Peppered Seitan Sandwiches with Creamy Mustard Sauce, the 65′s, the Jungle Giants and Silverclub
I roll my eyes at food geeks all the time. I know, I’m sort of one, but would an actual food geek forget to tell someone that nutritional yeast is in the mix? Didn’t think so. When I ask someone about a dish and they start to describe it down to the smallest detail, for instance the bread, my eyes glaze over spittle forms at the side of my brain stem and I go to my safe place (which used to be my VD until Sarah and Hannah snipped that this weekend). This week, things began to change. First there was the aforementioned destruction of my safe place which forced me to actually listen to people rather than retreat. Then there was my purchasing of Ciabatta bread for some sandwiches.
Ciabatta bread is a food geek’s yeast filled wet dream. Put some faux meat, fresh vegetables, cheese and some sort of condiment on it and you’ve got the kind of thing that causes nations to go to war with each other. I’m going to try my hardest, when someone asks about a dish, to not emphasize the bread because that’s geeky. But at the same time, Ciabatta makes avoiding blue hosiery difficult.
Peppered Seitan Sandwiches with Creamy Mustard Sauce
(printable version)
for the seitan:
-1 pound of homemade seitan
-vegetable oil
-freshly ground black pepper
for the mustard sauce:
-2 shallots, minced
-1 garlic clove, minced
-1 cup veggie broth
-2 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
-Dash of almond milk
for the sandwiches:
-Ciabatta bread, toasted
-arugala
-favorite vegan (or regular) cheese
1. Make the seitan according to directions. Place in a colander and allow to drain for twenty minutes.
2. On a small plate, grind the peppercorns until almost the entire plate has been covered. Roll the three balls of seitan in it, regrinding more if necessary.
3. In a cast iron skillet, heat the vegetable oil over high heat. When the oil is extremely hot, place one seitan ball in it and sear for about a minute on each side. Remove from the oil and place on a aluminum foil lined plate. Repeat with the other two seitan balls. Place the seitan in the refrigerator until cold.
4. For the mustard sauce. Scrap some of the pepper out of the cast iron skillet. Add the shallots and garlic. Cook until they are lightly browned (about two minutes). Pour in the vegetable broth and increase the heat to high for a minute. Stir in the mustard and almond milk. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the sauce takes on a mustard like texture (about 15 minutes). At this point it should coat the back of a spoon.
5. Remove the cold seitan from the refrigerator. Slice it into pieces that are about 1/4 of an inch thick.
6. Assemble the sandwiches by placing mustard on the toasted bread, two slices of seitan, arugula and cheese and two more slices of seitan. Top it with the other slice of bread. Succumb to geekdom.
The 65′s are no stranger to the world of rock music. I mean the four members of the band have performed in a number of other outfits including: The Dark Brothers, Puggle, c.i infidels, Electric Frankenstein, The High School Sweethearts, Balloon Squad and Shirk Circus. Now they have brought all that luggage, hopefully covered by a ton of stickers, together to create a “punk influenced gritty rock band in the vein of Husker Du or the Replacements.” The band recently signed to Dromedary Records and will have a CD forthcoming shortly. You can get your first taste of the new album in its entirety at the Dromedary Records room on Turntable FM this Sunday at 8:00 PM. For an appetizer, check out “Walk on Selfishly”:
The Jungle Giants is an Australian band that is quickly garnering a lot of attention. Their sounds aren’t anything unique, pop music with some Afrobeat, lyrics that bounce and shout at just the right time. But one thing I know is that I would trade all the boring uniqueness in the world for something that isn’t cutting edge but is catchy as hell. That’s the Jungle Giants. Here’s their first single “Mr. Polite.”
The Jungle Giants – Mr Polite by MuchoBravado
Silverclub is a project based on the studio experimentation of Duncan Edward Jones. Last December, the band released an EP titled Answers that has cemented them as one of the UK”s most exciting new acts. I can’t say I love the lyrics of their new song “No Application” (“ain’t no application on your laptop that will give you soul”) but I do love the music and the way it makes me feel. I can learn to like the lyrics, it will just take time. “No Application” comes from their brand new EP, No Application, which was released on Tuesday via Hidden Pony Records. A full length is set for early next year.
“No Application” – Silverclub by PlanetaryOnlinePR
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Jackie @ Vegan Yack Attack! says:
This looks so good! I’ll definitely have to try out the peppered seitan.
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