schnitzel burger + veganMoFo

Vegan MoFo 2014! Yeah! At least for the first week, then it'll be more like..."what to do I post now?!?"

This will be my FIFTH year participating (attempting to participate?) in what started as Isa's and PPK's answer to NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), which was itself a challenge to folks to write as much as they could in the span of a month. VeganMoFo challenges us to blog (and therefore, write) about vegan food (adding cooking to writing) for a month.

I think a lot of us forget that the challenge in the first place is to cook and write and not worry about themes or perfection or precision. We tend to get so excited about MoFo that we also stress the hell out.

Word of advice to those new to MoFo-ing - when you hit a snag in your blogging, just remember that you actually did, indeed, consume a meal that particular day and can blog about that particular meal or experience.

As many MoFo-ers, I, too have a theme for MoFo 2014 - burgers. This month I plan on making tons! (20) of vegan burgers and blogging about them. Join me, won't you?

I'll be out and about visiting as many MoFoErs as I can, since I am not only participating in the event but also participating as a Round Up writer. I will be writing the Round Up of MoFo 2014 on Sundays - can't wait to actually have an excuse to HAVE to peruse all the wonderful blogs out there!

Back to my blog and post...

My first MoFo offering in my burger-themed extravaganza is .....

Schnitzel Burger. You saw up there, didn't you? There goes the surprise.

Why choose this burger as my FIRST? Because I'm Hungarian and have served thousands of Wiener Schnitzels (unfortunately) to customers in Florida in my parents' restaurants. Back then the fried protein was an animal, but making a few compassionate alterations, the Schnitzel becomes a vegan delight.

This sandwich is made using a simple seitan recipe I love (my own!) and served over pretzel buns. It turns out that vegan pretzel buns are quite hard to find and I discovered that making my own was as close as a recipe... from Everyday Vegan Eats.

That happens to be my new cookbook which has a recipe for soft pretzels. With a few adjustments to the recipe (such as forming the dough into a bun), the pretzel bun became an easy reality. In case you need an easy, simple and great recipe for seitan, the on I use is in Everyday Vegan Eats (EVE, page 40).

After I battered and fried the seitan, and served it over the homemade pretzel buns with horseradish sauce, I also made my German Potato Salad (EVE, page 96) - such a perfect accompaniment to a schnitzel.

If you happen to be one of the very few folks who do not have Everyday Vegan Eats, you have a few days to enter to win it from Vegan Richa, who is giving away a copy to one lucky winner. If you haven't entered, yet, just look at the German Potato Salad and Soft Pretzels above and don't delay.

And as a side note, I am choosing the winner of Vegan Chocolate: Unapologetically Luscious and Decadent Dairy Free Desserts. There is still a scant few hours to enter to win this incredible cookbook by Fran Costigan.

Who wants the recipe for this super incredible burger?

SCHNITZEL BURGER PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

Schnitzel Burgers with Dill-Horseradish Sauce

Serves 4

3 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise

3 tablespoons vegetables broth

Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

½ cup dry bread crumbs

½ teaspoon paprika

¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour

4 seitan cutlets, gently squeezed of excess moisture

Neutral oil for frying

4 pretzel buns or other soft bun, toasted

Horseradish Sauce, recipe below

4 thin slices red onion

½ cup arugula

1. Combine the mayo and broth in a shallow pan. Season with salt and black pepper. Combine the bread crumbs and paprika in a separate shallow pan. Season with salt and black pepper. Add the flour to a separate shallow pan and season with salt and black pepper.

2. Heat ¼-inch oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add 2 popcorn kernels. When the popcorn pops, the oil is at the correct temperature.

3. Dredge each seitan cutlet first in the mayo mixture, then in the flour and finally in the breadcrumbs, but do not press on the breadcrumbs. This will keep the crust crisp.

4. Cook the cutlets in the hot oil until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Do not crowd the skillet; cook the cutlets in batches. Drain the cutlets on paper towels.

5. Make the sandwiches by spreading the toasted buns with Horseradish Sauce, add a slice of onion and some arugula. Add a fried cutlet and the top bun. Serve with German Potato Salad.

Horseradish Sauce

6 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise

2 tablespoons prepared horseradish

2 tablespoons minced fresh dill

¼ teaspoon natural sugar

Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

1. Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and season with salt and black pepper. The sauce will keep in the refrigerator, covered, for up to a week.

© 2014 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

I am linking to these recipe parties: Healthy Vegan Fridays, What I Ate Wednesday and Virtual Vegan Linky Potluck. 

 

     

the jazzy vegetarian + scampi pasta

Last week I had the most amazing time with Laura Theodore on her radio show The Jazzy Vegetarian.

Laura is not only the author of the party-friendly, family-friendly vegan cookbook, Jazzy Vegetarian Classics, but she also hosts her own television vegan cooking show on PBS and Create Channel. I know! How cool! Check for listing, channels and times of her TV show HERE.

Laura is such a talented host, that she put me right at ease on my first live interview, even though I was scared to pieces and nervous as all get out! We shared some great tips for vegan cooking and just generally had such a fun time.

I’m pretty sure I jabbered too much and too long, but that’s nothing new to those who know me.

A few things I shared on the show were:

Frontier Co-op, an online retailer of some great vegan-friendly and animal-friendly products, such as seaweed, nutritional yeast, cleaning and hygiene products, spices and herbs and tons of other stuff.

If you become a buying club member on the Frontier Co-op Wholesalers, for a ten dollar membership fee, you can have anything over $250 delivered free of charge. The idea is to get others involved to reach the minimum, but I have found that at least once a year (sometimes twice or thrice) I have no problem attaining the $250 minimum all by my lonesome self.  

Laura also asked about egg replacers on the show and I shared a few ideas, but just recently No Meat Athlete posted a wonderful visual representation.

Lastly, I shared an easy recipe from Everyday Vegan Eats on The Jazzy Vegetarian, and it happens to be the cover recipe, which is a dish that can be ready in 15 minutes, Scampi Pasta with Asparagus and Walnuts. It has mild garlic flavor, a mild sea flavor, thanks to dulse seaweed, and the richness is tamed by fresh lemon juice. Really a delicious meal!

SCAMPI PASTA WITH ASPARAGUS AND WALNUTS PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

Scampi Pasta with Asparagus and Walnuts

Serves 4

www.ZsusVeganPantry.com

Scampi, in the restaurant world, is a dish of shrimp sautéed in garlic butter and tossed with parsley and fresh lemon juice. In this version, dulse stands in for the flavor of seafood and the garlic-lemon sauce is tossed with thin pasta. This is a very fast meal, so get your pot of water boiling first.

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces capellini or angel hair pasta or gluten-free pasta
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped raw walnuts
• 1/4 cup dulse seaweed flakes
• 1/4 cup packed finely chopped parsley
• 1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

Preparation:

1. Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water. Cool the pasta under running cold water, drain, and set aside.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and walnuts. Reduce the heat to low. Cook, stirring, until the garlic is golden, about 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Increase the heat to medium. Add the dulse, parsley, and asparagus. Cook, stirring, until the asparagus is partially cooked, about 3 minutes.
4. Stir in 1/2 cup of the reserved pasta cooking water and continue to cook until the asparagus is crisp-tender, another 2 minutes.
5. Stir in 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, the reserved pasta, and the other 1/2 cup of reserved pasta cooking water. Cook, stirring, until the pasta is heated through and the sauce has thickened.
6. Season to taste with salt, plenty of black pepper, and the rest of the lemon juice, if needed. Serve hot.

CHEF’S TIP: If you have a wok, this is a great place to use it. Garlic or walnut pieces can be pushed up the side of the wok, out of higher heat, if any of them brown faster than the others. When the sauce is ready to be tossed with the pasta, you’ll have plenty of room to combine them.

From Everyday Vegan Eats by Zsu Dever. ©2014 Zsu Dever. Used by permission from Vegan Heritage Press.

If you haven’t listened to the complete interview, catch it below or HERE. While you are on the BlogTalkRadio, subscribe to her channel and take the time to look through the archives of the show – so many great interviews and information to be discovered!

I’d like to thank Laura for having me on the show and for being so gentle with someone so obviously new to the process. I am so deeply grateful!

Listen To Food Internet Radio Stations with The Jazzy Vegetarian on BlogTalkRadio with The Jazzy Vegetarian on BlogTalkRadio

If you would like to win your very own shiny new copy of Everyday Vegan Eats, the lovely Somer McCowan of Vedgedout.com is hosting a giveaway right this very second  (contest ends August 29). She is also sharing my recipe for Chilled Sesame Soba Noodles. Here is the equally lovely picture she took of said dish:

Photo by Somer McCowan of Vedgedout.com

I am linking to these recipe parties: Healthy Vegan Fridays, What I Ate Wednesday and Virtual Vegan Linky Potluck.