BBQ Ribz

These were easy and super-tasty. Probably my favorite barbecued seitan recipe yet. Shamelessly adapted from Fat Free Vegan and Yeah, That Vegan Shit.

1 cup + 2 Tbsp vital wheat gluten
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional)
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup water
4 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1 tsp soy sauce
1 teaspoon Liquid Smoke
a whole lot of barbecue sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the wheat gluten, paprika, nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder and salt in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, add the water to the peanut butter bit by bit until it's smoothly incorporated. Add the liquid smoke and the soy sauce and mix well.

Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and mix well. You should have a slightly moist dough. If it's too sticky, add more wheat gluten. Knead for a few minutes, then press into a lightly oiled baking dish until it's 1/2 inch thick. Use a pizza cutter to cut into strips roughly 3/4-inch wide.

Bake for 10 minutes. Flip the strips and paint them generously with BBQ sauce. Bake for 5 more minutes. Flip them one more time, paint with BBQ and bake for 5 more minutes. Serve slathered with extra BBQ.

Ingredient Notes: I get my vital wheat gluten and my nutritional yeast at New City Market. I found the smoked paprika at Penzey's Spices (it's by Cool Basil and Half Price Books, at 86th and University). I used peanut butter from the Farmer's Market and Russ & Franks BBQ sauce from the River Bend Trading Company (I've also seen it at Gateway Market).

Zen Noodle & Sushi Bar

The veggie sushi is mighty tasty and interesting. The udon bowl was less interesting, even though I love me some udon. Next time I'm trying the rice noodles with red curry.

Beautiful decor, decent prices, excellent location.

Grand Piano Bistro

The Grand Piano Bistro has had me dreaming of their falafel with apricot chutney all week. That's all I'm saying.

They had a fabulous build-a-sandwich option during lunch. Perfect for picky eaters like me.

Namaste - Now With Lunch Buffet

We've been loving the cheap tasty dosas at Namaste (77th and University). It's a different way to experience the joys of Indian food. Yesterday, we noticed that they've added a lunch buffet Tue-Sun, so we stopped in this afternoon.

Pros: Tasty, unusual South Indian food.
Cons: Not as cheap as their a la carte menu, and the food was very spicy. Which was fine for me, but not so great for my boy.

We'll definitely go back. The food is too good not to. But we'll probably have him order his mainstay chana masala off the menu.

Pesto Orecchiette w/ Green Beans & Broccoli

1/4 cup pine nuts (optional)
1 Tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups green beans, trimmed and cut into bite-size pieces
1 head broccoli, cut into bite-size pieces

2 cups orecchiette pasta (or other small pasta)
6 cups water

1/3 cup pesto
2 Tbsp whole-grain mustard
salt to taste

Put the water on to boil. Once it's boiling, add a little salt and the pasta. Cook for 10+ minutes, or until the pasta is no longer crunchy but still has a 'bite'.

If using the pine nuts, heat a dry pot over medium heat. Add the pine nuts, stirring constantly, until they start to brown. Remove them immediately to a small bowl. Rinse out the pot and return it to heat. Once it's dry, add the olive oil and garlic. Stir until golden, about 1-2 minutes. Add the green beans, broccoli and 1/4 tsp salt. Stir-fry for 2 minutes, or until the veggies are dark green. Add 1 Tbsp pesto, 1/4 cup water and cover. Cook for 5-10 minutes, or until the veggies are tender. Cover until pasta is done.

Once the pasta's ready, drain it in a colander. Immediately add it to the broccoli-green bean mixture, along with the pine nuts, pesto and mustard. Stir until well coated. Taste, and adjust salt to your liking. Serve at once!

Ingredient Notes: We got our orecchiette at the IngerDahl's. The mustard we use is the Iowa Country Dill Mustard from the downtown farmer's market. Pine nuts are fairly cheap at CostCo.

Roasted Beet Salad w/ Walnuts and Goat Cheese

Closely adapted from 'Vegetables Every Day', by Jack Bishop. (An excellent book which features invaluable tips on how to store and prepare all kinds of veggies. It's indispensable during farmers' market season.) This is an amazing way to prepare beets, even if you think you hate them.

4 medium-sized beets with the tops still attached
4 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
1 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 Tbsp orange juice
1 Tbsp Lambic Framboise (optional)
2 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup walnuts
1 oz. goat cheese, crumbled

(It's easier to do this first step the night before.) Preheat the oven. Wash the beets thoroughly. Cut off the tops and any trailing roots. If the tops have gone all wilty, put them in a bowl filled with water and stick it in the fridge. They'll crisp right up.

Wrap the beets in foil and pop them in the oven for as little as 20 minutes and as much as an hour (it depends on the size of your beets). Check every 20 minutes to see if they're done. (They're ready when a knife slides all the way through them easily. Remove them from the oven, unwrap them and let them cool a little. If you're using them right away, proceed to the next step while they're still warm. If you're preparing them ahead of time, just pop them in the fridge until you're ready to use them.

Using your hands (or paper towels) rub the skins off the beets. Slice them about 1/4 inch thick and set aside. Rinse or drain the beet greens and tear them into bite-size pieces, discarding the tough stems.

Heat a dry skillet over medium heat. Add the walnuts, breaking them up into smaller pieces with your spoon and stirring constantly until you can smell them (about 1-2 minutes). Remove from the pan, give the pan a quick rinse and return to heat. When all the water has evaporated, add the olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add the garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until golden.

Add the beet greens and stir until wilted. Turn the heat down to low. Add the beet slices, layering them on top of the greens. Salt the beet slices lightly, then cover and cook for 2-3 minutes.

Whisk the balsamic vinegar, orange juice, Lambic Framboise and olive oil together until smooth. Pour the dressing over the beets and keep covered until ready to serve.

Scoop the beets and greens onto plates, then sprinkle with walnuts and crumbled goat cheese. Serve immediately!


Ingredient Notes: I roasted a mixture of golden, red and white beets -- mostly because they look pretty, but also because they have slightly different flavors. You can get Lambic Framboise at some Hy-Vees and Gateway Market (at Gateway, it's in the refrigerated beer section).

If you're a Central Iowan, you must use Northern Prairie Chevre's cheese for this recipe (you can get it at New City Market, Campbell's and Gateway Market, as well as the downtown farmers' market). I normally despise goat cheese, but there's something about the intense creaminess and tang of Northern Prairie's chevre that's out of this world. Plus, they're really kind to their animals... and in this day and age, humane animal husbandry should always be rewarded.

Snap Peas with Mango and Mint

Last night, I came home to a fridge full of vegetables that desperately needed to be used.  So I abandoned my usual one-dish meal plan, got creative, and whipped out three dishes: Mexican zucchini patties, eggplant w/capers and peas with mango and mint.  Three very different tastes, but we saved the vegetables from extinction.  Now I just have to figure out what to do with a drawer full of beets....

2 cups fresh peas, shelled

1 mango, diced

3-4 mint leaves, cut into thin strips and bruised a little

Cook the peas by briefly steaming them in boiling water.  While still warm, toss with the mango and mint.  Serve!

White Bean Pesto Dip

I had some of this leftover from my first attempt at the Zucchini-Pesto Strata, and I discovered that it makes for a lovely dip.

1 can white beans, drained

1/4 cup tomato juice or veggie broth

1 handful pine nuts

2 handfuls fresh basil, chopped

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbsp white miso

1 Tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)

Blend until creamy.

Zucchini White Bean Pesto Strata

This is adapted from Robin Robertson's Quick Fix Vegetarian, which is overdue at the library, but I just can't bear to part with it.

2 medium-sized zucchini, sliced very thin

1 can whole tomatoes, drained, juice reserved

1 can white beans, drained

1/2 cup pesto

1/4 cup pine nuts (optional)

3 slices bread, toasted and cubed

a little olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Oil a cast iron pot or baking dish.  Mix the beans with the pesto and 1/4 cup juice from the tomatoes.

Layer one-half of the zucchini slices in the dish.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Top with half of the pine nuts, followed by half of the bean mixture.  Smoosh half of the tomatoes and lay them on top of the beans.  Repeat.  Spread the bread cubes on top and drizzle with olive oil.

Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes, or until the zucchini are totally cooked through.  Alternatively, you can put the lid on your cast-iron pot and simmer on the stove until done.  Just depends on how much you want to heat up the kitchen.

Zucchini Chai Bread

A moist, spicy, decadent way to use up zucchini.  I think this recipe works best with smaller loaves or muffins.  

2 cups grated zucchini, packed

3/4 small container vanilla soy yogurt

2/3 cup soy chai

1/3 cup canola oil

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 to 1-1/3 cup sugar

3 cups flour (unbleached white, spelt or whole wheat pastry)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

2 Tbsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/3 cup walnuts, crushed (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Oil two loaf pans or several smaller pans.  Combine the zucchini, soy yogurt, chai, oil, vanilla extract and sugar in a large bowl.  In a smaller bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon.  Add the dry to the wet gradually, stirring just until combined.  Fold in the nuts, if using.

Pour the batter into prepared pans and put in the oven.  If making larger loaves, bake 40-60 minutes.  For smaller loaves or muffins, 15-20 minutes should be sufficient.

Pan-Fried Eggplant Medallions with Capers

2 Japanese eggplants

2 Tbsp tahini

1/4 cup water

1-2 cups panko

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp capers

Slice the eggplants into very thin rounds.  Salt them generously and let sit for a few minutes.  Mix the tahini and water together to form a thick sludge.  Heat the oil over medium in a skillet.  Dredge the eggplant slices in the tahini, then in panko.  Fry for a few minutes on each side, until the eggplant is cooked through and the breadcrumbs are golden.  Just before serving, toss with the capers.

Barbecue Tempeh Sammiches

1 block tempeh, cut into small cubes

1/4 cup water

1 cup barbecue sauce

1 Tbsp hot sauce of choice

pickles, sliced

whole wheat bread, toasted

Heat the water in a skillet over medium.  Add the tempeh and cook until all water has been absorbed.  Add the barbecue sauce and hot sauce and simmer for 10 minutes.  Toast the bread, slice the pickles.  Ladle the tempeh onto the bread, top with pickles and consume!

Mexican Zucchini Patties

2-3 small zucchini, grated

1/4 cup hummus

1/2-1 cup masa harina (depending on the moisture of your zucchini)

1/4 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp chile powder

1/4 tsp salt (or more to taste)

2 tsp lemon juice

2 Tbsp olive oil

salsa

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate for 15 minutes or so.  Using your hands, form patties.  Heat the oil over medium heat and fry the patties for a few minutes on each side, or until golden-brown.  Serve with salsa!