VEGAN POULETS GRILLÉS À LA DIABLE

[Vegan Chicken Broiled with Mustard, Berbs, and Bread Crumbs]

...We had the Men's French Toast Breakfast after church today...so we didn't need to have brunch for lunch...I just have plain toast with syrup...still yummy...

...so we made a super easy and delicious vegan chicken dinner instead...


...Start by broiling your filets - I decided to use firm tofu (my grocery store is now carrying tofu - so YAY!) instead of seitan this time...

...broil until very lightly browned...

...salt lightly...

...make some bread crumbs...fresh is always better...

...chop some shallots - we used green onions...

...mix with a little cayenne, thyme, and mustard (you could also use basil or tarragon, Julia says)...

...Julia says to 'paint' the 'chicken' with the mixture...but we just dipped ours in it...

...then put your bread crumbs on a plate and dredge your painted 'chicken' in the crumbs...

...pressing to apply on all sides...

...then return to the broiler and brown slowly for 10 minutes or so...ours took a bit longer...

...we served them with mashed potatoes (Scout's favorite), some peas, biscuits, and applesauce...and also a side of Leeks in Cheese Sauce (Poireaux à la Mornay, Gratinés) (not pictured here)...

...this was another delightful dish...

...crispy on the outside and tender and moist on the inside...

...and the crunchy-spicy-mustardy coating was perfect...

Substitutions:
Tofu for the chicken

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking


(pp. 265-267)

Vegan Poireaux à la Mornay, Gratinés

[Vegan Leeks browned with Cheese Sauce]

...a delicious side dish...

...first you'll need to braise some leeks POIREAUX BRAISÉS AU BEURRE...

...and make a Sauce Mornay...

...sprinkle with 'cheese' we used Daiya...

...and run under a hot broiler for a few minutes...

...delicious...we served these with our POULETS GRILLÉS À LA DIABLE
...

Substitutions:
See POIREAUX BRAISÉS AU BEURRE
and Sauce Mornay
for their substitutions...

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking


(p. 496)

Vegan Omelette Pipérade

[Vegan Open-faced Omelette Garnished with Onions, Peppers, Tomatoes, and Ham]


I know I said a couple of Sundays ago when we made the Crêpes that we were out of Omelette recipes...but I was wrong...there was one more...and it is a fancy-schmancy-fill-you-up-hearty omelette for sure...

Julia says this is a Basque specialty and you'll need some Ham Seitan for it - I had some already sliced in the freezer...so that shortened our prep time considerably...


...First...you brown the 'ham' lightly in butter...

...and set aside...

...then in the same butter you browned the 'ham' in...cook some onions and peppers slowly without browning...

...season with salt and pepper...

...stir in some garlic and tomatoes...

...make your omelette... - remove it from the heat and spread your pipérade mixture over it...

...sprinkle the 'ham' over the top...and serve...

...I know that looks like wine in the glass but it's really cranberry juice...HA!

...so very hearty and good...

...we loved this omelette and will definitely be making it again...

Substitutions:
Earth Balance for Butter
Ham Seitan for the ham
Vegan Omelette for the omelette portion

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking

pp. 137-138

Other Omelette Recipes

L'OMELETTE BROUILLÉE (pp. 129 - 132)
L'OMELETTE ROULÉE (pp. 132 - 135)
L'Omelette Aux Fines Herbes (p. 135)
L'Omelette Au Fromage (pp. 135-136)
Omelette Aux Épinards (p. 136)
Omelettes Gratinées à la Tomate (pp. 136-137 )

VEGAN OEUFS EN GELEE

[Vegan Poached Eggs in Aspic]

I was a little bit afraid of all the aspic recipes in MtAoFC...but really a little bouillon and some agar powder and there's nothing to fear...'what could happen?'...

...First you'll need to make some Vegan Poached Eggs

...then, mix some agar powder with some vegan beef flavored bouillon...

...pour a little bit in the bottom of each mold...

...then add your tarragon leaves that have been dropped into boiling water and refreshed in some cool water...in a little cross shape at the bottom of the mold...

...pop in your little vegan poached eggs and cover with some more of the bouillon/agar mixture...

...allow it to set up...

...and unmold by running a knife around the edge - Julia suggests dipping in some warm water - but this wasn't necessary for my molds...

...place on a bed of lettuce leaves on a chilled plate...

...it was quite a pretty little thing...

...I think the agar was a little bit too firm...maybe I'll remedy that with some cornstarch or kudzu powder...

...they tasted just fine...like the beef bouillon with a little egg in the middle...not sure exactly when I would ever serve these...they seem like company food...but just a little out of date...either at a 60s theme dinner...or maybe at a wedding or baby shower brunch as a first course...


Substitutions:
Vegan Beef Flavored Bouillon with agar for the jellied stock
Vegan Poached Eggs for the eggs

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking

p. 547

Vegan Gâteau de Crêpes à la Florentine

[Mound of Vegan French Pancakes Filled with Cream Cheese, Spinach and Mushrooms]


...Since we were all out of omelette recipes for our Sunday Brunch for Lunch - we found another yummy recipe to take their place...and since our grocery store had the bags of organic spinach for 99¢ again - we'll have another meal featuring spinach...

...Julia describes this one as 'an amusing entrée' which I thought was amusing...

...First you'll need to make some CRÊPES...

....and some Sauce Mornay...

...and some ÉPINARDS BLANCHIS...

...then make the cream cheese and mushroom filling...

...sauté some mushrooms and shallots for about 5-6 minutes...

...mash some Tofutti cream cheese in a bowl with some
Flax Seed Goo for the eggs...

...add some salt and pepper...

...and your mushrooms and shallots...and mix well...

...now the fun part...start layering your Crêpes in a buttered round baking dish...

...top with mushroom filling...

...then another Crêpe your spinach and creme sauce...

...then another Crêpe...

...and some more mushroom and cheese...

...finish off with your prettiest Crêpe for the top...

...sprinkle on some vegan cheese - we used Daiya mozzarella style...

...dot with Earth Balance...

...pop it in the oven for about 1/2 hour...

...and serve...we had ours with some lovely braised leeks...

...a very pretty presentation...

...cut into wedges...

...so pretty and Spring-y this meal was...

...the Crêpes were tender and perfect and the spinach and cream cheese filling was very creamy and rich...

...it was delicious...Julia suggests 24 Crêpes for this stack...we thought that was quite a bit too much for three people of normal appetite so we cut back considerably...but if I were to make this for company - I'd go all out and have a huge stack - although I don't think I'd get more than 10 or 12 in my round baking dish...

Substitutions:
Flax Seed Goo for the eggs
Earth Balance for Butter
Tofutti Cream Cheese for the cream cheese
Daiya Mozarella for the grated cheese

See the supporting recipes for their substitutions.

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking pp. 193-194

VEGAN PÂTE À CRÊPES

[Vegan Crêpe Batter]

This was a lot easier than I thought it would be...


...just put all of the ingredients into the blender...I used flax seed goo for the eggs - almond milk for the milk and Earth Balance for the butter...

...blend that up - scraping down the sides to make sure all the flour is incorporated...

...it should just coat a spoon...refrigerate it for a couple of hours - so make it before Church if you're using it for brunch...or make it the night before...

...Julia says that the first crepe is always a trial one to test the consistency of the batter and the heat of your pan...so I wasn't too upset when I tore the first one...

...but I was more careful and the rest were perfect...

...I remember fondly the upside down crepe pan that my brother gave my Mom for Christmas one year - and the crepes we made on the stove with it sure were fun...

Substitutions:
Flax Seed Goo for the eggs
Earth Balance for Butter
Almond Milk for the milk

Recipe here: Mastering the Art of French Cooking pp. 191-193