Braised Seitan with Brussels, Kale and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Oh, Veganomicon, how I love you. I present to you Braised seitan with brussels, kale and sun-dried tomatoes.

This dish came about so interestingly. I realized I hadn't made seitan in ages. I typically make a huge amount and freeze most of it so I can just have seitan whenever I want without having to make it each time. (As a side note, if you've never made your own seitan, you totally should. It's hella easy and way yummier and cheaper than buying it.) I went to the market and bought a bunch of fresh veggies thinking I'd find a way to use them somehow. Turns out I had everything I needed for this, including an opened bottle of red wine I was trying to use up!

Seriously, folks, cooking with wine is great. The alcohol cooks out, so stop worrying about that. The depth of flavor that it adds is unequalled. Pretty much anytime you have to add a little bit of broth to something you can substitute some of that liquid for wine instead. Just be mindful of what kind of dish it is, sometimes red wine is better or sometimes white. Or just be crazy and throw caution to the wind and add whatever wine you want. Just not wine in a box. There is no forgiveness for ever buying that. I don't care what wineries are doing that trailer park crap.

Thyme Roasted Autumn Veggies

I blame Isa for the way this dish tasted. Because of her and Terry, I always have thyme in my fridge. Not only that, but I have both rubbed and whole leaf thyme in the cabinet. Yeah... I'm like a thyme junkie now. Dang it, I've caught the fever.

So I've been trying to make a concerted effort to eat with the seasons as much as possible. I'm trying harder to buy locally, though sometimes it's an inner conflict between local and organic. Most of these veggies are locally grown, thanks to the awesome markets near my apartment. I was kinda jealous of everyone having their awesome Thanksgiving feasts so I made this and some wild rice soup to make myself feel better. This is my first year in Canada, so I'm still adjusting to Thanksgiving being in October.

If you make something like this, you really don't need to follow a recipe. Just get some root vegetables, chop them up and put them in a pan with some oil and some kind of spice or herb. Just walk around the market and throw root vegetables willy-nilly into your basket and pick whatever herb smells freshest. (Ha, I just said willy-nilly!)

Thyme Roasted Autumn Root Vegetables

3 small turnips
2 parsnips
1 beet
15-20 brussel sprouts
4 cloves of garlic, diced
1 small onion, coursely chopped
2 fresh thyme, chopped (I think i probably used a bit more, I just used up what I had left)
4 Tablespoons olive oil

Preheat your oven to 375F.

Peel and chop the turnips, parsnips and beet. You'll want to make these smallish, but not tiny so that they cook fully. Clean the brussel sprouts and cut them in half length-wise. Put all of the veggies into an oven-safe dish and toss with olive oil, garlic, the onion and thyme. Stir gently so that the beets don't turn everything pink. I just used my hands to mix everything up.

Cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour.