For the Love of Teese?

Probably the thing I'm having the hardest time giving up enroute to becoming a vegan is cheese. I'm a huge fan of cheese - from the sharp, salty Parmigiano Reggiano, to the somewhat aggressive taste of a veiny Gorganzola, to the deliciously creamy Mozzarella on top of a good New York style pizza. I'm originally from New York, and I know the goodness that is true New York pizza. :) Yes, I love my cheese and it is hard to give up.

I've been doing some research on vegan cheeses, and came across a couple of blogs lately (VegCooking and What the Hell Does a Vegan Eat Anyway?) on Teese vegan cheese, specifically used on pizza. It appeared to have a melting factor close to true mozzarella, which with vegan cheeses is hard to find - a lot of them don't melt at all, and reviews rated it well, with minor margarine undertones.

I ordered three types of Teese from Cosmo's Vegan Shoppe - mozzarella, nacho cheese and cheddar. When they arrived, I was excited to try this on a pizza. I decided to try a mushroom, onion and fresh tomato pizza. I had a whole wheat Boboli in the house, and topped it with some Muir Glen pizza sauce. Quickly sauteed some baby portabello mushrooms and onions in a bit of olive oil, and spread these on along with some sliced fresh roma tomatoes.

Now - the Teese. I opened the red tube of Teese mozzarella, and the smell was very close to fresh mozzarella. Point to Teese. The Teese grated well, although it seemed a bit wet. I'm not sure if others have the same opinion about the moisture content of this cheese. I spread it on the pizza and put it in a 425 degree oven for ten minutes.

Opened the oven after ten minutes, and none of the Teese had melted except a few crust sections. Hmmmm. Waited another ten minutes. Still not much melting. I decided to take it out so the crust didn't burn. I let it sit for a few minutes, as the melted sections did appear to be VERY liquidy (is that a word?).

On the first taste, I was hit with a minor margarine taste (expected with a vegan cheese), but the taste overall was good. I agree with other reviewers that this may be one of the best vegan mozzarellas on the market today in terms of taste. I will certainly use it going forward on pizzas. However, I am going to try a couple of things differently:

-> Next time I will let it sit at room temperature for a while so it's not as cold going into the oven - maybe this will help with the melting, I don't know.

-> After grating, I'm going to it on paper towels while it comes to room temperature, to absorb some of the moisture. Possibly this will lessen the liquidy texture that I experienced on the parts that did melt.

-> I'll also try a 500 degree oven, with a whole wheat crust made from scratch. Hoping this will also help with the melting.

I'm also going to test the Teese in a classic caprese salad, and see how it fairs with some fresh tomato, basil and olive oil.

Overall, Teese has a very good offering with their vegan mozzarella. I would recommend it as an alternative to regular mozzarella, for the vegan who still enjoys a good New York style pizza. Of course, there's always the option to go with no cheese. :)

Sweet and Sour Peppers - it's what's for dinner!

I found lots of good peppers at Harris Teeter yesterday, and put them right to use in a recipe from 'Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home' tonight. I changed the recipe a bit to suit my own tastes - dropped the number of peppers and added straw mushrooms. Served over Arborio rice, it makes a tasty, healthy meal. :)

For the sauce:
1/4 c ketchup
1/4 c soy sauce (reduced sodium)
1/3 c cider vinegar
1/4 c packed brown sugar
3/4 c water
1 Tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 2 Tbsp water

For the stir-fry:
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 c very thinly sliced onions (1 small)
1 large red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1 large yellow bell pepper, cut into thin strips
15 oz canned baby corn, drained
15 oz canned straw mushrooms, drained
1 c raw or toasted cashews, whole or half pieces (optional)

Combine the sauce ingredients in a bowl. Have the remaining ingredients at hand before beginning to stir-fry.

In a wok or large skillet, heat the oil. Add the garlic and onions and stir-fry for three or four minutes. Add the pepper strips and continue to stir-fry. Add a couple of tablespoons of water if necessary to prepare scorching. When the peppers and onions are beginning to soften, add the baby corn and cashews. Stir-fry for a minute, then add the sauce mixture and simmer for another minute. Remove from heat and serve immediately.

Fresh Corn Chowder

My mother, with whom I've just recently re-established a relationship, was a chef in previous work experience. She's now a hospice nurse and is caring for people during the last stage of their lives. I sent her The China Study to read; as I've said, it's a book you want to share with family and friends. She found it a very compelling read. As a result, we've recently discussed my choice to become vegetarian and eventually vegan. On Thursday, I received two new cookbooks from her in the mail:

The Enchanted Broccoli Forest, by Mollie Katzen
Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home

I haven't tried anything from the Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home yet, but a thorough flip through this thick, well laid-out cookbook yielded a whole new host of yummy, easy to prepare veggie recipes.

The recipe I tried today came from The Enchanted Broccoli Forest. Fresh Corn Chowder jumped out at me from the first few pages of this lovely book, and although corn is not in season I decided to give it a shot. It is a hearty, flavorful soup that is very filling; I added some garlic naan on the side as an accompaniment. I am looking forward to trying it with fresh corn and herbs in season.

1 medium-sized potato
2-1/2 c water
2 to 3 Tbsp vegan butter (I use Earth Balance)
1-1/2 c onion, chopped
1-1/2 tsp salt
1 medium stalk celery, minced
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
About 5 cups corn (5 fresh cobs, or a 1 lb bag of frozen corn defrosted)
Fresh black pepper to taste
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried basil
1 cup plain soymilk, at room temperature

Scrub or peel the potato, and cut it into small dice. Place it in a small saucepan with the water. Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer, cover and cook until tender but not mushy. Set aside.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a soup pot or Dutch oven. Add the onion and salt, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring. After about 5 minutes, add celery and keep cooking. About 5 minutes later, add the cooked potatoes with all their liquid, the red bell pepper, corn, black pepper and herbs. Stir well and cover. Reduce heat and let it cook about 5 minutes more.

Use a blender or food processor to puree about half the solids in some of the soup's own liquid. Return this to the pot, and let it rest until serving time.

Stir in the soymilk about 10 minutes before serving. Heat the soup gently - don't cook it any further. Serve as soon as it's hot.

Enjoy! :)

Vegetarian Chili

I have been craving good chili, probably due to the cold weather we've been having. Looked around for a good veg chili recipe, and found a new one that I decided to try (courtesy of Emeril Lagasse). I tweaked it a bit to suit my own tastes, and it turned out great - highly recommended!

Note: If you don't like a lot of spice, drop the number of serranos and amount of chili powder and cayenne.

2 tablespoons canola oil
1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion (1 medium)
1 cup chopped red bell pepper (1 large)
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 to 3 serrano peppers, stemmed, seeded, and minced
1 medium zucchini, stem ends trimmed, quartered and chopped
2 cups fresh corn kernels (about 3 ears)
1 1/2 pounds portobello mushrooms (about 5 large), stemmed, wiped clean and cubed
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespooon ground cumin
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
4 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
2 cans dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 cup vegetable stock
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Cooked brown rice, accompaniment
Sour cream, garnish
Diced avocado, garnish
Chopped green onions, garnish

In a large, heavy pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, bell peppers, garlic, and serrano peppers, and cook, stirring, until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the zucchini, corn, and mushrooms, and cook, stirring, until soft and the vegetables give off their liquid and start to brown around the edges, about 6 minutes. Add the chili powder, cumin, salt and cayenne, and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and stir well. Add the beans, tomato sauce, and vegetable stock, stir well, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes.

Remove from the heat and stir in the cilantro. Adjust the seasoning, to taste.

To serve, place 1/4 cup of brown rice in the bottom of each bowl. Ladle the chili into the bowls over the rice. Top each serving with a dollop of sour cream and spoonful of avocado. Sprinkle with and green onions and serve. Six to eight servings.

Banana Split Muffins

In the November/December issue of VegNews, I found a scrumptious receipe for Banana Split Muffins. I made these this morning, and the baking time filled my house with a wonderful, warm, yummy smell on a cold, winter morning (well, as cold as it gets in Charlotte, NC). The muffins did not disappoint when I pulled them out of the oven - very moist and tasty!

3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup turbinado sugar
1/2 cup olive oil
1 Tbsp vanilla
2 cups whole-wheat pastry flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup firm tofu, mashed
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup dried cherries
1 cup black walnuts, crushed

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a 12-cup muffin tin, or line with paper liners.

In a large bowl, mix bananas, sugar, olive oil, vanilla, flour, baking powder, sea salt and tofu. Stir just until moistened. Fold in chocolate chips, dried cherries and walnuts.

Spoon mixture into prepared muffin tin. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Pasta Fagioli (Vegan)

The very first vegan dish I ever made was Pasta Fagioli, forwarded to me as encouragement. It has since been a staple recipe; a very hearty, satisfying dish.

20 slices of vegan pizza pepperoni sliced in half 1 medium onion, chopped
1 red or green pepper, chopped
2 clove of garlic, minced
2 Tbsp olive oil Sliced Mushrooms, Baby Bellas or White, 8 oz.
1 can great northern white or cannellini beans, drained
2 cups ditali or small bowtie whole wheat pasta
1 can pizza sauce
1 can tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatoes
16 oz vegetable broth
Salt, Pepper, Basil and Oregano to taste

In a large pot, sauté onions and garlic in olive oil until translucent. Add veggie pepperoni slices, pepper and mushrooms to onions and garlic, continue to sauté for five minutes.

Add beans, pizza sauce, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes and vegetable broth, mix thoroughly and bring to a simmer. Simmer 20 minutes.

Boil water and cook pasta. When pasta is cooked, drain and add to bean/pepperoni/tomato sauce mixture. Serve immediately. Add salt and pepper to taste.

A Brief Intro on Me.... :)

I wish I could say I started down this road from an ethical perspective, becoming a vegetarian out of objection to killing animals and the questionable agricultural practices that surround the production of meat. However, that’s not quite true. I became a vegetarian for two reasons: my health and my fear.

I loved my steak as much as the next girl, and ate plenty of it. For me, the end result of eating lots of meat and dairy (with some hard partying thrown into the mix earlier in life) was gall bladder issues. Not a fun thing to deal with on a daily basis. The recommendation to prevent attacks? Eat a vegetarian diet.

Around the same time, my boyfriend (a wonderful guy, vegetarian as well) recommended I read The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever Conducted and the Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss and Long-term Health. To be fair, he had been recommending this book for months, yet I had resisted. I found that 'The China Study' is one of those books that is hard to put down once you start it…a very compelling read and a real eye-opener. Enter fear. :) I recommend this book to everyone – it is a book that you will want to share with all of your friends and family.

The things I learned, on top of the health issue I was facing (the gall bladder has since been removed), drove me very quickly to adopt a healthful, vegetarian diet. I purged my house of meat, eggs and most dairy. Filled the refrigerator with fresh vegetables and fruit. Got rid of white flour products and switched to whole wheat/whole grain. Threw out the soda (liquid Satan, even the diet stuff!) and artificially sweetened drinks (goodbye, Crystal Light)…and brought in decaffeinated teas, soy milk and just plain water. After a couple of weeks of adjustment, I noticed I started feeling different - more energy and a better overall feeling of health.

I started reading more, kicking it off with Rory Freedman’s Skinny Bitch – a caustic, up front and in your face wake up call to women who want to be healthy. With this read, the ethical edge started to kick in. My boyfriend told me I would eventually ‘evolve’ to this point….damn if he wasn’t right again. :P Anyway, my next read is Slaughterhouse: The Shocking Story of Greed, Neglect and Inhumane Treatment Inside of the U.S. Meat Industry. I’m fairly sure that after this one, the ethical vegetarian in me will fully emerge. I’ve already realized that meat and dairy products are bad news, and stopped listening to the Meat and Dairy Industries that are lining their pockets as a result of their ‘healthy’ propaganda campaigns directed at the American public.

So today, three bad things remain. I’m trying hard to kick these in order to become vegan:

• Pecorino Romano cheese (on top of whole wheat pasta, of course…at least that part is good), and cheese in general
  
• Sour Cream (have not found a great non-dairy substitute for this, although Follow Your Heart just came out with one I’m going to try)
  
• Chocolate

A lot of people ask me – don’t you miss meat? Seafood? Eggs? At first – yes, within those first couple of weeks it was hard. I made it easier on myself by not having any in the house. However, after you move away from eating animal protein, you no longer crave it. Fellow veggies say that eventually it will become repulsive. I’m only three months into my journey and haven’t hit that yet, but I no longer want or have any desire to eat meat, seafood, eggs, etc. (with the exception of the evil three above).

I’m not here to try to convince anyone to become a vegetarian or vegan. People make their own decisions in life. I’m simply sharing my experiences and some tasty treats I’ve found/developed during my journey.

Enjoy! :-)