This Week's Menu

I've been researching pumpkin recipes lately to get in the spirit of fall and found a recipe in which the chef stacked layers of pumpkin with rice and other ingredients.  The presentation was lovely, but since all of my meals get packaged for clients in containers, I needed something more vertical.  But mostly I liked the hearty flavor combination of pumpkin with walnuts and mushrooms, which I decided to recreate in a different way.

My version uses butternut squash sliced into rounds (or "steaks" if you'd like) which get baked in the oven on an oiled baking sheet until lightly browned on the outside and tender on the inside.  I served them with a side of steamed kale and brown basmati rice.  Then I made my vegan version of the mushroom walnut sauce using dairy-free equivalents:  Tofutti cream cheese, nutritional yeast and rice milk.  This was decadent enough - I can't imagine anything richer.

The other entrees this week had a little spicy kick.  A favorite cold weather standby of mine is anything curried, so I decided to go with Chana Masala (chickpea curry) with Stringbeans and Basmati Rice.  A dash of cayenne and squeeze of lemon always perk of the flavors and the heat.

Then I made an Indonesian Gado-Gado.  I don't really have a recipe for this, but the key ingredients are peanut butter, chili powder, and cauliflower.  I could probably have augmented it with some coconut milk for added richness, but the peanut butter did just fine.  Some baked tofu rounded out the meal.

Split Pea Soup with Polenta Crouton and Fresh Basil Pesto

I had dinner with my parents this weekend, which translates to an entire afternoon of eating course after course after course, with snacking in between.  Not that I'm complaining... it was all good, and my mom has become quite the vegan chef! 

The first course was split pea soup.  On its own it would've been a delicious way to begin the meal.  But we wanted to figure out a way to make it special.  Oh, and there was some leftover polenta in the fridge and a HUGE bunch of basil from my uncle's garden that she wanted to use, too.  So I said, "why don't we float a raft of polenta on the soup, then top it off with a hefty dollop of pesto?"  And that's what we did.  Perfect!

This Week's Menu

It's been a cold and rainy week, which is why the theme of this week's meals was comfort food.  And fall vegetables like butternut squash are also among my favorite.  How could I resist making something smooth and creamy with it?

I think my favorite entree this week is the pasta with butternut puree made just a little bit richer by adding a touch of Tofutti cream cheese.  This was accompanied by broccoli rabe sauteed with pine nuts, kalamata olives, canellini beans, and sliced garlic.  The contrasts of bitter and sweet balanced nicely.

My client was craving creamed spinach, so I decided to do a vegan version of a southern favorite, panfried tempeh with creamed spinach and polenta.  It had that "down home southern hospitality" feel to it, which I appreciated on a cold New England day.

The third meal was a Moroccan Chickpea Tagine seasoned with cinnamon and cumin, two warming spices.  The addition of currants gave a nice sweetness to the other flavors.  Any one of these would be perfect meals for the cold fall evenings ahead. 

Pan-fried Tempeh with Pumpkin Seed Pesto, Mashed Potatoes and Sunchokes, and Brussels Sprouts

I found a nifty little vegetable in the produce section of my favorite independent grocery store and decided to try an experiment for dinner the other night.  The sunchoke, or Jerusalem artichoke, is the tuber from a perennial sunflower that grows wild in woodlands and blooms at the end of the summer.  This is also the time of year that the tuber can be harvested, which is why it was in my grocer's refrigerated section. 

It looks kinda like a gnarled hand of ginger, which is also a tuber, but its taste is mild, like a slightly sweet potato, which is why I decided to try boiling and mashing it with a potato.  This was going to be my entire meal (yeah, that's how creative I am when it comes to cooking for myself), until I found a handful of Brussles sprouts in the refrigerator that needed to be eaten lest they turn to compost.  I decided to complete the meal with some pan-fried tempeh and top it all off with pumpkin seed pesto I had left from a demonstration I had done a couple days before.  Like magic, this meal came together perfectly.

Start by pan-frying the tempeh.  I like LightLife garden veggie tempeh best, which I cut into 8 thin rectangles.  I heated a little olive oil in a nonstick pan, then added the tempeh and a generous sprinkle of sea salt and fresh black pepper.  After a couple minutes of sizzling, I flipped the tempeh over and let it brown on the other side. 

While this was cooking, I mashed my cooked russet potato and sunchokes with about a tablespoon of Earth Balance margarine, some rice milk, and sea salt.  I always leave the skins on the potatoes for added fiber and texture, and since these were organic, I didn't have to worry about any pesticide residue. 

The meal looked lovely on the plate and tasted even better as all the flavors complemented each other nicely.

Walk for Farm Animals

Yesterday was a fabulous day for a walk in the park, and it was made even better because it supported our friends at Farm Sanctuary.  This was the third annual Walk for Farm Animals held at the lovely Elizabeth Park in Hartford.  Vegan friends gathered together to show their love of animals and desire to spread the message of ending their suffering by adopting a plant-based diet.

I don't have the official tally, but my guestimate was that at least 50 people were in attendance.  Walkers who came from all over the state raised over $5,000 for the cause. 

It was a pleasure to share the afternoon with like-minded people. I hope everyone had a great time!

World Vegetarian Day Cooking Demo

On Friday, October 1, I gave a gluten-free vegan cooking demonstration to a group of employees of Yale's Child Life Center at the Killam's Point conference center.  Coincidentally, it was also World Vegetarian Day, which was the perfect occasion to introduce many of those attending to the benefits of a vegan diet.

I couldn't imagine a more lovely setting that, even on a gloomy, rainy day included panoramic ocean views out the windows which were conveniently in my line of vision as I gave my presentation.  I think this, in part, inspired such a delicious meal. 

It all started in the kitchen where I prepped veggies along a length of countertop that also shared that spectacular view.  I think everyone would enjoy cooking if they gazed upon these sweeping ocean vistas from their kitchen window.  And it must also bring that much more pleasure in eating as well.

From the oceanside table I prepared a cool weather lunch of Three Sisters Stew with Polenta and Pumpkin Seed Pesto, and Mixed Greens tossed with Dijon Vinaigrette and Spiced Pepitas. 

At the start of the day temperatures hovered around 70 degrees, but as the wind and sea churned out the remains of Hurricane Nicole, a cold front descended upon out little oceanside retreat and the air had chilled by at least 10 degrees.  By then, the stew was quite satisfying.

For dessert I made the gluten-free vegan interpretation of my grandma's Lithuanian apple cake.  Although it was a little moist and crumbly from the heat and humidity, the taste was definitively autumn.  A perfect ending to a perfect day, and one of my favorite teaching experiences to date. 

A message from me to the operators of Killam's Point:  If you'd like to hire a live-in chef to accommodate guests with healthy and delicious gourmet vegan food, give me a call!