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

Last night we had a fabulous vegan "Thanksmas" dinner (which is becoming a yearly tradition) at our friends Sarah and Gordon's lovely house with our 5-couple vegan dinner group.  I'll post about the dinner in a day or two, but there was some interest expressed on my Facebook page about the recipe for the dinner rolls I was making, so that's the subject of this blog post.

I wanted to make a nice fluffy roll, but with some fiber, and I wanted to go the no-knead route because it's so easy and convenient.  I couldn't find a suitable recipe in any of the six no-knead bread books that I own, or even online, so I "winged" it.  I kept it simple, using a combination of unbleached white flour with wheat bran for added fiber (without cutting down on the "fluffiness"), and using soy milk for most of the liquid, because soy acts as a "dough conditioner", making light, soft breads.  (I already know that the no-knead method allows the dough to develop exceptional flavor and gives strength to the gluten the way kneading ordinarily would [see the following posts for more info: 1.), 2.), 3.)].)  The hazelnuts add an elegant touch.

Well, it turned out to be a great success (not one left!) and I'm happy to share the recipe with you-- these rolls would be great with just about any holiday dinner.


Printable Recipe

As a little prelude to holiday cooking, I made this recipe from my book, The Fiber for life Cookbook last week.  Not only is it moist and dark and rich with spices and molasses, but it also happens to be whole grain, fiber-rich and low in fat.  I had a bit of my vegan caramel sauce leftover from another recipe, so I decided to "doll up" my homespun gingerbread with a drizzle of that and some toasted hazelnuts.  Perfect!

I called this recipe "Gingerbread" in the book because that's what we always called this type of dark, spicy, moist ginger cake baked in a square pan when I was growing up. But, it occurred to me that "gingerbread" is a cookie, too, so it's confusing. I'm hedging my bets and calling it a "Gingerbread Cake" this time!

Researching gingerbread quickly, I see that it can refer to anything from this type of moist cake to a fairly dry cookie (or biscuit, as it's called in the UK). What they have in common, besides the ginger, is the uses of molasses (or treacle), or possibly honey for at least part of the sweetener.  The following type of recipe is much like the British ginger cake, but without the traditional lemon sauce.

Try this with tea on a cold day!

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA’S WHOLE WHEAT GINGERBREAD CAKE (can be SF or GF or both)
makes 1/ 9” square pan/ 9 servings
Moist, dark and spicy—also low-fat and fiber-rich.

WET MIX:
1/4 cup water
1 T. flax seeds
1 cup dark molasses
1/2 T. lemon juice + any nondairy milk to make 1/2 cup
1/2 cup light organic granulated sugar
1/3 cup smooth applesauce
2 T. oil (olive oil works well in this)
DRY MIX:
2 cup whole wheat pastry flour (a GF flour mix would probably work fine with this-- they usually work well with simple cakes)
1 T. powdered ginger
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. allspice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. grease and flour a 9" square pan.

In a blender, blend the water and flaxseeds until “gloppy” like egg whites. Add the remaining Wet Mix ingredients and blend well.

In a medium bowl mix the Dry Mix ingredients well. Pour in the Wet Mix and mix briefly. Spread the batter in the prepared pan and bake 25-35 minutes, testing with a cake tester. Serve warm or cool.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 285.8 calories; 12% calories from fat; 4.2g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 267.2mg sodium; 699.4mg potassium; 61.1g carbohydrates; 4.0g fiber; 32.4g sugar; 57.0g net carbs; 4.3g protein; 5.3 points.


"DOLLED UP" VARIATION:
Drizzle the top of the warm cake with about 1/4 cup Caramel Sauce (see recipe below) and sprinkle with 3/4 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts.

With the Variation the Nutrition Facts are as follows: Nutrition (per serving): 396.4 calories; 25% calories from fat; 11.9g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 288.0mg sodium; 796.9mg potassium; 71.4g carbohydrates; 5.1g fiber; 40.3g sugar; 66.4g net carbs; 6.2g protein; 8.1 points

BRYANNA'S VEGAN CARAMEL SAUCE (makes about 1 cup):
1/3 cup brown rice syrup
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbs. brown sugar
2 Tbs vegan butter (such as my homemade vegan palm oil-free Buttah)
1/8 tsp salt
1/3 cup vegan creamer
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Bring the syrup, brown sugar, Earth Balance and salt to a boil in a heavy saucepan and boil over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the consistency of heavy syrup.

Remove from heat and cool a bit. Heat the creamer just until warm. Whisk into the syrup along with vanilla.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per 2 tablespoons): 173.1 calories; 18% calories from fat; 3.4g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 93.7mg sodium; 59.9mg potassium; 37.9g carbohydrates; 0.0g fiber; 33.1g sugar; 37.9g net carbs; 0.7g protein; 3.7 points.


Enjoy!

Lunch on the deck yesterday
Nothing spectacular this week (we're trying to get our garden in and do some hardcore cleaning and organizing in the house!).  I'm working on some interesting stuff for future blogs, though! It was a beautiful day yesterday (unlike today!), so we ate out on the back deck, shaded by our wild plum tree. The menu was simple-- a salad and  Ryvita crackers with Tofu Eggless Salad.



For some reason I was craving "Egg" Salad-- not always my favorite food as an omni.  I have a recipe from one of my first books, but I improved on it a few years ago, and I had a further idea to improve it yesterday.  Below is the result, and I was quite happy with it.  We had it on rye crackers, but it's delicious in raw bell pepper "cups", on celery sticks or cucumber rounds, on firm, dark pumpernickel bread squares (see my homemade dark Dutch pumpernickel recipe), or in sandwiches (firm white bread with the crusts cut off?).



Our salad was a version of one I found on the internet, using up some veggies that needed using-- asparagus, broccoli, and radishes.  It's supposed to serve 3 people, but the 2 of us ate the whole thing!

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I decided to use extra-firm silken tofu instead of medium-firm regular tofu, but instead of mashing all of the tofu, kept back 3/4 cup (1/2 a box) of it and cut it into tiny cubes to give the texture of hard-cooked egg whites.


Printable Recipe


Servings: 12
Yield: 3 cups
This is delicious not only on sandwiches, but on crackers and celery sticks. It is also good in stuffed small tomatoes or wide strips of raw bell pepper.

18.45 oz. (1 1/2 boxes)    extra-firm silken tofu  
2/3 cup vegan mayonnaise (I use my Low-fat Eggless Mayonnaise, but you can use Reduced-Fat Veganaise or Spectrum Naturals Eggless, Vegan Light Canola Mayonnaise instead)  
1 green onion, finely-minced  
1 stalk celery, finely-minced  
1 1/2 tablespoons    nutritional yeast flakes  
1/2 tablespoon    cider vinegar  
1/2 tablespoon    turmeric  
3/4 teaspoon    salt  (or Indian "black salt" for a more "egg-y" flavor)
1 teaspoon    sugar  
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice  
1/4 teaspoon garlic granules  
1/4 teaspoon onion powder  
1/4 teaspoon    paprika  
OPTIONAL:  
1/4 cup    hand-chopped red bell pepper  
1/2 teaspoon dried dillweed OR 1/2 tablespoon chopped fresh dillweed  
  OR whatever herbs and seasonings take your fancy!  
 
Open and drain the tofu. Crumble 1 box of tofu (12.3 ounces) into a bowl and mash coarsely with a fork. Cut the remaining tofu into 1/4" cubes and set aside.

Add the remaining ingredients (EXCEPT for the tofu cubes) to the mashed tofu and fold until well-combined. Fold in the tofu cubes and mix gently. Cover and refrigerate. The mixture firms up when chilled.

        Nutrition Facts (using my homemade Low-fat Eggless Mayonnaise):
Nutrition (per 1/4 cup): 52.5 calories; 43% calories from fat; 2.6g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 233.9mg sodium; 128.8mg potassium; 3.5g carbohydrates; 0.6g fiber; 1.1g sugar; 2.8g net carbs; 4.2g protein; 1.1 points.
        Nutrition Facts Using Reduced-Fat Vegenaise:
Nutrition (per 1/4 cup): 73.0 calories; 63% calories from fat; 5.5g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 231.3mg sodium; 118.4mg potassium; 3.2g carbohydrates; 0.5g fiber; 1.1g sugar; 2.7g net carbs; 3.9g protein; 1.8 points.
        Nutrition Facts using Spectrum Naturals Eggless, Vegan Light Canola Mayo:
Nutrition (per 1/4 cup): 63.8 calories; 57% calories from fat; 4.1g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 203.8mg sodium; 118.4mg potassium; 3.2g carbohydrates; 0.5g fiber; 1.1g sugar; 2.7g net carbs; 3.9g protein; 1.5 points.

 
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I veganized this recipe and cut the oil down from 3 tablespoons to 1 tablespoon. I had no shallots, so I used green onions and garlic instead, and no pine nuts, so I used toasted hazelnuts (and I used 1/2 cup instead of 1/4 cup). Very tasty!

Printable Recipe

ASPARAGUS, BROCCOLI AND RADISH SALAD WITH HAZELNUTS
 Servings: 3
 Adapted from a recipe from http://www.101cookbooks.com/

12 spears thick asparagus, sliced diagonally about 3/8" thick  
5-6 broccoli florets, trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces  
1 Tbs olive oil  
1 1/2 Tbs fresh lemon juice  
1/4 tsp salt  
1 clove garlic, crushed  
2 green onions, chopped  
3 Tbs aquafaba or oil substitute for salad dressing  
1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted, and coarsely chopped  
5-6 medium    radishes, washed trimmed and very thinly sliced  
  zest of one lemon  
OPTIONAL: Parmesan sub  (Go Veggie!Vegan or Parma! or Parma Zaan Sprinkles or my homemade okara/nut/miso version)

Wash the asparagus and broccoli well and set aside. Make the dressing by whisking together the lemon juice, salt, garlic and oil sub. Set aside.

To cook the asparagus, place the olive oil in a large skillet or wok over high heat. When the pan is hot add the asparagus and broccolini. Toss well , adding a sprinkle of salt. Stir-cook add a squirt of water now and then to keep from drying out (I use a squirt-type water bottle for this). You don't want to overcook the vegetables here, they should be bright and with a bit of bite to them. 

When the vegetables are cooked, remove them from the heat and stir in the hazelnuts, green onions, radishes and lemon zest. Taste; add a bit of salt if needed. Toss with the dressing.

Turn everything out onto a platter and finish with some Parmesan sub (see suggestions in ingredient list).

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 191.9 calories; 72% calories from fat; 16.3g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 170.0mg sodium; 410.1mg potassium; 9.9g carbohydrates; 4.0g fiber; 2.9g sugar; 5.9g net carbs; 5.5g protein; 4.4 points.

Enjoy!

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