New round of cookbooks from LINCC

I have been getting so bored with cooking lately.  Nothing was inspiring me to try new things or explore.  I started eating take-out and microwave dishes more just to avoid planning and cooking.  Meat was getting in there a little more than I like it to.  I knew this had to change.

Then I got a brilliant idea:  I work at a library.  Libraries have cookbooks!  So I placed a dozen holds on popular vegetarian cookbooks, and I have received a few so far.  Some had so many holds, I'll be lucky to see them by August.  One I was very disappointed with.  I won't mention it (unless you really want to know); the recipes were too frustrating.  It was pretty pretentious.  

Enter The Veganomicon. It's several years old now, so I'm thinking of maybe getting a copy cheap from Powell's.  It's exactly what I like.  Foods I have heard of.  Tasty no-nonsense recipes.  Not just vegan food, because I was a very unsuccessful vegan, but rather variety. It's a thick 250-recipe volume, and it gives you so many options for recipes that you are bound to find one you love.  Especially one you can add cheese to.  

So far I have made two things from it, and both were flavorful and easy to prepare.  

Tonight's dinner:  Scallion flatbread from page 222.  Very good, but maybe not a great, nutritious dinner.  We've been busy today, so I'm not going to count it out as being terrible for you.  They are very fun to make and pretty quick. 

They're cooked on the stove top almost like a pancake, but with little balls of dough rolled out very thinly beforehand and tossed into the pan where they sizzle and brown.  I'd love to try branching out with other types of flatbread, too.  These would be great if company came over.  I recommend using low-sodium soy sauce because the sauce is pretty salty but in general they were great!

Your library is almost certain to have a copy, and used volumes are sold on Amazon for around 16 dollars.  I say give it a try.

Spotlight on something weird: Portland Ketchup

It's been almost two years since I've moved here to Portland.  I feel that in the past I've done a fairly poor job at highlighting the region, which is one of the main reasons I write:  for the people at home that have either never been here, or have no time to come and visit.

So this year, I think I'm going to try highlighting things about Portland (and other parts of the West Coast) which are favorites of mine.  And I plan to travel.  I'd love to do Vancouver, B.C. and Southern California this year.

First on the list is this:

Portland Ketchup is a current obsession of mine.  I'm a fan of ketchup for the start, believing that fries are only a vehicle for getting the tomato-y sauce into my mouth in as high a quantity as possible.  Coming from Pittsburgh, maybe ketchup is a good regional identifier in my mind.  If that's so, then I'm sorry Pittsburgh, but Portland Ketchup totally eclipses Heinz in almost every way possible.  Made with all natural (and probably organic?) ingredients(no hfcs), this ketchup is fantastic.  The price isn't too good at $5 for this size bottle, but I've seen worse things to spend your money on in my lifetime.  It is very thick and has a good flavor, with spicy cloves very noticeable but not overpowering in a standard tangy, delicious sauce.  Basically it tastes like ketchup.  But better somehow.  I thought I was crazy until I made my husband try it;  he agreed.  (Not that I was crazy, but that the ketchup is fabulous.)

I first noticed its existence in the cafeteria at OMSI where I volunteer. I put it on a beanburger and was totally impressed.  I'm not sure of the availability of this product outside my region, but if you come to my house you will be greeted with some fries slathered in this golden god of a ketchup.

Read all about it! http://www.portlandiafoods.com/  Notice that if you buy it in a 12-bottle case it only costs $3.50 a bottle.  Additionally you can buy a gallon container for $32.00, which obviously I'm thinking very hard about.

Less is more...but sometimes it's not.

My friends are going on a road trip this weekend. You know, without me.  Being short on funds, finding food on a road trip might be a tad difficult.  Baking to the rescue.  Sometimes baking can be healthy...or at least a [somewhat] nutritious replacement for food.

Enter oatmeal cookies.  Well not JUST oatmeal.

Oatmeal-Raisin-Currant-Sesame Cookies.
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/oatmeal-raisin-cookies-i/detail.aspx  + Replace half the raisins with dried currants.  Add sesame to your personal taste.  I just shook in the seeds, but you'll need at least a tablespoon.  Sesame seeds, while high in fat, also add fiber, small amounts of calcium and totally delicious flavor to your cookies.  I found that making one inch round balls and no bigger produced a bite-sized cookie with a crisp bottom perfect for snacking.  Ms. T might call this "portion control".

Kawaii Meringues.

It's easy to make tiny meringues!

2 egg whites
3/4 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 - 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp cream of tartar (this one is pretty optional, I still think it would work without)
pinch salt.


Preheat oven to 280 degrees F.
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.


Beat egg whites until foamy and gradually add sugar.  Add vanilla, cinnamon, salt, cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form.  This process might take about 15 minutes or more, depending on your mixer

Using a small spoon or an icing bag + tip (preferable), make cookies 1/2 to 1 inch in diameter.  Smaller cookies become crunchier, while larger cookies remain chewy in the middle.  Leave a little bit of space between each one, they puff up slightly while baking.

Bake 20 minutes or until cookies slide off of the parchment easily.  They may crack a bit, this is normal.

Become addicted.

Midnight snack II...

Attention science geeks, stoners, pregnant women, and Portal fans:  Holy shit, you can make cake in a mug.  In minutes.  Yes you can.  No, really, you can.

How does it taste?  We liked it.  Not as good as regular cake, kinda spongy, chocolatey.  I admit it would probably be 100 times better with chocolate chips, as the recipe suggests.  Some reviewers say there is too much cocoa; this may be true as it was quite strong.  Don't try to cut out any sugar, it won't taste right.  And don't burn your tongue, it's pretty hot.

Midnight snack...

What the hell is it?

It's a Jicama, or a "Mexican Turnip".  This one is peeled, normally they look like this.  I doubt you have to actually peel them, but the sticker on mine suggested it.  Don't grab your vegetable peeler, though.  If you can get it started (say, near the stem?) the peel comes of by itself quite easily.  Alternatively, I have seen them in vegetable trays but this isn't very common.

What do I do with it?

My favorite way to eat them is raw with dip.  There are recipes, but I have been trying to incorporate more fresh, raw fruits and vegetables in my diet, and I feel very good.  Nutritional value?  Mostly carbs, fiber and water.  They are chock full of inulin(a kind of fiber), and are extremely filling.  Essentially they are a tasty vehicle for getting your favorite dressing from the bottle to your mouth, while sneaking 6 grams of fiber inside of you with you barely noticing.

How's it taste?

Crisp. Starchy. Wet.  If you like raw carrots or cut up sweet potatoes, you'll like this.  Its really crispy and satisfyingly fun to eat.

The big 64

The other day I bought 64 ounces of plain yogurt.  I've been eyeing up this jumbo tub of Nancy's for a while, but searching for something new to inspire me I went right ahead and bought it last week.  So, other than eating it covered in honey and frozen black raspberries (they were much more delicious-and a whole lot less money- back when I got them from grandma's back yard!) what in the world do you do with that much yogurt?

Well to start, you're going to want to whip yourself up a batch of this amazing low-fat pasta salad.  Its a bit summery, but that's what one needs in late January.  I found when I was making it that I had only about two tablespoons of mayonnaise left, so I just used more yogurt to replace it.  I also only had tomatoes, onions, and celery, but those seemed to work really well in this. I added feta cheese, and believe me, you'll want to.  It adds such a great texture to the yogurt dressing.  If you don't like feta, I'd still try adding just a bit of Parmesan cheese.  Don't forget lots of salt and pepper, but other than that it doesn't need much!  Its very similar to a pasta salad they sell where I volunteer and I'm constantly addicted to it.

This was great but I'll probably never eat red onions again...talk about two days of the worst stomachache possible!

Remember that cheap ice cream maker I bought last year? That's right, I'm way ahead of myself in terms of the seasons!  The husband and I happen to frequent those by-the-ounce frozen yogurt shops that cost a fortune.  Let me tell you, for less than one trip to a yogurt shop you can make yourself a pint and a half of creamy goodness and it is incredibly easy.  I found this recipe, and quickly whipped some up.  In less than an hour I had amazing frozen yogurt.

They claim you can't use low-fat yogurt, but guess what? You can. And its good.  Maybe not as creamy as ice cream, but it certainly beats those soft-serve places.  The yogurt plus the toppings ran us under 10 dollars, and we still have some left after a delicious and healthy dessert.

The recipe calls for greek yogurt but I used regular american-style plain yogurt.  Its very tangy and delicious and I can only imagine what using Fage would do for this yummy stuff.

The toppings are mini-mochi...we got them at our local asian market.  They're soft and chewy and make a great topping for ice cream and fro-yo.

So now maybe I feel a little snazzier than I did last week...but I still have some yogurt to eat!

Fall Favorites...

Whoever told me fall isn't as nice in the Pacific Northwest as back east must have been confused...It's just as nice and much, much longer.  Up until yesterday it has been in the 60's and partly cloudy.  Its grey now but the leaves have been colorful on the trees for weeks now,and it doesn't look like they're going anywhere anytime soon.

So of course, its time for a great sweater and some fall favorite recipes.  Disclaimer:  Cooking with fresh pumpkin is not for the faint of heart.  It takes all day and gets pretty messy, even if you cheat and roast it in the microwave instead of the oven.  That being said, I definitely recommend getting the small, flavorful pie-type pumpkins rather than cooking with a large jack-o-lantern type pumpkin.  I always like to cook with my jack-o-lantern, but cooking with smaller ones bred for pies makes an incredible difference.

Last week I made one of my favorite soups:  Creamy Thai Pumpkin Soup.

This soup is great, especially if you're a fan of tom kha gai or other thai food.  Some advice, however:  If you put all the ingredients in at the beginning as the recipe suggests, it ends up rather bland.  What I will do next time is actually cook the pumpkin in the broth, then later add some crushed garlic, lemongrass, coconut milk and other ingredients (its really good if you add fresh ginger, too) right before its done cooking.  While it cools, the ingredients will flavor the soup, and you won't lose any of the boldness. Also, please try to avoid the problem I always have:  missing some of the lemongrass before I puree it, which leaves it really stringy (a note about lemongrass:  even though the recipe doesn't really mention this, you do have to remove it. It won't puree smoothly no matter how long you try).

My second favorite pumpkin recipe is the best one to share.  These Easy Pumpkin Muffins are great to take to fall potlucks, family Thanksgiving dinners, classes, meetings, or work.  People will love you, just don't tell them they take almost no effort to make.

I love the orange color that it turns when you add the pumpkin!

Follow the recipe exactly.  The batter will be thick, but don't add eggs or oil.  They don't actually need it, and if you do your muffins will end up too wet.  I've tried this with Trader Joe's baking mix as well with limited results.  I know its bad for you and blah blah blah but it is just best with a Duncan Hines mix.  Add walnuts and top them with brown sugar for a crunch.

I also made mine mini, they're better for sharing.

Cheeseless Nacho Cheese - How'd I do that?

While shopping in the Whole Foods Bulk aisle, I made an astonishing purchase:  Nutritional Yeast.  Wait, what?

Nutritional Yeast is inactivated yeast fortified with B vitamins that is rich in protein. Its sold in flakes or powder.  If you're a vegan and you're not eating this, you probably should be. It has a nutty, cheesy aroma and if someone just told you it was cheese sauce mix, you'd probably believe them.  Its shockingly flavorful, and its used in a lot of cheese additions.

I know you've had vegan cheese before, probably to your disappointment. This recipe, with some changes, is amazing as nacho cheese.  It fooled even me, and I made it.  I replaced 2/3 of the water with almond milk, rather than soy as many people had suggested, and added the tumeric.  Soy margarine was used this time but could probably be replaced with either oil or butter.

The result of this recipe will have you baffled.  Its so damn close to cheesy sauce you might not even miss it.