What's Cooking? Rampin' it Up

I had never tried a ramp. My mother had gushed about them over the phone. Food sections of various newspapers discussed the flavor notes and debated the merits when cooked with eggs or grilled. Foragers went nuts over this little wild leek-like herb. Chefs and food critiques alike breathed a sigh of relief with something new and exciting en vogue in the culinary universe. Yet I had not tried a ramp.

What is this plant of which I speak? A short-lived (4-8 week season) early spring green, the ramp is a perennial wild onion native to the Appalachian mountain region of the United States. Historically, the greens provided a dose of vitamins and minerals after a long winter without fresh produce...of course, prior to the advent of the global food economy and supermarket shelves that currently abound. Like many edibles before them, ramps now face threats from over-harvest due to a rise in demand.

So when I gratefully accepted a small bunch from a fellow marketeer at Dupont on Sunday, I was at a loss of what to do with the slender white roots and dainty greenish-pink leaves. Could I chop them up and stick them in a salad with my armful of greens? Should they be roasted alongside the perfectly purple asparagus? 'Eggs', I was told. 'Oh wait, you're vegan!' Thankfully, my market friends are more creative than that, and quickly the egg idea evolved into tofu scramble.

Ramped-Up Scrambled Tofu

4 ramps, finely sliced

2 green garlics, sliced

1 package of firm tofu, drained and mashed

3 tbs nutritional yeast

1/4 cup pine nuts (toasting optional)

1 tsp basil

Salt to taste

Grapeseed (or other high-heat) oil for the skillet

1. Heat about 1 tbs oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add sliced whites of the ramps plus the bulbs of the garlic. Cook for a couple of minutes until beginning to soften. 

2. Add tofu and greens of garlic and ramps. Season with nootch, basil, nuts, and salt. Continue to saute until tofu browns. 

3. Remove from heat and serve with some crusty bread or home fries or something else wonderful...like asparagus! 

So what did I think? Nice mix between garlic and onion (so, really garlicky with the green garlic...). Adds nice color to a dish and is a little more exciting than the wayward shallot. I'm a fan!

Smitten Kitchen makes Ramp Pizza (feel free to omit the cheese...)

101 Cookbooks takes advantage of asparagus season with stir-fry (sub ramps for green onions)

Finally, Serious Eats grills up some ramps!

Check out other comestibles on Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays and Wellness Weekends.

What's Cooking? Lettuce Leaves

A week of silence on the blog doesn't mean I haven't been eating, it just means I haven't been too creative about what I eat. After a long day at work, plus perhaps a yoga class, the stovetop or oven are often the last of the modern amenities I want to use. So dinner could be a hastily thrown together melange of easy-to-prepare protein source + vegetable (e.g. microwaved sweet potato and Butler's soy curls...yes, I know, sad.).

Once Saturday comes around, though, I am ready to jazz things up. And when a housemate leaves for a month and says "eat my romaine lettuce"...well, by golly, I'm going to eat that romaine! But salads are so boring sometimes, particularly if they are lacking in the kale department. So instead, I used the lettuce leaves as a conduit for a colorful array of fresh, tasty goodies. 

This always makes me wonder why my first reaction upon coming home is to shut off my brain and settle into a known pattern. We are creatures of habit, favoring routine and the path of least resistance. And I suppose prepping the same breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day allows for that comfortable routine. But to be honest, while creativity can sometimes be draining, this rather simple dish was not at all. It's easy and relatively fast, so you could feasibly make it even after a busy day! So I'd say change things up and try something new...

Lil' Lettuce Tacos

Miso Tahini Marinade

1 tbs tahini

1 tbs soy sauce

1 tsp toasted sesame oil

1 tsp agave nectar

1 tsp brown rice miso paste

1 tbs chopped shallot

Other Ingredients

1/2  block firm tofu, pressed, drained, and cubed

1 medium sweet potato, cut into strips

1/2 medium mango, sliced into strips (optional)

1/2 cup cucumber, sliced thinly

1/2 cup kohlrabi, sliced thinly

6 large romaine leaves

1. Marinate tofu in miso tahini mix. Meanwhile, roast sweet potato with olive oil and salt in a 375F oven, until soft (approximately 35-45 minutes).

2. In an oiled skillet, pan-fry the tofu until browned on both sides. Set to side to cool.

3. Cut romaine leaves where rib starts to get really thick (about halfway down). Eat that or use it for salad later; you only need the top of the leaf.

4. To assemble, layer tofu, sweet potato, mango, cucumber, and kohlrabi in each leaf. To consume, roll in the edges of the leaf and enjoy!

Find more fun foods on Wellness Weekends and Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays.

What's Cooking? MoFo Chopped!

Sunday evening is not my usual blog posting time. But this week's Chopped/Vegan Brunch Round was too tempting to pass up (and tomorrow is the deadline and Blog Action Day). This game is fun. We're given a meal and four ingredients, and then set free to design a dish. Judged on perceived taste and presentation (drat, I wish I had some natural light for my photo), the dish may also include other ingredients. Ok, drum roll please...the secret ingredients are: butternut squash, popcorn, rosemary, and apricot jam!

So here goes, Complete Brunch, gluten-free vegan style (serves two).

Making brunch for dinner means terrible indoor lighting

 Poppin' Johnny Cakes

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/3 cup lite coconut milk

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/3 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp rosemary, fresh, chopped finely

1 tbs apricot jam (or the wonderful apricot rosemary jam the farmer I work for sells)

2 tsp olive oil

2 tsp lemon juice

1/3 cup air-popped corn

1. In a food processor,  combine all ingredients except lemon juice and popcorn. Taste to ensure desired sweetness has been achieved.

2. Add juice and corn, and pulse five or so times.

3. Heat a little oil or non-dairy spread in a skillet over medium-high heat. Spoon batter into four circles in the pan. Cook until edges look set, then flip and press. Continue to cook until other side browns. Remove from skillet and plate, maybe top with some more jam (rosemary infused or otherwise).

Butternut Hash

1/2 medium butternut squash, grated

1 cup beet greens or chard, chopped

1/4 onion, diced

Salt to taste

1. Heat some olive oil in a skillet. Add onions and cook until starting to become translucent.

2. Add butternut squash and continue to cook for another 10-15 minutes with a lid covering to keep in moisture. 

3. Throw in greens and cook until wilted and squash is soft. Salt to taste and plate.

Tofu Scramblers

1/4 onion chopped

6 oz firm tofu

5 baby bella mushrooms

1 tbs white wine (optional)

1 clove garlic, minced

1 bell pepper, diced

1 tsp turmeric

1 tbs nutritional yeast

1/4 tsp thyme

1/4 tsp oregano

Salt to taste

1. Heat olive oil in a skillet on medium high. Cook onions until starting to become translucent, then add mushrooms, garlic, (and wine). Cook another five minutes or so.

2. Meanwhile, mash tofu, turmeric, thyme, oregano, nootch, and salt in a bowl. Add to the skillet along with peppers. Fry up until liquid has evaporated

What's Cooking? Another Harvest Holiday

Saturday was Shavuot, the holiday in which the Jewish people receive the Ten Commandments. Ok, so I'm pretty agnostic as far as spiritual beliefs go, but this is one of those holidays that piques my interest for purely secular reasons. In biblical times, Shavuot marked the beginning of the harvest season. Also called Hag HaKatzir, meaning “The Harvest Holiday” and Hag HaBikurim “The Holiday of First Fruits," you can understand why I might feel drawn to this particular festival. It hearkens back our agrarian roots, and is indicative of how integral the growing of food was in people's lives. Another interesting aspect is the lead-up to the holiday. Between Passover (marking the barley harvest) and Shavuot (wheat), there is a period of fifty days. Fifty days of uncertainty - rains might fail; a scourge of locusts may decimate the crop - and a constant reminder of how dependent our agricultural systems are on the good graces of Mother Nature. While the holiday remains one of the "big ones" in terms of religious observance, I feel like we have lost this essence as we move farther away from our roots as farmers. Always good to be reminded! (and there are some references to gleaning in the texts, as well).

One of the traditions of the holiday is to consume dairy. There are a number of explanations as to why - we'll stick with the reasoning that, after fleeing from oppression in Egypt and wandering in a desert for forty years, that consuming the namesake of the "Land of Milk and Honey" might symbolize the sweetness of freedom. Since dairy products are not in my repertoire, I decided to take a vegan twist on an old favorite. We can also incorporate some "first fruits," reveling in an early strawberry season. And although buckwheat is not actually the wheat one would harvest at this time (actually gluten-free and not wheat at all), it is still a biblical grain, so I think we are covered. Here goes:

 

Not-so-Dairy Holiday Blintzes (makes 2)

1/4 cup buckwheat flour

1/4 cup rice flour

2 tbs tapioca flour 

Pinch stevia (or 2 tsp sweetener of some sort) 

Pinch salt 

1/4 cup almond milk

1/4 package of tofu, silken would be nice

2 tbs agave (or to taste)

Juice of half lemon

1/4 tsp vanilla

1 cup fresh strawberries, quartered

1. Combine flours together with sweetener and salt. Add milk and mix. It should be pretty runny, so if it's not, add some more milk or water.

2. Heat a skillet on medium high and spritz with some oil. Pour about half the onto the pan and quickly spread it as thin as possible without ripping it (too much...). Let cook. Flip after edges are done.

3.  Meanwhile, puree the tofu, agave, lemon, and vanilla until creamy smooth. 

4. When crepe is done, let cool for a few minutes. Top with tofu cream and sliced strawberries. Enjoy!

More tasty treats on Wellness Weekends and Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays!

What's Cooking? Purple Potato Eater

First of all, Happy Earth Day! 42 years of celebrating the Earth, and unfortunately we still have much to do. So how did I spend my (admittedly soggy) Earth Day? It was my first day back at the farmers market selling organic produce!

I am generally happy with the farmers markets in DC. They may be expensive, but there is a good selection and friendly vendors. But for some reason certain produce items do not seem as prominent here as they were in good ol' Seattle. Only one vendor sells sunchokes, one of my favorite winter root veggies. Rabes, the flowering part of hardy winter greens, are also generally absent from the market stalls. While both of these are a little more obscure, I was extremely surprised at the lack of potato varieties! No rosy-fleshed taters, very few fingerling types, and not a purple potato in sight. So when I found some of these majestic spuds at the grocery store, I couldn't resist. And though there may be slight nutrition benefits to choosing purple over white, ultimately I just love the color and subtle flavor.

Purple Potato Scramble

1 medium purple potato, grated

1/4 onion, chopped

1 cup mixed greens

1 oz firm tofu, mashed 

1 tbs nutritional yeast

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp dill

Salt to taste

1. Heat a medium skillet on high with a little bit of olive oil. Saute onion for about five minutes. Add potato. Allow to cook for 10 minutes until potatoes begin to soften.

2. Mash up tofu with nootch and garlic powder. Throw into the skillet and cook another 5 minutes or so. Add greens, dill, and salt. Continue to cook until potatoes are tender.

Check out other tasty weekend dishes on Wellness Weekend and Slightly Indulgent Tuesday.

What's Cooking? Taste of Home

Can I start by announcing that this is My Munchable Musings' 300th post? Oh, well I just did! In honor of this momentous occasion, I thought to bring out an old classic. Two or three times per year, my mother would whip up a vibrantly orange dish that my sister and I adored. While it could be in no way considered healthy, full of butter, eggs, and sugar as it is, carrot souffle was much anticipated particularly at Passover time (subbing matzo meal). Sweet and rich, with undertones of carroty goodness. Souffles, however, are not one of the more vegan-friendly dishes to concoct. Well here goes an attempt - and one might even call this healthy!

Carrot Souffle

6-8 large carrots (about 1lb)

6 oz silken tofu

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup raw sugar

15-20 drops vanilla stevia

1/4 cup millet flour (or tapioca starch)

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1. Steam carrots until very tender. Allow to cool for five to ten minutes. Puree carrots, coconut oil, tofu, stevia, and sugar until very smooth. 

2. Add in the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Let it go until everything is well-combined. 

3. Pour into five greased ramekins. Bake at 350F for 35-45 minutes until set. Allow to cool completely. Enjoy!

As always, please visit Wellness Weekends and Slightly Indulgent Tuesday! Follow me on Twitter @YumMusings.

What's Cooking? A Pi(e) Party!

Perhaps a couple of weeks late, I hosted a post-Pi Day pie party this weekend. There was sweet potato pie, brownie pie, and my chocolate mousse pie; the was pizza pie, chili cornbread pie (gluten free!), and even a raw Mediterranean pesto torta! And of course any good pie party must have a quiche. According to Wikipedia, pies are defined by their crusts. A filled pie has only a bottom crust, a top-crust pie is also known as a cobbler, and the two-crust pie fully encapsulates the filling. And while the crusts can be your typical pastry or something more like mashed potatoes (shepherd's) or graham cracker crumbs (chocolate creme), they really are just conduits for amazing fillings.


Now the quiche is by rights and egg and cream custard in a standard pie shell. Below you will find that vegans can enjoy a delicious quiche, also. Ironically, quiche comes from the German word for cake, kuchen. Yet there has been a longstanding rivalry between cake aficionados and pie lovers (me being the latter). Luckily, a very scientific analysis was brought to my attention by one of the party guests. The conclusions support my earlier statements that the filling is key and that pies dominate cakes any day. 

Garlicky Mushroom Spinach Quiche
Crust
1 box ritz-like crackers (I used TJ's multi-grain)
2 tbs olive oil
Water until consistency

1. Grind crackers to crumbs in a food processor. Pulse with oil, and then add water in tablespoons intervals until the crumbs begin to stick together.
2. Press into a standard pie pan.

Filling
16 oz firm tofu
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/2 lb mushrooms, chopped
1 cup spinach
1-2 tbs red wine (optional)
1 tbs garlic powder
Olive oil for pan
Salt to taste


1. In a pan, sautee mushrooms until tender, adding spinach, garlic, and wine towards end.
2. Run tofu and nootch through the food processor until smooth. Stir on veggies and salt. 
3. Bake at 350F for 35-45 minutes until it begins to brown. Allow to cool and set.

More yum at Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays!

My Munchable ... Pi Day!

March 14th. 3.14. It happens but once a year - Pi Day. One of my most favorite non-holidays. A decidedly nerdy day, where math and numbers reign supreme. What makes it even better is that Pi Day inevitably means pie. And pies just happen to be one of my most favorite things to bake. Chocolate, too? Yes please!

Chocolate Truffle Pie
1 1/2 cups cinnamon graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup almond meal (optional)
1/4 cup agave
2 tbs melted coconut oil
Shake of cinnamon
Oil to consistency

16 oz firm silk tofu
1/2 cup vanilla soygurt
1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips or 12oz good dark chocolate
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbs coconut oil

Pecans, toasted

 1. Food process all crust ingredients. Add just enough oil so that it is sticky. Then press it into a pie plate or spring-form pan. Stick in the fridge.
2. Puree tofu, yogurt, sugar, and vanilla. Melt the chocolate, add coconut oil, and then food process until smooth. Fill the pie crust with the chocolate cream filling.
3. Add the toasted or candied pecans to the top and refrigerate. Serve with a dollop of coconut whipped cream!

Take the Pi Day Challenge!

My Munchable Soapbox: Soy Good For You?

First of all, for those in DC, happy meat-free week!

There are many reasons to follow a vegetarian or vegan diet - animal well-fare, health, sustainability.  Grist devoted the last week in January to assessing our obsession with protein. In the past 60 years, global meat consumption has doubled. This is a concern, because animal products simply take more calories to produce than they provide when consumed. It makes sense - sunlight turns into plant matter (soy and grain) and then turns into animal products. Along with the loss of energy along the food chain, livestock factory farming produces greenhouse gases and collects waste that pollutes water (read earlier musings on the topic). For more analysis of the topic, check out "A Veggie Considers Meat" (a little bit of a deceptive title...)

But I didn't bring you to this point in the text to extol veganism; it's not nearly as simple as a no-meat diet. While at first glance, this article looks like a critique of consuming meat and dairy (eggs are low in emissions, but water-intensive...), it actually is much more nuanced. One of the reasons a vegan diet may not be all hunky dory, is soy. Yes, the stereotypical veggie, hippie, super-food - tofu. But soybeans grown in the States are sprayed with pesticides up the wazoo and are almost exclusively from genetically-modified stock. Holy Guacamole! This other soy-centric article essentially argues that if it's not organic, who knows what's in it. But more importantly, if you buy processed foods and not whole ingredients, the likelihood of consuming something mysterious is greater.

So, I think we can go by the general rule that "it's complicated." Pastured beef cattle can sequester carbon. Chickens can eat pests. Soy may not be a vegetarian's best friend. Be a conscious consumer, do your homework, and make sure what you eat, is what you actually want to eat!

My Fling with Spring

Weather is a funny thing in the Pacific Northwest; I never know whether to expect sunshine in January or snow in March. So, while the vernal equinox has officially passed and new buds should now be in endless supply, spring fruits and veggies are not yet available. In fact, that mild (and at times quite warm) winter has transformed to a chilly spring. Amid those little April showers, I still feel like curling up in front of a warm fire and sipping some tea.

Well then, what does one do when confronted with a pie challenge themed “Spring”? Washington does not provide the early spring bounty so readily available in sunnier (and also heavily irrigated) California. And since I don’t want to turn my beloved Evergreen State into something it’s not, I embraced the transition of the seasons.

Two pies emerged from the abyss of desserts from which I pull my inspiration. At the farmer’s market a couple of weeks ago, I picked up the first of this season’s rhubarb! I still can hardly contain my excitement around this fruit I only first encountered a year ago. And although I obtained strawberry plants at the market, my pie had to make due without. The pear served as my local link to the fall and winter and melded nicely with the silky rhubarb.

Pear – Rhubarb Pie (vegan)

Crust:

1 cup all-purpose flour

½ cup ground brazil nuts

½ cup oat flour

¼ cup cold water (more if necessary)

½ cup oil (vegetable or nut)

1. Food process the oats. Add the nuts and run it until it reaches a fine meal.

2. Combine the oat/nut meal with the flour. Add the wet ingredients.

3. Mix all together with a wooden spoon until just combined and finish it off by hand.

4. Refrigerating isn’t really necessary, so just flour a surface and roll out to fit your pie pan (with a bit extra for the lattices).

Filling:

2 large pears

3 large stalks of rhubarb

½ - 1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

2 tbs corn starch (or tapioca starch)

1. Chop up the pears and rhubarb. Toss with sugar, starch, and cinnamon.

2. Fill the bottom crust. Use the leftover crust dough to lattice the pie.

3. Bake at 350F for 30-45 minutes, until the filling starts to bubble.

With my dessert set to go, my main course pie still eluded me. Oh, how good those fiddlehead ferns looked. Oh, if only the asparagus didn’t come from Mexico. Oh, if only I knew the dandelion greens growing in my lawn were edible! Instead, I snipped some of the chives that started to perk up as the weather warmed. Added to my fall/winter staples – onions and mushrooms – these little herbs make a nice quiche.

Caramelized Mushroom, Onion, and Chive Quiche (vegan, gluten-free)

Crust:

3 medium potatoes, grated

¼ cup garbanzo flour

1 tbs tapioca starch

1 tbs salt (or to taste)

1. Combine all the ingredients. Press into a greased pie pan. Bake for 15 minutes at 350F.

Filling:

12 oz firm tofu

½ large onion

½ cup sliced mushrooms

2 tbs chopped chives

1-2 cloves roasted garlic

½ tbs olive oil

2 tbs white wine

Salt to taste

Nutritional yeast (optional)

1. Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add onions and cook until starting to turn translucent.

2. Food process tofu until coarse. Add half the onions and give it another whiz.

3. Continue to sauté the rest of the onions and add the mushrooms. Douse them in the white wine and continue to cook until the mushrooms are soft and beginning to brown.

4. Combine all the ingredients. Taste, and make sure it is to your liking. Fill your potato crust. Pop it back into the 350F oven for 20-30 minutes until set.

And if there was any doubt that pies rule, check out this article on Jezebel: Pies vs. Cake!

Dare to Bake - Challenge #2

I would like to start out by apologizing for my tardiness, but I happened to have just returned from Vancouver, BC!!! I love the Olympic Games!

Anywho, this month on Daring Bakers, I was posed the challenge of creating a vegan tiramisu. Now, this is the dessert I most strongly regret not trying while in Italy. However, I pledged to make a concerted effort under my re-imposed dietary guidelines. Here goes my Vegan Pear Hazelnut Tiramisu:

Lady Fingers (Adapted from chocolate lady fingers in "Love, Eric")

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp sea salt

3/4 tsp baking soday

1/4 cup vegetable or nut oil

1/3 cup soy milk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup maple syrup, agave nectar, or brown sugar simple syrup (cooled!!!)

1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

1. Mix wet ingredients together with a whisk.

2. Sift in dry ingredients. Mix together with the whisk. It will be thick, but if must be spread add a tad more oil and milk.

3. Pipe batter into about 4-inch long fingers onto a baking pan (use parchment paper or a silpat).

4. Bake at 325F for 20-30 minutes until set. Cool and store in an air-tight container.

Notes: These were a lot denser than I had anticipated. They tasted really good, but weren't the light and fluffy cookies that they are supposed to be - if you have any tips for vegan lady fingers, I'd be glad to hear it.

Pastry Creme (Inspired by mascarpone recipe in "Nonna's Vegan Italiano" and tofu cream in "Love, Eric")

12 oz silken tofu (completely drained)

2/3 cup raw or toasted hazelnuts (depending on your flavor preference)

2 tbs lemon juice

1/2-3/4 cup brown sugar + 2 tbs maple syrup

2 tbs tapioca starch

1 tbs tahini

pinch sea salt

1/2 tsp hazelnut extract (if the nuts are untoasted)

1. This is super easy. Food process everything until smooth!

Pear Compote

2 ripe pears, any variety

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tbs brandy

1. Bring water and pears to boil in a small sauce pan over medium-high heat. Simmer all the ingredients over low heat until pears are super soft. Continue to add water as it boils away. Mash/blend to smooth-ish.

Assembly

1. Take a glass casserole dish. Dip lady fingers in brandy (I used pear brandy, because it is more mild. Line bottom of dish with cookies (I had to cut them to fit).

2. Thinly slice another half of a pear and place around the edge of the bowl.

3. Spread a thick layer of the pastry creme. Spread a thin layer of the pear compote. Add another layer of spiked lady fingers. Repeat.

4. Refrigerate for at least a day. Garnish top with pear slices and crushed hazelnuts.

The results, tasty, but not tiramisu. As usual, the creme was too tofu-y. The flavors melded nicely, but I have to say I think I would prefer the classic, with a hint of chocolate! Still, fun challenge - and definitely a challenge! See the blogs below for the original, and far more complex, recipes.

The February 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen and Deeba of Passionate About Baking. They chose Tiramisu as the challenge for the month. Their challenge recipe is based on recipes from The Washington Post, Cordon Bleu at Homeand Baking Obsession.

When Life Gives you Apples...Make Applesauce!

Produce of the Week: Apples

While I have tried for the past few weeks to focus on vegetables that often get a bad rap, I could not ignore the twenty-pound box of apples that replenishes itself every two or three weeks sitting in my garage. I mean, who does NOT like apples? So, here we are with some tantalizing recipes that use this little sphere of delight.

Apples are the quintessential lunch fruit. The daily dose of fiber and sugar that will keep the doctor away. They are one of the top cultivated species of tree fruit and span approximately 7,500 varieties. Today, we stick to a few major flavors, like Red Delicious and Granny Smith, but the market is expanding to include a wider selection (I think Pink Ladies take the cake). This popular fruit originated in Central Asia, probably in Turkey, and has been a staple in Asia and Europe for millennia, it didn't make it out to the North American continent until the 17th century. I could expound upon the history and qualities of apples, but you are probably here for the recipes. To learn more, visit Wikipedia or go hunt down Botany of Desire on DVD or in print.

Old picture of applesauce!

While apples aren't the most nutritious fruits around, they are delicious, and can be used in so many different ways. Applesauce is probably my favorite end product of bruised or otherwise marginalized apples. I feel no need, whatsoever, to add sugar to these stewy fruits:

5-7 (depending on size) Fuji and Gala apples. Coursely chopped with skins on (can peel if you want but the skins provide extra flavor)

1 cup water

Cinnamon to taste

1. Bring water and apples to a boil in a large-ish sauce pan. Lower heat to low.

2. Add cinnamon stick or ground cinnamon.

3. Let simmer/stew with lid mostly on until fruit is really soft (about 1-1.5 hours)

4. If you like chunky applesauce, mash with a spoon or fork. If you are an immersion blender addict like me, go wild!

5. Revel in the delicious flavors of homemade applesauce!

However, there is only so much applesauce a person can eat. So let's expand our apple adventures to a more mainstream course. Kugels are sort of the Ashkenazi Jew's version of a pudding - meaning it could include anything from noodles or bread to simply eggs. This Comforting Cabbage-Apple Kugel was adapted from "Passionate Vegetarian" by Crescent Dragonwagon (a monstrous tome and vegetarian bible).

1 small cabbage head (I used purple, but it left the kugel with an unappetizing bluish hue)

1/2 large onion, diced

2 medium apples, peeled and finely diced

2 tbs honey (I preferred it savory and would have left out the sweetener)

1 tsp salt

2 cups cubed and toasted whole wheat bread (I used my slightly stale sourdough baguette)

1 1/2 cups water

1/4 cup potato starch

1/3 block of firm tofu, smashed or pureed*

1/4 cup coconut milk w/1 tbs tapioca starch and 1 tsp baking soda dissolved*

1 tbs olive oil

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cabbage. Cook for about 20 minutes, until cabbage is starting to get tender and onions are translucent.

2. Add sweetener, salt, and apples. Cook for another 10-15 minutes. Take off heat.

3. While cabbage cooks, place bread in casserole dish and pour boiling water over. Let it soak until cooled enough to handle. Squeeze out and discard water.

4. Mash soaked bread with milk mixture and potato starch. Stir in cabbage mixture and tofu.

5. Bake at 350 F for 40 minutes or until starting to firm up. Let cool slightly before serving.

*The original recipe called for 3 large eggs, separated. The final dish is supposed to be kind of souffle-like, so if you want to keep the eggs, mix in the yolks for the coconut milk mixture. Beat the whites to stiff peaks and fold in at the end.

Apple pie, pre-crumble topping

Caramel (from my leftover vegan salted caramels) crumble apple pie!

And, then, there is always a classic apple pie! Make a simple vegan pie crust - I like to add a bit of food-processed brazil nuts to add a little oomph.

Filling:

3-4 apples, chopped

Lotsa cinnamon

1 tbs honey or other liquid sweetener

Crumble:

1/2 cup oats

1/2 cup flour

1/3 cup chopped walnuts

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/3-1/2 cup canola oil

Um, pretty straight forward. Make pie crust. Roll out and transfer to pie pan. Fill with apples. Bake at 350F for 30 minutes, until apples getting soft. Add crumble. Bake at 325F for another 15-20 minutes until browning and apples are soft. Drizzle with caramel if so desired. Let cool. Enjoy!

Produce of the Week: Cabbage!

With a couple of beets, a few bedraggled carrots, and a half of a rutabaga, my refrigerator's produce bin was looking pretty pitiful. It had been three weeks since my last farmer's market excursion, and I was definitely suffering the consequences. I don't know how long I could have kept up my chocolate and apples diet (since, that is what it seemed to be turning into). But, thankfully, Saturday arrived and I had my favorite weekend excursion: the U-District Farmer's Market! Among the bounty of roots, leafy greens, and baby delicatas, I picked up this gem - a beautiful, Rachel-sized, purple cabbage!

Ok, now most people I know hear the word cabbage and immediately mime gagging. For some reason (like many of the veggies I love), it has this bad reputation. Maybe it is the pungent aroma given off when cooked...maybe it is the result of one too many bad experiences with the "Cabbage Soup Diet" (well, of course you'll lose weight if all you eat is cabbage!)...I don't know. But my hope is that if you are one of the cabbage knockers, you will give it another chance.

Cabbages are the quintessential Brassicas, and actually the same species as kale, broccoli, and brussel sprouts (its "Mini Me"). This star of today's cole slaws, has a long cultivation and culinary history, spanning civilizations and continents. I am not going to go into the detailings of centuries of cabbage evolution, but if you are interested, check this out.

Anywho, I am a recent cabbage convert. It's not a super-food like some leafy greens or anti-oxidant-rich berries, but it has some redeemable qualities with plenty of Vitamin C and anti-inflammatory properties. Plus it is a hardy, filling meal, that - due to its neutral pH - helps ease acidic stomach problems.

A couple of weeks ago, I made an absolutely scrumptious Indian Stir-Fried Cabbage. Pair it with some naan, dal, or other Indian food stuffs. I am loathe to include a slaw recipe in this post, but as long as I steer clear of our American version and stick to a light Asian-inspired dish, I think I will pull through. For dinner tonight, I thought I would make Purple Cabbage, Winter Squash, and Tofu, compliments of last week's NY Times dining section!

If you happened to be overflowing with apples and parsnips, I also recommend this soupy delicacy!

A Bite of India in Sammamish

I love Indian food. It's a fact. When I come home (or stay home for extended periods of time due to unemployment), it is a longstanding tradition for my mother and me to enjoy the spicy delicacies at one of the local Indian lunch buffets. Well, it has been a while since I have satisfied this particular craving. Just the other day my sister - who happens to be in Londontown for the year - was despairing over the lack of tortillas and the plethora of naan in her life! I, on the other hand, couldn't imagine a better situation.

So, on one of my usual escapades through food blogs, I was absolutely thrilled to discover The Bread Baking Babes. Once a month they put out a bread baking challenge...and this month was none other than NAAN, brought to us by Cookie Baker Lynn. Tonight I tried it out - halving the recipe and subbing 1/3 cup of whole wheat flour and 1/3 cup besan (garbanzo flour) to kick things up a bit. It came out surprisingly well - "it tastes like naan" according to my dad! I served it up with some saag tofu and curried cabbage. Thanks BBB for a fun challenge, and I look forward to baking with you all again!

Anywho, lots been happening in the kitchen lately, so stay tuned for updates!