Category Archives: Végétalien

Under the blanket

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So I have been hiding under a blanket. A cigarette burnt, sweat smelling, bittersweet memories filled blanket.

There is much to do under a blanket, besides the obvious obviously : crumb collecting, wall staring, ancient persia recollecting.

Yep I got busy under a blanket and must admit that it is rather dim under there. You can try and blog, but your eyes quickly tire. You can cook amazing raw foods, but the smell of the slime ends up overpowering the smell of the sweat. In short, if you’re very determined, you can blog and cook under a thick dusty beige blanket, but you definitely cannot shoot. Here’s the proof.

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So after months of self-indulging in the sweet darkness of my sweet blanket, I sort of went overboard/overbored and tasted the blanket. I experienced a slightly salty nuttiness with a dreamy dash of nutmeg. Then I got up from under my beloved blanket and baked it into these yummy banana muffins. Indulge!

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vegan banana pecan muffins (print)

recipe adapted from everybody likes sandwiches

(12 small muffins)

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup oats

1/4 cup quinoa flakes

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 pinch of cinnamon

1/3 cup raw sugar

1/3 cup oil

3 ripe bananas, mashed

1/4 cup pecans

Preheat oven to 375. Coat a muffin tin with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, quinoa flakes, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix the sugar and oil together until blended. Stir in the mashed bananas. Then slowly add the dry mixture along with the pecans, making sure not to overmix the batter.

Spoon batter into muffin tin and bake for 15-20 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.

nutrition facts : 172 calories; 8.2 g fat; 1.6 g dietary fibers; 9.5 g sugars; 2.2 g protein

muffins végétaliens aux bananes et aux pacanes (imprimer)

recette adaptée de everybody likes sandwiches

(12 petits muffins)

1tasse de farine de blé entier

1/4 tasse de flocons d’avoine

1/4 tasse de flocons de quinoa

1 c. à thé de poudre à pâte

1 c. à thé de bicarbonate de soude

1/2 c. à thé de sel

1/4 c. à thé de muscade

1 pincée de cannelle

1/3 tasse de sucre brut

1/3 tasse d’huile

3 bananes mûres, écrasées

1/4 tasse de pacanes

Préchauffer le four à 375. Vaporiser de l’enduit à cuisson sur un moule à muffin.

Dans un bol, mélanger la farine, l’avoine, le quinoa, la poudre à pâte, le bicarbonate de soude, le sel, la muscade et la cannelle. Réserver.

Dans un grand bol, mélanger le sucre et l’huile. Ajouter les bananes écrasées. Puis, incorporer doucement les ingrédients secs et les pacanes. Ne pas trop mélanger.

Répartir le mélanger dans le moule à muffins et enfourner de 15 à 20 minutes. Laisser refroidir sur une grille.

valeur nutritive : 172 calories;  8,2 g de lipides; 1,6 g de fibres; 9,5 g de sucres; 2,2 g de protéines

 

About

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I’ve been meaning to write an about section for this blog. Here’s a sneak peek.

I’m thirty-two and it hurts. More than ever before, I feel like Kevin from the wonder years every single minute of every single day.

I’m Québécoise all the way but can’t quite grasp what being Québécoise truly entails.

I spent my teenage years having Roseanne’s Dan as a father figure and Courtney Love as role model.

I blissfully and blindly married into royalty, ancient persian royalty that is, at the age of 20.

I teach french for a living. I enjoy it but often wish I had gotten my MBA instead.

I suffered from a severe concussion when I gave birth to a king almost four years ago and never recovered : je vois la vie en rose!

Food matters to me. Eating an open-face tomato sandwich with homemade vegan mayo feels both natural and political to me.

I’m hosting the FMP today. I chose two vegan mayos for you to experiment with : tofu mayo and bread-and-nut mayo. I made the bread-and-nut version and loaded it with fresh herbs. This mayo is both earthy and slightly tangy. Most importantly, it has that same addictive factor that regular store-bought mayo has. It is vegan and healthy, but will fit beautifully with all of your carnivorous favorites : tuna sandwiches, blts and burgers.

tofu mayo (print)

recipe from mark bittman

makes : about 1 cup

time : 10 minutes

Here is a delicious homemade vegan mayo. To make this more of a sauce, add some soy milk, water, or a little more olive oil.

6 ounces soft silken tofu (about 3/4 cup)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard, or to taste

1 tablespoon honey or sugar, optionnal

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teasppon salt, or to taste

Put all the ingredients in a blender. Turn the machine to a medium speed that keeps things moving without splattering. Let it run for a minute or 2, then turn it off.

Scrape the sides of the container with a rubber spatula, turn the blender back on, and repeat the process two more times. Taste and add more salt if necessary. Serve immediately (or store in a jar for up to several days).

bread-and-nut mayo (print)

recipe from mark bittman

Like the tofu mayo above, this homemade vegan mayo is going to taste much better thant store-bought eggless mayonnaise or, for that matter, most store-bought “real” mayonnaise. Plus both vegan mayos keep for days, if not longer.

Bread-and-nut mayo is based on skordalia, the classic Greek sauce that tastes great with almost anything. Use whole wheat bread here if you like but stay away from breads witth seeds or bits of grain.

1 small slice day-old bread, preferably whole wheat

1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more as needed

1/2 almonds, walnuts or cashews*

1 garlic clove, to taste**

1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice, or to taste

salt

pepper

Put the bread in a bowl and wet it with a few tablespoons of water. Squeeze the bread dry, then put it in a food processor with the oil, nuts and garlic. Process the mixture until the nuts are ground. With the machine running, slowly pour in 1/4 cup water, followed by a drizzle of oil to form a creamy sauce as thick or thin as you like.

Add the lemon juice and some salt and pepper and process to combine. Serve immedialety (or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days).

* I used walnuts.

** I skipped the garlic, obviously.

Sur la corde raide

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Cet été, j’ai redécouvert le bleuet.

Pas le bleuet sauvage, farouche, quasi féroce. Pas cette minuscule et tendre bille bleue qui a motivé les balades en forêt de ma tendre enfance. J’ai grandi, vous saurez.

J’ai redécouvert le bon gros bleuet bien élevé dans un bleuetier bien élevé par un agriculteur bien élevé bien de chez nous. Le bleuet docile, dodu, apprivoisé. Le bleuet juteux, savoureux, généreux. Celui qui s’achète avec de l’argent à un prix plus ou moins bon marché dans un bon marché bien de chez nous. Bon marché ou non, j’ai grandi, vous saurez. Je suis une adulte et je peux acheter des bleuets pour adultes autant que ça me chante. Et ça m’a chanté beaucoup cet été. Ça m’a chanté des crêtes pleins à craquer de bleuets prêts à croquer.

Ce bleuet, je le préfère cru et à la poignée au gré de ma fantaisie. Oui, rappelez-vous, il me suffit d’ouvrir la porte du réfrigérateur pour empoigner l’extase. Mais, en cette fin d’été, je me suis dis pourquoi pas. Pourquoi ne pas prolonger l’extase? Pourquoi ne pas faire durer le plaisir? Pourquoi ne pas exciter la flamme déjà folle et furieuse?

J’ai choisi la croustade. Voilà un mot et un mets bien de chez nous. Mais pas n’importe quelle croustade. Une bien jolie croustade individuelle remplie de délices : jus de gingembre, biscuits au gingembre, amandes. Une croustade qui croque et jute à la fois. Une croustade qui vous maintiendra sur la corde raide de la titillation aussi longtemps que vous pourrez résister à la tentation de n’en faire qu’une bouchée.

croustade végétalienne aux bleuets et au gingembre (imprimer)

recette inspirée de val so cal

(4 portions)

2 tasses de bleuets

2 c. à soupe de sucre brut

1 c. à thé de jus de gingembre

1/2 c. à thé de fécule de maïs

2 pincées de sel

1/2 tasse d’amande

1/2 tasse de flocons d’avoine

2 sachets de biscuits au gingembre Praeventia (environ 1 tasse)

3 c. à soupe d’huile d’olive

Préchauffer le four à 350.

Dans un bol, mélanger les bleuets, 1 c. à soupe de sucre, le jus de gingembre, la fécule de maïs et 1 pincée de sel. Répartir dans 4 ramequins.

Hacher grossièrement les amandes au couteau puis broyer au robot. Ajouter les flocons d’avoine et les biscuits au gingembre dans le robot et continuer de broyer jusqu’à l’obtention d’une chapelure grossière. Mettre dans un bol, ajouter 1 c. à soupe de sucre, 1 pincée de sel et l’huile, et mélanger. Répartir le mélange sur les bleuets.* Enfourner les ramequins pour 30 minutes et laisser refroidir avant de déguster.

* Il peut y avoir trop de chapelure. Miam!

valeur nutritive : 381 calories; 18,3 g de lipides; 7,5 g de fibres; 4,3 g de sucres; 4,5 g de protéines

vegan blueberry ginger crisp (print)

recipe inspired by val so cal

(4 servings)

2 cups blueberries

2 tablespoons raw sugar

1 teaspoon ginger juice

1/2 teaspoon cornstarch

2 pinches salt

1/2 cup almonds

1/2 cup old fashioned oats

2 pouches Praeventia ginger cookies (about 1 cup)

3 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat oven at 350.

In a bowl, stir together the blueberries, 1 tablespoon sugar, the ginger juice, the cornstarch and 1 pinch salt. Share the mix between 4 ramekins.

Using a knife, roughly chop up the almonds and then grind using a food processor. Add the oats and the cookies to the food processor and keep grinding until you obtain nice crumbs. Drop the mixture in a bowl, add 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 pinch salt and the oil, and stir. Share the mix over the blueberries*. Cook in the oven for 30 minutes and let cool down before digging in.

* You might have leftover crumbs if using very small ramekins. Yum!

nutrition facts : 281 calories; 18.3 g fat; 7.5 g dietary fibers; 4.3 g sugars; 4,5 g protein

Silent Tuesday

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quinoa tabbouleh (print)

recipe adapted from mark bittman

(4 servings)

1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained

salt

1/3 cup olive oil

1/4 cup lime juice

black pepper

1 cup finely chopped parsley

1/2 cup finely chopped mint

1/2 cup finely chopped kale

1 cup edamame

7 radishes, finely diced

1/2 cup finely chopped chives

2 tomatoes, seeded and finely diced

1/2 cup finely diced seeded cucumber

1/4 cup pistachios, chopped

Cook the quinoa in salted water like pasta and drain well. Toss the warm quinoa with the oil, lemon juice and pepper. Set aside.

Just before you’re ready to eat, add the remaining ingredients and toss gently.

nutrition facts : 391 calories; 26.4 g fat; 7.5 g dietary fibers; 3.1 g sugars; 14.8 g protein

taboulé au quinoa (imprimer)

recette adaptée de mark bittman

(4 portions)

1/2 tasse de quinoa, rincé et égoutté

sel

1/3 tasse d’huile d’olive

1/4 tasse de jus de lime

poivre

1 tasse de persil, finement haché

1/2 tasse de menthe, finement hachée

1/2 tasse de chou borécole, finement haché

1 tasse d’edamame

7 radis, hachés menu

1/2 tasse de ciboulette, finement hachée

2 tomates, épépinées, hachées menu

1/2 tasse de concombre, épépiné, haché menu

1/4 tasse de pistaches, hachées

Cuire le quinoa comme des pâtes dans de l’eau salée et bien égoutter. Y ajouter l’huile, le jus de lime et le poivre. Réserver.

Au moment de servir, ajouter le reste des ingrédients et mélanger doucement.

valeur nutritive : 391 calories; 26,4 g de lipides; 7,5 g de fibres; 3,1 g de sucres; 14,8 g de protéines

Sticky hot

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Whenever it gets sticky hot outside (and inside for that matter), and it does pretty much everyday down here in Montreal, I find myself hesitating between booze or ice cream.

Booze or ice cream? Là est la question!

The prince of persia would choose booze. In a heartbeat.

The little king would choose ice cream. Obviously.

I can’t choose. In other words, I choose both!

For the Food Matters Project, I followed Jennifer’s simple and amazing lead and threw some fresh raspberries, sugar, water and limoncello in the ice cream machine.

After about twenty-five minutes of noisy churning, I went out on the balcony to take a few shots of my homemade boozy sorbet.

This is what my sorbet looked like after spending about two minutes staring at the sunset.

That is one sticky hot sorbet!

So I quickly put it out of its misery : it was sweet, lemony and how refreshing! It made me forget my own sticky hotness… for about two minutes, that is.

For the original recipe, click here. For twisted twists on boozy sorbets, click here. For the road to happiness, buy an ice cream machine!

rustic raspberry and limoncello sorbet (print)

recipe adapted from mark bittman

(4 servings)

4 cups fresh raspberries

1/4 cup limoncello

1 cup water

1/2 cup sugar

In a bowl, pour the limoncello all over the raspberries. Set aside.

Heat up the water and the sugar until the sugar is completely dissolved.

Pour the hot liquid over the raspberries. Roughly mash the raspberries with a fork. Cool down completely in the refrigerator, at least one hour.

Freeze in the ice cream maker according to instructions.

sorbet rustique à la framboise et au limoncello (imprimer)

recette adaptée de mark bittman

(4 portions)

4 tasses de framboises fraîches

1/4 tasse de limoncello

1 tasse d’eau

1/2 tasse sucre

Dans un bol, verser le limoncello sur les framboises. Réserver.

Chauffer l’eau et le sucre jusqu’à ce que le sucre soit dissout.

Verser le liquide chaud sur les framboises. Écraser grossièrement les framboises à l’aide d’une fourchette. Refroidir complètement au réfrigérateur, au moins une heure.

Passer à la sorbetière selon les instructions du fabricant.