Spring cleaning - Red Lentil Dal and Roasted Broccoli

This week I decided it was time for a little Spring cleaning.  I’m not talking about washing windows and scrubbing floors (although I should be!).  I’m talking about cleaning out my cupboards, pantry, and freezer. 

The freezer - With spring finally here, we’ll soon be getting fresh seasonal produce from our garden, our CSA, and local farmers’ markets so I don’t need to keep a huge supply of frozen vegetables.  I went through all the half-used bags and chucked the ones that are more snow than vegetables. This left me with 5 bags of frozen veggies.

The cupboards – When I inventoried our cupboards, I found the following – white rice, brown rice, brown basmati rice, brown jasmine rice, red jasmine rice, wild rice, Arborio rice, bulgar, millet, red quinoa, white quinoa, amaranth, couscous, soba noodles, udon noodles, rice noodles, lasagna noodles, and 2 boxes of spaghetti.  I vow not to buy another grain or noodle until I’ve at least cut this arsenal in half.

The pantry – Honestly, I didn’t have the energy to inventory the pantry yet.  I can say, though, that there are a multitude of cereals, sauces, sweeteners, and dessert mixes that may or may not have expired long ago.  It’s often a place where obscure ingredients for desserts I plan to but never make go to die.  

So my mission for last week’s meals was to cook using only ingredients I already had. Monday we had leftover lasagna from Easter dinner (thanks, Mom!) so Tuesday was the first day I cooked.  I made Red Lentil Dal from Lindsay Nixon's Happy Herbivore cookbook.  (You can view the recipe here.)  It's such an easy and delicious recipe.  The only change I had to make was to use a can of crushed tomatoes in place of the fresh tomato.  I had all the other ingredients.  The leftover Dal warmed up beautifully the next day.

Red Lentil Dal over brown basmati rice

On the side we had the most scrumptious broccoli I think I’ve ever eaten.  This just may replace asparagus as my new favorite roasted vegetable.  The broccoli was so flavorful and sort of caramelized on the bottom where the stems were a little thinner.  Because of the high oven temperature, the smoke alarm was going off like crazy (despite having the exhaust fan on and every window in the house open) but it was worth it!  Try it - I can guarantee you'll love it, too.

Roasted Broccoli

(original recipe found here)

Ingredients:

2 pounds broccoli crowns

2 tbsp. olive oil

½ tsp. salt

1 tsp. sugar

Freshly ground black pepper

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees.  Cover the bottom of a large baking sheet with aluminum foil.  Place sheet on lowest rack of the oven while it heats up.

2. Cut off just the bottom parts of the broccoli.  Use a vegetable peeler to peel off the tougher skin on the stems.  Cut the crowns lengthwise into large pieces.  Place in a bowl and add remaining ingredients.  Toss to combine.

3. When oven is heated, place broccoli on baking sheet and roast for 11 minutes (until slightly browned).

Makes 4 servings.*

*We only ended up with 2 servings.  I don’t know if we had less than 2 pounds of broccoli or if we both just ate a lot!

Banana Chamomile Morning Smoothie

As I've said before, I am a creature of habit.  Whenever I make a breakfast smoothie, it's always the same.  Well, I'm trying to branch out a bit and when I came across this recipe the other day I knew it was the perfect opportunity to try something new.  It comes from a Vega Community blog post.  (I modified it slightly.  Be sure to check out the original - the picture is much nicer than mine.)  

This smoothie is cool, creamy, sweet, and satisfying.  You can use any non-dairy milk but the almond milk gives it a nice texture.  If you don't have VEGA, you can use another protein powder or skip it altogether.  After a weekend of indulging too much sugar and carbs, this felt like a healthy (and delicious) start to my day.

Banana Chamomile Morning Smoothie

1/2 cup chamomile tea, cold

1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

Frozen banana chunks (1-2 bananas)

1 cup ice

1 tsp. agave nectar

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 scoop VEGA Whole Food Smoothie Infusion

Blend everything until smooth and frosty. 

Makes 1 large serving. 

Vegan Eats in Washington State

Today’s post is long over-due but it’s one I’ve wanted to do for a long time.  So here we go!

Last summer Brian and I went to Washington State for our vacation.  Brian is really into the outdoors – hiking, backpacking, and exploring the wilderness – and with the mountains, beaches, rainforests, and wildlife, there are ample opportunities for outdoor activities.  I enjoy the fresh air and hiking, too (as long as I can come home to a bed and indoor plumbing at the end of the day) so I was looking forward to those things, as well. 

An even bigger draw for me, however, is that Seattle is well known for its vegan scene and I had a long list of places I wanted to check out while we were there.  Sadly, I don’t have too many pictures of the great food I ate.  This was before I started this blog so I wasn’t really into that yet.  

It was unbelievably foggy in at Olympic National Park near Port Angeles - but I was on vacation and determined to wear my sunglasses!

Port Angeles

Before Seattle, we actually drove up to Port Angeles to stay for a few days.  While there we wanted to drive up Hurricane Ridge at Olympic National Park, go to a rainforest, and see some beaches.  Oh yeah, and visit Forks – the hometown of the fictional characters from Twilight (my favorite series after Harry Potter).  Incidentally, we saw the just-released Eclipse in Port Angeles at the only movie theater within 40 miles of Forks...but I’ll spare you details.  (You can let me know if you want to hear more about the "Twi-hards" in Forks, WA.)  

I can’t go into much detail about vegan food in Port Angeles – mostly because there isn’t a whole lot of it.  I only have one picture.  And it's fruit.

First Street Haven – We went to First Street Haven for breakfast the three days we were in town.  I got the only vegan item on the menu all three days – a fresh fruit bowl and plain bagel with jam.  I will say that it was a pretty darn tasty fruit salad and their coffee was good and strong.

Fresh fruit bowl from First Street Haven

Thai Peppers – We had dinner here the first night.  They have a TON of vegetarian menu items!  I had the Veggie Green Curry, which is bamboo, bell peppers, green peas, Thai basil, and pineapple mixed with a curry/coconut milk sauce.  I also added fresh tofu and a side of jasmine rice.  Everything was so fresh and not at all greasy (like most Thai places around here).

Bushwhacker – I think the name says it all.  I had the salad bar.  Let’s leave it at that.

Domino's Pizza – It was just about the only place open on the 4^th of July.  I had their thin crust veggie pizza.  Some pizzas are awesome sauce without cheese but this one would have benefited from a sprinkling of Daiya or at lease some nutritional yeast.  Ah well.  It was vegan and they delivered.

Country Aire Natural Foods - A great little health food store just down the block from First Street Haven, I was able to restock my Lara Bar supply and get some fresh apples and bananas for lunch.  

Seattle

Pike Place Market - Pike Place is an open-air market with fresh produce at every turn.  It's a great place to walk through every day because there's always different things and people to see.  A downside is that it's very crowded and smells like fish. 
 

 

Plum Bistro – Located in the Capitol Hill section of town, Plum Bistro is a beautiful, airy, slightly upscale yet relaxed gem of a restaurant.  The menu is completely vegan and offers inventive and unique dishes.  They serve you water with cucumber, orange, and lemon slices – so simple yet so refreshing!  Their alcohol is also vegan, which is a bonus.

I can't remember exactly but I think this was a pineapple mojito.  Whatever it was it was awesome!  You can see the cucumber and citrus water in the background.

Avocado sushi roll

The Mama Africa Burger - a millet and quinoa burger with grilled onions and salsa, served with sweet potato fries.  Brian had the Crazy Jamaican Burger.  Both were incredible!

Mighty-O Donuts – Although I ate my weight in Boston Cream donuts when I was a kid, I haven’t so much as had a craving for a donut in many years.  Yet when we decided to go to Seattle, the first thing that popped into my head was “Mighty-O!”  There was something about an all-vegan and organic donut shop that was very intriguing.  We didn’t go until the last day of our vacation and it was late in the afternoon, so many of their donuts were sold out.  No worries, though – there were still plenty of options.  I ordered a chocolate peanut butter donut.  It was dense and cake-like and absolutely delicious.  I was tempted to order a few more for the road but I exercised restraint.  Instead I bought a really cool Mighty-O shirt.

Chocolate PB donut from Mighty-O

Wayward Vegan Café – I read the most amazing reviews about Wayward so this was another place on my “must eat” list and I ended up being a little let down.  It’s basically a vegan greasy spoon.  I left feeling full but not quite satisfied.  I’m glad we went but I probably wouldn’t go back if we find ourselves in Seattle again.

The Griddle Combo - french toast, tofu scramble, tempeh bacon, and a sausage patty (my order)

Biscuits Maximus - 2 herb biscuits smothered in mushroom gravy with a side of garlic steamed greens (Brian's order - he regrets not choosing the Biscuits Minimus instead) 

Wild Ginger – One night for dinner we ate at Wild Ginger.  It’s sort of like P.F. Chang’s but way nicer.  They have a separate vegetarian menu and nearly all of the items on it are vegan.  For an appetizer, Brian and I shared the Vietnamese Buddha Vegetable Rolls with pineapple dipping sauce.  I can’t remember what I had for my entrée (something with tofu) but it was really good.  We also shared an order of Sichuan Green Beans.  We had to specify vegan preparation on those because they are also on the regular menu.  There were also a few vegan desserts but I was too full to try one.

Cinnamon Works – Cinnamon Works is a little bakery at Pike Place Market.  A lot of their items are vegan but some are not.  Brian and I each bought a HUGE cookie that ended up being our (highly unhealthy) lunch.  Mine was snicker doodle and was the first vegan snicker doodle that is as good as my grandma’s.  Super delish!  Brian had an oatmeal raisin that was pretty darn tasty, too.

Pike Place Bar and Grill – Honestly, I can’t even remember what I ordered here.  After looking at the menu just now online, I think it was the grilled vegetables sandwich minus the cheese.  But I can’t be sure.  Anyway, the bar is located in Pike Place Market and looks really cool inside. 

Brian enjoyed his beer sampler.

Sidecar for Pigs Peace – According to their website, they are the state’s only 100% vegan store.  Sidecar for Pigs Peace is owned by PigsPeace Sanctuary, another place I wanted to go to but didn’t have a chance.  Next time.  Anyway, the store is located in the University District, practically right across the street from The Wayward Café.  I didn’t really see anything new that Vegan Essentials or Cosmo’s doesn’t carry but it was fun to look around.  I bought a cute little piggy shirt for my goddaughter and some Glad Corn for myself.

Starbucks – Nothing unusual to report here and actually, I only had regular coffee there. Actually, one day I tried a cup of coffee from their Clover Brewing System, which is only found in select locations (none in Michigan).  Honestly, the taste wasn't all that different from their regularly brewed coffee.  Maybe if I did a side-by-side comparison I could tell.  

Most mornings on our way to Starbucks, we’d stop at the grocery store so I could buy a soy yogurt and fresh fruit cup to have with my grande iced brewed coffee.  The cool thing about Starbucks in Seattle (and actually all restaurants and on the street) is that you don’t have to throw anything away.  You either recycle or compost just about everything.  And the employees were way friendlier there than they are here (I'm talking to you Ms. "Rephrase my Coffee Order in a Condescending Tone"). 

Even with all the vegan options, I am still quite, um, particular about what I eat so most lunches were Larabars and fruit.  With my unpredictable stomach, sometimes I need to stick with what's safe.  And I was saving myself for dinner.  I know there are tons more vegan restaurants in Seattle.  I can't wait to go back someday!

Temps in the 80's and 4 feet of snow on Mt. Ranier...in July!

Rochester Mills Beer Co. - Rochester, MI

Portabella sandwich - $8.95

Last weekend Brian and I went to Rochester Mills Beer Co. for dinner.  They have a portabella sandwich that is incredibly delicious.  In fact, the main reason we went was because of the sandwich since everything about it is verifiably vegan (unlike other places where the bread may or may not be vegan).  The sandwich consists of grilled portabella caps and sliced eggplant, roasted red peppers, lettuce, onion, and sundried tomato pesto (although I asked them to hold the onion and pesto).  It's served on house made focaccia bread and comes with potato chips and a pickle.  The sandwich is so fresh, juicy, and flavorful.  I highly recommend trying it if you have the chance. 

The other vegan option at Rochester Mills is a hummus sampler with edamame, black bean, and red pepper hummus, as well as pita and veggies for dipping.  Maybe next time I'll try that.  There are also a couple of vegetarian and gluten-free options.  The menu is clearly marked and our server seemed knowledgeable about ingredients.  I'm sure they would be as accommodating as possible.  Oh, and as you may have gathered from the name, Rochester Mills is also a brewery.  Not sure if the beer is vegan but Brian's a big fan (and he doesn't worry about fish bladders, anyway.)

Tofu's Workin' Overtime

I tried something new with tofu the other night and it turned out better than I ever could have expected.  It was sort of an accidental success.  I was going to broil it, using the Basic Broiled Tofu recipe from Veganomicon, which is great because it doesn’t require pressing and it cooks up fast – great for a weeknight dinner when I don’t get home until 6:30 and am famished from my workout.

This day I was actually home early so I decided to press, marinate, and bake the tofu.  (Plus I was missing most of the ingredients for broiled tofu.)  I looked at a few recipes to get an idea of marinade ingredients and baking times and temperatures but I wasn’t really following any of them as they were written.  My measurements aren’t exact but I ended up with about 1 cup of marinade.

I baked the tofu longer than planned since Brian was stuck working really late and I was trying to delay dinner as long as possible.  As much as I wanted him home earlier, it ended up being a good thing for my tofu.  The end result was firm on the outside with an almost caramelized texture and creamy, melt-in-your-mouth on the inside.  Quite possible the best tofu I’ve ever made.  It also stayed warm covered in the oven for Brian until he got home.  He was lucky I saved some for him...

I enjoyed my tofu with a side of steamed broccoli and mashed sweet potatoes with Earth Balance and brown sugar.

Orange-Maple Baked Tofu
(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

1 block extra-firm tofu, pressed*

¾ cup orange juice

Bragg’s liquid aminos

Maple syrup

1 tsp. sesame oil

Directions: 

1. Cut pressed tofu into 8 slices.  Pierce slices with a fork on both sides.  Put in an 8x8-inch square baking dish.  Set aside.
2. Combine orange juice, Bragg’s, and maple syrup.  Adjust to taste.  Add sesame oil.  Pour over tofu.  Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour, turning tofu once.
3. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Bake tofu for 60 minutes, turning every 15 minutes, or until most of the marinade has been reduced. 
4. Broil on low for another 3 minutes per side.  (I ended up turning up the broiler to high for about 2 more minutes per side.)

*I pressed it for about an hour in my TofuXpress – a tool I highly recommend!  

Speed work and hills

For the past year, the focus of my runs has been consistency.  I try to settle into a good pace early on and maintain that pace for the duration of the run. My Nike+iPod helps with that since I can look at it to see my pace at any given time.  I aim for around 7:40ish/mile, which is what I’ve done in my last 3 half-marathons. 

 As I may have already mentioned, I don’t train.  If I can get one 4-mile run in the week before a half marathon I’m doing pretty well.  In the summer I usually run once or twice a week.  Of course, I do other exercises – spinning, boot camp, yoga, elliptical, and strength training – 4-5 days per week so that keeps up my strength and endurance but none of those are quite like running. 

This year I really want to make an effort to run more consistently.  I’d like to do two runs per week and this week I tried something a little different.  On Tuesday, I went to the track at a neighborhood park and ran 4 miles at my usual pace.  On Thursday, however, I went to a nearby paved trail*, left my Nike+ in the car, and tried some speed work and hills.  The first quarter/half mile is through the woods and a little hilly.  Here I just ran at what felt like a good warm-up pace.  The next mile is pretty flat and winds through the University of Michigan-Dearborn campus.  I used that part to do some speed drills.  I didn’t time myself but instead picked out landmarks, such as trees or signs, to sprint to.  Then I would recover and choose another landmark.  I tried to vary the distances that I was sprinting and recovering. 

The route is an out-and-back so I continued my sprints until I returned to the wooded part of the trail.  On my way back through the woods, I stopped at two hills.  The first was short and not very steep but it was a hill, nonetheless.  I ran up and down it 5 times before continuing on to the last hill, which is much steeper and longer.  I ran the second one 3 times and then jogged the final part of the trail back to my car.

It felt good to mix things up and have a little variety.  I’ve been reading about the benefits of speed work and hill drills and am going to try to incorporate them into my runs on a weekly basis.  
  
*The trail is a regular running spot of mine since it's on my way home from work.  Usually I do a 4-mile out-and-back without varying my pace.

Celebrity Spotlight: Tal Ronnen

Tal stayed after his presentation to sign copies of his book.

Tal Ronnen was the keynote speaker at VegFest this year.  (See my previous post for more details on the event.)  He is the author of The Conscious Cook and a developer of Gardein.  I checked out his book from the library a year or so ago.  Although the recipes are masterfully created and looked delectable, they all seemed rather involved, some with 3-4 recipes needed to create the dish.  Nothing jumped out at me as something I wanted to eat badly enough that I’d spend a lot of time cooking it.  If someone would cook his recipes for me, however, that would be a different story.

Tal came across as a really down-to-earth guy and explained that he’s more comfortable in the kitchen than talking in front of a crowd.  He started out his presentation by explaining his philosophy on vegan cooking.  Basically, his mission is to cook food that tastes good, is satisfying, and appeals to vegans and non-vegans alike.  In fact, he prefers to cook for non-vegetarians to show them that they can have all the flavors and textures of meat in a completely plant-based meal.  He talked about some of his experiences – cooking for Oprah, teaching at Le Cordon Bleu, helping create Gardein, opening a vegan restaurant in Akron, OH – and discussed plans for a vegan fast food chain. 

After talking for a while he got down to doing what he does best – cooking.  For the demonstration, he made “Celery Root Soup with Granny Smith Apples” from his book.  As he cooked, he explained what he was doing and shared some tips and tricks he’s learned throughout his experience as a chef. 

During this time Tal answered questions from the audience.  Unfortunately, it was at this point that things began to take a turn for the worse.  I quickly became frustrated with all the health-related questions that people insisted on asking, even though Tal clearly stated (again and again) that he wouldn’t be addressing those issues.  If I was frustrated, I can only imagine how he felt!  I actually left the demonstration early because I couldn’t take the audience members any longer, so I didn’t get to see him finish the soup.  Thankfully Tal shared his recipe with VegMichigan, who in turn published it in the April edition of their newsletter.  I haven’t made it yet but it sounds really good.

Tal Ronnen’s Celery Root Soup With Granny Smith Apples

Ingredients:

· Sea salt

· 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

· 2 medium celery roots, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes

· 2 stalks celery, chopped

· 1 large onion, chopped

· 2 quarts faux chicken or vegetable stock (try Better Than Bouillon brand)

· 1 bay leaf

· 1 cup thick Cashew Cream (recipe follows, make the night before)

· Freshly ground black pepper

· 1 Granny Smith apple, unpeeled, very finely diced

· Chive Oil (recipe follows)

Directions:

1. Place a large stockpot over medium heat. Sprinkle the bottom with a pinch of salt and heat for one minute. Add the oil and heat for 30 seconds, being careful not to let it smoke. This will create a nonstick effect.

2. Add the celery root, celery, and onion, and sauté for six to ten minutes, stirring often, until soft but not brown. Add the stock and bay leaf, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add the Cashew Cream and simmer for an additional ten minutes.

3. Working in batches, pour the soup into a blender, cover the lid with a towel (the hot liquid tends to erupt), and blend on high. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into bowls. Place a spoonful of the diced apple in the center of each serving, drizzle the Chive Oil around the apple, and serve.

Makes 6 servings 

Prep time: 1 hour, 10 minutes ______________________________________________________________________

Cashew Cream

Ingredients:

· Two cups whole raw cashews (not pieces, which are often dry), rinsed very well under cold water

Directions:

1. Put the cashews in a bowl, and add cold water to cover them. Cover the bowl, and refrigerate overnight.

2. Drain the cashews and rinse under cold water. Place them in a blender with enough fresh cold water to cover them by 1 inch. Blend on high for several minutes until very smooth. (If you’re not using a professional high-speed blender such as a Vita-Mix, which creates an ultra-smooth cream, strain the cashew cream through a fine-mesh sieve.)

3. To make thick cashew cream, which some of the recipes in this book call for, simply reduce the amount of water when they are placed in the blender, so that the water just slightly covers the cashews.

Makes about 2 1/4 cups thick cream or 3 1/2 cups regular cream

Prep time: 10 minutes, plus soaking overnight ______________________________________________________________________

Chive Oil

Ingredients:

· One small bunch chives

· ½ cup canola oil

· Pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Blanch the chives for 30 seconds in boiling water, then drain, and chill in an ice bath.

2. Drain, wrap the chives in a towel, and squeeze the moisture out. Place in a blender with the remaining ingredients and blend for two minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve.

3. Put the chive oil in a plastic squeeze bottle with a small opening or use a spoon for drizzling it on the soup.

Makes 1/2 cup

Michigan VegFest '11

In a previous post, I promised to give a review of VegFest with pictures and details about great new foods and products from the expo.  Sadly, I don’t have a lot of good things to share.  As I sit at my computer, I have been typing, deleting, and retyping, trying to give a good description that is not too harsh, nor too long.  (I tend to get wordy and overly descriptive – it’s the English major in me.)  To keep it simple, I finally decided to do a, ahem, brief bulleted list.

Thumbs up for:

· New location – Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi

· Keynote speaker – chef Tal Ronnen

· Featured speaker – former Detroit Piston John “The Vegan” Salley 

Thumbs down for:

· Organization – Or lack thereof.  I shouldn’t be the one telling VegMichigan volunteers that members get in free.

· Spacing and set up – Even though it was at a large expo center, VegFest only utilized about ½ of the space and had all the tables very close together.  You could barely walk down the aisle, let alone get to the tables.  Having all the food and non-food tables mixed together didn't help.

· Food samples – Vendors were out of food by 2:00 and the event went until 5:00. 

· PETA – A man dressed as a cow was trying to force people into the animal cruelty area, telling people that if they don’t want to see it they shouldn’t be there.

· “Ultimate Green Smoothie” demo – The speaker said that all you need to eat is fruit to get all your fat, protein, vitamins, and minerals for the day.  Even just half an avocado is more fat than your body needs and you can forget about nuts!  It’s irresponsible to have someone spewing that sort of garbage to people who are potential new vegetarians and vegans.

· Canola oil – Tal, who cooked for Oprah’s 21-day cleanse and teaches classes at Le Cordon Bleu, was given a plastic bottle of canola oil for his soup.  Really, VegMichigan?  Really??  No olive oil?  How embarrassing! 

· No Cupcake Station – Or any cupcakes, for that matter.  How could there not be cupcakes?

· Goodie bags – Pretty lame this year.  GladCorn, an Alternative Baking Company cookie, a packet of sugar and a packet of tea.  These are all tasty things but in the past there have been more samples.

· Idiots – People, this is an expo.  You can’t expect to stand in one line and just parade past each table.  I swear, if anyone thought you were trying to cut you were elbowed faster than you can say “tempeh.”  Also, if you see that there are only 5 chocolate samples left on the table, do not take 4 of them for yourself.  And finally, if Tal Ronnen says he’s not a doctor and he won’t answer health-related questions, please don’t continue to barrage him with queries about your low-sodium and low-fat diet.  Let the man cook, for crepes sake! 

I really did enjoy hearing Tal speak and I sampled a few delicious foods so I’ll detail those highlights in my next post.

Did you attend this year’s VegFest?  What did you think?