Vegan Eats

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This is more or less three recipes in one blog entry, which is good, because I plan on posting far less frequently in the upcoming months due some very interesting and exciting career developments which will be keeping me extremely busy! I’m opening a restaurant with a couple of fine friends/business partners! It’ll be opening up in Kensington Market at 160 Baldwin Street and the concept is a vegan taco and burrito take-away joint with a small seated bar area for people to sit and eat. It’s all very exciting/scary and has kept me extremely busy over the last week or two since we signed the lease and got the keys. It’s seriously been non-stop. We don’t have an exact date for the grand opening, but I’ll be sure to keep you up to date with all the happenings here on the blog. Oh yeah, and the name of the place: Hot Beans. Get ready, it’s coming.

Cashew Sour Cream
Ingredients:
1 cup cashews
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
heaping 1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions:
1. Soak the cashews in water for at least 12 hours in the fridge. This will make them nice and soft, which is essential for getting as smooth a cream as possible.
2. Drain the cashews and give them a bit of a rinse. Add them to your blender along with the rest of the ingredients. Process them until the cream is as smooth as its going to get. This is where a heavy duty blender like a Blendtec or a Vitamix comes in handy, both of which will give you a silky smooth consistency almost immediately. This recipe will make a good amount of sour cream, so you can cut the recipe in half if you want, but it might be trickier to blend together because it’ll be so little an amount going into the blender. It should keep in the fridge for about 5 or 6 days.

Maple Smoked Tempeh
Ingredients:
1 8oz. package of tempeh, thawed (if frozen)
1/4 cup maple syrup
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon tamari
1 tablespoon liquid smoke
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

Instructions:
1. Steam the tempeh in a steamer pot for about 4 or 5 minutes. This will make it easier for the marinade to soak into it.
2. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until well combined and the sugar has dissolved.
3. Slice the tempeh into thin strips and place into either a ziplock bag or a resealable plastic container. Pour the marinade onto the tempeh and seal. Let marinate in the fridge for at least 12 hours.

Potato and Smoked Tempeh Perogies
Ingredients:
3 Yukon gold potatoes, roughly chopped
Extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup onion, diced
1 teaspoon rosemary
3 or 4 cloves garlic, minced
Marinated tempeh, about 3/4 of the package, diced small
1 8oz. package cremini mushrooms, diced
1 stalk green onion
Few handfuls of spinach (optional)
Dumpling wrappers

Instructions:
1. Boil the potatoes in a pot of salted water until cooked through, about 10 to 15 mintes. Drain cooked potatoes and set aside.
2. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add the cooked potatoes, onion, rosemary, and a big pinch of salt and pepper. While sautéing, smash up the potatoes into a rough mash. Fry them in the pan, tossing occasionally, until the potatoes are golden brown. This should take about 10 to 15 minutes, maybe more. A cast iron pan is ideal, since you’ll be able to get some nice crispy browning on the taters, but if you don’t have one, a non-stick pan will do.
3. In another skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and diced tempeh. Sauté, stirring frequently for about 8 to 10 minutes, until the tempeh is browning.
4. Add the mushrooms and a bit of salt and pepper, to taste. Continue to sauté for another 7 minutes or so. Stir in the green onion and optional spinach and cook just until the spinach begins to wilt.
5. Mix the tempeh and mushroom mixture into the fried potato mash and set aside. Make the dumplings by putting a small amount directly into the center of each wrapper and folding over, sealing the rounded edge with fork. To make sure they stick when you fork them down, just dab your finger in a bit of water and use it to wet the edge of the wrapper before folding it over the filling.
6. To cook the dumplings, you can either boil them until they float, steam them for a few minutes, or fry them with the potsticker method from this recipe. All methods will yield a tasty dumpling. Serve with sour cream and sliced green onions.