Dinner

I had some finely shredded cabbage left from this weekend's Food for Life class and decided to make a waterless dish. I  put garlic, ginger, broccoli stalk cubes, onion, seitan, the cabbage, Roma tomato cubes, dried oregano, salt, and black pepper into a large Saladmaster stock pan. I cooked waterlessly - i.e., I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started jiggling, then I reduced the heat to low till the jiggle stopped. I let it cook for about 20 minutes. I served with some freshly chopped cilantro. I also served Madagascar Pink rice, as well as heirloom tomato slices. Results Wow, we all enjoyed dinner. Frankly, I was a little concerned when the dish was underway as the batch of seitan that I had purchased wasn't as tasty as I had hoped. But the flavor combination was excellent and it didn't need any additional spices. Ideas for the future I love the results of waterless cooking and should more regularly cook this way. I don't cook w...

I came home and got to work almost immediately making dinner. I had purchased collard greens several days earlier and wanted to use them; I thought of the idea of collard rollups and found a recipe that suggested blanching the collard leaves and then filling; I may try this interesting recipe with coconut curry sometime. I didn't have time to cook beans so used a 13.4 ounce box of kidney beans and a bit of canellini beans that I had on hand. I cooked waterlessly (i.e., I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started jiggling, then I reduced the heat to low till the jiggle stopped for about 20 minutes) the beans along with a clove of chopped garlic, along with other chopped vegetables (a green onion, broccoli including stem, and about a half dozen olives), plus 1/4 t salt, 2T nutritional yeast, and 1/4 cup marinara. I blanched the intact collard leaves one at a time by putting each leaf in a pan with about an inch of boiling water for 15 seconds a sid...

My wife and daughter are traveling on Friday and I'm teaching tomorrow, so this is my last meal for the family till they return. My wife had picked up some broccolini, which I thought I'd make a mixed vegetable waterless dish out of. I picked up some  Hempé brand soy-free hemp seed and chickpea tempeh, which I air fried at 350°F for 4 minutes then 400°F for an additional 2 minutes. I put, in this order, a little onion, half a head of broccolini chopped into 1/2" pieces, maybe 2 cups of frozen cauliflower florets, 3/4 cup frozen bell pepper slices, and a large baby bok choy, cut into 1" lengths, into a large Saladmaster stock pan. I cooked waterlessly - i.e., I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started jiggling, then I reduced the heat to low till the jiggle stopped. I let it cook for about 20 minutes. I mixed the "fried" tempeh and vegetables, then mixed in 4T of Frontera brand key lime skillet sauce  (1g of fat per 2T). ...

I bought some fresh cranberry beans from a nearby farmers' market this past weekend. I love cranberry beans and haven't seen them dried (or fresh) for sometime now. I sauteed some onion and baby ginger in a small  Saladmaster stock pan for a few minutes, then added the fresh beans, enough water to just cover the beans, a diced carrot, a green (not quite ripe) tomato that I also bought at the market, a vegan bouillon cube, garlic powder, and salt. I brought to a boil and cooked, uncovered, for about 5 minutes, then covered and simmered on low heat for  20 minutes. I then mixed in a chopped roasted bell pepper that I had also purchased from the market, and served, along with a cucumber-caper-Ume plum vinegar salad and brown rice noodles. Results I was going to serve the beans as the main course, which I did, but it turned out a soup rather than a more firm plated dish. I am not normally so excited about soup, but my whole family loved the entire dinner, especially the soup. It ...

The hurricane is slowly passing us by and finally we had some sunshine today - but also tornado warnings this morning, a lot of rain, and nearby areas experienced flooding. We are lucking out and haven't even lost power, but I'm still focused on bringing down my frozen food inventory. I recently bought frozen riced broccoli (blanced organic broccoli and salt), and decided to cook it waterlessly (I just put it in my small  Saladmaster stock pan, covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started jiggling, then I reduced the heat to low till the jiggle stopped. I let it cook for about 7-10 minutes, really just to defrost and heat up. I made a "cheese" sauce to serve atop the broccoli by blending soaked cashews, water, nutritional yeast, garlic, salt, and, for color, a little bit of tomato and red bell pepper. I mentioned in the recent past about, for me, a new tofu company called Hodo Foods  . I bought their braised tofu and used it with dinn...

Hurricane Florence is bearing down on the Carolinas and I am concerned about those who live or have property along the shore. I remember living through Hurricane Fran , which was scary, and that was a category 3 storm; this could hit category 5 and be much more destructive. However, I'm hopeful that by the time it hits our area, we'll get perhaps 30-40 mph winds, which wouldn't be bad. With that as a long preamble, we are not going to be surprised if our power goes out, so I thought I should start eating up frozen foods. If we do lose power and have frozen foods, they will quickly spoil and need to be discarded. I had a favorite frozen pizza, Vegan Harvest by American Flatbread  on hand; I love its crispy crust and find it better than some pizzeria pizza. I also made a waterless broccoli dish with broccoli, kale, garlic, onion, lemon juice, turmeric, garlic granules, and salt. I recently found a nice breakfast dish with organic grains and quinoa called a  Cinnamon Vanill...

For dinner today, I wanted to use some beans but hadn't soaked any. This is the reason I keep a few cans of beans around; I had a 15 ounce can of organic "salad beans" (chickpeas, kidney beans, pinto beans). I did a waterless preparation of the beans with onion, garlic, kale, and mixed vegetables cooked in a  Saladmaster stock pan. I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started jiggling, then I reduced the heat to low till the jiggle stopped. I let it cook for about 20 minutes though 10-12 minutes would have been enough (I just wasn't ready to serve). I mixed some red curry paste with millet and brown rice ramen . The bean mixture went atop, and roma tomato thirds triangulated the plate. Results Dinner was good! The curry paste was just spicy enough for my daughter and I liked it; my wife added some hot sauce. I was pleased about how easy, nutritious, and quick this meal was! Ideas for the future We all like curry pastes; I should coo...

We have a new store that opened near our house last week called Sprouts ; we visited and found it doesn't have the variety and quality of coops or Whole Foods Market , but it's nice that it's nearby so we may occasionally visit. They had a few products we've not seen elsewhere, such as  Lightlife brand vegan "sausage" ravioli  that I picked up and decided to make today. It's not particularly healthy as it has 16g of fat and a long list of ingredients, but I thought we'd try it. (It turns out it had soy which my wife is a bit intolerant of, so I prepared some pasta instead for her but used the same sauce, side dish, and salad for her.) I made a homemade sauce by sauteeing chunks of just-ripe but firm tomato, bell pepper, garlic, and onion, and mixing in oregano, salt, and black pepper when off the heat. I don't often make tomato sauces - this one was good! I put, in this order, onion, garlic, frozen cauliflower, and frozen baby lima beans into a la...

I made a waterless meal by putting, in this order, onion, shallot, matchsticks of potato, broccoli, fennel, and fresh sage leaves into a large Saladmaster stock pan. I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started jiggling, then I reduced the heat to low till the jiggle stopped. I let it cook for about 15 minutes. I then mixed in  Victoria Vegan brand arugula pesto alfredo sauce ; I will classify this as an almost no added fat meal; the sauce has 5g fat per quarter cup, but I only used about 1/4 cup to make our three servings. I simmered, covered, on low for a few more minutes. I then added a bit of cubed (1/4") shallot, salt, freshly ground black pepper, and dried oregano. I served it with brown rice maifun noodles and leftover dhal. Results Pending Ideas for the future Pending

We had a Kindergartener friend over for dinner and I thought I'd make a simple whole wheat pearled couscous meal. The couscous is easily made in a ratio of 1 : 1.5 of couscous to water. Here is what I did. Ingredients 1 clove garlic finely minced 1 1/2 cups whole wheat pearled cousous 2 1/4 cups water 1 cup frozen mixed chopped vegetables Vegan bouillon cube 1/4 t salt 8 ounce packet of tempeh cut into thin rectangles maybe 3/4" x 1/2" x 1/4" 1/8 cup onion cut into 3/8" cubes (I used both red and sweet onions) 1-2 T coconut aminos (or soy sauce or tamari) (optional) 1/2 t dried chives Process I dry sauteed the garlic for a minute in a large  Saladmaster  stock pan with no water or any other item. I then added the water and couscous, along with the vegetables, bouillon cube, and salt, and brought to a boil. Once at a boil, I reduced the heat to low and simmered, covered, for 10 minutes. While the couscous was cooking, I sauteed the tempeh and 2/3 of the onion on ...

I had some friends over and had made a very early dinner for them when my daughter and wife came home, so I had a fun, extended cooking time, launching right into our own dinner. I used pans that I had just used for the earlier meal, so I didn't have extra cleanup. I wanted to get a meal going and served quickly, so decided to make a waterless meal. Here is what I did. Ingredients 1/2 cup onion cut into 3/8" cubes 2 cloves garlic, finely (1/8" or so) chopped 3 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into 1/2" cubes (just under 1/2 cup) 1 cup eggplant, cut into 1/4" pieces 1 cup frozen chopped spinach 1/2 of a small (about 14 1/2 ounce) can of diced tomatoes (i.e., about 7 ounces) 1/2 t salt 1/4 freshly ground black pepper Process I put, in this order, the onion, garlic, potato, eggplant, and spinach into a small  Saladmaster stock pan; it almost filled the pan. I cooked waterlessly - i.e., I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started j...

I had a half head of cauliflower that I wanted to use and found that my wife had cooked some black-eyed peas. I also had a turnip that needed to be used. I decided to make a waterless main course, and serve sauteed plantain slices on the side, along with a lovely purple carrot and icicle radish slices. Here is what I did. Ingredients 1/4 cup onion cut into 3/8" cubes 1 clove garlic, finely (< 1/8") minced Medium turnip, peeled and cut into 1/4" cubes About 2 cups of cauliflower florets (about half a head) 1/4 of a medium Meyer lemon juiced and remainder chopped into 3/8" cubes (only if organic; if a non-Meyer lemon or lime is used, use just the colored outside zest) 1/4 t salt 1/4 t freshly ground black pepper 1/8 t turmeric 1/8 t dried oregano Process I put, in this order, the onion, garlic, turnip, cauliflower, and black-eyed peas into a large Saladmaster stock pan. I cooked waterlessly - i.e., I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor rel...

My daughter was feeling a little bit sick yesterday so is eating just a little. She wanted mashed potatoes and didn't want the skins, so I had Russet potato skins with a bit of potato on them, and had the idea of making some sort of dish for my wife and me that incorporated the potato skins. I also had made sweet potato while pressure steaming the potato (for 20 minutes in my  Instant Pot  pressure cooker). I made a waterless dish; I didn't plan ahead to have beans ready, so used the one can of chickpeas I had on hand. I put into a large Saladmaster stock pan these ingredients in this order: onion, garlic, potato skins, chickpeas, and frozen spinach. I cooked waterlessly - i.e., I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started jiggling, then I reduced the heat to low till the jiggle stopped. I let it cook for about 20 minutes. Results Pending Ideas for the future Pending

My daughter picked out a recipe from Ruby Roth 's The Help Yourself Cookbook for Kids , soba noodles with toasted sesame seeds. I didn't have soba but did have udon noodles on hand, and made a simple dish inspired by her recipe by: boiling udon noodles for 8m, sauteeing over low heat for 3-4 minutes or so black sesame seeds on a dry cast iron pan (being careful not to burn the seeds), and using a small  Saladmaster stock pan to cook waterlessly (I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started jiggling, then I reduced the heat to low till the jiggle stopped) for about 15m onion, broccoli, and seitan. I drained the noodles and rinsed them with cold water, then returned them to the pan and mixed in some coconut aminos (or soy sauce). I served, topped with toasted sesame seeds and the vegetable-seitan mix. Results Dinner came out surprisingly well! I wanted to have a flavorful broth for the noodles and wish I had had more time to come up with some so...

We're vegan and occasionally eat some vegan cheese (rarely for my wife who never liked cheese and once in a while for me as it tends to be high in fat and processed). I do like Miyoko's Kitchen (I met Miyoko at a conference where I was also presenting) products and recently found their vegan version of mozzarella , and thought I'd make an eggplant dish with this. Here is what I did. Ingredients 1 1/4 cups onion cut into 3/8" cubes 4 cups eggplant cut into 1/2" cubes (about 2/3 of a medium eggplant) 1 clove garlic, finely (1/8") minced - 15m 5m more 1 1/4 ounces marinara sauce 1/4 t salt 1/2 t freshly ground black pepper 1/4 t dried oregano 3-4 ounces of vegan "mozzarella cheese" cut into small chunks as per chef's preference (mine were approximately 1/2" chunks) Process I put, in this order, the onion and then the eggplant into a large Saladmaster stock pan. I cooked waterlessly - i.e., I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until...

The weather became cold tonight and I felt like a warm soup. I thought I'd make a main course of a curried cauliflower dish along with a dhal. Frankly, I prefer a chunkier not even quite stew to dhal often, but though I've tried cooking dishes like lentils at the low end of the water and high end of the time required, I generally get a product more liquidy than I expect (I do like dhal and soup, but often try for something thicker, which I also like!). Tonight, I ended up with a nice consistency of my lentil dish which was actually just a tad bit dryer than it could have been. Here is what I did. Ingredients 1 1/2 cups brown lentils 1 1/2 times as much water (i.e., 2 1/4 cups) 1 cup carrot cut into 3/8" slices (I used 3 small carrots; if they weren't thin, I'd have halved them, as well) 2 cloves garlic, finely (1/8") minced About 2T organic Meyer lemon, including all (flesh and rind), cut into 3/8" cubes (if no organic Meyer lemon or no Meyer lemon at all...

A few days ago, I found in a gourmet market an interesting looking thin bean called a  "rice bean" , also known as frijol arroz . It is quite small, like large rice grains, and cooks stovetop in just 20-25 minutes with 2" of water above the beans. The website description, however, suggests 30 minutes: Rice Beans ( Phaseolus vulgaris ) are related to the Kidney Bean. They have a mild flavor and firm texture. Grown in Idaho, these beans are 1/4" long and are pill-shaped, like a giant grain of rice. Their uniform ivory white color and unique shape make it hard to believe they're really beans. This quick cooking bean makes it ideal for dinners in a hurry, perfect for cold pasta and vegetable salads. Rice Beans are also great mixed with colored rices such as wild rice or Thai black sticky rice. There is no soaking required. Rinse beans well. Place in pot and cover with plenty of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Drain and serve. One cup ...

I made a simple waterless main course with two tablespoons of onion cut into 3/8" cubes, 1 clove garlic finely (1/8") chopped, 1 cup frozen baby lima beans, and 6 ounces of grilled " artihearts " put, in that order, into a  Saladmaster stock pan. I cooked waterlessly - i.e., I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started jiggling, then I reduced the heat to low till the jiggle stopped. I let it cook for about 15 minutes. I mixed in 1/4 t kala namak ("black salt", but other salt could be used), 1/4 t dried tarragon, and 1/8 t garlic powder, then served with plantains cooked on a cast iron pan with no oil, as well as quinoa. Results Dinner was good! The artichoke-lima bean combination was better than I expected. I sometimes add turmeric to quinoa and did so today, but I used more turmeric than usual - not enough to make it bitter, but enough to add a nice, stronger flavor to the quinoa. Ideas for the future I should explore m...

I have some extra grilled " artihearts " (grilled artichoke hearts) leftover from our glorious Thanksgiving dinner so will be coming up with several meals featuring them. Here is what I did today. Ingredients 2/3 cup onion cut into 1/2" cubes 2/3 cup frozen mushroom slices 2/3 cup frozen Brussels sprouts 1 6 ounce packet grilled " artihearts " (grilled artichoke hearts; alternately, regular artichoke hearts) cut into approx. 1/2" cubes (a little over a cup) 2/3 cup frozen bell pepper slices (maybe 1 1/4" x 1/4") 1/4 t salt 1/8 t freshly ground black pepper 1/8 t garlic powder 1/8 t tarragon 1/8 t fennel seeds Process I put, in this order, the onion, mushroom, Brussels sprouts, artichoke, and bell pepper into a large Saladmaster stock pan. I cooked waterlessly - i.e., I covered the pan and heated it on medium high until the vapor release started jiggling, then I reduced the heat to low till the jiggle stopped. I let it cook for about 20 minutes....

Happy Halloween! I had a little pumpkin puree on hand and was very happy with my recent ( October 18th ) experiment cooking with seitan and pumpkin puree. I came up with the idea of cooking seitan with vegetables and pumpkin, then mixing in fresh, raw tomatoes when I served. I made the mistake of mixing the tomatoes in with the couscous which I had thought to make as a side dish - and, in hindsight, I think my "mistake" was fortuitous as it nicely elevated the taste and presentation of the couscous. Here's what I did. Ingredients 1/2 cup whole wheat couscous 3/4 cup water (I accidentally used 1 cup) 1 cup frozen Brussel sprouts Vegan bouillon cube 2/3 cup tomato cut into 1/2" cubes (much of a small-medium tomato) 2T minced basil leaves 3/4 cup onion cut into thin half moons app. 1/4" x 1 1/2" 8 ounces of seitan (I used strips, but any convenient size can be used) 1 1/3 cups carrot cut into 3/8" widths (I used two medium carrots) 1 2/3 compressed cups k...