MoFo chopped! challenge

Roasted Butternut Squash in Popcorn Crepes with Rosemary Apricot Sauce

My dear husband has swept up the confetti and I have composed myself, but are YOU ready? It is Weekly Vegan Menu's first Chopped!/Vegan MoFo Challenge!

Yours truly follows the MoFo blog religiously and was amazed at the incredible option dangled before me. The golden carrot of opportunity. 

The Chopped!/Vegan Challenge. 

Yes, like most devoted fans of Chopped!, not only have I thought 'eww..gross' at many rounds of the basket, but have boasted that I-can-do-better. Ms. Isa heard these boasts of ours and has given us the chance to put the basket where our stoves are.

I am sure there are some readers unfamiliar with this process. Here is a succinct rundown of the Food TV show:

4 chefs

4 ingredients

20-45 minutes

1 dish using all of the ingredients in the basket

3 rounds of baskets

3 judges to decide the winner

In our only round of the MoFo challenge, BRUNCH, we were given in our virtual baskets:

butternut squash

popcorn

Rosemary

apricot preserve 

There are over 800 bloggers in MoFo VI.

 This is MY story:

As soon as I read the ingredients, I knew, for better or worse, what I would make. But more importantly, I knew I would actually be making it, not just have daydreams about entering. 

I realized, as anyone reading the ingredients list, that popcorn was the challenge. As much as a raked my brain for different variations of the popcorn itself, alas, popcorn can only appear in a few forms: popcorn kernels (con: can cause emergency tooth surgery), popcorn popped (con: too average), popcorn ground (flour) (con: too messy), popcorn liquefied? Maybe not the last one. I was sure I was the only clever cleaver to go with popcorn flour!

 [Yeah,... probably not :] 

I decided to use my un-original idea of popcorn flour to make Crepes.

Crepes made with popcorn. Popcorn Crepes.

 I popped my fresh kernels, as any self-respecting Chopped Contestant would, ground it into flour, 

(Now I know where the packing material's name comes from - believe me, it isn't the popcorn; it is the airiness it achieves when you open the blender top. I thought glitter was bad! I'm sure I will be cleaning up popcorn debris until next year.) 

and used it as part of the crepe batter. Surprise! It worked! Not only did the popcorn add popcorn flavor (thanks in part to the 'double' cooking of the popcorn), but it did not mess up the crepe itself. 

Popcorn. Check.

Butternut squash is scary enough to send any and all of my kids scrambling for cover; they are not fans of winter squash. I haven't been, either, truth be told. That is, until I learned to roast. See this post for roasting techniques. 

Roasting is a medium-heat cooking where the natural sweetness and flavor of the cooked ingredient is drawn out. That is exactly what I did with the butternut squash. I added Rosemary to the squash to echo the Rosemary in the sauce. It also adds a lovely earth-quality to the sweetness of the squash and the richness of the black beans. Although black beans are not in the basket, the challenge is a BRUNCH one, and a great protein source (in addition to the other wonderful plant proteins) is beans. Black beans also pair extremely well with winter squash because they complement each other.

Butternut Squash. Check.

Apricot preserve had  a few different options in my thread of cooking. It could glaze the squash or become a sauce. I decided on making it into a sauce because adding the sweetness of the preserve to the sweetness of the squash was just begging for a double whammy, and not in a good way. 

However, if I made the preserve into a sauce and cooked it with some apple cider vinegar long enough that the acidic quality of the vinegar was gone, but the delightful tartness remained, then the sweetness of the preserve would be balanced. I used the Rosemary, for the second time, in the sauce. The earthy quality of the herb fared well with the preserve. Doubling up the Rosemary in the sauce and the squash preparation connects the elements of the dish. I was careful to not overwhelm the palate with Rosemary, but to not let it get lost among the other flavors.

Rosemary. Check.

Apricot Preserve. Check.

To sum it up, I kept it simple, not overdoing the dish with too many other ingredients. 

The crepes have a definite popcorn flavor, but not overwhelmingly so. They pair well with the sweetness of the squash with its hint of spiciness and Rosemary. The sauce adds another dimension of sweetness and tartness, again with Rosemary hinting at the edge of the bite. The dish is contrasting enough while complementing all the basket ingredients. It is a complete dish with no one note taking center stage. It is also seasoned well, for those judges wondering. Salt and fresh ground pepper were appropriately used.

 A simple symphony for the palate.

Who is the winner? And who will be chopped?

Tune into MoFo  on October 16!

My recipe is below the pictures.

Roasted Butternut Squash in Popcorn Crepes with Rosemary Apricot Sauce Recipe

IHOP make over

Moseying over to casual dining experiences, breakfast style this time, we are heading toward the uniquely named, but acronym-ly referred to IHOP - International House of Pancakes. When you crave pancakes, I suppose this is a great place to head to!  Oh! Except, it is off-limits to vegans, unless they are in the mood for a piece of dry toast.

 Maybe, grits.

Making this one over is such a pleasure because it still baffles me that eggs and dairy are used in making pancakes; I love to show that pancakes and eggs are not a match made in heaven. Not to mention that all of my kids are pancake fiends. 

I decided to remake their self-appointed healthy pancake, Harvest Grain 'N Nut and their special seasonal Pumpkin Pancake. The Harvest Grain has great flavor, although it is not solely made of whole grains, and the pumpkin one was a surprise hit for the family; just enough pumpkin flavor without crossing over into pumpkin pie land.

While maple syrup is a nice addition to pour on the pancakes, IHOP is very worried that syrup alone won't be enough to sweeten your breakfast. To ensure you receive your proper intake of sugar, they add ample amounts to the batter. What I'm saying is, go easy on the syrup. I added flax meal to the pancakes, not because I thought the pancakes needed anything to "bind" them (flour does that), but because it adds nutrition.

Both are easy enough to make, just keep the temperature of the pan on medium to medium-low to allow the inside of the pancake to cook through.

Cost Breakdown

Harvest Grain:

flour, oats, milk, baking powder: $1.25

nuts, flax, vinegar, oil: $1.50

milk, sugar, syrup: $1.50

Total to make 12 pancakes:

$4.25

Their cost per order: $6.00 

(Originally it is $8.30 per order with topping.)

Make Over Cost per Serving: $1.10

Pumpkin:  

flour, milk, baking powder: $1.25

pumpkin, vinegar: $.50

flax, sugar, spices, syrup: $1.50

Total to make 10 pancakes:

 $3.25

Their cost per order: $6.00 

Make Over Cost per Serving: $.82

Harvest Grain and Nut

Pumpkin

Pumpkin Pancake Recipe

GRAIN AND NUT PANCAKES PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

pat's cheese steak make over

To make the sandwich bigger,
click on the top bun.

Let's for a brief moment veer away from the casual dining restaurant and go to Philadelphia.  Pat's King of Steaks boasts of being the originator of the Philly Cheese Steak. The legend goes that Pat was selling hot dogs from his cart when, on a whim, he decided to cook up some steak meat instead. He was probably getting tired of hot dogs and wanted to eat something different for a change. 

A cabbie nearby was exposed to the succulent "aroma" and had the temerity to ask for Pat's lunch instead of a hot dog. Being the smart businessman that he was, Pat didn't have a hang up over this and, in fact, made some more for himself after the cabbie was gone. The cabbie enjoyed this steak sandwich so much that he spread the word to other cabbies who in turn spread the word and the rest is history. 

At this point Pat did not have cheese on his famous cheese steak; he added that later. 

Since I went to the trouble of making the SteaK Seitan, I decided that I needed more recipes for steak. Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives loves to show cheese steaks on the show and Tami and Celine have their own version of cheese steak in their new cookbook, Vegan Sandwiches Save the Day; I didn't want to be left behind.

Let's talk how to order this cheese steak as a local - not that you'll ever have the chance seeing as it isn't vegan, but perhaps you can get the family to play Pat's and "order" the sandwich from you.

Here is the lingo:

(1)

One sandwich with onions: "wit"

One sandwich without onions: "wit-out"

Two sandwiches with onions: "2 wit"

(you get it, right?)

(2)

specify the cheese: American, Cheese Whiz, Provolone

For the vegan version, you can have Follow (Your Heart), Teese, Daiya, or a great vegan cheese sauce. 

(3)

 Have your money ready 

(or chores for the at-home players)

So, review:

One sandwich without onions, with cheese whiz:

"wit-out whiz"

For those who want authentic, and nothing but, you will need the cheese sauce, which I have very conveniently invented for you (although, which at this point had to be removed from the site as it is appearing in my upcoming cookbook!). This is a fantastic cheese sauce, so please give it a go - it requires no Daiya, FYH, etc. I added peppers and onions to our sandwiches, along with the cheese sauce. 

Pat would be proud. 

*sniff*

Cost Breakdown

SteaK: $3

bread: $3

peppers, onions, mushrooms: $3

cheese sauce: $2

oil, garlic, misc: $1

Total to make 4 sandwiches:

$12.00

Their charge per sandwich: $9.00

Make Over cost per sandwich: $3.00

SteaK Seitan

Cheese SteaK Sandwich

bennigan's make over

Bennigan's is sort of close to my heart, as much as any casual dining restaurant can be, because I worked there. As a vegan. Not much fun, as I am sure many other vegans who have to serve body parts feel. This is another time around the Irish-wanna-be  establishment. In the first go-around I promised you a Monte Cristo recipe. I lied. I'm not going to take the time to type it up, because, frankly, it is a pretty gross sandwich. Sorry, if I have offended anyone.

The Broccoli Bites over there, however, are pretty good and I recommend them.

What is a MoFo Make over without something buffalo? I've done Buffalo Wild Wings for MoFo V and Pub Grub for MoFo IV, to satisfy the insatiable need for the buffalo spice. For MoFo VI I am recreating Bennigan's Buffalo Chicken Sandwich. Apparently they no longer have the sandwich on the menu, although they are offering it as a salad. Go figure.  

While this is basically the same thing as the other buffalo recipes, this one is just the sauce, nothing but the hot sauce, coating the seitan. No butter, no garlic, nothing else.

I tried making this with tofu, but it wasn't quite as good as with the seitan. Squeezing out the excess moisture of the seitan before frying is necessary because the crust can get soggy. Also, you can fry all the cutlets first and then bake them to re-crunchy-fy them. This used to be served with Bleu Cheese or Ranch Dressing. I went with the Ranch because that is what my kids like. Below is a quick Ranch dressing that I am finally happy with.

Cost Breakdown

seitan:$2

breading: $1

buns: $3

sauce, Ranch: $1.50

condiments: $1

fries: $3

Total to make 4 sandwiches:

$11.50

Their charge per sandwich (guessing) ~ $10.00

Make Over cost per sandwich: $2.86

BUFFALO SEITAN SANDWICH PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

T.G.I. Friday's make over

T.G.I. Friday's is, you guessed it, another casual dining experience, which offers up a bunch of animal-based menu items, with not a vegan meal in sight. Last time I gussied up Friday's, I covered Potato Skins, fried Mac and Cheese, and Jack Daniel's Sesame Chicken. It went well. Now I decided to make over their Dragonfire Chicken. I'm a sucker for cool-sounding menu names, and this one had me all fired up. 

This chicken dish is Friday's low-calorie item, although it still comes in at around 750 calories. I'm not here to fix calorie content, however, so that is not the issue. It's the dead animal on the plate that I'm gearing to replace. Back to the dish. It is marinated in a sweet, parsley-jalapeno sauce, grilled, topped with their spicy kung pao sauce and served with pineapple pico de gallo, mandarin oranges and rice. What? No cheese? Don't all casual dinning restaurants smother everything in cheese? Not this one; which probably accounts for the lower calorie content.

Since the chicken is marinated, I looked to tofu as the replacement. I pressed the tofu (with a Tofu Xpress) for a little amount of time before marinating it in the first of two sauces. The tofu soaked up enough of the marinade to make it matter. I grilled the tofu, spread some of the second sauce over the top and served it up with the pico de gallo. 

This sounds like a simple dish, and it is, but it is packed with flavor. From the marinade all the way to the pico de gallo, this dish packs a punch. The marinade is sweet, the sauce is deliciously spicy and the tartness of the pico makes for one harmonious plate. This is a great dish. The rice is an appropriate choice to balance all the loud flavors, and it is even served with some broccoli.

Cost Breakdown

tofu: $2

rice: $1

pineapple, tomato, lime, cilantro, onion: $3

oranges, parsley, jalapeno: $.75

oil, sugar, vinegar, tamari, garlic, ginger: $2

broccoli: $3

Total for 4 servings:

$11.75

Their cost per serving: $7.99

Make Over cost per serving: $2.95

DRAGONFIRE TOFU PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

chili's make over

This is Take Two for the Chili's Make Over. Take One is here.

I won't rehash the fabulous casual dining experience that Chili's offers, but head right into the heart of the blog. 

The steak.

I have been wanting to recreate 'steak' ever since, well,... we went vegan. It hasn't been easy and I am not saying this is the end-all to the endeavor, but, damn, it's good! Chili's offers a Cajun Ribeye on their menu which has Cajun seasoning, au jus, and Cajun butter. It is served with mashed potatoes and veggies. I chose this as the first steak to make because it has other components that take the focus off the meat. This would make it more probable that the steak would taste like a steak. Not the steak, mind you, but a steak-like product.

This is seitan in its simplest form - basically vital wheat gluten, tamari, oil, stock and steak sauce. Steak sauce is vegan, ironically. The real secret is not in the gluten itself, but how it is prepared. After the gluten flour is mixed with the liquid it needs to sit for around 24 hours  6 hours. It is then rolled very thin (possible after all that sitting) and cooked low and slow, for about 2 hours. 

Now that the gluten has become a SteaK, it is grilled in a grill pan with a good bit of oil. Although most of the oil drips off into the grates, the oil is important because our seitan has practically no fat, but the flesh it mimics does. 

 Our Cajun SteaK is then topped with au jus and the Cajun butter. 

O.M.G.

You WANT this. Really.

It is um-mazing. In fact, the family has informed me that we will be having this often. Even as I write, there is another batch sitting and waiting to be baked.

Onto the contest winner of Fresh From the Vegan Slow Cooker by Robin Robertson.

Random.org generated result is comment #17, in2insight. Email me with your mailing address at veganaide (at) yahoo (dot) com.

Congrats! And everyone, thanks for entering. It really is an amazing slow cooker cookbook. I have her first one and this supreme! It is worth the cost of $11.32.

Cost Breakdown

SteaK:

gluten, oil: $2

stock, sauce, tamari: $4

Total to make 8 thin SteaKs:

$6.00

CAJUN STEAK PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

SteaK Seitan Recipe

california pizza kitchen make over

Not to be outdone by New York and Chicago, California introduced the west coast's version of pizza in the 1980's. It takes New York style thin crust and serves it up with California cuisine which integrates different cooking styles and local ingredients.

California Pizza Kitchen made this style of pizza popular by serving it in a casual dining environment. Pizzas such as Original BBQ Chicken and Jamaican Jerk Chicken, are being served around the country and internationally.

I couldn't leave well enough alone, even though I said I'd only make one dish, so here are two pizzas, but totally unconventional, with nary a tomato in sight. These crispy, sweet, loaded pizzas are a surprising culinary adventure.

The Original BBQ Pizza has chicken, onion, cheese, BBQ sauce and cilantro. So what is absolutely vegan and BBQ-y? Beans. I used navy beans because I didn't want the pizza overwhelmed with the texture of beans and the navy bean is dense, firm and small. I baked them in the sauce before adding them to the pizza. It works! The onions gets almost caramelized and the sauce of choice of the chain is a sweet and spicy one. Really delicious.

The second pizza I made was the Jerk Pizza. This one originally comes with chicken, onion, bacon, roasted peppers and green onions with a sweet Caribbean sauce. I used marinated tofu as my chicken sub and used my Tofu Bacon. The tofu needs to be pressed really well (6 hours in Tofu Xpress), but only needs to marinate about 30 minutes. The marinade is a very strong chicken-style broth. This was delightful as well.

The dough needs to proof overnight and the oven needs to preheat at 500 for an hour, so plan on making this in the winter.

If you've been hankering for CPK or just curious about all the fuss, get baking. 
It's worth the experience.

How did I do?
The chain charges $12.75 for each pizza.

Original BBQ:

crust: $2
beans: $2
onions, cilantro, sauce: $1.50
vegan cheese: $4
Total for 2 pizzas:
$9.50

Their charge per Pizza: $12.75

Make-Over cost per Pizza: $4.75

Jerk:

crust: $2

tofu, pepper, tofu bacon: $3

onions, green onion, sauce: $1

vegan cheese: $4

Total for 2 pizzas:

$10.00

Their charge per Pizza: $12.75

Make-Over cost per Pizza: $5.00

Original BBQ Pizza

Jerk Pizza

JERK PIZZA PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

Original BBQ Pizza

applebee's make over

Applebee's is another of those casual-dining chain restaurants. Very much like Chili's, T.G.I.F and The Cheesecake Factory. Applebee's was among my first make overs in my first year of MoFo. That time I recreated their Oriental Chicken Salad and Ribs. This time around I took up the challenge of Grilled Shrimp 'n Spinach Salad. This salad tosses shrimp, peppers, onions and spinach in a hot bacon vinaigrette. 

Bacon and shrimp are the problem children here. I could have replaced the shrimp with tofu or seitan (more cost effective), but I decided on hearts of palm. I marinated the palm with a little dulse, a seaweed, and used Bac'uns for the bacon. Typically tvp doesn't stand up to cooking in liquid because it looses the crunch, but because this was a hot dressing, I cooked the Bac'uns in the oil before adding the vinegar. This worked out perfectly.

After the hearts of palm marinated, I sauteed them to a golden brown.

Disclaimer. The result was not shrimp. But it was delicious. The palm was a bit vinegary because it is pickled and the dressing was smoky and the bac'un in it crispy. The almonds add another crunch to the dish and the veggies are just right. Nothing is overwhelming and there is a hint of the taste of the sea. 

Applebee's charges $10.99 for a serving.

Cost Breakdown

spinach: $3
hearts of palm: $8
tomato, pepper, onion: $3
almonds, dulse: $1
spices, oil, vinegar, Bac'uns: $2
mustard, smoke, sugar: $1
Total for 4 servings:
$18.00

Their charge per Serving: $10.99

Make-Over cost per Serving: $4.50

GRILLED HEARTS OF PALM AND SPINACH SALAD PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

chili's bar and grill make over

Happy World Vegetarian Day and First Day of MoFo VI.

This is my third year MoFoing!

Because MoFo kicked my posterior last year, or my perfectionism got the best of me, I decided to make MoFo less stressful this year by reducing the make overs I do for each establishment. So, instead of recreating three or four dishes per post, it'll be only one.

Last year's Chili's Grill and Bar Make Over involved Chili's Enchilada Soup, Grilled Caribbean Salad and Fajitas. This casual dining establishment serves American food with a Tex-Mex influence. While Chili's has recently added a vegetarian menu as an offering, it is still wholly non-vegan, and therefore is in need of a make over.

With that in mind, my first menu item is Chili's  Honey-Chipotle Chicken Crispers. I love chipotle peppers and the word "crispers" got me. In my opinion, "crispers" is just a way to disguise the word "fried," but their PR department people know their job and the term sounds decidedly appealing.

In this offering, the honey in the sauce, the egg in the batter and the chicken itself need to be replaced. 

Substituting maple syrup for the honey is an obvious choice, but the honey is much thicker than maple syrup and even sweeter, so adding only maple would not cut it. The restaurant thins out the honey with water, so I've eliminated this extra liquid. Maple syrup is also more complex in flavor, so to cut the extra flavor, I used agave nectar in addition to the maple.

The egg in the batter acts as a binding agent and is replaced with flax meal, which is nutritious to boot. The crispiness of the batter results from a doubling up on the breading technique: there is a liquid batter followed by a dry breading. 

As for the chicken, the obvious, and best, choice is my Simple Chicken Seitan. After the seitan is made and cooled, it is important to squeeze out the extra moisture. When the seitan is fried the moisture is turned to steam and renders the crust soggy. Once the extra moisture is eliminated, the fried seitan retains the crispy crust, while still remaining properly moist on the inside. 

The chain serves this as a main dish with corn on the cob and fries. 

They charge over $10 for one order. 

VA Make Over:

Cost Breakdown:

seitan: $3

batter and breading: $2

sauce: $1

corn on the cob: $3 

fries: $4

oil (for frying): $2

Total to make 4 servings:

$15.00 

Their charge per Serving: $10.29

Make-Over cost per Serving: $3.75

Also, don't forget to check back on the 6th to see if you've won Fresh From the Vegan Slow Cooker Cookbook by Robin Robertson.

"fresh from the vegan slow cooker" + giveaway

I know everyone who is a fan of Robin Robertson has noted that her new cookbook is now available. Since I tested for it last year - Fresh From the Vegan Slow Cooker , I am just as excited to send someone a copy of it.
Therefore, it is time for another giveaway! 

 These are incredibly creative recipes, as the one below indicates: Puttanesca Pizza.

No need to reread it.

Slow Cooker Pizza. And it works beautifully! 

Puttanesca Pizza

These recipes are a lifesaver for anyone too busy to cook, but still insisting on delicious, healthy, vegan food at the end of the day. They are really easy to prepare as well! Robin always keeps the cook in mind, while making sure those who eat are happy as well.

Among her other incredible recipes are: 



Indonesian Noodle Soup



Baked Potato Soup





Three-Bean Cholent



Barley Orzotto

Lemon Edamame and Potato with Chard

Garlic-Mashed Potato

Country French Green Beans with Tomato

So how do you get my copy?

Just leave a comment and return to see if you won on October 6.
If you comment, please submit it only once. The comments are moderated and will be published soon.

Sorry, I can only send the copy to a US resident. 

Love you all, though!

potpie-style seitan over smashed new potatoes

I don't know about you, but my least favorite part of making pot pie is the pastry crust. Just the thought of having to make the crust, waiting for it and rolling it out is enough of  a deterrent for me. 

For your culinary enjoyment, without the hassle of the crust, is Potpie-Style Seitan over Smashed New Potatoes. 

This dish takes new potatoes, with cook in about 15 minutes, smashed with a bit of vegan butter and tops it with sauteed seitan and gravy speckled with carrots, corn and peas. While your potatoes are cooking (no need to peel new potatoes), you saute cubed seitan, which you reserve for later. In the same pan, you cook the onions and make your gravy. Then you add a cup of mixed veggies of corn, peas and carrots to the gravy. That is it!

I made Bryanna's Buttah recipe using olive oil instead of a neutral oil for cooking this recipe. Or you can use regular vegan butter with a splash of olive oil.

To serve, you lay the potatoes on the platter, cover with the seitan and gravy and watch everyone devour. The potatoes soak up the gravy and become creamy themselves without the work of making mashed potatoes, all the while retaining the texture of potatoes. The seitan is cooked to golden crispness and the veggies are tender.

My CSA box contained rapini this week, so I sauteed the bunch with garlic and olive oil for our side dish. If you blanch any bitter greens in a large pot of boiling water, it will reduce the bitterness of the vegetable. Make sure to shock the blanched vegetables in ice water and drain well before proceeding with your cooking. 

Not a lot of leftovers with this one.

Cost Breakdown

seitan: $2

flour, chicken-style broth, spices: $.50

onion, veggies: $1.50

potatoes: $3

Total to make 5 servings:

$7.00

RECIPE UPDATE: this dish has been tested and revised and will be featured in the upcoming cookbook "Everyday Vegan Eats," by Zsu Dever.

roasted corn bisque

A bounty of corn was to be had in my CSA box a few weeks ago. We love this sweet taste of summer, roasted, barely cooked, slathered with butter and a dash of salt. In its simplicity, nothing really says summer more than an ear of corn. Unless it is a ripe tomato or juicy nectarine or decadent eggplant... 

I had a mushroom bisque slated for the menu on this day, but as soon as the new box arrived, it was time for a change of plans. Roasting corn brings out the sweetness in it, so let's talk roasting. 

Whenever a restaurant dish specifies "roasted" on the menu, the dish gets special attention from the customers. That is because the word 'roasted' evokes a sort of nostalgia, even though it is probably evoking a misconception. Most folks consider roasting to be done in the oven, but technically, and preferably, roasting should take place on the stove top where the cook can see, smell and hear the food cooking to perfection. It is the best way to maintain the proper heat in the pan and adjust seasoning and timing appropriately. Were we to be cooking animal flesh, we would need to finish it in the oven (under ideal conditions), but we have no such restrictions and can easily finish the cooking on the stove top. Roasting is not killer-high-heat cooking, but medium heat cooking. It gives you an opportunity to coerce the food to release its sweetness, its flavor, its aroma. It prevents burning the food (which makes it bitter) and leaves you with the best possible dish. This of course takes time, around 20 minutes, so patience is a must for success.

This bisque utilized the roasting process of corn. Since the corn releases its own 'cream' once blended, there is no need to add vegan milk or cream. After the soup is cooked properly, blend to pulverize it. At this point it is ready to serve as a rustic bisque. If you want a silky, smooth, velvety soup, one you would be able to order at a fancy restaurant, use a very fine sieve, a very fine cheesecloth, or nut bag, to remove the pulp. 

This is a little messy and takes a bit more time, but the resulting texture is worthy of a holiday table or a weekend-night dinner when you want to pamper yourself and your guest(s).

Cost Breakdown

corn: $3
onion, celery, carrot: $.75
herbs, garlic, tomato paste: $.75
flour, wine: $1
Total to make 4 servings:
$5.50

Roasted Corn Bisque Recipe