Happy Saint Patrick's Day (Vegan Reuben)

Happy Saint Patrick's Day! Time for green beer, shamrocks, and dancing leprechauns. Instead of going to the store and buying pre-packaged, over priced, imitation meat product, I decided to get creative and try to work out a Reuben sandwich without the meat! My favorite part was creating the vegan Thousand Island dressing! It is a great vegan version if I do say so myself. Here is what I came up with:

For the Thousand Island:

• 1 cup vegan mayonaise       ($0.26)
• ⅓ cup ketchup                       ($0.12)
• 1 dill pickle, diced                 ($0.05)
• ⅓ cup Annie's Goddess       ($0.65)
• 1 tbsp. dijon mustard            ($0.18)

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth and you will be in shock of how similar this tastes to real Thousand Island dressing! Also, $1.26 is not too shabby for a homemade dressing.

For the Sandwich:

• 1 slice of pumpernickel rye bread         ($0.22)
• 3 tbsp. vegan Thousand Island               ($0.16)
• 1 large mushroom, sliced                       ($0.15)
• 1 tbsp. beau monde seasoning             ($0.18)
• 3 tbsp. sauerkraut                                    ($0.08)
• 1 tbsp. vegan butter                                ($0.12)
• 1 cup vegetable broth                             ($0.15)

Slice the mushroom and soak it in the vegetable broth and beau monde seasoning for about 15 minutes. This is a good time to make the Thousand Island dressing. Cut the slice of bread in half. Toast the bread, then apply half of the thousand island to both sides of the bread. Save the other half for later. Sauté the mushrooms in the vegetable broth on medium until soft. Scoop the mushrooms out and set aside. Add the sauerkraut to the broth and lower the heat to low until warmed. Layer the mushrooms and the sauerkraut on the bread and add the remaining dressing. Melt some butter in a small saucepan and fry both sides of the bread. Bia blásta! (or Irish for 'tasty food', like saying bon appetit) (($1.06 per sandwich))

I prefer Vegenaise but NayoWhipped was all I had in my fridge
I am curious as to how this would have turned out
using Vegenaise because it was so great the first time 

THIS. Just THIS. If you have not tried this dressing,
stop reading and go to Kroger and BUY IT!
To me, it tastes like a vegan caesar dressing
To my boyfriend, a blue cheese dressing
Either way it is absolutely delicious and I feel like it is
the secret ingredient to this Thousand Island

Add caption

DO NOT TRY AT HOME, KIDS
I love taking danger shots of blenders with the lid off

Little shot of dressing
I could almost drink this stuff straight
Almost

Beau Monde means beautiful world and it certainly lives up to the name

This looks so nasty and actually smells so nasty
although it does taste great
DO NOT BE DECEIVED BY OUTWARD APPEARANCE

Broccoli Cheddar Rice Casserole

Everybody loves the flavor combination of Broccoli and Cheddar. That may or may not be because cheese makes everything better and cheddar is one of the best cheeses. I admit it; I am a vegan who still discusses how amazing some cheeses are! I love cheese. I will always love cheese. I have come to terms with the facts and cheese is bad for animals and the human body, but otherwise, I would literally consume cheese with every meal. With cheddar, the sharper the better! I want to feel the bit from the cheddar on my whole tongue. Anyway, getting back to the recipe... I created this casserole when we needed a hearty, wintery meal that involved cheese (vegan, obviously). Easy, inexpensive and delightfully tasteful, this vegan broccoli cheese casserole kills zero animals and contains zero cholesterol! 

Ingredients:

• 2 heads broccoli                                ($0.99)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced                      ($0.25)
• 1 cup brown rice                                ($0.20)
• 1 cup mushrooms, sliced                  ($0.99)
• 4 tbsp. soy sauce                             ($0.15)
• 1 cup vegetable broth                       ($0.30)
• 2 tbsp. corn starch                             ($0.10)
• 1 cup vegan cheddar cheese           ($2.99)

Preparation:

Cook the rice according to your preferred method of cooking. I use a wonderful Japanese rice cooker that smart senses when the rice is cooked; it takes about two hours but cooking on the stove is completely acceptable. Steam the broccoli for 15 minutes. Feel free to drink one glass of red wine while the broccoli cooks. Mince the garlic and slice the mushrooms. Sauté the mushrooms and garlic for approximately 6 minutes or until the mushrooms soften. Mix in a bowl the soy sauce, broth, and corn starch. Add this to the mushrooms and garlic. This should create a broth-like "cream of mushroom soup" consistency. Turn the heat off. Add the broccoli. Stir well. Place into a casserole pan and top with the vegan cheddar cheese. Daiya makes two types of vegan cheddar cheese. The cheddar-style shreds are oily when heated, but the cheddar-style wedge melts marvelously for a great topping to this casserole. I recommend the block of cheddar, which yields  a more crunchy topping; the shreds will yield a very fine stringy, cheesy, gooey, melty casserole. Preference is important. At this point, you should probably consume one more glass of red wine (make sure it is vegan). Bake in the oven for 20 mins on 350°F. TADA! Broccoli and cheese have come together perfectly in this vegan casserole!

Try not to overcook the broccoli
It will continue to cook in the casserole

Rice cookers do an amazing job of producing fluffy rice
Stove cooked rice will do just fine

Beet Hummus! from Healing Tomato

It is high time for a guest recipe! I have been following the Healing Tomato blog for a couple months now and have been fascinated by all of her recipes. It is a vegetarian blog but it would be very easy to turn her recipes vegan either by omission or vegan substitutions. When she posted this recipe for beet hummus, I just knew we were meant to be friends. I LOVE BEETS! I grew up on beets. My mom fed me beets like candy and I developed a taste for healthy vegetables. She used to put beets on cottage cheese and it was one of the best meals in the whole world. I have been meaning to look up some vegan cottage cheese to bring this memory back to me in vegan form. Anyway, back to the Healing Tomato. I do not even know her name but she is fabulous and the blog is a great read! Check her blog for the recipe for beet hummus! She is on Google+ as well. I will be making this as soon as I get a free moment. Working two jobs and being a full time student is very difficult, especially when trying to move across town during the middle of mid-term week! All this work will pay off in the long run. Who knows? Maybe this blog will transform from the Impoverished Vegan to the Almost-Above-Poverty-Line Vegan! Just one step closer to being the Rich Bitch Vegan that I have been dreaming of becoming.

 

Try it on apple slices, carrot sticks, pita bread, or triscuits!
The options are endless.

Spaghetti? How about Spaghetti aglio, olio e peperoncino

I get a lot of my love for cooking from my mother. She was always creating tasty and exciting ways to get me to eat vegetables; she would sneak shredded zucchini and squash into spaghetti sauce. Almost every Friday she would cook up here spaghetti in a huge batch and it would last the whole week! It was usually served with carrot sticks with ranch dip and garlic toast. We would eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! Her spaghetti is one of my absolute favorite meals even to this day! I had always associated tomato sauce with spaghetti and spaghetti with tomato sauce. That is how it was. That was spaghetti. I recently was referred to a recipe that claimed to be the traditional way spaghetti was prepared, except it did not use a tomato base for the sauce! Furthermore, there was not even really a sauce on it! It turned out to be extremely satisfying and light! If you need to avoid tomatoes or have frequent heart burn, try this type of spaghetti! 

Ingredients:

• 1 serving pasta                    ($0.45)
• 1 tbsp. minced garlic          ($0.15)
• 2 tbsp. olive oil                     ($0.15)
• 2 tbsp. chopped parsley     ($0.07)
• ½ tbsp. red pepper flakes   ($0.09)
• 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice    ($0.04)

Preparation:

Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box. Drain and set aside. Heat the oil on medium heat and throw in the garlic once it has warmed. Sauté for one minute and throw in the pasta. Keep sautéing, stirring constantly and add the chopped parsley, red pepper flakes, and lemon juice. After 2 minutes remove from heat. You are done. That is it. Simple, savory spaghetti in less than 15 minutes! I cooked some mushrooms and asparagus in some garlic and oil for a side dish. For the salad, I used spinach, black olives, red onions, and balsamic vinaigrette. Any pasta dish can be cheezed up with Go Veggie! vegan grated parmesan cheese! Enjoy! 

Shu Mai done VEGAN! Happy Chinese New Year!

FAIR WARNING! This recipe is not necessarily for the Impoverished Vegan, as it is relatively expensive. As of late, and in an attempt to recreate the traditional meals of a specific culture, I hereby submit a recipe that would not normally be vegan. This is a blog post attempting to recreate a meat-filled dish without the meat. It will be 100% vegan. As a traditional Chinese dumpling, I had never consumed Shu Mai or Siu Mai, even as an omnivore. These pork, chicken, or seafood dumplings are served for the Chinese New Year on January 31. Yes, I have had Crab Rangoon or Crab Wontons, as has every civilised human in the modern world. When I joined the exclusive community known as foodies+ on Google+, I had NO idea they were definitely a force to be reckoned with. They are a super active community that supports and encourages new recipes and ideas! JUST MY NICHE! Be sure to check out the page and plus one them! I fit in very well there and am very proud to announce my first commissioned piece as a member of foodies+! Introducing, VEGAN ShuMai Chicken and Prawn Dumplings! 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups chicken (meatless grill strips)      ($3.99)
• 1 cup shiitake mushrooms                         ($1.99)
• 2 tbsp. shrimp seasoning                          ($0.21)
• 2 cups no-chicken broth                             ($0.35)
• 2 tbsp. woodear mushrooms                   ($1.00)
• ½ tbsp. fresh shredded ginger                 ($0.17)
• 1 tbsp. scallion root (white part)              ($0.12)
• 1 carrot, finely peeled                               ($0.10)
• ⅛ tbsp. sesame oil                                    ($0.01)
• 3 dashes white pepper                             ($0.01)
• ½ tbsp. corn starch                                   ($0.02)
• 2 dashes salt                                             ($0.01)
• peas for garnish                                        ($0.05)
• vegan wonton wrappers                         ($3.50)
• hoisin garlic sauce                                  ($1.50)

Preparation:

At first, I tried to make my own wonton wrap because it was difficult to find a vegan version without egg. It failed. It was exceedingly dry and fell apart extremely easily. I eventually stumbled upon a wrap that just so happen to not contain egg! It was slightly smaller than a wonton wrap but that was fine with me. 

For the shrimp, I used shiitake mushrooms marinated in no-chicken broth and shrimp seasoning; the chewiness of the mushrooms imitates actual shrimp. For the mushrooms, I had to rehydrate dried woodear mushrooms by soaking them in no-chicken broth and I added some shrimp seasoning to these mushrooms as well. Simple Truth makes a wonderful frozen chicken breast imitation. Strain the mushrooms after about an hour. Thaw the frozen chicken breast strips. Place them in a food processor with the mushrooms, ¼ cup no-chicken broth, ginger, scallion root, carrots, sesame oil, white pepper, corn starch, and salt. Puree until finely chopped or desired consistency. Heat the leftover marinate from the mushrooms in a pan on medium until it starts to bubble. Place 1 tablespoon of the mixture in the center of a wonton wrapper and wrap up tightly. Make a few and place them in the pot a few at a time. Steam for at least 5 minutes. Garnish with the peas, a few sliced carrots, and hoisin garlic sauce! 

As healthy as I try to eat, I still love fried food! I had an urge to throw these dumplings in some hot oil and fry them up! It was a success! I turned the traditional dumpling into an Americanized treat! Eastern tradition meets Western gluttony with these fried Shu Mai. I actually went a step further and topped them with my vegan cheese sauce too. Enjoy! 

See? They even somewhat look like prawns... haha

This broth has a wonderful, deep flavor, without the meat!
The woodear mushrooms have a captivating suble taste.

Soak for about one hour and they will absorb the liquid and rehydrate

Soak these for one hour as well and they absorb that shrimpy sea flavor

My ginger was a little old so the skin was tough to peel off but
there is nothing like fresh ginger to kick start any recipe 

Beautiful, natural vegetables

Pulse, pulse, scrape down the sides, pulse, pulse

Looks like chicken, tastes like chicken, does not contain chicken!

Be careful not to overfill the dumplings or they will fall apart

Soft dumplings

FRIED DUMPLINGS! 

WITH VEGAN CHEESE!

Happy Year of the Horse! May it be filled with good fortune and good eats. Cruelty free eats that will reduce your cholesterol to zero, I may add. Even if you still consume meat and dairy, try this recipe out and you will fall in love with vegan food!

Stuffed Mac & Cheese Casserole!

I was waiting to write this recipe until I had posted the Mac & Cheeze blog because it uses the same cheese sauce. This is seriously one of the best casseroles I have ever consumed! And I made up the crazy recipe on accident! After Thanksgiving, I had a bunch of stuffing leftover and did not want it to spoil. I also happen to have leftover Mac & Cheeze. It was a divine intervention! I thought, "Why not combine two of my most favorite things into a casserole!" And perfection was born. I do not want to know how many calories are in it; being vegan, it does not really matter! Make this cheesy casserole the next time you need to warm up! 

Ingredients:

1 unit Mac & Cheeze - recipe here      ($4.03)

1 box vegan stuffing                            ($0.99)

1 jar french fried onions                       ($0.75)

Preparation:

Make the Mac & Cheeze according to the recipe. Prepare the stuffing according to the directions on the package. Place a layer of the stuffing on the bottom of a casserole dish. Put a layer of Mac & Cheeze on the stuffing. Add another layer of stuffing and the last of the Mac & Cheeze. Top with the fried onions and bake for 20 minutes on 350°F. Crunch and munch and then relish the deliciousness of cheesy stuffing casserole! 

For the stuffing, I melted vegan butter in some water

Once boiling, I removed it from heat and covered for 5 minutes

The stuffing is made!

Herbes de Provence makes for a delightfully tasty stuffing

Cheesy goodness! The excess sauce drips down
and saturates the stuffing in cheeeeeeese!

For added texture, add a layer of fried onions in between
each layer of stuffing and cheese

ALL THE CARBS but it is so delicious and so vegan
that you do not have to feel any guilt at all!

Roasted Red Pepper Mac & Cheese

Mmm*Mac & Cheese! Everybody loves it. It seems everyone I talk to says, "Yeah, I could not be a vegan because I would miss cheese too much!" Let me be the first to say I thought the same thing! I loved eating cheese. I had cheese with every meal. Cheese was a meal. Mac & Cheese was my favorite meal to eat when it was cold outside. My mother would always make me homemade cheese sauce over spaghetti noodles. I would request it every morning and it was my absolute favorite breakfast. Vegan cheese recipes can be super simple simulations of ooey-gooey cheese. 

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup raw cashews (soaked)              ($0.95)
• 2 tsp. olive oil                                           ($0.01)
• 1 onion, diced                                          ($0.18)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced                           ($0.38)
• 2 cups vegetable broth                           ($0.65)
• 1 1/2 tbsp. corn starch                            ($0.05)
• 1 1/2 tbsp. nutritional yeast                    ($0.18)
• 1 roasted red pepper                              ($0.45)
• 1 tbsp. tomato paste                              ($0.12)
• 1 tsp. salt                                                 ($0.01)
• 1 tsp. ground mustard                            ($0.03)
• 1/2 tsp. turmeric                                      ($0.03)
• 1 box of pasta                                         ($0.99)

Preparation:

Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package. Sauté the onions in olive oil until they become translucent. It should not take more than 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté 30 seconds. You do not want to overcook the garlic and lose the flavor. Add this mixture to a blender or food processor. Add the drained cashews, vegetable broth, corn starch, nutritional yeast, red pepper, tomato paste, salt, ground mustard, and turmeric. Blend until smooth. Smoothness is important. If you have read my previous blogs involving cashews, you will understand that it is very important to have a smooth sauce. The texture is gritty, rough, and crunchy. Transfer the sauce to the pan used to sauté the onions. Heat on medium-low for 10 minutes or until it starts to thicken. Once thick, add the pasta until the whole mixture is warmed through. SERVE and MUNCH! 

Sautéing the garlic for only 30 seconds will keep the flavor
of the garlic at the optimal level 

At first it was weird to add hot onions and garlic to a blender
but the flavors of these are key to creating a cheesy flavor!

The sauce will slowly thicken. KEEP STIRRING!
The first time I made this, I slightly burned the bottom
of the cheese sauce; it burns very easily so keep stirring

I used Lumaconi pasta instead of shell pasta or macaroni
because they look way cooler and they were
significantly less expensive at Aldi

There you have it. Delicious mac and cheese! 

Since it has been so long since I have had actual dairy cheese, the vegan mind will almost forget what actual cheese tastes like and this faux cheese will totally satisfy all of your cheese cravings! I will challenge any cheese-eater to try this cheese sauce and tell me that it does not imitate mac and cheese extremely closely. I am still working on a few more cheese blogs so get hype! I hope to publish them very soon! For now, enjoy this delightful take on the American staple using cashews instead of dairy! 

This is a modification of Isa Chandra's Pizza Mac & Cheese recipe from Post Punk Kitchen. I love her work and she is the most exceptional vegan chef! Check out her blog at the Post Punk Kitchen!