Chocolate Chunk Cookies and Thanksgiving, 2011

We had another great Thanksgiving this year.  We filled our bellies and finished off the night playing Twister and the Five Little Monkeys board game.  As usual, everyone got to pick a dish that they wanted for the meal - dinner or dessert, their choice.  And, my job is always to fill in the blank (usually the vegetable).  This year, JK picked chocolate chip cookies.  When I went shopping, I saw a stash of chocolate chunks, which I haven't seen for about ten years!  I pointed them out to him, and thankfully, he agreed to the chunk version, yay!  Cookies are usually my sweet downfall, rather than cakes or pies.  They are so easy to pick up, and in a few bites they are gone.  I've got to figure out how to get control of that.  Anyhow, I simply veganized the recipe on the bag by Bakers and reworded the directions to suit my taste.  They were delicioso.  Between all of us, about half made it to the Thanksgiving table.  Serves me right for making them early in the day.

Here's our complete menu:

Tofurky - always picked by G
Gravy - Me
Cranberry sauce, smooth and chunky - SR
Waffle Fries - SR
Steamed Broccoli - Me

Chocolate Pumpkin Spice Cake - made completely by GR, no recipe for the cake or frosting, and she wrote Thanksgiving across the top
Pumpkin Pie - GR, who made this too, and we bought Rice Whip for the top
Roasted Chestnuts - Me
Chocolate Chunk Cookies - JK

Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Our Thanksgiving Spread

My Thanksgiving Plate

Our Dessert Spread

My Dessert Plate

Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Ingredients:

1 and 3/4 cup flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup vegan margarine, softened
1/2 cup vegan or raw sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 Tbs. EnerG Egg Replacer
2 Tbs. water
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 pkg. chocolate chunks

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.  In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and sugars.  Add the Egg Replacer, water and vanilla extract, and beat on low speed until well mixed.  Add the flour mixture in two halves to the sugar mix, and continue blending until well mixed.  Stir in the chocolate chunks.  Take a heaping tablespoon of the cookie dough - I found I had to mold it into balls in  my hands - and place on an ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake for twelve minutes.  Cool for a couple minutes on cookie sheet on cooling rack, then place cookies directly on cooling rack to finish cooling.  Makes about three dozen.  Feeds five hungry vegans.

Classic Bean Tacos

One of my dad's signature dishes was tacos.  We had taco night about once a month or so, and he was always in charge of it.  This version of the taco was the first one I made when I stopped eating meat, and I use all the traditional toppings that we used at home.  It hits the spot and the heart.

Classic Bean Tacos

Ingredients:

At least one 29oz. can vegetarian refried beans
Canola oil
20 or more corn tortillas
Hot sauce
Ketchup
3 green onions, sliced
Romaine lettuce, chopped
Tomatoes, diced
At least one medium can of sliced black olives
1 pkg. Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet cheese, cheddar style, finely shredded

Directions:

Heat the refried beans in a medium pot until warmed through.  Heat one teaspoon of the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat.  When hot, add one tortilla.  When it starts to change shape or bubble (just in ten seconds or so), flip over.  Add a large spoonful of beans down one side of the tortilla.  Fold the other side over the beans.  Place on a paper towel lined cookie sheet.  Follow suit with at least one more tortilla before adding a bit more oil to the pan.  Finish with the remaining tortillas and beans.  Have the toppings ready at the table.  I like to add the hot sauce and ketchup on the beans, so they stay put, instead of falling to the plate.  Have fun, enjoy the food, eat to your heart's content.  Feeds five hungry vegans.

Fried Potatoes with Jalapenos

I love to create spicy dishes, but with my family, I have to usually separate out all the spicy ingredients and add them in at the end for me.  This is one of those dishes - the Blessings are not too keen on onions and jalapenos.  But, lately, JK has been chowing down on pickled garlic, even though he still requires his potatoes to be peeled!  Anyhoo, if everyone in your family likes all the ingredients here, I recommend cooking the toppings with the potatoes, instead of in a separate pan like I did. 

Fried Potatoes with Jalapenos

Ingredients:

2 Tbs. canola oil
6 russet potatoes, peeled and cubed into bite-sized pieces
Salt and pepper to taste
1 Tbs. olive oil
1 large white onion, quartered and sliced
1 head of garlic, peeled and sliced
2 jalapenos, ends trimmed, seeded and quartered lengthwise, and sliced
Black pepper!

Directions:

In a large pan, heat the canola oil over medium heat.  When hot, add the potatoes and cook for at least twenty minutes, until they begin to get fork-tender.  Add the salt and pepper.  At this point, heat the olive oil in a medium pan over medium heat.  When hot, add the remaining ingredients, except for the black pepper.  Cook for about fifteen minutes, until onions are brownish or beginning to caramelize.  The potatoes should be done at this point - you're aiming for a brown crispiness on their edges.  Serve the potatoes and top with the jalapeno mixture.  Add pepper to taste.  So good.  (If you wish, you can add the uncooked onion, garlic and jalapenos to the potato dish, while the potatoes are still cooking, and cook them together.)  Feeds five hungry vegans.

Fried Tofu Sandwiches

When I was a kid, one of the few egg dishes I liked was my father's fried egg sandwiches - just a fried egg between two slices of bread, slathered with mayo.  Several years ago, I wanted to recreate that memory vegan-style, so I made a fried tofu sandwich.  At first it was just as simple as the egg version, but over the years it's become more grandiose with classic condiments and veggies added to it.  Now, I don't even think of my old childhood fave, for my new love is far superior in presentation and taste.  The sandwich pictured is with my Basic White Bread and my mom's homemade pickles - shout out to Mom!

Fried Tofu Sandwiches

Ingredients:

2 Tbs. canola oil
2 pkgs. of extra-firm tofu, drained and sliced in 1/4" to 1/2" slices width wise
10 Slices of bread
Vegenaise
Mustard
Lettuce, torn into sandwich size pieces
2 tomatoes, thickly sliced
Salt and pepper to taste, optional
Pickles, sliced into rounds

Directions:

Heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.  When hot add the tofu slices and cook until brown on both sides, about ten to fifteen minutes.  Repeat with rest of tofu, if all of it couldn't fit in pan the first time.  Drain on paper towels.  Spread Vegenaise and mustard on bread, add two or three pieces of tofu, along with the lettuce, tomato and pickles.  I  like to sprinkle salt and pepper on top of the tomato slices.  Serve with a side of roasted veggies, if desired.  Hits the spot.  Feeds five hungry vegans.

Almond Streusel Coffee Cake

This is a very similar coffee cake to my Apple Streusel Coffee Cake.  I veganized this from a mailbox solicitation years ago, making some adjustments in the ingredients and baking time.  Except for a slight change in directions and eliminating apples, there really isn't much difference.  I've really been enjoying using fresh citrus when I need their juice and grated peels in recipes; it is vastly superior to the store bought versions.  I recommend doing this, if you really want to taste the intensity of flavor.  I love to have these for Saturday breakfasts when I can get up early while the family is snoozing and fill the house with the fragrance of baking.  I usually make two and freeze the second sans glaze.  They are easy to reheat; just add the glaze when cool.  They're also great to thaw out and warm up for when guests come over.

Almond Streusel Coffee Cake

A slice of Almond Streusel Coffee Cake

Almond Streusel Coffee Cake

Ingredients:

Non- stick spray 

For the streusel:
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup flour
5 Tbs. vegan margarine, melted
1 tsp. fresh, grated orange peel

For the cake:
1/2 cup  vegan margarine, room temp or softened
1/2 cup  vegan or raw sugar
1 and 1/2 Tbs. EnerG Egg Replacer
6 Tbs. water
1 tsp. fresh, grated orange peel
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 cup orange juice (fresh from oranges, above, or store bought)

For the glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 and 1/2 tsp. orange juice

Directions:

For the streusel: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a Bundt-style cake pan with non-stick spray and set aside.  In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, sliced almonds and flour.  Add the margarine and orange peel and mix well.  Set aside.

For the cake: In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed.  In a mug, whisk together the Egg Replacer and water.  Add this, as well as the orange peel and vanilla to the sugar mixture.  Blend with the electric mixer, until incorporated.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and baking soda.  Alternate mixing in the dry ingredients with the orange juice into the sugar mixture.  Start with low speed and work your way up to medium.  Spoon half of the cake batter into the cake pan.  Follow with half of the streusel.  Finish scooping out the rest of the cake batter on top of the streusel, making sure to cover it as best you can.  Top with the remaining streusel.  Bake for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Ignore it if some streusel sticks to the pick; you're looking for gooey cake batter.  Cool on a cooling rack completely.  Once completely cooled, invert on a large plate, then invert again onto another plate, making sure the streusel is facing up.

For the glaze: In a small bowl, stir together the sugar and juice well.  Using a small spoon, drizzle in a zig zag fashion back and forth around the cake.  Let set up for at least fifteen minutes, before slicing.  Feeds five hungry vegans.

Tofu Tacos

We love taco night here at our home.  I always think it's going to be more work than it is, but really, it comes together in a half hour or less usually.  I like to make variations of things to keep them fresh and fun, but also hang on to the successful classics.  I started using tofu as one of my taco fillings a few years ago, and found that it worked really well.  Now, it is one of the fillings that I rotate around on taco night.  For the shells, I sometimes use a tad of oil to soften up the tortillas in a pan.  Use only as much as you need, just a couple of drops for two or more tortillas before adding more.  I find that corn tortillas sometimes need a little extra help to soften up, without breaking.  Here are some tasty toppings ideas for you, as well.

Tofu Tacos

Ingredients:

Canola oil, divided
2 pkgs. extra-firm tofu, drained and mashed
1 vegan taco seasoning packet
20 or more corn tortillas (we are feeding five hungry vegans here, with teens!)

Toppings:
1/2 white onion, sliced
1 tomato, diced
Fresh cilantro sprigs
Romaine, sliced in strips
Ketchup
Hot sauce

Directions:

Cover a large baking sheet with paper towels, set aside.  In a large pan, heat two tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat.  Add the mashed tofu and cook until it starts to brown, about fifteen or so minutes.  While cooking, prepare the toppings.  Add the taco seasoning packet to the tofu and stir well, cooking for another minute or so.  Remove from heat.  Heat a teaspoon of oil either in a large skillet or griddle over medium heat.  When hot, add one tortilla, wait ten or so seconds - bubbles may appear on the tortilla, or it may bend at the edges - flip over and scoop a tablespoon or so of the taco mix onto one side of the tortilla.  Flip the other side of the tortilla over to cover the filling.  Remove from skillet and place on baking sheet with the paper towels.  Repeat with one or two more tortillas, until the pan is dry, and then add a teaspoon more of oil.  Fill with an assortment of the toppings.  Just a small tip: I like to add the ketchup and/or hot sauce directly on the tofu, instead of on the very top of the toppings, so none of it falls onto the plate, if there's a topping avalanche.  Very yummy.  Feeds five hungry vegans, sometimes with some cold, tasty tacos leftover for the next day's lunch.

Joe's Special with Tofu

When I was twelve and fourteen years old, my father took on me long-distance bicycle trips: one was the California coast border to border and the other was Seattle to San Francisco.  He and I did a lot of shorter long trips together, but each of the two long-distance ones took us one month to accomplish.  They were literally the best times I had with my father growing up. We could talk, we saw sights and heard sounds that people in cars whizzing by missed.  We slept mostly in hiker-biker parts of regular campgrounds, but sometimes we found ourselves in a sheep farm, or a hidey-hole up a steep trail, or the rare hotel to wash up.  We met some great people on these trips, and if they were bikers going the same direction as us, we found ourselves meeting up at the next campground 50 to 75 miles away the next evening.  Sometimes we would get to know other travelers over a week.  It was a wonderful time for me.

One of the things that was commonplace was to share our meals with each other and develop a sort of outdoors banquet.  This is when I first had Joe's Special.  It was actually my father's contribution, but I don't recollect him making it other than on these trips.  We usually had it at least once a week on the road, and my belly always welcomed it.  The other campers brought whatever they had to contribute and would gather around the fire that was heating our meal; the smells were an invitation for everyone to join in.  My father made his with ground beef, mushrooms and spinach - we would carry the food and pans right in our panniers, our bicycle packs.  He seasoned it simply with just salt and pepper - the outdoor air and the moon and the crickets fed the rest of the senses.  I've made a vegan version in different ways over the years, and this is my take on it with tofu.  I've added liquid smoke to try and recapture the essence of being in the woods, the campfire lights sparking into the air, but I don't think anything will quite compare to the memories I treasure.  This is as close as I can get it.

Joe's Special with Tofu

Ingredients:

2 Tbs. of canola oil
2 pkgs. of extra-firm tofu, drained of water, cubed into approximate 1/2" squares
8 to 10 mushrooms, sliced thickly or quartered, depending on size
2 cups fresh spinach leaves
1/2 tsp. liquid smoke
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add the cubed tofu and cook until it browns, about fifteen to twenty minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the mushrooms and cook for another five minutes.  Add the spinach and seasoning and cook until the spinach wilts, just a couple of minutes.  Served with baked potatoes, this makes a complete meal.  Feeds five hungry vegans.