vegan gadgetry

When you think about it, there aren't too terribly many gadgets out there that one would explicitly label "vegan." However, this guy is one of my favorite things in my kitchen and gets weekly (at least) use!



Yesssssssss . . . that is a Soyabella soy milk maker! Now, I know what Alton Brown says . . . "never own a unitasker." Well, this isn't a unitasker, people! You can also make nutmilks in the Soyabella, and that's actually my favorite thing to do with it! Although I enjoy homemade soy milk, I find nut milks, (specifically almond milk,) tastier and even faster than running the soy milk function.

How easy is homemade almond milk, really? Well, I soak about a half-cup of almonds in water for at least six hours, drain and rinse them, and put them in the "milk screen." I add water to the line, run the mill function five times, and, voila!

A quart of freshly-made almond milk, costing next to nothing, creating no packaging waste, and taking almost no time! (I like to add about a tablespoon of agave, a half-teaspoon of vanilla, and a pinch of salt to my milk, too, but it's pretty tasty on its own.)

The Soyabella is quite expensive, but I was able to score mine at a deep discount when I worked at the kitchenwares store . . . and it's been SO worth it! I definitely think it's paid for itself twice over in the years that I've owned it, and it's still kicking strong!

Now, as much as I love my Soyabella, you can make nut milks without one -- you just need a blender and some cheesecloth or a mesh bag to strain the milk through. Combine the soaked almonds with about a quart of water, blend away, and strain! Easy enough! I think soy milk would be a little harder, though, so if you prefer that, the Soyabella would totally be the way to go!

What is your favorite "vegan gadget?"

TGIF!

Quick funny story . . .

As many of you know, I purchased a Soyabella soymilk maker some months ago now, and have been happily making my own soy and almond milks ever since. (And one experiment with some almond-pistachio milk -- delicious, but slightly pale green in color!) Dan always gets excited when it's time to make a fresh batch of almond milk -- and always wants to drink a big glass when it's finished!

I was talking to Dan last night, and he told me that he brags about my soymilk and almond milk-making to people. Am I a nerd? Is Dan a nerd? Maybe?

But I think that's pretty funny! ("My girlfriend's so cool -- she makes her own soymilk!")

TGIF, indeed, folks. I'm SO glad it's almost the weekend!

busy weekend!

Don't you just love those weekends when you are super-productive, but not exhausted? I've had one of those weekends. I've caught up on email and snail mail correspondence, done some tidying up and filing around the house, nearly completed my Christmas shopping, wrapped all of the Christmas presents I've purchased, made a (crustlesss) tofu pumpkin pie, done some laundry, mopped the floors, washed mountains of dishes, and finished a book! I've also been cooking and eating, of course. :)

One of my impulse buys at the Wedge on Friday:

Pineapple guavas! I was sold on their bubblegum-like fragrance -- I had to give a few a try.

Trying:

Guavas are a little strange . . . sweet and tart, with an unusual texture. They may not be on my grocery list on a regular basis, but they were worth a try!

Almond Milk!

I realize this looks remarkably like the batches of soy milk I've made with my Soyabella, but I had to post about almond milk . . . because it tastes SO good, and it takes even less time to make than soy milk. Plus, almonds are a natural source of calcium and iron -- bonus!

Falafel for dinner last night:

I baked my falafel this time . . . ew. I will stick to pan-frying from now on, because my oven baked falafels just got dried out and crumbly. My salad (romaine, tomato, artichoke, olives, oil, and vinegar,) was spectacular, however!

The beginnings of holiday baking:

Chai shortbread dough, off to the freezer for a couple of weeks. See you soon, chai shortbread!

Rescuing falafel for lunch today:

I pan-fried the falafel today, with much better results. Sweet potato fries and more guavas on the side. (I'm full!)

I still can't believe it's only 4:15 or so . . . what will I do with the rest of my day? We shall see . . . !

soymilk maker!

After the September staff meeting at the store, I had the opportunity to purchase a Soyabella soymilk maker (at cost) -- and I did! Wahoo! Why buy a soymilk maker? For starters, I'll save a ton of money over time. The maker is expensive, (over one hundred dollars retail,) but when you consider a half gallon of soymilk is at least four dollars, the maker will pay for itself in not too much time because bulk soybeans are so dang cheap. Also, other reasons include: soybeans weigh a lot less than a carton of soymilk when transporting groceries home from the store, I have an easy time finding locally grown soybeans, and homemade soymilk calls for zero packaging, minimal processing, fewer ingredients, and has a very fresh taste.

I finally unpacked my soymilk maker this weekend:

That's a lot of parts! (And that's not even including the cord, instruction book, or cleaning utensils!) However, when I learned that most of these extra parts are for different applications (like rice paste and coffee grinding,) I packed most of them away and kept out only what I needed.

How to make soymilk? Easy.

1. Use the scoop to measure 1 scoop of soybeans. Rinse the beans and soak them for 4 to 6 hours.
2. Place the soybeans in the metal cup, attach it to the top of the machine, fill the machine with water to the line, and press the "milk" button.
3. Wait 15 minutes.
4. The soymilk is done! (Pardon the blurry picture.) Add sugar, salt, and vanilla, per the recipe included, or to taste.

5. Clean all of the parts thoroughly. (This was honestly the hardest part of soymilk making -- the pieces need to be cleaned right away so they don't get gunky.)

I really like their recipe for vanilla soymilk, although I may cut back on the sugar a little bit. Dan said the soymilk tasted like a thin vanilla milkshake -- which I'll take as a positive review. :)

ALSO, I can use my soymilk maker to make nutmilks -- almond milk and hazelnut milk, here I come!

Anybody else have a soymilk maker? What have your experiences been?