Wok and Roll

For some reason, I've spent the past couple of months refusing to buy corn starch. I don't have any particular moral objection towards this powdery stuff - it's just that it comes in big boxes and you never need more than a couple of tablespoons and I didn't see the point. I finally ended up caving when I came across today's recipe for Kung Pao Sauce, and I'm so glad I did!

This sauce is incredible - the flavors are amazingly complex, the texture is thick and smooth, and the whole thing just soaks right up into any veggies you happen to throw into it. My sister just moved to DC and has access to a functional kitchen for the first time in years, so obviously we spent a good portion of her first weekend in town cooking up delicious noms.

The beginning of greatness. 

I need more cowbell chilies.

This lovely recipe comes to you courtesy of The View from Great Island - my only regret is that I neglected to account for the fact that my sister and K are two of the most spice-obsessed people I know, so this wasn't nearly enough heat for their seared-off tastebuds. Adjust accordingly and enjoy!

Ducks in a row. 

Two cutting boards for twice the fun. 

Hipsters Love This

As I've noted before, I'm not the kind of vegan who exclusively worships at the altar of kale. I prefer a more polytheistic approach, with plenty of idol worship to the demi-gods of brownies and mac n' cheez thrown in for good measure. That said, there's something about this Garlicky Kale salad that I just can't get enough it!

I went to DC Veg Fest this past weekend, and among the samples of nut cheeses, tofu sausages, and gluten-free cupcakes (laugh all you want, it was goddamn awesome), the Whole Foods tent was doing a roaring trade passing out little cups of this crunchy salad with its creamy, tart dressing. I kid you not, K and I went home and recreated it that very evening.

The trick to this recipe is to let the kale marinate in the dressing before you serve it. This wilts the leaves while also letting the ingredients of the dressing do their chemistry magic and mellow out a bit.

Hush, Liz. Eat your kale.

Garlicky Kale
adapted from Eating Bird Food

Serves 4

4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon tahini
2 tablespoons lemon juice (this was one big lemon for me)
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
5 cups kale
2 tablespoons sesame seeds (optional, but the sesame seeds on sesame paste adds a nice Inception element to your salad)

Dump all the ingredients except for the kale into a blender, then go to town with that pulse button. You'll only need a couple of rounds to get everything nicely mixed up - taste test and add whatever your little heart desires (more tahini if it's too sour, more lemon if it's too bitter).

A study in beige.

Throw your kale into a large bowl and pour the dressing over it. Use salad tongs to toss it all together so that your leafy greens get completely coated in the dressing, then put the whole bowl in the fridge while you make the rest of your meal.

I can see the vitamins!

Right before serving, sprinkle the sesame seeds over your salad. Buen provecho!

Don't Get It Twisted

I was so skeptical about my ability to pull off these Pretzel Bites. I don't know why, but the idea of cooking with yeast totally freaked me out and I was certain that I'd end up with rock-hard dough bites that no one wanted to eat. Wrong! 

I attribute my success to the easy peasy recipe more than anything else, but these turned out delightfully puffy and soft. I coated half of this batch with cinnamon sugar, and the other half with nutritional yeast, garlic, and oregano. It was really difficult deciding which ones were tastier - I was simply forced to eat a dozen and still couldn't make up my mind.

A disclaimer: these are more like tiny dinner rolls than pretzels since you don't boil the dough before baking it, but if you douse them in enough delicious dust, I promise no one will be able to tell the difference!

The recipe over at Averie Cooks leaves nothing to be desired (the woman suggests dipping your pretzel bites in chocolate...I like her), so enjoy the photos and click here to create your own magical pretzel creations!

My Muffin Top

I'm not sure I want to know what kind of Google searches are going to lead people to this post (fun fact, more than one poor soul has ended up here as a result of searching for "Pokemon eating sweets"), but I don't care - the more people know about today's Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins, the better!

I dunno, do I really need to sell you on muffins with chocolate in them? Vegan muffins and quick breads often end up unpleasantly gummy for some reason - any chemists here to clarify why this is so? - but these little treats are a happy exception. The insides are soft and fluffy, the tops are crunchy and sweet, and all the potassium and vitamins in the bananas cancels out the fact that you're eating chocolate for breakfast. Pro tip: I highly recommend eating these muffins warm for maximum chocolatey gooeyness.

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins
adapted from Doron Peterson’s Sticky Fingers’ Sweets

Makes 16 muffins

¼ cup coconut oil
½ cup sugar
3 ripe bananas
½ tsp vanilla
¾ cup soymilk
2 ¼  cups flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼  tsp salt
½ tsp cinnamon
¼  tsp allspice
¼  tsp nutmeg
¾ cup chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 350 F and pop paper liners into a muffin tin. You can also use a little bit of Earth Balance or coconut oil to grease the pan instead. In a medium bowl, cream together the coconut oil and sugar until it's super smoothly - this should only take a few minutes. In another bowl, mash the shit of your bananas. They should look like something a toddler might smear in her hair while you try to give her a snack.

Pre-smooshing. 

Add the bananas and the vanilla to your sugar mixture and stir until evenly incorporated. Then add the soy milk and slowly stir until everything is blended up really well. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salta, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg. Dump this into the wet batter and carefully stir together to avoid a spicy cloud of flour from settling all over your kitchen. Don't overstir here! Just mix until there aren't any patches of flour or weird banana clumps visible in the concoction.

Bliss. 

Finally, the most important step - toss in the chocolate chips and stir the batter a couple of final times, stopping as soon as all the nuggets are mixed into the batter. Use a big spoon to drop the batter into the prepared muffin cups.

Taste-test liberally. 

You can fill them up almost to the top, and be sure to monitor for appropriate chocolate chip distribution. Pop the muffin tin in the oven for about 30 minutes, until a toothpick stuck into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Enjoy!

Sour Spicy Sweet

Labor Day has come and gone, my friends, and it's time to pack away your white pantsuit for another year and prepare for the imminent takeover by our pumpkin overlords. In the meantime, though, as you're packing in as many picnics as possible before the weather turns, I highly recommend this amazing Spicy Tahini Dip for all your September snacking needs.

I love how thick and creamy this dip is, and that there are no weird ingredients or high-speed blenders required! Just dump everything in a bowl and whisk it up - the tahini makes everything nice and smooth, while the lime and spices give it a tangy bite that keep the sesame flavor from being too overwhelming or heavy. 

An embarrassing amount of this dip was transported into my mouth via roasted purple potatoes, because they're adorable and delicious, but you can and should eat this with raw veggies, baked tofu or tempeh, grilled corn or artichokes, or anything else that would benefit from this magical combination of flavors (hint: everything). Bonus: if you add a little water to thin it out, it magically transforms into a dressing for your favorite salad!

Spicy Tahini Dip

adapted from The Vegan 8

Makes about 1 cup

¼ cup tahini
¼ cup lime juice (this was one giant juicy mutant lime for me)
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon chili powder (or cayenne, or paprika - whatever you've got on hand)
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon cumin
salt and pepper, to taste

Whisk together all the ingredients until you have a smooth, evenly blended mixture. Adjust the chili powder, lime, and maple syrup as necessary to achieve your desired taste and thickness, then shovel into your mouth with a spoon. Does this even count as a recipe??

Note the overflowing bowl of chili powder.  

Tahini looks like it would be tasty by itself...but it isn't.