Mushroom French Dip with Horseradish Mayo

Do restaurants still have French dip sandwiches on the menu? I remember back in high school or college eating them when dining out, but don’t recall seeing them on menus after that. Maybe I just didn’t notice once I became a vegetarian.

When I saw a mushroom version online recently, warm food memories of the traditional sandwich came flooding back. The chewy roll, the tender beef, and oh, the au jus! Honestly I don’t remember cheese and caramelized onions on the sandwich, but what I ate probably wasn’t authentic, and I’m sure it would have been loads better with those two additions.

Since my go-to beef replacement over the last almost 30 years has been mushrooms in some form, this moved to the top of my “must make” list. Truly a multi-dimensional meal, the bite of horseradish in the garlicky mayo; the rich, meaty mushrooms; the soft, sweet caramelized onions; creamy Provolone; and the complex au jus come together on toasty French bread for a sensory overload of deliciousness. When Pete deemed this one of the best things I’ve ever made, well, I felt a duty to share. You’re welcome!

• Servings: 4
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Adapted from this Pinch of Yum recipe

Horseradish Mayo:

½ cup of your favorite mayonnaise (if you’re mayo averse, I highly suggest Vegenaise Better than Mayo brand—no eggs, no dairy)

2 teaspoons prepared horseradish

2 cloves garlic, finely grated

Pinch of salt

Seasoned mushrooms:

6 large portabella mushroom caps or more if they’re smaller (about 18 ounces total), wiped clean, gills scraped off, and sliced about 1/3 inch thick

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons Montreal steak seasoning (store-bought or homemade; I made a scaled down version of this recipe) or just use salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Caramelized onions and au jus:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 large sweet onion, halved and thinly sliced

¼ cup dry sherry

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (Annie’s and Whole Foods 365 are both vegetarian)

1 tablespoon reduced sodium tamari or soy sauce

2 cups vegetarian “beef” broth (I used 2 teaspoons Better than Bouillon No Beef Base with 2 cups hot water)

Salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

To complete the sandwiches:

4 demi baguettes or one long baguette cut into four sections

Butter or buttery spread, optional

Provolone cheese slices

To make horseradish mayo, whisk ingredients together in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

To prepare the mushrooms, warm the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced mushrooms and sprinkle with steak seasoning. Cook, tossing mushrooms occasionally, until they release their liquid, it has cooked off, and mushrooms are tender, about 10-15 minutes. Set aside.

To caramelize the onions and make the au jus, melt the butter in a heavy skillet, preferably cast-iron, over medium heat. Add onions and cook, tossing occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until they are golden brown, about 30-40 minutes.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Add the sherry to the onions and cook until the sherry has evaporated. Add the Worcestershire, tamari, and the broth. Increase heat to medium and bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer for 5-10 minutes until slightly reduced. Taste, and add salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.

Place a fine mesh strainer over a bowl and dump the mixture into the strainer, separating the onions from the au jus. Set both aside.

Halve the baguettes horizontally and spread with butter (optional). Place on a sheet pan. Divide mushrooms among bottom bread sections and cover with Provolone slices (cut to fit if slices are wide). Transfer pan to the oven and toast the open sandwiches for about 5 or 6 minutes.

Remove from oven and top the mushroom/cheese side of sandwiches with caramelized onions. Liberally spread top sandwich portions with the horseradish mayo and put sandwich tops on bottoms. Serve each sandwich with a small bowl of au jus for dipping. Make sure to have plenty of napkins and enjoy! Makes 4 sandwiches (no judging if the two of you eat all four portions; that might have happened here).

Falafel with Creamy Tahini-Yogurt Sauce

I don’t know why, but earlier this summer I started craving falafel. And Foxy Falafel, my go-to source for truly great falafel, is limited to curbside pick-up during the pandemic. Deep-fried food just doesn’t travel well, and I’m thinking it wouldn’t be as amazing by the time I got it home.

This led me to look for an authentic recipe that would satisfy my craving. I found it and must share—it’s that good! Plus, it’s not deep-fried–yay! Golden brown and crispy on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside with all those signature falafel herbs and spices, it’s served with a creamy tahini-yogurt sauce, thinly sliced radishes, cucumber, red onion, and tomatoes from our garden. All piled on a whole wheat tortilla or, if you have time, stuffed in my whole wheat pita bread, it’s a nutritious, delicious all-in-one meal.

There’s nothing difficult or time-consuming about this other than the need to plan ahead and start soaking the dried chickpeas the night before (canned chickpeas won’t work here). And after soaking, you don’t have to cook the beans, which makes this recipe even easier! Everything else comes together quickly enough for a weeknight meal. A very special weeknight meal! Enjoy!

• Servings: 4
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Adapted from this Downshiftology recipe
This recipe is naturally gluten-free and all that’s needed to make it vegan is to use a tahini sauce without the yogurt, like this one.

1 cup dried chickpeas (canned won’t work in this recipe)

About half of a medium yellow onion, roughly chopped

1 cup fresh parsley, in between loosely and tightly packed

1 cup fresh cilantro, in between loosely and tightly packed

1 medium jalapeño pepper, seeded and diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 heaping teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

Several grinds of black pepper

2 tablespoons chickpea flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

Grapeseed or avocado oil for pan-frying (or another neutral oil of choice)

Tahini-yogurt sauce, recipe follows

Flour or corn tortillas or my whole wheat pita bread

Accompaniments:
Thinly sliced radishes, cucumbers, red onion, diced tomato

The night before you plan to make the falafel, place the chickpeas in a pot and cover with water by 2-3 inches (the chickpeas will triple in size and you want to make sure they stay submerged). Cover pot and set aside.

The next day, drain and rinse the chickpeas and add them to your food processor (after draining, I dump them onto a clean kitchen towel and pat them dry before putting them in the food processor).

Add the onion, parsley, cilantro, jalapeño, garlic, cumin, salt, cardamom, and black pepper to the food processor and process until the mixture is the texture of coarse sand (you may have to stop and scrape down the sides a couple times).

Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and stir in the chickpea flour and baking soda. Cover and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F. Place a cooling rack on a baking sheet and place it in oven.

Heat a cast iron pan over medium heat. Add a couple tablespoons oil. When oil is hot, form falafel mixture into balls (I used a #30 cookie dough scoop, which is about 1 ½-2 tablespoons) and place in hot pan. Flatten slightly with a spatula. You’ll have to do this in batches—don’t crowd the falafels.

If the mixture seems too wet, add another tablespoon of chickpea flour. If it seems too dry, add a tablespoon of water (I didn’t need to do either both times I have made this recipe).

Cook the falafels for about 3 minutes, until golden brown on the bottom. Flip and cook another 3 minutes. Remove to rack in oven to stay warm. Repeat with remaining falafel mixture. You will probably need to add more oil to the pan.

Serve in warm tortillas or pita with a swoosh of tahini-yogurt sauce, several falafels, tomato, radish, cucumber, or other toppings of choice. Makes about 4 servings or 18-20 falafel.

Creamy Tahini Yogurt Sauce
From this Feasting at Home recipe

¾ cup plain Greek yogurt (I used 2%)

¼ cup tahini

2 garlic cloves, grated on a micro-plane

Juice of one medium lemon

½ to 1 teaspoon kosher salt (my tahini was salt-free, so I used the full teaspoon)

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Wisk all ingredients in small bowl until thoroughly combined and creamy. Can make a day or two ahead of time. Cover and refrigerate until use.

 

Buttermilk Chive Bread

After returning from an all-too-short cabin trip over the 4^th of July, we had a big bag of cabin chives to use. I’ve written about our cabin chives before—they come from the most prolific chive plant I’ve ever seen, and it’s situated smack dab in front of the cabin. The Lake Superior air must be good for it.

You can cut chives from this plant almost any time of the year. We’ve even dug through the snow to find fresh chives in winter. Seriously!

A couple years ago after bringing a bag of chives home, I got to thinking about chives and buttermilk pairing so well together and wondered how that would translate into bread. I found a recipe online, tweaked it some, including incorporating whole wheat flour and doubling the chives (hey, when you’ve got good chives, flaunt ’em!), and the rest is history. It’s become a staple in our house whenever we bring home chives. Perfect for either sandwiches or toasted and spread with good butter, it’s got a pleasant tang from the buttermilk and an oniony hint that lots of chives bring. I see sandwiches in your future! Enjoy!

By the way, if you’re lucky enough to have the chive flowers, in addition to being pretty, they add a delicious delicate flavor to whatever you add them. We love the on salads!

• Servings: 2 loaves
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Adapted from this Iowa Housewife recipe

4 cups bread flour, divided

2 cups whole wheat flour

4 teaspoons instant yeast (if using active dry yeast instead, double rising times)

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon salt

¼ cup neutral oil (grapeseed, avocado, canola) or melted butter

1 ¼ cup warm water, about 110 degrees F.

1 cup warm buttermilk (I use low-fat), about 110 degrees F.

½ cup chopped chives

2 tablespoons butter, melted, for brushing on cooked loaves (optional)

Grease two 4 ½ x 8 ½ inch loaf pans. Set aside.

Place three cups of the bread flour, the whole wheat flour, yeast, sugar, and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix until combined (if you don’t have a stand mixer, use a whisk).

With mixer on low speed, add the oil/butter, water, and buttermilk. Gradually add the remaining cup of bread flour and mix until dough leaves the sides of the bowl. Turn speed up slightly and mix for about two minutes. If you don’t have a stand mixer, mix all ingredients together using a wooden spoon.

Add chives and change to the dough hook, and, at low speed, knead about five minutes (if you don’t have a stand mixer, knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for about 5 minutes). Cover bowl and let rest in a warm place for about 10 minutes. Turn dough out of bowl onto a floured surface and divide in half. Form into loaves and place in prepared pans. Loosely cover the pans with a tea towel and let rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes.

While dough is rising, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Bake loaves for 25-30 minutes. Remove loaves from pans onto a cooling rack. Brush tops with melted butter. Slice and eat either warm or room temp. Loaves freeze well. Makes two loaves.

Cauliflower Banh Mi Sandwich

For anyone who is unfamiliar, the banh mi is a Vietnamese sandwich served on baguettes spread with pâté or spicy mayonnaise and stuffed with various marinated meats, cucumbers, herbs, and pickled veggies. I’ve seen vegetarian versions made with either tofu or tempeh and even though they looked delicious, I’d never had one.

Then a couple weeks ago in my Facebook news feed, I saw a post from the local co-op sharing for Meatless Monday a cauliflower banh mi from the Minimalist Baker, aka Dana Shultz. I was familiar with her blog and even have one of her cookbooks, so I knew this would be a solid recipe. It’s vegan and if you want it to be gluten-free, all that’s needed is swapping out the baguette for a gluten-free one or do it as a lettuce wrap. I was intrigued by a cauliflower version and put it on my must-make-soon list.

The first time, I made everything on a weeknight after work and by the time it was ready, we were famished. I then realized much of it can be prepared in advance. The pickled veggies taste better made a day or two ahead anyway, and you can chop up the cauliflower florets and make the aioli the night before, which is what I did the second time. This time we were able to sit down to dinner before we were so hungry we wanted to eat our fists!

Truly an amazing recipe, it definitely makes my list of top five best sandwiches I’ve had in my life. Spicy, crunchy, saucy, sweet and sour—all delicious. When you’re done eating, you’ll want more! Even those who aren’t big on cauliflower are going to love it. Enjoy!

• Servings: 2
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Adapted from this Minimalist Baker recipe

Pickled Vegetables (best made a day ahead)
2/3 cup rice vinegar

1/3 cup hot water

½ teaspoon fine grain salt

1 tablespoon sugar

2/3 cup thinly sliced or shredded carrot

1/3 cup thinly sliced or shredded daikon, red, or watermelon radish

Cauliflower
3 tablespoons chili garlic sauce (like Sambal Oelek)

1/3 cup tamari, coconut aminos, or, if no need to be gluten-free, soy sauce

1 ½ tablespoon pure maple syrup

1 ½ tablespoon fresh squeezed lime juice

1 tablespoon neutral oil (avocado or grapeseed)

4 heaping cups cauliflower florets cut in bite sized pieces

Aioli
½ cup vegan mayo (Vegenaise or Mindful Mayo brands are both delicious!)

2 teaspoons pure maple syrup

1 tablespoon sriracha or other hot sauce

Sandwich
2 small baguettes (gluten-free if that is a concern) or large lettuce leaf, used as a wrap

Fresh herbs (cilantro, basil, parsley, mint—your choice—I used parsley and basil)

Thinly sliced cucumber

Fresh or pickled sliced jalapeño (I use Trader Joe’s Hot & Sweet Jalapeños)

To make the pickled veggies, shake vinegar, hot water, sugar, and salt in a glass jar until sugar and salt are dissolved. Add carrot and radish and push down to submerge. Cover jar and refrigerate; they’ll keep a couple weeks.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Make the cauliflower: Whisk together in a medium bowl the chili garlic sauce, tamari, maple syrup, lime juice, and oil. Add the cauliflower florets and toss to evenly coat.

Heat a large, oven-proof (preferably cast iron) skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, using a slotted spoon, transfer cauliflower to pan, reserving most of the liquid in the bowl.

Cook the cauliflower, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. Then add most the of the reserved marinade to the pan, but save a little for serving. Toss to coat. Place pan in the oven and bake until cauliflower is crispy and caramelized, about 15 minutes.

While cauliflower is cooking, whisk together aioli ingredients together in a small bowl. Refrigerate until needed.

Chop your herbs, slice the cucumbers and jalapeño.

Halve your baguettes horizontally and place them in the oven, cut side down, directly on rack, during the last five minutes of the cauliflower cooking.

To assemble sandwiches, spread aioli on both sides of baguette. Top one half of baguette with cauliflower and drizzle some left-over cauliflower marinade. Top with pickled vegetables, cucumber, herbs, and jalapeño. Cover with top half of baguette. Have a napkin on hand too. You may have not use all the cauliflower and will probably also have leftover pickled veggies. Makes two sandwiches.

Beet Reuben Sandwiches

Sometimes you get a hankering for a good ol’ reuben sandwich, even if you’re vegetarian. At restaurants, once in while I’ll order the reuben minus the meat, which is usually met with a curious look by the server (and one, years ago, said, “Honey, that’s not going to be any cheaper.”). Occasionally there will be a meatless reuben on the menu with tempeh or portabella mushrooms swapped in for the corned beef. And when I happen to be on the Minneapolis side of the Twin Cities, I’ll pick up some vegan pastrami at the amazing Herbivorous Butcher, which makes for an outstanding pastrami rendition of the sandwich.

But a couple months ago, we came across a unique reuben on the menu at Red Cow in St. Paul that really intrigued me, a beet one. Interesting. And delicious! I knew I needed to recreate it at home, with the goal of making it even better.

A version with roasted sliced beets and dilled sauerkraut was my first attempt and it was tasty, but not knock-your-socks-off good. Then I made one with a caraway kraut that moved things up a notch. Today, though, I hit the jackpot. The key was braising the beets in a little water seasoned with the same spices you would use to make corned beef. Wow, it was fantastic!

To speed things up a bit, make the seasoning mixture and Russian dressing ahead of time. Also, make sure to have good quality rye bread on hand, either homemade or from your favorite bakery. Served with a batch of oven fries, you’ve got yourself a perfect comfort food meal. Enjoy!

• Servings: 4
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Two large beets, peeled and sliced 1/3 to 1/4 inch thick

1 tablespoon seasoning mix (recipe follows)

Russian dressing (recipe follows)

4 slices Swiss cheese

About ¾ pound homemade or packaged sauerkraut, drained (I used Farmhouse Culture Classic Caraway Kraut)

8 slices good quality rye bread

Olive oil spray

Place sliced beets in medium saucepan and just barely cover with water. Add about a tablespoon of seasoning mixture. Cover pan and heat till boiling. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until beet slices are tender, 35-45 minutes. Remove beets from liquid and set aside. Discard liquid.

Preheat oven broiler. Arrange bread slices on large baking sheet and spritz with olive oil spray (alternately, brush bread slices lightly with olive oil). Broil about 6 inches from heat until bread is lightly browned, about 1 or 2 minutes.

Remove 4 slices of the bread to a cutting board. Flip the remaining 4 slices on the baking sheet and top with Russian dressing, beet slices, sauerkraut and cheese. Broil 6 inches from the heat until the cheese is all melty.

Meanwhile spread more Russian dressing on the untoasted side of the reserved bread slices. Remove pan from oven and top sandwiches with reserved bread slices. Cut in half and serve. Makes 4 sandwiches.

Russian Dressing:
Adapted from this Epicurious recipe

1 tablespoon finely chopped onion

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/8 cup ketchup

2 teaspoons prepared horseradish

1 teaspoon hot sauce, preferably Frank’s Red Hot Sauce

1 teaspoon vegetarian Worcestershire sauce (I love Annie’s Organic)

1/8 teaspoon sweet paprika

Fine sea salt, to taste

Wisk together all ingredients, except onion, until smooth. Stir in onion, cover and refrigerate until cold and flavors have melded.

Seasoning mix:
½ tablespoon black peppercorns

½ tablespoon yellow mustard seeds

½ tablespoon coriander seeds

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

¼ teaspoon allspice

¼ of one cinnamon stick

½ bay leaf, broken into small pieces

½ teaspoon ground ginger

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon smoked sea salt

Toast peppercorns, mustard seeds and coriander seeds in a small dry skillet over medium heat until fragrant, shaking pan frequently, about three minutes. Transfer to a mortar, add remaining seasoning mix ingredients, and finely crush with a pestle (alternately, pulse mixture in a spice grinder to a coarse texture).

Cauliflower Taco Meat

The humble cauliflower. That funny looking vegetable I hated as a child, continues to surprise me. First there was cauliflower pizza crust, then Buffalo cauliflower, cauliflower steaks, and now, wait for it…cauliflower taco meat!

Replacing the spicy ground beef in traditional tacos, this mixture of cauliflower, mushrooms, walnuts and bold seasonings amps up the deliciousness and it’s a healthy mix of superfoods to boot! What’s not to love? And I swear, even if you think you don’t like cauliflower, mushrooms, or walnuts, if you like tacos, you will like this.

I stumbled upon the recipe at Pinch of Yum, one of my favorite food blogs (and their photography is amazing!). Intrigued, I knew what I was going to make with that head of cauliflower in the fridge. The only thing that made me hesitate was the two cups of walnuts the recipe called for. I know walnuts are super healthy, full of good fats, omega 3s, and loaded with antioxidants, but they also pack a wallop of calories, which I certainly don’t need. Since mushrooms are so meaty, especially cremini mushrooms, I decided to replace half the walnuts with them. The result wowed us!

And don’t limit this yummy mixture to tacos; it would make a great filling for burritos, quesadillas, enchiladas, frittatas, taco salad and on and on. My mind is now working on a way to make this, with different seasonings, into a mixture for Italian recipes, lasagna, spaghetti sauce, meatballs, and stuffed peppers. And sloppy joes! I bet that would be wonderful!

The taco “meat” ingredients involve just a quick series of pulses in the food processor and then a half hour of baking, followed by a couple minute broil, then a sprinkling of fresh lime juice. While it’s in the oven, you can prep your taco accompaniments, so this is very doable on a weeknight after work. Plus, it reheats really well, and leftovers will not go to waste. Enjoy!

• Servings: 4
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Adapted from this Pinch of Yum recipe

3 cups cauliflower florets

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup chopped cremini mushrooms

2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce

1/4 cup tomato sauce

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

Fresh squeezed lime juice

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet.

Place all ingredients except lime juice in the bowl of a food processor and pulse on and off until the texture of cooked ground beef. I found it easier to get the right texture by doing this in two batches, half of each ingredient in each batch. The first time I made it I did it all at once and half of it was almost like a paste—still tasted great, but just not the right texture. Transfer mixture to the baking sheet and spread it out in an even layer.

Bake for 30 minutes, stirring once at the half-way point. After the 30 minutes, turn oven to broil and broil 8-12 inches from broiler for a minute or two. Watch carefully so it doesn’t burn. Drizzle with a tablespoon or two of lime juice and toss to distribute it.

That’s it. The “meat” is ready to use in tacos, burritos, taco salads, enchiladas, quesadillas, or whatever your heart desires. Reheats well and keeps several days in the fridge. Makes about 4 servings.

Chunky Potatoes with Garlic and Peanuts

A few years ago for my birthday, Pete gave me 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer, a cookbook I’d had my eye on for a while. Full of mouth-watering recipes layering spices and ingredients, there’s a huge section of both vegetable and legume curries to satisfy any vegetarian, plus biryanis, spice blends and pastes, and it starts with a detailed primer on curries. There’s also a large chapter called “Curry Cohorts,” that in addition to rice recipes, contains delicious curry accompaniments like coconut noodles, lentil pancakes, and all sorts of heavenly Indian breads from naan to roti to parantha.

After making a few recipes, I found several more I really wanted to try, but they called for fresh curry leaves. What!?! I had heard of curry powder, but never curry leaves. After searching large grocery stores and the co-op, I finally found them after checking several Asian food stores that, unfortunately, weren’t conveniently located for me.  Eventually, the book was set aside, and has been gathering dust.

Recently a Whole Foods Market opened up near our house and I had to check it out. Impressed with the variety of produce that includes items not found in other stores near me, I was so surprised and excited to see fresh curry leaves. Time to dig out 660 Curries again.

Fresh curry leaves

With my stock of fresh curry leaves, I perused the book to decide what to make. For a weeknight when there wasn’t a lot of meal prep time, Chunky Potatoes with Garlic and Peanuts was deemed the ideal recipe. It had a manageable list of ingredients, some intriguing flavor combinations, and called for fresh curry leaves!

The combination of sesame seeds, peanuts, garlic, and chiles piqued my interest, and smelled wonderful after being combined in the food processor. Not used to potatoes and tomatoes together, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this dish, but we weren’t disappointed. The sesame-peanut blend will release the most amazing aroma into your kitchen while cooking, and once combined with the rest of the ingredients, will morph into a delicious scent that makes it hard to wait until supper is ready.

The cookbook suggests this as either a side dish or stuffed into fresh pita. Since this was to be our main course (actually, our only course), and I didn’t have pita or naan (which would go so perfectly), I cooked up some brown basmati rice and served the potato dish over it. Gradually growing on me from one bite to the next, this spicy, hearty meal won me over and will definitely be made again . And I had plenty left over to take for lunch the next day (which I thought about and, even dreamt about, all night!). Enjoy!

• Servings: 4-6
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From Raghavan Iyer’s 660 Curries

2 tablespoons white sesame seeds

2 tablespoons raw peanuts or roasted peanuts (if salted, reduce salt later in recipe)

4 medium-sized cloves garlic, peeled

3 dried red Thai chilies or cayenne chiles, stems removed (I used about ¾ teaspoon crushed red chili pepper)

2 tablespoons peanut oil

1 pound russet or Yukon gold potatoes, peeled, cut into 1 inch cubes, and submerged in a bowl of cold water to prevent browning (I didn’t peel my potatoes and skipped the bowl of water because I cut them up at the last minute, quickly, while the sesame-peanut mixture was roasting)

½ teaspoon ground turmeric

1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes

2 teaspoons salt (use only one if both your tomatoes and peanuts already contain salt)

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro (or parsley if you are cilantro-averse)

12 medium to large-sized fresh curry leaves (if you can’t find curry leaves, this dish will still be delicious)

Combine the sesame seeds, peanuts, garlic, and chiles in a food processor and pulse to form a gritty, sticky, mellow-smelling blend.

Heat the oil in a medium-sized saucepan over medium-low heat. Scrape the sesame-peanut blend into the warmed oil and roast the mixture, stirring, until it starts to release it’s own oils and loosens, turning crumbly and nutty brown, 5-8 minutes.

Meanwhile, drain the potatoes, if they were in water.

Stir the turmeric into the sesame-peanut blend and cook for a few seconds. Then add the potatoes, tomatoes, (with their juices), 1 cup water, and the salt. Stir once or twice, raise the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan, and cook stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are fork-tender and the sauce has thickened, about 25 to 30 minutes. Stir in the cilantro and curry leaves and serve. Great as a side dish, stuffed inside a pita, along-side warm naan, or over brown basmati rice. Makes 4-6 main dish servings.

Homemade Peanut Butter

Way back when I was a kid, the peanut butter in most households was Jif, Skippy or Peter Pan. That was pretty much it. Except if you were my family, then it was the natural kind that you had to stir to incorporate the oil. It wasn’t very common back then either, but once again, my parents were ahead of their time when it came to healthy eating. And I hated it!

I wanted nothing more than to have Jif or Peter Pan peanut butter like “normal” kids. Even Skippy, which wasn’t as good, was better than that natural stuff in my kid mind. I remember being over at a friend’s house and for a snack we had white bread (which we never had in my house either), toasted, with Jif peanut butter. I was in snack heaven!

My how our tastes changes as we grow up. I wouldn’t eat those name brand PBs filled with sugars, added oils (often hydrogenated) and preservatives now under any circumstances.

For years, I’ve purchased the “natural” peanut butters where the short list of ingredients was peanuts and salt. My adult taste buds loved the pure peanut taste that wasn’t masked by sweeteners and other oils. Trader Joe’s was my brand of choice. Just open the jar, pull out a butter knife and use your brute force to stir it up so the separated peanut butter and peanut oil were mixed together. Then keep it in the fridge. Only bad part was once you got down to about the last quarter of the jar, you had pretty hard peanut butter that was a pain to spread. I never thought much about it, but the stirring and bottom-of-the-jar hard PB kind of sucked. That’s just what you need to accept when you want “natural” peanut butter, right?

Then one day my co-worker Jill asked if I make my own peanut butter. Make my own peanut butter? Whhhaaatttt?!? I had never thought of it. Why had I never thought of it? A quick google made me laugh at how easy it is. Dump a bag of roasted peanuts in a food processor and turn it on. That’s it—after a few minutes you have your “natural” peanut butter with just peanuts and salt, or if you buy the no-salt-added, just peanuts. Put it in a jar, pop it in the refrigerator and you have silky smooth, no-oil-separated peanut butter whenever you have a hankering. Thank you, Jill!

I usually buy the 50% salt Trader Joe’s peanuts which gives the perfect level saltiness for my taste. And it never separates or becomes hard, even near the bottom of the jar. Who knew? And it’s cheaper than buying a jar of the same amount of peanut butter. I haven’t bought a jar of peanut butter since.

 

A few people at work, besides Jill, have been as surprised as I was about this making-your-own-peanut-butter thing, so I thought it would be worth sharing in a blog post. I should note, this works equally well with cashews or almonds. But don’t thank me; thank Jill. Enjoy!

• Servings: 1 16 oz. jar
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I’ve used this in baking too–in cookies and bars–with good results

1 pound roasted peanuts (unsalted, lightly salted, or salted)

Salt, to taste (if peanuts are unsalted and you want salted peanut butter)

Put the peanuts and salt (if using) in the bowl of a food processor. Process for about a minute and stop it and scrape down the sides (be warned, it’s really noisy at first!). Process for a couple minutes more, until it is to your preferred consistency. You may need to scrape down the sides a couple times. The amount of processing time will vary on the power of your food processor—the right time will be when it looks right to you.

Scrape the peanut butter into a jar and refrigerate. Unless you rarely eat peanut butter, it will keep longer than it takes for you to use up the jar. Makes a 16-oz. jar.

Vegan Chorizo and Crispy Potato Tacos

Yesterday was National Taco Day. Seems like there are more and more of these “holidays” I’ve never heard of before, Siblings Day, Pet Day, Popcorn Day, etc. Today is National Kale Day. I kind of like them—it’s actually rather fun to have a theme for the day.

I hadn’t really given Taco Day much thought until I remembered I had some Trader Joe’s vegan chorizo in the fridge and some fresh corn tortillas. A quick google of chorizo tacos brought up a number of recipes, but the one that caught my eye had “crispy potatoes” in the title. My potato-loving husband would definitely approve.

I had all the ingredients or suitable substitutes on hand and this all came together quickly for an easy, filling, and delicious weeknight meal. And there were plenty of leftovers for Day After Taco Day lunch. Enjoy!

• Servings: 4-6
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Adapted from this Serious Eats recipe

One pound russet or gold potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch dice

Kosher salt

1 tablespoon white vinegar

4 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided (grapeseed works well)

12 ounces fresh vegan chorizo sausage (Trader Joe’s is my favorite)

To serve:
10 warm corn tortillas

Sliced yellow onion

Fresh arugula

Chopped fresh tomato

Homemade or all natural store-bought salsa verde

Lime wedges

Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water by 1 inch. Add vinegar and 2 tablespoons salt. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until potatoes are just cooked through, about 5 minutes after coming to a boil. Drain potatoes and let rest over sink until mostly dry.

Meanwhile, heat a tablespoon of the oil in a cast-iron skillet over medium heat, add chorizo and break it up with a spatula. Cook until just beginning to crisp. Remove chorizo from pan to a bowl and set aside. Wipe pan clean.

In the same pan, heat 3 tablespoons vegetable oil over medium-high heat until lightly smoking. Add potatoes, shake to distribute around the pan, and cook, tossing and stirring occasionally until very crisp and golden brown on all sides, about 15 minutes.

Add cooked chorizo to pan with potatoes. Toss to combine and season to taste with salt, if needed (mine didn’t need additional salt). Serve chorizo and potato mixture immediately in warm tortillas with onions, tomato, arugula, salsa verde, and a squeeze of lime.

Salted Radish Toasts with Superfoods Cheese

Since we started harvesting this year’s bumper crop of radishes from our garden, they’ve been used raw in salads, on sandwiches, in omelets, and cooked with garlic and mushrooms over pasta (yum!). Last year I found out how good they are on pizza. If you don’t have garden radishes at your disposal, the local farmers’ markets are overflowing with them and those will have much more flavor than the ones you’ll find at a grocery store.

When I post a recipe, it’s because I love it and want to share the foodie love with everyone and that is especially the case with this radish toast with superfoods cheese creation. I wanted to do something a little different with our radishes and I’ve heard so much about butter and radishes being such a great combo. Thing is, I’ve got a lot of radishes, so that means using a lot of butter, which I certainly don’t need.

Then I remembered the superfoods cheese I made a few weeks back and had a couple rounds left in the freezer. It’s a tangy, vegan cheese made with macadamia nuts, probiotics, and nutritional yeast. From the cookbook Superfoods Snacks by Julie Morris, it was the recipe that caught my eye and made my decision to buy the book. Oh my, what a delicious combination!

The cheese is a little labor intensive and with the 1-2 day “aging,” it’s not something you’ll whip up at a moment’s notice, but it’s worth the effort. This is truly a worthy substitute for a soft dairy cheese, and bonus, it packs a big nutritional wallop.

If you would rather not make the time commitment, you could make the radish toasts with another soft cheese, such as chevre or boursin, or a vegan cream cheese to keep it plant-based, but if you opt for the superfoods cheese, I promise you will love it! And splurge on a box of quality, flaky sea salt like Maldon, the taste is amazing and you’ll find tons of uses for it, in both savory and sweet recipes. Enjoy!

A few notes about the superfoods cheese recipe:

• As an alternative to cheesecloth, a nut milk bag can be used. If you have one, use it. Much easier than cheesecloth. I got mine a couple years ago from Amazon (this one). I’ve also seen them at my local co-op.
• Trader Joe’s is a good source for the macadamia nuts and hemp seeds, and their prices are great. Buying from the bulk section of your grocery or natural foods store would also save money.
• For the probiotic powder, you can find the capsules in the refrigerated area of the natural foods section at large grocery stores or at a natural food store. You can also order them online. Pull the capsules open and dump the powder into a small bowl until you have the amount listed in the recipe.

Cheese recipe from Julie Morris’ Superfood Snacks

2 cups macadamia nuts

¼ cup hemp seeds

1 ¼ cups filtered water

1 teaspoon probiotic powder*

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast

¾ teaspoon sea salt

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Thick slices of good quality fresh bread (sour dough is extra good!) or your favorite gluten-free version

Thinly sliced radishes

Fresh chopped herbs such as basil, parsley, tarragon (optional)

Flaky sea salt, such as Maldon

Place the macadamia nuts in a bowl and add enough water to cover them by an inch. Refrigerate and let the nuts sit for a minimum of 4 hours up to overnight to soften and slightly swell.

Drain the nuts and place in a blender. Add the hempseeds, water, and probiotic powder. Blend until very smooth, stopping the blender and scraping down the sides, as needed. This may take a few minutes to blend the mixture to a super smooth consistency. If needed, add a little more water (up to ¼ cup) just to get the mixture blending–the less water you use, the better.

Put two 12-inch square layers of cheesecloth (or use a nut milk bag) inside a colander. Place the colander inside a large bowl or tray to catch excess liquid. Use a silicone spatula to scrape all the nut mixture from the blender into the center of the cheesecloth. Gather up the ends of the fabric to create a bag, hold it over the bowl, and gently squeeze all of the mixture in a downward motion into a ball at the bottom of the bag. Squeeze the cheese ball lightly to encourage excess milky liquid to be pushed through the cheesecloth, but not too hard, or else the nuts will begin to push through the cloth as well. Twist the ends of the cheesecloth together to wrap snugly around the cheese ball and set it inside the colander. Place a heavy weight—such as a water-filled mason jar in a small pot—on top of the cheese. Cover the whole thing with a towel, and let it rest at room temperature for 24-48 hours.

Peel away the cheesecloth and place the cheese inside of a bowl. Add nutritional yeast, sea salt, and lemon, and mix to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Put a quarter of the mixture onto a piece of plastic wrap and shape it into a 4-inch compact cylinder, rolling it gently inside the plastic wrap to form a symmetrical shape (or you can use a small ring mold to create the rounds). Repeat with remaining cheese.

The cheese will last for up to 2 weeks and continue to firm up slightly in the refrigerator. It will also become slightly sharper with age. Alternatively, wrap the cheese tightly in plastic wrap and then in aluminum foil and store in the freezer for up to 6 months. Before serving, defrost the cheese for a couple hours.

If your bread is super fresh, by all means, skip the toasting step if you’d like. Otherwise, toast bread slices, spread a thick slather of superfoods cheese on each slice and top with radish slices. Dust with fresh herbs, if using, and sprinkle with sea salt. Mmm…you’ll be in heaven!

*Simply open probiotic capsules and empty the powder into a small bowl. A teaspoon is usually equivalent to 6-8 capsules. Probiotics are friendly bacteria that are often taken as a health supplement. The powder is used here as the “starter” for culturing the nuts that will improve the cheese’s flavor and texture. The remaining probiotics will keep in the fridge for your next batch of cheese.