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The Kitchen Recessionista

So, here we are, in a recession. Let's eat!

Memorial Day Cookout: Vegetarian Beer Brats With Asparagus and Baked Beans.

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Happy Memorial Day to you, friends, and my thoughts are with those who have lost loved ones.

Though the Memorial Day holiday isn’t the official start of the summer season, it sort of is, in terms of summertime activities.  Though we’ve been cooking out for weeks already, the Memorial Day barbecue holds a certain gravitas that our typical Sunday cookouts can’t quite muster. It’s the start of something Big, the start of summertime treats and pool parties and beach trips and outdoor movies.  As a result, I’ve been planning for it for weeks!
Tonight was an all-grill feast – no indoor cooking required!  First, I poured a can of baked beans into a grill pan, covered it with foil, and placed it on the grill to heat up, allowing a cook time of about 35 minutes from end to end.  Next up came the asparagus: These spears were just big enough to fit on skewers, so I carefully threaded them through and sprayed each side with cooking spray.  When I knew we had about 15 minutes left in our grilling time, I placed them onto the grates and seasoned each side with some Cajun seasoning.
Finally, out came the beer brats and accompanying sauerkraut!  As the brats cooked, I put some sauerkraut in a foil packet and heated it up alongside for some extra zest.  When dinner was nearly ready, I tossed two buns on to toast.
As for the final result: It was wonderful.  The brats, sauerkraut, asparagus, and beans were all fantastic (if I do say so), and the accompanying beer wasn’t so bad either!  We have a couple of brats left over for lunch this week, which I know neither of us will turn down.  Hooray for summer fun!

:)

Vegan Lasagna Primavera.

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I’m not gonna lie – this recipe has more steps than I usually care to embark upon on a Thursday night.  But the final result was so incredibly wonderful that it makes all the work worth it!
This was yet another recipe from the amazing Robin Robertson’s Vegan Planet, and as is the norm with Ms. Robinson’s work, it didn’t disappoint.  The filling was teeming with zucchini, mushrooms, shallots, carrots, crumbled tofu, parsley, spices; the vegan béchamel sauce that accompanies the filling is perhaps one of the most amazing sauces I’ve ever had, vegan or no!
I went against the rules a bit by not boiling my lasagna noodles before placing them in the pan; that’s a time-saving trick my mother showed me long ago that continues to pay dividends today!  Otherwise, though, I followed Robertson’s recipe to the letter (almost), and I wasn’t disappointed with the results.
What a wonderfully light, yet filling, dish!  The lasagna had so many fresh vegetables inside that we didn’t even serve a side salad as accompaniment, and the béchamel sauce added a wonderfully hearty taste without being overly rich.  The tofu filling was almost ricotta-like in texture and had a very fresh taste, and the noodles cooked down just as Mom always says they will. :)  What else could you ask for!
How about leftovers?  We’ve got those, too – enough to carry us through the weekend.  Hooray!

:)

Pink Beans and Rice With Vegan “Fish.”

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Tonight, we traveled to Puerto Rico – in our little kitchen, that is – with a new take on Old Faithful!  Pink beans, yellow rice, and even some “fish cakes” on the side – what could be better?
We’d never tried pink beans before, but when we spied them in the international grocery store awhile back we knew we had to bring them home for later.  Turns out “later” was tonight!
I steamed the rice by cooking it in the rice cooker along with a packet of Goya seasoning, and as it cooked, I heated the beans on the stovetop as I would Old Faithful.  (Call it a lack of creativity if you must, but I wanted my first enjoyment of pink beans to be pure and unadulterated!)  As everything cooked, I heated some Sophie’s Kitchen “fishless sticks” in the oven to stand in for a traditional codfish cake.  This was our first time trying this particular Sophie’s product, and not to spoil the surprise, but we liked it very much!
Once everything was thoroughly cooked, it was time to serve the meal.  We spooned rice onto each of our plates and topped it with the pink beans, placing the fishless sticks on the side.  Then came the toppings – chopped onion, salsa, sour cream, Daiya cheddar, hot sauce, and black olives, in random order!
The result?  Fantastic!  We loved the mellowness of the pink beans and thought the fishless sticks were great – tasty, and reminiscent of fish without being too overly fishy.  I get the sense that the pink beans will gladly take on the flavors of whatever we season them with, and we’ll definitely experiment with seasoning blends in the future!
And, as usual, our hearts sang with joy at the realization that at least one of us will get to enjoy these leftovers tomorrow.  I love when lunch comes pre-cooked and pre-packed the night before!

:)

Vegan Tomato Pie With Salad.

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Oooh, Memorial Day is almost here! And with that, the start of the summer season!
I’m jumping the gun a tad today by launching in with the year’s first tomato pie, but that’s OK.  I think you can handle it. ;)
I was first introduced to this recipe by Christy over at Southern Plate, and it’s been a family favorite ever since!  Tonight’s recipe was slightly different from the ones I’ve made in the past, however, in that I used vegan substitutes for the cheese and mayo ingredients!  It’s just LeeLee and me dining tonight, so I figured what’s the harm in a little experimentation between friends and loved ones.  So instead of using cheddar, I used Daiya cheddar; instead of full-fledged mayo, I used Vegenaise.
Now, sometimes these substitutions work like a champ; sometimes they don’t.  Tonight, thankfully, was a champ!  The Daiya blended beautifully, and the Vegenaise added the same creaminess that regular mayo would’ve.  And though the tomatoes weren’t farmer’s-market-fresh, they were still juicy and tasty, their flavors enhanced by half an hour in the oven.
Like last night, we paired our entrée with a salad complete with fixins from the garden: Fresh lettuce and homemade creamy dill dressing with backyard limes.  (The cherry tomatoes came from Safeway, but let’s not quibble.)  It made for a cool side, dovetailing nicely with piping-hot pie!
And with that, the season’s first tomato pie is in the books.  There’s more where this comes from!

:)

New Recipe! English Muffin Pizzas.

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Why, pray tell, haven’t I made these earlier?
When you want all the taste and flavor of pizza without dealing with making your own dough, these English muffin pizzas hit the spot.  Dress them up however you would a regular pizza and feel your cares melt away.
OK, I may be overselling that last part – I still have a care or two, even after dinner.  But I can’t express enough my love for these mini-pizzas.  They’re quick, easy, and of course tasty!
Tonight, LeeLee got home a little later than planned, and before he arrived I had occupied myself in our great spring decluttering spree and lost all track of the time.  When he called to say he was on his way, I sprung into action – and dinner was ready almost as soon as he walked in the door!  This recipe is THAT easy.
We served the pizzas with a side salad – but a side salad with extra flair!  All of the lettuce came from our backyard garden, and we topped it with tomatoes, mushrooms, and Daiya cheddar.  The dressing was a homegrown affair, as well – Vegenaise, olive oil, salt, pepper, and backyard dill and lime juice (from a backyard lime tree!) blended together into a creamy, wonderful topping.
Give the English muffin pizzas a try and let me know how you like them!
ENGLISH MUFFIN PIZZAS
Serves two
What you’ll need:
4 English muffins, sliced in half
1 jar pizza sauce
1 package Daiya mozzarella (or the cheese of your choice)
1 package veggie pepperoni
1 container of sliced button mushrooms
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Arrange each muffin half on a large baking sheet.  Top each muffin with pizza sauce to taste (we like ours pretty saucy!).  Next, top each muffin with mozzarella (don’t skimp!).  Finally, add pepperoni onto half of the muffins and mushrooms onto the other half – or in any other combination you prefer.  Or with any other toppings you prefer.  The opportunities are limitless!
Next, place the baking sheet into the oven for 10 minutes, checking after 7 or 8 minutes just to be safe.  Once the cheese is melted and the muffins are crispy, they’re done!  Serve and enjoy.

:)

Sunday Cookout: Vegetarian “Beef” Tacos.

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Yes, yes, I know what you’re thinking: Tacos for a cookout?
Well … not really.  In fact, all weekend LeeLee and I had been looking forward to grilling beer brats with all the fixins.  But upon opening the grill at 6:30 this evening, to begin cooking, I was dismayed to see that my ash dump had turned into a concrete pit, soaked as it was in a mix of ash and three-day-old rainwater, a casualty of Friday morning’s deluge. 
I calmly removed the ash dump and, well, dumped the standing water.  But the cement-like ash residue remained, all soggy and clumpy and sad.
As is my way, I took matters into my own hands – literally – and began beating on the back of the ash dump in an attempt to dislodge the wet cement.  No dice.  I slammed it (half out of necessity, half in frustration) onto the patio.  No dice.  That cement had begun to gel, and I knew I was fighting a losing battle.
So I evaluated my options.  How to grill sans ash dump?  I even consulted the wide expanse of the Internet’s barbecue knowledge, to no avail.  An ash dump, it would appear, is a very useful thing to have when generating ashes (and, before that, fire) in a grill.
It took me about 25 minutes to concede defeat, but once I did, it was all systems go toward Plan B.  As LeeLee prepared the back yard for our feast – we may not be grilling tonight, but we were still going to enjoy the nice weather! – I heated up some ground “beef” in one pan, some refried beans in another, and got some rice started in the rice cooker.  As everything simmered away, I chopped up some onion, cherry tomato, fresh lettuce and cilantro from the garden, and some black olives.  Once the rice was finished, so was everything else (I’d put the taco shells in the oven about 5 minutes before dinnertime), and we prepared our plates and carted them outside to enjoy al fresco.
Our menu items may have changed, but the tacos were still quite tasty!  We mowed everything down with the usual fervor and were both so pleased to learn that in the end we had lots left over for lunch tomorrow.  And those beer brats?  They’ll be making an entrance soon themselves – just as soon as my ash dump dries out.

:)

Tomato and Rice Soup With Pesto.

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So, before we get into the makings of this meal, a confession: This was supposed to be a Crock-Pot meal, but this morning, as I surveyed what was on the dinner docket for tonight, I said to myself, “Ah, soup in the Crock-Pot.  Got it!” and … left the house.
Without giving another thought to the fact that a Crock-Pot meal needs to be cooked in the … Crock-Pot.
But that’s OK!  Because once I got home from work, I was able to recreate this tomato and rice soup in my trusty Le Creuset French oven, and it worked just beautifully in the end.  No harm, no foul!
This is a recipe that comes from one of my oldest cookbooks – my Better Homes and Gardens Crockery Cookbook.  I believe I’ve mentioned it in these pages before.  It remains one of my very favorite resources, and I’m still trying new-to-me recipes from it!  Tonight’s was just such a recipe.
Anyway, slow cooker or no, the tomato and rice soup was wonderful!  LeeLee was delayed in getting home tonight, so it had plenty of time to simmer, and upon his arrival I added the instant rice and, just before serving, a couple of hearty dollops of pesto.  Served with a garlic breadstick on the side, it was a fantastically complete meal that we will definitely make again!
Initially, I was nervous that this soup would be too wintry for our now-springlike tastes.  Not at all.  The tomatoes gave this dish a fresh, summery feel, and it was both hearty enough to stand on its own yet light enough to not weigh you down on a warm evening.  The best of both worlds!

:)

“Beef” and Hash-Brown Casserole With Sautéed Vegetables.

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This is one of my favorite recipes from Christy over at Southern Plate!  At first blush, beef and hash-brown casserole may not seem to be the most vegetarian-friendly dish, but it’s so easy to veggie-ize nearly anything these days, and this is no different.  Who WOULDN’T love a blend of veggie burger crumbles, shredded hash-brown potatoes, pasta sauce, onions, and (vegan, tonight) cheese?  It fits the bill any time!
The casserole isn’t exactly a quick-fix meal, but it is a surefire multitask recipe.  With very few steps, it’s easy to set and forget, freeing up time to, say, do a load of laundry (check) or clean the kitchen from a rush-out-the-door morning (check) or dust the living room (OK, maybe not).  Add the potatoes, bake; add the crumbles, onion, sauce, potatoes, bake; add the cheese, bake.  And you’re done!  It can’t get much easier than that.  Or much tastier, either!
Tonight, on the side, I sautéed up a mix of frozen vegetables – peas, corn, green beans, and carrots.  I added some chipotle seasoning from Rosetta Farms and, for an extra-special surprise, several strips of veggie bacon, which I cut into little squares.  I sautéed everything at medium-high heat for the last 20 minutes of the casserole’s cook time, and everything came out hot, crispy and well-seasoned!
I confess we each enjoyed two hearty servings of casserole, plus the entire pan of veggies!  And since the casserole recipe makes a full lasagna pan’s worth, we’ll have plenty of leftovers for the rest of the week.  Not a bad deal when you get right down to it!

:)

New Recipe! Bowtie Pasta With Tomato “Meat” Sauce

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This recipe is one that I’ve been working on for quite awhile, and I’m finally happy with it.  In previous incarnations, the sauce was too light (I used whole tomatoes, which I crushed by hand), or too bland (I didn’t add adequate seasoning), or it wasn’t creamy enough (I didn’t add the small can of tomato sauce).  Now, though, it has an excellent balance of flavor and texture – and it makes enough for guests (or for leftovers!).
The first time I put this together, it was a clean-the-pantry night with a twist: LeeLee and I were going to our neighborhood theatre for a play that evening, and we wanted to both cut costs and have a nice meal.  A few cans of tomato products later, mingled with some vegetarian burger crumbles and herbs and spices, and we were on to a new pasta sauce!
And it’s only gotten better with every iteration.  Furthermore, it simmers just beautifully – if you’re entertaining or your dinner partner is held up at work (this happens at our house from time to time, as you might have gathered by now), you needn’t worry about the quality of the sauce as a result.  It will simmer right on!
Anyway, give it a try and let me know what you think!
TOMATO “MEAT” SAUCE
Serves five
What you’ll need:
1 14.5-oz can of crushed tomatoes
1 small can of tomato sauce
1 can sliced mushrooms
1 package of vegetarian burger crumbles
2 tsp. onion flakes
1 tsp. garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste
Place the crumbles in a medium-sized saucepan.  Add the mushrooms, crushed tomatoes, and tomato sauce, and then stir in the spices.  Cover – because this sauce will splatter all over your stovetop if you’re not careful! – and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour, stirring occasionally.
Serve atop the pasta of your choice and enjoy!

:)

Chik’n Posole.

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Tonight was one of those tight-turnaround nights that our family is famous for during the week!  I knew that chik’n posole – one of our favorite quick-fixes – would fit the bill perfectly!  It’s light on the tongue but filling to the tummy, and paired with a garlic breadstick, it makes for a hearty dinner.

What’s more, tonight’s posole had a special guest – cilantro straight from the garden!  Good old cilantro, a favorite herb around here, has a pretty limited time to shine; it starts to bolt by Independence Day and by midsummer we’re forced to replace it with another herb (or two).  But while it’s in bloom, look out – it’s a taste that can’t be beat!
I feel so sorry for those folks who can’t taste the goodness in cilantro but instead are left with nothing but a soapy aftertaste.  My condolences to your poor taste buds!  It’ll be a struggle, but LeeLee and I will enjoy your portion on your behalf. ;)
So, with only about a half-hour to turn dinner around and get it onto the table, chik’n posole gets the job done every time.  The sad news is that there aren’t any leftovers – we cleaned the pot! – but that’s a price we’ll have to pay.

:)