Vegan Eggs Benedict Florentine Omelettes with Sage Hollandaise Sauce

I've officially declared myself a single, domesticated housewife. Following a rousing 3-hour laundry session, the amount of delight I felt while pairing all of my mismatched socks today sealed the deal. Pitiful? Hell no. I'm ready for Wife Life when love finds me. I'm really enjoying my new life in the Gayborhood (aka West Hollywood) so far. To date, my favorite neighbor is a strapping young man by day and a Cher doppelgänger by night. I enjoyed life in Santa Monica, but considering it's the yoga capital of America, it had its fair share of angry people. The soccer moms fighting over the produce at the farmer's market have zero chill, and would hiss anything except "OM" if you get in their way. Let's just say I feel a little more in my element here. 

This post officially marks my one-year Blogaversary. I spent a good 2 hours last week musing over posts from the past 12 months. It was so interesting to notice not only how much has changed in my life, but how much I've grown as a chef, writer and photographer. If you asked me 5 years ago what I thought I'd be doing today, I probably would have said one of two things: 

1) Holding a steady position as an anchor person for a snappy news/talk show. I was a broadcast journalism major for a long 2 months. 

2) Harvesting a flourishing marijuana farm in northern California under the code-name "Pimpstress of Mystery." My posse would be comprised of people with street names like "Haze" and "Blitz", and I would fight off the DEA with my wit and charm. 

What a long way I've come, indeed. I decided to reward myself by making one of the things I miss the most: Omelettes. Even as a meat-eater, I never understood people when they said they just needed a big juicy steak. To be fair, I have really high iron levels. What I really miss are eggs. And Brie...which I hope to conquer soon. I started off with the Parmesan Blend I use all the time, and just kept altering the recipe until it provided that proper "egg-ish" taste and smell. I think this recipe still needs a bit of work, but for now, it really did the trick. 

Special shout-outs this week to Melisser...it was great to see you :) And to QuarryGirl, for being my Guinea Pig with the egg recipe. You both make me smile. There are several components to making this omelette a Benedict omelette, but you can make this your own way, too. Enjoy!

 

Vegan "Eggs" Benedict Florentine Omelettes with Sage Hollandaise Sauce

Chef's Note: Yo! It's Future Jenn. The year is 2022. The world has provided Vegan Liquid Egg Mix, so save yourself some time and skip to the "Sage Hollandaise" section.

To make the "Omelette"

• 1 lb package Nasoya Silken Tofu
• 1/4 cup Vegan Heavy Cream (or 1/2 cup Soy Milk thickened with 1 TBSP Corn Starch)
• 1/4 + 1/8 cup "Egg" Mix (recipe follows)
• 1 TBSP Mellow White Miso Paste
• Dash of Garlic Powder
• Dash of Turmeric
• Dash of Yellow Mustard Powder
• Dash of Curry Powder
• Salt, to taste
• 5 tsp Agar Powder

Grease two medium sized skillets with Canola Oil or Non-Stick spray, and set aside. Blend all of the above ingredients except the Agar Powder in a food processor until smooth. Pour into a sauce pan, and stir in the Agar Powder. Allow to sit for 5 minutes, then bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat while stirring occasionally. 

Allow it to boil for about a minute, then pour into the greased skillets and smooth out evenly with a spatula or spoon. Allow to refrigerate a few hours until completely set. 

When you're ready make your omelettes, gently remove from the pan, keeping the set mixture in one piece, by either turning the pan upside-down over a plate, or pushing out of the skillet onto a plate. It will look like this...

Add a little oil or earth balance the the pan, then brown on each side (flipping gently with a spatula) and fill with either the Florentine Benedict fillings, or whatever else tickles your fancy. 

To make the "Egg" Mix

• 1/3 cup Raw Walnut Pieces
• 1/3 cup Raw Cashew Pieces
• 3 TBSP Raw Sunflower Seeds
• 1/4 cup Roasted Sesame Seeds
• 1/4 cup Nutritional Yeast
• 2-3 tsp Kosher Salt
• Dash of Garlic Powder
• Dash of Turmeric
• Dash of Yellow Mustard Powder

Blend all the ingredients together in a food processor until the just start to stick together. It should smell/taste "eggy" to you when you're finished. Omit the last 3 ingredients to make a bitchin' parmesan substitute. Also great when sprinkled on tofu when making a scramble. 

To make the Sage Hollandaise Sauce...

• 1/2 + 1/4 cup Vegan Heavy Cream (or Cashew Mix)
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• Pepper, to taste
• 2 TBSP Vegan Butter, melted
• 1 3/4 TBSP Corn Starch mixed with 1 1/2 TBSP Cold H20
• 1 TBSP Fresh Lemon Juice
• 1/8 cup Fresh Sage Leaves
• Dash of Turmeric

Heat 1/2 cup of the Vegan Heavy Cream (or Cashew Mix) in a sauce pan over medium high heat until it just begins to boil. Pour into a blender, add salt and pepper, and place the lid on to trap in heat. 

In the same sauce pan, whisk the rest of the Heavy Cream, Cornstarch and Turmeric together, and heat over medium high, stirring constantly, until thickened/reduced by almost half. Scrape into the blender with the rest of the Heavy Cream, add melted Butter, Lemon Juice and Sage, and blend until smooth. 

Reheat over low heat or microwave before serving. 

To make the Vegan Bacon...

• 8 oz Super Firm Tofu, pressed, drained & dried well - cut into Bacon size slices
• 4 TBSP Soy Sauce
• 2 TBSP Bragg's Liquid Amino
• 2 1/2 TBSP Mirin
• About 12 drops of Liquid Smoke
• 1/2 tsp Better Than Bouillon's No Beef Base combined with 1 TBSP Hot Water
• Dash of Garlic Powder
• Dash of Onion Powder
• 1-2 tsp Canola Oil
• 1/2 tsp Beet Powder (optional...for color)

Take the tofu slices, and stack in a Tupperware container. Combine the rest of the ingredients well, then pour over the tofu slices. Allow to marinate for a few hours. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a sheet pan with Canola oil, then spread out pieces of tofu evenly. 

Allow to bake 4-7 minutes on each side, flipping once, until browned...

Dice up and place in the omelette. 

For the English Muffin Croutons...

• 1 Vegan English Muffin, diced into cubes
• 1 TBSP Vegan Butter, melted
• 1 clove garlic, minced

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. In a mixing bowl, toss all of the crouton ingredients until the cubes of English Muffin are well coated, then bake on a greased baking sheet until brown and crispy. 

For the Spinach...

• 2 cups Baby Spinach Leaves
• 2 TBSP Vegetable Broth
• 2 tsp Lemon Juice
• 2 cloves Garlic, minced
• Salt and Pepper, to taste
• Olive Oil, enough for cooking (About 1 TBSP)

Combine Vegetable Broth and Lemon Juice, and set aside. Over medium, heat the olive oil in a small skillet. Add the minced Garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds. 

Turn heat to low, add Spinach leaves, salt, pepper, and Broth/Juice mix, then stir to combine. Turn off the heat, and cover with a lid until the Spinach wilts, stirring occasionally.

Drain before adding to the omelette.