Last winter our daughter gave us a gift certificate for a vegan Asian restaurant, Veggie Village, where the food was phenomenal!!  All the dishes had meat names, but all the meat was made from tofu or mushrooms. I always got the tofu. The first time we went there our daughter ordered Sweet and Sour Shrimp and that tofu was shaped to look like shrimp. Our son-in-law ordered the Orange Chicken. Jack and I ordered Kung Pao Chicken. It has some hot chili peppers and was too hot for me. Jason informed us Kung Pao is always hot. Now you tell me!! I shared some of my hot vegetables with him. The tofu chicken was scrumptious. The next time we went I ordered the Sweet and Sour Chicken, while Jack ordered the Orange Chicken. Yum!!

Several months ago, I found a recipe online I thought I could veganize—Sweet and Sour Crockpot Ribs. I figured I could cut my gluten steaks into strips to look like ribs, or I could use tofu. I have only tried it with the gluten and in my humble opinion it is phenomenal. This Sweet and Sour Sauce tastes so much like the Sweet and Sour Sauce at Veggie Village. I have also made this recipe dicing my gluten into chunks, sautéing for about 5-10 minutes, and then marinating them in the sweet and sour sauce while I stir-fry the vegetables. Once the veggies were done, I added the gluten and sauce to the vegetables and served it over rice. We thought it was really good!

Sweet and Sour Crockpot “Ribs”
Scalloped Potatoes
Three bean salad
Cookie Sheet Apple Pie

Pre-Sabbath Prep:
Sweet and Sour “Ribs”: Make gluten steaks if you don’t already have some tucked away in the freezer. Make the sauce. Add to gluten and cook in crockpot. Leave in crockpot for Sabbath. This dish could also just be put in a casserole dish to bake and reheat, like I did for this meal. For the two of us, I have also put it in my little lunch crock I told you about in the previous menu post.
Potatoes: Make and bake the Scalloped Potatoes.
Salad: Make the salad and refrigerate.
Dessert: Make the Cookie Sheet Apple Pie.

Sabbath: I place my food in my propane oven after breakfast with the pilot light on and then turn the heat up to around 300° about an hour before I plan on serving. If you have a time-bake feature on your oven, this is a good time to use it.
Potatoes: Put potatoes in oven to warm.
Ribs: Turn crockpot or lunch crock on to warm or low or put in oven with potatoes if done in a casserole dish.

Sweet and Sour Crockpot Ribs (1/2 recipe)
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons water
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon soy sauce or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos
2 tablespoons ketchup
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1-2 cups gluten steaks cut into strips, or your desired shape.

Mix brown sugar and flour in a saucepan. Add water, then lemon juice, soy sauce, ketchup, ginger, and garlic powder. Cook and stir over medium heat until boiling and thickened. Layer the ribs in crockpot, spooning sauce over each layer. Cover and cook on Low for 10-12 hours. Since the gluten is already cooked, it just needs to get hot to marry the flavors.

Scalloped Potatoes (1/2 recipe)
[Adapted from 7 Secrets Cookbook]
2 cups thinly sliced potatoes (or 2 medium potatoes)
1/2 onion, sliced in rings
1/2 cup each coconut (or plant-based) milk and water blended with 1 tablespoon flour
3/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Boil potatoes and onions in 3 cups water with 1 teaspoon salt for 5 minutes. Drain and place in a 1-quart oiled casserole dish. Combine milk with seasonings and pour over potatoes, pressing them firmly into the milk. Sprinkle with paprika if desired. Bake uncovered at 400° for 45 minutes.

Serves: 2

3-Bean Salad (1/2 recipe)
Adapted from 4-bean salad recipe in 5 Loaves Deli & Bakery.
1/2 cup cut green beans
1/2 cup cut yellow wax beans
1/2 cup dark red kidney beans
2 tablespoon chopped bell pepper, any color
1/4 cup chopped red onion, or 1 tablespoon green onion
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
Dash of garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon McKay’s Chicken Seasoning
1/4 teaspoon dill weed
1/4 teaspoon celery salt

Mix all together and chill several hours or overnight.

Yields: 4 ½-cup servings

Cookie Sheet Apple Pie
Several years ago, I came across a recipe in a Taste of Home magazine. It seemed a novel idea—an apple pie made on a cookie sheet! One adjustment I made to the recipe was to make a crumb topping rather than a top crust. If you are an accomplished pie maker and have a favorite crust recipe, definitely use what you are comfortable with.  A couple months ago I also came across an Apple Pie Pizza, which is basically the same as the cookie sheet apple pie, just baked on a pizza pan instead.
3 cups flour
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup shortening (coconut oil)
2/3 to 3/4 cup water
8 cups sliced, peeled apples (or run through salad shooter enough apple to cover pie crust – about 2-3 apples)

Crumb topping:
1 cup flour
1 cup quick oats
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup oil

Bake at 400° for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350° and bake for additional 20-25 minutes or until golden.

Note: The apples seemed a little dry and the crumb topping kept falling off. Normally sugar and cinnamon and sometimes flour, are added to the apples before being put in a crust. Next time I would certainly do that. Or you can use your favorite pie filling.