Pamela Toman

Beef Brisket Seitan

Shreddable texture. Slather in BBQ sauce, serve as a pot roast simmered with vegetables and rosemary in a roux-based gravy, or pull it apart to make tacos or beef barley soup.

Cheap Worcestershire sauce tends to be vegetarian (but check it for anchovies). Browning sauce can be found in the gravy aisle.

I think we should add some yellow mustard powder next time. Maybe in the dry rub?

This seitan recipe uses the Instant Pot, and its results are more consistently good than I've gotten from baking, boiling or steaming.

Ingredients Step
180 g (1½ c.) vital wheat gluten Measure into large bowl. Set aside.
140 g (5 oz.) tofu, wrung dry
½ c. dark beer or water
½ c. water
3 T. tamari
2 T. olive oil
2 T. miso paste
4 t. onion powder
2 t. garlic powder
2 t. Worcestershire sauce
2 t. browning sauce		 Whiz together in food processor until smooth and creamy, scraping down as needed.
Scrape tofu mixture into gluten. Stir together until dough forms. Let rest 15 minutes to hydrate.
Process in food processor for 2-4 minutes, until the dough is sticky, stretchy, glossy, and slightly warm.
2 t. smoked paprika
2 t. sweet paprika
2 t. onion powder
1 t. celery salt
1 t. black pepper
1 t. thyme
yellow mustard powder?		 Lay down a 18-inch-long sheet of heavy-duty foil on the counter. Top it with a similarly sized sheet of parchment (just so the aluminum doesn't touch the acidic food for hours). Measure the ~3 T. of dry rub spices onto the parchment, then stir the spices together.
Form the dough into a loaf-like shape that will fit in your pressure cooker, then plop it on top of the spices and roll it around so all sides are covered in the dry rub.
Tightly wrap the dough in parchment and then in foil, locking the ends tight. Then use a second 18-inch sheet of aluminum foil to wrap the loaf even more securely.
Place trivet in the bottom of the Instant Pot. Add water to just underneath the height of the trivet. Place the package on top of the trivet, and pressure cook on high for 90 minutes, then natural release the pressure for 30 minutes.
Remove the package from the Instant Pot after 90 NR 30, and let it cool on the counter until it can be handled comfortably. Refrigerate overnight as a loaf if you want to use it whole, or shred it immediately (shredding warm is easier).

Source: Skye Michael Conroy's Crafting Seitan: Creating Homemade Plant-Based Meats

Beef Brisket Seitan was published on 8 August 2025.

Recipe uses: wheat-gluten, pressure-cooker

Sweet and Tangy Braised Chickpeas

Hearty and delicious. Serve with bread or cornbread, and/or over egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or polenta/grits.

Cheap Worcestershire sauce is often vegetarian (check the label for anchovies).

In this recipe, I like to use the Better than Bouillon paste because it can make arbitrarily volumes of stock, and because the water can enter the pan already hot from being boiled in the kettle.

Ingredients Step
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
4 T olive oil
1 medium onion, sliced		 Heat oil in a large, deep cast iron skillet with oven-safe lid, then saute onion.
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced Add garlic.
2-3 carrots, in ¼-½" chunks
1-2 c. other chopped vegetables (e.g., celery, fennel, winter squash, cabbage, parsnip, potato, cauliflower)
1 t. salt
⅛ t. red pepper flakes
black pepper to taste		 Saute vegetables. Season.
4 T. tomato paste (half a can)
1 T. brown sugar		 Add and cook until well-incorporated.
3 c. vegetable stock
⅓ c. red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar
2 t. Worcestershire or soy sauce
3 cups chickpeas (1 cup from dry, or 2 rinsed cans)
1 bay leaf		 Bring to simmer, then cover tightly with lid and transfer to oven.
possibly: 1 c. vegetable stock Braise for 60 minutes, then check and add 1 c. additional broth if necessary. Braise for another 30 minutes (for 90 minutes in total).
Discard bay leaf and season to taste before serving.

Source: Deb Perelman (Smitten Kitchen)

Sweet and Tangy Braised Chickpeas was published on 8 August 2025.

Recipe uses: chickpeas, stock, carrots, stock

Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding

Nutritious and delicious -- a good source of calcium, iron, fiber, and not a bad source of protein (24 g from 8 T. of chia seeds, plus potentially more from the milk). Vegan.

Must be made the day before so it has time to set up. Topping with fruit is lovely.

Ingredients Step
20 g (¼ c.) cocoa powder
90 g (3-5 T.) maple syrup
½ t. cinnamon
½ t. vanilla
pinch sea salt		 Stir together in a 4-cup bowl that has storage lid, until the mixture is fully smooth and no dry cocoa powder remains.
½ c. chia seeds
1½ c. oat (or other) milk		 Stir thoroughly into chocolate mixture, incorporating milk a bit at a time. Cover with lid and put into fridge for 30-45 minutes.
After 30-45 minutes, stir again (this reduces the chance of lumps), then return to fridge to set up overnight.

Source: Minimalist Baker

Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding was published on 5 August 2025.

Recipe uses: chia-seeds, cocoa-powder, milk

Pasta Salad

Jess brought this delicious pasta salad to us early in the summer. It reminds me of one that Luke would make, whose recipe I seem to have lost. The fresh basil and feta make the salad.

Ingredients Step
¼ c. red wine vinegar
½ c. olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
1 t. honey
salt
pepper		 Blitz into an emulsified dressing.
6 c. broth
1 lb. orzo		 Bring broth to boil. Add orzo, reduce heat, cover partially, cook until al dente, then drain. Move to large bowl and toss frequently to cool.
2 c. grape tomatoes, halved
7 oz. feta, cubed
1 c. basil, chopped
1 c. green onion, chopped		 Mix in, then add vinaigrette. Let stand a few hours before serving.
½ c. slivered almonds, toasted Add at time of serving. Serve at room temperature.

Source: Giada De Laurentiis in Bon Appétit (April 2006)

Pasta Salad was published on 5 August 2025.

Recipe uses: feta, orzo, lemon, basil, tomatoes-cherry, stock, almonds

Cornbread

A sweet and moist cornbread (that is, a cornbread that we actually eat more than 1 slice of).

The original recipe calls for ½ c. white sugar, but we found that version was too sweet to stand up to butter and a drizzle of honey, so I cut it in half.

Jalapenos and cheddar are welcome additions!

Ingredients Step
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
¾ c. yellow cornmeal
1 c. flour
¼ c. sugar
2 t. baking powder
½ t. salt		 Whisk dry ingredients together in a bowl.
1 c. milk
¼ c. oil
4 T (½ stick) butter, melted
2 T. honey
1 egg
1 egg yolk		 Whisk wet ingredients together until incorporated.
Pour wet ingredients into dry, then stir until just incorporated. Let sit 5-10 minutes to hydrate.
While waiting for the ingredients to hydrate, butter an 8x8 pan.
Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake 17-30 minutes, until starting to turn golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Don't overbake.
Cool 10 minutes, then slice. Serve with butter and honey.

Source: Melissa Stadler at Modern Honey

Cornbread was published on 27 May 2025.

Recipe uses: cornmeal, egg-yolk