Chocolate Sorbet

The following recipe is really too good to be true. Delicious vegan ice cream! And no “weird” ingredients! I got the original recipe from Southern Living magazine. This is my version.

5 c. water
2 ¼ c. sugar
1 c. cocoa
1 bag vegan chocolate chips (I use Ghirardelli semisweet chocolate chips with great results. The bag says it “may contain trace amounts of milk,” but milk is not a listed ingredient. I assume the disclaimer is just due to processing on machinery used for other, non-vegan products. If that doesn’t work for you, just pick a chocolate chip that does.)
about 15 lbs. ice for the ice cream freezer
rock salt

1. Bring the water and sugar to a boil in a large saucepan. Boil, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved (about 1 minute). Whisk in cocoa until blended (no lumps). Reduce heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, 30 minutes. Remove from heat. Gradually add the chocolate chips, whisking until smooth after each addition. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour.
2. Pour the chocolate mixture into the freezer container of a 4-quart ice cream freezer. Freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions, about 45 minutes.
3. Move the ice cream to your kitchen freezer, and let it “cure” in the freezer overnight.

This makes about 5 cups of unbelievably delicious ice-cream-like sorbet.

Tempeh Fajitas

Here is a vegan version of fajitas that even omnivores will love.

1 8-oz. package tempeh (I like LightLife's garden veggie tempeh.), sliced into fajita-sized slices
juice of 2 limes
1/2 t. chili powder
1/2 t. cumin
1/4 t. salt
1/2 onion, sliced
1 bell pepper, deseeded and deveined, sliced
3 t. canola oil plus 1 t. canola oil
flour tortillas (no lard ingredients)
fixin's (chopped tomato, salsa, pickled or fresh jalepenos, chopped green chiles, guacamole or avocados, chopped lettuce, pico de gallo etc.)

Mix the lime juice with the chili powder, cumin, and salt. You can also substitute the fajita-seasoning packet of your choice for the spices and salt. Marinate the tempeh slices in the lime juice mixture overnight.
Wrap the tortillas in aluminum foil and warm them in the oven on about 250 degrees while the fajitas are cooking.
In a non-stick pan, heat the 3 t. oil over medium-high heat. Put the tempeh slices in the oil, and let them fry in it until they have soaked up the oil. Add enough water to coat the bottom of the skillet, and let the tempeh soak that up, too. (It will also evaporate some.) Once the water is gone, add the remaining 1 t. oil, the onion, the bell pepper, and any leftover lime marinade. Sort of stir-fry everything together until the onion and bell pepper are cooked but still slightly crunchy. I have even been known to add one julienned carrot to the veggie mix here.
Once the veggies are cooked, load tempeh, veggies, and fixings onto the warmed tortillas, and enjoy!

Tofu Chocolate Pie or Pudding

This is a recipe I modified from Mori-Nu, the only company I know that makes silken tofu. You need to use silken tofu for this recipe - not the crumbly Chinese kind. If you don't tell people this pie has tofu, they will likely rave about it! If you tell them in advance it has tofu...the less adventurous ones will likely not try it. Their loss!

2 packages silken tofu, (extra-firm for pie, firm for pudding)
3/4 c. raw honey
1 T. almond extract
1/2 c. cocoa powder
1 prebaked pie crust or graham cracker crust (if making pie instead of pudding)
2 T. chopped nuts (optional topping for pie)

In a blender, purée each package of silken tofu individually until really smooth. Do one package, then move the smooth, puréed tofu to a large mixing bowl, then do the next package, and move that to the mixing bowl, too. Add the honey, almond extract, and cocoa. First, mix with a spoon to get the cocoa coated with liquid to prevent it from flying everywhere when you start the mixer. Then use a hand mixer to thoroughly combine all ingredients into a smooth, chocolatey batter.
For pies, pour the mixture into a prebaked pie shell. For pudding, pour into individual serving dishes or a serving bowl. Sprinkle chopped nuts, if using, over surface of pie. For either pudding or pie, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Serve cold.

Serving Suggestion: I have put a thin layer of raspberry or other fruit preserves in the pie shell before pouring in the tofu batter. You could also top with chocolate shavings or confectioner's sugar. For pudding, you can use it to make parfaits or top with berries or other fruit.

Cuban Black Beans

This is adapted from a recipe my friend Elaine gave me. I am not sure what cookbook she may have gotten it from. She has advised me that my topping of fresh tomatoes is not properly Cuban. If you want to be authentic, top with chopped fresh white onion, per Elaine. Thank you, Elaine!

1 lb. dried black beans
1 T. salt
2 T. plus 2 T. extra virgin olive oil
2 medium onion, chopped
2 bell peppers, deseeded and deveined, chopped
5 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 bay leaves
1 T. dried oregano
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
6 c. prepared white rice (Ok to use brown if you're taking better care of yourself!)
chopped fresh tomatoes to garnish

1. Wash the beans well after picking through them to remove any stones. Put the beans in acovered pot with the salt and 2 T. olive oil and water to cover. Soak 8 hours or overnight.
2. Simmer beans in the same water. Add bay leaves, oregano, and ground pepper. Cook until tendter, 1.5 - 2 hours. Stir very little to avoid breaking the skins on the beans. Add additional water as they are cooking, if necessary. Cook the rice during this time so that it's ready to go when the beans are.
3. Sauté onion, peppers, and garlic in the remaining 2 T. olive oil until soft. Stir these into the finished beans. Remove the bay leaves.
4. Serve the beans over the cooked rice. Garnish with chopped tomatoes.

Overnight Caramel French Toast ala Indiana

This is what Beth served for breakfast Sunday morning -- fabulous!!

Overnight Caramel French Toast

1 cup packed brown sugar 1 tsp. ground cinnamon, divided

½ cup butter 6 eggs

2 T. Light corn syrup 1 ½ cups milk

12 slices bread 1 tsp. vanilla extract

¼ cup sugar

In a small saucepan, bring the brown sugar, butter and corn syrup to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat. Pour into a greased 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Top with six slices of bread. Combine sugar and ½ tsp. cinnamon, sprinkle half over the bread. Place remaining bread on top. Sprinkle with remaining cinnamon-sugar. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs, milk, vanilla and remaining cinnamon. Pour over bread. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.

Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees F for 30-35 minutes