veganmofo.1.3: Squash Risotto with lemony tofu

Last night I made a risotto with brown rice, (more) buttercup squash, and some lemon-marinated tofu. It made for a yummy weeknight dinner.

The recipe was based on this one, and it was very easy. I first soaked 1 cup of short-grain brown rice. Then I combined 1 package of firm tofu with 1 minced clove of garlic, 1/2 tsp salt, and the juice of one lemon, crumbled it all together and put it in the fridge for awhile. I chopped up 2 cups of buttercup squash (leaving the skin on) and 1 leek. I sauteed the leek in 1 tbsp of olive oil for a couple of minutes, then added the squash. Then I added the rice (drained and rinsed), fried it for a couple of minutes, then  added 2 cups of vegetable broth, 1/2 cup sake, and 2 tsp soy sauce. I brought it all to a boil, then down to a simmer, and then cooked it for an hour, stirring every once in a while and adding water as needed to get the right consistency. Then I took the tofu out of the fridge, folded it into the risotto, and I was done.

veganmofo.1.1: Oden (part one)

Oden is a Japanese hotpot or stew. I'd never eaten or made one before, but with some simple instructions from another ppker who used to live in Japan, I decided to try it out.

I first boiled some water in a pot, then added a handful of of sliced shittake mushrooms and a piece of kombu. I simmered them for maybe 10 minutes, then added half a tsp of veggie stock powder and some soy sauce. Then I added some chopped buttercup squash and potatoes (both unpeeled because I like to keep the nutrients) and cooked for about 15 minutes more. Then in went some chopped cabbage and fried tofu (you can buy fried tofu at the markets here, it isn't flavoured or anything but I like the texture of it, and I'm sure chopped firm tofu would be fine too). I cooked for 10 minutes more, then added some chopped bok choy, scallions, a splash of sake, and a bit of sesame oil, and cooked just until the bok choy had wilted. Tested the broth to see if it was salty enough, and it was ready!

Verdict: seriously delicious. I think I could eat this for every meal of the day. And it's so easy to just be able to throw things in one pot and not measure and have it turn out so well. I see many versions in the future: I'll definitely try kabocha squash (Japanese pumpkin) next time, and also try adding udon instead of potato and also some napa cabbage.

New Year's Eve Dinner

Goodness, this is not a good start to the new year! I meant to post this much earlier, alas.

I made a small dinner for a dear friend and myself.

 

Buckwheat crepes with almond tofu ricotta, mushrooms and spinach, and some potato leek & dill soup as well. And a simple greens salad. Yum yum yum.

 

My friend followed me around with his camera while I cooked, I guess it made me feel less dorky to be taking pictures of our food. Here I am (in part), serving it up.

And for dessert, baklava! I used the recipe from Extraveganza, except I subbed half the walnuts for pistachios and omitted the lemon zest, adding some rosewater instead (did you know that pistachios and rosewater are my favourite?!)

Check out the nutty flaky deliciousness! Mmmm...

And there was also mulled pomegranate juice. No alcohol for us.

Comfort Food

Ever had those days when you feel like crap and all you want to do is stay in and not talk to anyone and say ‘screw the world’? Well I did, last week. The weather was dreary and I was feeling tired and bummed out for no good reason, so I decided to make some ‘feel-good’ food and watch Leningrad Cowboys Go America. As an ending to my bad day, the film-watching didn’t happen (I haven’t been able to find it on dvd anywhere around here and the version I had downloaded on my roommate’s computer wouldn’t open on mine) but the food part was good. And I’ve since located and watched the film (very funny, check it out – Aki Kaurismaki is great) so all is well, but I digress. Back to the food.


I made baked tofu with yogurt sauce, fried mushrooms and onions, and potato-yam-sage pancakes, with a little green salad on the side. I was quite pleased with the pancakes – all I did was boil a potato and a yam, mash them together (with the skins on to retain nutrients), mix in some almond milk, bread crumbs, minced onion, sage, paprika, salt and ground pepper, shape them into pancakes and fry until browned. A good, satisfying, comforting meal.


Then for dessert (even though I said I was going to lay off the sweets for a while) I made chocolate-avocado mousse. I didn’t use measurements so I can’t post a recipe yet, but next time I make it I will certainly use measurements and post it! Maple syrup is the sweetener, and it is very rich and chocolaty so this keeps me from consuming too much at once. It’s not terribly unhealthy either, even though it tastes like it is. A good ending to a good meal!

The Other Night’s Dinner

I’ve recently discovered tofu for two and made their three-pepper tofu for dinner the other night. I breaded and baked the tofu at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes, flipping the slices half-way through. Maybe less crispy than if I’d fried the slices, but still yummy. I had it alongside some cucumber, Grated Carrot and Daikon Salad from Vegan Express and brown rice. A very satisfying meal. Just to prove that I eat healthy savoury things too (not just sweets, I swear!).

The next night I made baked paprika yam sticks from Extraveganza to serve with some of the leftover baked tofu, and, inspired by some of the yogurt dipping sauces described in tofu for two, I devised one of my own:

Impromptu Yogurt Chili Dipping Sauce

Ingredients:

½ cup soy yogurt
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 pinch cayenne
¼ teaspoon salt
1 pinch cane sugar

Blend all ingredients until smooth. Makes about ½ a cup.

Sorry, no photos, but you can imagine it, right?