This morning Piet spoke with a few friends back home in England. Hobnobs, a European biscuit, came up in conversation due to the fact that you can purchase them in the US at import stores, but they are incredibly overpriced. Temped by his friend Steph’s comment about home made Hobnobs, I got right to work making some of my own. They turned out just right! Recipe after the cut.

1 1/4 cups oats
1/4 cup & 2 tablespoons flour
1/4 cup & 2 tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 cup & 1 tablespoon butter
1/2 tablespoon corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
chocolate chips

Mix all dry ingredients together in a medium sized bowl. Add the wet in and mix together. Should be a dry batter.

Place between 2 sheets wax paper and roll out till about 1/4 inch thick. Cut out cookies with cookie cutter, or wine glass like I did

Bake for 12 minutes at 350 degrees.

Meanwhile melt chocolate chips by placing them in a metal bowl and setting that in a small sauce pan with simmering water.

When cookies are done, let cool for a bit and then spread melted chocolate over the top.

Eat and enjoy!

Today is a good day. My order of cotton came in, what will I use it for? Stay tuned!

Also, I made these delicious little stuffed potatoes the other night. Aren’t they pretty? Better yet no dairy involved! Just Broccoli, garlic and red pepper flakes! So good.

Last night and today has been a cooking frenzy for me. I really should be studying and getting caught up on reading, but apparently the kitchen calls! I started out last night making my first ever tamales! So yummy! Piet and I are going to a Cinco De Mayo party on Wednesday, and I shuttered at the thought of mounds of delicious food covered in cheese. I really wanted an alternative to eat guilt and bloat free. So I went out on a limb and made vegan tamales which will be served with Tofutti Better than Sour Cream.See this recipe and others after the cut below.

Next was Bran Muffins. This only came about when cruising the Winco bulk (our favorite place in the world) and discovered whole wheat bran, so I snatched some up. This recipe of course uses apple sauce in place of eggs and since they are on the healthy side, I decided to top them with a sprinkle of Sugar in the Raw mixed with cinnamon.

And last is another loaf of my French Bread. It is the newest addition to my bread repertoire and the most simple. I think everyone was getting sick of my rosemary olive oil haha.

Recipes and a note about veganism and me below.

After long hibernation, Keven the “vegan” is making a partial comeback. I was never vegan for issues regarding animal cureltly (to put it lightly) as I believe even meat eaters can make the right choices by purchasing locally farmed grass fed meat, and you don’t need to be vegan to take a stand against the horrors of our meat industry. With that said, I would rather be a regular person who for the most part choses to have a “vegan” diet, but I love eating delicious food other people make me regardless of what is in it, and I love trying new things.

Piet and I already do not purchase or cook meat (except on a very rare occasion I surprise him with bacon), i’ve turned him onto the delicious wonders of Almond Milk, so we no longer have to buy milk for his tea or cereal, I cook most my meals with whole foods and tons of olive oil, I NEVER use butter, and I almost always substitute apple sauce in my baking for eggs (makes for some amazing corn bread!). So, it’s not a huge stretch for us to take it to the next level and make an intentional decision to be healthier people. I feel better when I cook and eat in a way that does not involve animal products, but that doesn’t mean we can eat the delicious grass fed, locally raised steak Andy cooks up on the BBQ or have a peiece of Grandmas pie just because it has butter in it…..mmm these bran muffins are good and getting crumbs all over my keyboard….ok now for recipes.

Vegan Tamales

6 cups water or vegetable broth
1 cup corn oil
2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 bag corn husks (you can buy these at Fred Meyer or Winco)
6 cups Maseca corn masa mix for tamales (also at the above stores)
2 cans black beans (approx 4 cups)
1 chopped onion
16 cloves roasted garlic, chopped (could substitute with garlic powder)
2 tablespoons olive oil
Optional : Trader Joe’s tofu Chorizo.

First thing is to roast the garlic if you are going the long route. Here are some good instructions on how to do that.

Soak corn huks in warm water for 10 – 20 minutes so the individual husks come apart easily.

In a large mixing bowl combine corn mesa mix, water/veg broth, baking powder, corn oil and salt. Mix well and set aside.

To make the filling sate chopped onion and garlic in 2 tablespoons olive oil for about 10 min or until soft and translucent. Combine with black beans in blender. Here you can experiment with other spices or I threw a splash of worcestershire sauce and white wine vinegar. Pure until smooth.

Spread open individual corn husks and spread a good amount of mesa mix onto each one, leaving about 1/2 inch on either side. Then put a spoonful of the filling in the middle, and sprinkle some tofu chorizo in there as well if you like. Fold the small end of the husk up and then fold the sides in so they overlap and you surround the filling with the mesa mix on the inside.

Stand them up open side up, in a large pot with a steamer inside and steam covered for about 2 hours. Check on them every 20 min or so to replenish water if needed.

Bran Muffins

2 1/2 cup wheat bran
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup brown or white sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup apple sauce
1 cup almond or soy milk
1/3 cup canola oil

Mix bran, flour, sugar , baking soda and salt in large mixing bowl.

Combine oil, milk and apple sauce in small bowl. Whisk until frothy. Slowly add to dry mixture until all combined, but don’t mix too much. Distribute evenly into muffin cups and you can add sugar and cinnamon or sliced almonds to the top of each.

Bake in muffin tin at 400 for 20 minutes. Enjoy!

Piet and I attending our St. Cupcake tasting today for the wedding. We really lucked out, and they have agreed to do a trade with Plywerk for the cupcakes. (Thank you Kim & Kjell!) So we dropped by their bakery in NW Portland to sort everything out. There are still a few we need to try out that they didn’t have today, however I fell in love with the Fat Elvis…mmm. We also got a goodie box to take home with us!

It was a great experience, and it will come highly recommended from us!

The Olive Oil Rosemary is so far my favorite, check out the recipe below the cut.

Combine these ingredients in the bread maker in this order:

1 cup warm water

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon italian spices
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon rosemary (i usually add more than that and of the italian spices)
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons yeast

You can either make the whole loaf in the machine, or make the dough and bake in the oven at 350F for 45 minutes.

Enjoy!

Friday I got a wild hair (or is it hare?) to bake some bread. Luckly I remember Kim & Kjell bought a bread machine, and I was lucky enough to borrow it. Well since Friday night i’ve baked 5 loaves of bread and gained 5lbs. The baking frenzy will calm, but i’m really excited about the idea of never having to buy bread again. The pictured loaf is a Jalapeno Cheese bread, the recipe is below the cut. Although my prized loaf so far is a delicious Rosemary and Olive Oil. I’ll get some pictures and post the recipe soon.

I prefer making the dough in the machine and then baking the bread in the oven. However this particular recipe requires baking it in the oven.

Add these ingredients in this order:

1 cup milk
2 tablespoons melted butter / margarine
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons yeast

Turn bread machine onto the dough setting and about half way through cycle  (so there is still one more kneading cycle left) add the following ingredients:

2 tablespoons finely chopped jalapenos – add more for a more spicy bread
1 tablespoon chopped or dry minced onion

Once the dough is ready roll it out and sprinkle the flat dough with 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese. Roll the dough back up and pop it in the oven at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until it sounds hollow if you tap it with a knife.

This bread is so good with a yummy jelly spread on a slice. Enjoy!

For Thanksgiving I made some candied cranberries which sampled and got the idea from Whole Foods. I’m pretty sure the bag of cranberries I bought were not ripe enough, so I would sample your cranberries before going through the whole process…like I did. They still turned out pretty though!

First I made some simple syrup, which is 1 part boiling water and then add 2 parts sugar. I soaked the cranberries in the simple syrup for 24 hours, then drained and rinsed.

Then I let them dry on a baking sheet and coated them with powered sugar.

This is a fairly simple recipe to make an impressive main course. I’ve made it a few times and it seems to be a hit! Goes well with salad and roasted fingerling potatoes.

I start out by cutting the tops of each pepper off and rinsing out the inside. Then I poach them in salted boiling water for about 4-5 minutes and set them aside. Best to keep them warm in the oven if you can.

Then I made the sauce starting with sautéing about half an onion for ten minutes and then adding coriander, turmeric and cumin generously and 6 whole cloves and cumin. Saute for about 5 more min and add coconut milk, as much milk as you need sauce. Add more above named spices and salt to taste and some thing spicy if you like things with more kick. Simmer on low while you cook the filling.

The filling can be anything you want really. I like to use about 2 onions, sweet potato and mushrooms. But you can add any vegetables you like. Mix in more cumin, coriander, turmeric and salt…I tried mixing it all together with ricotta to give it a more creamy texture.

Fill each pepper and place in hot sauce to heat it up a bit…then serve!

]]> http://cafevanzoen.com/2009/11/18/stuffed-bell-peppers/feed/ 1 http://cafevanzoen.com/2009/10/25/pumpkin-gnocchi-ravioli/ http://cafevanzoen.com/2009/10/25/pumpkin-gnocchi-ravioli/#comments Mon, 26 Oct 2009 02:10:38 +0000 Keven http://cafevanzoen.com/?p=116

Friday evening we had some friends over for dinner, one of which is allergic to gluten and dairy. I had planned on experimenting with a craving for ravioli, so I went ahead and tried it gluten free and non gluten free. Both recipes included in this post.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup cream cheese or Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese
1 cup cold mashed potatoes
1 medium shallot- grated
4 oz. egg whites
1/4 Tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 TSP Allspice
1/2 Tsp salt
1/2 Tsp pepper
Dash of hot pepper sauce
3 Tbsp butter or butter alternative
2 – 2 1/2 cups flour or gluten free flour
1 cup ricotta or an additional cup of Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese
1 cup pumpkin paste (not the pumpkin pie filling

Dough: combine everything through hot pepper sauce mixing thoroughly. Stir in flour until soft dough is formed.

Filling: combine pumpkin paste and ricotta or Tofutti with salt and pepper to taste, or any other spices you see fit.

Heavily flour surface for rolling out the dough. Use a cookie cutter square or round (or even a wine glass will work) and cut thin slices of dough out and set aside.

place a dollop of pumpkin filling on each bottom half of ravioli and cover with top half. Pinching the edges firmly. (I found using a fork to seal the edges works best and looks nice. Since it is technically a Gnocchi dough it seemed to work better)

Place each ravioli in heavily salted boiling water for about a minute or until it rises to the surface. Place raviolis on oiled pan and bake in oven at 350° F for about 10 minutes.

You can finish with anything you want, I sautéed mushrooms and garlic in olive oil and poured it over the baked ravioli. Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture as we were having so much fun eating it! I would love to try it with goat cheese and pumpkin or maybe…just goat cheese next time!

If you haven’t checked out Ampersand located on 29th and Alberta in NE Portland, I urge you to stop in sometime, especially durring a Last Thursday event. The small shop specializes in books and retail committed to cultural preservation of historic and contemporary documents and collectables. You can purchase anything from vintage Playboy magazines, to hundred year old love letters written to long gone romantics.

The space doubles as a gallery featuring monthly rotating shows. The show which ends today  is appropriately titled You Are What You Eat by Mark Menjivar. The show is a series of portraits made by examining the interiors of refrigerators in homes across the United States. Menjivar explores the issue of hunger and how our food consumption as individuals effects ourselves as well as our communities.

Food Artist . New York, NY . 1 person house           Bar Tender . San Antonio, TX . 1 person
hold . Runs small vegan bakery from her                 household . Goes to sleep at 8AM and
apartment                                                                 wakes up at 4PM daily.