Aubergine curry

"Aubergine" is a much nicer word than "eggplant"..

This is Aimee's (my omni, but vegan curious flatmate) recipe.

Vegan Aubergine Curry 3 servings (or 2 if you're hungry)
Ingredients:
1 medium sized aubergine
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
curry paste (refer to jar to see how much to put in)
1 can chopped tomatoes
a few generous handfuls of fresh spinach

- Prick and rub oil on 1 aubergine. Bake for 45 min-1 hour.
- Chop one onion and a clove of garlic and fry in oil until soft.
- When aubergine is done baking, cut in half lengthwise and scoop out the flesh.
- Add curry paste and aubergine flesh to onions and stir.
- Add a can of tomatos and simmer for 20 min.
- Add spinach and let it wilt a bit. Keep adding and wilting until all the spinach leaves are incorporated.

~FIN~

Serve over rice.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I've never been a huge cookie person. Chocolate chip and sometimes oatmeal raisin were pretty much the only ones I actually liked and would bother making. But despite my seemingly ambivalent nature towards the food, I have been known to get some killer cravings for them. These cravings aren't the types that bubble under the surface for a while and then slowly become less managable to resist. No, these cravings are the aggressive "NEED COOKIES NOW" ones that come when I'm least expecting them. One of these cravings happened the other night, unfortunately it came during on of my all too frequent cabinet draughts. Not a cup o' flour or sprinkle o' chips in sight. I decided, with my flatmate, Aimee, that we'd make the best god damn chocolate cookies the next day when we had all the ingredients.

We used Isa's recipe from VWAV. I was a bit worried about the dough; it was awfully crumbly and not at all the consistency of most cookie dough. More vigorous mixing helped a little, but we found that it was easiest just to grab the dough and mold it by hand. The cookies turned out phenomenal! If you can resist the urge to eat them straight out of the oven, I promise they taste 100x better if you let them sit and cool to room temperature. Sounds crazy, right? After all, fresh out of the oven cookies are supposed to be the product of angels! Just trust me on this one.

I've got the plague!

Well, not really. But I've been feeling kind of bleh for a few days and this morning a full fledged cold reared it's ugly head into my life. I'm a big ball of sniffles and aches. My medicine? Chai tea latte, fruit, and a solid chunk of the day devoted to watching Northern Exposure DVDs. Looking forward to a long day of veggie broth and surfin' teh internets...

Vegan Routes. A big fat womp.

Last week I went to Vegan Routes, a new vegan restaurant in Soho. Like Rootmaster, Vegan Routes is housed in a retired double decker bus with the kitchen on the first floor and seating outside and on the top. The food was alright but really nothing special. My friend and I split a hummus appetizer...which was literally a blob of chunky, gritty hummus with some celery and carrot sticks. Not a pita in sight. We both got the Shepherd's pie which was pretty nice, but would have been much better under a different name--calling it "Shepherd's pie" was trying to make it something it wasn't. It was good, but nothing like Shepherd's pie so omni's (like my friend) ordered it with unrealistic expectations. Lentil pie would have been a more appropriate name.

When ordering our drinks, the waiter misunderstood our orders of "tap water" and thought we wanted the £4 guarana. I'm not sure how this confusion took place since there was no language barrier, but the guarana was definitely not worth the price. Actually, it was pretty gawdawful.

The thing that bothered me most was how the food was served. Everything was served in cardboard. Cardboard cups, cardboard plates...and the main courses were served in take away containers. Take away containers! Not only did it make you feel like you weren't even wanted--like you were being rushed out--but it was also detrimental to the environment while being under and eco-friendly guise. How many of those paper plates do they go through in a day just to have them thrown out after each use?! I asked the server if anything was recycled for further use and she said she didn't know.







All in all a major disappointment. My loyalties definitely lie with the original vegan bus. Nicer service, better food, plus it's right next to one of the best vintage clothing shops in London. Win.

Coconut Rice (with some unauthentic-y twists)

As a rule, I hate anything coconut-y. It's rich and creamy, which seem like things that would add up to a food I'd love but, for some reason, it just makes me feel stabby. Coconut rice is the exception. It took me until last fall to even try the stuff but it actually pleasantly surprised me. I hadn't had coconut rice since that first time, but a few days ago I was craaaving some and it just so happened that I had left over coconut milk in the fridge (from making the spicy pumpkin soup from Vegan Comfort Food. Will post pictures soon!). I was too tired to follow a recipe so I decided to hope for the best and jsut wing it. The result was delicious, albeit not the most authetic rendition.

1/2 cup rice
coconut milk*
2 cups water

sesame oil
1 onion, chopped
1/2 zucchini, chopped into small cubes
1 small tomato, chopped into small cubes
1 large button mushroom, sliced
turmeric
splash of dark soy sauce
salt & pepper to taste
small squeaze of ginger paste (optional)

Cook the rice in the coconut milk/water mixture. Boil for 15 minutes and then drain.

While the rice is cooking, sautee the onions in the sesame oil (use a large frying pan or small sauce pan). Add the rest of the vegetables and heat on low until the rice is done cooking.

Add the rice to the vegetables and mix. Add some turmeric (as much as you like, but I used about 2 tsp.), soy sauce, the rest of the coconut milk, and ginger paste.

Done! So quick and easy. I put a little dollop of chopped cilantro mix my flatmate had in the fridge and it complemented the sweetness of the rice really well.


*use as much as you'd like but know that a little does NOT go a long way in this recipe. I finished all the left over coconut milk in this recipe and still would have preferred a stronger flavor. Also, save a little on the side to add towards the end.

Mac & Cheese

Ask any culinary inclinded (self-professed included) vegan and they're guaranteed to have their own signature mac & cheese recipe. It's like a right of passage; the bar mitzvah or sweet 16 of the vegan world if you will. Most of these recipes involve lots of ingredients that can be pricey and hard/annoying to find if you don't live near a health food store. I've tried a few different recipes, but mostly I've played around with the ingredients I've had on hand until I ended up with something resembling mac & cheese. After over a year of experimenting I finally have my own, personal mac & cheese.



As with most of my recipes I'm lucky if I measure things at all, let alone carefully, so the measurements here are just an estimation. I've made this recipe loads of times and have never measured and it always turns out fine!

Mac & Cheese
2 cups pasta

1/3 cup soy milk
1 package silken tofu (aseptic packaged)
2 T soy sauce
2 tsp ground turmeric
3/4 T mustard
salt and pepper to taste

While the pasta's boiling, put the rest of the ingredients in a seperate pot. Heat up and use a hand blender to liquidize the mixture. Continue heating until it bubbles. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring frequently, until it's thick (5-10 minutes).

Drain the pasta and add the tofu mixture.

See? Easy.

This made enough for me to have lefovers for lunch and dinner the next day.

Ginger Hot Chocolate

Neal's Yard Salad Bar is one of my favorite veg restaurants in London. Don't let the name fool you, vegetarian Brazilian comfort food is their specialty and much of what's on the menu. It's a tiny little place tucked in the middle of Neal's Yard, a quirky little side street brimming with brightly painted shops and quaint cobblestones. There is plenty of seating outside for the warmer months, but in freezing January I opted to sit inside, on the second floor, where the rest of the tables are. I know this is a food blog and I'll get to that in a minute, but first I have to gush over the interior decorating first. It's so cozy! Mismatched antique chairs surround the tables; a perfect mix of bohemian and gothic styles. The vibrantly painted walls add to the bohemian feel and vintage chotchkies and picture frames tie it all together.

Aaaanyways, when you go to Neal's Yard Salad Bar, be sure to get the ginger hot chocolate! I don't really know what else to say about it. I'll let the picture speak for itself.



Foodwise, I'd reccomend the pumpkin polenta pie. It's listed as an appetizer, but it's massive and I usually can't even finish it.

Fettuccine Fondue-Fredo

Forgive the lame name of this next meal. It's da mornin' and my coffee's not kicked in yet.

Anywho, just a quick post on what to do with all those fondue lefovers (see fondue recipe a few posts down).

So easy. Ready? Ok:
Boil pasta. Heat up leftover cheezy fondue. Combine. Nosh.

(I topped mine with some red chili flakes, cayenne, and oregano.)

Spinach & Split Pea Soup from The Breakfast Club, plus bonus exhibition

Ergh. It's dark, rainy, and gross gross gross outside. Perfect day to start classes up again, eh? Grumble.

It's been a good few days back, though...très relaxing. Tasha and I went to an exhibition yesterday, at the Parisol Unit, which I highly recommend. Visible Invisible: Against the Security of Real showcases the work of artists Cecily Brown, Hans Josephsohn, Shaun McDowell, Katy Moran and Maaike Schoorel.

The work was mostly painting with a few sculptures. My favorite piece was this painting by Cecily Brown; Aujourd'hui Rose (2005).


Brown had another collection of untitled paintings, all of which, while being far from realism, have an undeniable human quality to them.

One of the untitled

Anyways, after the exhibition, we decided to get coffee at our faaavorite breakfast/coffee/everything place. The Breakfast Club in Hoxton Square. If you're ever in the area, you have to go to The Breakfast Club. No excuses. I haven't been to the the other BCs (there's on in Angel and the original in Soho), but when the Hoxton one opened last May, it immediately became our local hangout, coffee joint, and breakfast haven (plenty of vegan options, although you might have to specify for no cheese, eggs, etc.) We moved flats this year and, even though we're now a half hour walk away, we still go to The Breakfast Club all the time. It's just that kind of place; totally worth a little hike.

I decided to get my usual soy cappuccino, along with the soup of the day which was spinach and pea soup. The soup was really nice, although the bread that came with it was outstanding! Yes, the bread. Best part of the meal.
Alright, now that you know about The Breakfast Club...GO!

Cheese Fondue

Sorry I haven't posted lately. I was enjoying a much needed vacation from the stresses of uni and visa applications. I went back home to Massachusetts and spent time with friends and family and it was lovely! I didn't get around to doing as much cooking as I'd originally hoped, but I did make this fondue several nights. I first discovered this recipe last year around the holidays and my family LOVED it! It's now a wintertime staple in the house (at least when I'm home to make it). Super fast and clean up isn't that bad (although I'm messy so I tend to get tahini, flour, and nooch everywhere). The recipe is easy to double too, so you can have more and use the leftovers in other dishes (I'll post some of my experiments in the next few days). I got the recipe from WikiHow, although it's originally from The Uncheese Cookbook (thanks evolution from the PPK!). I've tweaked it a little.


2 cups white wine
1 cup water
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1/3 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup tahini
4 T flour
2 T lemon juice
1 T onion granules
1/2 tsp mustard powder
1/4 light soy sauce
a drop or two of sriracha sauce

• Put the wine in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Let simmer while moving on to...
• Put the rest of the ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth.
• Combine the mixture with the wine and heat on medium-low, stirring constantly, until it's the thickness you want it to be. Add salt and pepper to taste (I like to make it extra salty. The salt makes it taste exactly like non-vegan cheese fondue!)
  

Pick your favorite veggies or, really, any bite-sized veg food to dip in! We used whole wheat bread, brussel sprouts, broccoli, and cauliflower.

Also, sorry the picture's a bit fuzzy....and there's more where that came from. I can't find my camera's charger so I've been taking all my pictures on my iPhone.

RootMaster!

My flatmate and I went to go see the great Eddie Izzard at Wembley Arena last night. He was amazing, as usual. The show was part of his stripped tour (which I saw the very first performance in Boston two years ago) so it was really interesting to see how the show evolved over the years.

Anyways, I've been super busy with finishing up my final projects for class...I'm drowning in clay, plaster, and glaze and have zero time to cook. So now I get to make a post about my favorite vegan restaurant! RootMaster is in a converted double decker bus (kitchen on the bottom floor, seating on the top with additional tables outside). The menu is constantly changing and everything is fantastic and made even better by the prices (most entrees are under a £10 and appetizers are around £6). It's my favorite restaurant in London and I take everyone here...all of whom are proud meat eaters and were quick to admit that the food at RootMaster was awesome!

Garden burger with the most amazing fries you will ever taste!!

Burrito

Happy Slapsgiving!

Thanksgiving was a surprising success this year. It was my first year I wasn't home or with my family so I was worried about being homesick, but I was fine. I think inviting my American friend, Anna, made it a lot easier since we could be homesick together. I went back to the flat with Anna around 6:00 and had to start cooking straight away. Anna was in charge or mashed potatoes and boiling the dumplings that came with the tofurkey. My job was everything else (tofurkey, apple sage stuffing, and kmouse's spinach artichoke dip).

The torkurkey was a hit! Everyone was a bit skeptical but ended up wanting seconds. Point for team vegan! Kmouse's dip stole the show though. Soooo delicious!
Aimee made pumkin raisin and oatmeal cookies (from VWAV) for dessert. No pictures, but trust me, they were delicious!

Of course the best part of Thanksgiving is the leftovers....note to everyone: Kmouse's spinach artichoke dip is even better the next morning on toast! Mmmmm

Pumpkin Muffins

Today I went to the Christmas lighting on Oxford Street with a few friends and it was craaaazy busy! Lots of fun though...Jim Carrey (who has a very non-Carrey-ish beard nowadays) did the lighting while promoting his new film A Christmas Carol. After the lights went on, we sprinted to Leicester Square to go to the premier. Since we didn't get to the premier at stupid o-clock, we weren't able to get good standing room so we went to go grab dinner. On the way out of the restaurant, we walked by the theatre just in time to see Jim Carrey and Jenny McCarthy!

Anyways, I obviously didn't have time to cook today, but my awesome flatmate made Isa's pumpkin muffins from VWAV a few days ago and they were fantastic!

Seitan Stroganoff

So it's a gloomy day after Halloween (and world vegan day! Woo!) which means it's prime comfort food time! I decided to make stroganoff for lunch and used this recipe from What the Hell Does a Vegan Eat Anyway? I didn't have any vegan sour cream so I used cream Sheese....and wow! It was awesome! I served it over shells with peas and roasted carrots.



Bonus Halloween pictures!

Caramelized Onion Mashed Potatoes

Last night was our 90's flatwarming party! It was a hit, even if the 4 of us were the only ones that dressed up. I woke up this morning with a killer hangover and needed something to nurse it asap. When I fiiiinally heaved myself out of bed I went downstairs....now I remember why I never threw parties in high school. The flat's a mess, but that didn't matter; I needed mashed potatoes.


I still don't feel like cleaning...Gilmore Girls and potatoes are much more tempting.

Carrot and Potato Curry

One of my favorite things to do is experiment with different curries. They're so easy and versatile and...OH! I heart them so much. Tonight I tried a new one using carrots, potatos, and peas and the main ingredients. I didn't measure anything, but I'll write down basically what I did so you can try it. It was amaaaazing! Seriously, the picture does not do it justice! Sweet, tangy, and savory all in one. Mmmm...


canola oil (to sautee the onions)
1 onion
3 carrots (peeled and grated)
2 potatoes (peeled and cut into cubes)
frozen peas
soy milk
garlic paste
ginger paste (you can use fresh garlic and ginger, but I use these to save time)
soy sauce
~ tbs curry powder

While you're sauteeing the onions, put the potatoes into boiling water until soft. Once the onions are transluscent, add the grated carrots and a few splashes of soy milk. Bring to a soft boil, and the peas, and reduce to a simmer. Squeeze in some garlic and ginger paste (I tend to be preeeetty liberal with the ginger), curry powder, and a splash of soy sauce. Let simmer for a while until slightly thickened. I served mine with quinoa, but rice or clear noodles would also work well.

Sweetcorn Chowder

It was a pretty gross Saturday this weekend: cloudy, grey, and the misty type of rain that makes my hair explode. My flatmate, Tasha, and I were both nursing some nasty colds so the plan for the day was clear: SOUP!

Of all days to be barren, our pantry chose this one. Of course. We found some vegetable stock granules, a can of cannelini beans, frozen peas, an onion, and tvp. Don't try this at home...we weren't expecting anything great. We were sick and just wanted something to fill the soup void in our ickle ill hearts.

No such luck. The groul that bubbled and hissed in the pot could not have been less edible. Somehow we were going to have to soldier on to Tesco for ingredients...and find a recipe. No more romantic hopes of creating a perfect soup spontaniously. Non. Us wild birds needed some taming. Boundaries. Instructions.

Aaaanyways, we managed to get all the ingredients for Sweetcorn Chowder from VWAV and some root vegetable soup Tasha found online.



I didn't try Tasha's or take a picture of it, but my corn chowder was delicious! It was a bit too sweet at first but some extra salt made it perfect.