Simple...Elegant Christmas Dinner

I have never made homemade seitan before--well not the kneading, resting, rinsing, kneading, rinsing...rinsing, rinsing, etc., type of seitan.  It is very laborious and I'm not certain if it is worth it or not.  The seitan was very flavorful and would be great sliced for sandwiches or served with a fruit and cheese platter, but sliced into medallions the texture was somewhat chewy.  So the "Simple" in my title references all of the other components of the dish, but not the seitan.  It took about 3.5 hours to make the seitan from start to finish!

 
Demi Glace:  Is a classic French brown sauce--one of the mother sauces that I learned to make in Culinary School years ago.  Obviously the French make the sauce with meat bones, but my recipe uses only homemade vegetable stock and it is rich, glossy and delicious.  To make the sauce I added a couple tbsp of olive oil to a sauce pan, along with one cup sliced white button mushrooms and one cup sliced onion.  I cooked these until brown and caramelized and then added several cloves of crushed whole garlic.  I deglazed the pan with about a cup of red wine and added one tbsp tomato paste.  I reduced this down until almost all the wine was evaporated and then added four cups of homemade vegetable stock, along with a sprig of fresh time, a tsp of fresh rosemary leaves, one bay leaf, and a 1/4 tsp of black peppercorns.  I brought the sauce to a boil and reduced the heat to low and simmered until reduced by half.  I then strained the sauce through a fine strainer, pressing on the solids, returned the sauce to a smaller pan and then whisked in a beurre manie (equal parts butter and flour) to thicken the sauce.  Finally, I seasoned with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.   

Sherry Glazed Button Mushrooms:  I used one pound of white button mushrooms, cleaned them with a damp cloth and trimmed the stems. I heated a cast iron skillet and added a couple tbsp of olive oil and sauteed with the tops face down without stirring until golden brown.  I then turned them over and browned the other side.  Once brown I added chopped fresh thyme, rosemary and minced garlic, along with salt and pepper.  I then deglazed the pan with one cup of pale dry sherry and reduced until the mushrooms were coated and all the liquid was evaporated.  If you don't have sherry, any fortified wine will taste great:  Madeira, Marsala or Ruby Port.  

Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes:  I used Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into two inch chunks.  I made a cashew cream with one cup raw cashews and two cups of water blended in a VitaMix until smooth and creamy.  I roasted two whole garlic heads in the oven for about an hour until soft and caramelized.  I squeezed out the flesh of the garlic and added it to the cashew cream and blended again.  I drained the potatoes, mashed, added earth balance butter and added enough garlic cashew cream to create a smooth consistency, along with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Homemade Peppered Seitan:  Back to the kitchen to tweak this recipe further.  Again, sliced thinly and tossed with a BBQ sauce and piled high on a sandwich would be great, but still needs some refinement.

 
I hope that you and yours had a wonderful Holiday!  Until my next post...enjoy!
 

 

French Apple-Custard Tart

Today is my last post for my Thanksgiving Series.  When I mentioned my series back in late September I posted a photo for an Apple-Riesling Tart.  I did not post the recipe because I felt that it was too complicated.  And so I simplified the recipe by using a store-bought apricot jam and left out the Riesling reduction altogether.  The added cost for the Riesling really didn't provide much to the recipe--even though it sounded good.   I also experimented with a gluten-free version of the crust, but it was just too crumbly to hold up against the weight of the apples.  But I will continue experiment with a gluten-free crust for future posts, so stay tuned.

I still haven't decided what I'm going to serve on Thanksgiving, but I'll post my final menu next week.  Until then, thanks for following along with me and I wish you and yours a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday!

Flaky Pastry Crust Ingredients:
(Makes enough for 2 9" Tart Pans)

1 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/4 cup unbleached white flour
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp unfiltered sugar
12 tbsp or 1-1/2 sticks Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks, cut into small cubes, frozen
4 tbsp or 1/2 stick Earth Balance Natural Shortening, cut into small cubes, frozen
1/4-1/2 cup cold filtered water

Method:

• Add flour, salt, sugar to a food processor and pulse to combine.
• Using the pulse mode add butter and shortening and pulse until the texture is crumbly and the fat resembles small peas.
• While still in pulse mode, drizzle in water slowly until dough sticks together when pressed in your hand.
• Remove dough from bowl and place on a cutting board.  Divide dough into two 1" high flat disk/circles.
• Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for about an hour before rolling out.  If only making one tart, wrap the second disk in plastic wrap and aluminum foil and store in the freezer for up to three months.

Cashew Cream:

 

1 cup raw cashews, soaked overnight in filtered water

2 cups filtered water

 

Method:

• Drain cashews and place in a blender and cover with 2 cups filtered water.
• Blend on high for about 4 minutes until creamy.  You'll need to strain the cream if you don't have a high speed blender.
• Measure out 1 cup for the custard and reserve the other cream for other uses.

Tart Filling:

3-4 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, sliced in half and then thinly sliced

1 cup cashew cream

1/3 maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp cornstarch

1/4 cup apricot glaze (I used 100% pure fruit apricot jam, heated it and then strained it removing any solids) 

 

Method: 

• Peel, core and slice apples and decorate top of tart shell.
• In a blender mix together 1 cup cashew cream, maple syrup, vanilla extract and cornstarch.
• Pour over top of tart/apples (see assembly instructions below).

Assembly:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees and position oven rack in the middle of the oven.
• On a lightly floured cutting board, roll out the dough to 3/8" thick and line a 9" tart pan, pressing along the sides and removing excess from the edges.
• With the prongs of a fork, prick the bottom of the dough several times and place in the freezer for 30 minutes to chill.
• Remove tart from the freezer and place on a sheet tray.
• Brush the bottom of the tart pan with a little apricot jam and then start overlapping apple slices starting at the top edge and working around to complete the circle.  You want the apple slices to cover the edge of the tart.  Follow the same pattern for the second and third layers, using any small apple slices to fill in the holes.  
• You want the entire surface of the tart covered with apples.
• Move the tart/sheet pan to the oven rack and then slowly pour in custard in a circular motion.
• Carefully slide in oven rack and bake tart for about 1 hour and 15 minutes until golden brown and custard is set.  If apples start to brown too much you can drape tart with foil or turn oven down to 350 degrees, but you may need to adjust your cooking time with a lower temperature.
• Remove tart from oven and let cool on rack for about 15 minutes before removing tart ring.
• While tart is cooling, brush with warm apricot glaze.
• Let tart cool for about 30 minutes before cutting and serve with your favorite vegan ice cream or sweetened cashew cream (see below).

Sweetened Cashew Cream:

 

1/2 cup cashew cream

1/4 cup apricot glaze

 

Method:

• Mix ingredients together in a bowl and chill until ready to use.

 

 
 

Caramelized French "Five" Onion Soup

Before I switched careers to become a chef, I used to work in the high-tech industry in Silicon Valley.  And in 1998 my boss went on a trip to Paris and he brought me back a bottle of red wine and told me to keep it for six to eight years before drinking it.  So I stuck the bottle in the back of a coat closet, behind the vacuum cleaner and forgot all about it...until I attended culinary school in the fall of 2003.

During class one day we made French Onion Soup and I was so excited to come home and make it for dinner.  It was one of those great fall evenings where the air was crisp and we were just about to get our first rain of the season.  So here I am in the kitchen nursing my onions into a deep golden brown and I didn't have any red wine...or at least I thought I didn't.  But then I remembered the bottle of forgotten red wine behind the vacuum cleaner and I excitedly removed the cork and added about a cup to my onions.  All was well until my husband walked in the front door and noticed the "opened" bottle of French wine on the kitchen counter.  He asked me why I opened it and before I could explain, he grabbed the bottle off the counter and went into the home office and looked it up on the Internet.  To make a long story short, the bottle was worth $545, that's Five Hundred and Forty-Five Dollars and I used it for my French Onion Soup!!! 

Needless to say, we were both quite upset--obviously he more than me.  But in my defense, I was only focused on culinary school and making the best French onion soup ever!  But the evening had a happy ending--the soup turned out phenomenal and I let my husband drink what remained of the wine all to himself and it was one of the best meals we've ever had!

If you don't have three hours to make French Onion Soup the proper way, then wait until you do.  This recipe contains no flour, cornstarch, sugar, soy, tamari, or worcestershire sauce to obtain its deep/rich brown color.  All it takes is ruby port wine, vegetable stock and a couple of hours to nurse and caramelize the onions and you've got an amazing authentic soup.

Above is a photo of what the onions should look like before you add the majority of the vegetable stock.  Once you get to this point, all you need to do is add the remaining stock and simmer the soup for about 20-30 minutes, ladle it into bowls and garnish it with cashew cheese sauce and croutons.

Even before I started eating a plant-based diet, I was never a big fan of garnishing French onion soup with a large toasted crostini and melted Gruyere cheese.  I found it really hard to eat and I always felt like I was going to choke on all the cheese.  So instead, I skip the cheese altogether and use a cashew cheese sauce and garnish the soup with herb-croutons.  I find it so much easier to eat and you get a crunchy crouton in every bite!  But if you're a big fan of melted vegan cheese, then by all means, add it to the soup and garnish it with the croutons.

Soup Base:

2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
2 medium leeks, white and light green parts only, sliced in half moons, rinsed
1/2 cup sliced shallots
2 tbsp finely minced garlic
1 tbsp finely minced fresh thyme leaves
1 cup Ruby Port Wine or Merlot
10 cups dark vegetable stock (homemade or Trader Joe's Brand)
1/4 cup pale dry sherry
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Method:

• Heat a large dutch oven or stock pot on medium heat.  Add olive oil and onions and cook on medium to medium-low for about 45 minutes until onions are soft, stirring frequently.
• Once the onions look like they're going to burn and stick to the bottom of the pan, deglaze with ruby port and cook for another 30-45 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Again, once the onions look like they're going to start burning ladle in 1 cup of vegetable stock and cook until reduced, about 15 minutes, stirring frequently.  
• Ladle in another cup of vegetable stock and cook until reduced, stirring frequently.
• Add in garlic, thyme and dry sherry and cook for another 15 minutes, stirring frequently.  At this point the onions should be a deep amber brown and look like the photo above.
• Add remaining vegetable stock, salt and pepper to taste and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Herb-Croutons:

1 day old loaf Sour Italian Batard, crust removed and diced into 1-2" cubes
1 tbsp finely minced fresh thyme
1 tbsp finely minced garlic
2 tsp finely minced fresh rosemary
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Method:

• Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees.
• Toss bread cubes, herbs, olive oil, salt and pepper together and place on a sheet pan and bake in the oven for 15 minutes until lightly golden brown.

To assemble, ladle the onion soup into deep bowls and garnish with cashew cheese sauce or vegan cheese, herb croutons and finely minced chives.  




 

Roasted Tomato Tart with Herbs de Provence

Wow, gluten free baking is expensive!  I opted to purchase Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Flour to save money, but I'm not certain if I did.  His blend includes garbanzo bean, tapioca, sorghum, and fava bean flours, along with potato starch.  If I would of purchased all of these flours separately it would of easily cost me about $25, but I ended up spending that anyway because I purchased a $12 bag of xanthan gum.  Oh well, live and learn, but this is one expensive tomato tart!  I actually skimped on the other ingredients for the tart because it was getting to the ridiculous stage.  I just don't know that much about gluten free baking.  Perhaps I could of skipped the xanthan gum all together or purchased guar gum instead, which is a lot cheaper.

So how did the tart crust turn out?  Well, I'm not sure actually, because I've never eaten a gluten free pie or tart crust before.  The texture was more on the sandy side, not flaky which is what I'm used to.  The bottom of the tart held together nicely and did not get soggy from the tomatoes.  However, the sides were a bit fragile and I had to be careful cutting the tart so that it did not crumble under the pressure of the knife.  Also, the crust didn't have a lot of flavor; however, I could definitely taste a hint of garbanzo bean, which was a bit weird.  Perhaps it's the recipe I used, or I didn't use enough butter, or xanthan gum--I'm just not certain.  Anyway, I'm going to make the tart again so if anyone has any suggestions, I'm definitely listening. 

Crust Ingredients:

2 cups Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free A/P Flour

1/2 tsp Bob's Red Mill Xanthan Gum

1/2 tsp kosher salt

4 oz Earth Balance Buttery Stick, or (1 stick)

1 tbsp ground flaxseed (plus 3 tbsp water)

1-2 tbsp ice water

Method:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Dice butter and place in the freezer for about 15 minutes before using.
• Place flour, xanthan gum and kosher salt in a food processor and pulse until combined.
• Add diced chilled butter and pulse until the size of small peas or oatmeal in texture.
• In a small bowl, whisk together ground flax and 3 tbsp water and add to food processor and pulse again.
• Add 1 tbsp of ice water and pulse a couple of times again and then test to see if dough will form into a ball.  If too dry or sandy add additional tbsp ice water and pulse.
• Remove dough and knead into a ball and form into a flat disk.
• Roll out dough between two pieces of wax paper to about 1/8-1/4" thick and about 2" larger in size then your tart pan.
• Transfer dough to tart pan and press dough along bottom and sides of pan, removing excess around the edges.  Prick bottom several times with the prongs of a fork.
• Freeze tart pan for about 15 minutes before baking.
• Place tart on a sheet pan in the middle of the oven and blind bake (cover with foil and baking beans) for 10-15 minutes.  Remove foil and baking beans and bake for another 10-15 minutes until crust is firm and starting to pull away from the sides of the pan.
• Let cool for about 10-15 minutes before adding tomatoes.

  

 

Other Ingredients/Assembly:

 

3-4 lbs ripe Roma tomatoes sliced 1/4" thick, drained

2 tsp Dijon mustard

1/4-1/3 cup basil pesto (1 bunch basil leaves, 2 garlic cloves, 1/4 cup raw pinenuts or walnuts, 1 tbsp nutritional yeast, juice of 1 lemon, extra virgin olive oil and salt and pepper to taste)

1/2 cup Daiya Mozzarella Cheese Shreds

1 tbsp Herbs de Provence

Chopped basil for garnish

Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling

Note:  For my tart, I did not use the basil pesto or Daiya cheese.  As I said above, it was getting too expensive.  When I make it again, I will definitely add these components to the tart.  Also, this tart would work better in a square tart pan because the tomatoes will lay better and cook quicker.  

 

Method:

• Turn up oven temp to 400 degrees.
• Slice tomatoes and place on paper towels to drain/dry to remove as much moisture as possible.  
• Brush the bottom of the tart pan lightly with Dijon mustard, followed by basil pesto and Daiya cheese.
• Place tart in the oven for about 1 minute for cheese to melt slightly.
• Remove tart from oven and starting from the edge overlap tomato slices until you get to the center of the tart.
• Sprinkle with Herbs de Provence and bake for about 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes, turn tart and bake for another 10 minutes until tomatoes are starting to release their juices and are starting to shrivel.  
• Remove tart from oven and let sit for about 10 minutes before removing from tart pan.
• Let cool completely before slicing and serve with a side salad of baby arugula dressed in a light lemon vinaigrette.

PS, If you're ever in Portland (we have family who live there), go visit Bob's Red Mill, it's just outside the City.  You can take tours and watch how they mill their flours, or wander around their large grocery store and purchase some of their products that are not available at Whole Foods.  Also, their restaurant serves the best vegan pancakes I've ever tasted!

Bouillabaisse with Tarragon Butter Crostini

Bouillabaisse is a Provencal Fish Stew originating from the City of Marseilles in the South of France. The most important part of the stew is the broth and the spices that are used that give it its unique flavoring, such as saffron, fennel seed, and orange peel.  Bouillabaisse really reminds me of the Mediterranean and the freshness of the sea and so I wanted to capture those same flavors in my vegan version.  Not only is the broth identical to what you might find in a small cafe in Marseilles, but the different textures used in the soup make it quite satisfying as well.  This is a great soup to enjoy year round, even on a warm summer night.  

I know that the ingredient list looks long, but it's no different than making any other soup from scratch if you are using a homemade stock.  You can also purchase prepared artichoke hearts instead of making your own to save time.

Stock Ingredients:

1 large onion, sliced

2 stalks celery, sliced

1 fennel bulb, sliced, stems and fronds included

4 whole garlic cloves

10 sprigs fresh thyme

5 sprigs fresh parsley

1/2 tsp fennel seed

1/2 tsp coriander seed

1/2 tsp black peppercorns

1 4" piece of kombu (dried kelp)

1 sheet nori (dried seaweed), crumbled

1 cup white wine

Juice of 1/2 lemon, after squeezing juice, add lemon

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

10 cups filtered water

Method:

• In a large dutch oven or stock pot, heat olive oil and saute vegetables until tender.
• Add white wine and cook until reduced by half.
• Add spices, herbs, filtered water, kombu and nori and bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer.  
• Simmer stock for about an hour until almost reduced by half.  
• Strain stock through a fine mesh strainer and set aside.  You should have about six cups of liquid.

Braised Artichokes:

2 lbs baby artichokes, peeled, tough outer layers removed, stems removed and then cut in half
1 tsp lemon zest
Juice of 1 lemon, plus add the whole lemon after squeezing, cut in quarters
1 tsp orange zest
Juice of 1/2 orange, plus add the half orange after squeezing, cut in half
1 cup white wine
5 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
4 whole garlic cloves
1/2 tsp black peppercorns
Water to cover, about 4 cups

Method:

• Before you start preparing the artichokes, you need to prepare the acidulated braising water first.  This will keep the artichokes from browning while you're trimming the entire batch.  
• When preparing the artichokes, make sure that you peel off the tough outer layers.  It may seem like you're wasting a lot of the artichoke, but there's nothing worse than chewing on a tough piece of artichoke.
• Bring artichokes to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook covered until really tender, but still holding their shape, about 30 minutes.
• When artichokes are finished, drain and remove herbs, citrus and garlic cloves.  Set aside.

Soup Base:

1 leek, white and light green parts only, sliced in half lengthwise and then sliced in 1/4 inch slices.  Wash leeks really well in a colander before using.
1 medium onion, diced small
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 stalks celery, diced small
2 tsp fresh thyme leaves, minced
1 tsp fennel seed
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 bay leaf
1 tsp orange zest
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 tsp saffron threads, crumbled
2 cups tomato puree
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
6 cups prepared stock
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Method:

• In a small bowl add white wine and crumbled saffron and let sit for 10 minutes.
• In a large dutch oven or stock pot, add olive oil, onion, celery and garlic and cook until soft.
• Deglaze with saffron-wine mixture and cook until reduced by half, about 4 minutes.
• Add herbs, spices, orange zest, tomato puree and stock and season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Bring soup to a boil and reduce to a simmer and cook for about 30-40 minutes until thickened somewhat and flavors have combined.

Soup Ingredients:

1 pound baby fingerling potatoes (or other baby boiling potatoes)
2 fennel bulbs
1 can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
2 tbsp finely minced parsley
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Method:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Slice potatoes in 1/2, toss with 1 tsp chopped rosemary, 1 tsp chopped thyme, 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.  Roast in oven for 20 minutes until golden brown.
• Slice fennel bulbs in 1/2 lengthwise and then slice into 1/4" thick slices, keeping the core in tact.  Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast for about 20 minutes until golden brown.
• Below is a picture of the cut fennel, before roasting.  You can see that the core is still attached to the leaves so that they don't fall apart while roasting.

• To finish the soup, add cannellini beans, braised artichokes, roasted potatoes and fennel to soup base and heat through.  Add salt and pepper if needed. 
• Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with fresh minced parsley. 
• I served my soup with a toasted crostini smeared with Tarragon Butter. I had some Tarragon Butter leftover from July 4th and I wanted to use it up.  It goes really well the Bouillabaisse.

Salad Nicoise with Tarragon-Basil Vinaigrette

Another really hot day and another really easy dinner. This salad is so refreshing and very healthy for you too.  I just love the textures and flavors!
 

Tarragon-Basil Vinaigrette:

1 small shallot, finely minced

1 small garlic clove, finely minced

1/2 tsp Dijon mustard

2 tbsp minced fresh tarragon leaves

2 tbsp minced fresh basil leaves

1/4 cup Champagne or good quality white wine vinegar

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil (I prefer my vinaigrette to have a ratio of 2:1 (oil to vinegar, but you may find it too acidic, so just add more olive oil if needed)

2 tsp agave nectar

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Salad Ingredients:

1 lb organic Yukon gold baby potatoes, sliced and roasted

1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

2 tsp fresh rosemary leaves

1-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil for roasting potatoes

1 pt cherry tomatoes, sliced

1 lb slender green beans, trimmed and blanched

1 can or two cups cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

1/4 cup nicoise olives, pitted and sliced

2 tbsp capers, rinsed

3-4 cups chopped romaine lettuce, rinsed and drained

3 cups baby arugula, rinsed and drained

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Method: 

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  
• Wash potatoes and dry really well on paper towels and slice in half.
• Toss in a large bowl with fresh thyme, rosemary and a drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper and roast for about 20-30 minutes until golden brown.
• Remove from oven and set aside and cool.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and blanch green beans for about 2 minutes until crisp-tender.  Drain and immerse in an ice-bath to stop cooking and set color and texture.  Drain and set aside.
• Add all ingredients to a large bowl and dress lightly with the vinaigrette.
• Add salt and pepper if needed and serve garnished with fresh basil leaves.