International Fusion Cooking

Vegan Tomato-Rice Soup in a Bread Bowl

Bring some tomato sauce to a boil, adding water to make it a 50-50 consistency. Add 1/6 of the soup volume in rice, plus double the rice volume in water, and cook the rice, at least 30 minutes. Raw black organic wild rice is the best, but any can be used. When rice is tender, establish the correct thickness for the soup, adding water if desired, or adding corn flour (Mexican masa harina de maiz) and cooking to thicken. Salt to taste.

Some popular additions are: Finely chopped tomato, thyme, garlic, basil, chilis, rosemary, garlic, onion. Newbie? finely chopped basil never fails. Mega-yummy. Simmer at least 10 minutes after adding additional ingredients, much longer if dried spices are used. Serve in a bread bowl (recipe below).

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Vegan Rolls or Bread Bowls: Mix a cup of lukewarm water with a package of yeast, and mix thoroughly for at least 3 minutes. Add a cup of flour, and mix extremely completely, into a batter. Keep adding flour, a little at a time, until stiff. Knead on a floured board until smooth and elastic. Cover, let rise until doubled in bulk (1-4 hours), and bake on a cookie sheet in 350 degree (Fahrenheit) oven, 20 to 25 minutes. Breadcrumbs can be used to keep the dough from sticking to the pan. Corn meal works, too. Adding salt is optional, and makes the rising time longer.

Serve hot, or cool and scoop out the insides for a bread bowl. The bread scooped out may be used as bread croutons, or breadcrumbs. If you will be cutting or scooping these rolls, they must be cool first!

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Mexican Mashed Potatoes

Prepare mashed potatoes, usually using the dehydrated box type, and it is best to add at least some real fresh boiled potatoes, too, for aroma. Arrange in a mound on dish or bowl, and place a depression or well in the center of mound of mashed potatoes.

Fill the well with fresh salsa. Serve with a side of sour cream or ranch dressing.

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International Salsa, Mex-Arab

Start with fresh Mexican salsa, which contains chopped red or green tomato, onion, and any type of peppers, depending upon how hot you want it. The mildest salsa uses bell peppers, but Anaheim chilis are also very mild, if desired. Pimentos (sweet red bell peppers) optional. Gourmet touches include the addition of walnuts, pecans, diced figs, raisins, or chopped olives (ripe or green).

For Arabian flavor and content, add diced apricots, tahini (crushed sesame seeds with lemon juice), shredded parsley with bulgur wheat (as in tabuleh), whipped garbanzos (hummos), even the spice cardamom (ground). Spearmint is optional, as is Feta cheese. Garlic (fresh, powdered, or salt) optional.

You will not, in practice, use all of that at the same time, but it is food for thought. Or is it thought for food?

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Mexican Hamburger:

The original Spanish version of the Hamburg Chopped Steak German Sandwich (hamburger) is the Spanish Hamburger, or Sloppy Joe. It consists of crumbled ground beef on a bun, the Spain version using chili powder to season the beef, but no tomato. Onion and garlic powder are also used, as well as salt and black pepper. Tomato sauce, the US version, improves it. Barbecue sauce can be used for a more country flavor.

For a truly Mexican sloppy joe, try using Pato brand red tomato sauce containing chili peppers. Pato means duck. That is precisely what the Mexicans added to the Spanish hamburger. US tomato sauce (no chili peppers ground up in it) is the US sloppy joe.

Fusions include spearmint, which makes it a Sloppy Gyros (Greek or Arab), or if you add fennel seed, it becomes a Sloppy Beef Italian Sausage Joe. Vegan? I thought you´d never ask!

Garbanzos, yellow peas, hummos, lentils, even Mexican frijoles (pinto beans) can be used as a meat substitute. The consistency of the legume used should be quite thick, like dough. Onion, garlic, and spices help, and you can use the Arab-Greek or Italian tricks, above, or just simple Mexican sauce.

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Strawberry Margaritas

Shred some real whole strawberries in a blender, mix with strawberry Kool-Aid that has much less water than the package calls for (double strength), optional dash of Triple Sec (next recipe), add a quart of tequila, and sugar to taste.

Triple Sec is orange zest liquer. Orange zest is the orange part of an orange peel. Scrape some off of some oranges, and soak in vodka several weeks at room temperature. Strain. Fast method (few hours) use 196 proof (double strength) vodka, and when done, mix with an equal amount of water to dilute it to regular alcohol strength. The alcohol is what absorbs the orange flavor.

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Tex-Mex Beef Ribs

Have the butcher cut the ribs narrow, bones only 3 to 4 inches long. Take the bands which result and cut into individual ribs. Simmer in beef broth or boullion at least 4 hours until very tender. Gentle, as these ribs will fall apart from the bone. Serve with sauce over them that contains Mexican Pato (a general Mex-style red tomato sauce) plus regular barbecue sauce, combined together. Arby´s Restaurants sauce is exactly this. Tex-Mex Better Than Sex! Try these longhorn ribs, Mr. Rancher!

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Mexican Vegetarian or Vegan "Fish" Tacos

Substitute Arabian felafel balls for the fish. Fish taco dressing is ranch (see below), with finely chopped tomato, onion, and peppers, with cilantro. Cheese is optional, for those not vegan.

Vegan method is to bake the felafel (no oil), no cheese of course, and substitute whipped avocado for the ranch dressing (which contains buttermilk). There do exist vegan bacon-substitute pieces, if feeding this to a group of carnivores, but add same at the last minute to keep them crunchy. Salad croutons can also be used.

Also consider the addition of Chinese Black Mushrooms, which do taste like beef, yet are vegan.

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The future of farming:

How about a mushroom that contains genetic material from Texas longhorns? No animals were grown, harmed, nor slaughtered to produce it. And, the mushroom tastes like beef tenderloin. I buy free-range buffalo, as they enjoy an excellent life, and then when they become blind, old, and lame, are euthanized. Humane and low-fat. Healthy? No, but tasty. Try eating crown rib roast of bison just once. (Buffalo prime rib.)