Stuffed Potatoes.

One of the first things I looked at in my inbox this morning was the VegNewsletter. The Holiday Recipes edition! I eagerly scrolled down to the list of recipes and the first one that struck me was Super Stuffed Potato Skins!

I love stuffed veggies but I've never made stuffed potatoes before for some reason. This simple recipe inspired me so much that I had to take action immediately! Upon entering my kitchen for the day, the first thing I did was to grab the two potatoes in the basket and began working.

As always, I modified the recipe to make it my own. While watering my plants in the morning, I noticed a bunch of rainforest sized mustard leaves so I was very tempted to harvest and incorporate them into the recipe. I also continued my trend of throwing in some sesame seeds to increase the calcium content of the dish

It's one of those easily changeable recipes, so if you don't have or like any of the ingredients, don't feel shy to switch things around. :)



2 Potatoes - scrubbed clean and de-eyed.
10-12 large Mustard Leaves
1 tsp Sesame Seeds
2 T Nutritional Yeast
Big splosh of plain Tabasco Sauce
Small dash of Tomato Ketchup
Large pinch of Rock Salt
Daiya Mozzarella Shreds
Sunflower Seeds (the roasted, unsalted kind)
Tomato - chopped

Poke holes all over the potato and nuke it int he microwave for 5 minutes.

Slice in half lengthwise and scoop out about 3/4 of the insides.

Arrange, scooped side up, on a microwave safe baking dish.

Place a few shreds of daiya into the center of each potato half and top with a few sunflower seeds each.

Pop the scooped out potato insides with the mustard leaves, sesame seeds, nutritional yeast, tabasco, ketchup and rock salt into a grinder jar and process into a thick, mostly creamy mixture (using a tiny bit of water if required).

Stuff the potatoes with this mixture and top with a few shreds of daiya.

Bake in a preheated microwave using the convection option at 250 C (or you can use a regular oven too) for 6-7 minutes. Then use the grill option and grill the potatoes for another 4-5 minutes (the daiya will slightly browned).

Let them cool for a few minutes, top with the chopped tomatoes and serve.

Enjoy! :)



To the leftover stuffing, I mixed chopped onions, carrots and tomatoes, wrapped them in cabbage and baked and grilled them in a similar way. Those were pretty yummy too!

Raw, Vegan 'Rasmalai'

When I saw this link for Raw, Vegan 'Rasmalai' on my friend P's facebook profile yesterday, I was consumed by the desire to immediately attempt it. One just can't have the words VEGAN and RASMALAI jumping out from the same sentence and resist its pull. Any plans I'd had to laze around after lunch went right out the window. I prepared and gobbled up the chapati and tofu/capsicum curry in a big, fat hurry and lunged for my mixie, all the while showering a thousand blessings upon the heads of Rohit and Rishi of Roshi's who came up with this ingenious, raw concoction.

I tweaked the original recipe a wee bit. Here's the version I followed.



Cardamom and Saffron Flavored Cashew Mylk Base:

1/2 C Cashews
2-3 T Agave Nectar
4 Green Cardamom Seeds (crushed)
1 generous pinch Saffron Strands
1 3/4 C Water

Add all ingredients, except water, into a grinder jar and powder well. Add water a little at a time and make a smooth paste. Add the rest of the water and blend well to form a creamy vegan mylk. Keep aside.

Rasgulla Balls:

1 C Cashews
1 C Almonds
1/2 tsp Sesame Seeds (optional ingredient for added calcium)
5 Soft Dates (chopped)

In a dry jar, grind 1/2 C cashews and 1/2 C almonds into a fine powder. Separately grind the rest of the cashews and almonds along with the sesame seeds into small granules.

In a large bowl, mix everything with dates by hand until evenly distributed. Add 2 tablespoons of the cashew mylk and knead. Shape into 1 inch balls and lightly flatten them into saucers.

Place in a wide bowl and pour the prepared cashew mylk over them. Sprinkle sliced pistachios and a small pinch of saffron on top. Cover and keep aside for 7-8 hours for the balls to soak up the mylk and soften (this is the hardest part!!).

Tastes best when served cold.



Note: This is a rich, healthy and extremely delicious dessert but it didn't turn out exactly like normal Rasmalai. The mylk did taste like the kind used in Rasmalai but the texture of the balls was not soft and creamy like Rasgulla should be. They were more like a rich, dry fruits barfi/ball soaked in decadent saffron mylk.

I will be redoing this recipe again and next time I will eliminate the dates and also lightly mix and shape the 'dough' rather than kneading.

But in the end, even if it doesn't turn out like Rasmalai, I don't really care because it tastes absolutely heavenly!! Plus it's easy to make, raw and healthy (not a single bad ingredient in there!). I even guiltlessly ate it for breakfast just now. :D

I have a feeling that this will be a staple dessert at our home. :)

Eating Without Heating Raw Food Demo with Lisa Pitman and SHARAN India

Last Friday I had the pleasure of attending a demo and dinner event by certified Vegan Raw Chef Lisa Pitman, better known in the blogging and social networking circles as Veganlisa. Toronto based Lisa turned vegan at the age of 6. And now at the age of 33 (which you could *never* guess by looking at her) she not only continues to be vegan but also follows a mostly raw diet. One can clearly see the benefits of a completely plant based diet just by looking at her youthfulness, vivacity and glowing skin.



The 3 1/2 hour long session was organised by SHARAN India at In The Pink Organic Restaurant and Bazaar. The introductory part of the program had Lisa speaking about The Healing Power of Plants where she shared her personal story about the magnificent benefits of Veganism in her life and the life of her loved ones. This was followed by the Eating Without Heating 'uncooking' demo where she showed us how to prepare a delicious, completely raw meal without ever turning on the stove.



As Lisa churned out dish after dish with the help of a good, strong blender...



Dr. Nandita Shah and Millie Mitra of SHARAN were in the background assisting her in any way she required.



We could clearly see the passion Lisa has for raw food preparation and it was easy for us to get carried away by it.









Whenever Lisa was about to switch on the blender she asked us to sing a song in our heads to pass the seconds. For some reason, I hummed Alouetta to myself. :oP

During the demo, we got to glug down large glassfuls of delicious smoothies - Green Fruit Smoothie and Immuno Blast Smoothie.

After the demo, we got to indulge in a sumptuous spread of all the things she had taught us to make - Broccoli Salad with Cashew Dressing, Zucchini Rolls with Fermented Cashew Cheeze and Sun Dried Tomato Marinara Sauce, Date Squares and Coconut Lime Cheezecake.















It was a sublime and highly satisfying meal. And though I ate till I was bursting, I was feeling active and joyful, unlike I feel after most heavy meals.

The workshops in Bangalore are over but there are more in Gokarna, Mumbai and New Delhi. If you'd like to attend them then you can find the details on the SHARAN India events page.

You can get delicious raw food recipes and see beautiful photographs of the food and Lisa's current tour on her blog.

Vegan Vanilla and Agave Nectar Cupcakes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World

This Sunday was supposed to have been my very first vegan bake sale at a local fair called the Sunday Soul Sante. I kept putting off the registering because of sheer laziness and procrastination but then a fellow vegan who makes delicious cheezes out of nuts and tofu very kindly offered to split her stall with me. It was just the push I needed. But yesterday when I called her to confirm, she said that the Sante had been postponed because of the rains. The new date hasn't been fixed yet and it might be a couple of weeks at least before I know.

But in a way it's a good thing that it's not this weekend because now I can relax and prepare. Try a few new recipes, buy ingredients in bulk and get the packaging details organized. I know that cakes and cookies wrapped in cellophane with a little ribbon look adorable but I'm really looking for a more environmentally friendly option.

Since I was all agog with the idea of baking this week, I decided to go ahead and make something special yesterday. So I broke out my copy of Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World.



I bought this book over a year ago and have truly enjoyed reading it over and over again. The writing style is so amusing and the cupcake photos are TDF! However, I hadn't gotten around to baking anything from it because my older 12 cup nonstick pan doesn't fit into my current oven. But a few weeks ago I treated myself to a 9 cup pan (shiny aluminum, as recommended in the book) and had been really looking forward to taking it for a spin. And finally yesterday it happened. :) I decided to make the Simple Vanilla and Agave Nectar Cupcakes from page 44 of VCTOTW.

This is my first time baking cupcakes with a proper cupcake recipe. In the past I've just used plain yellow cake and brownie batter to make cupcakes. I must say that when using a proper cupcake recipe, the difference in texture is stark!! I was simply blown away by the sponginess and perfect crumb. I *finally* understand what the big deal is with cupcakes as compared to a slice of regular cake. LOL

Needless to say, my baking is going to involve only cupcakes for a while.



I frosted these cupcakes with Vegan Fluffy Buttercream Frosting from page 142. Thanks to a very generous friend of mine, I had some delicious vegan margarine from Australia in my fridge and I also had some non hydrogenated Earth Balance shortening remaining from last year's stock. So I used them and modified the recipe slightly by replacing the soymilk/creamer with cold espresso.

I sprinkled the frosting with dark chocolate shavings, instant coffee granules and drizzled on some liquified chocolate rum ganache. Finally I topped each cupcake with a dark chocolate chunk.

My very first cupcake decorating attempt and it was so much fun! :)

Something crazy happened too. I'd left the cupcake on the window sill and had stepped away for a moment but when I returned, the cupcake had disappeared. I checked the hidden camera and my jaw dropped as I watched the hijack!

Sambar for Idli - Vegan MoFo Post 19

A bonus post. I guess this is my way of holding on to Vegan MoFo and prolonging the last day. :oP

My first recipe for Vegan MoFo 2011 was for Idlis. I thought it would be apt to end the month with a recipe for Sambar which is commonly served with Idlis.

There are a few different authentic South Indian recipes for homemade Sambar and I enjoy the taste of most of them. The one I'm about to share with you is a quick and simple one.



2 C Mixed Vegetables - Carrots, Beans, Potatoes, Chow Chow (Chayote), Peas, Radish etc...
1 Large Diced Onion or 15-20 Peeled Sambar Onions (Shallots) - this is optional
2-3 Diced Tomatoes
1/2 C Toor Dal
1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
2-3 tsp Sambar Powder (this spice mix tastes best when home made but it is also commercially available in the masalas section of Indian grocery stores)
1-2 tsp Tamarind Paste
1 tsp Jaggery
Salt
For the seasoning: Coconut Oil, Mustard Seeds, Curry Leaves, Dry Red Chillies (broken into halves), Hing (Asafotedia)

Wash and dice the vegetables. Wash the toor dal thoroughly. Bring 3-4 C of water with the turmeric to boil in a pressure cooker. Add the toor dal, vegetables and a small pinch of salt and pressure cook for 5-10 minutes (depending on your pressure cooker). Let it cool completely before opening the lid.

Meanwhile heat 1-2 tsp of the coconut oil in a deep pan. Add mustard seeds and let them crackle for a few seconds. Add the remaining seasoning ingredients. Add the onions/shallots and stir fry until they are tender. Add the sambar powder, tamarind paste, jaggery and salt and mix well. Add the tomatoes and turn off the heat. Cover and keep aside.

Once the vegetables and dal have cooled, add the tomato mixture and bring everything to a boil. Reduce the flame and simmer for a few minutes to allow the flavors to blend. Taste and adjust.

Serve hot ladled over Idlis or cooked rice.

Enjoy! :)