Chicken-Style Seitan

1 1/2 Cup Vital Wheat Gluten
2 Tbs Nutritional Yeast
1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
3/4 Cup Cold Water
1 Tbs Tamari or Soy Sauce (low sodium)
3 Tbs Soymilk
1 Tbs Olive Oil

Mix dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, then combine and knead with your dough hook.

Then make your broth:
2 Cups Water
1 Vegetable Bullion Cube (I used a Tbsp of my vegan chicken broth powder)

Heat the broth until it starts simmering, and then turn it to med-low. Shape the gluten dough into small cutlets by smashing and stretching it. Then put them into the lightly simmering broth and cover with the lid.

After simmering for 10 minutes, lift the lid and turn the pieces over. They should be puffed up with the broth now, and look something like this.

Simmer the pieces for 10 more minutes, and then you’re done! Refrigerate the pieces with the broth to have a nice texture for later, or use them in your recipe right away.

Shepherd’s Pie

Ingredients

• 4 large red potatoes, boiled and peeled, about 1.5 pounds
• 12 oz. MorningStar Farms Grillers Crumbles, thawed
• 16 oz. frozen green peas and diced carrots, thawed and drained
• 1.5 cups plain, unsweetened soy milk
• 3 tbsp vegan butter
• 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1/4 onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 3 tbsp canola oil
• 4 oz. crimini mushrooms, diced
• 2 tbsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tbsp tamari
• 2 tbsp red wine
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

1. In a pan, cook the garlic, onions, and mushrooms in canola oil over medium heat until they start to brown.
2. Add the Grillers Crumbles, 1 tsp garlic powder, Worcestershire sauce, tamari, red wine, and 1/2 tsp of black pepper and continue to cook, stirring regularly. Cook for about 5-8 minutes and remove from heat.
3. Meanwhile, mash the boiled potatoes. In a medium to large saucepan, melt 2 tbsp of vegan butter over medium heat. Add the potatoes, soy milk, nutritional yeast, 1 tsp of garlic powder, 1/2 tsp of black pepper, and 1/2 tsp of salt.
4. Mix and continue cooking while the mixture starts to bubble, stirring frequently. When the mixture reduces by about 1/3 to 1/2, the mashed potatoes are done and should be thick.
5. Begin assembling your pie. Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly grease a 10" bake pan and layer the crumble mixture, then the thawed carrots and pea, and lastly, the mashed potatoes, smoothing and evening out each layer.
6. Bake for 30-40 minutes. Melt 1 tbsp of vegan butter and pour over the pie about halfway through. The pie is done when the crust is a light golden brown.

Country-Fried Seitan

Dry Mix:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
3 tsp Old Bay Seasoning (or equal parts celery salt & paprika)
4 tsp baking powder
Wet Mix:
1/3 cup seasoned dry mix from above
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup soy milk
3 Tbsp mustard (dijon worked great!)

Heat a skillet of olive oil to 350 degrees (Medium-high heat). Mix dry and wet mixes in seperate bowls. Add the seitan first to the wet mix to coat, then place in the dry mix coating both sides. Then slide the pieces into the oil a few at a time, turning after about 3 minutes when golden brown and crispy. Drain on paper towels.

Vegan sausages

EACH RECIPE BELOW MAKES ONE LARGE SAUSAGE

Italian Vegan Sausage – Seitan
2 ts of poultry or Italian herb blend, 1/4 ts salt, 1/4 ts sugar, 1/4 ts ground thyme, 1/4 ts ground fennel, 1/8 ts garlic powder, 1/4 ts onion powder, 1/4 cup gluten flour (30 grams), 1 TB chickpea flour (7 grams?), 1 ts oil, 1 TB tomato sauce, 1/4 cup water

1. Mix dry ingredients
2. Taste your dry powdered mix. Salty and spiced enough? Add more if needed.
3. Add sauce and/or oil then liquid
4. Mix everything til it’s a firm ball of dough. Add more gluten flour at this point if your dough is moist, sticky or not forming a solid ball.
5. Place dough on foil, form sausage shape, roll foil around it then twist the ends closed.
6. Steam in steamer basket for 45 minutes. ENJOY

Mesquite Brown Sugar Vegan Sausage – Seitan
1.5 ts mesquite barbecue powder blend (bought from whole foods) + 2 ts brown sugar, 2 TB BBQ sauce, 1/4 cup gluten flour (30 grams), 1 TB chickpea flour (7 grams?), 1 ts oil, 1/4 cup water

*I think those first two ingredients were over powered by my impulsive use of BBQ sauce. You might be able to skip the sugar & powder blend. Maybe BBQ is all that’s needed for a sweet mesquite sausage flavor.

1. Mix dry ingredients
2. Taste your dry powdered mix. Salty and spiced enough? Add more if needed.
3. Add sauce and/or oil then liquid
4. Mix everything til it’s a firm ball of dough. Add more gluten flour at this point if your dough is moist, sticky or not forming a solid ball.
5. Place dough on foil, form sausage shape, roll foil around it then twist the ends closed.
6. Steam in steamer basket for 45 minutes. ENJOY

Maple Breakfast Vegan Sausage – Seitan
1 ts sage powder, 1/2 ts salt, 1/2 ts onion powder, 1/8 ts garlic powder, 2 TB maple syrup, 1/4 cup gluten flour (30 grams), 1 TB chickpea flour (7 grams?), 1 ts oil, 1 TB tomato sauce, 1/4 cup water

1. Mix dry ingredients
2. Taste your dry powdered mix. Salty and spiced enough? Add more if needed.
3. Add sauce and/or oil then liquid
4. Mix everything til it’s a firm ball of dough. Add more gluten flour at this point if your dough is moist, sticky or not forming a solid ball.
5. Place dough on foil, form sausage shape, roll foil around it then twist the ends closed.
6. Steam in steamer basket for 45 minutes. ENJOY

Chipotle Cajun Vegan Sausage – Seitan
2 ts Cajun blend 1/2 ts garlic powder, 1 ts onion powder, couple drops of adobo sauce from canned chipotle peppers, 2 ts soy sauce, 1/4 cup gluten flour (30 grams), 1 TB chickpea flour (7 grams?), 1 ts oil, 1/4 cup water

1. Mix dry ingredients
2. Taste your dry powdered mix. Salty and spiced enough? Add more if needed.
3. Add sauce and/or oil then liquid
4. Mix everything til it’s a firm ball of dough. Add more gluten flour at this point if your dough is moist, sticky or not forming a solid ball.
5. Place dough on foil, form sausage shape, roll foil around it then twist the ends closed.
6. Steam in steamer basket for 45 minutes. ENJOY

Best Vegan Cupcake + Cake Recipe

Best moist, fluffy sweet vanilla funfetti cake and cupcakes right here! Can I just drink the batter. It’s so flipping good. Last dessert post I declared that I was moving toward small dessert sized portions. Dessert for “one”, right?

And in a smooth move to irony here’s a recipe that made epic portions of goodies. I cranked out 18 full cupcakes, 1 mini layered nude (naked?) cake and a huge tray of tiny bite sized cupcakes. How the tables have turned. I went to an event and wanted to bring cupcakes so that explains me tripling the recipe. Below I’ll just post below a single portion. I’m guessing that makes a dozen cupcakes but feel free to double or triple the recipe.

Cake was a bit messy so I don’t have any pictures of it cut. It was actually my first time attempting a layered cake. And also making a nude or naked cake. So glamours.

1 cup flour, 2 ts baking powder, dash salt, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup oil, 3/4 cup vanilla almond milk, 1 ts vanilla, 1/2 TB vinegar, 30 g sprinkles + vegan frosting (I used duncan hines)

1. Mix all the dry ingredients together (except sprinkles)
2. Add wet ingredients on top of the dry ingredients (expect sprinkles). Mix with a hand mixer for 2 minutes.
3. Fold sprinkles in. Pour batter into cupcake liners or greased cake tin. Bake at 350 til tooth pick test shows the batter is fully cooked. I baked cupcakes for about 20 minutes. I baked the mini (tiny) cupcakes for 9 minutes. I baked the cake layers for about 15 minutes. Times may very.
4. Mix food dye with vegan frosting and apply as shown in the video below. ENJOY

Vegan Buffalo Wings & Vegan General Tso’s Chicken

Vegan Buffalo Wings
I love hot sauce so by extension buffalo sauce is legit. While these were amazing I would dip these in buffalo sauce next time instead of coating them. Yeah that’s nerdy but I’d rather have super crispy breading than semi soggy. The amount of salt in that sauce is freaking addicting.

Vegan General Tso’s Chicken

I bought this general tso’s sauce at aldi’s on a whim. The label showed the salt was totally humble and the ingredients showed all the flavors I love together. Sadly the sauce wasn’t up to my high horse standards. Long story short I gave this bowl of asian chick’n to Mark and dipped my half of plan fried nuggets in BBQ sauce. It was soooooooooooooo good. I really wanted to use orange sauce but didn’t get to the store in time. Mark liked the general Tso’s chick’n better than the vegan buffalo wings.

The recipe I used to makes a massive portion of seitan. Half was turned into nuggets and the other half turned in “wings”. Essentially this recipe made 2 portions of wings and 2 portions of Asian nuggets. Really a ton of food. Feel free to cut the recipe in half or follow the general measurements below for the Vegan Chick’n Parmesan recipe if you just want to make a single portion.

HUGE RECIPE FOR BOTH WINGS & ASIAN NUGGETS:

1.5 cups gluten flour (not packed, 180 grams), 2 ts onion powder, sprinkle garlic powder, 1 ts poultry herbs, 1 ts salt, 3 TB tahini, vegan chick’n broth (or water), 6 TB vegan egg powder (46 grams), 1.5 cups cold water (or more) for egg powder, 2 cups flour, 1 ts cornstarch, 1/2 ts garlic powder, 1/2 ts onion powder, 1 ts salt, 4 TB buffalo sauce, 4 TB Asian sauce (and/or any other sauce)

1. Mix: 1.5 cups gluten flour (not packed, 180 grams), 2 ts onion powder, sprinkle garlic powder, 1 ts poultry herbs, 1 ts salt in a bowl
2. Add 3 TB tahini to a measuring cup. On top of the tahini add veggie broth or water til it reaches the 1.25 cup mark. Mix together.
3. Add liquid for line 2 to dry ingredients on line 1. Add more water to your dough if it feels to stiff. Knead dough for a minute.
4. Divide dough in half. Pull one half into small balls and the other half into wing shapes. These will double in size so make them small!
5. Cover with water or broth. Boil for an hour. Once cooked lay them on a paper towel lined cookie sheet to cool.
6. Make vegan eggs as directed. Make sure the egg batter is on the thinner side so maybe a little extra water.
7. Make flour mixture: Mix 2 cups flour, 1 ts cornstarch, 1/2 ts garlic powder, 1/2 ts onion powder and 1 ts salt in a bowl.
8. Dip nuggets and wings into flour then vegan egg batter then back into flour. Fry on high/med-high until golden brown. Fry in small batches.
9. Once cooked mix each piece with desired sauce. ENJOY

Peanut Butter Truffles

12 oz of melted chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups of Peanut Butter
2 cups of confectionery sugar
1/4 cup of soy (or other non-dairy) milk
2 tablespoons of sugar
1 tablespoon of shortening
1 teaspoon vanilla

In a large mixing bowl, combine the peanut butter and vanilla. Mix. Slowly (about a 1/2 cup at a time) at the confectionery sugar, mixing well. The mixture needs to be firm and a little dry. Form the peanut butter into balls about 1/2 inch in size. Place in wax paper. Set in the fridge for 1 hour and let chill. Meanwhile, combine all other ingredients into a pan and melt over low heat. Do not let the chocolate burn! Using a spoon, dip the balls on peanut butter into the chocolate and return to the wax paper. Once all peanut butter balls are covered, return to the fridge for at least 1 hour to chill.

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 cups of flour
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of chocolate chips 
1/2 cup of cocoa powder 
1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup of oil
1/3 cup of brown sugar
2 teaspoons of salt
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon of vanilla

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a bowl, add the flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips, mix well.  Once the dry ingredients are mixed well, add the water, oil, and vanilla and fold until the dough is moist and thick.

Form into typical cookie shapes and bake for 15 mins.  Allow to sit on the baking sheet for an additional 5 minutes then place on a cooling rack.

S'mores Cookies

2 cups of flour
1 cup of sugar

3/4 cup of chocolate chips
1/3 cup of brown sugar 
2/3 cup of vegan marshmallows
1/2 cup of oil 
1/4 cup of water 
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of vanilla 
1 teaspoon of salt

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Chop the marshmallows into 1/8 inch chunks.  If the marshmallows are too large, they will expand and the cookies will not hold.  Do not overlook the step.

In a bowl, add the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, brown sugar, chips, and marshmallows and stir well.  Add the oil, water, and vanilla and mix well.  This dough should be a nice brown color and damp.

Form into 1 inch balls on a baking sheet.  Bake for about 14 minutes and allow to cool on the baking sheet for another 5 after removing from the oven.  This will allow the marshmallows to shrink back to a normal size.  Then place cookies on a cooling rack and allow to cool.

SWEET PEPPER RICE

1 cup rice
3 small bell peppers (red, yellow and green each)
sesame oil
black pepper
1 tbsp. grated ginger
1 tbsp. onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp. chopped chive, finely
soy sauce
oil
garlic, finely chopped

 Heat the oil in a deep iron pot or a wok.

Add the onion, garlic, and ginger. Allow cooking until the onion is soft and clear.


Add the chopped sweet peppers.


Stir and cook for 4 minutes.

Add the rice.

Sprinkle the soy sauce and add salt to your taste. Mix well.




Sweet Pepper RiceGarnish with chive.

Another Banana bread

4 ripe bananas
4 cups of flour
1 cup of white sugar
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup of applesauce
1/2 cup of pecans (or walnuts - optional)
4 tablespoons oil
2 teaspoons of baking powder
2 teaspoons of baking soda
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of vanilla

Pre-heat the oven at 325. Grease and flour a loaf pan. In a mixing bowl, mash the bananas, oil, applesauce, vanilla, and maple syrup. It is preferred that the bananas still have a little chunk to them. The consistency of your banana bread will be better. In another bowl, combine and mix all other ingredients. Then combine the two bowls and mix until the batter is a golden color and there is no dry flour. Pour into a loaf pan, cover with foil and bake for 55-60 minutes. Check with a toothpick.

Lemon Cake

3 cups of flour
2 cups of sugar
3/4 cup of water
3/4 cup of lemon juice
1/4 cup of oil
2 teaspoons of baking soda
2 teaspoons of vanilla
2 teaspoons of lemon zest

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients. Then add the wet ingredients starting with the oil and ending with the lemon juice. There will be some bubbling, do not be alarmed. Mix until all the lumps are out, our into a greased 9x9 baking pan and bake for 45 minutes. Use the toothpick test in the center to see if the cake is complete.



Lemon Glaze

2 cups of confectionery sugar
1/2 cup of lemon juice
1 teaspoon of lemon extract
1 teaspoon of lemon zest

In a mixing bowl, add the sugar and lemon juice and mix well. Add the zest and extract and mix well. If the glaze is too thick, add more lemon juice. If the glaze is too runny, add more sugar.

Easy Seitan Steak

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• Dry ingredients
• 1½ cup vital wheat gluten
• ¼ cup nutritional yeast
• ½ cup garbonzo bean powder (or chick pea flour)
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• ½ tbsp garlic powder
• ½ tbsp onion powder
• ½ tsp turmeric
• Wet ingredients
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• ¼ cup organic ketchup or BBQ sauce ( or both!)
• 1 tsp liquid smoke
• 2 cloves of shredded garlic
• pinch of pepper
• Stock
• 1½ cup vegetable stock
• 1 diced onion
• 4 smashed cloves garlic
• 2 bay leaves
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• ½ tsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• ½ tsp thyme
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp molasses
• ¼ cup BBQ Sauce
• 3 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2 cups water

Instructions

1. Mix all dry ingredients and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, mix together all wet ingredients and whisk until well combined.
3. Slowly pour wet ingredients into dry and knead with your hands. The mixture should be dough like, not overly sticky. Knead well.
4. Form two “logs” with the mixture and let them sit on the preheating oven for 5 to 10 minutes.
5. Mix together your stock in a large bowl.
6. Place “logs” into a deep casserole dish and cover with your stock.
7. Cover dish and place in oven 350 for 1 hour.
8. Flip seitan and continue to cook for ½ hour uncovered. If it is still soft, then cook for another 15 – 20 minutes.
9. Remove from pan and set aside to cool.