After taking a long walk, I got started making the pies. First, the Tarte aux Pommes. I cut the apples and squeezed a little lemon juice on them. Half of them were sliced thinly, the other half were cooked and then blended into a smooth compote. The compote lines the crust and the thin slices go on top, dotted with vegan butter.
First Meal: With two pies completes, the Tarte aux Pommes and the Fresh Fruit Tart, I took a break to eat plain Black Beans on a Corn Tortilla.
After the beans I had more fruit: Cantaloupe, Apples and Plums. The apples were especially good. These were the leftover slices from the pie that had lemon juice on them.
Meanwhile Gary got to work on the savory foods. He marinated Tofu for the Chicken-fried Tofu dish we’ll be making for the main dish. He also prepared the Tempeh Bacon and the Seitan Bacon.
Gary does beautiful work. His Roasted Vegetables with a Balsamic Glaze are stunning.
His Garlic Mashed Potatoes with Cashew Cream are the best.
Gary had cooked the potatoes in water. He saved the water for cooking the greens – Kale and Broccoli Rabe. When the greens were done, I used the cooking water to prepare Quinoa. When it was done I added Black Beans, creating what Gary called “the employee meal”. This is what would sustain us tonight and tomorrow. Cooking the quinoa in the potato, greens water and letting it soak it all up gave it a lot of flavor.
It was getting late when we began to wrap the marinated Baked Tofu in Rice Paper, dipped it in flour, a dredging mixture and then bread crumbs. Then Gary sautéed them. Everything is looking good!
I took my pies out of the refrigerator to photograph them. Tomorrow I may forget. Here’s the Tarte aux Pommes.
And the Fresh Fruit Tart. It’s made with a layer of dark chocolate, topped with a cashew cream custard and fresh fruit.
It’s been a long day! We had our challenges too, not cooking in our own kitchen with our own cookware and equipment. BUt Gary’s cousin Nancy and his sister Deb were generous in lending us the things we needed. The water pressure in the kitchen sink had dropped to a trickle the day before and yet we managed to clean and wash all the dishes, pots and pans we used in our prep work. We did it all beautifully. That’s how the Swingin’ Gourmets roll.