Just past Passover…

Posted on April 15, 2012 by moviewitz

So, Passover has come and gone, and through the week, I didn’t get a chance to post any recipes.

However, several were so good, that I really don’t see why I won’t continue to make these all year.

We got hooked on cauliflower pizza, and I have since discovered it’s quite the trendy thing, having made it to the Dr. Oz Show and elsewhere.  I can see why – and after experimenting with ingredients (i.e. what’s in the fridge), here’s what I’ve come up with. (First one I tried, I served at our vegetarian seder. It was that good.)

Ingredients (for two large portions, or four small portions):

1/2 head, large cauliflower

1 tbs. olive oil

1 cup shredded cheese (if it wasn’t during Passover, I’d use Daiya mozzarella style shreds; during Passover, I used Kosher for Passover mozzarella, so this wasn’t vegan).

1 egg (see above: not vegan)

1 diced shallot

1 half diced red or yellow or green pepper

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1 small diced zucchini

salt/pepper/chopped basil

How:

Pre-heat oven to 350F

Lightly oil a square glass baking pan

Steam the cauliflower then chop in a food processor (or with a fork or masher), making sure that it’s not watery.  Add the egg, lightly beaten (although I will try this without an egg in the future), the cheese, salt, pepper, and chopped basil

Place in the bottom of the pan, and bake for about 15 minutes.

Sautee the diced vegetables in a little bit of oil, remove cauliflower from oven, and turn the broiler on.

Spread vegetables on top of cauliflower, and then cook under broiler for about 5 minutes, or until it looks ready.

The way I make it, I wouldn’t say it’s like “pizza”, but it is really, really good. So –

Enjoy!

Posted in cauliflower, main course, vegetarian | Leave a comment

Naan Bread Pizza

Posted on April 5, 2012 by moviewitz

This one was inspired by the fact that I didn’t have a lot of stuff on hand for dinner the other night, but my husband had returned home with a package of whole wheat naan bread. And so, I came up with this variation on pizza. It was inspired by a recipe I read years ago, in Vegetarian Times, about pizza that used dijon mustard instead of tomato sauce.

Ingredients (for 2 “pizzas”):

2 whole wheat naan breads

2 tbs. coarse grain mustard

2 tbs. olive oil

2 – 3 cups fresh baby spinach

1/2 avocado

1 can organic sliced mushrooms (or fresh. Yep, fresh would have been better)

Daiya mozzarella-style shredded cheese

How to:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

Place naan breads on a baking sheet

Spread 1 tbs. of olive oil on each of the breads, followed by 1 tbs. of mustard

Steam the spinach for a couple of minutes, then drain well, divide evenly, then spread onto the bread.

Add the avocado, sliced or chopped

Add the mushrooms, then top off with a handful of Daiya cheese on each pizza

Bake for about 8 – 10 minutes, until the cheese is sizzling.

Enjoy!

Posted in avocado, main course, Vegan | 1 Comment

Who doesn’t like brussels sprouts?

Posted on March 14, 2012 by moviewitz

Apparently, a lot of people… but they are a great vegetable, and worked really well in the recipe below.

Ingredients for two servings:

8 brussels sprouts, washed, bottoms removed and cut in half

1 head of broccoli, cut into small pieces

1 cup of sliced mushrooms

1 tsp chopped garlic

1 tsp dried basil

1 tbs balsamic vinegar

1 tbs olive oil

1 cup dry pasta (I used rotini)

How:

Cook pasta as directed

Heat oil in a deep saucepan. Add mushrooms, garlic, and balsamic vinegar, and sauté. Add brussels sprouts and broccoli, and the basil, continue to sauté under medium heat.

Drain pasta, add to vegetables, and stir to mix. Let stand, covered, on very low heat for a couple of minutes.

Serve — and if you want, add a sprinkle of rice parmesan cheese (or the real stuff). Enjoy!

I was feeling particularly inspired last night, so I also made this unbearably easy appetizer:

Ingredients (for two):

1/4 avocado, diced

4 large black olives, pitted and sliced

4 stalks of hearts of palm, sliced

2 small tomatoes, sliced

2 tsp tamari sauce

How:

I divided the above ingredients into two small dishes, tossed, and then added the tamari sauce.

Posted in avocado, brussels sprouts, main course, pasta, salad, Uncategorized, Vegan | Leave a comment

Lentils, Kale, and Israeli couscous — what to make, to make up for cake

Posted on March 6, 2012 by moviewitz

Okay, well it wasn’t cake, and it was a really really good vegan brownie, and it was oh so small and quite delicious, so that’s not why I felt the need to make this for dinner.

Fact is, the last couple of weeks have been really busy, and so I haven’t been doing much cooking;  “Amy” and “Gardein” have been making wonderful dinners. (Amy’s tofu lasagna, Amy’s cheese-less pizza, Amy’s vegetarian meat loaf, Amy’s bean burrito, Gardein chick’n filets, etc….)

So last night, I decided to make something that didn’t involve pre-heating the oven and removing a plastic overwrap. The jury (aka my husband) is still out on this one. I think next time I make this, I’ll cook the Israeli couscous in vegetable broth, to add a bit more flavour. And if you happen to try this at home and have any suggestions, feel free to post them.

Ingredients (for two good-sized portions):

2/3 cup Israeli couscous (prepare as directed; I added 1 tbs of Earth Balance butter substitute)
1/2 cup lentils (cook as directed)
1/2 cup chopped red cabbage
1 cup chopped kale
2 chopped dates

dash of cumin, mustard powder

How:

Prepare the lentils.

In a large sauce pan, prepare the Isareli couscous, and when it’s just about ready, add the chopped kale and red cabbage, and the dates. Add a dash of cumin and a dash of mustard powder, stir, and then let sit for a couple of minutes, on very low heat so that the kale and cabbage soften.

Serve and enjoy!

Posted in couscous, kale, main course, Vegan | Leave a comment

“Where do you get your protein?”

Posted on February 16, 2012 by moviewitz

Today, I offer this link to a song that answers that question:

http://jonathanmann.bandcamp.com/track/vegan-myths-debunked

 

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

I’m back — and have some salads to prove it.

Posted on February 8, 2012 by moviewitz

January went too fast — I was away at a directing workshop in beautiful Banff, Alberta, and my vegetarian moviemaking efforts mostly consisted of eating spinach salad everyday with chick peas, and making one pot meals of couscous, mushrooms, chick peas, and tomato soup. Not that I’m complaining for one instant: the workshop was amazingly inspiring and wonderful.

But once back home, I realized I had to get back into my more varied salad making ways. So I offer two salads created this past weekend:

First up, red quinoa and baby romaine, with an olive oil/balsamic vinegar dressing.

Ingredients (for two generous portions):

4 – 8 cups of baby romaine

1/2 cup canned chick peas

3/4 cup red quinoa (made in advance — this is great to have in the fridge)

1/2 avocado, cut into small pieces

1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds

1/4 cup goat cheese bits (optional; I realize this takes away from the vegan appeal of the salad)

2 tbs olive oil

2 tbs balsamic vinegar

Mix it all together and enjoy!

And now, the second salad, a variation on the same theme:

Ingredients:

4-6 cups of organic baby spinach

1 navel orange, peeled and cut into cubes

1 cup organic baby romaine (had some left over from the day before)

1 cup organic shredded red and white cabbage and carrots (Whole Foods has this pre-made and packaged)

1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds

1/4 cup organic goat cheese (yeah… I know…)

1/2 avocado, cut into cubes

Dressing:

2 tbs olive oil

1 tbs coarse grain mustard

1 spritz of lemon juice

1 tbs balsamic vinegar
Mix together and enjoy!

Posted in beans, salad | Leave a comment

Cold weather/warm cafe

Posted on January 21, 2012 by moviewitz

The vegetarian moviemaker is on the move, and my cooking has been pretty basic (couscous and tomatoes, couscous and chick peas, salad and chick peas, vegetable soup…..I think you get the idea.)

So today, rather than a recipe, I offer a picture of this excellent vegan blueberry scone, as served at the Wild Flour Bakery, in Banff, Alberta. A dessert like this takes away the sting of -30 weather. (Although it’s hard to complain, when I’m also surrounded by spectacular mountains, and see the occasional deer wandering around.)

Posted in dessert | Leave a comment

Mushroom barley soup with kale

Posted on January 10, 2012 by moviewitz

My husband loves mushroom barley soup, and so, on this cold January night, I figured it was as good a night as any to try my hand at this classic soup.  And, I just found out, according to Whole Foods, it’s National Soup Month (http://blog.wholefoodsmarket.com/2012/01/celebrate-national-soup-month/) so my timing is perfect.

Ingredients (for 2 – 3 main course sized servings):

1 onion, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 tbs olive oil

salt

basil

herbs de provence

black pepper

227 grams (a package) of sliced white mushrooms

1/2 cup pearl barley

1 cup kale, cut into thin strips

4 cups vegetable broth

How I made this:

In a large pot, sautee the onions and celery until tender in a bit of olive oil

Add the mushrooms and the vegetable broth and the seasonings,

Add the barley

Bring to a boil, turn down the heat, and then add the kale.

Let simmer for about 35 – 45  minutes over low heat. (I realized that I did not use “quick” cook barley, but the regular kind, so it took a bit longer than I expected.)

Enjoy!

Posted in kale, soup, Vegan | Leave a comment

Kale salad

Posted on January 8, 2012 by moviewitz

My salad philosophy is pretty much “anything goes”, especially when it comes to mixing together kale and arugula. (Yep, I have a salad philosophy.)

Today’s lunch then was this:

Ingredients (for one):

3 – 4 large dark kale leaves, washed and torn into small pieces (throwing out the really hard stems)

1 – 2 cups baby arugula

1/2 diced apple, peel left on

1 celery stalk, sliced

1-2 tbs Daiya mozarella-style cheese shreds

1 tbs olive oil

1 splash good quality balsamic vinegar

How:

Toss it all together in a container and enjoy!

Note: Some people apparently don’t love kale as much as I do. They have a very different salad philosophy that involves romaine or iceberg lettuces, complaining that kale is too hard a vegetable to enjoy, the leaves are tough, it’s bitter, etc….

But what I’ve discovered is that if you make this salad (or any other salad featuring kale) a few hours ahead, or even the night before (leave it in the refrigerator), by the time you’re ready to enjoy it the following day, the kale will be fine and very edible.

Posted in arugula, kale, salad, Vegan | Leave a comment

Mustard Tofu and Squash

Posted on January 3, 2012 by moviewitz

What with the New Year, I was feeling particularly inspired yesterday . I was also staring down a block of tofu in the fridge that would soon be heading past its expiration date, right into the compost container.

Armed with a bottle of really good, grainy mustard from a local farmer’s market, I decided to see what I could create by putting these two ingredients together. Served with a side of squash and plunked on a bed of lightly sautéed arugula, the result was quite successful.

Ingredients (for two):

4 slices (about 1/4 – 1/2  inch thick) firm tofu

1 tbs coarse grain mustard

1 tbs olive oil

4 cups of arugula

Here’s how I made this:

Preheat oven to 375

In a small bowl, mix the mustard and olive oil.

On a lightly oiled glass baking dish, place the tofu, then spoon the mustard/olive oil mixture on top, spreading as evenly as you can.

Bake in the oven, about 20 – 25 minutes, or until tofu starts to brown slightly.

For the arugula, I took a deep sauce pan, added a tiny bit of olive oil, and lightly cooked on a medium heat, covering for a couple of minutes, so that the arugula got nicely wilted.

For the squash, I placed a teaspoon of Earth Balance and a little less than a teaspoon of maple syrup on each, and baked for about 45 minutes (adding the tofu in at the 20 minute mark).

I would definitely make this again.

Posted in arugula, main course, tofu, Uncategorized, Vegan | Leave a comment