Warm Chik'n & Fig Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette

Saturday was a lazy day. I spent the majority of it getting acquainted with a British TV drama on Netflix (it's becoming a weekly thing now). After getting through most of Series 1 of Hotel Babylon, I looked over at the clock and saw it was after 6:20pm, and Artichoke would be home from work in about an hour.

Earlier, we had already agreed to just have a pizza, as we had an Amy's Roasted Vegetable Pizza (No Cheese) in the freezer. By the time, I turned on the oven, it was about 6:30pm. At 6:45pm, the pizza was cooking. The time crunch seemed to inspire me. I decided we need to have something more. It was time for what Artichoke likes to call a "Quick Whip-Up."

Taking some chik'n strips from the freezer, a few Turkish figs and a bit of chopped walnuts, I came up with the highlight of a salad. Moving away from our go-to homemade balsamic dressing, I grabbed some strawberries I just bought and tried my hand at a new dressing. It was a bit of a spin off of a Homemade Blueberry Balsamic Vinaigrette I first made in 2009.

When Artichoke came home, everything was plated. Salad and pizza, served with a couple of bottles of Pilsner from Brooklyn Brewery Co. (Local beer = GREAT). We started with the pizza, delicious as always. Then we went for the salad. I was surprised how good it turned out, especially with the figs and dressing. In fact, the salad must have been out of this world for Artichoke, because he ate 2 more servings of it. In fact, he now wants to use the dressing as a marinade!

SUCCESS for this "Quick Whip-Up!" Now here are the recipes.

Warm Chick'n & Fig Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette
Source: Macaroon's Whim
Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 pkg MorningStar Farms Meal Starters Chik'n Strips
• 4 dried Turkish figs, sliced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, halved
• A dash of each: oregano, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper
• 1 large heart of Romaine lettuce, roughly chopped
• 6 Campari tomatoes, quartered
• 1/4 c. chopped walnuts, toasted
• Strawberry vinaigrette (see recipe that follows)

Directions:

1. In a skillet, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil, then add garlic clove. Saute until browned
2. Add chik'n strips and spices, and cook for about 5-7 minutes, then toss in figs. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.
3. When done, remove from pan and place in a medium bowl. Set aside.
4. Wipe skillet clean and add chopped walnuts. Toast them on a medium-low heat for approximately 5 minutes, stirring occasionally
5. In a large bowl, add Romaine lettuce and tomatoes. 
6. Add chik'n strips and figs mixture. Toss salad and add walnuts.
7. Serve on individual plates and top with strawberry vinaigrette (approx. 2 tbsp per serving, but add more if you like)

Strawberry Vinaigrette

Source: The Macachoke Kitchen

Makes approx. 1-1/2 cups

Ingredients:

• 1 c. sliced strawberries
• 1/4 c. olive oil
• 1/4 c. balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 tsp. thyme
• 1/4-1/2 tsp fennel seed
• 1-2 tbsp agave nectar
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients into blender. Blend until well combined and smooth
2. Use as dressing on salad or sandwich

Read the Full Story

Veganize! The First in a Series

Welcome to Veganize! This is a Macachoke exclusive with no frequency given.

In these posts, Macaroon and Artichole will take some of their favorite recipes from their favorite cookbooks, and put a vegan twist on them. Some will pass. Some will fail. Some will be devoured. Some will be thrown in the trash. You just have to keep checking in to see what they do.

The first Veganize entry features Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies from Sarabeth's Bakery: From My Hands to Yours by Sarabeth Levine. If you're not familiar with her culinary greatness, let us point you in the right direction. Sarabeth Levine is an amazing chef and owner of the Sarabeth chain of restaurants in NYC and FL. She's best known for her scones, and her fabulous jams and marmalades, which you can find at your local supermarket or gourmet shop. We should also add that Macaroon met Sarabeth last year at a book signing at Williams-Sonoma for this cookbook from which we veganized the cookies.

Why have we selected this recipe? Well, Macaroon was baking chocolate chip cookies for Artichoke's co-workers. Those weren't vegan. So Macaroon and Artichoke couldn't try them. Macaroon also was craving oatmeal raisin cookies. Since she made Sarabeth's cookies before turning vegan. Why not make them so!

Now, onto the cookies! We're not going to post the recipe (Boo Hiss!), but tell you how we flipped the script on these cookies. You can buy the book or get it from the library for the full recipe.

• Make sure your sugars are vegan. Some sugars are processed through animal bone char.
• The 2 sticks of butter were replaced with 1/2 c. unsweetened apple sauce and 1/2 c. canola oil
• The eggs were replaced with 2 servings of Bob's Red Mill's egg replacer (1 tbsp of egg replacer = 3 tbsp of water = 1 egg)

It was just that easy. The cookies were delicious. Nothing was missing in taste or texture. In fact, we think the applesauce-oil blend in place of the butter kept the cookies moist and chewy. That's never a bad thing with oatmeal-raisin cookies.

Considering we're new to the game, I'm sure there are ways to make these cookies even more vegan than vegan. When we get to have level, we'll let you know.

This post will conclude with somewhat of an inspiration to this piece. Please enjoy...

The world (is holding back). The time has come to...VEGANIZE! C'mon! C'mon! C'mon!

Read the Full Story

Hold the Cheese...Seriously

Some folks don't get it. Who knows if they ever will. There are people in the world, like Artichoke and me, who do not eat cheese, no matter the reason. So I've yet to understand why a cheese-less pizza is a foreign concept. Here's what's happened to us recently.

About 2-3 weeks ago, I took Momma Macaroon food shopping at our local Fairway Market. It was around lunch time and Momma was hungry. We decided to go to their food court for lunch. After looking around, I went for pizza.

In the past when I've had the pizza, it has been awesome. The pizza man I usually see does an amazing job. He told Artichoke, who is a pizza conoisseur, about his 30 years experience.

On this day, I did notice that the usual pizza man wasn't there, but not a big deal. I stepped up the counter and ordered a Vedura (veggie) pizza. "No cheese, please." The woman working the station looked surprised. "No cheese?" "No cheese at all," I replied. "Okay."

She made the pizza right in front of me. It looked awesome before going in the oven. I was really looking forward to it.

About 10 minutes later, the pizza was ready. In on swift movement, the pizza woman took the pizza out of the oven, placed it in the box and threw a massive handful of Parmesan cheese. I thought to myself "Oh man! She forgot." Nicely, I asked "You didn't just put cheese on there, right?" She held her hand over her mouth and apologized profusely, "I forgot. You said 'no cheese.' I'm sorry. I can make you another one, if that's okay." "Sure" was my answer. I figured that it happens. "No cheese" may not be a normal request.

I waited another 5-6 minutes. The pizza was underdone, but I wasn't going to press the issue. The pizza woman rushed things because she didn't want me to wait any longer. She also was very careful not to put Parmesan cheese on it. The end result: so-so pizza. I wasn't mad, just chocked it up to a bad pizza day.

Well tonight, I went to our beloved Fairway with Artichoke and Momma Macaroon for food shopping. We decided to have dinner in the food court. No pots and pans to wash!

Artichoke and I agreed to split a pizza. Again, the normal pizza man wasn't there. This time, it was a new guy behind the counter.
Here was the conversation:

Artichoke: "I'd like a veggie pizza. No cheese."
Guy: "No cheese? Okay!"
Guy makes the pizza and puts it in the oven.

10 minutes later.

Guy puts something in his hand and starts sprinkling it over the pizza.

Macaroon: "Nonononoooooooooo!"
Guy: "What?"
Artichoke: "I said 'No cheese."
Guy: "Well, i didn't put mozzarella on it, just Parmesan."
Pause
"Oh. That's cheese, right? I'll make you another one."
Macaroon: (groan)
Artichoke: "Okay"
We walk away

Macaroon: "This is the second time this has happened. You'd think they give them a cheese lesson or something."

10 minutes later, we got our pizza, 100% cheeseless, and it rocked! So the dude redeemed himself.

Now, I'm wondering if I need the schedule of the usual pizza man to best ensure we get a cheese-less pizza the first time around...or just order a cheese-less burrito the next time.

Read the Full Story

Do the Mashed Potato

Spuds, taters, prátas, tubers, potatoes...  You've probably had them every which way, from French fries to your basic boiled Irish potatoes. Although it's easy to get lazy and return to familiar recipes, why not take a chance and try something new? It's VERY difficult to screw up potatoes, save from burning them in the oven. There's probably as many ways to prepare as there are varieties (over 5,000!).

Since we had a good amount of spuds laying around along with TONS of garlic and frozen broccoli, Macaroon decided to make a new dish. It turned out to be yummy and easy as hell. 

Baked Mashed Potatees

Source: The Macachoke Kitchen
Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 6 to 8 medium red potatoes (Mac usually keeps the peel, but you can remove them if you like)
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and mashed
• 1/2 c. plain soy milk
• 2 tbsp. soy margarine
• 1/2 c. chopped broccoli, cooked
• 1 tbsp. vegan grated Parmesan cheese
• Dash of each of the following: crushed red pepper flakes, oregano, salt and black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Do not cover with lid. Place on stove at medium-high heat and bring potatoes to a boil
2. Boil potatoes for approximately 30 minutes, or until they are tender. Drain potatoes in a colander. Then rinse with cold water. Return potatoes to pot
3. Mash potatoes, then add garlic, soy milk and margarine
4. Stir in broccoli, Parmesan cheese and spices
5. Pour potato mixture into a 8x8 baking dish
6. Place dish in oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until top is lightly browned

Read the Full Story

The Brown Rice Whip-Up

Odds are that you have most, if not all, of these ingredients sitting in your home doing nothing. So I don’t want to hear any excuses. Get off your duff and round up what you need and get cracking… I’m waiting! Macaroon is sharing an easy and tasty one. If you’re pressed for time or just plain lazy, go to your local Chinese restaurant and ask them for plain brown rice; I doubt they’ll charge you more than $2.00. There, we just saved you 20 minutes. Now get in that kitchen, cook up this meal and tell us what you think. Now skedaddle! 

Brussels Pepper Brown Rice

Source: The Macachoke Kitchen
Serves 6-8 (depends on who's eating)

Ingredients:

• 4 c. water
• 2 c. long grain brown rice
• 1/2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
• 1 c. red and/or yellow bell pepper, diced
• 2 tbsp. soy margarine
• 1 c. cooked Brussels sprouts, roughly chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Add brown rice to water in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to boil, then lower to a simmer, covering saucepan with lid. Cook for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally
2. While rice is cooking, in a skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute for approximately 5 minutes
3. Add peppers and lower heat. Slowly cook for 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. When rice has finished cooking, remove from heat and take off lid. 
5. Stir in margarine, Brussels sprouts, peppers and onion. Season rice with salt and pepper
   

By the way, we topped this dish with Garden Chipotle-Lime Crispy Fingers and added hot sauce. You can find Gardein products at your local supermarket. A package averages around $4.70. We actually got these on sale for $2.99. We definitely stocked up.

Read the Full Story

Quinoa Chili on a Meatless Any Day

For a long time, I've wanted to try quinoa. Quinoa is a seed, rich in protein. Though many consider it to be a grain, it's actually related to spinach, swiss chard and beats.

A few weeks ago, I bought a bag of Quinoa from our local Fairway Market on a whim. With no idea of how to prepare or serve it, the bag just sat in the cupboard. Suddenly yesterday, I somehow was inspired to start cooking for the week. Of course, not having a recipe on hand, I took the Internet to find something. One of the search results listed a chili made of quinoa from Meatless Monday's website. The recipe came to Meatless Monday from a blog called Cooking for a Vegan Lover,

The ingredients for Quinoa Chili call for a lot of spices, which makes this dish chock full of smoky and sweet flavors. One thing that surprised me is that it didn't call for tomatoes, as many chili recipes do. After a simple taste test, it turns out that the tomatoes were not needed. In addition to the lack of tomatoes, the fact that the quinoa had a hearty meat-like texture in this dish was awesome. I think I can get this by Momma Macaroon without her realizing it's vegan!

I invite you to check out the recipe yourself and enjoy on a Meatless Monday...or any other day for that fact!
*Click*

Before closing out this post, we need to post the Macaroon Modifications:

• Replaced 1 medium onion with 2 small onions
• Replaced the cumin with 1 tsp of fennel seed
• Omitted the onion powder
• Replaced vegan broth with vegan stock
• Used canned Fava beans - the recipe said you could use any canned beans
• Cooked chili the day before to let the flavors soak in

Meatless Mondays is a great site for those of you who aren't ready to go meatless everyday. Check it out!

Read the Full Story

From My Home to Your Work

Artichoke will be taking these bad boys to work tomorrow! 

Don't worry, guys. I made these non-vegan for you.

"My Best Chocolate Chip Cookies" from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours. Thank you Dorie for this and your other wonderful crowd-pleasing recipe!

A couple of weeks ago, Dorie opened up a pop-up shop called CookieBar right by Artichoke's job in NYC. On his lunch break, with my copy of my favorite baking book in hand, he paid Dorie a visit. She autographed my book and gave him a sugar cookie. Though we're vegan, I had to break it and have the cookie which I shared with our building's super. SO GOOD!

Below is the note Dorie wrote in my book. I'd like to pass these words onto Artichoke's crew, who are going through a hard time right now.

Read the Full Story

Lazy Day Roll-Up

A couple of weeks ago, a friend posted a link to a vegan cinnamon roll recipe on her Facebook page. The photo looked so good that I went on a mission to make them right there and then. Since it was a Sunday, I feeling a bit lazy and wanted to effortlessly make the dough. So off to the bread machine I went.

I was very careful to place the dough ingredients in the machine as the manual states: liquids, sugars, "fats," flour and yeast. The dough setting was on and the "Start" button was pressed, while I was bouncing with excitement.

After the dough was ready, about 90 minutes later, I broke out my rolling pin, and got the dough ready for cinnamon-sugary goodness! I sprinkled, dusted and lathered the filling with the cinnamon mixture, rolled up the dough into a log and cut away. Then came the next rise, which gave me time to catch up on "Outsourced' for the week. I love that show.

30 minutes later, I was shocked. The rolls didn't rise. They didn't double in size. They stayed the same. So I thought I needed to let them rise longer. 20 minutes later, there was no change. Grrrrr.

I then thought, "If I put them in the oven, they'll puff up." In the oven, they went for 18 to 20 minutes. The rolls were the perfect color, but no increase in size. In fact, they were more like thick cookies. I was a bit disappointed, but not deterred. Cookies are just as good as rolls. With that, I drizzled on the glaze.

A plate for Artichoke. A plate for me. We tore into our cookie-rolls. They were really good. Okay, not like Cinnabon or Entemann's, but delicious nevertheless.

I've learned something from this. A bread machine is not an out. You can't slack off when creating beautiful pastry. Next time, I'll do this properly.

Want the recipe as it should be followed? Click here!

Read the Full Story

V is for Cookie!

Before we embarked on our vegan journey, I've been goo-goo-ga-ga for vegan chocolate chip cookies from Whole Foods. They taste so much better than their regular chocolate chip cookies, which are good in their own right. However, there is something about the vegan ones that I cannot resist upon each visit, despite their high price. Oddly enough, I've never had the desire to try to bake my own...well, not until now, that is. Thank you, Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terri Hope Romero for Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar (and your other cookbook gems).

So of course you know that being vegan doesn't mean you're dead...or can't have sweet delicious goodness. Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar proves just that point. Now, don't let this little book fool you. The book packs a punch with mouth-watering, quick and easy recipes running the gamut of cookies and brownie treats from Snickerdoodles, Samoas (right there with the Girl Scout kind) and the traditional...well, okay, maybe not...Chocolate Chip Cookies!

The Chocolate Chip Cookies are the bomb-diggity (and I can't believe I actually typed that)! I cannot tell you how many time I've made these recently. I'm totally addicted. They beat the pants off of Whole Foods (sorry  - I still love you though when I don't feel like baking) They are the perfect combination of airy, gooey, chewy and chocolatey! I know a couple of folks who wouldn't know these were vegan. Those that are vegan have raved for them.

So guess what, kids?!?! This book is now on my go-to cookie baking list, which I should probably share some time. And with that, I'm saving some cash and stepping away from the Whole Paycheck, er I mean, Foods Bakery section/

- Macarooneyrooooooooooo

Read the Full Story

Tofu Scramble with Fakin' Bacon

A friend of ours put me onto Lightlife's Organic Smoky Tempeh Strips recently, after seeing our post on biscuits with tofu bacon. I'm so glad she did! This stuff is awesome! It's pretty close to bacon, even though it does have a bit of a grainy texture. The flavor is rather spot onto bacon. 

Last weekend, I decided to serve it up with a tofu and potato scramble that I whipped up. Sorry, I don't have a recipe for this, If I ever decide to create one, I'll share it. 

Doesn't it look good?

Read the Full Story

Dinnah by Artichoke!

What a good spouse Artichoke is! The other night, he made a delicious dinner of stuffed peppers, roasted brussel sprouts and sauteed string beans. Yeah, we were trying vegging out and with some of my favorite foods on the planet.

The string beans were pretty simple. There's no set recipe for this. Using a package of haricot-verts Momma Macaroon gave to us, Artichoke put some olive oil in the pan with a couple of cloves of garlic. When the garlic started to brown, he tossed in the beans and added some salt and pepper. Cooked until tender, the beans were put into cold water and shocked! That was it! Easy, right?

Artichoke never had Brussels sprouts until we started dating way back in the day. I loved them! My grandmother and mom made them often, usually just boiling them with some butter and salt. Again, simple. The first time I made them for him, Artichoke couldn't believe he missed out on them for so long. Now, he's hooked!

Lately, I've been on a roasted Brussels sprout kick, especially after seeing a great recipe in Vegetarian Times over the summer. Since finding that recipe, I've found ways to modify it by adding or changing ingredients from the original. So here's the recipe from VT with my modifications:

Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Source: Vegetarian Times, Nov/Dec Issue

Ingredients:

• 2 lb. Brussels sprouts, large sprouts halved, small sprouts left whole
• 3 Tbs. olive oil
• 2 Tbs. maple syrup
• 2 Tbs. butter, optional

Macaroon Modifications: Replace the maple syrup with 2 Tbs. of agave nectar. Omit the butter. Add 2-3 cloves of garlic, 2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar and 1 tsp lemon zest. 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss Brussels sprouts with oil in large baking dish or on baking sheet, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Roast 45 minutes, or until tender, loosening sprouts from baking dish or sheet with spatula every 15 minutes, if necessary.
   
2. Transfer to serving bowl and toss with maple syrup and butter, if using.

Macaroon Modifications: Toss all of the ingredients in a bowl and be sure the sprouts and evenly coated. Cover the Brussels sprouts in a baking dish with foil before placing in the over. Roast for 20-25 minutes. Remove the foil and stir the sprouts. Roast for another 20-25 minutes. Don't bother with the butter.

Now, we're onto the star of dinner: Stuffed Peppers. Artichoke grew up on the stuff. Me? Not so much, though I love peppers. Though the main component to many offerings of stuffed peppers include meat, Artichoke and I went without and it was no loss to us at all. Using leftover brown rice, green peas, a bit of pasta sauce, and vegan Parmesan cheese, Artichoke took about 12 mini peppers and stuffed them with veggie goodness.

Yummy Stuffed Peppers
Source: The Macachoke Kitchen


Ingredients

• 12 mini peppers 
• 1C. brown rice
• 1/4C. sweet green peas
• 1/4C. pasta sauce
• 2Tbs. vegan Parmesan cheese
• Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. 
2. Cut the tops off of the peppers and cut along one slide of each. Set aside
3. In a medium bowl, mix other ingredients together
4. Take mixture and stuff into peppers
5. Place peppers on baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes

Artichoke did a great job! Everything was delicious! Let's do it again, shall we?

Read the Full Story

Macaroon's Birthday Lunch

Sorry, I'm late with this post about Macaroon's birthday. As you know, we had a lovely dinner with Momma Macaroon on Jan 20th! Well, we kept the celebration going through the weekend. I took her out for a post-birthday lunch on Jan. 23.

Macaroon’s birthday = special meal! Through reliable sources, I’ve heard a lot of good things about Blossom, a vegan joint on 9th Avenue between West 21st and 22nd Streets in Manhattan (New York, not Kansas). Albeit we were there on a Sunday as the place opened, reservations are strongly recommended, because it does get filled pretty quickly.



Right off the bat, I liked Blossom. The place is small but cozy. The waiter was informative, attentive and polite. Since it was VERY cold that morning, I decided to have the Italian Chestnut Soup with apples as an appetizer. For the main dish, I opted for the Southern Seitan Sandwich, served with fries. Macaroon chose the very yummy Soy Bacon Cheeseburger with fries and a side of garlic spinach. Everything was delicious and filling. If we had bigger stomachs, we would have finished our entire meal on the spot. Instead, we could only each half our sandwiches, took then to-go and quickly devoured them when we got home. If you couldn't tell, we love this place!





Normally, we would have tried their desserts but decided forgo them. Macaroon had been wanting to try chocolate from a place called Cocoa V, a vegan chocolate and wine bar on 9th Avenue. A couple of her friend had highly recommended it. We had to leave enough room for that! Oddly enough, Cocoa V was catty corner to Blossom and has the same owner. So I had to take Macaroon there!


We ended up having chocolate bark with cherries, roasted edamame clusters, a pecan praline truffle and a hazelnut truffle. Macaroon had asked about their butterfinger candy, but sadly they were out of it. We LOVED them all! The chocolate was dark but not too bitter or sweet. What's also cool is that they give you recommendations to pair wine with chocolate. They also sell baked goods (Mac! We got to get some cake next time!) Another bonus is that they have an online store. So don't fret if you don't live in New York City. Awesome vegan goodness is a click away!

Lastly, after burning off calories by driving from the West Side to the East Side of Manhattan, we stopped at Whole Earth Bakery and Kitchen on St. Mark’s Place between 1st Avenue and Avenue B. I had been trying to take Macaroon there for a bit, after seeing such great reviews about it.

The place is pretty Bohemian in appearance, and rather small. Their menu is extensive with juices, smoothies, soups, entrees and baked goods. The display cases have a mix of entrees like lasagna and stuffed cabbage and desserts like cakes, cookies and pies. Since we were there for our sweet tooth, we tried their chocolate chip cookies, chocolate walnuts cookies, halva and a cinnamon bun with a "splash." Though Mac kinda like the cinnamon bun (It tasted like pancakes to her), we unfortunately weren’t crazy about Whole Earth Bakery and Kitchen. The desserts were rather pricey, ranging in $1.50-$6.00 per piece of slice, yet the flavors were bland. The saddest part was that halva, which I normally love, they offered wasn’t really halva, but an odd tasting truffle.

I will say that I do in giving food establishments a second chance. So, I may pay another visit and try one of their juices the next time I’m in the area.

Read the Full Story