Burrito Cake!

Before I tell you about the physical Burrito Cake, let me tell you the full story.

At my birthday party a few months ago my sister saw my Betty Crocker Bake 'N Fill cake pans and decided I would make her a savory cake for her birthday - a burrito cake. Since I have had great success other times using the Bake 'N Fill, but in a sweet way:

Chocolate Bomb:

Chocolate Cookie Ice Cream Cake:

We started scheming the design of the burrito cake. Cornbread, beans, rice, avocado, and tofu sour cream "frosting." The end result was different than we planned, but super tasty!

I scrapped the corn bread bottom and went with a tortilla, salsa, and cheese layered bottom, similar to an enchilada.
Next, the beans and rice. I made a mixture of beans and rice with soyrizo for the outside dome. I added some corn starch to help the form. Then I filled the divit in the middle with refried beans and soy cheese.
I didn't have much luck turning it over! Since it was hot, it separated more than I wanted it to. See the pan in the background?
Nothing a little guacamole won't fix, right? I thought of this as the crumb coat, in normal frosting terms. By this point, it really started to settle and push outward. While I was hoping it wouldn't fall off the counter, two little dogs at my feet were.
Then the tofu sour cream. It's hard to frost something that's so bumpy.
Toppings of fake cheese stars and jalapeños.
The garnish make it complete! We have burrito cake!
Time to cut the cake! Doesn't it look like something from super mario brothers?
Inside:

It really wasn't that pretty, but it sure tasted good. And it was better than my husband's "burrito soup."
If this isn't evidence of my ability to take on cooking challenges I don't know what is!

Lemon Garlic Brussle Sprouts

Normally I eat my brussle sprouts roasted with a bit of garlic, today I was looking for a different flavor and decided on lemon and garlic.

I started with a roux - soy milk, flour, earth balance and a bit of lemon juice. I added the garlic and stirred until it thickened. I poured over my broiled brussles and served with rice.

This was a simple meal that added much more flavor than normal, though I added a bit too much lemon. The sauce was a nice touch with the nutty tasting broiled vegetable.

Mr. Bolsh Cooks Again!

I updated the Apple Spice Cake recipe to include my working recipe. I think it still needs some work though. I made it again last night and it sank about 1/4 in the middle after the oven. Try it and let me know what you think.

I overheard Mr. Bolsh talking with his grandmother on the phone. She was inquiring why I wasn't washing the dishes and he was. He replied saying that I cook and he does the dishes - if he didn't do the dishes he'd be eating spaghetti every night.

That's right Mr. Bolsh's specialty is spaghetti! Pasta from a bag, sauce from a can and neat-balls from the freezer.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Menu: (all dishes named by Mr. Bolsh)
Potato Rolls
Candied Carrots
Mashed Potatoes
Tofurky with Cider Glaze
Gobble Gravy
Super Green Beans

The Potato Rolls came from Veganomicon. They were fantastic, but not much like the potato rolls I grew up with, but more like dinner rolls.

Candied Carrots is a dish both Mr. Bolsh and I grew up with but it seems most people eat this dish with yams or sweet potatoes. Simply over boil some carrots, drain, then add some earth balance and brown sugar. Cook until the sugar is melted.

Mashed Potatoes are Mr. Bolsh's specialty. I did have some input - I had him add some parsley based off Julie's advice.

Gobble Gravy was something I wasn't planning on making, but it turned out wonderful, and I'm not even a gravy fan! I caramelized 1 1/2 onion. It took awhile for it to cook down. I used sparkling cider to deglaze the pan. I then dissolved 1 cube of vegetable broth in 1 cup of thick cashew milk/cream. Once this was all added together I was planning on adding a thickener, but instead I let it cook for about an hour (while the tofurky was cooking) and it boiled down very nicely.

Super Green Beans were about as simple as the carrots. I roasted the green beans with olive oil. When they were done from the oven I added some flax seed, which lightly coated the green beans and gave a nice nutty texture to it.

The Tofurky, both of them, were all cooked by Mr. Bolsh. A few year ago we started using sparkling pear cider to glaze and marinade the fake meat. This year was no different. Mr. Bolsh boiled the cider into a reduction sauce (though I don't think he knew that's what he was doing) and he kept turning the tofurky to coat it. He then baked it like normal.

On to the photos!

The Spread:
Potato Rolls:
Candied Carrots:
Super Green Beans:
My Wonderful Plate of food:
Nap Time!

Faux Indian Food

I've been craving Indian food lately. It's more the spices and the wonderful smells they bring into the house.

This was a simple meal I made that makes my mouth still water.

Potatoes coated in oil, mustard seed, cumin seed, cardamon seed, pepper, and probably some other spices. I then roasted them for about 30 minutes in the oven.

Pan fried brussel sprouts and onions with similar spices as the potatoes. They didn't taste the same though.

Chickpeas, spinach and a premade tandoori sauce.

Such a simple meal and full of so much flavor!

Soups

Since my bike accident, I've barely been cooking. I've been able to eat out more. My injuries were worse than I first thought - a sprain and possible hairline fracture in my arm bone - no wonder it hurts all the time! I am so glad that Bone Up now makes a vegan formula, too bad they haven't changed their name.

To comfort myself from the pain, the lack of riding my bike, the pain of paying for the bus and
the recent Portland Fall weather - I've been making soups. Soups are dishes that rarely require recipes. They are usually just lots of ingredients thrown together to make a delicious food I can spoon out of a bowl with one hand.

Black eyed Peas and Greens:
This was nice and smoky soup with the inclusion of liquid smoke. The caramelized onions helped make a great broth along with some blended roasted eggplant. I added a few ripped up pieces of field roast slices. Very filling.

Vegetable Soup:
Lots of zucchini, onions, garlic, carrots, cubes of eggplant and chickpeas.

Hearty Breakfast Mush:
Blended steel cut oats, cream of wheat, cashew milk and flax seed. All topped with a spoonful of peanut butter, brown sugar and dried blueberries.


Fall Cake:
My friend Joe just got back from hiking the Pacific Crest Trail and he needs fattening up so I made a cake. One layer is chocolate chai and the other is a vanilla nut spice layer. In between in a sweet cashew fluff layer and topped with two layers of chocolate ganache.

Creamy Tomato Pasta

I've moved onto fall, but I still have some summer produce in my kitchen. This recipe makes a nice sauce as well as having some firm vegetables in it.

Creamy Tomato Pasta:
2 tomatoes (one yellow and one red, for color)
1 zucchini
1 Tablespoon Wildwood garlic Aoli
1 Tablespoon fresh chives
1 Tablespoon fresh oregano
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook the pasta as normal.
Saute the chopped tomatoes and zucchini in olive oil for about 7 minutes.
Add the aoli and fresh spices and let cook 3-5 minutes or until tender.
Pour over the cooked pasta.

Breading

This is my favorite breading for anything from tofu to eggplant.

Basic Breading:
1 cup corn flakes
3 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon seasoning

Blend all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until small crumbs remain.
You can always add other spices depending on what you're cooking. Garlic powder, onion powder, basil, oregano and cumin are always good.

Breaded tofu with a side of roasted corn salad.
The tofu was marinated in a soy sauce and powdered vegetable broth.

Canned wheat chicken with roasted vegetables and rice.
My local Asian grocer has a variety of canned fake meats. I pick them up every once and awhile. This canned setian I breaded and baked before serving with some roasted veggies over rice.

My First Risotto

I think I've only ever had risotto once (I grew up in a Tex-Mex house give me a break!) I went about making it awhile ago but I bought orzo instead of risotto rice so my cooking was stopped at the grocery store.
Below is my story with risotto.

I started with this recipe. I added rosemary and sun dried tomatoes as a base flavor, then stirred in spinach later.

Started by sauteing some onion. When it was translucent I added some rosemary, chopped sun dried tomatoes and three cloves of chopped garlic.
I added the rice and dry cooked it for three minutes.
Then went the "wine." My wine was mostly water with a splash of apple juice. Next time I will just use more broth.I slowly added more veggie broth, while stirring continuously.When all the both was incorporated I added the spinach.
I added the fresh herbs of oregano and basil and bit more chopped garlic. Also a pat of Earth Balance and covered the rice and let it sit for 5 more minutes.Served with fresh oregano, black salt and some figs on the side because they are just so beautiful.
The risotto was good, but it was a lot of work to sit there and constantly stir it. Next time I will try the lazy approach where you add the water all at once and just let it cook, stirring when I remember.

Potatoes with Carrot Tarragon Sauce

Potatoes with Carrot Tarragon Sauce:
2 large potatoes
olive oil
1/2 sweet onion
1 large handful baby carrots
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 Tablespoons Mirin
3 cloves garlic
2 sprigs tarragon
Salt and pepper to taste

Slice the potatoes in round and boil until soft, but not falling apart.
When the potatoes are done, spray cookie sheet with olive oil and place boiled potatoes on sheet and bake about 10-20 minutes at 425 F until lightly browned on both sides.
Saute the onion until caramelized. Deglaze with Mirin.
Add carrots and water and boil until the carrots are very soft. Add garlic last three minutes of cooking.
Blend the carrots, onion, left over water in the pot and 1 sprig of tarragon until pureed.
Spread across a plate and place boiled and baked potatoes on top. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and tarragon.
Serve warm.
This sauce is fun to trick people because they will think it's a cheesy sauce. Really, it's a hearty, lightly sweet and warm carrot sauce.
The sauce would make a great soup with more liquid. This sauce had Mr. Bolsh licking his plate!

Kitchen Gadgets

The following meals feature dishes made from new kitchen gadgets.

First the Panini Grill:
I love grill lines on my food. I can't wait until the day we have a backyard grill to include the smoky flavor. The Panini grill is great because it's larger than a George Foreman Grill and the lines are closer together.
I wanted a quick meal so I threw on a cut of cabbage, onion and some quickly miso-marinaded tofu. I sprayed the cabbage with soy sauce and sprayed the onion with olive oil before sprinkling on some kelp powder before grilling. I walked away and when I came back there was hot, grilled food waiting for me. I stacked them on top of each other and called it a meal.


Rocket Blender or "The Magic Bullet":
The Magic Bullet is a tool I've heard people rave about for a long time and I ignored it because I have my dear food processor to fulfill all my desires for chopping, blending, shedding. The Bullet seemed like the Vita Mix people who are just loyal.
When I broke our blender I went out and bought a Rocker Blender, just to try it. I had no idea the world I was about to step into!

Peaches and Cream:
Smoothies have been a great way to fill me up while not having much time for a full home cooked meal.
1/2-1 cup raw cashews soaked in water for an hour or more (I have these soaking in the fridge these days)
1- 1 1/2 cup soy/rice milk
1- 1 1/2 cup frozen peaches or strawberries

Blend the cashews with a bit of soy milk.

You might need more soy milk or other liquid, so just blend until it's thick and creamy.

Add the frozen fruit and maybe more liquid. Blend until the consistency you desire.

Take off the blender attachment and add the drinking cap.

We've really enjoyed this kitchen gadget because it's quick and easy both in clean up and use.
The pros, beyond the clean up and user-friendly style, are how well it blends ice and how you don't have to push down or stir the items -you can just lift it up and shake! When it's ready to serve you just throw on a little drinking cap to cover up the threaded edge and drink away.
The cons to this toy is the annoyance of screwing and unscrewing the blender attachment. Blenders are great because you can continue to add items while blending, something you can't do here.

Creamy Potato Soup:
I've been pretty stuck on the cashew cream lately. I used it in a potato soup to make it creamier and a bit thicker. It was a hit.
Cashews, veggie broth, carrots, onion, potatoes, and basil.


Pesto Shells:
Here I was trying out the Bullet again while making pesto.
basil, olive oil, veggie broth (to cut the oil down), garlic, cashews, sun dried tomatoes.

The problem with using the Rocket here was that to dice the garlic small enough the pesto became soup-like it was so smooth. I prefer various sized basil pieces in my pesto over a pesto-soup. It still got the job done but I will be sticking to my food processor for pesto.

Savory Vegetables Abound!

My food from this last week all has the same theme but I can't quite figure out the theme.
Here's some random food from this past week:

Cashews Green Beans and Sprouts:
This really wasn't as good as I wanted it to be.
Pan fried brussel sprouts, green beans and cashews with a soy sauce flavoring. As I was pouring the soy sauce in I was even thinking how soy sauce and sprouts just don't seem to go together. And they don't. Don't try this one. Brussel Sprouts and Tofu:
So what does go with brussel sprouts? garlic and lots of it!
Broiled tofu, brussel sprouts, garlic, olive oil and salt! Perfect!Aspargus and a Secret Sauce:
Now I know I don't post many of the Post Punk Kitchen test recipes but I couldn't get enough of this creamy garlic sauce. I salavate just thinking of it.
Have you noticed my theme of keeping the vegetables fairly simple?
Tofu and Green Beans:
This one is a bit fancier so I'll give you some rough directions after the photo.
1. Set the oven broiler to high. Slice tofu slab into 6 pieces and cut into triangle pieces. (Triangles just taste better.) Put a little of soy sauce on each piece before putting it in the oven for 10 minutes.
2. Steam the green beans.
3. Turn the tofu over and put a little bit of tomato sauce on each one, just enough to cover the tops. Broil again for another 10 minutes or until done.
4.Arange tofu on a plate, I used 4 slices. smother with some extra maranara/tomoato sauce. Layer the green beans on top and then coat with your favorite garlic sauce. Serve warm.
If I was to make this again I would maranade the tofu before.


Fried Green Beans and Rice:
Ths was wonderful! Healthy and not to healthy at the same time. Again you see that mysterious creamy garlic sauce! I told you I couldn't get enough of it!

For the breading I roughly followed the directions in The Dirty South Cookbook. I used about 1/3 cup flour and another 1/3 cup glutten flour (I thought it was another flour. I need to label my bulk foods better!) onion powder, lots of soy sauce and enough soy milk to make it a good consitancy. I threw all the green beans in the batter and coated them until frying time.
At first I thought the batter was going to be too soy saucy but it was just enough flavor to be perfect with a bite of rice and green beans.

I'll show you some chocolate pie later, but for now I must finish painting the house. (I keep being asked how I have so much enegry and I guess it's becuase I eat so many dark green veggies!)