Revision 14 as of 2012-08-05 01:02:39

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Contents

  1. Caesar Salad dressing
  2. Vegan Cheese (Tofu Misozuke)
  3. Homemade Stock
  4. Mega-Mushroom Stroganoff
  5. Grilled Cheese sandwiches

Caesar Salad dressing

Equal parts white miso, tahini, and lemon juice (usually 1T). Add 1t garlic powder & a splash of soy sauce or Bragg's. Combine thoroughly with fork or whisk. Thin with water to taste.

Vegan Cheese (Tofu Misozuke)

http://www.rauom.com/2011/05/24/tofu-misozuke-recipe/#more-1583

Homemade Stock

Save veggie ends when cooking. Things like onion tops, mushroom stems, garlic paper, herb stems--mostly anything is good, but we tend not to put lettuce in. Store the ends in the freezer in a gallon bag or similar, and when you fill the bag, put the contents in your stockpot and fill it up with 5 quarts of water.

Get it to a boil, and while it's heating up add a tablespoon or so of whole peppercorns, some soy sauce, and a small handful of dried mushrooms. Watch carefully for a boilover as it nears boiling, and when it gets there back the heat down to a simmer and let it cook with the lid on for an hour.

When it's time, take it off the burner and take the lid off. It's got to cool, which will take a few hours. (I usually start stock before 3pm to avoid doing the next step too late at night.) Once it's cool enough to handle without scalding yourself, pour the liquid into your stock vessel (the blue gallon pitcher). Then take some cheesecloth and squeeze a handful of vegetable matter, draining the liquid into the gallon pitcher. Make sure to give each handful several good squeezes--there's more water than you think is possible :) You can toss the wad of veg in the trash once you've extracted its vital...essence.

The whole extraction process will take about 30 minutes, but when you're done you'll have a gallon plus of stock. Use it in savory dishes instead of water--if you don't make soup, it can last up to 3 or 4 weeks!

Mega-Mushroom Stroganoff

Food:

Spices:

Just before you start veg prep, soak a little less than 3/4c TVP in 3/4c vegetable stock (or a water/soy sauce mix, but homemade veggie stock is cheap and easy to make). Then take a brick of silken tofu (I prefer the Mori-Nu aseptic packs) and mix in a food processor with about a tablespoon of olive oil, 1/4t salt, and about a half or whole lemon's worth of lemon juice (to taste; start with a half). This is the “sour cream.”

Once that’s out of the way, you just start throwing it all together. Basically you saute over medium heat a nicely-chopped onion and a stupid, ungodly amount of thinly-sliced mushrooms (though you might call it a godly amount if you’re a fungus-worshiper like myself). When that's ready (i.e., onions are turning transparent, and mushrooms are cooked down), add to that minced garlic (or granulated if you don’t feel like mincing garlic), and then some herbs (parsley and thyme are nice), salt, and pepper to taste. The black pepper is what makes this dish, so don't be stingy! Once most of the moisture is gone, add the TVP, which should have mostly soaked up the stock by now. It’ll add a little bit of moisture to the pan to deglaze any scorching. Cook the TVP for about 5 minutes, maybe 10 if you cut the heat down, and then add the sour cream. Let the heat get through it, stirring thoroughly, and when you start to see it bubbling again it’s chow time! I like to serve this over rice or short noodles. Egg noodles are traditional, of course, but if it’s got starch it’ll probably be ok.

This recipe changes just about every time I make it. Sometimes I play with the consistency of the sour cream; other times I change up the herbs or veg base. Celery is not unheard of, nor is eggplant. But I have laid out the basics, and it’s out there for you to play with now. Bon appetit!

Grilled Cheese sandwiches

Forthcoming