"Oi vey! My yeast is expired!" pizza
Psh, expiration dates usually mean very little to me. But I realized today that you can't fuck around with yeast. It's dead or alive. Mine was dead. And so begins the adventure of yeast-less pizza dough. I started out with VWAV's pizza dough recipe, then improvised when my yeasty water flatlined. dun dun dun. I added baking powder to the mix, and hoped that would allow the dough to rise when baked. Because I was still in denial, I let the dough sit for an hour anyways hoping that some way, zombie yeast would arise and dominate that shit. This was almost as fruitless as my desire for zombies to actually exist. Here's the scary part. The dough did actually rise a little bit. Spooky. Now real zombies would be horrible, so let's make the most out of an all around brain dead kind of day.
On a separate note, I went to Cafe Nation in Brighton, MA today for brunch. Salivating for their portabello sandwich on herb and garlic bread, I entered with anticipation. Hold on! Vegan tofu scramble??! How could I not try and brand new vegan item on the menu? Even at a wopping 7 bucks plus 50 cents for every veggie, I sprung for it. GOSH was I disappointed. The tofu was mashed to a pulp, or more like a gruel. It was bitter, possibly from the turmeric or chickpea flour? Chalky for the same reason I assume. Luckily it came with toast so I was able to make a weird sandwich out of it. I was extremely disappointed to say the least. I won't get it again, but when they have vegan crepes (rumor has it) I will definitely go for this. Crepes are their specialty anyways.
The problem with cafes and restaurants having more vegan options is that the standard for quality of said vegan item is low balled. I guess people think, if it's vegan, they'll eat it. Lots of people probably would. But being the huge snob that I am, if I can make it better myself I become extremely resentful. I totally support restaurants offering more vegan options and in time, they will probably get better. But at least leave it to people that know what they are doing, especially if you are charging up the wazoo for it.
More options with less care? Or less options with higher standards? That is the question of all things considered.
Anyways, opted for nice and big tomato slices, tiny orange grape tomatoes, fresh basil, roasted garlic and shallot, thinly sliced delicata squash and cashew concoction.
The dough was pretty good. I prebaked for 5 minutes and then cooked with toppings on for 10. It was flat and crispy which made for an okay crust, but the middle came out nice. But alas, I will opt for yeast next time. Not in my vagina, but in my pizza. GROSS.
Thought for food: my kitchen is my sanctuary. I feel safe, protected, accepted and nourished. What is yours?
Just had to throw that one is there.
love,
jp
On a separate note, I went to Cafe Nation in Brighton, MA today for brunch. Salivating for their portabello sandwich on herb and garlic bread, I entered with anticipation. Hold on! Vegan tofu scramble??! How could I not try and brand new vegan item on the menu? Even at a wopping 7 bucks plus 50 cents for every veggie, I sprung for it. GOSH was I disappointed. The tofu was mashed to a pulp, or more like a gruel. It was bitter, possibly from the turmeric or chickpea flour? Chalky for the same reason I assume. Luckily it came with toast so I was able to make a weird sandwich out of it. I was extremely disappointed to say the least. I won't get it again, but when they have vegan crepes (rumor has it) I will definitely go for this. Crepes are their specialty anyways.
The problem with cafes and restaurants having more vegan options is that the standard for quality of said vegan item is low balled. I guess people think, if it's vegan, they'll eat it. Lots of people probably would. But being the huge snob that I am, if I can make it better myself I become extremely resentful. I totally support restaurants offering more vegan options and in time, they will probably get better. But at least leave it to people that know what they are doing, especially if you are charging up the wazoo for it.
More options with less care? Or less options with higher standards? That is the question of all things considered.
Anyways, opted for nice and big tomato slices, tiny orange grape tomatoes, fresh basil, roasted garlic and shallot, thinly sliced delicata squash and cashew concoction.
The dough was pretty good. I prebaked for 5 minutes and then cooked with toppings on for 10. It was flat and crispy which made for an okay crust, but the middle came out nice. But alas, I will opt for yeast next time. Not in my vagina, but in my pizza. GROSS.
Thought for food: my kitchen is my sanctuary. I feel safe, protected, accepted and nourished. What is yours?
Just had to throw that one is there.
love,
jp
http://www.flickr.com/photos/volcanodust/5319302048/
ReplyDeleteugh so good! thanks for those pictures! you make our apartment look so wonderful!
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