Split Pea and Barley Soup

6 cups veggie broth (plus extra water if your pot sucks)
1 1/2 cups dried split peas
1/2 medium onion, minced
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 shallot, minced
1/2 cup pearl barley
salt and pepper

Put broth, split peas, onion, carrot, celery and shallot in a big soup pot.
Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour.
Blend soup with an immersion blender. Add barley. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer about 45 minutes or until barley is tender. Add extra water if your pot doesn't close completely like mine and all the liquid evaporates, making the soup way too damn thick.
Season with salt and pepper.

adapted from this

Almond Tofu

Finally got this dish to not suck. Gotta use half the amount of water that the recipe calls for and heat the sauce separately so the veggies stay crisp. But Tofu Cookery is still awesome.

here's my slightly edited version of the Tofu Cookery recipe:

have ready:
1/2 cup roasted almonds

cut into 3/4" pieces:
2 lbs firm tofu (drained)

whip together then mix with the tofu cubes:
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder

brown the tofu over medium heat in 2 tbsp canola oil.

in another pan, saute together only until crisp-tender:
1 tbsp oil
1 large pepper, chopped
6 green onions, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 8oz can water chestnuts, drained
1 tbsp ginger, grated

heat in a small saucepan and stir until thickened:
1 cup cold water
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp cornstarch

Add the soy sauce mixture, the tofu, and the almonds to the veggies and cook just until everything is hot. Serve with rice.

Chili

from veganyumyum

I used broth instead of cubes, tomato paste for the tomatoes, hot sauce in place of chipotle, barbeque sauce instead of jerk sauce, left out the liquid smoke and added some green peppers, green onions, and asiago cheese.

Seitan Tikka Masala

I went the almost vegan route and used dairy yogurt for this. It'd probably be almost as good with soy yogurt.

1 cup plain (soy) yogurt
2 tbs lemon juice

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp ground red pepper

2 tsp fresh ground black pepper

1 tsp cinnamon

a pinch of salt

1 tsp ginger, minced

2 8oz packages of seitan

1 tbs earth balance (butter)

2 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp garam masala

a pinch of salt

1- 8oz can tomato sauce

1 cup soy creamer

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

For marinade, combine yogurt, lemon juice, cumin, red pepper, black pepper, cinnamon, salt and ginger in a bowl. Stir in seitan. Marinate in refrigerator 1 hour. For sauce, melt butter in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. Stir in coriander, cumin, paprika, garam masala and salt. Stir in tomato sauce, simmer 15 minutes, stir in creamer. Simmer until sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, heat broiler. Broil seitan until cooked through, about 8 minutes. Remove seitan from broiler, add to sauce. Simmer 5 minutes; sprinkle with chopped cilantro. Serve with basmati rice, flat bread, and raita.

adapted (stolen) from here

Seitan Marsala

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp each: oregano, thyme, paprika
a dash each: cayenne, salt, pepper
2- 8 oz packages of seitan, sliced thin
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 tablespoons earth balance (butter)
3 cups sliced cremini mushrooms
3/4 cup Marsala wine
1 cup veggie stock
1 tbs parsley
salt and pepper
chopped scallions

Combine the flour and seasoning mix in a bowl and stir to combine thoroughly. Add the seitan chunks to the bowl and cover them with the seasoned flour mixture, then get rid of the excess flour. (a strainer works) Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until very hot but not smoking. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter and cook the seitan until golden brown. Transfer to a plate and set aside. Add 1 tablespoon of the remaining butter to the pan and add the mushrooms. Cook, stirring frequently, until mushrooms are golden brown around the edges and have given off their liquid. Add the Marsala wine and bring to a boil. When the wine has reduced by half, add the stock and cook for 3 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened slightly. Lower the heat to medium and return the seitan to the pan and continue to cook until the sauce has thickened, about 5 to 6 minutes. Swirl in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, add parsley and salt and pepper, to taste. Garnish with chopped scallions and serve immediately.

original recipe: Emeril

Peanut Butter Cupcakes

From Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, of course. I think I heated the soy milk for too long so the ganache got chunky. Tasted damn good though.

Sichuan Green Beans

1 lb fresh green beans; trimmed, and cut into small pieces
a dash of salt
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon seasoned rice vinegar
a dash of sesame oil
2 teaspoons honey
1/4-1/2 teaspoon hot chili flakes
1 tablespoon olive oil
a pinch of sesame seeds

Mix together soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, sesame oil, olive oil, and chili flakes. Fill a frying pan 2/3rds of the way with water. Bring water to a boil and add beans and salt. Cover and cook, stirring once, until beans are bright green and still sorta crunchy, 8 or 9 minutes. Drain and rinse beans in cold water. Stir soy sauce mixture and add to pan. Bring to a boil. Add the beans and cook through. Garnish with sesame seeds.