Everything inside -- vegan pockets ***

It's a proven fact that if you put any food inside another food -- julienne strips of veggies inside rice paper wraps, chickpeas and veggies inside triangular pastries, zesty tomato goodness inside yeast dough -- people will eat it. People love pastry. That's a thing, right? People love eating things inside things. Veggie sushi rolls? Even using cabbage leaves to hold a bunch of avocado and cashew cream makes for a hearty and tasty bite.

But my mandate here today was to make something that didn't need to be eaten right away -- so goodbye cabbage leaf roll up, goodbye sushi roll, good bye rice paper cold roll. I love you all, but go away now. Byebye.

My mission is freezer food. So, here goes. I wanted to make a soft yeast pastry, roll it out thin, stuff it with goodness, seal it, then freeze it unbaked to stock my freezer with things that can be thrown into the oven or toaster oven. I label the outside of the bag with what it is, and how long it takes to bake from frozen.  One answer to a quick dinner.


This is called "find stuff in the freezer and use it".

mixture 1 -- faux beef crumbles and veggies with cumin and marjoram

dough balls, 50g each, ready to be rolled

it doesn't have to be perfect!

good enough

ready for the filling!

a couple of table spoons is enough

single layer on a silicone sheet and baking tray, ready for the freezer or oven

keep it simple!

mixture 2 -- faux chicken crumbles with edamame and tamari/sesame oil/coconut sugar

step one

step 2

step three

step 1

step 2

step three: fold it over easy does it

press the edges closed all the way around

step one variation 

step two variation -- wait for it

step three variation -- lift the edges to the centre and press

press all the way from the centre out to one end

ta da

now press all the way out to the other end

ta da again!!

pick it up

silicone pans are great for freezing the pastries or for baking the pastries

once they are frozen, I will bag them and label the bag with the filling and the cooking instructions

filling 1:

1 onion finely diced, cooked in a pan with 2 tbsp coconut oil and a sprinkle of sea salt

1 cup chopped celery
1 cup diced carrot
1 cup diced sweet potato
1 cup diced potato
1/2 cup green peas

1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp marjoram
1 tsp chili powder -- optional

 1  tsp sea salt (to taste)

1 package 'faux beef' crumbles,(or 'faux chicken' crumbles, tofu, or a couple of cups of cooked lentils or split chickpeas)

directions:

1. cook the onion
2. add the other vegetables and spices
3. cook until done
4. stir in the beef crumbles and cook well


filling 2:

1 onion diced + 2 tbsp coconut oil cook in a pan with a sprinkle of sea salt

1 cup chopped celery
1 cup diced carrot
1 cups diced sweet potato
1 cup edamame

2 tbsp tamari
1 tbsp coconut sugar
pinch of garlic powder (or more if you can tolerate it)
1 tsp sesame seeds
drizzle sesame oil
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar


1 package faux chicken crumbles ( or tofu cut into very small bits)


directions:

1. saute onion with coconut oil and sea salt
2. add other veggies and seasonings and cook until done
3. add faux meat and cook

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yeast dough pastry:

2 cups water
2 tbsp coconut sugar
1 tbsp yeast

1/2 cup tapioca starch
3 1/2 - 4 cups kamut flour
1 cup almond flour
2 tsp sea salt

1.  combine water, coconut sugar, and yeast, and let proof
2. mix together the dry ingredients
3. add the yeast slurry to the dry ingredients, and form into dough. Knead by hand or in a mixer
4. let rise and punch down.
5. when ready, divide into 50 g balls
6. roll out the balls with a rolling pin, put some filling in, and close them up
7. move carefully to a pan to either go in the oven or in the freezer. Freeze them in a single layer on silicone or parchment lined trays. When they are fully frozen, bag them in ziplock bags, and label the outside with the filling and the baking instructions, as well as the date you made them.




bake from fresh at 345 for about 30 minutes
bake from frozen at 345 for about 45 to 50 minutes

Chickpea Vegetable Soup

Well, Papa is coming over for dinner, and we're going to have a houseful for his birthday. So, in addition to eatables such as lasagna and chickpea flour flat bread, we'll rock this vegan crockpot.  Simple and delicious. Old fashioned diced veggies and chickpeas. Super delicious. And since it feels like fall, perfect really. We all enjoyed it.

ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 onion, finely diced
1 cup green cabbage, very finely chopped

4 cups soaked chickpeas -- not cooked

1 tsp sea salt

2 cup diced carrots
2 cups diced celery
1 diced kohlrabi

1 tsp sea salt

4 cups diced white sweet potato

1 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp marjoram
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp chill powder

9 cups water

1 tsp sea salt


directions:

1. turn crockpot on to high, and set for 6 hours
2. layer ingredients in the order listed
3. let cook for 6 hours. I used dry chickpeas that had been fully soaked but not cooked. If you use canned or cooked chickpeas, you can reduce the cooking time
4. stir and taste, add seasoning if needed.

A chickpea and vegetable 'pot' dish

'Pot' as in cooking vessel, not as in marijuana. I recently read Michael Pollan's cooked. I am a Michael Pollan fan, and in his description of learning to cook in his book, I was inspired to make a dish that used very finely chopped vegetables as a base, and to let those vegetables sort of cook down into nothingness. Nothing, that is, except for flavour. As is my wont, I used a crockpot instead of a stove top pot. I layered finely diced vegetables, with the onions and garlic right in the oil at the bottom of the pot where they would get the most heat, then proceeding with the cabbage, then carrots and celery. The layers of chickpeas and sweet potato went last, and then enough water to come up to the chickpeas.  The chickpeas and sweet potato, being largest as well as farthest from the heat  will breakdown the least. Which is just what we want!! Even with very very little seasoning (only a bit of salt), this is a very richly flavoured dish. Perfect with socca-ish ...

ingredients:


2 tbsp coconut oil

1 1/2 cup very finely chopped onion
2 cloves of finely chopped garlic

1 cups finely chopped celery
2 cups finely chopped carrot

4 cups finely chopped cabbage

4 cups soaked chickpeas

3 cups diced sweet potato -- if possible use a firm dry variety (I love bonita. others are kyushu and murasaki, also called 'asian sweet potatoes' or 'oriental sweet potatoes') Chop 'em so they are about the same size as the chickpeas


3 tsp sea salt

2 to 4 cups water


directions:

1. turn on the crockpot to high, and add the coconut oil
2. chop the veggies. In the interest of time (I had very little) I used the food processor and did a fine chop.
2. once the oil has melted and the crock is hot, spread the onion and garlic over the bottom, and the cabbage right on top.
3. spread the carrots and celery bits on top of this
4. evenly spread the soaked chickpeas over this
5. sprinkle a couple of tsp of sea salt over the chickpeas
6. spread the diced sweet potatoes over the chickpea layer
7. sprinkle one more tsp of sea salt over the sweet potato

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

Rice and Lentil Crockpot -- super easy super yummy crockpot

I remember -- not really -- that blurred unreal reality after my baby was born. I think I must have filled the freezer, so Colin fed us from that. Anyway, some friends of our just had a baby. Maple Pecan baby cakes and this lentil, rice, and veggie dish found their way to their door. Their verdict? Yummmmmmmmmm ........


The almond butter and coconut butter are not necessary, but I wanted to add a richness both in taste and body to the concoction. Apparently the dish went over very well. They were able to make 3 meals out of it, and found it almost unexpectedly delicious each time.

ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil

2 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 onion, finely diced

2 cup finely chopped cabbage
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes, diced

1 cup masoor lentils
1 cup short grain brown rice

1 cup frozen green peas
1 cup frozen corn

2 cups diced carrot
2 cup diced celery

4 cups diced sweet potato

4 cups boiling water

4 tbsp almond butter
4 tbsp coconut butter

3 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp cumin

2 tbsp marjoram


directions:

1. Layer the ingredients in the order listed
2. Cook on high for 4 hours
3. stir, add more water and sea salt and pepper if needed

Autumn dinner

autumn vegetables:

ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 diced onion
2 green cabbage leaves, diced
1/4 cup dried mushrooms, crumbled
1/4 cup split mung beans

1 cup green peas
1 cup diced carrot
4 cups diced sweet potato
1 large pattypan, diced

1 tbsp sea salt
1 tbsp rosemary
1 tbsp marjoram
1 can coconut milk



layer in order into a cast iron dutch oven or covered casserole dish
bake for 2 hours. Stir and add more water if need and bake for up to 1 hour more.



------------------------

socca:

combine:
2 cups water
2 tbsp avocado oil
2 cups chickpea flour
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup sweet potato flour

saute:
1 onion, finely diced
2 tbsp coconut oil


mix the two and cook on a cast iron skillet for 1 hour -- sprinkle with coarse sea salt before baking if desired (and rosemary)