Holy Seitan Stroganoff, I'm Gettin' Hitched!

Wow- that's the corniest title for a blog post I've ever created. But the reality is that I've got two things on my mind right now:

1) My impending November nuptials to this guy

and

2) the Seitan Mushroom Stroganoff I made last night.

The fact is, both Steve and the Stroganoff have a lot in common. Both begin with the lovely letter S. Both are unbelievably comforting. Both took some risk and a leap of faith for me to become involved with. Both are deliciously satisfying. Both remind me of home and family. And both are vegan (yes, Steve finally made the transition to becoming vegan. I am so proud of him!).

But sadly, only one of these loves will be taking my hand in marriage come November. As much as I'd be overjoyed to devote myself to Seitan Stroganoff for the rest of my life (which I guess in theory I could), the world of vegan food is too vast and too yummy to only focus on this one delectable, yet singular dish.

So, I choose to devote today's post to Seitan Stroganoff, a dish that speaks to my heart and stomach so beautifully.

Yesterday, I was in the mood for comfort food - I think between the crazy wedding planning and the immediate fall weather we've been having in Brooklyn, it makes a lot of sense to crave something warm and homey. After brainstorming a bit, I had the idea to create my own Seitan Stroganoff, but I had no recipe to base it own. Oh sure, I know there are plenty of vegan stroganoff recipes out there - I just wanted to try and figure it out on my own (in honor of my month-long Vegan Mofo III Challenge). I picked up a few ingredients, experimented with them in my kitchen, and the result was a creamy comfort food which is perfect for autumn.

My inspiration for the sauce came from Bryanna Clark Grogan's marinade for her Breast of Tofu. If you like traditional American cooking, check this domestic southern goddess out. She rules.

Seitan Mushroom Stroganoff

Ingredients for the Seitan and Mushrooms:

1 package WestSoy Vegetarian Stir Fry Strips,
pulled apart into chunks

2-3 c. baby portabella or cremini mushrooms, sliced

1 tbsp. Pastry flour
(un-bleached, all-purpose flour works great too)

2 tbsp. organic, expeller-pressed canola oil

Ingredients for the Sauce:

1 1/2 c. water
1/4 c. mushroom soy sauce
(regular soy sauce can work too)

1/4 c. nutritional yeast flakes

2 tsp. dried sage

1/2 tsp. dried rosemary

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

1/2 tsp. onion powder

3 tbsp. Earth Balance Margarine

3 tbsp. Pastry Flour, 
whisked with 1-2 tbsp. cold water

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a medium-sized pan on medium heat. Add seitan chunks and cook about 5-7 minutes, or until good and browned.  Once browned, sprinkle 2 tbsp. flour onto seitan and toss in pan to coat. Add mushrooms, toss with seitan and cook for 1 minute.

2. While seitan is cooking, mix water, soy sauce, spices, and nutritional yeast in a bowl. Pour wet mix over seitan and mushrooms. Allow to cook on high-heat for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Add margarine in small slices to the pan, and cook until margarine melts. Stir in the flour-water mixture slowly and continuously to thicken. Be careful not to dump the whole mixture in too quickly, or the stroganoff will become way too stiff. Once the stroganoff resembles a creamy, gravy-like texture, it's ready. I topped the dish with more nutiritional yeast, because I'm a huge fan of the stuff. Totally up to you.

When life hands you lemons, make a vegan cupcake.

I didn't think you could have a quarter-life crisis twice. Now, after a very interesting day, I'm a firm believer that you should be allowed to have as many as you need in order to figure stuff out.  Today was a huge "what should I do with my life?" day - so much so that I had a proper freak out to celebrate the occasion.

To bring you up to speed - I've been pursuing acting since I was a wee one. I remember standing on top of a man-made hill in the backyard of my South Jersey home happily belting out songs from the musical "Annie" at awkwardly early hours in the morning. I even took my love of acting to New York to study it like mad and ultimately receive my Drama degree from the Tisch School at NYU. I've spent three and a half years out of school trucking along as an actor in the city, and while my career has not played out quite the way I expected, I've been just fine. Or so it seems.

The curve ball? This little thing called veganism. Ever since I went vegetarian, and ultimately vegan, I have become increasingly sensitive to the connection between myself and the world. My community gradually became a whole lot bigger as I realized that the actions I was taking in my life directly affected the other people and animals who inhabit this world with me. And it dawned on me - I had a choice. I could choose to bring a whole new element into my life if I wanted to. And I did, so I began this blog, I started researching other vegan blogs, I subscribed to VegNews, and I looked for ways to help animals online. And a year later, I have discovered that my love for animal advocacy and veganism has grown equal to my love for acting. Which has been a tough pill for me to swallow, considering acting is all I have ever known and all I have ever pursued. So this morning, I spent an hour hashing out my predicament with my awesome mom, who said some wise words to me - "Lindsay, why can't you do both?". To which I desperately replied, "But what if this vegan thing becomes more important to me than the acting thing? What do I do mom?" My mom then proceeded to patiently explain to me that I didn't need to spend my life only doing one thing, and that if I began to love the vegan cause more, then why don't I pursue it more? And she's right, of course. Moms frequently are.

This whole ordeal reminds me of a passage I found while Steve and I were looking at different quotes for our wedding ceremony. It comes from the Dalai Lama's Instructions for Life, and it says:

"Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck."

I add this because I've begun to realize this past year that if the acting thing did go as I planned it would, I probably would've never found this whole other love of mine - the work I do for animals and to promote veganism. And I think that in life, you need to do what brings you the most joy, peace, and balance. For me right now, it's this. So I think it can only help to explore how I can make a greater impact for the animals I care about so much.

Oh, and by the way - I baked some awesome cupcakes last night, and I made a point to give them to my fiance to bring to his work friends today, some of whom are skeptics about the positive aspects of veganism. Every single person loved them, and I hope the experience of tasting something yummy and vegan will allow them to have a more open heart when it comes to veganism. A small step in the right direction for me? We shall see.

(Hey - maybe a cupcake really can change the world.)

Just so you know, my cupcake and icing recipes were adapted from the Golden Vanilla Cupcake recipe and the Vegan Fluffy Buttercream Frosting recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World. If you don't own this cookbook yet, buy it now. It might change your world.
 

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Autumn Spiced Frosting

Ingredients:

1 c. coconut milk

1 tsp. apple cider vinegar

1 1/4 cups pastry flour

(or unbleached, all purpose flour)

1 1/2 tsp. EnerG Egg Replacer,

mixed with 2 tbsp. warm water

3/4 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 c. canola oil

(preferably Organic and Expeller-Pressed)

3/4 vegan sugar

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp. ground cloves

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1 serving Autumn Spiced Frosting (recipe to follow)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line your cupcake pan with cupcake liners.

2. Mix the coconut milk with the vinegar in a small bowl and set it aside for a few minutes.

3. Mix the oil, coconut milk mixture, sugar, vanilla, egg replacer mixture, and spices in a large bowl.

4. Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in another large bowl.

5.  Add the dry mix to the wet mix slowly, and remember to scrape the sides of the bowl as you mix. Mix until there are no large lumps left.

6. Fill the cupcake liners two-thirds of the way and bake for 18-22 minutes (depending on your oven). To check to see if the cupcakes are done, stick a toothpick in the middle of the cupcake - if the toothpick comes out clean, you're good. Transfer the cupcakes to a cooling rack, and allow them to cool completely before you frost them.

Autumn Spiced Frosting

Ingredients:

1 stick Earth Balance Margarine (or 1/2 c.)

1/2 a stick of Earth Balance Shortening (or 1/4 c.)

3 1/2 c. confectioner's sugar

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

1/8 cup coconut milk,

with more on hand if needed

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp. ground cloves

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

Directions:
1. Place all ingredients in a large bowl and beat with an electric hand-held mixer (at the highest speed) until fluffy. Add more coconut milk to mixture if it's too stiff. Enjoy!

 And:

"Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon."

(from The Dalai Lama's Instructions for Life)

I made dinner last night from scratch, ya'll.

I did. And I'm so proud of myself! Woohoo for me!

I know, I know - a small accomplishment. But in this day and age of eating out all the time, I'm really happy that this year has marked my first in finding creative ways to cook at home. It's a super important aspect of my life - and it's funny, because it only really began for me once I went vegan. As I've said before, veganism has completely opened up my life to countless varieties of foods I didn't really acknowledge or know about prior to making the change. It has been a reawakening of sorts to discover amazingly versatile ways of eating and living. 

So, yesterday I ventured to Whole Foods and looked around for local, organic vegetables, bought a pasta I love, and used spices and flavors I have in my kitchen cupboard.

As much as I love following someone else's lovely recipe, I've really been wanting to be more bold in my cooking and baking. So, I've decided that at least once a week, I will try something completely on my own. Even if it's a disaster, I will commend myself at the end of the process for a job well done. Because it's the thought and effort that count in the end anyway. And of course, I will always blog about it!

I shall call my creation:

Creamy Lemony Quinoa Pasta
with Eggplant, Squash, and Mushrooms

This is a dish that is just as the name suggests: creamy, comforting, and full of flavor. Feel free to change the vegetables to your liking.

Makes 2-3 servings

Ingredients:

3 c. Quinoa Pasta

(or Brown Rice or Whole Wheat -  your choice)

2 c. cremini mushrooms, sliced

1 whole small eggplant, chopped into 1/2 inch cubes

1 whole small yellow squash, chopped into 1/2 inch cubes

juice of 1 lemon

2-3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

2 1/2 tbsp. Earth Balance Margarine

2 tbsp. Nutritional Yeast 

(click on the link above if you're unsure what this is)

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. finely ground sea salt

salt to taste

paprika to garnish (optional)

Directions:

1. Cook pasta as directed on box.

2. While pasta cooks, salt eggplant and place in a colander covered with a dish towel or paper towel for about 10-15 minutes (or until they start to become soft). 

3. Heat 2 tsbp. oil at medium heat in a medium-sized pan. After about 1-2 min, add mushrooms and sprinkle with some of the salt. Cover and allow mushrooms to cook for about 5-7 minutes on medium heat (occasionally check the mushrooms to make sure they don't burn). Add squash and 1 tbsp. margarine to mushrooms, cover, and cook for 4-5 more minutes. Add eggplant, juice of one lemon, 1 tbsp. nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, and the rest of the salt. Cover and cook about 4 more minutes. Uncover and add the rest of the nutritional yeast, margarine, and salt to taste. When pasta is done, toss pasta into vegetable mixture to coat. Sprinkle paprika on top of the dish to garnish. Enjoy!

Um...

I'm so bummed - It's only four days into VeganMofo III, and I'm already late on my daily posting! But I have a great excuse, I promise. It's because I participated in two - count 'em, TWO - Walk for the Farm Animals events.

On Saturday, I traveled down to Rehoboth Beach, DE and walked with Steve and my mom and her boyfriend, and we had a blast with the Farm Sanctuary group down there. We may have been a small group, but we were full of energy and laughs and were totally ready to make a stand for the animals. It was a joyous walk, and we were able to pass out all of our leafleting materials! Good stuff.

Today was even better - I volunteered at the New York City Walk by dressing up as a cow for two and a half hours. 
 

Yup.

It was pretty awesome actually - I got to take pictures with lots of smiling kids (and smiling kids are one of my favorite things), and all in all, it was well worth the effort (and by "effort" I mean sweating my butt off - that thing was hot!). In the end, I asked myself- if farm animals could endure endless amounts of suffering, couldn't I tough it out in a cow costume for a few hours? I follow that with resounding "Oh yeah."

So, beginning tomorrow, I will again be bringing you more fun info about vegan food - don't worry.  In the meantime, here's a picture of a really yummy dessert to tide you over. It's from the OMG Cupcakes website - Andie, the woman who runs the company, is awesome and so talented at baking. I was lucky enough to sample her carrot cake mini-cupcakes at the NYC Walk today, and they blew my mind!

Bliss.

Photos of Food + A Hungry Stomach = Having To Eat the Photos?

In honor of Vegan Mofo III, I have decided to uncover my long awaited catalog of food pictures taken during my trips to California and Delaware this past August. Some dishes were homemade, some were from restaurants, and all were outstanding. While my camera is not a professional one, I hope you will enjoy the photos nonetheless!

Homemade Stuffed Shells with Sweet Tofu Ricotta

in a White Pepper Nutmeg Sauce

(made my yours truly and my mom in Delaware.

Recipe for White Sauce courtesy of Skinny Bitch in the Kitch)

 

A breakfast of pancakes, tempeh bacon, and

roasted potatoes at Sante La Brea on

North La Brea Ave. in Los Angeles

A homemade dinner of country style tofu, gravy,

corn on the cob with sage butter, and fresh hummus 

at Joanna and Brian's house in Miracle Mile

 

Raw Taco Salad at Euphoria Loves Rawvolution

 

Cocophoria Sandwich at Euphoria Loves Rawvolution

 

Homemade Brown Rice Penne with

cherry tomatoes, eggplant, and cauliflower

in a Vegan Pesto Sauce

(courtesy of the lovely Joanna and Brian) 

 

Tempeh Reuben with Potato Salad at

Flore Vegan in Silverlake

 

Steve and I eating delicious vegan chocolate cupcakes

from M Cafe on Melrose Ave (Cupcake photos

 courtesy of the amazing Joanna Wilson Photography )

Here we go, here we go!

Happy October! Time for pumpkin picking, apple orchards, Halloween costumes, warm soups, and sweaters...

 

It's also time to Walk for Farm Animals this weekend (there's still time to register to walk and to give - www.firstgiving.com/lindsayalanawolf), and it's also National Vegetarian Month! Whew!

As I explained in my previous post, this month I am participating in Post Punk Kitchen's Vegan Mofo III, which affectionately stands for Vegan Month of Food! I will be chronicling delicious vegan dishes and foods every single day of the month. I think what these fabulous people over at PPK have organized is a great thing - by banding all of us bloggers together with the challenge of writing a post every day, they give us the opportunity to find endless ways to get the word out about how awesome vegan food can be.  I am honored to be a part of the cause!

I'm also going to try to use this month as a personal challenge to create original recipes for this blog, because it's kind of been a dream of mine to have recipes I could call my own. But wait, there's more! I will also be spending the month talking about foods that were difficult to give up once I went vegan, and what kind of delicious alternatives I've found along the way. Bottom line - I'll be bringing you original ways to come up with yummy dishes that will hopefully both satisfy and enlighten. Cheers!

For today's post, I would love to start with a food that was really difficult to part with at first - cheese. It's easy to stay off of the stuff now that I've educated myself about both the health problems linked to dairy, as well as how damaging and destructive the process of obtaining it is on both the baby cows and mother cows living on dairy farms. In the first few months of going vegan, however, I was definitely having a hard time going without it. But being the determined person I am, I forced myself to: 1) confront what I was really looking for when I ate cheese, and 2) find alternative ways to enjoy those qualities in other foods.

The thing about cheese that I loved was the thickness and creaminess it possessed. Dairy in general supplied that element to a lot of my food, so my initial freak out was mostly because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to find vegan foods that could satisfy my craving for all things comfort. Boy was I wrong.

What I ultimately realized was that there was an endless array of creamy vegan foods - I just had to find them!

Here's a list of a few foods I came up with to get you started:

Coconut Milk - this milk can be added to stir fry dishes to make a creamy sauce, or it can be whipped to make cream to top desserts with. It's also my absolute favorite non-dairy milk to make ice cream with (go out right now and buy Purely Decadent's line of Coconut Milk Ice Creams and tell me you don't agree!).

Avocado - mash them up and you immediately have a creamy spread for almost anything (or add a little Vegenaise and mix in a food processor to make an awesome sandwich and veggie burger topping).

Cashews, almonds, and other nuts - in addition to nut butters, which are always creamy (unless you buy crunchy), you can actually make your own nut cheese, which I've tried and is absolutely delicious! (Dr. Cow's line of nut-based cheeses is especially scrumptious - they're expensive, but worth every penny.)

Tofu - you just haven't lived until you have tried my Sweet Tofu Ricotta recipe (which I've included at the bottom of this post). Tofu is a miracle food, because in addition to being an awesome protein source, it can be blended into nearly any dish that requires a creamy, thick texture. I think I'll have to devote a future post to tofu, because it's one of my favorite things in life.

Vegan Sour Cream and Cream Cheese - Follow Your Heart makes wonderfully creamy vegan sour cream and cream cheese that you can use in dips, icings ,and desserts. After using them for a while, you won't even notice the difference between these and their dairy counterparts.

Flour, Arrowroot Powder, and Corn Starch - I'm sure most of you have used at least one of these powerhouse thickeners before, but I wanted to add them here because they have been my go-to source for adding consistency to sauces and pasta dishes. 

Have I missed anything you think is a great alternative to dairy cheese? Please feel free to add a comment on the bottom of the page.

And as promised, my recipe for Sweet Tofu Ricotta:

Sweet Tofu Ricotta

You can add this to any dish that calls for ricotta. My favorite way to use it is to stuff jumbo pasta shells with it, top them with my favorite tomato sauce, and pop the whole thing  in the oven at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes or until the top is bubbling.

1 package firm or extra firm tofu,

pressed for 5-10 minutes and crumbled

2-3 tbsp. olive oil

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tbsp garlic powder

1 tsp. nutmeg

1/4 c. vegan cane sugar or agave nectar

more sweetener/salt on hand to taste

In a food processor or blender, add all ingredients and pulse until thick and smooth. I like to start with 2 tsbp. of oil, and then add more as I go to make it creamier. You can also add more sugar to reach your own desired level of sweetness.