Chow Vegan

Mushroom Dynamite

December 18, 2008 By chow 7 Comments

Lately, I’ve been experimenting with a dish from my past that I wanted to try to veganized. Dy-na-mite. Why is it called dynamite? I have no idea. But I love the spicy, creamy sauce. Basically it’s just vegan mayonnaise and hot chili sauce. So simple, but so tasty.

It’s a dish found in Japanese restaurants, usually as seafood smothered in the sauce and baked. I made mine with a mix of oyster and king oyster mushrooms on a bed of rice.

It’s so rich and decadent, it’s served in small portions and as part of a meal. Which is probably for the best, with all that mayo covering everything.

I don’t have an exact recipe for the dish as I’m still tweaking it. Just thought I should post something seeing as I haven’t posted anything for awhile. Where did all the time go?

Purely Decadent Root Beer Float

November 30, 2008 By chow 4 Comments

Why am I drinking a root beer float in November? Because it was a nice balmy 85 degrees here a couple of weeks ago!

And in the freezer, I recently got in pints of the new Purely Decadent coconut milk ice cream straight from the manufacturer just waiting to be sampled. I decided on “Vanilla Bean” for the first taste test – the most basic of all ice cream flavors.

From the very first bite, it’s amazing. So smooth and creamy with a hint of coconut. So soft and rich. It’s everything ice cream should be and more – vegan, soy-free and dairy-free. The only downside is if you don’t care much for coconut, then you’re out of luck.

After that first taste, I just had to make a root beer float. Making one couldn’t be simpler – scooping coconut milk ice cream is much easier than soy-based ice cream. It doesn’t seem to freeze into such a hard block; it’s so much softer.

Starting with a bit of root beer in the glass, add the ice cream next. Then slowly pour root beer over the ice cream, be careful not to let the foam spill over the top of the glass.

For a nice frosty mug, run water over the glass and stick it in the freezer for 10 minutes. Make sure it’s a glass mug, otherwise it could crack and then it’ll be no root beer float for you.

Amy's Spicy Chili Fries

November 16, 2008 By chow 9 Comments

It seems a little odd, being a vegan and all, that I only like beans okay. And that’s a very apathetic okay. Yes, I know it’s an excellent source of protein and fiber, blah, blah, blah. What can I say, there’s no accounting for taste.

On the few occasions that I willingly eat beans, it’s usually in the form of chili. Since I’m no lover of beans, I’m not going to even bother to actually cook any. So if I’m going to be having some, it’s going to have to be canned.

On top of fries.

I like to go with Amy’s Organic Spicy Chili. It’s perfect. Just heat and serve. It’s got good flavor, along with the red beans, there’s lots of tiny bits of tofu and a nice spicy kick. It’s a hearty, stick-to-your-ribs, fill-you-up type of chili.

Scooped on top of freshly baked fries, I have no problem at all getting that to go down.

Baking your own fries is pretty easy too. It’s very similar to the Spicy Baked Potato Chips but instead of rounds, cut the potato into 1/4″ to 1/2″ fries and season with just salt. Add olive oil and baked until desired crispiness (a thinner fry will take less time to cook than a thicker one).