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

You may have seen the other yuba recipes I have shared on this blog. (See below for recipe links.)  This recipe is quite different from both the Chinese "Buddha's Roast Duck" and the two European-style stews (one with a Peruvian flair).  It's a recipe I developed for my now defunct vegan cooking newsletter, inspired by some Malaysian food I enjoyed in a Portland restaurant-- rich and spicy.

I love yuba-- it's a very versatile and satisfying food.  I hope you'll give it a try after you've read the information below and checked out the recipe.  Fortunately, you don't have to live in a city with a large Asian population anymore in order to source dried yuba sheets and sticks.  These products, and most of the other more unusual ingredients required for a recipe like this, are available online (see links in recipe ingredient list) and in Asian grocery stores, and, more recently, in many large supermarkets, as well-- check the "International" aisle.


Here is how to make your own yuba.

Dried Yuba sticks

Soaked yuba sticks

Soaked yuba sticks cut up for a stew

Brownies with bobble-y antennae on the ferry to Vancouver It's been two weeks since I blogged-- sorry about that! We went to Vancouver for the first time in a year (!!) to visit friends and relatives for a few days, and since then I've been playing catch-up in the house and practicing with my dance class for a little show. We ate very well in Vancouver (as usual)-- Vancouver is known for its wonderful and varied restaurants. We stayed with my cousin Chris and his partner Roxanne at their lovely little house in the East End. Chris is a retired landscaper, as you can see:

Fabric art show on the walls at Bandidas

Vegan soft taco sampler plate that I had (Roxanne, too)-- these are five of the 6 vegan fillings, all delicious.  (I forgot to take the picture until after I'd already eaten one!)

MR. B’S: Roasted potatoes, caramelized onions, pinto beans, cheese, sour cream, & roasted salsa (Daiya vegan cheese is available.)

We all shared freshly-made and smooth-as-silk Humus & Matabal (roasted eggplant & tahini), a spicy green pepper sauce and olives with pita

My main course was Mujadarah: rice, lentils and roasted onions and salad.  his is one of my favorite Middle Eastern dishes.  Yummy!

Sarah and Gordon and my DH Brian has the Vegan Stuffed Fresh Cabbage Rolls with salad-- delicous! (I had a taste.) ************************************************** We ate in on Sunday--  my youngest daughter Justine and her partner George and my youngest grandson  Logan came for breakfast, along with my stepson Laurence.  Justine brought delicious whole wheat vegan banana muffins, Roxanne made a beautiful fruit salad, we had sourdough bread from a Granville Island bakery, and also a lemon cranberry tea loaf that my sister had brought to us. For the main dish, I made five vegan onion, red and orange pepper and vegan "ham" Spanish potato tortillas (like fritattas/baked omelets)  from my book "World Vegan Feast")   We had so much food left over that we enjoyed the leftovers for another casual meal in the afternoon with DH's stepdaughter Barbara and her husband Mehdi. ******************************************** Our last meal in Vancouver was breakfast with my 2nd oldest granddaughter Kate at the Wallflower Modern Diner on Main St..  Kate grew up on Vancouver Is., but she is studying at Langara College in Vancouver and she's flourishing in the big city.   The Wallflower Modern Diner is another great place for a meal with a mixed crowd.  They have several vegan items for breakfast, lunch and dinner, but they are not run-of-the-mill. ( Check out the menu here. ) The vegan dishes are flavorful and interesting, and we plan to go there again.  Brian had the BBQ Tofu and Veggie Hash My granddaughter Kate at the Wallflower Modern Diner.  I had the Vegan Benny with salad and hash browns-- English muffins topped with grilled portobello mushroom, marinated tofu, and vegan cheesey sauce.  Yum! Thanks to Roxanne and Chris for a great visit and for being such wonderful hosts, as always! ************************************* I didn't want to end this post without a recipe, so I'm posting this old favorite.  The cremini mushrooms we've been getting lately are big and firm-- perfect for this dish. (Sorry, the photo didn't turn out!)  PS: This is not the usual calorie-laden "spinach and artichoke dip" type of stuffed mushroom. It's simple, but scrumptious. Printable  Recipe BRYANNA’S ARTICHOKE-STUFFED MUSHROOMS  Makes 4 main dish servings These sumptuous morsels make great appetizers, too (enough for 12 appetizer servings) MAKE-AHEAD NOTE: You can stuff the mushrooms ahead of time, cover and refrigerate them until just before baking and serving.  approximately 1 1/2 pounds stuffing mushrooms, white or brown (NOTE: I use mushrooms about 1 to 2 inches across for appetizers and 3 to 4-inch ones for main dish servings.) 1/4 cup finely-chopped onion 2 cloves garlic, crushed 1/4 cup low-sodium vegetarian broth or dry white wine (can be non-alcoholic) 1/2 cup fresh whole wheat bread crumbs (1 slice)  14 ounces frozen or canned artichoke hearts, drained and chopped (NOTE: If you only have marinated artichoke hearts, place them in a colander and rinse them thoroughly with hot water to eliminate most of the oil and vinegar. Drain well.) 3 green onions, chopped 1/4 cup soy parmesan (I use GoVeggie! soy parmesan, which used to be Galaxy Vegan, but use your favorite) 1/2 cup lower-fat vegan mayonnaise (I use my homemade version or homemade Tofu Mayo, but you could use Spectrum Naturals Light vegan mayo or Reduced-Fat Vegenaise.) 1/4 teaspoon salt  freshly-ground black pepper to taste Panko breadcrumbs for topping  Clean the mushrooms gently with a damp cloth. Remove the stems. Chop and reserve the stems. Steam-fry the mushroom stems, onion, and garlic in a large heavy nonstick skillet sprayed with oil from a pump sprayer, until soft, adding a squirt of water or white wine as needed to keep it moving.  Add the broth or wine and cook until the liquid evaporates. Stir in the bread crumbs. Remove the mixture from heat and let it cool. Combine the onion-bread crumb mixture in a medium bowl with the chopped artichokes, green onions, soy parmesan, vegan mayonnaise, salt, and pepper.  Fill each mushroom cap with the filling so that it’s gently mounded. Arrange the stuffed mushrooms, just touching, in a shallow baking pan which has been sprayed lightly with oil from a pump sprayer. (At this point, you can cover the mushrooms with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to bake.)  When ready to serve, preheat the oven to 350°F. Sprinkle the stuffed mushrooms with a little of the panko breadcrumbs (for crunch) and spray with a little oil from a pump sprayer. Bake the mushrooms for 12-15 minutes, or until golden. Serve hot.  Nutrition Facts: Nutrition (per serving): 144.4 calories; 9% calories from fat; 1.1g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 448.8mg sodium; 534.1mg potassium; 21.4g carbohydrates; 6.7g fiber; 2.5g sugar; 14.8g net carbs; 7.6g protein; 2.2 points. Enjoy!

One-pot Cheesy Farfalle (Bowtie Pasta) with Asparagus, Zucchini & Soy Curls, recipe below

I must apologize for not posting much lately.  I seem to be suffering from bouts of IFS.  I was just thinking of it as "Internet fatigue", but, apparently, it has a name already-- Information Fatigue Syndrome.  So, I've been curtailing some of my Internet activities and reading actual books.

But I have not been totally inactive.  Actually, my husband and I have been (and still are) on a mission-- to use less energy in our home.  And, in two weeks, we have lowered our energy consumption by 40%!  (This is according to our BC Hydro website, our provincial electrical company, where we can see our monthly, weekly and daily electrical consumption.)


I've also been experimenting with some different cooking methods, especially to avoid boiling pots of water.  For instance, when we felt like having mashed carrots and potatoes (a favorite of DH) I cut the potatoes in chunks and the carrots in smaller pieces and pressure-cooked them together, using only 1/2 cup water, in 8 minutes.  Perfect!

These days, our preferred method of cooking pasta is this:  Bring a pot of water to a boil-- but not as much water as you might be used to. I use about 2 qts. for up to a pound of pasta, and I bring the water to a boil in an electric kettle, then pour it into the pot before turning on the heat. When it comes back to a boil, add your pasta, bring back to a boil, stirring a bit, turn the heat off, cover and let stand for 8-10 minutes or so. (Spaghettini will take 8 minutes, other pasta, such as rotini or other shapes will take 10.) Drain and serve as usual.  Trust me-- this works beautifully!  The pasta is tender but al dente and there is no stickiness.

Gemelli pasta cooked by the no-boil method in the paragraph above.

This method can be used for cooking other foods and it is also known as "passive boiling".  It is mentioned in two books that I recommend (actually the ONLY books on reducing energy-use in the kitchen that I could find): "Cooking Green: Reducing Your Carbon Footprint in the Kitchen" by Kate Heyhoe (she calls it "reducing your cookprint"-- clever), and "The Green Kitchen" by Richard Ehrlich, a British journalist. See if your library has them, if you prefer not to buy them-- they are full of good ideas.

NOTE: Apologies for my lack of posting and this short post!  I'm trying to get ready for Easter company and I have a knee that's acting up, so I'm not getting as much done as I would like.  I'll post a proper post very soon!
HAPPY EASTER AND HAPPY PASSOVER/PESACH!

Above is a photo of our dinner the other night-- Farinata (Italian chickpea flour "pancake") with a topping of lightly sautéed veggies and a bit of vegan cheese, accompanied by roasted cauliflower. This is one of my favorite dishes. The recipe for the basic Farinata (and some history, too) is at this post on my blog (and it's in my book "Nonna's Italian Kitchen"). It is far more delicious than the simple ingredients might suggest. The modern way to eat this very old peasant dish is to use toppings on the already-baked farinata, a bit like pizza (it doesn't taste like pizza, though). Personally, I like vegetable toppings, cooked ones in colder weather, raw or cooked ones at room temperature in warmer weather. You can let your imagination run wild, but I think less is more in terms of number of ingredients.

The topping in the photo (added AFTER the 10 minute baking and then pop it under the broiler or into a very hot oven to melt the cheese) was a combination of thinly-sliced onion, chopped brocolette, thinly sliced baby zucchini, and some organic oven-dried Roma tomatoes from a jar (they are from Costco, Kirkland brand, and contain herbs and oil-- I rinse much of the oil off them in a strainer before using), along with some basil and about 4 cloves of garlic, slivered. I added a bit of vegan  parmesan and sprinkled a handful of Daiya mozza shreds on top (but you could use whatever type you prefer). 

Honestly, it's such an easy, inexpensive meal and so very nutritious and delicious! DH is crazy about this!
PS: I usually make this in a 14" round pizza pan, but I this time made it in my little Cuisinart countertop oven (energy-saving!), so I used the 12" square pan that comes with the oven, lined with parchment.

Do give this a try!


Enjoy!

This recipe is an old one in our house-- I developed it for my book "The Fiber for Life Cookbook", published back in 2002.  Nothing fancy, but nutritious and delicious. My granddaughter has been enjoying them today, too.  No need for butter on these-- just a little of your favorite jam!


Printable Copy

This is a dish that I brought to a casual dinner the other night.  It's a hearty variation on plain ol' hummus, of Jordanian and Palestinian origin-- one that I've been planning to "veganize" for a while now.  I've been researching this dish for some time.  I have a sneaking suspicion that everyone's mother in that part of the globe has a different recipe for it!  Some versions use ground meat (from lots to just a little), and some use cubes. Some decorate the dish with whole chickpeas and some don't.  Yogurt or labeneh (yogurt cheese) may oor may not be dolloped on top.  Some versions are hot-spicy and some not.  (The other spices vary as well.) Some versions are served with crispy pita on the side, and others call for pieces of the pita to be the first layer of the dish, covered just before serving by the hummus and other ingredients. I even read one recipe that called for soaked pita bread pieces to be stirred into the hummus.

So, you see, you have a great deal of latitude with this delicious dish!  Here's my version, and, I must say, it was good!


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Nutrition (per serving): 294.5 calories; 34% calories from fat; 11.8g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 526.9mg sodium; 360.1mg potassium; 31.8g carbohydrates; 9.8g fiber; 2.8g sugar; 22.0g net carbs; 18.9g protein.

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I like combining traditional ingredients (Southern USA, in this case) in untraditional ways.  This combo makes a delicious, fiber-and-nutrient-rich, colorful salad, which can serve as a hearty side dish or a meal in itself. It's a wonderful hot-weather dish, of course, but it's also hearty enough for a winter salad and utilizes staples you might have in your kitchen during cold-weather months. The zingy dressing is practically fat-free, too.

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Farfalle (bowtie) pasta and rapini with Italian Walnut Sauce

I don't know why I haven't shared this sauce before- it's so luscious, creamy and so easy and quick to make.  It is a specialty of the region of Italy where my paternal grandmother's family originated-- Liguria, a north-western Italian province that includes the Italian Riviera and the city of Genoa. Evidently, its origins are ancient. According to one of my uncles, my grandmother's family (who emigrated to Peru in the 1800's) came from the towns of Chiavari, Rapallo and Moneglia. I don't know much else about them, unfortunately.  All I know is that her maiden name was Roncagliolo and her mother's was Guerrini.

I love the description in Laura Schenone's wonderful book about Ligurian food, "The Lost Ravioli Recipes of Hoboken: A Search for Food and Family".  (It's not just a cookbook-- it's a wonderful read!) The author writes:
"The story begins at Genoa's port, with its ancient layers, its grittiness, its eye towards the Mediterranean Sea.  here we cross paths with Greek, ancient Roman and Arab worlds during much earlier eras of globalization.  Olives, wine, and wheat traveled along these water routes. Migrations began and ended...But the story also begins in the mountains, with ancient Ligurian people who were here thousands of years agom allied not with the water but with wood and stone. It's a story of steepness and difficulty, of chestnuts and mushrooms and gathered greens..."

This recipe, though lightened up (no olive oil or pine nuts) and made vegan, I think retains the character of the original.  It is delicious served over ravioli stuffed with greens, or a simple dish of cooked linguine or tagliatelle.  This time I used farfalle (bowtie pasta) and added chopped cooked rapini (broccoli rabe), which adds a nice slightly bitter note to contrast with the creamy nut sauce, and reminds me of my fore-mothers gathering wild greens in the hills beyond Genoa. I hope you enjoy it!

Printable Copy

BRYANNA'S VEGAN SALSA DI NOCI (CREAMY ITALIAN WALNUT SAUCE)  
(GF and can be soy-free)
Servings: 4
Yield: 2 cups sauce

This is enough sauce for about 12 oz. pasta, plus 1 1/2 to 2 cups of cooked, well-drained vegetables. It's a modern, lighter version of a very ancient Ligurian sauce to serve on pasta or stuffed pasta (pansotti, or "potbellied" ravioli). Very simple to make! This is a slightly updated version of the recipe in my vegan Italian cookbook "Nonna's Italian Kitchen".
NOTE: Traditionally, no pepper is used in this sauce.

3/4 cups chopped walnuts
2 cups plant-based milk
1 tsp vegan chicken-style broth powder or paste
1 small clove garlic, crushed
1/4 tsp freshly-ground nutmeg
2 Tbs vegan Parmesan substitute (Earth Island/Follow Your Heart Vegan Parmesan-Style Cheese Alternative, Go Veggie! Vegan Soy Free Parmesan Grated Topping, walnut-based Parma!,  or homemade alternative of choice
salt to taste (about 1/2 tsp.) 
TO SERVE: More of the same vegan Parmesan sub of your preference to sprinkle on top of the pasta

Heat an 8" cast iron skillet, or other heavy skillet, over high heat. Add the walnuts and reduce the heat to medium. Toast the walnuts, stirring frequently and watching them constantly, until they turn color a shade and smell toasty. Remove them from the pan.

Combine the milk, broth powder or paste, garlic, and walnuts in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a heavy 1 qt. or 1.5 qt saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and keep at a low boil until it has reduced somewhat and thickened to a sauce consistency. Remove from the heat and add the nutmeg,  optional herbs, if using and the Parmesan alternative.

Taste for salt (pepper is not traditional in this sauce). Heat gently before serving with cooked, drained pasta (see text above), alone or with cooked vegetables, such as chopped cooked rapini (broccoli rabe).

 Nutrition Facts (for the sauce only) 
Nutrition (per serving): 212.6 calories; 65% calories from fat; 16.3g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 240.6mg sodium; 224.8mg potassium; 9.0g carbohydrates; 2.5g fiber; 2.8g sugar; 6.5g net carbs; 8.2g protein.


Enjoy!