Lettuce Wraps with Hoisin-Mustard Tofu

Lettuce Wraps with Hoisin-Mustard Tofu

I've been working my way through Isa Chandra Moscowitz's Appetite for Reduction with great success and this recipe was no exception.  In fact, I've made four more recipes from the book this week and been pleased with every single one.  The great thing about this book is that most of the recipes don't require a long prep time and none seem daunting or complicated.  As an every day cookbook that incorporates a variety of flavour profiles and cuisines, I think this is a winner.  
      
I wasn't sure if I was going to like this Hoisin-Mustard combination but I was curious enough to try it and I'm happy to report it was delicious. If you like honey-mustard sauce then you will probably enjoy the blend of  ginger, garlic, mustard and the Hoisin barbecue sauce making for a great sweet and savory bite. Wrapping the tofu mixture in lettuce provided the perfect crisp, fresh complement. I used Romaine instead of iceburg and my husband and I gobbled this dish up.

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For our cooking challenge, over the Easter weekend, my friend Kathryn made a Polish sweet bread called Babka which looks and sounds delicious.  Check it out here.  

Szechwan Green Beans and Shallots



Szechwan Broccoli and Shallots

Okay, I know the title of this post is a little misleading because these don't look like green beans and they're not but I really wanted to try this recipe from Robin Robertson's new book Party Vegan and the closest thing I had in my fridge was broccoli. This book has been topping my pile of must read library books for a few weeks now and with so much going on around here, I have not had time to do this lovely book justice. I plan on buying myself a copy when the budget allows because it's chock full of delicious sounding recipes that are right up my alley. She is hands down my favourite cookbook author - I think our palates are super simpatico because whenever I read her recipes, I find myself drooling and inspired to get into the kitchen.

This recipe is pretty simple but as usual I was missing another ingredient, this time for the sauce. Dry cooking sherry is not something I usually stock in my pantry although I do come across it occasionally in recipes. It's one of those things I never remember to buy so instead I substituted a combination of rice vinegar and agave nectar. The recipe only calls for one teaspoon and hopefully it didn't completely alter the intended flavours of the dish.  My husband said he thought the sauce was very balanced with a nice amount of spiciness.   Because I replaced the beans with broccoli and also added tofu to make it a one pot meal, I should have doubled the sauce but it was a easy to prepare, flavourful and very reminiscent of the traditional Szechwan sauces I've eaten in Chinese restaurants.  I will definitely make it again with just beans next time.   

Ceci-Roasted Red Pepper Soup



Ceci-Roasted Red Pepper Soup

For my second foray into Appetite for Reduction: 125 Fast and Filling Low-Fat Vegan RecipesI was attracted to a soup called Ceci-Roasted Red Pepper Soup.   Mmm, doesn’t that sound good?   It has all the flavours I love; roasted bell peppers, tomatoes, garlic, chickpeas, coriander and rosemary.  I was a little nervous that the called for quantity of rosemary would overpower the soup and after tasting it I definitely found it to be the dominant flavour.   It’s a very hearty soup and I will definitely make it again but next time I’ll use less rosemary.   I also found it slightly salty and after tasting thought it needed a tiny bit of sweetness so I squeezed in a squirt of agave nectar which seemed to help.  This soup made for an easy week-night supper and with a few, tiny tweaks it gets a big, thumbs up!

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My lovely friend Kathryn has been cooking up lots of yummy food while I've been distracted by other things.   She's way ahead of me on our cooking challenge so I will link all of her entries here.   Check out her most recent dishes!  

Mixed Vegetable Masala

Flying Apron's Dark Chocolate Cake

Flying Apron's Gluten-Free Maple Berry "Muffins"

Surprise Cookies and an Underwhelming Lasagna

Veggie "Basagna"

I had a request for "basagna" on the weekend and as much as I enjoy eating lasagna, I haven't yet mastered or found a vegan version that satisfies me.  There is always something missing, a richness or sauciness that I used to love about eating it in my pre-vegan days.   I guess I just haven't found the right recipe or combination of sauces and fillings. 

For my weekly cooking challenge I decided to combine ideas from three or four recipes.  It didn't turn out well enough for me to want to post the recipe but I'll keep working on it and share the improved version later.  I added sauteed scallion, carrots, red peppers and spinach to the tofu ricotta mixture which was quite tasty and I also added a layer of eggplant with the tomato sauce.   It definitely needed extra tomato sauce ladeled over the top when served.

While I was busy cooking components for the lasagna, my daughter was whipping up her own creation in a bowl on the kitchen table.  After taking a look at the mushed up fruit and nuts in the bowl I suggested we add a bit of flour and oats and see if her "dough" would bake up into cookies.   We were very excited to see if the experiment would work.  She insisted on adding a spice so we settled on nutmeg.   Here follows the ingredients with very rough measurements, it made seven cookies that were surprisingly tasty with no added sweetener!  I really enjoyed the peanuts in the cookies and although the name implies crunchiness, they were actually quite moist and soft on the inside. 

Yum-Crunch Delicious Cookies

1 banana mashed
1/4 peach chopped into tiny pieces
1 or 2 tablespoons roasted peanuts
1/4 cup rice crisps
1 tsp lemon Juice
2 tablespoons soy milk
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup oats
1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Smush wet ingredients together with a potato masher until well blended and then add dry ingredients and mix well.   Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 18 minutes.   Enjoy! 


Yum-Crunch Delicious Cookies!


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My friends Kika and Kathryn were busy in the kitchen last week.    Kika made a super delicous looking Mung Bean and Carrot Salad with a few variations, check it out at her lovely bilingual blog named Come Compa here. 

It looks like Kathryn baked a successful batch of Irish Soda Bread in honour of St. Patrick's day, here is her post at The Hedgehog in the Kitchen.

Flax-Berry Pancakes with Simso's Strawberry Sauce



Flax-Berry Pancakes with Simso's Strawberry Sauce


When I find a recipe I like, I sometimes get into a rut.  I've been making the same pancakes for over a year now and this morning decided to bust out a few cookbooks and look for something new.  My choice was Flax-Berry Pancakes from Vegan Planet: 400 Irresistible Recipes with Fantastic Flavors from Home and Around the Worldand to top it all off Simso's Strawberry Sauce from Vegan World Fusion Cuisine.  I must say, as a Canadian who can't imagine using anything but maple syrup on my pancakes this was a pretty radical idea.

The pancakes were tasty and easy, except for the bit where you have to scrape ground flaxseeds out of the blender jar.  I was a little more hesitant about the strawberry sauce it but exceeded my expectations.  The recipe called for chopped strawberries, water, a little sweetener of your choice (I used agave), mirin, a pinch of cinnamon and a pinch of cardomom which I hate so I left that out.  My only complaint is that it only made enough for one person.   Next time I will double or triple the recipe.  All in all though, it was a successful breakfast and my weekly cooking challenge is complete!  

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My friend Kathryn was way ahead of me this week and whipped up some tasty, savory black beans and rice for our challenge.   Go and check it out at The Hedgehog in the Kitchen. 

Happy cooking everyone!

Leek Potato Soup



Leek Potato Soup

 I don't often cook with leeks but they are definitely one of my occasional, vegetable impulse buys at the grocery store.  I had three sitting in my fridge getting a little dried out and thought it would the perfect ingredient for my weekly cooking challenge.  I've always wanted to make potato leek soup and searched my cookbooks for a recipe.  I found an appealing candidate in Lauren Ulm's wonderful Vegan YumYum with relatively few ingredients. 

This simple, warming soup was a big hit with everyone in our house. I liked it's velvety texture and the fact that few ingredients were required. Next time I will reduce the amount of salt and season at the end if required. 
 
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And now lets go and see what Kathryn has made over at The Hedgehog in the Kitchen.   Ooooh, it looks like some yummy middle eastern lentils and rice from Veganomicon.   I must give that one a try.   Go Kathryn!  Keep on cooking!

Quick Whole Wheat and Molasses Bread

Quick Whole Wheat and Molasses Bread

 I've had this cookbook - How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman for over a year and barely used it.  It's ginormous and heavy, like a big, fat encyclopedia with no photos.  It sits on the bookshelf in my kitchen and every now and then, I glance guiltily over at it's pretty, green spine and think I must use such an excellent resource but I'm not often inspired to pick it up.  I can't imagine writing something like that, it must have taken forever.

Anyways, on the inside of the back cover there is a list called 20 Essential Vegetarian Dishes and I thought that would be a good place to start in terms of trying recipes.  One of the items on the list is Quick Whole Wheat and Molasses Bread.   Doesn't that sound yummy?  I thought so too!  I made it a few weeks ago and while it was quick and easy to prepare, we found the molasses flavour to be extremely overpowering.  After my daughter and I tasted a few bites of the warm bread my husband was left to eat the entire loaf over the course of the week. It does have an appealing and hearty appearance and I might make it again but next time cutting the molasses in half using 1/4 cup instead of 1/2 cup.  I also subbed soymilk with a tablespoon of vinegar for the buttermilk.  I think this quickbread has a good texture and the potential to be great with a little tweaking.
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My buddy Kathryn has made some tasty looking Almond Cookies over at The Hedgehog in the Kitchen.  I think she is trying to tempt me off my no-sugar challenge!

Cauliflower and Potatoes with Spices



Cauliflower and Potatoes with Spices

I borrowed The Asian Vegan Kitchen from the library and fell in love.  There are about 30 pages of photos in the centre of the book and I want to make every single recipe.  I decided to do an Indian Inspired Sunday brunch today starting with the Cauliflower and Potato with Spices recipe on page 18.  I also made up my own lentils in a tomato/cashew sauce which was delicious but I will post the recipe for that later. 

The potato and cauliflower dish is what they call a dry dish.  I don't always have fabulous results with this type of recipe and I'm definitely a sauce freak.  You basically fry the spices and ginger in a bit of oil and then add the potatoes and cauliflower with a couple of tablespoons of water and let them steam or cook in their own juices.  I was missing two of the spices; mango powder and asafetida so I'm not sure how those missing flavours would have affected the outcome but my husband and I both give this dish a 3 out of 5.  The cauliflower was a little soft and the texture of the potatoes a bit weird for lack of a better word.  I have a feeling I may enjoy this more tomorrow as leftovers. 
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My friend Kathryn over at The Hedgehog in the Kitchen has been having fun trying recipes from The Peaceful Palate and this week cooked up Pasta with Peanut Sauce.   Looks yummy Kathryn!

Oil Free, Sugar Free Muffins!

Since I started my no sugar challenge on the first of January I have been searching for alternate ways to satisfy my sweet tooth and love of baking.  I found a promising oil-free and sugar-free muffin recipe in Vegan Fusion World Fusion Cuisine by Bo Rinaldi and Mark Reinfeld.

These muffins have a lovely, mildly sweet and fruity flavour.  They're sweetened with mashed banana, pineapple, pineapple juice and maple syrup.  They also contain a half cup of coconut which contributes nicely to the mix of flavours and texture.  I used a small can of crushed pineapple found in the pantry and supplemented the required amount of juice with some orange juice.  I was pleasantly surprised with the results.  My only reservation was with the chewiness of the crumb but this didn't detract from my complete enjoyment of the muffins.  In fact, I think I ate eight in one day which is admittedly overdoing it a bit but they were good! 

Emaho's Oil Free Muffins

Temperatures have really dropped this week and a bowl of Kathryn's Black Bean Chili over at The Hedgehog in the kitchen would be very welcome.   Kathryn has been faithfully cooking something new every week for our cooking challenge.  I applaud her and hope her transition to veganism is going smoothly.  After cooking and eating this way for over a year now, I'm having so much fun in the kitchen.

Lemony Roasted Potatoes

I've been cooking a lot of comforting and familiar foods lately because a friend and I are committed to not eating any refined sugar for about 6 weeks.  We hope to gain control over the sugar beast and once the 6 weeks are up, strictly limit intake to small amounts.  I gorged myself on far too many cookies, scones, and other treats.  My body and mood definitely took a beating from too much sugar and some repair work is in order.   

Lemony Roasted Potatoes


Now that the holidays are over, my other friend and fellow blogger Kathryn and I are back to cooking something new once a week.  I received my own copy of Veganomicon for Christmas and this week decided to make the scrumptious sounding Lemony Roasted Potatoes on page 109.  

Prep was easy, just peel and slice the potatoes into wedges.  Combine the sauce ingredients which were all things I had in my pantry - lemon, oregano, tomato paste, veggie stock, garlic, salt and pepper.  The potatoes are roasted in a covered casserole and require stirring throughout the cooking process.  The potatoes were tender with an extremely intense, lemony flavour.  You must be a lemon lover to enjoy these, my husband really loved them.  In order to balance the acidity of this dish I made a big green salad with a creamy, slighty sweet dressing and it was perfect. 

Kathryn over at The Hedgehog in the Kitchen also made a recipe from Veganomicon - Applesauce Cake.  I think that sounds like the perfect dessert to accompany my dinner.   It's too bad she lives thousands of miles way!

Better Bean Burgers

This is a quick post because we are in the middle of a busy holiday weekend.   Our Christmas tree went up tonight and I whipped up a batch of these tasty Better Bean Burgers from Robin Robertson's book Vegan on the Cheap.  They were surprisingly flavourful with so few ingredients - black beans, parsley, red onion, bread crumbs, gluten flour and some salt and pepper.  I was worried they would be boring but I was wrong, I really enjoyed them.  I love trying new veggie burgers so leave me a comment and tell me about your favourites!  

Better Bean Burgers

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And it sounds like my good friend Kathryn over at The Hedgehog in the Kitchen baked up a delicious pumpkin pie for American Thanksgiving.  Keep on cooking Kathryn, you are inspiring me! 

Butternut Squash and Wild Mushroom Lasagna

Creamy and rich, almost overwhelming so, with not a drop of dairy in sight.  The butternut squash lent this dish a hint of sweetness.  I made the mistake of using dry noodles instead of the type you must boil first and the top layer was a little on the chewy side.   I think I prefer lasagna with some type of red sauce although this was very good.  The food in the photo looks downright scary because I'm terrible at making lasagna look pretty and it always falls apart when I lift it out of the pan.   Recipe from Robin Robertson's Vegan Planet. 

Caution! Caution!  View the following photo at your own risk. 



Butternut Squash and Wild Mushroom Lasagna


For our weekly cooking challenge this week, my buddy Kathryn over at The Hedgehog in the Kitchen made a delicious lentil soup.   Check it out!  

My other friend Kika has also been doing lots of cooking this week for vegan mofo and her latest creation looks yummy - Vegetable Curry with Chickpea Patties.

Black Bean and Butternut Squash Chili



Prepping the Butternut Squash


A few months ago I purchased a cookbook by Robin Robertson called Vegan Planet: 400 Irrestistible Recipes with Fantastic Flavors from Home and Around the World.  Whew, that's a long title!  Until today, I hadn't had time to really read through the book page by page but am I ever happy to have picked this up.  It's chock full of delicious sounding recipes.  I've already made note of at least 50 that I want to try and I'm only about half way through.  

For the cooking challenge this week I'm making Black Bean and Butternut Squash Chili on page 316.  The recipe called for a cup of apple juice which I didn't have so I substituted some of my daughter's peach cocktail which contains apple juice and half of a leftover applesauce cup I found languishing in the back of the fridge.  It smelled really appetizing while it was cooking!    The peach juice added a little extra sweetness and an interesting flavour.  I want to make this again using the apple juice.  I also think the squash to bean ratio was a bit off, it may be that my squash was too large but next time I won't use the entire thing.   The whole family enjoyed this dish served over either quinoa or rice.      


Black Bean and Butternut Squash Chili




Served with Quinoa


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This week Kathryn from The Hedgehog in the Kitchen was run off her feet.  But, she did have time to create a simple rice pudding dish to satisfy a late night sweet craving.

Vegan Flan - Cooking Challenge

My brother used to date a lovely Brazilian woman named Ana who always brought the most scrumptious flans to family events. I’ve never made flan let alone a vegan flan so I’m really excited for my little experiment this week. In preparation, I read a few recipes on the web and since they were all fairly similar I decided to combine my favourites into the following recipe.

I had a few problems with the caramel. At first, the sugar wouldn’t melt so I turned the heat up to high which resulted in a bunch of hard clumps that wouldn’t dissolve no matter how hard I tried to mash them out ( I think this is my fault for not stirring enough, I got distracted by the computer). I added a few tablespoons of water which may have helped with the consistency but after stirring and stirring I gave up and just strained the syrup into the pan. Instead of using individual ramekins, I poured the caramel and custard into a round cake pan.

I must admit to being disappointed with the flavour and consistency of this dessert.  The flan set well but was too gelatinous and not creamy enough for my taste.  I also didn't enjoy the soy flavour of the custard and will replace the soy milk with coconut milk in my next attempt.  I'm happy I gave this a try even though it was not as fantastic as the flan in my memory.  I'm determined to make it better.

Vegan Flan

For the Caramel:

¾ cup of sugar
3 tablespoons water (approximate)
Melt the sugar and water over medium-low heat until the syrup coats the back of a spoon and it’s a lovely golden brown colour. I think you should stir it fairly constantly but obviously I’m no expert! Pour the caramel into the bottom of the pan or ramekins, whatever you are using.

For the Custard:

2 cups of unsweetened soy milk
1 tablespoon agar-agar flakes
½ cup silken tofu
¼ cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Heat the soy milk and agar-agar flakes in a sauce pan until boiling and then reduce the heat to low. Cook, stirring often, for about 5 minutes or until the agar-agar has dissolved.

Place the soy milk mixture, tofu, sugar, vanilla and salt in a blender. Blend until smooth.  Pour over top of the syrup and refrigerate until cool. To remove, slide a knife around the perimeter of the cake pan and lightly shake side to side. If the flan doesn't loosen, dip the bottom of the cake pan in hot water for about 15 seconds, then turn over onto a plate.  Eat it up!
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Now turn your attention to Kathryn's creation this week over at the hedgehog in the kitchen.   She was inspired by a picture book to make pumpkin soup.

And joining us for the first time from Mexico City, please welcome Kika who has made an appealing looking corn bread.   Her blog is called come compa and she is posting in both Spanish and English.  

I can't wait to see what everone is cooking up next week! 

Samosa Mashed Potato Pancakes

Hey everyone!  I'm back and cooking in my new home.  It's so exciting to have a new(ish) kitchen to work in with adequate cupboard space and a longer countertop.  I'm still finding my groove with this different layout but it's awesome that more than one person can actually be present in the kitchen with me and not get in my way.  I was chatting with some friends over on Goodreads the other day about how yummy potatoes are in just about every way.  The conversation inspired me to try a recipe that would use up some mashed potatoes I had sitting in the fridge.  Samosa Mashed Potato Pancakes from Vegan Brunch.    Doesn't that sound good?  I thought so too.  I love Indian inspired dishes so I was really looking forward to a savoury breakfast.

The first step in the recipe was to pop mustard seeds in hot oil for a few minutes and then continue sauteeing more seasonings such as ginger, garlic, cumin, carrots and onion.  I wasn't sure if the mustard seeds were supposed to turn black (mind did) and was concerned about how they would flavour the dish but I needn't have worried, I couldn't detect any bitterness or burnt flavour in the final product.  Half way through, I discovered there was no flour in the house but decided to go ahead with the recipe with the hope that everything would hold together in the pan.  They were a little on the wet side but the flavour was fantastic.   Next time I make them I'm sure we will enjoy more cohesive pancakes with all the same great flavour.


Samosa Mashed Potato Pancakes in the mixing bowl



Samosa Mashed Potato Pancakes in the pan!


My amazing friend Kathryn over at The Hedgehog in the Kitchen recently celebrated a birthday and her sister Ann whipped up a batch of Wheat Free Chocolate Chip Cookies from Veganomicon.   I haven't tried that recipe yet but they look and sound great!  I'm always looking for new chocolate chip recipes to try so thanks for posting about these.      

I look forward to getting back in my cooking groove and the challenge goes on!

Poppy Seed Pull-Apart Rolls

I woke up yesterday morning with half my life packed and thought it would be so easy not to cook something new.  But, with my daughter still soundly asleep and a few moments of calm I pulled out Vegan Brunch, flipped it open to the back and came across a recipe for Poppy Seed Pull-Apart Rolls.   Perfect!   Some nice fresh rolls to tear into on a Sunday morning.   What could be more comforting?  The ingredient list is short and I've never made rolls, so it sounded perfect for a challenge this week.  I will be taking the next two weeks off while we move but I can't wait to start cooking in my new kitchen.  Hopefully the quality of my photos will improve with the better lighting there.   

This recipe called for equal amounts of whole wheat flour and all purpose flour but all I had in my pantry was the all purpose so these rolls won't be the healthiest things on the planet.  The dough was extrememly sticky, so sticky that I had to add at least another half cup of flour and much more while I was kneeding it out.  You can see how sticky my hands were here when I tried to pry the dough out of the mixing bowl.  The rolls turned out a little denser then I expected and had lots of poppy seeds but they were tasty.

Sticky, doughy hands

Poppy Seed Rolls before rising

Risen and ready for the oven

The final product

My friend Kathryn over at The Hedgehog in the Kitchen made a simple and delicious sounding Spicy Lemon Pepper Pasta with Broccoli this week. I hope she continues her adventures in the kitchen while I am on my wee break. I look forward to seeing what she has been up to when I get back!

Asparagus with Peanut-flavoured Tofu Dressing

Japan has been on my mind lately and I was determined to cook something from a library book I have home called The Enlightened Kitchen: Fresh Vegetable Dishes from the Temples of Japan.    I woke up early this morning to prepare a simple and intriguing dish called Asparagus and Hijiki with White Vinegar Dressing.  I was SURE I had two packages of dried hijiki in my pantry but when I went to look for them all I could find was wakame seaweed.   Arrgh!   So I frantically pawed through the book for some other way to use the lovely and slender asparagus all steamed and ready to go.  I hit upon a salad recipe with a Peanut-flavoured Tofu Dressing and thought that might do.  And then my next challenge presented itself.  I had no silken tofu for the dressing because the package in my fridge had expired.  Darn, darn and triple darn.  The recipe said that silken tofu was "preferred" but not required so I cut up some regular firm tofu and attempted to blend it together with the remaining ingredients.   I'm telling you this story so if you ever try to make salad dressing with regular tofu you don't, unless there is quite a bit of liquid involved.  Out the window went the specified amounts of lemon juice, vinegar and maple syrup.  It was necessary to splash in at least a few extra tablespoons of various liquids along with uncalled for ingredients before the blender would even function!  

So here is my final product.  Some simple steamed asparagus with a peanut-flavoured tofu dressing.  The dressing was still a little goopy and I'm still on the fence about this particular flavour combination but since I love asparagus it wasn't a bad breakfast.  Better luck next week Lee.  I'm not going to write out the ingredients to this mess unless someone begs me.

My friend Kathryn in California seems to have had more success this week with her offering of sauteed kale.  Go and check it out!    I love, love, love kale so am always happy to find new ways to cook and serve it.  Thanks Kathryn!

Creamy Broccoli Dal

Well the fall weather had definitely arrived in Canada.  From a sticky, hot and humid summer we have been plunged quite rapidly into autum.  I love the cool fall weather because it's the perfect time to start experimenting with warm pots of soup and cranking up the oven for baked treats.  Mind you, the hot weather doesn't stop me from baking but it's certainly more enjoyable now.  This week for the cooking challenge I decided to make a soup recipe I've had my eye on for quite a while.  It's called Creamy Broccoli Dal from one of my favourite cookbooks - Vegan YumYum by Lauren Ulm.  It's a delicious combination of finely chopped broccoli and onion with red lentils and Indian spices such as mustard and cumin seeds.  At the end soy milk, turmeric and a bit of lemon juice are added in.  This photo doesn't do it justice but the turmeric gives it a lovely colour.  I ate a bowl of this after eating a plate of spicy noodles and amazingly was still able to appreciate the flavours.  Highly recommended!

Creamy Broccoli Dal

My friends Kathryn and Jeannette have their hands full this week with other projects.  I look forward to seeing what they make for next week's challenge.

Aloo Gobi - Vegan Cooking Challenge

When I announced early this afternoon that I had to devote some time to browsing through my cookbooks in order to find a recipe for my weekly cooking challenge, there was a sudden flurry of activity in our little kitchen.   My four year old daughter suddenly decided that she would also be participating and proceeded to order her dad to remove certain items from the fridge and assist her with her creation.  I was amazed at the speed with which she put together her dish.  A beautiful sweet red pepper stuffed with leftover, cooked quinoa and topped with broccoli and cauliflower flowerets.  It's so cute, take a look!  I'm very impressed with her creativity and this is the first time she's ever attempted to make anything. 

My entry this week is Aloo Gobi, a curried cauliflower and potato dish using a recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau.   My husband keeps buying cauliflowers and this morning I found two mouldering away in the produce drawer that sticks shut, so I decided something needed to be done with at least one of them.   I sauteed ginger and cumin seeds in canlola oil then added the potatoes, cauliflower and tomato along with water, turmeric, coriander, a bit of brown sugar and salt.   Pop the lid on and let the vegetables cook.   I left it simmer longer than recipe called for because I wanted the flavours to really meld.  We didn't mind that the cauliflower sort of disintegrated because the sauce was great. 

Aloo Gobi before it cooks down.

Aloo Gobi

This week my friend Kathryn will be joining us for the first time.  Kathryn is transitioning to veganism and has prepared Auntie Bonnie's Curried Apple Soup from the book How it all Vegan! by Tanya Barnard and Sarah Kramer.   You will find her challenge post here on her newly christened blog The Hedgehog in the Kitchen.  Isn't that the most adorable name for a blog?  I love it!  

And last but not least, it looks like Jeannette has delved into the fabulous Veganomicon for her cooking adventure this week.  She also made a soup and one that I have been curious about so I'm happy to hear the results.  Jeannette says:  

This was a busy weekend for me, but I had lots of veggies in the fridge, so I had to cook! I chose to prepare Spicy Peanut and Eggplant Soup from Veganomicon.  It was a bit of work, chopping and coordinating, but it was worth it! This is a yummy soup! The mild spiciness is a good counterpoint to the peanut butter. The eggplant was soft, and did not dominate the soup. (I did not brine the eggplant as instructed in the recipe. I skipped that step.) My peanut butter was nice and chunky, and the beans were still a bit crisp, so the soup's texture was enjoyable,too. I left out the cilantro (no surprise). I will definitely make this again!