The Return of Muffins

Before summer, I made a batch of muffins at least once a week so that Phil and I always had something to munch on in the morning, but once the heat hit I avoided the oven like the plague (especially if preheating was involved). Well, upon purchasing a secret ingredient that I promised Phil I would make muffins with, I decided yesterday that I might as well start.

What is the secret ingredient, you ask?



Many of you no doubt recognize this, expecially if you read VeganYumYum, since she made "cupcake pies" with these in September (I discovered this after Googling them today to check some last minute facts). Phil and I, however, did not know what they were. We saw them at a small farmers market, and upon asking what they were, we were given a little sample. Hmm. Weird, fruity, tomato-ey, sweet, savory, acidic-- all these things in one little grape-sized berry enveloped in a papery husk.

I didn't think they were quite sweet enough to replace just any fruit, but after looking through my recipe books for a basic muffin recipe, I thought they might do well in a slightly modified version of VWaV's Ginger Raisin Muffins... and I think I was right.

Personally, I think I modified this enough for it to be a different recipe and to share it, so I will. And on the off-chance that someone (like Isa, though she'd ever read this blog) is offended, please alert me promptly and I will remove it. Additionally, if you don't own VWaV, you probably already know that everyone else does and loves it, so you should, too.

Ginger Almond Groundcherry Muffins (i.e. Physalis)
Makes 12 standard-sized muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 c. whole wheat pastry flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 c. + 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 2 tsp. ground ginger*
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 3/4 c. oat flour**
• 1 c. rice milk
• 1/4 c. water
• 1/3 c. canola oil
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. rinsed groundcherries
• 1/4 c. raw almond slivers, plus more for garnish

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and oil your muffin tin or line with papers.

Sift together flour, baking powder and soda, sugar, ginger, cinnamon, salt and the oat flour. Make a well and add the liquid ingredients. Mix until combined, but be careful to not overmix. Fold in the groundcherries and almonds.

Distribute evenly throughout the muffin cups, garnish with almonds, and bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean!

* Dry, ground ginger. I noticed someone else made this recipe and used fresh ginger, probably microplaned. If you choose to do that, increase the amount accordingly... not sure what the equivilant would be, though.
** Throw some rolled oats in a food processor or coffee grinder and go crazy.

I think these would also be good in an orange or lemon muffin, too...

I'll leave you with what was an awesome lunch:

Hot veggie and tofu hoagie, kale chips and quinoa with corn and peas.

Lentils and Quinoa

Officially out of beans (except for dried garbanzos, bt i keep forgetting to soak them) I thought I was SOL for lunch today, but... TA DA! Lentils were hiding in my cabinet. So I made this simple, subtly flavorful and very satisfying dish that I just have to share.

Lentils and Quinoa
Serves 2-3
Ingredients:

• 1 c. dried quinoa
• 1/2 c. dried brown lentils
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp. dried coriander*
• 1/2 tsp. Tandoori blend*
• 3 c. water*
• 1 c. spinach, chopped
• 2 white mushrooms, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• Optional: 1/2 c. chopped mango

*If you have a vegetable broth you like, omit the spices and water and add 3 c. broth instead.

Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in a medium saucepan and add the quinoa and spices. Cook for 3-5 minutes, then add lentils. Give a good stirring. Add the water or broth, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the water is all absorbed.

In a skillet, heat the remaining oil over medium heat and add the spinach, mushrooms and garlic. Saute for 5 minutes (until tender and wilted) and add the quinoa and lentil mixture and the mango, if you're using that (which i recommend). Mix well, salt and pepper to taste, and serve!

I had seconds. Enjoy! Oh, and if you have carrots, make roasted carrots. I would link to the recipe but I have to go to work!

Chickpea Tacos

My excuse for the lack of posts is as follows:

This past weekend my family held a memorial for my step-grandmother down in Virginia, and in order to take of the weekend for it, I had to work 8 days in a row. This didn't leave much time for blogging, although I did cook as much as I could. But now I'm back, so I have some food that hasn't been posted to post.

The great thing about Vegetarian Times is that they archive old issues on their website and post the recipes. March 2008 is already up there, so I thought I would share their Chickpea Tacos and mexican rice. Unfortunately the rice recipe isn't online yet, but I'll share the basics.

When I went grocery shopping for the week, I bought dried chickpeas for this dish, thinking I'd remember to soak and cook them before attempting this. Wrong. I totally forgot, and ended up having to use a can of small red beans, which are pretty bland in comparison with the garbanzos. But whatever. Phil made a pico de gallo to go with this instead of us using jarred salsa. Overall the avocado/bean mash was good but a little bland-- something I've found often with VT's recipes. I realize they're trying to appeal to all of their reader's palates, so it doesn't hurt to add a little more seasonings if you know you like salt or spicy flavors.

I do love VT, though. Even if I need to tweak some things to my taste, the recipes offer a lot of inspiration!

Oh, and for the mexican rice. I actually made quinoa, and it went something like this:

Mexican Quinoa
Serves 4 (or 2 pigs, i.e. Phil and me)
Ingredients:

• 1 c. dry quinoa
• 2 c. water
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil (optional)
• 1 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 Tbsp. ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp. chili powder (this amount can be tweaked to your taste!)
• 1 c. frozen peas
• 1 c. frozen corn

Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan. Add the quinoa and stir until slightly browned, 2-3 minutes. Add cumin and chili powder and stir for another 2-3 minutes or until the spices are fragrant.

Add the water and tomato paste and stir well until the paste had dissolved (mashing it against the sides of the pot helps me!). Then, stir in the corn, peas, and salt. Lower the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for 15-20 minutes.

As usual, enjoy!

Chickpeas a la King

I don't remember much about the first few years of vegetarianism, which I guess means my mom, who was not a vegetarian, did a good job feeding me (she's the best mom, truly). I do, however, know what meat I never tried as a meat eater, and Chicken a la King is one of them. In fact, I had no idea what it was before I came across 'Chickpeas a la King' in Jo Stepaniak's Vegan Vittles the other day.

Oh, it was heaven.

I served it over quinoa and steamed some peas and carrots for the side.

The recipe is already online here, so I will just post it as well. However, I must say-- if you like this, buy her cookbook! It's vegan comfort food, but healthy. And it's tastes great. I didn't use it much in the past because I've always been afraid of nurtitional yeast. But now we're best friends!

Okay.

Chickpeas A'la King

Recipe By :Joanne Stepaniak

Submitted by: Sue in NJ

Nutritional info is for regular Rice Dreams rice milk. A fat-free soy or rice milk would give this recipe an even lower fat and calorie count.

1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup red bell pepper -- chopped
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme -- crumbled
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cups rice milk -- or low-fat soymilk or other non-dairy milk
1 1/2 cups chickpeas -- 1-15oz can, rinsed & drained
1/2 cup scallions -- finely chopped

1. Sauté the mushrooms & bell peppers in water or veggie broth (original recipe called for oil) for 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly so they don't stick or brown. Stir in the flour, then add nutritional yeast and spices and continue cooking & stirring for another minute.

2. Remove from heat and gradually stir in the milk, mixing constantly to avoid lumps.

3. Return to heat to continue cooking. Stir constantly until thickened, then add chickpeas & scallions and continue cooking another 3-5 minutes or until the chickpeas are thoroughly warmed.

4. Serve at once over biscuits, rice, noodles or toast points.

Serving Size : 4

Description:
"Use chickpeas, not chicken in this old fashioned entrée. You're bound to get compliments that will make you crow. Serve it over rice, toasted bread triangles, or split biscuits. - Jo Stepaniak"

Source:
"Vegan Vittles - Recipes Inspired by the Critters of the Farm Sanctuary"

Thai Tofu Satay with Peanut Sauce

I kept forgetting to post, so I'll do the last few days today.

On Sunday, Emlit (my sister) came over for dinner! What a nice surprise. We talked so much we didn't get to watch the movie we rented (which is how it should be!) At any rate, we made Vegetarian Times' Thai Tofu Satay with Peanut Sauce and it was killer! Since we changed some stuff a bit, and it's already on the web, I'm going to post it here. Hopefully VT won't come after me. The recipe is actually for skewers, kabob style, but because I suck at reading directions I didn't realize this until we were supposed to skewer them. And I don't have any skewers. So we improvised. Also, I've never written down cooking directions, so yes, I know this is kind of convoluted. But I'm trying!

Thai Tofu Satay

• 3 Tbs. low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1 tbsp. olive oil (or toasted sesame oil for added flavor)
  
• 1 10-oz. pkg. firm tofu, drained and cut into 1-inch cubes
• Small onion of your choice (i used yellow)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
  
• 4 oz. fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed (about 1 1/2 cups)

Peanut Sauce (the delicious key to this recipe)

• 3/4 cup light coconut milk
• 1 tsp. red curry paste, or to taste
• 1/4 cup smooth peanut butter
• 2 Tbs. brown sugar or raw sugar
• 1 Tbs. lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp. salt

Quinoa Yum

• 2 c. quinoa (? I used a rice cooker, and just followed the lines. However, quinoa is a 1:2 grain, so 1 c. quinoa cooked with 2. water yields 3 c. cooked quinoa, or thereabouts)
• 4 c. water
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. sweet paprika
  

1. If using a rice cooker, fill to line 1 with quinoa, then to line 2 with water. Add salt and paprika, give a quick stir, and switch on. If cooking in a pot, do the same thing but with the measurements I gave above. Bring everything to a boil, then simmer covered for 15-20 minutes depending on the texture you want.
2. Whisk together soy sauce and tumeric, then combine with tofu and mushrooms in a large container. I used a tuperware, so I could shake it periodically to insure full-coverage. Yum.
3. To make Peanut Sauce: Whisk together coconut milk and red curry paste in saucepan. Whisk in peanut butter until smooth. Stir in sugar, lemon juice and salt, and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low, and cook 5 minutes, or until thickened, stirring often. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Heat oil in skillet. Add onion and cook for five minutes, or until soft. Toss in the tofu, mushrooms, and garlic. Stirring often, let it cook on medium heat for about ten minutes-- until the tofu looks done and the mushrooms are soft and spongy. Once this is achieved, lower the heat and move to the next step.
5. Reheat the peanut sauce on low heat and add 1/4 c. water to thin it out. You have two options: either toss in with the stir-fry directly in the skillet, or drizzle it on top after plating everything. Either way, this sauce is so ridiculously good. Serve on top on the quinoa!

The end. It was awesome. We ate it with this.