Bryanna Clark Grogan’s Vegan Feast Kitchen/ 23rd Century Table

I've been refreshing my old sourdough starter lately, thanks to the interest of a couple of friends.  I've been playing with no-knead crusty sourdough bread and will do a post on that very soon.

While refreshing my starter and making extra for my friends, I found myself with too much starter today, but so nice and bubbly and sour that I couldn't bring myself to throw it away.  Since we were expecting company today, I decided to make a batch of sourdough biscuits.  I literally hadn't made them for years.

These are the BEST biscuits-- golden and crispy on the outside and tender and layered on the inside.  Make sure that your starter in active and fresh.  It should be about the consistency of a pancake batter, but full of bubbles.

Fresh, bubbly sourdough starter

Printable Copy

BRYANNA'S SOURDOUGH ROLLED BISCUITS
Yield: 12

1 cup unbleached flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup very cold (or frozen) vegan butter (see my homemade palm oil-free vegan "Buttah" recipe)
1 cup fresh, bubbly sourdough starter (see my starter recipe and instructions for use)
NOTE: you may need a few sprinkles of non-dairy milk OR flour

Mix together the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder in a medium bowl.  Add the cold vegan butter and quickly rub in with a pastry cutter or your fingers until bits of vegan butter are like crumbs.

Pour in the starter and stir with a fork until it is a dough that holds together.  If the dough is too wet, add a bit more flour.  If it is too dry, add a few sprinkles of non-dairy milk until it hold together.

On a floured surface (best to use a piece of baking parchment or a silicone mat) pat or roll out the dough into a rectangle about 3/4" thick.  Fold in thirds.  Roll out again and fold into thirds.  Roll and pat into a rectangle about 1/2" thick.

Turn oven to 425 degrees F.  Cut the dough into 12 squares or, with a biscuit cutter, into 12 rounds or hexagons. (You can push the scraps together, fold once and roll out gently, then cut out as many as you can.)

Place the biscuits in a 9-10" round shallow layer cake pan, not quite touching.  Cover loosely with a clean tea towel and let rise for 15 minutes.  Brush the tops with soymilk or spray lightly with oil. Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes, or until golden.

Serve hot or cool on rack and reheat in a 350 degree F oven for a few minutes

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per biscuit):  95 calories, 36 calories from fat, 4g total fat, 0mg cholesterol, 175.5mg sodium, 51.5mg potassium, 12.4g carbohydrates, less than 1g fiber, less than 1g sugar, 1.9g protein.

Enjoy!

Last week I made a batch of my vegan taco filling from one of my older books ("Soyfoods Cooking for a Positive Menopause") and we had tacos for two days running.  (I had added some coarsely-mashed black beans to the taco filling this time.) I stored the remainder of the filling, Tofu Sour Creme, salsa and shredded lettuce in the refrigerator. A couple of days later, we arrived home late and I contemplated the contents of my refrigerator, and  spied these leftovers. However, I didn't feel like messing with taco shells this time.  I grabbed some potatoes (locally grown thin-skinned yellow German Butter [Sieglinde] potatoes), scrubbed and poked them with a knife, and microwaved them while I heated the taco filling.

Sieglinde (German Butter) Potatoes

The buttery-tasting potatoes were delicious topped with our taco filling and condiments, and I served a friend's tasty bean salad (made with his home-grown beans) alongside.

This recipe, by the way, includes my recipe for making homemade red chile paste, which is very easy to make and can be stored in the refrigerator, in a sealed jar, for weeks.  

I love it when we can use up good food in a delicious and creative way!



Printable Copy (of both recipes)

BRYANNA'S EASY VEGAN TACO, TOSTADA, OR BURRITO FILLING
(From my book "Soyfoods Cooking for a Positive Menopause", slightly revised.)
© Bryanna Clark Grogan 2015
Enough for 12 tacos or tostadas, or 6 burritos.

If you package of taco shells in the pantry, or some tortillas in the refrigerator, this deliciously spicy, kids-of-all-ages-pleasing dinner won't take long.

Your choice of vegan "burger":
3 to 31/2 cups firm tofu, which has been frozen at least 48 hours, thawed, squeezed dry and crumbled
OR commercial vegan "hamburger crumbles" 
OR ground seitan 
OR reconstituted granulated textured soy protein (my favorite is So Soya+ Ground Veggie Burger, which is organic and kosher certified) 
OR the crumbs from Soy Curls (or crushed Soy Curls), reconstituted
Additional ingredients:
1/4 c. Bryanna's Red Chile Paste (see recipe below)
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 T. extra-virgin olive oil

Mix the vegan "burger" of your choice with the Red Chile Paste in a bowl, combining it in well.

In a large heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, add the onion and sauté until it softens.  Add the "burger"/chile paste mixture and cook over low heat for about 10 minutes, adding a little water if it dries out too much.

Fill the heated taco or tostada shells, or warm soft wheat or corn tortillas-- we add shredded lettuce or cabbage, a good spicy tomato salsa, avocado, if we have it, and tofu sour creme.

Cooked pinto or black beans, or vegetarian refried beans, are optional.  You could also add some hashbrown potatoes and/or grated vegan "cheese", if you like.

BRYANNA'S RED CHILE PASTE
(From my book "Soyfoods Cooking for a Positive Menopause", slightly revised.)
© Bryanna Clark Grogan 2015
Yield: 1 3/4 cups

1/2 c. good-quality chile powder
7 T. red wine vinegar
2 T. dried red chile pepper flakes
4 vegetarian broth powder or paste (or enough for 4 cups liquid)
1 T. dark sesame oil 
1 T. unbleached flour or 2 tsp. rice flour
1 T. Marmite (or other yeast extract paste) OR 2 T. red miso 
1 T. water
1 T. salt 
6 cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 tsp. dried oregano 
1/2 tsp. ground cumin

Mix all of the ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Store in a sealed jar in the refrigerator.

Enjoy!