>KISS in the Kitchen

>Hey kids, it’s SassySteffi’s baby’s daddy* Felipe here with the first of periodic posts written by yours truly.  While the Missus is the culinary creationist of the family and the driving force of DFV, the dirty little secret is that I do most of the day-to-day cooking here on the home front.

Being a relative novice in the kitchen, the best approach to cooking for me is the KISS method.  That doesn’t mean I blast “Calling Dr. Love” while I’m cooking,  I save that for later if ya’ know whatta I’ma sayin’.   I mean KISS as Uncle Sam’s Army taught me:

Keep It Simple Stupid

I’ll be posting my own recipes for lazy and incompetent ere…i mean rushed and in-experienced chef’s like myself, guaranteed to impress the undies off the pickiest of eaters using off the shelf products usually available at your local Trader Joe’s.  Measurements, we don’t need no stinkin’ measurements.  Let’s call it the Lego method of cooking, round up the parts and snap those suckers together.

As the house custodian of all things kitchen gadget related, I’ll also post about some of the cool toys we’ve collected, usually when I don’t have a dish to write about.

Just so you know what your in for, sometimes I might not be so user friendly.  I cuss, I’m crude, I bitch and I throw things.  Cooking while listening to Norman Goldman will do that to a person.  They made a movie about that Julie chick, so why not let all hang out here.

Enough about me, you’re here for the food so here we go.  This dinner is so simple it would be stupid except it’s so freekin’ delicious and good lookin’ too that your dinner guest will never know it.


Baked Portabella Mushrooms
Scale for how many people you’re feeding and how hungry they are.  I usually make 1 large & 1 small/medium portabella per adult.

Portabella Mushrooms (no sh*t really?)
Goddess Dressing
Herbes de Provence
Fresh Vegetable of your choice
Loaf of Par Baked Bread

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Clean mushrooms, removing gills.  Place upside down on a cooking sheet, fill  with Goddess Dressing and dust with Herbes de Provence.  Bake for 10-12 minutes.  Be careful not to leave them in the oven too long or they will dry out.

Steam the veggies while the mushrooms cook, heat the bread according to the directions.

You can go from zero to plating this in 20 minutes, depending on how fast your oven preheats.

* The Sassy one and I are married, I call myself that just to annoy her.

Posted in Felipe's corner | 1 Comment

Artery Lovers Breakfast Muffin

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There are dozens of scrambled tofu recipes out there that taste great and fulfill that craving for eggs but I was having a hard time getting them to work on sandwiches.  Recently I was playing around and came up with … Continue reading

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Double Baked Potato

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I love potatoes and could easily eat them with every meal. My favorite has always been a double baked potato for it can make any entree complete or be a stand alone meal.  After many attempts I have finally come … Continue reading

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Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Cake

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Growing up, our close family friends imported decadent cakes from Germany, unlike the flavorless cardboard cakes that were purchased at the local grocery store bakery.  On my birthday they always let me have the cake of my choice.  As an … Continue reading

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Say Cheese! Mock Cheese Sauce

People that are considering the transition to animal free diets or who have found out that they are dairy intolerant often say “I can’t give up cheese.”  It is the food I crave the most and indulge in when I fall of the wagon despite the fact that it makes me ill every time I eat it.  Sounds like the story of any addict.  I have been trying for the past six years to create something that at least gives the same happy sensation that cheese does to my brain and I have finally mastered it. It will not fulfill the need to slice a piece of cheese and eat it but it works for sauce, mac ‘n’ cheese, and by adding a cream cheese substitute to it you can make a great spread for quesadilla’s.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 Tbs tamari
1 Tbs Lemon Juice
1 Tbs yellow miso
1 Tbs tomato paste
1 Tbs Nutritional Yeast
1/3 cup Earth Balance(or butter substitute)
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup vegetable broth

Mix all ingredients except broth, Earth Balance and flour together and put aside.  In sauce pan use the Earth Balance and flour to make a roux(melt Earth Balance over low heat and slowly add the flour whisking it till it becomes a paste.) Now mix in the mixture of ingredients(not broth) and continue to whisk.  Once it is mixed in with the roux slowly add broth still whisking(my daughter Anzia does the whisking for me!) The sauce will thicken. Use your imagination.

Mock Mac ‘n’ Cheese
Preheat oven to 400. Cook 3 cups dry pasta of choice and cook as normal. In casserole dish combine 3/4 of mock cheese mixture and cooked pasta (my family likes to add broccoli.) Pour the remaining mock cheese over the top. We like to add fried onion bits over the top before baking but it is not necessary. Bake for 25 minutes or until brown on top.

Quesadilla
Add fake cream cheese to mixture after you have completed all other steps until it is the consistency of a cheese spread. When making for my daughter as a snack I just spread it over a tortilla, fold it in half and toast in toaster oven on medium.  When I am doing the adult version i saute spinach and mushrooms. Spread cheese over tortilla cover with spinach mushroom mixture and top with another tortilla. Then bake in oven on 350 for approx 8 minutes.

Posted in Anzia's picks-a young vegans perspective, cheesy sauces | 1 Comment

Fajita Polenta Cakes

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As this picture clearly shows I am not a food photographer or Master Chef.  I wish I could have done this dish justice visually because it is much better than the picture lets on.  It is a light dish for … Continue reading

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Hold The Mozarella! Caprese

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Yes, we like cheese and attempt to emulate it quite often. We especially like cheesy Italian fare and Caprese has always been a must for us as an appetizer. This is a pretty satisfying dairy free version. Buon Appetito! Ingredients: … Continue reading

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Persimmon Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash

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I was originally introduced to acorn squash by my Mother in Law.  She put it in the oven with a little butter and brown sugar.  Having been raised by a Mom that was not a fan of squashes it was … Continue reading

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Thanksgiving All Stacked Up

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On January 1st, 2011 my grandparents celebrated their 67th wedding anniversary.  Earlier today my sister posted a picture of them at the lunch she hosted in their honor and it got me reminiscing about my grandma in particular.  Most of … Continue reading

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Pineapple/Apple Rum Crisp

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  Is rum vegan? I know not all wines and beers are vegan but am not sure if Rum is or not and I have been unable to find the answer.  If it is not I apologize. No worries though, … Continue reading

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