Barbecue Seitan Sandwich with Green Slaw

I know I've featured barbecue seitan here before, but it's one of my favorites. And last time, it lacked this most delicious accompaniment. This crunchy, tangy slaw is so lovely with the sweet and smoky seitan.

For the Slaw:
1/2 a green cabbage, sliced into thin strips
1 turnip, peeled and sliced into matchsticks
2 leeks, white and light green parts sliced thinly
1 green apple, peeled and sliced into matchsticks
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
1/4 cup veganaise (or mayonnaise)
1 tb apple sauce
1 tb dijon
2 tb apple cider vinegar

For the Seitan:
1/2 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tb olive oil
1 8 oz package of seitan
1/2 cup barbecue sauce

Slaw:
Combine vegetables in a large bowl. Whisk sauce together and pour over the vegetables. Stir to combine thoroughly.

Seitan:
Saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil until the onions have softened. Add the seitan and continue to cook, stirring, until it's warmed through and slightly browned. Pour in the barbecue sauce and cook over low heat for about 5 minutes.

Green Spaghetti

From this recipe, with the following adjustments:

2 cups green cabbage, rather than 6 cups savoy cabbage
no anchovies
about 1/2 the cheese of the original, and I used a mix of romano and parmesan

Mushroom Soup

I made a quick soup with the things I happened to have in my refrigerator/pantry:

3 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 cup chopped bell peppers (I used green and yellow peppers)
2 tb olive oil (or butter, I'm trying not to be so buttery lately, but it would be good)
1 pound crimini mushrooms, chopped
5-6 dried morels or other dried wild mushrooms, hydrated for 10 minutes in 1 cup of warm water
1 cup white wine
1/4 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
2 cups vegetable stock
reserved morel soaking water (1 cup)
1/4 cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste

Saute the first three ingredients in the olive oil until the onions are softened. Stir in the mushrooms and continue to cook until the mushrooms begin to look shiny and soft (about four minutes). Pour in the white wine and cook until most of the liquid has cooked away. Add the bay and thyme leaves, then the vegetable stock and morel water. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 10 minutes.

Remove the bay leaf. With an immersion blender, puree the soup. Whisk in sour cream and season to taste.

Kale-Carrot-Cauliflower Timbales

About six leaves of kale, stem removed and leaves chopped

For the Carrot Puree:

3 carrots, peeled and quartered
2 small shallots, whole
1 clove garlic, whole
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp tumeric
1/4 cup milk

For the Cauliflower Puree:

Florets from 1 head of cauliflower
8 small shallots, whole
3 cloves garlic, whole
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp white pepper
1/4 cup milk

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Combine the carrots, shallots, and garlic clove in a roasting pan. Toss with olive oil (about 1 tb), salt, pepper and the dry spices. Roast for about 30 minutes, or until the carrots are tender.

In a second roasting pan (or in half of the same roasting pan) similarly roast the cauliflower with all its other ingredients, except the milk.

Removed the roasting vegetables from the oven and turn the temperature down to 350 degrees F.

Separately puree each vegetable mixture with 1/4 cup milk. Grease small ramekins and place a little kale in the bottom of each. Spoon carrot mixture on top of the kale, then the cauliflower mixture on top of the carrot. Place six ramekins in a baking dish and carefully pour water into the dish to surround them. The water should reach about 1/2 way up the outside of the ramekins. Bake for about 30 minutes, then turn the dishes out onto plates and enjoy.

I served this with a simple balsamic reduction: Bring 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar to a boil in a small saucepan. Turn down the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, or until reduced by half.

Vegetable Barley Soup

1/2 cup barley
1 russet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 parsnip, peeled and chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
1 yellow onion, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
2 tb olive oil
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup frozen or canned corn (or fresh in season)
a couple sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves
8 cups vegetable stock
salt and pepper to taste.

I used a rice cooker for the barley. It was super easy. But if you don't have a rice cooker, follow the instructions on the package. I just used water, but if you had extra stock, you could certainly use that too.

Parboil the potato until it's almost cooked. Set aside.

In a heavy bottom pot, saute the next six ingredients in the oil. When the carrots are almost cooked, add potatoes, peas, corn, thyme and bay leaves. Pour stock over the whole mixture. Bring to a boil, then simmer until everything is fully cooked. Stir in the cooked barley. Season to taste.

Remove the thyme and bay leaves before serving. This soup is best a couple days later.

Vegetarian Pasties

I know, friends. I've been gone for near a week and what do I bring you? More savory pies. Please know that I don't expect you to eat naught but buttery-crusty-vegetables. I promise a crustless vegan treat later this week. Stay tuned.

For the Crust:
Pate brisee by Martha Stewart (minus the sugar)

For the Filling:
1 russet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
florets from 1 head of broccoli
1 parsnip, peeled and chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1/4 green bell pepper, chopped
1/4 yellow bell pepper, chopped
2 tb butter
3-4 leaves of red kale, stem removed and leaves chopped
3 sage leaves, julienned
leaves from 1 sprig thyme
1/4 cup ricotta or other cheese (cream cheese, or shredded cheddar would be good too)
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Filling:
Separately parboil both the potato and the broccoli florets until they are almost cooked. Plunge into icy water, drain and set aside.

Over medium heat, saute the next six ingredients in the butter. When the carrots are almost cooked, wilt in the kale and add the herbs. Continue cooking for a couple minutes. Remove from heat.

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, stir together all ingredients. Let cool. A warning: I ended up with twice as much filling as crust. You might consider doubling the crust recipe, or enjoying the filling on a sandwich the next day.

To make the pasties:
If you use the exact pate brisee recipe above, separate the dough into four small disks, rather than two, before resting.

Roll out the disks until they're about eight inches across. Scoop about a 1/2 cup of filling onto one half of the disk. Brush the perimeter of that half with egg wash. Carefully fold the other half over and press down around the edges. Then, with the tines of a fork, crimp the edges. Snip the top a few times to allow steam to escape and brush with more egg wash. Bake at 400 degrees F for 30 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.

By the way, pasties, not to be confused with pasties, are a popular food in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Seitan Pot Pies

For the Crust:
Pie dough from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, by Mark Bittman.

For the Filling:
1 large russet potato, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/3 bunch of red kale
2 tb butter
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 leek, white and light green parts sliced thinly
3 shallots, sliced thinly
1 celery stalk, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
leaves from one sprig of thyme
5 sage leaves, julienned
1/3 cup frozen peas
1, 8 oz package of seitan, chopped

For the Roux:
2 tb butter
2 tb flour
2 cups vegetable stock
2 tb heavy cream

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Crust:
The pie crust I made was a very simple flour-butter-water dough. I've only recently starting making my own crusts, but I've found that it's very helpful to freeze a large, non-stick cookie sheet while the dough is resting. Then, I flour that sheet and roll the crust out on top of it. It keeps the dough cold while you're rolling it out and it almost entirely eliminates sticking. If the dough gets too warm, it's easy to put the whole thing back in the freezer to cool for a while. I rolled the dough out then used a cup to cut out circles that would fit the timbales I was using.

Filling:
Boil the potato until just tender. After removing tough stems, blanch the kale for a few minutes, then let it sit in some ice water while you work on the rest of the filling.

In a large, heavy-bottom pan, melt butter over medium heat, and saute carrot, leek, shallots, celery and garlic until the carrots are nearly cooked and the shallots are soft and slightly browned. Stir in the herbs. Remove the kale from its icy bath and squeeze out as much water as possible. Then chop the leaves into small pieces and, along with the peas and seitan, add to the filling. Stir to blend and let the mixture cook a little longer, until the vegetables are soft and the seitan is warm and flavorful.

Roux:
Melt butter over medium-low heat and whisk in the flour. Continue whisking for several minutes to cook the flour. It may clump up; that's ok. Add the vegetable stock and keep whisking. After a few minutes the sauce will thicken. Stir in cream, then pour over the filling.

Spoon filling into timbales (makes about 10, 3 inch individual pies) or into a large baking dish for a single pie. Let cool. Cover timbales with appropriately sized crust disks. Snip the middle of the crust to allow steam to escape and crimp the edges with the tines of a fork. Brush with egg wash. Bake at 400 degrees F for about 30 minutes or until the crusts are golden brown.

Roma Tomato White Pizza

Pizza Dough
Olive Oil
Shallots
Garlic
Basil
Tomatoes

We ate this alongside a salad. Extra delicious tip: pile your vinaigrettely-dressed salad right on top of the pizza and enjoy!

Acorn Squash Tacos

1 acorn squash
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeño, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tb butter
1 tb olive oil plus more for roasting
1/4 tsp coriander
1/4 tsp cumin
salt and pepper to taste
1 tb cilantro, chopped
tortillas
fresh salsa (this recipe will have to come another day)
tomatoes
sour cream

Slice squash in half length-wise. Scoop out seeds, then horizontally cut the fruit into 1/2 inch-thick slices. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, then roast at 450 degrees F for about 20 minutes. When cooked and cooled, peel the squash and set aside.

Over medium heat, melt the butter with the olive oil. (For a vegan version, skip the butter and double the oil). Then, saute the onions, red pepper, jalapeño, and garlic until garlic is fragrant and the onions have softened. Add the dry spices, then stir in cooked squash. Season to taste, and pile the filling into warmed tortillas. Garnish with cilantro, fresh salsa, tomatoes and sour cream for the dairy-eaters.

(inspiration)

Reggae Birthday

In honor of my friend Rob's birthday, I present this delicious Black Uhuru song.

Tempeh Loaf

For the Tomato Sauce:
1 can whole peeled tomatoes
2 tb balsamic vinegar

For the Loaf:
1 carrot
1/2 large onion
1 celery stalk
1/3 cup walnuts
2 garlic cloves
2 tb butter
leaves from 1 thyme sprig
1 pound crimini mushrooms
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
2 tb parsley, chopped
1, 8 oz package of tempeh, crumbled
salt and pepper to taste
1 beaten egg
1 egg white
1/4 cup milk

Sauce:
You could use ketchup, but I made a simple sauce out of a can of organic whole tomatoes and some balsamic vinegar. Puree the tomatoes with their juice and pour into a small saucepan. Stir in the vinegar and let simmer while you prepare the loaf, or until it's cooked down to about half its original volume.

Loaf:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a hot pan, melt butter. Meanwhile, use a food processor to chop the carrot, onion, celery, walnuts and garlic into small, uneven pieces. Pour onto butter and saute until the vegetables begin to soften. Add thyme leaves. Again, use the food processor to chop the mushrooms into small pieces. Add these to the cooking vegetables and continue to saute it all. Cook until the mushrooms release their moisture.

In a large mixing bowl, mix breadcrumbs and parsley. Add mushroom mixture and crumbled tempeh to the breadcrumbs and stir until well blended. Season to taste. Pour in 1/2 the tomato sauce, the egg, egg white and milk and stir to blend completely. Spread mixture into a greased loaf pan and pour remaining tomato sauce on top. Bake in 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes.

Celery Root and Leek Potato Cakes with Mushroom Gravy

For the potato cakes:
3 large, starchy potatoes
2 leeks, sliced thinly (white and light green parts only)
1 carrot, sliced thinly
1 celery root, chopped into thin strips about 1 inch long
2 tb butter
3 cloves garlic
5 sage leaves, sliced into thin strips
2 beaten eggs
1 tb fresh parsley, chopped
1 cup or more panko bread crumbs
olive oil for pan frying
salt and pepper to taste

For the mushroom gravy:
3 tb butter
2 tb flour
1 cup vegetable stock
3 small shallots, sliced thinly
2 cloves garlic
1 pound crimini mushrooms
5 morel mushrooms, hydrated and chopped
4 sage leaves, sliced into thin strips
leaves from 1 sprig of thyme
1 cup dry white wine
salt and pepper to taste

Potato Cakes:
Boil potatoes (or use leftover mashed potatoes, as long as they don't contain too much milk or other liquid). Meanwhile, melt butter in a heavy bottom pan and saute the leeks, carrots, and celery root over medium heat until the vegetables begin to soften. Add the garlic and sage and continue to saute until vegetables are cooked through. Add cooked potatoes to the celery root mixture and puree. Season to taste. Remove the puree from the heat and allow it to cool.

Once cooled, stir in parsley and beaten eggs. Then, drop large spoonfuls of the pureed potato mixture onto the bread crumbs, and coat. Form into cakes and set each one carefully onto a hot, olive-oil-coated-pan. Cook each side for about 3 or 4 minutes or until golden brown.

Gravy:
Make a roux with 2 tb of the butter, flour, and vegetable stock. Meanwhile saute shallots, garlic, sage and thyme in the remaining butter until the shallots are soft and translucent. Add the whole criminis and the morels and cook until they begin to release some of their liquid and soften. Pour in white wine and continue cooking. After a few minutes, pour the roux into the mushroom mixture and continue cooking until the liquid has thickened sufficiently and the mushrooms are cooked. Season to taste. Set some whole mushrooms aside, then puree the rest of the mixture. Return the whole mushrooms to the gravy, pour onto plates and serve with potato cakes.

Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese

Vegan tomato soup from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, by Mark Bittman

Sourdough bread
Muenster cheese
Butter

Butternut Squash Ravioli

Pasta:
(from the May 2005 issue of Bon Appétit)

Filling:
1 butternut squash
1 tb butter
1 shallot, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped finely
1/4 tsp thyme leaves
4 fresh sage leaves, sliced into thin strips
1/4 cup ricotta
salt and pepper to taste

Sauce:
2 tb olive oil
1/2 cup grated parmesan
2 tb purple basil, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Peel the squash, slice in half lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds. Then, chop the squash into 3/4 inch cubes and steam for 7-10 minutes over boiling water.

Meanwhile, saute the chopped shallots in the butter until translucent. Add garlic and continue sauteing until fragrant. Add thyme and sage, stir and remove from heat.

Mix the shallot mixture with the steamed squash, ricotta, salt and pepper, and use an immersion blender to blend all ingredients until smooth.

Scoop tsp-sized portions of the filling onto the fresh pasta, about one inch apart. Lightly brush pasta with water and fold it over the filling and onto itself. To seal, press down on pasta around the filling, pushing out any trapped air. Cut around filling* and carefully drop the fresh ravioli into a large pot of boiling water. Cook until the ravioli begin to float, about 3 or 4 minutes.

Mix the sauce in the bottom of a large serving bowl. With a slotted spoon, scoop cooked ravioli out of the boiling water and carefully place them in the same serving bowl with the sauce. Toss gently and serve.

*You could stop here and freeze the ravioli for later. To do this, carefully set ravioli onto a cookie sheet and freeze until solid. Then, place the frozen ravioli into freezer bags and store.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

(inspired by Culinary Concoctions by Peabody)

World Vegetarian Day

Today is world vegetarian day! Hello, world!