Back on the grid w/ flat breads

I have been storing up my dairy-free food adventures until I had more time to post. I was so excited about my Christmas present from Dad that this seemed like a good time to share all of the good stuff I've been saving up. This is going to be an awfully long post.

Cooking for Isaiah: Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free Recipes for Easy Delicious Meals

I haven't really be interested in any cookbooks on this subject yet. They seem a little more like snobbish guides on keeping up with diet trends.  This cookbook on the other hand, is just a mom trying to feed her kid the type of food he ate before they found out he was gluten and dairy intolerant. I don't know about you, but I have a lot of great food memories from growing up. I'd love to be able to eat this sort of food again, but paired with a cocktail since I can now also reap the rewards of being a grown-up. I am starting to gear up to try some of these recipes soon.

In the meantime, I recently had some successful food adventures with the universal delights of flat breads. I am on a mission to eat my way around the world and everywhere you go they all seem to have a local unleavened bread. You can't go wrong with naan from India, pitas from Greece. My two favorites though are tortillas from Mexico and the dressed up Italian flat bread, pizza! Get ready to go from south of the border to across the Atlantic.

For flour tortillas I went with the recipe from my online cooking bible The Pioneer Woman Cooks. I thought I'd share the tips I picked up.

1. I highly recommend getting a pastry cutter as the recipe calls for. I did this twice, once with two knives and once with the pastry cutter. Boy was the second time easier. You can plunk down anywhere from $5 to $20 for one, but you won't really use it enough to justify spending more. Check out the options on Amazon here or hit up your local Target. You won't regret it if you ever do any more dough making.

2. If you don't have a tortilla press, then cellophane (a.k.a. saran wrap) is your friend. Start by balling up all of your dough.

Then take one of the dough balls and place it between a piece of saran wrap folded in half. From here you can use a rolling pin or you can slowly flatten out the dough ball with your fingers. I went with the second method and was able to get the dough nice and thin.

Have a dry nonstick skillet ready on medium high heat. As you flatten out your dough, put them straight into the skillet, about 1 minute on each side. The first tortilla is always the best because you get to eat it to make sure your skillet is set to the right heat and you flipped at the right time.

3. Finally, remember that Crisco is only for use sparingly. I think it tastes weird straight out of the can, but apparently some people disagree.  Just remember the warning on their labels before you decide to go buttering your toast with it.

Once you've made your delicious dough discs, you can eat some right away and then the rest will keep.  They freeze really well, or last in the fridge for about a week. Tortillas are good with just about anything, but my favorite is guacamole. All you need is pico de gallo, lime, a dollop of mayo, and the fruit (yes it's a fruit) of the gods, avocado.

For pizza I cheated, but why reinvent the wheel? I went with the delicious whole wheat dough and pizza sauce from Trader Joes as my base. They even have delicious directions right on the bag.

Once you have a good base, you can start building. I went with kalamata olives, shallots, mushrooms, and white truffle oil which was an awesome combination.

Add a good friend to eat it with you are in business. I can't even tell you how delicious this was!

That concludes my last post of 2011. Happy new year; I hope 2012 is full of foodie adventures for us all. See you next year for more posts.

Yuck!

I knew that my biggest challenge when I started this whole project would be replacing cheese and boy was I right. This week I have to report that I had a good faux cheese experience and a bad one. The difference? DIY. Which brings me to the conclusion that fake cheese is just better left to the pros.

The failed attempt was vegan nacho cheese. I should have known raw cashews was just a little too weird. In the end it was a texture thing mostly. I just couldn't bring myself to eat more than a taste of the grainy concoction.  A yellow witches brew full of complicated ingredients that was so not worth the hassle. And I spent almost an hour at Whole Foods trying to track down pimientos and nutritional yeast!

The good experience also came from Whole Foods; however, from a company called Candle Cafe. Apparently it's a vegan New York eatery that started making frozen foods recently.  If I actually take the trip to NYC to visit friends I've been saying I will, then I may even check them out in person and give a full report.

But when it comes to frozen foods boy are they worth checking out! I had vegan macaroni and cheese that was honestly better than any other frozen mac and cheese I've had that uses real cheese. I would even say it matches up to the Trader Joes frozen Macaroni and Cheese experience. Carmen, my only blog watcher, you will be flabbergasted by this statement.  The only downside I can see is as usual affordability. But to keep some on hand for those days I just need a quick go to lunch that won't make me feel incredibly guilty for eating dairy in a pinch, then they are totally worth it.

Sorry that I didn't have another recipe for the blog this time, but trust me you didn't want this one. Next time, homemade tortillas!

Fall Recipe - Choco Pumpkin Pie

I am not gonna lie to you; I was flying by the seat of my pants on this one. Also spoiler alert this is going to be the BROWNEST entry I will ever do. But brown means chocolate and who doesn't love chocolate.

1 1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips (semi sweet)
1/4 cup Silk dark chocolate almond milk
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin puree (I wanted to avoid tofu since soy is no bueno, but that is up to you dear viewer)
3/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp molasses
2 tps arrowroot powder (this is a thickening agent)
1 tsp vanilla extract

If you are a cheater like me, you can buy an Arrowhead Mills premade graham cracker crust. Note: this is dairy, but not soy free.

For most of the crazier ingredients (vegan chocolate chips and arrowroot powder) you are gonna need to hit up your local Whole Foods. When you get back preheat your oven to 425 degrees while you watch this awesome video to laugh about how you just experienced most of it for real. Your best friends will be these two milk free chocolate filled goodies:

While the oven is heating up put the chocolate chips in a microwavable bowl and heat at 15 second intervals, checking regularly, until melted.

Open up the pumpkin puree and mix it in with the melted chocolate. I tried this to help get some of the chocolate stuck on the bottom of the bowl and it actually worked really well.

Add the rest of the filling ingredients to the bowl and then mix in the pumpkin chocolate mixture. Stir until everything is well combined and put it in the pie crust. Even it out so you look like you know what you are doing and pop in the oven for 15 minutes.

This will give you some time to contain your excitment, but don't get ahead of yourself. After 15 minutes you will need to lower the heat to 350 degrees and then bake for 40 more minutes.

Now I pulled it out, let it cool and then went straight for a slice. Looking back I think I would have put it straight into the fridge to see if it would firm up a bit more.  Either way you do it the taste is great though so it's up to you.  Give it a try and if you do your own variations, let me know. There is no wrong way to make a chocolate pie!!

Ranting About Farmer's Markets

My goodies after a very thoughtful trip the Farmer's Market

It should come as no surprise that I have something to rant about, but Farmers' Markets can really make me cranky sometimes.  It is nice having so many markets to choose from, I mean there is one for every neighborhood in the PNW pretty much. Even so most areas now have at least a few going on. My parents have one to go to at their neighborhood park back in Tucson, Arizona for pete's sake! Due to a different climates you will see different things wherever you are and the PNW has an abundance compared to some areas which is amazing. I love walking down the market pathways and seeing so many colors of delicious. What I don't love is how trendy they have gotten which means a lot of the stalls charge premium for lower quality goods.

Now not all stalls are this way, but gosh darnit you better do a lap first before you commit to buying anything. Today I saw the grungiest leeks ever plucked from the ground for $2/lb and then two stalls down there were some gorgeous leeks at $2 for a huge bunch of four. If I hadn't waited I would have been very sad indeed when I laid eyes on those second leeks. And unfortunately, there are probably many who buy from the first stall, because they expect a little gouging at a Farmer's Market. To me this defeats the purpose of cutting out the middle man and the whole reasoning for why you want to go to the FM instead of the Grocery.

I am not advocating a FM boycott or anything and I know that there are a lot of factors that might go into why a farmer charges what they do. I also know that there are some bad apples who really are taking advantage. I am just hoping that more of us might take a little extra time so we can find those farmer's that are truly excited about providing fresh locally grown goods and who believe that it is the right thing to do to charge a fair price. And maybe the bad apples will take note and rethink their prices when their goods go unsold.

Tortilla Smuggler - Veg Tortilla Soup Recipe

If there is one thing I can't stand it's a bad tortilla. Moving from the Southwest to the Pacific Northwest I have found that while they have pretty decent locally produced corn tortillas up here, good flour tortillas are almost impossible to find. I just can't handle replacing the real thing with rubbery chemical tasting grocery store offerings. 

I had had enough and I snapped so this last week while I was back in Tucson, Arizona (where I started this journey called life) I brought some delicious flatbread discs of awesomeness back with me.  Apparently tortillas, when stored in a carry on suitcase, don't look normal on the xray scanners they put your bags through at an airport.  This will result in the search of your luggage and a lot of confused looks when you tell the airport security that those are just tortillas you are bringing home with you and are not "pancake bombs" or anything dangerous. I am not saying don't try it, since real flour tortillas are sooooo worth it.  Just take my pro tip, get to the airport early for this.

After I finish up the smuggled tortillas, I am finally ready to try my own. Since I don't feel like reinventing the wheel, I am going to use the pioneer woman cooks homemade flour tortillas recipe.  If you are going more dairy free than meat free like me, I have heard that you should definitely go with lard for this recipe. Otherwise don't worry, vegetable shortening can also be used!

And flour tortillas can also be used as an important component of my next recipe, or you can be lazy and just go buy some tortilla chips at the store. I leave that up to you.  Either way lets get started on VEGETABLE TORTILLA SOUP!

I know tortilla soup traditionally includes chicken, but I've been making an all veggie option for awhile now. I HIGHLY recommend this soup. Also I promise to make something other than soup next time, but if it's any consolation this soup is very different from the last one. You'll need:

1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 tsp Chili Powder
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1 Onion, diced
2 Bell Peppers (varying colors), diced
8 oz can Roasted Green Chiles, (I like to get these whole and dice them myself)
32 oz vegetable broth
15 oz can of sweet corn
15 oz can of pinto beans
10 oz can Diced Tomatoes
3 Tablespoons Cornmeal/Masa
2 cups Hot Water

Plus fresh cilantro and an avocado for garnish

Heat 1 Tbsp Olive Oil in a large pot over medium high heat (I am using my trusty dutch oven faux le cruset). Add onion, bell pepper and seasonings and sautee for a couple of minutes.

When the good stuff already in the pan is starting to sweat add the green chilies, tomatoes, sweet corn, beans, stock and Hot Water. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for 45 minutes, uncovered.

Mix cornmeal with a small amount of water, pour into the soup mixture and then continue to simmer for 30 more minutes.  Around this point it should be time for a seasoning check. Add salt and more seasonings if needed before turning of the heat and letting the soup rest.

After 15 minutes of anticipation put that deliciousness in a bowl and top with diced avocado, cilantro, and either tortilla chips or strips of your amazing homemade tortillas!

First Recipe - Chickpea, potato and leek soup

This one turned out quite tasty. However, in retrospect I would have gone lighter on the chickpeas because they made the soup super thick especially after it cooled down.  The left overs are more like hummus mashed potatoes than soup, but the flavors are all there.

I saw this on Jamie Oliver's old show where he would invite people over and cook a meal for them. The recipe below is adapted to include vegan substitutions and should also be the correct ratios (less garbanzo more potato) if you wanna give this one a try.

8oz chickpeas, soaked overnight
4 medium red potatoes, cubed
3 large leeks
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon Earth Balance spread
2 cloves of garlic, finely sliced
salt & pepper to taste
28oz vegetable stock (not quite a whole container)
Extra virgin olive oil

Rinse the soaked chickpeas and (in a different pan then you plan to cook the soup in) cover with enough water to submerge the chickpeas and the potatoes. Cook until the potatoes are tender, 45 minutes to an hour.

Cut off the roots and slice the leeks in half lengthwise. Wash carefully, remove the outer leaves, and slice finely. I thought some pictures might be helpful here since I know I haven't had much experience with leeks in the past so others may not have either.

Cut off the roots and the grungy tops

Slice lengthwise, rinse thoroughly (no seriously so much hidden dirt), and remove the outer leaves

Artsy shot with all three stages of the leek chopping process

Now warm a thick bottomed pan (enter my faux le cruset dutch oven), and add the tablespoon of oil and the tablespoon of Earth Balance. Add the leeks and garlic to the pan and sweat gently with a good pinch of salt until tender and sweet.

 

Add the cooked chickpeas and potato (I also used the cooking water here because I like liquidy soups) and cook for 1 minute. After this add about two-thirds of the stock and simmer for 15 minutes.  

Not the prettiest soup in the world

Now decide if you want to puree the soup or leave it chunky.  I have an emulsion hand blender that did the trick quite nicely and left a nice texture. Just be careful of splatters! Now add the remaining stock. Check and season to taste. (I added some garlic powder to get it extra garlicky)

Really you just need to let it simmer long enough for everything to come together, about 5 more minutes, and then you are ready to serve.  It's really good with an extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil on top and honestly, although the original recipe calls for parmesan cheese, the potatoes and chickpeas end up creamy enough so you really don't miss it.

Seriously this soup is too legit to quit. TRY IT!

The best laid plans of mice (wait, mice who don't eat cheese, that doesn't seem very likely) ... and men.

The great potato recipe was delayed a day due to garbanzo beans that had to soak overnight.  I am armed to the teeth with an emulsion hand blender and a faux le cruset ceramic pot though and ready to do battle!! I'll try to take pictures throughout the whole process.

I have also found myself in the possession of two rad looking new recipes for vegan chocolate pie and vegan nacho cheese which are two of my favorite things. Just to give you a taste (Get it?! Because I am talking about food!!) of what is to come.

In the meantime here are some vegan memes! If you don't know what a meme is, we can't be friends.

Quick and painless

Milk products for me have been like a bad friend who you just can't seem to cut out of your life. They hang around causing more trouble than good, stealing your boyfriends, writing false rumors about you on the bathroom walls. Yet you always talk yourself into keeping them around despite all of the drama llama antics.  As with every bad friend you reach a breaking point.

I was getting close to adding the last straw to the proverbial camel's back when I watched Forks Over Knives. I noticed something, things I was trying to resolve with the help of my doctor lately had been proven to be easily reversible with the help of nothing more than a veggie centered, whole grain added diet. While I had heard all of these things before, this time it sunk in. It was time to break up with cheese!

Other diets from the past (South Beach, Weight Watchers) had left me a bit gun shy.  I know what miserable feels like and how unproductive wanting to eat something you can't have can be, but so far for the most part this time has been pretty painless. One thing I know for sure, I am going to enjoy what I eat. Otherwise I'll turn into Dietzilla taking my frustration out on everyone around me like they were tiny little residents standing in my way of overtaking Health City. 

Enough talk here are some pictures:

Bell pepper, cucumber, and avocado salad with olive oil and lime dressing.

Simple steamed broccoli.

I know I promised that I would catalog recipes I had tried here. Well I am gearing up for my first big recipe. Just to remind myself that this isn't like those other diets this recipe will involve that delicious startch that is friend to you and me...

THE POTATO

Nothing should taste like cardboard!

Have I mentioned that I love cheese yet?  I also love to eat and I love food that tastes good. Just to drive this point home let me share a blog with you that has become my recipe bible, The Pioneer Woman Cooks:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/category/all-pw-recipes/

I am not doing this to torture myself.  I would actually love to see this awesome blog get more attention, because she has some amazing recipes! But I also still fully intend to cook using her recipes and amazing step by step pictures. The only catch is that I'll have to make some alterations here and there to make them less dairy-tastic and meat-centric. Hopefully she doesn't disapprove!

Now I want to introduce my first secret weapon in the war on horrible tasting dairy free food.  As I try vegan style cooking I am not going to try to replace the real thing with the faux substitutes for the most part because I will just end up disappointed that they are not the real thing. I can think of nothing worse than wanting a juicy cheesy burger and biting into a dry course lentil patty with bland strangely textured soy cheese! But when you are cooking you still need a few key things to ensure success and I am sure as heck not going to try to bake, saute, or melt without something like butter.  Let's face it, butter makes everything better. It improves texture, flavor, and when used correctly can make grown men cry. Well it turns out butter is something that is more easily faked than probably any other dairy delight for us skeptics.

 Let's take it down for a moment so I can share a secret with you... I haven't been using real butter at home for the past few YEARS! I have actually been using something called Earth Balance instead.

This little yellow and ochre colored tub of goodness is vegan, gluten free, and even does your taxes for you.  I don't wanna know what else is in it that goes against some other study or factoid so please don't tell me.  I just want to enjoy the fact that I don't need butter to make it all better!

All this talk has made me hungry so I think I'm going to slather Earth Balance on something and stuff my face with it.  After that it's off to Trader Joe's to stock up on some essentials. My next post should be all about the first recipes I am going to dare.  Wish me luck!

What am I doing here?

Let's get one thing out in the open ... I LOVE CHEESE!! Whenever something good comes out of something bad like mold then I have to respect that. I am not just a cheese light weight either. I've run the gauntlet from mild gouda to stinky roquefort and everywhere in between. Most of my favorite foods involve cheese and I am a long time food lover who doesn't mess around when it comes to meal time.

So why a blog about trying vegan eating? Well sometimes you have to step back and look at the bigger picture. Due to some health issues that have been exacerbated recently I have to stop and think what I can do to try to get better. I have been told in the past that I am intolerant to whey protein (found in all dairy), but it was easy to overlook a diagnosis from a homeopathic doctor as more of a suggestion. The nice hippie doctor man wants me to stop eating dairy, how sweet of him. But there have also been some pretty darn credible studies that link a dairy and meat heavy diets to the exact sorts of issues I am running into. I decided what have I got to lose if I try this out for a little while.  If I don't get better, then you bet your sweet ass I'll go running back to the loving arms of cheese. But for now, I feel strongly that this is the right thing to do to get back on track. 

Sure now you know my sad Oprah worthy story about health issues. But I didn't really answer your whole question.  You'll have to forgive me I have a tendency to go off on tangents sometimes. Rather than fight it, just go with me on these short out of the way journeys and just trust that I will eventually get you back to the path we were on.

Side journey #1: There is nothing worse than a condescending well anyone, but especially a condescending vegan!!

Hipster Barista here kind of sums up how it feels living in Seattle sometimes. I am finding that my timing is quite bad, because right now there is a bout of stylish veganism going around. I mean admit it, everyone tries a fad out at least once in there lives. Often we just want to see what all of the fuss is about. But in this case I don't respect the reasons behind this particular fad and I don't want to give the impression that this has anything to do with my decision. I even considered doing this whole thing in secret, because I know some of my friends would have a field day with the born again vegan hipster jokes.

But then I thought to myself, what could be worse than feeling like I was doing something wrong because I had to do it in hiding.  It also occurred to me that there could be some other folks out there who were also dragged kicking and screaming into a plant based, whole grain diet and they just want to feel like they aren't alone too.

So getting back on topic as promised ... I am blogging about this experience to be able to look back on how this went and also in the hopes that someone will relate to what I'm going through and maybe even want to swap recipes.

Also I want to be 100% clear that while I am going strictly dairy free, I am going to bend a bit here and there on the meat issue. I already eat a meat lite diet, but the big thing here is the veggie centric shift I am going to have to make. In the end even if I do eat meat it will never comprise more than 10% of my diet.  What can I say, one of my favorite things is tuna sashimi and I am not prepared to give that up just yet.

I am sure there will be some good food moments and some "I'd rather be dead than eat that again" moments. Whatever happens thanks for reading!