Make Your Own Hot Sauce from Scratch!

With the abundance of hot peppers in the potted veggie garden that I've had growing this summer, I was trying to figure out ways to use them all before they went bad. I use them regularly in stir fries, pasta sauces, and salsa, but I still had so many peppers! I decided to try my hand at making my own hot sauce and it was a spicy success! After scouring the web for various hot sauce recipes, I decided to go with one that seemed relatively easy to make and one that included ingredients that I already had on hand. Plus, this one included a bit of chipotle, which is always good!

I used the recipe from Veg Obsession with the peppers that I had in the garden. You could really use any type of hot pepper - some will be hotter than others. I used a combination of Cayenne Peppers and Five Colour Chinese Hot Peppers - maybe between 30 and 40 in total, since the Five Colour peppers are smaller in size.

Ingredients:
24 hot peppers, any variety
1/3 cup onion
1 bulb garlic
1 carrot
2 tbsp dried chipotle pepper
1/2 tsp salt
white vinegar
apple cider vinegar

Directions:
Slice off the tops of the peppers. Peel the onion and the garlic cloves. Chop the onion and carrot into big chunks. Throw everything into a large pot. Cover almost entirely with a mixture of white vinegar and apple cider vinegar (about 95% white vinegar and 5% white vinegar). Simmer the mixture on low-medium for 10-15 minutes.

* Note - the hot peppers caused some spicy fumes to rise up out of the pot...and they seemed to fill the entire kitchen and living room, too! It actually made me cough. So, I would recommend some sort of ventilation if you're using really hot pepper...once I opened the window, everything was fine!

Remove the veggies and place in a blender with a little bit of the vinegar in which they were cooked. Blend until smooth.

Pour the blended veggie mixture into a saucepan. Add the vinegar that they were cooked in before little by little until it reaches the desired consistency. I ended up using all of the vinegar in the hot sauce. Add the dried chipotle flakes and salt. Simmer and stir for a couple of minutes and pour into bottles.

This amount made two bottles of hot sauce and I'm storing them in the fridge. Put on everything and enjoy!

Support Me in my Walk for Farm Animals (Farm Sanctuary Charity Walk)

Two years ago, I participated in the Walk for Farm Animals supporting Farm Sanctuary and I've decided to raise money for this amazing animal charity once again this year! I have joined the Toronto walk that happens on September 28th, 2013.  Ever since I visited Farm Sanctuary, I've been a huge supporter of this amazing organization and will do everything that I can to help them out. They are one of the leading animal charities that rescue farm animals that have been abused as a result of factory farming, and they also do a lot to change government policies regarding abusive practices towards animals.

I would really appreciate any donations if you would like to sponsor me in this event.  By clicking the above button, you will be taking directly to my fundraising page, where your donations will go directly to Farm Sanctuary.  Any donations are appreciated and the rescued farm animals will be thankful for your support!

It would also be fantastic if you wanted to participate in the event and raise some money as well for this worthwhile cause!  You can sign up as a participant in a city close to you, become a Virtual Walker in your city like I did, or "Sleep In For Farm Animals" where you'd like to raise money but might be a bit too busy to take part in a walk. 

Thank you so much for your support!

Caribbean Peas and Rice...with Kale!

I love the combination of beans and rice and this recipe was a great opportunity to make a new dish using those healthy ingredients. This one is reminiscent of past travels in the Caribbean and dining on local cuisine. Peas and rice are a staple there, and it just happens to also be vegan! This recipe is from Happy Herbivore and also uses an ingredient that's a fan-favorite...kale!

The recipe calls for jerk seasoning, which I did not have on hand. However, I had all of the spices required in order to make a jerk spice blend, so I was able to make it from scratch! I used this one from Allrecipes, minus the oil:

2 tbsp dried minced onion
2 1/2 tsp dried thyme
2 tsp ground allspice
2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt

Combine all of those ingredients together. Any extra seasoning that you don't use could be stored in a small jar for next time!

Here's the recipe - this one makes enough to serve 4, or you can save it for lunch the next day like I am if you're dining solo!

1 bunch scallions, white parts sliced thin
2 whole celery stalks, minced
4 whole garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp fresh ginger root, minced
4 whole fresh thyme leaves
1½ tsp hot sauce
2 tbsp ketchup
¼ tsp turmeric
1 bunch kale, chopped into small pieces
15 ounces black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1 cup brown rice, uncooked
2½ cups vegetable broth
2 tsp Jamaican dried jerk seasoning (using recipe above)

Combine rice with 2 cups of vegetable broth in a large pot and set aside. Line a skillet with a thin layer of broth and add scallions, celery, garlic, ginger, thyme, hot sauce and 1 tsp jerk seasoning. Cook over high heat, adding additional broth as necessary, until the celery is soft, about 3 minutes. Add remaining jerk seasoning, stirring to coat. Transfer to rice, add 2 squirts of ketchup and turmeric, stirring to combine. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling reduce heat to low and simmer 40-50 minutes, until rice is cooked.  You might have to add more broth as the rice absorbs the liquid. Once rice is fully cooked, stir in black-eyed peas and greens. Let the greens wilt slightly. You can serve with hot sauce or add a little bit of salt, if needed.

Miso-Maple Sweet Potato Tacos

In my never ending search of delicious food and recipes to try online, I came across this one at The Kitchn that caught my interest. I'm always up for trying new Mexican-inspired recipes since some of my go-to meals include burritos, tacos, and eating as much re-fried beans and rice as I can. This one included one of my favorite foods, and one that I'm trying to eat more of since they're so good for you...sweet potatoes! Plus, the words...miso....maple syrup...sweet potatoes...really, how could you go wrong!

This recipe was delicious and perfect as it was - I didn't feel the need to alter any ingredients and the quantities were bang-on! It was pretty easy to make, especially since I bought my sweet potatoes pre-cut and pre-washed. I doubled the amounts of the miso-maple glaze since I think I had double the amount of sweet potatoes on hand, which truly shows since I have a lot left over. This would be fantastic re-heated for lunch tomorrow though, which I'll be doing!

Sweet Potatoes, fresh from the oven

Here's the recipe!

Glazed Sweet Potato Filling
2 tablespoons miso paste
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 medium sweet potatoes, unpeeled and chopped into small cubes
1 small red onion, chopped
Olive oil

Toppings
whole wheat or corn tortillas, to put everything inside 
red pepper, chopped
green onions, chopped
hot pepper or jalapeno, chopped
cilantro 
toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
sprouts or greens

Cilantro-Coconut Sauce
1/2 cup light coconut milk
1/4 cup cilantro leaves
1/4 cup basil leaves
1 scallion, green and white parts, chopped
1/4 cup toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
1 lime, zested and juiced
1 small garlic clove
Splash of Sriracha hot sauce (optional)
Pinch of sugar (optional)
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

Heat oven to 400°F. Whisk the miso paste, maple syrup, and vinegar together in a small bowl. Spread sweet potatoes and onions in a single layer on a baking sheet (you might need 2 baking sheets). Drizzle with a little olive oil, and then liberally brush the glaze over the vegetables.

Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 to 30 minutes (it took me 40-45 minutes to get the potatoes soft since my sweet potato cubes were a bit larger). The time will vary depending on the heat of your oven and the size of your sweet potato cubes. The onions will likely be done first so be sure to watch and take them out when they're nicely browned but not burnt. When the sweet potatoes are finished, remove from the oven, taste and add another brushing of glaze if you wish.
Serve on warm corn tortillas with cilantro-coconut sauce (see below) and fixings such as avocado, sprouts, cilantro, and pepitas.
In a food processor, pulse all cilantro-coconut sauce ingredients together until just combined. Serve alongside the tacos.

Delicious Toppings!

Vegan Baked Tacos

From the photo above, it's hard to tell exactly what this meal is other than a mound of Daiya cheese, jalapenos, and salsa. It's a recipe called Baked Tacos from Vegetarian Times magazine (March 2003). I adapted this one a little bit to make it vegan, and also added a couple more ingredients that I enjoy (mostly the onions). This is a really easy recipe to make and quick to prepare - it is sure to be a new winner for dinner!

It also makes a LOT of food. Unless you have a family of four or more people, you'll probably have some leftovers. These re-heat really well and are really yummy the next day.

I'm not really sure "tacos" is the right word to describe these. They are more like baked Mexican wraps, smothered in salsa and cheese.

Ingredients:

8 - 8" flour tortillas
1 - 15oz can refried beans
1 package of baked tofu, cut into 16 long strips
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
1/2 small red onion, chopped
Daiya cheddar shreds
chopped fresh coriander for garnish
chopped green onion for garnish
1 1/2 cups salsa

Directions:

1.  Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Spray 9x13" baking dish or larger with non-stick cooking spray.
2.  Starting with 1 tortilla, spread half of the tortilla with 2 heaping tablespoons of beans, then 2 slices of tofu, 1 tbsp jalapeno, 1 tbsp red onion, 1 tbsp Daiya. Wrap tightly and place in the baking dish.
3.  Repeat with the rest. Arrange all in the baking dish. Pour salsa on top, sprinkle with Daiya. Cover the baking dish with foil.
4.  Bake for 20 minutes or until filling is heated through. Top the tacos with cilantro and green onions.

Black Bean Burgers with Tempeh Crisps

Black Bean Burger with all the toppings!

The Post Punk Kitchen Top 100 for 2012 alerted me to the fact that archived editions of Vegetarian Times magazine are available to read for free via Google Books! BTW - if you haven't looked through the PPK Top 100 list, you should check it out for all kinds of wonderful vegan things that came out last year! Anyway, while looking through the old magazines, I came across this recipe for Black Bean Burgers with Tempeh Crisps that I decided to try! 

The recipe is also available over at their website, where I also discovered that they post all of the recipes from their magazines (also available for free!). Now, you have hundreds and hundreds of recipes to try out. Only a few of their recipes are vegan or can be made vegan, so watch out for those recipes that have dairy or eggs.

Tempeh Crisps

The black bean burgers were super yummy, but I thought it was the tempeh crisps that totally put this recipe over the edge of deliciousness! Fix these burgers up with the toppings of your choice and on a whole wheat bun and you're all set! We also made the OMG Onion Rings from Appetite for Reduction to go along with them!

All the Toppings

 Black Bean Burgers:

•  3 cups cooked black beans
• 2 cups cooked brown rice
• 1 cup bread crumbs (we used probably 1 1/2 to 2 cups of Panko bread crumbs)
• ½ tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. black pepper
• ¼ cup chopped scallions
• 1 Tbs. chili powder
• 1 Tbs. ketchup
• ½ to ¾ cup water, or as needed to process

Tempeh Strips:

• 12 oz. tempeh, sliced into thin strips
• 2 Tbs. chili powder
• ½ tsp. pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Spray sheet pan with nonstick cooking spray.
2. To make Black Bean Burgers: Combine black beans, brown rice, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, scallions, chili powder and catsup in food processor, and process, adding just enough water to blend, until smooth. Form into 6 equal-sized patties, and chill 1 hour.
3. Meanwhile, to make Tempeh Crisps: Toss tempeh strips with chili powder, salt and pepper. Spread strips evenly on sheet pan, and bake about 15 minutes, or until browned and crisp. Remove from oven, and set aside.
4. Heat skillet over medium heat, and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Add patties, cooking 5 minutes on each side, or until heated through. Place each burger on whole wheat bun. Garnish with crisps and favorite condiments.

Sesame Soy Soba Stir Fry

Oh, the veggie stir fry. It is one of my go-to meals because it's easy to make, it has loads of veggies, plus it's fairly versatile. Choose your base - do you feel like brown rice, quinoa, couscous, pasta, or soba noodles? Then, the veggies - which ones do I have in the fridge that I'd like to use up? And then the sauce - how about a sesame/soy/ginger, peanut sauce, teriyaki sauce, sweet chili sauce, or coconut curry? Then, you can choose to add a protein of your choice - marinated tofu, tempeh, seitan, or even mushrooms. You can even add peanuts, cashews, pumpkin seeds...the possibilities are endless.  Now, I find myself whipping up various stir fry creations on my own without recipes in the kitchen. This is one of those recipes where you can alter it to your liking!

Here's a quick stir fry that uses soba noodles (Japanese buckwheat noodles that you can find at most grocery stores), a ton of different veggies, a sesame soy sauce, and topped with green onions and sesame seeds. The most laborious part of preparing the meal was chopping all the veggies and even then, it doesn't take too long. It also uses a lot of alliteration - sesame, soy, soba, stir fry!

You'll need:

1 package of soba noodles, cooked as per the instructions on the box

chopped veggies: broccoli, bok choy, green beans, red onion, red pepper, julienne carrots, garlic

Garnish:
green onions, sliced
sesame seeds

Sauce:
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp sesame oil
1" ginger, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
pinch red pepper flakes

Whisk all of the sauce ingredients together. Stir fry all of the veggies in the sauce for five minutes until softened. Don't overcook the veggies - they taste the best a little bit crunchy and fresh!

Serve the veggies and sauce over the noodles, and garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.