Some people become vegetarians because they don’t like meat and/or it upsets their body. Not me. I grew up eating some sort of animal everyday – sometimes three times a day and loved it. So when I decided, for humanitarian reasons, to become a vegetarian, it was quite an adjustment.
I found that the key to not falling off the vegetarian wagon is to eat really good food. This is why I started my blog – to help others find delicious alternatives. Vegetarians don’t have to subsist on rice & beans and salads alone.
I’ve been a vegetarian so long now that I rarely miss meat, but when I do, I have my go-to fake meats. There are lots of them out there – some fabulous…and some not.
Which brings me to my “HAM” & CHEESE LOAF. The original recipe used real ham. I’ve found several good fake ham products out there that I substitute for the real thing. Now, let’s be honest – if I were to merely eat the “ham” (quotation marks denote imitation) on it’s own, it wouldn’t be worth the bother. But when I add it to casseroles or, in this case, the sandwich, it serves to give the illusion of ham (without the quotation marks).
Note: For those of you opposed to imitation meats, just leave it out – it’s still a good sandwich.
“HAM” & CHEESE LOAF
- 1 cup (250 ml) water
- 2¼ tsp yeast
- 2 T butter, soft
- 1 cup (125g / 4-3/8 oz) rye flour
- 2 T sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp caraway seeds
- 1/4 cup (62g) Dijon mustard
- about 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour
- 8 oz (87g) fake ham, cut into 3/8″ – 1/2″ pieces
- 4 oz (116g) cheese, cubed or shredded – I prefer medium cheddar
- 1/2 cup (86g) dill pickles, cut into 1/4″ pieces
- egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 T water)
Heat the water to 100º – 104º Fahrenheit. Stir in the yeast and let proof about 5 minutes. 
Put the butter, rye flour, sugar, salt, caraway seeds, mustard, and 1 cup of the AP flour into the workbowl of a food processor. 
When the yeast is proofed, turn on the machine and slowly pour in the yeast water. 
When it’s mixed, add in remaining flour a little at a time, until dough starts to pull away from the sides. You may or may not need all of the remaining cup of flour. 
Empty dough into greased bowl, flipping dough ball so entire ball is greased. Cover with tea towel or plate and let rise 1 hour.
Place dough on floured parchment paper that lays on top of a tea towel (so the parchment doesn’t slide). Roll dough out into a rectangle, about 14″ wide X 7″ tall (it doesn’t need to be exact).
Spread on the “ham”, cheese, then pickles down the center of the dough. Make 1½” cuts along both sides – cut the same number for both sides.
Fold in one end, then grab the first dough tabs and twist them together, pinching to make sure they stay. 
Keep doing this for all the tabs.
Slide the parchment onto a large, rimless cookie sheet. Cover loaf with the tea towel and let rise 30 minutes. At this time, preheat oven to 375º F.
When dough has risen the 30 minutes, brush with egg wash and bake at 375º F for about 25 minutes, until golden brown. 
Remove to rack and let set about 15 minutes before serving.
I had given up on frittata making. They stuck to the skillet and were rubbery. Although they looked enticing in photos, mine never came out right. I was done! That is, until I discovered the joys of cooking with a cast iron skillet.
Cut potatoes in half lengthwise, then cut each of those halves in half lengthwise. Slice each quarter widthwise into 1/8″ thin pieces.
In a mixing bowl combine onions, potatoes, olive oil, 
Heat 10″ cast iron skillet over medium/high heat. Pour in potato/onion mixture and pat down with a spatula. Cover and cook for a total of 15 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. (Set a timer for the 15 minutes, and another for the 5 minutes!)
Into the now-empty mixing bowl (no need to clean it), beat the eggs with a whisk or fork. Beat in the sour cream, feta, cheddar, peas, and the remaining 
When potato/onions are cooked, pour into the egg mixture and stir together.
Then pour this immediately back into the skillet. Turn heat to medium/high and heat for 15 seconds, running a spatula around edges. 
Cover and cook undisturbed at medium/high heat for 5 minutes. Remove lid and place skillet, uncovered, in the 350º F preheated oven. Bake for 15 minutes. (Don’t overcook or it will yield a tough frittata.) Remove from oven and let set for 20 minutes before slicing.
Sadly, when we think Mac & Cheese, we often think of Kraft Mac & Cheese. While children seem to love it, one wonders what exactly is that suspicious orange “cheese” and multitude of ingredients that hearken one back to high school chemistry.
Add in pasta and bring to a simmer. 
Maintaining the simmer, cook uncovered until pasta is just past the al dente stage – about 6 minutes. 
While pot is still on low heat, stir in American cheese, Dijon and cayenne. Remove from heat and stir in Cheddar. Cover pot and let melt together. Taste for seasoning.
If you want to make the bread crumb topping, toast the panko, olive oil, salt, and pepper in a small skillet until browned. (Keep an eye on it – it only takes a couple of minutes.) Remove from heat and mix in the Parmesan.
Grits. Just the word has always made me want to rinse out my mouth. I could never understand why anyone would want to eat them…and like them! Until now.
Add in the 3¼ cups water, milk, hot sauce, pepper, and salt. Bring to boil.
Whisking continuously, very slowly pour in the polenta (or cornmeal). 
Decrease heat to maintain a simmer and cook, uncovered, until thickened – about 15 minutes. Stir often, taking care to get into the edges.
In a blender, pureé the corn with the remaining 1/4 cup water for about 5 seconds. 
Pour into the thickened grits, also adding the cheeses, stirring to blend. Cook another 5 minutes or so to thicken. 
Top servings with scallion green slices, more shredded cheese, and paprika, if desired.
Chicken & Dumplings is one of those classic, stick-to-your-ribs meals that’s considered a comfort food by many. Of course, being a vegetarian, chicken was not an option. That pretty much left a watery broth and a few carrots, onions, and celery.
Add in mushrooms and continue to cook another 4 minutes, scraping fond on bottom of pan (the browned bits). 
Add dill, tomato paste, garlic, and 2½ tsp of the salt – cook 3 more minutes. 
Pour in the Sherry and continue to cook until evaporated, scraping any fond formed. 
Add the water, tofu, soy sauce, red wine vinegar, and parsley. Bring almost to a simmer. In a small bowl, make a slurry by combining the arrowroot with 1/4 cup of the soup. Stir slurry into soup until it thickens a bit – should take a few minutes. Taste for seasoning – adjust, if needed. Keep heating the soup to bring to full boil.
As soup is heating up, make the dumplings. Heat the butter and let cool a bit. Then combine melted butter with the buttermilk – it will get clumpy. Whisk the egg white a little, then whisk it into the buttermilk mixture. 
In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and 
Form small dough lumps – 1″ or less. There will probably be about 62. (These will plump up with cooking.) Make sure you form all these balls before you begin dropping them in the soup so they cook at the same rate.
When soup has come to a full boil, one by one drop in the dough balls. Wrap a towel around the pot lid and cover. (MAKE SURE THE TOWEL DOESN’T DROP ANYWHERE NEAR THE BURNER! YOU DON’T WANT A FIRE!!!) The towel will absorb steam moisture so the dumplings don’t get soggy. 
Decrease flame to medium and cook 11 minutes. Remove lid and allow steam to escape a few minutes before serving.
Anyone’s who made manicotti knows the challenge of trying to stuff cooked tubular pasta without tearing it. If you fill uncooked tubes, then you face the problem of cooking them enough so they’re edible.
Add in the tomatoes and 
Place the uncooked noodles in a 8″ x 11″ (or there-abouts) casserole dish. Cover noodles with boiling water, separating them with a fork to make sure they don’t stick together. Let them soak for 5 minutes, moving them around now and then.
Place noodles on a tea towel to dry. Discard water and dry pan.
Divide the filling evenly amongst the noodles (about 1/4 cup each). Spread filling, leaving a 1/2″ border at one of the short ends. 
Roll up, starting at end where the filling went all the way to the end. (The border is to allow room for the filling to spread as you roll them up.)
Spread 3/4 cup of the marinara into the pan. 
Lay the manicotti, seam side down. 
Pour on remaining marinara, covering all exposed pasta with the sauce. 
Cover with lid or foil. Bake at 375º F for 40 minutes. Increase oven to 500º F. Sprinkle on remaining 
Bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Sprinkle on more basil, if desired.
Why spend a lot of money on store-bought granola when you can make it yourself? You won’t believe how easy it is! Plus you can fine-tune it to suit yourself.
In a very large bowl, mix together the maple syrup, brown sugar, vegetable oil, vanilla, and salt.
Blend in the oats and toasted nuts. 
Pour onto a parchment paper lined rimmed 16½” x 12″ (inside measure) baking sheet. Spread out and, using a flat implement (such as a potato masher or measuring cup), firmly press down granola evenly. I like to start in the center and work my way to the sides so that the edges aren’t too thin, or they’ll over-bake. 
Bake in the upper third of the 325º F oven until medium browned – about 32-45 minutes. (Mine take 32 minutes.) 
Remove from oven and let cool 1 hour on baking sheet. Break apart and add in dried fruit, if using (I never do).
Store in airtight container.
Let me say right off the bat, this is an EXTREMELY easy recipe. Honestly! Yes, it involves making those ultra thin pancakes that wrap the stir-fry, but I promise, you can do it!!!
On a well-floured board, roll dough into a 12″ log. 
Slice into 12 pieces. 
Using floured fingers, pat each piece into a 3″ disc. 
Generously brush 6 of the discs with the sesame oil (you may have some left over).
Place each dry disc on top of an oiled one, creating a kind of sandwich. 
Roll each of these into a 6″-ish circle. 
Remove to a tea towel to let cool a few seconds. Then, carefully split apart the pancakes. 
Stack them, oiled side up. Carry on with the remaining circles. (You may not need to oil the pan with each new pancake, depending on the non-stick ability of your skillet – I put in a little vegetable oil every other one.) Keep warm in the wrapped tea towel until ready to use.
Prepare teriyaki sauce: In a small saucepan, combine the Mirin and cornstarch, smooshing out any lumps. 
Add in the soy sauce, sugar, ginger, garlic, and sesame oil. Cook over medium heat until thickened. Set aside. 
Note: You only need 1/4 cup of the teriyaki sauce for the Moo Shu. Store remainder in refrigerator.
Drain the mushrooms over a container.
Add 1/3 cup of this mushroom water to the skillet, along with the cabbage and drained mushrooms. Cook on high for another 2 minutes.
Pour all of the stir-fry mixture into a colander or sieve, discarding the drained liquid.
Add in the drained veggies and the 1/4 cup teriyaki sauce. Blend together and heat through.
We’re all familiar with the POTATO GNOCCHI – awhile back I even posted a recipe for 
But gnocchi are merely dumplings that are made from various things besides potatoes, such as wheat flour, cheese, breadcrumbs, cornmeal, and semolina flour – the basis for this Roman Gnocchi recipe.
Very slowly pour in semolina, stirring constantly to prevent lumps (a whisk is best for this). Once all the semolina in mixed in, decrease heat to low and cook 3-5 minutes, until it becomes very thick and pulls away from the sides of pan. (Don’t undercook or the gnocchi will taste floury.) Let cool 4 minutes. 
Cut 
Mix in the beaten egg, Gruyère, rosemary, and baking powder. 
With the remaining 
Chill at least 30 minutes.
Sprinkle Parmesan on top of gnocchi and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving.
Turn off heat and stir in 1/4 cup basil, sugar, and pepper.
Cook for 5 minutes. SET A TIMER! You don’t need to cook it fully right now – it will continue to cook in the oven. Pour pasta into a strainer to drain, but 
In another bowl, beat egg with a fork then mix in 1/2 cup (1.5 oz) (44g) Parmesan and cottage cheese. 
Once the pasta is draining, pour the cornstarch-cream mixture into the now-empty pot. Over a low heat, bring to boil.
Immediately turn off flame and stir in the cottage cheese mixture. 
Add in half of the mozzarella and 1/2 cup of the marinara. 
Stir in the cooked ziti, breaking up stuck together pasta. 
Pour into an 8″ x 8″ casserole dish (or it’s equivalent). 
Top with remaining marinara sauce, then sprinkle on remaining mozzarella, followed by the rest of the Parmesan (20g). 
Cover with a lid or foil and bake at 350º Fahrenheit for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake an additional 30 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle on 1 T basil. 
Let set 20 minutes before serving.
Vegetarian Cooking For Carnivores BLOG 