Ben's Calzone

Hello on the 27th day of the Vegan Month of Food and the sixth day of my Parks and Recreation theme week! I'm also pretty excited because this is my 100th post! (I would have hit this milestone sooner had I not deleted my first several posts, including those of Vegan MoFo 2010, but ah well...)

Ben's Calzone

In "The Comeback Kid" (season 4, episode 11), Ben, having resigned from his job as assistant city manager, has been keeping himself occupied by shooting a (very short) claymation video and learning to make calzones. (Leslie and the rest of the parks department have been planning a comeback for her city council campaign, but when everything goes wrong, she decides to hire Ben as her campaign manager.)

Chris: So, Ben, why calzones?

Ben: Glad you asked, Chris. You know, there's fast-food hamburgers, there's fast-food Mexican, there's fast-food Chinese, blah, blah, blah. Have you ever wondered why there isn't a fast-food option for Italian food?

Chris: What about pizza?

Ben: "Pizza? Never heard of it!" That's what people will be saying in 20 years because pizza is old news, Chris. Pizza is your grandfather's calzone.

Chris: I never thought of it that way.

Ben: What I'm talking about is a portable, delicious meal that is its own container. It's a whole new spin on Italian fast, casual dining.

Chris: Amazing!

Ben: Now, you of all people will like this: I'm going to use low-fat ingredients.

Chris: Game-changer!

Ben: And I will call my new Italian fast casual eatery the Low-Cal Calzone Zone.

Chris: That idea is literally the greatest idea I have ever heard in my life.

Chris (to camera): That idea is terrible.

Ingredients:

(crust)

--1 Bob's Red Mill 16 oz. package Gluten Free Pizza Crust mix

--2 T flaxseed meal + 6 T water (replaces the 2 eggs)

--1 1/2 cups warm water

--2 T olive oil

--yeast packet (included in the pizza crust package)

(toppings)

--tomato sauce

--shredded Daiya (both mozzarella and cheddar)
--vegan pepperoni slices (I used Lightlife's Smart Deli Pepperoni)

Directions:

(Preheat oven to 425°F.) Combine yeast and water in a large bowl; let stand a few minutes. Add the flaxseed meal and olive oil, stir. Add the pizza crust mix; stir until combined. Split dough in half, leave in bowl, covered for 20 minutes so it can rise. To make two calzones, take one of the doughs, split it in half, and spread out two round crusts on the greased baking tray. Bake for 7 minutes without toppings. (Store second unused dough, wrapped in plastic wrap, in the fridge.) Remove from oven, add tomato sauce to one half of each crust, then Daiya and vegan pepperoni on top.* Fold the empty half over to cover the toppings. Crimp the edges closed with a fork (if possible; wasn't for me, oops!). Add a bit of olive oil atop the calzones and make a few small cuts in the top, then bake for 9 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool; the calzones will be much hotter than a pizza. Serve and enjoy!

*To use up some leftovers, I (over)filled one of the calzones with some chopped yellow onion and Boca chick'n instead of pepperoni.

This was my first time making calzones, and while they were messy (and I was unable to get them fully closed), they were still delicious. I think it would be fun to experiment with different fillings (the two versions I made were both great), but all in all, I'm more of a pizza person. Sorry, Ben! 

Bonus quotes from the episode:

Leslie (to her former campaign managers): I just had a big meeting with my new advisory board, and they are brilliant and amazing. They're real killers.

Andy (in background): Leslie? I tried to make ramen in the coffee pot, and I broke everything.

Leslie: Thank you, Andy; I'll be right in.

In other vegan news, today is Hug a Vegan Day! So here's a big hug for all my vegan readers and fellow bloggers!

Mystery, however, is rather skeptical of all this hugging going on...

Peace. :)

Tom's Chicky-Chicky Parm-Parm

Hello on the 26th day of the Vegan Month of Food, and the fifth day of my Parks and Recreation theme week!

Tom's Chicky-Chicky Parm-Parm

In "Soulmates" (season 3, episode 10), Ann helps Leslie sign up for online dating; when Leslie is matched up with Tom, she is surprised and confused. She decides to take him out on a date to get to know him better and to see if she can figure out why the dating site put them together. When Leslie asks him to lunch, Tom asks if he can order "apps" and "zerts," and then goes into an explanation of his unique names for things.

So, from that list, I chose to make a vegan version of "chicky-chicky parm-parm" with "long-ass rice."

Ingredients:

--Gardein Tuscan Breasts

--tomato sauce

--2 servings spaghetti (I used angel hair)

--vegan cheese sauce*

*To prepare the cheese sauce, see the ingredients and recipe on Vegans Eat Yummy Food, Too! (It's perfect that today is "Thankful Thursday," because I am certainly thankful for discovering this quick and easy recipe! Thanks, Sandy!) Note: I didn't need as much, so I only made 1/4 of the cheese sauce that her recipe makes.

Place the two chick'n "breasts" in a baking dish, add some tomato sauce on top of the chick'n, then add the cheese sauce. Bake in the pre-heated oven at 375°F for 20 minutes. Cook the spaghetti, drain, return to pot and pour in the sauce packets from the Gardein, stir and simmer on low for 5 minutes. Serve and enjoy your chicky-chicky parm-parm and long-ass rice! All in all, it turned out pretty good, and it was fun to use a new recipe from a fellow blogger.

 

Bonus quotes from the episode:

Leslie: How did you and I get matched up?

Tom: I made 26 profiles, each designed to attract a different kind of girl. Tom A. Haverford, sporty and sexy. Tom B. Haverford, smooth and soulful. Which letter did you get?

Leslie: "N." Tom N. Haverford.

Tom: (laughs) The "N" stands for "nerd." I never even check that one because no one ever responds to it.

Leslie: OK, well, whatever...

Tom: Tom N. Haverford collects globes.

Leslie: Great, that's enough.

Tom: His favorite movie is books.

And now it's time for the premiere of the sixth season of Parks and Recreation! So excited!

But first, here's a photo set of a sleepy little Mystery.

Peace. :)

Chris' Portobello Mushrooms

Hello on the 25th day of the Vegan Month of Food, and the fourth day of my Parks and Recreation theme week! (This post also fits in with the Work With it Wednesday theme, since I was a bit skeptical of portobello mushrooms and haven't been that much of an asparagus fan.)

Chris' Portobello Mushrooms

In "Indianapolis," (season 3, episode 6), Leslie and Ron are traveling to the city to receive a commendation award, but all Ron cares about is eating at his favorite steakhouse. When they arrive, however, they discover that it has been shut down due to a health code violation. Chris, who now lives in Indianapolis, offers to "fire up the grill" at his place. While preparing the meal, Chris offers some salad to Ron. (Hehehe, look at me, I finally figured out how to embed a video in a post!)

Chris: Ron, would you like some salad?

Ron: (chuckles) Since I am not a rabbit, no, I do not.

Chris: Try it, salad's good for you. (serves him some salad)

Ron: You got it. (Chris leaves to work on the rest of the meal, Ron dumps his salad back into the main serving bowl) Mmmm, delicious!

Later, when Ron goes out to the grill to check on the steaks, he discovers that Chris isn't actually cooking steak... 

Ron: Ahhhh!!!!

Leslie: Ron?

Ron: What in the devil's name is this?!

Chris: Portobello mushrooms.

Ron: Where's the steak?

Chris: Oh, there's no steak. That's a healthier option. It's organically grown.

Ron: Oh... (gets unsteady)

Leslie: Ron, are you OK? Woah, woah, woah, OK. (helps Ron into a chair) (to Chris) Can you get us a cold compress or something?

Ingredients for Chris' meal:

--2 organic portobello mushrooms

--olive oil

--salt

--pepper

--asparagus

--rosemary

--garlic salt

--red and orange peppers

--mixed greens

Pre-heat oven to 400°F, cover a baking tray with a sheet of aluminum foil. Clean, de-stem, and de-gill the portobello mushrooms. Brush olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides, set bottom-up on the tray. Trim the asparagus, lay them out in a baking dish. Drizzle olive oil atop, and sprinkle on some rosemary, garlic salt, salt, and pepper. Bake both the mushrooms and the asparagus for 10 minutes. Flip the mushrooms, add sliced peppers and a bit more garlic salt to the asparagus and stir. Return mushrooms and the asparagus dish to the oven to bake for another 10 minutes. Prepare a salad using the mixed greens. After removing the mushrooms, allow them to sit for a bit on a folded paper towel to soak up excess oil. Serve with the asparagus dish and the salad.

The portobello mushrooms turned out better than I expected. They weren't as oily as I'd feared they'd be and they were nice and soft on the inside. The texture of mushrooms has always seemed weird to me, but it really wasn't too bad. The asparagus dish was alright; I think I used too much olive oil, so maybe next time I make it, it'll be better. The salad, being just mixed greens, was plain; I don't really like dressings, so I ended up just chopping up some of the mushroom and asparagus and peppers to mix them in with the greens, and combining everything together in one dish worked out nicely.

But wait, there's more! Before making this dinner, I prepared a quick appetizer...

The Snakehole Lounge's Pigs in a Blanket

Also in this episode, April and Andy go out together to the Snakehole Lounge, a Pawnee bar. Andy is embarrassed that he doesn't have money to buy drinks, so April suggests that they see how much free stuff they can get throughout the night. At one point, she comes back with a whole tray of pigs in a blanket.

April: I got this from a waiter. I told him I had a pork deficiency.

Andy: Sweet! Pigs in a blanket! I always wondered why they called them that...

Ingredients:

--4 Lightlife Smart Dogs

--1 package vegan crescent rolls

Preheat oven to 350°F. Unroll the rolls and slice the smart dogs in half. Roll up one half smart dog in each roll. Place on greased baking tray. Bake for 10 minutes. Serve & enjoy!

Apart from getting a bit burnt on the bottom, these "pork-deficient" (vegan) pigs in blankets turned out great, very delicious for being so easy to make. I only had two of them, so I'm looking forward to finishing off the rest in the next couple days; yum!

Bonus quotes from the episode:

April: Hey, uh, six beers for, uh, table twelve.

Woman behind bar: Do you work here?

April: Yeah, my dad owns this place. I'm Janet, Janet Snakehole.

Here's a picture of Mystery curled up, all snuggly on the couch.

Peace. :)

Ben's Mac & Cheese Pizza

Hello on the 23rd day of the Vegan Month of Food, and the second day of my Parks and Recreation theme week (and another perfect match for Mac-and-Cheese Monday).

Ben's Mac & Cheese Pizza

In "Jerry's Retirement" (season 5, episode 20), Leslie and Ben were supposed to have a day off together, but right as they were leaving, Jerry got up to say his good-byes. No one had remembered that Jerry was retiring that day, so no celebration had been planned. Instead of having a day off, Leslie becomes determined to help Jerry achieve the goals he'd had when he first started working for the government (and only briefly gets distracted by her excitement for Ben's dinner plans, video clip here and dialogue below).

Leslie: I just can't let Jerry leave here with nothing and go home to an empty life.

Ben: Well, I'll help with anything, just promise we'll do it quickly. I'm making us a mac & cheese pizza for dinner...

Leslie: Mac & cheese pizza?! (gets up from desk)

Ben: Yeah... (looks nervous)

Leslie: You're making that?! (heads around desk to Ben)

Ben: Yeah... (smiles)

Leslie: Huhhh! (starts making out with Ben)

I figured that it must be some pretty good pizza to get that kind of a reaction, so I wanted to try making it myself.

For the mac & cheese:

I used the mac & cheese recipe I posted about last Monday: Hot Dog with Mac & Cheese.

For the crust:

I simply took out the leftover second dough from the fridge and let it sit for 30 minutes before spreading it out on the greased baking tray and baking it for 9 minutes at 425°F. (For instructions on making the dough using the Bob's Red Mill mix, see this post from Friday: Pizza.)

After removing the crust from the oven, add the mac & cheese atop the crust spoonful by spoonful, spreading it out. Add some shredded Daiya mozzarella, pepper, and garlic salt on top. Put pizza in oven for 9 minutes. Remove, allow to cool slightly, slice, and serve (I had some baby carrots and potato chips on the side.)

The mac & cheese pizza was a bit messier to slice and eat than regular pizza. It was good, though I don't know if it's something I'll make again. (I think I prefer more traditional pizzas.) But all in all, it was yummy and fun.

Bonus quotes from the episode:

Jerry: (reading from plaque) Jerry Gergich Memorial Conference Room. R.I.P. (confused look)

Ben: Oh, the guy at the plaque store thought you had died. It was a rush job, so we didn't have time to change it.

Leslie: It doesn't matter; we can just pretend it means “retire in peace.”

In other news, today is Celebrate Bisexuality Day (also known as Bi Pride Day and Bi Visibility Day)! 

image from: http://taskforceblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/bi_pride_graphic.jpg

Mystery briefly got into the spirit by modeling this fun scarf.

Peace. :)

Ben's Chicken Soup and JJ's Waffles

Hello on the 22nd day of the Vegan Month of Food! I'm so excited that today is the autumnal equinox; fall has officially begun! Today is also exciting because it begins my Parks and Recreation theme week!

For those of you who haven't seen the show, it's about the local government of the fictional Pawnee, Indiana, with a focus on the staff of the parks and recreation department. It's filmed in the mockumentary style of The Office; the characters are aware of the cameras and have one-on-one "interviews" with them to elaborate on what occurs in the main action. The fifth season ended with Leslie Knope (previously the deputy director of the parks and recreation department) being threatened with a recall of her current position as a city councilor. (Parks and Recreation starts its sixth season this Thursday.)

Ben's Chicken Soup and JJ's Waffles

In "Flu Season," the second episode of the third season, a bunch of people in Pawnee (including April, Leslie, and Chris) come down with the flu. Ann, a nurse, is caring for them at the hospital, but Leslie successfully escapes in order to do her presentation to local business owners for the upcoming harvest festival. She's brought back to the hospital afterwards to recover, and Ben stops by with his family's traditional chicken soup, as well as waffles from JJ's Diner. Leslie being Leslie, she's only interested in the waffles.

Ben: (appears in doorway of Leslie's hospital room)

Leslie: Oh, hey!

Ben: Hey there. I got you some waffles here, courtesy of JJ's Diner, and chicken soup, courtesy of me.

Leslie: I'll take the waffles, thank you... (takes the waffle container)

Ben: (awkwardly holds out the soup container, then sets it down on the night stand)

….

Ben: (heading out) Oh, uh, left the chicken soup there just in case, it's an old family recipe, it's not a big deal but...

Leslie: Thank you for that.

Ben: OK. (leaves room)

Leslie: (takes bite of waffle)

For the soup:

--2 cups vegan chicken broth

--1/2 cup rotini

--1/4 cup carrots and celery, cut

--bit of turmeric (less than 1/4 tsp), some pepper, and a pinch of ginger

--1/2 Boca chik'n patty, cooked and cut up into smaller pieces

Bring the broth to a boil, add rotini, lower heat a bit, add carrots and celery after about 15 minutes, then the spices, and finally, the pieces of "chicken." Turn heat to low and cover for a bit, then serve.

For the waffles:

--2 Van's Gluten Free Ancient Grains Original waffles

--1 can coconut milk, set in fridge overnight

--3 T confectioner's sugar

--raspberries (or other fruit of your choice)

Prepare the whipped cream according to the directions here on the lunchboxbunch.com: How-to: Whipped Coconut Cream from Coconut Milk. Heat up the waffles, add raspberries, and serve with the whipped cream on the side; dollop on as needed.

The waffles were really good, and it was fun to make my own whipped cream, which turned out delicious (it wasn't as light and fluffy as I'd hoped, but that was likely because I didn't have a hand beater, just a whisk). In true Leslie fashion, I left the soup alone (I put it in the fridge and had it later for dinner with some crackers).

Bonus quote from the episode (video clip here):

Andy: Leslie, I typed your symptoms into the thing up here, and it says you could have network connectivity problems.

Mystery was very interested in this meal; Zach had to hold her back so I could eat without her trying to get into my food.

Peace. :)