Agave Grain Bread

This is one of the tastier breads I’ve made.  It comes from the user manual for my bread machine so it is super easy.  The original recipe is Honey Grain Bread so I just swapped the honey for agave.  The rest of the ingredients were already vegan (provided you use non-dairy margarine, of course).  Although the top of the bread looks a little, um, rustic, the taste and texture is absolutely fabulous.  If you aren’t going to finish eating it in more than a couple of days, however, it will get a little dry and may be best for toast.  

Agave Grain Bread

Ingredients:

1 cup water

2 tbsp. non-dairy margarine

1 ½ tbsp. agave

1 tsp. fine sea salt

2 ¼ cups bread flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

½ cup quick cook oats

1 packet active dry yeast

Directions:

1.    Measure and add the water, margarine, and agave to the bread pan.

2.    Measure and add the salt, flours, and oats to the bread pan.

3.    Form a well in the center of the flour.  Pour the yeast into the well, being careful not to let the yeast come into contact with the liquid.

4.    Refer to the instructions in your bread machine’s manual for settings.  (I used the “Whole Wheat” setting with “light” crust color.)

Makes one 1.5-pound loaf.

Wild Rice and Veggie Stuffing

As promised, here is the recipe for my stuffing.  It was in the Detroit Free Press in an article about vegetarian side dishes for Thanksgiving.  I've noted the ingredient changes I made.

Wild Rice and Veggie Stuffing 

1 cup uncooked wild rice 

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms

1/2 cup chopped carrot

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup chopped onion 

4 cups vegetable broth 

2 tbsp. Earth Balance

A few grinds of black pepper or to taste 

5 cups herb-seasoned stuffing cubes, such as Pepperidge Farm

    

NOTE: I substituted homemade French bread, cubed and dried, along with the following herbs: 

1/4 cup snipped fresh parsley

1 tbsp fresh snipped rosemary

1/2 tsp ground sage

1/2 tsp ground thyme

I also added 2 chopped Granny Smith apples and a couple handfuls of dried cranberries along with the bread cubes 

1. In a slow-cooker, place the rice, mushrooms, onion, celery, carrot, buttery spread, vegetable broth and black pepper. Stir well. Cover; cook on lowest setting for 5 hours.

2. After the 5 hours, stir the stuffing cubes into rice mixture. Cover; cook another 50 minutes. Stuffing should be moist and tender.

Serves: 8 / Preparation time: 20 minutes / Total time: 6 hours in a slow-cooker 

Nutrition Information (with Pepperidge Farm stuffing):  

 339 calories (44% from fat ), 17 grams fat (5 grams sat. fat ), 5 grams carbohydrates , 17 grams protein , 1,298 mg sodium , 8 mg cholesterol , 4 grams fiber. 

From Susan Kline of Troy. Tested by Susan M. Selasky for the Free Press Test Kitchen.

French Bread

1 cup plus 7 tablespoons filtered water*

2 tablespoons olive oil 

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice 

1-1/4 teaspoon sea salt 

2 teaspoons Sucanat or fructose 

4-1/3 cups bread flour 

1 tablespoon active dry yeast

1. Add ingredients in the above order to your bread machine. Close lid and select the desired setting (many machines will have a setting for French bread). Press start and let bake. 

2. When complete, remove bread pan from machine and invert to remove loaf.

* I find that I usually have to add an extra couple of tablespoons water during the 1st kneading cycle because the dough seems dry.  Keep an eye on it.

From VegNews.com