Earth Day Was SOOOO Last Week. Psych! Everyday is Earth Day When You Are Vegan.

For Earth Day this year, I celebrated by attending Berkeley Vegan Earth Day, hosted by eco-friendly event planner, Karine Brighten.   Though you may be thinking,'Earth Day was soooo last week, why are you getting around to this now?', I have two reasons.  One is that I am a slacker.  Two is that it doesn't matter because EVERYDAY SHOULD BE EARTH DAY!  And the information is still relevant!

What was special about this particular Earth Day Event was the link Brighten emphasized between veganism and it's positive impact on both animals and the environment, as well as exploring "reasons and ways to take that commitment even further".  Mission accomplished, girlfriend!
Berkeley Vegan Earth Day included a screening of the documentary "Call of Life: Facing the Mass Extinction",  followed by a panelist discussion and catered reception. 

To put it mildly, 'Call of Life' was intense.  The tag line pretty much sums it up, "If current trends continue, scientists warn that within a few decades at least HALF of all plant and animal species on Earth will disappear forever".  We live on a planet full of ecosystems that depend on each other for survival.  When one species, whether plants or animals begins to dwindle or become extinct, it causes a ripple effect of which human animals are not immune to.  The scientists, anthropologists, philosophers and psychologists featured in this documentary are hypothesizing that if we don't fundamentally change our behavioral and societal patterns(RIGHT NOW) we are going to contribute to both the extinction of the plants and animals on our planet as well as ourselves.  Another point this movie touched upon was that as humans, we are not oblivious to this going on around us and may suffer from feelings of terror, anger and/or despair.  Yet our society is so adept at pushing consumerism as a way to suppress the feelings, or block them out entirely.  We buy the things 'we deserve', to feel better or indulge in meat though we know factory farming is vicious and inhumane, as well a direct reason for clear cutting rain forests.  The longer this movie sat with me, the more powerfully my thoughts centered around throwing myself off my second story balcony, but then I remembered I was hosting Easter at my apt this year, which would hopefully save at least one pig sent for slaughter this spring (nothing like an agave-brown sugar baked seitan roast).  Activism people!  It saves lives!

Next up were the Vegan Panelists!
David Vlansey - the executive producer of 'Call of Life'.
Lauren Ornelas of the Food Empowerment Project
Hope Bohanec of In Defense of Animals
Alex Eaves of Stay Vocal

So informative.  My favorite points from the discussion include:
  Lauren Ornelas:
     *In the US farm workers are not paid overtime, though in pretty much every other professional it is mandatory.  There are laws against compensating them as they deserve for the hours they work overtime.
     *Environmental racism - it's no coincidence that oil refineries, land fills, truck depots,etc happen to be located around low income neighborhoods and communities of color.  These areas have higher rates of cancer and pollutants along with less access to health care or healthy foods.  Examples of these regions in the Bay Area include Richmond and Martinez.
 Hope Bohanec:  
     *The only difference between organic beef and conventional beef is what they are fed.  Eating organic beef doesn't effect green house or fossil fuel admissions.
      *It's not feasible to have enough grass-fed, free range meat to feed 6 billion people (the Earth's population).  There simply isn't enough room.
     *Eating vegan is eating green.  2 vegan meals a week is better than eating an organic, locally sourced lifestyle.
Alex Eaves:  
     *Recycling is failure to reuse.
     *It takes 400 gallons of water for all the cotton that goes into one new t-shirt.
     *Eaves also made the point that if his friends that own coffee shops were to charge everyone that brought in their own travel mug $1 and then $5 for every paper cup, people could then pay for their ignorance and denial.  Harsh, but I have to say I loved it!   I'm in the clear!

The reception was catered by Millennium, which was great for me, as I've never eaten there! (I am currently accepting dates, boys). 
.
Of the event Brighten is "extremely happy to have had such an amazing turnout, and so much support from the community".  Sign up for her newsletter to receive updates on upcoming events here!  I may have heard a rumor about vegan speed dating in Berkeley in the near future....

Nacho Cheese Sauce is the New Craze! Of Course I Have A Recipe.

 I've used this cheese sauce on Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts and Enchiladas.  Delicious.  I want to make some RIGHT NOW! 

 You will need:
     *1 cup of soaked cashews. **
     *1/2 Tbs olive oil
     *1/2 cup water
     *Juice of half a lemon
     *1 clove of garlic
     *2 bell peppers
     *1 1/2 tsp salt
Blend together, until completely smooth.  I add a little bit of Red Chile Pepper for some kick.

You can leave it as a raw sauce, or bake it onto something, or even just heat it up on the stovetop and pour it over some chips.  Add jalapenos if you are so inclined.  My next venture is to leave out the spice and make mac n cheese with it. 

**Soak 2/3 of a cup of raw, unsalted cashews for at least 6 hours.  Best if overnight.  6 hours, covered at room temperature, anything longer than that- put in a container with a lid in the fridge.  If you are short on time, you can boil the cashews.  Some of these dishes get baked anyway so the rawness doesn't matter so much.  Boil on medium high for about 15 - 20 mins, until cashews are soft.

Brussel Sprouts

Broccoli

Enchiladas

Orphan Easter Party

My friends are rad.  I was bummed I couldn't spend Easter with my family this year (work) so I decided to throw a party!  Orphan Easter Party!  We ate, we drank and Lena Fay showed up with a Bunny Ear headband.

The spread!  Many a friend contributed to the food, others contributed drinking materials and both were appreciated!

 The plate.  'Ham', gravy, stuffing, roasted califlower, vegan sausage squares, root and kale bake, corn and avocado salad...hungry yet?  Photo by Zack Brewer.

I made the 'ham', gravy and stuffing.  For the ham, I made my seitan, except I added red food coloring, more salt and liquid smoke (a lot of it).  I boiled it as usual, then browned it in a pan and baked it with foil over it for about an hour at 350.  I baked it in the broth I boiled it in.  I flipped it halfway through baking it.  I put the broth aside, brushed the top of the seitan mounds with a mix of agave nectar and brown sugar.  I put it back in the oven til the top was nice and brown.  I made a gravy out of the broth, by adding flour and bringing it to a boil. 

 After the agave nectar and brown sugar baked onto it. 

My family's stuffing recipe, veganized!  Onions, garlic, mushrooms, spinach and crutons!

 Brit'nay making the sausage squares.  Vegan beef crumbles and Pilsbury crescent roll dough.  That shiz is vegan!

The cutie pie friends.  With Easter Fay.

STOP USING PLASTIC BAGS!

Use these.

Remember the Pacific Garbage Patch?  Yeah, it's still a problem.  Be a part of the solution, stop worsening the damn problem.  Cause YOU ARE CONTRIBUTING TO FUCKING UP THE EARTH.  Sorry, the truth hurts.

Stop using the excuse that Bio Bags are too expensive.  That shiz is tired.

I'm Making a Vow to You All Right Now #2

I'm totally chunking out, and I'm not pleased.  I know it has to be the stress of a new job, a commute and a new schedule, because this happens every time my life changes dramatically.  THAT DOESN'T MAKE IT OKAY.
No bread.  No sugar.  No more eating when I'm not hungry and no more Charles Shaw just cause I'm bored.  I'm not going to stick to this unless I make it public.  So embarrassing, but so true. 

Maybe I can fit exercise into my schedule, but I don't want to get carried away here...

Now, I don't know what you do, but I have to stick to a low carb diet.  It's what works best for me.  I get a lot of flack for it for some reason, but I always feel healthiest eating that way.  I don't know how seriously to take this, but  I have blood type 'O', which in theory, means I benefit from a simple diet of protein, fruits and veggies, NO grains.  Not everyone believes in the idea of eating right for your blood type, but it works for me.  Unfortunately, being a low carb vegan is not easy.  Carbs are everywhere! While being vegan, the absolute best I have felt (and looked)  has been on a raw diet.  Raw diets are HELLA low carb, but also time consuming and expensive, which is why I am not on one right now.

No more excuses though.  I'm going to figure something out, and I think it's going to be a mostly raw food plan.  Don't worry - I'll let you in on everything I'm eating!  It definitely won't be boring.  I'm going to try sleeping more as well.  And drinking lots of water!  I'm going to prance around in a bathing suit at the beach this summer, dammit.

3 years and 15 pounds ago.  I can do it! 

Meatball Sub - A Sure Sign I Am Missing Jersey Shore - Power Lunch # 3

The title says it all.

You will need:
     *Vegan Meatballs.  As many as you see fit.  I used about half a pkg of the Trader Joe's brand.
     *1 14.5 oz can of tomato sauce
     *1 small to meduim onion
     *4 - 6 cloves of garlic
     *About 2 cups of spinach
     *6 mushrooms
     *1/4 cup wine (I used Sherry)
     *1/2 TBS of salt
     *1/2 tsp of Agave Nectar
     *A pinch of pepper
     *1 1/2 TBS Italian herbs
     * olive oil
     *green onions
     *A medium to hold your sub! I use Mission Low Carb tortillas but bread would be so much better.
     *Vegan cheese (optional)

Preheat your oven according to how your package of meatballs instructs and bake them.  While that's going on, cover the surface of a pan with olive oil, chop your mushrooms and cook until brown. Put them aside (in a bowl or plate, not actually in the pan), chop your onion add to pan and saute until translucent or caramelized. You may need to add more oil between the mushrooms and onions.
When onions are cooked to your liking, (re)add mushrooms, chopped garlic and Italian herbs, being careful not to let the garlic brown.  Once garlic starts becoming fragrant, add spinach and let cook down.  Pour in your tomato sauce, turning the heat up to medium high.  As it's coming to a slight boil, add wine, salt, pepper and agave.  Let reduce just a bit, taste, and increase seasonings as necessary.  If it starts boiling aggressively, turn heat back down to medium.  You want it to go for about ten minutes.

I don't like the idea of the meatballs simmering with the sauce as a way to 'heat up'/cook.  That's why I bake them first.  Once they are done, according to package instructions, I take them out and throw them into the sauce for a few minutes.  That why they can absorb some of the flavor and become more tender.  Once you reach this stage, add some chopped green onion and vegan cheese, then remove from heat.  Meatballs are done!

Put onto a sub or in my case, wrap in a low carb tortilla.  Power lunch #3! 

  My Daiya cheese didn't melt!  I added it too late!

Most Random Dinner Ever

Tonight, as with many nights, I put together one of the weirdest dinners ever.  After a day of work followed by five beers at my friend Landon's house, plus an hour trip back to the city from Oakland, I was starving.  STARVING.  During the entire BART ride home, I went over every item I knew I had on both my shelves in the fridge and pantry, frantically trying to figure out what I could make for dinner that would be easy and very, very fast. 

I had two things to look forward to when I got home...dinner and a new episode of 'Khloe and Lamar'. 

 

The odd combination you are viewing - tacos and leftover green bean casserole.  

  

Seriously, I gotta figure this meal thing out.  I am simply FAMISHED when I get home from Oakland.  Maybe I should start bringing a cooler with me to work?  Just in case I'm not home for 12 hours and I don't want to buy food out.  Especially those days I stop by Landon's house for some brewskies and cable...

I think I have about five taco recipes on here, but this is how I normally make them:

  

*Corn tortillas

*Black beans sauteed with red onions, garlic, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, Tapitio and salt

*Topped with cilantro, green onions, red onions, lime juice, salt and avocado 

This is what my cat does in the kitchen.  Gross. 

Battered Tempeh Tacos! Gluten Free!

I bought an issue of 'Living Without' recently.  Ew pervs, it's a gluten free magazine.  It's chock full of recipes and tips for those with numerous food allergies.  None of which I have, I think.  It's like psychology class in college, where all the sudden you have all the symptoms of the disorder you are reading about.  Am I turning into a chunk because I'm allergic to corn?!  No, I'm chunking out cause I started a food blog and I'm cooking huge meals all the time and then sitting in front of a computer for hours typing about it instead of exercising....

On that note, I want to post recipes that cater to everyone.  I'm that generous and kind as a person, it's true.  I can't help but have noticed, many gluten free recipes are not vegan, though many of the friends I have with Celiac's or gluten sensitivities are vegan or vegetarian. I may be an amateur at the gluten free recipe thing, but I am going to do my best at incorporating more gluten free, vegan recipes on this blog.  If anything is off, please let me know immediately. 

That's right, I'm posting a recipe here...

Tempeh Tacos

You will need:

     *One package of Tempeh

     *Juice of 3 limes

     *2 tsp chili powder

     *1 tsp cumin
     *A pinch of cinnamon 

     *1 tsp salt

     *1/2 tsp pepper

     *1/2 cup corn or potato starch

     *1 - 2 green onions

     *1 avocado

     *1/4 green onion

     *1/4 stalk of cilatro

     *Corn tortillas

This is reminiscent, or copying (whatevs, if you change 3 things in a recipe, it's yours.  Maybe 5 things? One of the deals with recipes is that you can't copyright them, but it's nice to give credit where credit is due) of a fish taco recipe in 'Living Without' April/May 2011.  Mine is vegan, and not going to, even remotely, taste like fish at all. I'm alternating a 'Blackened Tilapia Taco' recipe I found.  Tempeh seemed like the perfect medium to use.

So, cut your tempeh into small strips, about a 1/4 - 1/3 of an inch thick (I always cut them on the thicker side and somewhat regret it afterward.  Steam your tempeh - in a pot, with a steam basket, for about 15 minutes on medium/ medium high heat.  If you check facebook as much as I do, set it on medium.  You get more time that way.

Roast your spices!  The cumin, the chili powder, cinnamon, the salt and pepper - cook them for 5 - 7 minutes on medium high heat in a pan with no oil.  Once they become fragrant, or in my case start smoking, mix them in a bowl with the starch. Put some vegetable oil in your pan, enough to cover the surface, and turn to medium high. 

 Roasting the spices.

Juice two limes and put that in a bowl of it's own.

Take steamed tempeh, dip both sides in lime juice bowl, then coat with starch/spice mixture.  Fry it up!  Once one side is brownish, flip.  Do this with all your tempeh strips, and don't let them crowd in the pan. Well they are nicely browned on each side, transfer them to a plate.  If you have paper towels available, place a couple on the plate to absorb excess oil.

 Tempeh in lime juice, tempheh in batter.

Frying.

For the topping (and best part of tacos, in my opinion), dice your onion, finely cut cilantro (removing stems) squeeze juice of one lime, thinly slice green onion, cube avocado and add a generous pinch of salt into a bowl. 

Heat your corn tortillas on the stove to make them pliable.  It's the authentic way to do it - coming from a 

 white girl.  

 Heat and flip.

My roommate Dan, who works at a wine bar and is therefore very well versed in wine, said that this dish paired beautifully with the citrusy Pinot Grigio he brought home. 

Tips of the Trade #2

Do you ever find yourself asking which oil is best to cook with?  Do you wonder about smoking points?  I do, and I'm here to answer those very questions for you.  Not with actual cooking temps, you can look that up online.  I'll give you an outline.  A basic reference, if you will.

Everyone loves to cook with olive oil!  It's in every recipe, especially Italian ones.  But olive oil should only be used for low to medium cooking, definitely not baking.  A light saute-that's what olive oil is there for.

If you want to saute (or fry) at a higher temperature, use vegetable oil. Recommended in baking recipes.

The best oil you could possibly use is coconut oil.  It's very good for you.  "But what about the coconut flavor in everything?  I don't want that!", I hear you asking.  That is what REFINED coconut oil is for.  There is no flavor and you can cook it at a high temp!  It's kind of expensive, which is why it's not in my pantry (haphazard shelf) right now.  I did spot some at Trader Joe's today.  I will def be buying that in the future. The jury is still out for baking, as it made an apple caramel bread of mine turn out beautifully, but the sides of my baking dish burned (the parts not occupied by dough).  So, maybe not as 'grease your pan' kind of oil.

Got it?  Olive oil for medium - medium high temperature saute, vegetable oil for high temperatures, and refined coconut oil for everything!

Garlic Bread / The Reason I Am Single

I use a whole bulb of garlic for this one.  No joke.  If you actually like having friends, you can tone it down.

This is the easiest thing you can bring to a potluck or dinner, and everyone will love you for it!

You will need:
     *1 loaf of VEGAN french or sourdough bread
     *Olive oil or vegan butter
     *One bulb of garlic, minced.
     *Dried Parsley flakes (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Cut bread in half length-wise. Mince garlic. Slater bread halves with vegan butter or drizzle (not lightly) with olive oil.  Spread garlic over butter/oil and sprinkle with parsley flakes.  Bake for about ten minutes, or until the tops begin to brown.  You don't want the garlic to brown or burn!  Seriously.

 Pre - oven.  Soy margarine half on top, olive oil on bottom.

 Baked! Olive oil half on top, soy margarine on bottom-no burnt garlic!

Close up.

Mystical

This Is What I Ate For Dinner #2

It's so exciting discovering random vegan food in the freezer section of Trader Joe's.  My roommate Crystal actually did all the work.  She pulled their Thai Vegetable Gyoza pot stickers out of our freezer and asked me if they were vegan.  After careful read through the ingredients I was able to confirm that they were!  So I went to Trader Joe's the next day and bought some.  They are so delicious!  And easy to make when I've had the kind of day that includes a post work nap on the BART ride home from Oakland.

 I like to steam them.  It seems healthier and faster than pan frying.  Using the microwave is NOT an option.
 I bring my water to a boil, with the steam basket in the pot.  Then I add the pot stickers, cover, set to medium and catch up on 'Keeping Up With The Kardashians' for about 10 minutes.  

Normally I make four, but I was extra hungry tonight. 

Finished!  Sauteed spinach with a dash of sesame oil and black sesame seeds. Pot stickers topped with Trader Joe's Gyoza sauce, green onions and black sesame seeds. 

Gluten Free Country Gravy!

You didn't think I was going to let the gluten free biscuits go unadorned, did you?! Gravy is so easy, once you make it the first time, I guarantee you will become a gravy making machine!

You will need:
     *1 medium red onion
     *4 cloves of garlic
     *2 Tbs Rice flour (sweet or regular)
     *3 cups unsweetened soy milk
     *1/2 tsp pepper
     *1/2 - 1 Tbs salt
     *pinch of Italian herbs

Dice up your onion and saute it on medium heat.  Go until onions are transparent or caramelized. Add chopped or minced garlic, cooking until fragerent, but don't let garlic brown.  Add 2 Tbs rice flour to coat everything in the pan and let it cook in for a minute or two, moving constantly as to not let flour burn.  If you get it a little browned, it will add a subtle nutty flavor to your gravy.

Onions and garlic, coated with rice flour.

Pour in 2 cups of soy milk, whisking constantly and bringing to a light boil. You will probably need to turn up the heat a little bit.  Add your salt and pepper, then the remainder of the soy milk.  Don't stop whisking!  Once you get the consistency/thickness you prefer, take off the heat and add a pinch of Italian herbs.  Taste, add more salt/pepper as desired.  You can either leave it chunky, or throw it in a food processor or blender until smooth.

 Adding the soy milk.

 Whisk until thickened.

Gravy.  There you have it. 

 This recipe doesn't necessarily have to be gluten free.  Just add regular flour instead of rice flour.

Gluten Free Biscuits

I don't have Celiac's, I don't have a sensitivity to gluten, nonetheless, I'm into the challenge of making delicious gluten free, vegan, baked goods and entrees/sides.  The thing that discourages me when I am looking for recipes is the 5 million ingredients I need to have, none of which are in my 'pantry' (haphazard shelf in the kitchen).  I mean, are 15 different bean and grain flours necessary?

I've taken it upon myself to experiment and I came up with this biscuit.  Only 3 flours!  Plus xanthan gum, which is expensive, but imperative.  It is what binds the flours together, which is what gluten normally does.  I like to get mine out of bulk bins, that way I don't have spend 15 dollars at a time.

We don't need gluten for flaky, tasty breakfast biscuits!

You will need:

     *1/2 cup corn flour

     *1 cup sweet rice flour

     *1/2 cup garfava flour

     *3/4 tsp xanthan gum

     *1 1/2 tsp salt

     *5 tsp baking powder

     *1/3 cup chilled soy margarine or vegetable shortening at room temp

     *1 cup unsweetened soy milk or water

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

The trick with biscuits, is to not play with them too much.  This is especially true when working with regular flour, but I like to think the same rule applies for gluten free as well.  The less you handle them, the flakier they will be.  

Measure out your flours, salt, xanthan gum and baking powder (dry ingredients) in a bowl.  Whisk to get any lumps out and to mix everything together (you can use a fork for this step-sometimes I find myself with no whisk).  Add chilled soy margarine in small chunks.  This is called cutting it in, which is described here.  You don't need a pastry cutter, some people use knives, but I use my hands.  Not over mixing or playing with your dough is extremely important once you start adding the fat and liquid.

 The different dry ingredients whisked together.

 Chunks of fat.

 Pebble - like.  Maybe closer to sand this time around.

 Lightly, by hand, mix everything together.  You want the consistency to be 'pebble or sand- like', with chunks of magerine or shortening visible throughout. Next, add your soy milk or water.  Knead 10 times, no more!

Now, I don't have a pastry cutter.  I'm not that fancy, but maybe I should look into it.  I just spoon out some dough and drop in onto a greased baking sheet.  A few inches apart, and you should get about 8 biscuits out of it.  Place in the center of the oven.

 Pre - oven.

Gluten free goods bake faster than their regular counterparts.  Check them around the 8 minute mark.  If the bottoms are browning, they are close to done.  You don't want the tops to brown, or they won't be flaky, they will be OVERBAKED.  The baking time should be around 8 - 12 minutes, depending how long the oven pre- heated and how quickly your oven bakes.

Perfect!

She and Him cover "Wouldn't It Be Nice"?  It's official, they are my favorite band.

Vegan Green Bean Casserole / Brittany Lassiter Can Cook!

My friend Brittany 'doesn't' cook. She claims she can't. I don't believe her for a second, and besides, we all have to start somewhere. For her 24th birthday party, she made a traditional green bean casserole, and it became my mission to veganize it.

I wanted to make a vegan version of her mom's recipe.  Why should I be denied Green Bean Casserole because of my ethics?! I will not be denied any longer - neither will you!

Brittany cooking soy beef crumbles at the last vegan potluck. 

You will need:

     *1 medium red onion

     *olive oil

     *6 - 8 cloves of garlic

     *10 oz mushrooms (a little over half a pound)

     *1 1/2 cup soaked cashews + 4 cups of water

     *2 lbs fresh green beans, trimmed and washed.

     *1 - 2 Tbs Italian herbs

     *2 tsp pepper

     *1 1/2 Tbs salt

     *3 - 4 green onions 

     *1 large can (6 oz) French's Fried Onions 

First and foremost, I chop up my mushrooms into very small pieces and saute them in olive oil on medium heat. I wasn't the biggest fan of the movie 'Julia and Julia', but one thing I learned is that mushrooms won't brown if you crowd them in the pan.  So I cook them first and put them aside in a bowl. 

Mushrooms

Next, I add a little more oil to my pan, dice my red onion and saute it until caramelized, but you can go until they are just transparent.  Add chopped or minced garlic, being careful not to burn it.  I like to add the Italian herbs at this point, so they can cook into the onions and garlic.  Add mushrooms and let cook together for about a minute or so.

Mushrooms, onions, garlic, Italian herbs.

While the onions are doing their thing, blend your soaked cashews and water together until smooth. Once your onion/mushroom/garlic/ Italian herb concoction is cooked through and through, add your cashew cream.  Whisk everything together and add salt and peeper, plus thinly sliced green onions.  Cook on medium/medium high for a few minutes.  Whisk constantly as to not let it burn.

Cream of Mushroom Soup - Vegan Style!  Taste and add more salt/pepper/Italian Herbs to taste.

As this recipe tends to be time intensive, I usually make my cream of mushroom soup the night before I make the casserole.  It's also one of those dishes that tastes better when it sits in the fridge overnight.

Next, I steam my green beans for about 10 - 15 minutes.  The goal is to get them tender, but since they will be baked as well, try not to take them too far.  

Steamed

Now is the fun part!  It's all coming together! Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  In a bowl, mix your green beans and cream of mushroom soup together with about 3/4 of the can of french fried onions. 

Spread out the mixture in a casserole/baking dish.  Bake for 20 - 30 minutes.  It probably won't be ready at 20 minutes, but every oven bakes differently, so it's a good idea to check on the casserole every few minutes after the 20 minute mark.  I'm guessing at about 25 minutes, you'll want to pull it out and sprinkle the remaining french fried onions on top.  Bake for another 5 minutes.

 Before the oven

Done and done!
 

To make this recipe a little simpler, you can make the cream of mushroom soup with soy creamer, about 3 1/2 - 4 cups.  Before whisking it into the mushrooms and onions, coat everything in about 2 Tbs flour and whisk soy creamer in.  Whisk vigorously to get all flour clumps out and cook until desired thickness.

Next time I might add some Sherry to the cream of mushroom soup.  For tips on soaking cashews, check out this post.

 I know there has to be a better alternative than these!  So delicious, though.  Any suggestions??