Vegan Mofo: A Miso to Remember

Miso and I, sizing eachother up (I'm Cary Grant, obvs)

I have this needlessly tempestuous and stormy relationship with miso (ie, fermented soybean paste.) Its like, every time I see it in a bio-store I go up and examine it flirtatiously. I hold onto it for five minutes at a time while I walk around the store, pretending to be totally casual. Sometime, I even bring it to the register. But in the end I always return it to the shelf. Why? Because I simply cannot bear to spend 8 f#@king euros on what is basically a condiment. But then... I dream all night of all the things I could have made with it. Macaroni and cheeze.... miso-tahini dressing... mushroom gravy.... soup.... and then I get annoyed and think of rushing back to the store, only to realize its too late, its already closed and my hesitancy has cost me my chance for happiness. I mean, with me and miso its like An Affair to Remember... star-crossed lovers, always too late, kept apart by misunderstandings and fate.

Until today! I found a huge tub of miso for 4 euros in an Asian market near Alexanderplatz, and finally, all of my miso fantasies can come true!! First on that list was a simple classic, roasted vegetables with miso-tahini sauce.

I started with roasting a gazillion vegetables- beets, zucinni, carrots, onions, sweet potato, a fistful of mushrooms, a tiny pasrnip, ect- with some oil, salt and pepper at 400 degrees (200 c) for about 25 minutes, or, long enough to call all three of my student loan officers. Then, I made the ridiculously simple miso tahiuni sauce--- whisk equal parts white miso and tahini, add a drizzle of agave nectar, and whisk in warm water until desired consistency is reached.

The end result was the super healthy plate of my dreams- mixed vegetables, roasted to perfection, fluffy quinoa and my perfect, heavenly miso-fix. Perfection attained.

Song of the Day: Fiona Apple- Why try to change me now