Notes from the Vegan Feast Kitchen/ 21st Century Table

Enjoy!

BRYANNA'S MUSHROOM-TEMPEH BURGERS
Makes 9 burgers 
DH ordinarily dislikes tempeh, but he loves these. They are moist and tasty. I usually double this recipe and freeze leftovers. I use a food processor and/or mini-chopper to mince everything finely, which saves alot of time. The pre-steaming of the burgers cooks the gluten and keeps the burgers moist. After they are cool they can be browned in a non-stick pan or a flat indoor grill. I have been working on this recipe off and on for a few years. (Sorry the pics are so fuzzy!)
Note:  If you prefer to serve these on a bun, check out the homemade vegan bun recipes at this blog post.

TVP Mixture:
1 cup textured soy protein (TVP/TSP) granules
7/8 cup boiling water mixed with a vegetarian broth cube, powder or paste for 1 c. broth
1 Tbs soy sauce
Steam-Fried Mixture:
1/2 Tbs olive oil or dark sesame oil
water, broth or dry sherry for steam-frying, if necessary
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, minced
6 oz raw mushrooms, minced finely
2 Tbs tomato paste
1 Tbs yeast extract (Marmite, etc.) OR 2 T. red or dark miso
freshly-ground black pepper to taste
Tempeh:
8 oz tempeh (I prefer the milder 5 or 7 grain tempeh), thawed and crumbled
1 Tbs soy sauce
Additional Ingredients:
1 cup well-cooked cooked bulgur wheat (fine [#1] or medium [#2])
(See Cooking Tip below)
1/2 tsp EACH dried thyme and marjoram, or other herbs or spices that you like
1/3 cup pure gluten flour (Vital wheat gluten)
1/2-1 tsp liquid smoke (OPTIONAL)

1.) In a large bowl, mix the textured soy protein with the boiling water, broth cube, and 1 T. soy sauce. Let stand while you prepare the other ingredients.


NOTE: FOR THE STEAM-FRIED MIXTURE, I mince the garlic in a food processor, then add the onion, chunked and mince it well. After I empty that out, I mince the halved mushrooms in the same processor container-- you don't need to wash it first.
2.) STEAM-FRYING
Stove-Top Option: Heat the oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic til the onion starts to soften, adding a bit of water, broth or sherry as needed to keep the mixture from sticking.

Add the mushrooms, and cook 5 minutes longer. Remove from heat and stir in the tomato paste and Marmite or miso, and pepper to taste. Spread the mixture on a cookie sheet. Place in freezer to cool quickly for a few minutes.

Microwave option: This saves time and effort, so it's the one I use. Place the onions and garlic in a microwave-safe pie plate or casserole with the oil, and cover. Microwave 5 minutes. Stir in the minced mushrooms and microwave 3 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and Marmite or miso, and pepper to taste. Spread the mixture on a cookie sheet. Place in freezer to cool quickly for a few minutes.

3.) Crumble the tempeh into a bowl and stir in the 1 T. soy sauce. Mash it with the tines of a fork, mixing well.

4.) Add the bulgur, herbs, and optional liquid smoke, if using, to the soaked TVP mixture. Mix in the tempeh and the cooled sautéed mushroom mixture. Mix well.

5.) When the mixture is on the cool side (you can spread it on a cookie sheet and put it in the freezer for a few minutes for a quick cool-down), add the gluten flour (don't add it to a hot mixture, or it will be” stringy"). Mix well again.

6.) Divide the mixture into 9 / 1/2-cup balls and pat into patties (4" across) with wet hands. I pat them down on a parchment-covered cookie sheet to get an even shape.



7.) Steam over simmering water for 20 minutes. (I line the steamer with cooking parchment, with holes poked in it with a bamboo skewer.) Place on cookie sheets and chill thoroughly before stacking with sheets of waxed paper in between and refrigerating or freezing in a rigid plastic container with a tight lid.



                                          The steamed burgers before they are browned.

8.) To brown, use a non-stick pan with a bit of olive or toasted sesame oil, or a flat nonstick sandwich grill. Serve on buns, or on their own with a favorite sauce or gravy.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 138.9 calories; 22% calories from fat; 3.8g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 221.3mg sodium; 329.5mg potassium; 13.4g carbohydrates; 1.5g fiber; 1.4g sugar; 14.7g protein, 2.8 points.

Cooking Tip:
To cook bulgur wheat-- use a fine or medium grain bulgur. Bring 1 cup bulgur to a boil in a small saucepan with 2 cups water and a little salt. Turn down to low, cover, and cook 15 minutes. Use leftovers for a dinner grain side dish, like rice.

Enjoy!

Happy New Year, everyone!  I'm feeling pretty energized and ready for some new projects (three lined up for myself so far) to get me through the winter.  I'd like to tell you a little about one of them in this first post of 2012, and post a successful recipe utilizing an experiment on that project.

Several people whom I really respect have been reminding me about the problems with palm oil. We generally eat pretty low-fat and don't eat alot of packaged foods or use solid shortening, so I was, I admit, pushing it to the back of my mind.  But the elephant in the room, so to speak, was Earth Balance, the best-tasting and vegan butter substitute around, which is good for baking, too. (Should we start a writing campaign to convince them to change their formula?)   And, yes, we are careful with our use of it, have our toast only with low-sugar jam or marmalade, use homemade low-fat spreads whenever possible, use primarily olive oil in cooking, etc., etc. But, for many of us, unless we are on a fat-free regime, there are those times when you need a vegan butter substitute, particularly for baking.

So, long story short, my first project of 2012 is to develop a homemade version of vegan "butter" that is a.) easy to make; b.) tastes good and "buttery"; c.) is made from simple ingredients that are not difficult to find; d.) has the potential to be made from organic and even some fair trade ingredients; e.)  is similar to butter in the balance between  fat, solids and liquids;  f.) has a better balance of fats than Earth Balance and other solid fats (my goal is more monounsaturated fats than saturated or polyunsaturated fats);  g.) contains little or no coconut oil ( see this short video  from Dr. Michael Greger and this also), and, of course, no palm oil; and h.) can be used both as a good tasting spread or in baking, substituting across the board for butter or Earth Balance (and instead of palm oil shortening).
After many hours of research and some experiments I think I'm almost there!  Here are some photos of my latest experiment (which meets all the criteria above) and it's pretty darn good, if I do say so myself.  I have another version to try before I share it (providing that works!).



Of course, while I'm doing this I'm trying to stay on a low-fat diet! But I wanted to try it in baking, so I made some scones (I only made half the recipe)-- some fancy ones, I admit.  The vegan "butter" (I need to find a name) worked just like the "real thing" in the recipe and the scones came out beautifully!  The recipe is below-- it's not low-fat but makes a lovely treat for a company tea or coffee party.

I'll post my "butter" recipe as soon as I'm completely happy with it, so stay tuned!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday!  Ours was fun, hectic, and full of family!  We had too much good, Christmasy food and still have lots of leftovers remaining, even though I sent some home with guests.  After several days of this, I'm craving rice, pasta, soup, tomato-y dishes, spicy food!  So, when it's just us after the festivities, this is the sort of thing that does the trick...a really quick, nutritious and delicious dish, a simplified, veganized version of a Thai dish called "Praram", which is often made with chicken.  (A birthday and the  New Year to go now!)




BRYANNA'S THAI-STYLE SPINACH AND TOFU WITH PEANUT SAUCE (SIMPLIFIED VEGAN "PRARAM")
Serves 3

Quick Peanut Sauce: 
1/4 cup peanut butter 
1/2 cup vegan broth 
1/2 cup plain nondairy milk 
2 tablespoons coconut flour or creamed coconut
NOTE: Instead of the soymilk and coconut flour or creamed coconut, you can use a generous half cup of lite coconut milk. 
2 tablespoons  Thai sweet chile sauce (there are many brands of this-- here's one) 
1 tablespoon lemon juice (or 2 tablespoons lime juice) 
1 tablespoon soy sauce 
The rest of the dish: 
2 tablespoons mushroom-based vegetarian "oyster" sauce (Lee Kum Kee brand is called "Vegetarian Stir-Fry Sauce", and I have a homemade recipe here) 
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil 
a few shakes of Thai or Vietnamese hot sauce 
1 tablespoon peanut oil, or other oil 
12 ounces firm tofu (NOT silken), cubed 
12 oz fresh, cleaned baby spinach 
freshly-steamed basmati rice 

Whisk together the peanut sauce ingredients in a small saucepan and heat gently. In a small bowl, mix 1/2 cup of this sauce with the vegetarian "oyster" sauce, sesame oil and hot sauce. Reserve the rest of the sauce in the pan. 

Heat the peanut oil in a large nonstick skillet or wok. Add the tofu cubes and quickly brown them. Add the peanut sauce/"oyster" sauce mixture in the small bowl to the tofu. Stir this around until the tofu absorbs most of it. 

Add the spinach to the tofu and stir over high heat JUST until the spinach wilts. Spoon the mixture immediately over steamed rice and top with the remaining peanut sauce. 

Nutrition Facts (without rice)
Nutrition (per serving): 352.4 calories; 62% calories from fat; 24.8g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 582.7mg sodium; 1049.2mg potassium; 15.9g carbohydrates; 5.1g fiber; 7.2g sugar; 10.8g net carbs; 19.7g protein; 8.3 points. 


Happy New Year!

I almost forgot to announce this! Go to this link for the recipe(s) , which I developed a few weeks ago for the So Delicious Dairy Free blog, using their Coconut Milk Beverage (Original) in all three (dairy-free, soy-free, and gluten-free) components of the recipe. These recipes might seem complex at first, but as you'll see, with all three components, you'll be creating a stupendously delicious dairy-free (and gluten-free!) meal—or you can enjoy the waffles, crispy sweet potatoes, or chik'n gravy served with your favorite accompaniments.  And since most of the recipes can be made well ahead of time, this hearty meal will be a snap to put together when it's time to serve!"


Enjoy!

This blog post is going to be truly short and sweet, as I am recuperating from my first cold in 2 years and trying to summon up enough energy to organize and clean my house, and plan menus and make-aheads for my holiday guests.

I want to share a brunch recipe from my new book, The World Vegan Feast. (Actually, you can serve it any time of the day, and it's often served as a bar snack in Spain.) It's a Spanish omelet that is similar to an Italian fritatta, but it always contains potato. In Spain this omelet is called a tortilla de patatas or tortilla española.

I had developed a tortilla española recipe earlier on, but I'm always trying to improve on recipes. I was in the mood for a hearty Spanish potato omelet one day when we were taking lunch over to our friends Jane and Matsuki's house. I chose to make this dish because it’s a perfect choice for toting to potluck meals and picnics, given that it can be eaten hot or at room temperature. It's also open to many variations-- for instance, you might want to add sliced roasted red bell peppers or cooked artichoke hearts.  But I thought that my recipe lacked something, so I changed my formula to add some chickpea flour-- bingo!  Firmer texture and more eggy flavor-- just what I was after.

Just a little aside about spelling: "Omelet" or "Omelette"?


This omelet was made a bit thicker than the one pictured above-- those are my friend Jane's cute little bluebird salt and pepper shakers peeking from behind.


Printable Recipe


BRYANNA'S TOFU AND CHICKPEA FLOUR TORTILLA DE PATATAS (SPANISH POTATO OMELET) WITH ROMESCO SAUCE
Serves 4 to 6