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

The big rectangular pan holds my Tofu Pot Pie; bread and cornbread stuffing to the right; Pelka's "Wadorf-y" green salad above that; Sarah's mashed Comox Valley German Butter potatoes above that. Center right-- a trio of condiments-- orange-y homemade cranberry sauce, my homemade palm oil-free vegan "Buttah" and  vegan "ham" gravy, flanked by a platter of my roasted beets with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Above that is a platter of roasted local veggies, and beside that roasted home-grown cauliflower and red peppers.  At the top corner of the table is a butternut squash casserole; at the end of the table is my seitan "ham", and you can just see the corner of a glass bowl with lemon-almond green beans.  More description below!

My Tofu Pot Pie in the foreground (it's been a traditional holiday main dish since the 90's); my Cranberry Sauce on the right (I added orange rind, chopped orange and apple and some ginger, this year); and my roasted beets with olive oil and balsamic vinegar with parsley on the left.

  David and Tanya's delicious lemony-almond green beans.

                                                     My seitan "ham"

 David and Tanya's delicious casserole of butternut squash from their garden, baked with garlic and parsley and olive oil and topped with toasted sesame and nutritional yeast "Parmesan".

 On the left, Holly's roasted cauliflower and red peppers (both from her garden); on the right, my stuffing (a mix of DH's whole wheat bread and my cornbread, with traditional herbs, onion and celery).

              Fireweed's  gorgeous roasted local veggie platter.

 Along with the homemade cranberry sauce (described above), my homemade palm oil-free vegan "Buttah" and Vegan "Ham" Gravy.

 And for dessert, along with So Delicious Coconut Non-Dairy Vanilla Bean Frozen Dessert, my Ginger Apple Crumb Pie, made with all Denman Island apples (Mutsus from our neighbors at Apple Lane Orchard, and large Russets from friend and guest, Holly).

Phoebe and Ringo got lots of lovin' from our guests and family (Sadie and Thelonious made themselves scarce!) and they were all worn out by the evening!

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Pasta with Lemon, Asparagus, Peas and Vegan "Ham"

I posted a picture of this dish on a blog post back in May and promised to post the recipe. I'm finally getting around to it, after all of those desserts!

If you like creamy, lemony foods, you'll love this dish! And it's super easy and low-fat, as well! A perfect early summer supper dish.

Printable Recipe (sauce recipe included)


BRYANNA'S PASTA WITH LEMON, ASPARAGUS, PEAS AND VEGAN "HAM"
Serves 6

1 recipe Bryanna's Quick Creamy Sauce for Pasta (I used the sherry option)
1 lb. fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut into about 1" pieces
1 lb. wholewheat spaghetti or fettucine
approx. 2 cups slivered vegan "ham", loose-packed (such as Yves [I actually prefer their "bacon" to their "ham"])
1 1/4 cups frozen petit pois (baby peas), thawed
the juice of 1 large lemon
1/3 to 1/2 cup vegan Parmesan substitute (Follow Your Heart (Earth Island in Canada brand is excellent)
zest of 1 large organic lemon (use a citrus zester, if possible, for long slivers of zest, as pictured)
a handful of chopped chives

Make the Quick Creamy Pasta Sauce and set aside.

Put a large pot of salted water on to boil for the pasta.

Steam or blanch the asparagus pieces until just crisp-tender, and quickly run them under cold water to stop cooking. Drain and set aside.

When the water boils, add the pasta and cook until al dente.

While the pasta cooks, brown the ham slivers lightly in a large sauté pan, stir-fry pan or skillet (use a spray of oil from a pump-sprayer, if necessary). Add the peas and asparagus to the pan and stir-fry just to heat them up. Add the lemon juice to the Quick Creamy Pasta Sauce and then add the mixture to the skillet, along with the Parmesan substitute of your choice. Stir it around over medium heat until the sauce bubbles.

Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet and toss with the sauce so that everything is coated and the ingredients are evenly distributed.

Divide the pasta dish evenly between 5 pasta bowls or plates (preferably warm ones). Top each serving with some of the lemon zest and chives and serve immediately.

 Nutrition (per serving): 459.4 calories; 5% calories from fat; 3.1g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 1271.8mg sodium; 724.2mg potassium; 77.2g carbohydrates; 5.7g fiber; 3.9g sugar; 71.5g net carbs; 33.4g protein; 8.6 points.


Enjoy!

We, like many others on either coast, have had company all week-- visitors from land-locked Michigan (not counting the lakes!). They loved our area and we got to do some sight-seeing, which one rarely does in one's home region. Anyway, not much time for blogging, so here's a bit of this and that, including a recipe:


My Seitan "Ham". I wanted my guests (Lydia is a vegan personal chef) to try my vegan seitan "ham", so I made some and served it in the traditional manner. (Update:  I'm still planning a seitan cookbook and this recipe will be in it.)


Snap peas from our garden, stir-fried with Soy Curls (see here for info). The recipe, which I made for a casual lunch for our guests one day, is adapted from the Tofu with Snow Peas recipe in my book "Authentic Chinese Cuisine for the Contemporary Kitchen".






Strawberry Crepes or Blintzes. Blintzes are crepes (my vegan Tofu Crepes from my book "Soyfoods Cooking for a Positive Menopause", in this case) filled with cottage cheese and are supposed to be folded into bundles and browned in a bit of butter, but I usually bake them instead. I make my own Tofu Cottage Cheese . For fancier filled crepes (like the bottom photo), I use my Tofu Cashew Ricotta from my book "Nonna's Italian Kitchen". You could also use a commercial tofu "cream cheese", such as Tofutti or Sheese brands (or my new Okara/Cashew Ricotta).






My low-fat "Corn Butter". After the excesses of this last week, I'm trying to stay on Weight Watcher's Core Plan as much as possible, so I made some of my "Corn Butter", so I don't have to feel guilty when I "butter" a piece of DH's fresh-baked wholewheat bread!

I have fooled around with low-fat "fake butters" for years. This is my current favorite (Update, 2012: it still is!)-- tastes very good, melts and only 13.5 calories per tablespoon!  NOTE: Don't try to use this for baking or frying, etc., instead of butter or margarine, though-- it's only meant for spreading, topping potatoes, etc.

UPDATE, 2011: To make this spread richer, but still fairly low-calorie, add 1/2 cup of your favorite vegan "buttery spread" (see the recipe for my homemade vegan palm oil-free "Buttah") to the full recipe (or 1/4 cup to the half recipe at the end).  Add it after you have blended it smooth and blend a little more.  Then refrigerate as usual.  This makes a spread with about 40 calories per tablespoon instead of about 100 for butter or margarine.

Printable Recipe






Enjoy!