Fall crockpot

Since it finally feels like fall, I felt like making this. The rich, savoury flavours are both delicious and comforting. And if you are not familiar with seitan, it's a toothsome, chewy, dense food made primarily from the protein in wheat. So obviously, not for those with gluten intolerance or wheat allergy! This crockpot is great without it, so that part is totally optional. I added some chickpea flour to my seitan this time because I am totally a chickpea flour fan. A last minute addition of oven crisped chickpea flour tofu when the crockpot is finished would also be good, or chunks of tofu for extra heartiness when you fire up the crockpot. We ate this with oven roasted potato wedges one day, and with brown basmati another. Versatile, hearty, and perfect for fall.

equipment needed:
crockpot
 (or cook in a large pot on the stove, no prob)
measure cups
measuring spoons
cutting board
knife
mixing bowl
mixing spoon


ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 onion, finely diced
2 cups green cabbage, finely diced

2 cups uncooked green lentils, rinsed

2 cups chopped celery hearts
2 cups diced carrot

4 dried shiitake mushrooms


4 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp herbe de provence
1 tsp cumin

8 cups water


directions:

1. layer all ingredients in order listed -- that's my crockpot secret for you.



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for seitan:

1 cup gluten flour
1/2 cup chickpea flour
1 tsp vegetable bouillon powder (or sea salt, herbs, and seasonings to your taste e.g. 1/2 tsp sea salt, some marjoram, basil or oregano, some chili powder or garlic powder etc -- I was in a hurry hence the bouillon powder)
1 1/2 cup water


directions:
1. combine chickpea flour, gluten flour and seasonings, and mix well
2. add water and mix well
3. knead
4. roll flat, and place on top of other ingredients in crockpot.

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finally:
1. cook the concoction on high in crock pot for 5 hours
2. remove the seitan and cut into cubes
3. remove the mushrooms and cut into pieces
4. return the mushrooms and seitan to the crockpot, stir, and let cook for 1 final hour


This is a dish that tastes great the next day. It's really good as soon as it's made, but don't worry about making it ahead if that's more convenient.

Also would be great with some crusty bread for soaking up any residual (and delicious) broth.

** Lentil Vegetable Crockpot -- vegan, whole food, delicious

The smell of this dish while cooking is out of this world. I'm such a sucker for the combination of cumin and paprika. I adore lentils. This is wonderful with brown basmati, or by itself. Huge hit with everyone. Simple, comforting, unpretentious food that cooks itself while you do something else.

equipment needed:

6 quart crockpot
knife
cutting board
sieve for rinsing lentils
measuring cups
measuring spoons



ingredients:

1 onion, chopped ( 1  cup)
2 cups chopped green cabbage
3 cups rinsed green lentils, not cooked

1/2 cup sliced dried mushrooms

2 cups chopped celery (I use the hearts for this)
2 cups diced carrot
2 cups diced asian sweet potato

4 tsp sea salt
black pepper
2 tbsp marjoram
2 tsp paprika (sweet)
2 tsp ground cumin)

1/2 cup dried apricots -- sliced

8 cups boiling water


set crockpot for 5 hours on high

Broccoli and Chickpea Crockpot

This green and white concoction is savoury, thick, and utterly comforting. The peeps in my house adore both broccoli and chickpeas, so it's really easy to love this simple dish. The cauliflower and sweet potato aren't really very noticeable, although they do provide body, flavour, and nutrition. The theme of the concoction is definitely broccoli and chickpea. Once again, I mixed a little chickpea flour into the water I added to the crockpot, which thickened up wonderfully over the cook time. Simple, satisfying, and universally enjoyed.

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 onion, finely diced
3 cups of chopped up cauliflower florets

3 cups cooked chickpeas
3 cup frozen green peas

1/2 cup diced celery

4 cups diced white sweet potato


3 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp marjoram

3 cups boiling water
1 cup water + 1/2 cup chickpea flour

500 g broccoli florets


directions:

1. melt the coconut oil in the bottom of the crockpot as it's heating, and then go about chopping.
2. add the onions
3. add the cauliflower florets
4. add the cooked chickpeas
5. add the green peas
6. add the diced celery, followed by the white sweet potato
7. on top of all this sprinkled the seasonings
8. add the 1 cup water and 1/2 cup chickpea flour mixture
9. pour on the rest of the water
10. cook on high for 4-6 hours depending on how well your crockpot does.
11. when it's all done cooking, add in your dismembered broccoli florets, and stir in. I used frozen ones that then didn't really need to be cooked ... if yours are fresh and raw, you might give them a little cook time in the crockpot after mixing in.
12. taste, and adjust salt and pepper if needed.

Socca-ish -- a vegan, chickpea flour flat bread

This is a fun and spunky little side that can be a simple meal on its own when paired with a fabulous salad, or can add a little pizzazz to other dishes.

Bow down and worship the humble chickpea in all its forms.

ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 med/large onion diced, then cooked in the coconut oil with a little salt

3/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 cups water

1/4 cup ground chia

1 cup chickpea flour
a pinch of granulated garlic


directions:

preheat the oven to 345
1. chop the onion, and cook in 2 tbsp coconut oil with a little salt
2.while the onions are cooking, combine the other ingredients
3. add the cooked onions and stir
4.
5. spread on an iron griddle or in 2 square silicone pans and bake for 60 minutes ...

Savoury Tomato Spiked Chickpea Flour Dinner cake -- a savoury, vegan, gluten-free delight.

It's not lasagna, but it's in the same family of means as a hearty square of baked pasta. We eat this with a side of fresh salad and it makes a satisfying but simple dinner. 

ingredients:


1/4 cup finely chopped sundried tomato

2 cups finely chopped green cabbage (about 1/4 of a smallish cabbage)
2 cups finely chopped celery
2 cups finely chopped carrot





6 cups tomato sauce

1/4 cup ground chia seeds



3 cups chick pea flour
1/2  cup coconut flour
1/2 cup sweet potato flour

1 tsp baking soda

rosemary to sprinkle on top

directions:

preheat the oven to 345
prepare a baking dish -- eg lasagna pan, glass cake pan etc

1. chop the vegetables in your food processor until they are fine but not pureed
2. mix together with the tomato sauce, the chia seeds, salt to taste
3. add the chickpea flour, coconut flour, sweet potato flour, and baking soda
4. put into the prepared baking dish, smooth the top, and sprinkle with rosemary

combine and bake at 345 for 90 minutes

Gluten Free Pizza Roll-up -- vegan, grain free, gluten free, dairy free, delicious!!! Fancy!

Our friends are coming for dinner!! One of our friends cannot eat any gluten at all. Nor can she eat cheese. So, while the others enjoy a more traditional pizza, some of us will enjoy this vegan, gluten free, grain free, pizza-esque roll up.

This dish is wildly successful, and super delicious. It was devoured by everyone. My 5 year old prefers it to regular pizza, and every guest that ate some came back for more. Need I say more?

ingredients:

dough:

1 1/2 cups tomato sauce puree

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp oregano

black pepper 

1/4 cup ground flax seeds

1/4 cup ground chia seeds

2 cups almond flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

4 tbsp coconut flour

filling:

cashew vegan ricotta and spinach dip

1 1/2 cups cashews, soaked for 2 hours, drained.
300 g package frozen chopped spinach
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
1/4 tsp nutmeg
black pepper
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

directions:
puree in the food processor until homogeneous and creamy

sauteed onion:

2 onions sauteed in coconut oil with a pinch of sea salt


directions:
1. roll the dough flat
2. spread with spinach dip
3. sprinkle with well sauteed onion
4. roll up
5. bake for 60 minutes at 345 degrees
6. let cool for a few minutes then cut and serve


and it's fabulous the next day.


A few things:
1. The spinach ricotta mixture can be made a day or two ahead then stored in an airtight container
2. The dough can be made a day or two ahead, then wrapped in parchment and sealed in a ziplock bag.
3. When you roll the dough out, cover it with parchment to keep the dough from sticking to the rolling pin. I roll it out on a silicone baking mat. Do your best to roll it out to the whole dimension of the mat.
4. The trickiest part was rolling up the layers together. Use the mat to help you, because it will move everything in one go and keep it smooth and even. So, use the mat to turn over that first edge and then to keep on easing the roll.
5. Do your best to coax the whole rollup into the middle of a mat for baking, and slide a baking sheet under it before putting it in the oven.
6. The whole thing can be made ahead, then frozen. I froze mine unwrapped on a parchment lined baking sheet, then wrapped it very well once frozen. I then baked it for frozen at 345 for 2 hours. Let cool and set for a while before serving.

Vegetable soup with 4 kinds of sweet potatoes

Yummy. I love a wonderful clear broth soup so full of flavour and goodness. Good for what ails you.

ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil
2 medium onion, finely diced
4 cups green cabbage, finely chopped
2 cups dry lentils -- (I used black caviar lentils, but any whole lentils will be fine. Dupuy, masoor etc. Don't used split or they will reduce to complete disintegration)
2 cup frozen green peas

1  cups celery, stalks and leaves, finely diced
2 cups carrots, diced

3 cups sweet potatoes, diced -- I used 4 kinds -- 3 different asian (murasaki, kyushu, and some white ones), and also the iconic orange beauregard variety

3 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp ginger
8 cups water


directions:

1. layer up the crockpot with the ingredients in the order listed -- do not stir
2. cook for 6 hours on high
3. enjoy with green noodles, or alone

Samosas with Friends August 2013

My friend's sister is a newbie vegan, and was asking for some cooking suggestions to feed her somewhat particular young son. This is what we will make together. That's right, I am now a cooking instructor. Huh. The thing that is great about this recipe is that it is adaptable. You can sub in whatever vegetables you like. You can use different beans instead of chickpeas. In fact, you can eat the filling just by itself. So it's a good starting point. Another friend of mine once told me her son refused to eat broccoli. She steamed it and served it plain. When they were over for dinner, we did a light saute (almost like a steam) using coconut oil and some sea salt. He devoured it. I find with my own son that a little seasoning has endeared a whole lot of things to him he wasn't super keen on when they were plain. Raw spinach leaves are fine, but dressed with a little avocado oil, a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and a sprinkle of sea salt and black pepper and suddenly they are delicious. Throw some diced avocado and tomatoes in there and forget about it! Amazing. Even when my son was a brand new eater, he was much more interested in food that had some pizzazz. And I'm not telling you to go crazy with the seasonings, but just the right about of seasoning can really bring out the natural deliciousness of beautiful ingredients. And don't forget not to fear the fat!! Many of the nutrients in vegetables are fat soluble. So judicious application of coconut oil for the hot ones or avocado oil for the cold ones is a great idea. If you are a butter lover, use butter. Just make sure it's organic so you don't get stuff you don't need. The chemical load in fat is far higher than in any produce. 

The selection of vegetables today is based entirely on what looked nice at the Sunday Farmer's Market. Yep, you've discovered my secret. I'm an impulse shopper. Anyway, it's fun figuring out what to make based on the ingredients you can find. That's how the cool kids do it, I imagine.

Part 1) dough

ingredients:

1/4 cup extra virgin coconut oil

2 cups kamut pastry flour (finely ground, whole grain)

1 cup blanched almond flour

1  tsp sea salt

3/4 cup filtered water

directions:

1. put the flours, salt, and oil in a food processor. pulse a few times to thoroughly combine.

2. turning the machine on, slowly trickle in the water (and vinegar) until the ingredients clump together and form a dough. If it seems too dry, add more water whilst the processor is on, a teaspoonful at a time. You do not want to add too much water, because then the dough will be very hard to work with. Too little water and the dough will be too crumbly.

3. take the dough out of the food processor, wrap it in parchment and put it in a plastic bag, or wrap it in plastic wrap. Set the dough aside to rest. (you can also make it ahead of time and put it in the fridge. However, it will need to come to room temperature before you can use it.

Part 2) filling

ingredients:

2 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil

1 onion finely diced
3 cups split chickpeas, already cooked

3 leaves green cabbage, finely diced
1 carrot, finely diced

1 large sweet potato, finely diced

1 very large pattypan (or 1 large zucchini) finely diced

1 or 1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp cumin powder

directions:

1. saute  the onions, and add the chickpeas and some of the salt and the cumin, and cook until the onions are translucent

2. add the cabbage, and sauté

3. layer in the rest of the ingredients, sprinkle with salt, and cover to cook for a while
4. stir to fully combine, and finish cooking

Part 3) samosas

directions:

1. take the fully rested dough, and divide into 20 g balls using a kitchen scale. Or if you are not as ocd as me, just make ping pong ball size dough balls. Try to make them even. Using the kitchen scale method, I got 35 balls this time. You could make 'em a touch bigger and get 24 balls, but I like this size best. Keep the balls covered by a piece of parchment topped by a damp towel to keep them from drying out. This is very very important!

2. one by one, roll the dough balls into circles, put some filling in the middle, and fold three sizes to make a triangular package. You should probably roll the dough on baking parchment or a mat of your choice. I find this dough easy to work with and somewhat forgiving.

3. place the samosas on a lined baking sheet. You don't need to leave a lot of space between, but you also don't want them to touch.

4. here, you have to make the decision to bake or to freeze. If you elect to freeze your bounty for later, put the baking sheet fully loaded into the freezer. Once the samosas have frozen solid, put them in airtight freezer bags. They can be baked right from frozen in about 40 minutes at 345.

5. If you choose to bake them now, put your baking sheet in the oven at 345 for about 25 or 30 minutes, until they seem adequately brown for your liking. If you want to bake them in a few hours, cover the samosas on the baking sheet with a piece of parchment topped by a damp towel.

Vegetables Baked in a Cast Iron Dutch Oven

My beautiful sister and her beautiful family stayed with us recently, and it was joyous. One of the meals we made was this rustic baked vegetable dish, served with fresh spelt flour bread and fresh tomatoes and basil as a side salad. It was fantastic. This is one of those meals that somehow transcends and is far far more than the sum of it's parts. I highly recommend this as a scrumptious rustic meal especially if you want to impress someone with deliciousness. I made it in a cast iron dutch oven -- Nemesis, for those of you who remember my red pot. I imagine you can bake it in a large casserole dish, too, or a stainless steel dutch oven. Just make sure whatever you use has a lid. You can also vary the vegetables, but the ones chosen married together beautiful for maximum savoury awesomeness. Mostly, they were the vegetables that we found at the farmer's market in the morning. A tad opportunistic, perhaps? I'll never deny it.  In a word? Heavenly. A rustic peasant meal fit for an emperor. A naked emperor, perhaps ...?

I wish that you could smell how amazing, delectable, and savoury the house smelled when this was ready ...

ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil -- unrefined, extra virgin, organic, etc
1 medium onion, small dice
4-5 large green cabbage leaves, chopped
3 cups split chickpeas, cooked, or whole chickpeas cooked (or canned, rinse, drained)
1 kholrabi peeled and diced
4 celery ribs, diced
2 medium carrots, diced
3 large green zucchinis, diced

2-3 tbsp herbe de provence
4 tsp sea salt
1 can coconut milk (400 ml, full fat, organic)
1 cup water

directions:

heat oven to 345 and put your dish in to melt your coconut oil.

1. In a dutch oven I melted 2 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil, and then threw in my diced onion.
2. I layered on 4 or 5 large green cabbage leaves that I had cut fairly finely
3. on top of this went 3 cups of split chickpeas that had been previously cooked. Whole chickpeas would be fine, too. Cooked or canned (well rinsed).
4. Next I layered a diced kholrabi
5. On top of this went 4 diced celery ribs
6. Next went 2 diced medium carrots -- fresh from the ground and wonderfully tender
7. This was topped with 3 large zucchinis, diced
8. All this was sprinkled with 2-3 tbsp herbe de provence and 4 tsp sea salt
9. I then poured 1 cup of coconut milk on it, which washed the herbs and salt through everything
10. I baked it covered for 2 1/2 hours at 345
11. Then I stirred it and added 1 cup of water, and stirred again
12. I then baked it for another 30-45 minutes at 345, lid still on.

Fantastic ....

Remember to layer and not stir until after it has cooked for most of the cooking time. That's my secret I will share with you.

Split Chickpeas

I live just down the street from Little India, and enjoy going into my local tiny supermarket. This week I  found both split moong dal (split mung beans) and split channa dal (split chickpeas). Always  fun to try new things. I cooked a pot of split moong dal seasoned with just avocado oil, dehydrated vegetables, and sea salt. It produced a thick creamy dish. Today I'm playing with the split chickpeas. I did a quick soak on them this morning, and will now see what fun I can have.

ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 finely diced onion
4 cups finely chopped cabbage

3 cups split chickpeas -- soaked but not cooked

1/4 cup crumbled dried mushrooms

1 1/2  cup diced celery

3 cups diced sweet potato

4 cups diced zucchini

1 cup water

3 cups chopped broccoli florets -- lightly steamed, stirred in when the crockpot is finished cooking.

Cooking chickpeas for patties

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 onion finely diced
1 cup nappa cabbage, finely chopped
3 cups split chickpeas, well soaked
sea salt
water


1. saute the onion and cabbage in the coconut oil in a pot with sea salt to taste
2. add the chickpeas and water
3. cook until the water is absorbed and chickpea halves are falling apart
4. cool then mash with an immersion blender -- the beans will still be coarse
5. stir in up to 1/4 cup toasted buckwheat groats to form a stiff batter (if needed)
6. roll into balls
7. roll the balls in a layer of buckwheat groats and place on a baking sheet
8. bake at 345 for 60 minutes

Baked Vegetable Cake

It's pretty much delicious, and that's about all I can say. My son calls it pasta. Good for you, and good tasting. Does it get any better than that?

ingredients:



2 cup carrot, coarsely pureed
2 cups green cabbage, coarsely pureed
4 cups sweet potato, coarsely pureed
1 medium onions, coursely pureed

2 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil
1 tsp sea salt
black pepper


1 cup raw cashews ground
1/4 cup raw white sesame seeds, ground


3 cups water warm water
1/4 cup ground chia seeds
1/4 cup ground flax meal
1 tsp sea salt
black pepper
2 tsp chili powder
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp mesquite

1 cups chick pea flour

1/2 tsp baking soda



directions:

1. sauté the onion and garlic in the coconut oil
2. add the shredded sweet potato and carrot and 1 tsp sea salt, and  sauté
3. meanwhile, in a bowl, combine the ground chia seeds and ground flax seeds with the hot water and let sit for 10 minutes. Mix in the seasonings, cider vinegar,  chickpea flour, and baking soda
4. mix with a whisk!
5. when the shredded veggie mix is cooked, add it to the batter, and combine well
6. pour into a greased 3 L glass baking dish
7. bake at 345 for 75 minutes