Potato Dough Makes the World a Brighter Place

I’ve been really pleased with the way my summer cooking has been going. My biggest coup by far has been my mastering of the making and use of potato refrigerator dough. This versatile foodstuff is just the best. I’ve used it to make burger buns, hot dog buns and dinner rolls. I even drizzled leftover dinner rolls with margarine and cinnamon sugar to make a yummy addition to a birthday breakfast.

My recipe is basically this one with the changes Ruthie mentioned plus one change of my own, I used all whole wheat bread flour. That's the key for me. Store bought whole wheat buns are so expensive. That may be the best reason of all to give this recipe a try. It's so easy to shape a few buns when the dough is already mixed and waiting.

As Ruthie mentioned, I didn’t need to punch it down daily. I also found it needed a longer rising time than the original recipe called for. I feel such shame confessing this but I used mahed potato flakes. There, I said it. Stone me if you must. I’m a huge fan of everything from scratch but baking potatoes in the absence of a microwave in the summer is not my idea of a good time. Plus they carry the mashed potato flakes at the local discount grocery store.

The meals themselves have largely been the ones from the meal plan I put together a few months back. I still can’t believe how much time and mental energy having a meal plan saves. I like the way a meal plan gives me ideas but invites variation. For example, I made baked seitan but instead of making jerk seitan with it, I made BBQ seitan. Simple? Yes, but very effective and tasty too. Now go, look in your fridge, cabinet or garden and make a substitution. Start small, substitute some collards for spinach (in cooked recipes only or you'll be sorry. It's a memorable mistake that you'd only make once!)

I’ve been very adept at combining several days of leftover bean dishes and making veggie burgers. The leftovers have included Cajun black eyed peas, Cuban Black Beans, Brilliant Baked Beans (From How It All Vegan) and BBQ Chickpeas. My only mistake in combing them was pureeing them too much and making the texture a little too gooey. A potato masher would have done a better job. (Is it odd that a potato masher should come up right after I confess to not using one a mere paragraph ago?)

I’ve discovered a real PMS snack pleaser, try combining dried unsweetened cherries with dark chocolate chips. No cooking, just toss them together in a bowl. You can try conning yourself into thinking it’s healthy just because you’re eating fruit. Then again, if you’re PMSing, you probably don’t give a hoot if it’s healthy.

In the fruit and veggie department, the CSA and farmers market have been our primary source. I just discovered a woman in walking distance who has a farm stand set up in her front yard. I'm planning to head her way toward the end of the week when my fridge begins to look empty in anticipation of the next pickup.

Meet Gilbert II

Check out Gilbert II, Leenie's marshmallow popcorn snowman. Just for the record, Gilbert I is her cellphone. The popcorn balls we made with the vegan marshmallows were great for molding into balls but a little too sweet to enjoy eating. (That assessment came from Leenie and I, Rob and Kyle had no complaints. Personally, I'd stick to the caramel popcorn recipe in the Tightwad Gazette.)

Who Killed the Electric Car? ***UPDATE***

Last night Jim and I watched Who Killed the Electric Car? What an interesting and upsetting movie. It seems unthinkable that a functional, greener technology was systematically rounded up and destroyed. It seems big oil has its tentacles in so many places. That having been said, I liked the way the movie showed everyone's culpability. Its a must see. (BTW, so is Supersize Me, although I can't seem to link into the official website anymore???)

My personal reliance on cars really bugs me. It gives me the itch to move to a place that's designed for pedestrian living. A place where things aren't sprawled far and wide. At the same time, I have no use for the high cost and affluence (or perception of affluence) of NYC. The wheels in my head are turning...

I forgot to mention, I did do some "cooking" in NYC. I made a variation on the Date Nut Pop'ems. They are so easy to make. Its a no bake recipe which was perfect to make in our tiny hotel room. Its not a very exact recipe but here it is:

about 1 cup cashew nut butter (I used unsalted)
about 6 - 8 date rolls (these are the dates that are already pitted and rolled in coconut, you find them at natural food stores)
about 3/4 cup of chocolate chips (I used semi sweet)

Put the cashew butter and the date rolls in a bowl and let them sit at room temp for about 15 minutes. Then mash them together, I used a fork for this. Once they are well combined pour in the chocolate chips, mix together and shape into a log. Break off pieces and roll into balls. Place these in the fridge and serve cold.

We ate these in the hotel and on the train ride home. Yum!! I also had enough to give to my family when they met me at the train station. It was the best souvenir a mom could bring home!

***UPDATE***
In my opinion the links section of the Who Killed the Electric Car website was a little challenging to find. To help rectify that, I linked directly to it above and here are a few of the links to get you started.

Plug-In Partners

Plug In America

Inform

Not Gummi Bears, Gummy Squares!

In the grand vernacular of children, Gummi Bears are king. I think they're disgusting and loaded with artificial colors, flavors and often times, hydrogentated oils. I'm not planning on buying them for my kids anytime soon. How do you please the kids without compromising your principles and their health?

We came up with a creative solution to this parental dilemma quite by accident. This past month I bought unsweetened papaya spears from our food cooperative and they were a little chewier than the last time. This resulted in several children refusing to eat them. I tried making them more palatable by cutting them into smaller pieces. It worked like a charm and the gummy square was born!

The boys thought this was the coolest thing and they loved saying, "They're not Gummi Bears, they're Gummy Squares!" Robert especially loved that he could eat these during snack time which is limited to fruits or vegetables in his classroom.

Happy Valentine's Day to all. Its snowing, sleeting, freezing raining in the Hudson Valley and the whole family is home.

Winter Squash Seeds?

We're eating a lot of winter squash this time of year but what can you do with winter squash seeds? Actually, just like you can use winter squash in place of pumpkin in almost any recipe, you can bake the seeds of almost any winter squash just like you would pumpkin seeds. I actually think acorn squash seeds taste better than pumpkin seeds.

I bake the seeds in a 300 degree oven until they start to pop, about 45 minutes. I usually dry roast them but recently, I tried adding a tablespoon of tamari to them after they had begun to pop. I stirred it around and returned them to the oven for 5 minutes. Once cooled they were really delicious, although if you burn them with the tamari, they are almost inedible.

I've also ground the plain, cooked seeds into a flour and substituted it for half of the flour in my scone or pancake recipes. It gives a uniquely nutty flavor to the recipe. If you do this, be sure to really grind the seeds down to flour or you'll find little shards of seed getting stuck in your throat and the recipe won't hold together as well.