Stovetop cheese sauce

 

Our blender's broken, but I was craving my favourite comfort meal (for the record: cheesy pasta with seitan chicken, broccoli and kale chips, you're welcome).  I messaged Michael from Where's The Beef for urgent help.  He delivered. 

For the record, I added some dijon.  Otherwise it's perfect.  5 stars no notes.

Trailwalker macaroni
(a recipe from VeganYumYum, archived here)

500g macaroni
1/3 cup margarine
1/4 cup plain flour
2 1/2 tablespoons tamari
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon white miso
1 tablespoon tahini
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 1/4 cups soy milk
1/3 cup nutritional yeast flakes

Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the macaroni until al dente.

While the pasta is cooking, prepare the sauce, making sure that you have all the ingredients ready on hand. Start by melting the margarine in a medium saucepan over medium heat. When it's completely liquid, whisk in the flour to make a smooth paste. One at a time, stir in the tamari, lemon juice, miso, tahini and tomato paste - the mixture will be thick. Gradually whisk in the soy milk, just a half cup at a time, trying to maintain a smooth sauce. Stir in the yeast flakes until well combined. Keep the sauce on low heat, stirring regularly, until the pasta is ready.

When the macaroni is cooked, drain it and transfer it back to the large saucepan. Pour in the sauce and stir well. Serve immediately. We usually eat this with roasted broccoli and carrots - it's pictured above with parsley, roasted broccoli, cauliflower and kale.

Sauteed shiitakes

 

Simple, glorious.  I made these and added them to pho but they'd be great with any noodle dish.

https://www.acouplecooks.com/shiitake-mushroom-recipe/

Ingredients

• 1 pound shiitake mushrooms
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 teaspoon Sriracha hot sauce (or other hot sauce)
• 2 dashes toasted sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil (standard, not toasted)
• Kosher salt

Instructions

1. Remove the stems from the mushrooms and discard. Slice the larger mushroom caps in half and keep smaller mushrooms whole. In a small bowl, stir together the soy sauce, lime juice, Sriracha and toasted sesame oil. 
2. Heat the sesame oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add a few pinches of kosher salt while cooking.
3. Once browned on all sides, carefully pour in the bowl of sauce and continue cooking 1 to 2 minutes until dark brown and glossy. Serve immediately. 

Dan Dan noodles

hey, it's been a while - I've still been cooking lots, just relying on old favourites and never loving a new one enough to add it to this esteemed collection.  BUT THAT ALL CHANGED LAST NIGHT, thank you dear Hetty McKinnon!

Only thing I changed was using 100gm shiitake along with 200g button mushrooms and a splash of soy in the mushrooms, because...well.  Cooked them a little longer too.

That's all, I love you, life is great here thanks. x

Recipe: here

Ingredients

Noodles:

Vegetable or peanut oil

2 stalks celery, finely diced

300g swiss brown or button mushrooms, finely diced

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

150g Chinese broccoli (gai larn), trimmed at the base or cut into 5cm pieces

450g fresh noodles, such as hokkien or rice noodles, or egg noodles (for non-vegan version)

1 Tbsp sesame seeds, toasted

Handful of coriander leaves

3-2 spring onions, finely chopped

Sea salt

White pepper

Szechuan or regular chilli oil, to serve

Dan dan sauce:

20g fresh ginger, about 5cm, peeled and finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 Tbsp rice vinegar

3 Tbsp tamari or soy sauce

2 Tbsp Szechuan or regular chilli oil

1 tsp sesame oil

1/3 cup (80ml) tahini, or peanut butter as a substitute

3 tsp sugar

Pinch sea salt

Method

1. 1.In a small bowl, add the ingredients for the sauce and whisk to combine.
2. 2.Bring a big pot of salted water to the boil. Add the noodles and cook according to packet instructions until al dente, about 3-4 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water.
3. 3.In a large pan or wok over medium-high heat, drizzle about one tablespoon of oil, add the celery and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic, season with a big pinch of sea salt, a small pinch of white pepper, and cook for 4-5 minutes until the mushrooms are golden and starting to caramelise. Remove from pan and set aside.
4. 4.Heat the same wok/pan, and when hot, add small drizzle of oil and toss in the Chinese broccoli. Toss for 1 minute or so, until the broccoli is bright green. Remove from pan immediately so they don't discolour.
5. 5.Place the noodles in a large bowl and add the mushroom mixture and sauce. Toss to combine, making sure the noodles are well coated. To serve, top with the Chinese broccoli, and scatter with sesame seeds, coriander and spring onions. If you like it spicy, drizzle with more chilli oil.