Chow Vegan

Good Eat • No Meat

Baked Falafel

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Baked Falafel

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.

Vegetables Baked In Parchment

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Vegetables Baked in Parchment

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.

Savory Tang Yuan

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Savory Tang Yuan

As a symbol of family unity and harmony, tang yuan is traditionally served around Winter Solstice, right around the time when families get together for the holidays.

The little round dumplings are made of glutinous rice flour and can be white or colored, sweet or savory. They don’t really taste like much, except for what it’s cooked with. The texture is smooth and a little chewy.

It’s funny to look back at my first post about yuan, when I first started up the blog. Last year, I had cut the daikon and tried my hand at making yuan. This year, I got demoted to just peeling the daikon and cleaning the mushrooms. But I don’t mind as no one can cook like Mom can.

And this year, I finally managed to get down my Mom’s recipe, adjusted to be vegan of course.

Savory Tang Yuan
Serves 2

Stock
5 cups vegetable stock or water
3 cloves garlic, smashed
Garlic salt to taste
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 medium sized daikon, peeled and julienned

In a large pot, add the first four ingredients and bring to a boil, then add the daikon. Bring to a boil again and reduce the heat to low and let it simmer while you prepare the rest of the soup.

To make the yuan
1 16 ounce bag glutinous rice flour
1 1/2 cups water

Pour the bag of rice flour onto a clean smooth surface. Make a well in the center and add the water a little bit at a time to the center, mixing the flour with the water. Save a little bit of the flour to use for dusting.

Knead the dough mixture until soft and smooth and the dough is well-mixed. Flour the work surface and hands. Twirl the dough between the hand into a log shape, break off about an 1/2″ size chunk and roll between the palms to make it into a ball shape.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the yuans, a few at a time, do not overcrowd the pot. Bring to a boil, when the yuans float to the top about 4-5 minutes, take the yuans out.

Finishing the soup
2 cups napa cabbage, julienned
3-4 dried chinese mushrooms, soaked until soft and sliced
3 1/2 ounces veggie meat
1 green onion, chopped
1 sprig cilantro, chopped

To the stock, add the napa cabbage and mushrooms, cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the veggie meat. Add the yuan and bring to boil. Serve, garnish with greens onions and cilantro.