How to Cook with Ginger

I love to use spicy ginger in sweet and savory dishes! It is a raw power food so the later in the cooking process you can add it, the better! This brown fibrous root can be difficult to prepare. 

Peeling the Skin 


Ideally: 

...the spoon! Use a spoon to gently scrape away the skin piece by piece. This is way to waste the least amount of the ginger flesh. This can be time consuming.

If I'm feeling lazy:

...the vegetable peeler! It is not really intended for ginger but will peel the skin a only and little of the flesh if you do not feel like the spoon method.

If I'm feeling really lazy or rushed: 


...the knife. You can slice down the sides to remove the skin but it will take a lot of the juicy ginger with it. You may need to use the knife anyway if you have particularly hard, woody areas or dry areas on your piece of ginger. 


My Favorite Ginger Tool!

The cute ginger grater my hubby bought me from a Japanese store!

Start with a small-ish peeled piece of ginger.

Grate away! Apply pressure along the grain of the ginger and occasionally switch sides. Do this vertically over a container to collect the juice. The fibers/pulp will stay on the grater.

As a Garnish:

Slice your piece vertically and then into strips with the grain.  Add to a dish at the last minute for decoration and added crunch and taste!

Storage:

Storing ginger is not something I have mastered! It does not do well in the freezer or a plastic bag. I have heard of pickling it in vodka. What I usually do is toss the unused ginger in the fridge- cut or not- and use it up as soon as possible. No long term storage ideas here :o/

What is your favorite way to use ginger?

Meal Plan & Baby Bump

Meal Plan for This Week 

Chili with TVP

Burritos or Quesadillas

Sweet and Savory Crepes

Veggie Stir Fry

Leftovers Night

Pasta with Green Beans

Indian Chickpeas with Samosas

20 weeks and 1 day

20 weeks and 2 days

Vegan-izing Conventional Baking Recipes

We only own one vegan cookbook. At all. It's a baking cookbook specific to cookies and you probably know it and love it: Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar 

I have held onto some of my older non-vegan cookbooks and I do a lot of recipe searches online. Sometimes there is something I really want to make but it calls for animal products. Thankfully in baking, these substitutions can be pretty easy and undetectable by even the most steadfast "omni." 

I am no expert, but from my experience, here are some successful baking substitutions:

Butter or Margarine: Forget that cholesterol and carcinogens! I suggest Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread. There are a few varieties available including soy-free. It is made with a variety of vegetable oils that are not partially-hydrogenated. This acts exactly like butter to use the same methods to soften or melt it. 

Cow Milk: I'm not too helpful here because my lousy palate does not detect taste differences between non-dairy plant-sourced 'milks.' I use them indiscriminately in baking. Substitute whatever you have in your fridge: soy, coconut, hemp, rice, almond. Make sure it is not flavored- unsweetened is a good idea also so you are in control. 

Eggs: Eggs provide a few things in baking- binding, fluff, and rise. For the later two, you may want to experiment with a little extra baking soda and baking powder. 

Bananas: This will make whatever you are baking taste banana-y! Mash up an egg-size worth of banana for each banana called for. I usually use this for scratch brownies.

Flax: For each egg, use the ratio 1 tablespoon ground flax seed 

~ 3 tablespoons water

Mix in a separate bowl and let sit to become thick. Great way to get some extra omega 3s!

I've heard of using apple sauce but have not tried this. There are also commercial egg replacers. 

Standard Sugar (make use bone char, bleach): Go for evaporated cane juice or granules made from something besides sugarcane like beets. If you use a 'wet' sweetener like agave or maple syrup, you need to lessen the other liquid ingredients to balance. 

Sweeteners During Pregnancy

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies from Isa Chandra Moskowitz' book

Weird fact I learned from another vegan blog- most icings you buy in tubs are vegan! This does not mean that they are healthy- full of high fructose corn syrup, trans-fat, preservatives, etc. but in a pinch they would be an easy fix!

Happy Baking!