whoa! it’s been NICE OUT. sunny! hot! sunny! not raining!
luckily my anniversary happened to be during this sunny spell. we ate tasty treats all day.
breakfast! coconut almond yogurt with blueberries, sourdough toast, coffee with chocolate.
what to snack? oh! why not an artichoke!
…the remains
also HEY IS IT HOT OUT? WANT A COFFEE? too hot? granita with coconut cream!
not pictured, homemade gnocchi. great day, real recipes to come!
tofu benedict! delicious and insanely huge. this was a celebratory brunch because a- it was nice out and b- my boyfriend didn’t float away in the flood in Calgary.
makes 4 biscuits or 2 big bennies
BISCUITS
i used this biscuit recipe without the chives and cheese BUT HEY you could leave em in too. i cut them out big, about 4 inch circles, so cooking time is about 5 minutes longer. you’ll have extra biscuits.
BENNY
1 avocado, sliced
2 leaves of lacinto kale, veined and chopped
half a square of medium firm tofu, cut into 4 slabs
1 block of tempeh, sliced in half so you have two big thin squares, then cut that into 2
4 slices of broccoli, cut so the stalk is still attached and you have nice intact slices.
3 cloves garlic, minced
olive oil
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
a few shakes garlic powder
fresh cracked black pepper
for the tempeh, i used this marinade for about 10 minutes then fried it up in a skillet until brown on both sides. remove and put aside. roast the broccoli with a bit of oil at 400 on a baking sheet for 10-15 minutes, flip once. in the same a skillet real hot with olive oil then add the tofu unti browned. flip, add kale to the pan with garlic. dust tofu with nutritional yeast, garlic powder and black pepper. once the other side is browned, you’re done! the kale just needs to wilt a bit and slightly saute the garlic.
Cut a biscuit in half, add 1/4 avocado per side, a slice of tempeh, a slice of broccoli, a quarter of the kale and a slab of tofu. do this to the other three then top with hollandaise. eat!
HOLLANDAISE SAUCE
3 tbsp earth balance
1/4 c. flour
1 1/2 c. unsweetened almond milk
1 tbsp dijon
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
1/4 c. nutritional yeast
black pepper
1 cloves garlic, minced
salt to taste
melt earth balance in a pot, add flour and whisk. once thickened, slowly add almond milk, whisking as it thickens. add everything else, taste and adjust to your taste. if it’s too thick add a bit of almond milk to thin. all done!
saturday farmer’s market! i love it! sunny saturday! DOGS EVERYWHERE. SO MANY CUTE DOGS. and pals. and best of all, the mushroom stand had the elusive 2 dollar bag of “soup mushrooms”. i’ve only managed to nab it a couple of times. it’s a HUGE brown bag full of fancy mushrooms that are theoretically not good but always look great to me. needless to say i snatched them up along with some sea asparagus. it wasn’t cheap, but i’m don’t come across it and i couldn’t turn it down.
so mushrooms, sea asparagus, and garlic scapes from my garden. luuuuuunnnnch.
THE DISH
oil
1 portobello mushroom, sliced
2 big oyster mushroom bits, chopped smallish
2 garlic scapes, sliced thin
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 cups sea asparagus (soaked in 2 changes of ice water then blanched)
zest of 1 lemon and a squeeze of juice
heat oil in a pan and saute mushrooms, add garlic, scapes and sea asparagus. cook for a few minutes until asparagus is just tender. add zest, a squeeze of juice and season with salt and fresh cracked black pepper.
TATERS
olive oil
baby taters, cut in half or quartered
nutritional yeast
salt and pepper
chili flakes
toss in oil and dust with nutritional yeast to coat. season with salt and pepper and bake fat 400 until golden (flipping once), about 20 minutes.
this meal started with cornbread and then i worked my way backwards and planned the rest around it. it was loosely based on this BBQ tempeh dish we had in Hawaii at Peace Cafe.
It is delicious, summery and filling!
CORNBREAD
For the cornbread, I used this recipe from PPK.
I used half the amount of maple syrup, added 1/2 c. corn niblets and some fresh cracked black pepper. Also i baked it in a skillet. to do this, put your cast iron skillet in the oven with a few tbsp of oil and leave it in while you prep the batter and the oven heats up. then take it out and pour in your batter and bake for about 30 minutes or until it’s set and a knife or toothpick comes out clean. run a knife around the edge and invert onto a cooling rack.
BBQ TOFU
some oil
1 block of medium firm tofu, cut in half and then into 1/4 in slices
1 small onion, diced fine
1 can tomato paste
1 small can diced tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp molasses
1 tsp each: dijon, white vinegar, chili paste
1 tbsp each: apple cider vinegar, worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, maple syrup
1/4 c. nutritional yeast
in a pot sauté onion with a bit of oil and a pinch of salt until slightly browned. add tomatoes, tomato paste and garlic. stir to break down the tomato paste. add everything else (except tofu). once it starts to bubble, turn down to a low simmer and put the lid on. cook gently for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
heat a bit of oil in a pan and lightly fry the tofu slices in one layer until slightly golden, then flip. add BBQ sauce, turn down heat and cook for 5 minutes. ALL DONE.
SLAW
1/2 small red cabbage, sliced fine
1 carrot grated
1/2 c. small diced veg (we used cucumber and celery because it was around)
1 bunch of scallions, sliced
black sesame seeds to garnish
CREAMY SLAW DRESSING made by Mark
1/4 c. vegenaise
1 tbsp mustard (dijon or otherwise)
2 tbsp white vinegar
a pinch of sugar
black pepper
whisk together, pour over slaw and stir.
i love breakfast, maybe more than anything. here is a good summer brunch.
also it’s finally nice out and i can sit in my yard and eat delicious brunches, which i actually love more than anything (except thor).
TEMPEH BROCCOLI FRY-UP
oil
1/2 head of broccoli
1 package of 7-grain tempeh, cubed
3 scallions, sliced (whites and greens separated)
1 tomato, diced
2 tsp bragg’s or tamari
3 cloves garlic, minced
a squeeze of lemon
finely chop the broccoli stalk (after removing the waxy outer layer). saute in a pan with the white parts of your scallions. add tempeh, once browned add garlic and broccoli florets. cook for a few minutes. add lemon, tomato and bragg’s, then turn off heat and cover with a lid for 5 minutes. the broccoli should be bright green and still quite crisp. then add green scallion bits!
CHIVE BISCUITS
1 c. unbleached flour and more for rolling
3/4 c. whole wheat flour
1 tbsp baking powder
6 tbsp cold earth balance, cubed
3/4 c. almond milk + a bit for brushing
a few cracks of black pepper
2 tbsp chopped chives
1/4 c. daiya (delicious and optional)
a dusting of nutritional yeast
preheat oven to 450.
Mix dry ingredients, then cut in earth balance with a pastry cutter or two knives, until you have pea sized pieces. slowly add milk and stir with a fork, it should be damp but not too sticky. mix in chives, daiya and black pepper. roll out on a well floured board to 1/2 inch thickness. cut with a sharp circular cutter, or a thin glass (the sharp edges make the fluffy layers). put on a baking sheet, brush tops with almond milk and dust with nutritional yeast. bake for 8-10 minutes until slightly golden.
MUSHROOM GRAVY
8 mushrooms, diced small
2 tbsp earth balance
3 tbsp coconut oil
1/4 c. flour
2 c. hot broth
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp chili paste
fresh black pepper
1/4 c. nutritional yeast
2 tbsp balsamic
saute mushrooms in earth balance until they release their liquid. add coconut oil, then add flour and stir until absorbed. slowly add hot broth, whisking as it thickens then adding more. add nutritional yeast, chili paste, black pepper, soy sauce and balsamic. then POUR IT ALL OVER YOUR FOOD.
and here’s Thor being lazy in the yard
go eat a food 