I lost the taste for cow’s milk before I went vegan. The last drink of cow’s milk came from a coffee that was made using bad milk.   Hot, rancid milk is one thing but add some strong coffee to it and it just enhances the flavor. After that I started drinking soy milk exclusively. I toyed with different brands and different flavors finding the one I preferred.  I went with store brands but found them too chalky and paper tasting. I tried 8th Continent but found at the time they added Vitamin D3 (from sheep’s wool) to their milk, a practice they have since discontinued.  I went with Silk vanilla for a very long time as my choice but lost the affection for such a sweet taste and moved to the plain variety.  I then tried unsweetened and found it to be perfect.  It was the perfect cereal milk, coffee milk and straight out of the carton milk.  It also cooked very well and didn’t lend a sweetness to my recipes.

I then read about the company which owns Silk, Dean Foods, and how they are the leading operator of factory farms in the US.  I also read about how they get a portion of their soybeans from China and there is no sure way to know under what conditions those beans were produced or if they are actually organic.  When Whole Foods opened I noticed they started carrying Organic Valley unsweetened soy milk.  I had used Organic Valley soy milk previously and liked their flavor but they did have a bit of texture to them I didn’t like, reminiscent of a whole cow’s milk. I decided to go with Organic Valley unsweetened for a period.  It didn’t make the best coffee but worked great otherwise. You can also find out exactly where the soybeans that were used in the carton of milk you have are from by going to their website and typing in a code from the carton.
I have since tried rice milk and find it pointless, why not just use water? I have tried hemp milk, full of nutritional value but a little pricey.  I haven’t tried almond milk yet but get many recommendations to do so.

One thing I don’t miss from the days of drinking cow’s milk is the phlegm you get form downing a glass of milk.  None of that stuff with the soy milk. Soy milk even makes great ice “cream”, if you don’t want to make your won get a carton of Purely Decadent.  Better than ANY traditional ice cream I have had.

I have considered going back to Silk unsweetened just for coffee since it steams well but I don’t want to be any more hypocritical than I already am.  I know somebody is just waiting to get me for it if I do.

I made my first attempt at seitan yesterday. I was planning white chili for dinner and wanted something extra for it. I used a recipe from “Vegan With A Vengeance” (a great book, if you don’t have it get it.) and made a few alterations on flavor. It came out ok but I think the gluten I used was a little less than fresh and it could have come out better but overall I was happy.

For those that don’t know, seitan is a chewy textured food used sometimes as a meat-substitute or a substitute for tofu in some dishes. It is made using vital wheat gluten, a little four and water as well as ingredients for flavoring if desired. For those that like meat-substitutes it can be a popular addition to dishes and can be easy to prepare.

Try this recipe, it is the same one from the book but is also posted on the author’s website:

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Ingredients
1 1/2 cups vital wheat gluten flour
1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes

1 cup very cold water or vegetable broth
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cloves garlic, pressed or grated on a microplane grater
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Simmering Broth
10 cups water or vegetable broth
1/2 cup soy sauce

Directions
In a large bowl, mix together Vital Wheat Gluten Flour and nutritional yeast flakes.

In a seperate bowl, mix together reamining ingredients: water or veg broth, soy sauce. tomato paste, garlic, lemon zest.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and combine with a firm spatula, knead dough for about 3 minutes until a spongy, elastic dough is formed. Let dough rest for a couple of minutes and prepare your broth, but don’t start boiling it.

Now roll your dough into a log shape about 8 inches long and cut into 3 equal sized pieces. Place the pieces in the broth. It is important that the water/broth be very cold when you add the dough, it helps with the texture and ensures that it doesn’t fall apart. Partially cover the pot (leave a little space for steam to escape) and bring to a boil.

When the water has come to a boil set the heat to low and gently simmer for an hour, turning the peices every now and again.

Now you’ve got gluten. Let it cool in the simmering broth for at least a half an hour. It is best if it cools completely.

What you do next depends on the recipe you are using. If it calls for gluten use it as is. If you want to store some of it for later use put it in a sealable container covered in the simmering broth.

If your recipe calls for seitan cut your peices up as desired. I prefer to use a cast iron skillet for the frying because it produces the best flavor and texture. Use as little oil as possible to coat the bottom of the skillet, 1 teaspoon may suffice. Heat the skillet over medium high and add your gluten. Cook for about 20 minutes, turning the pieces occasionally.

This is going to be one of those late-nite-before-bed-nonsense posts…

Nutritional yeast is great. If you are vegan or vegetarian and you DON’T have this in your pantry/cabinet then go out and buy some now. In fact, even if you are a hardcore meat-eater, you should get some for the great flavor it has as a popcorn topping. You can find it in bulk at Wild Oats or Whole Foods as well as in large cans in the health section, although I don’t recommend purchasing it in this way as it will cost you alot more. This great little flake gives a powerful dose of vitamin B12 as well as protein. It has a great, sharp cheese flavor and works well in anything that needs that tasty kick. I made a batch of cheeseburger macaroni tonight using it. I’ve used it for macaroni-and-not-cheese, grilled cheese (after making a spread from the yeast), cheesy biscuits, I’ll even go as far as to eat a spoonful dry and plain!

Like I said, a late ramble but the greatness of nutritional yeast had to be shared! Now you know!

Call it Ice Cream, call it Soy Cream, call it the best stuff ever.

Peppermint Ice Cream

2 cups soy milk
2 cups soy creamer
2 TBS arrowroot
½ cup evaporated cane juice
1 TBS vanilla extract
4-5 peppermint sticks, crushed

Whisk 1/4 cup of the soy milk with the arrowroot. Heat the remaining soy milk and soy creamer to a simmer. Add the evaporated cane juice to the soy mixture and stir until completely dissolved. Add the arrowroot and stir until thickened, about 2 - 3 minutes. You are not looking for a “pudding” consistency, just a light thickening.

Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Add vanilla and cool completely in refrigerator.

Prepare accordingly using your ice cream maker.

When the soy cream reaches the point where it is almost finished add the crushed peppermint and turn the ice cream maker back on/keep cranking/etc for 3 – 4 more minutes.

RELATED:  If you don’t have one of the Cuisinart Ice Cream Makers, then go now and get one.  It makes recipes like these too simple to finish up.

Fresh RumNog Pecan Cookies, I love these things. They were just made today and I have just delivered a few tins, supplemented with fudge, to some of my clients. They were baked fresh this morning and I made certain a few were left over for me to munch on for the next few hours, that’s about all they will last. In fact I have eaten two as I am writing this. We picked up fresh pecans on our way back from Atlanta earlier this week just to make these. I can’t say much more about these except DELICIOUS!

I usually get two or three nights per week where I cook only for myself. I usually just get in a hurry and want something quick and filling so I just eat a couple veggie burgers and some tater tots or a baked potato. I’ll fry up an onion and sometimes a bell pepper and then put the patties on top of the fried onions and cook it for about 15 minutes before frying it. Steamed buns on top of the burgers and onions, potato, yum, sure. All of this is just junk food to me and I eat it far too often. I just don’t want to cook a big deal of a dinner for myself. I know I should move to something else, veggie burgers aren’t all bad but when you eat them constantly you’ll fall into a vegan junk food slump, as I have. Given the onions and peppers are a fresh addition but still, fried and all the time, not good. The cooking has almost become mechanized and scheduled. I can cut up the onions, set them on to fry, do something else for the allotted time, come back add the burgers, do something else, come back and flip, you get the idea. I think that’s where I got hooked, it is easy for me to do among other things and tends to be my first choice at the end of the day, when the day isn’t really over.
I think next week I am going to try to add something new to the mix. Maybe stir fry with brown rice. Should still be just as easy to prepare and may turn out to be quicker. It should end up being a little lighter and I’ll mix up the sauce so I can give myself more variety. I already have Five Spice and Sweet and Sour sauces from Trader Joe’s. I’ll can make up teriyaki sauce in advance as well as orange sauce.

Veggie burgers once a week won’t be so bad.

I don’t write much about what I cook and eat.  Here’s a first.  Tonight I will be making Stuffed Bell Peppers.   Not the first time I have made this and it is very simple.   Tomatoes, TVP, a few spices that I am in the mood for, a little worcestershire (No, not common worcestershire, I prefer Annie’s Naturals brand.)  and, of course, bell peppers.  I just ran out of fresh from the garden bell peppers so I picked up two organic ones from Wild Oats, actually a deal at $2.49 a pound as opposed to what they usually go for.

Mashed Potatoes is always a great side and it will be there tonight as well, but I have some fennel that I picked up from Whole Foods this weekend as a “Let’s try something new.” thing.  I’ll probably sautee that to go along.

I don’t really have a name for this dish but we made it a couple nights ago and it turned out great.

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2 Cups Brown Rice
2 Cups Spicy V8
2 Cups Water
2 15oz cans Black Beans
1 15oz can Whole Kernel Corn
1 Clove Garlic (minced)
1/4 cup Onion (finely diced)
1 small green Chili Pepper (diced)
1 Tomato (diced) (you can use a 15oz can of diced tomatoes if you don’t have fresh)
1/2 Teaspoon Cumin
1/2 Teaspoon Chili Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Salt (more or less to taste)

Bring water and V8 to a boil and add rice, chili powder and cumin. Stir so rice will not clump and bring back to a boil then add all other ingredients. Cover and turn heat on low. Cook for about 45 minutes. Serve with tortilla chips or wrapped in tortillas.

This recipe makes alot. We had enough left over for lunch the next day and then some.

Do you find yourself ever getting lazy when it comes to cooking for yourself?  I do.  I think I eat veggie burgers three times a week.  To me, veggie burgers are the ultimate lazy vegan junk food.  They’re quick, simple and processed.  They are probably the one processed food I still consume regularly.  I guess I could resort to PB&J but a couple veggie burgers and a few tater tots just spell delicious simplicity to me on some nights, especially after working and not really wanting to spend much time in the kitchen.