Pumpkin Chili and White Sage Whip

Pumpkin Chipotle Chili with polenta, yogurt and roasted pumpkin seeds

It comes as no surprise that different cultures have different ideas of what is healthy. In the Balkans, people think strong coffee several times daily is good for the digestion. Turks sprinkle fresh parsley on everything and drink herb teas but are generous with the oil and dairy. And in Germany, many people chain smoke continuously but make sure to buy certified organic produce. I've realized that my specialized quirk as an American is that I think pretty much everything is unhealthy except for vegetables. 

Not that I don't eat sugar, flour, caffeine, alcohol, etc, its just that I make sure to feel guilty while I consume them, like a good American.  Which is pretty much the opposite of my husband, who thinks that everything is healthy except for McDonalds and any form of medicine. (Just trying to get this man to take an aspirin generally leads to a rant about American pharma ending in "pills instead of feelings!")

So when we decided to both try to start eating healthier, I knew this was going to be a piece of cake. Everything I eat is already not a cheeseburger so it should be easy to satisfy his demands. To satisfy his desire for healthy lunch type stuff, we've been cranking out various types of aufstrich- aka, spreads. This white bean, sage, and roasted almond spread ("White Sage Whip") from Hot Knives fit the bill awesomely and is just decadent enough to glam up brown bread and veggies.

As for dinner, my traditional Chili packed with beans and pumpkin and spiked with chocolate, beer and chipotle goes awesomely with (healthy!) polenta and soy yogurt. Its not exactly rabbit food, but neither is it a cheeseburger. (You can find various approximate recipes here and here.)

Hot Knives' White Sage Whip

Song of the Day: Arcade Fire- Reflektor

Migas in Portugal

Mama Celeste, a Portuguese cook

My Dad recently traveled to Nazare, Portugal for work, and also for part of his "making my daughter jealous tour." While there, he witnessed monster feats of surfing during the day and stuffed his face with homey cooking in the evenings. Ah, the life of a cameraman.

There was one dish, coincidentally vegan, that he really enjoyed at thought to share with me.

Mama Celeste in her element

He wrote the following:

"If you order fish in Nazare it comes with garlicky potatoes and Migas,.. it’s a mixture of cornbread, kale and black eyed peas that tastes great and is light and fluffy.

The cook, Mama Celeste, who feeds a ravenous band of surfer dudes every day at her restaurant that bears her name, shared her recipe.

Cornbread  sauteed in olive oil

Kale sauteed in garlic

Black eyed peas boiled and salted.

The whole thing gets stirred together in and heated for a moment in a black skillet."

The finished product!

Sounds pretty delicious and do-able, right? I'm going to have to add this to my repertoire of easy dinner dishes.

Vegan Mofo: Black Eyed Pea Stew and Battered Okra

Hey guys! Its day 3 of Mofo and so far I made something Southern, something Latino, and today I continue my journey of soulfood with a dish from Carribean Vegan, the Black Eyed Pea Stew. The author, Taymer Mason, specifically mentions that this is a good dish for recovering from a cold because its hearty and nearly fat-free. Since I'm recovering from a cold, that really spoke to me. Its even extra perfect because I have a special love for black-eyed peas. Who wouldn't love a bean that is tasty, renowned for bringing good luck, and much faster to cook from scratch than your average bean? In this stew its also souped up with some carrots, tomato, and bajan seasoning- a must for cooking from this cookbook that I will demonstrate in a later post.

On the side I decided to have something fatty after all- battered okra. I know some people are totally icked out by Okra but ever since I discovered its wondrous properties in gumbo I'm all about it. For this I soaked it for a minute in soymilk, then dredged in a mixture of cornmeal, flour, salt and pepper and garlic powder. Then I fried it in a couple inches of oil. (I was kind of thinking about hush puppies.) Worked like a charm!

All in all, a totally soulful and satisfying Wednesday supper. Now it would only be more delicious if I could eat it alongside the Presidential Debate tonight in the US, but alas, I will have to enjoy that event with my morning coffee here in Gerrrrrmany.

Song of the Day: Portugal, the Man- So American

Back in Form: Cupcakes and Hoppin' Jimmy

 

Chocolate-Raspberry-Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Icing

Whew! After what now seems like several years of wedding-related madness (but was actually only a few months) S. and I are finally, really and truly, married and legally resident and official and all that jazz. I am allowed, by God, my parents and the Ausländerbehörde, to stay in Germany for the time being and start living a normal, somewhat less precarious existence. This doesn't mean that everything is stabilized (still looking for a steady job, after all) but things are calm enough that I can actually do that ultimate house-wifey activity: cook!

My first and foremost obsession of late has been cupcakes. I received a handheld mixer as a wedding gift so I can finally make American-style icing, not this glorified whip cream that Germans dig so much. The other day my friend K. finished her final law school exams and held a big party to celebrate, so I whipped up some marvelous cupcakes inspired, natch, by the PPK cupcake tome we all know and love. I made one batch of chocolate and one of vanilla, filled with homemade raspberry compote and topped with lemon cream cheese icing. Big hits (especially with me- I ate like 10 in two days.)

I've also been really into Southern food lately, following our sojourn in the US South. I got a couple of neat Community cookbooks (more on that in later posts) and also brought back some crucial ingredients- liquid smoke, molasses, and creole/ cajun seasoning.

Hoppin' Jimmy with garlicky-spinach

So far, the most popular of my "experiments" (don't ask about Peanut-beurre-blanc) is my version of Hoppin' John. I really like this for a weeknight meal because, unlike with other beans, black-eyed peas only require a quick soak and not the night-before treatment. Also, you can jazz it up with loads of spices or keep it simple as a side dish for more elaborate meals. The authentic Hoppin John would be bare bones, with the inclusion of an actual bone, a ham hock, or some other meaty thing. Mine, obvs, isn't authentic because I added a sofrito and additional spices, so we will call it Hoppin' Jimmy after my vegetarian little brother who lives for beans.

 

 *****

Hoppin' Jimmy

1 cup black-eyed peas, rinsed and soaked for at least one hour

3/4 cup white rice

1 large onion, diced

2 bell peppers (any color) diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

2 tbs. tomato paste

1 tsp. liquid smoke

1 tbs. Cajun or Creole seasoning 

oil, water, salt, pepper

1.) In pot, bring black-eyed peas and enough water to cover them to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Let simmer for ca. 1 hour, skimming off foam occasionally and adding more water if necessary, until beans are cooked through and soft.

2.) When beans are cooked to your liking, add rice and 1.5 cups of water to pot (less if there is still a lot of bean-cooking water.) Add some salt, bring back up to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer and cover.

3.) While the rice and beans are simmering away, add your onion to a medium sized, heavy bottomed pan with plenty of oil heated up to medium-low heat. When onions have slightly softened, add in chopped bell peppers and garlic and season with salt and pepper, plus the Cajun seasoning. Cook over medium heat until all vegetables have softened.

4.) Now, we combine. Give rice a check for done-ness, then a stir before adding in liquid smoke, tomato paste, and onion-pepper mixture, stirring gently to combine. Simmer for 5-10 more minutes until most of the liquid is cooked off and taste-test for any seasoning adjustments. 

Serve with greens and hot sauce.

*****

Song the Day: Soko- I'll Kill Her

Recipes from The Inspired Vegan- Beans, Greens, Yams, Molasses Cake

I believe I have expressed my fondness for Bryant Terry on this blog before, and his first cookbook Vegan Soul Kitchen is now somewhat of a classic (according to me.) SO when I heard he had come out with a new cookbook, The Inspired Vegan, I knew I had to rush out and get it. (And/ or, wait 6 months until I was back in the US to grab it.) Happily, while on my honeymoon I had the chance to go to one of my ALL-TIME-FAVORITE places in the whole country, Charis Feminist Bookstore in Atlanta, GA, and they happened to have a copy sitting on the shelves! And that's not exactly a coincidence, because much like Charis, the book is packed with fascinating info about art, music, and social justice. The menus are dedicated to different themes and people that interest Terry, like Shirley Chisholm, Grace Lee Boggs, and Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, and interspersed with his own memories and interests, while giving information for those who are interested in further reading or volunteering for different causes. In this respect, it is much more than a cookbook. But just in case you have no interest in politics, history, music, the environment, or history (HA), you can still enjoy the recipes, which range from Southern soul food to Asian fusion to African cuisine. For me, being interested in all of those things (and how!) its the perfect drool-worthy cookbook that also inspires you to go beyond the pages and find out about all the cool people and movements he mentions.

I picked out a few recipes to cook for me and S.'s one month anniversary: black eyes peas in garlic ginger braised mustard greens, (or in my case, chard) and molasses, miso, and maple candied sweet potatoes. I served it with white rice rather than the suggested forbidden black rice, and it was totally delicious. The greens and beans were spicy and flavorful but still subtle in comparison to the juicy sweet potatoes that were bursting with strong flavors. Despite being an objectively healthy meal, this was still special occasion-type food that was really exciting to prepare and eat. We ate the meal with 'Dark & Stormy' cocktails, a mix of strong ginger beer and dark rum that is my new favorite special occasion cocktail.

For dessert I made another recipe from the book, ginger-molasses cake. (Its supposed to have walnuts but I didn't have any so I served it with peaches.) This was super easy to make with ingredients that most vegans would have on hand, and turned out really moist and delicious while still tasting very sophisticated and "different." It also looks like chocolate cake so its a fun way to trick guests. :)

I have no doubt that I'll be cooking plenty more from this tome and I hope that Terry keeps 'em coming.

Song of the Day: Fela Kuti- Water Got No Enemy

Fruska Gora and daily menu

Fruscka Gora

Greetings from sunny Serbia! Here in Belgrade, the weather has turned to Spring literally overnight, and the streets are filled with beautiful girls in bright dresses and handsome boys in crisp white shirts and new haircuts. I must say, the Serbs I have encountered in Belgrade are terribly good looking in a sporty sort of way, totally unlike the lanky hipster paperdolls in Berlin (who are also, actually, pretty bloody attractive in their own way). I guess what I'm saying is, if you are single and looking for a hot tennis player with a country house, try Belgrade, and try Berlin for all of your hot starving artist needs.

Ahem. Using Europe as a boyfriend buffet ASIDE, I am very much enjoying my stay in Belgrade, but a lack of variety in vegan options has led me to eat more or less the same thing day in and day out. As you can imagine, this does not make for very interesting blog posts, however, feast your eyes on THIS:

So here we have my daily lunch, from a local a la carte restaurant that has slightly different offerings every day. The thing in common is that its always simple, good food, and that its INSANELY cheap- less that 2 euros usually. (That's crazy-town.)

So above we have, from clockwise- red beet salad, Serbian cornbread (Proja) which the owners insisted contain no jaja or mleka (eggs or milk) but I'm a little skeptical. Next to that we have pirinac (rice) with leeks and what may be the national dish of Serbia, Prabanac- beans with paprika and other spices. (Sometimes made with bacon or other meat stuffs so ask!) On the side are some simple grilled veggies. I eat this literally every day and I'm not sick of it yet, which either says something about me or the good food on offer.

Anyways, the weekday lunches might be monotonous, but Belgrade itself is city that really knows how to relax in style. The prices are so low in comparison to the rest of Europe that it seems silly not to enjoy the vibrant club scene, enjoy the view from a water-front restaurant, or stay up all night dancing on the tabletops of a local kafana with live folk music.

And I have been doing some of that. But I was also offered the chance this last weekend to head to the Fruška gora (a country area outside of Belgrade known as the Frankish Hills, as Rebecca West says, for a reason far too dull to interest anyone). Now, this area is sort of a wide green valley filled with small country houses, Orthodox monasteries, and acre upon acre of fruit trees. Its special in Serbian history for offering a retreat from Turkish dominated territory, and to this day houses the tombs of many Kings. But I'm no Serb historian, I'm in it for the fruit! We're talking cherries of all seasons, pears, figs, grapes, plums, and all manner of sunflowers, lavender and corn. Its not the season for these yet, but Oh my G-D, it is still so insanely gorgeous.

Here we were in the tail end of winter and the area was still a sight. In the little, elegantly appointed home I stayed at we stayed outside all day and ate bread and apples, played cards, and watched neighbors walk by on horseback. Its truly hard to believe that such a beautiful and seemingly ancient place exists to close to bustling Belgrade, but it does, and if you ever visit Belgrade you would be extremely remiss not to pay this area a visit.

I'm hoping to go back when the fruit trees are full and lie in the fields gorging on cherries in the sunshine! Ugh, doesn't that just sound almost too divine?

song of the day: The Shoes- Time to Dance

Happy Meals

I have absolutely no scientific evidence to back this up, but I am convinced that eating orange food in the winter counteracts some of the effects of sun deprivation. Maybe its just the bright, cheerful color of sweet potatoes and carrots that lift my mood, or maybe beta carotene packs some kind of happy punch. All I know is, when the weather is grey I can't get enough orange. (And Germans seem to agree: almost every restaurant offers pumpkin or carrot soup this time of year.) (But my sweet potato lentil soup is better. :) )

So for the last few weeks, faced with the prospect of moving to a new country, planning two weddings, and staving off poverty until impending permanent residency (and accompanying work permit) I have been trying to lower my stress levels by loading up on delicious orangey bliss. Its been kind of working.

Above we have a simple dinner from S.- sweet potatoes mashed with a little bit of maple syrup, white miso, and cinnamon, fried tofu  that has been dredged in soy milk then coated in cornstarch, a little flour and sesame seeds, and green beans sauteed with salty soy sauce. Perfection.

And then here we have a variation on an old standby: carrot-cashew pasta. This time I aimed for more of a savory flavor profile rather than the sweet flavor my other recipe gets from ginger and agave nectar. This time I boiled sliced carrots, a handful of plain cashews, and a clove of garlic until tender, then blended them with a few tablespoons of the boiling water, plus a sprinkling of curry powder and black pepper. This was tossed with pasta and topped with sauteed brown mushrooms.

And finally you have my purest version of a happy meal:

A homemade black-bean burger on a sesame seed roll topped with onions, spinach, and sriracha-laced ketchup, served with sweet potato fries and, sure, more ketchup. Eat your heart out Micky D's.

How does one make sweet potato fries, you ask? Simply preheat your oven to 400 degrees and slice up a peeled sweet potato into thin, fry-like slices. Toss resultant slices with olive oil plus any of the following: salt and pepper; cumin, cinnamon and paprika; lemon pepper and salt; ect. Bake until crispy and  try to wait until they cool down.

So, that concludes my primer on stuffing your S.A.D. face full of orange. Here are several more dishes on the same theme:
Butternut Squash Risotto with sage
Sweet Potato Gnocchi
Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

And now, friends, I'll continue my panicked Serbia preparations! Next time you hear from me, I'll be writing from Belgrade!
Следећи пут када чујете од мене, ја ћу бити у Београду!


Song of the Day: Tears for Fears- Everybody Wants to Rule the World

Vegan Brazilian Feijoada, quickly

On a cold and rainy day, there's nothing quite as comforting as a big warm pot of feijoada. Since Brussels is often cold and rainy, I first learned about this miracle cure when I lived above a group of Brazilian guys in Belgium. Every Saturday, a smokey, rich cooking smell would drift up to my apartment during the morning, and continue all day. In the late afternoon, I would hear them playing guitars and singing in Portuguese, clearly having an awesome party while I shivered in my apartment. Finally, I got invited one day, when I happened to be walking by the open door. I learned that the all-day dish was feijoada, Brazil's national dish. Its a combination of slow simmered black beans, various types of meat, bay leaves and other spices, with wine or beer. The vegan way, of course, involves some substitutions, but its still incredibly rich, comforting and delicious, especially with sides of orange rice, braised kale, and roasted plantains, the traditional accoutrements to the rich stew.

The real, "from scratch" recipe takes several hours, given that you use dried beans to get a luscious broth. But sometimes I do a short-cut recipe for weeknights that captures most of the appeal of the original without the many hours of stirring. I definitely recommend trying the traditional recipe, however- both Viva Vegan and Color Me Vegan offer awesome versions (and you can't get that perfectly thick bean broth with canned beans, alas.) However, once you've mastered those, you may find yourself craving the dish on non-special occasions, such as a particularly gross rainy day. In that case, I think my version holds up fairly decently, and my feijoada-obsessed boyfriend agrees.

*****
Brazilliant Feijoada serves 4

2 16 oz cans black (turtle) beans, drained and rinsed
2 medium onions, diced
6 cloves garlic, diced
2 cups mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 cup deuhydrated soy curls or similar (I use "soja schnetzel")
1 cup red wine
1/4 c. balsamic vinegar
2 Tbs. soy sauce
4 cups vegetable broth (or water + veg bouillon)
1 sprig fresh thyme, or 1 tsp. dried
1 bay leaf
1 and 1/2 Tbs. cumin
1and 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika

1.) Reconstitute soy curls by pouring boiling veg broth (about 2 cups) over them (enough to cover) and soaking for about 5 minutes. Then drain, squeezing against colander gently to release excess water, and set aside.
2.) In a large, sturdy pot, heat a few good glugs of oil over medium low heat. When hot, add in onions and stir to coat. After 1-2 minutes, add in garlic. When garlic and onions are soft, season well with salt and pepper and pour in red wine to deglaze, cooking a few minutes more.
3.) Add in mushrooms and cook for 5 more minutes, then add in soy curls, beans, remaining two cups veg broth, and remaining ingredients. Bring mixture to a boil, then lower heat to low. Let stew simmer for 30 minutes, stirring ocassionally. Meanwhile, prepare accoutrements (ie, roasted plantains, greens of your choosing, orange rice.)
4.) After stew has boiled down and sauce has become thick, taste and adjust seasonings. (I usually add a bit more soy sauce and balsamic at this point.) Let cook a bit longer until plenty thick, and serve hot with plenty of rice and hot sauce. Leftovers are even better the next day.
 *****

For more on roasting plantains, see here. For more on cooking dried beans, which I fully encourage despite the above recipe, see here.


Song of the Day: Aguas de Marco- Cibo Matto

Vegan Mofo- Hard to Mess Up

As promised, here is my list of 5 recipes I make over and over again, with delicious, crowd-pleasing results every single time.

5.)  Pizza Crust- Joy of Cooking

Sure its a non-vegan cookbook, but its got a lot of hits, and often contains the most simple baseline recipe for something you've heard of but never cooked. That makes it great for veganizing. This recipe, however, needs no alteration, and I've made perhaps 100 times, always with phenomenal results. A no-frills classic.

4.)  Venezuelan Black Beans- Viva Vegan

Once you try Terry Hope Romero's recipe for simple black beans, you may feel tempted to throw away all of your other cookbooks. Resist. Man cannot subsist on black beans alone. However, this is the perfect recipe with which to attempt that feat.

3.) Minimalist Tagine (from moi)

I came up with this streamlined take on the classic Tagine in Brussels and ever since I've made it at least once a month, always a little differently. Sometimes its mushrooms and eggplant, sometimes I throw in some chickpeas, the nuts depend on what I have around... in other words, its flexible. But the cinnamon and cumin spiked sauce, with golden apricot bits, is exotic enough to feel like a feast, even when you just throw it together. Its also a good centerpiece to a Moroccan themed dinner party.

2.) Eggplant Potato Moussaka- Veganomicon.

Isa and Terry might be over-represented on this list, but there is a reason for that.  I've served this impressive casserole to everyone, from my parents, to a bunch of omni Germans on Passover. Its always a hit. The filling- layers of potatoes and eggplant with a toothsome tomato sauce- perfectly compliments the custardy pine-nut cream topping that no one ever believes is vegan. Its simple enough to make, but everyone will think you are a star vegan chef when you serve this.

1.) Banana Flapjacks- Vegan Brunch

I have plenty of pancake recipes that I love and enjoy, but let's not kid ourselves- Vegan Brunch's version are the sine qua non of pancake recipes.Without them, there is no breakfast. I get so many compliments on these babies that I feel like I should send a royalty check to Isa every time I make them. But then I'd really have to be a millionaire. Try them once, and watch as your attachment to all other pancake recipes fades away....

What recipe or cookbook can you not live without?

Vegan Mofo: Skills- Cooking beans from scratch

Today's essential vegan skill is cooking beans from scratch- that is, transforming them from their dried state on the bottom shelf of the grocery store aisle into a big pot of saucy deliciousness. Why should you bother to learn this?
 1.) Buying a big bag of dried beans is cheaper than buying as many cans of beans! (And that's saying something, because canned beans are already kind of cheap.)
2.) You have more control over the flavor. Ever noticed all the gross salty water they pack in there?
3.) You get to have cred! Like, look! I took something that could take about ten seconds with a can opener, and stretched it over 2 days!

Ok, maybe I'm not selling this correctly. The truth is, if they had canned black beans in Europe readily available, maybe I would never have learned this "skill." But I still think people should try it once, because it can make a huge difference in the taste, and also, don't you want to know that you COULD make beans from dried if you needed to? If you were shipped off to war somewhere with no canned beans? And besides, you might find out that the taste is so much better that you always want to do it this way. And here's how!

Skill two: Cooking beans from scratch!
1.) Take your beans and spill 'em out somewhere to sort through them. My technique is to pour them about 1/4 a cup at a time onto a kitchen towel on the counter, sort them for rocks and broken pieces, then gather the towel at the top and dump it into my soaking container. (In this way, you can avoid spilling beans all over your kitchen at 11 o'clock at night like I always do.)

2.) Now for the soaking. As I demonstrated yesterday, you just need some kind of big container in which you place you beans and fill it with cold water. The best thing is to do this before you go to bed, stick it in the fridge, then it gets to sit the next day and they should be really ready by the time you want to cook them. (If you are making black beans, why not soak some cashews too and make cashew sour cream?)

3.) Alright now comes the rigorous part. After you beans have soaked as long as you can bear it (10-12 hours is usual for me) then you can start you cooking. Drain the beans in a colander than cover them with a few cups of fresh water in a large pot and bring that baby to a boil. Then reduce to simmer and cover, with a little room for steam to escape. (If you get some white foam at first you can skim it off with a spoon, though it won't hurt you.) How long you let it sit and simmer depends on many things: what quantity of beans you are cooking, how long they soaked, what phase the moon is in, and most of all, whether or not you have dinner guests. But I have found that the most common length of time is between 2 and 2 and 1/2 hours for 1 cup beans. You will have to keep adding more water periodically. (But don't add salt until the end!)

4.) In the meantime, you fry a bunch of stuff to put in them when they are done! (Terry Hope Romero calls this, "sofrito!") This is where your creativity comes in.  Good combos:
-Simplicity: garlic, onions and peppers
-mushrooms, garlic and onions
-potatoes, carrots, onions
-small tempeh pieces, peppers, onions
Last night I fried up some quartered plantains first of all, then setting them aside, used the same hot pan to cook a bunch of onions and garlic. It doesn't matter whether they stay hot because you are just going to add them into your beans.

5.) Now that you've done that, painted your nails, replied to all of your emails, and whatever else you can accomplish is 2 and 1/2 hours, you can check on your beans. When they are perfect, it won't be huge effort to chew one and they will be easily mashable with a fork. At that time, you can add in your "sofrito", as well as some canned or fresh diced tomatoes (1/2 cup per cup of beans is good, but add more for saucier beans), and some cumin. I also add in cayenne pepper at this point, and a pinch of paprika. Beans eat up spices so you need not be stingy, and feel free to be creative. (Like if you are one of those cilantro types.)

6) Let the beans cook another 10-15 minutes with all the new ingredients folded in, or as long as it takes to cook some rice. Taste and adjust salt and spices. Serve with rice and some cashew sour cream, or if you're in the mood, with hot sauce, pickled onions, avocados and mango... whatever you have on hand!

It may not be the most gorgeous dish, but its so delicious.

Q: "But T, this is just for black beans! Is it the same for other kinds of beans?"

A: Kind of! You can use a similar process for other types of beans (except for lentils), but they take different amounts of time and go better with other flavors. Red beans take about 1 and 1/2 hours, and go great with just garlic and onions and a tons of spices (served with coconut rice, yum!) Adzuki beans take less time, chickpeas take more. But once you've experimented with dried beans you will find that the process doesn't vary much and there is a big reward to cooking them this way- namely, the taste.

What do you prefer, canned or dried?

Song of the Day: MGMT- It's working