Country-Fried Tofu w/Golden Gravy

Since I had some left over Tofu and Gravy decided to give my hand at the Country-Fried Tofu w/Golden Gravy on page 285. This dish was previously done by Ms. Vegaorama on November 7th.

Since I had the Gravy left over from ThanksLiving all I needed to do was fry up the tofu.

The seasonings are simple as pointed out before just salt and pepper to taste and cornstarch for the coating. It's a very easy dish to make and

--Gymmie

Ginger-Pear Tart with Cranberries and Walnuts

One of my best friends is named Ginger, and fittingly, she loves food made with ginger. For the Friends Thanksgiving Dinner that my best friends and I had today, I knew that Ginger-Pear Tart with Cranberries and Walnut {page 469} was perfect -- both for the season and for G-licious.

The tart dough came together perfectly, rolled out easily, and was plenty to fill the tart pan and press into the edges. The pear filling was delicious, but made too much to fit in the standard 9" tart pan that is called for in the recipe. I mounded the filling quite high, and still ended up throwing out at least 1/4 of the filling.

My main issue with the recipe was the topping. Overall it was a good idea, but just didn't work out properly. The recipe said to bake the tart uncovered, and at that high temperature for that long, the walnuts and cranberries were burnt black. They tasted like poison. I picked out the ones I could get to, and warned everyone not to eat any others they might find. I sprinkled some uncharred cranberries on the top for flavor and color, and that helped quite a bit.

The whole tart was actually very delicious, minus the cranberries and walnuts. I would definitely make it again. However, I wouldn't add the walnuts and cranberries until the last few minutes of baking.

-- Your Friendly Neighborhood Batgirl

Butternut Soup with a Swirl of Cranberry

Nothing says fall -- or deliciousness -- like squash. Especially mild, slightly sweet, and more-than-slightly yummy butternut squash. Butternut Squash with a Swirl of Cranberry {page 170} is a silky delicious puree of butternut squash and other vegetables, swirled with a smooth cranberry puree.

The soup itself is delicious, light but flavorful, smooth, sweet, and comforting. A perfect bowl of wonderfulness for a cool fall evening. However, the cranberry swirl takes the whole dish to a whole new level. The tart-but-sweet nature of the cranberry pairs perfectly with the more mellow squash, and brightens up the flavor. As an additional benefit, if you're careful about how you swirl, your soup looks awesome! {If you are not careful, your soup looks like a murder scene, or worse...}

I can see this soup being a perfect first-course for a big fall or winter feast, or a complete meal when served with some crusty bread and a nice salad.

-- Your Friendly Neighborhood Batgirl

Thanksgiving 2K9 Gymmie Style

I haven't been big on eating "holiday" foods on holidays since it's just me for one and two never really wanted to take the time to make much of anything.

But this year I decided to do *something* even if not totally traditional.

I decided to go with a few recipes in the 1,000 Vegan Recipes book that had been done before.

After all the raving I've been wanting to try the Soy-tan Dream Cutlets on page 294 that The Divine Miss V made on October 19th and by Ms. Veganorama on October 25th.

As the other ladies stated the recipe is simple to put together. The cutlets are very versatile as they can be used for sandwiches, in salad,s used in stir-fry dishes or as is. I did not make any change to the recipe.

For the original meal I had it with the golden gravy from the Country-Fried Tofu with Golden Gravy on page 285 originally made by Ms. Veganorama on November 7th.

The gravy was easy to put together and like many recipes in the book consisted of ingredients already on hand.

I did not have any unsweetened milk but I thought it was fine with the sweetened milk.

One staple of Thanksgiving seems to be the Green Bean Casserole. Not being a fan of mushrooms I think I've only had it once so I don't know what it's suppose to taste like.

The Green Bean Casserole Redux on page 370 was originally done by Batgirl on November 20th. Other than using sweetened soy milk the only change made was omitting the mushrooms. To me the dish tasted fine with the sweetened milk and since I have no "memory" to compare it to nor any Omni's around I don't know if the taste was "off" by making those changes.

The casserole came together nicely since it took approximately 45 minutes to bake I made that first while working on the other dishes.

I don't have a steamer so I used a trick I learned from someone of using a colander in a pot to create the steaming effect.

When I had the Soy-tan Dream Cutlets today I had them with some Veganaise mixed with Sriacha that The Divine Miss V told me about. A very yummy combination that goes great with the cutlets.

The cutlets are on my definitely will make a zillion times list. I look forward to trying the gravy with the Country Fried Tofu and the Casserole will definitely be made again. Happy Nomming :)

--Gymmie

Vietnamese-Style Noodle Soup

Vietnamese-Style Noodle Soup {page 151}, also known as pho, is hands down the very best thing I've made from this book so far. It is ground-breaking, earth-shattering, and definitely justifies the purchase of this book all on its own {not to mention the dozens of other incredible recipes found in this book's pages}.

I love pho, but it's really hard to find vegetarian pho in Vietnamese restaurants. Most have pho without meat, but the broth is laden with beef stock. The Ninjahusband and I both agree -- this is the best pho either of us has ever had, vegan or not, restaurant or homemade.

It is a little time-consuming, as you have to wait for the broth to simmer for 45 minutes, but once the broth is made, the rest of the soup can be ready in 10 minutes flat. The broth is so complex and completely delicious, and it will make your whole house smell like heaven.

I made 3 minor alterations to the recipe. As I began adding things to the pot, I realized that I was completely out of ginger, so I added about 3/4 tsp of powdered ginger. Seemed to work fine. I couldn't really taste the ginger specifically, so at least I didn't add too much.

My 2nd modification was regarding the seitan. I don't like seitan in soups. It gets all spongey and tastes funny. I decided to omit the seitan and add some fried tofu the last 3 minutes of cooking. It was absolutely phenomenal with the fried tofu. I would definitely recommend making it like that if you aren't a fan of seitan in soup.

Finally, I may have added a bit too many noodles to the soup. The original amount didn't feel like quite enough, so I added a bit more. Turns out that the original amount WAS quite enough. But it was still great with the extra noodles. Just made it more substantial. Yum!

Overall, this soup was just one of the very best things I've eaten in a long time. If you love pho, make it! Even if you don't love pho, make it, and you'll be a pho-lover before your bowl is empty.

-- Your Friendly Neighborhood Batgirl

Fruit Salad in Winter

With Fruit Salad in Winter {page 96}, fruit salad need not only be confined to your summer plate, you can enjoy this delicious concoction of fruit and nuts at any time of year.

This salad showcases winter fruits at their finest -- apples, oranges, pears, red grapes, and star fruit combine into a delicious medley of textures and flavors. Chopped walnuts paired nicely with the fruit, for a crunchy and savory surprise. My only gripe with the salad at all is the dressing. I don't really feel like fruit salads need dressing, but in the spirit of being true to the recipe, I made it anyway. It was very oily, and while I didn't find it too off-putting {although it was definitely unnecessary}, the Ninjahusband and a friend I had over joked about it being "greasy fruit salad" and how they felt like their mouths were now primed for eating any number of large or difficult to eat objects. If I made this again, I would definitely avoid the dressing, or maybe skip the oil and just toss it with the lemon juice/agave.

-- Your Friendly Neighborhood Batgirl

Chinese "Chicken" Salad

I don't tend to make salads at home. I find them time consuming, and the return on investment low, but Chinese "Chicken" Salad {page 83} may become a frequent exception.

The dressing had a great peanutty flavor that combined well with the crunchy vegetables. I can see adding additional vegetables and nuts next time, to provide more variance of flavor and color. I looked hard for Asian-marinated tofu, but couldn't find anything along those lines, so I used Honey Sesame Baked Tofu {read the package -- no actual honey in it! Go figure!} and it paired really nicely with the Asian flavors.

It was a very nice salad, and when eating a good-sized portion of it with some bread it could easily be a full meal. I will definitely make this {and variations of this} often.

-- Your Friendly Neighborhood Batgirl