Whatcha Makin'??

[silva]

ok, I made this-
Melty Stretchy Gooey Vegan Mozzarella • it doesn't taste like chicken
So very easy. It is stretchy, but no comparison to mozzerella! In the comments people say omnis couldn't tell it wasn't mozz! I bet those same people laughed with friends about their silly vegan dinner . With tweaks I think it would be good. I also used a teaspoon of miso, but otherwise followed as written. I think a half cup of olive brine (which I later realised I'd saved) to replace a half cup of water would be great! It definitely needed more acidity- but I say that about most all vegan chese things.
I will make again. I think it'll go with some veggies later. Maybe add to a creamy chowder, or a @MadamSarcastra casserole !

 

[Katrina]

I used to use white beans, but now I just use whatever I have on hand. Pinto beans work just as well. I'll be using red kidney beans this time.

 

[MadamSarcastra]

Maybe add to a creamy chowder, or a @MadamSarcastra casserole

Hey, you've helped spark an idea! I've now got a great name for those.... Sarcasseroles! LMAO

 

[MadamSarcastra]

And yes, I shall be making a Sarcasserole shortly. I think I'm only gonna use half of the big bag of frozen diced potatoes & one small bag of frozen broccoli. I don't have any cashew-cheese sauce for this thing, so I hope to whip up some sort of sauce using some chopped (not sliced) mushrooms, minced garlic, Earth Balance, soy milk, nooch, spices, corn starch, etc.... Oh, and I have that wild rocket arugula to use up, too!

I'm letting a pan soak right now....

 

[MadamSarcastra]

^^^^ OK, got the garlic & mushrooms sautéing, just about to add soy milk & three kinds of Go Veggie... mozzarella shreds, cheddar-jack shreds, and a slice & a half of smoked provolone. Once the "creamy/cheesy" mushroom sauce is done, it's all cake... just dump it on the frozen veggies & bake!

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I didn't end up using any arugula... just thought it would be weird with this stuff. But the mushroom-cheese sauce turned out thick & tasty... hardly used any corn starch... lotsa nooch, though, a pinch of ground flax meal... and beer! Spooned some sauce over the broccoli & potatoes, stirred it up, added the last of the cheddar-jack-style shreds and a few more spoonful of sauce, and popped the dish in the oven at 350°.... I even had enough leftover sauce to fill a jar.

 

[Katrina]

I made the baked beans a couple nights ago. They are damn good. I haven't had time to cook anything since then. Tonight I'll probably make this rice thing where you cook the rice in oil before adding the hot broth. Then I add turmeric and cinnamon to the pan. Afterwards, add golden raisons, currents, and toasted almond slivers. Mmm it's so good, and it's one of the few dishes that H ever asks me to make.

 

[Tom L.]

Over the weekend I cooked dried white beans and blackeyed peas (both pre-soaked) with lovage and garlic in my slow cooker. I grew everything except the white beans. I froze some of it, and mixed the rest with a bit of vegetable oil, a few okra pods (also home-grown), canned Italian-style green beans and unsalted mixed vegetables, and canned crushed tomatoes with basil. I had some of this with rice for lunch. YUM. My lunches this week will pretty much recap today...

Yesterday I made a sort of poor man's pastafazool with it before I had added the veggies and tomatoes: cooked elbow macaroni and my fresh kale. Good, but really could have used the tomatoes.

I LOVE lovage- it adds this savory cooked-celery aroma and flavor, and grows okay for me (I never tried growing celery) but it's not commonly used. I bet it'll be found carcinogenic or something...

 

[MadamSarcastra]

I'm preparing some possibly "iffy" leftovers (the last teensy bit of sautéed veggies & my last kale-falafel patty)... it's all vegan, I should be OK if I cook the **** out of it, right? LOL Makin' a wrap (the last Flatout light Italian flatbread) with that sh*t, plus baby greens, sliced tomato, & Chao cheese.

And I'll probably finish off the last o' my tater chips with it....

 

[MadamSarcastra]

Well, I just bought a bag of kale as big as a friggin' throw pillow... there's a super simple recipe on the back for kale chips. I've been wanting to make my own snack food for ages, I'm home for the rest of the night, why the hell not! LOL And if they suck, I'm only out $1.49.

 

[silva]

i love kale chips! I don't even think you need oil, but I think I've sprayed oil on them- the canned spray, and added nooch and garlic powder, well, and salt. It's been a long time! I just feel I can't get enough on the tray and I share with my son!

 

[MadamSarcastra]

i love kale chips! I don't even think you need oil, but I think I've sprayed oil on them- the canned spray, and added nooch and garlic powder, well, and salt. It's been a long time! I just feel I can't get enough on the tray and I share with my son!

Yeah, never made 'em before... it just calls for olive oil & salt. I'm definitely doin' the nooch/onion powder/garlic powder thing, though... I'll grind a little sea salt up with that stuff.... I hope they turn out OK.

I'm not ready to prep 'em yet.... wanna take another Airbone & have a beer. LOL

 

[silva]

I think I should go for beer..

 

[MadamSarcastra]

I think I should go for beer..

Yes!

I think I'm gonna go this route.... 6 Tips for Flawless Kale Chips + All-Dressed Kale Chips recipe — Oh She Glows -- But I'm just gonna use olive oil (no lemon juice)... and I'll grind up sea salt, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, dill weed, nooch, and a touch of cayenne.

Oh, and I just bought that box of vinyl gloves (good for food prep), so I can get "every nook & cranny" of the leaves covered in oil without greasin' up the ol' digits... glove on left, basting brush in right.


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OK, they baked for 10 minutes... gonna let 'em cool on the rack just a touch (while I have a beer), then I'll flip 'em over with my mini tongs & season that side.

Ya know, this is a hell of a lot of work for what's looking like practically nothing. Next time I'm just gonna toss everything together in a big bowl & lay it all out on a baking sheet. LOL

 

[MadamSarcastra]

The small pile o' kale chips is done. They turned out great! Extremely delicate, but soooo tasty & crispy!!




I had leftover evoo on a plate (to baste), so I dumped my frozen Brussels sprouts on the already-used baking sheet, cranked up the heat a bit on the oven, basted & rolled the sprouts around, sprinkled with my leftover kale chip seasoning, and have those roasting now....

I want those in my pasta dish tonight... Supergreens spaghetti & Newman's Own marinara with roasted Brussels sprouts!

Also put the last of my sarcasserole in a smaller container to be whipped into shape tomorrow... it's gonna transform into magical mashed potatoes.

 

[MadamSarcastra]

Gonna make my sautéed veggies (red onion, red bell pepper, mushrooms, baby spinach).... I can use that stuff for sandwiches/wraps, or mix in with a pasta dish, or have with brown rice....

Also gonna put my leftover potato/broccoli sarcasserole in the food processor, make mashed potatoes, and either bring that over for Jerry or freeze it.

 

[Tom L.]

Those kale chips look scrumptious, MadamSarcastra. (And... a huge bag of fresh kale for only $1.49??!! What a deal! The only way I'd be able to get kale that cheaply from any store here would be if it were half-rotten, or at least severely wilted- and in that case, I wouldn't bother with it if it were free, even though kale is one of my favorites.)

Anyway- this past weekend I wanted to make something with dried white beans and some of my butternut squash. I soaked the beans and then put them in my slow-cooker with a big peeled squash and enough water to cover. But squash is slightly sweet, while I think beans taste better in something savory... so I couldn't make up my mind how to season this stuff, and only added two green jalapenos. I had a little of it, and it tastes okay, even though I think the beans are a tad undercooked. It looks nice anyway, with the chunks of rich orange squash and the light-pinkish beans.

Anyway, I lightly roasted the squash seeds in my toaster-oven- YUM. Peeling that sucker was hard though- I had to go carefully so as not to cut myself. I think I'll bake most of the rest of my harvest during this winter- no peeling needed- just slice in half and scoop out the seeds.

 

[MadamSarcastra]

More kale chips. Doin' them the easy way this time... I'm just gonna spin the chopped leaves dry in the salad spinner, throw 'em in a giant bowl, toss with olive oil & my noochified seasoning blend, dump 'em out on two cookie sheets, not gonna worry too much about overlap.... as delicious as they were, last time took far too much effort for very little pay-off. LOL

All I'm doing is making sure I get rid of the "stemmy" sections... and I'm saving the smaller bits for when I make pesto tomorrow... I already have walnuts, need to get fresh basil, thought kale would be a nice addition... I have so freaking much of it!

 

[MadamSarcastra]

All done!

 

[silva]

I decided to try angel hair pasta again- I've never liked it, but figured it must be close to ramen noodles-it is not. I added some better than boullion no chiken at the end and stirred in a bunch of fresh spinach to wilt. It was just slightly brothy. I just don't like those noodles. I like regular spaghetti, but these are just so lacking. the spinach tasted weird too
ETA- added some margarine and garlic powder and it's now better

 

[MadamSarcastra]

Already made another jar of vegan ranch dressing when I got home... so damn easy. I'm makin' a sautéed veggie wrap... I spread a Flatout flatbread with some of the sarcasserole mashed taters. I'm too lazy to slice the rest of the Roma tomato, but I may crumble some of what's left of my earlier kale crisps on it.... and I think I'm gonna save the Chao cheese & go with the Go Veggie smoked provolone this evening. That Chao is far too precious.