VegLite – Healthy Vegan Recipes

November 17, 2010

beetroot chocolate cake

Filed under: Desserts,Not-so-lite — Tags: , , , — dimitra @ 8:44 am

In the ppk survey I posted yesterday I wrote that one of the weirdest combinations I ever had was beets & chocolate. My inspiration was the Chocolate Beetcake with Raspberry Filling and Frosting from Vegalicious . It’s one of my favorite blogs and I often cook recipes from their site.  Here is my version of a rich beetroot chocolate cake with vegan ganache.

beetroot chocolate cake

beetroot chocolate cake

Ingredients

2 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda pinch salt
3/4 cup blended soft silken tofu
1/2 cup olive  oil
1 and 1/2 cup light brown soft sugar
1 and 1/2 cups cooked and pureed beetroots
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

for the ganache

1/2 cup soy cream
3/4 cup vegan chocolate chips
3 TS maple syrup

Preheat oven to 180 C.  Grease and flour a baking pan. In a bowl sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the tofu, oil, sugar and vanilla and mix well. Add the beetroots puree and mix until you form a semi-thick batter. Pour the batter in your pan and bake for about 45 minutes.  To make the ganache bring the soy cream to a boil and lower the heat. Add the chocolate and maple syrup. Mix well for about a minute until all chocolate is fully melted. Allow the cake to cool for 15 minutes and then top with the ganache. Let it cool completely before serving or if you prefer it hot put it in the microwave for 10 seconds.

November 16, 2010

PPK Vegan Survey

Filed under: Uncategorized — Tags: , , , — dimitra @ 9:34 am

As you can see this is not a recipe but a survey run by the ppk forum.
And a photo of my little peanut! isn’t he adorable???

Q: What’s your favorite spice or spice blend?
A: Garam masala!

Q: You have $20 to spend on fresh groceries and produce for the whole week (with a fairly well stocked pantry of dry goods, legumes, grains, and spices). what do you buy?
A: tomatoes, lettuce, spring onions, carrots, zucchinis, eggplants, spinach, broccoli, avocados, lemons, bananas, apples

Q: What’s your favorite way to make tofu?
A: Baked with lemony potatoes

Q: Vegan guilty pleasure?
A: Cupcakes!

Q: If you could make anyone vegan, who would it be?
A: My husband. That would probably make my life easier

Q: If you could only read one other vegan blog, what would it be?
A: www.veggie-wedgie.com for the food creativity and the great photography!

Q: Were you always interested in cooking, or did veganism change the way you saw and interacted with food?
A: Ever since I remember myself, but I enjoy it more since I became vegan.

Q: Excluding analogues, what new things have you tried that you probably wouldn’t have as an omni?
A: Seitan. Pretty much that’s it. I preferred vegan food even as an omni.

Q: What is the one vegan staple that everyone seems to love, but you can’t get behind?
A: Seitan… it just doesn’t work for me. Not my taste…

Q: What was your first “wow, I’m such a stereotypical vegan” moment?
A: When I yelled to a friend that wanted to kill a roach… it was quite embarrassing…

Q: First recipe you veganized?
A: Meat and potatoes became tofu and potatoes. And it tasted quite the same as my omni friends said so.

Q: What would you like to veganize, but haven’t yet?
A: My moms walnut cake which I don’t think I will ever try as it asks for more than 5 eggs… snif snif

Q: Favorite kitchen utensil/appliance?
A: Tofuxpress! Tofuxpress! Tofuxpress!

Q: Most disastrous kitchen failure?
A: steaming seitan… I forgot about it, my pot run out of water and soon it turned black. Disaster!

Q: First vegan cookbook?
A: How it all vegan by Sarah Kramer

Q: What question about being vegan do you HATE answering?
A: How do you get your protein? Or why no milk? I think the second one annoys me more

Q: If you could tell the world one thing about vegans, what would it be?
A: We are so “abnormal” :P

Q: Funniest vegetable?
A: Brussels sprouts

Q: What is a family recipe you have veganized?
A: Mousaka

Q: Weirdest food combination ?
A: Beetroot chocolate cake

Q: Favorite ways to prepare tofu, seitan, tempeh, any other vegan proteins?
A: Stir fry, baked, scrambled

my little peanut

my little peanut

Q: Are your pets vegan? if so, what do you feed them? tell us about having vegan furbabies!
A: No. my little peanut eats pretty much everything

Q: Favorite non-dairy milk?
A: Soy milk in general but I prefer almond milk for desserts

Q: What’s one “vegan myth” you’d like to squash?
A: That milk is the only source for calcium

November 15, 2010

homemade seitan tofurkey

Filed under: Main Dishes — Tags: , , , , — dimitra @ 3:43 pm

I find it scary how much this seitan tofurkey looks like meat. Sean walked in the house and asked me if it was roast beef! I am not a big fan of seitan but it seems like it works for everyone else I am serving it too. I did enjoy this roast though. I also made a cauliflower chickpeas casserole as a side dish. It was very simple but different and flavorful. We absolutely loved it. I think this roast can make a great centerpiece for Vegan Thanksgiving and my recipe comes together pretty easy.

seitan tofurkey roast
seitan tofurkey roast

for the seitan tofurkey

2 cups vital wheat gluten flour
1 cup chickpea flour
1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1 package firm silken tofu
1 cup cold vegetable broth
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 TS olive oil
2 TS ketchup
2 cloves garlic minced
1 tsp smoked paprika
several dashes of fresh ground pepper

for the glaze
1/2 cup blackstrap molasses
1 cup cranberries

for the cauliflower chickpeas casserole (side dish)
2 cups cooked chickpeas
1 big cauliflower cut in small florets
1 big red onion sliced
1 TS mixed fresh herbs or 1 tsp mixed dry herbs
1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 tsp salt
1 TS nutritional yeast
1/4 cup breadcrumbs

seitan tofurkey & cauliflower chickpeas casserole

seitan tofurkey & cauliflower chickpeas casserole

To make the seitan tofurkey, mix in a medium bowl (the 1lt ones) the vital wheat gluten flour, chickpea flour, spices and nutritional yeast. Blend the tofu, put it in a different – bigger – bowl, addall the other ingredients and mix well. Add the wet mixture into the flour mixture and mix well with a fork. Knead with your hands for a couple of minutes until you form an elastic dough. Place your dough into the medium bowl and press it down. Let it rest for 10 minutes. In the meantime put your steamer on. Use a big piece of aluminum foil and top your bowl. Turn it upside down so the dough will keep its shape. Wrap it with the aluminium foil and place it in your steamer. Steam for 1h and 30 minutes. Make sure you won’t run out of steaming water (been there, done that).

While steaming the seitan tofurky prepare the side-dish.

Put the chickpeas in a food processor and pulse a couple of times to mash them but don’t puree them. Place the cauliflower florets in a baking dish. Add the chickpeas, onions, spices, herbs and oil and mix well. Mix the nutritional yeast with the breadcrumbs and top the casserole. Add the vegetable broth and bake in the oven for 40 minutes at 180c.

To make the glaze mix in a sauce pan over medium heat the molasses with the cranberries and simmer for 15 minutes. Once you are done steaming the seitan tofurkey, remove the foil, place in a baking dish, top with the glaze and bake it for 30 minutes at 180 c. Slice thin and serve with the cauliflower-chickpeas as a side dish and with cranberry sauce.

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