Valley Dish - Sloppy Chipotle Joses

Yesterday was a fun and fabulous day. I got to cook with Tram Mai, the awesome host of Valley Dish here in Phoenix. She is so fun and full of energy. She is passionate about food and is very interested in finding delicious healthy things to eat. A self-proclaimed carnivore, she was very excited to try some tasty vegan fare. I was thrilled to be able to bring some compassionate cooking to the studio kitchen. I do hope that I am able to dispel some of the misconceptions about vegan cooking being bland and boring.

When trying to come up with dishes for the show, I have a fun time trying to find vegan dishes that will appeal to all types of viewers and diners...that can also be prepped in 10 minutes or so. This flavorful Southwestern twist on a classic American favorite fit the bill for this episode. The actual cooking time is longer than 10 minutes of course, but prep is a snap. I've served this dish to kids, adults, carnivores, you name it, with great success. I love it because it is easy, low fat, healthy and really great for feeding a crowd. It doubles easily and freezes like a dream. So it is excellent for busy people. Click here to view the video of Tram and I dishing 'em up (courtesy of Valley Dish).

Sloppy Chipotle Joses

Makes 8 sandwiches

1 ½ cup brown lentils

5 cups water

2 ½ teaspoons Better than Bouillon vegetarian no beef flavor base

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large fresh pasilla/poblano chile, medium dice (approx ¾ cup)

1 medium yellow onion, diced small (approx 1 cup)

3 large cloves of garlic, minced (or 3-4 teaspoons pre-minced)

1 teaspoon ancho chili powder

½ teaspoon smoked paprika

2 teaspoons Mexican oregano

½ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon prepared mustard

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

½ cup ketchup

8 oz. tomato sauce

2 chipotle peppers (in adobo sauce), minced (leave seeds in if you like a bit more heat)

In a two-quart saucepan combine the lentils, water and bouillon. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer lentils for about 20-30 minutes until cooked through. There should be a very small amount of liquid left (Lentils can be made a day or two ahead of time and refrigerated).

While the lentils are cooking, heat olive oil in a 4 quart saucepan over medium heat. Add pasilla chiles, yellow onion and garlic. Sauté until just soft, about 8 minutes. Add ancho chile powder, smoked paprika, Mexican oregano and salt. Saute for another minute or so until they become fragrant. If lentils are not quite, done turn heat on the vegetable mixture to the lowest setting and simmer. Add lentils and remaining ingredients to the pan. Simmer over low heat for 10-15 minutes. You can serve immediately, but I recommend waiting 15 minutes or so to let the flavors really come out. This one is even better the next day for a quick lunch.

Serve on soft burger buns with a side of slaw.

Options:

If you like a lot of heat, you can add an extra chipotle chile and maybe even a hit of cayenne pepper.

Want it more sloppy? Feel free to add another 8 oz. can of tomato sauce.

Just for the fun of it, here is the nutritional information courtesy of livestrong.com

MOFO - Day 15 - Green Chile Grilled Cheeze

So this is not officially a recipe, but it is officially pretty tasty. I ran out of time today and had nothing ready for today's post. So I decided to ad-lib for today's entry. This will end up being something I will make again too.

Green Chile Grilled Cheeze

1 Sandwich

2 slices whole wheat bread
Vegan butter (enough to butter bread)
1 thick slice sweet onion
1 teaspoon olive oil
dash salt
1 - 1/2 inch thick slice large tomato or two smaller slices
1 whole roasted green chile, large enough to cover the size of the bread
1/3 cup grated Daiya cheddar (or your favorite vegan cheddar grated)
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives

In small bowl combine cheddar and chives. Butter one side of each slice of bread. Heat small iron skillet over med-low heat. Lightly salt and grill onions in olive oil until they are softened about 3-5 minutes. Remove from pan. Place one slice of bread buttered side down in same pan. Top evenly with half of Daiya mixture. Next layer in order with green chile, tomato slice(s), grilled onions, remaining Daiya mixture and second slice of bread with butter side on top. Grill on med low heat until bread it browned and crisp, about 3-5 minutes. Flip and grill other side until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Slice in half and serve immediately.

Tailgating Vegan-Style

Last weekend I made my triumphant return to the Grand Canyon. OK it wasn't so much triumphant, but it was awesome. A few of the Laurie Scouts headed up to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. It was gorgeous. The Aspens were turning bright yellow and red, the air was crisp and clean and the beauty of the canyon was beyond description. Sadly, I forgot my camera. Duh! I did take  a few shots on my phone, but I can't find my USB cord. So no aspens for you today my dear readers.

Thankfully my friends remembered their cameras and took some lovely pictures.

So about 545am we headed down the North Kaibab trail. The mission was set out. We were all to hike together until the bridge, where I would make the trek back up 2200 vertical feet on my own and they would continue on to Ribbon Falls. Now, I have to share with you that I was not being a slacker. I had a back injury earlier in the summer and could not properly train for the 16.6 miles we had planned for the day. But when the world hand you lemons, make lemonade.

In this case I made lots of vegan goodies!! We agreed that since I could not make the whole trek this trip that I would be in charge of the post-hike tailgate. Keeping in mind that my friends are going to be tired, ravenously hungry and certainly not vegan, I wanted to make lots of stuff to replenish their bodies and make their mouths very happy. After much though I decided I needed some savory, some sweet, some salty.

I dug into my many archives of cookbooks and test recipes and came up with my menu: From Julie Hasson's upcoming Vegan Diner I made Garlic Dill Cheese. It tastes very much like dill Havarti. I love this recipe, but oddly this one got passed over for some of the other treats.

For the sweet, I made Gluten Free Chocolate-Chocolate Chip cookies from Carla Kelley's testing. The hiking gang loved them! I think one of them ate like 4. My friend said they reminded her of brownies in the best way. They were very yummy.

I wanted to make something hearty and tasty and tailgate friendly that would also travel well. I decided on the Muffulleta from Veganomicon. This sandwich has been very well received by my friends in the past. I am not an eggplant fan, so I subbed grilled zucchini. I highly recommend trying it this way whether or not you like eggplant. It was super yummy!

Next I made a version of my own salsa. I'd provide the recipe, but it is always just a little bit of this and a little bit of that. So it is never the same, but it is always a winner. I served the whole kit n' kaboodle with authentic tortilla chips (a new brand at my WF that is kick booty), organic crackers and fresh crudite. I got rained on twice waiting for the hiking gang to return. So the food had to go in and out of the truck a couple of times. But all in all the hikers were very happy with their special vegan tailgate.

My friends brought festive Halloween decorations. You can see them here.

Muffuletta with Zucchini

The Return of Food Network Fridays - BBQ "Pork" Panini Sandwich

It has been a bit of a hiatus for Food Network Fridays. This is a little challenge started by the one and only Tami Noyes of American Vegan Kitchen (AVK) and Vegan Appetite fame. A few of us goofy food obsessed types go about converting a Food Network recipe to a much more kind vegan version. It is a lot of fun to see what all of the fantastic cooks whip up.

This week we converted this BBQ Pork Panini Sandwich from an episode of Down Home with the Neelys.

I started off yesterday with a test recipe from the upcoming Vegan Bakesale by Carla Kelly of The Year of the Vegan. Her recipe for what she calls plain bread was hailed by my number one taste tester, Fred, as the best bread he has ever had! It was darn good. Because I had my sights set on this conversion, I made the bread into French-style torpedo rolls. It had to bribe Fred not to eat all of the rolls so that we could eat them with this today.

This morning when I got home from another graveyard shift (yuck), I whipped up another tester from Julie Hasson's upcoming Vegan Diner: Smoky Sandwich Spread. This cheesy, creamy, tasty spread stood in for the cheddar in the original recipe.

For the "pork" I used Tami's Beefy Seitan recipe from AVK. If you don't have her book yet, there is something seriously wrong with you. Go buy it!

I bring you my version of

BBQ Porque Panini Sandwich

Makes 4 Sandwiches

3 tablespoons Earth Balance, softened
2 large cloves garlic, minced
12 oz Beefy Seitan roast
Rub - Recipe below
1 cup BBQ Sauce - Recipe Below
4 French-style sandwich rolls
Smoky Cheezy Sandwich Spread (or your favorite vegan cheddar)
4 large dill pickles, sliced length wise

In a small bowl, blend the Earth Balance and garlic. Set aside for later use.

Coat seitan roast with rub. Save remaining rub in airtight container for later use. Let rub soak into seitan for at least and hour.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In covered casserole, bake roast for about 20 minutes. Roast will be warm, but not hot. Slice as thinly as you can and return to the pan with 1 cup of the BBQ sauce. Bake for 10-15 more minutes until heated through and sauce becomes a little sticky. Remove from oven and set aside while you prepare the sandwich.

Preheat Panini press or griddle depending on what you are using. I used the griddle on my stove and a big old cast iron pan for the press.

Butter the outsides of the bread with the Earth Balance mixture. Spread a thick layer of cheezy spread on top piece of bread. Working quickly set the bottom piece of the bread on the press/griddle. Top with pickle slices and seitan (divided into four equal portions). Grill on each side for about 2 - 3 minutes until bread is golden and crunchy. Slice at a diagonal and serve with a little extra BBQ sauce for dippin' if that is your style.

Fred likes more pickles and less meat on his. This is a very flexible recipe, so add and subtract the ingredients to fit your taste.

Happy FNF!

Dry Rub

1/4 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
2 Tablespoons smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
1/2 teaspoon granulated onion
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Can store in airtight container for future use.

Smoky BBQ Sauce

Makes approx 4 cups

2 teaspoons canola oil
3/4 cup finely chopped onion (about 1 medium)
3 cloves garlic minced
1 - 15 oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes (do not drain)
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (leave seeds intact)
1/2 cup cider vinegar
6 oz can tomato paste**
2 teaspoons vegan worcestershire sauce
5 Tablespoons chili powder (hot if you like a very spicy sauce)
3 teaspoons celery salt
1 Tablespoon black pepper
1 Tablespoon prepared mustard
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
2 tablespoons toasted yellow mustard seeds*

In medium saucepan, saute onion and garlic in oil over medium heat until translucent, about 5 minutes. While they are sauteeing puree diced tomatoes and chipotle together making sure chipotle is chopped fine. Pour mixture and remaining ingredients into saucepan. Bring to simmer and turn heat to low. Simmer on low for at least 30 minutes.

This sauce is even better if you can let it chill overnight in the fridge to intensify the flavors.

* Some people like thinner smoother sauce. For a thinner smoother sauce, add 1/2 cup of water and puree all ingredients except for the mustard seeds. Add seeds and then simmer.

** I have to indulge myself in a little rant here. I get so miffed when recipes call for 2 Tablespoons or less than a whole can of tomato paste. I know this has to happen sometimes, but it irks me to no end to have this small amount of tomato paste sittin' in the fridge. I purposely developed this recipe so that you, my dear reader, will not encounter this common cooking irritation. Boooooya!

Food Network Friday - Beef and Horseradish Sauce Sandwich

For this week's Food Network Friday Challenge I converted this Ina Garten Recipe. With the holidays approaching, it was nice to have a fairly easy conversion this week. Once the seitan is made, this is a snap to throw together. I used Tami Noyes' Beefy Seitan Recipe that will be in her upcoming American Vegan Kitchen cookbook as the base. The rest was pretty straight forward.

"Beef" and Horseradish Sauce Sandwiches.

Makes 2 hearty sized sandwiches.

4 oz Beefy Seitan

1/2 tablespoon Earth Balance

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

Salt and Pepper

Sauce ingredients

1/2 cup vegannaise

1 tablespoon dijon mustard

2 teaspoons stoneground mustard

1 tablespoon prepared horseradish

1 Tablespoon Toffutti non-hydrogenated sour cream

Sandwich ingredients

4 slices whole grain sandwich bread

1 cup arugula

1 tomato sliced thin

1/2 tablespoon softened Earth Balance

Preheat oven to 500.Mix 1/2 tablespoon EB with 1 teaspoon dijon. Coat seitan roast with mixture. Coat with pepper and salt lightly. Bake seitan for 15-20 minutes until outside gets a nice crust on it. Remove from oven.

While seitan is cooking mix together sauce ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Can keep in refrigerator for several days.

To assemble sammies thinly slice hot seitan. On one slice of bread spread the horsey sauce. Top with thinly sliced hot seitan, 1/2 cup arugula and a few slices of tomato. Butter top slice of bread and put on top (butter side down). Slice in half and serve.

Vegan MOFO - Day 10 - An ode to Mrs Eichenberger

Mrs. Eichenberger was our lunch lady in grade school. We actually went to school in a time when lunches were actually real food made by old ladies who cared about what they cooked for the kids. We paid 4 cents for a pint of milk.

One of my favorite lunches was the "pizza burger". It was neither a pizza or a burger. In hindsight and with many years of food experience behind me, I found it was a rather crafty way to use the leftover spaghetti sauce from the lunches earlier in the week. The matrons of the school cafeteria took spaghetti sauce (probably made with some soy burger rations) and a really cheap nasty cheddar cheese that got totally crusty when broiled. OK, now when I think of this today I'm thinking, "really? That is some nasty shiitake." But in the day it was like gold.

I had some leftover spaghetti sauce from the remake of Tracey's sauce. I found some Orrowheat sandwich rounds, which seemed to me to be the perfect canvas for this remake. I slathered that sauce on the rounds, added some Daiya cheddar and plopped it under the broiler. Ah, the sweet memories of grade school took over my snobby foodie palate and made me 10 years old again. It was the best forking lunch I've had in a long time. Viva la Mrs. Eichenberger and LITH Elementary School!!!