Chow Vegan

Banana Chocodilla

June 5, 2013 By chow 8 Comments

When you have a snack attack, who you gonna call? Chocodilla!

I don’t quite remember where I first heard of a Chocodilla. From the name, I thought it would be a giant chocolate Godzilla or something. It’s actually a fast food creation by Taco Bell consisting of chocolate in a tortilla.

Available in other countries but not in the US. I thought I can easily make that. And to make it super easy, I won’t even worry about melting any chocolate, I’ll just make it with Justin’s Chocolate Hazelnut Butter. And I’ll throw in a banana, you know, to health it up.

Lately, I’ve been seeing chocolate hazelnut spread everywhere. Sadly, most brands have sugar as their first ingredient. Except Justin’s, which list hazelnuts and almonds first. Sure it’s a bit more pricey, probably because there’s more nuts in it. But I usually only get a jar when it’s on sale.

No need for a recipe really, it’s so easy and simple. Just slather the chocolate spread on a warmed up tortilla (I used sprouted whole grain tortillas). Place sliced bananas on one side and fold in half. Cut into wedges and eat. Such chocolatey goodness!

You could also fry it up in a lightly-buttered skillet but I figure I don’t really need the extra butter. But if you’re going to go all out, instead of a banana, have marshmallows and make it into a s’moredilla.

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Roasted Butternut Squash Tamale From The Oaxacan Kitchen

May 5, 2013 By chow 4 Comments

While at the Palo Alto California Avenue farmer’s market today, I picked up a tamale from The Oaxacan Kitchen booth. That was the extent of my Cinco de Mayo activity for the day. It’s not much compared to whipping up a tableful of Mexican dishes or hanging out at a party, but it sure was tasty.

There’s only one vegan tamale, the Roasted Butternut Squash – Fresh corn, guaillo salsa, big chunks of butternut squash and zucchini. Really good flavor. Available mild, spicy or extra spicy. I got the middle spice level, spicy but not mouth-on-fire kind of spicy (at least for me), $4.00 for one.

I haven’t tried anything else there but while waiting for my food, I spotted the lady making corn tortillas to order. She would grab a bit of the dough from a giant pile, flatten it out in a large hand press and then cooked it up. Man, she was fast.

And all this in basically the middle of the street (a section is closed down for the farmer’s market). Next time, I going to have to try to get something that has those handmade tortillas.

Mini Savory Lentil Cupcakes

April 24, 2013 By chow 7 Comments

With the weather bouncing back and forth between warm and cool, I’m taking advantage of the cooler days to use the oven before it really warms up around here. Not that it ever gets that hot in Northern California, I just don’t use the oven much in the summertime. Until then, I’m enjoying these mini savory lentil cupcakes (I’ve also made normal lentil loaves with a regular square pan, if you’re over the whole cupcake thing).

I’ve come a long way with lentils. In the past, I didn’t care much for the little guys, but now, I’m liking them more and more. I haven’t advanced to cooking them myself just yet, so I’ve been using the Trader Joe’s Steamed Lentils for a fairly easy recipe.

The hardest part is mashing the lentils as I don’t have a masher and had been using a dinner fork which wasn’t quite doing the job. Frustrated, I squeeze the bejesus out of those little lentils beans with my bare hands and that actually worked out great.

Mini Savory Lentil Cupcakes
Makes 12 cupcakes

1 small leek, white and some of the green part, chopped
4 fresh shiitake mushrooms, chopped
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cups cooked and seasoned lentils
1/8 cup walnuts or almonds, crushed
1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 small carrot, chopped
1/2 cup petite peas (fresh or frozen)
1/2 cup white corn kernels (fresh or frozen)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Heat a wok or sauté pan to hot, add the oil and swirl to coat the wok. Add the leeks and cook until translucent then add the mushrooms. Stir-fry until cooked and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, mash the lentils. Add in the nuts, breadcrumbs, tomato paste and vegetables. Mix well.

In a well-oiled muffin pan, portion out the lentil mixture and pack into the pan, tightly pressing into the bottom. Top with ketchup. Bake for about 30 to 40 minutes until browned and pulling away from the edges. Allow to cool completely before removing from the pan.

While the lentil cupcakes are baking, make the optional mashed potatoes beet frosting. Just add a small beet to your favorite mashed potato or caulipots recipe. Pipe on the mashed potatoes and sprinkle with crushed kale chips.