Chow Vegan

After returning from a trip and having absolutely nothing to eat in the fridge, I am even more happy and grateful that Amy’s Kitchen had sent me a sample of their new roasted vegetables tamale to try. I love tamales so I was really looking-forward to trying it.

The first thing I noticed about Amy’s tamale is its flattened, somewhat uniform shape. Which is ok, to me it looks very Amy-ish, it reminds me of some of their other products like the burritos and wraps. But most importantly, it tastes good.

As you can see from the photo, the tamale doesn’t have a ton of corn masa. I’ve had some tamales where it was all masa and just a tiny bit of filling. Amy’s seems to have struck a good balance between the two.

The black beans were also very good. I’m not a big fan of beans (a tiny part of me wished it was rice instead of beans) but I ate every last one of them. Amy’s definitely knows their way around beans.

Bottom line, I would eat it again if I can find it. I haven’t seen it at any store around here yet but maybe because it’s new.

I’ve been yammering on and on about making my own sushi for awhile now. I got around to trying it the other day. I thought it went fairly well for a first time attempt. But I’ve got to say – that sushi rice sure is sticky.

Somehow I managed to get it everywhere. It seems to stick to everything except the nori. I finally wrestled enough of it down to make an inside-out teriyaki tofu, avocado and cucumber roll. After all that effort, the least it can do is be tasty and it was.

Sushi rolls may look easy, especially after years of watching sushi chefs deftly whip them out. But it’s not. It takes practice to make them look nice and presentable. My technique especially needs a lot of work and probably a little less rice and bigger/more pieces for the filling would help as well.

I’m already looking forward to the next round of sushi making. I’m hoping to pin down the rice next time without too much effort or mess. We’ll see.

It only lasted one measly little week. Then I fell off of the healthier-eating wagon and pan-fried me some chicken-fried portobello mushrooms. Yum!

It was the recipe that got to me. The guilty culprit is here. It just sounded so good. I’ve been on the look-out for a new way to prepare portobellos. For awhile there, I was all portobello out, but here was a different twist to preparing the big brown mushrooms.

I made a few minor changes to the recipe. For the egg wash, I used soy milk and egg replacer. Since I was out of bread crumbs, I substituted corn meal. And I pan-fried it in oil instead of butter.

As I think the crispy coating is the best part, I decided not to cover it up and just have it plain, without the gravy. Served with smashed sweet potatoes and green beans, for a little redemption.

I was so looking forward to pigging out at my favorite Mediterranean cafe but they were closed for the holidays. So I decided to make my own falafels, baked not fried, as part of my healthier 2009 eating initiative.

I thought they came out pretty good. They’re different than the ones I’ve gotten at restaurants, probably because 1. I used canned garbanzo beans instead of dried, 2. I didn’t use a food processor to combine everything and 3. It’s not fried.

Next time I’m going to try using dry garbanzos and a food processor but I’ll leave the frying for eating out as a treat. Besides, I’m much too lazy to clean up a big, fried mess. What? Did you really think I was going to stop being lazy in the new year?

Baked Falafel
Makes about 21 balls

1 15 ounce can garbanzo beans
1 small onion, finely chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Drain and rinse the garbanzo beans. Put in a medium sized bowl and smash with a fork. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Form into small balls, about 1 1/2″ in diameter and slightly flatten. Place onto an oiled baking pan.

Bake for 15 minutes on each side, until nicely browned (since it’s baked, only the part actually touching the pan will be browned and crispy).

Serve with mini pita pockets, hummus, tahini sauce, tomatoes, lettuce and/or cucumber.

Happy New Year!

I got one more package to open, and it’s a tasty one – vegetables baked with herbs in a parchment packet.

The fancy culinary term for cooking in parchment is en papillote in French or al cartoccio in Italian. It’s a cooking technique where food is sealed in a packet (foil can be also used instead of parchment) and baked.

It’s a nice, healthy, flavorful way to cook. It’s also my feeble attempt to eat a little healthier in the new year. Plus it’s super easy to clean-up, a bonus for those who are lazy inclined, like me.

Vegetables Baked In Parchment
Serves 2 as part of a meal

2 large shiitake mushrooms, sliced
1 baby sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2″ pieces
1 medium red potato, peeled and cut into 1/2″ pieces
1 small zucchini, sliced into 1/4″ rounds
1 small leek, white part only, cut into quarters, lengthwise
4 whole garlic cloves, skins left on
2 fresh rosemary branches
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 fresh thyme sprig
1 teaspoon olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 sheets of about 12″ x 15″ parchment paper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl. Evenly divide the vegetables between the pieces of parchment paper, placing onto one side of the parchment. Fold the other side over and then roll the edges tightly together to seal the packet.

Bake on a baking sheet for about 20-25 minutes. Serve immediately, opening the packets at the table.