Tag: recipes

Jazzed-up Ramen Noodles

Instant ramen noodles aren’t just for college students and don’t have to be so unhealthy. I don’t buy packaged foods often, but sometimes you just need a big bowl of steaming hot broth and noodles (and  at 75 cents a pop who can argue?). Try to find brands with lower sodium and no animal products. This means no chicken, beef, or seafood flavors. Vegan means no animal products and chicken flavoring usually implies it came from a chicken, so it’s not vegan. Stick to vegetable broths, the one I used was mushroom.

But the best way to counteract the evils of packaged foods? Throw some fresh stuff in there too! This is just one of many variations I make when I want to jazz up my ramen. I also suggest tofu, spinach, carrots, radishes, cabbage, edamame, jalapeños or any combination of these. 
Jazzed-up Ramen Noodles
1 package of instant ramen soup
2 cups water (may vary based on the brand you use)
1 1/4 inch piece of ginger root, sliced finely
1 clove of garlic, chopped finely
1 bunch bok choy
Fresh basil, chopped finely
Green onion, sliced finely 
Red pepper flakes 
Cook the noodles accordion to the instructions on the package. My package said to boil  2 cups of water, add the noodles and cook for 3 minutes. 
After about a minute of cooking, I added in the ginger and garlic. 
I suggest boiling the bok choy for a minute or two first so it is less bitter. 
Once the noodle are cooked, transfer to a serving bowl. 
Add the bok choy, and top with the basil, green onions, and pepper flakes. 
Relive or continue to survive your college days with cheap, easy, and delicious bowl of jazzed -up ramen. 

Birthday Cupcakes: Kona Mocha and Tropical Coconut

Today is my birthday! I am 24 years-old today and pretty happy about it. I am not where I thought I would be at 24, and that’s a really good thing. The most important thing I have learned in my 24 short years of life is to just go with it. Life takes you places you never imagined and the best thing to do is not fight it. If you told me when I was 16 that I would be living in Hawaii pursuing a degree in geology, I doubt I would have believed you. I still don’t have it all figured out, but life is more fun with surprises 🙂 I  would have believed you if you told me I was going to become a vegan though.

I put more thought into what treat I wanted for my birthday than is probably needed because I hardly ever make sweets. It’s a real treat when I do. I searched the web, found many yummy options but none really caught my eye. I couldn’t decide between something coconut/mango-y or mocha/chocolate-y. Then I realized I could make both! But I didn’t want to end up frosting 48 cupcakes all day so I decided to make a normal 24 batch and just split the batter.

I used a box mix because, it’s just easier. But, it’s organic and does not have tons of scary chemical ingredients. I am not opposed to packaged products occasionally, but they should not be the stable of your diet. But a nice treat on your birthday is fine.

I made two cupcakes from a single box mix, Tropical Coconut and and Kona Mocha. It’s not hard to doctor-up a simple box mix with your own variations. The Tropical Coconut have pineapple-mango preserves in the batter, a pineapple-mango buttercream frosting and are topped with coconut shavings. The Kona Mocha have Kona coffee and chocolate added to the batter, chocolate buttercream frosting, and are topped with some coffee grounds. If you want to make full batches of either or both of these, just don’t split the batter and add double preserves in the pineapple mango and double the chocolate and coffee in the Kona Mochas.


By the way, Kona coffee is the only coffee that is completely grown and produced in US. Make sure it says 100% Kona coffee on the label for the real stuff.

The Cupcakes
1 box of vanilla cake mix (I used Dr. Oetker)
4 and 1/2 tsp Ener-G Egg Replacer
6 tbs water
1/2 cup soy milk
1/2 cup applesauce (I used cinnamon but plain is fine too)

Pineapple Mango Variation 
3 tbs unsweetened pineapple-mango preserves
1/4 cup soy milk
1/4 tps baking powder

Kona Mocha Variation
1/2 extra strong Kona coffee
2 ounces of dark chocolate, melted

Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees and spray a cupcake tin with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, add the cake mix.

In a small bowl, whisk the Enger-G Egg replacer and water. Add to the large bowl.

Add the soy milk and applesauce to the large bowl, mix together well, making sure to get air in the batter. If you aren’t a broke college kid like me, you can do this in your stand mixer.

Now evenly divided the batter into two bowls.  I only have one cupcake tin so I had to make them one at a time.

For the Tropical Coconut, in one of the bowls add the perseveres, 1/4 cup soy milk, and baking powder. Mix together well again.

Pour the batter into the cupcake tin, filling eat 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 10-12 minutes. They are ready when a tooth inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Let them cool in the tin for bit, then remove from and let cool completely.

For the Kona Mocha, in the other bowl add the coffee and melted chocolate. I added some extra coffee grounds in for an extra kick too. Mix together well again.

Pour the batter into the cupcake tin, filling eat 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 10-12 minutes. They are ready when a tooth inserted into the middle comes out clean. 

Let them cool in the tin for bit, then remove from and let cool completely. 








The Frostings
1 box of vanilla frosting mix  (I used Dr. Oetker)
2 stick soften vegan shortening
1/4 cup soy milk
Tropical Coconut Variation
1 tbs pineapple-mango preserves
unsweetened shaved coconut
Kona Mocha Variation
2 ounces dark chocolate, melted
Kona coffee grounds
If you have stand mixer, use it. It sucked mixing this all by hand. 

In large bowl, beat together the frosting mix, shortening, and soy milk until smooth. 
Divide into two bowls.
For the Tropical Coconut,in one bowl add in the preserves and mix well. 
Frost the cupcakes and sprinkle on some shaved coconut. 

For the Kona Mocha, in the other bowl add the melted chocolate and mix well.
Frost the cupcakes, and sprinkle on some coffee grounds.
I decided to be nice (and it’s healthier for me not to eat them all anyways) and share them with the geology department. So UHH geology majors, go check the seminar room today.
I left some out for me to eat tonight of course, but one conveniently didn’t fit in the box when I was packing them up last night 🙂 Oh, the frosting is so good. And I love how moist the applesauce makes the cupcakes. Not as pretty as my mom would have made but delicious nonetheless. Happy Birthday to me indeed!  
PS, When I checked the geology seminar room at 12:30, only a few cupcakes where left. Guessing they were a hit!

Feel Better Vegetable Soup

I’ve felt kind of crummy all weekend, I think I caught a cold or something. So, I decided to make the best thing for a cold, soup! There is tons of research on the healing properties of vegetable and chicken soups—but since I am a vegan I am only going to talk about vegetable soup. Since soup is largely liquid based, it helps keep you hydrated, which is key to fighting a cold. The vegetables also can act like anti-inflammatories and help lessen congestion and soreness. The protein in the seitan also helps boost your body’s ability to fight off sickness as well. I’ll post some links at the bottom.
Besides all those wonderful health qualities, who doesn’t love a big steaming bowl of soup? That’s the main reason I decided to make this. It conjures up happy memories of my mom bringing a bowl of her homemade soup and kissing me on the forehead to make me feel better. It’s also proven that thinking of happy memories helps your immunity too (I watched a very good documentary recently called The Science of Healing with Dr. Esther Sternberg on the subject).
I guess this is based on my mom’s chicken soup recipe, just minus the chicken. It’s pretty much the standard vegetable soup recipe and it’s very easy. I wanted more of the seitan I posted yesterday, I made up another batch to add more protein to the soup. I made my own broth because it makes all the difference in the world. Plus, there is way less sodium than the stuff in the box or can. 

Vegetable and Seitan Soup
1 large onion
3 large carrots
4 stalks of celery
2 cloves of garlic
1 half inch piece of ginger
8 cups water
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 cup seitan

Peal the onion and chop off the ends. Cut into quarters. Cut the ends off the carrots and celery, cut into quarters as well. Peal the finer and chop off the ends. Peal the ginger. Throw everything into a large pot.

Add the water, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.

Cover and turn on the heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook for about an hour, until the veggies are tender. 

Remove the veggies. If you strain them, make sure you do not accidentally throw out the broth. Set the veggies aside to cool. Taste the broth and season with salt and pepper as needed.

Once the veggies are cooled, chop into bite size pieces. Some people discard the garlic and ginger, but I chop it up too.

Add the veggies back to the broth.

Add the seitan and turn the heat to low. Let it cook for a few minutes, just to warm everything back up.

I served mine over wild jasmine rice, but noodles would be wonderful too.

I hope I feel better tomorrow. And if not, I have plenty to soup to help me feel better.

Links on Cold Cures:
Today Show: The Truth About Six Common Cold Remedies
Mayo Clinic: Common Cold
10 Simple Ways to Cure Cold

Homemade Seitan

Seitan is my favorite meat alternative. As much as I love tofu, you can only eat so much soy before it gets old. Seitan is wheat protein that has all the starch washed away. If you have Celiac Disease or any other gluten allergy, it’s the exact thing you are allergic to, so sadly this tasty dish is not for you. But, if you have no issues with gluten, give “wheat meat” a try. It has a firmer and chewier texture, reminds me of chicken a little bit. Like tofu, it will take on the flavor of what ever you cook it in. It is sold in health food stores and you can find it in some normal grocery stores now too.

I have a hard time finding it in Hilo, so I decided to attempt to make my own. I actually made this awhile ago, but haven’t had the time to post it. I can’t remember where I first read about making your own seitan, but the idea stuck around in my head. I looked up some videos on YouTube and found the following to be the easiest to follow. I loved the final outcome but I have to admit, the process was a huge pain. The video says washing the dough takes 15 minutes but it took me more like 45 minutes. She says wash until the water is pretty clear, but trust me, wash that dough until the water is CRYSTAL clear. Any remaining starch (the stuff that makes the water whitish) will make your seitan tacky and gross. I had to make another batch because of that. So wash it more than you think is necessary, because it is totally necessary. 
This is my version of the recipe in the video, it’s pretty close to hers though. I made my plain with no spices because I did not know what I was going to use mine in. So I omitted the spices in the actual dough.  But I made sure I jazzed it up when I used it in the my final dishes. 
Homemade Seitan
Dough:
8 cups white all purpose flour
3 tbs nutritional yeast
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 and 1/2 cups water
Cooking Stock:
4 cups vegetable broth 
1/2 cup soy sauce
Follow this video, she explains everything very clearly and is easy to follow. Like I said earlier, wash until it is totally clear, not just pretty clear. It might take awhile, but it’s necessary. I cut mine into two shapes before boiling, steaks and nuggets. 
I used my seitan for all sorts of things.  I fried it up like chicken and had it with some BBQ sauce and green bean casserole one night. 
I sautéed it in olive oil with garlic and basil, then served with tomato sauce. 
I even ate the nuggets plain with some ketchup for lunch one day too. It’s always good to know what actually goes into the food you eat. Making your own of something ensures that there are no scary ingredients. Plus, I like the texture of my homemade stuff better than the store bought. 
I think next time I am going to use it has taco filling….

Go Ducks: Yell-O and Green Nachos

For the past 6 years of my life, every Saturday from September to December is taken over by Oregon Duck football. I am proud graduate University of Oregon and needless to say, I bleed green and yellow. I loved going to the games with my sorority sisters and yelling “O” until we went hoarse. I have sadly had to spend the past seasons and this one cheering from Hawaii. But just because I am in the middle of  the Pacific doesn’t mean I don’t get all ducked-out. I either go to a local sports bar or watch from home, but regardless I have my jersey on and shout like a maniac.

Today the Ducks face off against LSU, a game that will sure deserve a special blog post. So I decided to make something green and yellow (U of O colors), and finally settled on nachos. I made queso sauce from nutritional yeast and used salsa verde for the colors. Plus some jalapeños for some spice and because they are little O’s. I wanted to top it all off with some vegan sour cream, but my store was sold out.

I just realized this is also fitting because our coach is named Chip.

Yell-O and Green Nacho
Queso sauce:
4 tbs vegan butter
1 and 1/4 cup nutritional yeast, divided

3/4 cup vegetable broth
1/2 cup unsweetened, plain soy milk

1/2 tbs garlic powder
1tps cumin
1 tps parkia
1 tps chili powder
1/2 tsp pepper
The rest of the stuff:
1/4 medium onion, chopped
1 cup soy” beef” crumbles (I used Smart Ground)
Tortilla chips
Salsa verde
Jalapeños
Vegan sour cream

To make the queso sauce, add the vegan butter and 1 cup of the nutritional yeast to saucepan over medium/low heat. Incorporate the two together to make a sort of roux. It should clump together and get a little golden.

Add the vegetable broth and soy milk. Whisk together so there are no lumps.

Add the garlic powder, cumin, paprika, chili powder and pepper. You can add salt if you like, but mine didn’t need it. Mix together well.

Reduce the heat to low. Let it reduce and thicken, stirring frequently. Taste it after awhile, if it need more “cheese” flavor, add some more nutritional yeast.

In skillet, lightly brown the chopped onion. Then add the soy crumbles. Cooked until heated through.

Once the queso sauce is smooth and thicken slightly, it’s time to assemble.

On a large plate or platter, scatter desired amount of chips. There is enough sauce for at least 5 serving so be generous.

Next sprinkle on the soy crumble mixture.

Now pour on the queso sauce.

Now add the desired about of salsa verde.

If your store didn’t run out of sour cream like mine did, add a few dollops.

Top with desired about of jalapeños so your nachos are yelling “O”.

Turn on the Ducks game, open a Widmer (or any other fine Oregon brew) and get ready to cheer! Win the days boys!

Cincinnati Style Chili

I had heard of Cincinnati style chili before, but never had the chance to try it. The other day I was trying to decide what I want to make next for my blog when I saw something on the Food Network about some restaurant in Ohio that famous for their chili (can’t remember the restaurant or what show it was) and thought it looked delicious.

Cincinnati style chili is more like a sauce than a chili. It was first made by Macedonian immigrants who wanted to expand their restaurant menus. It consist of not only traditional chili ingredients like chili powder and cumin, but has some unusual ones like chocolate, cinnamon, and vinegar. I like savory/sweet combinations so I knew I was going to like it. The real version has worcestershire sauce (not vegan since it is fish based, though there are some vegan versions out there) and ground beef. I omitted the worcestershire and used Smart Ground Veggie Protein Crumbles instead of beef.   
The chili is normally served over spaghetti or a hot dog since it is more sauce-like, though it is good enough to eat on its own. I got to give it you Cincinnati, you make a very fine chili. I will definitely make this again sometime. This recipe is based on one from foodnetwork.com called Cincinnati Chili. 
Cincinnati Style Chili

  • 1 large onions, chopped

  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 2 tbs chili powder
  • 1 tbs smoked paprika
  • 1 and 1/2 fps ground cumin
  • 1 fps ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp chili turmeric 
  • 1 package Smart Ground Veggie Protein Crumbles  
  • 1/4 cup red wine 
  • 1 tbs soy sauce
  • 1 tbs cider vinegar 
  • 1 6-ounce can tomato sauce (I used a pasta sauce) 
  • 2 tablespoons chopped unsweetened chocolate
  • Salt and pepper to taste 






Heat cooking spray in a large pot over medium heat. I made mine in sauce pan but I only made a single serving. Add the onions and garlic, cooked until the onions are translucent. 



Add the chili powder, paprika, cumin, cinnamon, and turmeric. Thoroughly coat the onions and garlic. 



Add the protein crumbles and cooked until the crumbles are heated through. Don’t worry if the spices start to stick to the bottom of the pot. 



Add the wine, soy sauce and vinegar to deglaze the pan, make sure to scrap all the brunt/stuck stuff off the bottom of the pan. 



Next add the tomato sauce and chocolate, mix together well. 



Cook for about 15 minutes until the chili tightens up a bit more.  Season with salt and pepper to taste. 










I boiled up some pasta (ok, it’s actually ramen noodles, I didn’t have any spaghetti on hand and I am a college kid!) and slathered the noodles with the chili. Traditionally, the dish is then topped with kidney beans, onions, and TONS of cheddar cheese. I just went with some kidney beans to keep it healthier. 


Brown Rice Sushi

If, hypothetically—not like that one of my friends ever did this—you are at a sushi restaurant that says each order comes with 6 to 8 pieces,  don’t assume you get to pick whether you want 6,7,or 8 pieces. Because, hypothetically still, if each of you order 6 of your choice of sushi (thinking that means 6 pieces only) and say you had 3 people eating, that means you get 18 orders of sushi. Eighteen orders of 6-piece sushi would be 108 pieces and will take up two large trays. And, if this ever actually happens, don’t be the friend who just sits there even though it sounds odd when the waiter repeats back 6 orders of sushi each. But, if this does happen, make sure one of your friends can take home the remaining 10 orders of sushi and be forced to eat them for the next few days. Not that my friends and I ever let this happen….hahahaha

Anyways, my friend reminded me of this (hypothetical) story today, so I thought I attempt to make sushi again. I have tried a few times before and failed horribly. So I watched some videos on Youtube first and figured out what I was doing wrong.
I did not take pictures as I was making the sushi because, to be honest, I did not have high hopes for myself. But they came out good. Follow the steps in this video just like I did and you should be successful. I used different ingredients then what she uses in the video because hers are not vegan. You can put in whatever fillings you like really, these were just what I have on hand. You can use traditional or get creative. Mine aren’t typical but not too crazy. I used brown rice instead of white because it is more nutritious. 
And I have no idea why the lady is cooking with her dog. At least the dog is cute! 
Brown Rice Sushi
2 cups cooked brown rice
3 tbs rice vinegar
2 tbs sugar 
1 tsp salt
2 sheets of toasted nori
Tofu, sliced into thin strips 
Dried shiitake mushrooms, rehydrated (I marinated them in soy sauce, garlic, and ginger too)
Handful of kale leafs
Follow the directions in the video (just minus the meat and non-vegan stuff), it explains it better than I can. It’s not that complicated, you just need the right technique. My recipe makes about two, 1 inch rolls. 
I wish I had some pickled ginger on the side, would have been the perfect finishing touch. I should have cut them a little smaller too. Oh well, next time. I am very proud of my first successful sushi meal. 

Barszcz: Polish Beet Soup

I’ve always wanted to try borscht, called barszcz in Polish. I love the taste of beets and figured all those jokes about the soup being awful soup were from McDonalds-addicted, over-processed food lovers. Now that I’ve tasted it, I know that is exactly the case. It has a mild and slightly rich flavor, totally in love.  My mom say it’s ok, but my grandma said she loves it too. Although she loves, my mom said she didn’t make it very much while my mom was growing up because my grandpa hates beets. Apparently he didn’t even want them in the house! I must confess that grating beets is a pain, so I shared my grandpa’s hatred while I was prepping everything at least. This recipe is based on one from cooks.com called Polish Beet Soup.




Barszcz
4 cups water
1/2 stick of vegan butter (I used Earth Balance)
4 good-sized beets
1 medium-sized onion
Salt

This part really sucks to do. I suggest wearing gloves so your hands do not turn bright red.  Peel and grate the beets and onion.

Add the 4 cups of water to a large pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the vegan butter.

Once the butter has melted, add the grated vegetables and salt to taste.

Cook for about 1/2 an hour, until the beets and onions are cooked.

If you want hot soup, serve it immediately. But I wanted mine cold so I made mine earlier in the day and then let it chill till dinner.

Top with some vegan sour cream (try Tofutti) and some dill or chives. My dad and I loved it, my mom wasn’t a big fan. I guess she takes after her dad.

One last Polish recipe posting up soon.

Polish Rye Bread

The Polish side of is calling out again. I am heading back to Hawaii in a few days and won’t have my lovely parents to cook for. So I decided to make Polish food for dinner tonight, embrace our heritage once again. Like I said on my pierogi post, a lot of polish food is not vegan so I need to change the recipes a bit. But despite the lack of eggs or pork here and there, they are pretty authentic.

I have never had barszcz, Polish variant of borscht, so I thought give it a try. I love beets so why not try a beet soup? While I was looking for recipes online, a bunch more Polish recipes came up too. I asked my mom what kluski is and when she explained they are delicious little homemade noodles, I knew I had to make them. Then I thought well, what would a Polish dinner be without kapusta? Kapusta is pretty much just plain sauerkraut and it is delicious….makes the house stink though. 
Then I thought a nice home-baked rye would go lovely with the barszcz so I added that to the list too.  I love its dry but savory taste. Plus, my dad was practically drooling over some we saw on TV last night so I figured he would be happy. 
Rye bread is not that complicated to make, just like with any bread you just need to be patience and not overwork it. And it’s already vegan! I found a recipe for a simple breadmaker version called Polish Rye Bread on Group Recipes, but adapted it for normal baking methods. 

Polish Rye Bread

1 cup warm water
1 packet dry yeast
1 and 1/2 tbs molasses  
3/4 cup rye flour
2 cups bread flour
2 tps caraway seeds
1 tps salt 
1 tbs vegetable oil 

Dissolve the packet of yeast into the warm water. I suggest doing this in a measuring cup. Add the molasses. Stir lightly if needed. Set aside until it all bubbly and frothy. 

I did my mixing and kneading in a stand mixer. I wish I had one of these in Hawaii. Can’t wait to not be a broke college kid and have a real kitchen. In the mixer bowl, add both flours, caraway seeds, and salt. Mix together well by hand. 

Turn on the mixer to the lowest setting and slowly add the yeast mixture. Use bread hook attachment. Then add the oil. Continue mixing until smooth and slightly elastic. 

Remove the bowl from the stand, cover with plastic wrap (I suggest putting a rubber band around it too) and cover with a dish towel (ścierka in Polish, I’ve been taught a few random words). Put in a warm place like the laundry room to proof. If you live in humid place, that’s really not an issue so just set aside anywhere really. My bread proofs so quickly in Hawaii. 

Momma rolled it out for me.

Once it’s risen, punch it down again. Sprinkle some flour on the counter and roll the dough out on it a bit. Shape into the size of pan.

Spray a bread pan with cooking spray and place in the dough.
Cover with plastic wrap and a clothe again, then set aside to proof a second time. 
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.  
Once it’s risen the second time, pop it in the over for 20 minutes. My mom made the suggestion of putting some hot water in a pot in with the bread to help crisp up the crust. 

Next, remove the pot of water and remove the bread from the pan. Put the freed bread back in the oven and bake for 10 more minutes. 

Your baking times may vary based on your oven. 

My bread skills need some work…my bread came out kinda dense. But  it was still pretty good. Like I said, if you are patience and take your time, your bread should come out lovely.  I would suggest more salt, my mom thinks more molasses. 

It smells so good. 
I’ll post the rest of the Polish recipes later. Still in the process of cooking all of them! 

Rhubarb Bars

I was looking through the new recipes on VegWeb and came across one called Rhubarb Bar for the Herbivore. There was a bunch of rhubarb in my mom’s garden that needed to be picked, so I thought I would give this recipe a try. I used whole wheat pastry flour and less butter in the crust to make it more nutritious. I also did not need as much sugar as the recipe calls for, and I thought my rhubarb was pretty sour to begin with. Just preference I guess.

Rhubarb Bars
Crust:
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
3 tbs powdered sugar
2 tbs vegan butter
2-3 tbs of water

Filling:
2 cups rhubarb, chopped
1 cup raw sugar
2tbs Enger-G egg replacer
4 tbs water
1/4 cup flour

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a small square pan with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, add the flour and butter. Then squish together by hand. Add the water as needed until the dough is crumbly.

Press the dough down into the bottom of the pan firmly.

Bake for 15 minutes. It should still be pale but a little firmer.

While that bakes, peel and chop the rhubarb into bite size pieces. Check out my Strawberry Rhubarb Pie post on how to prep rhubarb.

In a large bowl, add the rhubarb and all remaining ingredients. Mix together well. Taste for sweetness, you may need more sugar depending on preference and the sourness of your rhubarb.

Once the crust is baked, pour the filling in while the crust is still hot.

Bake for 35-40 minutes until the filling is bubbling.

Let it cool before cutting and serving. I topped it with a little powdered sugar for fun.

If you have never had rhubarb before, I would not suggest this recipe. But if you like a little tartness, give this a try. It’s a nice change from a big heavy dessert.

*PS, my dad pretty much devoured this tonight. When he really likes something, he will eat the whole thing. So if you are a rhubarb fan, this is the dish for you.