Vegan Gratin Jurassien

[Scalloped Potatoes with Heavy Cream and Cheese]

...oh Man!...do I love me some potatoes...and creamy, cheese-y potatoes even more...Julia describes this creamy dish as 'mouth-watering'...

...start with some potatoes sliced thinly - about 1/8 inch...

...grease a baking dish with some Earth Balance...

...arrange your potatoes in a single layer in the dish...and dot with more Earth Balance...and sprinkle with salt and pepper...

...continue adding layers...

...Julia uses swiss cheese...but I used Daiya shredded cheddar...which I keep in the freezer so mine is still slightly frozen in this picture...

...pour on your heavy cream...I make cream by adding powdered soymilk to unsweetened soymilk to make a thick and creamy substitute...sometimes I just use plain Silk Creamer...but this seems a little sweet to me...so I only use that when I don't mind a little bit of sweetness...

...Julia says not to let it come to a boil in the oven...keep it below a simmer...I don't think that will apply to the vegan cream...but I followed the instructions anyway...

...so creamy and delicious...

Substitutions:
Earth Balance for Butter
Vegan Cheese for the Swiss Cheese - I used Daiya Cheddar
Vegan Creamer or Soymilk mixed with soymilk powder for the cream

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking

p. 524

Vegan Sauce Moutarde

[Cold Mustard Sauce with Herbs]

...Julia says this sauce is perfect for cold meats and vegetables...

...for some reason I used a pot for mixing...you can use a bowl as there is really no cooking involved...

...start with some prepared dijon mustard...

...add some boiling water...

...then some olive oil...whisked in by droplets...

...squeeze some fresh lemon juice...

...and whisk that in as well...

...beat in salt, pepper and herbs...

...to make a creamy sauce...

...thick and creamy and pretty ...

...and delicious...

...originally I planned to have it with my leftover cold Thanksgiving Seitan Roast, since Julia says it's for cold meat...but in the end decided to reheat it...and this sauce was good warm too...

Substitutions:
NONE - already vegan HA!
Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking

pp. 95-96

VEGAN MARRONS BRAISÉS

[Whole Braised Chestnuts]

...I had been sort of putting off doing any of the Chestnut recipes...because I had a very bad experience with puréed chestnuts when I was in France...I'm pretty sure they came from a tin...so now that I loved these braised ones...I'm excited to try the puréed ones too...

...anywhoo...after the big vegan feast on Thanksgiving Day...my Mom came for a visit...and so we had to have another big feast...

...but these Chestnuts were easy to make and surprisingly delicious...

...you start by putting 24 peeled chestnuts in a baking dish just large enough to hold them in one layer...I know I only have 21...

...then you mix some port with some arrowroot...

...and 2 cups of good brown stock...I used Washington's Rich Brown Seasoning and Broth...

...bring to a simmer...

...the liquid should cover the chestnuts by 1/2 inch...

...add some Earth Balance...

...set in the lower third of the oven and regulate the heat so that the liquid simmers for 45-60 minutes until the chestnuts are tender...

...Julia says that if the liquid has not reduced to a syrupy glaze to drain it off and boil it down in a saucepan...and we did have to do that...

...these were so good...and totally unlike what I was expecting...when you cut them with your fork...they separated into 3 or 4 little chunks...and they had sort of a potato-like starchy consistency which was very pleasant and not at all what I remembered from France...

...so...we'll definitely be making these again...

Substitutions:
Earth Balance for Butter

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking

pp. 519-520

VEGAN MOULES À LA MARINIÈRE - II

[Mussels Steamed with Wine, Flavorings, and Bread Crumbs]

...it's been cold and drizzly here...normal November weather to be sure...and it's perfectly normal to want soup in weather like this too...

...first you'll need some seitan moules...and some onions cooked in Earth Balance until tender and translucent but not browned (I need to count how many times Julia says that)...I didn't photograph that part as I've done it a lot...

...add some dry white wine...

...and some fine white bread crumbs...Julia suggests a 'homemade type' of bread...

...stir in your herbs...

...and your vegan mussels...and cook over high heat...

...pour into a soup tureen...remove the bay leaf so no one gets that in their bowl...

...and serve...

...Julia says to ladle the mussels and sauce into soup plates...

...so I guess it's not technically a soup...

...not a soup...but we enjoyed our mussels and sauce like a soup...

Substitutions:
Seitan Mussels for the Mussels
Earth Balance for Butter


Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking

p. 228

...VEGAN SAUTÉ DE VEAU MARENGO

[Brown Veal Stew with Tomatoes and Mushrooms]

...with the cooler temperatures we were all in the mood for a nice stew...

...Julia calls this dish 'uncomplicated'...and 'hearty'...

...and I agree with the 'hearty' part...

...I started with a seitan roast...detailed instructions here...

...browned the seitan in some oil...

...then while the onions were browning in the leftover oil...I tossed the seitan with some salt pepper and flour in the casserole...

...then I added the wine to the browned onions...

...Julia then puts the wine/onion mixture into the casserole...but I just left it in the pot and added the tomatoes...

...Julia used button mushrooms...which would probably have been prettier...but I used sautéed mushrooms from the freezer...I had gotten a packet of them out of the freezer a couple of days ago to put on top of a baked potato and I wanted to use them up...

...and this was sort of a mistake...or I was just rushing through the recipe...as Julia doesn't add the mushrooms until after the baking...ooops...

...then added the herbs...

...and the garlic...

...and then I put everything in the casserole...

...put it in the oven...

...and baked for about an hour and a half...

...then I took it out of the oven...

...and poured the contents into a seive placed over a saucepan...

...this was to reduce the sauce of course...but probably because seitan doesn't give off any 'juice' (as dead animals tend to do)...and because I had used previously sautéed mushrooms...

...very little 'juice' dripped into my pot...so I didn't have anything to reduce...

...we served it 'en casserole' as Julia suggests with rice...

...(and a side of green beans...not suggested by Julia)...

...and it was very delicious...very...

Substitutions: Seitan for the Veau

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking

pp. 361-362