Vegan MoFo Day 12 – Where’s The Beef?

I posted recently about making some, (ok, an environmentally-friendly truck-load) of Seitanic goodness, and I thought I’d share with you one of my favorite Seitanic dishes…and never fear, for those who can’t/wouldn’t/don’t want to get all gluten-y, it’s ok. You don’t need to be a Seitan worshipper to love this dinner! And I I’ll stop with the trite Seitan clichés now. Promise. Wait…

The Seitanic Sauna

Though sometimes brushed-off as a Macrobiotic-only cookbook, Cooking The Whole Foods Way by Christina Pirello, is a wonderful vegan cookbook for anyone, Macrobiotic or not. Pierello’s wealth of experience as a whole foods chef is concentrated into this vast (it’s huge!) volume of 100% vegan meals, snacks, salads and desserts. I use this cookbook often, and whole-heartedly suggest checking it out at your local library if you can. One of my favorite recipes in CTWFW is her “Where’s The Beef?” Stew.

Stew was one of my favorite foods when I was a kid. It brings back memories of chilly Autumn walks home from school, rosy cheeks and steamed kitchen windows as my mum was getting dinner on. I think one of the other reasons I loved stew as a child was because it often meant baking powder biscuits, which were – and still are – one of my favorite treats.

There’s nothing too difficult about this stew : just dredge your seitan in some arrowroot & spices, fry it up a little in some oil to get it crispyish, then add in your veggies. What I use of course depends on what’s in my pantry or freezer, but I usually have some red onions, potatoes, parsnips, carrots, green peas and maybe some green beans in there. It’s a warm and healthy meal if you can manage not to pig out on the biscuits (which are not mandatory, but so yummy to dip in that stew!).

This stew is also just as good sin seitan. You could use any soy analogue or just the veggies. I’ve made this with no meat sub and it is also delicious, so don’t let the gluten stop you from drooling over my dinner!

On a non-food note, tomorrow is a big day for me. I’m going to try to quit one of my jobs. I hate it. HATE it. I started almost 2 years ago and never thought I’d still be there, but well, the money is nice for frosting the cupcakes if you know what I mean. It’s a part-time teaching gig at a vocational high school and it’s awful. I’ve finally decided that it’s taking a toll on my health, my happiness, and that the small amount of hours I get isn’t enough to justify the evilness…but I have to quit. I really like my co-workers, and I feel like I’m breaking up with them or something…which is probably why I haven’t already walked out – so many times I’ve almost walked out…in my mind anyway. By sharing this with you all I’m hoping not to lose my nerve and just getting it over with tomorrow.

Wish me luck!

And thanks, guys.

I need all the moral (or immoral, cause that’s fun, too) support I can get!