Meatless Monday - A Special Guest

My good friend Laloofah, from the wonderful blog Mehitable Days, is being kind enough to share with us some of her vegan cooking expertise. I'm so glad she is here today, and even more glad that she has agreed to do two guest posts. So, be on the lookout because she will be visiting again soon, with another yummy creation.
I'm going to be doing a little extra veg stuff this month in honor of Vegan MoFo (Vegan Month Of Food). I'm very happy to take part, and I'm hoping to welcome some vegetarians to the old blog. So, if you are new, welcome, I'm so happy you stopped by. And, to my dear regulars, please enjoy this recipe that Laloofah is sharing with us today. Take it away Laloofah.

A few years after my husband and I became vegan, I got a wicked hankering for New England clam chowder. It wasn't a soup I ate a lot growing up despite having lived in various New England states (mostly Maine), but occasionally I would crave it and that craving had come upon me once again. So I found a couple of recipes for vegan versions, used ideas from both and added some of my own, and over the years I made changes every time I made the soup till I arrived at what, to me, is a perfect vegan version of New England clam chowder and now one of my husband's very favorite soups! It's a good way to eat nutritious sea veggies, too, which are available online or in Asian or natural food stores.

Happy-As-A-Clam Clamfree Chowder
A yummy and nutritious soup, especially on a nor'easter sort of day! Ayuh! :-)

Ingredients
Marinade:
1/4 cup tamari
1 tsp dulse flakes
1/4 tsp nori flakes
1/8 tsp kelp flakes

1 14-oz (more or less) organic extra firm tofu, marinated, baked and cubed (see directions below)

Soup:
About 3-4 TBSP water (for sautéing)
1 medium onion, chopped
2 carrots, sliced
2 cups water
2 cups organic unsweetened soy milk
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 TBSP dulse flakes or a combination of dulse and nori flakes
1/2 tsp celery seed
3 large potatoes, cubed (I use organic Yukon Golds)
3 celery stalks, chopped

Directions:
Mix the dulse, nori and kelp flakes with the tamari. Set aside.
Drain the tofu well (press as much water out as possible) and slice it into strips about 1/4" thick and 1/2" wide, and marinate them in the tamari mix for 3-4 hours, turning the tofu strips now and then so it's well coated in the marinade. (I marinate them using one of those leak-proof containers with the locking latched lids, so I just turn the entire container over every hour or so).
After marinating, bake the "tofu sticks" on a dark, nonstick cookie sheet at 425ºF for 10-15 minutes on each side, until nicely browned but not crispy. Let cool. Cut into cubes for the chowder and set aside. (I like to use all but a handful - about 4 or 5 of the strips - in the soup, using the rest on tossed salads or just to nibble on.)
Heat 3-4 TBSP of water in a large non-stick soup pot over medium heat. Add the onions and carrots and sauté, stirring frequently, for about 15 minutes or until onion is soft. (If necessary, add a little more water to prevent sticking).
Add the 2 cups of water and the soy milk and stir.
Add the salt, pepper and celery seed and bring to a low boil. Add the potatoes and celery, immediately reduce heat to low-medium, and let the chowder simmer until the potatoes are soft (about 30-45 minutes), stirring occasionally. (I tend to simmer mine covered, and at my high altitude it takes about 45 minutes for the potatoes to be done. The longer you simmer the soup, the thicker it will be).
Add the tofu cubes during the last 3-5 minutes of cooking. (Adding them sooner makes them too soft).
Salt to taste, if desired -- but remember that the dulse flakes and the marinated tofu both taste salty!

Makes 6-8 servings

To learn more about nutritious, delicious sea vegetables and more ways to incorporate them into your diet, visit Maine Coast Sea Vegetables or Cooks Thesaurus: Sea Vegetables.

If human civilization is going to invade the waters of the earth,


then let it be, first of all, to carry a message of respect ~ respect for all life.


~ Jacques Cousteau

Thanks Laloofah for sharing with all of us.