seitan and polenta skillet with fresh greens

I can't believe I made this and forgot to take a picture of it. Above is a picture that I stole from another blog, and since the recipe is posted there I figure it's safe to post here as well. I'm still not sure about the blog-etiquette of posting recipes from cookbooks! Is there anyone more knowledgeable who can fill me in on that? But anyhow, the reason that I forgot to take a picture is because this looked and smelled so delicious that I just DEVOURED IT. My husband was actually looking at me strangely because I was eating so fast. And I ate so fast that I was a bit woozy afterwards from it, ha. I guess I should make food that looks less appetizing when I feel starved!

Ingredients:

One 18-ounce tube polenta
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
Cooking oil spray, optional
1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 pound seitan, cut into bite-sized pieces or strips
4 large or 6 medium stalks bok choy, with leaves, sliced crosswise*
5 to 6 ounces baby spinach**
4 scallions, sliced
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, or more to taste
1/4 cup oil-packed sliced sun-dried tomatoes, optional
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Cut the puckered ends off the polenta, then slice 1/2-inch thick. Cut each slice into 4 little wedges.
2. Heat a wide nonstick skillet. Add a drop of the oil and spread it around with a paper towel to create a very light coat, or use cooking oil spray. Add the polenta wedges; cook in a single layer over medium heat until lightly browned, about 5 minutes on each side.
3. Transfer the polenta to a plate. Heat the oil and soy sauce slowly in the same skillet. Before they get too hot, add the seitan and stir well. Raise the heat to medium-high and saute, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes. Stir in the bok choy, spinach and scallions, then cover and cook until just wilted, 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Sprinkle in vinegar to taste. Gently fold in the polenta wedges and sun-dried tomatoes, if using. Season with salt and pepper, and serve at once.

* I had no bok choy when making this, but it was still really good.
** When I saw this number I was like "Holy crap, that's a whole package of spinach!" But I learned something new about cooking -- spinach shrinks down a lot when it wilts, so even though I felt like I was putting in a ton of spinach I probably could've thrown in more (I put in about half a package, ~3 oz)

seitan & green beans

I'd never tried seitan before this meal, and had a package sitting in my fridge for quite a while before finally taking the plunge with this recipe from Vegan Planet. I'd also never used shallots, and just so happened to have picked up a bag of them.

Everyone should really own this cookbook. Basically, you steam the beans, brown the seitan for about five minutes in olive oil along with the shallots and garlic, and then transfer the seitan to a bowl. Add some sherry to the skillet, then stir in a little dijon and tamari and vegetable stock and let it reduce for about 10 minutes. Add in the seitan and the beans, let it heat a couple minutes, and then serve over rice. Go pick up the book if you want specifics though!

This meal officially made seitan my favorite meat analogue. It has a such a perfect texture, and the flavors in this dish were divine. The next time I have my parents over for dinner, this is what I'm making. I think even my meat-loving father would approve.