Teese Challenge// Loaded Sweet Potato Fries.

So, the fine folks of Chicago Soy Dairy put out a little tweet, offering some free product to those of us who have food blogs. http://www.chicagosoydairy.com/. So awesome, thanks guys!

I received a tube of both Mozzarella and Nacho Cheese flavored Teese. Due to the fact that it has been so long since I have cooked with any sort of "cheese," my first attempt with Mozzarella Teese ended up being quite a failure. It was a delicious mush of a failure though, to say the least.

For my second attempt, I chose to mix two delicious dishes: Sweet Potato Fries and well-topped Nachos.

Loaded Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients:

2 Sweet Potatoes, skinned and sliced into small fries

1 Poblano Pepper, diced

1 Jalapeno Pepper,diced

1/2 medium Red Onion, diced

1 tsp Cumin

1/2 tsp cayenne

1 1/2 TBSP Olive Oil

1 TBSP Maple Syrup

5 Green Onions

1 can Black Beans, rinsed and drained

1 tube Nacho Cheese TEESE

Avocado

Sea Salt to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400'F.

2. Mix together ingredients up to maple syrup. Make sure all of the fries are coated well with both olive oil and the onion/peppers mixture.

3. Bake for 15 minutes in a casserole dish.

4. Remove from oven, mix up well.

5. Add ingredients through TEESE, mix a bit more.

6. Bake for 15 more minutes.

7. Remove from oven and garnish with some avocado slices.

8. Enjoy

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Snowed in Breakfast - Biscuts w/ Snausage Gravy

About 2 weeks ago, Philly got like 20 inches of snow and freaked out. With the city totally shut down we declared a a 2 day cooking and eating binge. In Sarah's cold apartment we made an array of fatty, creamy dishes to warm us up inside and out. We also had a chip buffet, but that's irrelevant to this dish.

The sausages in the gravy were made using Vegandad's sausage recipe. I always forget to leave the dough really wet before I steam them so it was a good experience for me to use the recipe on this one. We tossed those sausages in EVERYTHING we made, but this dish really stood out to me. I won't bore you with other recipes for the gravy and biscuits, because we pretty much just pulled the off the internet, nothing special. Fresh baked biscuits.... MMMMmmmm.

Also, I think that since people write vegan cheese like "Cheeze", we ought to be able to say "snausage" instead of "vegan sausages". It's saving you a couple of syllables dropping the vegan from the phrase even if the 'sn' sound is a bit tough to get used to. Who's with me? If I can get the support of a few good spellers on my side, that might add some legitimacy to my campaign. Every team needs a speller.

Asparagus and Lemongrass Risotto

Risotto has been on of those foods I was intimidated to make because, well, you spend over 1/2 an hour stirring, and food patience has never been my forte. I recommend making this with a friend to trade off stirring duty, or get a good book to read with your free hand to pass the time. I promise it'll be worth the wait - cream, tangy, rich and hearty. Not to mention asparagus season is right around the corner.

broth:
4 whole
cloves garlic
1 inch ginger, sliced
1 T dried lemongrass
3 c veg broth
3 c water
3 T soy sauce

risotto:
1/3 c sherry
1 lb asparagus
5 T peanut oil
1 c basil leaves
2 T fresh mint
6 large shallots
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 t red pepper flakes
1 1/2 c Arborio rice
1 t sugar
2 T lime juice


1.) Bruise the ginger and smash the garlic, place those and the lemongrass inside a loose leave tea bag. Put the teabag and all the broth ingredients in a large stock pot. Bring to a boil, simmer for 10 minutes. Turn heat to low and remove the teabag.
2.) Cut asparagus into 1/2 inch pieces, and saute in 4 T of oil until bright green and tender, about 5 minutes. add basil and mint, saute for 30 seconds and remove from heat, but in a separate bowl.
3.) Warm the sherry in a small pot over medium-low heat
4.) Add 1 T oil, saute the shallots and garlic until soft, about 7 minutes. stir in pepper flakes and rice, saute for about 8 more minutes until the rice sounds slightly toasted. Add the sherry and stir until absorbed.
5.) Now get ready to stir. Ladle 1/2 cup of broth at a time into the rice, stirring constantly until all the liquid is absorbed each time. When the broth is almost gone, stir the sugar and lime juice into the last of the broth before absorbing it into the rice. This will end up taking about 35 minutes total.
4.) Stir in the asparagus stems and cook for another 5 minutes. Garnish with chopped peanuts.

Alternative Medicine.(Cream of Broccoli Soup)

So after about a week with a pretty sore throat, I had two choices tonight. I could either say Phuqit and go see Castevet and go out in the 15'F weather, or I could make some soup. The fact that I am posting this blog means I chose the latter.

Ingredients:

32 oz. Frozen Broccoli

4 Cups Vegetable Stock

1/2 tsp powdered dried rosemary

1/2 tsp dried thyme

3 TBSP Olive Oil

2 Cloves Garlic

1 Small Yellow Onion

3 TBSP Flour

2 cups Unsweetened Non-Dairy Milk ( I used So Delicious Coconut Milk as it was on sale this week)

sea salt & black pepper

1. Put on a great Outkast record,(I chose Stankonia) and then Cook Broccoli until tender in stock.
2. With a slotted spoon, remove one cup of broccoli florets. Set aside
3. Peel/Dice garlic cloves, dice onion and Sauté on medium heat in 1 Tbsp olive oil until translucent. Add to pot
4. Place remaining broccoli, liquid, parsley, thyme, rosemary, and salt in the blender and puree until smooth. Set aside.
5. Heat the olive oil in the soup pan. Add the flour and cook on low for 5-8 minutes.
6. Stir in coconut milk, bring to a boil then simmer till thickened, stirring constantly.
7. Stir in broccoli puree and non-blended florets.
8. Heat gently & serve immediately

http://vegetarianstar.com/2008/11/30/andre-3000-benjamins-last-meal-on-earth-broccoli/

.Get into themed meals/listening sessions.

wow, we must all be getting skinny