Making Seitan

I used to be a vegetarian for 5 years, and during that time I consumed quite a lot of tofu. The range of vegetarian products, however, was still a bit limited, and tofu was the only "meat substitute" that I knew. I put the word between quotation marks, because I do not really regard tofu as a substitute, rather as a wonderful product that does not merit the pejorative undertone of substitute. Anyway, nowadays there is a much wider range on the market, and you can get all kinds of preparations on the base of quorn, seitan, lupin or even milk! Most of them are healthy and low on fat, but high on proteins.

After having read that seitan can be easily made, I decided to give it a try myself and bought a whole package of wheat flour to get started. There are several tutorials on the internet, and I will give you mine as well. You have to put a little work and it needs time, but it's fairly easy and cheap!

You need:
- 1kg wheat flour
- water
- 1 carrot
- vegetable stock
- 1 tbsp miso (optional)
- soy sauce
- pepper

Pour the flour in a bowl and add as much water as you need to knead a firm dough. Add warm water and cover the bowl with a towel. Let it rest for 1/2 hour.

In the meanwhile, pour 1-2L of water into a cooking pot, add vegetable stock, miso, soy sauce, pepper and the carrot cut into thick slices. It should be quite salty. You can add other spices if you like.

After 1/2 hour, knead the dough shortly under the water, and pour off the white liquid. This time, add cold water, knead, pour it off. You have to repeat that step until the water is no longer white, but clear. Make sure to alternate between cold and warm water. The last step should be done with cold water. You will notice that, while you wash out the starch, the dough will change. When the texture is chewy, it is ready.

Turn on the heater and wait till the brew is boiling. I suggest you cut the dough into slices or cubes, or whatever shape you want to have, because they will absorb the stock better. Reduce heat just a little and cook the seitan for 45 minutes.

You can season or marinate the seitan with other spices or soy sauce, depending on the dish you want to create, before frying or baking it.

Good luck and enjoy!

~Vail~

Cheesecake From The Orient

I found a recipe for an oriental cheesecake that caught my attention because it sounded so irresistible that I had to give it a try.

You can find the link for the original recipe here:
http://www.kuechengoetter.de/rezepte/Kuchen/Orientalischer-Kaesekuchen-2573.html

As usual, I made some alterations and baked it without a base. This is also the light version but the taste is very exciting. Dried, yet soft apricots, figs and raisins inside a creamy yet firm sour cream and quark mixture, flavoured with rum and grand marnier, cinnamon, vanilla and cardamom. I love it and would do it again. :)

Earth Almond Pancakes With Cinnamon Apples

I took the recipe for these low carb pancakes from this site: http://soulfoodlowcarberia.blogspot.com/2011/12/pfannkuchen.html

Instead of regular almond flour, I took earth almond flour, which is the reason why they are slightly darker.

What you need (for 2 pancakes) :
- 50 ml milk
- 1 egg
- 10g butter or margarine
- 30g (earth) almond flour
- 1/3 tsp wheat flour

Prepare the batter. With a whisk, beat the egg and the milk. Melt the butter and add it to this mixture. Include the flour until dough has thickened. Let it rest.
Peel and slice the apples. Heat some butter in a frying pan and add the apples. Fry them, add cinnamon and reduce heat. Cover the pan and wait until they're soft. Keep them warm.
In another pan, heat a little butter or oil and bake the pancakes from both sides.

Serve hot with the apples and enjoy.

~Vail~

Low Carb Pizza

Last night I was craving Pizza but since I am still living on low carb products, I googled to find a recipe for a dough that I could make without using much flour. And here it is! Found here: http://blogblume.de/low-carb-pizza-ohne-mehl/

I was kinda surprised that it is possible to make a pizza dough with only tuna, egg and little flour but here it comes.



1. This is the "dough" before being baked. For 1 serving, you need:
- a small can of tuna (NOT in oil)
- 1 medium egg
- 1-2 tbsp. of soy flour
- salt
- pizza seasoning if you like
Get the tuna as dry as you can and stir it with a fork until you get a smooth texture. Add the egg, the salt and the pizza seasoning, and finally the soy flour. When you feel you are happy with the result, put the mixture on a baking tray (simply toss it onto some baking paper) and press it flat with the palm of your hand. There shouldn't be any holes and make sure the dough is not thicker than 3-4mm.

2. Put in the preheated oven (180°C) and bake about 20 minutes or until the dough is no longer wet.

3. Add the toppings but make sure not to use ingredients that contain too much water, or else your dough will be wet and not crispy. Bake for about 7-10 minutes.

4. Your pizza is ready when the cheese is melted and the dough crispy.

Enjoy!

PS: Surprisingly, the dough didn't taste like tuna anymore, once it was baked. Of course, it's not a real substitute for pizza, but it will satisfy your craving enough.