Home made soy milk!

I got my Soyabella soy milk maker! I used it the other night for the first time, making 2 batches. It was really super easy. I used the okara to make felafel and pita bread (both recipes here on the blog). Did you know that okara added to bread dough lends it loft and (of course) LOTS of good for you things? me neither. but I've found a number of recipes to try for using up okara, including pasta. check my blog for the results of my searching.

I'm definitely going to make some tofu as soon as I get some cheesecloth, too.i

We still have some commercially produced soy milk left, so I can't really report on the taste yet. But Mike says it's beanier (this does not bother me a bit).

Updates: I've been adding a touch more sugar, and found a way to double-filter the soy milk (using a paper coffee filter after I use the regular (gold) coffee filter) as a way to avoid the very fine and sludgy okara that settles, and that may contribute to the 'beany' or bitter taste. My cereal this morning with milk done this way was fresh and really tasty, much better than cow's milk ever tasted to me. Note: cut sugar a bit, to 1 1/2 T.

Also!! I just made tofu for the first time! I know, enough with the exclamation marks. tough, deal with it. Was it a hassle? Yes, because this first time round I think I used nearly every pot and pan in the kitchen. Even with that, the process was not all that bad - a series of small, easy steps. and it's beautiful (and it's what's for dinner, broiled after marinating simply, with collards and maybe some spiced-up roasted potatoes. More later on the actual taste (details, details).



HOME MADE TOFU

This is a mix of recipes, suited to what I have (I have no nigari, for example - I mean to get some). The basic recipes are from Bryanna Clark Grogan and Just Hungry.

1. 2 or 3 quarts of freshly made soy milk
2. muslin or cheesecloth
3. strainer
4. large pot

Follow the instructions for making soy milk, but instead of putting the strained milk someplace where it can cool down, put into a large pot on the stove on the lowest heat. It should not boil, but just stay hot. If you are using previously made soy milk, heat it up so that it's hot but not boiling. Use a thermometer if you want to be precise - it should be around 75°C / 165°F.

Now add your coagulent. This can be a variety of things. Brianna uses epsom salts; some use nigari, and you can also use lemon juice or vinegar.

For NIGARI
Make your nigari mixture by dissolving 4 teaspoons of powdered nigari in a cup of lukewarm water until the powder is dissolved. (This amount is for the soy milk created from 500g / about 1 lb of dry soy beans, as described in Part 1.) Stirring the warm soy milk, add the nigari liquid in stages, stirring then waiting a bit between additions. As soon as the curd starts to separate from the liquid, stop adding.
For EPSOM SALTS
"For this amount of milk (3 qts), I use two heaping tablespoons of Epsom salts, dissolved in 1/2 cup boiling water. The reason you don't want to add all the nigari at once is because it has a slightly bitter taste, so you want to add a little as possible while still achieving a good degree of coagulation. Most of the time though, the entire amount can be added.

Turn off the heat, and put a tight fitting lid on the pot. Leave for at least 15 minutes, then take a look, stirring very gently to see the state of the curds. They should be fairly big and totally separated from the yellowish liquid. If the white particles are still very small and floating all around in the liquid, add the rest of the nigari liquid if you have some left, or make up an additional teaspoonful's worth of powder and water. Stir in, and put the lid back on for an additional 10-15 minutes." (Bryanna)

for LEMON JUICE or VINEGAR
"*In general, the amount of coagulant is 0.25 to 0.5% of cooked soymilk by weight. Ellen's note: If you don't have calcium coagulant, try to get it, but if you can't, to prepare your solidifier, combine 1 cup warm water with one of the following: 2 tsp. Epsom salts, 2 tsp. nigari, 1/4 cup vinegar or 1/4 cup lemon juice. They take about twice as much volume and need about twice as long as the calcium sulfate.

Cut in 3/4 of the coagulant. Cut gently but persistently in one direction, do not whip or beat. As soon as the curd begins to firm, immediately STOP stirring and cover. Allow the curd to set without disturbing for 10 minutes. If there are any milky patches, shake up the coagulant again and stir in a little more coagulant this way: sprinkle the rest of the solidifier in and poke the top gently and let it sit again for a few minutes. Make sure to stir coagulating tofu gently so as not to break up the curds. It ends up soft white clumps in a yellow whey. If the coagulant is poured in too fast or beaten, the curd breaks apart and won't clump well. Too slowly and it starts coagulating early, creating hard blocks." from Ellen's Kitchen.

Cover the pan and let it sit for around 15-20 minutes. Next, take a sieve and gently ladle out the clear liquid (or as much as possible without disturbing the curds that have now sunk to the bottom of the pan).

Ladle the curds into a press lined with cheesecloth. I use a cheap grocery store storage box, the kind that comes in packs of 3 or 4, and have drilled holes in it for drainage, and cut the lid so it will fit inside the box.

Wrap the cheesecloth over the top. Put the lid on the top of that, and set a 15 oz can atop all this. Leave it for an hour or so, then (if you want) add more weight to get the tofu firmer.

Roasted tamari chickpeas

1 can or 2 cups cooked chickpeas
1 tbsp tamari
1-2 tsp lemon or lime juice
taco seasoning or 2 tbsp menudo mix (taco seasoning recipe also available through the link, below)

whisk tamari, juice & spices
add rinsed chickpeas and toss until coated
place on tray, spray with oil
bake 400F 20-25minutes

This recipe is amended from the terrific Happy Herbivore blog, where the chickpeas are incorporated into blue corn tacos! Thanks for correcting my mis-linking, too - very much appreciated!

Okara Pita Bread

The pita bread made from this recipe was much lighter than previous recipes, and I've tried 3 or 4. It's a great way to use your akara, and I think next time, I'll up the whole wheat flour, and perhaps try adding either sauteed onion or sesame seeds to the top after I roll the pitas out, and before baking.

2 cups warm water (no more than a warmish body temp or the yeast will die)
1 tablespoon yeast
2 tablespoons honey (or vegan sub - I used agave nectar)
1/2 tablespoon salt (I cut this in 1/2 from the original recipe)
1/2 cup warm wet okara (or substitute mashed soft tofu)
1 cup whole wheat flour
4 to 5 cups unbleached all purpose flour

• In a large mixing bowl mix the water, yeast and honey or substitute well.

• Let sit for 5 minutes to dissolve the yeast.

• Mix in salt and okara.
• Add one cup whole wheat flour and two cups of the unbleached all purpose flour. Beat well to develop the gluten. Continue to add the rest of the white flour until you get a stiff dough. Knead the dough for at least 10 minutes. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and place in a warm spot to rise for approximately 1 hour.
• After the hour, punch the dough down, and knead a few times. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Divide the dough into 12-15 portions (the original recipe said 10-12, but with the okara it makes lots more!) Roll the portions into balls, cover and let rest for 10 minutes.
• After the 10 minutes, take a ball of dough, and flatten it to 1/4" with a rolling pin, shaping it into a round. Place on a greased cookie sheet. Repeat for the remainder of the dough, placing two to a cookie sheet (3 if smaller). Bake for 5 - 7 minutes until browned. Make sure to keep your eye on these because I've found that with successive batches, the oven temp goes up!

• Move to a wire rack to cool while you flatten and bake the rest of the dough. Makes approximately 12-15 pitas.

from Okara mountain

Tangy Yogurt Sauce

Tangy Yogurt Sauce

3/4 cup tahini
1 tablespoon natural creamy peanut butter (optional)
1-1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 large clove garlic, finely minced
1/4 cup green onions, finely minced
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely minced
1 tablespoon fresh basil, finely minced (optional)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon paprika
dash cayenne

In a medium sized mixing bowl combine sauce ingredients and beat well. Refrigerate any sauce that is left over and use it for dip for raw veggies, or as a salad dressing.

Okara Felafel

I just made this tonight, and it makes a TON of felafel (I mean really, it made about 30 1" balls)! next time I'll cut it in half. I added some chopped flat leaf parsley, which worked very well. This felafel was my own first attempt at homemade - it is light, tasty, and very very different from the prepared boxes you just add water to. We decided we like that granular (and firmer) box mix, or at least, that aspect of it. I'll be fiddling with this recipe to get it where we want it - it's definitely a keeper! Maybe if I add cornmeal (or mix in chickpea flour) I'll have firmer texture - another option might be to drain and press the okara.

2 (15 ounce) can chickpeas (drained, rinsed, and mashed)
1 cup wet okara
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup celery, minced
1/2 cup green onions, (white portion only) minced
1/2 teaspoon tumeric
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon paprika
cayenne (dash or to taste)
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
3-1/2 tablespoons white unbleached flour (you will need extra for coating)
3 tablespoons tahini
2 egg replacements, beaten

In a large mixing bowl, combine above ingredients well. Chill mixture for at least one hour or more. With your hands dusted with flour, scoop out mixture to make 1" balls. Coat the balls with flour. Heat a 2"- 3" pool of oil in a heavy skillet or heavy saucepan to 365 degrees. Deep fry the Felafel (three at a time, depending on size of skillet or pan...don’t overcrowd) until golden brown. Hold in a warm oven until done frying all the Felafel. Serve warm with Tangy Yogurt Sauce.

recipe from Okara Mountain, which I recommend highly - this looks fantastic!

Okara hummus

1 cup okara
1 lb canned chick-pea (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/4 fresh lemon juice
6 garlic cloves
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (more if you like a thinner hummus)
2 tablespoon tahini
salt and pepper

Saute the garlic cloves in olive oil until golden brown. (This eliminates the garlic "kick" that a lot of people find offensive, and the flavor of roasted garlic adds a warm taste to the hummus.).

add the chickpeas to a food processor or blender and blend until smooth.

Add all of the other ingredients. Adjust the seasonings to taste.

Serve with raw vegetable crudites, crackers, or toasted pita points.

from Recipezaar, amended

drying okara & using it in breads

spread okara out on a baking sheet, then bake at 300F until completely dry, stirring every 10-15 minutes. After it's done, whir in food processor to get rid of lumps, then bag to store in refrigerator or freezer.

Add 1/4 - 1 cup of the dried okara to bread recipes (without altering the recipe otherwise) for a light texture.
To add a cup of cooked (undried) okara to bread, decrease the liquid in the bread recipe by 2 ounces (to 10 ounces) and increase flour by 1/4 cup (to 2-3/4 cup).

Okara tropical granola

* 5 cups okara (if homemade, 'fluff' it first, then measure)
* 1/4 cup sesame oil
* 1 1/2 cups quick cooking oats
* 1 cup brown rice syrup
* 1 1/3 cup shredded coconut
* 1 cup sliced almonds
* 1 fluid oz. coconut essence (a small bottle)
* 1/2 - 1 teaspoon sea salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and mix thoroughly.
3. Spread mix no more than 1/2 inch thick over a large cookie sheet that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
4. Bake for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally until desired color/crispness is attained.
5. Cool and store in an airtight container (in refrigerator for longer life).

from grouprecipes

Okara French toast

2 cups soy milk
2 tsp. vanilla
½ tsp. nutmeg
2 tbs. okara
8 slices bread
butter, soy margarine or vegetable oil

In large bowl, whisk together soymilk, seasonings and okara. Grease skillet and bring to low heat for several minutes. Dip a slice of bread into the mixture and immediately transfer to skillet. Cook until browned, turn and cook until browned. Repeat with remaining slices. Serve with syrup, applesauce, or fruit.

Reproduced from the Q'Tessence blog, which looks really interesting!

Old Bay seasoning

OLD BAY SEASONING

1 tablespoon celery seeds
1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
6 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon whole cardamoms
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
4 whole cloves
1 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika
1/4 teaspoon mace

In a spice grinder or small food processor, combine all of the ingredients. Grind well and store in a small glass jar. Best if used within 6 months (date your jar).

Okara 'Crab' Cakes

on Fat Free Vegan Kitchen

Fresh Spring Rolls

copied from culinate, an interesting omni blog

From the book Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites by Moosewood Collective
Serves 6
Total Time 1 hour
Yield 12 rolls
Introduction
\s.
Ingredients
Rolls
3 oz. rice vermicelli
2 to 3 cups lettuce, shredded
1 cup scallions, minced
1 cup carrots, peeled and shredded
1 cup red bell peppers, thinly sliced
\1¾ cups tofu strips (about 6 ounces)
½ cup fresh basil and/or cilantro, chopped
¼ cup toasted peanuts, chopped (optional)
12 rice-paper discs (see Note), each 8 to 10 inches in diameter
Dipping sauce
~ Hoisin sauce, thinned with a little water, or a combination of:
1½ Tbsp. brown sugar
¼ cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp. rice-wine vinegar or lime juice
Steps

1. Place the rice vermicelli in a heatproof bowl, cover with boiling water, and set aside for 10 to 12 minutes, until soft. Drain well.
2. Assemble all of the filling ingredients, then dampen a clean dishcloth and lay it flat on a work surface.
3. Fill a large bowl with hot water. Holding a fragile rice-paper disc by the edge, gently lower one side of it into the hot water; it will soften as it absorbs water. Slowly turn the disc in the water until it has completely softened, taking care not to force it or it may crack. Place the disc on the damp towel and flatten it out (see Note).
4. Using about 3 tablespoons of noodles, make a small bed of rice vermicelli just below the center of the disc. Top the noodles with 1 or 2 tablespoons of lettuce, a pinch of scallions, a sprinkling of carrots, 1 or 2 bell-pepper strips, and finally a few tofu strips. Sprinkle on some basil and/or cilantro and chopped peanuts, if desired.
5. Fold the two side edges of the disc over the filling to form a rectangular shape with curved ends. Roll up from the bottom to make a neat little package. Place, seam side down, on a platter.
6. Soften and fill each of the remaining rice-paper discs, cover with plastic wrap, and chill until ready to serve.
7. Serve with either, or both, of the two dipping sauces.

Notes

To soften several discs of rice paper before beginning to fill them, soften each one individually and arrange on the towel side by side; don’t stack them, because they will stick together.

Culinate editor’s notes: Other potential filling ingredients include fresh mint leaves and long, thin matchstick slices of cucumber.

This content is from the book Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites by Moosewood Collective.

My note: these are SO good! try them with the peanut sauce on this blog, or a chili sauce!

Basil-Tofu Ricotta (Non-Dairy)

Basil-Tofu Ricotta (Non-Dairy) Recipe #269020
From Vegan with a Vengeance. Great substitute for dairy ricotta.
by Serah B.
10 min | 10 min prep | 2 cups
1 lb firm tofu, pressed
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 dash fresh black pepper
10 fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1. In large bowl, mash tofu with hands until crumbly.
2. Add lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, and basil. Mash with hands until mixture reaches the consistency of ricotta cheese.
3. Add olive oil; stir with fork.
4. Add nutritional yeast and mix all ingredients well with fork.
5. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

© 2007 Recipezaar. All Rights Reserved. http://www.recipezaar.com

Sausage

choices, choices... today I'd like to try making some sausages (and some hotdog buns to go with) from a recipe on Isa's PPK blog. Maybe I can make them more hot-dog sized.


Spicy Pinto Sausages

Makes 4 big sausages
1/2 cup pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup vegetable broth
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, grated (with a microplane, or very finely minced)
1 1/4 cups vital wheat gluten
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons fennel seed, crushed
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Several dashes fresh black pepper

Before mixing your ingredients, get your steaming apparatus ready, bring water to a full boil. The rest of the recipe comes together very quickly.

Have ready 4 sheets of tin foil. In a large bowl, mash the pinto beans until no whole ones are left. Throw all the other ingredients together in the order listed and mix with a fork. Divide dough into 4 even parts (an easy way to do this: split the dough in half and then into quarters). Place one part of dough into tin foil and mold into about a 5 inch log. Wrap dough in tin foil, like a tootsie roll. Don’t worry too much about shaping it, it will snap into shape while it’s steaming because this recipe is awesome.

Place wrapped sausages in steamer and steam for 40 minutes. That’s it! You can unwrap and enjoy immediately or refrigerate until ready to use. I refrigerated some of mine in wrappers and some out of wrappers to see if there would be a difference, but there really wasn’t. They’re really great sliced up and lightly sauteed, and this weekend I’ll be trying them on pizzas.

another variation is here (well, actually this is the original, and the inspiration). I had been thinking I needed that 'chicknish' seasoning called for on Julie Hasson's excellent site, but after seeing Vegan Dad's variation, and Isa's, I'm really pleased at the thought that I can go ahead with this! I don't have a steamer - I will have to rig something up. hmmmm.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Just made this terrific variation - next time I'll add some hot pepper flakes, though, or a T of whole grain mustard - it needs some 'punch'. I steamed these and then grilled them, basting with garlic-infused olive oil, topped off with carmelized onion and grilled tomatoes with fresh lemon sage, served on crusty grilled French bread:

2 1/2 c. vital wheat gluten
1/2 c. nutritional yeast
4 T. chickpea flour
4 t. unchicken broth powder (I used chicken seasoning, and you could just use sage)
1 t. onion powder
1 t. garlic powder
1 t. cumin
1/4 t. allspice
1 t. salt
ground black pepper

2 c. grated sweet potato (1 medium sized)
2 chipotle chiles, minced
4 t. adobo sauce
2 T. canola oil (I used olive oil)
2 T. black strap molasses
2 c. cool water

I realized when I posted the quinoa salad recipe that it's been far, far too long since I posted here (must be a malady peculiar to bloggers, postus interruptus). It's not as if I haven't been cooking, either! In fact I've made 4 batches of bread from the book I mentioned below, Artisan breads in 5 minutes a day, but for the most part I seem to have found a number of favorites for when I'm super-busy. I managed to use the aforementioned bread recipe to make some wonderful hamburger buns for broiled tofu with backyard bbq sauce (from Veganomicon); just tried crispy sweet and sour tofu (verdict: General Tao's Tofu is miles better for our tastebuds! but it is super easy to make, which is nice. not enough spice, too sweet). And pizzas, cutlets, awesome gravy (love the bechamel!) etc etc etc - a good groove, accompanied by absolute truckloads of kale and collards, as well as buckets of beans.

I am anxiously awaiting delivery of a Soyabella soy milk maker! We appear to go through lots of soy milk, about 2 gallons per week, so this struck me as a good idea on several levels. First is cost, though with the machine racking up over $100, it will take a while to pay for itself (1/2 gal. soy milk = around $3 X 4 = $12 per week, or nearly $50 per month, versus $100 for the machine, 1/4 c soybeans per quart (5lb bag of these cost $6 - I'm too tired to do that particular math!) As well, apparently you can make your own tofu (I'd love to try this) and a byproduct of soy milk prep is okara, which from all reports is a super healthy add to various recipes, having even more nutritional wallop than the soymilk.

So there you go. All that and I haven't even talked about the new grant project, my lit review, or - so much else. Well, hey. This is a vegan food blog, eh? Still, it's been pretty wild. I work part time in Second Life, a virtual community whose participants include thousands of researchers, educators and others (and more than 700 librarians!) - as a consumer health librarian, funded by grants from the National Library of Medicine. One project has just ended, and another began directly on its virtual heels - this one, to mentor people with disabilities and chronic illnesses into Second Life. Along with this I'm mid-lit review, and have been struggling - repeatedly - with issues of self-confidence and motivation, something I think must be quite common. Cooking is a relief from this. Or maybe we can file it under procrastination.

Quinoa Salad with Black Beans and Sweet Potatoes

posted by Damzifly at the PPK
Quinoa Salad with Black Beans and Sweet Potatoes - from Women's Health

My note: this is delicious! Easy, super-tasty, a real top favorite in this house.

Ingredients
1/2 cup quinoa
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 scallion, thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon dried red chile flakes
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup canned black beans, drained and thoroughly rinsed
juice of one lime
2 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

Instructions
1. Place quinoa in a small-mesh sieve and rinse thoroughly.
2. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a medium skillet (be sure you have a tight-fitting lid for the skillet).
3. Add sweet potato, scallion, and chile and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
4. Add quinoa; toast for 2 minutes.
5. Add water and salt.
6. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, and cover. Simmer until quinoa and sweet potato are tender, about 10 to 12 minutes.
7. If liquid remains unabsorbed in the pan, raise heat to high and cook for 2 minutes until it boils off.
8. Stir in black beans and lime juice and cilantro.
9. Serve warm or chilled.