Vegan Mofo V Day 24 - Scallion Pancakes!!!!!!!!

The first time I had scallion pancakes was when I lived in Brookline ten years ago. They were from Lucky Wah, which was right around the corner from our place. I was hooked immediately. I've had some at other restaurants since but these will be the standard by which they're all judged. I'm not even sure if they are the best, but they were the first I ever had so that's how I expect them to be from that point forward. Plus the sauce they sent with them was so very good. Now I could probably pick it apart and figure it out but back then I was clueless. It had just the tiniest bit of sweetness that made it perfect. I am definitely swining by there whenever I am back on the east coast.

If I got back into my themes, this would fit under "Stuff I Always Say I'm Going to Make, but Haven't Yet". I'm addicted to these pancakes and unfortunately my 2nd favorite place to get them has stopped making them, boo! Sometimes they have them in the asian markets, but they don't taste as good, so you just have to make your own. Since I've recently gotten more comfortable with flipping and frying, it seemed like a good time to go for it. Plus my sister put her "special tofu" on the menu for the week and they'd go together perfectly.

I used the recipe in Vegan Soups and Hearty Stews for All Occasions by Nava Atlas. It's very simple with only a few ingredients: whole wheat pastry flour, salt, baking powder, water and scallions. Sesame seeds are optional but I had them so they went into the bowl too. I forgot to pay attention when adding the oil so I put too much, lucky for me I like greasy food, but you could do well with less for sure. These came out tasty, but of course not like my #1 jam at Lucky Wah (not to discourage anyone from trying them, they are delicious!) It's a close substitute for now though. I will keep trying until I get it right.

I Make Dough, But Don't Call Me Dough Boy(chucker)

I have been wanting soft pretzels loaded with mustard for about a week now. Today I decided to do something about it. I used the "Soft Pretzels" recipe from The Joy of Vegan Baking. I've never worked with yeast before, partly because I was afraid of it not working out and also because I have hardly any patience. So this was a 2-for-1: get over fear of unfamiliar ingredients and learn to enjoy waiting. I had a blast rolling and shaping the dough, my niece not so much. I think next time I will roll the balls into sticks and then she can shape the pretzels. She got frustrated and it took away from the fun. Luckily they bake up quickly and everyone was happy as soon as she had a pretzel to snack on. As of this writing, only 7 pretzels remain (I had 3 and my niece had 2). Next time I will have to do a double batch or make sure someone else is here to confiscate them as soon as they exit the oven. I totally want to make pizza pretzels now!

Li'l ball of dough

All grown up now



Dough babies



My wannabe Wetzel's Pretzel twists

O.G. pretzels, half by me, half by my niece

Super salty the way I like 'em

Naked ones to be cinnamon-sugared  later

Ready to eat, no more time for pictures!