Assessing January's Recipes AND Parsnip Pecan Muffins

It's the final evening of January 2012 and I have stuck to my New Years resolution so far. During the month of January, I've tried 10 new recipes.

Here's how I rate each:

Overnight Chai Steel Cut Oats - Good stuff!

White Bean Burger- Good, especially with Dijon mustard

Chickpea and Date Tagine- A keeper!

Overnight Oatmeal with Spices, Dates and Pecans- I'm eating it all the time!

Rice Pudding- Tasty

Vegetarian Pot Pie- wonderful comfort food

Tofu Scramble- I'll definitely make this many more times.

Pineapple Tofu Fried Rice- Fail

Sweet Potato Soup- This recipe needs to be modified

Parsnip Pecan Muffins- I'll be making these for many years to come!

I surprised myself by trying so many new recipes, and hope that I can continue to exceed my expectations. I've been reminded that my tastes in food are very different from most (a coworker told me he didn't like the overnight oatmeal), I've used more cinnamon and vanilla than ever before, and I've unintentionally influenced my boyfriend to eat more like a vegetarian. Experimental vegetarian blog = success!

Now, let's talk about my newest recipe! I have never done much with parsnips. I tried growing them during one of my first seasons as a farmer and didn't have much luck. I was trying to grow them in Northern New York's hard clay soils and they were skinny, gnarled, and totally unappealing. Since I couldn't grow them, I didn't eat them. Parsnips fell off my radar.

Looking through a folder of recipes I've collected, I found a magazine clipping from 1997 - my first year of farming- for Parsnip Muffins. I'm amazed that I've been carting this recipe around for 15 years without ever having tried it. A few years, ago someone gave me a piece of parsnip cake to try at a farmers market and it was delicious. The memory of that slice of cake, combined with my bewilderment at this 15- year -old magazine clipping led to tonight's baking experience.

These muffins are easy to make, delicious, and moist. I've never made a carrot cake (a bit of foreshadowing?), but there are definite similarities.

I'm sure there are many variations that could be explored (vegan, gluten-free, frosted, or savory versions) but this recipe is a nice treat.

Parsnip Pecan Muffins

2 cups all purpose white flour

1/2 cup sugar

1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 cups grated parsnips (3 large or 4 medium sized)

1/2 cup raisins

2 large egg whites

1 large egg

1/2 cup apple sauce

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract

2 Tbsp. finely chopped pecans

1. Preheat oven to 375. Lightly oil 12 muffin cups or coat with nonstick spray.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in parsnips and raisins.

3. In a smaller bowl, whisk egg whites, egg, apple sauce, oil, and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients until entire mixture is moistened.

4. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups; sprinkle muffin tops wtih nuts. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until tops spring back when lightly pressed.

Makes 1 dozen muffins

Sweet Potato Soup...what was I thinking?

Just because I haven't posted doesn't mean I've stopped testing recipes! I tried a Sweet Potato soup recipe this week; I had clipped this recipe out of a magazine at some point and stuffed it in a folder of recipes to try. Before I made this soup, I anticipated it would be similar to Butternut Squash soup - only sweeter. things started out well. I had purchased several perfect sweet potatoes and I was extremely motivated (aka hungry). Unfortunately, it was all downhill from there. For some reason, I had blender issues. Sweet potato came spewing out of the top of the blender when I tried to blend the first batch. Assuming I hadn't put the lid on all the way, I tried again. Hot soup landed on my face, in my hair, and all over my kitchen. I ended up having to rest my arm on the blender and push down full force while blending.

The soup was thin and somewhat tasteless. I thickened it, added curry powder and black beans, and it was edible. I even ate it 2 days in a row. However, I will not share that recipe here.

Watch for more recipes later this week!

Tofu scramble and a pineapple fail

Because I raised laying hens and tried marketing pasture-raised local brown eggs at farmers markets in a past life, I feel very ashamed when I purchase eggs from the supermarket. Because I know what it is like to raise hens in a compassionate way and to try to make living doing it, I feel an obligation to purchase from small local producers now that I am a consumer. During the summer, it's easier. There's a farmers market every day of the week in Rhode Island. In the winter, there are markets too. But it's hard to justify a 40-60 minute round-trip drive just to purchase a dozen eggs. As a result, I have bought supermarket eggs a few times this winter.

The fact is, I love eating scrambled eggs from time to time. This weekend, I wanted scrambled eggs and I was out of eggs. I wasn't sure what to do. I hesitated. Then, I decided to try the unthinkable: scrambled tofu.

Guess what? Scramble tofu is better than I thought it would be!

For seasoning, I used 33rd & Galena Chicken and Pork rub made by Penzey's Spices. I was gifted a set of their spices for Christmas and they're good! The chicken and pork rub contains Tellicherry black pepper, paprika, nutmeg, sage, cayenne, crushed red pepper, and oleoresin of basil.

Eggs for the Single Person

olive oil or margarine

1/3 block extra firm tofu

2 Tbsp. onion, diced

2 Tbsp. green onion, diced

1 Tbsp. nutritional yeast

1 tsp. tumeric

seasoning of choice

salt, pepper

1. Heat olive oil in skillet.
2. Add onion and green pepper. cook for 2-3 minutes, or until onion is translucent.
3. Add tofu. Smash with fork. Stir and cook for several minutes.
4. Add nutritional yeast, tumeric, seasonings, salt, pepper. Cook several minutes.
5. Serve with toast or english muffin. Devour!

Pineapple Fail

I also tried to make pineapple tofu fried rice, but I wasn't happy with the results. I have decided not to share recipes that weren't delicious as I don't want others to replicate them and be disappointed. However, since one of my intentions in writing this blog is to document my experimentations, I'll just mention the fails.

Comfort Foods: Rice Pudding and Pot Pie

This week, I found myself having cravings for certain foods. First, it was rice pudding. And when I discovered how easy rice pudding was to make, I felt like a fool for having never made it before. The recipe I used is a very traditional one, adapted from the Joy of Cooking website http://www.joyofbaking.com/breakfast/RicePudding.html. The only change I made was that I used soy milk. I don't feel this affected the recipe in any way. Be forewarned that the recipe only yields 2 servings. I ate one serving for dinner, and the other for lunch the next day.

Rice Pudding Recipe:

2 1/2 cups soy milk

1/3 cup long or short grain white rice

1/8 tsp. salt

1/4 cup granulated white sugar

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 cup raisins

1. In a medium heavy bottomed saucepan combine the milk, rice, and salt.

2. Place saucepan over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium to medium-low and simmer until the rice is tender (about 25 minutes). Stir the milk mixture frequently using a heatproof rubber spatula or wooden spoon to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

3. When the rice is tender (al dente) remove from heat and add the sugar, vanilla extract, and ground cinnamon.

4. Return to heat and cook until the rice pudding thickens, about 5 to 10 minutes.

5. Remove from heat and add the raisins.

6. Spoon the pudding into your serving bowls and cover with plastic wrap. If you want a film or skin on the puddings, allow them to cool before covering with plastic wrap.

7. Refrigerate until serving time, about 1 to 2 hours

Pot Pie!!!!

Another comfort food that was calling out my name all week was pot pie. After studying about half a dozen pot pie recipes on the internet, in cookbooks, and in magazines for sale at the supermarket, I developed my own recipe, which has all of the elements I think are essential to a pot pie: chicken-like substance, peas, potatoes, nice crust, and creaminess.

The chicken-like substance was essential for me because pot pie is something I remember from my childhood, when I was a carnivore. I really wanted to stay away from tofu. I enjoy tofu, but I wanted something with a tougher texture for this recipe. I recently discovered Gardein products, and while I try not to eat too many processed foods, I have to say these are pretty tasty.

The crust was the part that was making me really anxious. Pie crusts are my nemesis. Attempting to make a pie crust has brought me to tears more than once. Using a puff pastry for the crust was what made this pot pie work for me. I doubt puff pastries are all that healthy for you, but they are wicked easy to work with and sure are yummy!

There are many pathways you can follow to make your pot pie creamy. Most recipes use flour, constarch, or sour cream. I went with a mixture of broth, soymilk, flour, and nutritional yeast.

I ended up making 4 individual pot pies. Each of my parents had one, I had one, and the other is in my boyfriend's fridge. This pot pie lived up to my expectations. For years, I have thought about making pot pie, but it seemed like a daunting task. This recipe is so simple, however, that I know I'll be making it again before the winter is over.

My Pot Pie

Ingredients· 3 tablespoons olive oil
· 1 package Gardein vegetarian chicken scallopini, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
· 2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
· 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
· 2 medium carrots, peeled and finely chopped
· 2 cloves garlic, minced
· 1 small potato, peeled and diced small
· 1/4 cup all purpose flour

· 2 Tbsp. nutritional yeast
· 1 cup vegetable broth
· 1/2 cup soy milk
· 1 cup frozen baby green peas

· 1 tsp. thyme
· 1 tsp. sage
· 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
· 7 ounces store-bought puff pastry, defrosted if frozen

Directions
1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees and arrange a rack in the middle.
2. Brown gardein scallopini in a sautee pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Remove from pan and set aside.
3. Heat remaining olive oil in a skillet. Add onion, celery, carrot, and garlic and sauté until onion is translucent.
4. Add potato, cook until tender.
5. Sprinkle flour and nutritional yeast over vegetables, stir to coat.
6. Add broth and milk, stirring constantly until mixture is smooth. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.
7. Add gardein scallopini, peas, herbs, and vinegar, and stir to combine.
8. Remove from heat, Season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
9. Whisk egg together with 2 teaspoons water and a pinch of salt until evenly mixed. Set aside.
10. Once mixture is cool, pour into individual ramekins, glass pie pan or small casserole dish. With kitchen shears, cut pastry to fit over the baking dishes. Cover mixture with puff pastry (be sure to leave a small excess of pastry for folding and fluting of the edge) and seal edges. Cut slits in the top to vent.
11. Place on a baking sheet and bake until crust is golden brown and mixture is bubbling, about 30 minutes. Let sit at least 5 minutes before serving.

On an Oatmeal Kick

When I posted my blog to facebook, the overnight oatmeal recipe got lots of attention. I told some folks at work about the recipe also, and people seemed interested. One colleague said, "Chia seeds? Like the chia pet?" I wasn't actually sure so I had to google it. It turns out they are the same seeds. I learned that soaking them is a great thing to do since they form this gel that makes them easier to digest and probably helps give you that "full feeling" that keeps midday snacking at bay.

Other reading I did this week helped me to learn more about the health benefits of eating oatmeal. I always thought it was eaten in winter simply because it was warm. Now I am learning that it tastes great cold, and it's especially good to eat in winter because it's a complex carb, so it helps regulate your glucose levels, which can prevent those wintertime mood swings we all experience in the frigid North.

I also learned that overnight oatmeal is a bit of a craze at the moment. I wondered if it could be done with rolled oats as easily as steel cut oats, and apparently it can. However, most people cook theirs in a rice cooker or other slow cooking device. Those that use the soaking method often use a combination of Greek yogurt and milk. While this probably tastes nice, I don't like starting my day off with too much dairy. It just doesn't agree with me.

I decided to peruse some oatmeal conversations out there on the internet and took the best parts of many different recipes to devise my very own original overnight oatmeal concoction. It contains a nut milk, oats, and chia seeds as its base. I increased the ratio of milk to oats, since I thought the rolled oats might absorb more moisture. I ate it this morning and it was just about the best breakfast I ever ate.

Here it is:

Overnight Oats with Spices, Dates, and Pecans

1/2 cup rolled oats

1 cup almond or soy milk

2 Tbsp. chia seeds

1/4 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp. ground clove

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 Tbsp. Maple syrup

1/3 cup chopped fresh dates

2 Tbsp. chopped pecans

Mix all ingredients - except pecans - in a glass container and seal. Store overnight in refrigerator. In morning, microwave for 1 minute (optional), and stir in pecans. Eat.

Chickpea and Date Tagine

Last night, I persuaded my omnivorous boyfriend to make a recipe I'd been wanting to try. I brought all of the ingredients over to his place and he made it for me. Just like that. According to him, "it was damn easy to make." He added some hot peppers to the pan at some point; if you like spicy food, I'd recommend this addition. I love the flavors of Moroccan cooking and I'll definitely eat this again.

I wonder what he'll make me tonight!

Chickpea and Date Tagine

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 large onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. ground coriander

1 tsp. ground ginger

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 15oz. can crushed tomatoes

3 cups cooked chickpeas or 2 15oz. cans chickpeas, rinsed

1 cup whole wheat couscous

1/4 cup. lemon juice

/12 cup chopped cilantro

1. Heat oil in saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, and cook until they start to brown, stirring often. Stir in garlic, cumin, coriander, ginger, and cinnamon, and saute 30 seconds. Add tomatoes, chickpeas, and 1/4cup water; simmer 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, toast couscous in small saucepan over medium heat 5 minutes, or until fragrant. Add 1 3/4 cups water, and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, cover, and let stand 5 minutes.

3. Stir dates and lemon juice into tagine, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Serve over couscous, sprinkled with cilantro.

Malcoun, Carolyn. "1 Food in 5 Ways: Dates." Vegetarian Times. December 2011: 55. Print.

B-b-b-bean Burgers

For some reason, I am intimidated by burgers. I have a beet-carrot burger I make and it's a ton of work. I've tried a few others, but the texture of homemade burgers often displeases me. I still don't feel like I've found my go-to quick burger recipe.

Last night I saw a bean burger recipe linked to a New York Times article (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/01/magazine/mark-bittman-going-semi-vegan.html?_r=2&ref=magazine) and I've been wanting to make it all day. After work, I picked up some oats so I could make them tonight. I added a few extra ingredients, but basically stuck to the recipe.

Pros:

• These burgers are handsome. I was worried that the pasty texture would make them difficult to mold into patties, but they were easy to mold and held their shape very nicely.
• These are the easiest things in the world to make if you have a food processor. I whipped them up at 9:00 for dinner. This blog post is taking longer to make than the burgers did.
• The recipe makes four large burgers.
• The recipe is very basic and begs for you to add your own creative twist.

Cons

• The texture is not excellent- a bit mushy like most veggie burgers I make. I'd add sesame seeds or coursely chopped veggies or nuts to the food-processed mixture next time for an extra little crunch. I added some dethawed frozen corn, but that didn't do the trick.

Here is the recipe, with my slight variations added.

Ingredients

1 onion

1 can of beans (preferably white)

1/2 cup rolled oats

1 Tbsp. Chili powder

1/2 tsp. Coriander

Hamburger buns

1/2 cup frozen and de-thawed or canned corn

Olive oil

Preparation

1. Cut onion into chunks and put it in a food processor, along with drained canned beans (white are best here, but any will work), oats, chili powder, coriander, and salt and pepper.

2. Pulse, stopping occasionally to scrape the sides as necessary.

3. Taste; if it’s too dry, add water; too wet, add more rolled oats, a tablespoon at a time.

4. Mix in corn.

5. Divide the mixture into four even patties and cook them in olive oil until nicely browned each side. (Turn carefully.)

6. Serve on toasted buns with favorite toppings.

Everybody's doing it...

Here is the link to an article about being semi-vegan that recently appeared in the New York Times. The article is short, but there is a link to 10 vegan recipes. The bean burgers look pretty easy to make; might have to dress that recipe up a bit and try it sometime soon.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/01/magazine/mark-bittman-going-semi-vegan.html?_r=1&ref=magazine

Chai Oatmeal Recipe

Here's the first new vegetarian recipe that I tried in 2012! I got this recipe from Vegetarian Times January/February 2012. I didn't have cardamom so I used a pinch of clove. I also used almond milk in place of hemp milk, and I didn't add the coconut or pistachio.

I thought it was a great recipe. It was nice to have breakfast all ready when I woke up this morning. The only thing I'd do differently is refrain from eating 2 full servings for breakfast, which was a bit much.

Overnight Chai Steel-Cut Oats

Ingredient List

Serves 2

• 1 cup steel-cut oats
• 1 cup hemp milk
• 2 Tbs. chia seeds
• 1/4 tsp. ground cardamom
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. ground ginger or
• 1 Tbs. crystallized ginger
• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch nutmeg
• 1 pinch black pepper
• 1 Tbs. maple syrup, optional
• 1 Tbs. shredded coconut, optional
• 1 Tbs. chopped pistachios, optional

Directions

1. Combine oats, hemp milk, chia seeds, cardamom, vanilla, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, black pepper, and maple syrup (if using) in glass jar with lid. Stir, close lid, and refrigerate overnight.

2. Open lid, stir, and sprinkle with coconut and pistachios, if using.

Nutritional Information

Per 1-cup serving: Calories: 270, Protein: 9g, Total fat: 7g, Saturated fat: 1g, Carbs: 42g, Cholesterol: mg, Sodium: 62mg, Fiber: 9g, Sugars: 9g

Why I Started Meatless Moments

During my winter vacation, I successfully read my first book on a Kindle. It was Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer. After the first few chapters, I thought it was a good book, but that perhaps I wasn't the type of person that really needed to read it. I mean, after all, I don't eat meat. He's preaching to the choir. I pushed on and kept reading, partly because I wanted to finish reading a book on a kindle, and partly because I came to understand that am exactly the type of person Foer wants reading his book.

He reminded me that, "someone who regularly eats factory-farmed animal products cannot call himself an environmentalist without divorcing that word from its meaning" (784) and that "when we lift our forks, we hang our hats somewhere."

Foer asks his readers, "What did you do when you learned the truth about eating animals?" (3448). I began to understand the truth about eating animals in elementary school. One day, I noticed the lines in my ham and asked another student what they were. I believe another child told me they were veins. Now, this may not have been correct, but the answered moved me. I had never spent much time thinking about the fact that my sandwich meat was once a living animal. I never ate ham again.

A short time later, my brother told me he had seen a car at a junkyard that someone had blown their brains out on. This also may not have been correct, but when he told me the brains looked like salami, there was no more salami for me.

In 8th grade, a friend told me that the summer camp I was attending served veal and that the only way to get out of eating it was to say I was vegetarian. This meant I wouldn't be able to eat meat for the entire 2-week session of camp. Once she told me about veal, I made up my mind to pose as a vegetarian. I didn't eat meat for those 2 weeks, and I made the decision to stop eating red meat altogher. I continued eating chicken and turkey through high school, since my mother was exasperated by my new restrictions, and didn't know what else to feed me. Once I got to college, I got rid of poultry too.

Honestly I wasn't a very good vegetarian when I started. I ate like crap. But now, I can't conceive of a meat-eating lifestyle. I've never been a preachy vegetarian, but I've never been apologetic either. After reading this book, I can say that I am re-inspired to not only strengthen my diet but to share with those around me the importance of eating a vegetarian diet. There are many people who will simply never be vegetarian. I get that. But this is exactly why those of us who can be vegetarian, should be, and - in fact - need to be.

How will I strengthen my vegetarian diet? I will try to eat less milk, eggs, and fish. As a general rule, I don't buy cow's milk. Instead, I go for almond milk or soy milk. When I am out of my house, however, I will often put milk or cream in my coffee. I could easily avoid this. And then there are eggs. I'm pretty familiar with the nastiness of laying hens, and the importance of obtaining eggs from small local growers who raise their hens on pasture. But I've become lazy. I've been buying at the supermarket. I need to stop that. I'm not likely to become a vegan anytime soon, but I could make a conscious choice to eat more like a vegan.

I also plan to experiment more with my food and to try new recipes. I'd like to try one new vegetarian recipe every week this year; I came up with this resolution as I was making Overnight Chai Steel-Cut Oats last night.

How will I share my views on vegetarianism with others? I'm going to share more information with those around me. Sometimes I take it for granted that everyone is aware that the more meatless moments you enjoy, the more you do to alleviate human rights abuses, animal suffering, deforestation and global warming, heart disease and other public health issues. I'll share some of the information Foer shared with me when they argue that they only eat organic meat or pasture-raised meat.

And I'll start this blog.