Vegan Poutine

I haven't had a lot of time to cook lately. I have been running after some papers for the wedding, and facing the chaotic Brazilian bureaucracy. I am getting married next month actually. It happened all quite fast. In my last post, I was saying how I thought my boyfriend's family did not approve of me because I am not Jewish. Well, his parents seemed to have gotten used to the idea now, and they approve of it, although they'd wish I were Jewish. His other relatives (like his paternal grandmother and uncle) say I look like a nice girl, but that it is too bad I am not Jewish. So this is where it stands. But we are getting married anyway.

I thought it would happen later during the year, but my boyfriend wants it to happen as soon as possible. Hurry much? Well, I think he is more worried about my status in Brazil and wants to regularize everything. It's true that it would be better for me. I would be more independent, financially and all.

Anyway.

I have been incredibly busy and have not had the time to cook, as I said. Still, on Wednesday night, I got home early and was able to cook a little. I made this vegan poutine.

For those of you who don't know what poutine is, it's a French Canadian speciality, fast food. It typically consists of French fries, curd cheese and beef gravy. My version was slightly healthier: roasted fries, home-made vegan cheese and home-made vegan gravy.

CHEESE

Ingredients

1/2 cup of raw cashews soaked over night

1 cup of hot water

1/4 cup of agar-agar powder

3 table spoons of tapioca powder

1 clove of garlic, crushed

Half a bell pepper (I chose a yellow one for the colour)

A pinch of sea salt

Juice from half a lemon

I wish I had nutritional yeast powder to add to the recipe, to give it a slightly cheesier flavour, but it's been impossible to find in Brazil. Also, instead of water, you could use some vegan milk of your choice (preferably unsweetened), but I ran out.

Preparation

Mix everything into the blender until smooth and transfer to a sauce pan. Heat everything on high heat until it simmers and lower the heat to medium low. Keep stirring. The mixture will get very thing, very fast. Keep mixing until it can form a ball. Transfer the mixture into a pot and let it cool to use later. 

I let mine sit in the fridge for about 2 hours before using it. I cut it into bite size pieces and added them to the fries.

General comment: It doesn't quite taste like cheese, so don't be fooled. I love cheese and it has been what is the most difficult for me to stay away from as a vegan, but this cashew cheese goes a long way. It's versatile. I can mix in more herbs, and truffle oil, or maybe a jalapeño pepper for some Mexican flavour The possibilities are endless.

FRIES

Ingredients

3 average size potatoes

Oil to coat the potatoes

Sea salt

Thyme

Preparation

Wash the potatoes well and leave the skin on for extra vitamins. Cut them into French fries size strips. Let them soak in water for about an hour, that is to lose some of their starch and get them crunchier. Drain their soaking water and rinse them. Put them in a dish and coat them with oil, season with salt and thyme. Cook in the oven for 45 minutes or until crispy.

GRAVY

Ingredients

1 table spoon of olive oil

1/3 cup of all-purpose flour (whole wheat could have worked too)

1 table spoon tomato paste

3 cups of vegetable broth

1 clove garlic

1/2 tea spoon of each, paprika, oregano, black pepper, hot sauce

Preparation

Over medium heat, make a roux with the olive oil and the flour. Add the tomato paste and garlic. Once well combined, add a little of the vegetable broth. Enough to dilute the roux a little. Whisk until smooth. Add the rest of the broth. Continue whisking until the sauce thickens. Add the spices.

Pour the gravy over the fries and the cheese. Garnish with fresh parsley.

Gosh, I have been craving for poutine for so long. It totally satisfied my need!

Heart Warming Hot Cocoa

Yesterday evening, I talked with my dad on the webcam and told him I was engaged. My dad is quite easy-going, so he did not say much about it. He just said: "That's a good news." He didn't ask questions, he just accepted the fact.

My boyfriend and I then went to have dinner at my in-laws. It's quite usual for us to have dinner there on Fridays, for the Sabbath. Anyway, my boyfriend told them he had news.

"What is it?" his father and mother asked.
"Myriam and I will get married," boyfriend said.

His parents went silent. His brother screamed his joy. The grandmas became teary, although not with joy. Well, they probably would have preferred it if I were Jewish. My boyfriend is not religious, so for him it does not matter. He actually prefers that I am not Jewish. But maybe his family were still hopeful he would "come back to the righteous path"?

I am not sure what the parents thought. I guess they like me, but liking me and wanting me as a wife for their son, are two different things. They said they were just shocked, and they told me "welcome to the family," but what else could they say? They wouldn't make a scene in front of me.

Anyway, I am not sure how I am feeling right now. I am not sure what I was expecting anyway. I am a little confused. I slept over it and, when I woke up this morning, I felt the need to have something sweet so I made myself a cup of cocoa.

HEART WARMING HOT COCOA

Ingredients

2 cups of oat milk
3 1/2 ounces vegan dark chocolate
1 tea spoon cinnamon powder
3 table spoons of maple syrup

I was going to put a dash of rum in it too, but I wasn't able to open the bottle... Anyway, it's probably better to avoid the alcohol in the morning, right? :)

Directions

I poured the milk in a saucepan and broke the chocolate into squares before adding it to the milk. I heated the milk on low heat and added the maple syrup and cinnamon powder. I stirred everything until the chocolate was all melted and it started to boil. I took it off from the heat and served it into cups. One for me, one for boyfriend.

Vegan Palak Paneer and Flat Bread

One of my favourite Indian meals is palak paneer. I just love how it feels to have pieces of cheese inside a thick and creamy spinach sauce. I didn't grow up eating Indian food, I was first exposed to it when I moved to Toronto to study; but I cannot remember when was the first time I tried palak paneer, in which context, or how I reacted to its taste. I find it frustrating. Food memories are among my favourite memories.

Well, I will associate palak paneer to a new memory from now on. I will always remember that this is what I made the day my boyfriend proposed to me. Yes, it seems I am engaged. He popped the question and I said yes. We will get married. We are not sure when yet though, and if it will happen in Brazil or in Canada, or both. We are not sure of anything. We will talk about it all on Sunday afternoon, he says. He wants to make a "plan". That's how he calls it. Right now, we only know we love each other enough to fully commit to each other.^^

Here is what I made last night for dinner: vegan palak paneer, rice (still finishing off the free rice my ex-roomate gave me), hashbrown potatoes and home made flat bread. The picture below was taken today for lunch, though. I ate the same thing again, because I wanted to take a better picture, with better lighting. I am still learning how to take pictures of food. Lighting makes a big difference.

VEGAN PALAK PANEER

Ingredients

1 large chopped onion
2 table spoons minced ginger
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 table spoons tomato paste
2 diced tomatoes
2 cups of frozen spinach
1 pack firm tofu cut into cubes
2 cups of thick oat milk (thick)
1 tea spoon sea salt
1 table spoon mustard seeds
1 table spoon coriander
3 cardamom pods
1 table spoon ground cumin
2 teaspoon curry powder
Chili flakes to taste

Directions

I started off by cooking the onions, garlic and salt in a big pot with a little bit of olive oil over medium low it. I then added the ginger and stirred occasionally. While it cooked, I crushed and mixed the spices in a mortar. Already, the smell of the spices was dreamy. I could not wait to try how it would taste at the end. I added the spices to the veggies and added the tomato paste. I cooked it until everything was cooked through then added the tomatoes, the spinach and the milk. I let it simmer for a while until the spinach were unfrozen and the sauce had thickened. I poured the mixture into the blender, whizzed it until smooth and returned the mixture to the pot. I added the tofu, stirred and let it simmer a little bit more for the tofu to get some taste.

I am not sure how palak paneer tastes in India, but I loved this one. The original recipe called for garam masala, but I couldn't find it in Sao Paulo. If I am not mistaken, I think garam masala means a mixture of spices? I vaguely remember learning that, maybe watching a cooking show some time? I would only need to know which kinds of spices to put in the mix, and how much; but the various recipes I found on the internet for garam masala differ and I am not verse enough in India cooking to use my gut.

Even for this recipe, I replaced some spices for others and changed the quantities to make it to my liking. I followed my nose. So you will have to excuse me for not being authentic. :)

FLAT BREAD

I remember in restaurant, palak paneer is always served with a sort of flat bread. I decided to make some, to dip into the spinach sauce. I crushed cardamom pods and took only the little seeds inside to put into the recipe to give it a subtle Indian flavour. The salt also didn't dissolve entirely when I cooked the breads, so at some point we had bites slightly saltier than others, but I liked it. My boyfriend too.

Ingredients

3 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour
1 pinch of sea salt
2 cardamom pods
1 table spoon baking powder
2/3 cup water

Directions

I mixed all the ingredients together and formed a well in the middle. I poured the water in the well and started incorporating it slowly until I got most of the flour and made a dough. I kneaded the dough until it was firm enough to be rolled. I floured the counter, separated the dough into five small parts and rolled them out into circles. I fried them one by one in a slightly oiled frying pan.

Vegan raw brownies

Again for yesterday's lunch, I made raw vegan brownies for my guests. It uses no processed sugar, just the natural sweetness of dates, which is better for you since it has vitamins and fibers than the usual white sugar.

RAW VEGAN BROWNIES

Ingredients

3/4 cup walnuts
3/4 cup coconut flakes
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 cup coconut milk
10 pitted dates
coconut flakes to garnish

Preparation

Put all the ingredients (minus the coconut flakes) into a mixer and mix until you get a smooth dough. Press the dough into a pan and sprinkle with coconut flakes. You should leave it in the fridge for over 2 hours. The longer the better.


I loved how naturally sweet it was, and the chocolaty and nutty flavour reminded me of the brownies. It also has the consistency of a chocolate mousse cake (my absolute favourite dessert). So I loved it!