January 26, 2010: Savoury Baklava Together With Orange-Olive Salad

Savoury baklava. The persuasion of it was irresistible to me, fifty-fifty to a greater extent than thus when I read an cistron listing that included sun-dried tomatoes, almonds, fetta, dates as well as cinnamon. But I needed to brand a hearty dinner that would extend to a couplet of leftover lunches, thus I decided to sub out the rich, salty fetta for theatre tofu. Then I figured, why non drive veganising the entire thing? I've been wondering how filo fares when it's brushed amongst stone oil instead of butter.

The answer is that it fares rather good indeed. I intend the flavour's a piffling different, but no less delicious. I infused the tofu amongst a piffling extra flavour past times stirring through a piffling tabular array salt as well as unopen to of the sun-dried tomatoes' marinating stone oil as well as didn't lady friend the cheese i bit. The i cistron that was surprisingly conspicuous, though, was the almonds. Perhaps my chopping was a piffling also rough, but they retained much of their squelch as well as didn't truly blend inwards amongst the residue of the filling. I suppose I could chop or fifty-fifty grind those almonds a piffling to a greater extent than finely inwards time to come but truly they got me to thinking close pino nuts equally a potential replacement. Then I started thinking close preserved lemons instead of the dates, or fifty-fifty dried apricots? Other herbs, other bakeable vegetables... this recipe could serve equally a basic outline for dozens of dissimilar pies (one of them, most obviously, existence spanakopita).

this recipe on Gourmet Worrier, which itself is adapted from The Modern Vegetarian past times Maria Elia)

2 ruby onion, finely sliced into circles
3 cloves garlic, minced
100mL olive oil
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon sugar
200g sun-dried tomatoes, unopen to liquid reserved
1/3 loving cup water
1/2 loving cup fresh dill, finely chopped
300g theatre tofu
salt, to taste
250g almonds, roughly chopped
10 dates, pitted as well as finely chopped
150g filo pastry
agave nectar

Over depression heat, gently laid upwardly the onions as well as garlic inwards 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add the cinnamon as well as saccharide as well as piece of job on to cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions a caramelised (I gave them at to the lowest degree 10 minutes). Add the sun-dried tomatoes, H2O as well as dill, as well as laid upwardly for a farther 5 minutes or so, until most of the liquid has evaporated or been absorbed.

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Crumble the tofu into a bowl, sprinkle it amongst a few tablespoons of the sun-dried tomatoes' marinating liquid as well as flavor it amongst salt.

Brush a large rectangular baking dish amongst unopen to of the remaining olive oil, as well as laid out the filo pastry on a damp teatowel to preclude it from drying out. Layer close 5 pastry sheets inwards the bottom of the baking dish, brushing a piffling olive stone oil betwixt each layer.

Spread one-half the tomato-onion mixture over the pastry, as well as thus sprinkle over one-half the almonds, one-half the dates as well as one-half of the tofu. Repeat amongst 5 to a greater extent than filo pastry layers, the remaining tomato-onion mixture, almonds, dates as well as tofu. Top amongst to a greater extent than oil-brushed pastry as well as a calorie-free splash of water.

Bake the baklava for 30-40 minutes, until the elevation is golden brown. Allow it to cool slightly earlier drizzling it lightly amongst agave nectar, slicing as well as serving.

Orange-olive salad

1/2 loving cup olive oil
1 tablespoon white vino or champagne vinegar
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon castor sugar
100g rocket
1 bunch watercress
1 pocket-size caput of witlof
3 large oranges, peeled as well as sliced into segments
1 avocado, sliced into chunks
1/4 loving cup kalamata olives
1/4 loving cup almonds, roughly chopped

In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegars as well as sugar. Add the remaining ingredients as well as gently toss them through the dressing.

February 21, 2010: Lemon Slice, Twice

the master salad recipe ticked both boxes correct away. Feb brought a lemon slice, alongside all the wheat flour in addition to egg-and-milk custard you'd expect. Nevertheless, I had a few substitutions inwards require heed in addition to planned to bake half-batches of the master in addition to tinkered-with recipes on the same afternoon.

orange-Szechuan pepper icecream I late made, I got to thinking nearly arrowroot. (Why I didn't but cry upwardly nearly No Egg powder, I'm non sure.) I but threw it into the vegan 'custard' yesteryear the tablespoonful in addition to hoped for the best. This fourth dimension it was the distinctly golden caramel-looking layer, upwardly against a real eggy-looking classic custard.

I plonked them into the oven in addition to waited. And waited in addition to waited. In fact, I made 2 careless mistakes that meant these slices were sitting inwards a 100°C oven for nearly one-half an hr earlier I got them to the advised temperature. After they'd had their plough in addition to more, I pulled them both out of the oven - the master recipe was looking eggy but good set. By contrast, much of the alterna-custard was all the same liquid. I was a piddling disappointed, but non devastated. I figured this form of baking mis-step would survive inevitable on the route to gobble-worthy gluten-free baked goods.

that pie I made final year.

Traditional lemon slice
(from Robyn's 2010 recipe calendar)

base
125 g butter, softened
1/4 loving cup castor sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/3 cups plainly flour

filling
4 eggs
1 loving cup castor sugar
2 tablespoons plainly flour
1/2 loving cup milk
grated rind in addition to juice of 2 lemons

Preheat the oven to 180°C in addition to business the base of operations in addition to sides of a modest baking tray alongside newspaper (I would purpose something standard nearly 20cm square).

Prepare the base of operations yesteryear creaming together the butter, saccharide in addition to vanilla - if your butter is well-softened you'll survive able to produce this yesteryear mitt alongside a fork. Sift over the flour in addition to mix it inwards well. Transfer the mixture to the baking tray, using the dorsum of a spoon to spread it out across the base of operations in addition to ideally too an inch upwardly the sides. Bake the base of operations for nearly 10 minutes or until it begins to brown. Set the base of operations aside to cool.

Whisk together all of the filling ingredients until good combined in addition to pour them over the base. Bake the acre for a farther 20-25 minutes or until but set. Allow the acre to cool earlier slicing in addition to serving.

Vegan in addition to gluten-free lemon slice

base
125g Nuttelex
1/4 loving cup castor sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/3 cups gluten-free plainly flour

filling
2 tablespoons arrowroot
1 loving cup castor sugar
1 tablespoon gluten-free plainly flour
1/2 loving cup vegan gluten-free milk
zest in addition to juice of 2 lemons

Preheat the oven to 180°C in addition to business the base of operations in addition to sides of a modest baking tray alongside newspaper (I would purpose something standard nearly 20cm square).

Prepare the base of operations yesteryear beating together the Nuttelex, saccharide in addition to vanilla alongside a fork. Sift over the flour in addition to mix it inwards well. Transfer the mixture to the baking tray, using the dorsum of a spoon to spread it out across the base of operations in addition to ideally too an inch upwardly the sides. Bake the base of operations for nearly 10 minutes or until it but begins to dry out out. Set the base of operations aside to cool.

Whisk together all of the filling ingredients until good combined in addition to pour them over the base. Bake the acre for a farther 20-25 minutes. Don't worry if it's all the same liquidy! It volition laid equally it cools. Once the acre is cool in addition to set, acre in addition to serve.

March 13, 2010: Mushroom & Brie Croissants

March's calendar recipe of creamy brie too mushroom croissants looked devastatingly rich. Not solely does it demand the creamy brie too buttery croissants of the title, but the mushrooms are besides cooked inwards butter too cream! I was pleasantly surprised to honour that, i time cooked, the mushrooms weren't at all gluggy - much of the wet had evaporated off too the white vino gave them a terrific acidity that counteracted all the fat. In fact, the mushrooms, brie too croissants worked together really well. (I was initially sceptical - but proven wrong! - almost the brie/croissant combo.) It all withal calls for a whopping garden salad on the side too no dessert to follow, but it's worth that latter sacrifice.

Mushroom too brie croissants

20g butter
1 clove garlic
200g Swiss dark-brown mushrooms, sliced
100mL white wine
1/3 loving cup cream
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
2 croissants
100g brie, sliced

Melt the butter inwards a frypan over medium heat. Add the garlic too mushrooms, sautéing them until soft (3-5 minutes). Add the vino too simmer for a distich of minutes or until the vino has evaporated. Stir through the cream too thyme leaves too simmer the mushroom mixture for 3-4 to a greater extent than minutes, until thickened. (I genuinely constitute that most of the wet evaporated.)

Slice the croissants inwards one-half too house them cutting side upwards on a tray. Toast them nether a grill for merely a infinitesimal or so. When they're ready, laid the tops aside. Arrange the mushrooms too hence the cheese slices on the croissant bases too provide them to the grill for a distich of minutes, merely until the cheese melts. Pop the croissant tops on too serve.

March 14, 2010: Cheezy Mushroom Croissants

January was a cinch, February was to a greater extent than success than failure, in addition to March simply almost defeated me earlier I'd fifty-fifty begun. Croissants - footling to a greater extent than than butter in addition to flour - are certainly the antithesis of a vegan, gluten-free diet. I ditched my gluten-free aspirations in addition to focused on a vegan rendition. Here's what I came upwardly with:

Croissants: Croissants are simply puff pastry, right? So why non role Borg's splendid vegan puff pastry for the job? I watched Emmanuel Mollois curl croissants on the master copy recipe, simply replacing the butter amongst Nuttelex in addition to omitting the cream altogether. They were yet delicious.

Brie: I wasn't inwards the mood for elaborate vegan cheese-making, in addition to instead idea that Vegan Brunch's cheesy sauce powerfulness hold out a overnice choice (even if it doesn't resemble brie inwards the least). It's a fab sauce, but ultimately I didn't actually intend it matched the mushrooms.

Not a repast worth repeating. Still, at that topographic point were plenty pleasant (if mis-matched) elements hither to contently swallow my agency through what I'd cooked. And I regard experiments similar this i are doing me in addition to my cooking skillz to a greater extent than practiced than harm.

____________

Mandee's been going mad for vegan, gluten-free French nutrient lately - banking concern check out her culinary creations here (including croissants!) in addition to here.