seeds in my spice cabinet, and the thought of lemon poppy seed muffins really fit the bill:  I had a fridge full of lemons, my muffin papers are the colors of easter eggs, and the flavor had a spring-like profile.  Done!

This recipe is based on the one in the quintessential cookbook Joy of Cooking by Irma Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker, and Ethan Becker.  They were totally delicious.

Ingredients:

2 c. all-purpose flour

1 T. baking powder (try to find aluminum-free baking powder)

1/2 t. salt

1/3 c. granulated sugar

1.5 T. poppy seeds

2 large eggs (vegans could use Ener-G Egg Replacer), lightly beaten

1 c. plant-based milk

1/3 c. brown sugar, packed

1/4 c. plus 3 T. canola oil

1 t. almond extract

juice of 1/2 lemon

1 T. grated lemon zest

Method:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.  Either grease a 12-cup muffin tin or line the tins with muffin papers.

In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, salt, granulated sugar, and poppy seeds.

In another medium bowl, mix the eggs (or Egg Replacer), plant-based milk, brown sugar, canola oil, almond extract, lemon juice, and lemon zest.  Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients.  Stir until JUST MIXED, keeping the stirring to a minimum.  Too much mixing will make the muffins heavy, so the batter will be (and should be) lumpy.

Divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups.  Bake about 20 minutes or until muffins are golden.

Veggie-Tofu Pot Pie

Here's a FANTASTIC vegan vegetable and tofu pot pie.  I know it's wrong, but I reminisce about the little freezer pot pies of my childhood.  This is a healthier, more humane walk down memory lane.  This recipe is a compilation of ideas from The Joy of Cooking by Irma Rombauer and The New Farm Vegetarian Cookbook edited by Louise Hagler and Dorothy Bates.  Both of these cookbooks are HIGHLY recommended by moi!

The recipe is more of a weekend dish as it takes a while to make the crust and all the filling, then you still have to cook it.  But it's SO WORTH IT on a cold weekend evening!  If you like, make the crust in advance up to the point of shaping into disks, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use.

Irma Rombauer's pie crust recipe for a double crust goes like this.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/4 t. salt
3 T. cold unsalted vegan margarine, cut into chunks (I like Earth Balance brand.)
3/4 c. chilled vegetable shortening cut into chunks (Again, I like Earth Balance brand.)
6 T. ice water plus 1t. - 1 T. more ice water, as needed

Method:
Mix the flour and salt.  Using a pastry blender or working it in with your fingers, cut the cold butter into the flour mixture.  Cut in half of the chilled shortening using the same method until the flour has the consistency of cornmeal.  Cut in the remaining chilled shortening until it is pea-sized.

Sprinkle the dough with 6 T. ice water.  Blend gently into the dough until it just holds together.  If necessary to hold the ingredients together, add up to another 1 T. ice water, but no more.

Divide the dough in half.  Shape each half into a disk, and wrap in plastic wrap.  Let it rest in the fridge for half an hour.



The rest of this recipe comes from The New Farm Vegetarian Cookbook.

Ingredients:
1/4 c. flour
1 T. nutritional yeast flakes (Note that nutritional yeast comes in FLAKES and POWDER.  This recipe calls for FLAKES.)
1 t. salt
1/2 t. garlic powder
1 lb. Chinese-style tofu, excess water squeezed out, cut into 1/2-inch cubes  (I like to freeze my tofu for 24 hours, then thaw it.  It improves the texture.)
2 T. canola oil
1 c. onions, chopped
1/2 c. celery, chopped
2 c. frozen mixed vegetables (I used a mix that had peas, carrots, green beans, and corn.)
1 batch of Golden Gravy (second recipe in the post linked here)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Combine flour, nutritional yeast, salt, and garlic powder in a medium bowl.  Add the tofu and stir to coat the tofu in the powdered mixture.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the tofu and sauté until golden brown.  Add onions and celery to the pan, and continue to sauté until the onions are soft.  Add the frozen mixed vegetables and sauté until the vegetables are warm.  Stir in the Golden Gravy.

Using a cold rolling pin, roll out the first disk of dough for the bottom crust and fit it into a 9-inch deep dish pie pan.  Spoon the filling into the bottom crust.  Roll out the 2nd disk of dough for the top crust and fit over the pot pie filling.  Cinch the edges of the 2 crusts together with your fingers and trim off any excess dough.  Make an X in the middle of the pie and fold back the sections created by the X to make a vent for the pie.

Bake the pie on the middle rack of the oven for 30 - 40 minutes or until the top crust is lightly browned and the contents are bubbly in the vent.  Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before serving.  Serves 6 - 8 as a single-dish meal.

Cornmeal-Carrot Skillet Cakes

MMmmmmm!  We had Cornmeal-Carrot Skillet Cakes (recipe here) this week with mixed greens and chili sauced beans.  SO YUM!!!

Happy Groundhog Day!  We welcome Phil's prediction of an early spring!!!

Soft Pretzels

Scott recently made some soft pretzels, and I think they would be PERFECT for your gameday party on Sunday.  He used an easy recipe from the 75th anniversary edition of Joy of Cooking by Irma Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker, and Ethan Becker.  Scott and I both highly recommend this cookbook.  Check out his delicious results, below!

 

 

Ingredients:

1 c. warm water (105 - 115 degrees F), separated

2 1/4 t. active dry yeast (1 envelope)

3 c. all-purpose flour

2 t. vegan margarine, melted (I like to use Earth Balance brand.)

1 T. sugar

1/2 t. salt

2 T. plus 1 t. baking soda

coarse salt

 

Method:

In a large bowl, combine 1/2 c. warm water and the yeast.  Let stand until yeast is dissolved, about 5 minutes.

 

Add flour, margarine, sugar, and 1/2 t. salt.  Mix this by hand while slowly pouring in the other 1/2 c. warm water.  Stir for a minute, adding more water if needed to make a moist but not sticky dough.  Knead for about 10 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.  Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl and turn the dough to coat it with oil.  Loosely cover the bowl and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, 1 - 1.5 hours.

 

Punch down the dough and divide it into 8 - 12 pieces, depending on how thick you want the pretzels.  (The recipe calls for 12 pieces, which is what Scott made.)  On an unfloured work surface, roll each piece into a ball.  Loosely cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rest for 10 minutes.

 

Grease 2 baking sheets.  Roll each ball int an 18-inch-long rope, working from the center outward and slightly tapering the ends.  To form the pretzels, lift the ends of the rope and bring them to meet at the 12 o'clock position, forming an oval.  Twist the 2 ends once or twice around one another about 3 inches from the ends, then fold back down over the oval pressing the twist at the 6 o'clock position of the oval.  Place the pretzels on the baking sheets, cover, and let rise in a warm place until nearly doubled in volume, about 35 minutes.

 

 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.  Bring 8 cups of water plus the baking soda to boil in a large pot or Dutch oven, then reduce the heat to a simmer.  Using a slotted spoon, gently slide one or more pretzels into the simmering water.  Simmer for 30 seconds, then flip over and continue to simmer until puffed, approximately 30 more seconds.  Returned to greased baking sheet and sprinkle with coarse salt to taste.

 

Once all the pretzels have been boiled and salted, bake until deep golden brown, about 15 minutes.

 

Makes 8 - 12 pretzels.

Spring Rolls!

Ever since Scott made a layer cake at Christmas, he's been on a cooking kick. The sweet joy of success is eating your own creation! I have to give him credit for taking on the task of finding ingredients for and making such a foreign food, which we fell in love with at a local Vietnamese restaurant. With the aid of the classic cookbook Joy of Cooking, he recreated our beloved dish perfectly at home!

First make the peanut dipping sauce, which we mixed with store-bought chili garlic sauce. I could eat this with a spoon!

Ingredients:
2 t. canola oil
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 t. peeled and minced fresh ginger
1/2 t. crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 c. water
2 T. soy sauce (or tamari or shoyu)
2 T. fresh lime juice
2/3 c. chunky peanut butter
1 T. brown sugar, or to taste

Method:
Heat the canola oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until golden brown (about 1 minute). Add the water, soy sauce, lime juice, peanut butter, and brown sugar. Cook, stirring, until thickened (about 4 minutes).
Serve warm or at room temperature. This sauce will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to 1 week.

Now make the rolls:

Ingredients:
4 large red-leaf lettuce leaves, washed, large stems removed, leaves torn into large pieces
1 large carrot, peeled and shredded
1 c. bean sprouts, rinsed
1/2 c. cilantro leaves, minced
8 scallions, washed and chopped, white and green parts
2.5 oz. vermicelli noodles, broken in half (or use cellophane noodles or rice stick noodles)
3 T. canola oil
1 lb. firm Chinese-style tofu, water squeezed out, cut into 1/2-inch chunks  (I like to freeze my tofu for 24 hours, then thaw it.  It improves the texture.)
8 12-inch round sheets of rice paper (This stuff is edible, even though it does not appear to be when first taken from the package.)

Method:
First make sure all your vegetables are prepared and ready to go.  Put a large saucepan over high heat and bring 4 c. water to boil.  Cook the noodles until just firm to the bite.  Drain and rinse under cold water.

In the meantime, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat in a large non-stick skillet.  Add the tofu to the hot oil and brown on 2 sides of each chunk.  Remove from heat.

Lay a damp kitchen towel on the counter.  Have a large bowl of hot water (115 - 120 degrees F).  Dip 1 sheet of rice paper into the water, completely submerging it, and quickly remove it to lay flat on the damp towel.  Slightly lower then center and leaving about 1 inch on the right and left, put a horizontal line of lettuce, then noodles, then bean sprouts, then tofu, then cilantro, then scallions, then carrots (about 1/8 of each ingredient).  Fold the right and left sides in and overlapping the filling by about an inch so that the paper sticks to itself above and below the filling.  Bring up the bottom edge of the paper to cover the filling and stick to the rice paper at the top of the filling.  Now roll tightly into a neat cylinder.

If the rice paper starts to tear, overlap it with another sheet of paper (prepped in the hot water, as usual), using 2 sheets for one roll.

Cut each roll on the diagonal with a sharp knife and serve immediately as the rice paper will toughen with time.  Serve with peanut dipping sauce and, if you want, some chili garlic sauce.  Makes 8 delicious servings.