walnut burgers

one of my road trip vacation stops last year was at beans & barley in milwaukee, wi. there was a really delicious walnut burger on the menu, and our server kindly explained that it was inspired by a little hotel in trempeleau, wi. the next night, on our way to minneapolis, we decided to stop in trempeleau. it was the quaintest little hotel - no tv, no phones, shared bathrooms etc. it was almost like a bed and breakfast (without the breakfast). it was the coolest little place to stay, and home of the apparently famous walnut burger. although their version isn't vegan, i came home with the express intent to re-make it vegan friendly.

the finely ground walnuts replace bread crumbs in this recipe and give it a serious flavour boost.

• 2 cups cooked short grain brown rice
• 1¼ cup finely ground walnuts
• 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons ground flax seed
• 1½ tablespoons tamari
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)

it's important that you use short grain brown rice in this recipe as it provides a much stickier texture than long grain rice. make sure it's cooled down to room temperature. combine all ingredients except for walnuts and rice into a medium mixing bowl. mix into a dry crumbly paste and incorporate the rice. the rice and paste should combine to be a pretty thick and sticky mash. last, fold in the ground walnuts.

you should be able to create about 5 1/2-inch patties.  these don't really firm up like a standard veggie burger, but the flavor is phenomenal.  just be gentle when cooking them and you shouldn't have any problems.

fry: grill in a non-stick skillet with about 1 tablespoon oil for about 10 minuets on each side.
bake: on a greased cookie sheet, bake at 375°f for 15 minutes on each side.  i've also baked them in an oil-rubbed cast iron grill pan.
grill: heat grill to medium and use a non-stick olive oil spray to prevent sticking. grill for 10-12 minutes on each side.

rainbow chard lemon-garlic fettuccine

back with a new recipe. i have been cooking during my blog absence, but mostly just recipes i've already shared. so many people contributed to me getting up the creative energy to make this happen: my dad, a big meat and potatoes kind of guy, actually cooked a vegan meal for my birthday. thanks dad! my mom, who made him cook that meal :), and also once again went out her way to get me some rocking pappardelle pasta for my birthday. my brother, who got me a kick-ass ceramic knife which made this meal possible. (plus, he brought me over 20 pounds of asparagus this year). my csa, greely gardens, which started this weekend (yay!). and of course, my husband, who always graciously tries my recipes and smiles through it all. plus, he drove to store and got the mushrooms. whew, sounds like i a won an academy award or something... moving on to the food!

• 4-5 rainbow chard leaves
• 2 inch garlic scape, sliced
• 10-12 button mushrooms, sliced
• 6 oz. roasted garlic Pappardelle fettuccine
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup Drew's Lemon Goddess dressing

in a large pot, bring 4 cups of water to a boil and cook pasta for 8 minutes. drain then rinse with warm water. set aside.

trim stems from the chard and tear the leaves into fourths.  in a small pot, boil 2 cups of water and add stems for 3-4 minutes to tenderize. remove from heat and drain.
slice garlic scape into thin medallions, almost like scallions. in a large skillet on medium heat, sauté the garlic and chard stems in olive oil. after 2-3 minutes, add in chard leaves and about an 1/8 cup of water. cover with lid to wilt stems. when the leaves have reduced, remove lid and add the sliced mushrooms. continue sautéing on medium heat for 3-4 minutes.

in a pasta bowl, toss the fettuccine noodles with 1/2 cup of the lemon goddess dressing. the noodles should be well-coated and will separate. add in the chard and mushroom saute, as well as up to another 1/4 cup of dressing as needed. serve warm.

lo mein

i've never really been a fan of take-out lo mein.  it always looks so oily and super soy saucy (which means way too salty for me).  i have no idea why, but i had a serious craving for it a couple of weeks ago.  have you ever had that - where you absolutely must have something and you can't think about anything else until you get it?  it was that kind of  lo mein craving.  so i promptly bought some noodles and set out to make some miss v lo mein.

• 10 oz. lo mein noodles
• 5 button mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 cup shredded carrots
• 1/2 bell pepper, julienned
• 1 cup chopped napa cabbage, or bok choy
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3/4 cup veggie broth
• 2 tablespoons nama shoyu or lite soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil

bring water to boil in a large pot and cook noodles for 3 minutes (or according to package directions). drain and rinse with cool water.  heat wok to 375°f  and sauté the garlic in the sesame oil.  once garlic is browned, add in sliced cabbage, veggie broth and nama shoyu.  stir fry the cabbage for 2-3 minutes, keeping the lid on the majority of the time.  next, add in red pepper flakes, red bell pepper, carrots and mushrooms.  continue to stir fry for 3-4 minutes. once veggies are tender, but still a little crisp, add lo mein noodles to the wok and toss with veggies for about 1 minute.  sprinkle a little extra low sodium soy and a dash of sesame oil at the very end.

makes approximately three generous servings.

vegan mofo: quinoa and purple cauliflower casserole

i got over-hyped about the purple cauliflower.  c'mon... it happens to the best of us.

status: somewhat fail.

why i'm including it: it really wasn't terrible, but it was my first time cooking with purple cauliflower AND with quinoa (this is an old pic).   it was sort of a melty cheese casserole thing that i still have the recipe for.  it was like a C+ meal...  but i really just wanted to post a picture of purple cauliflower.


would i make it again:  it was the first and only time i've seen purple cauliflower.

vegan mofo: millet loaf

i was inspired by many fellow bloggers to work on some more gluten-free recipes, so i opted for a main base of millet.


status: good eating!

why i'm including it: the millet is an awesome grain for veggie loaf.  and it's gluten free!  for whatever reason, i totally forgot to write anything down.

would i make it again:  an enthusiastic yes.  recipe forthcoming in 2011.

ps - see previous vegan mofo post about those spicy green beans in the background.

vegan mofo: grandma's eggplant parmesan

my lovely italian grandma surprised me with this dish of something wonderful earlier this fall.


status: foodgasmic!

why i'm including it: i visited my grandma for her birthday earlier this year...  she's an amazing woman who has inspired me more than she knows.  and she's made some of the best italian food  i've ever tasted (and still trying to emulate).  she taught me about black pepper on pizza!   anyways, she embraced my veganism and made this eggplant parm for us to share, complete with vegan mozzarella.

would i make it again:  if only i could do her cooking justice.

 

ps - happy thanksgiving!

vegan mofo: cheeseburger casserole

it's amazing what sounds good after a LOT of beer.


status: drunk food.

why i'm including it: i have no idea what spawned this idea, but i think it was another fourth meal concoction.  we whipped up some sort of red bean burger crumbles, topped with some nooch sauce, french fries and bacon bits on a big hoagie bun. 


would i make it again:  my arteries hurt just remembering it. 

vegan mofo: grilled kohlrabi

this was my first year trying kohlrabi, and i was totally impressed.


status: needs enhancement.


why i'm including it: this was actually really tasty - we put in on the grill in a foil pouch with some grilling spices and green peppers. it was okay, but lacked something by itself. my plan is to make it again and serve it as a condiment on something - like vegan brats.


would i make it again: as soon as the spring time rolls around, it'll be on my blog.

vegan mofo: chili infused vodka

simple, but awesome.  we just popped some chili peppers in a decanter of high quality vodka... and two weeks later, we had some kick-ass bloody marys.


status: good drinkin'! 

why i'm including it: again, i wasn't sure if this was real recipe, or just more of fun experiment.

would i make it again: we're still working through the first decanter.  (we also made black pepper vodka - so good)!

vegan mofo: ambercup mash

i was given an ambercup squash and had no idea what to do with it.

status: epic fail!


why i'm including it: it seems every vegan and their mother loves some sort of squash mash or hash. i guess it's just not for me. it was too sweet.


would i make it again: nope, i'm sticking with the spicy chili squash soup (which i've now also made with butternut and love)!

vegan mofo: broccoli & brown rice casserole

really simple recipe that actually tastes good, but is it too simple for vegan blog recipe post?


status: good eating?

why i'm including it: i made this like 2 years ago.  simple, tasty, easy.  i have the recipe, but it just seemed so simple.  maybe i'll glamorize it a bit and re-post.  it might taste okay, but really has no personality.

would i make it again: i do, for easy dinner nights. it needs something more to be blog-worthy.

vegan mofo: fourth meal

i love my man v. food. it's horribly hedonistic and terribly unhealthy, but still, i love the glee adam has for each new foodie encounter.   

status: foodgasmic!

why i'm including it: i reserve wednesday nights for fourth meal - typically made right after watching man v. food. this was some sort of concoction involving a sammie of french fries, vegan queso, chili beans, tomatoes, tapatio sauce, and jalapenos.   it was drunk food, but it tasted sooo good.

would i make it again:  not the healthiest or calorie-friendly, but i probably would for a rare indulgence.

 

ps - once i remake this, i'll post a recipe for all my non-calorie-countin' vegan friends.

vegan mofo: homemade polenta

i have some italian heritage and feel that all italian foods should just come naturally to me.  not so easily, i learned.


status: somewhat fail.

why i'm including it:  i love the tubes of polenta you can buy, and thought there was no better was to use up some cornmeal than to cook up an authentic version.  unfortunately, i don't believe i ever saw my grandparents make homemade polenta (although i've heard stories).  a LOT of effort and time later, the results were just 'meh'.  (i added in some bell peppers to make it tastier)

would i make it again:  not sure. is buying it all that unauthentic?  i've seen one of the tubes in my grandma's fridge, after all.  :)

vegan mofo: asparagus miso soup

remember when my brother brought me 28 pounds of asparagus?  that gave me a ton of leeway to create recipes...  and this was one of them.

status: somewhat fail.

why i'm including it: it really wasn't bad, but felt it could have been better?  i don't know - maybe it was the miso?

would i make it again:  i might try to swap out the miso, or change the recipe some.  the next time i have 28 pounds of asparagus lying around, i'll let you know.

vegan mofo: baby bok choy in oyster sauce

i like baby bok choy and i like (vegan) oyster sauce.  where did this go wrong?

status: somewhat fail.

why i'm including it: i saw a great recipe about baby bok choy in oyster sauce.  sounded awesome.  turned out...  just meh.   i'm not sure what could be done to improve it other than making it into a different dish.

would i make it again:  i might try some changes, but i'm not enthusiastic.

vegan mofo: mom's first vegan meal

my mom is pretty chill about my vegan diet.  my pops was whipping up chicken enchiladas for the family and my mom went out of her way to make vegan ones for me.  this was a couple years ago, but i kept the picture because it was awesome and it was made with some serious love.

status: heart warming.

why i'm including it:  don't get a lot of vegan meals cooked for me, and this was just a act of foodie love by my mom.  plus she introduced me to a vegan cheddar that actually melts!

would i make it again:  i would, but i'm waiting on mom to make it again.  hint hint, mama.

vegan mofo: tofu scramble

most vegans love their tofu scramble, as do i.  however, after reading about the amazing egg flavour you can get from black salt over at bianca's vegan crunk blog, i went a little overboard.  do you ever do that?  seriously, this was soooo salty that i didn't even finish it.


status: epic fail!

why i'm including it: although this was a one-time tofu scramble fail, it still stands out as one of my worst meals in the past year.

would i make it again:  i do, but i keep that black salt in check.

vegan mofo: purple cabbage & jicama slaw

a mix up on cabbage slaw that didn't light my fire.

status: epic fail!

why i'm including it: although it wasn't quite an epic fail, this particular recipe definitely need some improvement.  the cabbage, jicama and pistachios definitely rocked.  the dressing, however, is a bit tricky with those ingredients.

would i make it again:  parts - yes.  look for an improved recipe in 2011.

vegan mofo: homemade taco bowls

i rarely have a meal cooked for me - especially one with such effort!

status: foodgasmic!

why i'm including it: i do 99% of the cooking in my household, but sometimes i just want to come home to a home-cooked meal.  despite the marinated tofu and home made taco shell, i never posted it because i don't really know how he made it. but i will say it was delicious!

would i make it again:  never have made it, but would love to have it made for me again (hint, hint)! 

vegan mofo: apple butter and salsa

a couple of years ago for christmas, i canned some organic homemade apple butter and salsa.  supplied were limited, so only my near and dear friends got a jar. 

status: good eating! (i hope!)

why i'm including it: i took pictures with the intent of posting the recipes.  however, i never got around to it.  plus i don't have any pictures of the 'making' of it - just the dolled up christmas jars.

would i make it again:  i'm thinking about making the apple butter again this year.  i'll be checking my list if you've been naughty or nice.