I am a beef lover. I also hate Windows XP. (I was starting to blog this when the damn thing shut down on me.)
As I was saying, I am a beef lover. I adore it. And I miss it. So I was skeptical when we purchased Gimme Lean "Ground Beef Style"... fake meat tube. I was even more skeptical when my fiancee made it into spaghetti and meatballs. I gotta say though--it wasn't bad at all! It actually tasted somewhat beefy and had a decent texture. My fiancee, who isn't as used to fake meat products, hated it. When I asked what he hated about it, he said, "The taste." When I asked what specifically he didn't like about the way it tasted, he said, "All of it." That's fine. More meatballs for me!
We didn't do anything special to the meatballs. He rolled up the fake meat tube into balls and browned them on the stove in a skillet. I am not really sure--yet--how the flavor and texture could be even further improved by the introduction of spices, garlic, or other goodies. And the stuff isn't as good as beef, but it gets a thumbs up from me.
Saturday, July 7, 2007
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Vegan alert: AvoTuno Salad and Paprika Potato Wedges
Hola, vegans and lovers of tasty food! These two recipes are recipes I was using long before I decided to go veg, and they are delicious, whether you eat meat or not.
AvoTuno Salad
My AvoTuno salad doesn't use any sort of mayonnaise product, vegan or otherwise. It uses avocados! (Which is funny . . . I've been a lot more conscious of avos since my fiancee began working in the avo industry.) Avocados are creamy, delicious, and healthy in moderation. They also are delicious with tuna salad--or tuno, as it were.
Note: You can use Tuno, or any meat substitute you'd use in a tuna or chicken salad mock-up.
1 can Tuno, rinsed and drained thoroughly (thanks to the Vegan Lunchbox, I know this trick! Apparently, if you skip it, Tuno is really nasty) or equivalent meat substitute
1/2 avocado
juice of 1/2 lemon or lime
1 tbsp your favorite mustard (or to taste; I like the spicy brown mustard, and a LOT of it)
dash of your favorite hot sauce
1/4 cup (or to taste) chopped pickle or relish--I prefer dill, myself
1/4 cup minced onion, or as much as you like
1 stalk celery, chopped small
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 cup of raisins or currants
1 clove garlic or 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp of cumin, or to taste
1 tsp chili powder, or to taste
salt and pepper, to taste
Sound like guacamole? You are very wise in the culinary arts. Guacamole was my inspiration for this little number, but I also wanted to keep the best aspects of the tuna salad. You can add or substitute or leave out ingredients as you like--for instance, I love adding salad olives. I know it sounds gross, but it works!
Oh, the process? Mash everything in a bowl and add the citrus juice. Season to taste. Easy!
Paprika Potato Wedges
I was terribly addicted to these for a long time. I used paprika that I got at Whole Foods, but your favorite paprika will do. This recipe is also REALLY good with paprika, chili powder, and sweet potatoes. It's not even really a recipe, it's more of a method, but it's so good that I think I'm going to make some tomorrow.
Preheat oven to 400F.
Cut as many potatoes as you want into thin wedges. You can do thicker if you want, but they will take longer to cook.
Pile the wedges onto a cookie sheet and add enough vegetable oil to make a thin (but decent--don't skimp) coating. Add enough paprika to coat; you can add or substitute any spices you'd like. Add salt and pepper, then toss the pile to coat evenly. Spread the pile out onto the sheet in a single layer. (At this point, I generally give a very light sprinkling of salt over the top. Not enough for overkill, just enough to give it a little something.)
Bake until the potatoes are soft and brown. Serve. Delicious.
AvoTuno Salad
My AvoTuno salad doesn't use any sort of mayonnaise product, vegan or otherwise. It uses avocados! (Which is funny . . . I've been a lot more conscious of avos since my fiancee began working in the avo industry.) Avocados are creamy, delicious, and healthy in moderation. They also are delicious with tuna salad--or tuno, as it were.
Note: You can use Tuno, or any meat substitute you'd use in a tuna or chicken salad mock-up.
1 can Tuno, rinsed and drained thoroughly (thanks to the Vegan Lunchbox, I know this trick! Apparently, if you skip it, Tuno is really nasty) or equivalent meat substitute
1/2 avocado
juice of 1/2 lemon or lime
1 tbsp your favorite mustard (or to taste; I like the spicy brown mustard, and a LOT of it)
dash of your favorite hot sauce
1/4 cup (or to taste) chopped pickle or relish--I prefer dill, myself
1/4 cup minced onion, or as much as you like
1 stalk celery, chopped small
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 cup of raisins or currants
1 clove garlic or 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp of cumin, or to taste
1 tsp chili powder, or to taste
salt and pepper, to taste
Sound like guacamole? You are very wise in the culinary arts. Guacamole was my inspiration for this little number, but I also wanted to keep the best aspects of the tuna salad. You can add or substitute or leave out ingredients as you like--for instance, I love adding salad olives. I know it sounds gross, but it works!
Oh, the process? Mash everything in a bowl and add the citrus juice. Season to taste. Easy!
Paprika Potato Wedges
I was terribly addicted to these for a long time. I used paprika that I got at Whole Foods, but your favorite paprika will do. This recipe is also REALLY good with paprika, chili powder, and sweet potatoes. It's not even really a recipe, it's more of a method, but it's so good that I think I'm going to make some tomorrow.
Preheat oven to 400F.
Cut as many potatoes as you want into thin wedges. You can do thicker if you want, but they will take longer to cook.
Pile the wedges onto a cookie sheet and add enough vegetable oil to make a thin (but decent--don't skimp) coating. Add enough paprika to coat; you can add or substitute any spices you'd like. Add salt and pepper, then toss the pile to coat evenly. Spread the pile out onto the sheet in a single layer. (At this point, I generally give a very light sprinkling of salt over the top. Not enough for overkill, just enough to give it a little something.)
Bake until the potatoes are soft and brown. Serve. Delicious.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
My (In)famous Mac N Cheese
Finally, the recipes are here. :)
I never use recipes, and these are all my own creation, unless I say otherwise--and I will! I'm not good at following recipes.. short attention span while cooking, I guess. I just throw in a little of this, and a little of that, and when it's ready, I usually know.
This, of course, means that my recipes are not always exact. Most of them can be altered to your liking; if you have any questions about alterations, please post them as comments and I will post a reply!
First up: My Infamous Macaroni and Cheese recipe
I love this macaroni and cheese recipe. It's probably the best I've ever eaten. I can't guarantee it'll be as good with vegan substitutes--you guys are on your own on that one! If you do try it and it's good, please let me know how it turned out and I will post it!
There are a few ways you can make this mac and cheese recipe. Obviously you can add all sorts of goodies to it--you can make it Mexican with some taco seasoning and chiles, that's really good, or add mushrooms or fake meat for a "cheeseburger" mac n cheese... etc. There are also various liquids you can use to make the sauce, which I will discuss in the 'sauce' section.
The Noodles
2 1/2 cups dry macaroni or other tubular noodle (shells work, too)
The Sauce
3 cups liquid. Use at least 1.5 - 2 cups dairy (or dairy sub), the rest can be veg broth. If you're not counting calories or saturated fat the night that you're making it (and don't we ALL need a comfort food night sometimes?), use 1/2 milk and 1/2 cream or half and half.. mmmmmm. Also, beer works well in this recipe, but I often am not able to use it or I get pouted at by my fiancee.
1.5 cups shredded cheddar cheese
3 tbsp butter or margarine or oil (butter/margarine is the best.. but if you aren't eating it, oil will work)
3 tbsp flour
3 cloves garlic/3 tsp preminced garlic (handy stuff, that)
salt and pepper, to taste
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg (optional but delicious)
The Extra Bits
Several slices of good melting cheese OR extra shredded cheese (must be something that doesn't get stringy--no mozzarella! Try American, cheddar, muenster, provolone, or any other good melting cheeses. I prefer American slices for flavor--I know it's processed cheese food, but it's really good)
a cup of bread crumbs
2 tsp of smoky paprika, or to taste
3 tbsp margarine or butter, cut into small pats (or, if using oil, it will be combined with breadcrumbs prior to spreading)
Any extra bits that you want to add
The Assembly
Gather your mise en place. This is always handy when you're going to be multi-tasking in the kitchen. If you need to cook any of your extra bits before they go in the macaroni, now is the time!
Preheat your oven to 375F or 400F, depending on if your oven tends to run a little hotter or a little cooler. If you're unsure which, go with 400F and watch the mac closely the first time.
Get your noodles cookin' on the back burner--or at least start the water for the noodles. The noodles should be about half cooked when you pull them off, so watch them carefully.
In a cold, large skillet--preferably one with high sides--add your garlic and butter/oil. Turn the burner on to low and let the garlic and the butter melt together, stirring to prevent the garlic from burning.
When the butter is melted and has cooked down for a few moments, add the flour and stir. Let the flour cook with the butter for a few minutes. If the roux (that's the flour/butter mix) seems really chunky, add a little more butter. If it seems really slurry, add a little more flour. It should be a little slurry, but not too much.
Once the flour has cooked for a few minutes, it should still be in the blond stage. That means that the flour hasn't darkened very much, but still is beginning to smell a little nutty. Add your three cups of cold liquid (make sure it's cold!) and whisk to break down the roux into the liquid. I like to add half my liquid, stir really well, then add the other half. Bump the heat up to medium or just below.
Season the sauce with salt, pepper, a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg, and any spices you'd like to add. I often add a teaspoon or two of paprika. Whisk frequently, but not necessarily constantly until it begins to come to a bubble. When it looks like it's getting ready to boil, whisk furiously and constantly (well, not too furiously--try to keep the sauce in the pan!) until it's fully to a boil. It should thicken as it comes to a boil. After this happens, turn the heat off.
(By now, your macaroni is probably already done. Strain it, but don't add it to the baking dish yet. It'll be fine hanging out--now don't you rinse it, either!)
Once the heat is off under your macaroni, stir in the shredded cheese. I generally use about a cup and a half to two cups; any more than that, and I find the sauce gets a little stringy. It won't seem as cheesy as the premade stuff in the restaurants, but it's plenty cheesy, trust me.
Using a 9 x 9 baking dish (or 8 x 8, whatever), we will now assemble this gift from the cheese goddess.
Put a VERY thin layer of the sauce on the bottom of the baking dish. Portion out roughly 1/3 of the noodles on top. Cover the layer of noodles with sliced cheese or shredded cheese, then 1/3 of the remaining sauce mixture. Repeat, repeat. (If on the last layer your sauce seems a little too thick, thin it out a little bit before adding it. It's going to bake, anyway.)
On top of the top cheese layer, add your thinly sliced butter/margarine pats (if using) and then cover that with the bread crumbs. Before adding the bread crumbs, mix them with the paprika and a pinch of salt. If foregoing the butter, mix the bread crumbs also with enough olive oil to make them moist.
Bake until the crust is browned. It won't brown VERY much, so don't look for a drastic difference. The sauce should be all bubbly and delicious at this point. I have left it in for as little as ten minutes or as long as 40, depending on the oven. Keep a close eye if you don't know your oven very well!
Next recipe to come: Vegan AvoTuno Salad!
I never use recipes, and these are all my own creation, unless I say otherwise--and I will! I'm not good at following recipes.. short attention span while cooking, I guess. I just throw in a little of this, and a little of that, and when it's ready, I usually know.
This, of course, means that my recipes are not always exact. Most of them can be altered to your liking; if you have any questions about alterations, please post them as comments and I will post a reply!
First up: My Infamous Macaroni and Cheese recipe
I love this macaroni and cheese recipe. It's probably the best I've ever eaten. I can't guarantee it'll be as good with vegan substitutes--you guys are on your own on that one! If you do try it and it's good, please let me know how it turned out and I will post it!
There are a few ways you can make this mac and cheese recipe. Obviously you can add all sorts of goodies to it--you can make it Mexican with some taco seasoning and chiles, that's really good, or add mushrooms or fake meat for a "cheeseburger" mac n cheese... etc. There are also various liquids you can use to make the sauce, which I will discuss in the 'sauce' section.
The Noodles
2 1/2 cups dry macaroni or other tubular noodle (shells work, too)
The Sauce
3 cups liquid. Use at least 1.5 - 2 cups dairy (or dairy sub), the rest can be veg broth. If you're not counting calories or saturated fat the night that you're making it (and don't we ALL need a comfort food night sometimes?), use 1/2 milk and 1/2 cream or half and half.. mmmmmm. Also, beer works well in this recipe, but I often am not able to use it or I get pouted at by my fiancee.
1.5 cups shredded cheddar cheese
3 tbsp butter or margarine or oil (butter/margarine is the best.. but if you aren't eating it, oil will work)
3 tbsp flour
3 cloves garlic/3 tsp preminced garlic (handy stuff, that)
salt and pepper, to taste
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg (optional but delicious)
The Extra Bits
Several slices of good melting cheese OR extra shredded cheese (must be something that doesn't get stringy--no mozzarella! Try American, cheddar, muenster, provolone, or any other good melting cheeses. I prefer American slices for flavor--I know it's processed cheese food, but it's really good)
a cup of bread crumbs
2 tsp of smoky paprika, or to taste
3 tbsp margarine or butter, cut into small pats (or, if using oil, it will be combined with breadcrumbs prior to spreading)
Any extra bits that you want to add
The Assembly
Gather your mise en place. This is always handy when you're going to be multi-tasking in the kitchen. If you need to cook any of your extra bits before they go in the macaroni, now is the time!
Preheat your oven to 375F or 400F, depending on if your oven tends to run a little hotter or a little cooler. If you're unsure which, go with 400F and watch the mac closely the first time.
Get your noodles cookin' on the back burner--or at least start the water for the noodles. The noodles should be about half cooked when you pull them off, so watch them carefully.
In a cold, large skillet--preferably one with high sides--add your garlic and butter/oil. Turn the burner on to low and let the garlic and the butter melt together, stirring to prevent the garlic from burning.
When the butter is melted and has cooked down for a few moments, add the flour and stir. Let the flour cook with the butter for a few minutes. If the roux (that's the flour/butter mix) seems really chunky, add a little more butter. If it seems really slurry, add a little more flour. It should be a little slurry, but not too much.
Once the flour has cooked for a few minutes, it should still be in the blond stage. That means that the flour hasn't darkened very much, but still is beginning to smell a little nutty. Add your three cups of cold liquid (make sure it's cold!) and whisk to break down the roux into the liquid. I like to add half my liquid, stir really well, then add the other half. Bump the heat up to medium or just below.
Season the sauce with salt, pepper, a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg, and any spices you'd like to add. I often add a teaspoon or two of paprika. Whisk frequently, but not necessarily constantly until it begins to come to a bubble. When it looks like it's getting ready to boil, whisk furiously and constantly (well, not too furiously--try to keep the sauce in the pan!) until it's fully to a boil. It should thicken as it comes to a boil. After this happens, turn the heat off.
(By now, your macaroni is probably already done. Strain it, but don't add it to the baking dish yet. It'll be fine hanging out--now don't you rinse it, either!)
Once the heat is off under your macaroni, stir in the shredded cheese. I generally use about a cup and a half to two cups; any more than that, and I find the sauce gets a little stringy. It won't seem as cheesy as the premade stuff in the restaurants, but it's plenty cheesy, trust me.
Using a 9 x 9 baking dish (or 8 x 8, whatever), we will now assemble this gift from the cheese goddess.
Put a VERY thin layer of the sauce on the bottom of the baking dish. Portion out roughly 1/3 of the noodles on top. Cover the layer of noodles with sliced cheese or shredded cheese, then 1/3 of the remaining sauce mixture. Repeat, repeat. (If on the last layer your sauce seems a little too thick, thin it out a little bit before adding it. It's going to bake, anyway.)
On top of the top cheese layer, add your thinly sliced butter/margarine pats (if using) and then cover that with the bread crumbs. Before adding the bread crumbs, mix them with the paprika and a pinch of salt. If foregoing the butter, mix the bread crumbs also with enough olive oil to make them moist.
Bake until the crust is browned. It won't brown VERY much, so don't look for a drastic difference. The sauce should be all bubbly and delicious at this point. I have left it in for as little as ten minutes or as long as 40, depending on the oven. Keep a close eye if you don't know your oven very well!
Next recipe to come: Vegan AvoTuno Salad!
Thumbs Up: Tofurky Italian Deli slices.
Just recently, a friend of mine, Dean, convinced me that I should put aside my bad experience with Yves "Salami" (I have ascertained that it was Yves) and try the Tofurky Italian Deli slices with sundried tomatoes and basil. After a good deal of squinting at him doubtfully, I tossed them into the basket--at the local natural foods market, they were two dollars less than at the conventional grocery store (always price compare!), so I didn't feel like I would be wasting money if I didn't like them.
Can I just tell you how delicious these deli slices are? I sat down to try them while I was watching Roseanne the other night, and I ended up eating them all. Yes, eating them all. I may not eat meat, but I haven't made the transition into 'healthy portions' yet. The texture was a little chewier than meat, but still pretty satisfying, and they had great flavor. No envelope adhesive here, just great spices and no funky "vegetable" taste. (I love vegetables. I do. But sometimes when they get processed to death, they're not so good.) The Tofurky Italian Deli slices get my official meat-loving thumbs-up.
I would also like to reiterate how good the Morningstar Farms "sausage" patties are. They really taste like sausage to me, which should give me a clue that most of the great 'sausage' flavor is in the spices, not in the pork. I think I could even fool my carnivorous family with these.
Recipes later today! Look forward to them: My famous macaroni and cheese (not vegan--sorry vegans!) for starters, and I'll pull up a vegan recipe from my files for balance.
Can I just tell you how delicious these deli slices are? I sat down to try them while I was watching Roseanne the other night, and I ended up eating them all. Yes, eating them all. I may not eat meat, but I haven't made the transition into 'healthy portions' yet. The texture was a little chewier than meat, but still pretty satisfying, and they had great flavor. No envelope adhesive here, just great spices and no funky "vegetable" taste. (I love vegetables. I do. But sometimes when they get processed to death, they're not so good.) The Tofurky Italian Deli slices get my official meat-loving thumbs-up.
I would also like to reiterate how good the Morningstar Farms "sausage" patties are. They really taste like sausage to me, which should give me a clue that most of the great 'sausage' flavor is in the spices, not in the pork. I think I could even fool my carnivorous family with these.
Recipes later today! Look forward to them: My famous macaroni and cheese (not vegan--sorry vegans!) for starters, and I'll pull up a vegan recipe from my files for balance.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
I ate chicken and I am sad.
When you first become a vegetarian, there's a hard going of it at times. The people around you, especially the people who have known for you a long time, have to transition as much as you do. My boyfriend and I were at his mother's house this week, and she made dinner; she had heard that we stopped eating meat, but wasn't sure if that extended to chicken, so she made a tray of chicken taquitos along with some cheese enchiladas and a salad. I saw Bobby pick up some taquitos and I raised my eyebrow; after a quick and hushed discussion--Should we eat them? They're going to go to waste if we don't.. but then again, if we do, she might think that we eat chicken and make them again sometime for us--we decided to eat the taquitos. It's not something I really wanted to do, but I also didn't want to hurt her feelings after she went to the trouble to fix dinner for us.
So where do you draw the line when it comes to eating meat that others have prepared?
Three times since I became a vegetarian not long ago, I have eaten meat. Not because I wanted to, either--I honestly could not have cared less if I ate meat or not. Once because my manager ordered the wrong sandwich from the deli (he thought it was grilled cheese; it ended up grilled cheese and ham), once because the same manager brought me some leftovers (I ate it because he seemed really, really proud of the dish that he'd made), and, of course, the taquitos. It is awkward to turn down someone's offer of food, the ultimate in hospitality. Then again, standing up for your principles is equally as important as being a grateful guest or recipient.
I've decided that I am not going to beat myself up over it. I have eaten a lot less meat than usual, and I will continue in the same vein. They say that every little bit helps; for a meat-eater to stop eating meat almost altogether, I am going to declare myself 'helpful.' I even resisted fried chicken at a buffet--that's how committed I truly am. ^^
This week, I will review Tofurky deli slices, Smart Choice (I think) ground 'hamburger,' and probably some other stuff. Also, recipes!
So where do you draw the line when it comes to eating meat that others have prepared?
Three times since I became a vegetarian not long ago, I have eaten meat. Not because I wanted to, either--I honestly could not have cared less if I ate meat or not. Once because my manager ordered the wrong sandwich from the deli (he thought it was grilled cheese; it ended up grilled cheese and ham), once because the same manager brought me some leftovers (I ate it because he seemed really, really proud of the dish that he'd made), and, of course, the taquitos. It is awkward to turn down someone's offer of food, the ultimate in hospitality. Then again, standing up for your principles is equally as important as being a grateful guest or recipient.
I've decided that I am not going to beat myself up over it. I have eaten a lot less meat than usual, and I will continue in the same vein. They say that every little bit helps; for a meat-eater to stop eating meat almost altogether, I am going to declare myself 'helpful.' I even resisted fried chicken at a buffet--that's how committed I truly am. ^^
This week, I will review Tofurky deli slices, Smart Choice (I think) ground 'hamburger,' and probably some other stuff. Also, recipes!
Monday, June 18, 2007
Is it vegetarian?
It's time for another round of my favorite game: Is it vegetarian? In this game, we look at common items and determine whether it's vegetarian, vegan, or not.
Doritos: NOT! (sometimes.)
It depends on which flavor you buy! You have to be careful with Doritos. You'd think that corn chips would be safe, but the Salsa Verde flavor (my favorite flavor, wouldn't you know?) contains natural chicken flavor; the new 'experimental' flavor in the black bag contains beef! (It also tastes just like a McDonald's hamburger. I ate them before I figured out there was beef in it.) When buying chips, make sure you check the labels.
A-1 Steak Sauce: VEGAN!
Unlike Worcestershire, A-1 Steak Sauce contains no meat products. It's actually made out of tomato, vinegar, raisin paste, orange rind.. crazy stuff! It's also GREAT on portobello mushroom burgers.
Here's the complete list of ingredients. I checked the vegan-ness of the fancy-sounding ones:
tomato puree (water, tomato paste,), distilled vinegar, corn syrup, salt, raisin paste, crushed orange puree, spices and herbs, dried garlic and onion, caramel color, potassium sorbate (to preserve freshness), xanthan gum
Ramen noodles: NOT! (mostly.)
I've gotten conflicting reports; some say that tomato is the only veggie flavor, some say that oriental is also veggie. Obviously, chicken and beef flavors are pretty not-vegetarian.
Triscuits: VEGAN!
Triscuits are VEGAN! Yeah, Triscuits! For being such delicious little crackers, they certainly are very simple--I think they only have a handful of ingredients.
Hormel Chili: VEGAN!
REALLY? Yes, really. Apparently, Hormel is too cheap for meat. Which is good for us, yeah!
Smucker's Marshmallow Ice Cream Topping: VEGAN!
Yep. I dunno how, but PETA says it is so.
Lesson here? Look at labels--for EVERYTHING! Don't assume something is or is not vegetarian or vegan before you look--you may be pleasantly surprised.
Doritos: NOT! (sometimes.)
It depends on which flavor you buy! You have to be careful with Doritos. You'd think that corn chips would be safe, but the Salsa Verde flavor (my favorite flavor, wouldn't you know?) contains natural chicken flavor; the new 'experimental' flavor in the black bag contains beef! (It also tastes just like a McDonald's hamburger. I ate them before I figured out there was beef in it.) When buying chips, make sure you check the labels.
A-1 Steak Sauce: VEGAN!
Unlike Worcestershire, A-1 Steak Sauce contains no meat products. It's actually made out of tomato, vinegar, raisin paste, orange rind.. crazy stuff! It's also GREAT on portobello mushroom burgers.
Here's the complete list of ingredients. I checked the vegan-ness of the fancy-sounding ones:
tomato puree (water, tomato paste,), distilled vinegar, corn syrup, salt, raisin paste, crushed orange puree, spices and herbs, dried garlic and onion, caramel color, potassium sorbate (to preserve freshness), xanthan gum
Ramen noodles: NOT! (mostly.)
I've gotten conflicting reports; some say that tomato is the only veggie flavor, some say that oriental is also veggie. Obviously, chicken and beef flavors are pretty not-vegetarian.
Triscuits: VEGAN!
Triscuits are VEGAN! Yeah, Triscuits! For being such delicious little crackers, they certainly are very simple--I think they only have a handful of ingredients.
Hormel Chili: VEGAN!
REALLY? Yes, really. Apparently, Hormel is too cheap for meat. Which is good for us, yeah!
Smucker's Marshmallow Ice Cream Topping: VEGAN!
Yep. I dunno how, but PETA says it is so.
Lesson here? Look at labels--for EVERYTHING! Don't assume something is or is not vegetarian or vegan before you look--you may be pleasantly surprised.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Cast Iron Grill Pan: My current favorite kitchen equipment
I purchased my grill pan when I was still eating meat; after all, it's much easier to throw something on the grill pan (which is cast iron, so that means no washing! big plus) than it is to preheat the oven, dirty up some dishes, blah blah. Now that I'm a vegetarian, you may think that such an item is superfluous, but it isn't--my reversible grill pan/griddle is just as versatile as it was when I was eating meat, and I firmly believe no kitchen should be without one.
What can you do with a grill pan? And what the heck is it, anyway?
If you haven't used cast iron pans before, look for one that's already pre-seasoned. Seasoning is the stuff that makes grill pans naturally nonstick. Target carries a pre-seasoned reversible grill pan/griddle that's about 20 bucks--well worth the price. If you do happen to buy a non-seasoned pan, or you want to know how to take care of a cast-iron piece, this is a great page to look at.
Once you have your grill (and, if necessary, you've seasoned it), the sky is the limit with what you can cook on it. Panini, grilled cheese, grilled vegetables, grilled tofu, bruschetta, quesadillas, flatbread, frozen vegetarian hamburgers, portabello mushroom burgers (these are especially good grilled with some A1 steak sauce brushed on them)--not only is it really convenient, since you can leave your grill pan out on your stove all the time, but it's really, really tasty. I don't clean mine very much unless it gets really filthy, so it's less mess to clean up after dinner, too. I especially like to grill asparagus.
I really don't know how I ever lived without this item. There are plenty more uses, too, I'm sure; stuff I haven't even thought of! The reversible griddle side is great for a quick breakfast, too--pancakes, eggs, and your Morningstar Farms meatless sausage, all cooked on the same surface! So quick and easy to use, this item should be mandatory for all cooks.
Friday, June 15, 2007
Veg Food in Review, Pt. 1
As a new vegetarian, I'm currently testing and either accepting or rejecting vegetarian-geared foods, particularly protein substitutes. For any who are either making the big leap or are new to vegetarianism, I can say (and this has really helped my boyfriend, who has gone veg with me) that it's easier to accept "meat substitute" products if you don't think about them as being meat. Fake 'steak' will never be as good as real steak, ever--actually, I take it back. Sometimes the fake stuff does taste as good, or almost as good, as the real stuff; the problem that I find is that it doesn't taste similar to the real stuff. I set myself up for disappointment time and again. The trick is to think about the products on their own merit, not as being 'meat substitutes.'
Here are some findings so far. Opinions may vary from people who have been eating vegetarian for a longer span of time than I have!
Morningstar Farms vegetarian sausage patties: Big thumbs up from me. They actually do have similar taste and texture to the real thing; this is the only exception I have ever, ever found in the fake meat arena. The big plus is that they're less greasy and rich than real sausage patties, which I have a hard time eating more than one of (HAD a hard time.. you get the idea). It's a great addition to any breakfast-type meal. The best part was that I could microwave them while the potatoes were still going.
Morningstar Farms Veggie Bites (Spinach and Artichoke): As expensive as these are, they are little nuggets of joy. I'm going to be testing recipes for these within the next few weeks because they are terribly expensive for that little bitty bit of food that you get in a box. It's more like having a restaurant appetizer than cooking at home! I know I can make these cheaper. If you're looking for a delicious quick snack, though, these are great.
Vegetarian Salami (brand to be determined when I get home): This has to be the most awful thing--wait. I take it back. It's not, but it's pretty damn awful. The seasoning is fine, I think, but the slice of vegetarian salami that I ate was frighteningly close in taste to envelope adhesive. Thumbs down. Way, way down.
Stonewall's Jerquee: My friend Dean loves this stuff. I like it, but I'm partial only to the Pepperoni and Pastrami flavors. I've tried those two plus the Spicy Chicken and the mild 'regular' flavor, and the latter two just didn't do it for me. (It kind of tastes and smells like dog food.) I'm slightly addicted to the pepperoni-style, though--just promise me one thing: If you try this, and you don't initially like it . . . just chew on it for awhile. And have another one. What happens eventually is that the weird, dog-food-esque flavor leaves your mouth and you just notice the texture (chewy and juicy) and the spices (delicious and surprisingly pepperoni-like). You will get hooked on these babies, too.
Field Roast: Gross. I ate this stuff once--and only once--when I worked at Wild Oats. Disgusting. Surprisingly, their Celebration Roast is actually quite tasty. Thumbs up for the celebration roast. Thumbs down for the field roast.
Tofu: Tofu is not a meat substitute, I know. It is a great way to get protein into our non-meat-eating diets, though. Most people I know are afraid of tofu. It's really very easy to prepare and make delicious! When it's cooked to my liking, it's firmer than scrambled eggs but has a similar mouthfeel, and it tastes like whatever you marinate it in.
How I cook tofu:
First, you have to press it. That's the step they (wait, who are "they"?) always seem to leave out. Lay it out in a square casserole or something, place a cookie sheet on top, then weight that down with heavy stuff. Yeah, your tofu is going to get a little squished out of shape; just try to distribute the weight evenly. Don't skip this step! Let it it out a few hours. Don't worry, it won't hurt it--I once left tofu out overnight by accident, and I still ate it. I know no fear.
When the liquid is leached out of the tofu (you can lightly salt it before you press it to help this process), dump out the liquid and replace it with a marinade. The marinade doesn't have to be anything fancy--last time, I mixed soy sauce, that chili garlic stuff from the jar, honey, and... wait.. I think that was all I used. For the tofu currently in my fridge, I plan to use a bottled sesame dressing. Let it marinate for a few hours, overnight if you can! The tofu will begin soaking up the marinade. (Tip: It's a good idea, if your marinate can be eating as a dip--like the salad dressing--to preserve some for serving.)
When you go to cook the tofu, I prefer to grill it. I guess you can saute it; I like to grill it. The point is, cook it like you would a piece of meat, I guess. I fire up my cast iron grill pan and (carefully) rub peanut oil on it to help prevent the tofu from sticking. The tofu usually sticks a little anyway. Just be careful when you're flipping it. I generally will cook the tofu over just above medium, but not quite to medium high. I like to cook it until it's nicely blackened where the grill marks are, and I also cover it with foil while it's cooking (or, if we're being environmentally conscious, use some pot lids) to make sure it gets nice and done.
For service, you can serve it like you would serve meat. I like to serve with dipping sauce because tofu will soak up any sauce that it's in, which is delicious.
I think that's all for now. I smell the first good fresh strawberries I've had all season, and my mouth is practically crying for them. Sayonara!
Here are some findings so far. Opinions may vary from people who have been eating vegetarian for a longer span of time than I have!
Morningstar Farms vegetarian sausage patties: Big thumbs up from me. They actually do have similar taste and texture to the real thing; this is the only exception I have ever, ever found in the fake meat arena. The big plus is that they're less greasy and rich than real sausage patties, which I have a hard time eating more than one of (HAD a hard time.. you get the idea). It's a great addition to any breakfast-type meal. The best part was that I could microwave them while the potatoes were still going.
Morningstar Farms Veggie Bites (Spinach and Artichoke): As expensive as these are, they are little nuggets of joy. I'm going to be testing recipes for these within the next few weeks because they are terribly expensive for that little bitty bit of food that you get in a box. It's more like having a restaurant appetizer than cooking at home! I know I can make these cheaper. If you're looking for a delicious quick snack, though, these are great.
Vegetarian Salami (brand to be determined when I get home): This has to be the most awful thing--wait. I take it back. It's not, but it's pretty damn awful. The seasoning is fine, I think, but the slice of vegetarian salami that I ate was frighteningly close in taste to envelope adhesive. Thumbs down. Way, way down.
Stonewall's Jerquee: My friend Dean loves this stuff. I like it, but I'm partial only to the Pepperoni and Pastrami flavors. I've tried those two plus the Spicy Chicken and the mild 'regular' flavor, and the latter two just didn't do it for me. (It kind of tastes and smells like dog food.) I'm slightly addicted to the pepperoni-style, though--just promise me one thing: If you try this, and you don't initially like it . . . just chew on it for awhile. And have another one. What happens eventually is that the weird, dog-food-esque flavor leaves your mouth and you just notice the texture (chewy and juicy) and the spices (delicious and surprisingly pepperoni-like). You will get hooked on these babies, too.
Field Roast: Gross. I ate this stuff once--and only once--when I worked at Wild Oats. Disgusting. Surprisingly, their Celebration Roast is actually quite tasty. Thumbs up for the celebration roast. Thumbs down for the field roast.
Tofu: Tofu is not a meat substitute, I know. It is a great way to get protein into our non-meat-eating diets, though. Most people I know are afraid of tofu. It's really very easy to prepare and make delicious! When it's cooked to my liking, it's firmer than scrambled eggs but has a similar mouthfeel, and it tastes like whatever you marinate it in.
How I cook tofu:
First, you have to press it. That's the step they (wait, who are "they"?) always seem to leave out. Lay it out in a square casserole or something, place a cookie sheet on top, then weight that down with heavy stuff. Yeah, your tofu is going to get a little squished out of shape; just try to distribute the weight evenly. Don't skip this step! Let it it out a few hours. Don't worry, it won't hurt it--I once left tofu out overnight by accident, and I still ate it. I know no fear.
When the liquid is leached out of the tofu (you can lightly salt it before you press it to help this process), dump out the liquid and replace it with a marinade. The marinade doesn't have to be anything fancy--last time, I mixed soy sauce, that chili garlic stuff from the jar, honey, and... wait.. I think that was all I used. For the tofu currently in my fridge, I plan to use a bottled sesame dressing. Let it marinate for a few hours, overnight if you can! The tofu will begin soaking up the marinade. (Tip: It's a good idea, if your marinate can be eating as a dip--like the salad dressing--to preserve some for serving.)
When you go to cook the tofu, I prefer to grill it. I guess you can saute it; I like to grill it. The point is, cook it like you would a piece of meat, I guess. I fire up my cast iron grill pan and (carefully) rub peanut oil on it to help prevent the tofu from sticking. The tofu usually sticks a little anyway. Just be careful when you're flipping it. I generally will cook the tofu over just above medium, but not quite to medium high. I like to cook it until it's nicely blackened where the grill marks are, and I also cover it with foil while it's cooking (or, if we're being environmentally conscious, use some pot lids) to make sure it gets nice and done.
For service, you can serve it like you would serve meat. I like to serve with dipping sauce because tofu will soak up any sauce that it's in, which is delicious.
I think that's all for now. I smell the first good fresh strawberries I've had all season, and my mouth is practically crying for them. Sayonara!
I like meat.
I didn't become a vegetarian because I think it's wrong to eat meat. I love meat. Especially red meat. I look at a cow and think, "Oh, how cute;" I also think, "Man, that would be fucking great on a plate with some mashed potatoes." I also don't like PETA. I respect what they believe, obviously, but a lot of what they do is just as propagandist as who they're trying to fight. I also don't think that some of their methods are effective; I've said it before and I'll say it again--throwing maggots at fashion models, jumping onstage naked at runway shows, and throwing paint on people's expensive fur coats are more likely to do harm than good. Wouldn't you be more likely to be pissed off than enlightened if that happened to you? I know that I would, and most people would be, as well. Way to go on the KFC front as well, PETA--that's obviously the best way to make your point, writing letters to people outlining how evil they are for not following your advice. That'll win them over to your side.
I wrote PETA about this, and received two e-mails back about how they need to be shocking (read: assholes) to get media coverage. Yes, because you're a small, unknown organization with no support. Face it, PETA: you don't get all the results you want because you're more concerned about being right than getting results. And you are right, but some of your methods are wrong.
In short, I'm the last person you'd ever, ever expect to be a vegetarian. Everyone I know is bum-fucked shocked. So why am I a vegetarian?
Because PETA is right. Because animals feel pain and suffer when they're raised in less than satisfactory conditions. Can you imagine what your life would be like if you had no room to move and had to live in your own shit all day? It's also affecting the environment, our food supply, and inhibiting our ability to move ahead with greener fuel sources. Just recently, the food industry complained that, if we upped the production of ethanol, the meat industry would suffer from loss of feed for livestock. (This is referenced in my other blog.) This would affect the meat industry because the meat industry doesn't use sustainable farming methods; doing so would eliminate the need to ship feed in from the highly subsidized corn farms across America. We could then use that corn for ethanol. (We could also use the corn that goes into high fructose corn syrup--I'm sure nobody would miss that. Or diabetes.) Not to mention the fact that, if we moved to sustainable farming, there would be fewer incidents of pig shit geysers. (Read Al Franken's Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them. The pig shit geyser story is great.) Also, healthy livestock makes healthy meat makes healthy omnivorous humans. It all works in our favor; unfortunately, it doesn't work very well for big business profit margins. These people that supply our food care more about their bankrolls than their customers. The only way to make them understand is to hit 'em where it hurts--their wallets.
Which is why I stopped eating meat. I could buy organic or free-range meat; I choose not to do so because--well, frankly, the demand for it isn't high enough to create a greater supply, and it is too damn expensive. It is an alternative to going all veggie if you're concerned about animals but don't want to stop eating them.
Regular, tortured meat isn't cheap, either; when I was living in Columbus, Ohio, and working at Sbux, I discovered that meat is a luxury that I couldn't afford more than a couple of times a week. I began to grow accustomed to doing without. Perhaps it is this viewpoint that led me to make the vegetarian leap (except that I do still eat canned tuna, mercury be damned). I view meat as a luxury, not a necessity--why should an animal, therefore, go through life under some of the worst conditions just so that I can consume it? It's not right. I made excuses to myself for years, but the bottom line is that it's not right for me to support that.
If you don't think that animals deserve the right to be treated with dignity, consider any pets you may have had throughout your life--you can forget the one time you dressed it up in a Halloween costume, that wasn't particularly harmful to it. You nurtured your pet; you stroked it, loved it, fed it, made sure it stayed healthy, played with it; your pet was part of the family. And if someone had mistreated it, there would have been hell to pay! Am I right? And didn't your pets also know when you were happy and when you were sad; didn't they get excited when you came home, and scared if they heard a loud noise (or maybe threatening, if you had one of those protector dogs)? Animals have feelings. They feel pain and suffer, but they can also feel contentment if conditions are favorable (see cats purring and dogs wagging their tails). Even if you don't think, say, chickens are smart enough to have feelings, they can definitely register pain and fear; that's basic survival instinct.
I love meat. My very favorite food in the whole world is rare steak. But I stopped eating meat because it is wrong to support an industry that is cruel to animals. It was a sacrifice, damn right it was, but we can't get results without sacrifice. It's time for Americans to stand up and do what is right, not what is convenient.
Now, onto what the blog is really about. I promise this blog isn't going to be all preachy, but I had to speak my mind, yeah?
I am new to vegetarianism, as you can probably tell. I'm just now discovering what's good and what's not; I also have the unique advantage of still being a meat-lover. I want to chronicle my journey through vegetarianism for all vegetarians, vegans, and reluctant vegetarians alike. I want to help meat eaters who want to do the right thing make a smooth transition into vegetarianism without eating fake meat that tastes like crap (some of it is great, some of it's gross), without going on a diet of entirely french fries and soda (you know who you are), without being terrified of tofu (it's great if you prepare it right, it really is--I thought so even when I was eating meat) and without missing your meat too much. You'll miss it, but you can respect yourself in the morning.
If any vegetarians are reading this and would like to join the blog, please email me at ophelianouveau @ yahoo.
I wrote PETA about this, and received two e-mails back about how they need to be shocking (read: assholes) to get media coverage. Yes, because you're a small, unknown organization with no support. Face it, PETA: you don't get all the results you want because you're more concerned about being right than getting results. And you are right, but some of your methods are wrong.
In short, I'm the last person you'd ever, ever expect to be a vegetarian. Everyone I know is bum-fucked shocked. So why am I a vegetarian?
Because PETA is right. Because animals feel pain and suffer when they're raised in less than satisfactory conditions. Can you imagine what your life would be like if you had no room to move and had to live in your own shit all day? It's also affecting the environment, our food supply, and inhibiting our ability to move ahead with greener fuel sources. Just recently, the food industry complained that, if we upped the production of ethanol, the meat industry would suffer from loss of feed for livestock. (This is referenced in my other blog.) This would affect the meat industry because the meat industry doesn't use sustainable farming methods; doing so would eliminate the need to ship feed in from the highly subsidized corn farms across America. We could then use that corn for ethanol. (We could also use the corn that goes into high fructose corn syrup--I'm sure nobody would miss that. Or diabetes.) Not to mention the fact that, if we moved to sustainable farming, there would be fewer incidents of pig shit geysers. (Read Al Franken's Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them. The pig shit geyser story is great.) Also, healthy livestock makes healthy meat makes healthy omnivorous humans. It all works in our favor; unfortunately, it doesn't work very well for big business profit margins. These people that supply our food care more about their bankrolls than their customers. The only way to make them understand is to hit 'em where it hurts--their wallets.
Which is why I stopped eating meat. I could buy organic or free-range meat; I choose not to do so because--well, frankly, the demand for it isn't high enough to create a greater supply, and it is too damn expensive. It is an alternative to going all veggie if you're concerned about animals but don't want to stop eating them.
Regular, tortured meat isn't cheap, either; when I was living in Columbus, Ohio, and working at Sbux, I discovered that meat is a luxury that I couldn't afford more than a couple of times a week. I began to grow accustomed to doing without. Perhaps it is this viewpoint that led me to make the vegetarian leap (except that I do still eat canned tuna, mercury be damned). I view meat as a luxury, not a necessity--why should an animal, therefore, go through life under some of the worst conditions just so that I can consume it? It's not right. I made excuses to myself for years, but the bottom line is that it's not right for me to support that.
If you don't think that animals deserve the right to be treated with dignity, consider any pets you may have had throughout your life--you can forget the one time you dressed it up in a Halloween costume, that wasn't particularly harmful to it. You nurtured your pet; you stroked it, loved it, fed it, made sure it stayed healthy, played with it; your pet was part of the family. And if someone had mistreated it, there would have been hell to pay! Am I right? And didn't your pets also know when you were happy and when you were sad; didn't they get excited when you came home, and scared if they heard a loud noise (or maybe threatening, if you had one of those protector dogs)? Animals have feelings. They feel pain and suffer, but they can also feel contentment if conditions are favorable (see cats purring and dogs wagging their tails). Even if you don't think, say, chickens are smart enough to have feelings, they can definitely register pain and fear; that's basic survival instinct.
I love meat. My very favorite food in the whole world is rare steak. But I stopped eating meat because it is wrong to support an industry that is cruel to animals. It was a sacrifice, damn right it was, but we can't get results without sacrifice. It's time for Americans to stand up and do what is right, not what is convenient.
Now, onto what the blog is really about. I promise this blog isn't going to be all preachy, but I had to speak my mind, yeah?
I am new to vegetarianism, as you can probably tell. I'm just now discovering what's good and what's not; I also have the unique advantage of still being a meat-lover. I want to chronicle my journey through vegetarianism for all vegetarians, vegans, and reluctant vegetarians alike. I want to help meat eaters who want to do the right thing make a smooth transition into vegetarianism without eating fake meat that tastes like crap (some of it is great, some of it's gross), without going on a diet of entirely french fries and soda (you know who you are), without being terrified of tofu (it's great if you prepare it right, it really is--I thought so even when I was eating meat) and without missing your meat too much. You'll miss it, but you can respect yourself in the morning.
If any vegetarians are reading this and would like to join the blog, please email me at ophelianouveau @ yahoo.
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