Sweet Italian Seitan Sausage

Today I spent much of the day on the phone. Needless to say it is difficult to cook with a phone stuck to your head so I need to come up with something tonight that wasn’t going to take a lot of time. Pasta always comes to the rescue when I don’t have much time. To go with the pasta I decided to make sweet Italian seitan sausage because it is also fast.

The spices and flavorings I used were taken from the Charcuterie book. As usual I added bread crumbs because I like what they did for the texture. This time I chose to leave out the fat to see what impact that had on the sausages (I love experimenting with my food).

Sweet Italian Seitan Sausage
Makes 8 sausages

Ingredients:

3 cloves of garlic
2 tablespoons of wine vinegar
2 cups of water
1 tablespoon of agave
2 cups of fresh whole wheat bread crumbs
1 tablespoon fennel seed
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon of kosher salt
10 ounces of vital wheat gluten

Directions:

Combine the garlic, wine vinegar, water and agave in the blender. Puree until smooth. Pour the contents into a bowl that is large enough to knead the dough. Add the breadcrumbs and stir so that they are thoroughly saturated. You want them to be very moist, like wet bread. Add the fennel seed, paprika, black pepper and kosher salt and stir to combine. Add the vital wheat gluten and knead to form dough. If any of the gluten remains dry add a little more water a few tablespoons at a time. You want the dough to be wet and fairly easy to knead. It should be softer than if you are making a seitan roast.

Put the dough on a cutting board and form into a ball. Cut the ball in half and make it into two balls and cut those in half. Continue this process until you have 8 roughly equal balls of seitan dough.

Form each seitan ball into a snake about 5 – 6 inches log. Roll each snake up in aluminum foil and twist the ends closed.

Put a steamer insert into your pressure cooker. Add water to the bottom of the steamer insert. Place the sausages in the pressure cooker and bring the cooker up to pressure with the heat on high. Set a timer for 15 minutes and turn the heat to low. You want the heat as low as you can set it but still have steam escape. After 15 minutes turn the heat off and allow the pressure to reduce naturally.

When the pressure has reduced open the cooker and remove the sausages to another place to cool for at least 10 minutes so that you can remove the foil. The sausages can be use used or refrigerated.

Nutritional information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 210.95
Calories From Fat (6%) - 12.2

Total Fat - 1.39g
Saturated Fat - 0.12g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 389.46mg
Potassium - 81.13mg
Total Carbohydrates - 20.72g
Fiber - 3.09g
Sugar - 0.67g
Protein - 29.99g

Comments:

Good flavor from the fennel and sweetness from the agave and paprika. The sausages have a good texture. They are tender but have a nice chew. I was surprised that the oil I have been adding seems unnecessary. Going forward I won’t be adding oil to the wet mixture for the seitan.

Seitan Beer Brats with Sauerkraut and Baked Potatoes

My German heritage husband is not overly fond of sauerkraut. This fact is still one of those things that makes me go, huh? What kind of German doesn’t like sauerkraut? I love the stuff so I have devised a way that we can both enjoy the sauerkraut.

If I soak the sauerkraut in a bowl of water for a few minutes and then strain it, rinse it and soak and rinse it a second time then my husband likes sauerkraut. Additionally, soaking and rinsing removes most of the salt from the sauerkraut making the dish healthier. I add a few common German spices to this dish to make up for the reduction in saltiness.

Seitan Beer Brats with Sauerkraut and Baked Potatoes
Serves 2

Ingredients:

½ tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
1 red onion, thinly sliced
28 ounces of sauerkraut, drained and rinsed of excess sodium
1 teaspoon of caraway
1 teaspoon of dill weed (dried)
½ teaspoon of fennel seed
½ teaspoon of sweet paprika
½ cup of water, white wine or beer
2 seitan beer brats
pan spray
2 large Yukon Gold Potatoes (about 4 ounces each)
4 tablespoons of silken tofu, tahini, garlic sauce or tofu sour cream

Directions:

Sauté the onion in olive oil until tender. Add the remaining ingredients, except the seitan beer brats and simmer over low heat for at least 30 minutes.

Scrub the potatoes and pierce them with a paring knife so they don’t explode in the microwave. Cook until tender. Time will depend on the wattage of your microwave.

Cut the brats on the bias into ½ inch slices. Heat a heavy bottomed pan over medium low heat. Spray the pan with cooking spray and add the brat slices. Cook the brat slices on the first side until they are brown and a little crisp (about 3 minutes). Spray the top of the brats before you turn them so that the oiled side will be down. Cook the second side it is also a little crisp. Remove from the pan and keep warm until ready to serve.

To serve, put the sauerkraut on the bottom and top with the crispy brat slices. Garnish the potatoes with a dollop of tofu tahini garlic sauce or tofu sour cream.

If you make this earlier in the day (or your husband is running late as mine was) you can hold everything in a 200 degree oven until you are ready to serve. If you need to do this, I would suggest that you add the bratwurst to the sauerkraut so that it stays more moist. The presentation won't be as pretty but the texture of the brat will be better.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 519.81
Calories From Fat (19%) - 100.91

Total Fat - 11.46g
Saturated Fat - 1.59g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 1471.34mg
Potassium - 1682.41mg
Total Carbohydrates - 65.64g
Fiber - 15.28g
Sugar - 8.79g
Protein - 38.38g

The sodium in the statistics above is overstated. I could only find numbers for drained low sodium sauerkraut. I feel certain by soaking and draining the sauerkraut the majority of the sodium is rinsed away.

Comments:

We enjoyed this meal tonight. It was very filling and satisfying on a stormy night as tropical storm/depression (whatever it is now) Danny is coming up the east coast.

Update:

I have changed my mind on the brats after breakfast this morning. I would recommend stirring the crisped brats into the sauerkraut so that they are more moist. After having our brats simmered this morning I now think simmered is definitely the way to go.

Hummus - Basic Reduced Fat

We eat a lot of hummus in this house. Hummus has become our go to sandwich spread. I make a lot of different variations of hummus depending on my mood. There is my roasted red pepper, garlic and sweet paprika hummus, also my roasted garlic hummus, and my roasted red pepper and smoked paprika hummus. There are many other hummus variations that I have yet to put on the blog. They will all get posted eventually.

Most of my humus recipes have little or no fat and this is not exception. After reading the book “Life Over Cancer” we have been trying to keep our fat percentage down to about 13% overall, with most of that being omega 3 fat. In order to achieve a fat percentage that low it is imperative to keep the fat down on the hummus. Commercial varieties of hummus can get 50% or more of their calories from fat. Sure, they taste good, but that much fat isn’t necessary. This recipe is my attempt to keep the fat down but still maintain a little richness from the tahini.

Hummus - Basic Reduced Fat
Makes 3 ½ cups

Ingredients:

1 cup of dried garbanzo beans, cooked (cooking water saved)
2 tablespoons of tahini
1 teaspoon of kosher salt
½ teaspoon of cumin seed
¼ teaspoon of coriander seed
¼ teaspoon of sweet paprika
1 teaspoon of lemon zest
1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced
1 ¼ cups of bean cooking liquid (added a little at a time – see directions)

Directions:

Cook the garbanzo beans until very tender. Drain the beans and reserve the cooking liquid to use later in the recipe. Make the hummus while the beans are still warm. This is one of the secrets to a smooth hummus without a lot of added fat from olive oil and tahini.

Into the food processor place everything but the bean cooking liquid. Process to combine the ingredients. Add the cooking liquid ¼ cup at a time and continue to process checking the hummus consistency. Remember that the hummus will firm up in the refrigerator so you may want to make it a little thinner than you think you would like in the end.

Refrigerate in a covered container. This will last at least 5 days in the refrigerator.

If you want to serve as part of a mezze spread, swirl the top of the hummus to create grooves. Pour a little extra virgin olive oil on top so that it puddles in the swirl. Sprinkle the top with sweet paprika, toasted pine nuts and chopped fresh parsley.

Nutritional Information (per ¼ cup serving):

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 66.54
Calories From Fat (26%) - 17.18

Total Fat - 2.05g
Saturated Fat - 0.25g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 139.72mg
Potassium - 143.88mg
Total Carbohydrates - 9.47g
Fiber - 2.67g
Sugar - 1.57g
Protein - 3.21g

Comments:

This is my basic reduced fat hummus. The secret to getting the hummus creamy with just two tablespoons of fat (tahini) is making the hummus while the beans are still warm. I don’t know why this works, but it makes a big difference in the creaminess of the hummus.

The flavor of this hummus is mild so that you can mix it with many different ingredients on crackers, cucumber rounds (my favorite) or sandwiches. I even use this as the base of a roasted vegetable pizza to keep the veggies from sliding off when you eat it.

Potato Hash with Merguez and Roasted Red Pepper

Obviously I wanted to make something with the new seitan sausage and this is what I choose today. This dish is hearty and filling due to the potatoes and seitan. A subtle sweetness comes from the roasted red peppers and onions. I added the roasted red peppers, paprika and oregano to mimic what was in the seitan sausage.

This dish has a nice amount of potassium, vitamin A, and vitamin C. We try to consume about 60 grams of protein every day, and this meal contains about a third of our daily target. The fiber count is a little lower than I would like so I added a few veggies on the side.

Potato Hash with Merguez and Roasted Red Pepper
Serves 2

Ingredients:

10 ounces of Yukon gold potato (2 large potatoes)
½ tablespoon of canola oil
1 red onion, sliced
1 merguez flavored seitan sausage, cut into bite sized pieces
1 roasted red pepper, cut into bite size pieces
¼ teaspoon of sweet paprika
¼ teaspoon of oregano, dried
¼ teaspoon of kosher salt
¼ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Pierce the potatoes and microwave them until tender (about 3 minutes). Cool until you can handle and then cut into bite sized pieces.

Sauté the red onion in the canola oil. When the onions have softened add the remaining ingredients and heat through.

Serve hot.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 299.02
Calories From Fat (18%) - 52.67

Total Fat - 5.98g
Saturated Fat - 0.5g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 320.28mg
Potassium - 1120.55mg
Total Carbohydrates - 45.97g
Fiber - 5.26g
Sugar - 0.21g
Protein - 18.32g

Comments:

A good description of this meal would be warm, filling and comforting. If you are looking for a dish that is familiar but with flavor that is not the usual this is good recipe. The flavor is a little sweet (from the onions, roasted red peppers and paprika) but also savory. Add a nice salad and you have a complete meal with good nutrition.

Merguez Flavored Seitan Sausages

Somehow we ran out of prepared seitan in both the refrigerator and freezer. I wanted to make something unusual today, and decided to try my hand at making a Merguez flavored seitan sausage. If you are unfamiliar with merguez it is a North African spicy lamb sausage that is also popular in French cooking. The traditional sausages are very “lamby” and a bright red color. They are also juicy from the fat and red pepper.

Obviously mimicking lamb was going to be a problem but I knew I get the spice blend right. I used the spice combination from cookbook Charcuterie. I added the oil and whole wheat bread crumbs to try to mimic the juiciness of the original.

Merguez Flavored Seitan Sausages
Makes 8 sausages

Ingredients:

1 roasted red pepper
1 ¼ cup of water
½ tablespoon of agave
¼ teaspoon of hot pepper flakes
3 cloves of garlic
½ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon of sweet paprika
1 tablespoon of oregano
½ teaspoon of kosher salt
2 tablespoons of canola oil
½ cup of whole wheat bread crumbs
10 ounce box of vital wheat gluten

Directions:

Combine the roasted red pepper, water, agave, pepper flakes, garlic, black pepper, paprika, oregano, salt and canola oil in your blender. Puree until everything is completely combined.

Pour the wet ingredients into a large powder and add the whole wheat bread crumbs. Add the vital gluten to the wet ingredients and combine with your hands. Continue to smush and knead until dough forms.

Remove 8 pieces of aluminum foil from the roll that are about 12 inches length each.

Remove the seitan dough from the bowl and move it to a cutting board. Form the dough into a big log shape. Cut the dough into 8 roughly even pieces. One piece at a time roll the dough into a snake (like you did in kindergarten). The seitan snakes should be about 6 inches in length. Put the seitan snake into the aluminum and roll them into the foil like you are covering a candy. Twist the ends to close the sausages. .

Put water in the bottom of your pressure cooker until it reaches the bottom of your removal steamer basket. Place the seitan sausages in the cooker and lock the lid.

Cook the sausages under pressure for 10 minutes. Then turn off the heat and allow the pressure to come down naturally.

Remove the sausages from the pressure cooker and allow to cool a little so that you can remove the foil without burning your fingers. This should take about 10 minutes.

Put the sausages in a container with a lid and refrigerate until needed. If you are going to eat them in a 4 days wrap them completely in plastic cling wrap and place them in a zippered freezer bag. I have kept these in the freezer for months and they were fine when defrosted.

You can use these as you would any other sausage. I tend to put them into dishes cut into chunks, but you can serve them on a bun with sautéed peppers and onions if you like.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 180.94
Calories From Fat (22%) - 39.55

Total Fat - 4.48g
Saturated Fat - 0.42g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 146.47mg
Potassium - 102.11mg
Total Carbohydrates - 8.59g
Fiber - 1.43g
Sugar - 0.35g
Protein - 27.47g

Comments:

The flavor of these sausage is good and the texture is softer than my usual sausages. Since I added fat and bread crumbs I don't know which item made the largest difference in texture. I will continue to experiment with this in the coming weeks. I can't wait to use these sausages tomorrow.