Brown Lentil Gravy (Vegan)

Gravy is a wonderful thing of my past. I've been on this non-meat Thanksgiving food craze lately (See my vegan "chicken" cutlets), and I decided meat-less gravy would be a wonderful addition. I choose brown lentils for the base of my gravy--mostly because they're brown and get mushy when cooked, but also because they're loaded with protein and iron. I suppose any bean could be used, but I must say that lentils tasted great in this recipe. This gravy could be used alternatively as a protein-rich pasta sauce, or if some veggies were added, it could become a stew. I served my gravy over mashed potatoes with a side of steamed veggies. This stuff is like liquid gold!

BROWN LENTIL GRAVY (VEGAN)

*Yields about 2 servings*

-1/4 cup dry brown lentils, rinsed
-1 small onion, diced
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1 Tablespoon Tamari or soy sauce
-1 Tablespoon olive oil
-1 cup water, plus additional if needed (I used about 2 1/2 additional cups of water)
-1/2 teaspoon dried oregano or thyme, crushed in hands
-pinch of crushed red pepper flakes, optional

Heat a small pot on medium heat. Add oil, onions, garlic, and lentils. Mix it up! Cook until onions become translucent. Add tamari, oregano, crushed red pepper flakes, and 1 cup water. Cover pot with lid, and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Cook until lentils can be mushed with a wooden spoon, adding water along the way when needed.

Sesame Seed-Encrusted Croquettes With Black Beans, Quinoa, and Ginger

Quinoa is a great grain that not a lot of people know about. It was eaten by the ancient Incans, contains all eight essential amino acids (complete protein), cooks just like rice, and is extremely versatile. If I had a choice of eating quinoa or brown rice, I would choose the brown rice every time. Quinoa lacks the "beefiness" that other grains (i.e. rice, barley) seem to possess. For this reason, I usually use quinoa IN things (i.e. stuffed mushrooms or peppers, quiches, etc.). I had some left over quinoa, so I naturally decided to make croquettes. I was craving something ethnic and exciting. The below recipe is what I came up with. Feel free to tweak it, as always. I served mine with stir-fried vegetables, but the croquettes would be great in a pita with tahini dressing, or any other way that complements the natural flavors of the croquettes. I suppose bread crumbs could be used instead of the sesame seeds, but these the sesame seeds make the end product much more visually appealing. Have fun!





SESAME SEED-ENCRUSTED CROQUETTES WITH BLACK BEANS, QUINOA, AND GINGER (VEGAN)

(Yield= 9 croquettes)

-1 cup cooked black beans, mashed with a fork
-1 cup cooked quinoa
-1 teaspoon sesame oil
-1 teaspoon tamari or soy sauce
-1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
-about 1/4 cup sesame seeds

Preheat broiler to highest setting.

Mix mashed beans, oil, tamari, and ginger in a medium bowl. Stir in quinoa. Form mixture into flattened patties, and set aside. Pour sesame seeds into a shallow bowl, and roll previously formed patties into sesame seeds to coat. Place croquettes on a meatball pan OR a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Cook croquettes under broiler until nicely browned, flipping once during the process to brown both sides. Let croquettes cool for a couple of minutes. Serve warm.

Faux "Chicken" Cutlets (Vegan)

Chickpeas are by far my absolute favorite bean. I have not had potatoes, gravy, and chicken cutlets (obviously) in the longest time. I decided to replicate the Thanksgiving comfort-food eating experience with non-meat products. Gravy was not that hard to replicate, but chicken cutlets-that is a challenge! I thought about bean burgers and falafel; what composes these meat-like products? I looked at www.theppk.com for inspiration. What I found was Isa Moskowitz's brilliant Chickpea Cutlet Recipe. Her recipe called for vital gluten flour as a binding agent, but I decided to keep it simple. I worked with what I know, and this is what I came up with:



FAUX "CHICKEN" CUTLETS (VEGAN)

Yield= 4 cutlets

1 cup cooked chickpeas
1/2 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs (I toasted 1 slice of whole wheat bread and pulverized it in the food processor)
1 tablespoon low-sodium tamari or soy sauce
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cloves garlic
about 1/4 cup water
about 1 tablespoon olive oil, for greasing

Heat a metal skillet on medium heat.

Dump all ingredients, except water, into a food processor. Pulse until combined. With the food processor running, stream in 1/4 cup water (add more or less, if needed) just until the ingredients aggregate into a doughy ball.

Divide the mixture into four equally-sized portions, and form each portion into an irregularly shaped cutlet. Lightly grease heated skillet with oil. Add cutlets to pan, flipping when nicely browned on each side. Drain browned cutlets on a plate lined with a paper towel.

Enjoy with meat-less gravy, smashed potatoes, and steamed broccoli. Feel free to add additional spices to my ingredients list.

These cutlets were so comforting!

Spiced Flax Muffins (Vegan)

These muffins are so flavorful and moist; you would never guess that they are totally vegan and loaded with flaxseed! Flax is a great source of fiber, omega-3 fatty acids, and free-radical fighting lignans (a class of antioxidants). I buy my flaxseed ground (I'm too lazy to buy whole flaxseed and grind it myself) and store it in the freezer (this helps prevent rancidity and preserve the integrity of beneficial fats). Ground flax can be sprinkled in oatmeal, yogurt, muesli, granola, quick breads, or muffins. It has a very earthy/bran-ish/granola-like taste, so don't go too flax crazy. You just have to be mindful of proportions. Ask yourself, how much flax is in this recipe compared to other ingredients (whole grain flours, nuts, etc.)? With that mentioned, the following muffin recipe has the perfect amount of flax. These muffins would be great slathered with organic almond or peanut butter, and can easily be frozen and thawed for future use.

I found this flax muffin recipe on the blog of "A Chef in Med School", and immediately fell in love. I thought it was rather odd that the creator of "A Chef in Med School" (Michelle Hauser) and the creator of my blog, "A Chef in College: Chronicles of a Pre-Med Student's Culinary Adventures", (me) had strikingly similar blog names. I guess we think similarly? Anyway, Michelle's recipes and educational videos are great, and I highly recommend that they are looked at by any aspiring chefs.

I took her awesome recipe and altered it a bit (I used many of her suggestions) to veganize it. Feel free to do the same. Other liquid sweeteners, like honey, pure maple syrup, brown rice syrup, etc. could be used instead of the agave nectar. Raisins, craisins, chopped dates, nuts, etc. could be thrown into the batter. Different spices, like ground ginger, cardamom, or nutmeg would be great substitutions for the spices my recipe requests. Have fun and enjoy!


SPICED FLAX MUFFINS (VEGAN)

Yield= 10-12 muffins, depending how generously you decide to fill your muffin tins.






DRY INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (I used 1 cup wholewheat pastry flour + 1/2 cup millet flour)
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
1/2 cup oats
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

WET INGREDIENTS:

1 cup veganized buttermilk (1 Tablespoon vinegar + enough non-dairy milk to yield 1 cup)
1/4 cup agave nectar
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

OPTIONAL TOPPING:

3 Tablespoons oats

Line muffin tins with paper muffin cups, and preheat oven to 400 F.

Whisk all dry ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl. In a separate, larger bowl whisk together all wet ingredients. Pour dry ingredients into wet ingredients all at once and stir until just combined (lumps are okay). Spoon into prepared muffin tins and sprinkle with oats. Bake until muffins spring back when touched and pass the toothpick test (about 15-18 minutes). Let muffins cool, and enjoy!

Japanese Soba Noodles with Veggies

Soba noodles are thin, buckwheat-based noodles that are popular in Japan. They can be eaten hot, cold, or room temperature and can be served with virtually any sauce. The last time I remember having soba noodles was when I went to Japan (about a year ago), and this makes me sad. Lately I have been trying to experiment with grains I usually do not use. I do not recall ever cooking with buckwheat, so this gave me even more of an incentive to purchase a package of soba noodles. What did I do with these lovely noodles? Take a look:



JAPANESE SOBA NOODLES WITH VEGGIES

-Roland© Organic Soba Noodles (enough for one person)

-1 Tablespoon sesame oil
-Several shakes of tamari, or soy sauce
-About 1/4 cup mirin (Japanese rice wine)
-Ground ginger, to taste

-1 small onion, cut into wedges
-1 carrot, peeled and cut into thin coins
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-Small handful of baby spinach
-1/4 cup frozen green peas
-Crushed red pepper flakes and sesame seeds for topping, optional

Fill a pot with water and bring to a boil. Toss in soba noodles, cook until tender, drain in a colander, and set aside. At the same time, heat a metal skillet or wok on medium heat. Add sesame oil, tamari, ginger, onion, and carrot. Mix constantly. Once the onions and carrot become crispy, add the mirin and garlic. Continue to stir constantly, occasionally adding water if the pan becomes too dry. Toss in the spinach and peas. Let all of the liquid evaporate and the spinach wilt. Stir in cooked soba noodles and remove from heat. Spoon noodles into a bowl and top with crushed red pepper flakes and sesame seeds.

Enjoy with chopsticks and a cup of hot green tea.

Lentil-Barley Soup with a Seaweed Surprise

It's winter, and my body is craving hearty soups. I decided to make some thick lentil soup loaded with barley, veggies, and believe it or not, wakame seaweed. The seaweed adds tons of nutrition to the soup, and you would never guess it was there. I swear. Once the soup has been simmering for a while, the seaweed kind of breaks up and dissolves into the soup. It disappears, so nobody has to know your secret. Kombu seaweed could be substituted for the wakame, brown rice could be substituted for the barley, and other veggies and herbs can be thrown into the stew. I just used what I had available, but please alter the recipe to your liking.



LENTIL-BARLEY SOUP WITH A SEAWEED SURPRISE

-6 cups water
-1 1/4 cups uncooked lentils, rinsed
-1 1/2 cups pearled barley, cooked
-1 large carrot, diced
-1 large onion, diced
-3 cloves garlic, minced
-3 teaspoons dried wakame flakes
-1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
-1 teaspoon dried oregano
-1 teaspoon dried thyme
-1 teaspoon dried rosemary

Mix all ingredients EXCEPT BARLEY in a large pot. Cover with a lid and bring to a rolling boil. Lower soup to a gentle boil, cover with a lid, and stir occasionally. Cook for about 30 minutes, or until soup thickens and lentils are tender. Add cooked barley. Ladle about half of the soup into a food processor and puree. Pour pureed soup back into the pot and mix with non-pureed soup. You can puree as much or as little soup as you want. Your decision dictates how chunky the end product will be.

Ladle soup into an over-sized mug and top with crumbled crackers. I used multi grain pita chips. The soup was delicious!

Super Duper Vegan Cookies with Agave, Oats, and Flax

Vegan means no animal products. No eggs, no butter, and no milk is often associated with no taste, especially in baked goods. This misconception is so wrong, and this vegan cookie recipe clearly proves it.

What's special about vegan baking? Vegan sweets are usually more wholesome than non-vegan ones. Another benefit is that the baker can safely taste "raw" batter, since vegan batter will never contain raw eggs. What a concept!

This cookie recipe was adapted from a Agave and Honey Oatmeal M&M Cookie Recipe from RecipeGirl.com (http://www.recipegirl.com/2009/01/20/agave-and-honey-oatmeal-mm-cookies/). The recipe is super versatile and can be changed to yield completely different cookies. Additional spices can be added to the recipe (i.e. nutmeg, cloves, ginger, cardamom, all spice, etc.), other liquid sweeteners can be fully or partially substituted for the agave (i.e. molasses, honey, brown rice syrup, etc.), the oats can be ground in a food processor for a "lighter" cookie, and mixtures of whole-grain flours can be used for more whole grain variety (i.e. buckwheat flour, millet flour, or brown rice flour can be mixed with the whole wheat flour).

Just as a side note, I used chocolate chips in my cookies (they're not 100% vegan). Carob chips are usually used as a vegan chocolate substitute, but I have never tried them. Raisins, dried cranberries, dried cherries, chopped dates, crystallized ginger, and other tasty add-ins could alternatively be used. Another exciting point about this recipe is that it only yields about 8 cookies. This is great for people who live alone and have nobody with which they can share their cookies. The 8 cookie yield can be beneficial towards people who are dieting and do not want too many sweets hanging around the house. For those people who want more cookies to snack on, this recipe can very easily be doubled or tripled.

Have fun and do not be afraid to alter the recipe to your liking!



SUPER DUPER VEGAN COOKIES WITH AGAVE, OATS, AND FLAX

WET INGREDIENTS:
-2 Tablespoons warm water + 1 Tablespoon ground flax
-4 Tablespoons (1/4 cup) agave nectar
-2 Tablespoons canola oil
-1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract


DRY INGREDIENTS:
-1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
-3/4 cup oats
-1/8 teaspoon baking soda
-1/8 teaspoon baking powder
-1/4 teaspoon salt
-1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
-about 1/4 cup chocolate chips,carob chips, raisins, or whatever is available


Preheat oven to 375 F, and line a metal cookie sheet with non-stick parchment paper.

Agressively whisk together flax and water in a small bowl for about 1 minute (this process brings out the healthy fats in the flax seed). Set aside to thicken.

In a separate bowl, mix together all dry ingredients. Whisk agave, oil, and vanilla into flax mixture. Slowly stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients, and stir until combined. Drop Tablespoon-sized dollops of batter onto the parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. Slightly flatten dollops.

Bake for about 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown and beautiful! Cool cookies on a wire rack and enjoy.

Black Bean Asian Salad with Pineapples and Sesame-Ginger Dressing

I think sweet and savory flavors mingle so well with each other, yet it's sometimes scary for me to mix sweet and savory flavors together in a culinary arena. I love to eat it, but I am afraid to replicate it. In the past, I remember making a Moroccan dinner with turmeric, cinnamon, chickpeas, spinach, brown rice, and raisins. The sweet raisins tasted so yummy with the peppery turmeric! I wanted to relive the same experience.

I had pineapple chunks hanging out in my refrigerator today, and I decided to pair the sweet flavor of pineapple with the savory/spicy flavors of ginger and sesame. I love salads, so I decided to throw one together. The end product was a success! Below is the recipe for my Black Bean Asian Salad with Pineapples. Alter it to your liking.

Note: I rarely use measuring instruments when cooking (I definitely do when baking). Remember, cooking is an art!




BLACK BEAN ASIAN SALAD WITH PINEAPPLES
-large handful of organic baby spinach, washed and roughly chopped
-about 1/2 cup fresh pineapples, diced
-about 1/3 cup cooked brown rice
-about 1/3 cup cooked black beans

SESAME GINGER DRESSING
-about 2 Tablespoons sesame oil
-several shakes of low-sodium tamari (or soy sauce)
-a splash of pineapple juice (I used the juice the pineapple chunks were sitting in)
-several shakes of ground ginger
-about 1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Place baby spinach on a large plate or a shallow bowl. Top with brown rice, black beans, and pineapples.

In a small bowl, whisk together sesame oil, tamari, and pineapple juice. Whisk in ginger and sesame seeds. See photograph of finished dressing below.



Pour dressing over salad and enjoy!

Blueberry-Lemon Muesli Bread

I received a beautiful bag of Trader Joe's Blueberry Muesli this holiday season (see below). For anyone who is not familiar with muesli, muesli is sort of like an unbaked granola. It isn't as crunchy and overly sweet as some granolas tend to be. Muesli is fresher and more organic/raw-tasting.



I enjoyed my blueberry muesli in soymilk topped with a slice banana. This was a delicious breakfast, but I could not help but wonder, "Would muesli not taste awesome as part of a muffin or breakfast break recipe?". I instantly raced to the computer after breakfast and searched the internet for muesli-containing muffin recipes. I came across a simple muesli muffin recipe from "Something About Penguins" (http://lentilpenguins.blogspot.com/2008/02/muesli-muffins.html). This recipe was adapted from a muesli bread recipe from "Baking Bites" (http://bakingbites.com/2006/02/blueberry-muesli-bread/). My muesli bread recipe combines aspects of both recipes and includes my own little twists.

As I said previously, I used a commercially produced muesli (Trader Joe's Blueberry Muesli). If I had to make this muesli bread again, I would probably throw together a home-made muesli. My dream muesli recipe would consist of oats, sliced almonds, sunflowed/pumpkin seeds, ground flax, raisins, cinnamon, etc. Feel free to mix up your own muesli to use for this recipe.



BLUEBERRY-LEMON MUESLI BRREAD (VEGAN)

DRY INGREDIENTS
-1 1/2 cups muesli
-1 1/2 cups King Arthur's white whole wheat flour (or regular whole wheat flour)
-1/4-1/2 cup raisins
-1 teaspoon baking powder
-1 teaspoon cinnamon
-1/2 teaspoon baking soda
-1/2 teaspoon salt

WET INGREDIENTS
-1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce (I just ground up a small apple in my food processor)
-Zest of 1 lemon
-Juice of 1 lemon plus enough soy milk to measure 1 1/2 cups of liquid (This will make the soymilk thicken/slightly curdle. This is okay!)
-2 Tablespoons canola oil

OPTIONAL TOPPING
-about 2 Tablespoons oats

Preheat oven to 375 F. Grease a standard-sized metal loaf pan with canola oil.

In a medium bowl, mix together all dry ingredients. In a separate larger bowl, mix together all wet ingredients. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients all at once, gently folding until combined. Pour batter into greased loaf pan, and spread batter into pan with a spatula. Sprinkle with oats, if desired.

Bake bread in preheated oven for 60-65 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick/knife comes out clean. Place an aluminum foil tent over the bread about 15 minutes before the bread is finished in order to prevent over-browning. Nobody likes burnt bread!

Cool bread in loaf pan on a wire cooling rack. When cooled to room temperature, carefully remove bread from pan. The end product is a yummy breakfast bread with a crusty exterior and a deliciously moist interior. The lemon really adds a fun touch! Orange would be a great substitute, also. Enjoy bread plain, slathered with almond or peanut butter, or topped with jam.

Spiced Banana-Oat Vegan Waffles

Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. I am definitely a "morning person", and I think this is so mainly because I eat well-balanced, nutritious breakfasts that are loaded with fruit, protein, fiber, and whole grains. A good breakfast energizes me so that I can perform to my fullest potential throughout the day. How do I do it? I do all the hard work when I have time (the weekend). Below is a recipe for Banana-Oat Vegan Waffles. The batter can be prepared entirely in a food processor or blender, making clean-up a dream. I added in some fun ingredients to transform my waffles into fancy gingerbread-style waffles. Feel free to add in what you like!

Banana-Oat Vegan Waffles
(originally from http://www.chooseveg.com/display_recipe.asp?recipe=115 )

2 cups oats (I used rolled oats)
2 cups water
1 banana, sliced
(Add in the 5 ingredients below to make my gingerbread-style version)
1 Tablespoon blackstrap molasses
1 Tablespoon ground flaxseed
1/2 Teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 Teaspoon ground cloves

Preheat your waffle iron. Combine all ingredients in a blender or large food processor. Blend until smooth. Batter may seem thin and watery; this is OKAY. The oats will absorb the water more as they cook in the waffle iron.

Lightly grease the preheated waffle iron, and pour in the batter. Regrease the waffle iron after each batch of waffles is removed. Be sure to mix the batter prior to pouring it in order to redistribute the oats throughout the batter.

Freeze or serve immediately with fresh fruit and blackstrap molasses.