Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf

Veggie burgers are showing up on menus everywhere, and make me feel like a normal eater.  But rarer is the downright decadence of a bacon cheeseburger.  Few restaurants have a vegan cheese and fewer still - I mean NONE - have coconut bacon to be added.

Seriously, coconut bacon has revolutionized my life lately.  That smoky, salty crispy deliciousness is getting added back into our menus in so many ways.

Today's was a bacon cheeseburger meatloaf!

There are some really good ground beef substitutes out there for the vegetarians who might want to indulge in a sumptuous, beefy burger every now and then.  Even though the crumbles are a processed food, I usually buy a bag once a month to add some "ground beef" to either a pasta sauce, or a shepherd's pie, or a stew.

President's Choice makes a great ground beef crumble, but many brands including Gardein are great also.

I took some leftover lentils and rice in a large bowl and mixed in 2 tablespoons of yellow mustard.  I loathe the taste of ketchup, but since it's the world's most popular condiment, you could add some here as well to give the rice a burger flavour.

I browned the 'ground beef' in a pan, and added in some chopped garlic and onions.  When it was cooked, I incorporated it into the rice.  It mixed into a nice consistency, which I put into a bread loaf pan to make a meatloaf.  As I was about to put the loaf into the oven, I had a stroke of bacon cheesburger genius.

I had some coconut bacon in the fridge, and some daiya cheddar in the freezer.

I took about half the mixture out of the pan and layered in the cheddar and the bacon.  Then I topped it off with the rest of the ground beef.

Baked it for about 40 minutes at 350, along with some sweet potato crinkle cut fries.

When the smell of a bacon cheeseburger wafted through the house - I could tell it was done.  And it was smoky, rich, cheesy, and hearty.

Slices of this cheeseburger loaf would make a fabulous snack wrap.  Just add a thick slice to the centre of a tortilla, squirt a little mustard, ketchup, relish or dijon on top and roll up for lunch or for the freezer, when you need a quick burger fix.

Coconut bacon is opening up my world again, and I can't contain my excitement!

The Genius of Culinary Parchment Muffin Wrappers

Busy.

The word actually sounds exhausting, like a bunch of bees working away.

One of my favourite tricks is to make a large batch of either cookies or muffins and separate them into plastic baggies - just ready for the wet ingredients.  Then I write the wet ingredients needed on a post-it note and throw that in the bag.

The hardest part about making cookies or muffins is locating the ingredients and the measuring spoons.

So - once I have a recipe, and ingredients AND spoons A N D motivation to make something, I multiply that exponentially to pay it forward.

I will often do 10 bags at a time.  I take 10 coffee mugs and put them on the counter.  Put 10 baggies in the cups and roll the openings over the tops of the mugs.

1 cup flour - 1 cup flour - 1 cup flour ........
1/2 tsp baking powder - 10 x
1/4 tsp salt 10x

So now your favourite recipe has 9 versions just waiting to be made on a day when you want cookies but have no time to do it. This is (of course) the impetus behind cake mixes, muffin mixes, pancake mixes and cookie mixes, but you can really do this at home with better ingredients, less sugar, salt, fat and processed chemicals.  Take one Wednesday night after dinner & treat yourself to this little project.  It's like you're your own factory!

At the end of the day, Harrison wanted something sweet.  I grabbed a bag of muffin mix, added a 1/2 cup of cocoa, some oil and enough coconut milk to bring the mixture together.  Scooped the batter into 12 muffin cups using an ice cream scoop with a release valve so that all the muffins came out evenly.  Sprinkled some vanilla sugar on the tops and studded three dark chocolate nuggets into the top for a dash of extra decadence.

This was my first time using culinary parchment made specifically for muffins and I am positively hooked.  Everyone knows that nothing sticks to parchment, but these muffin containers are absolute genius.  They are beautiful - like little culinary tulips.  Secondly NOTHING sticks to them, so the muffins release easily from the wrapper.  I hate wrappers that cling to baked goods.

Finally, they actually come up over the muffin instead of just covering the stump, so they pack nicely into a lunch bag.

Most of the muffins at the grocery store have huge amounts of fat (some as many as 23g in a single muffin) and sugar (30g???) and loads of calories (480?)  Seriously?

Personally, I like the DIY.  I can use whole wheat flour, coconut oil instead of butter and control the sugar to my taste.

Asparagus Hollandaise and Fresh Pasta

I have really missed asparagus!

And Lily of the Valley....

And the smell of Lilac...

And NHL playoffs.  Except after watching a heart-wrenching defeat of the Maple Leafs, I'm kind of sensitive right now.  And being a Windsorite, I feel like more of a Red Wings fan than TO, but that's the beauty of the hockey.  It draws you in!

Spring is such a delicious, fragrant season.  And it's BUSY!  There is yard work to do, exercise to perform, school to finish, and summer plans to make.

So "what's for dinner" gets simplified to the most basic level.

I threw 2 tablespoons of grainy dijon mustard in a bowl.  Added in 1/4 cup of heavy condensed coconut milk.  Zest and juice of 1 lemon and a splash of soy sauce.  And a healthy dash of Cayenne Pepper.

Whisked in the bottom of the bowl as if I was making a classic caesar salad dressing.

Cooked up some fusilli and added to the dressing.  The heat smoothed out any solid bits of the coconut milk, and coated the pasta in a creamy sauce.

I added some added some thinly sliced young cucumber, some fresh tomato and some blanched asparagus segments for a fresh, creamy, lemony spring dinner.

Please forgive my grainy photos - promise to fix that over the long weekend.

"Saving It For Later"

Have you ever found yourself "saving" a luxurious, delicious splurge "for later"?  And then having it go bad?

This week, I scooped out the flesh of three mangos that I splurged on.  They are called "champagne" mangos - because of their delicate flavour and burst of yellow colour.  They are smaller than regular mangos, and sweeter.  They are an unusual find, so I bought 5 (two ripe and three under-ripe).

And then I proceeded to "save" them for 2 and a half weeks.  I skipped adding them to my oatmeal in the morning.  I declined to have one as an after work snack while I was getting dinner ready.  I declined to cut them up and offer them to the guys as a delectable dessert.

Nope - they just sat there, disappointed, as I passed them by, day after day.

If you've ever heard of the marshmallow test that they give 2 year olds, you know that the ability to defer gratification is an important part of growing up, being responsible, and being practical.  It can determine the person who can put off the instant gratification of impulse shopping, because their money is allocated to more important priorities.  It can determine the person willing to stick it out in a long term career plan requiring more education when all of your friends are getting on with their lives and getting real jobs.  It can be the difference between wanting everything NOW and wanting everything all in good time.

I like to think that I am the kind of person who is up for the unexpected, but the reality is that I am probably more practical than I should be.

I will "save" my expensive vanilla bean paste instead of putting it into every dessert I make.  And sometimes it will crystallize from sitting too long.

I will "save" my truffle paste when making a delicious mushroom risotto and use only 1 teaspoon instead of two.  Sometimes I save it so long that it gets moldy and I have to throw it out.

The difficulty in always living as if today was your last day was that you will run out of truffle paste, luxurious vanilla and that extravagant Parisian chocolate.

The difficulty in saving it is that you might not indulge in daily pleasures as often as you should.

I guarantee that, when one looks back at a life lived, that no one ever says that they wished they'd enjoyed their food less!

I think the "saving" impulse is rooted in the fear of scarcity.  If you believe that pleasures are abundant, then the risk is less.

One of the yogis on our cruise illustrated how perspective colours our judgement.

Take three pails of water, one hot, one cold and one at room temperature.

Put one hand in hot water, the other hand in cold.  Wait a while.

Then plunge them both into the room temperature water.  To one hand, the water feels warm.  To the other, it feels cool.  It's all about perspective.

The mangoes were great - I got to them just in time.  That day I bought three hard ones and two ripe ones.  The ripe ones were wasted because I waited too long.

So here's the thought of the day:

Life is too short to waste a perfectly ripe mango.  

10 K Energy Bites

I finished my first 10K race today.  Not bad on zero training, but I am sure I will be feeling it tomorrow.

Today was a perfect day for a 10k run.  It was mild out, I felt rested, I had my favourite running clothes, and I had put in such a full day yesterday of "weekend work" that I felt ready for a treat.

I hadn't committed to doing the race in case something came up.  But nothing did!?!  So I went.  I thought I might just run the 5K, but I felt mentally ready to push to 10.  Mind you, I have only ever run 10k before ONCE - last summer - but felt that if I just paced myself, I could survive it.  Even if it meant I walked some of the way.

Turns out, that was not realistic and my legs were able to keep me going for the entire time.  My brother has been doing triathlons since last June, and it has inspired me to dive into some of my own.  So if not now, never.

Muscle recovery is important in training.  It's not just how you can push yourself while you are doing whatever exercise you want, but how quickly your muscles can repair and recover once you're done.  Plants are remarkable at this.  Brendan Brazier, Robert Cheeke and Carl Lewis are two vegan athletes who credit a plant based diet to improvements in their performance.

Last weekend (far before I ever contemplated today's run) I made some "energy bites" out of some parnoosh dates and everything healthy in my pantry.  They are (were?) a great way to deliver protein, carbohydrate and energy in the form of natural sugar right to my muscles.

They have also been a great "en cas".  An "en cas" is a French woman's term for something to grab just in case one is desperate and in between meals.  The French do not "snack" the way North American's do.  They eat properly and well, not fast and poorly.

My book, Salt Sugar Fat, is amazing, and makes me even more committed to non-processed nourishment.

So, here are my energy bites - fuel for my next series of races:)

1 cup of parnoosh or medjool pitted dates.  (Do not leave the pits in, or you may exercise your dentist's schedule more than your muscles) .  Soak these in hot water to hydrate them.  When they are soft, chop them up into small chunks, about the size of your fingertip.

1 cup of uncooked, plain rolled oats.
1/4 cup hemp seeds
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1 tbsp cocoa powder
4 tbsp protein powder (vegan powders will not use casein or whey - and Brendan Brazier's VEGA line is perfect for this).
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Some honey or agave nectar to sweeten just a bit, and only if you really want to.

Take your rings off and mix with your hands.  Add any other items you like once you have a base.  I might add some chopped nuts or dried fruit.  If the mixture is too dry, add a bit more water.

Layer the mixture in a lasagna pan, and press down until very firmly packed in.  Bake at 300 for about 25 minutes, just to dehydrate the mixture and help the oats absorb some of the liquid.

Let the mixture cool, and cut into squares.  I prefer small 1 inch by 2 inch squares, because I can always take two, rather than waste half of one.  Wrap in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container.

Now RUN!

Wrapping up the weekend...

This was was a slightly non-vegan weekend as I cooked with a friend yesterday, and handed off the last of the food we made a half an hour ago.

A mother of two busy young girls, she often finds herself time challenged trying to feed her growing family.  My kitchen is just made for team cooking, so I offered to help her prepare a few meals for the week when both of our schedules converged on a Saturday afternoon.

A trip to the store with her revealed what is true for many moms.  While we had written down "onions" for some of the recipes, she headed for the open bins.  But bulk buying (as in a 5 lb bag) would only cost us $1.99.  She'd never thought of it that way, and was surprised at how inexpensive it was to buy more rather than less.

It bears repeating that you can compare the prices of things by looking at a tiny number on supermarket shelves which is the price per 100 grams.  While shopping for mozzarella, some of the premium varieties were going to cost us anywhere from 3.20 (organic) to .88c (no-name store brand).  It's located at the top of the bar code label on the shelf.

No-name store brands aren't for everyone.  Many like the prestigious nature of packaging and marketing.  But as any insider will tell you, the no-name product is often the same one as the "regular" version, without the additional cost of advertising.  The SAME.  So for something as generic as mozzarella, I would choose to allocate my dollars elsewhere.  (I WISH THEY MADE A NO-NAME DAIYA!!) but I digress again...

When we got the cheese home and were ready to shred it for her lasagna.  There was a tiny piece of greyish-ness on one corner of the cheese (probably the beginning of a little bit of mold near the exposed corner where air was trapped).   I cut off two inches of cheese and smelled the rest, which was fine.  My friend refused to go near the entire brick, and said that she's pretty picky when it comes to cheese and mold.  (I love her dearly, but laughed inside when I thought about how cheese essentially IS a bacterial culture similar to mold.  People literally go nuts for blue cheese which is mold one can literally see!  Even nut cheeses culture this way....) However, I didn't want to force the issue and just tucked it back in the fridge, and we moved on.

But the entire brick of mozzarella was still fine, and I really hate to waste food.  So thiis morning, I grabbed a bag of tortillas and sliced the mozzarella in 4 inch by 1/2 inch hunks.

Scoop 2 tablespoons of sauce on one 10 inch, whole wheat tortilla.  Centre one slice of mozzarella, and roll it up.   

5 minutes later, I had 9 pizza rolls for a snack or lunch for Harrison.  I packed each roll into a plastic snack bag, froze 6 of them and left the last two in the fridge.

So, in a rare, non-vegan moment I decided to do a quality check (just to make sure the cheese did actually taste OK), and grilled one for myself on my George Foreman grill.  It crisped up on the outside, and the cheese was beautifully melted on the inside.  It oozed out like a perfect calzone, and was tidy enough to be hand-held.

Even though my example is pizza, and I've gone out on a limb with the story about the tiny corner of mold, I hope this idea will inspire you to grab some tortillas and make your own version of a quick snack.

White bean puree with sauteed spinach is a great go-to savoury breakfast wrap.  
Almond butter with dried cherries and pecans inside?
What about peanut butter with chocolate chips?
Crushed black beans with hot sauce and lime?

The possibilities are easy when they're all wrapped up.

Now that I've had my pizza indulgence, it is time to get back to the kitchen.  I have 2 cups of cashews which have soaked overnight, and it's time to make vegan cheese.

Once I add the soy yogurt to the pureed cashews, I'll have to leave it out on my counter for 2 days to "culture"  :)

Vegan Tim Hortons?

This morning we went out and had breakfast on the boat.  The lake weather is still crisp, and we were in our hats and gloves.  Zara refused to sit on the deck because it was so cold, but she enjoyed the smells.  She was intrigued by Canada goose watching, and the male Canada Goose was eyeing her too, as the female sat on her nest in the rocks, nurturing her eggs.  Spring!!!

As good Canadians, we drove through Tim's to get a hot coffee and a "bacon-less" BLT.  It is always a challenge to order VEGAN in a standard drive-thru.  I brought a container of coconut bacon that I made last night, and we added it to our sandwiches when we got to the boat.

While it has been years since I have eaten at any of the big three (McD, BK or KFC), I have been known to order a seven layer burrito, ("no cheese no sour cream no meat") at Taco Bell.  Subway can do a reasonably decent veggie sandwich, although I always find there is WAAAAY too much bread.

Tim's is another matter.  While they attempt to cater to Canadians, still very much of their fare is laden with animal products, and it's really hard for Bill or I to eat lunch there.  Other than a bagel and a black coffee or tea, and the most basic of veggie sandwiches, there's really nothing we can eat.  Vegans are Canadian too!??!!

One of my goals for the summer is going to be to compose letters to Tim Horton's, Boston Pizza and Starbucks to identify the need for them to have vegan options which are easy to order.  I am quite sure they are working on this, and am quite sure they have done many a market study on the idea.  The problem for me is that I have never personally identified this to them.  I want them to know that I am out there deciding NOT to eat at their establishments on occasion because there isn't enough for me to order.

 I hold a firm belief that if something is important to you, you must voice your concern.  If something isn't right & you aren't getting what you need from someone, you have to speak up.  You might not get anywhere right away, but staying silent is the sure fire way to ensure nothing ever changes.

Even for Canadians who aren't vegan, there is a growing, health conscious sector of people who might appreciate the option.  And adding something vegan to the menu might mean more business for them, also.

For Tim's, it could be as simple as adding two kinds of hummus to their wrap menu.

For Boston Pizza, it could be to simply add Daiya cheese to their list of cheese options (along with Feta, Cheddar, Jack, Goat Cheese and Mozzarella) and adding some Gardein Chicken Wings to their wing menu.

For Starbucks, it would be great to get a breakfast wrap with a tofu and Daiya cheddar scramble in one of their wraps.  They already have soy milk on their menu for any kind of coffee, and that is huge progress when one really REALLY wants a Mocha!

I think the trick is to propose menu additions that don't ask too much of the big conglomerates, or force them to change too much.  It is also about persuading them to understand that while they might need to add some inventory, they could open themselves up to more sales if a vegan can eat there.  If a plant based product is cheap (hummus, tofu) they could stand to make some money.  AND where a plant based product is NOT cheap (daiya, gardein) they can charge accordingly.

I'll pay whatever premium you want to charge me if I can "grab a bite" with my friends.  Just put it on the menu!!!


For now, I offer this navigational top five list for vegan eating in traditional establishments.

1.  Read the entire menu.  Meat or cheese can easily be left off the order.

2.  Ask for something to be substituted for the meat or cheese.  "Can you leave off the chicken and substitute extra avocado?".

3.  Watch out for the dressings.  Mayo, Aioli, and Sauce are usually code for "animal".

4.  ASK if they have a veggie burger that can be added into a sandwich, burger or fish dish.  If you like what you see on a menu as it is written (the grilled chipotle lime fish looks delicous!) see if they can switch it up.  I have been known to sub in onion rings or a portobello mushroom in chicken dishes and the result is fantastic.

5.  Most importantly, MAKE ONLY ONE SWITCH.  The trick is to make it easy for the kitchen to switch it up, and make it easy for the server to ring it in.