Time Saving Tips

I am introducing a new label on this blog, time saving tips.  This is some of my personal experience, through trial and error.  Time saving, elimination of steps and saving time with clean up.

For instance, tofu pepperoni http://veganizeeverything.blogspot.com/2011/12/tofu-pepperoni.html

 will be tagged with "time saving tips" because cutting up tofu, making the marinade and placing in oven with parchment is a lot faster than making a seitan from scratch.  The oven drying takes a long time, but the labor and clean up involved is minimal.

baltimore kelp cakes

"accidentally found out that mac nuts, white wine and artichokes taste "crabby".  gluten free and soy free, these sea cakes are very "sea-tasty"

Equipment:
Mixing Bowl
Food Processor
Sauté pan
Heavy duty spatula

Ingredients:

*  1/2 cup raw or roasted macademia nuts

*  1/4 cup of white wine

*  1/2 teaspoon of dijon mustard

*  3 tsps old bay seasoning (or make your own), more if salt is needed

*  3 tsps kelp powder

*  the oil from 1 broken open capsule of EPA algae (if you have it, and can spare it)

*  2 TBL italian flat leaf parsley, washed (or dry)

*  8 large artichokes (canned in water, not oil) or fresh steamed, cut and pulled.  Canned, Drained with water pressed out and sliced

*  1/2 cup garbanzo / chic pea flour

Method...

•    Place macadamia nuts, white wine, mustard, old bay, kelp and epa oil in food processor and process until very well combined and "cheese like".  Add parsley and pulse until minced into mixture.

•    Transfer the mac nut mixture into big mixing bowl and add the drained, water pressed out, diced artichokes and chic pea flour.

•    Mix with your hands until well combined. Cover and place in frig if you are not using immediately or use right away.  (This mixture may seem too wet, but the flour will hold the cakes together)

•    Taste for salt and kelp if you can stomach the raw chic pea flour

•    Fry on a non-stick surface or with a little hot oil on a well seasoned sauté pan.  Flip and let brown over medium heat.  (The chic pea flour has to thoroughly cook)

vegan streetgrill burger

Equipment:

• Big bowl for mixing
• spatula to flip
• sauté pan for flour toasting
• flat or bamboo steamer for steaming seitan or slow cooker
• large flat braising pan for water under the bamboo steamer
• foil or corn husks or leaves to line bamboo steamer
• covered bowl or plate for storing burgers 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup TVP (texturized vegetable protein, found in most health food stores)

1/3 cup water

2 TBL soy sauce or tamari

1/3 cup white or whole wheat flour 

3 TBL onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 cup gluten flour

2 1/2 TBL vegan margarine (melted) or refined coconut oil (melted)

no sugar added, 100% pomegranate

1/2 cup 100% pomegranate juice  (yes, I used pomegranate juice and they turned out fantastic.   If you do not have this you can substitute water, although I believe the rich sour / non-sweet taste of the juice had something to do with the authentic taste of the burger)

1/2 cup water

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp course black pepper

1 tsp brewers yeast (if you do not have this, it would not be the end of the world)

Method…, or link to slow cooker method

Rehydrate TVP in water and soy sauce by bringing to boil, then turn down to simmer for around 1 minute. set aside

toasted flour

FOCUS...Combine white flour (not the gluten flour) and onion powder in sauté pan, on high heat and constantly flip and mix, on the heat and off of the heat, until nice and brown.  (Very important, this will BURN to ash in a second if you are not paying attention)  You will smell the smoke and brown/burnt flavor of the flour and onion, this is the flavor of the burger.  set aside

Get your steamer ready to go.

Wash Hands

Place the rehydrated TVP, browned flour / onion and the rest of the ingredients in mixing bowl and mix with your hands very well.  This mixture seems dry, but works.  If you add too much additional water the burgers get string like (i'm not sure why, but they do)

Form small flat burgers with your hands and place onto the steamer, cover and let steam around 25-30 minutes, each side.  Flip with spatula and let the other side steam around 25-30 minutes, watching the water level in the bottom pan.  Seitan should always be overcooked, never undercooked.  

When removed from steamer, place burgers on a plate and let cool to room temp, drizzle olive oil on top and bottom, cover airtight, place in frig.  Prepare directly on outdoor grill, grill pan fry or panini press.  Probably best to use medium heat for grilling or frying the burgers, they can burn fast due to the toasted flour.  Note that the patties are very dense and need to cook quite a long time to be hot all the way through.

Makes around 6 medium size burger patties.  Enjoy on a bun with all the fixings.

philly style vegan "meatballs"

Equipment:

bamboo steamer (or flat surface steamer for seitan) or slow cooker

braising pot to put on the bottom of the bamboo steamer

small saucepan

big mixing bowl

spice grinder, (coffee grinder , or,  plastic bag with small hammer)

tongs

non-vegan friends will not know the difference!

1 cup TVP (texturized vegetable protein, found in most health food stores)

3/4 cup water

1 TBL soy sauce

2 TBL fennel

1 TBL oregano

2 TBL italian flat leaf parsley, washed and minced (fresh if you have it, if not use dry)

2 cloves fresh garlic, minced  ( or...1 1/2 TBL garlic powder if you do not have fresh)

2 tsp black pepper

2 TBL minced onion, fresh

2 1/2 TBL earth balance melted (or 3 TBL olive oil)

1/2 cup unsweetened vegan milk 

3 slices cubed bread, (any type except rye)

1/2 cup gluten flour

to taste...salt or vegan parmesan

Mince your onions smaller!!

Method:  wash hands,

Place TVP in the saucepan with water and soy sauce.

Rehydrate the TVP in the water and soy sauce, under medium heat , and let cool to warm, set aside

Either grind fennel into powder, or, place in plastic bag and crush with small hammer (lightly) set aside

Set up the bamboo steamer with foil or corn husks and let the under water boil

Place all ingredients except gluten flour, in mixing bowl and mix with hands, add the gluten flour and mix with hands very, very well (this mixture will be heavy and dense, don’t worry, it will turn out light, fluffy and not fall apart)

 or link to slow cooker method, easier the meatballs and place in steamer and steam on high heat for around 25 minutes each side.  turn each meatball over with tongs half way through steaming

 Either place in sauté pan to fry for a crisp, brown outside, or place directly in marinara sauce from steamer

 Let "meatballs" simmer in sauce all day, or for as many hours as you wish

makes  around  10  medium  size  “meatballs”

Once steamed, these "meatballs" will keep for days of re-heat and frig in slow cooker pot

PROBLEMS WITH BLOGGER THAT I DID NOT HAVE THE TIME TO DEAL WITH, SO ENJOY, AS JACKED UP AS THE TEXT IS!

baked spinach gnocchi

Delicious appetizer or entrée

Equipment:

Food Processor

Large oven or toaster oven

Baking tray

Sauce Pan

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup unsalted walnuts (either raw or lightly toasted)
1/2 cup cooked russet potato packed, without skin
5 -6 cups fresh, washed, stemmed spinach, wilted in sauce pan and water squeezed out = 1/2 cup wilted spinach (or 1/2 cup frozen spinach, water squeezed out)
1 large garlic clove
a few leaves of fresh, washed basil
2 tsp lemon juice
2 TBL olive oil
1 tsp black pepper
to taste...salt (I used herbamare)
1/4 cup rice flour, or a little more to set up

Add vegan alfredo dipping sauce and your favorite marinara

Method...Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Combine all ingredients in food processor, except for the spinach and rice flour, and process until thoroughly combined.  
Add spinach and rice flour (and taste for salt and basil) until set up enough to roll
Place rolled gnocchi on oiled baking sheet and bake for around 20 minutes to 1/2 hour until the spinach turns bright green ( do not over bake and turn the spinach dark green, no worries on undercooking, they can be a little cold)
Serve hot from the oven, or, store in refrigerator and serve as a cold appetizer

Used as an entrée, not rolled, but spooned out onto baking tray

philly vegan calzone

In this recipe, you can make up the philly vegan steak and store in refrigerator, long before you need the filling for the calzone

Equipment needed:

1 large frying, saute pan or griddle.

1 cutting board

1 really heavy duty stainless steel spatula

1 french knife for slicing onions and mushrooms, or an asian cleaver

For dough...

big bowl for dough rising

small bowl for yeast rising

plastic bag for covering rising bowl

some clean towels

bench scraper

big spoon

rolling pin (french rolling pins are nice, no squeaky handles)

Measure	Ingredients
1/4 cup 1/2 of	saute oil (canola, safflower, light olive) large white onion, sliced very thin
1/2 cup	Italian cherry peppers, slice (or pepperoncini)
2 cups	Frozen vegan crumbles or refrigerated Lightlife crumbles
1/4 cup	mayonnaise
1 each	large fresh french baguette, soft
to taste	sliced button mushrooms
to taste	marinara sauce, not necessary for authenticity

For dough:
2 1/2 tsps or 1 package of active dry yeast (not the self rising type or the pizza dough, or the bread machine type)

3 - 4 cups of all purpose flour, or, bread flour

1 TBL gluten (optional)

2 tsps salt

1/4 tsp sugar

as needed, warm water

as needed, olive oil or oil of choice for the bowl

Method:

For calzone/pizza dough, please refer to the dough recipe, unless you have a frozen dough or you are a pro, you will not need an additional recipe.

Heat up your saute pan with the oil and throw in your onions, peppers, mushrooms and saute over very high heat until brown, add the vegan crumbles and saute together to blend the flavors until they are all browned and grilled, turn the heat onto low and add the mayonnaise and flip around until spreadable. Now, either refrigerate for later use, or set aside to place on  dough.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees at least 1/2 hour before baking

 Place vegan mozzarella on bottom half of dough, then place philly vegan steak mixture on top of the mozzarella on the bottom half, place a little more mozzarella on top of the mixture, carefully flip over, make small knife mark slices on top and carefully put on pizza stone or baking sheet over light oil spray, place in oven until light to medium brown, remove and serve.

philly italian hoagie

“This sandwich is all about the roll that you use.  It also does not hurt to get the onions as thin as possible.  This is also a very spicy sandwich.   I have attached an easy french bread youtube video recipe for those of you who don’t have a good vegan french bread available.  The roll is everything and should be somewhat firm on the outside and soft on the inside, and if you have never said WOW after eating a sandwich roll, you have never experienced a  great roll.  I was overjoyed to learn that I could make a great bread with 10 minutes of labor.  I also use the same method for my pizza dough.”

Equipment:

Long bread slicing knife

deli slicer or french knife for slicing onions, etc.

Ingredients:

1 each  french baguette, cut to whatever size you want

as needed  vegan mayonnaise (Vegannaise or Nayonnaise)

as needed  vegan pepperoni

as needed  vegan capicola or vegan ham (I used Ives, but you can use any version or make your own)

as needed  white onion, sliced as thin as you can get

as needed  iceberg or romaine lettuce shredded to cut and layered into sandwich

as needed  olive oil

as needed  tabasco sauce

as needed fresh, thinly sliced, tomato

pinches of  dry oregano

pinches of  ground black pepper

Method:

Slice the roll lengthwise and put the mayonnaise on (you can use Italian dressing instead of mayo, if you prefer), layer the pepperoni on one side of the roll, the vegan ham on the other side, then push down your lettuce with your slicing knife, add onions and tomatoes and push all down with the slicing knife.  Finally add the olive oil, tabasco, oregano and black pepper

10 minute french bread video

philly bar fries

This is EXACTLY like an order of philly "heese" fries.   For baltimore add old bay seasoning

Equipment:  Oven, Saucepan for sauce, small whisk

Ingredients:

• 1 pkg , frozen organic french fries (or make your own, I don't like the mess and time of deep frying)
• 1 cup , vegan milk
• 3 TBL , leahey foods "cheddar" powder
• 2 oz. , daiya cheddar vegan shreds

Method...
Heat your milk up in saucepan, and add cheddar powder and whisk into milk.  turn heat to low when it starts to thicken a little, add daiya shreds, continue to whisk in.

Uses...the sauce can be used with any recipe that calls for a melty cheddar sauce

philly vegan steak

I'm originally from Philly (the city, not the burbs)... this is authentic

  EEquipment needed:

1 large frying, saute pan or griddle.

1 cutting board

1 really heavy duty stainless steel spatula

1 french knife for slicing onions and mushrooms, or an asian cleaver

Measure	Ingredients
1/4 cup 1/2 of	saute oil (canola, safflower, light olive) large white onion, sliced very thin
1/2 cup	Italian cherry peppers, sliced or pepperoncini
2 cups	Frozen vegan crumbles or refrigerated Lightlife crumbles
1/4 cup	mayonnaise
1 each	large fresh french baguette, soft
to taste	sliced button mushrooms
to taste	marinara sauce, not necessary for authenticity
	makes 2 very large Philly sandwiches
	-or- 3 medium sized sandwiches

Heat up your saute pan with the oil and throw in your onions, peppers, mushrooms and saute over very high heat until brown, add the vegan crumbles and saute together to blend the flavors until they are all browned and grilled, turn the heat onto low and add the mayo (in philly they use chez whiz, mayo is the best substitute i've come across to get the texture and taste).  (you can coat your roll with marinara if thats how you like it)