Like Three Seasons in One Day

There have been many changes since I posted last, so here's the past 10 months in a rather large nutshell...

The bad news first: Sara Fezziwig Chicken passed away quite suddenly on September 1st; the temperature had climbed into the 90s, and she apparently died of heat stroke. It was quite a shock to find our beautiful golden queen chicken lifeless on the ground. Sara wasn't even 3 1/2 years old, but chickens who are raised for meat or eggs are sent to slaughter much earlier than that, at about a year and a half. Sara had the longest, happiest life we could possibly give her. We're so grateful she had one more summer with the run of the backyard, after her long winter spent indoors in 2010-11, when her best entertainment was chasing raisins, ripping into bunches of kale we hung up for her, visiting the rabbits, or pecking playfully at Sergei's toes. Here's Sara and her sister Sophia, at 10 months, on a beautiful March day in 2009.

In October, cancer with a small "c," a basal cell carcinoma, was removed from my face. That's the type of skin cancer that kills practically no one as long as it's caught early, and mine was. They took it off, and that's the end of that!

Then on April 11th, we lost our little Natasha kitty to kidney problems. Steve adopted her at age 6 months or so in 1997, so she was at least 15 years old. A week before, Tashi was still racing around the backyard at top speed. Even if she spent most of the rest of her time curled in her heated bed, she was only very ill for the last few days of her life. We keep trying to remember what a long and happy life she had.

We miss Tasha terribly, and so does Sergei, who now sleeps with us every night, right up on our pillows. Very cozy and warm on cool nights. Another change has been that, in January, Steve's cousin Matt moved to North Carolina. It's been quite an adjustment not having him around any more after ten years, but he's glad to be back in those beautiful mountains. Here's Matt with Sergei perched on his shoulders, since there's no pillow available!

Charm and Peridot are doing well, snuggling together, merrily digging at old phonebooks, nibbling paper in their tube, and arguing over barley biscuit treats.

Peridot

Charm










They very much enjoying being petted. Some rabbits like being held, some don't, and while both Charm and Peridot like being held and cuddled, they're terrified when they sense I'm trying to pick them up, and race away. Problem is, rabbits need their nails cut every 3-4 months, so it's something that I must keep working on. And get help with their nails in the meantime. Every time I start to get discouraged about this, I remind myself that my knees actually have calluses from being on the floor with them so much!

Here's Carlie, who now shares the coop and yard with Anne and Emily; she looks much like June, but has a completely different personality. We call her our little aviator---Carlie's always looking up and flies to get where she's going at every opportunity---and she's a big talker, and has more than once been the first to sound the alarm at the sight of a hawk.

Our 50,000 bee girls and boys survived the winter very well, and Steve has been successfully treating them for mites, so they are healthy. About month ago, they swarmed, but Steve successfully coaxed the swarm into sticking around our yard, so we now have two hives.

Steve's mom and my stepfather Andy are doing okay, facing health issues that being in your 80s bring. Old age is not for sissies, as someone has noted, and they're both proving that. I don't believe I've ever posted photos of the cats that my mother rescued from the streets of Omaha, and who have now followed her over the bridge: Bonzi, Chatty, and Roo.

The Ultimate Vegan Reuben Sandwich and Some Personal and Omaha History

The last time I ever saw my mother alive was in February 2008, about a month before she passed. She was sitting on the living room couch, dressed in her best black pantsuit and a pink scarf I’d given her earlier that day, biting into a dripping vegan Reuben sandwich, murmuring, "Ohhhh, this is sooo good!" and rolling her eyes in appreciative culinary ecstasy. She had just gotten out of the hospital and was so happy to be home with my stepfather Andy, and eating well again. That it was a Reuben sandwich was not really by chance, because we’re from Omaha, Nebraska, and, according to Omaha legend, the Reuben sandwich was created there early in the last century, at the Blackstone Hotel.

There has always been some historical debate about this, though. Some say the Reuben was invented in New York City. (I tend to hold with the Omaha version, not just because I’m an Omahan, but also because the niece of a famous Blackstone chef once rented a room from my mother, and assured us that the old story was true.) You can read more about the controversy and see a very retro menu from the Blackstone at the Nebraska State Historical Society’s "Weird Nebraska" website.

When I was a child in the 1960s and 70s, my mother and I would frequently find ourselves at the Blackstone's Golden Spur Grill after a winter's evening at the symphony, opera, or ballet, most often ordering the original (translated as: poor dead cow) version of the Reuben. In those days, my mother would have gone out of the house in curlers or (horror of horrors) blue jeans before she would have worn warm, sensible clothing for an evening out, so we shivered all evening in our too-thin dressy clothes. In those days, too, we would have thought ourselves deprived if we hadn’t eaten meat (read: some poor dead animal or another) at least twice a day. It wasn’t until the early 1990s, after my mother founded an animal rescue group that became an animal rights group, as well, and we had both had had our "and then it hit me" moments, realizing that not only the lives of puppies and kittens are important, but those of all animals. We both went veggie/vegan, and the old Reuben sandwich became a thing of the past.

We were always trying to come up with the best vegan version we could, and while the vegan Reuben my mother was so happily gobbling up that cold February night was a good one, the recipe below that I’ve just found comes the closest to duplicating that authentic, tangy Reuben taste of any recipe or version of the sandwich that I've tried. (And you don't even need Swiss shreez!) The (somewhat edited) recipe and the photo comes from a wonderful blog called Allison's Gourmet so please visit there for more yummy recipes.) Steve and I made these sandwiches for dinner on Friday, sans avocado, and we both thought they were really and truly right up there among the best sandwiches we've ever had, as Allison says, and they weren't alot of work, either. So, my quest for an authentic-tasting vegan Reuben sandwich is over. I just wish my mother was still here to enjoy one, too.

Onto the recipe...

Here’s what you need to make these delicious grilled vegan tempeh reuben sandwiches...
(Makes 4 sandwiches):

3 tablespoons sunflower or canola oil, divided use
8 ounce block of tempeh, sliced into 8 large, 1/8-inch thick strips
1 large yellow onion, sliced
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
3/4 teaspoon caraway seeds
3/4 teaspoon dried dill
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon tamari
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 cup water
8 slices bread (any kind of whole-grain bread will work, but it's best on rye)
2 tablespoons non-hydrogenated, non-dairy margarine (Earth Balance recommended)
Vegan Thousand Island Dressing (SEE RECIPE BELOW)
1 cup sauerkraut, drained
2 avocados, mashed or sliced (Optional---sandwiches are excellent even without the avocados)

1) In a large saute pan over medium heat, heat 2 tablespoons sunflower oil and tempeh, browning tempeh on each side. Remove tempeh from the pan and set aside.

2) Add remaining oil and onion. Brown for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Return tempeh to the pan (leaving the onions in), and stir in garlic, bay leaves, paprika, caraway, dill, salt, vinegar, tamari, and black pepper. Add water and simmer for 30 minutes or until the water has evaporated and tempeh is infused with flavor and coated with a glaze. Remove bay leaves.

While the tempeh is sautéing, you will have plenty of time to prepare the Thousand Island Dressing: In a small bowl combine the following ingredients: 1/3 cup vegan mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons ketchup, and 3 tablespoons dill pickles, chopped. (I used sweet pickle relish, actually, and it tasted great.)

3) Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Spread two slices of bread with margarine. Grill for 3 minutes, until browned on one side only. Repeat for the remaining slices of bread.

4) Between the ungrilled sides of two pieces of toast, layer Thousand Island Dressing, sauerkraut, 2 pieces of tempeh, onions, and avocado. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

This is Natasha, watching over her little brother Sergei, on one of their favorite boxes. You would probably not even think of eating either of them, so please, don't eat beautiful, soft-eyed cows, either. Thank you.

Wild Blackberry Frozen Vegan Dessert

We made this for the first time recently to celebrate our friend Carell's return to town. It's incredibly delicious as well as healthy.

Wild Blackberry Ice Creme
From THE WILD VEGAN COOKBOOK by Steve Brill
His website: http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/Clippings.folder/ForagingForBrambles.html

2-1⁄2 cups soy milk, nut milk, or oat milk
1/2 cup well-drained silken tofu
1/2 cup raw cashews
1⁄4 cup grape seed oil or canola oil
1/4 cup vegetable glycerin
1/4 cup lecithin granules
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon blackberry extract (optional)
2 teaspoon liquid stevia
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups wild blackberries

1. Place all the ingredients, except for 1 cup of the blackberries, in a blender and process until smooth.

2. Strain through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds.

3. Chill the mixture (or begin with chilled ingredients) if required by your ice cream machine, pour the mixture into the ice cream machine, and freeze it according to the manufacturer's instructions.

4. Serve topped with the remaining berries.
Makes 5-1⁄2 cups
Serves 6-8

For more fabulous wild blackberry recipes from Steve Brill, go to his website by clicking on the title of this post.

Sara Chicken's Favorite Biryani with Seitan

The solar-oven-baked pizza from Friday was particularly delicious, but I was too hungry to wait and get a photo of it! So here's what we had for dinner last night, recipe upon request of our honored guest, Bryan, who is trying very hard to go vegetarian. It's Sara Chicken's favorite biryani, and ours, too. Lots of spicy flavor without any heat, pretty easy to prepare, and heats up well. I have no idea where Steve found this recipe, but we've made it for years. We haven't tried freezing it, but that might work okay... For dessert, we had delicious frozen desserts, quite a splurge: One was chocolate hemp milk and chocolate & hazelnut coconut milk. Both were incredibly good, but I'd have to say that the hemp milk dessert had a slight edge in richness. I'd hate to have to pick, though...

Sara Chicken's Favorite Biryani with Seitan

2 c. brown rice
1 large onion, diced
2 T. olive oil (divided use)
1 lb. drained seitan, "chicken style"
1 c. peas (frozen is okay, thaw if so, or use snow peas)
2/3 c. almonds, toasted
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 cup biryani curry paste
10 oz. chopped tomatoes (canned or fresh)
3 3/4 c. boiling water

Preheat oven to 375.

Cover brown rice with cold water and soak for 20 minutes. Drain and set aside.

In small pan, saute half of the diced onion in 1 T. of the oil until soft/golden. Add the drained rice and saute 3-4 minutes. Set aside. (You could use the solar oven for this step, too.)

In a big frying pan or wok, saute the remaining onion in the remaining 1 T. of oil until soft/golden. Add the seitan and cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in peas, almonds, raisins, biryani paste and tomatoes.

Combine this mixture with the rice mixture in a Dutch oven. Add the boiling water, stir, cover, and bake for 60-75 minutes, depending on your oven/the sun. IMPORTANT: CHECK WATER AT 45 MINUTES. If you need to add more, use boiling water.

Serves 6-8.