Vegan Month of Food 2016 - Day 9 "Icelandic Christmas Cake!" VEGANIZED!

As I was driving home tonight from checking on, and feeding, the small group of ferals I help look after (only 3 of the 6 tonight, so worried...) I flipped through the satellite stations and somehow landed on a channel that was playing space music, or at least what I call space music. Synthesizers, no vocals, just endless flowing sound. As I continued to drive, I glanced upwards towards the sky noticing it was perfectly clear; full of stars.  I  turned onto my street, and eased into a pullover area, flicking off the headlights. It was so dark. With the space music still going, I opened the windows, got out of the car and looked at the sky. In the brush I heard some rustling, likely a Key deer or two... those that so many of us are working so hard to save. All this was balm for the soul and I wished everyone who matters to me could do the same.

Today, we're tasked with bringing you something from a cuisine or region we've never done before, or rarely do.

Iceland. Home of the midnight sun, Northern Lights, and adorable puffins. This was not my original plan for today's post, but when life hands me lemons, I make cake.

Since my video from Ethos got eaten by the internet demons (explained in the video below), I had to give this some mindful, but quick thought. I've been preoccupied with Iceland for quite a few years. I follow a couple of Icelandic pages on social media, and am ridiculous when it comes to staring at photos and movies of the Northern Lights. I've never seen them, but sure hope to. I want to visit Iceland, stay in an ice cave, forage for vegan food, see puffins in real life, be in a place where McDonald's is (supposedly) banned (can that be TRUE?!!!) and experience a day with practically no darkness. I know I'm all about beaches and palm trees, but Iceland gets a free pass from me, there's just something about it that calls. We've had a few guests from Iceland visit us here through the years as well. Such lovely people. So, with this, I've chosen the cuisine of Iceland to represent today. I learned that pretty much everything in Iceland is not vegan (there's air, there's water....) There's tons of lamb, fish, potatoes (with lamb, and fish), and so forth. But, if I had more time, I could veganize almost any recipe I looked at today. I chose Vinaterta, which is a traditional Icelandic Christmas cake. Actually, it's a shortbread torte layered with prune jam. Prunes do not live in my house, so I used cranberries and dates. Other than the prunes, I had every ingredient on hand for this, and who cares about prunes when ya got dates & cranberries. Even better, for the rebels out there who don't care about tradition, I have visions of chocolate ganache dancing between layers.... but that's just crazy talk, no?

It's been hard to put a post together today, not to mention a video, but I did. If you would like to try this recipe, scroll past the video and you'll see the link. I forgot to mention, I used vegan margarine for the butter, the other vegan substitutions are spoken of in the video.

Let's watch:

Here's the link to the recipe:

http://www.saveur.com/article/recipes/shortbread-and-prune-jam-layer-cake

I don't know how to say "good night" in Icelandic, so I'll say it in English... good night. May tomorrow bring us just that much closer to a vegan world.

xo

Vegan Month of Food 2016 - Day 8 "Far Flung Land" PS: I voted

Today's prompt is "dig deep, what's on the opposite side of the Earth from where you are." There's an app for that (does anyone use a globe anymore?)

We discovered that opposite us is the Indian ocean. The closest land mass is Australia. I can't swim, have water terror, and suck at making vegan sushi, so I went with Australia. They've got beaches, cool animals, and something called Anzac biscuits. Being that today is Election Day in my country (I voted. I got a cool conch shell sticker, that's about the only positive thing going in this entire election) when I learned about Anzac biscuits, I thought it was appropriate for the day, meaning patriotic to their country. Anzac biscuits came about sometime around World War I, and are beloved in Australia. The term "Anzac biscuit" is regulated; it cannot be called a cookie. As point of fact, I learned that Australia forced Subway to stop selling the "cookies" in Australia unless they made them more authentic and called them a biscuit. Apparently Subway couldn't source the ingredients economically enough (quite puzzling to me considering this was essentially a biscuit based on war rations, very basic ingredients) so they dropped them from the menu.

The biscuits are made with flour, sugar, (sometimes coconut, I did use it), oats, treacle (I used molasses the closest thing to treacle), vegan butter, and baking soda mixed with boiling water. That's it. If you scroll past the video, you'll see the link to the recipe I used which is from the Dept. of Veteran's Affairs, so I'm hoping I did choose one that is as authentic. Mine came out hard on the outside, a bit chewy on the inside. I was surprised how delicious and flavorful these are. They have a very long shelf life according to the information I found online, which is one of the reasons they were so popular during the war... stories are that the wives made them for the men at the front lines. I've read that they were made for galas and fundraisers as well, in fact to this day they are used for fund raising efforts.

I also talk a bit about koalas, because dang they're cute, and dang they're in trouble.... they're losing their habitat and on the road to becoming a very troubled species. Let's watch and see:

Here's the link to the little article containing the recipe I used for these biscuits. Give them a try, you may be as surprised as I am how tasty these are for something so very simple! This recipe is based upon ingredients not subject to war rations back then, so easy to veganize! I substituted Earth Balance for the butter, everything else is obviously vegan already!

http://www.abc.net.au/local/audio/2012/04/24/3487637.htm

There ya have it.... far flung and a sticker.

Til tomorrow!

xo

Vegan Month of Food - Day 7 "Home Town, Home State or Home Country"

There were so many options for today's prompt! I decided to go with a nod to my paternal grandparent's home country which is Italy, mostly because Italian food is my favorite, and this way I can showcase my favorite dessert of all time, tiramisu.  During last year's MoFo I veganized a Cuban sandwich for you, so we can skip that part of my heritage, and also as far as my hometown and home State, the LAST thing I want to eat is what's popular up there (also covered during last year's MoFo, veganize a childhood favorite; mine was fried pork roll or fried bologna, absolutely SHAMEFUL).

My grandfather was a cook, we've talked about this before. Today he'd be called a chef, back then "just" a cook. He worked in fine restaurants in NYC, and then places in NJ closer to home. I wonder what it would have been like for me to cook for him, and for me to have the benefit of his knowledge and support. That was not meant to be, but I think of him a lot when I'm in the kitchen.

I have not provided the recipe and with very good reason. This recipe takes 3 days to make, you serve on the 4th day. First a day is taken to make the vegan cream, vegan sour cream, and vegan cream cheese (disclaimer, I used premade vegan cream cheese for this video), those 3 components take 24 hours to set, minimum. The next day I combine those components with the rest of the creamy ingredients, and then give it at least another 24 hours to set. That same day I usually make the cake, but in this video, you'll see I used vegan lady fingers from a contributor on the vegan aquafaba site. I made several versions of them, the flavor is really great, but the rising was a problem for me. I do not fault author of the recipe, as I live super tropical, baking down here is always interesting with the year round humidity and heat. The cookies seemed to almost disintegrate in the dessert instead of absorbing the espresso, but the flavor was still perfect. I was going to buy some lady finger molds and work on the recipe some more, but for now I've decided against that. I make this recipe probably once every 2-3 YEARS. And, then the 3rd day I assemble the components into the actual tray, and allow it to set another 24 hours. Then day 4, you enjoy the fruits of your labor. If I make it that infrequently, imagine how you would feel... even less inspired. I'm a big fan of not spending events in the kitchen. I like simple things so my time can be spent with my friends when I'm entertaining. This recipe is NOT for the faint of heart, so just kinda go with me on the non-publication of this (I'm a little paranoid not sharing the recipe, last time I shared a picture on a social media site of one of mom's old recipes that I had veganized perfectly, I was shredded for not sharing, it got so bad I actually deleted my post!)

For your information, my creams are not nut based. Everything I use is typically made with soy, however I have also done the components using coconut milk with success. My thoughts are that far too many "cream" recipes are nut based (ie: cashews), again I'm NOT against nuts, but to rely on them too heavily is not the best idea for me. So many people that come to our place here have sensitivities, so I have a lot of excuses and reasons to experiment with vegan recipes that are allergen free, including gluten free, nut free, wheat free, soy free, and so forth. Always remember to have FUN in the kitchen, don't be so afraid to take a chance!

I find it a bit strange that tiramisu is not on more vegan restaurant's menus more often. There are SO many simple versions we can work up, including gluten free variations, there's no good reason for this not to be more readily available. Also, I never thought I'd take the plunge, but I did buy Chef Chloe's Vegan Italian Kitchen cookbook. I thought I'd never use it, but actually it's a GREAT book to have in the collection because the recipes are based on readily available ingredients, almost all of the recipes are uncomplicated, they taste great, and I've never found a typo in any of her books! She's got a tiramisu inspired recipe in there, I've made it, it's good!

Here's today's snappy little video, I hope you enjoy it. Now get cracking and make your own version of tiramisu. I'm taking this tray to my friends at the local health food store!!

Ciao for now!

xo

Vegan Month of Food 2016 - Day 6 "Comfort Food"

As usual, I'm different. My idea of comfort food doesn't usually comport with what most people typically want as comfort food. For me, I prefer a food that will nourish and heal... something that will heal my body, not just numb the mind when hurting. Many others associate comfort food with decadence. Things like super creamy mac & Gary, mashed potatoes with tons of gravy, cakes, donuts.... things of that nature. That's ok too, as long as it's vegan, it's on my plate at some point or another. I don't use bad times as an excuse to indulge in things that aren't the best choices for me. So, I bring you 2 comfort foods today... mine (detox "yoga" soup) and everyone else's (chik'n & dumplings--yes, damn good).

As I explain in the video, when I had some very intense pastry chef training a few years ago, I was feeling very unwell by about day 3. My instructor said "I know what you need! You need a detox or miso soup!" So, that's what I made for us, and magically we both felt so much better after we ate. As I also explain, I don't eat a lot of sugar (um, can we please forget about last night's "midnight snacking video") but I still ingest it through absorbing it through my skin as I work, as well as inhaling it during work (things I'd never considered until I went to see a healer for so many problems I was having).  I'm a baker. I spend countless hours working with the sweet stuff. It causes inflammation in my body, and sluggishness in my brain. I got sick of feeling sick, and eliminating sugar helps me.  This detox "yoga" soup is delicious and comes together in about 5 minutes. If you scroll down past the video, you'll see a list of suggested ingredients and a method for each. The other soup is a "chik'n & biscuit" style dish. It's super easy, and dirt cheap if you make your own seitan. It's hearty, creamy, warming. Actually it's a hug in a bowl.

Let's check them out:

Chik'n & Biscuits

4-6 cups veg stock, veg bouillon or un-chik'n bouillon

Choice of veggies, diced (I used carrots, onion, potato, edamame, corn)

seitan of choice (I made my own, method below)

your favorite biscuit recipe (I made my own, method below)

Seasonings of choice (I used sage, poultry seasoning, thyme and black pepper)

Bring water/stock to boil, turn heat to med. low, add veggies. Cook about 5-10 minutes, then add seitan (I shredded mine), keep on low about another 5 minutes. Mix up your biscuits (I mixed 1 cup flour, 2.5 tsp. baking powder, sage, thyme, black pepper; cut in 2.5 tablespoons vegan margarine, then mixed in about 1/2 cup non-dairy milk). When ready, spoon the biscuit mix on top of the soup/stew in blobs. Cover, keep on low about 7 minutes, uncover, check biscuits for doneness, should be ready to eat. Ladle into bowls. Prepare to receive compliments and hugs.

Seitan

I used about 1/2 bag of gluten I had leftover from something else, dumped in a bowl, sprinkled in some chickpea flour, poultry seasoning, and whisked well. Added in water until it became not too wet, not too dry, pulled to mix well, and shaped into logs. Slice. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of seasoned water to boil (use what you want: veg bouillon, poultry seasoning, sage, thyme, whatever.... if you don't season this enough, your seitan will be a little bland, but that's still ok, it's going to take on flavors of whatever recipe you use it in). Add uncooked seitan to boiling pot of magically seasoned water. Turn heat to medium low, cook 1/2 hour, stirring and pushing down occasionally (cook covered), then for about another 15 minutes or so, cook uncovered. Let cool. Use what you need, freeze or refrigerate the rest. Keep your leftover seitan in some of the stock water so it doesn't dry out. (Do I hear buffalo style seitan calling you????)

Jen's Detox "Yoga" Soup

About 4 cups water

Bragg's liquid aminos

Ginger, powdered or sliced, whatever you want.... amount to taste. I used a decent amount!

Mushrooms, washed & sliced.... MANY!

edamame, shelled

rice noodles or whatever you call those Asian noodles that you add to stuff after finished cooking, they're magic, you don't cook them, they're like little threads

You can add: miso (always add miso after done cooking, never boil miso), dark greens, tiny bits of tofu, broccoli, things like that. Whatever you want.

Serve with diced scallions, seeds on top, any type of hot sauce.

This is MY idea of comfort food.... it resets my body when it's far too overloaded with crap, especially sugar.

Hope you like the video and food.... cooking should be from the heart, more experimental than rigid. Use what you have on hand, and just go for it.

xo

Vegan Month of Food 2016 - Day 5 "Midnight Snacking"

Our assigned prompt today is "midnight snacking." I would not lie to you... I do not go for midnight snacking. No lectures to anyone who chooses to indulge, but it's just not for me.

Imagine my surprise (and good luck) however that tonight we attended the annual banquet for Save-A-Turtle of the Florida Keys. It's a non-profit here in the Keys that we volunteer for. Save-A-Turtle volunteers are the permitted people who walk Keys beaches in search of sea turtle nests during nesting season. We also do the excavations, and some of us are also part of something called the stranding and salvage network. All that being said, once a year after nesting season is just about over, we gather for an evening of fun and turtle talk with food (vegan food is always represented), raffles and other good stuff. Yours truly donated the desserts this year, which consisted of a bunch of organic vegan cheesecakes.  For good measure I also donated a couple pounds of allergen free triple threat chocolate biscotti... nut free, soy free, wheat free, gluten free, egg free, dairy free, of course vegan!  I packed my cake slice up and took it home after the banquet. It's coming up on 11pm right now.... not quite midnight, but close enough. Indeed I'm going to take a couple bites as soon as I'm done here. See how I don't lecture you for regular midnight snacking... now do me the same solid and don't lecture me about eating sugar which is off my approved list. Sometimes a girl just has to.

By the way, where I am we "fall back" tonight, meaning we set our clocks back 1 hour to Eastern Standard Time. For anyone that might be wondering, while summer is the best day of the year by my personal standards, by innkeeper standards, this is the second best time of the year. An entire extra hour of my eyes slammed shut before mixing waffle batter. Just dreamy.

Oh... and my handbag tonight.... by Calico Dragon. Found at the Central Florida VegFest. I may be paring down possessions, but I would have been incomplete if I did not have the bag shown in this video.

Cake! Vegan style.

xo

Vegan Month of Food 2016 - Day 4 "Eating Out"

Without a doubt one of the most frequent questions we get from people who are thinking of visiting is "what about eating out?" Well.... what about that? Oh sure, island living is an adjustment for those of us who weren't born all islandy, but once you become part of the flow, instead of resisting the flow, it all falls into place.

Our beautiful Florida Keys are chock full of small "mom & pop" type places (some without the mom, some without the pop, some maybe run by dogs, who knows....) which are absolutely the backbone of this community. For many people, there is a lot of misinterpreted information about what it's like to be a small business owner. We dream about, and talk about all the time we're going to have off because "it's our business" but the fact of the matter is in small business, generally you work harder than you ever planned to, and see far less of that illusive time off dreamt of and spoken of. Despite this, we soldier on and most of us do have satisfaction and pride in how we run our small businesses in spite of the huge sacrifices it often requires.

The natural food stores in the Keys are among my favorite places down here. In Marathon, there is Food for Thought, in Big Pine there is Good Food Conspiracy, in Key West there is Date & Thyme, and the Sugar Apple. I've written about all these places through the years, done videos, taken pictures, and urged you all to patronize these places while visiting Paradise. Eating out in the Keys is really not difficult as vegans; not to mention The Cafe, on Southard Street in Key West which is a funky sit down restaurant open all day with tons of vegan options, including vegan desserts.  There's plenty of places in the Upper Keys too, although we don't venture that far too often. Most any place will provide a vegan meal upon request, although some places are better at it than others. Also, we caution everyone to stay far away from fish houses down here as they really don't care about vegans and will not make any effort at all (sure, there are exceptions, but be prepared as well to sit among the fish heads, ok?) When we combine our love of supporting small business owners, as well as those in the natural food industry, it's a given that one of our most favorite places to eat out is Food for Thought in Marathon. If I could bring you "smell-o-vision" on this blog and on my videos this is the place you'd need to be. Often times the faint smells waft outside, and I'm treated before I even walk in. The place is sparkling clean, modern, perfectly organized, has wonderful people working there, and the cafe.... OMG the cafe.... Christina makes magic in the kitchen, it is restaurant quality food every time we go in.

Today is Friday, which at Food For Thought is "Living Food Friday" on the specials board. Come watch my little video as we have lunch at Food for Thought in our beautiful Florida Keys. We may not have all the fancy places that big cities have, but we want for nothing down here, trust me.

I'm not sure if they're doing it again this year, but in years past, they even run a ThanksLiving special in the cafe for vegans. You place your order ahead of time, they cook and pack a vegan ThanksLiving meal for you at a set price that you pick up the day before. We've ordered our ThanksLiving meals from them on more than 1 occasion in the past. For us, that holiday is just another work day, so it's super-duper that they've done this, not to mention that finding vegan food in the Keys on holidays can be more difficult than a regular day. This is because most restaurants are either closed, or do a "special menu" on holidays, ditching their regular menus, thus becoming much more reluctant to go off menu for vegans or any other needs. The magnitude of the amount of death that ramps up during holiday season is really difficult for me (and so many others) to cope with. Although Food For Thought is not a dedicated vegan grocer, it's important to note that there is a lot of thought and effort that goes into the selection of items there, as well as the offerings in the cafe. The fact that they regularly "tip their hat" to the vegan lifestyle through books, prepared food, groceries, the newest vegan products as they become available to our island chain (aka Mars) and other means of community outreach speaks volumes to the fact that this IS a very important lifestyle (although I will take the argument that compassion is always the BEST way of life). 

See you next time!

Vegan Strong!

xo

Vegan MoFo 2016-Day 3 "I don't have time to cook!" meal....

Groundhog day around here.... too busy, not enough hours, extra stuff to do, blah blah blah.... today's prompt is something like "I don't have time to cook" so what's my go to meal. 

I was going to open a box of PowerO's and pour them in a bowl, but it's Vegan Month of Food, I felt obligated to do something more than that (although just barely).

For what this is, and the amount of time invested, it's delicious. The sauce is super. This is an oil free dish, and depending on how much Bragg's and what type of ketchup you use, it can be low sodium (I'm not low sodium generally speaking, but I do cut it out anytime possible, this dish is another example by using low sodium broth).

It's late, I'm still working; I've got to still hit the gym, and feed the little ferals I look after in the secret spot. I'll see you tomorrow. At least I've got lunch all fixed up already! 

Go vegan, stay vegan!

xo