golden mushroom & pea risotto from the vegan chef

last saturday night i had a craving for something creamy and comforting, so i decided to find a vegan risotto recipe that would still be "creamy" without the butter & parmesan cheese. found it! thank you Vegan Chef  for this great recipe.

there were some tweaks i made to the recipe:
- i used chicken stock instead of veggie stock
- i did not add asparagus (not at the supermarket right now)
- left out the "nutritional yeast flakes" & lemon zest

it was still so good! definately

original recipe from The Vegan Chef


  3 1/2 - 4 cups vegetable stock
1 lb. asparagus, tough ends trimmed
1 cup onion, diced
2 T. olive oil
1 1/2 cups cremini mushrooms, destemmed, cut in half lengthwise, and sliced
2 T. garlic, minced
1 cup Arborio rice
1/2 cup white wine (optional) 
1/4 t. saffron threads
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup fresh or frozen peas
1/3 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1/4 cup freshly chopped parsley
2 T. freshly chopped dill
2 t. finely grated lemon zest
  In a medium saucepan, place the vegetable stock, and bring to a boil. Slice the asparagus spears diagonally into 1-inch pieces and place them in a fine mesh strainer. Place the strainer in the boiling vegetable stock and cook the asparagus in the stock for 2 minutes to blanch them. Remove the strainer from the stock and set the asparagus aside. Reduce the heat of the stock to low. In a large saucepan, saute the onion in the olive oil for 3 minutes to soften. Add the mushrooms and garlic and saute the mixture an additional 3 minutes. Add the Arborio rice, stir well to coat it with the sauteed vegetable mixture, and cook an additional 2 minutes while stirring constantly or until rice turns opaque.
Add the white wine (or use some of the stock if omitting) and saffron threads, season to taste with salt and pepper, and stir well to combine. Reduce the heat to low and cook the mixture while stirring occasionally until all of the liquid has been absorbed. Add 1/2 cup of the simmering vegetable stock and continue to cook, while stirring occasionally, until all of the stock has been absorbed. Repeat the procedure of adding a 1/2 cup of simmering stock, stirring, and cooking until fully absorbed before adding additional stock, until all but a 1/2 cup of stock remains. Add the blanched asparagus, along with the remaining ingredients, and stir well to combine. Cook the mixture an additional 2-3 minutes while stirring constantly, adding the remaining stock, as needed, so that the rice is tender and the risotto has a creamy consistency. Taste and adjust the seasonings, as desired.
Serves 4 (main dish) or 6 (side dish)

5 minute hummus

what's for breakfast? i am terrible about cooking breakfast- so not a morning person! 

we are trying out non-breakfast foods for breakfast since we aren't big fans of the traditional stuff (although i love a good waffle). but when ry requested hummus i was thrilled since i could make it the night before and he could have breakfast right away without waiting for me to make it. this recipe is so easy and good- no excuses not to make it now! 

5 Minute Hummus 

Makes 1 1⁄2 cups

Total Time: 05m

Ingredients

• 1  15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed
• 1  clove  garlic
• 1⁄4  cup  olive oil, plus more for serving
• 2  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice
• 2  tablespoons  tahini (sesame seed paste; optional)
• 1  teaspoon  ground cumin
• kosher salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  paprika

Directions

1. In a food processor, puree the chickpeas and garlic with the olive oil, lemon juice, tahini (if using), cumin, and ¾ teaspoon salt until smooth and creamy. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons water as necessary to achieve the desired consistency.

2. Transfer to a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with the paprika before serving.

Tip

This dip can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Nutritional Information

Calories 145; Fat 12g; Sat Fat 2g; Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 335mg; Protein 2g; Carbohydrate 8g; Sugar 1g; Fiber 2g; Iron 1mg; Calcium 19mg

ryan's pizza

a messy but delicious pizza dedicated to ryan

ry decided to avoid all cow products (so lots of dairy bye-bye) but goats cheese is still alright

so i made up a pizza topped with some of both our favorite veggies

Ry's Pizza

pizza dough

1 avocado diced 

1 roma tomato sliced 

1 orange bell pepper sliced into thin strips 

1/2 cup of yellow onion chopped

1/4 cup goat cheese

salt & pepper

olive oil

cornmeal

preheat oven to 430 degrees (or follow the pizza dough specific directions)

heat up some olive oil in a pan. add the chopped onion and orange bell pepper. saute till onion & bell pepper are soft. set aside to cool. 

roll out the pizza dough into desired shape. sprinkle cornmeal onto a baking sheet. place rolled out dough onto baking sheet. top with cooled bell pepper & onion mix. sprinkle on crumbled goat cheese. 

bake for 25 mins. 

remove pizza out of oven. top with avocado & tomato.

drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle on some salt & pepper. 

slice and enjoy!

im a fanatic- Fried Rice

what's my favorite savory food? easy peasy. its fried rice. so good- i could eat it everyday and not get sick of it. its kind of embarrassing. like how i make a batch and mysteriously 1/2 of it is missing by the time dinner comes around. yes its that good.

fried rice is supposed to be eaten alone as a snack, but i do like paring it with simple steamed veggies or potstickers that are not too complex so that the flavor the fried rice doesn't get covered up.

peanut oil really makes this dish sing but veggie oil works too. to make this dish vegetarian just use veggie broth instead of chicken broth and boom its awesome. be sure to use day-old rice here; if you use fresh cooked rice it will be too sticky/gloopy/ not yummy. i suggest making some rice in the morning and leaving it out on the counter to cool then transferring it to the fridge to dry out. then when dinnertime comes you got rice for fried rice!

do you own a rice cooker? i know alton brown says its not necessary, but hey i grew up with 3 rice cookers in our house- why did we need that many? i don't know, but it always made rice perfect so it became a need for me. and im Asian- its just a staple in most Asian cooking households right?

there are zillions of variations to fried rice but this is my very favorite. fried rice by Rose Cheng.

Basic Fried Rice

from Chinese Cookery  

After adding the rice, experiment and stir in your favorite diced cooked meat or vegetable.

2 eggs

1/2 tsp. salt

5 Tbsp. lard or peanut oil

1 cup chopped green onions

4 cups cold cooked rice

2 Tbsp. chicken broth

3 Tbsp. soy sauce

1/2 tsp. pepper

2 tsp. sesame oil

Beat eggs with 1/4 tsp. salt in a small bowl. Heat 2 Tbsp. lard or peanut oil in a wok over medium heat 1 minute. Pour in beaten eggs. Stir continuously until eggs are cooked dry and separated into small pieces.

Remove cooked eggs from wok and set aside. Heat 3 Tbsp. lard or peanut oil in wok over medium-high heat 1 minute. Add green onions and rice. Stir-fry for 5 minutes. Add chicken broth, remaining salt and soy sauce. Stir to mix well. Stir in cooked eggs, pepper and sesame oil. Serve hot. Makes 4-6 servings.

so you're going vegan?- Spicy Indian Chickpeas

yesterday ry and i were talking about the needed changes to his diet. it kind of terrified me. no eggs, no dairy, and no red meats. the no red meat thing was okay with me, i could totally be a pescetarian but every once in a while i love a great burger. but no dairy and eggs?! oh my gosh i love butter and heavy cream- what is a home cook to do?

most of my friends & family know that i dislike hippies and the hippie way of life (the no shower, dreadlocks  and hug trees type of hippie). its too relaxing for me. that's why my sister (future nurse) tells me that i will probably die early of stress, but at least i accomplished a lot! kidding. 

the word vegan equaled hippie to me. but after watching forks over knives i have definitely changed my way of thinking. 

last night for dinner i made lucinda scala quinn's Spicy Indian Chickpeas. so good. its a great cheap dinner that fills you up. the spices really make the chickpeas so delicious and it is on the spicier side but paired with some avocado its just perfect. white rice is my favorite accompaniment to this dish but lucinda also recommended cucumber yogurt salad .

now don't worry, this is not a vegan blog! just a blog about our food adventures in a kitchen that seriously needs a facelift but we deal with it and still make tasty food. 

Spicy Indian Chickpeas
from Mad Hungry by Lucinda Scala Quinn

Yield
Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

• • 2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped (about 1 1/2 cups), plus 1 small onion, sliced, for garnish
  • 8 cloves garlic, minced (2 tablespoons)
  • 1 3-inch-square piece of peeled fresh ginger, minced (3 tablespoons)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 3 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained (1 cup liquid reserved)
  • 1 large tomato, sliced in wedges, for garnishing
  • 3 hot fresh green chiles, sliced lengthwise and seeded, for garnishing

Directions

1. Heat large skillet and swirl in the oil. Add the chopped onion, garlic, and ginger. Saute until soft and lightly golden, 5 to 6 minutes.
2. In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon, garam masala, cumin, coriander, cloves, cayenne, and salt. Add to the onion mixture; cook and stir in the spices to lightly toast, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for another few minutes to combine. The color should be dark red.
3. Add the chickpeas plus the cup of reserved liquid. Stir to combine. Cover and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, removing the cover in the last few minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit for a minute to allow the beans to soak up the spice flavors. Season with salt to taste.
4. Serve in a shallow bowl garnished with the sliced onion, tomato wedges, and slices of green chiles.