Thanks to our own Virginian-Pilot epicure, Lorraine Eaton, for sharing some good “eatin” via her “Cook It” piece in today’s paper on Kim Howard Hastings‘ journey through my Blooming Platter Cookbook: A Harvest of Seasonal Vegan Recipes. Lorraine masterfully wove together a glowing book review, excerpts of Kim’s delightfully real and funny posts, and a couple of recipes in a concise piece with a photo.
Toque’s off to you both, Lorraine and Kim!
~Betsy
(A sequential installment from Kim Hastings, my photographer friend and, along with her vet husband, owner of Independence Veterinary Hospital, who decided on her own to cook her way through The Blooming Platter Cookbook: A Harvest of Seasonal Vegan Recipes Julie & Julia Style for her omnivorous family as a strategy for more healthy eating.)
Today’s recipe is the Grilled Butternut Squash with White Beans and Olivada. Spoiler alert: I will tell you now that this recipe got a rating of 4 in my book which is the highest rating possible.
To explain, my husband and I started this rating system during winery visits where we would write a number of 1-4 beside each wine we tasted. (The winery owners would get very excited thinking we were buying that many bottles!) Anyway this dish was so good I even packed up the leftovers to go on a trip so we could enjoy it again.
I always start by reading through the recipe and making sure I have everything. Check. Then I got started on the olivada so it would be ready when needed. I had purchased two tiny cans of olives thinking they were 6 ounce cans but no, they were 1.5 ounces. I have never been very good at estimating weights and measures clearly. So I used both cans but had to cut the other ingredients in half.
I went to my newly reorganized spice cabinet so proud that now I would be able to find everything I needed – but there was no oregano. How is that possible? I always have oregano. I tore through the cabinet from A to Z but there was none to be found. (Now I need to reorganize again.) No problem – I grow oregano in my herb garden. I have cultivated the same plant for 10 years and it has grown to be one of the largest plants I have. The leaves are dry now in winter but I can still use them. I grabbed my scissors and went out and…no oregano plant! Instead there was a huge hole! The dog had dug up my oregano plant and -ugh!!!!- replaced it with a gross toy! Are you kidding me?!! Things are going from bad to worse and I refuse to go to the grocery store for oregano. I finally decided to use a Greek seasoning I had on hand.
Once the olivada was done I took a taste and wow! I got some crackers out and started snacking while I started on the squash. The rest of the preparation was easy until I saw that I was supposed to have roasted the garlic. Too late – we are all hungry. So I just minced it and put it in the pan. One day I will try and roast a garlic but not today.
Arranging as instructed was like designing a work of art. It was beautiful when complete. I even used a cookie scoop to place the beans on the center of the fan of squash. Perfection!! Of course I got joked by the guys for taking the time to arrange a side dish, but one bite and they quickly stopped making fun of me. It goes without saying that this dish will be repeated many times in our household and I will definitely be making the olivada for parties.
~Kim Hastings
Yield: approximately 12 servings
The secrets to a rolled vegan cake revealed…
A rolled sponge cake made with eggs is child’s play, as the protein in the eggs add just the right pliable structure necessary to hold it together as it smoothly spirals like wrapping paper around a spool.
Not so much with vegan cakes. It took me four attempts to get it right. In the end, it turned out to be both a matter of ingredients and rolling technique (thank you Martha Stewart via my good friend, Sonya Harmon, who witnessed one of my epic fails).
In terms of ingredients, I ended up adding a couple of tablespoons of flaxseed meal as an egg substitute. I don’t think you’ll find a single other recipe on this website that calls for flaxseed meal as it simply isn’t necessary or, sometimes, even desirable for most baked good. For this one (an my other rolled cakes), it is critical.
Also, though I am not a big fan of xanthan gum–it quickly creates kind of a slippery, slimey, glue-like texture if you don’t use a very light hand, and is as expensive as heck–less than a teaspoon is key to the success of this recipe. (Here, a bag costs almost $12 on Kroger’s organics aisle. I recommend buying a bag and sharing with a gluten-free baker friend.)
And, finally, sprinkling a hand towel with confectioner’s sugar–not granulated sugar as Martha Stewart recommends–turning the cake out onto it, and rolling it up with the soft towel, instead of the crinkly parchment paper used to line the pan, is essential.
Lastly, trimming the edges of the cake–so that even the slightest bit of browning doesn’t create a “crust” that refuses to bend nicely–and not unrolling the cake completely flat to fill will yield the most satisfying results.
Vegan Vanilla Cake Log with Fig Preserve Filling and Caramel-Cream Cheese Frosting
1 cup soy or other non-dairy milk
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons flaxseed meal
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour (I use white whole wheat)
3/4 cup natural granulated sugar (I use demerera)
2 tablespooons cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup canola or other neutral vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup Fig Preserves (or any preserves you prefer), brought to room temperature or gently warmed
Caramel-Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)
Optional garnishes: shredded toasted coconut,, toasted if desired, chopped nuts, etc.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a rimmed 10 x 15″ pan with non-stick spray. Line with one sheet of parchment paper and spray lightly again. Sprinkle a tea towel with a little powdered sugar in a 10 x 15″ rectangle. Set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together soymilk, vinegar, and flaxseed meal and set aside to curdle, making a thickened vegan buttermilk. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, xanthan gum, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the center and pour in canola oil, vanilla extract, and soymilk mixture. Whisk together for 100 strokes until smooth. (Whisking for a portracted time like this will develop gluten and, hence, structure.) Transfer batter into prepared pan and gently smooth into the corners. Bake for 12 to 13 minutes or just until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in pan for 3 minutes and then invert onto prepared tea towel. Carefully peel off parchment paper. With a very sharp knife, trim 1/8 inch of cake from all of the edges. Working from a long side, fold the excess inch or so of towel over the edge of the cake and carefully roll up like a jelly roll. Tuck edges under and allow to cool completely on a wire rack. Carefully unroll, avoiding trying to flatten the cake completely. Gently spread with preserves. Reroll and place seam side down on a serving platter, nestling it onto a flattened side from the previous rolling. Frost with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting and garnish with shredded cooconut and/or nuts. Serve immediately or cover, refrigerate, and bring to room temperature before serving.
Caramel-Cream Cheese Frosting
1 cup vegan butter, divided in half
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup (4 ounces) vegan cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 to 5 cups confectioner’s sugar (1 pound box)
Up to 1/4 cup non-dairy milk or creamer (e.g. soy, coconut, almond)
Optional for a frosting with even more body: up to 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
In a small saucepan, melt 1/2 cup butter over medium-high. Stir in dark brown sugar and simmer, stirring, for 2 to 3 minuutes or until a deeper brown with a caramel-y aroma; lower heat if necessary. Remove pan from heat and pour caramel into a bowl. Cool and then chill, covered, for a couple of hours or until cold. Using an electric mixer, beat remaining half cup butter and cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in chilled caramel mixture and vanilla until well combined. Beat in powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, thinning with non-dairy milk if desired. For a frosting wtih even more body, beat in vegetable shortening, a couple of tablespoons at a time, again until desired texture is achieved.
(A sequential installment from Kim Hastings, my photographer friend and, along with her vet husband, owner of Independence Veterinary Hospital, who decided on her own to cook her way through The Blooming Platter Cookbook: A Harvest of Seasonal Vegan Recipes Julie & Julia Style for her omnivorous family as a strategy for more healthy eating.)
As I write about the events of tonight’s recipe and describe my most epic fail so far, I am sitting beside an open screen door in 40 degree weather trying to air out my kitchen – my eyes watering from the smoke and the smell of burnt sugar.
I chose Sweet and Savory Nut Brittle. I was so excited about this one because I love brittle anything. Everything started out great. I oiled the pans and measured the ingredients. I dug my candy thermometer out of the drawer and brought the sugar mixture to a boil. I was standing there holding the thermometer up for about two or three minutes before I realized it had a clip on the back – how handy!!
Now I have never in my life brought a candy past the hard ball stage so this was new for me. It seemed like a very long way to go to get to 360 degrees but I was patient. Apparently, however, 360 on my thermometer is the just-before-the-smoke-alarms-go -off-and-it-bursts-into-flames degrees. (I vaguely remember now that something went wrong with the thermometer last time I used it.)
The sugar mixture was now black but I thought “Well maybe this is how brittle is done or maybe it’s the balsamic vinegar – that’s black.” So I poured in the nuts and chili powder, stirred it and poured it on the baking sheet. I waited a little bit then pressed in the salt and then broke off a tiny piece to try. The burnt flavor was overwhelming, but being the optimistic person I am, I thought that maybe that goes away when it cools a little more. So I waited.
When it was cool enough to break, I got out the hammer and whacked it. It broke like glass and flew in different directions all over my kitchen. As I was picking it up, I tried a bigger piece and it was like scooping up a bite of ash out of my fireplace – awful!! I couldn’t eat it. I wouldn’t let my dog eat this fiasco. No literally! My dog was excitedly all over this one and I turned around and dug a piece of it out of her mouth. I was afraid of the potential carcinogens not to mention the sharp glass like shards cutting her mouth.
I was so disappointed (as was the dog!). I really think I should leave the candy making to someone with more experience in this field. I am positive this recipe tastes amazing when made by someone other than myself.
~Kim Hastings
(A sequential installment from Kim Hastings, my photographer friend and, along with her vet husband, owner of Independence Veterinary Hospital, who decided on her own to cook her way through The Blooming Platter Cookbook: A Harvest of Seasonal Vegan Recipes Julie & Julia Style for her omnivorous family as a strategy for more healthy eating.)
I thought I would try a little Indian cooking today so I chose the Indian Saag Dip. I read through all of the ingredients (and there are a lot of them!) and checked through my spice cabinet to see what I needed. Well this led to a complete reorganization of my spices because I couldn’t find anything I was looking for even though I could have sworn it was there.
So I lined them up in alphabetical order and was surprised to see what I really had. I needed turmeric and cardamon so I went shopping. Turmeric was no problem to find but cardamon was a whole different story. Since starting this challenge I find myself seeking out spice aisles searching for spices I have never heard of. I firmly believe that some can only be found in a secret vegan underground to which I am not invited. Well I finally found cardamon but the price – wow! I kept searching til I found what appeared to be buds of it for $5 on the Asian food aisle. Jackpot! I will simply grind it down myself. I must say it did look a bit sketchy grinding buds down in my kitchen.
The recipe goes on to tell me to get my piece of crap food processor out again – please can I have a break from this for just one night? I throw in the tofu and soy milk (yes I broke down and bought the soy milk) and it says to scrape down the sides as needed. Well with my processor once you are lucky enough to lock it in, you don’t unlock it til it’s done. My friends don’t believe it can be this bad. They insist I am being a total drama queen about this so I videotaped it tonight. Once you see it you will understand.
Oh and by the way if any of you run into my husband please tell him I would like a food processor for my birthday. Now he will look at you with a deer-in-the-headlights kind of look but that is just because buying women appliances or cleaning equipment is prohibited in this household. He will think this is a trick. I have taught both my boys (and my husband) that unless the woman specifically asks for it, you do not offer it as a gift. This became a hard and fast rule after my younger son let it slip that they were going together to get me a vacuum cleaner for Christmas one year. They really didn’t understand my reaction to this. Needless to say I did not get a vacuum. But just tell my husband this time I really am asking for one ok?
Now moving on…once all the ingredients were in the pan, the aroma was fantastic. The flavors came together so well – it was a nice variation from the dips we usually make. I will definitely try this one again.
~Kim Hastings
(A sequential installment from Kim Hastings, my photographer friend and, along with her vet husband, owner of Independence Veterinary Hospital, who decided on her own to cook her way through The Blooming Platter Cookbook: A Harvest of Seasonal Vegan Recipes Julie & Julia Style for her omnivorous family as a strategy for more healthy eating.)
I have had the Kung Pao Broccoli and Tofu recipe on my list for the last two weeks and replaced it each time. I have looked at it so many times that my book opens automatically to it now. Why have I been putting it off? Maybe it was the tofu, but I conquered my fear of that a few days ago so I’m doing this recipe today.
My husband is thrilled that it is a one skillet dish. He always has some comment about the state of the kitchen when I’m done cooking these days. I do honestly try to clean as I go. In fact I hear my mom’s voice in my head telling me those exact words but it usually looks like a cyclone went through my kitchen no matter what I do.
I must admit that I prepared chicken on the side so that if my men refused the tofu they could pick it out and substitute the chicken, but I’m not going to pick it out for them. I was a little worried about what kind of reactions I would get from this meal but I have to say that even I was impressed with the way the tofu looked (and tasted!) before I placed it in the warm oven.
Everything was moving along just fine until I realized I did not have the hot dried chiles. Now that is an important ingredient in Kung Pao and somehow I missed it so I just used a healthy amount of red pepper flakes instead. No problem. Everything else came together beautifully.
My family did not see the tofu part of the preparation so when they asked what it was I just said it was a veggie. That’s not a lie right? One just took it at face value and said it was good. The other tried to analyze it and decided it was fried mashed potato chunks. I think the funniest thing was that my older son came home to eat the leftovers the next day and when he took the foil off the dish, he was so upset that all that was left was the chicken and a few peanuts. His brother had beat him to it.
Get this – no one had eaten the chicken!! (Until that was all that was left of course). I think that speaks for itself about just how amazing this dish tastes. My challenge to get them to love vegetables just as much as the other items on the plate is working! I am so proud of myself – seriously proud.
~Kim Hastings
(A sequential installment from Kim Hastings, my photographer friend and, along with her vet husband, owner of Independence Veterinary Hospital, who decided on her own to cook her way through The Blooming Platter Cookbook: A Harvest of Seasonal Vegan Recipes Julie & Julia Style for her omnivorous family as a strategy for more healthy eating.)
[Betsy’s Note: the “F” on Kim’s photo is the grade she gave herself for her adlibbed cheese layer of the sandwiches, NOT for the recipe.]Today I was super ambitious and decided to take on two recipes.
The first one, Curried Couscous, was the easiest one I have made to date. My biggest challenge was the fact that I had no idea what couscous was. My family has never eaten it. So of course I’m standing in the rice aisle at the grocery store searching up and down. I suppose I looked lost because two of the store managers who were in a deep discussion behind me stopped and walked over to see if I needed help. I said I was looking for couscous explaining that I had never used it before and one pointed it out to me and then proceeded to show me all the different kinds. The other manager told him to stop confusing me and just handed me a box of the plain. They were both so kind that I took two and was on my way.
Putting this recipe together was totally uneventful, thus a real confidence builder for me. I’m totally getting the hang of this vegan cooking… until I took on the Pear Walnut and “Blue Cheese” Sandwiches.
Ok I had already decided that my “blue cheese” wasn’t going to have quotation marks around it. I was buzzing on a total confidence high from the couscous. Pears, bread, mustard, and brown sugar? I got this! The assortment of flavors sounded a little strange, but one thing I have learned from cooking The Blooming Platter is to just go with it and it all comes together in the end.
So I now have the sandwiches under the broiler and go to the fridge for my cheater blue cheese dressing and once again…I can’t find any. It’s gone. So now what? The sandwiches are now out of the oven and sitting on top of the stove not looking so appetizing to me (I was really looking forward to the blue cheese). I searched the fridge again hoping it would magically appear. It did not. So I started reading the recipe for the “blue cheese” and I have none of those ingredients. Time to get creative I guess.
I chose pepper jack cheese and cream cheese – I know, don’t judge me – and I layered it on the sandwiches and put them back under the broiler. Then I remembered I forgot to put the walnuts on it so I quickly took it back out and buried them under the cheese. It came out a little burnt around the edges so I cut the crust off and I honestly did eat it for lunch. I have to say it wasn’t bad!
I did not make this for my family because they really don’t like pears for one, and two, they would definitely object to using fruits with mustard and cheese; and my husband hates walnuts as well. I can definitely say I will be making both of these again. The couscous tasted really good! We served it right out of the pot so fast that I did not get a photo of it but it was beautiful. However I regret to say that I did get a photo of the “sandwich” even though I am sure it looks nothing like a pear, walnut and blue cheese sandwich. I promise to do it by the (cook)book next time!
~Kim Howard Hastings
First let me start by saying that the photo I took does not do today’s recipe justice. I chose Carrot Cake Pancakes and messed up so many times I lost count but no matter – they were still delicious. Let me explain.
I made my list and braved the grocery store on a Sunday afternoon. This was my first mistake. I should have known when I walked in and there was only one cart left. I was moving right along until I had to search for arrowroot powder. Not knowing what it was I assumed it was on the spice aisle so I finally got my cart through the masses until I was standing in front of the alphabetized spice display but sadly, no arrowroot. Hmmmmm… I kept searching but I eventually had to get out of everyone’s way. I found a clear spot and looked it up online. It was compared to cornstarch. No problem – I have that at home. Moving on to the juice aisle for pineapple and orange juices. And I’m done! Finally!
Now we had decided to have breakfast for dinner so I started preparing them, so happy that it looked like an easy recipe. I went to get the pineapple juice to pour into the flour mixture and…no pineapple juice anywhere. I searched the fridge, the pantry, under counters and in the truck. Somehow it never made it home and I am NOT going back to the store. So I had to use orange juice. The batter still looked ok after I added the carrots and nuts (I used pecans) so hopefully I’m fine.
Next I decided to do the cream cheese topping before cooking the pancakes. I went to get the cornstarch and I didn’t have that either. WTH!!! Is this really happening?? I remember my mom always substituted flour for cornstarch so that’s what I did, except I added all the orange juice to the flour not just a couple tablespoons. I give up! I threw everything for the sauce in the pot and let it fight its own way to some form of a cream sauce. And that, my friends, is why my photo looks more like potato cakes and gravy instead of beautiful carrot cake pancakes. Sorry!!!
The good news… they were consumed so fast that it did not matter what they looked like!! This recipe is definitely a keeper.
(A sequential installment from Kim Hastings, my photographer friend and, along with her vet husband, owner of Independence Veterinary Hospital, who decided on her own to cook her way through The Blooming Platter Cookbook: A Harvest of Seasonal Vegan Recipes Julie & Julia Style for her omnivorous family as a strategy for more healthy eating.)
Today is a big day in my challenge. I feel it is time to face my fears and choose a recipe with …. tofu.
Now the truth is I have no opinion on it and no valid reason to dislike it because I don’t even know what it is. So I’m going into this with an open mind! I chose the Broiled Tofu Sandwiches with Broccoli Pesto. I was lucky enough to have seen tofu in the produce section the week before so I knew right where to get it and thankfully the recipe told me what type to get. So that was easy.
My biggest challenge in the grocery store was trying to locate pine nuts. After 20 minutes of searching I gave up and went home….and that’s exactly where I found pine nuts! I forgot they were in my pantry all along. So shopping is out of the way.
I started by slicing the tofu and preparing it as directed for the broiler. Next step was to break out the food processor. Again. Quite honestly, wrestling with that heap of plastic was the hardest part of this recipe.
I have to admit that when the instructions said season to taste, I threw in a clove of garlic. I do love putting garlic in almost everything. That was my only deviation I swear. I even used the nutritional yeast. We put the sandwiches together and we were ready to try them. I chose an evening when my husband would not be home because I knew I would have to provide other options if he were there.
My youngest son was as curious as me so we sat down to dinner hoping the other one would take the first bite. We discussed what tofu was while we studied it. He reported that it was plant protein but seriously, that doesn’t tell me anything. What plant? How it it made? I have a lot of googling to do obviously. Bored with all my questions, he finally took the first bite and said “Not bad!” That was enough for me.
I tried it and thought it was surprisingly good. I confess I had tried it just out of the oven and was not that impressed but together with the pesto and ciabatta…Wow!! In my son’s words – Not bad! He had to leave for work but when he got home later he took the leftovers out of the fridge and finished them off – that’s says a lot. So now the big question…
Will I give up my omnivorous ways? No, but I will definitely not be afraid to eat tofu again.
~Kim Hastings
