2015, a Recipe Odyssey: July Edition

Well, this has been a whirlwind month. We went to Spangle, WA for Restoration International‘s Northwest Family Retreat. It was great. It was my fourth time going, and the first time that I felt like a normal human being and actually thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end.

Things are starting to come on in the garden, too. I’ve been picking blackberries almost daily this week. Green beans are on, but I keep forgetting about them. Oops. We harvested one cauliflower so far. Tomatoes are coming on and the cabbage is putting on heads. The sunflowers are blooming.

But also my little Lou Who (who will be three next week – THREE!) is blooming. About three days ago I decided it was Time to Use the Potty, and she has not only done all her business in the toilet (barring a couple puddles on the floor the first day and one yesterday), but she’s woken up with virtually dry diapers in the morning as well. This is too easy. I keep waiting for something to go Drastically Wrong – I mean, GooGoo was over three when I started her training and it took her MONTHS before she got anything close to this proficient (and even now at 5 1/2, we still have a fair amount of Incidents. Please know, I’m not putting down GooGoo, I know every child is different, and she is highly sensitive, possibly has sensory issues, so, yanno – I’m just saying that, in comparison, that’s why this feels too easy.)

Here’s what I made! Grouped by source. (And not necessarily in order, because since I’ve been gone and/or ridiculously busy for a large chunk of this month, and this post has fallen through the cracks for weeks.)

From Vegan With a Vengeance, 10th Anniversary Edition:

1. Lemon Poppyseed Muffins – I actually really liked these, and I have never liked lemon poppyseed anything, ever.

2. Pancakes, raspberry-lime variation – For a pancake, this wasn’t bad. (I’m not a pancake fan, but I like to try different ones since my family loves pancakes and hey, why not?)

3. Cherry-Almond Muffins – I made this in loaf form and I liked it, but didn’t love it.

4. Tempeh Sausage – I made this ahead of time and froze it for use in…

5. Tempeh Sausage and White Bean Gravy – which was SO EASY to make, and we ate it on…

6. Baking Powder Biscuits – Okay, so honestly I was a bit blah about trying a biscuit recipe, because a biscuit is a biscuit is a biscuit, right? Well, these were amazing. I’m guessing it’s the use of two fats instead of just one, maybe? I did half white, half whole wheat flour, and these were so light and delicious and perfect.

As for the gravy, I really liked it, despite that it looks a little like barf on a biscuit. Mr Pine Nut thought the flavour was too strong, but I really enjoyed it, largely because the tempeh added a lot of bulk but I really didn’t taste it so much, as I do it many recipes.

7. Lentil-Walnut Burgers – I decided that I’d try something I heard about subbing zucchini for mushrooms. It worked great! I have these made up and frozen now for future meals, but I did try one of the ones that broke. It had a great flavour. My primary gripe was that they were tremendously soft and flipping them was almost impossible. I had to bake them way longer than the recipe said. Soooo… next time I think I’ll have to add in more breadcrumbs or something.

8. Pumpkin Waffles – These were a hit! Not only did they have zero issues sticking or falling apart or things like that, but they tasted great. 😀

9. Oatmeal Pumpkin Cookies – Of course I had to use up the remaining cup of pumpkin from the waffles, so, uh, THESE. These are going to be a regular. They are amazing!

10. Maple Walnut Scones – These were good, but I thought I’d like them more than I actually did.

11. Berry Scones – But I liked these even better. I used fresh-picked (like literally freshly picked) blackberries from right outside our house. The girls liked these too and overall they were more of a hit than the maple ones.

[12. ETA: Apple Pie Crumble Muffins – Oh man these were good.]

From Veganomicon:

13. Mexican Millet – This was really good and paired perfectly with…

14. Black Beans – …these. The only negative I have is that I didn’t make a double batch, because they were licked clean!

From Isa Does It:

15. Lentil-a-Roni – SO GOOD! And easy. Definitely would make again.

From Vegan Brunch:

16. Zucchini Spelt Muffins – I tried really hard to like these, but I just didn’t. I hate zucchini. 😦

17. East Coast Coffee Cake, Jam Swirl Version – oh om nom nom.

From Vegan Diner:

18. Mushroom Burgers – And nope, I didn’t use mushrooms! I used zucchini. These turned out really well and I was pleased. They are a little softer than the usual burgers I make, but still held together really well. I haven’t tried them yet; as with the lentil-walnut burgers, these are actually going to be used more next month.

Cookbooks [or other sources] represented in July: 5

Did I meet my goal? Nope. But I didn’t expect to, and I’m impressed with myself for having made as much as I did!

See you next month, with August’s recipe report!

2015, a Recipe Odyssey: June Edition… AND a Six-Month Sum-up!

Here’s what I made! Grouped by source.

From Vegan With a Vengeance, 10th Anniversary Edition!:

1. Roasted Garlic White Bean Soup – I didn’t have time to roast the garlic, so I did what Veganomicon recommends and subbed 6 fresh minced cloves. I also threw in some rice that I had leftover in the fridge. It was really tasty and I will make it again.

2. Raspberry Chocolate Chip Blondies – These tasted a bit like slimy wet sugar, and the texture was super weird and not at all looking like in the picture. I was so sad and have no idea what on earth I could have done wrong. 😦 We ate them, but they were just… off. And this made me sad.

3. Tofu Dill Sandwich – YUM!

4. The Best Pumpkin Muffins – Okay, so technically I’ve made these before, but there were apparently some slight changes made to the recipe for this new edition, so I say it counts.

5. Carrot Raisin Muffins – Very nice. Low sugar, low oil, tender and tasty.

From Vegan Casseroles:

6. Cheesy Broccoli Casserole – Today I made the cheesy broccoli casserole from Vegan Casseroles, minus some nooch because I RAN OUT. #vegankitchencrisis Also, I was sick and my brain was in a fog, so I accidentally dumped way  more than 2 cups of rice into the casserole dish and already had added the sauce and stuff before I realised. Dumb. It still tasted good, but I did have to add more salt. I’d make it again too.

7. Regular Cheese Sauce – for the above.

8. Rice and Beans Casserole – Different from what I expected but it was very good and the girls liked it.

9. Nacho Cheese sauce – for the above.

10. Chickpeas and Rice with Dill – Liked this very much. I think I’d reduce the tahini a bit next time, because the flavour was very strong.

11. Jambalaya – This was okay but not that exciting.

From Whole Grain Vegan Baking:

12. Pineapple Upside-Down Cupcakes – I left the sugar out of the pineapple mixture to make it less sweet, more like a muffin. It was actually perfect that way. They turned out great and I was able to flip them out of the muffin tin after 10 minutes (the recipe says 30, but I didn’t have time to wait). The girls did not like them. They ate all the pineapple off the top and then handed me the rest. Their opinion notwithstanding, I’d make these again.

From Isa Does It:

13. Island Black Bean Burgers – I didn’t do the salsa, just the burgers. They were fairly easy to make. I don’t think I needed to add the broth, though. They were very soft and wet and so I had to bake them longer. They were really tasty though – super rich, deep, but not overpowering flavour!

14. Cucumber Ranch Bowl – This was good. Not a favourite, but it was fine.

15. Mini Chocolate Cherry Loaves – SO GOOD. I left out the almond extract as per my usual. My mom loved these too!

16. Everyday Pad Thai – I love pad thai but I don’t think I’ve ever had it without eggs. This was fantastic and so easy. I used roasted salted cashews instead of the peanuts so that Lou Who could try it if she wanted. But at the moment I don’t remember if she did try it!

From Vegan Pie in the Sky:

17. Lemon Mousse Pie – This was a crazy, insane amount of work to make. I did it for company so I made a double batch in a 13×9. First I had to bake gingersnaps to make the crust, and then zest and juice approximately five thousand tiny lemons (they were cheaper than the big ones). So I was kind of fretting and complaining and I told that pie IT BETTER BE GOOD.

And you know what, it was. It was absolutely out of this world. Everybody raved about it. So I’d definitely make it again. WIN!

One thing to note though: when pouring the lemon topping layer on, use a spoon and gently drizzle it around. I did that at first with excellent results, and then got impatient and tried to drizzle it from the pan and ended up disturbing the other layer and there wasn’t a clean definition in those spots between layers.

From the interwebs:

18. Cinnamon-Clove Fresh Cherry Pie – On our way home from the Yakima Valley I stopped at a fruit stand on the spur of the moment and they were selling the last of their Rainier cherries for ONE DOLLAR A POUND. Now, I have to admit Rainier (or any other yellow cherry) are not my favourite, but that’s a sweet deal and everyone else in my family loves any kind of cherry. So I bought a few. 18.2 pounds, to be exact. And then I brought them home and dried about half of them, froze some, and made this pie with some.

It was really good. I cut the sugar in half (these are sweet cherries, for cryin’ out loud – really sweet, like off the charts sweet. Mr Pine Nut tested them with his beloved little brix thingie.) My only complaint was that the cherries were super huge and I really should have chopped them into smaller pieces first just to keep it easier to eat. But flavourwise, it was excellent, and I’d definitely consider making it again.

From Veganomicon:

19. Mac Daddy – So for some reason when I told the girls this stuff was called “Mac Daddy”, they thought that was the funniest thing they’d ever heard and proceeded to work “Mac Daddy” into every sentence at the lunch table. Better yet, they loved it the first day and loved the leftovers and asked me to make it again.

20. Tempeh Shepherdess Pie – This was all right. I subbed TVP for the mushrooms. I heartily approved of the potato-to-filling ratio (translation: THICK LAYER of potatoes, yum!) and I got to try my broiler for the first time EVER. I think actually I’ve never broiled anything, ever, at any time.

Cookbooks [or other sources] represented in June: 7

Did I meet my goal? Only just!

I’m not sure how July is going to pan out. I have grand intentions to share some great recipes with you for camping-appropriate food, but I cannot PROMISE anything, just that I’ll do my best. I don’t have a set goal for July due to its busy-ness, but I’ll still keep track of what new things I make, write a post, and jump back on the challenge in August!

***

And as promised, a sum-up of the first six months of 2015!

Isa Does It, 24
Veganomicon, 18
Interwebs, 13
The Veg Feasting Cookbook, 12
Vegan Brunch, 11
Whole Grain Vegan Baking, 9
Vegan Bowls / Everyday Vegan Eats, 8 each
Vegan Sandwiches Save the Day 7
Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar / Vegan Casseroles, 6 each
Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World / Vegan With a Vengeance, 5 each
Vegan Diner 4
Appetite for Reduction / More Peas, Thank You / Vegan Simplicity / Ten Talents / Vegan Pie in the Sky, 1 each

141 total