Vegan Pumpkin Muffins

When you aren't eating milk or dairy, eggs, or meat, breakfasts become either a problem or routine. As much as I love toast with peanut butter, or a quick smoothie, sometimes something more is very welcome. This morning, DD was sound asleep and I decided I'd surprise her with a nice breakfast, but I couldn't think what that breakfast should be. I stood with the fridge door open, surveying the contents of my fridge and nothing looked good to me. A week ago, I roasted a pumpkin and have a large amount of puree left, so I decided to make something with it - but what? Pumpkin bread would take too long, and my oven has been acting up a lot, so the long baking time was definitely out of the question. Pumpkin pancakes? DD loves pancakes, so that was a possibility, but I wasn't in the mood. Maybe pumpkin muffins. Vegan pumpkin muffins. I started googling vegan pumpkin muffins and found a number of yummy sounding recipes that had ingredients that I didn't have, but also a number of posts raving about Vegan With a Vengance The Best Pumpkin Muffins. Duh! Why didn't I think of looking in my copy of Vegan With a Vegance???? Duh, again!

So, out came the cookbook and the muffin pan. These are quick and simple to make with regular every-day ingredients that everyone has. I had run out of nutmeg, so I didn't put any in, and I had just a little bit less than 1/2 C of soy milk, so I added a few drops of water to make up the difference. I decided to top the batter with a few pepitas (pumpkin seeds) for color, crunch and added nutrition. One of the websites I visited said that you have to let these cool for at least 15 or 20 minutes in the pan because they are so tender that they will fall apart otherwise, and they came out perfectly for me after 20 minutes. Another said that if you eat these while still hot and don't let them cool to room temp, they will be tough. I couldn't wait to taste them and ate one much warmer than room temp, but still not steamy hot, and it was not tough at all - it was soft and moist, with a lovely crumb. The edges of the cap were crunchy like the corners of brownies, which is the best part, IMHO. All in all, these were wonderful muffins, though a bit too sweet for my taste. In future, I think I'll use only 1 C of sugar instead of 1 1/4 C, though I bet I could probably half the sugar and they would still be yummy.

VwV strikes again!

Click here to see the recipe from Bunnyfoot's blog.

Vegan Pumpkin Risotto with Spinach and Black Beans

Today, we need some comfort food because we found out that "Grandpa James" fell asleep in the Lord on Wednesday. DD and I are very saddened and feel a tremendous sense of loss, even though his advancing Alzheimer's made it impossible to maintain a relationship with him.

Grandpa James came late into our life. He was a lonely, elderly, quirky man who attended our church and lived near us. He came to our home many times in the course of our church life, and I gave him many rides since he preferred not to drive when it was dark, or alone. It didn't take long to grow to love him, and he grew to love all of us, particularly my Mom and my daughter. He was always willing to drop by to keep my Mom company, to help out wherever needed, to cheer DD on at every piano recital, play, dance recital, girl scout program... He took DD all over Savannah and treated her to ice creams and grilled cheese sandwiches. He spoiled her to death - she could get him to take her anywhere. He truly loved her, and she truly loved him. She had only one grandfather, and once Grandpa James came into her life, she had two. We didn't mind sharing our family with him. He had his own family, a brother nearby, two daughters and a son who lived far away, and a lot of grandchildren - all far away. We filled a hole in his life, and he added so much to ours.

Over time, he became forgetful, and argumentative, and well.... it was difficult. It became clear that he should not live alone any longer, and he became quite quarrelsome which was simply not "him" at all. We were beginning to suspect Alzheimers in my Dad, and as we read up on it, we realized that most likely that was the cause of Grandpa James' sudden personality change. Eventually, his family recognized this and put him in a beautiful nursing home. I visited him there twice, but he was quite argumentative, and over the last year, I didn't visit him at all. I regret that now, as does DD.

This has been a very sad day for us, full of regrets and memories and tears. We both needed something warm and comforting to eat for dinner. As I looked in the fridge, wondering what to cook tonight since we have no Thanksgiving leftovers, I saw about 1 1/2 quarts of fresh roasted pumpkin puree and a big bag of organic baby spinach. I had a bunch of onions and a couple of pounds of risotto rice, so pumpkin risotto with spinach it was.

I've posted before about the quick and easy way to make risotto, but today I made it the old fashioned way, spending about an hour stirring at the stove. I needed the time to reflect and pray for Grandpa James while DD napped her tears away. Sometimes, the old ways are best.

I found that the risotto was perfectly spiced and yummy yummy yummy until I added the pumpkin - then I had to fiddle with it. The pumpkin took a lot of salt, too. Then I thought that black beans would add some color and some badly needed protein, so in they went. All in all, this is pretty tasty, but it made a HUGE amount! We will be eating this forever and ever! Or maybe I'll bring the leftovers to trapeza on Sunday since its my turn to cook.

Pumpkin Risotto with Spinach and Black Beans

1 C chopped onion (could have doubled this for the amount of rice)
4 cloves garlic, minced
extra virgin olive oil
2 C risotto rice
1 C white wine (I had some Reisling open)
5 C vegetable broth
1 1/2 C pumpkin puree (this is about what is in a 15 oz can)
1 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice
1 Tbs dried basil
1 tsp oregano (or Italian seasoning)
1 Tbs salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained well
1 lb baby spinach, washed well

In a large, deep pan like a chicken fryer, warm up a couple of tablespoons of olive oil. Saute the garlic and the onions until translucent. Then add the risotto rice and stir well, making sure that every single grain of rice is well coated with the oil, adding a little more if necessary. Stir in the spices and herbs. Saute the rice for a couple of minutes, but do not let it brown. Add in the wine and saute until it is absorbed. Turn heat to med-low and add the hot broth a cup at a time, stirring well, until it is absorbed. You will know when it is time to add more broth when you draw a spoon down the center of the pan and you can see the bottom of the pan. Keep adding broth until the rice is tender but not mushy. Add in the spinach to wilt, and then add the pumpkin puree. Stir the pumpkin in very well over the medium lo heat, and add a half cup of broth at the end if the risotto seems too thick. Stir very, very well for about 2 or 3 minutes - this will help to release the starch so that the risotto is traditionally creamy without butter or cheese. Taste for seasonings: I ended up using about another half Tbs of salt at this point. Stir in the black beans at the very last.

This is really delicious and very creamy. You will never be able to tell that there are no dairy products in it. I think I'd like it with mushrooms sauteed at the beginning together with the onions, too, but I didn't have any fresh mushrooms today. I wouldn't mind a more pronounced wine flavor as well, so perhaps next time I'll add a more strongly flavored wine, or maybe a little more.

This makes a LOT. I'd say that it makes about 3 quarts, or a little more. Way too much for a family of TWO!

Make this when your heart needs comforting.

Carrot Sesame Salad

DD and TBF cooked dinner tonight. And to think, some people don't believe in God!

Anyway, it was a simple dinner, but a very delicious one: cheese pierogies, baked potato slices and carrot salad. No dessert. Pierogies are pretty filling!

Last weekend we visited Agnes Scott College in Atlanta, since DD wants to attend there next year, and we stayed with a priest friend of ours and his family. His mother-in-law, Baba Lottie, knows how much I love pierogies, and made six dozen HUGE cheese pierogies. She greeted us late on Friday night with many pierogies, and being good guests, of COURSE we managed to eat one each. One taste was all it took, and we happily scarfed down many, many pierogies. These were the best pierogies I have ever, ever eaten. The woman is a genius. No, not a genius..... a GODDESS! Yes, she is the Pierogy Goddess! I guess a devout Orthodox woman shouldn't say that, but truly, truly, I say unto you, I worship her pierogy making skills. Anyway, she sent us home with a dozen, which DD cooked up tonight. DD also made her famous crispy cajun potato rounds.

Which brings me to The Boyfriend. His contribution, other than cleaning up the kitchen after dinner (have I previously mentioned what a fine young man he is?), was to make the Carrot Sesame Salad. He had tried this a few weeks ago when we had our pastor over for dinner. He had loved it then, and wanted to try to make it himself. Now TBF has many attributes to commend him, but the ability to cook is not one of them. However, he did a great job and the salad turned out so delicious that I think even he was surprised. I sent him home with the leftover carrot salad so that he could prove to his family that he made something so very tasty.

Carrot Sesame Salad
1 lb carrots, grated (not too finely)
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbs light soy sauce or Bragg's Liquid Aminos (love that stuff!)
2 Tbs rice vinegar (get the seasoned kind)
2 Tbs roasted sesame oil (from the Asian food section of the supermarket)
1 Tbs honey
1/4 tsp sriracha sauce or Asian chili paste (we used the paste tonight)
2 Tbs toasted sesame seeds
2 Tbs chopped cilantro

Mix together well and chill for 30 minutes.

Yummy yummy yummy! This would make an awesome filling, along with a slather of hummus, for a pita sandwich. It would probably even taste good with peanut butter, or even a grilled cheese sandwich.

Four stars from The Boyfriend!

Philip's Fast and Vegan Pear Pancakes

We Orthodox began our preparations for the Nativity of Christ on November 15th. Western Christians call this period, Advent, and sometimes we do too, but it is more commonly called Philip's Fast, after St. Philip the Apostle, whose feast day immediately precedes it on November 14th. In our home, we always call it Philip's Fast, made all the more poignant by DD's dear Uncle Philip's absence. He fell asleep in the Lord more than a year ago.

For Orthodox, fasting is a spiritual tool handed down through the centuries to allow us to gain control over our passions, and to free up money and time for charitable works and prayer. During fast periods, we are encouraged to strive toward the goal of eating only vegetables, legumes, grains and refraining from meat, fish, poultry, eggs, and dairy. For more about fasting, click here to be taken to one of my prior posts.

I've just received my third CSA box. When we lived in California, I had a CSA share and received wonderful organic fruits and veggies on my doorstep every week. Here in Georgia, even though 15 minutes outside the city boundaries the land becomes very rural and agriculture, community supported agriculture is just now getting off the ground, so to speak. As in most parts of the US, organic, sustainable agriculture is a hard sell here as well. I got lucky, because after years of searching, a chance comment on a homeschooling e-list led me to Heritage Farms and their bi-weekly box of organic fruits and vegetables. So far, I've found that spending $25 on fruits and vegetables every two weeks has drastically reduced the number of trips to the grocery store, and I have spent about 25% less than I was already spending for our near-vegan diet. Anyone who says that eating whole, fresh, healthful foods is too expensive, is just plain wrong.

The last box had some pears which we loved, but I lost one since they are so fragile. Last night, I saw that there were two firm pears and I decided right then and there that both would get eaten before they turned brown. So... when DD finally woke up this morning, I told her I was making waffles for breakfast. She loves pancakes better, and promised to vacuum the living room floor without complaint if I would just please, please, please make pancakes instead. I'm no fool. That floor needs vacuuming! Pancakes it was. I was going to slice the pear up and artistically arrange the slices on each pancake, but when reality set in, I realized that was too Martha Stewart-ish for me. I grated one of the lovely firm pears into the batter. Yummy!

Vegan Pear Pancakes
1 firm pear, grated
1 C all purpose flour
2 Tbs sugar (I used brown sugar)
2 Tbs baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 C soymilk
2 Tbs vegetable oil
1 heaping tsp apple pie spice
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger powder (I ran out of fresh ginger in the freezer)

Mix the dry ingredients together, then mix in the grated pear, then mix the wet ingredients in just until barely combined. Do not overmix because you will develop the gluten and end up with rubbery pancakes. Its ok if there are little clumps of flour.

Heat a frypan over medium heat, spray with oil, and drop 1/4 Cup dollops of batter onto the hot pan. Cook until there are lots of little bubbles on the surface of the pancake, then flip over. Keep warm until all the batter is cooked.

DD ate 7 pancakes. Luckily, she still was able to squeeze herself into the front seat of my car when I drove her to work at noon. I guess she liked them. Maybe you will like them too!

Eddie's Favorite French Canadian Split Pea Soup

This soup reminds me of childhood - of dark, frosty afternoons playing outside in the snow with Debby Plunkett, and coming in with frozen fingers and toes to this delicious soup. My Dad is full blooded Acadian, and as a child, he lived in French-speaking Canada with his parents. He absolutely loves this soup. Its one of those dishes that my Mom would cook regularly in the winter since it is so filling, so delicious and so inexpensive -- and most importantly, Dad adores pea soup. When I married and had a household of my own, I developed my own recipe, and my Dad always felt that mine was even better than his mother's or mine. Turns out that my pastor's favorite soup is.... you guessed it! French Canadian split pea soup! So, I made him a batch last Wednesday on the anniversary of his ordination. He was in hog heaven.... without the hog, of course, since the recipe was veganized!

If you want a canned split pea soup, the best is Habitant brand, but it is found mainly in New England where many French Canadians have settled. There are so many ways to make split pea soup - when we lived in California, we were exposed to the Scandinavian version and love that as well, so in a pinch, we'll eat a can of Andersen's. If you are ever in Solvang, California (and I highly recommend that you visit there - its a blast!), go to the town next door called Buellton, and visit Andersen's factory restaurant. Be sure to get the never-ending bowl of pea soup with all the toppings. Yummy!

I like to use a combination of split peas and whole dried peas for this soup to give it a more authentic texture, but it is increasingly difficult to find the whole peas. I prefer to make this in the crockpot for ease, but it can be made in the traditional way on top of the stove, or even in the pressure cooker as long as you are careful to not fill the cooker more than half full.

I'm naming this one after my Dad, Edmour Edgar Edward Joseph Babineau.

Eddie's Favorite French Canadian Split Pea Soup
3 C dried split peas, picked over and rinsed well (or combination of split and whole peas, the way Dad likes it)
10 C water
1 large onion, chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1/2 heaping tsp dried thyme
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 smoked ham hock or 1 tsp liquid smoke
Secret ingredient that truly makes a lot of difference: 1 tsp sugar

Put all ingredients in the crock pot and cook on med-low all day or overnight. If you used the smoked ham hock, shred it and return to the pot before serving. Remember to fish out the bay leaves once the soup is cooked!

To veganize: Leave out the ham hock and stir in 1 tsp of liquid smoke instead. Easy peasy!

You can cook it on top of the stove as well, just slowly simmer everything, stirring occasionally, and adding water a quarter cup at a time if it gets too thick. It will probably take about an hour to cook if you are using only split peas. If you are using whole peas as well, it will take about twice as long.

If using a pressure cooker, make sure its an 8 quart one and fill only half full. Cook 10 minutes at 15 pounds and reduce instantly under running water. Don't open the steam cock, because it might clog - use the water release method.

In a culinary homage to both sides of my family, I served this soup with two kinds of focaccia: tomato and cheese, and mushroom and rosemary.

Sorry, no pix for this - I never make my dinner guests wait for their dinner while I take a photo, though my pastor would have understood, I think.

Dottie's Corn Casserole - Veganized!

A couple of weeks ago, DD's Baba Dorothy brought the yummiest corn casserole for our communal luncheon (trapeza) at church. Of course, *everything* Dottie cooks is yummy, but this was particularly delicious - a little crunchy with cornmeal and slightly sweet and cheesy. Numerous people begged her for the recipe, which she graciously provided:

Dottie's Cheesy Corn Casserole
1 8 oz package of corn muffin mix
1 16 oz can of corn, drained
1 16 oz can of creamed corn, not drained
1 C sour cream
1 stick butter, melted
1/2 C cheddar cheese, shredded

Mix all ingredients except the cheese together. Bake at 350F for 40 - 45 minutes. Remove from oven and cover the top with the cheddar cheese. Return to oven for 4 or 5 minutes until cheese is melted.

How I veganized it:

Now that DD is a vegan, though, the sour cream and cheese would have to go. I figured we could just do without the cheddar completely since we love the flavor of corn. Sour cream could be replaced with some silken soft tofu mixed with a few drops of lemon juice and a pinch or two of sugar. The butter can easily be replaced with oil and a little butter flavoring. It turned out very tasty, and the corners and edges have a nice crunchy chewiness that is normally found in brownies. I pumped up the flavor by adding a little finely minced scallion. I like this version very much. Here is my new recipe:

Denise's Vegan Corn Casserole
1 8 oz package of corn muffin mix
1 16 oz can of corn, drained
1 16 oz can of creamed corn, not drained
1 C silken soft tofu blended with 1 tsp lemon juice, 1/2 tsp butter flavoring and 1 Tbs sugar
1/4 C vegetable oil
2 scallions finely minced

Mix all ingredients together and turn into an oiled 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 350F for 45 minutes, until the top is golden.

This made a delicious, warm breakfast for me on a chilly morning, and eventually will make a yummy room-temperature late lunch once DD wakes up. Kids!