There's Always Online Stores

It's a pain and a chore to go grocery shopping these days. There's shortages galore and you have to be savvy when a particular store stocks up. If worse comes to worse  there is online shopping and the various stores that can offer salvation.

One of the best places is Amazon. There has been some negative criticism regarding how the company treats their workers during this time and the heavy amount of  work  allotted to them. Yet it has a wide array of foodstuffs and items for any home chef and kitchen.I have been buying kitchen wares from them for years. The company has a very good selection of silicon bakeware .There's a wide variety of that , from loaf pans to smaller ones for decorative cakes and candies.  The company is also great for appliances. Air fryers are big and a godsend. Amazon has a wide assortment of different brands and they have their choices as to what's the best. You can always something that suits your needs. The same goes for toaster ovens - which they have many , from simple ones to ones with convection ovens included. If you want fancier gadgets like sous vides and immersion blenders, them Amazon, is the place to go for them. (but you can  also go to Target and Wal-mart too)  Another plus about Amazon is that they do have a wide variety of hard to find and unusual foods. I recently bought Berbere spice there, something I know I couldn't get in my local grocery store. I've also bought clotted cream from them, something I can only get at British specialty stores in Manhattan.

There are other places to go to for specific foods. The Carmel Honey Company is one of my favorites. I buy their wildflower honey for my tomato sauce and chili (yes, I use it for those. It's better than sugar). it was started by teenager Jake who wrote about honey bees for a school project. He became so involved that he started his own honey company  - lucky for us. It's a great source of natural honeys that can be used for everything from sauces (yes again) to cakes and muffins.  For vegan, Vegan Essentials has all sorts of foodstuffs from faux seafood to Beyond Burger if you can't get those at your local supermarket. The company also has Miyoko's  vegan cheeses and butters. These taste like the real thing and the website has a variety of different cheeses like scallion flavored cream cheese and cultured butter. It's hard to get any fancy loaves for family celebrations but Vegan Essentials does have tofu loaves like Field Roast squash stuffed tofu.  Flour is supposed to be up next when it comes to shortages. Not to worry. King Arthur has a wide variety of different flours (along with bakeware and baking gadgets). They also sell gluten free flours which is great for those with celiac disease.  Another good site for flours is Bob's Red Mill which also has nut flours as well along with all natural sugars.

If you can't find it in your local store, then go on line. It's an easy way to shop with out all the worry and the fretting.It';s just point, click and buy without the hassle.

A Vegan Mardi Gras

It's Mardi Gras season, a time for delicious foods and "le bonne temps roule". Yet it can be tricky navigation for vegetarians and vegans. Don't worry. You can still let the good times roll with some tasty meatless dishes, full of flavor and that New Orleans spice.

Jambalaya is always a must for Mardi Gras. This rich rice dish is always full of Andouille sausage, chicken and shrimp, yet these can be subbed in with vegan versions. Beyond Meat has sausages you can use while Morningstar Farms has the chicken strips. The shrimp may be a little hard to get, especially with the holiday just a few days away, You could go to Vegan Essentials, a popular vegan site, and buy the Be Leaf Shrimp. You could also make your own using sweet potato dough that's been boiled into a dulse or seaweed flakes broth. Another idea is loading the jambalaya up with different kinds of beans. Try it with kidney or black beans. Some vegans toss in some cubes of tofu for more protein. Just remember to always include the holy trinity of Cajun and Creole cooking - peppers, celery and onions. A new Mardi Gras recipe can be made with these and any kind of tofu. Add some tomato paste , garlic and cayenne pepper for some zing.This would be great over rice or even grits for a more Southern feel. Gumbo is another must for Fat Tuesday, Of course it has the holy trinity of peppers, celery and onions  but then there's vegan sausage and jackfruit , an exotic fruit with a meat like texture . It will give a sweet pear and mango. You can eliminate the last if you find that it adds too much of a sugary taste.

One of the best dishes to come out of New Orleans is the muffaletta sandwich. This originated in sicily and was brought over with the Sicilian immigrants who helped shape the city. It's a hearty combination of different cold cuts such as mortadella and salami along with different cheeses and giardiniera - a pickled vegetable salad. All of this is layered on a round Sicilian bread. However it's easily converted into a meatless feat. There are some great cold cuts from Tofurky  that can easily pass for what your deli offers. Another sub in is grilled portabella mushrooms. Giardiniera is a easy find, especially in Italian delis, however if you can't find it, try chopped black and green olives. As for the bread, Italian bread or ciabatta rolls work nicely. If you want another Mardi Gras sandwich, then think the Po'Boy.It's usually a shrimp filled one rich with remoulade - a spicy sweet mayo blend. For vegetarians, try oyster mushrooms dipped in a mix of panko breadcrumbs and cornmeal. You can add flax seeds for more flavor. These can be air fried and then popped onto a baguette cut into four to five inch lengths. Slather on  remoulade sauce made with Nayonnaise, the vegan mayonnaise mixed with  Cajun or Creole seasoning, pickle juice , garlic and hot sauce. Add sliced tomatoes, pickles and arugula lettuce.

Mardi Gras is a time for fun and fun eats. Vegetarians and vegans can easily celebrate too with all sorts of good meatless Cajun and Creole adaptations. Let the meat free good times roll!!

Lobster Balls Finally

The lobster balls I had planned to make for Christmas Eve finally got cooked today.

They had been in the freezer for six weeks (they came a week before the holiday). I had to steam defrost them in the microwave for six minutes before cooking them in the air fryer.

It was adding water to them and then putting a paper towel over them to steam them.

Afterwards it was then creating a sauce to match the Priano  garlic flavored risotto I bought at Aldi's

These were a quick cook of about fifteen minutes.

The lobster balls were a bit more elaborate. I flavored them in a bath of olive oil, and this trio

,garlic salt, onion powder and dried oregano.

The hard part comes next.  Setting a time and temp on the air crisper. The recipes for tofu balls really didn't help. There were literally none for lobster tofu balls. I set it for 350 degrees.

Setting at 400 might have been too much.  As for the time. first it was eight minutes, checking it 

then another ten minutes.

This was the final product.

I thought the balls would be crispy and brown. They did have a crispy exterior but a soft lobster like interior. The flavorings I added were subtle and the balls worked with the risotto. It would have been the perfect Christmas Eve, or New Year's Eve dinner.  The lobster and the rice were the perfect pairing. There are a lot of leftover lobster balls (and risotto) but I'm chilling these and turning them into a tasty cold salad for tomorrow's dinner.

I may decide to make the lobster and rice for a non traditional Easter dinner. They're really an elegant duo and balance each other. I will be buying the lobster balls again from Vegan Essentials for other dishes too.

A Very Vegan Christmas

Christmas is the time for good will towards all and that includes animals. For a more sympathetic and Franciscan holiday think about going vegan and vegetarian. It's surprisingly easy to do  -not to mention delicious with the right foods and treats.

What do herbivores eat for the holidays? I'm asked that all the time , as I cook and bake in a vegetarian household. (I'm not one myself and I will allow myself dairy , eggs and meat/seafood from time to time). For main meals  some kind of tofu pr plant based "meat" is the star. Beyond Meat and Impossible Burgers have expanded the range of no meat recipes. I was pleasantly surprised when I found out my local Stop & Shop had all different kinds of plant based meats, including Beyond Burgers meat loaf and sausages. Even Stop & Shop itself has their own version of the faux meat which is exciting. The chopped "meat" can be made into a fancy loaf and decorated with grape tomatoes, olives and peppers. You could also make a meaty vegan lasagna, perfect for a crowd as a second course. Tofurkey has these little "hams" that have an amber ale glaze or just plain. There 's some fancy recipes regarding them, with one giving it the Hassleback treatment. This is slicing the ham and stuffing the slits with rosemary and tart apples. it's served on a variety of veggies like carrots and fingerling potatoes. Tofurky also gives us their famed tofu turkey loaf and feast package. There is a breadcrumb and rice stuffing in their loaves, while the feast comes with gravy and even a cheesecake.

Many feel that seafood is a luxury, perfect for a lush Christmas Eve or Christmas Day meal. Gardein which has excellent vegan meat like their turkey and gravy and chicken strips offers crab puffs. These mini balls are a perfect way of starting off a meal and have relatively the same ingredients as the real thing. Onions and peppers along with a hint of garlic give them that extra flavor, associated with crab cakes. Vegan Essentials, a great site for all things vegan has some good fish and seafood substitutes. I recently made their Match Meat brand  crab cakes. They were just as good as the real thing, especially with the seafood taste and crumbly texture. One large cake can satisfy one person and they're perfect with a salad and a light side. There's also a nice lemony aftertaste thanks to addition of lemon juice in the recipe. Vegan Essentials also sells "lobster chunks" by Loving Hut which I ordered for Christmas and am excitedly. anticipating their arrival.They're made with konjac root, an herb found in Asia. The lobster supposedly tastes like the real thing so I will have plenty of melted vegan butter on hand. For real luxury there is Caviart, a faux roe that's made with seaweed.

Vegans can eat well for the holidays. There's a wide array of faux meats and fish that can satisfy any taste. The best parts is that no animals were harmed in the making of the Christmas meal.