"Oh I would never dream of assuming I know all
Hogwarts' secrets, Igor," said Dumbledore amicably. "Only this morning,
for instance, I took a wrong turning on the way to the bathroom and
found myself in a beautifully proportioned room I have never seen
before, containing a really rather magnificent collection of chamber
pots. When I went back to investigate more closely, I discovered that
the room had vanished. But I must keep an eye out for it. Possibly it is
only accessible at five-thirty in the morning. Or it may only appear at
the quarter moon - or when the seeker has an exceptionally full
bladder."
Harry snorted into his plate of goulash. Percy frowned, but Harry could have sworn Dumbledore had given him a very small wink.- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 23 (The Yule Ball)
So last night I made Portobello and White Bean Goulash from Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker by Robin Roberston, the recipe can be found here. It was good. I seem to have a love hate relationship with the slow cooker in theory it's amazing however in practice it tends to be meh. I've had a few recipes completely flop(bland) but then when I made the SAME recipe on the stove top or in the oven it's magic or at the very least WORLDS better. I wish I'd bought one of her other books to be honest the recipes I've made have all be okay-good, where as the ones I've made from the internet have been much better. I did say love hate so let me explain I LOVE using it to cook dry beans. That said it's a me thing this simply isn't the way I prefer to cook.
"Harry had just finished telling Ron what had happened when he'd left the grounds with Professor McGonagall. Ron had a piece of steak and kidney pie halfway to his mouth, but he'd forgotten all about it."- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Chapter 9 (The Midnight Duel)
So the seitan I
made a few posts back really shines here. I've never had steak and
kidney pie. I've never eaten kidney period, so it may not taste like the
real deal but I'm fine with that! This was SO good!
Filling
1 1/2 c. diced seitan about a 1/2 in or a touch
smaller.
2tbs vinegar (I use regular white vinegar)
.....Pasty crust is tricky.... you want to mix and play with it AS LITTLE as
possible as long as it looks like it will roll its perfect! Wrap in saran wrap
or wax paper and chill 30 min.
Add the seitan, Worcestershire sauce and broth to pan reduce
heat to simmer and let thicken, stirring often.
Roll out dough between two pieces of parchment paper about
to line the bottom of your pie pan. I used a small round Pyrex casserole
dish that holds just shy of the brim 1 quart of water. When the filling
is thick gravy (think pot pie thick) add to the pie dish all of my filling fit
but pour slowly in case you have more than your pie dish will hold you don't
want it boiling over.
Roll
out a smaller piece of dough to cover the pie seal the edges, don;t forget to make a
vent on top you can simple poke the top with a knife a few times or get fancy it's up to you. Brush with melted earth balance (optional)
and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 35-40 min or until nice and
golden. Serve with salad or green veggies this isn't a healthy dish to be sure, but we will make this again!!
"If you have the pea soup, make sure you eat it before it eats you."
—Dre Head warning in the film Prisoner of Azkaban.
I'm not sure where the time is going I can't believe September and mofo are nearly over. Which is pretty sad I've really enjoyed this, and didn't make nearly as regular or as many posts as I wished but That's life and I have a plan in store for next year that will hopefully work a bit better. I do plan to keep blogging after mofo though Harry Potter will take a back seat as I have some lifestyle and wellness changes planned for the month of October.
I'm not sharing a recipe for the pea soup it was "meh" totally edible but nothing special. It needs work. Our weather is AMAZING I'm talking in the 80s! Off to enjoy it a recipe post later tonight.
"By seven o'clock, the two tables were groaning under dishes and
dishes of Mrs. Weasley's excellent cooking, and the nine Weasleys,
Harry, and Hermione were settling themselves down to eat beneath a
clear, deep-blue sky. To somebody who had been living on meals of
increasingly stale cake all summer, this was paradise, and at first,
Harry listened rather than talked as he helped himself to chicken and
ham pie, boiled potatoes, and salad." -Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Chapter Five
" But when were they going to see him? Nobody seemed too bothered with a
precise date. Hermione had scribbled I expect we'll be seeing you quite
soon inside his birthday card, but how soon was soon? As far as Harry
could tell from the vague hints in their letters, Hermione and Ron were
in the same place, presumably at Ron's parents' house. He could hardly
bear to think of the pair of them having fun at The Burrow when he was
stuck in Privet Drive. In fact, he was so angry with them he had thrown
away, unopened, the two boxes of Honeydukes chocolates they'd sent him
for his birthday. He'd regretted it later, after the wilted salad Aunt
Petunia had provided for dinner that night."- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Chapter One
Thankfully this time if year there is still plenty from the garden, and even better I don't have to deal with the pesky garden gnomes. Super quick post it's a beautiful day and winter will be here much sooner than I'm ready for.Yes I realize it was just the autumn equinox however in northern upper Michigan by Halloween it's about "winter" as far as donning parkas, knit hats scarves and gloves anytime you venture outdoors but today is 70 and SUNNY and there are adventures to be had! This is our go too "meal salad"
*One head of romaine lettuce cut up. You could use any green you like.
* One cucumber sliced, peeled if older/not organic.
* 1-2 roasted beets quartered and sliced depending on size and number of people eating.
* 1 can dark red kidney beans drained and rinsed well.
* 3Tbsp hemp hearts
* liberal dousing of balsamic vinegar
* Kalamata olives sliced
* Cauliflower
~Optional but great~
* Grated carrot
* Boiled potato(cold/ room temp)
* pea sprouts
* Sugar snap peas
* Marinated and baked tofu
*green onions or chives
*finely cut cabbage
Chop, grate, and slice to preferred size. Throw everything in the bowl but keep the beets on top, go to town shaking on the balsamic mix and enjoy!!
'Fred - George - NO, JUST CARRY THEM!' Mrs Weasley shrieked.
Harry, Sirius and Mundungus looked round and, within a split
second, they had dived away from the table. Fred and George had
bewitched a large cauldron of stew, an iron flagon of Butterbeer and a
heavy wooden breadboard, complete with knife, to hurtle through the air
towards them. The stew skidded the length of the table and came to a
halt just before the end, leaving a long black burn on the wooden
surface; the flagon of Butterbeer fell with a crash, spilling its
contents everywhere; the bread knife slipped off the board and landed,
point down and quivering ominously, exactly where Sirius's right hand
had been seconds before.
'FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE!' screamed Mrs Weasley. THERE WAS NO NEED -
I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS - JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE ALLOWED TO USE MAGIC NOW,
YOU DON'T HAVE TO WHIP YOUR WANDS OUT FOR EVERY TINY LITTLE THING!'
'We were just trying to save a bit of time!' said Fred,
hurrying forward to wrench the bread knife out of the table. 'Sorry,
Sirius, mate - didn't mean to - '
Harry and Sirius were both laughing; Mundungus, who had toppled
backwards off his chair, was swearing as he got to his feet;
Crookshanks had given an angry hiss and shot off under the dresser, from
where his large yellow eyes glowed in the darkness.- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Chapter 5
Note the buttery spread? This was after I removed half to smear on another slice. My 9 year old was "upset" I hadn't left well enough alone.It looked like cake frosting.
Okay so remember I made seitan for the first time? Well this was part of what else I was using it for, we have one more recipe in the next few days. Truth be told I won't be using Seitan in this again however it was good but my father and I were the only ones who didn't pick the seitan bits out as they ate. So MORE mushrooms in the future.
Molly's Irish Stew
Ingredients;
Seitan cut into 1 inch pieces or double the button mushrooms.
3 teaspoons of salt (more to taste)
2Tbsp olive oil reduce to just a small amount if using more mushrooms rather than seitan just to brown garlic
8oz Button mushrooms whole or halved/quartered depending on size.
2 portabella caps stem and all
6 cups of water and 4 tsp Better Than Bouillon Vegetarian No Beef Base
6 large garlic cloves, minced
1 1/4 cup of extra stout (make sure it's vegan) Beer
6 cups of potatoes cut into 1/2-1 inch pieces, I used red so cut them on the larger size.
1 1/2 cup chopped onions
2 1/2 cups 1/2-inch pieces of parsnip and carrot use all carrot if you wish peel if not organic
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 Tbsp dry parsley
Method
1 Heat
the olive oil in a large thick-bottomed pot over
medium-high heat. In batches add seitan and "brown" on all sides, I'm not 100% sure this is necessary however it's what I used to do and certainly didn't hurt.
4 Add everything to the stew pot add pepper, salt, parsley. Simmer uncovered until everything is tender about 40 minutes. Remove bay leaves
On to the Soda bread!
Ingredients;
3 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
4 Tbsp earth balance at room temperature
1 1/2 cups milk
2Tbsp vinegar
Method
1. Preheat oven to 450°F. In a small bowl mix together milk and vinegar, set aside. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda.
2. Use your fingers to work butter into flour mix until resembles course meal.
3. Make a well in the center and pour in "buttermilk" the flour mix. Using wooden spoon gently fold in until it's just mixed. If it's too dry add more buttermilk, and if too wet more flour but do NOT over work, or it will be tough this is best with a white flour, I used wheat this last time and it was far more dense and maybe not in a good way at least use half white. Knead a few times and form into a round loaf.
4. Grease a cast iron pan/pot and take a knife cut a X into the top of the loaf about 1-1 1/2 inch deep, place loaf into the prepared pan and bake for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 400 for another 30 minutes if the top is getting to brown is getting place a piece of foil over the top.
In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - Chapter 4 (The Keeper of the Keys) Rubeus Hagrid baked a large, sticky chocolate cake with "Happy Birthday Harry" written in icing for Harry's eleventh birthday.
While making it I was sure I was doing it wrong it looked SO bad. She notes that it will so I kept going. However having never had, or made a pudding cake before I was skeptical to say the very least.
Oh no! I thought.
The recipe is on line the two I found ( I didn't look all that hard sorry.) didn't appear to have permission to share it so I am not linking them for you, and in all honestly if you don't own this book you should. Even many of my non vegan friends love her recipes. That said Google away and enjoy it's amazing!
Does this look right??
Yummmmm!
Hurry up and make yourself some you won't regret it! Unless you hate gooey fudgy chocolate magic. This cake stole carrot cakes rank in my oldest daughters heart, if you knew her you would know what that means for nine years that is the ONLY type of cake she wanted for her birthday cake. There is a long way before April but she swears this is what she wants incorrect spelling and all. Oh and this is gluten free (oat flour) provided the rest of your ingredients are also. ENJOY!
They climbed the steps into the entrance hall and went into the Great Hall for lunch.
"
Must be nice, " Ron said abruptly, when they had sat down and started
serving themselves roast beef and Yorkshire puddings. "To have so much
money you don't otice if a pocketful of galleons goes missing."
"Listen, I had other stuff on my mind that night!" said Harry impatiently. "We all did, remember?"
"
I didn't know leprechaun gold vanishes, " Ron muttered. " I thought I
was paying you back. You shouldn't've given me that Chudley Cannon hat
for Christmas."- Goblet of Fire Chapter 28
*** A thousand live bats fluttered from the walls and ceiling while a thousand more swooped over the tables in low black clouds, making the candles in the pumpkins stutter. The Feast appeared suddenly on the golden plates, as it had at the start-of-term banquet.
Harry was just helping himself to a baked potato when professor Quirrell came sprinting into the hall, his turban askew and terror on his face. Everyone stared as he reached Professor Dumbledore's chair slumped against the table, and gasped, "Troll -- in the dungeons--thought you ought to know." He then sank to the floor in a dead faint. - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Chapter 10
There was a side salad also not pictured,
My first experience making a seitan roast. The family wasn't sold on this one, in fact there was a request to not have this again. O.o I thought it was good and to the best of my knowledge it turned out exactly as it should have. I used the recipe from Vegan Zombie minus the rosemary and doubled it because I had plans for two future posts that wouldn't work with rosemary. When I make this again I'll use rosemary and make Gyros.
The potatoes were super simple and very tasty, all I did was coat them with oil and them cut as you see above. Then I sprinkled them with sea salt and baked them the last hour with the seitan. Of the four the two larger potatoes needed to go back into the oven for another 15 minutes. Which worked out just fine while I made the gravy and waited for the seitan to rest. All the gravy was, was a bit of the cooking broth some flour and parsley cooked until thickened. I really enjoyed this meal!
"Harry's
mouth fell open. The dishes in front of him were now piled with food.
He had never seen so many things he liked to eat on one table: roast
beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and
steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, chips, Yorkshire pudding, peas,
carrots, gravy, ketchup, and, for some strange reason, peppermint
humbugs."-Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone.
Dice up as many potatoes as you need we did 6 medium. Try to cut them the same size it will help Down the road,Soak in very cold or ice water for 30 min. Preheat oven to 400f drain and season as you wish I used 1 tsp each of garlic powder, onion powder, and sweet Hungarian paprika. 1/2 tsp season salt and celery salt, 1/4 tsp cayenne and one tbsp parsley.
If you want toss with oil or line a sheet with parchment paper. Bake 15 min and flip. Keep baking and flipping at 10-15 min intervals until cooked through and crisp. mine took just under 40 min.
by Robin Roberston, the recipe can be found here. It was good. I seem to have a love hate relationship with the slow cooker in theory it's amazing however in practice it tends to be meh. I've had a few recipes completely flop(bland) but then when I made the SAME recipe on the stove top or in the oven it's magic or at the very least WORLDS better. I wish I'd bought one of her other books to be honest the recipes I've made have all be okay-good, where as the ones I've made from the internet have been much better. I did say love hate so let me explain I LOVE using it to cook dry beans. That said it's a me thing this simply isn't the way I prefer to cook. 
.JPG)
