Last night, I attended one of JL Fields' (author of several books on vegan cooking) fabulous cooking demonstrations in downtown Colorado Springs. This time, she demonstrated five recipes that would work well for Thanksgiving dinner: a colorful salad, "cheesy" mashed potatoes with white bean gravy, green beans with Sweet Earth's Benevolent Bacon, and an easy bread pudding. Who knew vegan cooking could be so wonderfully delicious as well as healthy?
My two main takeaways were to use more arugula (very tender, great in warm salads) and more white miso, which adds a cheesy, slightly tangy taste and contains probiotics.
I plan to attend her next class, Fancy Finger Foods and Clever Cocktails for Holiday Entertaining.
JL mentioned the Vegan Ladyboss community, which I will look into.
Thursday, November 15, 2018
Monday, November 12, 2018
The Great Vegan Butter, Cheese, and Eggs Debate
So what is the best vegan "butter"? Many people think it is Earth Balance, which I have successfully substituted for real butter in baked goods. Unlike most margarines, it contains no hydrogenated oils. Coconut oil also seems to work well. The creative Mel at A Virtual Vegan has come up with a recipe for Easy Vegan Butter that I need to try.
I have yet to taste a good non-liquid vegan cheese, but I haven't really experimented with many. I'll keep trying ...
I have, however, a recipe for cashew bechamel sauce that is to die for!
The very creative Mel at A Virtual Vegan just came up with a recipe for Vegan Cheese Sauce that sounds delicious. It includes tofu and nutritional yeast. I plan to try it out tonight with elbow macaroni. By hook or by crook, I'll sneak healthy ingredients down the gullets of my finicky family members!
Update: I made it, and it was good! I will probably add a little white miso if I try it again.
I also have a recipe for vegan mozzarella here. This one uses cashew nuts and vegan coconut yogurt. Shout out to Dana at Minimalist Baker for those recipes!
As for eggs, the only substitute I have tried (and it seems to work well in cakes) is 1/4 cup of applesauce per egg. One can also apparently substitute 1/4 cup of mashed banana or mashed silken tofu per egg. Other egg substitutes: mix 1 tsp of baking soda with 1 tsp of white vinegar; or mix 1 Tbsp of either flax meal or chia seeds with 3 Tbsp of hot water per egg. Then there are several commercial egg replacers one can buy at the supermarket.
An intriguing egg substitute is aquafaba, the brine from canned legumes. Usually chick pea brine is used. Three tablespoons of aquafaba is equivalent to one egg. Each can of chick peas produces 1/2 to 3/4 of a cup (or about eight to 12 tablespoons) of aquafaba. One can also beat aquafaba with a little cream of tartar, sugar, and vanilla extract, to produce aquafaba meringue. I have to give that a try.
Update: There's a good discussion of egg substitutes at One Green Planet here.
Mel (again) has a fabulous-sounding recipe for Earl Grey Vegan Cake with Lemon Frosting that she bakes with aquafaba and her own vegan butter. I really have to try that one!
I have yet to taste a good non-liquid vegan cheese, but I haven't really experimented with many. I'll keep trying ...
I have, however, a recipe for cashew bechamel sauce that is to die for!
The very creative Mel at A Virtual Vegan just came up with a recipe for Vegan Cheese Sauce that sounds delicious. It includes tofu and nutritional yeast. I plan to try it out tonight with elbow macaroni. By hook or by crook, I'll sneak healthy ingredients down the gullets of my finicky family members!
Update: I made it, and it was good! I will probably add a little white miso if I try it again.
I also have a recipe for vegan mozzarella here. This one uses cashew nuts and vegan coconut yogurt. Shout out to Dana at Minimalist Baker for those recipes!
As for eggs, the only substitute I have tried (and it seems to work well in cakes) is 1/4 cup of applesauce per egg. One can also apparently substitute 1/4 cup of mashed banana or mashed silken tofu per egg. Other egg substitutes: mix 1 tsp of baking soda with 1 tsp of white vinegar; or mix 1 Tbsp of either flax meal or chia seeds with 3 Tbsp of hot water per egg. Then there are several commercial egg replacers one can buy at the supermarket.
An intriguing egg substitute is aquafaba, the brine from canned legumes. Usually chick pea brine is used. Three tablespoons of aquafaba is equivalent to one egg. Each can of chick peas produces 1/2 to 3/4 of a cup (or about eight to 12 tablespoons) of aquafaba. One can also beat aquafaba with a little cream of tartar, sugar, and vanilla extract, to produce aquafaba meringue. I have to give that a try.
Update: There's a good discussion of egg substitutes at One Green Planet here.
Mel (again) has a fabulous-sounding recipe for Earl Grey Vegan Cake with Lemon Frosting that she bakes with aquafaba and her own vegan butter. I really have to try that one!
Friday, November 9, 2018
2018 World Chess Championship
The 2018 World Chess Championship between Magnus Carlsen of Norway and Fabiano Caruana, who holds both Italian and U.S. citizenship, started today at The College in Holborn, London. Caruana has been creeping up the FIDE rankings to #2 in the world. Carlsen has a rating of 2835; Caruana is just behind him at 2832. The two are also very close in age. Carlsen will turn 28 later this month (11/30) and Caruana turned 26 last July (7/30). Both players have been preparing for months and have a team of experts along to help them. Carlsen even brought his own chef.
Carlsen has a very impressive resume. He has been world champion since 2013, when he beat Viswanathan Anand. He defended his title against Anand in 2014 and again against Sergei Karjakin in 2016. He has been the highest rated player in the world since January 1, 2010. As a child prodigy, he was known as "the Mozart of chess." He holds the highest peak rating, 2882 (achieved in 2014), in history. Caruana has been a strong grandmaster for years, but has only recently ascended to challenger status for the world crown.
Carlsen has become a swashbuckling champion who appears annoyed by journalists and publicity and often behaves like a surly teenager. There is something charming, however, in his insouciance and candidness. Caruana, universally known as Fabi, seems much more mature, polished, and courteous. He is kind, calm, and unassuming. He reminds me of my son, so I'm rooting for him.
Game 1 is underway! Caruana has the white pieces, and Carlsen responded to 1) e4 with the Rossolimo Sicilian Defence. Caruana is in time trouble, and it looks like Carlsen has the better position with strong king-side attacking chances
One can follow the moves in real-time here, and The Guardian offers commentary here.
Should Caruana win, he will be the first U.S. champion since Bobby Fischer beat Boris Spassky back in 1972.
It's really fun to watch the game. Chess is not generally considered to be a spectator sport, but Caruana has to now move very quickly, so things are happening fast. Carlsen is playing for a win. I will update the match as it progresses.
Update: After Caruana blundered on his 17th move, Carlsen had a won position until he also blundered while in time trouble. Unwilling to give up the point, he persevered for several excruciating hours until a draw was agreed.
11/10: Game 2 is underway. Carlsen opened as white with 1) d4, and the game continued as a queen's gambit declined. The experts are opining that the game now looks draw-ish. My completely non-expert and ignorant opinion is that 25) ... Bxf3 looks very good for black. I think he could pick up the d-pawn and would have far better pawn structure in the end game...
Update: Fabi did indeed play 25) ... Bxf3, and picked up a pawn. The pundits are saying it's a theoretically drawn rook and pawn ending. I'm sure they're right, but I'm not seeing it ...
Update: Unsurprisingly, the pundits were right. The players agreed to a draw after 49 moves. The score stands at 1-1.
11/12: Game 3 is afoot. It's another Rossolimo Sicilian, as in the first game. According to the Norwegian supercomputer Sesse, white (Fabi) has a significant advantage. The Guardian commentary on this game offers mixed predictions from two grandmasters at move 17. Norwegian Simon Agdestein thinks the game is headed for another draw; Judit Polgar describes black (Magnus) as being in "survival mode." Judit's sister, Susan, is live-tweeting and thinks white has a superior position but that it is holdable for black.
Update: According to Susan Polgar, the position is now "99.99% draw", although she suspects Magnus will play on for hours to "burn off some anger that he got outplayed in the opening again."
Update: Draw agreed after 49 moves. The score stands at 1.5 to 1.5
11/13: Game 4 is going on. Magnus opened with 1) c4, the English Opening. Magnus played the opening surprisingly slowly, given that he must have prepared for many responses. Queens are off the board before the 20th move, usually a sign of an upcoming draw. According to analysis on Twitch, their computer thinks the position is equal.
Update: Magnus offered a draw, which was accepted, on the 34th move. Shortest game of the four so far. 2-2
Magnus may be happy to draw his way to 6-6, as he is expected to have a major advantage in the tiebreak, which would consist of four short games (25 minutes per player for the first 40 moves, with a 10s increment after each move.)
11/15: Game 5, with Caruana as white, was the third Rossolimo defense and the fifth draw (after 33 moves.) The Guardian commentary is here.
Carlsen has a very impressive resume. He has been world champion since 2013, when he beat Viswanathan Anand. He defended his title against Anand in 2014 and again against Sergei Karjakin in 2016. He has been the highest rated player in the world since January 1, 2010. As a child prodigy, he was known as "the Mozart of chess." He holds the highest peak rating, 2882 (achieved in 2014), in history. Caruana has been a strong grandmaster for years, but has only recently ascended to challenger status for the world crown.
Carlsen has become a swashbuckling champion who appears annoyed by journalists and publicity and often behaves like a surly teenager. There is something charming, however, in his insouciance and candidness. Caruana, universally known as Fabi, seems much more mature, polished, and courteous. He is kind, calm, and unassuming. He reminds me of my son, so I'm rooting for him.
Game 1 is underway! Caruana has the white pieces, and Carlsen responded to 1) e4 with the Rossolimo Sicilian Defence. Caruana is in time trouble, and it looks like Carlsen has the better position with strong king-side attacking chances
One can follow the moves in real-time here, and The Guardian offers commentary here.
Should Caruana win, he will be the first U.S. champion since Bobby Fischer beat Boris Spassky back in 1972.
It's really fun to watch the game. Chess is not generally considered to be a spectator sport, but Caruana has to now move very quickly, so things are happening fast. Carlsen is playing for a win. I will update the match as it progresses.
Update: After Caruana blundered on his 17th move, Carlsen had a won position until he also blundered while in time trouble. Unwilling to give up the point, he persevered for several excruciating hours until a draw was agreed.
11/10: Game 2 is underway. Carlsen opened as white with 1) d4, and the game continued as a queen's gambit declined. The experts are opining that the game now looks draw-ish. My completely non-expert and ignorant opinion is that 25) ... Bxf3 looks very good for black. I think he could pick up the d-pawn and would have far better pawn structure in the end game...
Update: Fabi did indeed play 25) ... Bxf3, and picked up a pawn. The pundits are saying it's a theoretically drawn rook and pawn ending. I'm sure they're right, but I'm not seeing it ...
Update: Unsurprisingly, the pundits were right. The players agreed to a draw after 49 moves. The score stands at 1-1.
11/12: Game 3 is afoot. It's another Rossolimo Sicilian, as in the first game. According to the Norwegian supercomputer Sesse, white (Fabi) has a significant advantage. The Guardian commentary on this game offers mixed predictions from two grandmasters at move 17. Norwegian Simon Agdestein thinks the game is headed for another draw; Judit Polgar describes black (Magnus) as being in "survival mode." Judit's sister, Susan, is live-tweeting and thinks white has a superior position but that it is holdable for black.
Update: According to Susan Polgar, the position is now "99.99% draw", although she suspects Magnus will play on for hours to "burn off some anger that he got outplayed in the opening again."
Update: Draw agreed after 49 moves. The score stands at 1.5 to 1.5
11/13: Game 4 is going on. Magnus opened with 1) c4, the English Opening. Magnus played the opening surprisingly slowly, given that he must have prepared for many responses. Queens are off the board before the 20th move, usually a sign of an upcoming draw. According to analysis on Twitch, their computer thinks the position is equal.
Update: Magnus offered a draw, which was accepted, on the 34th move. Shortest game of the four so far. 2-2
Magnus may be happy to draw his way to 6-6, as he is expected to have a major advantage in the tiebreak, which would consist of four short games (25 minutes per player for the first 40 moves, with a 10s increment after each move.)
11/15: Game 5, with Caruana as white, was the third Rossolimo defense and the fifth draw (after 33 moves.) The Guardian commentary is here.
Thursday, November 8, 2018
Instant Pot Ace
Hooray!!!!!!!!!!😀 My new all-dancing, all-singing, very clever thing just arrived! 🎊🎉🎶 For some reason, the Instant Pot Ace is only available from Walmart, and it only costs $99. It has eight settings: Smoothie, Purée, Crushed Ice, Ice Cream, Soy Milk, Rice Milk, Nut/Oat Milk, and Soup. It also has a self-cleaning function. To make soup, you just throw in the ingredients (uncooked), and press the "Soup" button. The Ace cooks and blends everything for you. I just used it to make vegan ice cream with two bananas, some vanilla essence, and a can of coconut milk. It is soooooooo good!!! I will post some recipes here as I experiment further.
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