It's Vegan Mofo Time!

Welcome to the Vegan Month of Food 2011! Better known as VeganMoFo. What is VeganMofo? It’s an entire month dedicated to, you guessed it, vegan food. I’ll be blogging like crazy on both Vegan Guinea Pig and TheLady and Seitan Blogs all month long. I’ll be sharing with you new cookbook reviews, vegan bakeries, great new vegan convenience foods all month long on the Vegan Guinea Pig blog. Over at the Lady & Seitan Blog I’ll be doing what I always do, whipping up veganized versions of Paula Deen classics all month long.  Not only that but there will be weekly giveaways running on both blogs simultaneously so stay tuned! 

 

Unfortunately this will be my last month of blogging until 2012 as my family and I prepare for the arrival of our first child (hooray for vegan babies!) I will do my absolute best to pack in a month full of amazing blogs for you guys. Thank you so much for your support!

Vegan Brioche brought to you by Have Cake Will Travel

I don't know what's gotten into me lately but I have been canning, preserving and pickling summer fruits and vegetables like a madwoman. I've had to head to the container store on more than one occasion to buy new risers for my pantry to accommodate my growing collection of jams, preserves, chutney's, sauces and pickled veggies. But what's a girl to do with row after row of summer treats? I've gotten bored w/spooning preserves over coconut ice cream, biscuits for breakfast, lunch and dinner slathered in blackberry port jam (who am I kidding I could never get tired of this) and waffles with coconut whipped cream piled high with strawberry preserves.

Just when my brain couldn't think of a thing left to do with all these summer fruits Celine from Have Cake Will Travel invented a bit of vegan genius. Vegan Brioche bread! For those of you who have ever attempted to veganize brioche you know it is a feat not taken on by the meek or weary. I've tried it thrice myself with failures every single time. Since stumbling upon her recipe a couple weeks ago I've made brioche not once, not twice but three times the last time making a double batch so I could make brioche waffles and mini brioches which I stuffed full of blueberry spiced jam and devoured every morning this week for breakfast. The waffles actually freeze incredibly well so I can enjoy those for weeks to come.

I beg of you, if you do nothing else with the rest of your year - make this brioche! Now there is one word of caution. This bread does take a bit of time to make, and by a bit of time I mean at least a day so you do need to plan ahead. It's not super labor intensive but the dough does require 6 to 18 hours of standing time in the fridge and then another 2 hours of rising time before you start the baking process so it's a great bread to make on the weekends. I usually start on a Saturday morning. Take the dough out the fridge Sunday morning, let it rise while I'm running errands or making brunch and then bake it up. The actual baking time on the brioche is only about 30 minutes total so all in and it's really super easy to put together. Because of the amount of time it takes to set and rise I think I will always make a double batch. The recipe only calls for 1/2 cup canned coconut milk so doubling the recipe also allows me to use nearly a whole can of coconut milk without having to think of something to do with the rest of it. When doubling the recipe I still make it in two separate batches not one big batch. I don't want to rock the boat too much. Usually I go rouge on a recipe and start improvising but this one is so perfect as it is I couldn't imagine doing it any other way than how it's written. Please please please head over to Have Cake Will Travel and try this awe inspiring recipe!

Photos re-posted with permission from Celine Steen at Have Have Will Travel

Go Max Go Foods Jokerz Candy Bar

Growing up I wasn't allowed to eat much candy. Let's just say I was a "spirited" child with more than enough natural energy to go around and my mom wasn't about to take the chance that adding a little extra sugar would send me over the edge into a tiny tazmanian devil of energy. Since I never really ate candy or chocoaltes as a child  I have to say they don't appeal to me very much as an adult and so when Go Max Go came out with their line of all natural vegan candy bars I wasn't that excited. I was even less thrilled at the price tag, it's been a while since I bought a candy bar but I don't recall that they were ever $2.50 each which is the hefty price tag that these bars carry.

Finally one day last month I found myself at Cosmo's Vegan Shoppe picking up a small list of vegan goodies and as I started to eye the healthy protein bars and snacks my attention began to shift to the Jokerz candy bar glistening in it's bright red packaging begging for me to try it. Being the lady I am I can't turn down a candy bar's offer when it just flat out asks me to eat it so, of course, I did. I waited until I got into the parking lot, and slowly unwrapped the bar. It smelled like a sweet little piece of chocolate nirvana and before I knew what was happening half the bar was gone. The chewy peanut nougat, velvety caramel and roasted peanuts all covered in chocolate are reminiscent of a Snickers. But Snickers pale in comparison to these nougaty wonders. Snickers are like the red headed step child (no offense to the red headed step children out there) to the Jokerz. I can't believe it took me so long to try these. They are worth every penny of the price and, on a positive note about the price, it is set high enough that I won't be tempted to eat these every single day so they will remain a lovely treat that I get to indulge in from time to time. 

To purchase Jokerz Candy Bars head to Whole Foods, Earth Fare, The Fresh Market, assorted health food stores, Cosmo's Vegan Shoppe, Natural Candy Store and Amazon.com

Independence Day BBQ Tempeh Hoagies with Chipotle Mayo

After a nearly 4 month absence I'm back! I've been busy working on my new book Quick and Easy LOW-CAL Vegan Comfort Food  and a new blog dedicated to veganizing Paula Deen recipes called The Lady and Seitan. I'm busy as ever but finally back and I have a stockpile vegan goodies to review for you. What better way to start the month than with a recipe for BBQ Tempeh Hoagies with Chipotle Mayo from Quick and Easy Vegan Celebrations. Enjoy!

BBQ Tempeh Hoagies with Chipotle Mayo

Makes 4 hoagies

Get your napkins ready and your bib on tight because you’re about to dive into a boat of Smokey Maple BBQ Sauce with a little tempeh on the side. If there are skeptics of vegan food in your life then this is the hoagie to start them out on. I set these out at a cookout last year just for a moment while I went to grab some chips, and when I came back I found they had all been kidnapped by my omnivore friends. Let’s see how long they last at your summer cookout.

2 tablespoons canola oil

½ small white onion, sliced thin

½ medium bell pepper, of any color, sliced thin

One 8-ounce package tempeh, any variety, sliced thin

1 cup Smokey Maple BBQ Sauce (recipe below)

4 hoagie rolls, lightly toasted

Chipotle Mayo

½ cup vegan mayonnaise

1 teaspoon vegan Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon adobo sauce

1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce

¼ teaspoon dried oregano

Warm the canola oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and bell pepper and cook for 1 minute. Add the tempeh and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until the tempeh is warmed through, stirring often.

While tempeh is cooking, add all chipotle mayo ingredients to a mini food processor and process until smooth.

Remove from heat and stir in Smokey Maple BBQ Sauce.

Spread Chipotle Mayo on each side of the hoagie roll and fill with the tempeh mixture

Smokey Maple BBQ Sauce

Makes 1¾ cups

1 tablespoon canola oil

½ cup diced white onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup ketchup

¾ cup Grade A maple syrup

2 tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce

½ teaspoon hickory liquid smoke

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

Warm canola oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Put in the onion and sauté until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Stir in the ketchup, maple syrup, Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, and red pepper flakes.

Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. This sauce can be stored for up to a week in the refrigerator in an airtight container

Vegan Bake Sale for Japan!

I can't believe I haven't blogged in over 6 weeks! The daily grind of school, work, writing a new book and working on a new recipe based blog has me thinking I might have bitten off a little more than I can chew and my poor Vegan Guinea Pig blog has suffered. Well, I'm working on a bunch of new content for you guys but in the meantime I can think of no better reason to break my 6 week silence than to plug the Vegan Bake Sale for Japan taking place this Saturday, March 26th from 12-5pm at Criminal Records in Atlanta. If you don't live in the Atlanta area check around your town and I'm sure there's a Vegan bake sale in the making and if there's not then it looks like it's time to organize one! :)