Wednesday Food Blogging

My Meatless Monday

Quinoa Stuffed Peppers, and accompaniments 

It's Monday again, and that means it's meatless around here. Okay, every day is meatless. But Meatless Monday has a ring to it, don't you think? 

For breakfast, I had my usual: Dorset Cereal with soy milk. 

For lunch, I ate Alpro yogurt (cherry—yumm!) and some carrot sticks. 

For dinner, I made a version of this: Quinoa Stuffed Peppers. It wasn't exactly the same; I didn't use celery, and in the chipotle sauce I used sundried tomatoes instead of chipotles. On the side, some string beans with pine nuts (since I didn't use any of those in the peppers either) and a slice of La Brea bread, named after a place in Los Angeles but made in Ireland. It's a delicious whole grain bread, and the brand new Tesco in town was selling it at their grand opening today. My neighbors are upset about the new Tesco coming into town and changing the flavour of the village, but I'm happy for the convenience. 

Because Meatless Monday is all about convenience—my aim is to show non-vegans how easy and convenient it is to be vegan, even if for one day a week.

We also had a 2009 Bordeaux, which was a Very Good Year. Meatless Monday is all about good food and wine, too.

What was on your table for Meatless Monday?

My Meatless Monday

Today is Monday, obviously, and we're having—what else?—Red Beans and Rice. 

It's a tradition in Cajun country to eat red beans and rice on Monday, using the ham hock from Sunday's ham dinner. At least that's what they say. I doubt few Cajuns these days bake ham on Sunday, much less cook red beans from scratch on Monday. 

And of course 'round here, we never have ham hock at all. In fact, when you think about it, isn't that a pretty gross concept? The ankle bone of a pig in your beans? You have no idea where that ankle's been, and you want to put it in your pot of beans? Good luck with that.

We like to make red beans from dried, although if we haven't soaked beans in advance, canned will do just fine. If you can find actual red beans, instead of red kidney beans, do use those. They're smaller and more authentic than the larger kidney beans. 

But alas, Cajun products aren't found on the shelves of Tesco, so red kidney beans usually do for us. Here's the recipe, along with a little Cajun lore. 

Oh, and for breakfast, I had the usual cereal—Dorset cereal, since I"m still trying to win a Mini. For lunch, a sandwich, made with wholemeal bread, my favorite Maille mustard and some of these sage and onion slices from Redwood. They're really yummy, even for a devoted PB&J fan like me.

What's on your menu for Meatless Monday?

My Meatless Monday

Today was dreary—wet and cold. I spent part of the morning at the gym, after a hearty breakfast of Dorset cereal and soymilk. (I love their cereal, but they're also giving away a Mini Cooper, which I am determined to win.) 

For lunch I snacked on popcorn and yogurt (Alpro soy yogurt). Lunch isn't my favorite meal, and more often than not I snack throughout the day rather than sit down to a proper plate of food. 

For dinner I warmed up leftovers from last night—there was more than enough for two generous helpings. I also steamed some Savoy cabbage, and shook a few drops of red wine vinegar on it for flavor. (Greens and vinegar were made for each other. Or maybe it's a Southern thing.) And we finished the bottle of 2009 Bordeaux, supposedly an excellent vintage. 

Speaking of France, if you happen to be in Paris for Thanksgiving, you can have a vegan Thanksgiving at the Gentle Gourmet. Details here. (I'll be in France the day before, stocking up on mustard and wine and yummy vanilla soya milk.)

Portobellos with Potato and White Bean Stuffing, French Green Lentils, and Red Wine Sauce

The dish with the very long name. 

What a mouthful! I'm not sure what to call this concoction, other than the unwieldy name at the top of this post. The photo doesn't do a good job showing the portobello mushrooms, flattened underneath the weight of all that layered stuffing. The mashed potatoes in the middle are actually mixed with a white bean puree, with green le puy lentils draped over that, and a nice red wine sauce—i.e. gravy, if you must.

I like meals that contain many components. Stacking, layering, building texture upon texture—here's an example, and here's another. A meal oozing with sauce, a sturdy plank of mushroom or polenta, a meaty filling, a creamy topping, and loads of taste. These meals don't happen every night—they're somewhat complicated to prepare, though not as difficult as you might think. Many parts can be made ahead of time, and with two people working together in the kitchen, prep is a breeze. 

With my husband as sous chef, we created this masterpiece in just under an hour. And with plenty left over, we're having it again tonight. The potato-bean mixture and the lentils would be an excellent meal on their own, or perhaps with some other component. (I particularly love layering slabs of polenta with rich bean mixtures.)

I served this with a side of sauteed spinach. Just the right accompaniment.

Here's how we did it: 

My Meatless Monday

I sit here, full as a tick (Southern expression; sorry), remembering what I ate today. As promised, I'm sharing with you so you'll know what a day without meat looks like. Or rather, tastes like. 

It tastes rather good. Just ask Sparky, who got to share my sweet potato for lunch. Dogs love sweet potatoes, and they're good for them, so I cut off the end and gave it to him when he came when called. It's an excellent High Value Treat, for both of us. 

For breakfast, a bowl of cereal and soy milk. Wouldn't want to break a good habit. 

For lunch, the aforementioned sweet potato, baked, then allowed to cool in the oven while we took a walk, then mashed with Pure margarine. (A squeeze of lime is a nice low-fat alternative, fyi.)

For dinner, boiled edamame, soba noodles, and stir fried veggies with peanut sauce. One of my favorite meals, actually. The peanut sauce is easy: 1/2 cup boiling water, whisked with 3 tablespoons smooth peanut butter. Then add 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 2 tablespoons or so soy sauce, a minced clove of garlic, some minced ginger, and a glug of Sriracha sauce. I stir fried some onion, carrot, red pepper, mushrooms, mangetout (snow peas) and napa cabbage in a couple tablespoons of canola (rapeseed) oil and sherry. (Try this as a saute mixture for veg to cut down on the fat.) We actually had half soba, half somen, since I had less than half a package of each. That made for an interesting brown/white noodle effect. On top: a squeeze of lime, and/or cilantro (coriander), green onions, toasted peanuts. 

I had seconds.

For a snack, I had some Lotus Speculoos cookies with my green tea. 

Deprived? I don't think so.