Every weekend, I say a little goodbye to my bright red grill for the season, absolutely certain that the following Sunday I’ll be firing up the smoker for the first time this fall.  And every weekend, the weather is so beautiful that LeeLee and I feel we simply must grill out just one more time!

This weekend was no exception.  With highs pushing 90 degrees, we knew we had to take advantage of the warm weather while we could, knowing that come January, we’ll be pining for the temperate days of yore.

So, with that, I began marinating my tofu with buffalo sauce in the middle of the afternoon and put a whole butternut squash in the oven to bake an hour and a half before dinnertime.  (Incidentally, I don’t know why I’ve never roasted butternut squash whole before – it’s so much easier than trying to wrestle with the raw version before putting it in the oven!  After 90 minutes at 425 degrees, the squash was amazingly soft, and cutting it open and scooping out the seeds was a breeze.)

Jut before I fired up the grill, I wrapped some Brussels sprouts with Morningstar Farms veggie bacon and placed them in a grill pan.  Once the coals were nice and hot, I put the pan on for what would end up being about half an hour; the tofu joined in for the final 20 minutes. 

The days are getting shorter, so LeeLee and I brought out some candles – tea candles set in half-pint jars – to illuminate our meal.  Nothing beats a Sunday night candlelight dinner!  Add a couple of Pabst Blue Ribbon beers (why not?), and this cookout was worthy of any summertime Sunday.

The food itself was great; we eschewed hoagie rolls and enjoyed our Buffalo tofu in its more natural state, using a blend of Vegenaise and leftover Buffalo sauce for a dip.  The squash fell apart with every forkful; topped with a pat of butter and cinnamon, it was almost a dessert rather than a side item.  And the bacon-wrapped sprouts?  Well, they were not long for this world.  They’re always a hit, and so easy to make!

Maybe next weekend we’ll bust out the smoker for the first time this season.  Maybe not!  Either way, I’m looking forward to cooking out already.

:)

I tell you what, we’ve made good use out of our newest library find, The Chinese Takeout Cookbook!

Tonight’s dish was the second one we’ve whipped up from said cookbook in short order, and like this meal’s predecessor, the cashew seitan turned out beautifully.  I think I’m finally getting the hang of stir-frying after all these years!  The secret is in the high heat; you can’t be timid and try cooking at medium-low when medium-high is what it takes to get the job done. 

Like so many other Asian dishes, this cashew chicken recipe (posted here on the New York Daily News website) was easily veggie-cized.  I’m developing a much-too-late-in-the-game adoration of seitan, one of those vegetarian staples that’s been around forever but hasn’t had a presence in my refrigerator much until very recently.  I tell you what, I won’t let that seitan out of my sight again!  It’s so meaty and can be substituted for both beef and chicken in the right circumstances.  In tonight’s meal, it filled in for chicken wonderfully – so much so that LeeLee firmly believes meat-eaters would never know the difference.  We may have to test his theory sometime soon! ;)

At any rate, the longest part of the cooking time was getting the rice ready in the rice cooker.  While it steamed, I prepared the marinade and plunked the seitan in for a little bath, then set to work on getting my sauce put together and the onion and garlic chopped.  (I made a tactical error and neglected to purchase a bell pepper from the grocery store and/or market – but the dish wasn’t hurt any by its absence.)  Then I put several frozen spring rolls in the oven to bake and waited for the rice to be nearly finished.

When nearly all the water was gone from the rice cooker, I swirled a touch of vegetable oil in my best wok-like frying pan, then threw the garlic in for a quick cook.  Next I added the seitan, let it cook through, and tossed in the chopped onion.  Once it became slightly translucent, I added the sauce, and, finally, the cashews right before I turned off the stove.  Think about it – the entire entrée, ready in 7 minutes!  Amazing.  I love stir-frying, now that I know how to do it right!

The one thing I’ll tweak the next time I use this recipe is the kind of cashew I add.  These were lightly salted, per the recipe, but combined with the soy sauce I felt the dish ended up just a little bit too sodium-filled for my taste.  Next time I’ll get the unsalted version, and I’m sure the pairing will be perfect.  Tonight’s meal wasn’t bad by any means, but we could all stand a little less salt, right?

At any rate, this was a fantastic meal that took less time than if we’d ordered from a “real” Chinese restaurant.  I’m already looking forward to our next meal from the cookbook – and hope you will too!

:)

I haven’t made a pot pie in 100 years (or maybe a year), but now that we’re knocking on October’s door, my thoughts are turning to piping-hot comfort foods.  Seitan pot pie is just the ticket!

The prep work is a breeze, especially when you use store-bought crust (as I did tonight).  To be fair, sometimes I’ll take the time to make my own, and it’s really not that hard; but on work nights, it’s often all I can do to put a few convenience items together and call it dinner.  That’s where we are today. ;)

First of all, I started in on the buttercup squash.  Rather than wrestling with it in its raw state, I decided to cook it whole.  So onto a pizza pan it went, and into the oven at 375. All told, it needs to cook for 45 minutes to an hour to cook through, which times out just perfectly with the seitan pot pie!

Next, it was time to tackle said pie.  In a mixing bowl, add one can of drained peas and carrots and one small drained can of kernel corn.  Add the seitan to the mixture and top with three-quarters of a cup (or so — eyeball it and make adjustments where needed) of mushroom gravy.  Next up, it’s time for the seasonings – garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, and thyme to taste.  Stir your filling to blend it well and add it to the pie crust.

Now, what I’m about to confess is going to sound sort of janky.  It’s not my proudest moment, but then it’s not my least proud, so let’s just come out with it.

I first made this pot pie when I was in college, and I didn’t know that pie crusts came in two styles – prebaked in the pie plate, and roll-out.  So when shopping for this recipe, I purchased the only kind I knew about – the pie-plate kind.  (As a side note, now that I’m vegetarian, I have a hard time finding a roll-out crust that doesn’t have lard, so we’re still largely a crust-in-the-plate family when I don’t make my own.)

When I got to the part of the recipe where I needed a crust to top off the dish, I simply turned the second crust out of its pie plate and molded it atop my pot pie.  It’s easier – and, sometimes, tidier – than it sounds. Voila! A complete seitan pot pie.  Scoff if you like, but it works for me!

With the pie covered, I simply put the dish in the oven at 375 for 35 minutes.  After the time has elapsed, check to ensure everything has heated through, and once you find that it has, you’re almost there.  Place your pie in the middle of the table — it’s cute enough.  Then slice open the squash, scoop out the seeds, and spoon the orange flesh into a serving dish (and add some cinnamon, if you like).  And dinner is served!  Autumn fare, just in time for October.

:)

I hate to brag, but the weather up here in the DC area today is pretty much perfect.  Perhaps this is Mother Nature’s way of making up for a potential government shutdown this week?  Either way, I’m glad to have 75 and sunny!  (Though my thoughts go out to my friends who may be furloughed on Tuesday.)

This was supposed to be a smoker meal, but the weather was just too nice for us not to fire up the grill again.  Before we got the grill heated up, I put a whole spaghetti squash in the oven at 375 (with plans for it to cook for an hour or so, all told) and then commenced with the cookout.

Great Country Farms provided us with a slew of green beans this week, so I prepared them by snapping off the ends, putting them into an aluminum grill pan with some butter, Cajun seasoning, and diced fresh tomato, and covering them with foil.  Once the grill was properly heated, I tossed the pan onto the grates and let it cook for about 20 minutes.

After those 20 minutes had elapsed, it was time to cook the mushrooms!  In the mid-afternoon, I washed the three caps, put them in a zip-top bag, and tossed them with some olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and steak seasoning.  They marinated until it was time to shine on the grill, and then I added them to the fire.  A couple of quick flips in five-minute increments, and they were ready!  (You can find the full step-by-step recipe below.)

By this time, the spaghetti squash was also ready for its close-up, so I removed it from the oven, let it cool for a minute or two, and then cut it open crosswise.  I scooped out the seeds and began to separate all the spaghetti-like strands with a fork, putting them into a serving bowl as they separated.  I tossed the finished product with some butter, salt, and pepper, and added some nutritional yeast flakes on top for texture, and just like that, dinner was served – al fresco, as the sun began to slip down in the West.  A perfect end to September!

GRILLED PORTOBELLO MUSHROOM CAPS

Serves three

What you’ll need:

3 portobello mushroom caps

¾ cup olive oil

½ cup balsamic vinegar

1 tsp. pepper

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. garlic powder

½ tsp. onion powder

½ tsp. steak seasoning

Wash the mushroom caps thoroughly and dry them well. Then place them in a zip-top bag – I actually use two, one nestled inside another – and top with the remaining ingredients.  Seal the bag(s) and work the mixture around gently with your hands to ensure all mushrooms are covered (depending on the size of your caps, you may need additional olive oil and/or vinegar – you can add it at this stage).  Then place the bag(s) in the refrigerator and let marinate for two to three hours.

When you’re ready for dinner, heat your grill up and place the mushrooms, cap side down, on the grates.  Cook for 5 to 8 minutes and flip, cooking for another 5 to 8.  If you like them especially charred, you can leave them on much longer – but I find this timing is adequate for our tastes!

:)

On Friday, LeeLee and I ventured out to the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains to enjoy our annual apple-picking excursion, wherein we play hooky from work for the day and immerse ourselves in the business of collecting a bushel (not a typo) of apples in all shapes, sizes, and varieties.  Each year, we have a blast, and since we started this tradition five years ago, we’ve developed more “must-dos” throughout the day, from revisiting prime picnicking spots to visiting our favorite bookshop in Front Royal, Va.  By the time we’re finished with our mini-vacation, we’ve checked a lot more off our lists than just collecting bags of apples.  We’ve had time to talk, uninterrupted, and spent a few hours just relaxing and rejuvenating.  That, alone, is worth the trip!

But on to the apples.  Each year we visit Hartland Orchard in Markham, Va., for a great day of picking.  Even on the bad years, where apples aren’t quite as plentiful in our region, we have a great time selecting pre-picked fruits from the expansive bins.  But this year is apparently a great apple year – there were so many Red Deliciouses on the trees!  So many Fujis!  So many Granny Smiths!

Well, suffice it to say, we cleaned up.  We began with the Red Delicious trees, filling our two half-bushel bags halfway with the red beauties.  Per tradition, LeeLee snagged an apple-picking pole from the front office and proceeded to grab the highest-perched fruits, gently bringing them down to earth and plunking them into his bag.  I, however, stuck to the low-hanging fruit – I’ve always been efficient, you see – and soon, bags half-filled, we were ready to move on to the Fujis and Granny Smiths, which in tandem filled up the rest of the bushel.

Picking the apples is such fun.  Pulling fruit from its tree is about as locally sourced as it comes!  And in terms of entertainment value, between wrestling with the apple-picker and chasing after wayward apples after a bag gives way on the hillside, the excursion can’t be beat.  (And the recessionista in me has to add: At $24 for the full bushel, we certainly got a great deal!)

So what are we going to do with all these apples?  Many, many things.  I’ll be cooking applesauce in the Crock-Pot each morning for the next week (at least!), canning the results every night.  Apple butter is always a special fall treat (and an excellent Christmas gift!).  I love making apple pie, apple crisps, and stuffed apples, among other sweet treats.  Not to mention, they just taste good in regular old fruit form.  :)

They may not keep quite as long as the 40 pounds of potatoes we picked a few weeks ago, but we’re old pros at apple-preserving by now.  The clock is ticking!  It’s time to start cooking, canning, and freezing.  Updates to come as events progress!

:)

This is one of my favorite meals – and one of my mother’s specialties.  She taught me this particular recipe when I was first learning to cook around age 10 or so, and it’s been a go-to for me ever since!  Teeming with veggies and filled with protein, thanks to the veggie “chik’n,” it goes great over rice.

Gumbo purists might look askance when they hear that our gumbo doesn’t begin with the traditional roux.  Rather, it begins with the whole kit and caboodle of ingredients thrown in one after another – a bag of frozen okra, a bag of frozen mixed vegetables, one can of diced tomatoes, a container of veggie chik’n (we used Beyond Meat today), a healthy dose of Cajun seasoning, and, finally, a carton (about four cups) of vegetable broth.  Heat your soup pot to boiling, then cook on Medium for half an hour or so – just enough time for your rice to cook!

In the final 10 minutes of the cooking time, I popped several slices of garlic bread into the oven to bake as a treat.  I try to avoid impulse buys in the grocery store, but as I stood in the frozen-food section tonight, picking up some supplies I’ll need for the weekend, the bread beckoned me, and into my basket it went.  Blame it on a weak moment.  But on the plus side, we’ll certainly put every slice to good use!

This gumbo makes a lot, and it keeps (and freezes!) very well.  In fact, the leftovers are usually better than the original batch, since the flavors have more time to mingle.  Gives us something to look forward to for lunch!

:)

Over the weekend, what with the college-football lineup going strong and whatnot, I completely forgot to tell you about my vegan “egg”-salad sandwich!

I had a long run on Saturday morning – three hours, 30 minutes, to be exact (I went about 17 miles), and by the time I got home I was famished.  So after a shower and a cup of coffee – one must have one’s priorities, you see – I decided to have an early lunch while watching “College GameDay” on TV.  It’s a Saturday-morning favorite, and I always aim to be back home, dressed, and ready to go by the time Lee Corso picks his favorite team to win.

I knew I needed something with lots of protein, but I’m also trying to watch my fat and cholesterol intake.  Tofu “egg”-salad sandwiches were just the ticket!

I crumbled up a block of firm tofu in a bowl (I should have used soft, but Safeway was out), then added a healthy amount of Vegenaise and topped the mixture with salt, pepper, onion powder, and turmeric.  I mixed everything together until it was well-blended, then put the tofu salad in between slices wheat bread.  Served with a side of Pringles, it hit the spot and restored my energy!  I had to go back for a little more of the salad just by itself; just to make sure it was still good, you know. ;)

It had been awhile since I’d made one of these sandwiches, and I’d forgotten just how good they are.  Tofu salad will definitely be in my office-lunch rotation this fall!

:)

I’ve been craving fiesta taco salad ever since I first made a month or so ago!  Tonight’s variation was a bit more stripped-down than the last time I made it, primarily because LeeLee was at a meeting (another one!) tonight and I didn’t feel the need to pile my plate high with toppings!  Tonight’s salad didn’t miss a beat – with tortilla chips topped with lettuce, ground “beef,” fresh cherry tomatoes, and Daiya pepper jack vegan cheese, what’s not to love?  Top the whole thing off with a homemade dressing (more on that in a second), and you’ve got a great, light meal that’s filling, too.

I did add a few garnishes, of course.  As I cooked the “beef” in a sautee pan, I added a liberal amount of adobo seasoning for good measure; I found that to be a less salty, more flavorful taste than the taco seasoning packet I used last time around.  And I purchased sliced black olives for the occasion but completely forgot to use them!  So they’ll keep in the cabinet for another time.

Now, about that dressing.  It’s embarrassingly simple to make, and so very tasty (if I do say so).  Simply put several tablespoons of mayonnaise (I used Vegenaise) into a bowl or a jar and add a teaspoon of lemon juice and two teaspoons of olive oil.  Add salt and pepper to taste and then whisk the dressing together to see what you’ve got.  Too lemony?  Add some olive oil or mayo.  Too olive oily?  Add lemon juice or, yes, mayo.  Too much mayo?  Add more of the other two ingredients.  You really can’t hurt this dressing, and it’s made in a snap.

We’ve got plenty of all the ingredients left over, even after yours truly had two helpings for dinner, which means LeeLee will have plenty in the fridge for after his meeting tonight.  Or we can both enjoy leftovers for lunch tomorrow!  The best of both worlds.

:)