Churned Butter

Real Churned Corn Butter-makes 1 cup or 8oz.

around 15-20 minutes of labor total and 1 day waiting period

This has an almost identical taste and liquid/solids/fat ratios as dairy butter, amazing!!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup corn off of the cob, or frozen corn

1/2 cup warm or room temperature water

3/4 cup refined coconut oil (melted equals 3/4 cup)

3 TBL canola or safflower oil

1 tsp vinegar

1/2 tsp salt

Equipment:

bottom blade blender for pulverizing

food processor for "churning"

mesh strainer to strain "corn milk"

glass container with lid for butter

spatula 

glass measuring cups for oil

butter knife

cheese cloth or clean towel for first hour storage

microwave or stove with pan to heat up "corn milk"

Method:

Melt coconut oil, add canola oil and set aside

Add corn and water and salt to blender and blend until pulverized (a few minutes at minimum)

Strain this mixture with a fine mesh strainer and spatula.  This should produce a tad bit of fiber mush in the stainer
clean blender and dry for next use

Mix 1 tsp of vinegar into strained corn milk

heat corn milk in microwave or on stove until warm, not hot

add corn milk to blender with the melted oils

blend on low-medium for a few seconds until mixed thoroughly.

place in glass container with lid and refrigerate overnight.

Next day:

cut solid butter out of container and place in food processor in 2" pieces

place a little cheese cloth on bottom of storage container

(if you would like a magarine type spread add an additional teaspoon of oil in this step)--pulse and pulse, be patient, until the butter sets up and releases liquid buttermilk (pancakes anyone??)

save buttermilk for use

store butter in container with cheesecloth at bottom, after an hour you can get rid of the cheesecloth.

ENJOY

soy &gluten free veggie burgers

This recipe should be prepared a day or so ahead, because part of the “mouthfeel” and firmness comes from the cooling and then the re-heating.   The flavor also develops into a rich, dark yumminess.  This method is very similar to making pancakes and requires a bit of spatula work and judgement on “when to flip” etc. 

Our family, luckily, does not have gluten or soy issues; however, this is our absolute favorite veggie burger to this day!!  Enjoy..... this burger is a lot of labor, but well well worth it, healthy and delicious.  Use with different spices to make sausages and crumbled for taco and burrito filling, sloppy joes, dirty rice and the list goes on and on.

soy gluten f veggie burger with best oven fries ever and potato cheez, avocados, lettuce, tomato and onion

Equipment:
Big stainless steel bowl for mixing
Food Processor for veggies

Silicone spatula for removing veggies from processor

Big Saute Pan

Good, heavy duty spatula

Saucepan for cooking rice or quinoa

Big tablespoon and fork for “mashing”

smoker box if you want to “smoke” them. These are delicious non-smoked as well as lightly smoked, heavy smoke would mask the flavor.

Ingredients:
1 cup of cooked white or brown rice or very well cooked quinoa (not watery)
1 cup of very well drained cooked black beans
1 cup of course ground raw veggies of choice, almost puree but with less water (add nuts if you wish)  I have used everything from celery, onion, bell peppers spinach, mushrooms, carrots, broccoli and brussel sprouts
1/3 cup of dark roasted tahini (if you do not have, I have used vegan mayonnaise)
3 TBL of olive oil or oil of choice
1 giant tablespoon of molasses (this is crucial to a dark, iron taste for the burgers)
1 TBL of balsamic vinegar (this is also crucial to a “roasted” taste)
1 tsp of garlic powder or fresh minced garlic

2 TBL of onion powder
1 TBL of course black pepper
to taste, salt
to taste, spices and herbs of choice. I use 1 tsp of cumin, 1 tsp of oregano, 1 tsp of thyme, 1 tsp of Kirkland sweet mesquite
Approx 1 1/4 cups of gluten free all purpose flour (I use Bob's Red Mill).  Please use your judgement on the feel of the mixture because the water content will vary with different vegetables 
Oil of choice for frying
Wood of choice if you are smoking (I like a mix of mesquite and applewood) 

Method...
* Mix quinoa or rice and beans together with the back of a spoon until mashed, but leaving some whole beans just for fun

• *  Add your fat of choice or oil to the quinoa bean mixture
  
• *  Drain veggies if they contain too much water (mushrooms or tomatoes), although they can be a bit wet and you will just add more flour. Add to quinoa and rice mixture 

Add molasses, vinegar, spices, salt and pepper...IMPORTANT —taste for salt and flavor before adding the gluten free flour because that flour will mask the taste and is bitter and horrible uncooked

Now you should combine and mix the mixture and it should be looking like a really thick and lumpy cake batter

Time to start adding the gluten free flour, I’d say 1/4 cup at a time while mixing until it looks like a lumpy clay that is scoopable 

 Heat up sauté pan with around 2 TBL of oil of choice until very hot (if you place these on the pan cold or just warm, they will stick just like pancakes)
With a spoon, scoop out a slap of dough and place on oil, don’t worry about the thickness, you will flatten and correct with the spatula when you flip. Now turn the heat down a bit, a little over medium

When you feel that they are ready to flip (40-60 seconds?), turn heat to high again and carefully flip. After a few seconds turn heat down to medium high. Flatten with spatula until you reach the size you prefer.

After around 40-60 seconds, you are ready to continue flipping, turn heat down to low, cover with foil or pan lid and let cook away, I usually let sit on low, covered for a good 5 minutes each side (gluten free flour must be cooked very thoroughly or you get a nasty bitter taste). When you turn off the heat let the burgers sit until cooled. Place burgers on plate and cover with plastic and refrigerate until completely cool.

Before smoking (if you are smoking), rub a little oil over the top and salt the top of the burgers. I place my smoker outside on a little burner, no smoke in your dwelling. When the smoke starts I let them sit on medium heat smoking for around 4 minutes, turn off, let smoke escape and remove them. (A side note, mesquite will taste extremely bitter if anything sits too long in it).
Remove and cover with plastic on plate and carefully grill or refrigerate. (use care in flipping these on a grill due to the non-stickiness of gluten free flour)


Re-heating:
I reheat these in an oven, covered in foil or in a casserole dish, 350 degrees for around 1/2 hour and use immediately or, after the oven, put them on gas or charcoal grill. They also re-heat very well in microwave.

buffalo plantains

Frying plantains that are not overly ripe makes a crispy and sensational vehicle for buffalo sauce!

Equipment:
oven
cutting board
french knife
saute pan
heavy duty spatula
tongs for lifting, tossing
stainless steel bowl for tossing sauce
whisk

Ingredients:

*   plantains that are not fully ripe or black (1 plantain will make around 11-12 pieces
*   oil of choice for frying

*   for medium hot Sauce

3/4 cup water

1 TBL potato starch (or corn starch or tapioca starch)

1/4 cup plus 2 TBL vegan hot sauce (such as tabasco or red hot)

1 tsp vegan margarine or vegan butter
(whisk together in saucepan and heat until thick with coating ability)

*   for ranch dressing

1 cup vegan mayonnaise

to taste...garlic powder

to taste...onion powder

to taste...black pepper

1 TBL minced parsley or dry parsley

to taste...dill

to taste... a little extra lemon juice or cider vinegar

1-2 TBL vegan milk to thin out
(whisk together in bowl and refrigerate)

Method:

Carve and peel the plantains with the french knife and compost or disgard the peels.  Cut into sizable strips that you are comfortable with.  Fry in hot oil of your choice until hard, brown and crispy.  

Hold...wrapped in frig until ready to toss with sauce and eat.

Bake in hot oven when heating up and toss with hot buffalo sauce.  Serve with celery, carrot sticks and ranch dressing.

ENJOY

vegan milk and cream

Western culinary schools are still stuck in France in the 1600s, but not us vegans.

I  wanted to post my experience with years of blending different plant based  liquids.  Since an animal's breast milk is made of protein solids, water, fat, sodium and "sugars", we can make vegan milk with the same ingredients coming from plants.  I was surprised to learn from a nutrition lecture that there are large amounts of sodium in an animal's breast milk.  We all know that an animal's cream has tons of fat, so the addition of fats or less water makes thick and rich vegan cream.

The best part is that you really do not need a specific recipe--you can make the liquid according to the consistency you like or prefer.  EXPERIMENT--most of these milks can be made raw with the exception of "soy" and "chic pea" and "sesame".  Certain raw blended plant foods are "bitter" tasting and require cooking after blending.  Certain plant food milks are starchy without fat and may require a little oil or an addition of a few nuts or seeds or a shake of salt.

Here are some milks I have made and how they taste to me:
Equipment:  bottom blade blender, mesh strainer and a glass container that is shakeable for cold storage.
(some of these need a sauce pot to simmer)

sesame--okay, so so
quinoa--very good, needs simmering
raw white buckwheat--very good
macadamia nut--very good--oily, can be mixed with a veggie milk
coconut--very good
cauliflower--very good but thick
soy--very good, needs simmering
chic pea--very good, needs simmering
corn--good but sweet, needs simmering
cashew--very good
almond--very good
white asparagus--very good
banana--good but sweet
oat--very good but thick
rice-okay, so so
walnut-oily, I usually mix with a veggie like cauliflower
pecan-oily, I usually mix with a veggie like potato
potato-starchy, I usually do a half/half potato/oily nut or seed like walnut or sunflower 

NO RULES FOR VEGANS…if you do not need to stick to "white" milk for presentation, you can use pistachio, roasted nuts, broccoli, spinach, mushrooms, etc for casseroles and smoothies.

Now that you get the idea, you can mix and experiment and come up with your very own favorites!
Happy blending.

fast..healthy..easy..cheap..best all time vegan cheez

If you are looking for a DELICIOUS vegan cheez that costs pennies to replace melted mozzarella and melted cheddar you have found it.  Soy free, gluten free, nut free, grain free.. this recipe is the easiest vegan cheez to make; takes 10-15 minutes, requires only a blender, no hard to find ingredients, around .30 cents a big batch in 2014 u.s. dollars, holds up in frig and drizzles easily with a spoon compared to other vegan homemade cheez sauces with no gummy or stringy mess and no walking on glass, multiple equipment cooking methods with agar or powdered starches.   Also does well baked or microwaved, or as a dip.  

potato mozzarella on a slice of homemade vegan pizza, amazing! (I used homemade sunflower seed cream instead of water to make a richer tasting mozzarella)

Equipment:
Bottom blade Blender
spatula to get out of the blender
covered bowl for storage

Ingredients…
*  1 cup of packed down russet potato baked or microwaved  (the inside of the potato, not the skin)
*  1/3 cup oil (I use canola oil or olive oil for mozzarella)
* 2-3 TBL of melted refined coconut oil for a more saturated fat mouthfeel
*  3 TBL fresh lemon juice
*  1/2 tsp salt, or more if you like
*  water (or white veggie, seed, nut, bean milk) as needed to reach melted cheese consistency, usually up to 3/4 to 1 cup of liquid

Method…
Combine in blender the 1 cup of potato, oil, lemon juice, salt and water / vegan milk (a 1/4 cup at a time), until the consistency reaches melted cheese.  Taste to see if you need additional salt, tang.   Use right away or store, covered in frig a day or 2 until ready to use.

Mexican queso with green onions and cilantro

Ideas for additions to mozzarella or white cheez sauce..
a little miso, a tsp. of nooch nutritional yeast, cider vinegar, white wine.  For richer, heavier cheez use a soy milk, cashew milk, rice milk, sunflower milk and yes, I have used cauliflower milk or white asparagus milk successfully--all turns out delicious….although this turns out delicious if you use only the ingredients I have listed.

nachos with potato cheddar and "almond tangy sour cream"

Ideas for additions to make cheddar or orange cheez sauce..
a little tomato paste or a tsp. of sweet paprika then add some steamed carrots or squash for color, a couple TBLs of nutritional yeast.  Add jalapeño pickle juice or pimento pickle juice instead of water, hot peppers, lime juice, salsa and cilantro if making nachos or mexican queso. 

UNDER CONSTRUCTION-real churned corn butter

Real churned corn butter, as of 3/5/18 will report exact recipe
coming soon!!

The great part about this is that ingredients do not have to be exact,  you will go by the fluffy look

Equipment:
Food Processor
Small silicone spatula
Dry measuring cups
2-3 cup glass container with lid

Ingredients:

• 1 recipe of sweet corn cream vegan butter,(this would work with any vegan butter recipe you prefer) cut into squares and placed in food processor for around 15 minutes prior to whipping
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup light oil, use as much or little as you wish when you see the mixture fluffy enough (I use safflower and canola oil)
• a few shakes of salt

Method:
After the sweet corn butter is a little used to room temperature, add a little salt, then oil, a little at a time, and process the food processor until you think the mixture looks fluffy enough, but not so much that the heat separates the mixture.

Transfer the mixture immediately to a glass container, scape down sides of food processor with spatula, and cover container, refrigerate.  Can take 3-6 hours to set up.

 "this is nothing like margarine it is 100x better"

sweet corn cream vegan butter (no soy or lecithin)

This is so good whipped up and used as whipped butter, that words cannot describe it.  The natural acids and sweetness in the corn “milk” make a gold medal butter.  Ideas of using coconut oil have come from all of the wonderful vegan chefs on the web, including the first recipe that I know of: http://www.veganbaking.net/other-vegan-treats/735-vegan-butter.html#.Ui9-2BaYY20   I have successfully used this corn butter as a replacement for “butter” in baking recipes, and will follow this recipe with a “whipped” version that is easily spreadable and downright addicting.  

I have not "doubled" this 12oz. recipe because I think the heat might "break" it and I don't want to risk wasting precious coconut oil.

Time:  Takes cooling down times of up to 1 day, takes a combined time of around 20 minutes to set up and make the “pudding”, then the actual butter.  Makes approx. 12 oz. of butter.

Equipment:

High power bottom blade blender (I use a vitamix)

Fine mesh strainer or nut milk bag strainer or cheese cloth

Small-medium size sauce pan

Small spoon

Small silicone whisk

Small spatula

Glass storage container with lid

Dry measuring cups

Ingredients:

*   1 cup frozen yellow sweet corn (I use non-gmo, organic frozen corn)

*   1 cup water

*   3 level teaspoons of corn starch (again, I use non-gmo, organic, found in health food stores or on the web)

*   measure out 1/2 cup of pudding you will make from the corn milk and corn starch, stirred and cool or cold

*   3/4 cup + 1 TBL of refined coconut oil melted into liquid, room temperature (I use an organic coconut oil that is mechanically pressed).  If you do not mind a slight “coconut” taste, you can use unrefined coconut oil.

*   1/4 cup canola oil (I use organic non gmo canola oil)

*   salt to taste

Method:

Blend the frozen corn and water on high speed until you have liquid corn milk, if you need to stop the process and scrape the sides of the blender down into the liquid, do so.

Strain the corn milk out of the blender and into the saucepan, while pushing through mesh with a little spoon

Add cornstarch and a couple shakes of salt to “corn milk”

Whisk cornstarch into “corn milk” thoroughly

Turn heat on medium high and continue whisking entire mixture until this sets up as a thick “pudding”, take care to not burn the bottom while constantly whisking

Pour “pudding” into glass container, scrape sides of saucepan with spatula and let cool 5-15 minutes at room temp

Cover glass container and let “pudding” get nice and cold, approx 6 hours or overnight.

1 hour or 2 before making the butter:  heat your coconut oil up to make it liquid, then let sit until totally room temperature and not warm.

Making the butter:

“Fast and cool is the philosophy here; otherwise you risk breaking the mixture, which still tastes great, but the texture is off and oily”.

1/2 cup cool or cold “corn pudding” in the blender, add the 3/4 +1 TBL of room temp coconut oil and 1/4 cup room temp canola oil.

Blend on high speed for around 10-15 seconds, until well combined, but not so much that the heat of the blender breaks the mixture.

Pour immediately into a 2 cup glass container, cover and refrigerate until completely hardened, approx 6 hours to overnight.

no mayo creamy pasta salad

Forget the expensive mayo and use some healthy nut cream to make your favorite summer pasta salad.  (Can be made with gluten free pasta)

Equipment:
heavy duty blender (for the nut cream)
spatula
big storage bowl for pasta salad with cover
cutting board
french knife 
stock pot to boil pasta and strainer

Ingredients...

• 1 pound plus 1/4 pound of cooked pasta, strained and washed with cold water to prevent overcooking (enough for 6-12 people with leftovers)
• 1 - 2 servings of almond nut cream sauce (or cashew, or mixture of )
• 2 TBL yellow miso (if you have on hand)
• 1/8 - 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 3 TBL mustard
• 1 cup washed, minced celery
• 1 cup washed, peeled, minced carrots
• 1 cup washed, peeled, minced onions
• washed, minced parsley to taste
• spices to taste, I used onion powder, a tiny bit of garlic powder, ms. dash lemon pepper, crushed rosemary
• salt to taste
• black pepper to taste

Method:
While making the nut cream, add the mustard, miso and vinegar to the cream sauce.  Combine all ingredients EXCEPT the cream sauce in the huge bowl, then add cream sauce a little at a time, slowly until very set up and covered in sauce (The salad will absorb a bit of this sauce, unlike mayo; therefore, you may want to add sauce until it looks very saucy.  Before serving, after sitting overnight in frig, add a little oil and vinegar and salt to refresh).  Taste for salt, spices and pepper, mix well and refrigerate to let flavors develop, at least 2 hours or more.  The key to these salads is taste, taste, taste.  To offset acidic, add a little liquid sweetener, to offset too sweet, add a little vinegar or lemon juice, don't go too crazy with garlic, add little bits at a time so you don't overwhelm.

raw spring slaw

Its been a long time since my last post.  Decided to post this method of eating raw veggies because the size and slices of the veggies with the homemade sauces are easy, fast, cheap, healthy and delicious.  I have incorporated the raw vegan nut cheese "sauce" into some of the dressings, and will follow soon with the recipes.  I will cover the easy method of making the slaw if you have the right equipment (mandoline).

This slaw is drizzled with raw cheddary mexican sauce

Equipment:
Large ceramic or glass bowl for storage
Tongs (chef hands) to toss and move slices around
Bench Scrapper to get all the slices off of countertop or cutting board
Mandoline (The picture shows the good grips mandoline, which I love,especially for around $40, as of 2013)


cutting board
french knife or cleaver
time to clean up after your prep

Ingredients:
"Any edible raw veggies you desire"
I used...fresh and washed, patted dry

• Carrots
• Red Cabbage
• Zucchini
• Red Onion
• Cilantro
• Spinach (sliced and added before eating)

Method...
*  Clean countertop and work area
*  Have your veggies washed, peeled if necessary, and ready to shred
*  Use the mandoline to make very small long slices of the of the veggies.  Mix all veggies together with tongs (except leafy greens or water heavy veggies like tomatoes, wait until ready to eat to mix those in with slaw). 
*  Store the slaw in ceramic or glass bowl with wrap on top in frig.  Will keep for a few to 4, 5 days.

 This will happen very fast, 1 zucchini takes around 5 seconds to shred.  
*  The biggest part of this is cleaning up the kitchen after all the prep.  Use vinegar and baking soda to clean the garbage disposal if you used that for peels and scraps.  If not, remember to take the compost out (ants can smell a good salad:--))

cheezy potato blintze cake

Equipment:

big stainless steel bowl

big sauté pan

cutting board

knife

Ingredients...
•   1 large russet potato, baked
•   4 oz. of washed, sliced mushrooms
•   2 TBL olive oil
•   2 TBL of diced pimentos
•   8oz. of  daiya cheese
•   1/2 tsp garlic powder
•   salt to taste  (the cheese has sodium so watch out)
•   black pepper to taste

bendable, delicious...flatten with spatula

Method:
*  sauté the washed mushrooms in a little olive oil until the moisture is released, set aside
*  mix the inside of the baked potato, mushrooms, pimentos and spices (not cheese) in big bowl
*  heat your sauté pan up and add a big circle of daiya cheese until bubbling
place a little of the potato mixture on top of the cheese and in the middle and flip until brown on top
*  use the spatula to flatten

vegan confetti bake

A great Thanksgiving side dish.  Easy, nutritious and delicious this casserole forms a crispy top and melded interior and takes on all the veggie flavors.

Equipment:
casserole dish
oven
big mixing bowl
big spoon
tongs
mandoline or french knife and cutting board

Ingredients...
•    1 medium sweet potato, medium size julienne slice
•    1 large russet potato, medium size julienne slice
•    1/2 medium onion, small julienne slice
•    2 large carrots, small julienne slice
•    1 medium yellow squash, large julienne slice
•    1 medium zucchini, large julienne slice
•    10 oz. daiya cheese shreds (any type)
•    2 TBL olive oil
•    2 TBL nutritional yeast
•    1 tsp rubbed sage
•    2 tsp thyme
•    salt, to taste
•    pepper, to taste

Method...
preheat oven to 375 degrees, wash hands

( I have tried to push this low-cost mandoline to vegans for a couple months now, and yes, its still worth it.  Its the oxo v-blade mandoline, around $40 (as of this post 2012), and a wonderful tool for the price and for all the great bakes.)
1.  Combine all sliced veggies in big bowl, add daiya, spices and nutritional yeast and mix thoroughly with hands (the daiya will hold this together and the moisture from the squash and onion will add a sauce-like texture in the middle) taste for salt and pepper before placing in baking dish
2.  Press down into casserole dish firm
3.  Place dish in oven and bake at 375 until you hear the casserole start to bubble (approx 1/2 hour, 45 minutes)
4.  Turn broiler on and broil to a nice crisp brown top