Manicotti: Vegan Cooking with Nadine

Vegan Manicotti

       My sister, who has no interest in any vegan choices, actually requests for me to make this when she comes over to my house. This easy to follow beginners recipe is simple, clean eating. I usually pair it with a garlic bread and some fresh fruit, along with a chocolate dessert.

       The recipe calls for tofu, and if you don't like tofu, you're in luck! The tofu is mashed up to make a cottage cheese and then mixed with spaghetti sauce, so you don't even process it as tofu!

      I gave myself a bit more than hour (maybe 90 minutes) to prepare this dish my first time, but after that, I got the hang of what would make this dish quicker: get water boiling before you start cutting your vegetables. This saved me about 15 minutes because the first time I made this recipe, I didn't read the instructions all the way through (oops!) and I ended up having to wait for the water to boil, then for the noodles to partially cook, and lastly waiting for the noodles to cool down enough that I could handle them. 

In short, learn from my mistakes and boil water first!

Serves: 6-8

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 40 minutes

Total time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

1/2 package of manicotti noodles (24 shells)

2 20oz jars of spaghetti sauce

1 recipe Vegan Cottage Cheese (see recipe below)

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1-2 Tablespoons oil

2 cloves garlic, crushed or finely chopped

1 onion chopped (1 1/2 cups)

1 pound spinach, chopped or whole

1 teaspoon basil

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon Chicken Style Seasoning (found commonly in bulk seasonings).

Vegan Cottage Cheese:

1 pound extra firm Tofu

1/2 cup Vegenaise

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons lemon juice

• Mash tofu and mix in other ingredients.

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook pasta (to fill the pasta, it's easier if the noodles aren't fully cooked, and just a few minutes under cooked).
3. Sauté the last 8 ingredients above in the oil until onions and spinach are tender.
4. Add tofu cottage cheese and parsley to the saucepan and mix well.
5. Pour 1/2 a jar of spaghetti sauce into the bottom of a 9x13 inch casserole dish 
6. With a large spoon, fill pasta with the mixture from the saucepan. Place the shells in the tomato sauce.
7. Pour the remaining sauce over the shells. Make sure the shells are covered with the sauce, otherwise when they're done cooking, the exposed parts will turn hard.
8. Cover with foil and place in preheated oven for 40 minutes.

Sauteed Veggies

Sauteing works well to not only add a vegetables to a meal but also to add flavor. It's simple to do and they can go on top of many dishes. I enjoy adding sauteed zucchini to grain based dishes like pasta and the mushrooms and onions are delicious on meat like steak and burgers. I also have but it on top of bakes potatoes to add a more savory element.

Can be browned more if desired

Zucchini: Melt butter in a saute pan place peeled and sliced zucchini into melted butter, sprinkle with garlic. flip once browned and repeat. Add more butter as needed. Some  may burn more than other due to burning butter.

Mushrooms: Similarly, melt butter in  a saute pan and add washed, and sliced mushrooms. I recommend removing the stems. Saute until browned and to desired softness.

Mushrooms before cooking down

Onions (and mushrooms): Melt butter and add finely chopped onion. Saute until softened and add mushrooms, if desired. Continue cooking until onions are caramelized.

Farmers Market

I'm so excited for this weather to get better! Happily within the next month or so my favorite farmers markets are opening up. One of my favorite ways to start my weekend is to go and see all of the fresh produce and vendors. It's a great way to stock up on high quality ingredients. Here are my finds from today:

Carrots, hazelnut brownies, spinach and kale mix, and spinach starters. All for $10!

New Ingredients Part 1

While at the store not long ago I noticed produce I had never heard and some I just didn't know much about.  I decided to look into them to see what they are, what to do with them, and if I want to try and use them.

 Chayote Squash
Mild flavor and texture
From tropical farms so they are available all year round
Buy:small firm fruits that feel heavy
Store: for several weeks, in the crisper or in a paper bag
Eat: Most of the time it's cooked but it can be eaten raw. Can be cooked using any method like grilling, baking, and steaming.


 Tamarind:
African spice, used in Worcestershire sauce.
Buy: Can be found in a variety of forms. I just happened to find whole beans
Store:In processed forms it can last almost forever
Eat: Use the dried forms for rubs, marinades, and other spice combinations

Persimmons:
A Mediterranean fruit with a sweet taste. There are two varieties; the American and the Japanese or Oriental variety.
Buy: Available later in the year. choose fruits that are rich in color, blemish free, and plump. Make sure the leaves are intact.
Store: Ripen on paper bag and refrigerate once ripened. Eat quickly. Can be frozen in a puree or whole.
Eat:You can eat them raw just remove the pulp. Add to smoothies and salads. The can be poached and preserved in to puree or preserves.
***These are what I'll be trying once they come back in season this winter***

Let me know if you have any suggestions!
Bonus: Look at these HUGE avocados I found. They were larger that my fist.

Sorry it's blurry

Bacon Grilled Cheese

I had leftover bacon and needed to eat it so I decided to make a bacon grilled cheese. Is was delicious. So here's my how-to make any grilled cheese. It may take practice to get the bread a golden brown color but the practice is well worth the reward.

What you need:
Butter
Bread
Cheese- thinly sliced
Bacon (2-3 slices)


In a pan over medium heat place butter and allow to melt. While melting cut cheese thinly and arrange on bread. Place bacon on top next and top with the second slice of bread.  Place uncooked sandwich on to melted butter and cook. Using a spatula to check for coloring. Flip to brown the other side. Remove from pan, cut, and enjoy.

Notes:
Thinly sliced cheese will melt better the thick slices, so for a cheesy sandwich do multiple layers.
This method works for any type of grilled cheese that requires heating. I would recommend adding veggies like lettuce and avocado afterwards if you want to make a more sandwich like grilled cheese.

Recipe: Sugar Cookies

I typically make these around Christmas but the pastel mints work perfectly for Easter as well. These sugar cookies are delicious with the simple frosting and the mints. They are  my mom's favorite holiday cookie and she was very excited to have them around the house. They are  also easy to make and  a hit.

Cookies:

1 ½ cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter
1 egg

1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp almond extract
2 ½ cups flour
1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cream of tartar

Mix together everything except the flour, soda, and cream of tartar. Then add the final three ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours.

Roll out a flour board to cut the cookies and bake at 375 for 7-8 minutes. Once cooled frost.

Frosting:

~3 ½ cups sifted powdered sugar

½ cup butter

¼ cup 4% milk

1 tsp vanilla

Food coloring (Optional)

Shaved pastel mints (Optional but recommended)

Mix together adding the powdered sugar gradually until a good taste is made. Add food coloring if desired,  sprinkle on the pastel mints.

Spread icing on to cooled cookies and then cover in shaved pastel mints. Enjoy!

Building a Smoothie

Bannana-Berry

Smoothies are delicious. I love making one after class to enjoy as a snack. I have been making myself smoothies for awhile but I always managed to make too much and smoothies don't remix very well in my experience.

2 cups fruit

1 container yogurt (~1 cup)

1+ cup milk

~2 inch piece banana

Blend together and enjoy!

Notes:

If it's not mixing well add more milk. That's typically the problem, an air bubble forms at the bottom of the blender and the best way to prevent that and get better smoothing is to add more liquid.

You can also add a handful of vegetables to boost the nutritional value .

Pizza Bites

Easy snack or appetizer anyone? Not only are these easy to make they're done in less then two minutes after they're put in to the oven.
Get sliced baguette or similar and spread sauce. Form the sauced bread into one large group, pictured right. It makes it easier to spread toppings than doing it individually. Press toppings down on the bites to make sure it doesn't fall off when separating.. Bake at 350 for a minute or two. Remove and enjoy.

Notes:
Separating the individual bites may seem like a weird step but by doing so the edges are able to crisp in the oven

I've used spaghetti sauce every time I've made it but you could also try a pesto or white sauce, it's all up to you and what you like. Let me know how it turns out though.

Building a Simple Salad

As a student on the go having food that is healthy, easy, and delicious can be difficult. One thing I found was to make salads at the beginning of the week and grab them before classes in the morning. They started off as lettuce and apple but have evolved, So here is me step-by-step to make an on the go salad.

1. Base of leafy greens
2. Toppings- fruit and vegetables
3. Extras- cheese or nuts
4. Dressing






I fill the containers almost completely full of leafy vegetables. This salad includes red leaf lettuce, spinach, and a handful on kale.
Then I cut up some strawberries and washed some blueberries to put on top. Other toppings include pear, cucumber, carrots, and apple which can provide a fresh crunch.
Next I add chopped or ground up nuts- this provides some protein and flavor complexity. My favorite is pecans because they are sweet and soft. I have recently been using almonds on my salads because that's what I have.
Finally you can add dressing. If you're taking it to go I recommend  putting the dressing in a separate container and adding it once you're ready to eat.


 Have fun creating healthy salads with whatever you like and also what you have on hand. I recommend mixing flavors so it's not just another boring salad. Experiment and see what you like. Lettuce, apple, and pecans was my staple not long ago but now I have berries galore to use.

Recipe: One Bowl Brownies

This is a true one bowl recipe if you start off with a large enough bowl. By using a 9x9 pan a thick brownie (almost and inch think) is made and its delicious.

4 squares Baker's unsweetened baking chocolates, broken in half
3/4 cup butter
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup flour
~ 1cup add-ins like chocolate chips or nuts (optional)

In a medium microwave safe bowl, microwave the chocolate squares and butter until the butter is melted. stir until the chocolate melts as well. Add in sugar then eggs and vanilla, combining well. Add flour and add-ins. spread in to a 9x9 pan and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Baked Bacon

It's almost the weekend which means there will hopefully be time to make a yummy breakfast, with bacon! Bacon is delicious but frying it can be messy and painful when it sends grease flying out of the pan and on to your arms. I decided to look in to baking bacon to save myself from the bacon popping and it has become my favorite type of bacon. It turns out firm and crunchy without crumbling and burnt like fried crispy bacon. Yet it's soft without being chewy like fried chewy bacon. It's also really easy to do and allows you to work on the rest of the meal.

Spread out bacon onto a foil boat on a baking sheet on layer thick. Place bacon into cold oven and turn on the oven to 400. Bake for 20-25 minutes starting from the time you begin heating the oven. The bacon should be crisp when done. Move on to paper towel plate to remove excess grease and enjoy. Throw away foil and grease once cooled. The pan may have to be lightly washed as well.

Notes:
When looking up how to bake bacon I found a site saying to use parchment paper. You can use it but it will be a lot messier because it seeps through and it's not easy to contain the grease.

Ice Cream Cake: Chocolate and Mint Chocolate Chip

I'm a baker and part of my gift to my boyfriend is a cake, his birthday has long since past but now to tell you how I made his cake. I decided to try my hand at making an ice cream cake for him and even though I though, more than once, that I had failed it ended up fantastic! I will be making more of these in the future hopefully with more variations and I'll be able to help you make them successfully as well



German Chocolate Cake:
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup boiling water
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup plus 3 tbsp butter, softened
2 1/4 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk

Ice cream- I used mint chocolate chip

Stir together cocoa powder and water into a small bowl until smooth then set aside. In a medium bowl sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. While in a large bowl beat butter until creamy. Gradually add the sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well. Stir in the vanilla extract. Then alternate adding the cocoa and buttermilk and flour. Pour in to two 9 inch spring form pans with lined and greases bottom and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.
Allow to cool completely, refrigerating to speed up the process. Once cooled loosen from pans and  scoop softened ice cream on top of one cake and smooth, keeping it in the pan. Place the second cake on top and re freeze.
For frosting I used the ganache recipe from a previous post. The ice cream provided a sweet flavor contrast  against the rich ganache. The trick is to pour and spread quickly so the warm ganache doesn't melt the ice cream and it can go into the freezer again sooner.

New Year, Happy 2015

Happy New Year's everyone!
Hope 2014 went well for you all and that 2015 will be great as well.
I actually made resolutions this year, if you can call them that, and I want some help with them. I found a link on Pinterest for things to try in the new year relating too cooking and I thought this is perfect for me.  While I may have been in the kitchen for years I mostly know the basics and would like you to suggest some for me to try.
Expect a year with more posts, new ingredients (at least to me), and other tricks.
Happy 2015!