Vegan Irish Stew

Just in time for St. Paddy’s Day!  The event will happen on Saturday, March 14th at 2:00 Central time.  (That’s pm, not am…)

If you are interested, click this link:

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/blog-well-done-cooks

And if you want to participate live can dial in:

Conference Dial-in Number: (218) 339-4600
Participant Access Code: 645838#

Also, if anyone wants to cook along, here is the recipe:

Vegan Irish Stew

You will need:

• 6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 package seitan
• 2 medium yellow onions, diced
• 1 leek, sliced
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 3 cups veggie stock
• 1 can Guinness
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 1 sprig rosemary

Put two tablespoons of olive oil in a soup pot over high heat.  When the oil is hot, add the seitan and brown on both sides, 3-5 minutes per side.  Remove the seitan from the pot.

Put the rest of the olive oil in the pot and wait until hot.  Add the onions, leeks, carrots, and a healthy pinch of salt.  Cook until the carrots are soft, about 7 minutes.

Add the tomato paste and flour and cook for 60 seconds.

Add potatoes, stock, and Guiness to the stew and bring to a boil.  Lower the heat to medium.  Tie the thyme around the rosemary and put it in the broth.  Continue cooking until the potatoes are fork tender.  Add the seitan back and cook for another minute or two.  Remove the thyme and rosemary before serving.

If the stew is more like a soup, add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to two tablespoons of water.  Stir and add to the stew.  It’s not perfect, but it will thicken up the stew after a few minutes.

Thanks to lc347 for the image.

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This is the post for those people who held off on Valentine’s Day until the last minute.  I know you’re out there.  It was the same for Christmas and her/his her birthday.  It’s okay.  We’re all busy!

The good news is BlogWellDone.com is here to help! If you can buy four ingredients, a good bottle of wine, and a store bought dessert from a nice place you will have:

The Easiest Valentine’s Day Menu Ever!

Seriously, I threw this menu together in about 5 minutes.  It only uses four ingredients you may have to purchase from the store (plus salt, pepper, cooking oil, and butter if you have it), then you buy a good bottle of wine (suggestions below) and his/her favorite dessert from a bakery or restaurant.  That’s all you need for love to be in the air in less than 30.  I promise.

The Easy Valentine’s Day Menu

Here’s your shopping list:

• 2 8 ounce filets
• 1 bunch asparagus
• 2 pounds russet potatoes
• 1 cup heavy cream (that’s one smaller container)
• 1 bottle of medium body red wine
• 1 favorite dessert

Easy, right?  I can get all of that from a little shopping center about 15 minutes from my house that has a Whole Foods, a Cheesecake Factory, and a wine shop.  Bang!  Valentine’s Day.

Here’s how to make the meal:

Get the meat out of the refrigerator, sprinkle both sides of the meat with salt and pepper, and let it come to room temperature.

Cut the potatoes into large cubes and boil in salted water.

While the potatoes are boiling, bring a saucepan full of salted water to boil and cook the asparagus for 3 minutes.  Remove the asparagus from the water and IMMEDIATELY put in ice cold water.  This is called shocking the asparagus and will keep it form losing its green color.

When the meat has lost its chill, preheat the oven to 350.  Put a little oil (I prefer olive or grapeseed, but anything will work in a pinch) in the skillet over medium-high flame.  Let the oil heat.

Add the meat, cook 2-3 minutes to make a nice brown crust, and then flip and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes.  Put in the oven for 6-8 minutes for medium.  Remove the meat from the pan and let it cool.  Toss the asparagus in the skillet and them get warm.

Serve the dish by creating a bed of mashed potatoes, put the steak on the potatoes, and then stack the asparagus on top.  Serve with the good wine and dessert at the end.

It’s Valentine’s Day.  Enjoy!

Notes:

• For wine, go with something a bit earthy, but not overpowering.  A very full bodied red will overpower the flavors of the potatoes and asparagus.
• Splurge on dessert.  If your special someone’s favorite dessert can be bought at the grocery store, cool.  If not, make the extra effort to get something nice.  From personal experience, I can tell you that you can serve burnt, messy, salt mush for the meal and all anyone remembers is how great the dessert was.  It’s worth it!

Okay, stop reading!  You have shopping to do!

Thanks to Acme.com for the heart.

No related posts.

Killer Mashed Potatoes

What makes them killer?  Well, two things really.  First, they are really, really good or as Guy Fieri would say (”killer”.)  Secondly, they use so much cream and butter that … well, you get the picture.  So yes, these potatoes are definitely a sometimes food, but who cares?!  We have some resolutions to break!

Making Killer Mashed Potatoes

This one is pretty simple and can be done in one pot unless you want to add faux bacon (or real bacon.)

You need:

• (Optional) 4 slices faux bacon or real bacon
• 4 tablespoons olive oil*
  
• 4 pounds of potatoes, cut into pieces
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• 1 stick butter
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup Romano cheese
  

* You only need 1 tablespoon of olive oil if you are using real bacon

In a skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add the faux bacon and cook until it is crunchy.  Set aside to cool.

You can peel the potatoes if you like or make them skin-on for more texture and nutrients.  In a large pot, add them peeled or unpeeled and cover with cold water.  Salt the water so that it tastes slightly salty.  Bring the potatoes to boil and cook until fork tender (usually 10-15 minutes.)

Drain the potatoes of most of their water (in other words, don’t be too concerned if there is water left, it helps with mashing.)  Using a hand masher, give the potatoes a rough mash.  Do not mash them to their final consistency.

Add all the ingredients but the bacon and continue mashing until the potatoes are to the consistency you like and all the ingredients are well incorporated.  You can also use a hand mixer to whip them and make them light and airy.

Top with the bacon and serve.  You can also garnish with sour cream (for more milk fat) and scallions (for something resembling a vegetable.)

Okay, get to mashing.  Enjoy!

Photo courtesy of ninjapoodles.

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Pea and Potato Burritos With Roasted Bananas

To get the evening started off right, our family of four will be dining on pea and potato burritos, a great vegan go-to dish that is hearty and tasty.  Half a bag of peas provide a serving of vegetables to the family (A bag of frozen corn can be substituted instead, though it will change the taste pretty dramatically.)  Desert is cinnamon roasted bananas.

Pea and Potato Burritos

• 2 pounds russet potatoes, cut into 1 inch dice
• 1/4 pound of onion, finely diced
• 5-6 cloves of garlic, finely diced
• 1 12.5 ounce can tomato sauce
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1/2 bag of peas
• 4 tortilla shells
• salt and more pepper to taste

In a sauce pan over medium heat, add the can of tomato sauce, chili powder, the tablespoon of black pepper, and a healthy pinch of salt.  Bring to a boil and simmer to reduce.  This can stay on the stove until dinner is ready.  The longer it has a chance to reduce, the better it will taste.

Put the potatoes into just enough cold water to cover them and bring to a boil.  Boil until fork tender (15-20 minutes.)

Remove the potatoes from the water to cool and put about 4 tablespoons of the starchy potato water into a non-stick skillet over medium heat.  Add the onions and garlic and boil/saute for about 2 minutes.  Add the potatoes and two teaspoons of black pepper back into the skillet.  Cook for 5 minutes or until the potatoes are dry.

Mash the potatoes with a fork and add the peas.  Mix and cook until the peas become warm.

Take out the flour tortillas and fill each with a quarter of the potato/pea mixture.  Right before you serve, test the tomato sauce for salt, adjust if necessary, and pour the tomato sauce on top the burritos.

Roasted Cinnamon Bananas

• 1 pound bananas
• 1 tablespoon, cinnamon
• 3 tablespoons, powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a bowl, mix the cinnamon and the powdered sugar.

Leaving the banans in the peel, cut the bananas in half lengthwise and then cut each half into two.  Cover with the sugar/cinnamon mixture and bake peel side down for 15 minutes.  Serve warm.

(Now would be a good time to pour the sauce on the burritos.  It should be reduced by now )

Well, what do you think?

Oh, yeah, the tab:

Tortilla .75
*Garlic .38
*Potatoes 2.38
Peas .55
Chili powder .57
Tomato sauce .47
1/4 lb. onion .33
——–
Bananas .58
Cinnamon .57
Powdered Sugar .10
——–

For a total of 6.68

If you want, you can add 32 cents of cheap oil when sauteing the onions and garlic.  I just am not smart enough to do the math on that.

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Still on an Indian kick, I decided to experiment.  This is what I used:

• 2 tablespoons of ghee (butter or olive oil is fine)
• 4 medium sized golden potatoes cut into 1/4 inch coins
• 1 teaspon of cumin seeds
• 1 pinch of red pepper flake (more is fine)
• 1/4 cup of broth 
• 1 teaspoon garlic powdeer
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon of pepper
• salt to taste

1. Melt the ghee in a large skillet over medium heat.  When the ghee is melted, toast the cumin seeds and the red pepper flake.
2. Add enough potatoes to cover the bottom of the skillet.  Do not pile the potatoes on top of each other.  Season with salt.
3. Stir the potatoes to coat in the ghee/seed/pepper flake mixture to coat and let cook for two-three minutes, until the potatoes begin to change color.
4. Add enough broth to come up half way on the potatoes.  Cover with a lid.  The potatoes are ready when they are fork tender.
5. Move to a serving dish and add the ground cumin, coriander, cinnamon, nutmeg, garlic powder, pepper, and any additional salt.  Toss to ensure all potatoes are covered in the spice.

Try this dish.  I enjoyed the cinnamon and the potato combination far more than I had hoped.

Question:
So if you don’t mash ‘em or fry ‘em, what do you do with your potatoes?

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