Lunch in a Flash

I made lunch this morning before running out the door: between two slices of nutty multigrain bread I spread two tablespoons of peanut butter and laid down 3 leaves of romaine lettuce. Fast, yummy, and minimal clean-up.

Do you have any lunches that you throw together in a flash?

Vegan on a Shoestring

Sushi

I love sushi. It's nice to look at, it tastes good, and it involves nutritious sea vegetables (iodine, anyone?). Unfortunately, it's also really pricy.

The first time I ever made sushi on my own, I was shocked at how little food actually went into making each maki roll (a sheet of nori, a handful of rice, and some thin strips of fillings). I regretted that I had ever paid $3.50 and up for each roll. I was also surprised at how easy it was to make and swore to never to buy sushi again.

I use Alton Brown's sushi rice recipe. It is important to stick with the short grain rice (also called sushi rice). Be careful not to get short-grain sweet rice by mistake (like I once did). I have tried substituting the sushi rice with medium-grain white rice and with long-grain brown rice, and both came out terribly. For the rice, you've got to stick with short-grain. There is also short-grain brown rice but I haven't tried it yet.

You will need one bamboo mat to roll the sushi. You can get one for $2-3 at an Asian market, or online for a couple dollars more. You will need to wrap the mat in plastic wrap so food doesn't get all up in the mat.

For my sushi today I made a spicy tempeh filling, inspired by The Post Punk Kitchen's recipe.

Spicy Tempeh Sushi (makes 4 rolls)
Ingredients

• 4 ounces tempeh (half a package), steamed. (Or, in my case, microwaved in a bowl of water for a few minutes because my building's gas is still off.)
• 2 Tablespoons mayo (I used original Vegenaise)
• chili sauce to taste (I used 3 teaspoons of Sriracha)
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 4 cups prepared sushi rice, a la Alton Brown
• 4 sheets nori (unless you absolutely must have your nori raw or organic, I strongly suggest you get it from an Asian market where it is much much cheaper)
• desired veggies, chopped finely or cut into long, thin strips

Method

• Mash the tempeh, mayo, chili sauce and sesame oil together until well combined and resembles tuna salad.
• Take a nori sheet and lay it on your plastic-wrap-covered bamboo mat, shiny side down.
• Spread a thin layer of sushi rice over the lower 3/4 of the sheet, leaving some nori exposed on the upper edge which you should wet lightly with your fingers so the roll seals properly (like an envelope). You will need about a cup of rice. The rice will be sticky so you'll need to work with wet hands and keep wetting them as needed.
• In the center of the rice, lay strips of your ingredients.
• Using the bamboo mat, fold the lower part of the roll over to tightly enclose the rice and fillings then finish rolling, up to the wet seal. It's really hard to explain and I don't know if I did it justice, so here is a link to a video.

I made one roll with the spicy tempeh (upper line) with shredded carrots and diced celery (lower line) with toasted sesame seeds sprinkled over all.

The other roll had the spicy tempeh (upper line) with avocado (lower line) with toasted sesame seeds sprinkled over all.

Yummy with pickled ginger on the side.

I get tempeh for $1.69 at Trader Joe's or Whole Foods. A $1.69 block of tempeh is enough to make 8 rolls, which would feed 3-4 people. So that's only like $5-7, tops, (including the other ingredients) to feed sushi to a few people (but much cheaper if you avoid pricier fillings like avocado and tempeh). Nuts, I tell you!

Do you like sushi? What are some of your favorite fillings?


Vegan on a Shoestring

Easy Microwave Besan Ladoo

Indian sweets are the bane of my vegan existence. While they are extremely rich and decadent, they are mostly based on cow's milk or ghee. I have just veganized a favorite of mine: besan ladoo. The ladoos came out very flavorful and decadent.

The easiness and speed of this recipe is purely circumstantial. I decided to roast the besan in the microwave because the gas in my building was shut off and I was beasting too badly to wait it out.

Besan Ladoo
Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, melted (I used original Earth Balance)
• 1 1/2 cups chickpea flour (besan)
• 2/3 cup sugar, regular or powdered
• 1/3 cup almonds or pistachios, sliced or coarsely ground to preference
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom (about 4-5 pods)

Method

• Combine butter and chickpea flour in a large microwaveable bowl and microwave on high for 5-8 minutes. Every minute, remove from microwave and stir. Stop microwaving when the flour darkens in color to an amber/reddish brown and smells roasted and fragrant, about 5-8 minutes depending on microwave strength. (If you taste a tiny lump and it tastes kind of acrid or sour, it's still raw. I know this because after 5 minutes it smelled super fragrant and I thought it was done but when I tasted it it tasted nasty, but after 2 more minutes or so, roasted loveliness!)
• Add sugar, nuts and cardamom and combine thoroughly. Let sit to cool until still warm but not too hot to handle, about 10 minutes.
• Put 2-3 Tablespoons into the palm of your hand and press tightly, into a ball shape. The texture will be crumbly - you won't be able to roll it between your palms like fudge, you will have to press it tightly and round it out by pressing with your fingertips. If the texture is so dry that it won't even be pressed together, add more melted butter a little at a time until it can be pressed. When you squeeze it with your hand, it should be able to stick together in a lump.

I got 14 ping-pong sized ladoo out of this recipe. Much cheaper and more convenient than buying it at an Indian sweet shop. For the sake of my waistline, I hope I can refrain from making this regularly.

Have you ever made candy/sweets using the microwave? 

Vegan on a Shoestring

Cooking Comfort Zone

I've always loved Indian food. It's full of interesting, complex, rich flavor and it's so filling and satisfying. While I'm great at eating and enjoying Indian food, I don't have a good track record at making Indian food. I don't know if it was me or the recipes I used, but I always turned out flavorless or strange-tasting dishes. After several failed attempts I resigned myself to buying Indian food if I wanted it. Indian food became a weak spot for me because it was something I loved so much but I had come to the conclusion that I could never make it for myself. It was far outside of my cooking comfort zone. Even since becoming vegan and cooking so many new foods, it still hadn't occurred to me to try again.

I started craving Indian food a couple of weeks ago. I bought a big load of samosas one day and worked on them for a couple of days. Then I bought some curry for lunch another day, and again a couple of days later. Then I was like, "Why don't I try to make this again?" 

Since finding Manjula's Kitchen and making her recipes, I definitely feel more competent at it. I have made several Indian dishes during the past week or two, with great success. Not only have my curries come out very tasty, they have not been difficult to make. I am on a serious Indian kick right now, spurred by cravings for it, and maintained by finally being able to produce it at home.

Of all the positive effects of veganism, I'm currently very grateful for opening myself up to experimenting more in the kitchen. I used to have a repertoire of recipes and cooking techniques to which I clung firmly. Since becoming vegan I appreciate food a lot more and trust it a lot more, and that has led me to push my old limits on what I'm willing to try. I make new foods all the time now. With every new dish I make, I am not only reaching outside of my cooking comfort zone, I am expanding it. It's good for me because I get to try new things and keep learning, and it's good for my loved ones because they also get to reap the pleasures and benefits of new, yummy, cholesterol-free, animal-free foods.

Do you have a cooking comfort zone? What dishes or cuisines are difficult for you to make?

Vegan on a Shoestring