English Muffins

My first major sourdough fail was English muffins. I started with this recipe here, ended up with a weird dough patty that was cooked on the outside. After a few more attempts, changing things here and there along the way, I ended up with actually nooks and crannies, and delicious flavor.

Ingredients:

• 125 g unfed starter
• 260 g white flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill Organic White)
• 220 g water (filtered tap)
• 1 tsp salt (fine pink Himalayan)
• 1 tsp sugar (Florida Crystal raw cane sugar)
• Cornmeal (for sprinkling)
• Canola Oil (for cooking)

Steps:

The night before: Add all ingredients to a large bowl, stir until all ingredients are incorporated. Cover and move to refrigerator. This will be a somewhat thick, but very wet dough.

Cooking Day:

1. Heat a cast iron skillet over low heat. Grease the pan and some English Muffin rings.
2. Sprinkle some corn meal into the rings.
3. Add the dough, filling the rings about 1/2 full. The dough will still be fairly thick and will not spread out to fill the rings. You can use your fingers (carefully) to push it around, or just let it do its thing. Sprinkle some more cornmeal
4. Cover the pan and let cook for 15 minutes.
5. Carefully flip the rings. I use a thin metal spatula and a silicone oven glove to pick up and turn over the rings.
6. Cover the pan again and let cook for 15 more minutes. A lot of recipes will say to remove the rings somewhere around this point, but I don’t bother.
7. Move the muffins to a cooling rack to let cool. I usually wait and then push the muffins out of the ring once I can handle them. I’ve not yet had the experience of the muffins just “sliding off”, and usually have had to encourage them out.

These are best when split by hand as opposed to cut, you get all the nice texture and crispy bits once toasted.

Baking Bread in the Tropics

Hello again internet. I’ve not blogged for quite some time. I kind of don’t know how to, and don’t really have a goal in mind, other than maybe personal reference? So let’s catch up, shall we, internet? I had really only included some random travel recaps before, but in the almost three years since I last posted, I’ve finished business school, gotten married, and moved to Hawaii. Which is where I think I’ll pick this up…

While still in CA, my husband and I gave sourdough a go, but right when the starter seemed to be taking hold, we got a major cold snap- and I lived in a house with poor insulation- so that ended up being a huge bust. When we got out here, we decided to give it a go again, figuring we were probably going to have a pretty awesome climate to encourage fermentation.

And we ended up with a kick-ass starter, Dionysus (cultivated from a Cultures for Health packet). But as for actually baking with it, following most online recipes has led to over-proofed/ doughy/ not quite right messes.

I’m lucky to have been baking and cooking most of my life, and I’m a fan of the scientific method, so there has been a lot of experimentation in the kitchen, which is part of what I’ll address here. I’ll post some of my successes, including the source(s) from which I have tweaked. That way I can have a somewhat centralized record, and maybe help some other lost baker trying to figure out how to bake bread in a warm, humid place.

And maybe I’ll throw in some blurbs about things I love about O’ahu; hikes, restaurants, events, gardening brags, running stuff, etc.

New York!

Back in 2006/07, I did a study abroad in Paris. It was definitely one of the best years of my life. And along the way, I met some of my best friends. One of those groups of friends is the “Paris Girls”. The five of us are similar but different, and our group complements each other very well. We’re spread out across the country, but technology has made it easy to stay in touch (except when Google Hangouts decides to be dumb). We have bi-annual reunions (and some semi-reunions along the way), having gotten together in California, Chicago, Phoenix, and this year, New York.

This summer was the first time that I have been to New York. While it wasn’t a foodie trip, I was lucky enough that my girls were up for some Vegan adventures. A small recap of my highlights:

Starry Night! I know it isn’t food related, but it was a total bucket list item that I was stoked to be able to scratch off my list. The fifth floor of MOMA was a magical place for me. I also got to see some other Van Goghs, Fridas, Dali, Matisse, Picassos, and Monets. A dream world. Sigh.

Mombucha– I went to a Vegan Backyard Beer Bash (which I was able to pack some Golden Road 329 Lager as my contribution, beer travels very well!), and someone had brought this. Some of the best Kombucha that I have ever had!

 
Vinnie’s Pizza– I actually had a couple of days to myself and bummed around Brooklyn a bit. A friend had recommended that I come here, so I was sure to make it a stop. Vegan slices!

 
Champs Diner– I was able to meet some NY Vegan friends for dinner at this awesome diner in Brooklyn. A friend and I shared the Chicken Fried “Steak” plate and Red Velvet Pancakes. The perfect combination of savory and sweet.

Dunwell Donuts– because Vegan donuts.

 
Cinnamon Snail Truck– We tracked the truck down the truck in Manhattan and waited about half an hour for it. But OMG, the Seitan al pastor was insane!

Lula’s Sweet Apothecary– the best Vegan ice cream!

And of course I went to a Yankees game, but had to show my hometown love. 🙂

PDX!

I headed up to Portland over the 4^th of July weekend. The purpose of my trip was to see some fireworks, drink beer, and eat as much Vegan food as possible! I solicited recommendations from a few friends that were familiar with the awesomeness of Portland, and quickly came to the conclusion that I need to spend way more time there!

My dino twin Jeanmarieasaurus happened to be up in Oregon that same week, so we spent some time together too, and she was totally down to try to eat ALL the food with me.

The beer in Portland was so good! So many good local brews, and so cheap! 4 bucks for a pint! What really surprised me though was at most of the bars we visited, despite the amount of good local cheap beer, people were ordering PBR and Tecate. Tecate!?! WTF! Silly hipsters.

My hands-down favorite meal of the weekend was from Homegrown Smoker. I got the sampler platter which included Tempeh Ribs, BBQ Chickn, Mac-Nocheese, Slaw, and Hush Puppies. Oh my.

The other great discovery of my trip was Soy Curls! I am in love! I had a Soy Curl Burrito at Los Gorditos, and I have to say, MIND BLOWN. They aren’t available in CA in stores; but thank goodness for the internet, I’ve been able to order them online.

I was not disappointed by any of the food (and I had a lot of it!)… Other amazingness that I enjoyed:
 The Bye and Bye-A Vegan bar! My first stop in Portland (naturally). Good drinks, an awesome “meatball” sub, and practical jokes from the Universe.

 Paradox-Awesome brunch.

 Hungry Tiger-More beer. Super friendly bartenders and BEET FRIES!!!

 VooDoo Donuts!– I waited an hour in line for my donuts, but it was so worth it. My poor VooDoo doll didn’t stand up very well to the heat, but it was delicious!

 Harlow-More awesome brunch. Quinoa lemon pancakes, what?

  The Vegan Mini-Mall-Quite possibly the coolest corner on the planet. And Sweetpea Bakery!

San Francisco Awesomeness

My brother and I had been planning a weekend getaway to San Francisco for quite a while… no purpose other than to just hang out in the city and eat…

We took the Megabus up which was an interesting experience… but when the prices are as cheap as they are, I guess I can’t really complain… (I had once taken the Greyhound to San Jose, and that experience was less than fun- I ended up sitting next to some lady who hadn’t showered since Florida! o_O)

We bummed around the city, met up with some friends at Carnaval, drank some beer, and ate so much good food!

The highlight of the trip for me was going to Chez Panisse. Alice Waters is one of my heroes- going to her restaurant was definitely a bucket list item! We were sure to make our reservations as soon as we could book them, I was not going to miss out…

Alice Waters has been instrumental in the Slow Food movement in California and the US. One of the most amazing things to me about Chez Panisse is that the menu is written every morning based on what they get from the local farms. The day’s menu didn’t really have anything Vegan listed, so I asked our waiter if there was something that could be done for me. He went to talk to the chef and came back with a couple of suggestions, one being a Chickpea Ragu. I was sold.

This was one of the best meals of my life! It was chickpeas with a simple tomato sauce, sautéed and fresh greens, and mushrooms on toast, all so perfectly prepared! Chez Panisse was an experience, and one I hope to make it a point to have more often…

Some of the other fantastic places where we ate include:

Pepples Donuts– Our first morning started at the Ferry Building, so we checked out the Farmer’s Market for a while, then got some donuts! We had the Eureka Lemon, Salted Caramel, Cinnamon Sugar, and Blueberry donuts.

Cinnaholic (Vegan cinnamon rolls!)- in Berkeley. We waited half an hour for these. There are so many options as far as frosting and toppings go, but I kept it simple with the old school (vanilla frosting). I’d love to try ALL the combinations…

Herbivore– We swung by here during the Carnaval festivities (the Brazilian fare wasn’t so much geared towards Vegans). The place was pretty decent. The potato salad was killer though.

Millennium– Fancy for sure. We couldn’t get reservations, but didn’t have any problems with sitting at the bar. The food was incredible.  My favorites were the Crusted King Trumpet Mushrooms and the Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cake.

Source– Our farewell meal. I got the Cluck N Gilroy, but the best part was the Buffalo Bytes starter!

New Phoney Baloney’s Flavors!

A couple of  years ago, I remember being super excited about a new Vegan sandwich shop that was hidden in the back corner of Irvine, tucked in a little gym. I’d go sometimes on my lunch from work, get a Vegan grilled cheese and delicious cupcakes. I still have my loyalty card somewhere. I was sad when the shop didn’t make it, but was so excited when Kyle told me that he was in the works to launch a line of his coconut bacon.

Last year, Phoney Baloney’s coconut bacon was launched and took the Vegan world by storm. They’ve just expanded their line and have added four new flavors: Chipotle BBQ, Apple Fennel, Candied, and Reduced Sodium. (Spoiler alert: I’ve sampled the Apple Fennel and it was amazing!)

Now they are running a pre-sale on the new flavors over at Indiegogo. Head over, order the four new flavors, get the t-shirt too!

Phoenix Round Up

A few weeks ago I went out to Phoenix to visit a friend and watch some Spring Training games. I’m a Dodger’s girl born and raised, and love baseball. I’ve never been out to spring training, and I have a ton of Southwest miles to burn, so I figured pourquoi pas?

My friend is Vegetarian, and was super stoked to be able to take me to some of her favorite places to eat.

Our first stop was Green. They have the most awesome ice machine I’ve seen. We ordered a ton of the apps to start and shared them all. My favorite was the Artichoke Gratine. It was a yummy cheesy sauce with artichoke hearts. We also got the Buffalo Wings and the Chili Fries.  And demolished them. For my meal, I got “Thee Argentine Po-Boy” which is “seitan steak with caramelized peppers n onions, vegan mayo and spicy chimichurri sauce”. The food was all so good, and my friend’s husband who is Omni was even a fan. 🙂

For dessert, we walked over to Nami and got cupcakes. Vegan cupcakes can be hit or miss… sometimes they are too dry, crumbly, not good. But my Rocky Road Cupcake was perfect.

The next morning we had brunch at Bragg’s Factory Diner. I had the Spiced and Sliced French Toast which is “Almond French toast with cinnamon-ginger spiced citrus”. Before my Vegan days, French Toast was kind of my thing, but I haven’t had it for quite a while. This meal made me so so happy. And pies are kind of this place’s thing… so who was I to turn down the chance to try some? I got the peanut butter cup pie, it was pretty amazing.

I was actually pleasantly surprised with the food options in Phoenix, and have been told that there is so much more to explore. I’m heading back out there this summer for more baseball, so I’m stoked to try it all! If you have any suggestions, please share!

Weeeeeeeeee!

The inspiration has finally struck!

After spending some time this past weekend with some of the awesome Vegan bloggers that came into Orange County for the Expo West (which sadly I had to miss for a bachelorette party in Santa Barbara wah wah), I decided that it’s time to join the blogoshpere.

So enjoy the ride, this should be fun.