Ariel’s Neighborhood

Quick link: Why I need to make a trip to L.A. soon

Elisa
Yesterday
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If for no other reason, than to try some of the yummy must-eats found on this list of 10 Meals Every Vegan Needs to Eat in Los Angeles, courtesy of quarrygirl.

Can I hear a "nom, nom, nom"?

Holiday Recipe #3: Light Lemon Bundt Cake

Elisa
2 days ago
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The Joy of Vegan Baking: The Compassionate Cooks' Traditional Treats and Sinful Sweets

Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

Recipe #3: Light Lemon Bundt Cake

Source: Page 80 and page 232, The Joy of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

Background: My stepdad doesn't like chocolate, so we always try to have a lemon dessert for him. I made this cake last year too, and it was so good, I had to repeat.

Light Lemon Bundt Cake

Ingredients:

2 c. unbleached, all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/8 tsp salt

Zest of two lemons, minced

7 tsp Ener-G Egg Replacer (equivalent of four eggs) You can get this at Whole Foods

1/4 c. water

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (The juice from the two lemons above should cover it, if they're big lemons)

3/4 c. maple syrup (OK, I confess, I thought I had maple syrup and didn't, so I used agave nectar. Still worked. Maple probably would have tasted even better, though.)

1/2 c. canola oil

1/2 c. nondairy milk (Last year I used rice, this year almond. Didn't really notice a difference...no almond flavor seemed to come through, which I was actually kind of hoping for.)

1 TB lemon extract

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 recipe Lemon Sauce

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a Bundt pan.

Into a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon zest until well-combined. (I don't own a sifter, so I just mixed with a fork.)

In a food processor or in a bowl using an electric mixer, combine the egg replacement powder and water and blend well for about 2 minutes. Add the lemon juice, maple syrup, canola oil, milk, lemon and vanilla extracts, and blend again for another minute. (Last year I used a mixer, this year a processor. Both work.)

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk until combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown and pulls away form the edges of the pan. Let cool completely before unmolding. Serve with Lemon Sauce.

Lemon Sauce

Ingredients:

1/2 c. granulated sugar

1 TB cornstarch

1 c. boiling water

Zest and juice form 2 lemons

Directions:

In large saucepan, stir together the sugar and cornstarch. Gradually stir in boiling water, and simmer over low heat until thick, stirring occasionally. Stir in the ,emon zest and juice, and remove from heat. Serve warm or at room temperature over cake.

[The only annoying thing about the recipe is the lack of definition of "thick". How "thick" is "thick" enough? Still don't really know. BUt be warned, this part takes a while.]

Again: Source is Page 80 and page 232, The Joy of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

Holiday Recipe #2: Mushroom Walnut Pate

Elisa
3 days ago
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The Vegan Table: 200 Unforgettable Recipes for Entertaining Every Guest at Every Occasion

Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

Recipe #2: Mushroom Walnut Pate

Source: Page 224, The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

Background: I made desserts for my contribution to last year's Christmas dinner, and I knew I was going to contribute both the fudge and tomorrow's Holiday recipe #3, but I also wanted to try something savory.

I also wanted to finally try one of the two "food processors" I have, both of which are really small 4-cup deals...one of which is really an attachment for my blender...but that I've inexplicably been afraid to try.

So, I perused this new cookbook from "Joy of Vegan Baking" author Patrick-Goudreau, and came up with Mushroom Walnut Pate. I love mushrooms.I love walnuts. So what's not to love?

Well, if I'm being honest, I finally realized after making this that I don't really love thyme. And in recipes that call for it I should either cut it out altogether, or cut the amount way down. BUt other than that, this was yummy, and it really does evoke a real pate. Which is kind of creepy, in its own way!

Mushroom Walnut Pate

Ingredients:

2 TB olive oil, divided

1 medium-sized yellow onion, chopped (I used my Cuisinart chopper...which did almost too good a job!)

3 minced garlic cloves (I used the frozen garlic cubes from Trader Joe's)

15 cremini or shitake mushrooms, sliced (I combined both, actually)

1 TB chopped fresh thyme or 2 Tsp dried (I used dried, and I would cut this out altogether, but that;s just me!)

1 TB chopped fresh sage or 2 Tsp dried (I used dried)

2TB nutritional yeast flakes

3 TB tamari, divided

2 TB balsamic vinegar

2 C walnuts, toasted (I toasted on a baking sheet in a 250-degree oven for about 15 minutes)

1/2 Tsp freshly ground pepper (I skipped)

Directions:

Heat 1 TB oil in a large-size saute pan over medium hear, Add onion and garlic and saute until onion becomes translucent, about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms, along with remaining 1 TB oil, and cover; cook for 5 minutes longer, stirring occasionally. Uncover pan and allow them to cook for 10 minutes longer.

Add thyme, sage, nutritional yeast, 2 TB tamari and vinegar, and stir to combine. Cook for 1 minutes and turn off heat. Transfer mushroom mixture and toasted walnuts to a food processor, adding freshly ground pepper and remaining 1 TB of tamari, if needed (I didn't add either.) Pulse until mixture becomes a creamy pate. Taste and add more seasoning, if necessary. (It wasn't, for me.)

Serve at room temperature with crackers, bread or crostini.

Yield:

1 1/2 cups or 12 2-TB servings

Per serving: 45 calories, 3 g. fat, 2 g. protein, 4 g. carbs, 1 g. dietary fiber, 0 mg. cholesterol, 253 mg. sodium

Again: Source is Page 224, The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

Holiday Recipe #1: Vegan Fudge

Elisa
4 days ago
2 comments

I cooked three different dishes from three different sources for my contribution to Christmas this year.

Here's recipe #1: Vegan Fudge

Source: An email from the nice folks at VegNews

Background: I confess, I'm not a fudge person. I've never made it, and I don't even actually eat it...vegan or pre-vegan days. I like chocolate in small doses, generally speaking. Fudge is just so...fudgey. However. The recipe showed up in my Inbox just when I was starting to agonize about what to bring, and it looked damn easy. Four ingredients, and a little processing...piece of cake.

I made it. It was easy. It is incredibly rich, so one piece is about all I can take. And ti went over well with the fams, none of who are vegan, and none of whom seemed to realize or care that this fudge is.

Enjoy:

Vegan Fudge

Serves 24

What You Need:

8 ounces soy cream cheese
4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup vegan chocolate chips

What You Do:

1. Line an 8-inch square pan with wax paper. In a food processor, blend soy cream cheese until smooth. Add powdered sugar and vanilla, processing until smooth.
2. In microwave or double boiler, melt chocolate chips. Pour melted chocolate into cream cheese mixture and process until smooth.
3. Pour mixture into prepared pan and refrigerate until firm. Pull wax paper out of pan. Cut fudge into bite-size pieces. Store in refrigerator in an airtight container.

Happy Holidays!

Team Vox
5 days ago
9 comments

6acardVOX

5 comments

Happy Holidays to you, your family, friends and neighbors from all of us at Vox.
See you in 2010!

Vegan Food and Wine Resources

Elisa
Dec 20, 2009
4 comments

I'm always looking for good resources to figure out what to eat and what to drink that's vegan. Especially since this year I wanted to give some wine, and wanted to make sure it was vegan wine. (Here's a wikipedia entry on wine and veg*nism, in case you're unfamiliar with the issues.)

The Vegan Wine Guide hasn't got the best interface. The wines aren't listed alphabetically, so you either have to browse a very long list in pretty short chunks of links, or you have to search for a specific brand.

I found it a little easier to navigate Veggie Wines and Barnivore. barnivore is definitely the best-organized, and therefore the most usable.

I'm going to head to BevMo today and look out for either Hahn Estates, Fetzer Merlot, Rabbit Ridge or Yellowtail reds.

Vegan Soapbox provided some good links to restaurant resources, including Happy Cow and Veg Guide. Prompted me to write this post in fact.

Something else that has come in handy lately are veg*n aps for the iPhone, such as:

1. Lock down the "vegetarian" restaurant type on UrbanSpoon, and you can find the closes veg restaurants wherever you are.

2. Download VegCookbook or Vegetarian Recipes for recipe ideas.

3. The VegOut app is a veg restaurant search tool, powered by HappyCow. A little surprised by the $2.99 price tag, but I just downloaded it anyway!

What do you use to point you in the right veg direction?

Quick link from SuperVegan: Countering the counter-arguments

Elisa
Dec 13, 2009
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Apparently there is a movement afoot to provide arguments to meat-eaters who encounter those pesky logical arguments in favor of Veg*nism.

SuperVegan has some good arguments to counter this Moral Outrage Against NOT Killing.

I'm glad other sites have the energy to publish posts like these...I confess it's hard for me to avoid snark and sarcasm after all these years.

But I'm happy to point you to others who can manage to stick (basically) to the facts and logic!

Common Sense Advice for Vegan Hosts...

Elisa
Dec 9, 2009
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Namely...Serve delicious vegan offerings, and don't invite people who wouldn't appreciate your efforts.

This via the "Dear Prudence" column on Slate.com.

OK, she doesn't state it just like that, she says it more like this:

As for telling you you're rude and selfish to open your home and offer to feed them, or that you will have an unacceptable wedding because you won't serve meat -- hmmm, I wonder who's being rude and selfish?

That's only part of her logical advice, you can check out the whole thing. Nice to get that mainstream support :)

Some vegan links for the weekend

Elisa
Dec 4, 2009
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Here are a few things to check out over the weekend, the good, bad and ugly:

Hat tip to Vegan.com for pointing me to a very positive article in the News Observer: If a Vegan Comes to Dinner. The author actually suggests accommodating the vegan in your regular cooking, and that it (gasp!) won't kill the non-vegans to eat mashed potatoes with soy milk or stuffing made with vegetable broth. Of course, if you want to be left with the same warm glow the article leaves, don't read the comments. Some of your usual "Oh, you're a veg*n, let me tell you how tasty meat is" types are in there blowharding away.

JWeekly features a columnist who is aspiring to be vegan after being inspired by Alicia Silverstone and her new book.

I promised you ugly, and that would be the USDA declaring PETA to be a terrorist organization. Seriously appalling.

I'm definitely intending to write more about this, but here's a link to a section of Martha Stewart's site devoted to her awesome vegetarian Thanksgiving episode.

I'm also planning to write more about Jonathan Safran Foer's book Eating Animals, but until I do, here are two links I've been holding on to for way too long now, intending to share:

-Mary Martin from Animal Person on the book

-Erik Marcus from Vegan.com on the book

Finally, speaking of Erik Marcus, here is a little online interview with me, wherein I name Marcus's book "Meat Market" to be the most-life-chnging book I've read.

Enjoy, or at least appreciate, all the links and have a great weekend!

Animal-friendly holiday gift-giving, courtesy of Change .org

Elisa
Dec 3, 2009
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As always, Stephanie Ernst, Change.org's Animal Rights blogger, is a font of useful information. This time it's a holiday gift (and charitable) giving guide that all vegan, all the time.

Check it out here.

I really need to get myself over to Vegan Etsy and do some shopping around!