Hot pasta salad!

I haven’t been cooking as much as I would like to be, but one meal that I have consistently made is hot pasta salad. It is a versitale, delicous dish that you can make for yourself, or for a large group of people.   It started with a recipe from Joanne Stepaniak’s Table for Two — Michael’s Hot Pasta Salad:

Yields 2 servings:

1 cup small pasta

2 cups cauliflower or broccoli, cut into bite-size florets

1/2 of a red or green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 of a medium onion, coarsely chopped

1/8 teaspoon crushed hot red pepper flakes

1 medium sized zucchini or yellow squash,sliced in half moons

approximately 2/3 cup salad dressing, as needed

salt and ground pepper, to taste

In a 4 1/2 quart sauce  pan, cook the pasta until al dente, drain and return to the pan.  Cover and keep warm.  Set aside.

Meanwhile, steam the cauliflower or broccoli for about 5-8 minutes or until just tender.  Layer the bell pepper, onion, and crushed red pepper over the broccoli and steam for 3 -4 more minutes.  Next, layer on the zucchini and steam ll the veggies for about 5 minutes longer, or until everything is tender to your liking.

Stir the steamed veggies into the reserved pasta.  Toss with enough dressing to moisten everything.  Season with salt and pepper.

After following that basic recipe, I have altered it a bit. Here are my changes/suggestions:

• I have a steamer basket, so while boiling the pasta, I just steam the veggies on top. Or, I boil the veggies with the pasta.
• I don’t follow her suggestions for vegetable, I just use handfuls of whatever i have around, which is often just greens.
• I use frozen veggies a lot for this, some mixed vegetable thing, or just a bag of frozen greens.  I often go to a grocery and find the pre-bagged greens mixes, like from Cut and Clean Greens, and find them reduced for a short date, and I will just throw the bag in the freezer, and take out hand fulls for this dish (or any soup/pasta/cooked greens dish).
• I have used leftover stir-fry type things in there, just add to the pasta once it’s drained and heat up in the pan.
• I have also used ramen noodles for this.  Just add greens, beans, and vegenaise.  Embarrassing.
• Per Stepaniak’s suggestion, I generally add beans, tempeh, tofu, fake meat, etc; to make a more substantial meal. I sometimes keep the Tofurky or Field Roast sausages in the freezer, then pull one out and throw it on the steamer with the veggies, cutting it up before I mix them.
• I have also used grains instead of pasta, like rice or millet.
• Instead of using salad dressing, I use vegenaise and add  seasoning: curry, Vegetarian Express Saucy Ranch Seasoning, Spike, herbs ‘d Provence, etc
• When making food just for myself, I will premeasure out the pasta and veggies in a bowl that I will eat out of.
• My favorite combo is: garbanzo beans and Mixed Country Greens with curry powder.

This can be on the table (or on your lap in front of the computer) in less than 10 minutes, depending on the pasta and veggies you choose.  It can also be made as healthy or unhealthy as you like, it can easily be made gluten or soy free.  Endless.

Peggy Picklers.

I have been living on this sandwich for the last few weeks. My friend and I have dubbed it the Peggy Pickler, mostly because my roommate’s insurance agent of the same name had a business card on the fridge that day. I’ll post a pic of it later. Here’s the recipe:

Spread your choice of nut or seed butter on two slices of bread (I’ve been using almond). Sprinkle the butter with curry powder, and then add a layer of pickle slices. put the bread together, and fry in a pan until golden brown. Serves one. Eat!

I get made fun of a lot at work for eating this sandwich, but it’s worth it. Everyone I have convinced to try it thinks it’s great. Scared of the pickles? At least try the nut butter and curry powder. It’s also good with steamed or sauteed greens.

Obviously, I cannot commit to anything but veganism…

…and if I tell you anything else I’m a liar.

The Eat Local Challenge went well, not that you would know it by reading this blog.

The most challenging part of the challenge was the planning.  I think new vegans (without the option of restaurants,convenience food or roommates that cook for you) experience the same thing.  Every meal was a challenge. I think it should be an “Eat Mostly Local Month,” where you build up your Michigan arsenal for the first week or two, and then the rest of the month should be easy.  I’d say that I did about an 85% adherence to eating locally.  If I would have sat down and menu planned, it would have been easy.  I don’t menu plan normally, so who am I kidding.  I think a buddy would have helped, someone to keep you accountable and shares meals with you.

I could afford to eat a few times at a local restaurant, The Brass Cafe, who was participating in the challenge.  Not a vegan restaurant at all, more of a gourmet schmancy place, but they did a great job.  The chef is very accommodating and understands how important ingredient info is to vegans.  Could do with a few more options, but it will come in time.

I could try to summon memories of the food I ate, but with no pictures, what’s the point?  I made a few loaves of bread using Michigan spelt flour, used some Oryana Coop’s Soysage, Roasted Garlic and White Bean Soup (VwaV), Cauliflower and Red Lentil Curry (vcon), obviously a few other meals, but I cannot remember them now.

In summary, my advice to anyone wanting to try going local:

• Get support.  Either in the flesh or online; a community is essential.  Funny how local works.
• Plan it out.  Ok, you don’t have to menu plan, but at least sit down and get some basics.  Choose a local veggie or bean or something to focus a meal around, and find ways to incorporate more local into the recipe.
• Explore.  Our Coop got a few local restaurants to participate, and I beleive they were doing many local options already. Find out what your town has to offer.  Going to restaurants can be inspiring and exciting, even if you didn’t have a great experience, at least you can walk away knowing how much better you can cook than them.
• Share.  I hate to say the dreaded “P” word, but potlucks are great for this kind of challenge. You don’t have to bust out the tie-dye napkins and the bongos; potluck is just another word for informal gathering.   I love cooking and eating with people.  What better way to get ideas and to get excited about local?
• Don’t Give Up.  I caught myself mindlessly eating potato chips from Colorado, and was ready to throw in the apron.  It can be overwhelming thinking about what you eat all day long.  There is temptation and old habits everywhere, it just takes time to get through them.  You will create new habits and create new temptations.  Soon, you will mindlessly be eating Michigan Cherry Jam out of the jar with your hands.

Days 2 and 3.

I ended up traveling on day one, and traveling for a vegan or locovore (or anyone trying to eat more veggies) can be difficult. Of course, I didn’t plan ahead; I could have made a sandwich or something.  I decided to buy a  soda for the caffine (I drink coffee, but can’t drink most coffe on the challenge), because I knew Faygo is a Michigan company.  Soda can be so delicous sometimes, I don’t drink regular soda (I try not to consume high fructose corn syrup), but I felt sick after drinking it.   I munched on a few fries my brother had (didn’t help the sick feeling); I was starving when I got home.

I made cabbage and dumplings for dinner, and they were so satisfying.  For the cabbage, I used a little earth balance to saute over medium-high heat a large local onion and 3 cloves local garlic, then added half a large local cabbage, and cooked until tender.  Salt and pepper to taste. For the dumplings, I found a recipe online, then altered it for spelt and my own memory of my grandma’s methods.

The recipe I used is 2 1/2 cups whole Michigan spelt flour, 2 teaspoon baking powder, 1teaspoon salt, all sifted together, then cut in 3 tablespoons margerine (I used earthbalance) until it resembles coarse meal.  Then add 1/4 to 1/2 cup milk (I used almond, for Michigan I should have used Edensoy, but what are you gonna do about it?)  until it forms a manageable dough. Meaning, not sticky or dry.  Meanwhile, I had a large soup pot (not huge, you can do them in batches) filled about 2/3 with water or broth coming to boil on the stove.  Once the dough is ready, break off even sized hunks about the size of your thumb and drop them into the boiling stock.  Let them boil for about 7-10 minutes ( I did 7 and it worked out), remove them with a slotted spoon, I put them into a waiting large sauce pan with a dab of margerine waiting, covered.    Pretty close to what grandma used to make.  This makes about 4-6 servings, depending on the hunger of the participants and the size of your thumb.  It could go further if you do only 1/2 a thumb.

I ate that for dinner and for lunch the next day (I only had Michigan roasted coffee for breakfast), and will have it today sometime.  Yesterday for dinner, I made the Roasted Garlic and White Bean soup from Vegan with a Vengence (which is my favorite soup), with Stone House Bread (the ciabatta).  I also made pumpkin cookies made with leftover bits.  I will post those recipes later.

Day One

So, yesterday was a flop, so I will call today the first.   For breakfast, I mean, brunch, I defrosted some Fronch Toast I made a few months ago using Stone House cherry walnut bread, made in Leelanau, Michigan.  I would have taken a picture, but I am out of batteries and cannot find the cord to my camera.  The fronch part is from Vegan With a Vengeance, the best vegan french toast recipe I have experienced.  The ingredients for the fronch part are not as local, but could be!  Garbanzo bean flour, probably almond milk, and arrowroot powder, I think.   I topped it with some locally made Autumn berry Jam.  There is some discussion that the autumn berry, or autumn olive, being an invasive species, should not be promoted as local nor grown or wild harvested for jams.  It has become popular for it’s high lycopene content.  I just used it because I had it in my fridge, and it does the job.  Part of me thinks, well, it’s here, let’s eat it? But it is choking out native species. I could be easily swayed in either direction. I am going to finish my jar, and then rethink it.  I must say I like raspberry and cherry much better.

Eatin’ Local!

My coop is participating in an Eat Local Challenge, starting today. The challenge is to eat 80% of your food from Local and/or Michigan sources. I am going to do my darnedest to keep up, and I’m actually excited! Obviously, since it has aroused me to update my blog.

I’ve been doing some poking around the web, mostly the site of the folks who are spearheading this challenge – Eat Local America. A lot of what I am seeing on the web is focusing on eating meat, and old “vegetarians” mustering up their strength to “process” old friends (that is, cut up animals) so they can make a meal, and being congratulated and encouraged by other locovores. This is most disheartening.

As a vegan, I think I have experienced some of the challenges of locovores in promoting and discussing the way we eat. I think we deal with some of the same perceptions, namely that there isn’t enough to eat if you eat this way. I really like Carol Adams’ advice in her book Living Among Meat Eaters, she said to create abundance with veganism, which is easy, but it doesn’t seem easy to meat eaters who are watching you at the family picnic eating salad. I took her advice to heart and began bringing food with me everywhere. I think she is one of the reasons I really got into cooking, and became pretty ok at it. People where afraid at first, “Oh, god, is that tofu?” and I wasn’t a good cook at first, but I learned, and they began to trust that I knew what I was doing and looked forward to my contributions. Now I am a bit of a Vegan Queen of the area, and have built an army of tofu eaters.

Like I said, creating abundance is easy with veganism, but I do feel challenged with Local. I live in a small town in the middle of Michigan. You’d think with all this farm land, we’d be swimming in whole grains, beans, fruits and veggies; but most of that goes to feed animals we consume. My coop does very well. We have plenty of Michigan-grown beans, spelt flour, and tons of veggies. We even have Michigan-made tofu and tempeh, and Eden Foods is based out of Michigan, with many items grown in Michigan. Even with all this, the idea of being restricted to local foods makes me feel nervous and mutinous (All I wanna eat is mangoes and avocados). Knowing that many local challengees are going to be focusing their meals around animals that share their space, breath their air; I want to prove that being vegan and local is just as easy and delicious.

I will be using this blog to check in and hold myself accountable for the next few weeks. So I will start off honestly — I only thought about eating local today, For breakfast , I had Indian leftovers and for dinner, I had Hunan. I’ll make up for it!

I plan on dusting off the old crock pot and cooking some beans, I am going to make homemade dumplings and pasta with our Michigan Spelt flour, cobblers with local berries. Oh, I’ve got plans. I will check in a few times a weeks, more later!

I also feel that hiding under the guise of locovore can make some people feel better about eating meat and consuming reproductive products. I don’t think there is a such thing as “humane” meat, milk or eggs. More on that later.

Happy New Year.

I’m back, and I have a camera! I suffered the flu for the last week or so, and haven’t done much. I did manage to make a Tofurky Feast with friends, and that turned out great. We made the Tofurky surrounded with root vegetables (turnips, rutabagas, onions, garlic, parsnips) and soaking in a friend’s recipe for a red wine marinade (which I think was just red wine, balsamic vinegar, garlic pwd, minced ginger, and a few other things.), a wheat challah, mashed potatoes and the Giblet Gravy. For dessert we had left over pumpkin and berry pies, and a cherry Cheezecake. It was great. The only thing I have been able to eat lately is frozen fruit, crackers, and rice. Last night I made a bowl of rice with 2 tablespoons of raw garlic. It was awesome.