Six Degrees of Dessert…

So Kyle and I said we weren’t going to eat dessert anymore…that didn’t last long. Although I had fun using inspiration from one recipe to make the next dessert! Kevin Bacon, eat your heart out!

Lemon Cheesecake Bars from Martha Stewart were veganized to make the most delicious and easiest recipe. I think I used 1 cup of graham cracker crumbs, sugar and Earth Balance for the crust, then vegan soy cream cheese, 2 teaspoons egg replacer powder, 3/4 cup sugar and juice/rind of one lemon. My mom also tried making a lime version. Both are to die for. They would be really cute topped with a tiny lemon wedge or fancy rind, but I was too lazy for that.

On the lemon theme, I made the Coconut Lemon Bundt Cake from Vcon for mamma’s day. I’ve made it before, but this time I topped it with a lemon glaze. One of my fave recipes.

From Vcon again, I made the Vanilla Yogurt Pound Cake. Omigod. So spongy! The best vegan angel food cake-like recipe I’ve found! Yum!

Eager to make the pound cake again, I did but switched it up to be a trifle using cubes of pound cake, vanilla custard, strawberries tossed with maple syrup, and Soyatoo whipped topping. Even my grandma gave me positive comments! I think she is on the vegan bandwagon…finally! She’s come a long way from trying to persuade me to eat a porkchop because it’s ‘really tender’ and to eat a salad that has chicken because ‘it’s just chicken’.

To use up extra maple syrupy strawberries, I made a Coconut Ice Cream from a recent VT issue. It was a little icy.

Eager to use up the ice cream, we picked some fresh rhubarb to make Fresh Rhubarb Parfaits from a recent VT (maybe the same issue as the ice cream? Can’t remember!). The combo of orange and ginger was amazing. I threw in a few strawberries for extra sweetness, although it really didn’t need it.

Popularity: unranked [?]

GUJARATI CHICKPEA FLOUR “OMELET” (CHILLA)– FUSION-STYLE; AND FAT-FREE HASH BROWNS, 2 WAYS

Italian-style Chilla!

I’m still on the quest for chickpea flour recipes! For lunch today I made a familiar recipe, a type of chickpea flour “omelet” or “crepe” that originated in the Indian state of Gujarat. When I first made it, I realized that it could be like a blank canvas for the styles of many different cuisines. Thus far I have made more-or-less traditional Indian chilla, Italian-style, Mexican-style, and even Japanese-style!

I developed this recipe for the book Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes, but, unfortunately, it didn’t make it into the final version. So here it is– give it a try!

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA’S CHILLA (CHICKPEA CREPES)
Servings: 5
Yield: makes 10/ 6″ thin “omelets”

This recipe is adapted from a traditional recipe from the Indian province of Gujarat (called a “chilla”), but the recipe lends itself to a variety of seasonings. The “crepes” can be filled with grilled vegetables for a special brunch dish.

In the photos for this blog post, I made the Italian-style version, and topped the “omelets” with some leftover homemade spaghetti sauce, mixed with some leftover tofu sour creme, and added some sautéed oyster mushrooms and a sprinkle of my homemade Okara Parmesan.

For an even lower-calorie, lower-fat Chilla, instead of all chickpea flour, use:
3/4 cup chickpea flour (besan)
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons split red lentils, ground in a DRY electric coffee mill/spice grinder until like flour
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1 1/2 cups cold water
1 1/2 cups chickpea flour (besan)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
3/4 cup chopped canned tomatoes, drained, or chopped fresh tomatoes
(or you can use roasted, peeled red bell peppers, fresh or from a jar)
Flavor Options:
Indian– 2 tablespoons chopped pickled jalapeños, 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Mexican– 2 tablespoons chopped pickled jalapeños, 2 teaspoons dry oregano, 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Italian– 2 teaspoon dry basil (or 2 tablespoon fresh, chopped), 2 cloves garlic, minced

Blend together the water, chickpea flour, sugar, salt, and turmeric with a whisk or hand immersion blender, or in a blender or a food processor. The batter should about the same consistency as a crepe batter. In a medium bowl, stir the tomatoes and any other optionals) into the mixture.

Heat a nonstick 7-8″ skillet over medium-high heat. Cook just as you would a crepe, using 1/4 cup batter for each, and spraying the pan with oil from a pump sprayer or cooking spray before cooking each “crepe”. Quickly pour in the batter and swirl it in the pan to make an approximately round, thin 6″ crepe-like round. Use the back of a spoon to smooth out the mixture and make it round, if you wish. (The batter is thin, so I just swirl it like crepe batter.)

When the bottom is golden-brown, and there are little holes in the batter on top, carefully loosen it with a very thin spatula, and turn it over. When just cooked dry on the other side, but not browned, remove it from the pan, place it on a platter, cover it with a clean towel, and continue until all of the batter is used up. Just stack the cooked “crepes” up on top of eachother and keep covered.

You can roll them up like traditional crepes,

fold them in half like an omelet,

or leave them flat.

Serve hot.

Serve Indian-flavored “omelets” with plain soy yogurt or tofu sour creme and any kind of chutney, or fill them with curried vegetables.

Serve Mexican-style “omelets” with tofu sour creme and your favorite salsa.

Serve Italian-style “omelets” with a non-dairy béchamel or cheesy sauce, or marinara (simple tomato) sauce, or grated soy mozza.

All go well with potatoes– we like them with Waffle Iron Hash Browns OR Oven-Crisped Hash Browns (see recipes below.)

MORE IDEAS:

JAPANESE-STYLE “OMELETS”: Use the basic batter with no additional ingredients. Use instead of Japanese thin egg omelet to cut into strips for sushi.

EGGLESS OKONOMIYAKI: Sprinkle a mixture of corn, baby peas, shredded cabbage or carrot; minced green pepper, chopped cooked green beans, and bits of cubed tofu over the batter in the pan just after you have formed the “omelet”, while it is still soft on top. Serve with brown rice and teriyaki sauce.

SWISS-STYLE “OMELET”: Use the basic batter with no additional ingredients. Fill the “omelets” with browned cooked potatoes and onions, and top with a non-dairy cheesy sauce or béchamel sauce, parsley, salt, pepper, and soy bacon chips or bits of vegetarian “bacon” or “ham”.

SPANISH “OMELETS”: Use the basic batter with no additional ingredients. Fill with sauteed onions, green pepper, tomato, garlic, perhaps mushrooms.

KENTUCKY “OMELETS”: Use the basic batter with no additional ingredients. Fill with sauteed onion, green pepper and corn kernels, with soy bacon chips.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 229.0 calories; 15% calories from fat; 3.8g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 414.2mg sodium; 536.6mg potassium; 35.6g carbohydrates; 6.3g fiber; 9.2g sugar; 29.3g net carbs; 12.6g protein; 4.1 points.

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Printable Recipe

BRYANNA’S WAFFLE IRON “HASH BROWNS”
Servings: 2
Yield: four 4″ “waffles”

This is a great breakfast dish, or even a snack when you are really hungry.

8 ounces red or new potatoes, scrubbed and grated
3 medium (12 ounces) carrots, scrubbed and shredded, or sweet potatoes or yams, peeled and shredded
1 tablespoon powdered egg replacer mixed with
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes
1 tablespoon oat bran
1 tablespoon dehydrated onion flakes
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic granules
2-4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Preheat a nonstick waffle iron.

In a medium bowl, mix together all of the ingredients well.

Spray the waffle grids lightly with oil from a pump sprayer, or with cooking spray. Pack half of the mixture into the hot waffle iron. Allow to cook 10-12 minutes, or until the mixture is well-browned and crispy-looking. Gently ease the “waffle” from the iron.

Serve the potatoes immediately, and repeat with the second half of the batter. Serve with ketchup, applesauce, or gravy.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 179.1 calories; 2% calories from fat; 0.6g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 777.6mg sodium; 1041.0mg potassium; 40.0g carbohydrates; 5.8g fiber; 5.2g sugar; 34.2g net carbs; 5.9g protein; 2.8 points.

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Printable Recipe

BRYANNA’S OVEN-CRISPED HASH BROWNS
Servings: 6

Easy, quick and fat-free– this will quickly become a favorite for breakfast or snack times.

3 cups grated new or red potatoes (about 4 medium)
3 cups grated peeled carrots, yams, or sweet potatoes ( about 18 ounces)
1 small onion, grated (optional)
salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste
Cajun seasoning, or Old Bay Seasoning (optional)

Preheat the oven to 500°F.

Mix the grated potatoes and carrots (with optional onion) in a medium bowl.

Mound the mixture on 2 nonstick cookie sheets sprayed lightly with oil from a pump sprayer, or with cooking spray, making 3 mounds on each. (If the mixture is very juicy, squeeze the juice into the bowl before you shape the mounds.)

Flatten the mounds with a spatula, or the palm of your hand. Sprinkle them with salt and pepper (and other seasonings, such as Cajun, if you like), and bake on the lower shelf of the oven for 10 minutes, or until browned on the bottom. Turn over and bake 7-10 minutes more, or until crispy.

Serve hot.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 91.7 calories; 2% calories from fat; 0.2g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 43.2mg sodium; 634.4mg potassium; 21.1g carbohydrates; 3.0g fiber; 3.0g sugar; 18.1g net carbs; 2.3g protein; 1.3 points.

Enjoy!

Popularity: unranked [?]

Pasta with tomatoes and artichoke hearts

What can I say? I was listlessly thumbing through a Parade Magazine one lazy Sunday when something caught my attention. Although it wasn’t labeled as such, there was a great-sounding vegan pasta dish filled with artichoke hearts. I immediately went for the scissors and cut it out because you can never have too many recipes containing artichoke hearts.

As it turns out, the dish was as good as I hoped it would be, though I think it should be served over linguine, which is my favorite pasta shape. We had ours over whole wheat penne rigate with a side of kale.

Tomatoes and artichoke hearts with pasta (adapted from a recipe by Sheila Lukins)

• 12 oz. oil-marinated artichoke hearts
• 1–2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup chopped onions
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 2 28-oz. cans plum tomatoes, crushed
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
• juice and zest of one small lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar (evaporated cane juice)
• 12 oz. package dried pasta, cooked (linguini recommended)

1. Drain the artichokes and cut them in half lengthwise.
2. Sweat the onions in the oil for 10 minutes. (Cook over low heat in a heavy, covered pot, until translucent) Add the garlic during the last two minutes.
3. Stir in the crushed plum tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, oregano, rosemary, sugar and red pepper flakes. (Rub the herbs quickly between you hands to release their oils, before adding)
4. Simmer, uncovered for 45 minutes.
5. Add the artichoke hearts and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. Stir in the parsley and lemon. Add salt and pepper if needed. Adjust sweetness, if needed.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Walking Like a Vegan Chic

Have you heard that Vegetarian Shoes and Bags is now Vegan Chic? And they have an even bigger selection of 100% vegan shoes, as well as bags, belts, wallets, and clothing! The easy-to-navigate website makes it a cinch to find what you’re looking for. Eco-sneakers for running errands around town? Check. Gladiator sandals for brunch with the girls? Check. Sexy peep-toe pumps for a night out with your honey? Check. Best of all, they have plenty of very affordable shoes (plus bags, wallets, and belts) in all the latest styles.

So what look did I go for? Some super sexy, oxford-detailed vegan pumps in cappuccino that will take me from the office to an evening of cocktails with friends. The Caroleena pump by Neuaura has a glossy brown finish with details that makes these shoes look more expensive than they actually are, but these shoes are built to last! I chose to wear mine without the ankle strap.
So the shoes look good but do they feel good? I felt these shoes ran true to size, though slightly on the narrow side (perfect for my narrow feet). The wide heel makes it such that I don’t feel like I’m having to balance on my toes while walking. They certainly aren’t as comfortable as my trusty flats, and if I didn’t have a desk job I probably wouldn’t last in them all day. But I thought they were cute enough to withstand a little pain. (no blisters, just sore arches and ankles)
A lot of my friends often remark that they wouldn’t waste their time purchasing shoes online… too risky. But I have found that with a little practice (yes, this likely involves returning a pair or two of shoes), you learn what brands and styles fit your feet. And for most vegans, there aren’t too many options at local stores for quality footware. What are your experiences with buying shoes online?

Popularity: -0% [?]

Vegan cooking class with Chef Paul Tseng

The last cooking class we took at the Willy St. Coop with Chef Paul was a Chinese cooking class with vegan options, and it included seafood and chicken. This class was called “Vegan All the Way” and it was pretty amazing. I’m trying to remember the order of events, but when I think back to the class it seems like Chef Paul was doing five things at once, so I’ll do my best to describe what he did. On the menu was polenta with toasted almonds and herbs served with roasted red pepper sauce, roasted vegetable moussaka with tempeh, and braised belgian endive with tofu, fresh pineapple and summer vegetables. Also, marinated mushrooms with fresh lentil pasta.

The ingredients ready to go

Paul made the pasta dough early on because it needed time to rest before being rolled out. I’ve never see pasta like this before – it contained cooked, cooled red lentils.

The chef works the lentils into the flour.

After the dough had rested, covered with a damp towel, it was rolled into a thin circle, sprinkled with flour, rolled up into a tube shape and cut into about 1/4″ wide strips. More flour was sprinkled, the noodles were flipped around to unfurl them and they were cooked in a large pot of boiling water for 2-3 minutes. The button mushrooms were quartered and marinated in soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic, scallion, sweetener, salt and pepper. These were probably the best noodles I’ve ever tasted with a texture that was both chewy and tender.

Fresh lentil pasta with marinated mushrooms

Somehow, at the same time he was kneading the pasta dough, Paul also had slices of eggplant and zucchini for the moussaka roasting in a hot oven, and polenta cooling in the fridge — and a red pepper charring on the gas stove. For the polenta, coarse cornmeal was cooked in vegetable stock until thick. After removing it from the heat, lemon zest, toasted almond slivers, olive oil, minced fresh herbs, minced shallot, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper were added, and the mixture was packed into a large, shallow, round pan and placed in the fridge to set up. Roasted red peppers, minced garlic and olive oil were pureed with a stick blender, and then enhanced with fresh herbs, salt and pepper. The polenta, still slightly warm, came out of the fridge, got cut into triangles and was served with the sauce. Delicious and elegant.

Polenta triangles with roasted red pepper sauce

On to the moussaka. Onions and garlic were sautéed then cooked with cinnamon, nutmeg, cayenne, seeded and diced tomatoes, chopped tempeh and lemon juice. It was simmered to reduce the tomato liquid. The roasted eggplant and zucchini (mentioned earlier) were layered with the tempeh mixture in a glass baking dish. The dish was topped with a mixture of garbanzo flour, dried herbs, oil and bread crumbs. The moussaka was baked until the topping was golden.

The end of the moussaka. It’s hard to remember to
photograph things when they look and smell so good.

The last thing on the menu was braised vegetables. This dish contained fresh ginger, garlic, jalapeno, fresh pineapple, carrot, brussels sprouts, summer squash, asparagus, firm tofu and vegetable stock. (It was supposed to have endive and not brussels sprouts but a substitution was made to accommodate availability.) It’s intended to be served over steamed rice but we ate it straight up. This was really delicious.

Braised vegetables

The layers of flavor, gorgeous appearance and heavenly aroma of the food prepared in this class were an inspiration.

Our teacher seeding tomatoes and saving the juice

One of the things we also learned in class was not to waste anything. For example, even the tough stems that are snapped off the bottoms of asparagus stalks can be peeled and cooked! And all of the vegetable trimmings can be made into stock or composted.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Oak-Smoked Tofu Stuffed With Walnuts and Blue Sheese, Horseradish Cream Sauce, Braised Red Cabbage, Roasted Fingerling Potatoes

Oak-Smoked Tofu Stuffed With Walnuts and Blue Sheese

Horseradish Cream Sauce

Braised Red Cabbage

Roasted Fingerling Potatoes

The tofu block was cut into six cutlets, with a slit cut in the middle. We then smoked it for 20 minutes with oak wood chips for a change of pace. The tofu was pan-fried on both sides, and splashed with tamari and the end. It was stuffed with a combination of toasted walnuts and Blue Sheese, then finished in a 350F oven for 15 minutes.

The horseradish sauce was a bechamel (1 tbs. flour, 1 tbs. earth balance, 1 cup of soy milk) with 2 tbs. of horseradish, zested on a microplane.

Popularity: 2% [?]

RUSTIC APPLE-RAISIN TART WITH CRISPY, LOW-FAT OLIVE OIL PASTRY

This is a traditional pastry for savory pies in some parts of Italy, and I have used it for several years. I was always impressed with the crisp texture and ease of handling of this dough, considering how little oil there is in it (2 tablespoons)! Since olive oil is my primary oil for cooking (being a tasty, monosaturated oil), I have been wanting to try it in a fruit pie. But, since being on the WW Core Plan for the last 7 weeks, I haven’t been making very many desserts!

Yesterday, however, we were invited by some friends’ for coffee, I had some apples that needed using, and we had some extra WW points leftover, so I offered to bring an apple tart. I was impressed with the almost buttery taste of it and our hosts gobbled it up with groans of pleasure! This will now be my choice for pastry for any free-form pie! (I have yet to try it as a regular 2-crust covered pie.) I may try it with half whole wheat pastry flour next time– I’ll let you know how it works!

The apple filling is moderately sweetened with agave nectar and raisins plumped in sherry, but you can alter that as you like. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe for Pie and Pastry

Printable Recipe for Olive Oil Pastry only

BRYANNA’S RUSTIC APPLE-RAISIN TART WITH CRISPY, LOW-FAT OLIVE OIL PASTRY
Servings: 6
Yield: 1 freeform tart

This is a lovely, not-too-sweet treat. PS: If you would like a large tart, double the recipe, including the pastry and form the tart on a 14″ pizza pan. Bake the large pie for 1 hour.

1 recipe Bryanna’s Low-Fat, Crispy Olive Oil Pastry
(See recipe in Cooking Tips below)
Filling:
1/4 cup raisins (organic Thompson is what I used)
soaked in:
2-4 tablespoons medium sherry (enough to cover the raisins)
3 large apples, cored and thinly sliced (I don’t peel them- it’s up to you!)
(whichever variety you like– I used what I had: 1 Cox’s Orange Pippin, and 2 Galas)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 cup agave nectar
Spices:
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
a few gratings of nutmeg
1 pinch salt
3/4 tablespoon cornstarch
Optional:
You can add some grated lemon or orange zest, if you like
Finish:
soy or nut milk ofr brushing and a sprinkle of organic granulated sugar

Make the pastry as instructed in the recipe below. Place in a bowl covered with plastic wrap and refrigerate while you prepare the Fillling.

You need to soak the raisins and there are 2 ways to do this. 1.) place the raisins in a small microwave-proof bowl and cover with sherry. Cook in the microwave for 30 seconds, or as long as it takes to just come to a boil. Or, 2.) place the raisins and sherry in a small saucepan and bring just to a boil over high heat. Immediately remove from the heat. Either way, cover the bowl or pan and let sit while you go on to the next step.

Mix the sliced apples in a large bowl with the lemon juice, agave nectar, spices and salt. Add the plumped raisins and sherry, optional citrus zest (if using), and sprinkle with the cornstarch.

Combine well. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

On a lightly-floured piece of baking parchment, roll the pastry dough out into a 13-14″ circle (it doesn’t have to be perfect, but avoid having any holes or very thin spots). Carefully transfer the dough circle to a 9-10″ pie pan or small pizza pan, lightly sprayed with oil from a pump sprayer. Pile the apple filling in the middle of the pastry and bring the edges up around the filling, to make a freeform pie. Pleat the edges of the dough over the filling, leaving a 5″ open circle in the center.

Brush the pastry with soy or nut milk and sprinkle with a little organic granulated sugar.

Cover the fruit in the open circle (not the pastry) with a circle of foil cut to fit.

Place the pie in the oven and immediately reduce the heat to 350°F.

Bake the pie for about 45 minutes. Remove the foil and poke the apples with a fork to see if they are tender. If they are, remove the foil. If the pastry not golden yet, bake another 5-10 minutes, or until golden.

Cool on a rack until just warm. Serve warm, if possible. Cut into 6 wedges to serve.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per 1/6th): 235.6 calories; 18% calories from fat; 4.9g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 285.0mg sodium; 204.6mg potassium; 47.9g carbohydrates; 3.6g fiber; 26.2g sugar; 44.3g net carbs; 2.7g protein; 4.4 points.

Cooking Tips
BRYANNA’S LOW-FAT, CRISPY OLIVE OIL PASTRY
This crispy pastry is very easy to handle and quite low in fat (about 1 tsp. of olive oil per serving). Perfect for rustic “freeform” tarts. If you want to make a larger tart, double the recipe and make it on a 14″ pizza pan.

1 cup unbleached flour (NOT pastry flour)
3/4 tsp salt
2 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup ice-cold water

Mix the flour and salt in a bowl. Cut in the cold olive oil briefly. Add the water and mix with a fork until it hold together. Handle as little as possible. Lightly form it into a ball and refrigerate, covered, for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

On a lightly-floured piece of baking parchment, roll the pastry dough out into a 13-14″ circle (it doesn’t have to be perfect, but avoid having any holes or very thin spots). Carefully transfer the dough circle to a 9-10″ pie pan or small pizza pan, lightly sprayed with oil from a pump sprayer. Pile the filling in the middle of the pastry and bring the edges up around the filling, to make a freeform pie. Pleat the edges of the dough over the filling, leaving a 5″ open circle in the center.

For a sweet pie, brush the pastry with soy or nut milk and sprinkle with a little organic granulated sugar. For a savory pie, brush or spray lightly with olive oil.

Cover the filling in the open circle (not the pastry) with a circle of foil cut to fit. Place the pie in the oven and immediately reduce the heat to 350°F.

Bake the pie for about 45 minutes. Remove the foil and poke the apples with a fork to see if they are tender. If they are, remove the foil. If the pastry not golden yet, bake another 5-10 minutes, or until golden.

Servings: 6
Yield: 1 crust

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per 1/6th): 115.6 calories; 36% calories from fat; 4.7g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 235.8mg sodium; 22.3mg potassium; 15.9g carbohydrates; 0.6g fiber; 0.1g sugar; 15.3g net carbs; 2.2g protein; 2.6 points.

Enjoy!

Popularity: unranked [?]

Great Greens

When I was a child my mom in no way needed to tell me to consume my greens. I’ve usually loved them just about any way I could get them—and I nevertheless do. This year our vegetable garden will give us escarole, arugula, spinach, chard, two types of lettuce, and kale. That ought to maintain us as much as our necks in leafy greens till subsequent winter.

There’s a great deal to adore about greens. Certain, they’re super-nutritious and they taste excellent. But what I like greatest about them is their versatility. Take kale, for instance. You are able to consume it raw inside a salad or fried as chips. You are able to steam, boil, or sauté it. And that is just for starters.

My personal kale is not prepared to choose yet simply because we planted late, but the other day I purchased a large bag of curly kale at the supermarket. It wasn’t really tender, so I blanched it for any couple of minutes (which also aided it fit much better in my refrigerator).

I sauteed a number of it with garlic, white beans, and brown rice. I additional a handful to some soup. I even utilized some inside a smoothie (with pineapple and bananas—yum). That left sufficient to serve like a side dish to accompany some barbequed seitan and roasted sweet potato sticks.

When I’ve tender infant kale leaves, I like to serve it raw like a salad combined with diced avocado along with a squeeze of lemon. That is how I had planned to serve this blanched kale, but at the final minute (although waiting for the sweet potatoes to finish roasting), I also additional some diced mango along with a couple of dried cranberries. The outcome was a kaleidoscope of colour and incredible bursts of flavor. What could happen to be just a “side of kale” turned out to become the star of the whole meal.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Roasted vegetables with garlic and lemon

This is really a actual write-up I discovered in the newspaper. I swear – I’m not producing this up. “An workplace worker cleaning a fridge complete of rotten food produced a smell so noxious that it sent seven co-workers to the hospital. Firefighters needed to evacuate the AT&T building in downtown San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday after the fumes led someone to call 911. A hazmat team was called in.

The mixture of old lunches and disinfectant caused 25 people to need treatment for vomiting and nausea. But the enterprising worker who cleaned the fridge wasn’t one of them – she can’t smell because of allergies.” (Associated Press)

Whoa. At our house I was beginning to suspect that the refrigerator and the compost pile had become one and the same. It was not yet time to call 911, but it was definitely time to clean out all the odds and ends of things that tend to get pushed to the back of the shelves and the bottom of the bins. As I cleaned out the unusable, I came upon an orphan white beet, a single little pepper starting to shrivel, two partially used bags of potatoes and some enormous carrots. Not to mention a bowl of water with a lone chunk of tofu, and a lot of very ripe small tomatoes. After all that cleaning I needed something truly easy to cook, and decided I might as well roast the stuff I’d discovered.

Roasting veggies is so easy it doesn’t feel much like cooking, but the results are wonderful. I used yellow and red potatoes, a humongous carrot, a white beet, garlic cloves, a small banana pepper and a lot of small red tomatoes. I preheated the oven to 425˚ and cut the potatoes and beet into smallish chunks. The carrot got cut first into 3″ sections and then into lengthwise slices. I added some olive oil and turned the veggies to coat them, and I mixed in a handful of chopped parsley. Some unpeeled garlic cloves also went into the earthenware pan with the veggies, and two 1/2″ thick slices of tofu were coated with a little tamari and laid on top. The veggies were more or less in a single layer in a large, uncovered dish.

After 30 minutes in the oven, the tomatoes were added to the dish, and it went back into the oven for another 20-30 minutes or so, until the potatoes were cooked. When I took the pan out, I squeezed the garlic cloves out of their peels and mixed it into the veggies, and I broke up the tomatoes a bit to let the steam out. Some fresh ground pepper and it was ready to eat. I rarely add salt to vegetables, especially roasted ones that have so much natural flavor, but everyone has different tastes so add the seasonings you think are needed. You could drizzle on a little balsamic vinegar if desired. I had planned to squeeze lemon over the top but forgot all about it. Next time.

Popularity: unranked [?]

MOONG DAL INDIAN CREPES (DOSA)– MADE ONLY WITH BEANS; NO FLOUR OR GRAIN

Moong Dal Dosa with Indian-style sautéed Savoy cabbage and tofu “yogurt”

The reason I’m excited about these Indian crepes (also called adai or pesarattu, a type of dosa that is made only from dal and is unfermented) is that they are so great for the WW Core Plan because they are made from beans! (I have lost 11 lbs. so far, BTW, and DH has lost 13! We are not suffering at all on this plan!) If I had used a grain flour, I would have had to use some of my extra points. (I’m not sure the points thing would work if I used soaked, ground whole grain– anybody know?)

I have made dosa for years, but usually with some grain or flour in them, and usually with some oil in the pan. My experiment was to make them solely with soaked beans and with no more than a light spritz of oil in a nonstick pan. It was a success, and DH and my friend Holly gobbled them up. (For a filling, I used a simple cabbage stir-fry recipe from Madhur Jaffrey’s World of Vegetarian Cooking, with some Tofu “Yogurt”.)

We also remarked that this simple, delicious, nourishing, and filling meal was so inexpensive to make!

This has inspired me to try different kinds of Indian breads and dumplings that can be cooked in a nonstick pan, or steamed, using soaked beans, sprouted beans, bean flours, and even fresh corn. I’ll let you know if I have any other successes!

Last night I soaked some moong dal in water:

I used split moong dal, but it still had the skins. Unfortunately, much later, I found my split washed moong dal (which has the skins removed), which would have made a nice white batter. Mine was kind of green! Oh, well– next time!

Washed moong dal

In the morning it looked like this and I had about 5 1/2 cups of soaked dal!

Here’s the recipe:

Printable Recipe

BRYANNA’S MOONG DAL DOSA (INDIAN CREPES )
Servings: 12
Yield: 12 crepes

These “crepes” are also called adai or pesarattu, a type of dosa that is made only from dal and is unfermented. These are actually a bit sturdier than the crepes we’re used to, but they fold and roll nicely. You can just eat them with chutney or an Indian-style vegetable stir-fry, or with a more elaborate vegetable curry, if you like. They can be eaten for breakfast, as a snack, or for a lunch or supper dish. (They would be great for a gluten-free diet, too.)

1 1/2 cups split moong dal (the washed kind have no skins, so make a nicer-looking batter, but you can use the kind with the skins– just don’t use whole mung beans)
water to generously cover– they really soak it up!
2 tablespoons (or more, according to taste) of fresh chopped green chilies (seeds removed)
(Or, cheat, as I did, and use pickled or canned jalapeño peppers)
1 piece (1-inch) fresh ginger, peeled
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin seed
water to thin the batter, as necessary (1/2 cup, at least)

The night before you are to make the dosa, rinse and drain the dal and then place in a bowl or container with room to almost triple, and cover generously with water. The dal will soak up alot of water, so don’t be stingy!

The day you are making the dosa, make or assemble your filling(s) before starting to cook the dosa.

Drain the water off the soaked dal and place it in a large blender container, along with the chilies, salt and ginger. In a Vita-Mix, you can grind the soaked beans, using the tamper, without extra water, but I don’t think you could do this in cheaper blenders. In any case, I ended up adding water to the batter, so you are safe to add 1/2 cup of water to the batter when blending.

Blend the mixture until smooth, stopping and scraping down as necessary. Scoop the mixture into a bowl. Add the cumin seeds.

Now, adjust the thickness of the batter. If it’s too thick, it won’t spread easily. I kept stirring in water until it spread easily. I didn’t measure, unfortunately, but the batter ended up like a regular crepe batter, more or less– kind of like cream.

Spray an 8 to 10″ nonstick skillet (a good one) with oil from a spray pump and heat over high heat. (My Swiss Diamond pan can cook these without using a spray pump with oil, but it depends on how good your pan is.) When cold water sprinkled on the pan sizzles, scoop about 1/4 cup of batter into the center of the pan with a small ladle and then use the bottom of the ladle to go in circles and spread the batter out from the center. It’s easier than you might think! See the “action” pictures below:

PS: if your batter doesn’t spread easily, it may be too thick.

I turned the heat down just a notch or two from the “high” setting. Almost as soon as you have the batter spread, it will start looking a bit dry on top.

Carefully turn the dosa and cook for a few seconds, then fold in half and lay on a platter with a clean tea towel over the dosa.

Repeat until the batter is all used up. These can be refrigerated and reheated.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per dosa): 90.8 calories; 3% calories from fat; 0.3g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 166.5mg sodium; 327.7mg potassium; 16.4g carbohydrates; 4.3g fiber; 1.7g sugar; 12.1g net carbs; 6.2g protein; 1.0 points.

Enjoy!

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