Tofu-Sausage Patties

Here is another successful recipe for The Patty.  My family and I really liked my Tofu Quinoa Patties , and it really encouraged me to keep trying my hand at variations. This one was also well-received by the fam; little JK had three! This one's base is also tofu, and I'm happy with the texture and taste.  The center, like the ones with quinoa, is still somewhat soft, but it actually doesn't detract from the end result.  I tried different methods of preparing these particular patties and ended up liking the final method the best, even though it might seem redundant or time-consuming.  The final patty is worth the process.  Eventually, I'd like to try my hand at patties with bases other than tofu, although these patties and the quinoa ones hold up really well and could be eaten as a burger with the bun.  I'll let you know when I have another patty worthy of showing you. 

Tofu-Sausage Patties

Ingredients:

3 leeks, the whites chopped small
1 head of garlic, peeled and chopped small
1 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 pkgs. 14-16oz. water-packed tofu, drained
1/2 cup cracker crumbs, either already boxed or grind your favorite
1 Gimme Lean Sausage tube
Canola oil for frying
Non-stick spray

Directions:

Heat the oven to 425 degrees.  Spray baking sheet with non-stick spray, and set aside.  In a large pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the leeks and garlic and cook for ten minutes, stirring occasionally, or until they begin to brown.   While those are cooking, mash the tofu in a large bowl.  Add the cracker crumbs and mash together, using your hands if necessary.  Do the same with the Gimme Lean sausage.  To the pan with the leeks and garlic, add the salt and pepper, and stir.  When ready, add those ingredients to the bowl with the tofu mixture and mix well.  Add a tablespoon or so of canola oil to the same pan, and keep heat on medium.  Shape the tofu mixture into balls slightly smaller than the size of a tennis ball - these are big patties!  Flatten them slightly in your palm and lay them in the pan.  Cook on one side for ten minutes without disturbing, then flip over and cook for another ten minutes. Add more oil to the pan, if you are doing these in batches. Place patties on baking sheet, and bake for twenty minutes, flipping halfway through. So good. Makes ten patties.  Feeds five hungry vegans.

Purple Sweet Potatoes with Facon

I first made this simple dish on Thanksgiving of 2012. We enjoyed it again last night.  It seemed like a simple way to snazz up sweet potatoes and make them savory instead of sweet.  This is such a filling dish that I think I made too much for us, but yay for leftovers!  Check out the steam in this photo!

Purple Sweet Potatoes with Facon

Ingredients:

5 purple sweet potatoes
1 Tbs. olive oil
1 pkg. SmartBacon
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Peel the sweet potatoes, and chop them into bite-sized chunks.  Put them in a large pot with water to cover.  Bring them to a full boil, and boil for five minutes.  While the potatoes are boiling, heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat.  Dice up the facon and add to the pan.  After the potatoes have boiled, drain them, and add them to the pan with the facon.  Add the salt and pepper, and continue cooking over medium heat for about another five minutes. When they have crisped slightly and been mixed well with the facon, they are ready.  Serve with a salad and another vegetable for a complete meal.  Feeds five hungry vegans with leftovers.

Kale with Sausage

Sometimes I feel silly posting easy recipes like this one, but then I figure that maybe not everyone's thought of this, and then I plunge forward.  You first saw this family favorite of ours in my Easter, 2010 post titled, "Pecan Raisin Tart."   I mentioned there that I would post the recipe later, and I guess "later" is what I really must have meant.  Better later than never, right?  I served this alongside my Simple Garlic Bread , and it made for a tasty meal.  

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Kale with Sausage

Ingredients:

2 Tbs. olive oil
2 tube pkgs. Gimme Lean, sausage style
2 bunches of kale, stripped from stems and chopped, about 6 - 8 cups
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat.  Slice each tube of Gimme Lean lengthwise and then in semi-circles.  Heat in oil for five minutes to where they are almost browned.  Add the kale and toss thoroughly.  Cook until kale has just wilted but has a nice bright green color.  Add the salt and pepper and serve.  Feeds five hungry vegans.  Satisfying, especially served with garlic bread and even a salad or a steamed veggie on the side.

Biscuits 'n' Sausage Gravy

This is my "official" biscuits and gravy recipe for Saturday mornings.  I mentioned in my post for my Peppery-Garlicky Gravy that that recipe was just for gravy, and I paired it in my post with biscuits, but it wasn't my official biscuits and gravy recipe.  Well, now, this one is.  It's also very kid-friendly.  The trick to making a recipe kid-friendly, I've discovered over the years through lots of trial and error, is to make the dish with few ingredients and with familiar ones.  My Blessings do not like onions, but they do like garlic, so besides salt and pepper, that's the basis of my seasonings for this gravy.  One more tip that I've learned along the way when making this particular gravy is to use plain or original flavored soy milk, not vanilla flavored.  Vanilla makes the gravy too sweet, and believe me, you don't want to listen to a Southern man complain about the sweetness of his gravy.  So, there is no broth in this gravy like there is my others; this is based on the country-style or Southern gravy used to cover biscuits or chicken-fried steaks, or in my case Seitan-fried steaks.  The ingredient list is short, and the cooking process itself is easy, so there's nothing holding you back. We like a lot of gravy, so this recipe yields several cups, good enough for leftovers!   For the biscuits, I just use my Classic Biscuits recipe.  I'll copy and paste that below for your ease.  Let me know if you enjoyed this when you try it. 

Biscuits 'n' Sausage Gravy

Sausage Gravy in the pan

Biscuits 'n' Sausage Gravy


Classic Biscuits:

Ingredients:

4 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbs. baking powder
2 tsp. salt
2/3 cup shortening
1 and 1/2 cups soy milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.  Add the shortening and use a fork or pastry cutter to blend it in until the dough is crumbly.  Use your fingers, if necessary, to complete the job.  Add the soy milk, and stir until well blended.  On a large, lightly floured surface knead the dough for about minute, not longer, or else it will get tough.  Put half the dough back in the bowl.  Roll out the other half to about a 1/2 inch thick.  Using a round glass, cut circles of dough out and place on an ungreased baking sheet.  When you've cut out as many circles as you can, roll the dough back up into a small ball and roll out a second time.  Try to handle as little as possible.  Continue cutting out circles.   With the last remaining dough, shape with your hands a final biscuit.  Repeat process with second half of dough waiting its turn in the bowl.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Serve hot in a bowl covered with a towel.  Makes approximately two dozen biscuits.  Feeds five hungry vegans for two meals.

Sausage Gravy:

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. olive oil
1 tube pkg. of Gimme Lean Sausage
5 cloves of garlic, minced
6 Tbs. vegan margarine
4 Tbs. flour
4 and 1/2 cups plain soy milk
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper 

While the biscuits are baking, you can start on your gravy.  In a large pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Take the Gimme Lean Sausage and break it up between your fingers, kind of smooshing it, and drop in by chunks into the pan.  Don't worry if they're not too small yet.  Add the minced garlic to the pan.  Cook for at least five minutes, occasionally breaking up the sausage chunks into smaller bits with the tip of your spatula.  When the sausage is about pea-sized and browned, scrape it and the garlic over to one side of the pan.  In the other side of the pan, melt the margarine.  When the margarine is melted, add the flour and whisk with the margarine.  When they've become a thick paste, slowly pour in the soy milk, whisking constantly, keeping out of the sausage bits as much as possible.  It's okay if they blend together after the flour paste has been whisked into the milk.  Once all the milk has been added, go ahead and blend the liquid and the sausage mix together with the whisk.  Add the salt and pepper.  Stir slowly and constantly with the whisk until the gravy bubbles.  Let it boil for one minute, while constantly stirring, then turn the heat off. Serve over biscuits for a hearty breakfast.  Feeds five hungry vegans with enough left over for lunch or another breakfast...and more!