21 posts tagged “marjoram”
Mixed Vegetable and Tofu Bake
(Makes 4 large servings)
What you need:
Veggie Mix:
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic, minced or finely chopped
1/2 large green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 large yellow bell pepper, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups mixed gourmet mushrooms (baby bellas, chanterelle, shiitake mushrooms)
1 cup green beans, ends discarded and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. Italian herb seasoning
1/4 tsp. dried oregano
2 cups water-packed artichokes, or roasted artichokes packed in oil, drained well and roughly chopped
3 large tomatoes, seeded and diced
Tofu Mix:
1 pound extra firm tofu, drained
1/4 cup plain soy milk
1/4 cup vegetable broth
1 Tbsp. tahini
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
2 tsp. sea salt (or to taste)
Healthy dose fresh cracked black pepper
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
What you do:
Preheat the oven to 350F.
Saute the garlic, peppers, mushrooms, and green beans for about 12-14 minutes until the mushrooms have released some juice and green beans a bit softer. Add the herbs and continue to cook for a minute. Add artichokes and tomatoes and mix well. Cook for 3-4 minutes. When done, remove from heat and set aside.
In a food processor, blend smoothly all the ingredients for the Tofu Mix. When done, mix this mixture with the Veggie Mix very well. Taste to adjust the seasoning.
Pour the mixture into an oiled casserole dish and bake for 40-45 minutes until slightly brown on the edges and on top. It should be rather firm. Cool for at least 20 minutes before digging in. Serve warm.
Crustless Asparagus and Potato Quiche (Vegan)
Adapted quite a bit from this recipe by Johanna of Green Gourmet Giraffe
(Makes 4 servings)
3 small potatoes, diced
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2/3 cup carrot, grated
5-6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tsp. Italian herb seasoning
1 tsp. dried dill weeds
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 block extra-firm tofu
1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp. plain soy milk
1 1/2 Tbsp. sesame tahini
1/4 tsp. turmeric
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat the oven at 350F.
1. Simmer diced potatoes for 15 minutes until soft. Drain, and set aside.
2. Sauté carrots, garlic, spring onion, and asparagus (except for the reserved spears) for 6-7 minutes. Add the herbs and mix well. Cook for one more minute. Remove from heat, and set aside.
3. Blanch the reserved asparagus spears in boiling water for 15 seconds.
4. In a food processor, add everything from tofu to salt and pepper, and blend very well.
5. Mix the cooked potatoes, sautéed vegetables, and tofu mix in a large mixing bowl. Combine well.
6. Pour everything into an oiled 9-inch cake pan or a flan dish. Arrange asparagus spears on top of the mixture with cut ends in center and heads at the edge to create a star or spokes pattern.
Bake at 350F for 35-40 minutes. It is cooked when golden brown on top and firm to touch. Serve warm.
I have planned to make a rather bland but nourishing soup out of potatoes, but before I knew it, I completely cut potatoes out of the equation, and I was determined to somehow make polenta a star of the show this time, not in the deep-frying pan. So this is how the recipe came about.
Polenta Minestrone
(Makes 4 servings)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
8-9 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 cup carrots, cut into matchsticks or finely diced
1 1/2 cups portobello mushrooms, sliced
2 tsp. Italian herb seasoning
1 tsp. dried basil
Half (6-oz.) can tomato paste
1 cup organic vegetable broth
3 cups water
2 cups tomatoes, finely diced and juice reserved
1 tube store-bought polenta, cubed
2 tsp. dried parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
1. Saute onion, garlic, celery, carrots, and mushrooms over medium heat in a large pot for 9-10 minutes until onions and celery soften and turn translucent.
2. Add Italian herb seasoning, basil, and tomato paste and mix well. Cook for 2 minutes.
3. Pour in the vegetable broth and water. Add tomatoes and polenta. Turn to boil and lower heat to simmer. Simmer for 25 minutes.
4. Turn off heat. Add parsley, salt and pepper. Adjust seasoning if necessary.
Notes:
1. I used half a can of tomato paste because I really wanted a very tomato-y soup, but you can easily use from 2 teaspoons of that to any amount you feel like.
2. If you don't like polenta, feel free to use potatoes, like I originally planned. It will be great too. Though the creamy polenta cubes do lend a very pleasant texture to the soup overall.
3. The herb mix can be easily adjusted to suit different tastes and moods. Fresh herbs will be great.
I am submitting this soup to Souper Sundays, an excellent event started and hosted by Deb of Kahakai Kitchen. If you are interested in sharing your soup recipes with other soup lovers, please see here for more details.
We have been trying to entice more squirrels to come visit our yard more often by leaving mixed nuts on our lounge chairs and on the ground outside our lanai. So far, the first batch of nuts were consumed by one single squirrel a week ago; I watched the little fellow eat most of them and bury some in different holes. The second batch of nuts were mysteriously "stolen", on two consecutive nights, by some nocturnal animal. I haven't found any evidence of a raccoon living in the neighborhood, but I have seen a few cats wandering in our yard every day. Do cats eat nuts too? The mystery is that whatever animal ate the nuts, it also left a lot of white powder around the site. Since yesterday we had a lot of rain, unending. Now that the white powder is gone, the nuts gone, and it is super wet outside, I haven't seen any squirrel out in the yard yet. By the way, our nuts have a serious competition. My hubby told me that there is a lady living a street down who has some squirrel feeders that attract at least a dozen squirrels every day.
While waiting for the squirrels to come, I concocted a dish that combines my two favorite staples: scrambled tofu and tofu paprikash. So I named this Scrambled Tofu Paprikash. It is by far the best tofu dish we have ever tasted, since it combines the sweet paprika and tangy tomato taste and lots of fresh vegetables like cauliflower and yellow squash.
Scrambled Tofu Paprikash
(Makes 5-6 servings)
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
7-8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2/3 cup carrot, cut into matchsticks
1 cup sliced green onions
4 cups cauliflower florets, cut into bite size
4 small to medium yellow squashes, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
3 tomatoes, chopped and juice reserved
1 block extra-firm tofu, drained and cubed
1 Tofurky Italian sausage, thinly sliced
5 tsp. sweet paprika
3 tsp. parsley
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1. Saute onions, garlic and carrots in olive oil over medium heat for about 7 minutes.
2. Add cauliflower, yellow squashes and tomatoes and mix well. Cover and cook for 10 minutes.
3. Uncover. Add paprika, parsley, cumin and red pepper flakes and cook for another minute or two.
4. Add tofu and sausage pieces and mix well. Cook for 5 minutes.
5. Remove from heat. Mix in salt and pepper and nutritional yeast and adjust the spices if you want. Serve warm.
I have been completely absorbed in reading lately, which is the reason why I haven't had much time for cooking. I am currently reading the last volume of In Search of Lost Time (Marcel Proust) and To the Lighthouse (Virginia Woolf). I just finished Mrs. Dalloway (Virginia Woolf) 2 days ago. Marcel Proust and Virginia Woolf are my two favorite authors, and I can't read enough of their books. So, I only have two food photos to share this time.
Marinated Italian Tofu (Veganomicon). This is still one of my favorite ways of eating tofu.
Maple Snack Cake (recipe by Gretchen Noelle of 'Canela & Comino'). This is a must-try recipe for anyone who loves maple syrup. And who doesn't love maple syrup? It is a very dense and moist cake perfect for afternoon tea.
I guess this soup came about purely because I thought of a future where I would be visiting Italy one day, within the next 5 years, if Europe would not sink deeper into its depressed state. In any case, I am totally in love with minestrone right now.
Edamame Minestrone
(Makes 7-8 servings)
2 medium yellow onions, quartered and then sliced thinly
7-8 cloves garlic, finely chopped or minced
4 large stalks celery, thinly sliced
2 medium carrots, cut into matchsticks
2 cups portabella mushrooms, finely chopped
8 tomatoes, roughly chopped and juice reserved
1/3 cup fresh basil, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh thyme, finely chopped
3 Tbsp. fresh rosemary, finely chopped
2 tsp. fresh sage, finely chopped
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried marjoram
2 bay leaves
7-8 cups water
1 medium cabbage, leaves torn off and cut into bite-size pieces
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
1 1/2 cups cooked edamame
Salt and pepper to taste
1. Saute onion, garlic, celery, carrots and mushrooms over medium heat
for about 10-12 minutes until the mushrooms have released quite a bit
of the juice.
2. Add tomatoes and herbs and cover. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
3. Uncover. Add water and cabbage. Turn heat to high to reach a slow
boil. Reduce heat
to simmer. Cook for about 15 minutes.
4. Stir in the tomato paste and mix well. Cook for another 15 minutes.
5.
Add edamame to the stock and heat through. Remove from heat and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm.
Enjoy!
I have been cooking but it has become rather hard to keep up posting more often. We always seem to have many things piling up onto the to-do lists. "It's always something" has been such a cliche in our household now. I didn't have time to come up with any new recipe. Nor did I participate in any cooking contest like I planned. I cooked from cookbooks and my recipe collection. Alas! 'Tis life. We ought to be grateful for what we have though. My husband and I have begun our little "self-compliment" group, inspired by LaidOutInLavendar. It is not easy at all. Gosh, I never knew it could this hard to say a few nice things about ourselves without feeling weird or discouraged. But we are trying. It's much easier to compliment each other, but when it comes down to the self-compliment... I guess we just don't know ourselves well enough.
Anyway, here comes the food porn, as usual. The first thing is from VwaV, page 28, "Fronch" Toast. It was great, but next time I will definitely add some cinnamon and nutmet to make it more traditional.
The second thing is Bryanna's Hunan Tofu. I made this before, a long while ago that I can't even remember. This time I didn't even fry the tofu beforehand because I wanted more of a soft and juicy texture. It turned out even better than I remembered. Surely a keeper!
How was everybody's Thanksgiving? I hope that you all had fun and lots of really nice food. Did you overeat like last year and the year before last year...? Here are a couple of things that you can eat when you're so sick of food or thinking about cooking anything.
Scrambled Tofu with Cauliflower and Green Beans
(makes 3-4 servings)
1 large yellow onion, quartered and thinly sliced
7-8 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
9 large button mushrooms, wiped clean and thinly sliced
4 cups cauliflower florets, cut into bite size
4 cups green beans, ends discarded and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 1/2 blocks extra-firm tofu, pressed beforehand and cut into cubes
4 tsp. thyme
3 tsp. coriander
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. marjoram
1/2 tsp. sage
1/2 tsp. rosemary
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
Salt and pepper to taste
1. Saute onions, garlic, green onions, mushrooms and cauliflower over medium heat for about 12-13 minutes, until the vegetables begin to soften and mushrooms release some juice.
2. Add green beans and tofu cubes. Mix in well and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Add spices except for the nutritional yeast and salt and pepper. Cook for another 10 minutes until green beans are fully cooked. I like them crispy. If you want them to be soft, cook for 15-20 minutes.
4. Remove from heat. Add in the nutritional yeast and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste.
I bought a few too many sweet potatoes so I decided to finally hit the "Knish Madness" recipe (page 76) in Vegan With A Vengeance. I have no idea what I got myself into. I don't know why the recipe says the baking is altogether 70 minutes while I spent almost 4 hours baking the potatoes at a higher temperature too. I mean I made other pies and baked other things so it seems that my oven is that off. I really don't know what happened. Then the kneading completely wiped me out. By the time I put the knishes into the oven to bake, I was so glad that it was all over I didn't even care if I ever got to eat them. And I didn't make any potato-spinach knishes after all that preparations. But the final products were really good. I think I still said that it was worth the effort - 6-7 hours of working in the kitchen.
Moonstruck (1987) is definitely my all-time favorite movie. I guess by now I've seen the movie like 20 to 25 times. I've tried watching this movie every day for 10 days straight and I'm still not tired of it. Nowadays there is almost no chance of seeing such a cute, lovely and family-friendly movie that makes you drool over the Italian food and feel all so romantic like a high-school kid. Therefore, I made my Moonstruck Minestrone to commemorate all the happy feelings this movie has instilled in me.
D's Moonstruck Minestrone
(makes 6-7 servings)
1 large yellow onion, halved and then sliced thinly
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped or minced
3 large stalks celery, thinly sliced
2 medium carrots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
4 cups cauliflower florets, cut into bite size
2 cups tomatoes, roughly chopped and juice reserved
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 medium cabbage, cut into bite-size pieces
7-8 cups water
4 Tbsp. tomato paste
2 bay leaves
3 tsp. Italian herb seasoning
1/2 cup canned red kidney beans, drained
1/2 cup canned chickpeas, drained
Salt and pepper to taste
1. Saute onion, garlic, celery, carrots and cauliflower over medium heat for about 9-10 minutes until they soften a little.
2. Add tomatoes and cover. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
3. Uncover, add water and cabbage. Turn heat to high to reach a slow
boil and stir in the tomato paste and herbs. Mix well and reduce heat
to simmer. Cook for about 20 minutes.
4.
Add beans to the stock and heat through. Cook another 10 minutes.
Remove from heat and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm (and now you can watch one of your favorite movies while eating it).
Besides the minestrone which I really love, I'm also extremely fond of coconut pies. This time I made the V'con basic single pastry crust again and made the Lime Sucker Coconut Pie (Eat, Drink & Be Vegan, page 200). This pie has the perfect balance of sweetness of the coconut and fresh tanginess from the limes. It rendered me completely defenseless.
