Happy New Year (and late Festivus dinner photos)

      
           Seitan "Ham" with Onion & Garlic Chutney                                              Roasted Broccoli & Cauliflower

      
              Balsamic Glazed Portobello Mushrooms                                                               Freshly Baked Bread

Happy New Year! 2009 sucked on so many levels for a lot of people so I am really hoping that 2010 will be better for everyone.

Now on to the food. The Mr. and I had a couple friends over for a Festivus dinner on the 26th. I really didn't manage to get enough photos and the seitan was taken the next day. It's hard to take photos when you've got guests waiting!

Here was the full menu:

• seitan "ham" with a pineapple chipotle glaze
• roasted cauliflower & broccoli
• mashed potatoes (not shown)
  
• mushroom gravy (not shown)
  
• green bean casserole (not shown)
  
• thyme scented onion and roasted garlic chutney
  
• balsamic glazed portobello mushrooms
  
• freshly baked bread
  

The seitan "ham" was modified from Bryanna's recipe and the glaze was modified from a Recipezaar recipe (warning, the original recipe is NOT vegan). Aside from those two, everything was my own recipe/concoction. The glaze was amazing with the "ham" and the onion chutney was a perfect accompaniment.

I thought everything turned out well and I hope our friends enjoyed the meal as much as I enjoyed cooking it! I think I'm done with holiday menus until Easter. Next dinner I think I'll do a cuisine that is generally not vegan friendly like Thai or Vietnamese or Korean.

In the meantime, Happy New Year!

P.S. If you're not already vegan, go vegan and stay vegan!

Pasta Pilaf

Is "Pasta Pilaf" even a correct term? Eh, I don't know and I don't care. :p

Anyway, I had a bunch of bits and pieces of produce that I needed to use up. I had originally planned on throwing them into an Aglio e Olio (olive oil, garlic, red pepper flakes) spaghetti dish but I kind of wanted something a little different.

I had a box of baby shells that I was going to use for something else but it was perfect for a pilaf-type dish because of its small size. I love making pilaf with rice, couscous or orzo (and sometimes wheat noodles for a "saucy" noodle side dish) and thought that the baby shells would work well in this too.

I sauteed some onion, garlic, zucchini (which you can't really see), carrots and peas in olive oil. Then I added vegetable broth, herbs/spices, splash of Bragg's, chickpeas and threw in the shells until done with almost all the liquid absorbed. I topped it off with the last of our CSA tomatoes and parsley. Surprisingly, I eyeballed the broth and it was the perfect amount for the pasta. You want a little liquid left so that the pasta isn't totally dry. I'm not sure what the proper ratio is but maybe 1:2 pasta to liquid ratio? Something to look up online.

Anyway, it was super fast and easy to put together (about 20 minutes) and only one pot to wash. Really simple but really tasty. Give it a try!

Roasted Okra and Jalapeño & Vegetable Gratin

Oven roasted okra and jalapeño & vegetable gratin.

The okra was tossed with olive oil, salt & pepper and garlic powder and oven roasted until tender. The gratin had jalapeño peppers, zucchini, tomatoes, onions, Teese, Tofutti better than cream cheese and panko breadcrumbs. There's also some mushroom pizza in the background (top left) that was leftover from yesterday.

I used about 10-15 peppers and didn't wear gloves when cutting/handling them. My hands were burning for a few hours. Tomato sauce (jarred) was the only thing that seemed to get them to stop burning.

Mental note: wear gloves when handling hot peppers or don't bother with them at all.

ETA: And pronounce it right, people! :D (thanks Vincent for the link)

ETA Again: Do try oven roasted okra. Not as good (IMHO) as breaded and deep fried okra, but it's a lot easier and still super tasty.