I'm always veganizing recipes that I love...so...I'm working my way
through all of the amazing recipes in Julia Child's
Mastering the Art of French Cooking...
...making a Vegan Version of each one...... sometimes successfully - sometimes not...Recipe Count 551/524 (from Julie's count)...but really 629

Tuesday, November 12, 2024

VEGAN TARTE AU CITRON ET AUX AMANDES

[Vegan Lemon and Almond Tart — cold]

....Julia gives no introduction to this recipe at all...but the first thing you need is a Vegan Pâte Sablée (sugar crust)...
...but only use 3 Tbls. of sugar when you make the crust...
...prick it and set it on a baking sheet...
...par-bake until lightly colored...
...then you need the juice of three lemons...
...I realized that I should have peeled and zested these before I juiced them...
...so I had to use other lemons for that...just peel the yellow part with a vegetable peeler...
...and cut into julienne strips...
...simmer those for 10 minutes...drain and dry...but reserve the cooking liquid...
...then you need to boil a bunch of sugar (2 cups...YIKES)...
...to the soft thread stage...230° F (110° C)...add the vanilla and the lemon peel and set aside...
...I'm using the copycat Just Egg recipe I've used before just without the garlic powder...and I've added a Tbls of cornstarch for thickening as well...
...and you'll need some Pulverized Almonds...it's not really a recipe (p. 582)...but these are Julia's instructions for that...

Blanched Almonds Drop shelled almonds into boiling water and boil 1 minute. Drain. Squeeze each almond between the thumb and forefinger, and the almond will slip out of its skin. Spread the blanched almonds in a roasting pan and dry them out for 5 minutes in a 350-degree oven.

Pulverized Almonds If you do not have an electric blender, pound the almonds with a bit of granulated sugar in a mortar, or pass them through a meat grinder with granulated sugar and a few drops of water. If you have a blender, pulverize them / 2 cup at a time at top speed for about 30 seconds.
...so I blanched the almonds...and slipped off their skins...
...and I pulverized them in my coffee grinder...it's just a small amount and easier than the Vitamix...
...ok...I misread that...I thought it was 1/4 cup and it's actually 3/4 cup...haha...
...then you need the grated rind of 1 and 1/2 lemons and their strained juice...
...then you add everything to your vegan egg mixture...including 1/4 cup of Almond extract...but I only used half of that as it's such a strong flavor...
...and since I added cornstarch to my vegan eggs...I'm also cooking it before I put it into the shell...
...pour that into the sugar crust...
...set on a baking sheet...I added the little crust protectors so it wouldn't get too brown...
...while that's baking boil down the reserved cooking liquid from the julienned strips of lemon peel...
...until it's syrupy and sticky...
...Julia says the tart should be very lightly browned...
...spoon a thin coating of the lemon peel syrup over the top...
...and decorate with the julienned strips of lemon...
...Julia says this tarte is usually served cold...but can be served warm...we put it into the fridge and waited until it was cold...
...it sliced perfectly...
...and it was really good...even the Man thought so...

Substitutions:
Copycat Just Egg for the egg yolks
Aqua faba for the egg whites

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking pp. 646-647

Tuesday, November 5, 2024

VEGAN SOUFFLÉ DÉMOULÉ, MOUSSELINE

[Vegan Unmolded Souffle]

....Julia says "Most unmolded souffles are heavy, puddinglike affairs, but this one is light and delicious"

...and the first thing you need to do is set the tomato sauce to simmering, so make some VEGAN SAUCE TOMATE ...
...and then butter your mold...especially the bottom so that the soufflé will unmold easily...
...and then I whipped up a quick batch of Vegan Parm...I needed some anyway...it's always nice to have on hand...
...because Julia says to roll some grated parmesan around the mold...
...stir the vegan butter and flour together...until they foam and froth over medium heat...
...then off heat beat in the boiling almond milk and seasonings...and they are just salt pepper and nutmeg...which I omitted...
...then I switched to a larger saucepan..and added the vegan egg yolks...using the copycat Just Egg recipe for that...Veggie Fun Kitchen's Copycat Just Egg
...whip up some aqua faba...for the egg whites...
...and fold that into the mixture...
...I added some plain flour to give it a little structure and a teaspoon of baking powder to give it some lift...and Julia says you can use any of the soufflé recipes for this unmolded one...so I'm just adding some vegan cheddar...
...it definitely poufed up nicely...the top got a little overdone though...
...so I just peeled that bit off...it'll be on the bottom of the plate anyway...
...unmolded...
...and surrounded with the fresh tomato sauce...
...we just served it with a salad...and it was definitely poofy and springy and cheeze-y...so a pretty good vegan soufflé...

Substitutions:
almond milk for the milk
Copycat Just Egg for the egg yolks
Aqua faba for the egg whites
Earth Balance for the butter
Vegan Pamesan for the parmesan
Vegan Cheddar for the cheese

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking pp. 171-173

Tuesday, October 29, 2024

Vegan Caneton Rôti à l’Alsacienne

[Vegan Roast Duck with Vegan Sausage and Apple Stuffing]

...initially I thought this would be a 'difficult' recipe...but then I thought...I don't really need to make a big seitan roast duck for this...I can just stuff some baked tofu squares for theduck and it will be just as delicious...but if I were making this for a party or for company...of course I'd do the big seitan roast...
...first I baked some slabs of tofu marinated in some vegan chicken broth with some mushroom powder and marmite for that little bit of earthiness or gaminess that I imagine the duck has......
...I rehydrated some TVP sausage and cut up an apple...
...add some sugar, cinnamon, sage and cognac...
...and make a slit in the tofu...
...generously stuff the tofu slices...and pour over the cooked down mixture from above...we also added some vegan beef bouillon to that...
...and roast in the oven...
...we served our on little individual au gratin dishes with some peas and carrots and crusty french bread...
...stuffing like this is delicious...and very autumnal...this would make a perfect thanksgiving dish stuffed into a big seitan roast...

Substitutions:

Tofu for the duck
TVP sausage
Vegan broth

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking (pp. 275-276)