Homemade Vegan Xmas Goodies - guest post for The Alternative

Want to know how to make the three delectable goodies in the picture below? The Alternative, an online social change publication, asked me to do a kitchen experiment piece for them with recipes, pictures and a comparison between homemade vs. store-bought. Visit my article on their website to read about why I think it's a great idea to make vegan treats at home instead of buying them off the shelves this festive season. And learn to make Vegan Gingerbread Cookies, Vegan Chocolate Brandy Balls and Vegan Spiced Fig and Persimmon Chutney.

Click on the picture below.

Vegan Boursin Style Cheeze

Boursin is a soft herbed cheese that originates from France. It is extremely easy to make a vegan version at home that's equally rich and creamy but absolutely guilt-free. Vegan cheezes just don't have the kind of bad fats that animal secretion cheeses do. Add to that the zero cholesterol factor and you have something that you can keep on eating and feel really good about. :)

There are vegan Boursins which take a few days of time and patience so the cultures can develop. There are also those which require the cashews to be soaked overnight. My friend Isabel of India Outside My Window had made Boursin like that a few months ago and it was sooooooo delicious! But today I'm sharing a super-quick recipe with you. It doesn't contain the beneficial lactobacilli that fermented nut cheezes have but it sure hits the spot. Takes just ten minutes to put together. That's including the several tasting breaks while blending where you can't help but keep licking your fingers. And of course you have to wash them thoroughly before getting back to blending again and then you lick once more and wash and lick and wash and lick and wash... So that bit basically takes five minutes of the ten. :oP

Boursin cheeze is filled with herbs which make it amazingly flavourful. I used the herbs I had at home and you too can use what you have on hand. The consistency of Boursin is usually like a spread but I've made mine slightly more runny. It wasn't intentional, I added a bit more water than I should've but that didn't make it any less delicious. Also, I clicked the pics immediately after blending so the cheeze hasn't set yet. After a couple of hours in the fridge, now when I spread it on bread, it actually stays in place instead of dribbling down the side so temptingly. haha

The quantity of the tofu and cashew can be adjusted to your liking. Some people make Boursin completely with cashews (or other nuts) with no tofu in it. I need to replenish my stock of sesame seeds but if I had any at home, I'd definitely have put a handful into the mix for an added calcium boost. Also, I haven't mentioned quantities for any of the herbs and flavours because again, those can be added according to your taste.

Vegan Boursin Cheeze

1 C Cashews
250 gms Tofu (1 block from Towness)
Nutritional Yeast
Lime Juice
Whit Wine Vinegar (Apple Cider or Synthetic Vinegar are fine too)
Onion (small piece)
Garlic
Black Salt (regular salt is fine too)
Pinch of Black Pepper Powder
Herbs - Celery (just leaves, no stalk), Thyme, Mint, Cilantro

Grind the cashews into a fine powder in a dry blender jar.
Add everything, except the herbs, into the jar and blend into a smooth, creamy paste using a little water if required.
Taste and adjust the quantity of the salt and lime juice.
Roughly chop the herbs and add them into the blender jar.
Pulse 2 or 3 times.
The herbs should get incorporated but not blended completely.
Place in a glass bowl, cover and keep in the fridge for at least one to two hours.
Slather onto slices of good artisan bread and serve.
Enjoy! :)

This keeps in the fridge for a week to ten days.

This is what I had for lunch today - Whole Wheat Sourdough Bread (I made that yesterday) with Vegan Boursin and Arugula Salad on the side. It was a great, filling and satisfying meal which my tummy with a soothed feeling. :)

Whole Wheat Buttermylk Biscuits and Tofu Gravy

For a long time I'd only heard about Biscuits and Gravy, the American comfort food from my friends in the US. I finally got to taste them in 2010 as a part of the all you can eat Sunday brunch plate at the Sugar Plum Vegan Café in Sacremento. It was everything I'd expected it to be and more.

This evening, while I was going through an old baking book looking for a Sourdough Bread recipe, I chanced upon a recipe for biscuits and the memory of that breakfast came flooding back. I was overcome by a craving for Biscuits and Gravy and I decided right at that moment that I'd be having it for dinner, no matter how long it took me to prepare it.

As it turned out, it took me barely 30-35 minutes to make this from start to finish. It's hard to believe that deeply satisfying, hit-the-spot kind of food like this is so simple to whip up.

Biscuits

Biscuits are commonly made with all purpose flour but I made mine with whole wheat and they turned out deliciously flakey and crunchy on the outside. A perfect combination with thick, creamy gravy. This also made them healthier than traditional biscuits.

Healthier but not completely healthy. There's an insane amount of baking soda and baking powder used in biscuit recipes. And a lot of fat/oil too. This leaves one with a bloated tummy effect that raising agents usually cause. Nothing that a small swig of Oman Water can't fix, but now I do understand why this is traditionally a breakfast dish and not a dinner dish. haha

I am going to figure out a way to drastically reduce or eliminate the baking powder and soda the next time I make it though. But for now, the biscuit recipe below is totally worth trying! So yum!!!

1 1/2 C Whole Wheat Flour
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Sugar
2-3 T Thick Coconut Oil (or vegan margarine)
1/4 C Cashew Mylk (or other vegan mylk)
1 tsp Vinegar
1/2 C Peanut Mylk Curds (or other vegan yogurt)*

Preheat oven to 220 C / 425 F
Line a baking sheet with foil.
Sieve together the dry ingredients.
Add the coconut oil and rub well to form crumbs.
Whisk the vinegar into the cashew mylk.
Pour the cashew mylk into the dry ingredients and mix.
Slowly add enough of the peanut mylk yogurt to form a soft, slightly sticky dough.
Make a ball and place on a floured surface.
With a floured rolling pin, roll it out into a 1/2 inch thick sheet.
Cut out rounds using a cookie cutter or the edge of a cup/tumbler.
Place on prepared baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.

*If you don't have any vegan yogurt at home then just whisk the vinegar into 3/4 C of vegan mylk instead of 1/4 C and use that.

Gravy

I looked up gravy recipes and realized that a gravy consists of three main elements. A creamy sauce that's been thickened with the use of a roux. Chunks of something soft/chewy for texture. And interesting spices/flavours. As long as these three are in place, the gravy can be made of any combination of things. So I just used what I had at home and concocted my own version of gravy. I wasn't sure how it would taste but it turned out so delicious that I had to immediately record the recipe so I wouldn't forget it.

2-3 T Olive Oil
1 tsp Garlic - roughly chopped
1/2 tsp Celery (leaves, not stalk) - finely chopped
2 Cherry Peppers (or any other spicy chillies) - chopped
Pinch of Freshly Crushed Black Pepper
1/4 tsp Cinnamon
1 small block Tofu - cubed
1 1/2 C + 1/4 C Cashew Mylk (or other plant based mylk)
1 T Soy Sauce
1 tsp Sugar
1 T Corn Starch
1/4 tsp Tamarind Paste (or something else to add a wee bit of tang)
Salt (if required)

Heat olive oil in a heavy bottomed pan/wok.
Add the chopped garlic, celery and chillies and stir fry for a minute on low heat.
Add the crushed black pepper and cinnamon and mix.
Add the tofu cubes and stir fry for a couple of minutes.
Pour in 1 1/2 C cashew mylk, soy sauce and sugar, mix well and allow to simmer.
Meanwhile, whisk together the corn starch and the remaining 1/4 C cashew mylk.
Pour into the sauce slowly and stir continuously until the mixture thickens.
Turn off the heat.
Add tamarind paste and mix well.
Taste and add a bit of salt if required.

Slice biscuits in half and ladle the gravy over them.
Enjoy hot! :)

Creamy Coconut Pumpkin Vegetable Stew

Coconut Mylk Vegetable Stew is a hearty dish that hails from the state of Kerala, in South India. It is usually served as a combination with Appam Dosa, a kind of pancake made in a special, concave pan. The batter is poured into the hot pan, swirled around, drizzled with oil, covered and roasted for half a minute. This results in a soft, fluffy center and crispy sides. A piece of Appam, dipped in stew does all kinds of yummy things inside your mouth before melting away. :)

My mom usually makes Appam batter and gives it to me, so when I make the batter myself I'll share the recipe here on my blog. For now, here's a coconut mylk based veggie stew with an interesting twist and an added boost of health.

The veggies that are usually stewed in the coconut mylk are carrot, beans, peas and potatoes. But this time when I made the stew, I wanted to use up some week-old vegetables - a large slice of sweet pumpkin, a couple of half-dried radishes, one partially wilted chow chow (chayote) and a sweet potato that was in perfectly good condition. I diced the sweet potato with the carrots, beans and potatoes but the chow chow, radish and pumpkin, I decided to put into the sauce. It ended up making the stew extra creamy and absolutely delicious!

I liked it so much that from now on, whenever I make Coconut Mylk Stew for Appams, I'll be blending some cooked pumpkin into the sauce and maybe some radish too. :D

If you don't use a microwave, the vegetables can be steamed or boiled instead. It'll take a little longer and the texture will be slightly different, but other than that, I'm sure it'll taste just as yummy. :)

2 Carrots
10 Beans
1 Potato
1 Sweet Potato
1/2 C Frozen Peas
1 large slice Red Pumpkin (500 gms)
2 Radishes
1 Chow Chow
1/2 C Thick Coconut Cream/Mylk
2 tsp Coconut Oil
2 Green Chillies
1 inch Cinnamon
4 Cloves
Salt

Scrub and wash all the vegetables well (do not peel them).
Cut the pumpkin, radish and chow chow into chunks and place them in a microwave safe dish.
Sprinkle some salt over them, add half a cup of water and nuke for about 10 minutes (until tender).
Transfer to a wide bowl or plate and keep aside to cool.

Meanwhile, slice the carrots, beans, potato and sweet potato into 1 inch pieces and place them in the micro dish, along with the frozen peas.
Sprinkle salt and water over them and nuke for 5-7 minutes (they should be cooked but crunchy).

Now blend the cooled pumpkin, chow chow and radish into a creamy sauce, adding the coconut cream/mylk and about a cup of water (a little at a time).

Heat the coconut oil in a heavy bottomed pan or wok.
Add the cinnamon, cloves and sliced green chillies and stir fry.
Add the vegetables and stir fry for a couple of minutes.
Add the prepared pumpkin-coconut sauce and mix well.
Bring the sauce to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 5-10 minutes (to save time, I usually start making the Appams at this point, while the sauce is simmering).

Serve hot with Appams or Stemed Rice or Toasted Bread.

Enjoy! :)

Hot Spiced Chai with Cashew Sesame Mylk for Virtual Vegan Potluck Nov2012

Welcome VVP visitors! I am delighted to have you here. :)

When I signed up under 'Beverages' for the Virtual Vegan Potluck, I had intended to make a decadent, icy, chocolatey vegan shake of sorts. But since I've been over indulging over the past few days and because of the cold, rainy weather we've been having today, I decided to make a hot and comforting beverage instead.

For many years, I've relished the ritual of drinking hot tea every evening. After going vegan (over 9 years ago), I switched to soy for my daily dose of chai. Earlier this year, I discovered the magical taste of chai that's brewed with cashew mylk. It melds with the flavours of the added spices and is super smooth going down the throat. Simply amazing!

Recently, I've started to add a handful of sesame seeds with the cashews while grinding them to make the mylk to boost the healthy, calcium content. It also serves to enhance the taste of the mylk and subsequently, the tea made from it.

The spices in this Masala Chai help digestion and soothe the throat. So sip on some after you've enjoyed all the gastronomical delights that my fellow VVP bloggers have brought to the potluck today to help settle your tummy. ;)

Hot Spiced Chai with Cashew Sesame Mylk

For the raw sesame-cashew mylk:

1/2 C Cashew
1/4 C Sesame Seeds
2 C Filtered Water

Grind the cashews and sesame seeds to a fine powder.
Add 1/4 C water and blend to a smooth cream.
Add remaining 1 3/4 C water and blend well to get mylk.
Pour into a pitcher, cover and store in the fridge for up to a week.

For the tea (serves one person):

1/2 C Water

1 inch Ginger
4 Cloves
1 inch Cinnamon
4 Pepper Corns
1 Cardamom Pod

1 tsp Sugar
1/2 tsp Tea Powder

1/2 C Sesame-Cashew Mylk.

Heat water in a small pan.
Crush the whole spices and add to the water.
Boil for a few minutes to infuse the water with flavours of the spices.
Add sugar and boil for half a minute to dissolve the sugar.
Add tea powder and stir well.
Pour in the sesame-cashew mylk and stir.
Boil for another minute or two on medium heat, until the tea gets frothy.
Turn off the heat.
Strain the tea into a cup/mug through a metal tea strainer.
Press down into the strainer with a spoon to squeeze every last drop of tea into the mug.
Enjoy your piping hot cup of Vegan Masala Chai! :)
*slurp*

Virtual Vegan Potluck, the brainchild of Ann of An Unrefined Vegan, is a twice yearly global blogging event. This time, a hundred and four bloggers will be 'bringing' a vegan dish to the virtual potluck by posting a recipe. The blogs are arranged in order of the courses of a meal. We have Appetizers (18), Beverages (5), Breads (5), Salads (5), Side Dishes (9), Soups (10), Main Dishes (23) and Desserts (29).

Each blog post is linked to the blog before it and after it on the list so it's easy for visitors to jump from one recipe to the next in the order of the courses. My Hot Spiced Chai with Cashew Sesame Mylk is the 22nd recipe on the list. You can start at the beginning of the list by visiting the host site Vegan Bloggers Unite or move to the previous or next blog by clicking on the links below.



Thanks for dropping by. :)