Easy Chai-Rooibos Waffles

I had 3 leftover bags of chai, and was low on spices.  Guess what?  Didn’t need them.

I also had this rogue box of rooibos.  For drinking, I didn’t like this blend at all, but I figured it might work as flavoring for some future baked good.

So we were out of cereal, low on the grocery budget and tired of toast for breakfast.  (Oatmeal had also worn out its welcome long ago.)  I didn’t want to spend 4 dollars on a box of 4 tiny freezer waffles at the store, so I thought I might make a batch of 5 or 6 small homemade waffles, then freeze them.  I wanted chai waffles, but had to conserve those expensive spices.  Serendipity proved that my leftover tea bags would fit the bill.  Zero dollars spent! 

This is similar to my other recipe except I increase the yield and substituted the strongly-steeped tea for the soymilk

Ingredients: yields about 4-5 small belgian waffles

• 2 cups unbleached white flour
• 2/3 cup brown rice flour
• 2 tablespoon  brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
•  1/4 tsp salt
•  4-5 bags of chai or other cinnamon-based tea, or a combination
• 1/4 cup vegan margarine, melted (you can substitute oil)
• generous splash vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Pre-heat waffle maker. Apply some nonstick oil or spray.
2. Steep all tea bags in 2 cups boiling water about 5 minutes
3. Add sugar to steeping tea until well-dissolved, then add vanilla
4. For batter, mix all ingredients, including steeped tea mixture, in one bowl.  Lumps are fine. The batter should be quite thick.
5. Ladle batter in middle of waffle iron, about 3 big spoonfuls.  Cook for about 3-5 minutes, depending on how brown you like them.

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Gnocchi in Velvety “Cream” Sauce with Arugula

This entree blew my mind.  It is the perfect blend of creamy, cheesy, spicy, salty, sweet and bitter.  It speaks to every taste sensor in your mouth.  It.  Is.  AMAZING.  I wasn’t expecting much when I made this because I adapted it from a recipe I found in Southern Living magazine, of all places.  (I had to tweak the sauce to make it thicker.)  In fact, the only reason I made it is because we had some gnocchi laying around and had to use it up.  My husband raved about it, and he is not even a fan of arugula.

Sweet corn has been cheap lately, and I got a bunch of arugula for a song.  Gnocchi is pretty economical as well.

$2.50 per serving 

Serves 4

• 12 oz ready-to-boil gnocchi
• 2 small ears fresh sweet corn, kernels cut off and set aside
• 1 cup soymilk
• a few Tbs flour, plus a little more, just in case
• 3 oz. vegan cream cheese
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 3 cups torn arugula
• a few shakes of crushed red pepper
• handful of minced fresh basil

1. Cook gnocchi according to package, reserve 1/2 cup pasta water. Don’t rinse gnocchi, just drain.

2. Meanwhile, make cream sauce – combine soymilk, cream cheese, salt, garlic powder, pepper in medium saucepan

3. Cook sauce ingredients over medium heat for 10 minutes or longer until cream cheese is dissolved. Stir frequently with fork.

4. Add reserved pasta water and flour to sauce, stir until thickened.  You can add more flour until desired thickness is achieved

5. Pour cream sauce over gnocchi, stir in arugula, sprinkle red pepper flakes.  Sauce will thicken more as it cools.

This is my top favorite new recipe of the year-hands down!

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One Lovely Blog

After finding out that I got this nomination, I realized that I was NOT supposed to sit and wait to see who won, but to participate in the on-going nomination cycle. Oops.  I didn’t quite get that the first time.  But wow- I am happy to get this nomination!

Thank you, VeggieWhatNow, for nominating me for this award!  Please stop over and see this site!  It will make you  happy and hungry, I promise.

To accept the One Lovely Blog award, I am to tell you ten things about myself, and then nominate 5 blogs I enjoy. So here goes!

• Favorite Color: green for the kitchen, grey for my cothes, yellow for the walls
• Favorite animal: Kittens of all ages
• Favorite number: 8
• Favorite non-alcoholic drink: tea, tea, tea!
• Facebook or Twitter: Definitely twitter, which I barely use.
• My passion: drinking good tea and eating good food
• Getting or giving presents: Getting them, because I can never decide what to give. And I love surprises.
• Favorite pattern: Paisleys, hands down
• Favorite day of the week: Saturday
• Favorite flower: Orchids

 5 Blogs I have Nominated for the One Lovely Blog Award:

VeggieForAYear

The Veggie Nook

The Herbivoress

Everyday Vegan Girl

That Was Vegan?

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3-step Sunday Belgian Waffles for 2

Estimated Cost: $1-2.00 per person.  In our case, zip!  No trip to the store necessary.

When Nic and I got married, we ended up with a Crate and Barrel gift card.  After browsing all the shiny appliances, we decided to get a little Villaware belgian waffle iron.  We love its compact size, the cord wrapper on the back and how it can be stored on its side.  It is still going strong, the only problem I ever had with it is when I decided to shine the metal on the top with oven cleaner, which corroded it. (Oops.)  So it’s not shiny anymore, but still makes picture-perfect waffles. (See exhibit A.)

The recipe below is what I scrounged up this morning. I was determined to make a lovely breakfast without buying anything from the store.  I used 1/3 cup brown rice flour to help stretch our regular flour for this month.  Coincidentally, the rice flour adds some flavor and lightness to the waffles, so it all worked out.

Serves: 2, Preparation time: 10 minutes

• 1 cup unbleached white flour
•  1/3 cup brown rice flour
•   1 tablespoon  brown sugar
•   1/4-1/2 teaspoon baking powder
•   1/8 tsp salt
•   1 cup warmed nondairy milk (warm enough to dissolve the brown sugar)
•   1/4 cup vegan margarine, softened (you can substitute oil)
•   generous splash vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Fire up your waffle maker. Apply some nonstick oil or spray.
2. For batter, Mix all ingredients in one bowl.  Lumps are fine. The batter should be quite thick.
3. Ladle batter in middle of waffle iron, about 3 big spoonfuls.  My waffle maker has a buzzer that tells me when they are done; if yours does not, go for about 5-7 minutes, depending on how brown you like them.

That rice flour is an item in the pantry that I’m trying to find uses for instead of going out and buying more ingredients.  My goal for the rest of the summer is to use EVERYTHING in the pantry until it is absolutely bare before buying anything else.  What I have left: a silly amount of vital wheat gluten, amaranth, more brown rice flour, lots of regular flour, a big can of pumpkin, a can of creamed corn, a bag of broth powder, potato flour, lots of pasta shapes, a bag of soup mix and various oil/vinegar.  I already have a few ideas, but if anyone can think of uses for amaranth, I’d appreciate some tips.  I am stumped with that one.

Since we’ve pared down our food budget to about $80 per week, I’ve been creative.  I bought a lot of dry beans and lentils, and we’re planning each meal around what already exists in the house.  Our produce mainly consists of onions, garlic and potatoes, with the occasional on-sale fruit, (watermelon is uber cheap right now).  Thank goodness for in-season delights, like avocados, ($1 each!)  I’m looking forward to cheap zucchini and other reasonably-priced summer veg.  Soon we will both be feeling a little healthier, I’m sure.

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Pumpkin Muffins

Ready for your next source of beta carotene?

Aww, isn’t it cute?  It got a nice dome and everything.

The best part is that pumpkin is a natural binder, so you don’t need any egg replacer.  That would be like adding an egg replacer to applesauce muffins.  Silly.

Ingredients: (makes 6 large muffins)

• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp ground ginger
• 1 1/4 cups pumpkin puree (10 ounces)
• 1/2 cups soy milk
• 1/3 cup vegan margarine, softened at room temperature

Do it!

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a muffin pan. (Don’t forget to use my dome trick!)
2. In a large bowl, mix one cup of the flour, the brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, nutmeg and ginger.
3. Add the pumpkin, soy milk, egg replacer and vegan margarine. Mix until smooth.
4. Add the remaining flour and mix well.  Add some more soy milk or warm water if the batter is too dry.
5. Pour the batter into the muffin pan
6. Bake for one hour, or until knife comes out clean

These muffins cost me $3.95 because I was out of earth balance.

Quick note: Oopsie.  I can’t believe I did this, but I just updated my post on my fruit and nut muffins to better explain my “dome trick”.  Before I said that the muffins need to bake at the higher temp for 10 minutes UNTIL domed, when actually, they dont rise up high until you reduce to the temperature the recipe calls for. I fixed it though!

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Chipotle Bean Burgers

Meal Cost: $6.00, served 6

Pintos are so pretty before they lose their color in cooking.  Calico beans!

This recipe gives you a use for the chipotle pepper in adobo sauce that has been in your fridge for months. (It almost never goes bad if it’s in a sealed container after you open the can.  Who uses a whole can at once, anyway?  Crazy.)  This was cheap to make because I already had everything except the cilantro, avocado and peppers.

Burgers:

• 2 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup finely chopped onions
• ½ tsp. salt
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce, minced
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• ½ tsp. dried oregano
• 1 15-oz. can pinto, kidney or anasazi beans, drained and rinsed, or 1 ½ cups cooked beans
• ¾ cup breadcrumbs, preferably fresh (I used Panko, and it was fine!)
• Cilantro Sauce (recipe follows)

 Cilantro Sauce:

• 1 thick slice bread, stale is best
• 1 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium-sized green bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 scallions (white and pale green parts), thinly sliced
• 2 Tbs. fresh lime juice
• 1 small jalapeño chile, stemmed and seeded
• 1 cup cilantro leaves
• 3/4 tsp. salt

1. Heat 1 Tbs. olive oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onions and salt, and cook, stirring often, 7 to 10 minutes, or until softened. Add garlic, chipotle chile, cumin and oregano; cook, stirring often, 1 minute. Add a third of beans and 1/3 cup water (or bean cooking liquid), and, using potato masher or fork, mash beans. When liquid is absorbed, add another third of beans and 1/3 cup liquid, and mash until mixture is chunky. Stir in last third of beans, and mash lightly. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is very thick and mostly dry.
2. Transfer beans to mixing bowl to cool, about 15 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup breadcrumbs. Taste, and add more salt if needed. Spread remaining breadcrumbs on plate. Using spoon, drop bean mixture by one-sixths into breadcrumbs. Sprinkle tops with breadcrumbs, and form into 6 patties of equal size. Place patties on clean plate. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes, or until firm.
3.  Heat remaining 1 Tbs. oil in nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add patties, and cook until golden, about 3 minutes per side. Serve topped with Cilantro Sauce.

You could also grill these, but I don’t know any vegans who own grills…do you?

How to prepare Cilantro Sauce:

1. Put bread in small bowl, cover with water and let soak 5 minutes. Remove bread, squeeze out excess water, and set aside.
2. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add bell pepper, and cook, stirring often, 7 minutes, or until softened. Add scallions; cook, stirring often, 1 minute.
3. Put mixture into blender or food processor. Add 1/4 cup water, lime juice, jalapeño, cilantro, soaked bread and salt. Purée until smooth.

 

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Sesame-Rice-Pepper Salad

I threw down $3.00 for this meal because I only needed to buy the peppers and sesame oil (served 4)

C’mon, you know you have some brown rice kicking around in the pantry.  You need to use it already.  Go get some crisp, bright and fruity bell peppers from the farmer’s market, gather up that basil you have leftover from making pesto the other night, and dig out the white wine vinegar you’ve kept around for ages, because this is a great salad and you really shouldn’t miss it.  All credit goes to Amy Bronee, who owns rights to the original recipe.  (I modified it a little, mainly by using less oil, because my first attempt came out TOO wet and oily.)  The only way I can describe this is: it’s like the best stir-fry you ever had, only it is a salad.  I could eat a bath tub full of this stuff.  (This is slow food at its best, everyone knows that brown rice takes forever and you have to roast the peppers.  Well worth the time, as all good food is.)  Your kitchen will smell amazing while waiting for this dish.

Ingredients:

• 4 large bell peppers, (yellow, orange and red) seeded and cut into quarters
• drizzle canola oil
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup long grain brown rice
• 1/4 cup basil, sliced

Dressing:

• 2 Tbs olive oil
• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar, scant
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 tsp sesame oil, scant
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 garlic clove, pressed

How-to:

1. Toss peppers with a drizzle of canola oil in a  baking vessel and roast in a 400 degree (F) oven for 35 minutes until  softened and  edges darken. (Go to steps 4 and 5 while waiting.)
2. Move peppers to refrigerator to cool for half an hour.
3. Once cooled, chop peppers into slices and then cut slices into thirds.
4. Bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat and add the salt.
5. Add rice, cover, adjust heat to low, and simmer for 20 minutes until the water is absorbed and  rice is tender.
6. Drain rice, fluff with fork.  You can rinse to cool or leave the rice warm, depending on how you like it.
7. Combine all the dressing ingredients in a separate bowl and whisk.
8. Combine peppers, rice, dressing, and basil in a large salad bowl and toss.  DONE!

(Hey- I just found out that I was nominated for the One Lovely Blog award! I feel loved.)

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Quick-but-impressive Minestrone Soup

$5.00, 4 servings

I had an errant box of penne, canned tomatos, dry garbanzos, so all I had to buy was a little basil and a small amount of baby spinach for this fancy soup.  I’d like to personally thank my vegan broth powder for being there for me when I needed it.  Broth powder, you’ve been with me all year and you’re still kickin’!  Without you, this soup wouldn’t be possible.

Vegan Minestrone Soup

• 1 28 oz. can of diced tomatoes with italian seasoning
• 14 oz garbanzo beans (use prepared dry beans…they taste better! Soak the night before according to directions)
• 1 cup vegan broth
• 1 medium yellow bell pepper
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 cup dry rigatoni or penne
• 2 to 3 cups baby spinach
• minced fresh basil, about a handful of leaves

That’s not corn you see in the soup, it’s yellow pepper! (Corn?  Eww! Never.)

I love these cans, they look like something from the past.

Directions

1. Combine the tomatoes, 2 cups water, beans, broth, sweet pepper, seasoning and pasta.

2. Bring to boiling over high heat. Reduce heat to medium.

3. Cook, covered, for 10 minutes, stirring occassionally, just until pasta is barely tender.

4. Stir in spinach, ladle into bowls, add basil on top.

Here is my lunch the next day!  Soup leftovers and sauteed spinach on the side.

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Vibrant Pasta Salad

$5.00, Feeds 4

I modeled this after a pasta salad side dish that was served at our wedding.  I created the dressing by remembering the flavors, then I added my favorite veg.  This was cheap for me to make because all I had to buy was the pasta, pepper and basil.  Everything else was already in the kitchen.

Crucial tip: When making this pasta salad, or any other pasta salad, don’t let the pasta go cold.  Get the dressing and veggies ready while pasta boils.  Once pasta is done boiling, drain it, then toss all the ingredients and dressing with the hot pasta.  This develops the flavors. 

Ingredients: (for 4 servings)

• 1 1/2 cups rotini
• bell pepper – any color, sliced thinly
• a handful of grape tomatos
• 2 carrots, thinly sliced into coins
• 1/2  a red onion, thinly sliced and diced
• a handful of basil, torn into small pieces
• 1 garlic clove, minced

For the Dressing:

• 4 tbs olive oil
• 2 tbs red wine vinegar
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 1/2 superfine sugar
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

• Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling, lightly salted water until just tender
• Prepare dressing by whisking all ingredients together in a small bowl, set aside
• Prepare rest of ingredients and vegetables, add to a large bowl
• When pasta is done, drain, then quickly pour hot pasta into bowl with rest of ingredients
• Pour on the dressing
• Toss like there’s no tomorrow! (Until everything is well coated)
• Once everything is well-mixed, wait until the dish cools, then eat!

Additional tips: I was out of garlic when I made this once, and discovered this dish is still great without.  Also for a nice addition, toss in half-moon slices of zucchini- cooked with a little salt until crisp-tender.

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Virtual Vegan Potluck!

I am proud to have been invited to participate in a virtual vegan potluck coordinated by anunrefinedvegan.  You are now about to step through a portal of delicious vegan food!  Please click through, enjoy the sights.  Use the buttons below to go forward or backward through the potluck.

My contribution to this feast is a miso soup to have either in-between samplings of different dishes at the potluck or as an appetizer.  Virtually no calories, yet tasty and satisfying, this is easy to whip up in minutes.  I make my miso soup a lot chunkier than traditional versions, most miso is made more scant.  It depends on how much tofu you want to consume at the time.  Enjoy! And please click through to enjoy the other offerings at the potluck.

Veganmonologue’s Miso Recipe:

This is not a science!  Just go with it.  You can’t mess it up.

This is in terms of about a cup and a half-sized bowls of soup.

Ingredients:

• red or white miso paste (1 tbs per bowl of soup)
• firm silken tofu, cubed very small (enough to put a few tbs in each bowl)
•  a handful of straw mushrooms, canned (if you can’t find these, use fresh chopped shiitake or baby bella)
• wakame seaweed ( a little goes a LONG way- think about 1 tsp per bowl)
• your favorite broth (calculate enough to full up each bowl you are preparing)

Procedure:

1. Place dry wakame in a small bowl of cold water to sit while you prepare the rest of the ingredients
2. Get the broth really hot in a pan – medium high-  but not boiling
3. Add mushrooms and tofu until mushrooms are soft and cooked, the tofu will absorb some of the broth flavor
4. Once wakame has blossomed to more than twice its original size, drain and add it to the hot, but not boiling water
5. Take the pot off the stove, make sure the broth is not boiling, then add the miso paste, and stir really well until it is all dissolved

Interesting related facts: There have been studies in which daily miso consumption has been linked to a reduction in breast cancer in women, as well as many other cancers in both genders. Lastly, there is a sad shortage of straw mushrooms around the world right now, so if you can find these adorable and tasty little mushrooms, savor them while you still can.

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