Cafe Romeo

I was tipped off a few months ago that this little hole in the wall in the East Rock neighborhood of New Haven had vegan pizza on their menu.  With actual vegan cheese.  And since then, a friend of mine had heard the same thing, along with rumors about vegan desserts as well.  This was enough to get me in the door for a visit this week.

Cafe Romeo is a sweet little cafe which features a fiery brick oven for pizza, a decent selection of paninis and sandwiches, a cozy seating area inside plus outdoor sidewalk patio, free wifi, and plenty of hot and cold beverages.  Their grilled tempeh with apple and butternut squash panini was what caught my eye, and when I saw that they also offer gluten-free wraps, I knew that's what I would order.  I was all set to rave about my selection until the young gentleman at the counter announced there were no more gluten-free wraps.  Then I asked about gluten-free bread.  Nope.  Same thing.  So I suggested, why not make it as a salad with some arugula, to which my server obliged.

I also ordered a cup of the escarole and white bean soup which together made a nice light lunch.  The bread went home wrapped in a napkin for Zinny.  At around $11, this was slightly more costly than the average lunch, though I'm always willing to pay a little extra to be able to order tempeh at a restaurant.

My vegan friend ordered a personal vegan pizza which came with spinach and olives, along with a soy latte.  The vegan cheese was by Follow Your Heart, which melts up nice and ooey gooey in those hot ovens.  Again, she was just happy to not have to drive 2 hours to Peace 'O Pie in Boston and be able to order vegan pizza at a restaurant in New Haven (Sally's and Pepe's take note!).  We also agreed that we're kinda happy it wasn't over the top amazing like Peace O' Pie.

Cafe Romeo is just a 5 minute drive from my house, and in the warmer weather it will be less than a 10 minute bike ride, so I can see myself having a weekly business meeting here.  Anyone care to join me, just ask!

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. 

This Week's Menu

So I was having a discussion the other day with a vegan friend about what to do with tempeh, and both of us agreed that we like tempeh when other people make it, but not when we cook it ourselves.  Why is that?  Do the fermented soy properties somehow magically transform in the hands of another?  Alas, while I cannot solve that mystery, I did come up with a recipe idea for this week's meals:  Deconstructed Tempeh Reuben with Oven Roasted Potatoes and Stringbeans.

This delectible dish is made the same way you'd make a reuben, only without the toasty bread.  First, I panfried some thinly sliced tempeh in a hot pan with a little olive oil, sea salt and fresh black pepper.  After a few minutes when the tempeh gets golden on one side, flip each slice over, and add enough oil to coat the pan again with a little more salt and pepper.  When this side crisps up nice and brown, transfer the tempeh to a dish and spread each slice with about a teaspoon of either Dijon or stoneground mustard.  Then you'll start assembling stacks.  Take one slice of tempeh, top with about a tablespoon of Eden Organic sauerkraut, add another slice of tempeh, then top with more sauerkraut.  If you like things spicy, you can throw down a little horseradish in each layer for good measure.  These stacks go nicely with some thinly sliced oven-roasted potatoes and green beans fresh from the garden.

I was on a green bean kick this week since they're abundant this time of year.  One of the other meals was a luscious Gado Gado, which is an Indonesian peanut sauce made with coconut milk, spiced with chili powder, and stirred together with cauliflower, potatoes and grean beans.  It's topped by fresh carrot, cucumber, red onion, and mung bean sprouts.  A little squeeze of lemon juice brightens the flavors and brings it all together.

The third meal this week was Three Sisters Salad with Baby Spinach and Cherry Tomato Gremolata.  The three sisters are beans, squash, and corn, and they make a perfect little family since they're all in season right now and look so pretty.

Yesterday's lunch

I love it when leftovers taste this good.  Thursday night I scoured the fridge for anything that might come together with a little bit of magic and become dinner.  I found half a red pepper, tempeh, a few red potatoes and lettuce.  Not much to work with, and at first I considered throwing it all together and making some sort of hash.  Instead, I opted for something a little more creative.  And the payoff included a little extra to enjoy the next day.

The red potatoes were perfect for potato salad since I didn't have to peel them and they don't fall apart if you accidentally lose track of time and overcook them.  Which I always do.  Plus, the scallions growing in a pot on my deck added the perfect amount of freshness.  I sauteed diced red pepper with some onion, then mixed it together with crumbled tempeh, gluten-free breadcrumbs, tahini and various seasonings to make a good burger dough.  Then I panfried them to perfections.

Result:  Pan-fried Tempeh Burgers with Salsa, Red Bliss Potato Salad, and Greens.  Delish!

Memorial Day Mock Chicken Salad

I spent the day at my parents' house for a pre-Memorial Day picnic. Some years we get together and my mom overdoes it by turning the holiday into a summery version of Thanksgiving, which is nice, but I leave feeling as if I can't eat for another week. This year it was more casual with straightforward picnic fare, some of which was vegan.

There were the usual hamburgers, grilled chicken and kielbasa with sauerkraut for the omnivores, and for me there was salad with a delicious tahini dressing my mom successfully concocted (tahini, lemon juice, agave syrup, olive oil, sea salt), potato salad made with Vegenaise, and mock chicken salad.

These last two are creations of mine that I can safely bring to nearly any picnic if I want to achieve the illusion of normalcy. Regular people eat them. You'd never know the difference with the potato salad. And most people are pleasantly surprised by the tempeh "mystery meat."

The key ingredients are: Litelife garden veggie tempeh, Westbrae Organics Dijon mustard, Vegenaise and Bubbie's pure kosher dill pickles. If you don't use these, I can't vouch for the quality, because the pure awesomeness of this holy-trinity-plus-one really justifies any effort you might need to make to find them.

This is one of the easiest vegan recipes for a simple light lunch or picnic potluck. It can be made in a hurry, and leftovers only get better as they sit in the fridge.

The most critical step that must not be overlooked is to boil the tempeh before crumbling it into your salad. This plumps up the block of soy curd, softens the texture, releases the flavor and, once squeezed dry, also allows for the absorption of flavors. I hope you will make it one of your family favorites for years to come.

Tempeh Mock Chicken Salad

8 ounces tempeh, cut into cubes

1/2 cup Veganaise
1 stalk celery, chopped fine

1 carrot, peeled and finely diced
1 minced dill pickle

1-2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
¼ tsp garlic powder

¼ tsp sea salt

splash of apple cider vinegar

In a medium sauce pot, bring water to a boil then boil tempeh cubes for 5 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse with water until cool to the touch.

Squeeze tempeh cubes to remove water, then crumble into a large mixing bowl and combine with chopped celery, carrot and pickle.

Stir in remaining ingredients, mixing lightly but thoroughly. Season with sea salt and vinegar at the end to really perk up the taste. Serve in a sandwich or mounded on a bed of lettuce.