Jan 18, 2021

pot roast charcuterie

   

Overview

Seitan - prep 15 min, cook 3 hours
Roast - prep 15 min, cook 1 hour
Dishes: slow cooker, large roasting pot, oven


Hello, hello Dear Readers!

I am so excited to bring you this meal! At first, I thought it would be really difficult and time-consuming, but it turns out to be easy enough for a family-centered weekend meal. I offer you Pot Roast Charcuterie!

The roast is made with a spin on my Aquafaba cookbook pulled-seitan recipe and it is perfect for a pot roast style meal. The seitan falls apart as is expected, because it is laced with smashed chickpeas. Not to worry, though, because the chickpeas are so inconspicuous that when I told my diners that it had chickpeas, they were quite surprised.

The roast takes 3 hours to cook, but only 15 minutes to prepare, including kneading (use a bread machine or stand mixer, if you want to). If doing it by hand, less than 10 minutes. 

After browning the onions and potatoes, a simple roux is prepared and the gravy's base is created. Add the roast, return the vegetables to the pan and roast for 1 hour. 

How you present it is up to you - you can serve it like a regular pot roast or you can go one step further and present it as a charcuterie plate. I highly recommend the later, especially if you have an extra 5 minutes to spend on presentation. Adding some pickles, whipping up the horseradish crema and slicing some bread is not hard at all and makes a lot of difference. 

It brought my family to the table, where we gathered around the tray and not only enjoyed the pot roast, which was really delicious, but each other's company as well. 

Enjoy!





Speedy Cooking Tips:

  • Make the roast the day before. It is best cooled before prepared as a pot roast.
  • Heat your pan high heat. Pan fry the onion and carrot while you chop the potatoes.
  • Pan fry the potatoes while you gather the broth and flour.
  • Use a sturdy wooden spatula to remove all the brown bits at the bottom of the pan after you add 1 cup of the broth.
  • Prepare the horseradish sauce, the tray and the pickles while the roast bakes.
  • Add the roast to the tray first and then surround with the other ingredients.
  • Serve family style.   





(Printer-friendly doesn't seem to be so friendly. Just select the text between the arrows (including the white space to add margin on the top), right-click, select Print, and now it's printer-friendly. Can also be saved as PDF:  choose Save as PDF in Destination drop-down, instead of a printer.)





Pot Roast Charcuterie

www.ZsusVeganPantry.com

Makes 4 servings 

weekend


Preheat oven to 350-F.

1. Vegetables: Add the oil to a large, oven safe pot over high heat. Add the onion and carrot and brown. Remove to a plate. Add the potatoes and brown. Remove to the plate.         

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 small onions, quartered

4 medium carrots

4 medium potatoes, quartered 

2. Roux: Add the flour to the pot. Stir well with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom to loosen any browned bits. Add 1 cup of the broth, stir well to avoid loops. Add the rest of the broth, tamari, thyme and Rosemary. Stir well. Bring to simmer. Remove from heat. 

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 cups vegetable broth

1 tablespoon tamari 

1 teaspoon fresh or dried thyme

1 teaspoon fresh or dried Rosemary

3. Pot Roast: Add the seitan and reserved Vegetables to the Roux. Transfer to the oven and cook for 1 hour.   

1 Pulled Seitan Roast

4. Cream: Mix the sour cream, horseradish and sugar. Serve the stew in bowls, add a dollop of Cream and add fresh ground pepper.  

1/2 cup nondairy sour cream

2 teaspoons prepared horseradish

1/2 teaspoon sugar   

5. Serve: Serve the  Pot Roast with the Cream on the side or prepare as charcuterie by arranging the Pot Roast in the middle of a tray, with the Vegetables around it. Add slices of bread, pickles, radishes, the gravy and the Cream.   

Slices of bread

Dill and/or sweet pickles

Sliced Radishes 



© 2021 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.








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Jan 16, 2021

one pot tetrazzini

Overview

Time: 55 minutes
Dishes: large oven-safe skillet  


Hello, hello Dear Readers!

Although I wouldn't classify this dish as a Dump Dinner, since you actively have to attend to it, it certainly is a One Pot meal and where pasta is concerned, that has a whole lot of appeal on its own. Not having to cook the pasta in a separate pot is definitely a bonus.

This vegan, vegetarian and meatless dish features pasta, peas and protein in a creamy sauce. The pasta is baked with breadcrumbs and some optional nondairy cheese, so there is an element of crunch to the dish. It is savory, delicious and very easy to make. It take about 30 minutes to bake - which is where the long cooking time is.

I used Savory Tofu in this recipe, which you can make and store for up to 5 days and it easily doubles, but you are welcome to use sautéed Gardein scaloppini, seitan or just more mushrooms. As always, the biggest punch of protein is up to you (all plants have protein; it only depends on how much protein).

I have this old-familiar, large skillet that can go from stove to oven, so I recommend you use something similar, but you can always transfer the skillet ingredients to an oven-safe dish when it comes time to bake it.

NOTE: make sure you use unsweetened nondairy milk, otherwise the dish will be overly sweet.

NEW TO PLANT-BASED EATING? Get my free zines and check out the wrap-up of Fall 2020 recipes HERE. Great way to set yourself up for success!


Enjoy!





Speedy Cooking Tips:

  • Gather your ingredients.
  • Preheat the oven as needed (you know how long your oven takes to preheat).
  • Add the mushrooms to the heated skillet as it is sliced.
  • Slice the onions after the mushrooms are in the skillet.
  • Use a spatula to mix the flour as you add the milk; a whisk will get clogged up.
 




(Printer-friendly doesn't seem to be so friendly. Just select the text between the arrows (including the white space to add margin on the top), right-click, select Print, and now it's printer-friendly. Can also be saved as PDF:  choose Save as PDF in Destination drop-down, instead of a printer.)






One Pot Tetrazzini

www.ZsusVeganPantry.com

Makes 4 to 6 servings 

moderate


Preheat oven to 450-F

1. Mushrooms: Add the oil to a large skillet (oven-safe, if possible) over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, onion, garlic, thyme and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook until golden, about 8 minutes. Stir as needed. 

1 tablespoon olive oil 

8 ounces sliced mushrooms

1 small onion, sliced

5 garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons thyme

2. Flour: Add the flour and broth mix to the Mushrooms and stir well. Cook for 1 minute.    

5 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon Easy Savory Broth Mix or 2 teaspoons Better Than Bouillon   

3. Liquid: Add the milk and water to the Mushrooms, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well. Bring sauce to simmer, about 4 minutes.   

4 cups unsweetened, plain nondairy milk 

1 cup water

4. Pasta: Add the pasta and peas; stir well. If the skillet is not oven-safe, transfer to a 9x13 baking pan. Bake covered for 20 minutes.   

12 ounces pasta (penne, rigatoni, etc.)

1 recipe (about 2 1/2 cups) Savory Tofu or equivalent (like seitan)  

1 cup peas 

5. Uncover the Pasta, sprinkle it with the breadcrumbs and cheese, if using. Bake until the breadcrumbs are golden, about 10 minutes. Serve.   

1/2 cup breadcrumbs, regular or panko

1/2 cup nondairy parmesan or white cheese (optional)  






© 2021 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.










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