Pickled Onions and a Great Trip to the Farmers’ Market

(pickled onions used to brighten the wilted greens under the stuffed pepper)

(pickled onions on my salad for extra flavor)

We actually managed to get to sleep at a somewhat reasonable time on Saturday which is amazing since Dan was at work until very, very late. Don’t ask how late because it is ridiculous and I don’t want to call him out on the blog.

We were at the farmer’s market bright and early and were ready to shop, and shop we did. Sunday’s haul: 2 bunches collard leaves (for collard wraps of course), 2 huge bunches kale, 2 heads read leaf lettuce, ½ pound shitakes, 3 quarts strawberries, 1 bunch beets (save the tops for juice), 1 bag mesclun mix, 1 enormous bunch Swiss chard, 1 bunch radishes (the greens are good in soup, juice or wilted), fresh basil (woo hoo), and a tray of wheat grass (for juice of course).

I made one of my usual foundation recipes that I like to keep on hand. This one is pickled onions and I used those on salad and in collard wraps to add a pop of flavor with no fat and few calories. Here is what I did:

Pickled Red Onions
Makes approximately 2 cups

Ingredients:

1 large red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup water
½ cinnamon stick
rounded ¼ teaspoon whole cloves (this was approximately 20)
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 scoop (individual serving) stevia

Directions:

Combine the vinegar, water, cinnamon, cloves, pepper flakes and heat until it comes to simmer. Now add the stevia and red onions and let them stand, covered to seal in the heat. Toss the onions periodically so that all the onions will wilt. When the mixture has cooled place it in a sealed two cup jar and refrigerate until you need it. The onions have a long shelf life in the refrigerator. However we eat them long before they have a chance to go bad.

Nutritional information (for the entire recipe not that you would ever eat that much):

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 76.94
Calories From Fat (4%) - 2.96

Total Fat - 0.42g
Saturated Fat - 0.07g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 11.54mg
Potassium - 62.25mg
Total Carbohydrates - 16.81g
Fiber - 5.72g
Sugar - 0.32g
Protein - 1.55g

Comments:

If you liked pickled food these are a must have to keep on hand. I like to use these as often as I can because they add so much flavor. The acidity adds brightness to dishes and helps me to avoid salt.

The stuffed peppers pictured above were what we had for lunch with my parents on Sunday. I am going to post that recipe separately, most likely tomorrow.

Miscellaneous:
Dan did take the day off on Sunday which was nice. We spend the day enjoying each other which is why you didn’t see anything from me on the blog though I did manage a few Facebook comments. ;-)

We went for a nice before dinner walk through the neighborhood before the rain. We stopped to take a few pictures while we were out.

I love this house which is probably why it never goes on the market. ;-)

Don’t you just love the beautiful spring green and the blooming plants? I love this time of year. :-)

Happy thoughts:

• It was great to have my hubby home on Sunday. We had a good day together that started with the farmers’ market and fresh local produce and ended with a nice neighborhood walk. It was an excellent day.

• The lunch I made on Sunday (bell peppers stuffed with millet and maitake mushrooms on agro dolce wilted greens and topped with gremolata) was well received. It was fun to make something that was a little more complex. I may be getting my cooking groove back. Only time will tell right?

• I am love having two refrigerators full of local produce. There really isn’t much that makes me happier. I am such a food and nutrition geek, but I would have it no other way.

• I am still contemplating what I am going to do when I grow up (assuming that ever happens). When I have more of an idea I will fill you in. Thanks for all the ideas regarding what you want to see on the blog. Keep those ideas coming!

• This may sound silly but I have had the windows open for days and that is a wonderful feeling. After being closed up all winter I love having fresh air blowing through the house all day long. It may just be me but I worry about VOC’s and offgassing when the house is closed up.

Signing off:

Monday was a good day for me but I wasn’t a productive as I would like to be. Oh well, tomorrow is another day. At least I got a few things accomplished I am going to concentrate on that instead of what I didn’t do.

I did manage to get into the kitchen to make a pot of red lentil and tomato soup to have on hand this week for lunches and that is a good thing.  I didn't use this recipe specifically but this version was close.

Talk to you all again tomorrow. I hope you had a great Monday!

Quick Marinated Veggies for Sandwiches or Salads

Being part Italian I love pickled food. Giardiniera is one of my favorite things and I love any variation of it. My hubby is not as enamored with pickled veggies though he does tolerate them. I like to make these quick pickled veggies to use on collard wraps and on salads. Since my dad likes them too I always make a big jar so I have plenty to share. Here is what I made this morning:

Quick Marinated Veggies for Sandwiches or Salads
Makes 16 servings of about ½ cup each

Ingredients:

3 carrots
1 large cucumber
1 red bell pepper
½ red onion
2 cups white vinegar (or apple cider or wine vinegar)
2 cups water
either: hot crushed peppers, stevia, or olives – optional
other possible additions: jalapeno slices, dried oregano, garlic

Directions:

Slice the carrot, cucumber and onion very thinly on a mandoline. Use the thinnest setting on your mandoline. Place the veggies in a large container with a tight seal. I find it easier to slice the bell pepper into thin strips with my chef knife.

Cover the veggies with equal amounts of vinegar and water. If you want them hot add peppers, for sweetness include stevia for saltiness add olives. Store the veggies in the refrigerator until you need them. Because of the acidity these will keep quite a while if kept cold.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 19.47
Calories From Fat (4%) - 0.74

Total Fat - 0.1g
Saturated Fat - 0.02g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 12.66mg
Potassium - 125.61mg
Total Carbohydrates - 5.23g
Fiber - 0.87g
Sugar - 1.41g
Protein - 0.46g

Comments:

You can adjust the acidity by increasing or decreasing the proportion of vinegar in the recipe. I always drain mine fairly well before adding them to salads or sandwiches to reduce the acid a little. I find equal measures of water and vinegar seems to work for most palates. However I think my husband would vote for less vinegar. ;-) If you like marinated veggies on sandwiches this is a good all purpose mix. By using a mandoline to slice the veggies thinly they pickle quickly and are easy to use on a wrap.

I decided to post this recipe because I was emailing a friend this morning and they asked how I made the quick pickled veggies so I thought she wasn’t the only one who may want to see the recipe. This is really more of the method than a recipe. The only trick is to thinly slice things and keep them covered in the marinade. Other than that it is as simple as it looks.

Unrelated notes:

Guess who didn’t have a real dinner again last night? Yep, us. We had a bowl of pickled kohlrabi, carrots, cucumbers, apple cider vinegar and dill.

To go with that we had some sliced heirloom tomatoes with a little pomegranate molasses, sumac and parsley.

While we watched the movie we snacked on a little air popped white popcorn.

This morning once Dan left for work and cleaned up the kitchen I made myself three collard wraps for breakfast. I added a little lentil walnut pate, sliced tomato, thinly sliced red cabbage, shredded yellow squash and sriracha. It was an odd breakfast, but tasty.

I need to go get few things accomplished around here. However, I should be back later today with another recipe, just as soon as I think of something to make. LOL

Quick Question:

Do you find it useful to see what we eat on a daily basis?  I have gotten a lot of email quesitons about that which is why I am doing to do it more often now.  I get the feeling many of you run out of healthy food ideas.  But it is just TMI and not that useful I would like to know that too.  Thanks for letting me know! :-)

Talk to you later. I hope everyone is having a great Monday. It is gray and rainy here making it easy to stay inside and get things done. ;-)

Spinach and Artichoke Dip plus Happy Mother’s Day

Dan and I spent the day spring cleaning. Together we purged 7 kitchen bags of clothes to go to Goodwill. It felt great to get rid of things that are too big (woo hoo), or that I have not looked at in years, let alone worn. That is what happens when your overflow closet is one floor above your bedroom. Things tend to get forgotten when they are out of sight. But we are both happy to have the excess stuff packed up and ready for donation.

Our food today has been rather uninspiring, at least to me. For lunch there was yet another collard wrap this time with hummus, caponata and leftover quinoa. It was quite tasty. If you want to see a hot version of a quinoa collard wrap check out Aimee’s blog. Her filling sounds absolutely delicious.

As I have mentioned before Dan and I always discuss dinner, at least we do on the weekends. As we were batting options back and forth I realized I had never made a vegan spinach and artichoke dip. This oversight had to be corrected immediately. Coming of age in the 80’s spinach and artichoke dip has always been one of my favorites. The beauty of this dip is that in can be used multiple ways, which I will discuss later. Here is what I made tonight:

Spinach and Artichoke Dip
Serves 8 as an appetizer

Ingredients:

½ cup dry oats, ground into flour
½ cup raw cashews (soaked for a couple of hours and drained unless you are using a high speed blender)
1 ½ cups water, for the initial processing
1 ½ cup of water, for adjusting the base consistency
¼ teaspoon garlic powder (or 3 cloves peeled garlic)
½ teaspoon dry mustard (Coleman’s in the yellow can)
4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
14 ounce can brined artichokes, finely chopped
8 ounces fresh baby spinach, chopped somewhat finely
Fresh ground nutmeg to taste (I probably used ¼ teaspoon)
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Combine the oats, cashews and 1 ½ cup of water in your blender and process until smooth. If you are using the fresh garlic add it to the blender before processing.

Pour the cashew mixture into a saucepan, add the seasonings (garlic powder, nutritional yeast, and dry mustard) and heat on medium. As the mixture begins to thicken add water a little at time until you get the consistency you want. I needed an additional 1 ½ cups of water which I poured into the empty blender container to clean it before putting it into the saucepan.

When you like the consistency add the artichokes and spinach and heat until they are warm. Add salt and pepper to your taste.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 87.72
Calories From Fat (35%) - 30.27

Total Fat - 2.9g
Saturated Fat - 0.52g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 231.09mg
Potassium - 221.19mg
Total Carbohydrates - 9.24g
Fiber - 1.82g
Sugar - 0.54g
Protein - 3.25g

Comments:

This is destined to become another family favorite. This dip is rich and creamy and tastes very similar to the fat filled dairy original. I am not saying it has the fatty mouth feel of the original because it doesn’t. But it is almost buttery tasting from the nutritional yeast. The raw cashews and oat flour give the dip a nice thick and creamy texture. We really enjoyed this tonight. I hope you give it a try.

This can be served traditionally as a dip.

You can use it as a sauce to top pasta or quinoa.

Each serving of this dip contains approximately 2,650IU of vitamin A, 140mcg of vitamin K, 65mg of phosphorus, and 45mg of magnesium. I thought the nutrition was quite good for a sauce.

Unrelated Note:

Today is one of those days when I have always felt a little left out since I am not a human mother. My felines are my little babies who just happen to wear fur coats and walk on four feet. Anyone who has pets knows that they are an integral part of the family. At our house I am the cat mommy, just ask the cats.  ;-)  My husband always “takes” the felines shopping for Mother’s Day and this year was no exception. My family knows what I love. This year my babies (helped by my hubby) bought me a beautiful ring for Mother’s Day. They did a wonderful job shopping didn’t they?

I hope you are all having a wonderful Mother’s Day and that your human and animal children rose to the occasion and did something nice for you today. I will talk to all again tomorrow. With a little luck we will have a good start to the week. Mondays are always my least favorite day of the week.

Quick Pickles

Part of our dinner last night was a very quick sweet and sour pickle. My hubby is not fond of vinegar so I dilute it with water to make it more palatable for him. I would use straight vinegar if there were just for me. This is so simple it really doesn’t require a recipe but here goes anyway:

Quick Cucumber Pickles
Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 small cucumbers, cut in half and thinly sliced
½ cup vinegar (any type of light colored vinegar, I used champagne)
½ cup water
Stevia, to taste (I used 6-1gram scoops)
Fresh cilantro, minced, to taste (I used about ¼ cup)

Directions:

Heat the water, vinegar and stevia until about body temperature. Place the cucumbers and pickling solution in a jar. You are heating the vinegar so the flavor will penetrate the vegetable more quickly. Refrigerate until needed. If the liquid doesn’t cover all the cucumbers turn the jar over periodically so all the cucumbers are submerged for part of the time. I made these about 30 minutes before dinner but sooner would not be a bad thing.  When you are ready to serve drain the pickles and toss with cilantro.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 20.49
Calories From Fat (4%) - 0.9

Total Fat - 0.13g
Saturated Fat - 0.04g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 4.82mg
Potassium - 197.84mg
Total Carbohydrates - 5.67g
Fiber - 0.6g
Sugar - 1.74g
Protein - 0.73g

Comments:

You can jazz this one up many ways. It is really good with some rough chopped peanuts on top. I also like to infuse the pickling liquid with other spices depending on what I am serving them with. These are not too sharp or too sweet. I like to use them on top of sandwiches, or flax crackers with nut cheese. They are also good in salads or on an appetizer tray.

Unrelated notes:

Today was a typically Friday at our house. Checking on my elderly parents and running a few errands to get ready for the weekend.

The weather was glorious most of the day in the mid 80’s with a nice breeze and low humidity. I decided it would be a great idea to go out to dinner tonight and dine al fresco since the weather was so nice. I have been researching new restaurants for the last couple of hours. So what happened do you imagine? Well about 5 minutes ago it started raining. There is front coming through. So much for dining al fresco.

Now our dinner plans are completely up in the air. I may be posting something later from a restaurant or something from here. At the moment our dinner plans are a big question mark. I hope you evening plans aren’t being messed up by the weather. I will be back later with a dinner update, or some sort. Talk to you all soon.

Dinner Tonight: Taco Salad and Raw Falafel

We fell back on a family favorite for dinner tonight. Since we always have cooked beans in the refrigerator I used those to make a quick taco salad. I make these types of salads often because they are easy and very high in nutrition. For the greens I use baby spinach. Salsa is the salad dressing of choice for these salads. I toss the beans, bell pepper, dice celery, green onions and parsley with the salsa and place that on the spinach. A little more salsa is placed on the top of the salad for color. Halved cherry tomatoes are placed along the edges of the salad with a few tortilla chips on top. I omitted olives and avocado since our next dish had plenty of fat.

To go with the salad we had a few raw falafel with a cucumber, tahini and lemon sauce. Dan and I both think the falafel were okay, but it is not my best recipe. So …. I will be posting that recipe once I am happy with it. Sorry guys I don’t want to post a recipe I am thrilled with.

However to go with the falafel I made a quick cucumber sauce in the blender that we did like. It was very fast and here is what I did:

Cucumber, Tahini and Lemon Sauce
Makes approximately 18 tablespoons

Ingredients:

5 inches English cucumber, cut into chunks
4 tablespoons sesame seeds (or tahini if you aren’t using a high powered blender)
¼ to ½ fresh lemon juiced and zested
Sea salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Combine in your blender and process until smooth. This is nice creamy sauce with the unmistakable flavor of sesame.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 20.95
Calories From Fat (64%) - 13.5

Total Fat - 1.61g
Saturated Fat-  0.23g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 12.2mg
Potassium - 30.87mg
Total Carbohydrates - 1.37g
Fiber - 0.39g
Sugar-  0.2g
Protein - 0.67g

Comments:

This was an easy dinner from things we had in the refrigerator. There are days when that is the best way to go. I like the new cucumber sauce. It will also make a good veggie dip or salad dressing.

Unrelated notes:

I am going to sign off soon to relax before bed. I hope you all had a great Monday. I will chat with you tomorrow. Have a good evening.

Kalamata Olive and Roasted Garlic Pesto

The word pesto comes from the Italian word pestare, which means to pound or bruise. It can be anything that you want although in America we think of it as a basil sauce with nuts, cheese and oil. My husband thinks that I am the queen of condiments. I love anything saucy that I can spread on top of something else. I will use this on top of crackers (or my polenta and panelle hybrid), to top baked potatoes, stirred into cooked grains, on soup. This has a lot of uses. Here is what I did.

Kalamata Olive and Roasted Garlic Pesto
Makes about ½ cup or 16 half tablespoon servings

Ingredients:

2 heads steam roasted garlic, cloves only no papery skins
15 kalamata olives, pitted
1 clove fresh garlic, peeled and finely minced
1 tablespoon brined capers, drained
½ teaspoon oregano, dried
1 lemon, zested

Directions:

Process until combined. You still want to see the flecks of green from the capers. It is just as easy to mince this with your chef knife it you don’t want to clean your food processor. Refrigerate in a sealed container until needed.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 18.4
Calories From Fat (47%) - 8.7

Total Fat - 0.97g
Saturated Fat-  0.01g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 72.82mg
Potassium - 24.91mg
Total Carbohydrates - 2.26g
Fiber - 0.2g
Sugar - 0.08g
Protein - 0.39g

Comments:

This is something that I made just for me. My hubby is not a big fan of olives which means more for me. Yay! If you like olives you will enjoy this. I could eat it anytime on almost anything. If you thin it out with a little lemon juice it makes a really tasty salad dressing. It is also good with a few sun dried tomatoes, fresh parsley or fresh thyme added.

Unrelated note:

So today has been a wait and see day with nothing much to report. I hate waiting around for an important phone call that doesn't come. I guess there is always tomorrow.

On a more positive note I found an interesting standing ab workout today at the Women’s Health website. I decided to try the moves just to see how it would work, thinking it didn’t look very tough. Since I was so convinced it was easy I used dumbbells during the moves. Now I should tell you it was a better ab workout than I expected. If you are looking for something different you may want to check it out.

I have a quinoa salad planned for this evening, and for lunch for a few days. With a little luck I will have time to post that tonight. I hope you are all having a wonderful day.

Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto with Golden Raisins

I would love to take credit for this idea but it isn’t mine. This is my adaptation of a recipe that our chef friend Ian makes. Only his version uses olive oil and wine. I made some changes to make this healthier but kept the big bold flavor. His version is lighter in color so I think he uses more golden raisins proportionally. But the flavor of this is really good so I don’t know how much I am going to change the ratio of tomato to raisin. Here is what I did.


Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto with Golden Raisins
makes 15 servings - they are intentionally small due to the intense flavor

Ingredients:

¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes, rehydrated in warm water and drained
1/3 cup golden raisins
1 clove garlic, peeled and finely minced
1/2 tablespoon Chianti wine vinegar (Sherry vinegar or balsamic would also work here)
½ tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely minced
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Toss everything in your food processor and pulse to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate in a sealed container until needed.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 12.52
Calories From Fat (3%) - 0.38

Total Fat - 0.05g
Saturated Fat - 0.01g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 19.33mg
Potassium - 56.26mg
Total Carbohydrates - 3.14g
Fiber - 0.25g
Sugar - 2.25g
Protein - 0.25g

Comments:

This is one of the few recipes that have gotten an immediate two thumbs up from the husband. He loves this stuff. This pesto has a huge flavor. If you like big bold flavored food you will love this. But I warn you it is a flavor rush. It also has a sweet and sour aspect to it. It is alternately sweet from the raisins and tomatoes but with a hint of acid from the vinegar.

Unrelated Note:

This is going to be my last post tonight. I need to wind down and relax. Tomorrow will be another extremely hectic day at my house. I may not be able to post anything until much later in the day. I will be back as soon as I can.

Cranberry, Apple and Citrus Sauce

I am not one to think there are sacred dishes that must be served for particular holidays. However if there is one dish that comes close to being sacred for me it is cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Of course I like to make different variations of the cranberry sauce and would never serve the jellied stuff from the can, but I do always serve some form of cranberry sauce. Each year I challenge myself to make a variation that is different from my prior recipes.

The recipe I made this year was particularly good. Adding fresh citrus to the cooked sauce changed the personality of the dish for me. I also liked the apple and raisins in the dish. This sauce is lightly sweet but with a nice tart background. I don’t know that many children would like this recipe, but it was very popular on our Thanksgiving table. The only dish that was more popular was the butternut squash salad I posted a few days ago. Here is what I made.

Cranberry, Apple and Citrus Sauce
Makes 8 servings – about 1/3 cup each

Ingredients:

2 cups whole cranberries, fresh or frozen
½ cup water
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ginger, powdered
¼ cup golden raisins
1 apple, cored and minced
2 clementines, cut into small pieces approximately the size of a cranberry

Directions:

Cook the cranberries in the water until they have all popped. Add the cinnamon, ginger, raisins and apple and cook a few minutes until the raisins have plumped a little. This should take under 5 minutes.

Now take the sauce off the heat and add the clementine pieces once the sauce has cooled to approximately room temperature.

Refrigerate until needed and serve cold.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 47.97
Calories From Fat (2%) - 1.05

Total Fat - 0.13g
Saturated Fat - 0.02g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 2.66mg
Potassium - 116.3mg
Total Carbohydrates - 12.52g
Fiber - 2.57g
Sugar - 7.42g
Protein - 0.5g

Comments:

I love a sweet and tart dish like this. It is fabulous on sandwiches or on top of a nice seitan cutlet. I would also use it in or with roasted butternut or acorn squash.

If you are looking for something that is a little different than the standard cranberry sauce this dish is quick, easy and quite tasty. We had this again last night on seitan cutlets and I think I liked it a little better as a leftover. The flavors seemed to have combined better while being stored.

Genovese Pesto

Italians make many different forms of pesto even though in America we tend to only see the basil version that is popular in Genoa. I have a particular fondness for pesto. It packs a big flavor punch and can be used to dress up many different foods. I put it in mashed potatoes, salad dressing, tofu ricotta, and on top of veggie burgers to name a few options.

This particular batch of pesto was made to flavor the cooked grain that will be stuffed into the crimini mushroom caps. Our chef friend Ian made a parsley pesto flavored quinoa last Friday and that inspired my mushroom recipe that will be posted tomorrow. Here is how I made pesto today without parmesan cheese.

Genovese Pesto
Makes a little over a cup – 17 tablespoons

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh basil leaves, cleaned and packed tightly
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
½ cup toasted pine nuts
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste (or use Italian Finishing Salt)

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients in your food processor and process until smooth. The pesto should be thick and creamy. You may need to stop the processor and scrape the sides of the bowl once or twice while processing. Taste the pesto for seasoning and add salt and pepper, as you desire. Additionally, you can add more olive oil if you wish, but I think it tastes great just like this.

Store in a covered container in the refrigerator with a light coating of olive oil over the top to keep the basil from oxidizing. If you are going to need to store it longer than 4 or 5 days the pesto can be frozen.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 60.59
Calories From Fat (90%) - 54.81

Total Fat - 5.92g
Saturated Fat - 0.64g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 0.4mg
Potassium - 39.87mg
Total Carbohydrates - 0.77g
Fiber - 0.23g
Sugar - 0.16g
Protein - 0.72g

Comments:

Pesto is a calorie dense food due to the nuts and olive oil. However, I think the flavor it packs it worth the “price”. This pesto is great over vegetables or pasta if you have leftovers.

If you are a fan of the flavor of nutritional yeast the recipe as written should work for you. However, if you aren’t a fan of nutritional yeast yet start with one tablespoon and taste the pesto for flavor before adding the second tablespoon.

Each tablespoon of this pesto has a little vitamin A (260IU) and K (24mcg) but not a lot.

German Inspired Beet and Apple Relish

(pictured: Seitan paillard with beet and apple relish)

My 80-year-old parents like my seitan, which still blows my mind. They seem to prefer it when I make meals with the seitan, as it more closely resembles the meals they are accustomed to. Tonight we had the seitan paillards from yesterday topped with a German inspired relish. This relish has a lot of flavor, which is a nice counterpoint to the subtle flavors of the seitan and creamed cabbage and spinach.

To reheat the seitan paillards, I place them in my cast iron skillet with a couple of tablespoons of water and turn the fire to high. Cover the pan with a lid and cook for a few minutes until the water evaporates (the sound coming from the skillet will change to tell you to uncover the seitan). This will happen in less than 5 minutes. Now cook the cutlets uncovered, on both sides to recrisp them.

The relish is meant to add a pop of flavor and color to the plate. I combined classic German flavors in an unexpected way to make the relish. Here is what I did.

German Inspired Beet and Apple Relish
Makes 6 servings

Ingredients:

1 medium beet, finely diced
1 apple, finely diced
¼ red onion finely diced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
½ tablespoon walnut oil
1 tablespoon apple cider
2 tablespoons fresh dill, minced

Directions:

Place the diced beet in ice water. Allow the beet to sit in the water for 10 minutes to pull the excess color from the beet. This will keep the entire relish from turning fuchsia. Thoroughly drain the beet of water before the next step.

Combine the beet, apple and onion and stir to combine. Whisk together the mustard, walnut oil, and apple cider. Stir the dressing into the relish. Add the fresh dill and refrigerate until needed.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 40.13
Calories From Fat (29%) - 11.74

Total Fat - 1.34g
Saturated Fat - 0.12g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 42.66mg
Potassium - 91.88mg
Total Carbohydrates - 7.31g
Fiber - 1.43g
Sugar - 4.79g
Protein - 0.49g

Comments:

The most dominant flavor in this relish is the raw onion. Make certain you cut it finely and evenly distribute it throughout the relish. If you think your onion is too pungent soak it in water for 10 minutes or so to pull out some of the sulfur. I prefer the acrid punch of flavor from the onion but I am odd like that. The secondary flavor is apple, followed by walnut oil. The beet, dill and mustard flavors are more background notes that are not as easy to identify.

No one could pick up all the specific flavors in this relish tonight. The hubby, not a big onion or mustard fan, liked it and told me he would gladly eat it again.

Now I am off to finalize the Thanksgiving menu and check the pantry to see if I need to run to the grocery store tomorrow. I will post the menu and timeline as soon as it is ready and the individual recipes as I make then. For big meals like Thanksgiving I try to start cooking a few days before the actual meal. By precooking some the dishes I avoid the dreaded "chaotic day of cooking" that happens in many homes.

I hope you all have a great evening!

Tropical Salsa

(picture: Seitan paillard with tropical salsa and millet)

Our chef friend Ian makes a lot of fresh salsas. Eating his variations so often has had an impact on my love of salsa variations. Today I wanted to make a sweet and sour salsa for on my seitan paillards. This salsa has a lot of different flavors but they all blend well. I love the temperature contrast of a cold salsa on a warm entrée. I added the jarred hot crushed peppers to this salsa since the jalapeno didn’t add enough “heat”.

Salsa is great on seitan, tofu, or vegetables. This would also be good with pita or chips. If you like fried food this would be wonderful with crispy plantain chips. Here is the salsa version I made tonight.

Tropical Salsa
Serves 6

Ingredients:

¼ red onion, finely minced
3 clementines, supremed
1 jalapeno, seeded and finely minced
½ cup fresh pineapple, finely minced
¼ cup grape tomatoes, halved lengthwise and sliced into small half moons
juice from one lime
¼ cup fresh cilantro, minced
½ tablespoon hot crushed peppers, or to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Combine the salsa ingredients in a large bowl and taste for seasoning. Add salt and pepper as desired. Refrigerate until needed.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 32.37
Calories From Fat (4%) - 1.24

Total Fat - 0.15g
Saturated Fat - 0.01g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 49.59mg
Potassium - 124.07mg
Total Carbohydrates - 8.46g
Fiber - 1.45g
Sugar - 5.04g
Protein - 0.66g

Comments:

If you like to add freshness to cooked foods I think you will like this fruit salsa. It is flavorful, sweet, tart and fresh. The cilantro adds a nice bright freshness to the salsa. I could eat this stuff by the spoonful all by itself. However, it is nice with the contrast of the hot seitan.

That is going to be it for me today. I am going to work on menu possibilities for Thanksgiving. I got some input tonight from my parents and the hubby. The final menu will depend on what the organic farmers have tomorrow at the market. However, I like to have the number of dishes determined and a rough outline of what I will be making. The more items I can buy locally the happier I am. Hopefully I will be able to buy all the veggies I need tomorrow at the farm market. I will be posting my Thanksgiving menu just a soon as I finalize it. Have a great evening everyone!

Creamy Mixed Herb Salad Dressing

Salad seemed like the appropriate accompaniment to eggplant lasagna tonight. This dressing is a variation of the other raw cashew dressings that I have been making quite often over the last few months. Tonight I added white miso because it had worked so well in the tofu ricotta I thought I should try it in the dressing too. When I initially tried the dressing I didn’t think the miso had imparted much flavor. However as the dressing sat and the flavors married the miso imparted a nice sweetness to the dressing. When both my husband and father remarked that the dressing was particularly good tonight I knew I should post the recipe. Here is what I did.

Creamy Mixed Herb Salad Dressing
Makes almost 1 cup – 15 tablespoons

Ingredients:

½ cup raw cashews
½ cup water
1 clove garlic
1 tablespoon white miso
¼ cup basil, fresh
2 tablespoons dill, fresh
2 tablespoons cilantro, fresh
1 pinch salt
1 pinch freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Combine everything in the blender and puree until smooth. The mixture will thicken in the refrigerator.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 20.57
Calories From Fat (60%) - 12.29

Total Fat - 1.47g
Saturated Fat - 0.26g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 63.18mg
Potassium - 30.76mg
Total Carbohydrates - 1.41g
Fiber - 0.22g
Sugar - 0.26g
Protein - 0.77g

Comments:

This dressing is creamy and a little sweet with a dominant basil flavor. Cilantro and dill are more background flavors. Garlic was also very mild. Next time I may add another garlic clove. Overall I thought the dressing was good and may play around with adding miso in different dressing variations in the coming months. Miso is one of those ingredients that I usually have but don’t use very often and I don’t know why that is.

Tomorrow I have a few life administration tasks to cross off my list. I am hoping to have time to work on a new seitan cutlet recipe. I want to make something that has a big bold taste similar to beef. Replicating a “white meat” has been much easier than beef. But I have avoided that for too long now so I think tomorrow is the day I tackle a beefy seitan. Wish me luck; I think I am going to need it. Talk to you all tomorrow. I hope you have a great evening.

Buttercup Squash with Apple, Cranberry Mostarda

The squash I served last week was such a hit that I thought I would make something similar today to go with the bean and polenta dish. Since I had mentioned the version of mostarda with cranberries previously, I thought I should post it in case anyone was interested.

This was my first buttercup squash. One of the organic farmers had it at the market and I thought why not, even though I didn’t know what it was. I had to look it up to write this post. It is very similar to acorn squash in taste and cooking time, only much larger in size. Here is what I made tonight.

Buttercup Squash with Apple, Cranberry Mostarda
Serves 4

Squash Ingredients:

1 buttercup squash, cut in half and seeds removed
1 teaspoon canola oil
1 pinch of kosher salt
1 pinch of freshly ground black pepper

Mostarda Ingredients:

¼ cup red onion, finely diced
¼ cup water to water sauté onions
¼ cup cranberries, frozen or fresh
¼ cup golden raisins
4 tablespoons, cored and diced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons yellow mustard seeds
1 tablespoon agave
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Rub the exposed squash surfaces with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the squash on baking dish or half sheet pan cut side down. Add ½ cup of water and bake until the squash is easily pierced with the tip of a paring knife. Mine was ready in 40 minutes but the amount of time your squash takes depends on the size of the squash.

To make the mostarda water sauté the onion until it is soft. Add the remaining ingredients and cook until the cranberries burst. Check the mostarda for seasoning and correct before serving. You want the mostarda to be a little sweet, but also tart and to have a mustard background.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 187.24
Calories From Fat (12%) - 22.73

Total Fat - 2.66g
Saturated Fat - 0.36g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 134.3mg
Potassium - 631.09mg
Total Carbohydrates - 41.81g
Fiber - 4.89g
Sugar - 22.02g
Protein - 3.81g

Comments:

If you like chutney and squash you will probably like this dish, I know I did. The rest of the family appeared to like it too, because it disappeared fairly rapidly.

Next time I would probably use white balsamic so the color of the mostarda wouldn’t muddy. I like the sweetness the balsamic adds to the dish. However you can use regular red or white wine vinegar and more agave if you prefer. The red wine vinegar is so light in color it doesn’t negatively impact the cold of the finished mostarda.

Nutritionally this dish was better than the beans and polenta but it wasn’t the powerhouse that some of dishes are. Each serving of this recipe contains more than 1,600IU of vitamin A, 69mg of calcium, 24mcg of folate, and 67mcg of phosphorus.

I am off to relax with my green tea and my hubby. I hope you all have a great evening.

Pine Nut Mayonnaise

Last night when my hubby was ready to leave work he called and said he needed a substantial dinner because he felt like he hadn’t eaten enough. That is the reason made the broccoli and “cheese” potato with avocado. Dan doesn’t often say he needs extra food so I knew I needed to pile on the calories. Last night’s dinner was a good cold weather comfort meal that we both enjoyed but it was definitely heavier than most of my recipes.

After dinner I was looking through Charlie Trotter’s book “Raw” and saw a recipe for pine nut mayonnaise. It looked interesting so I tossed a ½ cup of pine nuts into filtered water before I went to bed so I could try the recipe in the morning.

When I tasted the recipe as given in the book it was a little too plain for me so I added a few additional flavors to the sauce. Here is the pine nut mayonnaise recipe I modified from the book “Raw”.

Pine Nut Mayonnaise
Makes approximately 1 cup – 16 tablespoons

Ingredients:

½ cup raw pine nuts, soaked overnight and well drained
¼ cup water
½ lemon juiced and zested
1 pinch dry mustard (scant 1/8 teaspoon)
1 pinch kosher salt
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

Directions:

Combine everything in your blender and process until smooth. Pour into a jar and refrigerate until needed. The pine nut mayonnaise will thicken in the refrigerator as it chills.

Nutritional Information (per tablespoon):

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 44.19
Calories From Fat (89%) - 39.13

Total Fat - 4.59g
Saturated Fat - 0.44g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 15.05mg
Potassium - 30.77mg
Total Carbohydrates - 0.95g
Fiber - 0.33g
Sugar - 0.16g
Protein - 0.62g

Comments:

I have been exploring a lot of raw salad dressings so mayonnaise was the natural progression. Pine nuts make a very mild body for the mayonnaise. My only complaint is that the sauce is a little too thin even after it has been thoroughly chilled. Not terribly thin, but a bit off the mark. Next time I may add another tablespoon of olive oil to see if that thickens the sauce. Overall this was easier than I expected and turned out more like mayonnaise than I thought it would. It has more lemon flavor than traditional mayonnaise, but since I love lemon that is a good thing in my opinion.

If you are looking for a cooked reduced fat mayonnaise I posted a recipe that can be found here. It results in a much thicker sauce than this that is more like traditional mayonnaise. There is a full fat mayonnaise that tastes like the store brought refrigerated brand, which I posted here. I have made both of these versions many times with good results.

I hope everyone has a nice day.

Mostarda – Apple, Apricot and Raisin

If you aren’t Italian you are probably wondering what in the heck is Mostarda. It is an Italian condiment that is typically served with cheese or charcuterie. I made it to go with the raw cashew goat cheese and I am so glad I did.

Mostarda is basically Italian chutney with a little mustard background. You can make it more sweet, or less. Add more or less mustard. Use whatever fruit you have on hand. I always use both fresh and dried fruit. At Christmas time I like to add cranberries, which go beautifully with the other fruit and mustard.

Assuming you don’t have any homemade goat “cheeze” on hand this is wonderful on seitan or baked tofu. I love it on sandwiches or on crackers. Here is what I did.

Mostarda – Apple, Apricot and Raisin
Makes 36 tablespoons

Ingredients:

½ red onion, peeled and finely minced
¼ cup water
½ cup dried unsulfured apricots, finely diced
½ cup golden raisins
2 apples, cored and finely diced
2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons amber agave
½ tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon yellow mustard seed

Directions:

Combine the onion, water, apricots and raisins and cook until the onion is soft. Then add the remaining ingredients and cook until syrupy. Refrigerate until needed. This will keep for weeks in the refrigerator.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 16.55
Calories From Fat (4%) - 0.6

Total Fat - 0.07g
Saturated Fat - 0.01g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 3.36mg
Potassium - 47.19mg
Total Carbohydrates - 4.17g
Fiber - 0.52g
Sugar - 2.99g
Protein - 0.21g

Comments:

This is one of my favorite condiments. I was first introduced to this at cooking class and it has been making regular appearances at our house ever since. If you like things that are sweet and tart (agro dolce as the Italians call it) I think you will love this condiment.

Balsamic Glazed Sliced Onions

As you may have noticed Italian food is my specialty. Most of my recipes are Italian or Italian inspired. This dish has Italian written all over it.

Traditionally balsamic glazed onions include quite a bit of olive oil and are roasted whole or in halves and are served with meat. The flavor does not suffer from the lack of olive oil. Additionally, when the onions are sliced first they can be used on crackers, pasta or on top of protein.

I use good quality 18-year-old vinegar to make this dish because I prefer the flavor of Napa Valley Naturals balsamic vinegar. If you are using standard vinegar you may need to use a little more vinegar and/or add a little sugar or agave to get the same syrupy texture and intensity of flavor.

Balsamic Glazed Sliced Onions
Makes about 1 2/3 cups

Ingredients:

1 large red onion, peeled and sliced thinly (approximately 1/8 inch thick slices0
1 cups of water
1 pinch of kosher salt
¼ cup of balsamic vinegar
2 inches of fresh rosemary (leaves removed and finely minced) – optional but recommended

Directions:

Combine the sliced onions, water and kosher salt in a large skillet with a lid. Turn the heat to medium low and cook covered until the onions begin to soften. Check the onions in 10 minutes to see if they are beginning to soften. When they are half cooked (this should happen in about 10–15 minutes) remove the lid so the water can evaporate. Add balsamic vinegar and rosemary and turn the heat to low. Stir occasionally while the balsamic reduces. Cook until the onions are soft and the balsamic has become thick like syrup (about 25 minutes).

Nutritional Information for the entire recipe:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 97.87
Calories From Fat (2%) - 1.65

Total Fat - 0.2g
Saturated Fat - 0.02g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 307.05mg
Potassium - 73.77mg
Total Carbohydrates - 20.33g
Fiber - 1.96g
Sugar - 9.53g
Protein - 1.57g

Comments:

If you like French onion soup and balsamic vinegar this is a marriage of the two. It is simultaneously sweet and tart. My favorite way to use this is on seitan. However it is also good on crostini or panelle. It makes a fabulous pizza topping too.

Homemade Vegan Mayonnaise

When the popular vegan mayonnaise by Follow Your Heart reached 4 dollars for a small jar in our market I decided I was no longer buying it. I thought it was a fantastic product, but the price was unreasonable for what it was. I knew if I tried enough variations I could make my own. After all, the ingredient list wasn’t that long, or complicated. This is my version of homemade vegan mayonnaise.

Homemade Vegan Mayonnaise
Makes about 1 ½ cups

Ingredients:
½ cup of soy milk, plain and preferably unsweetened
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of canola oil
¼ teaspoon of apple cider vinegar
¼ teaspoon of agave
¾ teaspoon of kosher salt
½ tablespoon of fresh lemon juice
zest from 1/8 of an organic lemon
1/8 teaspoon of dry mustard

Directions:

Put everything in the blender and process until it is thick. I make mine in my Vitamix and it takes about 15 seconds. If you have a lower speed blender you may need to process a little longer. The homemade vegan mayonnaise will become thick and completely emulsified exactly like a mayonnaise made with egg.

Comments:

You will not be able to tell the difference between this and egg mayonnaise. The flavors may be slightly different from your favorite brand, but the texture and overall flavor profile are just like egg mayonnaise.

I have kept this in my refrigerator for a couple of weeks. It will last as long as the soymilk.

If you only have sweetened soy milk wait and add the agave at the end, you will probably need less, but that will vary by brand of soymilk and your taste.

Update April 2010:

For those of you looking for another opinion of how well this works, check this post at Diets, Desserts and Dogs.  I was quite pleased when Ricki referred to the mayo as ethereal.  I still have not made this recipe with almond milk and don't know whether it will work or not. Since we have given up oil it may be a while before I get around to making the almond milk version.

Agave Mustard

Why should you make your own mustard? Why shouldn’t you? Making mustard is so quick and easy. Once you make mustard you will wonder why you ever spent so much money of those little jars of mustard.

Did you know that mustard is part of the cruciferous family? Not only is mustard lower in fat and calories but also it is also full of phytonutrients that have been shown to have anti-cancer effects. Mustard is also a good source of both selenium and magnesium.

Mustard seeds come in black, brown and white. The black mustard seeds have the most pungent taste, the white mustard seeds are the most mild and are the ones used to make American yellow mustard. Brown mustard seeds have an acrid taste and are the type used to make Dijon mustard. The names of the seeds are misleading since the white mustard seeds are yellow in color, and the brown mustard seeds are a dark yellow.

Many health food stores and natural markets carry whole mustard seeds in large quantities. If you have access to whole seeds at a good price you can grind them yourself in a coffee grinder you only use for spices. Don’t use your regular coffee grinder or your coffee will never taste the same no mater how clean you think the grinder is. I tried this once many years ago and it wasn’t a good idea.

This mustard is a good basic recipe to build upon. Give it a try; you will be surprised how easy it is to make your own mustard.


Agave Mustard
Makes about 4 tablespoons

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons of mustard powder (Coleman’s dry mustard)
1 tablespoon of water
½ teaspoon of apple cider vinegar (any vinegar will do)
½ tablespoon of canola oil
1 tablespoon of agave

Directions:

Mix the mustard, water and vinegar until a smooth thick paste forms. Add the oil and whisk until the oil has been incorporated. Stir the agave into the mustard.

Pour into a sterilized jar and refrigerate until needed.

Mustard is the most fiery 10 minutes after it is made. If you try the mustard early it will remind you of the mustard that you get with egg rolls. The mustard will mellow, as it is stored. It will lose much of its heat after being stored for a month.

Comments:

This mustard will be very fiery if you taste it right after you made it. Put it in the refrigerator and try it the next day. Alternately, you could try to use much less on your sandwich if you want to eat it right away. You can also add texture to the mustard with a few whole mustard seeds, or green peppercorns. A few coarsely ground black peppercorns would also be nice here also.

There are some things to keep in mind as you make your own mustard. The water activates the enzyme myrosinase, which makes the mustard fiery. To halt the enzyme an acidic liquid is added (vinegar, wine or beer). The more acidic the liquid the more it will reduce the heat, with the vinegar being the most acidic, then the wine, and finally the beer. Complimentary spices to use with mustard are: bay leaf, black pepper, chili, coriander, cumin, dill, fennel, garlic, honey, parsley, tarragon and turmeric.

Making mustard is somewhat addictive if you love mustard the way I do. It is rewarding to take a few ingredients that I always have on hand and make a quick sandwich spread.

Sherry Vinaigrette

We eat salad everyday at our house and I never post the dressing recipes since I assume everyone has a favorite dressing. My friends have convinced me that I should post some of my salad dressing recipes.

This dressing is one of my basic recipes. The first thing you will notice is that I do not follow the 3 to 1 ratio that is classic. I find that when dressings are three parts oil to one part acid they are too fatty for my taste. I started making my salads 2 to 1 and then moved to 1 to 1 a few years ago. The nice thing about this type of dressing is that it has a lot of flavor due to the proportion change and therefore you use less but don’t miss the flavor.

There are pluses and minuses to using olive oil in dressing. The big plus is that it takes good and is good for you. The negatives are that it is expensive and that it congeals in the refrigerator. I normally use an organic extra virgin olive oil in my salads because I like the flavor. If you choose to do this know that you need to take it out of the refrigerator 15 minutes before you want to toss the salad.

The mustard is not absolutely necessary in this dressing in terms of flavor, but it is required for the dressing to stay emulsified for a while. If you make the dressing without the mustard will be emulsify, but it won’t stay emulsified for long.

Sherry Vinaigrette
Makes enough for 8 – 10 large individual salads

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons of sherry vinegar
salt and pepper to taste (I use about ½ a teaspoon of each)
1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard
4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon of dried oregano or thyme, optional

Directions:

Add the salt and pepper to the sherry vinegar and whisk. By adding the salt to the vinegar it helps the salt to dissolve, before the oil is added. Add the Dijon and whisk to combine. Add the olive oil and whisk to emulsify the dressing. If you are using the oregano add it here and whisk it into the dressing. The oregano flavor will develop as the dressing sits in the refrigerator.

Store the dressing in a covered jar in the refrigerator until you are ready to make a salad. I use about a tablespoon of dressing per salad. When you remove the dressing from the refrigerator give the jar a good shake and the dressing will emulsify again if it has broken.

Comments:

If you like the taste of mustard this vinaigrette is also good with twice the amount of Dijon. My husband isn’t a huge fan of mustard so I try to keep it somewhat subtle. You can taste the mustard in this dressing but it isn’t the most dominant flavor. The sherry vinegar gives the dressing a nice subtle acidic hit. This dressing is one of my go to dressings. When I am not adding the shallot I make this dressing in a smaller quantity in the salad bowl right before I toss the salad. If you want you can grate a little garlic into this dressing for added flavor. Don’t add more than one large clove or it will be overpowering.

Rhubarb, Cherry and Port Sauce

I bought two pounds of rhubarb this weekend at the farmers' market with no idea of what I was going to do with it. This was partly because I like a challenge. This rhubarb, cherry and port sauce is full of intense flavor, but it is also good for your health.

Rhubarb is a relative of buckwheat and has a sour flavor if eaten alone. Rhubarb has been used as traditional Chinese medicine since ancient times. The anthraquinones in rhubarb are capable of inhibiting cellular proliferation (i.e. preventing cancer from metastasizing).

Tart cherries are packed with antioxidants. Researchers claim tart cherries are full of antioxidants, help with diabetes, and may prevent cancer.

I love when these tasty foods are also good for me.

Rhubarb, Cherry and Port Sauce
Makes approximately 2 cups

Ingredients:

1/2 cup ruby port
1/2 cup sweetened dried tart cherries
½ tablespoon of canola oil
1 cup red onion, finely minced
6 ounces of fresh rhubarb, trimmed and sliced thin (approx 1/8th inch thick)
2 cups vegetable stock
2 teaspoons arrowroot dissolved in 1 tablespoon of cool water
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 tablespoon agave
1 allspice berry, crushed

Directions:

In a small saucepan heat the port and cherries until the port begins to simmer. Turn off the heat, put the lid on the pan and allow to sit for 20 minutes.

Sauté shallots in the canola oil with a pinch of kosher salt until the shallots just begin to caramelize.

Add the sliced rhubarb to the onions and continue to cook until the rhubarb is soft (this should take about 5 minutes).

Add the vegetable stock and cherry flavored port to the onions and rhubarb and continue to cook over low heat (the pan should be at a low simmer) until the sauce has reduced by one third (approximately 20 minutes). Whisk the arrowroot into the water and then whisk it into the sauce. Arrowroot will gelatinize between 140 and 187 degrees. Add the agave, salt and pepper. Taste for seasoning.

I hold this sauce on my simmer burner on the lowest setting while I make the rest of dinner.

Comments:

This sauce is a symphony of flavors. The pop of cherry is nice when you get a whole cherry in a bite. The port flavor is noticeable but not overpowering. The rhubarb mostly disappears into the sauce but adds nice texture. Even though it only has one allspice berry, you will taste the flavor in the background.

This sauce would be good over seitan, tofu, or gnocchi. I put a little almond feta on a wasa cracker and drizzled this warm over the top of the "cheese" for a snack. This sauce is great with the almond feta.

If you have a meat eater in your house, this sauce would also be perfect over duck breast, on roast pork or chicken breast.