Oh, Funny Vegans

taken from a vegan how-to guide:

Mickey Mantle Breakfast

Bagel with sliced avocado and/or vegan cream cheese (see section 2)
Juice shaken with soy protein powder (see section 2)
Whiskey

Magic Peach Cobbler

Ooh-ooh, Erin goes to Scotland. Misses vegetables. Loves to invent. Ooh, ooh.

Yeah, meanwhile, I'm in central Illinois while the rest of the world travels abroad. My husband, in Japan. My friends Erin and Christy, in Scotland. My family, in Saint Louis and Texas, which feel far enough away. Boo hoo hoo.

But the one perk of Illinois in the summer, the one thing that trumps all of those other dumb places, is my Farmer's Market. Every Saturday. Free toffee, cheap pierogi, lots of dirt-covered, locally grown fruit and vegetables. Sigh.

Did I mention my quart and a half of peaches for $2? My half-pound of basil leaves? And the potatoes? Obviously, with all this produce and no one in town but me (so it feels), the pressure of cooking it up is on.

I don't know why I eat more produce once I bake it, but I do. As the following recipes testify.

MAGIC PEACH COBBLER

1/2 c. butter
Preheat oven to 350; put butter in a 9x13 dish; place dish in oven to melt. The magic begins.

1 c. all-purpose flour
1-1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1 c. sugar
1 c. milk
This is your batter. Mix it in a bowl if you want, or my sister-in-law mixes it straight in the pan full of now-melted butter.

3 c. peeled, sliced peaches with juices
Try blanching the peaches in boiling water to cover for 1 minute. So much easier. Be sure to let them cool before you try to slide off their skins. Avoid burns, people.

Pour batter in pan, arrange peach slices on top, and bake for 30 minutes. Be amazed as the cobbler crust rises above the peaches. Maybe all cobblers do this, but I don't know that for sure, so mine is still magic. In my head.

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That link will lead you to a complicated recipe for Spinach and Gruyere Tart in a Three-Pepper Crust. For this recipe I bought myself a tart pan. It may be the cutest thing I've bought for my kitchen, ever. Fluted edges, so adorable.

The tart was good, but not amazing. I'm going to guess more onion, some garlic sauteed with that, and more cheese would help. The crust was a good call, though. Be sure to use lots of pie weights or dried beans in the prebaking--I thought I'd used a lot, but no. It still rose in little humped pockets. And overall, the tart was overshadowed by Rogan's grilled lamb and peaches.

Why America is the Greatest Country of All Time

Having spent ten days in the UK (namely Scotland) I have come to the conclusion that politicians have known for a great long time (or at least been extolling) -- that America rocks. Not because of our self-righteous militaristic outbursts, nor our small-minded and hypocritical xenophobia, but rather because the food here is vastly superior. And I don't have to pay for it in pounds.

For someone who worships at the shrine of eating in the way that I do, travel is all about epicurean delights. Russia was marked by excellent traditional Caucasian cuisine, not to mention caviar blinis, mushroom soups, and a beef stroganoff that could bring me back to the red side (of meat, not politics that is). Sure Scotland had some really great smoked salmon, but who doesn't? And while I'm a big proponent of free wine and cheese, let's just say, I don't care what you put on wonderbread (prawns, Brie, apple slices, etc), it's gonna suck. And a slab of meat and overboiled vegetables, a meal does not make.

So since returning home, food has been pretty much all that's on my mind. (Well, all that I can publish here anyway. Check my 21 Stars Hot Action Review for more.) Thus the following elaborate and tasty dishes have been made since my return --

Curried Couscous : Absolutely amazing. Very simple. Also it has a lot of things that I usually have in the house anyway. (Though as someone pointed out, the things that are just lying around in my house aren't necessarily that ordinary.) Tastes good hot as well, though I'm gonna agree that letting it sit and serving it cold is ideal.

Sauteed Sea Scallops with Lemon-Mustard Sauce: Okay, so I didn't make this. My lovely boyfriend did. But having reaped the mustardy fruits of his labor though, I recommend and forward on.

Whole Roasted Red Snapper with Orange, Rosemary and Kalamata Olives : This was really good, and I think you could probably change out the fish if you wanted because snapper isn't exactly the cheapest or easiest fish you could find. (Perhaps Aldi orange roughy?) We used nicoise olives -- I'd recommend the Kalamata. And maybe dried rosemary instead of fresh? Needed a bit more oomph.

Tomato, Basil, and Mozzarella Quesadillas : This I made for myself largely because I had no car, no money (got my purse snatched in Atlanta on my way back -- which sucked largely because I spent the entire flight back daydreaming about the awesome food that I was going to make when I got back) . . . So this is a truly Erin creation

1 tomato, chopped
5 basil leaves, chiffonade
1/4 cup mozzarella (fresh is awesome)
2 tortillas

Combine tomato, bail, and cheese inside folded tortilla. Over med-high heat, saute tortilla until slightly browned on each side and cheese is melty. Eat.

For a Southwestern kick, add black beans and jalapeno. (Which you should saute with the tomato and basil before putting into tortilla.) Mmmm. Protein.

And right before I left, I made this:

Anaheim Shrimp Scampi : This might be the most delicious thing of all time. And slightly good for you!

I was also obsessing about tofu marinades and picked up this one as well:

TOFU MARINADE

1/2 c. soy sauce (low salt)
2 tsp. dry mustard
1 clove garlic, mashed
1/3 c. oil
2 tbsp. peanut butter
2 tbsp. ketchup

I didn't use the ketchup. But otherwise, mmmm. Tofu.