Vegan Diner Testing

Once again I get the distinct pleasure to test for yet another tasty and incredible cook book. This time it is the fabulous Julie Hasson's Vegan Diner. This book is going to be chock full of dishes we all know and love. It will remind you of those fantastic little diner's where the food is even more tasty at 1am! Above you can see the Quinoa Burger done up southwestern style.

Below is a creamy delicious smoky grilled cheeze with tomatoes.

I never thought I would be able to enjoy a Banana Cream Pie without the milk. But here it is! This creamy sweet delicousness is even better than I imagined.

Red Onion Rings - pretty self explanatory. These are crispy and oh so good.

This decadent beauty is a Dark Chocolate Cherry Cake. Be careful, looking at it may make you gain 5 lbs. This is an easy way to get your chocolate fix. The cherries add a moist deliciousness to the cake. MMMMM.

My advice to all of you is to save your pennies. The books that have been introduced to you here on the blog are all going to be really great additions to you collection. This one is no exception. This week I'm going to be testing for Jae Steele's new book - Recipes from Around Here. Hopefully I will have the time to blog about my adventures with her recipes this week.

Bon Apetit!

Portland Rocks

I'm back! We wanted to check out Portland for all it's delicious vegan food and cooler? weather. While we certainly found lots of great vegan food and fun people, we did not find greater Portland cool on this venture. It was almost 95 degrees, which is certainly cooler than the temperatures here in the greater Phoenix area, but still!

We got to meet up with some PPK friends that I have known from the internet for a while. It sure was fun to finally get to meet them in person. It makes me want to figure how we can live there at least part time! I won't give reviews of the places we ate as Jess, author of the fabulous blog Stumptown Vegans, is the expert in this area. I will however share with you the great eats we had on our visit.

We both had a great time and you can see the rest of the pictures on the PPK. I'm looking forward to many more visits in the future.

This is a delicious Charlie Brown Bar from Sweetpea Bakery

Behold the Almost Chicken Salad Sandwich and Tater Salad from Sweetpea

Los Gorditos II came highly recommended and this is one reason why.
Soyrizo Enchiladas!


Our new friend Julie Hasson made this heavenly Mint Chocolate Truffle Pie
She also made a banana cream pie that was off the hook.

Jess made these crazy good s'mores brownies

Testing for American Vegan Kitchen - Salads

So yesterday Tami was finally able to give the OK to blog about testing for her upcoming book "American Vegan Kitchen". This cookbook will truly dispell the myth that food must be laiden with animal products to be American comfort food.

She puts up test recipes at such a fast pace that I can't even keep up! This is a great thing. It gives a tester lots of choices, not to mention great variety in the kitchen. Variety is the spice of life...no. Testing has been going on for quite some time, but I was just invited recently. I'm so thrilled to be in on this. Tami is a creative marvel. I can't list much about the recipes, but I can show you pictures with faux titles (kind of like faux meat) for your viewing pleasure. This is yet another one you need to get your hands on when it comes out in 2010. There is nothing wrong with being a cookbook addict. I highly recommend it.

For your first peek, there will be some great salads. I'll keep posting more from different categories each post, so stay tuned.

Testing - Viva Vegan - Peruvian testers

I haven't posted for such a long time. I've been busy getting married. The wedding and plans took up quite a bit of time and energy, but so worth the effort. We had a great wedding weekend with lots of friends and family in town. As you can imagine, there wasn't a whole lot of cooking going on.

Now we head into our busy season at work. But this will not stop me from cooking. I'm just slacking a bit on posting.

I was invited to test for two more upcoming books; Viva Vegan by Terry Hope Romero and the other to be announced later (it is a stealth project). I can't wait to be able to let the cat out of the bag on that one.

We've had a lot of fun travelling the latin globe in our kitchen. Let's have a peak. (I can't post the recipes of course. Make sure you get a copy of Viva Vegan when it comes out!)

First stop was Peru. So far Peruvian food has proven to be high on the list of favorites. I know little about Peruvian cuisine, so I can't give much background (yet). I can tell you the bold flavors make my tastebuds very happy indeed.

P.S. I do plan on getting back to the restaurant reviews as time permits.

Peruvian Antichucos (Skewers)

Peruvian Red Chili Corn Salad

Seitan Saltado

Restaurant Review - Posh in Scottsdale

The second stop in my series of vegan friendly restaurant review is the unique and upscale Posh Improvisational Cuisine.

Posh
7167 E Rancho Vista Dr, Suite 111
Scottsdale, AZ 85251
480.663.7674

Posh is located in the Optima Camelview building facing Scottsdale Road. Be warned, the signage for parking is a bit tricky to find. You can enter the covered parking structure from Rancho Vista Drive by turning to the left into the structure. There you will see a small sign directing you to reserved Posh parking. The grounds are lush and inviting.

Because of the improvisionational nature of the restaurant, I called ahead to see if the chefs would be able to accomodate vegan requests. The very friendly hostess informed me this would not be a problem and also mentioned that she thought the owner's sister was vegan. Score another point for vegan friendliness.

We arrived for our 7pm reservation and were immediately seated. We were offered the option of sitting at a table or at seat by the open kitchen (bar). We opted for the kitchen gallery seating so we could see all of the action first hand. I highly recommend this option as you get to see the magic happen up close and personal. You will also get some personal attention from Joshua the owner and Zac the Chef de Cuisine. For a foodie such as myself this is an invaluable perk. The ambiance is definitely urban chic without being pretentious.


As soon as we were seated our server brought us the drink list, wine list, and the non-menu. He was friendly, efficient and offered great suggestions on wines to suit our tastes. We opted to try two of their specialty cocktails. The names of the cocktails which after an evening of wining and dining, have now slipped my mind. One was a delightful vodka lemonaide concoction, the other was a specialty cosmo style drink. Both were excellent. The latter's flavor was remeniscent of sweet tarts. With our dinner we selected a new style french chardonnay amusingly called Mischeif and Mayhem. My sister suggested these would be great names for my next pound puppies.

The non-menu is the heart of the Posh experience. Each guest can choose a tasting menu of 4-8 courses. There is also an optional wine pairing for an additional cost. This trip we chose our own wines rather than the pairings. The next visit (and there will certainly be more visits) I will try the pairings. The non-menu has a listing of proteins. Patrons indicate any items they would not be willing to try. These selections are decidedly not vegan friendly. However, at the bottom there is an area to indicate any special requests. Here is where I put down VEGAN. Very shortly after the server put in our requests, Zac (the Chef de Cuisine) came over to chat with us. He wanted to let us know that he was very happy to create vegan dishes for me, but that it may take him a little bit longer to create them than usual. I thought this was outstanding service. I let him know that I appreciated him letting us know. But rest assured in this atmosphere I appreciate a leisurely dining experience and was in no hurry to expedite this culinary experience.

I have to note here that the service was outstanding. I was a fine dining server for over 5 years and can be a bit persnickety when it comes to service. Posh's staff didn't miss a beat. We never wanted for refills on wine or water our entire visit.

On to the food! Don't get attached to any of the dishes you see below. Posh is improvisational so there is a good chance you won't see the same dish again. Joshua and Zac, please forgive me if I miss an ingredient or two. While I love the non-menu concept, my memory isn't always as sharp as I'd like. There was such a fantastic symphony of ingredients I may not remember them all, but my happy tounge does.

Amus Bouche - Haas Avocado Sorbet with Griddled Radicchio and fresh chives

The creaminess of the sorbet was a delightful complement to the slightly bitter and crunchy texture of the Radicchio.


Soup - Stonefruit Gazpacho - A refreshing sweet and cold twist on the Spanish classic made with cherries, plum, apricot, peach, and rhubarb garnished with chiffonade of fresh mint. Perfect for a hot summer night.


Grilled Endive and Radiccio with preserved lemons and slivered Gaeta olives. The lettuces were slightly grilled to perfection, bringing out the subtle flavors. The olives added the perfect amount of color and saltiness.


Saute of Bluefoot and Honshimeji Mushrooms with Okenowan Purple Yams. While I would like to say it was hard to pick a favorite, I am a mushroom fanatic, so this was hands down my favorite dish of the night. The mushrooms were perfectly sauteed and the sprinkling of capers gave the perfect piquant accent to the dish. When the dish came out I thought the yams were purple potatoes. When I asked chef Zac where the sweetness came from he told me about these very special yams and how he aquired them. Amazing dish!



Green and White Asparagus with Chili and Fennel - This was a visually striking dish; the white and green of the asparagus accented with the bright orange of the chili oil. The flavors were subtle and perfectly balanced.


Arthichoke Hearts with Corn Pudding and Balsamic Glaze - I love fresh artichoke hearts, so this was an easy win for me. The balsamic glaze was outstanding. I was luke warm on the corn pudding. It made for a lovely presentation, but the flavor just didn't pop with this dish. I'm not complaining mind you, I ate the entire dish without hesitation.




Chinese Long Beans with Gremolata and Lemon Verbina Broth - This was a delightfully light and fun dish. Plated to resemble a bird cage, it was a very visually appealing dish. The gremolata added a nice burst of flavor to the light and fresh tasting broth.



Dessert - Local Figs with Brulee and Muscat Espresso Smear (I'm not sure about the ingredients on this one). This was a gorgeous presentation. The figs were moist, fresh and wonderful. The brulee, however, was the only disappointment of the evening. As an aspiring vegan, I understand intimately the challenges of trying to produce a good sweet sauce resembling brulee. One must have the proper vegan ingredients to pull it off. To this end Zac mentioned that for those who are interested in a vegan tasting it is best to call 24 hours in advance so that the kitchen can have a better variety of vegan ingredients to work with. Even without advance notice, they did an excellent job at creating outstanding vegan dishes.




During and after dinner I had the pleasure of speaking to Joshua, Zac, and two other of the kitchen maestros. It is obvious that the entire staff is stoked about this venture. Zac's passion for finding unique, fresh, high quality ingredients is an important piece to this delicious puzzle. I had such a great time discussing my favorite pastime (cooking) with some of the most creative culinary minds I have had the pleasure to meet in a long time. I certainly hope that the Scottsdale/Phoenix area diners are open minded and sophisticated enough in palate to fully appreciate this incredible experience. I hope Posh has great success with their venture. I can't wait to go back! Watch out Mr. Binkley, these guys are bringing their A+++ game.



4 Course Tasting Menu $45.00 with wine pairing $77.00

5 Course Tasting Menu $55.00 with wine pairing $94.00

6 Course Tasting Menu $65.00 with wine pairing $112.00

7 Course Tasting Menu $75.00 with wine pairing $125.00

Full Tasting Menu $110.00 with wine pairing $165.00

NEXT UP: WOODLANDS IN CHANDLER

Cool Salad - Black and White Sesame Edamame Salad

We've already broken a record in May for the most triple digit temps. That said, turning on the oven has zero appeal. What is an obsessive cook to do? Make cold salads!!! This one is high protein, but feels light and cool. With the use of vegetable stock for much of the oil it isn't too high in fat. It is also pretty darn easy to put together.

Makes 6 portions or 4 cups

2 1/2 cups thawed, shelled edamame
1 can or 1 1/2 cups black soy beans rinsed and drained
2 teaspoons hot chili oil
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon mirin
3 teaspoons red miso
1/4 cup vegetable stock
2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger
2 garlic cloves minced or microplaned
1 tablespoon white sesame seeds, toasted
1 tablespoon black sesame seeds, toasted

In a medium sized bowl mix all ingredients from hot chili oil through garlic to make dressing. This can be done easily by hand or in a blender or processor. In a larger bowl toss dressing, edamame, and soy beans and mix well. Toss in both types of sesame seeds. Marinade overnight for best results stirring once or twice to re-distribute marinade/dressing. Serve plain or on a leaf of radicchio.

Restaurant Review - Fresh Mint in Scottsdale

This is the first in a series of restaurant reviews that I am going to be posting. I will keep working on a good format but I wanted to do this one while it was fresh in my head. With the sad news that Mandala Tea Room closed this week, I am going to seek out more vegan and vegetarian options in the Phoenix area and post what I find here.

Fresh Mint
13802 N Scottsdale Road, Suite 161
Scottsdale, AZ 85254
480-443-2556
NW corner of Scottsdale and Thunderbird

Fresh Mint is tucked away in an unassuming strip mall. It is a family owned restaurant. The Executive Chef is Mai Ly. She is the wife of the husband and wife team that own the restaurant. Each time I have been in she has been working away in the kitchen preparing every dish fresh to order. On this visit their daughter was the one masterfully plating and presenting my dishes.


The restaurant is simply and cheerfully appointed in bright greens. It reminds me of the kind of place you'd find in a small island town. There is beach music and oldies piped in which adds to the relaxed atmosphere. This could be because the first Fresh Mint was opened on the island of Maui by the owners. They moved to the mainland and sold the original so that their daughter could attend college here. This location has been open since April of 2008. It was not very busy during my visit as it was between the lunch and dinner rushes.

I'm going to jump right in and tell you about my favorite part...the food. The food is extremely fresh island fare with an Asian twist. The menu has a nice selection of appetizers, salads, soups, noodle dishes, other entrees and desserts. All of the items but one are vegan. The chow mein noodles are not vegan, but you can substitute brown rice to make the dish vegan. They offer soft drinks, coffee, daily fresh brewed jasmine tea, and smoothies made to your specifications.

On this visit I started off with the Fresh Summer Rolls ($5.95). They are filled with fresh thin sliced carrot, celery, cabbage, tofu, fresh mint all rolled in rice paper. The rolls are served with a sweet and rich house peanut sauce. The rolls themselves are super fresh. They do not have any marinade or seasoning, so alone they don't offer a lot of flavor. They are quite tasty with the sauce. As you can see from the picture below, the presentation is beautiful.


For the entree I opted for the Kung Pao Soy Chicken ($13.95) on the owners suggestion. The "chicken" was frighteningly close in texture and flavor to the animal version (in a very good way). The sauce was spiced to perfection and again the freshness of the ingredients really stole the show. You have your choice of brown or white rice. I opted for the brown. The rice was excellent. It was plump, fluffy, and cooked to perfection. The plate was presented with a lovely salad of lettuce, cabbage, red bell peppers, carrots, and tomatoes in a light basil dressing.


For dessert I tried the banana fritter. I don't have a good description of the ingredients at this time. This was a very nicely presented dessert. The bananas were wrapped in rice paper and fried. They were served over a creamy tapioca concoction drizzled with chocolate. I loved the concept of this dessert. The texture was excellent, but the flavor, while ok, left me wanting a bit more. On the flip side, because it was lighter in texture, I didn't have that overly stuffed feeling after eating a substantial amount of food.


Both times I have been in here the owners have both been working. Mrs in the kitchen and Mr in the dining room. Today I had the honor of meeting their daughter who was also working in the kitchen. She did a lovely job plating each course as you can see. We had a little conversation about the menu. She mentioned that she couldn't eat the "beef" dishes because they reminded her too much of the real thing. This makes me want to come back and give more attention to the beef dishes as many of my friends are carnivores who poo poo a lot of my veg talk. With the quality and freshness of Fresh Mint's food, I'm pretty sure they would be convinced that vegan food is pretty awesome.

The service has the laid back island feel as well. They are super nice people, but the fine points of service are absent. During my three courses, my water glass was never re-filled. It is not all that attentive, but when you do see your servers, they are very pleasant. That said, if you are looking to be pampered and waited on hand and foot, this might not be where you want to dine. If you are looking for outstanding fresh food and a bright friendly atmosphere, this is it!

Appetizers are $5.95
Salads are $7.95 - $8.95
Soups come in two sizes; Small $5.95 and Large $7.95
Entrees range from $9.95 - $13.95

If you have eaten here please post a comment and/or pictures of your experience.


NEXT STOP: POSH IN SCOTTSDALE