It's been great to be back in the land of plenty, all though it has been a bit odd too. We stopped over in Hawaii for a few days and one of our first stops was a real grocery store. We walked in and immediately felt overwhelmed and shocked. We looked at each other and knew we would just grab a few basics and just get out of there. We're getting a little better. I can even handle walmart....though I can't say the same for Matthew. We miss the simplicity and the inventiveness that comes from going without.
While I can't say I'd go back just yet, I have to admit that I'm starting to miss the sunsets and the food, the people and the peace, the laid back life and the ocean.....yes! Especially the ocean. There is just something rejuvenating about the ocean that brings peace and joy just at the sight of it. Oh how I miss the ocean. The colors that come as the sun drowns and the exhilarating rush to watch a storm fight for dominance, as if the sky must prove it's just as deep and holds just as much mystery and power. What I would do to stand on the shore staring and imagining what's on the other side. Whether on this side of the pacific or the other, it, like it's root word suggests, offers a mysterious, empowering peace that I pray, no matter how far from it I may be, I may stir inside me and never let go dry.
But enough with the gushing emotional flood. What I need is some food....ya, I'm an emotional eater....what of it? Here are so great summer meals that are fresh and refreshing and if you spray yourself with salt water while you eat it then you'll be wet and salty....Enjoy!
Monday: Bow Tie Ratatouille Pasta
Tuesday: Veganaise
Wednesday:Relief Society Pasta Salad
Thursday: Celery Salad
Friday: Asian Cabbage Salad
Saturday: Crusted Portobello Mushrooms
Sunday: Nutella
Shopping List
bow tie pasta
ratatouille
pesto
vegan parmesian cheese
cashews
bread crumbs
portabella mushrooms
canola oil
almonds
shell pasta noodles
grapes
apples
pineapple
cabbage
carrots
sesame oil
1 bunch celery
vegan milk
I loved these sandwiches as a kid. My grandmother was a master at making them. My grandmother, in my eyes the master chef, would actually toast a piece of bread and cut one piece of bread in half creating two full size pieces. We all thought that this was just another product of her being raised during the depression and she was just being frugal. Actually, grandma was just introducing us to high society.
"As the thinness of the bread is a point of pride in the kitchen, a dense-textured white Pullman loaf is cut with a wide-bladed knife, which guides the cut; daylight should pass through the resulting fine pores." - Wikipidia
Grandma can cut a piece of bread thinner than anyone...ya, I'm puttin out a challenge. Think you can cut it thinner? It is quite the art and takes quite a bit of practice. I can cut it in half but I'm still not as good as grandma. Another key point is the thinness of the cucumber. You can't have thin bread and thick cucumber...that defeats the purpose.
So raise your little fingers, dab the corners of your mouth and hoover up a dozen or so of these delectable morsels.
Traditional Cucumber Sandwiches
1 loaf of sliced bread toasted
1 cucumber sliced thin
veganaise
seasoning blend like spike or oneara
The key is to slice the piece of toast in half right when it comes out of the toaster. Be careful, its hot! Place your hand on top of the toast so you can feel as you cut through it. Now cover one half with veganaise, sliced cucumber, and sprinkle with seasoning. Now "put the top back on" as grandma would say and slice on the diagonal....it has to be on the diagonal or it won't taste right!
Yes, even as a child I was a food geek. I remember when my family would eat out at mick-e-dees. While the rest of the family ordered the usual quarter pounder with cheese, I went for the fillet o' fish. When they called for the big mac, I went with a salad. What can I say, I have sophisticated tastes.
I've always liked fish. Even when I first went vegetarian I didn't go all the way because I couldn't let go of my fish sticks. Now that I've found this substitute I'm happy to wave good-bye to my finned friends. This is way easy and tastes pretty authentic too. Try it with some white sauce, crumbled potato chips, and green onion for a gourmet version or pack it as a lunch.
Vegan Fish Fillets
1/4 c oats
1 c bread crumbs
(panko is best)
salt to taste
2 thingys of celery
1/2 red onion
2 russet potatoes raw
mustard
lemon juice
soy sauce
1 tb vital wheat gluten
1 pinch sage
1 pinch dill weed
1 tb veganaise
1/4 c cooked rice
In your magical food processor, quickly pulse your potatoes, celery and red onion. Now place in a sieve with a bowl under it and let sit for about an hour to let all the juice drain off. Or, to speed up the process you can wring it out in some cheese cloth. You must drain off the liquid or it will be too moist to stay together. Now put your oats, cooked rice, and all your dry ingredients (except the wheat gluten and bread crumbs) into the food processor and pulse. In a large bowl mix everything together, kneading it into a dough. Once it's a dough, roll it out between wax paper, cut into squares. cover with bread crumbs and fry in a pan with oil. These freeze really well! Serve on a bun with fresh tartar sauce.
On North Shore Oahu there is a great restaurant called Hukilau Cafe. If you're visiting I highly recommend it, though if you're vegan there will be nothing on the menu that you can eat. You'll have to ask a local how to get there.....well, ask a couple of locals because they'll all give you different directions, but this is still the way to go since you will never find it on your own. The Hukilau Cafe is where I was first introduced to " the hash." Matthew and I shared a dish of this and didn't eat again till dinner. Matthew refers to such dishes as "gut-pluggers." This meaty dish is definitely not vegetarian and has been linked to many health concerns but what a way to go. This recipe is a healthier, non meaty version that tastes nothing like the original but is still divine nonetheless.
Vegan Hash
2-3 potatoes cubed
1/2 red onion finely chopped
1/2 head cabbage finely chopped
garlic powder
veganaise
salt
In a large sauce pan cook the potatoes in just enough water to make them soft. Once the potatoes are tender, add the onion, cabbage, garlic, and veganaise. Cook till the cabbage is wilted. Serve hot.
When I was young we were blessed to have many foreign exchange students live in our home, most of them being from Japan. This was a great cultural experience for us kids as we learned to love the culture, the people, and the food through their influence.
This was all cool until, as a 3rd grader, I went to school with sushi in my lunch box. In theory this sounded cool. In practice it was not. You should have seen the faces I got. I was shamed for the rest of my elementary career. Of course, it didn't help that my mom kept insisting that it was cool and did it on a regular basis.
Jump forward to the present. I still love sushi and as an adult I'm glad I can wear this out in the open. I'm even part of an elite sushi club. Yes, it's true. I'm in a club of four women that eat sushi together in Salt Lake City Utah. Now, you may ask, sushi, in Salt lake? Yes, in fact, some of the best sushi I have had was in a town called logan in northern utah. If you are ever on a sushi eating tour call me and I'll give you details.
On one of our club excursions we met at the restaurant and ordered edamames for an appetizer. Come to find out, this was the first time one of our members had had them. Thinking they were snap peas she ate the whole thing, pod and all. I would not recommend this. After the meal, when she realized the rest of us has been putting the pods in a separate bowl, she laughed and confessed she had secretly been spitting them in her napkin the whole time to which she displayed a napkin full of pods.
This recipe can be as spicy or mild as you wish, just add the chili sauce a little at a time. I used to make it with imitation crap but now I substitute garbanzo beans and I like it just as much. I even got a little kid who is a picky eater to like this. His eyes were watering the whole time because of the heat but he kept coming back for more. I'm sure you will too.
Sushi
cooked rice
seaweed paper/nori
1/2 c garbanzo beans
Vietnamese chili sauce
veganaise
1/2 avocado
1/2 cucumber sliced length wise
wax paper
sesame seeds
Cook the rice and let it cool out of the fridge. If it cools in the fridge it will go hard. In a blender, add the garbanzo beans, a spoonful of veganaise, and chili sauce (add a little at a time). Slice your cucumber and avocado length wise. Place a sheet of nori on the wax paper and wet your hands (this will help keep the rice from sticking to you). Take a handful of rice and form it into a ball the size of a baseball. Keep working with it till it holds together well. This brings out the gluten so it will stick to your nori. Now put it on your seaweed and spread it around pressing it into your nori till the whole sheet is covered. Now flip the sheet over so the rice is on the bottom. On one long end of the sheet, layer the garbanzo bean mixture, sliced avocado, and cucumber. With 2 hands start to roll the sushi. Roll with the wax paper (make sure you don't roll it in) this will help keep it tight. To seal it, wet the nori at the end and squeeze it together. Now roll it in sesame seeds. To cut, use a very sharp knife. Cut the tube in half and then put the two halves together. Keep doing this until they are 1/4-1/2 an inch thick. Stack on a serving plate and serve with wasabi and soy sauce.
Steam or blanch your edamames and sprinkle with sea salt. Remember not to eat the pod!
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