FoodFash

Adventure Begins in the Kitchen

My Black & Bleu

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You know, I bought a 20 class yoga card at Yogani on 7/18/2009, just three days after moving back to Tampa from Dallas.  That class card should have been all sorts of used up by say…  August, maybe September, of 2009.  But it wasn’t.  I renewed the card on 1/20/2010 and, embarrassingly, again on 4/19/2011.  I think the lady at the counter felt badly for me at that point and set my new class card to expire on 12/2/2036.

Tonight, I decided to use up the remaining classes (for real this time) before I head back to Texas.  Even though there’s always a chance I’ll end up back in Tampa sometime between now and 2036, let’s not hope for that.

After yoga, I headed to the market to pick up ingredients for my version of a Black & Bleu.

I may or may not have had this song stuck in my head as I cruised through the aisles.

I scooped up the bluest bleu I could find and headed home to sauté portobellos in coconut oil.  I sprinkled garlic salt and crushed red pepper liberally and let them finish cooking.  I topped mixed greens with the heavily seasoned shrooms and cheese and called it a meal.

I intentionally over-seasoned the mushrooms (beware of pepper sneezes!) so there wasn’t a need for dressing.  And with all the umami-ness going on, this was quite possibly the easiest, meat-free, meatiest salad on earth!

Semolina Superstar

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It’s official.  With the addition of Semolina Flour, Bob’s Red Mill products now take up a larger percentage of space in my pantry than all other pantry items combined.  It’s ridiculous.

I couldn’t help it though.  I’ve been craving ravioli all week and it’s impossible to find a grocery ravioli that meets my non-dairy needs.  And everything I’ve read says all-purpose flour works just fine, but semolina… Well semolina is made for pasta.

I also knew that if I made it, I could add all the mushrooms my little heart desires.

And my little heart desires lots of mushrooms.

So I rolled out the dough that I prepared using Bob’s instructions and stuffed the ravioli with “ricotta” and lots of sauteed portobellos.  I used the same ricotta that I learned how to make at the Rollin’ Oats cooking class I attended a little while back.

The dough was surprisingly difficult to roll out.  It was thick and elastic and gave me an upper body workout I wasn’t prepared for this evening.  It was tough enough to justify looking into the purchase of a KitchenAid Pasta Roller.  Did you know they also make a ravioli attachment??  For the record, I’d like both, please.

The end result?  Yowza!

The ravioli was super delish.  I think the semolina flour added flavor that you wouldn’t be able to achieve using plain old, Jane old flour.  It could all be in my head, but that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.  I also created a personal best in the sauce department tonight.  Check back tomorrow for the recipe!

The Little Spoon

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I prefer using little spoons and being the little spoon, almost always.

The only exception I can think of?  Chili, cause big spoons and chili are pals.

I figured I’d get one last chili sesh in before temps refuse to dip below 95.

Finding a dairy-free faux meat crumble was a struggle, so much of a struggle that I gave up.  The recipe in my head quickly shifted to portobello mushroom chili.

FoodFash’s Portobello Chili

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 yellow onion, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

3 cloves garlic, crushed

2 portobello mushroom caps, chopped

2 cans spicy chili beans

1 can black beans, drained

1 can kidney beans, drained

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can tomato paste

½ can of water

1-2 tablespoons chili powder

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 ½ teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons dried oregano

Heat olive oil over medium heat and add the onion, green pepper, and garlic.  When the onions are translucent, add the portobellos.  Add the remaining ingredients when the mushrooms look wilty (technical term) and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes.

Thirty simmering minutes give you plenty of time to make some corn bread.  I ate a dry piece with my chili, slathered another piece with Earth Balance/agave nectar, and called it a night.

I’ll probably continue to add mushrooms to my chili because they add a slightly meaty bulk.  However, the lack of meaty texture left me wanting.  I’ll be heading to Whole Foods tomorrow in search of some dairy-free density to add to my leftovers!