Curry, my way

In my food I believe in two very important principles -- one is, obviously, deliciousness, and the other is simplicity. This has both. And it's ethnic, which makes you look impressive to your friends ;)

Sweet Tofu Curry

1 pkg extra-firm tofu
2 tbsp peanut oil (or vegetable oil for those with allergies)
3 cloves garlic
1 shallot
1 heaping tbsp curry paste
1 can coconut milk
1/4 c vegetable broth
1 1/2 tbsp honey
1/2 cup frozen spinach

First, and most importantly, the morning before you make this recipe, drain the tofu! The longer tofu drains, the more it will absorb flavor. I recommend slicing it into 4 or 5 pieces, then laying those pieces out on a pile of paper towels and leaving that in the fridge. If you don't have time for that, then before you start preparing anything else, lay out the tofu slices with paper towels on both sides, and put a weight over the whole thing (like a dinner plate or something) and leave it until it's ready to be sliced.

When you're ready to start cooking, finely chop the garlic, thin-slice the shallot, and cube up the tofu. Add your oil to a large pan on medium heat, and add the garlic and shallot. When the shallot gets translucent, add your curry paste, mixing it into the oil until it is consistent, then add your tofu. Cook tofu about 3 minutes with the curry paste mixture.

Add coconut milk, vegetable broth, and white wine, mixing until consistent. Stir in frozen spinach, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until mixture is reduced by about half, stirring occasionally. Feel free to add salt and pepper as you find necessary, but I don't think it really needs it.

Serve over basmati or jasmine rice.

So good it disappeared!

Ok, I meant to take a picture of this -- I really did. It's lovely, and colorful and worth photographing. But...uh...well, I ate it all before I remembered to take a picture.

Tri-Color Veggie Salad

1 c frozen whole kernel corn
1 c frozen green peas
1 fresh tomato
1/2 small yellow onion
1 c fat-free sour cream
1/2 tbsp garlic salt
1/2 tbsp adobo
2 tsp black pepper

This is about the easiest assembly ever: thaw the corn and peas. Chop up the onion and the tomato very small. Put everything in a bowl and mix together. The only note that I do have is about the adobo: I actually have a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce that lives in my fridge, and that was where I got my seasoning from. If you prefer, feel free to substitute that with cayenne pepper, chipotle powder, pepper sauce, or anything else slightly spicy that would make you happy.

This salad is awesome for picnics because it is SUPER easy and looks really pretty because of all the colors.

Absolutely Not Beef Stroganoff

I know what you're thinking: "What title could possibly be less descriptive than one where all we know is that we have ruled out one of the billions of meals in the world?" But please, bear with me here. There is a story:

Growing up, my mom would often make what she would refer to as "beef stroganoff," though she and the rest of my family knew that what she was actually making was nowhere close. The primary ingredients of her recipe were ground chuck, cream of mushroom soup, and sour cream. These things do not a stroganoff make, but what they did make was a delicious dinner of which I was a very big fan. The "stroganoff" is served over egg noodles, and was a favorite in my family.

My adaptation doesn't even have beef in it, so it is not just "beef stroganoff" with air quotes, it is absolutely not beef stroganoff. It is, however, yummy.

Absolutely Not Beef Stroganoff

prep time 15-20 minutes
serves 4-6

3 tbsp olive oil
1 bag of Boca or Morningstar ground crumbles
1 package sliced baby portabella mushrooms
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup sour cream
milk or cream
1/2 cup frozen corn
1 bag egg noodles
salt & pepper
parmesan cheese (optional)

recommended seasonings:
bacon salt
fresh oregano
fresh chives
paprika

Set your pan of water over high heat for the egg noodles. Simultaneously with preparing the egg noodles, add olive oil to a large, deep skillet (or electric skillet if you have one). Add crumbles, onion, and mushrooms, seasoning with a little salt and pepper. Heat, stirring frequently, until the onions are translucent. Add soup and sour cream, stirring until well blended. Slowly add milk or cream until you reach desired sauce consistency. Once desired consistency is reached, add corn and cook until heated through, then season to taste. Serve sauce generously over egg noodles and garnish with parmesan. Enjoy!

It may be a little early for this, but GUEST RECIPE!

I know this is only a new baby blog, but my finacee Jim made such an awesome dinner last night that I had to have him write out the recipe so I could share it. I'll post a recipe of my own tomorrow, I promise!
Sour Cream Pasta with Spinach

1/2 lb medium seashells (or whatever shaped pasta makes you happy)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped (or 1 leek for a milder onion flavor)
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1/2 bunch green onions, chopped
1 carrot, chopped (optional)
2-3 heaping tablespoons of sour cream
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup white wine
1 cup fresh or frozen spinach
1 teaspoon fish sauce (optional)
basil
2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
2 tbsp iberico cheese, grated
salt
pepper

Cook the pasta according to directions. Saute the onion, garlic, green onion, and carrot in olive oil until the onions are soft. Season with salt & pepper. Add the wine and basil; reduce over low heat for 5-7 minutes. Add the fish sauce, sour cream, heavy cream, spinach, and grated cheese- stir until consistent and simmer for 12 minutes. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Add more heavy cream or sour cream according to accomplish the desired texture. Toss with the pasta in a large bowl and serve hot with garlic toast.

MATTIE'S CHEESE NOTES:
With this particular recipe Jim used a combination of parmesan cheese and iberico, which is a semi-hard white cheese with a very subtle sharpness to it. You can certainly substitute the iberico with romano, or just more parmesan if you choose.

What I had for lunch today

I spent a good portion of this morning trying to figure out what to post today. I have a pretty substantial number of tasty dishes waiting in the wings for days when I can't think of anything new, but really it's way too early in the game to be breaking out the old faithfuls. Fortunately, I happened to make a sandwich for lunch today that was just so good I had to share it.

Fresh Veggie Ciabatta Sandwich

Prep time: 10 minutes

~take & bake multigrain ciabatta rolls
~cucumber
~artichoke hearts
~alfalfa sprouts
~carrot
~kalamata olive tapenade
~fromager d'affinois

I'm not including any measurements here, because you can make this recipe for one or for fifty, it's all up to you. For my sandwich, though, I used one ciabatta roll (and if you can't find the take & bake ones at your grocery store, feel free to just get a regular one and warm it up in your oven or toaster oven on "warm"). The take & bake roll needs to heat for about 8 minutes (follow the instructions on your own rolls, of course) and while it's baking, you can multi-task and get your veggies prepared.

Peel and thinly slice the cucumber(s) into rounds, and peel and shred your carrot(s). If the artichoke hearts came from a can, chances are they're already quartered, but if they're whole, you need to quarter them, and you may also want to peel them apart just so the sandwich isn't too tall and falls apart.



Once the bread is done, slice the rolls in half lengthwise. Spread one side with the kalamata tapenade, and the other with the fromager d'affinois.

Cheese always deserves a special note from me. I love cheese, and use it in almost everything. For this specific sandwich I used fromager d'affinois that was actually made from goat's milk instead of cow's milk, which gave it that wonderful subtle bite that only goat cheese can offer. If you want the cheese milder to offset the tapenade, however, you could certainly use the regular cow's-milk variety, or if you would prefer it a brie would be just as tasty. For the timid, or those on a very tight budget, cream cheese might also be a yummy substitute.

The rest is even simpler than it started. Spread a few cucumber slices on the bottom half of the roll; place the artichokes on top of that, followed by your sprouts and some shredded carrot for color and crunch. Put the lid on your sandwich, and enjoy!

I know, I know, this is ridiculously easy, but it's the flavor that counts. We all love a challenge, but I love a good lunch even more.

Biscuits and Gravy 2 Ways

Let me warn you, just because I said this was a pescy/veggie blog doesn't mean it's a health-food blog. I love old-fashioned country meals; my mother was an expert, and she made two things that became my favorite foods as I grew up. One was meatloaf which, I'm sorry to say, I still have not been able to recreate without it's main ingredient: meat. The second, though, was biscuits and gravy -- sausage gravy, to be specific. I am proud to say that I have designed not one, but two new ways to make that old favorite: one is vegetarian, the other vegan. As my favorite food, I thought it would be only fair to make it my first post.


Vegetarian Biscuits and Gravy

Mom's biscuits

Prep time: 20 minutes
Oven: 450 degrees F

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 cup milk

Mix dry ingredients together with french whip or fork. Stir in melted butter (or vegetable oil for lower-cholesterol biscuits) with a wooden spoon. Add milk gradually, stirring until soft dough is formed. Drop by tablespoons onto ungreased (nonstick!) baking sheet. Bake at 450 for 10-12 minutes. Allow biscuits to cool 5-10 minutes.


"Sausage" Gravy

Prep time: 10-15 minutes

1/2 lb Gimme Lean sausage (or other meatless ground sausage-flavored product)
1 small yellow onion
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
generous grinds of black pepper
medium pinch of kosher or sea salt

other suggested seasonings:
smoked paprika
toasted onion powder
garlic powder
Bacon Salt

For anyone accustomed to making gravies with a roux, my method will seem a little strange here. Traditionally, one would brown the sausage, scoop out the meat and use the pan drippings as the fat for the roux. There are two problems with using fake sausage: one is that it doesn't produce any drippings, and the other is that it does need to be browned in a pan before it can join the gravy (even though all it really needs is to heat up, if it doesn't brown first the texture is all funny). I also dislike doing dishes, so I refuse to cook the sausage in a separate pan and add it later. That being said:

Pour your milk into a measuring cup or other container, and set aside (this works much better if the milk is at room temperature).

Use a medium-sized skillet with high edges, on medium heat. Melt the butter, adding the "sausage" and onions after the butter is melted but before it's gotten too hot (brown butter is not delicious in this situation). Break up the "sausage" with a spatula into small-bite-sized pieces and season, stirring with the butter until the sausage is slightly browned and the onion is translucent. Spread the flour over the mixture, stirring until it looks like the "sausage" has gotten coated in a paste or dough (which is your roux).

SLOWLY (I cannot stress that enough) add milk to the mixture; a tablespoon at a time is really enough. Stir constantly, incorporating each portion of milk as you add it. If you add the milk too quickly, the gravy will never thicken and it will be very lumpy. Continue to add milk until you reach the desired consistency (you may need more or less than called for).

Sample the gravy at this point (the fun part!) and add additional seasonings as needed.


Vegan Biscuits and Gravy

"Mom's" Vegan Biscuits

Substitute 1/3 cup butter with vegetable oil, and 1 cup milk with plain soy yogurt. Follow recipe as above.

Also, for a really lovely subtle sweet flavor, try using vanilla soy yogurt. This is great if you'd like to eat the biscuits plain, or with preserves, and surprisingly they're also very good with gravy!

Vegan "Sausage" Gravy

Substitute butter with vegetable oil, and milk with vegetable broth. For a little extra creaminess, you could use a mixture of soy milk and vegetable broth, but I personally feel that the soy gives the gravy a weird flavor. Follow recipe above.

The most fun part!
Crumble a few biscuits into a bowl, cover with a generous portion of gravy, and enjoy!

Welcome!

Hi! My name is Mattie, and I am a recently-converted pescatarian (get it? pesky Mattie, pesky-tarian? punny, no?). While I discovered, to my chagrin, that pescatarian is not, in fact, a real word acknowledged by the OED, it is nonetheless what I have become. I have eschewed all meat products save for fish and select other seafood products, as well as leather, fur, gelatin, and any cosmetic or cleaning product tested on animals.
Being someone who loves to cook, the first crisis I encountered after the change was "How do I make this without bacon?!" So many recipes just don't seem the same without their traditional meaty ingredients, and making dinner delicious without the aid of pan drippings, chicken stock, or any of the other animal products I used to take for granted is proving to be quite a challenge. My adventures in creating new, meat-free and delicious foods needed chronicling, and I've decided to share those chronicles with the lovely audience of the internet. This is where you come in.
Here you can share in my adventures, mishaps, and discoveries, as well as occasionally laughing at my horrific failures. I hope to be able to include images with as many recipes and stories as possible, as encouragement to try some of the dishes posted. Many dishes will be seafood or fish meals, but I'm also making endeavors into vegetarian, and occasionally even vegan meals. I even have some vegan baking recipes to share!
So if you've ever faced a time-honored family recipe, and been stymied by the question "How do I make this without bacon?" I might just be able to show you.