Hope you’re all enjoying your Labor Day weekend!  Despite having to work for much of the weekend, Ryan and I were able to sneak away to the Getty Center on Saturday where he took these amazing photos.  I just couldn’t resist sharing them.

Hope you all have a great day with lots of good food!

To all the mothers out there – hope you have a wonderful day and someone to make you a great meal!  And to our moms, Jerry and Jan, we love you and wish we could be with you today!

Happy Cinco de Mayo!  Living in Southern California, there’s no lack of holiday celebrations to take part in today.  If you’re having people over, or even if you’re just having a quiet night in, this Mexican-Style Casserole is the perfect thing to celebrate the holiday.  Now, I say Mexican-”style” because I have to admit that it’s not the most authentic dish.  I had some lavash bread, so I used it in place of tortillas.  I figured it was similar enough that it would work, and it also happens to be the perfect size and shape.  The “Cuban-style” black beans don’t help the authenticity either, but they sure taste good!

If you’d like a more authentic dish, by all means use tortillas and different beans.  The fun of creating a dish like this is that you can always just add whatever fillings you like best.  I got these ingredients from Trader Joe’s, but if you don’t have one nearby you can just get similar products in place of the ones I used.  This casserole is spicy, tangy and satisfying enough to fool any meat-eater.  But the best part just might be how easy it is to make!

Mexican-Style Casserole

1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 small (or 1/2 large) yellow onion, diced
1 package soy chorizo
4 sheets of lavash bread
1 10-oz. container Avocado Salsa Verde
1 15.5-oz. can of Cuban-style Black Beans (or plain black beans)
1 12-oz. container fresh Mild Salsa
2-3 tablespoons Tofutti sour cream (or your favorite non-dairy sour cream), at room temperature

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and lightly grease a 9 x 13 inch pan (I use an oil spray).

Lila

Yesterday, Ryan and I headed up to Animal Acres for the Eggless Easter celebration.  They were having a vegan bake sale, so I donated some brownies and gluten-free chocolate cookies and also got to enjoy some goodies that other guests brought.  We had a chance to hang out with lots of the animals, including Lila, pictured above.  She was incredibly affectionate, loved being pet, and wouldn’t leave Ryan’s side as he took photos of the turkeys and ducks.  It was pretty adorable.

Regina

It had been a while since we’d seen the cows at Animal Acres, and they were HUGE!  Paolo (aka Maggie Moo) was not willing to share anyone’s attention with the other cows.  As soon as someone pet any cow other than Paolo, she would come charging over and head-butt the attention stealer.  You can see I’m keeping my distance here as I was trying to sneak a pet before Paolo saw what was happening.

This photo barely shows the scope of the size of this cow.  She was amazingly tall and also very long.  Most cows are slaughtered before the grow to their full size.  They’re killed (or die from exhaustion) at about six or seven years, but cows can grow to be as old as 25 if they’re allowed to.

Joee

This little calf hurried off as soon as Ryan was able to sneak this shot of her.  Unlike the other cows, she was very afraid of people, and with good reason.  A student at UCLA went home to Kansas and stole this calf.  He hog-tied and threw her in the trunk of his car, before driving across the country, back to California.  For the three days the journey took, Joee had no food or water, and once he got her here, the student left her tied up on the lawn of a rival fraternity house as a “prank.”

Thankfully someone called Animal Services, who then contacted Animal Acres, and Joee was brought there to live out the rest of her life.  Joee’s story has a happy ending, but it was so hard to see such a beautiful creature so afraid, and to think about what she’d been through to make her that way.

Einstein

So to end on a lighter note, take a look at this guy and his awesome feathered head.  I can only imagine Einstein got his name for that crazy mop-top, and I swear he had an attitude to match.  I loved watching him strut around, happy to pose for photos.

If you live in the Los Angeles area and haven’t been to Animal Acres, I can’t recommend it enough.  It’s such a welcome break from the city, and the animals are such a joy to be around.  It’s a special place that you need to experience first hand to really appreciate.

Okay, I know there must be people out there who don’t like strawberries, but I’ve never met them.  It seems like this fruit is universally loved (cue the emails and comments of people telling me about strawberry allergies).  I loved strawberries so much as a kid because we only got to really enjoy them during the summer.  I know you can buy them year-round now, but they’re just not as good.  I think there’s something special about only being able to have foods at certain times of the year, and while strawberries are pretty much in season all the time here in LA, I find myself waiting until spring and summer to really enjoy them.

This simple strawberry tart would be so beautiful on an Easter table.  The colors are vibrant, it’s really delicious, and it’s also really easy to make – which helps when you’re already making an entire meal for your guests.  This recipe is just a variation of my favorite peach tart, obviously subbing strawberries for the peaches.  I’m obsessed with these pistachios, and I thought the lemon flavor would add a nice texture and color contrast.  If you aren’t able to find flavored pistachios you can use plain and just grate some lemon zest to sprinkle on top of the tart.

I’m continuing to experiment with wheat-free baking, so I used whole grain spelt flour instead of unbleached all-purpose for this.  I really liked how it turned out.  The taste was a bit like a cross between a shortbread and a graham cracker crust.  You could use whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour, depending on what you like and what you’re able to find in your local store.

Strawberry Tart with Lemon Roasted Pistachios
This tart is as beautiful as it is delicious.  It would make for the perfect ending to your Easter (or any springtime) meal.

1/3 cup Earth Balance or other non-dairy margarine
1/3 cup Earth Balance or other vegan shortening (you can also just use an additional 1/3 cup margarine – either way works out fine)
2/3 cup sugar (I use Florida Crystals)
1 tablespoon Ener-G egg replacer
1/4 cup warm water
1 3/4 cup whole grain spelt flour (or white spelt, or unbleached all-purpose flour)
3-4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and slices
about 2 tablespoons brown sugar
about 2 tablespoons lemon roasted (or plain) pistachios

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cream together sugar, margarine and shortening.

Whisk together the egg replacer and water until the powder is completely dissolved.  Add this to creamed mixture and thoroughly combine, scraping the sides of the bowl.

Add the flour and mix until a soft dough forms.

Lightly grease a 9-inch tart pan and press dough into the bottom and up the sides of the pan.  You may need to wet your hands if the dough is too sticky.  Arrange the sliced strawberries on top of the dough and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the edges start to turn golden.  (If you use spelt flour, the baking time may be a bit longer).

Turn the broiler on.  Sprinkle about 2 tablespoons of brown sugar over the top of the tart and broil until the sugar is mostly melted.  Make sure to watch it so the peaches don’t burn.  Cool, and sprinkle the chopped pistachios on top.  Remove from pan to slice.

This will keep in the refrigerator for a couple days.  Enjoy!

This bright green spring salad is one of my favorites.  I love panzanella salads in general (who wouldn’t love a bread salad?!), and this version from Michael Chiarello is really awesome.  Thank god I finally like asparagus and peas – if you’d served this to me as a kid I’d have probably made a wise-crack and pushed the plate away.  The only thing I would have considered eating was the bread, and even that would have freaked me out since it’s coated in an asparagus puree.

All that’s changed, and now I love asparagus.  But one thing that hasn’t changed since my childhood is my love of springtime.  Even though we don’t suffer through a bad winter here in Los Angeles, the winters of my youth still haunt me!  That first peek of green, whether it was grass, flower or tree buds was an amazing sight.  Now that I’m not such a picky eater (well, okay, I guess some might see it that way because of the foods I choose not to eat – but it isn’t because I don’t like them), I can really appreciate the different fresh foods that each season has to offer.  Having lived in LA for almost seven and a half years, I can finally feel the change of seasons here, and one of the biggest indications of where we’re at season-wise is what’s at the farmers’ market.

This is definitely the time of year for asparagus, asparagus and more asparagus!  This salad is packed with it, and it’s so delicious.  There’s also a hint of basil and a mild onion taste, plus some sweetness from the peas. Lemon juice brightens up the whole thing, and the asparagus-puree-drenched croutons are a great contrast to peppery arugula.  You can use spinach if you prefer, but I like the bold flavor of arugula here.

Veganizing this one is ridiculously easy, and again, it just kills me that Chef Chiarello was so stumped about making a vegan meal on Top Chef.  For the sake of convenience I’m going to write the recipe out here with the minor changes I’ve made as well as my notes.

Spring Panzanella Salad

2 pounds medium asparagus
1/2 cup freshly chopped basil leaves
8 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Sea salt, preferably gray salt and freshly ground black pepper
Panzanella Croutons, recipe follows
2 cups fresh or frozen English peas, boiled until tender and drained [I just thawed frozen peas]
1 cup thinly sliced green onion or spring onion
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice, divided
1/2 head radicchio, ribbon-cut, soaked, drained, and dried
2 cup whole baby spinach leaves or arugula

Holding an asparagus spear in both hands, bend the spear until it breaks naturally at the point where the spear becomes tough. Discard the tough end. Repeat with the remaining asparagus. Cut off the tender tips and reserve.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the asparagus tips and cook briefly, just until they lose their raw taste, about 2-3 minutes. Lift them out with a sieve or skimmer and let cool. Add the remaining portion of the asparagus spears and cook until tender enough to puree, about 5 minutes or so, then drain well.

Put the asparagus spears, basil, 6 tablespoons of the olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste in a blender or food processor. Puree until smooth.

In a large bowl, combine the croutons, asparagus tips, peas, and green or spring onion. Add some of the asparagus puree and toss to coat well. Add more puree as needed to coat lightly and evenly. Add 3 tablespoons of the lemon juice and toss again. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then make an even layer of the mixture on a platter.

In another bowl, combine the radicchio and spinach or arugula. Dress with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, the remaining 1 teaspoon lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss well, then mound on top of the dressed croutons. Serve immediately.

Panzanella Croutons

1/2 cup (4 ounces) Earth Balance (or other non-dairy) margarine
12 cups (about 2 pounds) crust-free cubed day-old bread (1/2-inch cubes)
1/4 – 1/3 cup nutritional yeast, or vegan Parmesan

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut the crusts off the bread with a serrated knife, and use a chef’s knife to cube the bread.  Put the bread cubes into a very large bowl.

Melt the margarine, and pour it over the bread cubes, tossing well to coat all the pieces.  Sprinkle the nutritional yeast over the cubes, and toss again.  Spread the cubes out evenly onto two baking sheets .

Bake, stirring once or twice, until the croutons are crisp and lightly colored on the outside but still soft within, about 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool. Store in an airtight container.

Notes: If you use the radicchio, you don’t have to soak it.  You can slice it, and rinse it with very cold water.  I substituted Belgian endive to save an extra trip to a second store, and it worked just fine.

I like to use more lemon juice than called for on the greens.  If you’re not serving this to a crowd, just dress the amount of greens you want to eat since they won’t keep as leftovers, though the rest of the salad (bread part) will.  This makes a ton, so toss everything together in a really, really big bowl.  Enjoy!

I love artichokes, but I so rarely buy them fresh.  Maybe it’s because I think it’ll be too much work to prep and steam them.  Once I do it though, I realize that it really isn’t that hard, and it’s so worth it.  They’re delicious, and they’re also really fun to eat.

I’d been thinking about Easter recipes, which for me means spring recipes, and when I saw artichokes at the farmers’ market I thought they’d be the perfect thing to kick off an Easter meal.  They have that special occasion feel, but they don’t require a ton of work since the majority of their preparation time is spent in the steamer.

Steamed Artichokes with Tangy Dipping Sauce
serves 4

4 medium to large artichokes
1 lemon

Prepare a steamer large enough to hold the artichokes.  Cut the lemon rind off the lemon, and put the rind into the water in the base of the steamer.  Cut the lemon in half.

Cut the stems off of the artichokes so that they stand upright, and pull any small leaves off the bottom.  Rub the cut stem area with a lemon half.  Cut about 1 1/2-inches off the top of the artichoke, and again, rub with the lemon half.  With a pair of kitchen scissors, trim the tips off of the remaining leaves.  Don’t worry about cutting to much off since the part you want is at the base of the leaf.  Rub the cut leaves with the lemon, and put the lemon halves into the water with the lemon rind.  (You can measure out 2 tablespoons of juice for the dipping sauce before you add them to the pot.)

Once the water is boiling, stand your artichokes in the steamer, stem side down.  Steam them for 45-55 minutes, depending on their size.  If they aren’t uniform in size, make sure to check the smaller ones sooner. You can tell when they’re done by pulling on a leaf.  If it pulls away easily, they’re ready to go.  You can also double check by inserting a knife into the base of the artichoke to make sure there’s no give.  Serve with Tangy Dipping Sauce (recipe follows).

Tangy Dipping Sauce

3/4 cup vegan mayo
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons capers
1 tablespoon chopped shallot
1 tablespoon loosely packed fresh parsley
1/8 tsp salt (or to taste)

Combine all the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor or blender, and puree.  Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed.  You can always start with half the amount of lemon juice or capers and add more to taste.  This is also a really good with carrots or other raw vegetables.

Despite my red hair and unwavering love of Ireland, I’m not actually Irish.  Well, we think there may have been some Celtic blood in there somewhere, and all our Irish friends tell me that I look so Irish that has to be the case.  Plus, being raised right outside Chicago and then living in the city, I think everyone is honorary Irish on St. Paddy’s.  They dye the river green, for God’s sake!

I’ve been lucky enough to visit Ireland a couple times – both the North and South – and Ryan and I were actually trying to find a way to move there for a while.  Some of our favorite people in the world live there, and if you’ve never been, you can’t imagine how beautiful it is.  I’d never seen green in my life until I went to Ireland.  I swear that the grass and trees glow electric green.  But it does take a lot of rain to get that way, which I’m all too familiar with after living over in neighboring London for 9 months while in college.

I feel like Irish and English food can get a bad rap, but that’s a pretty outdated take on things.  I don’t know how traditional this stew is, but it’s amazingly tasty.  It reminds me of the beef stew that my mom used to make, and that I can’t even remember the last time I had.  Red meat was one of the first things I gave up, long before even becoming vegetarian, and I very rarely make faux steak dishes.  But I will definitely make this stew again.  Ryan tasted it and said, “This is one of the tastiest things you’ve ever made, and you can quote me on that!”

I started with this recipe, but made some changes to both the ingredients and technique, which you can see in my version below.  It’s a little bit of work, and a little bit fussy, but so worth it!  And I have to give a big thank you to Ryan’s Aunt Margie and Uncle John for the beautiful plates they gave us for Christmas – we’ve been saving them especially for St. Patrick’s day!

Irish “Steak” and Stout Stew
Makes 6 to 8 servings

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 pkg. veggie bacon, chopped (try Lightlife brand)
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 lb. vegan steak strips, thawed and chopped (I used two bags of gardein’s beefless tips)
6 Tbsp. vegan margarine
1 large onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 large carrot, chopped
1 1/4 cups dark beer
1/4 – 1/2 cup vegetable stock
1 cup frozen peas
Fresh parsley, chopped, to taste
Salt and pepper, to taste

Heat a large pot over medium heat.  Add about a tablespoon of vegetable oil, and the tempeh “bacon” strips. (You may have to do this in two batches to not crowd the pan, and the second batch might need a bit more oil).  Cook until they’re browned and crisp, and remove them to a paper-towel covered plate.  Once they cool a bit, chop them into small pieces and set aside.

Add a tablespoon or so of margarine to the pan to melt.  (You can also use olive oil, if you’d prefer).  In a medium bowl, combine the flour with the salt and pepper.  In a separate bowl, combine the soy sauce and the “steak”, and toss to coat.  Toss the “steak” in the flour mixture, and add to the hot pan.  Sear the “steak” pieces until they’re golden and the flour is no longer visibly white.  Remove them to the paper towel-lined plate you used for the bacon.  (I did these in three or four batches – again you don’t want to crowd the pan. Don’t worry if some of the pieces might stick to the pan; you actually want that because it adds more flavor.)

Once you finish cooking the “steak”, add another tablespoon of margarine to the pot.  Add the onion and cook until softened, scraping up all the bits of “steak” that stuck to the pan.  You can add a splash of veggie broth to help deglaze the bottom.  Once the onion is soft, add the carrots.  Sauté them together for about five minutes or so, until the onion is golden.  Add the garlic, and sauté for about a minute, or until fragrant.

Add the stout to the onion mixture and scrape up any bits still stuck to the bottom of the pan.  Add the “steak” and “bacon”, and about a 1/4 cup of veggie broth.  Stir and cook for 5 minutes, until thick.  Add the peas, lower the heat, cover the pot and cook for a few minutes to heat the peas through.  If the stew is too thick, add more beer or vegetable stock. Taste and adjust the seasonings.  Sprinkle with parsley before serving.

Notes: Rather than making a pie (I don’t have a deep dish pie plate), I decided to make the stew on its own and served it up in puff pastry shells.  You could also just serve it on its own, with some crusty bread.  I found that I didn’t need to add any additional salt.  If you prefer softer carrots you could steam them for a few minutes before adding them to the pot, or simmer the stew longer.  Enjoy, and have a great St. Patrick’s Day!

I used to love me some Irish coffee.  Now I stick to coffee with whiskey (hold the cream), or I make my own with non-dairy cream at home.  When I tasted the batter for this cake, it reminded me of my beloved boozy beverage and instantly transported me to the last time I was in Ireland, one of my favorite places in the whole world.  Not that I was eating a ton of the batter or anything like that – of course not.  I don’t just stand in the kitchen licking every spoon, bowl and spatula that I use.  And I’m definitely not shoving bites of this cake in my mouth as I write this.  That doesn’t even sound like me!

I got the recipe here, and it couldn’t have been easier to make.  The only changes I made were reducing the amount of salt and baking it in an 8×11-inch pan rather than the 9×13-inch pan called for in the recipe.  You could use the larger pan, but the cake would be much thinner.  The thing that’s great about this cake is the strength of the whiskey flavor in the finished product.  There’s just a hint of chocolate flavor, but it really is predominately a whiskey cake.  And it’s really, really, really tasty.  Being the lightweight that I am, I’m going to have to control myself from eating the entire thing and ending up in a cake-drunk stupor.

Happy St. Paddy’s day!