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Iron Chef Roundup #3: Hot Peppers, Sunflower Seeds, and Grapes

Iron Chef Roundup #3: Hot Peppers, Sunflower Seeds, and Grapes

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This week I posed the challenge of using three key ingredients in a unique dish for Vegan MoFo Iron Chef.  I am really impressed by all the entries this week using hot peppers, sunflower seeds, and grapes. They all sound like dishes that I would like to make and, more importantly, eat!

A visit to The Spade & Spoon produced a guide on how to make Sunflower Seed Tarts with Red Wine and Chili Jam. Can you believe it? I didn’t even think of wine when I thought up this week’s ingredient list. Grapes are versatile I tell you! (Left photo in image above.)

Kelly from Grassroots created a Waldorf Salad containing this week’s key ingredients (including jalapeno-roasted sunflower seeds!) and is called “Jalapeno-Face” Spicy Waldorf Salad.  (Center photo in image above.)

How do grilled tofu, taquitos, and Pico de Gallo fit in with this weeks Iron Chef challenge? You’ll have to visit Kim Cooks Veg 4U to see this inspired menu for yourself. (Right photo in image above.)

Vegan Fazool’s entry is unique for many reasons. Using the Candied Cowboys (candied jalapenos) made early during MoFo, The Sheriff, put together “The Shiny Saddle” and “The Candied Sunflower Raisin Saddlebag“. Hope the homestead makes it through the storm alright! (Photo above.)

Two contestants went the stuffed pepper approach.

Another Iron Chef newbie, The Unintentional Vegan used the ingredients beautifully in her Sunflower Stuffed Jalapeno Poppers with Balsamic Grape Dipping Sauce. (Left photo in image above.)

Opting for poblanos in lieu of jalapenos, Laura created a substantial dish from Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Sweet & Spicy Rasin Chutney. Talk about fusion! (Right photo in image above.)

When I thought up this set of ingredients, sunflower seeds in a bread seemed like a natural choice. Apparently, a couple of participants thought so too!

Take a look at Cara’s Raisin Scones with Sweet & Spicy Sunflower Seed Spread. Perhaps this is the perfect thing to eat while reading Wuthering Heights? (Left photo in image above.)

Somer went all-out with her first Iron Chef submission. This Monte Cristo is pretty epic. (Center photo in image above.)

Rubber Cowgirl’s Sunflower Biscuits with Grape-Chili Jam look like a great snack. I can just imagine the spicy sweetness of the jam on a crumbly biscuit. Mmmm mmmm. Kudos to you for eliminating palm oil from your cooking. I’m right there with you! (Right photo in image above.)

Well, that wraps up this season of Vegan MoFo Iron Chef.  Thanks to everyone who participated!  It was a lot of fun to see the key ingredients used so creatively in unique dishes.

Iron Chef Challenge: #3

Iron Chef Challenge: #3

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It’s Friday, which means it’s time for me to post this week’s secret ingredients for the Iron Chef Challenge. Participants will then use these ingredients in a unique dish, blog about the dish, and post a link to the recipe in the comments below. On Sunday I will do a roundup of the participating blogs’ dishes.

Our first Iron Chef Challenge this MoFo season brought you one ingredient. Then we raised the bar with two key ingredients. Have a seat; this is a shocker. This week, our final week of Vegan MoFo Iron Chef 2012, we will have THREE key ingredients! This pure Vegan MoFo craziness is brought to you by our key ingredients…

Hot peppers, sunflower seeds, & grapes

Hot pepper varieties abound, so choose any (or several) that you’d like. If you’re sensitive to heat, remember to discard the seeds and ribs. If you’re really sensitive to heat, go ahead and use a sweet pepper. We’ll be none the wiser.

Key ingredients can be used in  any form.
Psssstttt. Updated to add this hint: Raisins.

A quick review of our few simple rules/guidelines:

1. Whatever you come up with has to be new, nothing from a cookbook or a blog, not something you posted last week that happens to involve the secret ingredient(s). It’s fine to use a recipe for a jump-off point, but make it your own!
2. Entries are due at 3 pm PST on Sunday.
3. Have fun and be creative!

Allez Végétalien Cuisine!

Iron Chef Challenge: #2

Iron Chef Challenge: #2

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Chopped was fun last week, wasn’t it? Man, those entries looked amazing! We will now return you to your regularly scheduled Friday programming.

The weather is a little on the gray-side here in the Pacific Northwestern United States, so as of late, I’ve been filling up on stews and hot things. However, I realize not everyone is in “fall mode,” so I wanted to choose ingredients that are used year-round in hot and cold dishes. Perhaps you’ll end up cooking up a stew or casserole. Or maybe you’ll make a salad or spread. There are lots of options. And, not only are these ingredients widely available, they’re pretty inexpensive.

The secret ingredients are…..

Potatoes and Sesame

All forms of these ingredients will be accepted, and although they’re not technically closely related, we’ll include sweet potatoes. Keep in mind that there’s a whole world of spuds out there, so you don’t need to feel limited by the “same old” varieties.

A quick review of our few simple rules/guidelines:

1. Whatever you come up with has to be new, nothing from a cookbook or a blog, not something you posted last week that happens to involve the secret ingredients. It’s fine to use a recipe for a jump-off point, but make it your own!
2. Entries are due at 3 pm PST on Sunday.
3. Have fun and be creative!

To participate, just comment below with the link to your blog post by Sunday, 3 pm PST.

Unfortunately, this challenge is not well-suited for our raw participants. Remember not to eat raw potatoes, please! Also, avoid the green parts of potatoes, which indicate a high solanine content. Read about potato toxicity here.

Iron Chef Challenge: #1

Iron Chef Challenge: #1

Comments 26 comments

Welcome, everyone, to another year of Vegan MoFo Iron Chef!  Katie, who usually hosts this competition, has put her faith in me this month.

Fridays during the month of October will feature Iron Chef Challenges, wherein participants will use the week’s secret ingredient in a unique dish and post a link to the recipe. On Sundays I will do a roundup of the participating blogs’ dishes.

This week I wanted to chose an ingredient that is used in cuisines around the world, is fairly inexpensive, and can be used in a diversity of dishes.  According to Wikipedia, this vegetable has been cultivated since the second millennium BC, so I’m sure there are a few recipes to guide you through this challenge.

A quick review of our few simple rules/guidelines:

1. Whatever you come up with has to be new, nothing from a cookbook or a blog, not something you posted last week that happens to involve the secret ingredient. It’s fine to use a recipe for a jump-off point, but make it your own!
2. Entries are due at 3 pm PST on Sunday.
3. Have fun and be creative!

Let’s not beet around the bush. (Did you guess the secret ingredient just then?)

The secret ingredient is BEETROOT!

Think pickled/steamed/roasted/pureed/boiled/shredded beets, beet greens, beet juice as dye…really beets are quite a diverse vegetable! With their natural sweetness, they lend themselves to both sweet and savory dishes.

To participate, just comment on this entry with the link to your blog post by Sunday, 3 pm PST.

Allez Végétalien Cuisine!
(Disregard the carrots! Although delicious, they are not part of this challenge!)

PS- I apologize for posting this late.  Work gets in the way sometimes.  For this reason, if you don’t get around to posting your links until a little after 3 p.m. on Sunday, I’ll try to still feature your dish in the roundup!  I’ll be posting the challenges earlier in upcoming weeks.

Iron Chef Challenge for January

Iron Chef Challenge for January

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Hey guys, it’s Friday the 13th! You know what that means: it’s time to watch your favorite Jason movie and maybe make some tater pigs.

Due to pain I didn’t get this up as early as I normally like to (before everyone gets off work), so this challenge isn’t due until Sunday night. The rules!

1. Whatever you come up with has to be new, nothing from a cookbook or a blog, not something you posted last week that happens to involve the secret ingredient. It’s fine to use a recipe for a jump-off point, but make it your own!
2. Entries are due at 9 pm CST on Sunday (but it takes me awhile to read all of the entries so if you’re a little late it’s no big).
3. Have fun and be creative!

And the secret ingredient is…

SQUASH!!!

Whether you are still recovering from an overindulgent holiday season or you’ve decided to shun the silly notion that January = diet, squash is a perfect food to play with in January. It’s versatile, there are so many varieties (people down under can use summer squash) available right now, and it’s guaranteed to make any dish warm and cozy. Some squashes can be a beast to cut through, here’s a photo guide on how to cut and peel a butternut squash (safety first).

Allez Végétalien Cuisine!

Iron Chef Roundup – Mint

Iron Chef Roundup – Mint

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It’s a small roundup this week, but as always, I am impressed! Mint isn’t something that I use a whole lot outside of chocolate pairings (and the several gallons of green mint tea I drink a week) so if I had done the challenge myself, I probably would’ve been stuck.

First we have Rolled Focaccia with Garlic and Herbs from Julia, one of the herbs being mint obviously. Perfect for those of us whose kitchens are too cold to be in unless we’re baking something!

Tiffany made Mint Tea Whole Wheat Couscous, which brings to mind some many nice adjectives. Like: fast, easy, pretty, delicious, and simple-yet-interesting.

And to fill that cookie-shaped hole in your heart, Danni gives us Chocolate Mint Cookies, which she based on a veganized recipe of her mom’s pinwheel cookies.

So you could put those three things together and pretty much have a complete meal. Or. OR. You could head on over and check out Cara’s entry because she made three minty dishes (Tabouleh inspired Bulgur Veggie Tower on a Bed of Mint Sauce, Mushroom Cannelloni on Bed of Lettuce and Garlicky Button Mushrooms, and Minty Pancakes with Chocolate and Strawberry Jam) and she doesn’t even like mint! Watch out, Morimorto.

Thanks for playing, guys! Next month’s ingredient has already been picked out, and I promise that it’ll be perfect for the cozy kinds of food we all need in January. See you January 13th!

Iron Chef Challenge for December

Iron Chef Challenge for December

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Happy December everyone! A lot of people in the US are experiencing their first snow today, so it’s a good day to hit up the grocery store on your way home from work, and then hole up in the kitchen all weekend where you can bake and stay warm.

A quick review of our few simple rules/guidelines:

1. Whatever you come up with has to be new, nothing from a cookbook or a blog, not something you posted last week that happens to involve the secret ingredient. It’s fine to use a recipe for a jump-off point, but make it your own!
2. Entries are due at 3 pm CST on Sunday (but it takes me awhile to read all of the entries so if you’re a little late it’s no big).
3. Have fun and be creative!

And the secret ingredient is…

MINT!!!

Now, if you have mint in your yard like I do (so, so much mint), you might think that this is more appropriate for spring when you can use fresh leaves. But maybe you still do have fresh available, and there are extracts and teas and just so many mediums of mint that can be used. And while this will be a great way for all of us to figure out some new holiday treats to make, don’t forget that mint can be savory too!

Allez Végétalien Cuisine!

Iron Chef Roundup – Breadcrumbs

Iron Chef Roundup – Breadcrumbs

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The amount of entries for this was smaller than usual, but everything was impressive! Two people even turned other recipe failures into new meals for the challenge. Mark your calendars for the next challenge, which will be posted December 9th!

Zoa took a failed batch of seitan and turned it into Seitan-stuffed Tomatoes with Moroccan Spices.

Richa turned some leftover Chana Masala into these cute little Baked Potato Tikkis.

Cara took her favorite elements of a popular Georgian recipe and turned it into Breaded Nutty Tofu Balls en croûte and Nutty Breaded Eggplant Slices with Walnut Parsley Cream Sauce.

Danni made a pantry-friendly bean loaf, and included recipes for Cauli-tatoes and a Butternut Squash cake!

Corrina went old school with Butternut Squash Tofu Balls, that are based on a Dreena Burton recipe that I love! Tofu balls forever.

I love it when people aren’t too proud to talk about their baking/cooking failures, I think it’s educational. I love it even more when they are able to turn their failures into something new, waste not and all that. If you feel the same way, you’ll enjoy this epic tale of Tiffany’s Autumn Fruit Strudel Rolls.

Cadry made Cashew-Cheese Stuffed Jalapeno Poppers, I can practically taste the combination of cashews and miso in the filling.

Kristen made Panko-Encrusted Ginger-Wasabi Brownies, which she says is ‘not very original’, but I say: whaaaaaaaaaat?!

Iron Chef Challenge for November

Iron Chef Challenge for November

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Hey hey!  Did you enjoy your two week break for blogging and cooking like mad people?  I know I did!  I got so many episodes of Teen Mom and Supernatural watched.  It was nice.  This month’s challenge was Isa’s idea, so you can thank her (or blame her if you hate it).  In case you missed the tweet, the second Friday of every month will be the Iron Chef weekend here on MoFo.

A quick review of our few simple rules/guidelines:

1. Whatever you come up with has to be new, nothing from a cookbook or a blog, not something you posted last week that happens to involve the secret ingredient. It’s fine to use a recipe for a jump-off point, but make it your own!
2. Entries are due at 5 pm CST on Sunday (but it takes me awhile to read all of the entries so if you’re a little late it’s no big).  Note, i’m extending the deadline a little bit since i’m posting this later than I usually like to.
3. Have fun and be creative!

And the secret ingredient is…

BREADCRUMBS!!!

It doesn’t matter if you’re coating something with them or binding something with them, if you use a wheat bread or a gluten-free bread.  Maybe even crumbs made from carrot or banana bread?  Since the US Thanksgiving is coming up, and some of us will be stuck with a few extra rolls or half a banana bread (does anyone else have a family where everyone shows up with an unannounced dessert or is that just me?).  I think this will be a great way to compile recipes for using up those leftovers.

Allez Végétalien Cuisine!

Iron Chef #4 Roundup: Carrots and Oats

Iron Chef #4 Roundup: Carrots and Oats

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Here in the states, pretty much everyone is dealing with being cold/snowed on/wet, so this cozy roundup is a perfect read for your Sunday evening! Not only do we have lots of warm, inviting foods, but the carrots make for some bright dishes to help fight the gloomy feelings you might be having.

As if you need another reason to bake cinnamon rolls, Danni came up with these Sweet Surprise Cinnamon Rolls…the surprise being that they’re full of carrots and oats!

Cara made a burger and carrot fries, both the burger and the buns both contain carrots and oats as well!

If you want something quick, light, and drinkable, go over to My Munchable Musings and try this Carrot Oat Shake.

Latkes are another food that I think you can never have too many variations on, so I was happy to see Farrah made Curry Carrot Oat Latkes!

Savannah made a 3 Layer Carrot Coconut Crumble, which not only looks delicious but sneaks another vegetable in!

Zoa used the Magical Loaf Studio as a jumping-off point to create Carrot-Oatmeal Balls.

Kristen made cute little Carrot & Chickpea Sliders with pesto mayo.

The recipe name really speaks for itself: Choc-Carrot-Chai Spice Pudding Pie With Oat-Carrot Cookie Crust by Munchin’ Mochi!

JL is bummed because of the snow on her porch, luckily she has this Oat, Amaranth & Carrot Porridge to keep her warm, made in a rice cooker for a ‘set it and forget it’ meal.

Mandy made these beautiful Carrot Curry Puffs, and I agree that everything is better wrapped in puff pasty.

Missy was absent for pretty much all of MoFo due to computer problems, but she makes up for it with this Carrot Crisp.

I try not to play obvious favorites, but this recipe for Carrot Furikake Granola Clusters is interesting and pretty! A savory granola, that has with Japanese flavors by Tiffany.

Rachel made homemade Carrot Cake Larabars, using raisins instead of dates which makes them even more affordable to make.

Over at The Crabby Crafter, not only do we get a recipe for Carrot Cake Waffles, but a lesson on how to tweak the recipe to make baby food!

Ali made Spiced Carrot-Pumpkin 3-Grain-ola that utilizes popped amaranth, something I had never heard of (insert ‘The More You Know’ rainbow here)!

Annie decided to really go all Iron Chef and make three dishes: Meatless Loaf, Mixed Grain Mushroom Pilaf with Glazed Vegetables and Oatmeal Carrot Cake Ice Cream Sandwiches. Impressive!

Kelly lives up to her book/blog name with Carrot Cake Oatmeal Cream Pies. Daaaaaaaaaaang.

Jackie also made waffles, but these are gluten-free and topped with a pretty red grape compote!

Gigi made a short video, a song, and Tropical Voopee Pies!

And finally, Kelly did double duty with savory Quick Oat & Veggie Pancakes for her and Cinnamon Cranberry Carrot Oatmeal for her dog, after Kaylee had some teeth pulled. What a lucky dog! For getting oatmeal, not for having teeth pulled and surgery.

Thanks so much to everyone who participated, and for those of you asking about challenges continuing throughout the year…you might see us again soon. Wink.