Vegan Saag Paneer with Home Made Paneer Cheese

I was never one of those girly little girls that imagined "fairies and rainbows and sparkles" at her wedding.  I didn't even think about them. In fact, my only vague memories of extreme party planning are tied to my Bat Mitzvah...the most vivid of one being the argument between my grandmother and I when I demanded I wear a pants suit instead of a dress. How I didn't know I was gay when I was 12 is still a mystery to me. But I digress...

I have been duped into being a bridesmaid, and need a serious crash-course in planning a wedding. It's not my friend's requests to help with planning the party and surrounding events, but more the questions I don't know how to answer. I'm honored to be a part of a lesbian wedding party, but am left awkwardly tripping over my own words when my friend asks questions like: "Do we play 'Here comes the bride' or 'Here come the brides'?" 

My suggestion was to change the norm, and play "Back dat ass up"  while they did exactly that down the aisle. "What do you think of our color scheme?"  I don't fucking know. What am I supposed to say? "You're more of a 'summer and your fiancé is more of a 'winter'". I guess that leaves "spring" colors being their happy medium. What I'm dreading most? Wearing a Bridesmaids dress. I'm internally disrupted. I can't even pick out a dress for myself that fits, let alone a pre-selected one. I'm worried it will require extensive tailoring because I haven't grown since I was 14. 

I need to find a way to ground myself, and focusing on being happy for my friend. I want their wedding to be fun and full of warm & fuzzy love. Then, we all get shit-faced drunk and dance on the tables...just like another memory from my Bat Mitzvah that sadly involved my grandma as the table-dancer. 

There's one thing I do know: Give a Shagrin a bottle of good wine, and the evening will not turn out bland. Now the question I know you're dying to ask: "What about the food?!" 

I did enjoy helping them decided to go with a blend of Indian and American cuisines. It's easily vegan, and pleases almost anyone. Of course, I offered my culinary expertise should their catering chef have any questions. Here's one suggestion:

 

Saag Paneer with Home Made Vegan Paneer Cheese

• 2 TBSP Vegan Ghee (recipe follows) or Sunflower Oil
• 5 medium cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 TBSP finely chopped Ginger
• 1 cup Tomato Sauce
• 1 TBSP ground Coriander
• 1 tsp ground Cumin
• 1 tsp Cayenne Pepper
• 1 tsp Salt
• 2 10 oz packages Frozen Chopped Spinach, thawed and un-drained
• 1 batch of Home-Made Vegan Paneer (recipe follows, or sub cubed Super Firm Tofu fried as indicated in the Paneer recipe below).
• 1/2 cup Vegan Heavy Cream
• 1 tsp Garam Masala Powder

Heat oil in 3-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add garlic and ginger root; stir-fry 1 to 2minutes or until garlic is golden brown. Stir in tomato sauce, ground coriander, ground cumin, ground red pepper, and salt; reduce heat to low. 

Partially cover and simmer 7 to 8 minutes or until thin film of oil starts to form on surface of sauce. Stir in undrained spinach. Cover and simmer 8 to 10 minutes or until spinach turns a light olive green. 

Stir in Homemade "Cheese". Cover and simmer 3 to 4 minutes or until "cheese" is hot; remove from heat. Stir in heavy cream and Garam Masala.

Vegan Paneer

• 1 gallon (16 cups) High Fat Soy Milk (4-5g per serving)

• 1/3 cup + 1 1/2 TBSP White Vinegar

• Sunflower Oil, for deep-frying


Line large colander with cheesecloth, and place it in your sink. Heat soy milk to boiling in 6-quart stockpot over medium-high heat. Make sure to stir frequently while it's heating up to prevent scorching. The second that the soy milk hits the boiling point, quickly stir in the vinegar and remove from heat. The soy milk will immediately separate into vegan "curds" and "whey" . Pour the contents of the pot into the cheesecloth lined colander in the sink, then lift edges of cloth, hold up the "cheese" in the cloth, and pour any excess liquid out of the colander. Completely wrap the "curds" in cloth, and place them back in the colander. Making sure to use an object that covers the entire surface area of the "cheese" in the cloth, place a weight on top of the "cheese". I use a stock pot with a cast iron skillet resting on top of it. You can also just fill a correctly sized stock pot with water to use as a weight. Leave the "cheese" in the sink for 5 to 6 hours to drain well. After 5-6 hours, remove the weight and transfer the "cheese" to a cutting surface. Unwrap and discard the cloth, then slice the "cheese" into 1/2 inch cubes. Place the cubes on a plate, sprinkle with a pinch of salt, then cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours or up to 12 hours. They should look like so: Heat 3 inches deep of sunflower oil in dutch oven or stock pot over medium high heat. When the temperature reads 300 degrees (or when testing one piece of cheese, it fries), deep fry the cheese in two batches for 4-5 minutes until it floats to the top and is golden brown. Use a skimmer or slotted spoon to remove it from the pot, then drain on paper towel lined plate. Use immediately, refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 4 days, or freeze for a few months.

 

Vegan Ghee

• 1 stick (or 8 TBSP) of Vegan Butter

Heat the stick of margarine over low-low heat, stirring constantly, until it reduces by a little more than half. This should take about 10-20 minutes (at least). Every stove is different. Keep an eye on it until it reduces without burning any of it. It should be a clear, butter-colored liquid.