Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Been cookin' but not writin'

I've continued to cook my way through Isa Does It, although I have been remiss in writing about it.  And sometimes in taking pictures of it.

First up, Bhindi Masala:

Okra and black eyed peas!  And, I found the recipe to be...eh.  I topped with with plain yogurt, which was a mistake.  Is there a such thing as unsweetened plain yogurt?  It added a sweetness to the dish that I definitely did not care for.  I should have made a batch of sour cream and it would have been much better.  It did make for nice, filling leftovers but honestly I probably won't make this again.

Next up, Banana Berry Scones:

Fantastic!

Another Isa recipe, but this time from Vegan Brunch.  Lemon Poppyseed Muffins:


Again, wonderful.  Recipe here.

And, last but not least from Isa, is Pesto Cauliflower Pasta with Breaded Tofu:

Ah, pesto, how I love thee.  I did make one modification to this recipe, in that I used the pesto I had in the freezer rather than the one used from the book in this recipe.  But it still counts, as it's my fave pesto recipe off all time, and it just happens to be Isa's recipe from Vegan with a Vengeance.  Plus it made the recipe come together much faster.  The breaded tofu, while not perfect in appearance, was easy and not nearly as messy as I thought it would be.  Really quite wonderful.  It's only 10:20 in the morning and I'm already craving it for lunch.

And, just for fun, a non-Isa creation just to shake things up!  Chai  Berry Muffins from Bake and Destroy!

Obviously I'm on a muffin/breakfast pastry streak.  But really, how can you go wrong?  These muffins are most tasty, although not quite as spicy as I anticipated.  This could be due to the fact that I have a cold and my taste buds are muted.  And, word to the wise, if you make these, use a frozen berry mix that does NOT include strawberries.  The strawberry will get all mushy and will fall out of the muffin, causing a huge crater in it.  No one wants that.  So learn from my trial and error and use smaller berries.  Otherwise, yeah, I'll be making these babies again.  Recipe here.

I have made a few more recipes that I didn't get in pictures for one reason or another.  I've made the Roasty Soba Bowl with Miso-Tahini Dressing (wonderful), the Spinach and Black Bean Burrito Bowl (good, not great), Roasted Red Pepper Mac and Cheese (delish and tastes pizza-y, recipe and video here) and Nacho Night (duh, of course it was good).  My fascination with Isa Does It continues, although it is starting to slow.  Hard to believe, I know.  Now is when I start going back and making recipes for the 2nd time.

Good times in the kitchen.

Saturday, January 4, 2014

Cozy Hummus Bowl

Another winner from Isa Does It!


The marinated and baked tofu is fantastic and will have many other applications.  And the hummus, oh the hummus!  Maybe it was the kalamata olives in it, but I've not had much success in making my own hummus and was pleasantly surprised with this recipe.  Will be making this again SOON.