Pho Sho

Today I made the Sizzling Seitan Pho from Vegan Eats World, only I made it with baked tofu instead of seitan. Look at all those greens! Baby bok choy, Thai basil, mint and cilantro. I kicked up the flavor with a dollop of sambal oelek.  Pho is always time consuming, but the end result is worth it. I have my own vegan pho recipe if you're interested.

The kids received free bike helmets.  Partay! The bowling alley was doing a giveaway and had hospital volunteers on hand to measure heads and make sure the helmets fit properly. If they're this excited over the helmets, just think how pumped they will be when they get bikes. They won't have to wait too long; we are going to surprise them with new bikes on Jackson's birthday.

The Skull Car

Today, a couple more testers for Joni Marie Newman's vegan fusion cookbook.

 

First, a gorgeous jade-green chimichurri sauce. This parsley-based sauce is garlicky, tart, and addictive.

 

 

It makes a perfect marinade for grilled corn.

 

 

Next, Sloppy Joe Pho. Yes, Joni has managed to combine sloppy joes and the spicy Vietnamese noodle soup known as pho. I admit I was a little skeptical, but wow, this soup is so good. Tony and the kids liked it too.

 

 

Jackson was so awed by this sweet purple ride, he insisted on posing for a photo in front of it.

 

 

"Come on, Mommy, it has skulls on it!" Who can pass up skulls?

 

Spicy and Sweet

On Saturday we had lunch at PhoNatic, a Vietnamese cafe. We started out with a couple of appetizers. The veggie eggrolls with sweet chili dipping sauce were deep-fried perfection. I could have made a meal out of them.

The crispy salt and pepper tofu had a nice texture, but could have benefited from a dipping sauce. I dipped it in the sauce that came with the eggrolls.

You'll find a multitude of pho cafes in North Austin but, as far as I know, PhoNatic is the only one that offers a vegan pho -- the Pho Chay.

I'm really pleased that there is a non-meat option. However, the broth was lacking the complex depth of flavor one looks for in pho broth. I use anise, ginger, and other spices to attain that rich flavor when I make pho at home. PhoNatic's version basically tasted like vegetable broth with a little sriracha stirred in. 

It was fun to use the little plate of add-ins that was served with the soup -- basil, lime, sliced jalapeno, and sprouts. There's also a self-serve fixins bar where you can grab additional toppings such as scallions, cilantro, soy sauce, and plum sauce.

After lunch, Tony took the Jackson and Olivia to run some errands, giving me a couple hours of precious me-time. That evening, to repay the favor, I took the kids for ice cream so Tony could watch football in peace. We headed to Sweet Ritual, the awesome little vegan ice cream parlor.

The kids had vanilla cones with gummy bears.

I had a butterscotch shake. I love butterscotch! The shake was perfectly blended and delicious, with a caramel, almost coffee flavor to it. 

First they gave me a makeover. Now, face masks! Exfoliation is so important.

Rainy Day Pho

We're having some unseasonably cold weather here in Austin. It even rained yesterday, which is pretty unusual. To combat the chill, I decided to make the hot, spicy Vietnamese soup known as pho.

When Tony and I were first married, Tony worked near the Little Saigon neighborhood in Oklahoma City. At lunch, he would frequent the various pho cafes. Pho became one of his favorite foods. But because traditional pho is made with beef broth and contains chunks of beef, or sometimes tripe, I could never partake with him. He encouraged me to create a vegetarian version so that I could enjoy it, too.  This is the recipe I've been making for years; he says it's pretty close to the real deal.

Rainy Day Pho (serves 4)

First, make the broth.

6 cups vegetable stock

4 cups water

3 Tbsp. soy sauce

8 garlic cloves, chopped

1 small onion, chopped

1-inch piece of ginger, chopped

2 cinnamon sticks

2 bay leaves

1/8 tsp. anise seed

In a soup pot, bring broth ingredients to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially uncovered, for 20 minutes. Strain out the solids and return broth to soup pot.

While the broth is simmering, prepare the fixins. Keep each in a separate small bowl.

7 oz. rice noodles, uncooked

4 oz. firm tofu, cut in 1/4" cubes

4 heads of baby bok choy, chopped*

1 large carrot, grated

1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped 

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

4 scallions, chopped

1/4 cup peanuts, crushed

2 limes, cut in wedges

2 jalapenos, minced

*Prepare baby bok choy as you would a bunch of celery: chop off the base and discard, then slice the stems and leaves.

Now bring it all together. Add the baby bok choy to the broth and cook for 5 minutes, covered, at a gentle simmer.  Meanwhile, portion the rice noodles and tofu into four large soup bowls. Pour the baby bok choy and hot broth over the noodles and tofu and allow to sit for 5 minutes, in order to cook the noodles and heat the tofu. Top with carrot, basil, cilantro, scallions, peanuts, and jalapeno. Squirt fresh lime juice on top and serve.

Note -- I actually ladled more broth into my pho after taking this picture. It may seem like there is a lot of broth, but that's as it should be. Slurp the broth as you are eating the noodles. It's not rude -- you're supposed to slurp it!