Hello Everyone!

I apologize for not posting as regularly as I used to, but I’m working hard on revitalizing my blog and coming up with some really amazing vegan recipes to share with you all.

Lately I have been planning for the Vegan Mofo (Month of Food) 2014 in September. I have about 30 recipes planned and they are being tested and written up as I work on them, so that it’s not so difficult to do once September rolls around…I’ll still be quite busy posting and updating them all then! I’m also swearing myself mostly to secrecy about it, even though I have a calendar all mapped out…haha. If you follow me elsewhere like on the facebook page you may get a few sneak peeks once in awhile when I get too excited for my own good! Otherwise, no spoilers!

Although I won’t be posting a new recipe every day after September is over, I do plan to have some really amazing recipes shared as often as I can, and I am already thinking up those as well! I’ve been a recipe creating dreamer lately…

I decided I couldn’t wait to make and share this recipe I thought up recently though.

Here is the story behind it!

When I lived in Boston awhile back, I lived down the street from a Jamaican restaurant. While I currently was not vegan at the time (they did have vegan food there though!! Including cupcakes!) I really loved their beef patties. And recently when I accompany my mother to BJ’s, I’ve been seeing cases of them, and wishing that they were vegan. The tipping point in which I decided to veganize a recipe was when someone on one of my vegan facebook groups shared that they ate a vegan patty at a restaurant, and couldn’t get the recipe from them…

Vegan Beef Patty Recipe:
Makes 8 patties

Ingredients:

For the pastry:

• 4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
• 2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp salt
• 8 tbsp non hydrogenated organic vegetable shortening
• 8 tbsp (one stick) Earth Balance 
• 1/2 cup- 1 cup water

For the filling:

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
• 1 jalapeno pepper, minced
• 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
• 3/4 tsp ground cumin
• 3/4 tsp allspice
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• Salt, to taste
• 28oz can whole peeled plum tomatoes
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
• 3 scallions, chopped
• 14 oz Lightlife Gimme Lean ground beef style faux meat

To assemble:

• 1 tbsp egg replacer powder
• 4 tbsp water
• Extra flour for rolling out the dough 

Directions:

Dough:

1. If you have a food processor, place flour, turmeric, and salt into it and pulse. If not, stir these ingredients in a large bowl with a spoon until thoroughly combined. If using a food processor you may want to break it up into two equal batches depending on its capacity.
2. For the food processor method, add 2 tbsp of shortening and/or Earth Balance at a time until you have used it all, pulsing each time. Pulse until a crumbly texture is met.
3. For the non processor method, do similarly as above, except by using your fingers, two knives, or a pastry blender. 
4. Add enough water as needed (slowly add it) to either the food processor or in the bowl until you form a firm, smooth, dough.
5. Form the dough into two separate disks and wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least an hour and a half, or over night. (If you do overnight thaw about 10 minutes before using in the assembly.

Filling:

1. In a large skillet/frying pan, heat the oil on medium heat.
2. Add onion and cook until softened. 
3. Add in the garlic and ginger and cook about a minute.
4. Add turmeric, cumin, allspice, jalapeno, salt and peppr, and stir so that the onions get coated well with the spices.
5. Add the tomatoes, thyme, scallions, and parsley, stirring every so often. Turn to low heat when boiling.
6. Break up the tomatoes a bit with a spoon.
7. Cook for about 15 minutes. Add in the Gimme Lean beef in large chunks as pictured in the photograph below. Cook for five minutes.
8. Allow to thoroughly cool and then place the mixture in a blender and pulse a few times until combined.

Assembly:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Mix the egg replacer powder and water into a bowl.
3. Lightly flour your surface area.
4. If you kept the dough in the fridge overnight, let it sit to thaw for about ten minutes.
5. I broke each disk into 4 equal size pieces and formed it into balls before I attempted to roll it out.
6. Starting here is the tricky part, and it won’t be pretty unless you are a pastry chef…but roll out the dough into the best rectangle shape you can.
7. Place about 1/4 cup of the filling into the middle.
8. Using a brush, brush the egg replacer/water mixture around the edges of the dough around the filling.
9. Fold over the pastry so that all edges meet. 
10. Take a fork and pinch around the edges except for the part in the fold.
11. Place the patties on a baking sheet with parchment paper for about 30 minutes in the oven (mine were done at around 28 minutes though, so keep your nose alert and check on them if they smell done)

You will probably have left over filling, I advise picking up a pre-made vegan pie crust from Whole
Foods or wherever and using that as a filling, since you’ll probably be a bit annoyed with doughs after dealing with the pastry on these…you can even easily freeze the pie and defrost and eat a a few weeks later!  Yum!

The filling before blending. 

The filling after blending.

The finished product!

I’m having someone over for dinner tonight, and I made these in advance because I was really worried they wouldn’t come out well, but they did! I’m excited!

I’m going to reheat them in a toaster oven so they don’t get soggy…