Sooo....What CAN you eat?: Going Greek

Well, night before last was a Greek blast! Thought it would be fun to try out the Seitan Souvlaki in the newest issue of VegNews! & It was pretty great! Admittedly, I changed a few minor things & I have a BIG note that was left out of the directions! I added fresh homemade pita bread, hummus (which I usually make myself but I ran out of time! but I will post my hummus recipe soon anyways because it's F-ING FANTASTIC!) I added Greek-style potatoes & lots of cucumbers & we ate al fresco - what a blast! I will, for sure, be making this meal again! It was not only healthy but indulgent - don't you just love it when that happens?!

Seitan Souvlaki
recipe from VegNews

FOR THE SEITAN
1-1/4 c vital wheat gluten
3 tbsp tapioca flour
2 tbsp nutritional yeast (I made it 2 extremely generous tablespoons)
1 tsp garlic powder (I made it 2)
1 tsp onion powder(I made it 2)
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper (Normally I would have added a bit more but I didn't want it to be too peppery for Kingston)
1 c cold water
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp soy sauce (I used tamari)

FOR THE SEASONING MIXTURE
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried rosemary(I'm not exactly crazy about rosemary so I did not use rosemary)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

FOR THE SKEWERS
1 large yellow onion, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 red or yellow bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces
16 cherry tomatoes
(I had a buttload of sweet Maui onions from my local Farmer's Market & just used onion. Next time I cannot wait to do it with the bell pepper & tomatoes as well. I also think zucchini would have been awesome too)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. For the seitan, in a food processor, combine vital wheat gluten, tapioca flour, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, salt & pepper & pulse to mix. Add water, olive oil, vinegar & soy sauce & process to blend, then pulse for a minute or two. Turn mixture out onto a flat work surface & knead for 2 minutes until a smooth dough forms.

Ingredients for seitan

2. Flatten seitan into a 6-inch square & enclose it loosely in a sheet of aluminum foil. In a shallow baking dish, place the foil-wrapped seitan & add enough water to come halfway up the sides of the foil. Cover the baking dish tightly with foil & bake for 1 hour. Remove from the pan, then remove the seitan from the foil & set aside to cool. Refrigerate until firm, then cut into 1-1/2 inch cubes. (Here's where I kinda mucked up - this was my first time making my own seitan! But I didn't know it would take FOREVER in the fridge to get firm! Soooo make your seitan the morning you are making this meal or the night before. Believe me, you'll be much happier & your family won't have to wait until after 8 to friggin' eat!)

3. For the seasoning mixture, in a shallow pan, combine all ingredients. Add seitan cubes & toss to combine.

4. For the skewers, preheat the grill or broiler. Thread seitan onto skewers, alternating with onion, bell pepper & tomatoes. Grill skewers until nicely browned, turning once halfway through, about minutes total. (Have your grill on low to medium heat, not high heat because ours got charred rather quickly.) Drizzle on any remaining seasoning mixture. (A note about the seasoning - it was a fantastic dressing. We were dipping our cucumbers in it & adding it to out stuffed pitas!)

Tzatziki

recipe also provided by VegNews

1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, diced

1 to 2 garlic cloves, chopped (can you guess how many the Garlic Whore used? )

1 cup vegan yogurt ( I just used plain soy yogurt)

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

2 tbsp finely chopped fresh dill, mint or parsley (I unfortunately forgot to grab parsley at the Farmer's Market & used dried which was fine but I'm looking forward to using fresh next time - hmmmm I adore parsley!)

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp black pepper (I did salt & pepper to taste)

Paprika, for garnish

In a food processor, combine all ingredients except paprika & process until well blended. Transfer mixture into a bowl & taste; adjust the seasoning if needed. Cover & refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving so the flavors can mingle. Stir before serving & sprinkle with paprika.

This was an EXCELLENT accompaniment to the seitan - the flavors were so good together! I was dipping away!

Gorgeous Green's Greek Potatoes (or Patates Fornou, as they say!)

my own damn recipe

10 - 12 good sized red potatoes, peeled if skins aren't good, chopped into small cubes

2 shallots, finely chopped

2 - 3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup water

1 heaping tsp dried oregano

Sea salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425. Combine all ingredients (excluding potatoes) in a baking dish & combine. Add in potatoes & toss to coat evenly. Put this baby in the oven for about an hour, it could be a little longer - check the potatoes by taking out a spoonful & shoving them super hot right into your mouth & see if you want them softer! Haha I seriously do that & burn my mouth off but these are so freaking good, I swear you won't even care!