BAGEL BRUNCH

July 8th was John's birthday and I wanted to surprise him with a spectacular brunch spread. I knew he'd love bagels, cream cheese, and fixings, but I struggled for days deciding whether or not to make the bagels from scratch or buy them. They seemed so complicated! But the night before I just decided to go for it. Worst case scenario I'd run out the next morning and buy a few. As it turns out, bagels are a bit time consuming but not difficult. You have to allow about three hours of prep time the night before (including rising time), but once they're prepped, the boiling and baking part doesn't take long.

The first time I made them I used regular spelt flour instead of bread flour and they turned out fine. Bread flour has a higher gluten content than all-purpose flour, but I've never seen spelt bread flour. The second time I made them, I added some powdered wheat gluten to my flour. Wheat gluten can be found in most baking/spice isles of grocery stores, and the ratio is 1 tablespoon gluten to one cup flour to make a substitute for bread flour. I was reluctant at first since the bagels turned out well the first time, but the bagels were much better with the gluten added, more bagel-like. I made one dozen with spelt and one dozen with wheat four. I made these bagels for our housewarming brunch and I'm still the talk of the town because everyone was so impressed. I didn't get any pictures of them the second time around because they disappeared while I was in the kitchen boiling and baking the last few.

The one weird ingredient is malt powder. The first time I made them I went to Whole Foods to inquire about it. A helpful employee said they were out but he stole me a ramekin full from their bakery. The second time I made them I went back to Whole Foods hoping the same scenario would play out. No luck, but an equally helpful employee said that barley malt works just as well.

I got this recipe from The Fresh Loaf, and I chose it because someone commented that they made them successfully with spelt flour. The recipe yields one dozen bagels, but if you're baking for a crowd, plan on every other person having 2. I made about equal numbers of sesame, poppy seed, onion, salt and pepper, and cinnamon and maple sugar. From my experience, onion was the most popular followed by sesame. Next time I'll experiment folding stuff into the dough like blueberries or herbs or olives.

BAGELS

Sponge:
1 teaspoon instant yeast
4 cups bread flour
2 1/2 cups water

Dough:
1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
3 3/4 cups bread flour
2 3/4 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons malt powder
OR
1 tablespoon malt syrup, honey, or brown sugar

Finishing touches:
1 tablespoon malt powder/syrup for the water
Cornmeal for dusting the pan
Toppings for the bagels such as seeds, salt, onion, or garlic

The Night Before

1. Stir the yeast into the flour in a large mixing bowl. Add the water and stir until all ingredients are blended. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise for two hours.

2. Remove the plastic wrap and stir the additional yeast into the sponge. Add 3 cups of the flour, the malt powder and the salt into the bowl and mix until all of the ingredients form a ball. You need to work in the additional 3/4 cups of flour to stiffen the dough, either while still mixing in the bowl or while kneading. The dough should be stiffer and drier than normal bread dough, but moist enough that all of the ingredients are well blended.

3. Pour the dough out of the bowl onto a clean surface and knead for 10 minutes.

4. Immediately after kneading, split the dough into a dozen small pieces around 4 1/2 ounces each. Roll each piece into a ball and set it aside. When you have all 12 pieces made, cover them with a damp towel and let them rest for 20 minutes.

5. Shaping the bagel is a snap: punch your thumb through the center of each roll and then rotate the dough, working it so that the bagel is as even in width as possible.

6. Place the shaped bagels on an oiled sheet pan, with an inch or so of space between one another (use two pans, if you need to). If you have parchment paper, line the sheet pan with parchment and spray it lightly with oil before placing the bagels on the pan. Cover the pan with plastic (I put mine into a small plastic garbage bag) and allow the dough to rise for about 20 minutes. Place the pans into the refrigerator for the night.

Baking Day

1. Preheat the oven to 500. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, adding one tablespoon of malt powder. It is key to have a large pot and lot of water because adding the bagels lowers the water temperature and you want to try to maintain a boil.

2. When the pot is boiling, drop a few of the bagels into the pot one at a time and let them boil for a minute. Use a large, slotted spoon or spatula to gently flip them over and boil them on the other side.

3. Before removing them from the pot, sprinkle corn meal onto the sheet pan. Remove them one at a time, set them back onto the sheet pan, and top them right away, while they are still slightly moist. You may need to very lightly press some of the toppings into the bagel so they stick. Repeat this process until all of the bagels have been boiled and topped.

4. Once they have, place the sheet pan into the preheated oven and bake for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to 450 degrees, rotate the pan, and bake for another 5 minutes until the bagels begin to brown. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool. Top with vegan cream cheese, tomato, red onion, lettuce, roasted red pepper, or whatever your heart desires.

BLUEBERRY KANTEN WITH CASHEW CREAM

Kantens are really refreshing desserts that are easy as can be. They are also genuinely good for you, which cannot be said about most desserts. A kanten is a jelled dessert that is made with fruit and agar. Agar is a sea vegetable that comes in the form of clear flakes. Like gelatin, they can be dissolved into fruit juice and then it hardens as it cools. Agar, like other sea vegetables, has a high mineral content and has detoxifying powers. According to my Clean Foods cookbook, agar has a cooling and calming effect on the gastrointestinal tract, making it a perfect food to eat after a big meal. Agar is incredibly versatile because it is colorless and tasteless, so it can be added to any kind of juice/fruit combination. Had I added strawberries or raspberries to this dessert, it would have been perfect for the 4th of July.

BLUEBERRY KANTEN

This recipe was adapted from Clean Foods, a vegan and macrobiotic cookbook by Terry Walters. The original recipe asks for frozen blueberries, but I used fresh. It also instructs you to puree the entire kanten after it hardens to create a mousse-like dessert, but I wanted to keep mine in its hard form. Instead of serving it in parfait glasses, I poured the whole mixture into a 9x13 baking dish then cut it into squares. However, if I had parfait glasses, I think that would be a beautiful way to present it whether as a solid dessert with berries intact or as a mousse. The 1 tablespoon agar to 1 cup of juice is standard, so you can use that ratio to create a dessert with any combination of juice and fruit: grape juice and grapes, apple juice and watermelon, or peach berries. I've even made a vegan lemon pie by basically making a sweet lemon juice kanten and letting it firm up in a precooked pie crust. This kanten serves 6-8 and it keeps for a few days covered in the fridge.

3 cups apple or pear juice
3 tablespoons agar flakes
Pinch of sea salt
1 tablespoon lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

In a large pot over medium-high heat, bring juice to a boil. Reduce heat to low and stir in agar flakes, salt, and lemon juice or cider vinegar. Continue stirring until flakes have dissolved. Remove from heat, add blueberries and transfer to 9x13-inch glass casserole dish. Refrigerate until firm (about 45 minutes). Optional: Remove from refrigerator and puree with handheld blender until texture is smooth.


CASHEW CREAM

2 cups apple juice
2 cups lightly toasted cashews
3 tablespoons maple syrup

In small pot over medium-high heat, bring apple juice to boil. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Place cashews and syrup in food processor and process 10-15 seconds. Whith the processor running, slowly add juice a little at a time until you have the desired texture (you may not need all the juice. I only used about 1.5 cups. Also, it firms up as it cools).

CURRIED RED LENTIL SOUP

This soup comes from some macrobiotic cookbook, but I've made it so many times that I don't need the recipe. It is very simple to make and guaranteed to be a hit. There are some macrobiotic ingredients that you may not have in your pantry, but in my opinion they are worth having around.

The first is kombu, which is a form of kelp or seaweed. Sea vegetables are extremely nutrient dense foods and are used in macrobiotic cooking to add vitamins and minerals to ones diet. I think of kombu as being like a multivitamin that you add to the cooking water of beans. Because the minerals are cooked into the food, they are more readily absorbed by your body. It also serves to add flavor, like a vegetable broth would. Believe me, it doesn't taste fishy at all like you may imagine seaweed broth might.

The second odd ingredient is umeboshi vinegar, which isn't really a vinegar but a brine. It is the salty liquid leftover from pickling umeboshi plums. Umeboshi plums are actually a form of apricot that grow in Japan. They are incredibly nutritious and really tasty when pickled. Umeboshi plums and vinegar are some of my secret weapons in cooking. They have such a unique, salty and sour flavor that goes well in so many dishes. I blend umeboshi plums into hummus and eat it in sushi rolls. I add the vinegar to guacamole, salad dressings, soups, and toss it with boiled vegetables.

This red lentil soup could probably be made without these ingredients. You may be able to make it just as flavorful substituting salt and a little apple cider or wine vinegar, but it wouldn't be as nutritious. This soup serves 4-5

CURRIED RED LENTIL SOUP

1 1/2 cups dried red lentils, sorted,rinsed and drained

3 inch piece of kombu, wiped clean

5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

4 1/2 cups water (I use 5 cups because I like it more soupy, but use less if you want it to be more dal-like)

2 teaspoons curry powder

1/4 cup umeboshi vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh ginger juice

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/4 cup coarsely chopped cilantro for garnish

1. Bring the lentils, kombu, garlic, and water to boil in a large pot, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Stirring occasionally, simmer for 20 minutes, or until the lentils are soft and have the texture of puree. Skim off and discard any foam (This practice helps make beans less gas-producing and should be done whenever you cook dried beans). Remove and discard the kombu.

2. Stir the curry powder, vinegar, and ginger juice into the pot, and simmer an additional 5 minutes.

3. Garnish with black pepper and cilantro before serving.

Variations:

-Add any combination of finely chopped vegetables to create a red lentil vegetable soup.

-Add 1/2 cup of tomato paste to Step 2.

-Substitute a combination of cumin, coriander, and turmeric for the curry powder.

I served this soup for a some friends alongside long-grain brown rice, sauteed baby bok choy, and a salad of mixed greens and basil with a lemon vinaigrette, red onion, and sweet white radish.

SPRING VEGETABLE SIDE DISHES

Spring is such an exciting time because lots of beautiful vegetables come into season. Next week the Logan Square Farmer's Market starts and I cannot wait! Here are a few side dishes I've concocted over the past week or two using spring veggies.

LEMON-TAHINI BABY BOK CHOY

Baby bok choy is one of my favorite vegetables, one I buy every single time I get to Whole Foods. The taste is a little more subtle than the full-grown bok choy, less spicy. What I like most is that you can cook the entire leaf without cutting it up because they're small, so they fit in a pan, and the stems aren't too thick. I first made this dish for breakfast alongside steel-cut oats. The next time I made it I added some garlic and paired it with a homemade spicy chickpea soup and brown rice. I think it complemented the spices really well, almost like a tzatziki sauce. Serves 2.

1 head baby bok choy, separated and rinsed
2 tsp olive oil
2 medium cloves garlic
1 tbs tahini
1 tbs fresh lemon juice
1 tbs water
1/4 tsp salt

1. Whisk together tahini, lemon juice, water, and salt.

2. Heat oil to medium-high heat in a wok or frying pan. Add the biggest leaves and stir-fry for a few seconds, then the medium leaves, then the small leaves. Add garlic. Stirfry 1-2 minutes until greens are soft and stems are a little browned.

3. Turn off heat and immediately pour lemon-tahini dressing over the bok choy in the pan. Stir to coat. Remove from heat and serve immediately.


CARROTS AND CARROT TOPS

Ever bought a beautiful bunch of carrots with the greens still attached and not known what to do with them? Well, now you know you can eat them! If not using the tops it is important to remove the greens right away. The greens will continue to leech nutrients out of the carrots, so your carrots will go bad quickly. That being said, if you are eating the tops, they should still be removed, but use them within a day or two of purchase. Carrot-tops don't stay fresh long. I love this dish because it is so bright and colorful and can really add to an otherwise bland looking meal. You could add onion and/or garlic or use tamari instead of salt if you wanted to add more flavor, but the dish really doesn't need it. If I was cooking for a crowd, I'd have used the whole bunch of carrots and tops, but these portions were meant for one.

2 medium carrots, sliced diagonally into quarter-inch coins
4 carrot tops and stems, roughly chopped
2 tsp olive oil
salt
1 tsp freshly grated ginger juice (optional)
toasted sesame seeds (optional)

1. Heat oil to medium-high heat. Sautee carrots for 5-7 minutes or until they start to brown.
2. Add greens and sautee for about 1 minute.
3. Stir in salt and about 2 tsp water. Immediately cover, reduce heat to low, and steam for about 30 seconds or until greens are tender. Remove lid and turn off heat. Add ginger juice and sesame seeds. Serve immediately.

DAD ASPARAGUS

Asparagus is the epitome of spring vegetables because it is usually the first green thing to appear out of the frozen ground. This recipe comes from a cookbook created by my college co-op. What started out as "Dad's No-Fail Asparagus" (a recipe from my friend Hesper's dad) quickly became shortened to "Dad Asparagus" around the house. This recipe is simple, really delicious, and truely "no fail." Last week I served it at a good-bye dinner party for a friend paired with veggie burgers and salad. This week I paired it with spring rolls and peanut sauce. It goes with everything. The recipe below is the original cook-book recipe, but 2 lbs of asparagus really serves a crowd. I usually use 1 or 1/2 lb asparagus and slightly less Earth Balance and tamari.

2 lbs asparagus, ends trimmed
olive oil
salt
pepper
2 Tbs Earth Balance
2 tsp tamari
1 tsp balsamic vinegar

1. Preheat oven to 400.
2. Coat baking tray with oil, spread asparagus in a single layer, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and bake for about 12 minutes or until tender.
3. Melt Earth Balance in a small skillet on medium-low heat for about 3 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove from heat and stir in tamari and vinegar.
4. When asparagus is done, drizzle buttery mixture over the asparagus as soon as it comes out of the oven. Serve immediately.

MUSHROOM LEEK SOUP

My mom has been making this soup for me for ages, and it is one of my favorites. It is a very light but satisfying summer soup. It is easy to make, has very simple ingredients, and can be improvised and still turn out great. If you don’t work with leeks much, they may be kind of intimidating. Here’s how I trim, wash, and cut a leek:

1. Trim the tips of the leek to remove any old, wrinkly parts, and cut the leek in half, longways.


2. Peel back each layer of leek leaf and run water in between to rinse off the dirt. See how it hides down there!
3. Thinly slice the whole leek until you reach the hairy end. You can discard that. I've seen some people throw away the whole dark green part because they say it is too tough to eat. As long as its cooked long enough, that's not true.

A note about cleaning mushrooms: I've always thought mushrooms had to be wiped down with a damp cloth or paper towel because I heard that rinsing them made them soggy. So I wiped down all the mushrooms for this soup. Afterward, I decided to Google that myth to see if it was true. Not! Mushrooms can be rinsed and patted dry to remove dirt, and they won't absorb the water. Alton Brown from the Food Network did a show on mushrooms for Myth Busters. That will save me lots of time in the future!

And now to the recipe...

MUSHROOM LEEK SOUP

1 large leek, trimmed, cleaned, and thinly sliced into half-moons (about 3 cups)
1 8 oz package white mushrooms, thinly sliced (about 3 cups)
3 tbs olive oil
4 c water
2 tbs tamari, or to taste
salt

1. In a soup pot, heat olive oil at medium-high heat and sautee mushrooms until they begin to sweat, about 3 minutes.
2. Add leeks and a pinch of salt, and sautee until leeks are translucent, about 8-10 minutes.
3. Add 4 cups of water, or just enough to cover vegetables, bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for 20-30 minutes.
4. Add tamari and simmer for 5 more minutes. Garnish with scallions, cilantro, or parsley

Serves 4

TEMPEH RUBEN

I'm not the biggest fan of tempeh. It has a strong flavor which makes it not as versatile as tofu, my soy-product of choice. However, I can't get enough of tempeh that is marinated and baked. After pulling a batch out of the oven, it dawned on me to make a tempeh Ruben. I threw some sweet potato fries in the oven as a side and had myself a really happy lunch.

BAKED MAPLE MUSTARD TEMPEH
adapted from Clean Food

One reason I often don't like tempeh is because it is too dry. Steaming tempeh makes it more moist and allows it to absorb more flavors. I thought the original recipe in my Clean Foods cookbook was too sweet and the marinade was not liquidy enough. When I made it again I added a little less maple syrup, a little more tamari, and some water to stretch the marinade. This tempeh is perfect by itself, maybe served with some brown rice and sauteed greens. But if you want to make it specifically for a Ruben sandwich, consider adding 1/2 a teaspoon of caraway seeds or peppercorns or whatever spices you'd associate with corned beef. Serves 4.

2 8-oz packages tempeh
1/4 c extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons prepared mustard (Dijon or stone-ground)
1 tablespoon maple syrup
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons tamari (or soy sauce)
2 tablespoons water

1. Slice tempeh across into 1/2-in strips and steam for 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 425.
2. In a shallow baking dish, whisk together oil, garlic, mustard, maple syrup, lemon juice, and tamari. Place steamed tempeh in marinade, flip to coat each side, and marinate for at least 30 minutes (I recommend marinating overnight if you have the time).
3. Place tempeh with marinade in the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven, flip each piece, and bake for 10 more minutes.

RUSSIAN DRESSING

3 tbs vegan mayonnaise (Vegenaise is my favorite)
3 tbs ketchup
3 tbs minced pickles
1/4 tsp lemon juice

For the sandwich, add 4-5 slices of the tempeh, warmed sauerkraut, dressing, tomato, and lettuce to rye bread.

SWEET POTATO FRIES

2 sweet potatoes, unpeeled, cut into 1/4 inch fries
1 tbs olive oil
1 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 425. In a large bowl, coat sweet potatoes with oil and salt.
2. Arrange in a single layer on a lightly oiled baking sheet.
3. Bake for 15 minutes, flip, and bake for another 10-15 minutes.

LEMON-COCONUT CAKE

Friday night I had some friends over for a burger-themed dinner. We bought some veggie burgers, and I made some pressure-cooked baked beans and potato salad. I planned on putting the bean recipe on my blog, but they didn’t turn out the way I wanted them to. The big hit of the evening was the lemon-coconut cake I made for dessert. I stole this recipe from my friend Julia’s blog and she stole it from Vegenomicon. The coconut milk makes the cake so moist and yummy. The recipe calls for a Bundt pan, but Julia used a 9x13 rectangular pan, and I used a taller 9x9 square pan. All seem to work fine. I topped the cake off with lemon icing.

The cake recipe is here.

LEMON ICING

2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup Earth Balance, softened
2 tbsp soy milk
juice and zest from one lemon

1. With an electric mixer set at low speed, cream the sugar and margarine (I did this by handand it worked just fine).
2. Beat in the soy milk and lemon juice. Stir in the lemon rind.