Chow Vegan

Since there’s still a lot of tomatoes hanging around on this warm Autumn day, I decided to try the Live Mango Gazpacho from The 30 Minute Vegan. An interesting twist to the chilled raw vegetable soup, the mango adds a refreshing sweetness to the spiciness of the gazpacho.

As for the time, it took me 50 minutes to cut and chop up everything and I only made half of the recipe (ok, so I’m a slow cutter). And then 30 more minutes for the soup to chill.

But hey, after all that chopping, I got to kick back and enjoy a light, healthy meal without heating up the kitchen. I like how the cookbook includes a selection of live recipes. Of course, gazpacho by its nature is already raw but I’m looking forward to trying some of the other raw recipes.

Live Mango Gazpacho
Serves 4

3 cups mango, cut into small cubes (about 3 medium-size mangoes)
2 cups tomato, chopped small (about 3 medium-size tomatoes)
1/4 cup diced red onion
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped small
1 teaspoon seeded and minced jalapeño (optional)
1 garlic clove, pressed or minced
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
1 teaspoon chile powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
1 tablespoon minced fresh Italian parsley

1. Mix all of the ingredients together well in a large bowl.
2. Transfer 2 cups of the mixture to a blender and blend on high speed for 20 seconds and return to the bowl. Mix, and if desired, chill for 30 minutes, otherwise serve immediately.

Excerpted from the book The 30-Minute Vegan by Mark Reinfeld and Jennifer Murray, published by Da Capo Lifelong, a member of the Perseus Books Group. Copyright © 2009. www.dacapopresscookbooks.com

Related Post
Baked Tempura From The 30 Minute Vegan

I stopped by Loving Hut, an organic, vegan, fast-food chain restaurant in Palo Alto. Don’t ask me why, it’s just what it’s called. It’s a little space with bright lights and a cafeteria-like ambience, where you place your order at the counter.

I got the Crumbed Sensation – deep fried yam flour pieces, served with vegan tartar sauce and a small heap of cole slaw. Not too greasy and it has a firm texture that it reminds me of fried shrimp. I thought it was great, then again most fried food taste good.

I also tried the Shepherd’s Pie. That was just ok, seemed a bit on the dry side, like it needed gravy or some sort of sauce. It had soy crumbles, eggplant, carrot and onions on the bottom with mashed potatoes on top. It came with your choice of soup or salad. I got the soup – butternut squash and navy bean. Beautiful color on the soup, but not a real strong squash taste to me. It’s more beany than squashy. At least it wasn’t overly salty like some restaurant soups.

This location has a limited menu compared to the ones in San Francisco and Milpitas. It doesn’t seem like they do much actual cooking. It’s more heat and serve or scoop into a container for to-go. Still it’s nice to have an all vegan place right there in downtown Palo Alto.

Cruising the farmer’s market this week, I spied a cluster of brilliant, light pink jewels glistening in the sunlight. They were pink pomegranate seeds!

Not only pink but they’re also sweet with a bit of a fruit punch flavor. And nowhere nearly as tart as the familiar deep red pomegranates. I had no idea there was even different varieties of pomegranates available.

Once home, I pulled on gloves and my oldest, grubbiest t-shirt to peel the pomegranates only to find I didn’t need to – it’s non-staining! As an added bonus, they’re also easier to peel.

So good and refreshing, I just ate the seeds as is and didn’t have any leftover for a salad. Now I have to wait until the end of the week to get more. If you see it, give it a try. Pomegranates are pretty tasty in pink.

I can’t get over how many vegan cookbooks are out nowadays. I remember back in the day, there was hardly any at all. My latest read, fresh from the publisher is The 30-Minute Vegan by Mark Reinfeld and Jennifer Murray. Their thing is quick, healthy, delicious, vegan recipes cooked in 30 minutes or so. Let’s see if that holds up with me in the kitchen.

As I’m flipping through the cookbook, Batter-Baked Tempura jumps out. I love tempura! But not so much the fried part. So this is perfect, something I always wanted to try making at home and I don’t have to deal with the mess of frying. I’m now properly motivated. On to the cooking.

For my veggies, I went with trumpet mushrooms, green beans, yellow squash, onion, zucchini and carrot. And I used panko bread crumbs instead of regular crumbs. It took me exactly 30 minutes to get the veggies cut, battered, breaded and into the oven and then another 20 minutes to cook.

They didn’t come out looking exactly like tempura from a restaurant, still they were quite tasty. There’s not a super thick all-over coating but enough stuck on for a surprisingly good crunch and a bit of a nutty taste. There’s also a stronger veggie taste as you’re not eating a mouthful of batter.

I’m positive I can get the time down with a little practice. Next time I’m going to bread the veggies one at a time instead of all together in the bowl, for better crumb coverage. It really is a great, healthy and delicious alternative to the fried version.

Batter-Baked Tempura
Serves 4 to 6

2 portobello mushrooms, cut into 1/2-inch slices or 1 cup cremini mushrooms, halved
2 cups bread crumbs
1 cup broccoli florets
1/2 yellow onion, cut into 1/2-inch thick rings
1 cup zucchini, cut into rounds or 4-inch spears
1-2 tablespoons olive oil, for brushing (optional)
Soy sauce for dipping

Batter
3 tablespoons ground flax meal
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon baking powder, sifted

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking tray or cookie sheet. Prepare the vegetables and set aside.
2. Prepare the batter: Blend the flax meal, water, and baking powder for about 10 seconds. Pour the batter into a deep bowl. Place the bread crumbs in a separate deep bowl.
3. Toss the mushrooms around in the batter with a spoon or your hands. Remove them one by one, quickly shaking off the excess batter, and place them in the bread crumbs. When they are all in, swirl the bowl around a bit and use your hands to get them coated in crumbs. Transfer to the prepared baking tray and repeat the process with the broccoli, onion, and zucchini.
4. If you desire crunchier veggies, use a pastry brush to lightly coat oil on the tops of the vegetables. Use a dabbing motion rather than a stroke so as not to brush away the batter (you may even wish to drizzle the oil instead). Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.

Excerpted from the book The 30-Minute Vegan by Mark Reinfeld and Jennifer Murray, published by Da Capo Lifelong, a member of the Perseus Books Group. Copyright © 2009. www.dacapopresscookbooks.com

Related Links
To learn more about the authors, click here. For your own copy of The 30 Minute Vegan, visit your local bookstore or Amazon.

I first read about Go Max Go vegan candy bars on a review over at the BitterSweet blog. Ever since then, I can’t stop thinking about them. Vegan. No hydrogenated oils. No trans fats. Taste just like the traditional, name-brand candy bars. I had no choice but to track them down.

I finally nabbed a few at the local Whole Foods. I tried the Twilight bar first – caramel and chocolatey nougat in a rice-milk chocolatey coating. Sliding it out of the wrapper, that’s one smooth looking candy bar. Taking a bite, it’s got the same chewy, nougat-sticking-all-over-my-teeth mouth feel and texture as a regular non-vegan candy bar.

My dentist is going to love that. Or I should say my dental hygienist. I can already hear her now, “What have you been eating?” and then she’ll get out her scrapper thingy and go to town on my teeth.

I’m not sure if it’s because I don’t really eat candy all that much, but I thought it was a little too sweet. I was only able to eat about half of it. I’m saving the rest for later (I didn’t say it was bad, just a bit sweeter than I expected).

I also tried the Mahalo – coconut and almonds in a rice-milk chocolatey coating. Looked and tasted just like an Almond Joy with the right amount of sweetness and texture. I liked this one better and polished off the whole bar in a few bites.

I still got two more flavors to try: Jokerz – caramel, peanuts, nougat in a rice-milk chocolatey coating and Buccaneer – chocolatey nougat in a rice-milk chocolatey coating. Judging from the two I’ve already consumed, they’re spot-on for everything a candy bar should be and well worth the wrath of a dental hygienist.

I wonder if the company has plans to veganize any other candy bars, like maybe a Twix or a Kit Kat. Yeah, I like candy bars that are cookies all wrapped up in chocolate.