(Mid)summer Vegetable (Green) Curry

Being that it is Midsummer, preparing a so-called "summer" curry (an adaptation of Summer Vegetable Curry from Heidi Swanson's website, 101 Cookbooks) seemed appropriate. I honestly was not that enthusiastic about making this dish; I pursued it as an alternative (I like trying new things) to a panang curry I made a week or so ago for which I used too much paste, thereby rendering it too spicy for my mother (for whom I had prepared it) to enjoy and as an excuse to use the tin of green curry paste sitting in the pantry. Besides, my reasoning went, my mom had probably never tried green curry before! More babbling (and my version of Swanson's curry) after the jump.

Alicia Silverstone's Vegan Thin Mushroom Pizzas

So I had been incessantly renewing my borrowed library copy of Cher Horo...I mean, Alicia Silverstone's vegan cookbook "The Kind Diet," and as I am want to do with books in general, and any pursuits that I adore, including tackling recipes, it took months of having the book in my possession before I actually followed through with dog-earing the book and committed myself to making one of the compassionate Clueless star's dishes.

Silverstone's Thin Mushroom Pizzas (with Tofu Cream) was an excellent choice. It has enough prep involved that you are indeed actually making a yummy vegan dish, but is not too time-consuming (for those pressed for time), as the "crusts" are Ezekiel's small-sized tortillas. The pizzas are super savory, unami-packed, with a refreshing lemony zing from the Tofu Cream and the fresh basil topping. The recipe, which I followed faithfully, is linked in the text above. As Silverstone comments in the recipe's blurb, this pizza will be savored by vegans and omnivores alike (provided that they aren't freaks who dislike mushrooms!) One word of advice; be very careful when crisping the pizzas in the broiler. They WILL be done in a few minutes, and if you broil them for too long, they will make a popping sound, indicating that they are burnt or near-burned.

Tofu Chili

Chili's only drawback is that it's not so photogenic!

Vegan "Chicken" Salad

Don't mock me!

When my boyfriend proclaimed that he had eaten delicious vegan chicken salad from an unknown prepared foods company that sells its products at a corner store in Sunnyside, Queens, I was inspired to put the block of firm tofu sitting in my fridge to use for such a dish. I made the vegan chicken salad pictured above using a recipe from a food and health blog that I trust: Eating Bird Food. The site's blogger, Brittany Mullins, based her recipe on Whole Foods' version of the salad. Both my boyfriend and I were very pleased with the results: the savory salad may not have the texture of chicken, but the tofu - often described as a blank slate in the food world - soaks up the flavors of the spices, lemon juice, and tamari (which can be substituted with soy sauce or Bragg's liquid aminos) and the sliced almonds add a nice crunch! In fact, this salad tastes even better the next day, as the tofu pieces are more flavorful when given the time to marinate.

Two Breakfast (or lunch, or dinner...) Options

Spinach & Mushroom Omelette

"Italian" Tofu Scramble

Lately, I have been so busy with student teaching and a full load of graduate classes that it has been difficult to keep up with this blog.  Fortunately, even with a packed schedule, it's easy to make time for whipping up these two dishes, which are both nutritious and very satisfying. Recipes after the jump!

Thai Curry Soup with Rice Noodles

Brief Excursion to Brooklyn

Feeling spontaneous, I made a trip to Williamsburg, Brooklyn yesterday.

You'd never guess this house was in Brooklyn what with the nautical themed glass panel.

I did not go with the intention of having lunch, but I arrived at around 2pm, and wanted to leave around 3pm to beat the insane eastbound rush hour traffic.  I intended to have a bite once home, but when 3pm rolled around and I hadn't had anything but coffee for hours, I was feeling kind of sluggish and knew some form of sustenance was in order. While walking on Bedford Avenue, I happened upon a small, unassuming eatery called Supercore.  What caught my attention was the chalkboard outside proclaiming the lunch specials, in particular, the kimchee tofu. So I stepped inside, ordered the dish to go and was soon on my way. The staff was friendly and the clientele consisted of local hipster types: mainly 20-30 something men of low muscle mass working attentively on their Mac laptops, peeling away from their work here and there to have a bite from their plates.

 My kimchee with tofu:

The dish as you can see came with a generous helping of white rice, which I did not consume. As for what I did eat, the kimchee was pretty good; I am no kimchee connoisseur, but I do generally enjoy it. It was a bit on the sour side. The tofu -- two decent sized blocks underneath the heaping of pickled cabbage -- was plain and its cool simple taste was refreshing. The scallions were delish as always - you cannot go wrong with green onions, they delicately perk up any food with which they're paired.

I'll leave you with a photo of Christmas light-up decorations arranged on modest balcony space: