Piroshki are small Russian hand pies, usually filled with potato & onion, kasha (buckwheat), or ground meat. This one is filled with simple mashed potatoes (potatoes, Earth Balance margarine, salt & pepper) for Little shmoo, who loves simple potatoes. So, we've got one potato piroshki, peas & carrots, and a pear, along with four Reduced Fat Triscuits (they're finally making them without trans fats!) and four slices of Soy Deli Savory Baked Tofu.Verdict: The piroshki were delicious (FYI, I made the same rich, "buttery" dough I used to wrap Pups In A Blanket back in September -- and yes, it will be in the cookbook). We hadn't tried storebought baked tofu before; I was worried it would be too spicy, but it wasn't spicy in the least. My son liked nibbling it on crackers, and I put some in my salad for lunch. Only a few little peas were left rattling around in the lunch box. 5 stars.
36 comments:
Looks delish. I miss piroshki. . . I loved them as a kid. My parents used to reward my good grades in school with a special meal (maybe not the healthiest practice, admittedly), and I always chose Mrs. Paul's Pirogies back in the day.
Mm, I loved them. But, sadly, they are ::not vegan::
And, also ::full of trans fats::
Sigh. I can't wait for the cookbook, it sounds like it is full of wonderful comfort foods!
I've never had piroshki before, but this reminds me of the "empanada" that they make in the Philippines where I grew up.
Jennifer, when is the book going to be available?
This looks wonderful, as always. Was the tofu on the mushy side by the time lunch rolled around? I like the maze too.
Mmm, we all want peas... World peas.
Yum!!
My mother always tried to steer me toward sweet potato because it's so much better for you than regular. Does shmoo not like sweet potato?
Hi, I am new to your blog and have enjoyed reading it very much. :-) I have noticed that you put wonderful sliced fresh fruit in the lunch box. Do you soak it in lemon juice to keep it from turning brown? Your lunches are lovely.
Did he solve the maze you plunked in there with that mouth watering lunch? Or is that his napkin...
Peas, peas, peas and carrots! Let's hear it for peas and carrots!
(Big Veggie Lover here, LOL)
I can't wait for your cookbook to come out!
Looking good. Yeah, that definitely sounds like an emponada like my hispanic friends make (not vegan, tho).
In Iraq we use ground chick peas, parsely, sauteed onions, and pine nuts in the blnket. We add a bit of alspice, salt a pepper. Vegatarian, and so good. Michelina
Piroshki reminds me of a Kinish. You should try making them for Shmoo. There are differant kinds. I'm fond of the potatoe ones but I'm sure you can use non dairy cheese to make them too.
Jenn, I tried your snack of bananas, pineapple, and walnuts this morning and I LOVED IT! What a treat and so simple.
I tried a different kind of veggie meal for my omni family this evening. You can read about it and see pics at my blog if you like:http://weavingatapestry.blogspot.com/
You're such an inspiration to this mom of diehard omnivores!
Oh wow, I have never heard of or tried piroshki before but it looks gorgeous! I'm going to try making some today, yum, yum. :)
Congrats on your award too!
MissMeshell xx
Wow, Michelina, that sounds good. I love sauteed onions.
>>Was the tofu on the mushy side by the time lunch rolled around?
No, it still had a very firm texture. This baked tofu is firmer than any I've ever tried before; it almost reminded me of mozzarella slices.
>>Piroshki reminds me of a Kinish
Yes, my husband and I were researching and trying to discover the differences between the two; they sound very similar. And empanadas, cornish pasties, and calzones are all similar, too. Savory hand pies have a long tradition in all sorts of cultures -- it's fascinating!
Hi, Kim -- Woo hoo! I'm so glad you liked the fruit salad! I'll let my mom know -- she taught me that particular fruit combination, and it's always a big hit whenever I make it.
>>My mother always tried to steer me toward sweet potato because it's so much better for you than regular. Does shmoo not like sweet potato?
Oh, one of the things I still don't understand is how anyone can not like sweet potatoes, but he doesn't seem to (yet?). He'll eat it in muffins or pie, though, so there's hope! I could eat them every day...
>>I have noticed that you put wonderful sliced fresh fruit in the lunch box. Do you soak it in lemon juice to keep it from turning brown?
No, we found lemon juice to be too sour, so I use orange juice.
>>Did he solve the maze you plunked in there with that mouth watering lunch? Or is that his napkin...
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I tucked in a maze today for fun. :-)
Oh, but I should add I did decide to wrap the tofu slices in plastic before shutting the lid, because I didn't want the Triscuits to get soggy. I sometimes do some extra wrapping or rethinking after I've taken the picture...
This is just sort of somethign is lunch box reminded me of...Have you read "Vegan Planet"? I wondered if you use any of those recipies because I got that cookbook from the library and it reminded me of some fo the stuff you have made (can't think of anythign in particular).
ps. If you have is their any recpipies you recomend, since I can't keep it forever I wanted to try some good ones...
Great idea to send that baked tofu with crackers. I've got high schoolers but they pack a lunch every day and we do a lot of the baked tofu. I know they wouldn't do the peas though ;-)
That baked tofu does look pretty great. I was also opposed to do the idea of packaged prebaked tofu until I tried it at last year's NW VegFest, and now I certainly do not mind it : )
HI Jennifer:
What ratio of water to lemon juice have you tried for fruits or are you using straight lemon juice? You should not have any taste of the lemon juice or bitter flavor. I find that most people use straight lemon juice.
Most common ratio one part lemon juice to two parts water. I personally tend to use a one-to-one ratio.
I also like raspberry vinegar that will leave a flavor of raspberries. Slice pears with raspberry vinegar. Yummy!!!
SuzAnne
As a granddaughter of Russian immigrants, I can vouch for the deliciousness of piroshki! I never thought of vegan Russian cuisine though, because butter and meat are so important to my family's cooking. Thanks for taking me where I have never been before!
Did you check with nabisco on the monoglycerides in the triscuits?... I am usually a paranoid vegan when it comes to mono and di glycerides. Just wondering...
Does he eat the veggies cold? My boys will eat raw veggies (cold) but won't touch cooked veggies that aren't hot...
Also, when packing hot foods in the thermos, how hot does it stay? I have to pack lunches @ 6am and the boys don't eat 'till noon so I worry about food safety if the temp isnt maintained warm enough!
Thanks!
PS Love, love, love your blog!
Yes, he eats the veggies cold (think of all the cold peas and beans at the salad bar). I preheat the thermos by filling it with boiling water and covering it for 10 minutes before filling with food (which I also heat to near-boiling). It stays nice and hot til lunchtime (about 5 hours or more). Hope that helps!
>>I also like raspberry vinegar that will leave a flavor of raspberries. Slice pears with raspberry vinegar. Yummy!!!
Ooh, that sounds good! Great idea!
Can you tell us more about the cookbook?
LOVE LOVE LOVE the blog! Thanks so much for all the inspiration.
Just found your blog and love it. I was getting stuck on ideas for lunch and now have some ideas.
thanks !
http://morningramble.blogspot.com/
So is this your first cookbook?
Please keep us up to date! I'd like to get it.
I grew up on pierogis. My father is (1/2 Ukranian and it is a time consuming but delicious dish). This is similar only you boil pierogis. The traditional recipe has cottage cheese, sliced cheddar cheese, potatoes, etc in a dough but my vegan version has potatoes,mushroom, etc. And instead of butter and onions for the sauce, I use earth balance and onions. They are still delicious. Your lunchbox reminded me of them.
Looks good, as always!! Hope the piroshki recipe is in the cookbook!! =)
I love that baked tofu. I've gotten the hickory kind to replace bacon style tempeh when I was making BLTs and my grocery store didn't have tempeh. I also got the honey sesame kind the other day and used it in this salad. Yummy!
i love piroshki !! i use to frequent 'the house of piroshki' in san francisco as a kid..these sound great and i am sure less fattening...cool idea!
Piroshki - this word means just pies in Russian; so they can be whatever pies.
Sorry for being a grammer nitpicker... but one russian pie is "pirog" and more than one is "pirozhki" or however you want to spell it with the English alphabet.
My Russian and Ukrainian friends make it with cabbage for vegetarian me, with a bit of vinegar, salt and some other spices (or add ins like boiled beets). It's delicious! You might also want to try it during pumpkin season. Pumpkin pirozhki are excellent, just pumpkin, onions and some salt, pepper and flavored oil to taste. It's savory, which is interesting because in America, we always try to make our pumpkin sweet.
If you have a Trader Joe's around, try their version of Triscuits. They taste better, cost less, and well, only have 3 ingredients. I don't think they ever had trans-fats!
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