Embracing Sitophilia

Potato-Mushroom Chowder

Serves: 8 Time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Earth Balance (or any buttery vegan margarine) or butter
• 1 medium sweet onion, halved and sliced into half-moons
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp. sea salt
• 1 T. black pepper
• 6 T. all-purpose flour (you can use any flour here, it doesn’t matter, so long as it thickens liquid when heated, good news for those of you who are gluten-sensitive/allergic)
• 8 cups unsalted broth, water, or a mix of the two
• 4 small carrots, chopped
• 20 baby potatoes, quartered
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 2 cups dried wild mushrooms, or 1 pound fresh mushrooms, chopped
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1 T. red chili flakes
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 2 tsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. dried rosemary
• 1 can no-salt-added sweet kernel corn, drained and rinsed
• 1 can cannelini, navy, or other creamy white bean, drained and rinsed
• 1 c. almond milk

Procedure:

In a large dutch oven/soup pot, melt the margarine/butter over medium heat. Add the onions, salt and pepper, and let cook, stirring occasionally, until onions have softened (about 6 minutes). Add the garlic and cook until fragrant (another 3 minutes). Sprinkle the flour over the onion mixture and stir until a smooth paste forms. Keep stirring until the roux begins to cook and turn golden. Add one cup of the stock/water, and stir until thickened and smooth. Add another cup, and do the same. Then add the remaining stock/water and turn up the heat to high. Once boiling, let it boil for 1 minute, then add the vegetables, mushrooms, yeast and spices, except for the corn, beans, and almond milk. Turn down the heat, cover, and let cook at a high simmer for 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked. Add the almond milk, corn, and beans, and heat through. Taste to make sure it’s seasoned enough, adding more salt and pepper, if necessary.

ALLERGY: Almond, Yeast, Wheat (if using wheat flour)

Italian Chik’n Lentil Soup

Serves: 10 Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbls. Olive oil
• pinch sea salt
• 1 medium onion, halved and sliced into half-moons
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 6 crimini mushrooms, chopped
• 1 can no salt added diced tomatoes
• 1 can tomato sauce
• 4 quarts (16 cups) water or vegetable stock (unsalted)
• 1 medium, or 2 small, or 1/2 large zucchini, quartered lengthwise and sliced into wedges
• 6 baby potatoes, any variety (or a combo of different types!), halved, then sliced width-wise into thin half-moons
• 10 baby carrots, sliced into rounds
• 2 c. dried mixed mushrooms (shiitake, oyster, porcini, chantrelle, etc.)
• 2 packages chicken-style seitan, or 2 lbs. homemade seitan, sliced into strips (it will look less like actual chicken, but it will taste a lot better!)
• 1 cup lentils, rinsed and sorted for foreign matter
• 3 tsp. sea salt
• 2 tsp. black pepper, ground
• 2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. chili flake
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 2 tsp. dried basil
• 1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
• 2 Tbls. nutritional yeast (optional)
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 large handfuls baby spinach

Preparation:

Heat the oil over medium heat in a large soup pot/dutch oven (~6 qt.). Toss in the onions, celery, and mushrooms, add a pinch of sea salt and sauté until onions soften and mushrooms are giving off their water (about 6-8 minutes). Add tomatoes and tomato sauce, turn heat up to high. Add remaining vegetables (except for the spinach), seitan, herbs, spices, bay leaves, yeast (if using) and lentils. Bring just to a boil, then immediately cover and turn the heat down to a decent simmer. Let simmer for 15 minutes, or until lentils are tender and potatoes are soft. Remove from heat and add a handful of spinach at a time, stirring to wilt in the heat of the soup. Serve with warm, crusty bread.

ALLERGY INFO: Contains Wheat/Gluten, Yeast

Pumpkin Saag

Serves: 6
Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 T. oil (olive, canola or peanut)
• 1/2 medium onion, sliced
• 2 carrots, sliced thin
• 3 small sweet peppers, sliced into rings
• 6 crimini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 15oz. can coconut milk
• 1 15oz. can pureéd pumpkin
• 3 T. curry powder
• 2 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 T. black pepper
• 2 tsp. sea salt
• 2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 6oz. bag baby spinach
• 1 brick tofu, 1/2” cubed
• 1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped rough

Procedure:

Heat the oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions, peppers, mushrooms and carrots and sauté until the onions are soft and the mushrooms lose some of their water (about 5 minutes). Add the coconut milk, pumpkin and spices. When the curry is beginning to bubble, add the spinach in handfuls, letting it wilt before stirring in more. When the spinach is all added, toss in the cubed tofu and stir around to coat everything in the magic. Heat tofu through (another 5 minutes or so), then add the cliantro, stir briefly and serve.

Allergy: Coconut, Soy

So, my honey was sick today, and I went to play nursey. She was really nauseous, so I made her some ginger syrup to add to seltzer water to help calm her tummy down. This got me thinking about making my own sodas again… this shit is easy folks, and a lot cheaper. Plus, you know exactly what is going into your beverage. Here’s what I made tonight:

Spiced Prickly Pear Syrup

Time: 40 minutes
Yield:  about 4 cups

Ingredients:

• 2 cups (0.5L) prickly pear juice
• 2 cups (0.5L) water 
• 4 cups sugar (1000g)
• 1/4 pound (120g) fresh ginger, peeled and sliced thin
• 12 whole peppercorns
• 6 star anise pods

Directions:

After prepping the ginger, add everything to a medium pot over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Once a simmer is reached, simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, until volume is reduced slightly and syrup is thickened. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Strain liquid with a sieve/mesh strainer over a bowl. Voilá!

HOW IN THE HELL DO I USE THIS MAGIC STUFF?

Whatever the hell you want to use it for is up to you: pancake syrup, ice cream syrup, cocktails, desserts… my favorite is simply making homemade soda with it. 1/8 cup of syrup over ice and top off with 8 oz. of seltzer water and a lime wedge. You can of course, adjust the syrup amount according to your preference.

Allergy: No common ones :)