The Hearty Vegan's Texas Tempeh & Texas Tempeh sausage

What I'm enjoying, lately, is cooking, and eating, this locally produced Tempeh. 

The tempeh is also available in both black eyed pea and garbanzo bean versions.

Thanks to the good ladies at The Hearty Vegan.

Yes, I'm in Houston, and yes, this is made in Austin. It's not exactly biking distance, yet as local as one can get without making it oneself.

Recipes are available on their website

heartyvegan.com

Meatless

Veg Cook Book Club

<http://vegcookbookclub.com>

choose

  MEATLESS

from the kitchens of Martha Stewart Living

for our June collaboration.

From page 32, I made

Zucchini "Pasta" with Tomatoes and Walnuts

Served on a bed of red leaf lettuce.
Excellent "raw" dish for cool summer dining.
Added chopped onions, and extra garlic for more flavor,
and used miso paste instead of salt.
Sungold cherry tomatoes, basil, and zucchini 
are from my garden.
making the dish very fresh and inexpensive.
Highly recommended, and will make again!

Vegan on the Cheap, May VegCookBook Club

Joined the VegCookBook Club at
http://vegcookbookclub.com
just before leaving town earlier this month. Lots of beautiful photos and interesting commentary from  
fellow vegans cooking from whatever book is selected for that month.
Selection for May is Robin Robertson's Vegan on the Cheap,



from which I adapted the Southern News Year's Stew, since I had most of the ingredients on hand, and wanted to use the last of the local collards, which were in my share box from my Rawfully Organic co-op.
<Rawfullyorganic.com>
Didn't have any potatoes, so I left that out, and increased the brown rice to 3/4 cup. Instead of cooking the greens beforehand, I added them to the stew during the last 20 minutes of cooking.

Wha We Eat - Vegan King Cake for Mardi Gras

Laissez les bon temps rouler!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLqjLn0W5K0

(

In honor of Mardi Gras

and Black History Month,

baked 

Vegan King Cake 

for last night's

Vegan Sociey of PEACE's

2nd Saturday's Potluck.

Used KitteeKake's 

recipe from

Cake Maker To The Stars

http://kitteekake.blogspot.com/2008/02/king-cake.html

After rising, rolled, stuffed and ring shaped..

Baked and cooling.

ld

Glazed and sprinkled, purple, green and yellow.

Curried Lentil Rice Soup

Last night was

our 2013 inaugural

2nd Saturdays Potluck.

Theme was soups, stews, salads.

My dish

Curried Lentil Rice Soup.

Cooked on stove, carried to potluck dinner, 

and kept warm in crockpot for serving.

Recipe:

1/2 cup brown Basmati rice, soaked for 2 hours

1 cup dry brown or green lentils, soaked for at least 2 hours

1 Tablespoon olive oil

(may substitute 2-4 Tablespoons vegetable broth to reduce fat)

1 large red onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

4 large celery stalks, chopped

1/2 pound bag carrots, diced

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon chipotle or ancho chile powder (optional)

pinch black pepper

4 cups vegetable stock

4 cups water

3 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Directions:

Rinse and soak brown rice 2 hours, then drain.

Rinse and soak lentils minimum 2 hours, drain and rinse again.

Heat olive oil in large pot, over medium high heat until hot.

Add onion, garlic, celery, carrots, cumin seeds, curry powder, paprika, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper, chile powder if using. 

Stir to combine., cover and cook until vegetables begin to soften,

8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

If using vegetable broth instead of oil, check more frequently and add more broth if vegetables start to stick to pot.

Add drained rice, stir to combine, and cook for 2 minutes.

Add drained lentils, stir to combine, and cook for additional minute.

Add broth and water, increase heat until boiling.

Stir, cover, reduce heat to low and simmer 25 - 30 minutes.

Remove from heat.

Stir in apple cider vinegar and serve.

Like most soups, this one gets better with time.

Depending on your diners, ancho or chipotle seasoning might be too much of a kick, so optional.

Enjoy!

Celebrating 1968 release of

Otis Redding's

(Sittin' On the)

Dock of The Bay

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCmUhYSr-e4

Because 

it's a classic, like good soup,

I love Otis Redding's music,

and, though I am and will always be a mega

Florida Gator fan,

I am also an NCAA South East Conference fan

(GO SEC)

and celebrating conference college football win

last Monday night watching the

"...Tide roll away.." ND.

Black-eyed peas and Collard greens - Imani/New Year's Eats

Happy New Year 

- 13 years into the new century.

WOW!

Happy Kwanzaa!

Principle of the day

IMANI

- Faith!

Resolving to do MORE in 2013; 
in whatever way MORE presents itself.
For today, MORE home cooking!
New Year's traditional food
Black eyed peas and greens, with grits.

Creole Hoppin' - Jean (Jon) 
(Black eyed peas, brown rice and tomatoes)
from
Bryant Terry's
Vegan Soul Kitchen

Grits, aka polenta to some.
My own basic recipe:
4 cups vegetable broth
2 cups organic (non-GMO) stone ground corn meal
pinch seasoned salt 
(more or less depending on saltiness of your broth; 
we like Tony Chachere's)
In medium saucepan over high heat, bring broth to boil.
Reduce heat to medium high; slowly whisk in corn meal and salt,
whisking constantly to prevent lumps.
If any lumps do form, break them up with whisk.
Remove from heat and serve immediately.

Collard greens and tomatoes
2 bunches collards, washed and chopped
(do not dry greens; moisture helps steam them when cooking)
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 medium red onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
2 large tomatoes, chopped (optional)
1/2 cup vegetable broth
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
In large skillet over medium high heat, saute onion in oil until softened, 3-5 minutes.
Reduce heat to medium.
Add garlic, pepper flakes and tomato. Saute for a minute. 
Slowly stir in broth to de-glaze pan, 
if any bits of onion are sticking to pan.
Add greens, handful at a time, adding more as the greens "cook down" or wilt. 
Stir in salt.
Cover and cook for 5 minutes, until greens are completely wilted.
Remove from heat, serve.

For this dish, I spooned grits into middle of plate,
and surrounded them with the "hoppin-jean" and greens.
Grits take the place of the usual cornbread.
I prefer the texture of the stone ground corn meal for grits,
instead of the packaged grits sold in most stores.
The tomatoes in both the peas and the greens 
are from my summer garden frozen stash. 
A 14oz can of diced tomatoes will work, or just omit them.

Inspiration for this plating was a vegan "grains and greens" meal enjoyed at an Abyssinian restaurant last summer in San Diego, 
where the grits were surrounded by the greens and scooped up with one's fingers to "spoon" the greens into one's mouth
Because of the peas and rice, I used a fork.

Blessed, Healthy, Happy, Prosperous
2013!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXeXV0vgrtY

Jill Scott's BLESSED.
Enjoy!