Robin Robertson's Blog, page 27

Sweet on Sweet Potatoes

It’s hard to be indifferent about sweet potatoes.  Most people either love them or hate them.  I happen to adore them.  I love them baked and eaten “au natural” or maybe topped with a little vegan butter and ground black pepper.  I like to make them as oven-fries, nice and crispy on the outside and soft in the middle, or diced and roasted and then tossed with pecans and dried cranberries.

I never had the childhood misfortune of being forced to eat canned sweet potatoes, least of all topped with marshmallows – I can see where that would make anyone averse to sweet potatoes later in life.  Fortunately, my mother often made them sliced and sautéed in a little olive oil with onion, then tossed with some pitted black olives and lots of black pepper.  It remains one of my favorite ways to prepare them.

I also enjoy making a sweet potato salad, usually combined with green peas because I love the color combination.  In this recipe, they are also combined with toasted almonds and tossed with a luscious slightly sweet dressing made with almond butter. 

Note: The dressing is delicious, but if you prefer a more savory flavor, you can swap out the juice for water, or even omit the dressing entirely and just toss with a little olive oil and vinegar.  If you do so, you might want to also add some pitted kalamata olives. 

This dish is equally good served at room temperature or chilled and, since it can be prepared ahead of time, it makes a great Thanksgiving side dish. 

 

Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

This recipe is from Nut Butter Universe by Robin Robertson © 2013. Photo by Lori Maffei.

Gluten Free/Soy Free

Serves 4

 

1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup frozen baby peas, thawed

2 scallions, minced

1/2 cup pineapple juice; or orange juice; or cranberry juice (or water)

1/4 cup almond butter

Salt and ground black pepper

2 tablespoons toasted slivered almonds

 

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Peel the potatoes and cut them into 1/2-inch dice. Toss with the olive oil and spread on a baking sheet. Roast the potatoes until tender but still firm, about 30 minutes. Allow to cool, then place them in a large bowl. Add the peas and scallions and set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the juice, almond butter, and salt and pepper to taste. Blend well, then pour the dressing over the potato mixture, stirring gently to combine.

Sprinkle with the almonds and serve right away, or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

 

 

Last Berries of Summer

Everywhere I look it seems the produce of autumn beckons: local orchards boast no fewer than twenty varieties of apples and rows of vibrant orange pumpkins stand guard at every store and farm stand.

Before surrendering to the luscious fall baking of apple pies and pumpkin cheesecakes, I had one last appointment with the remaining berries of summer. They were waiting in my freezer, as if suspended in time, their sweet perfection having been frozen at their peak. A handful of blackberries from our own bushes that we had gathered before the deer finished them off; raspberries, a gift from friends who had picked them one August afternoon; blueberries from a Saturday morning trip to the farmer’s market — all frozen memories of the vanished summer.

This weekend, I combined those berries for one last taste of summer in a pie that we shared with friends. And today, a single piece remains. By tomorrow, it will be a memory, and a bushel of apples will take its place in my kitchen with all the promise of autumn.

Versatile Breakfast Casserole

Every casserole has a story.  Well, at least this one does. It begins a few months ago in the Pacific Northwest where some friends of ours stayed at a vegan bed and breakfast. One of the dishes served to them during their stay was a delicious breakfast casserole, shown in this photo:

 

A few weeks later, my friend decided she’d like to serve a similar casserole to their houseguests who were coming the following weekend.  Since she didn’t have the recipe, my friend asked for my help in recreating the casserole by looking at the photo.

I could easily see the spinach, tomatoes, and bread, so that’s where I began.  As I worked up the recipe, I included onion, bell pepper, and garlic for flavor and also some sun-dried tomatoes to enhance the flavor of the fresh tomatoes on top.  Italian bread and a  flavorful tofu-based batter tied it all together.  Here’s a photo of my interpretation of the breakfast casserole:

After I made it, I started getting ideas for variations (as I typically do anytime I make anything!)  I told my friend she could substitute a different vegetable for the spinach, such as chopped cooked broccoli, zucchini, or asparagus.  Other ideas include substituting diced cooked potatoes for all or part of the bread; adding a cup of cooked crumbled vegan sausage;  adding some chopped mushrooms when cooking the onion and bell pepper; or sprinkling the top with a bit of shredded vegan cheese, which she did (as you can see in her photo):

 

A final hint: Assemble this savory dish the day before, then cover and refrigerate.  It will be ready to bake when needed (bring to room temperature before baking).

Here’s the recipe. If you decide to make it, I hope you’ll share your experience so the story of this breakfast casserole can continue on.

 

Versatile Breakfast Casserole

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 Vidalia or other sweet onion, chopped (about 1 cup chopped)

1/2 cup chopped red or yellow bell pepper

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeeze-dried (*See Note)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

12-ounces medium or firm regular (not silken) tofu, well drained and crumbled

1?3 cup minced oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon arrowroot or cornstarch

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice or dry white wine

1 teaspoon dried basil

½ teaspoon dried oregano or marjoram

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 cups plain unsweetened nondairy milk

4 cups torn (or cut into 1-inch pieces) Italian bread

1/2 cup shredded Daiya cheese (optional)

1 small fresh ripe tomato, thinly sliced and drained on paper towels to absorb liquid

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and bell pepper, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 2 minutes longer to soften. Stir in the spinach and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Cook, stirring for 2 minutes longer.  Remove from the heat and set aside.

In a food processor, combine the  tofu, sun-dried tomatoes, nutritional yeast,  mustard, lemon juice, arrowroot or cornstarch, lemon juice, basil, oregano, onion powder, baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Add the nondairy milk and process until smooth and well blended. 

In a bowl, combine the tofu mixture with the spinach mixture, then stir in the bread pieces and set aside.

Lightly oil a shallow 10-inch square shallow baking dish or gratin dish (or other shallow baking dish). Spread the mixture evenly in the prepared baking dish pressing any bread pieces down to submerge. Sprinkle the cheese on top (if using).  If serving right away, set aside for about 20 minutes at room temperature before baking.  If making ahead, cover and refrigerate overnight, then return to room temperature the next day before baking.

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Arrange the drained tomato slices on top of the casserole.  Bake until lightly browned and puffed, 45 to 50 minutes.  

Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting into pieces to serve. Serve warm.

*Note: If you prefer to use fresh spinach instead of frozen, lightly steam 9 or 10 ounces of baby spinach (or wilt it in the microwave).  Squeeze out any water from the spinach, chop, and set aside.

Mac and Thai

The response to my new book, One-Dish Vegan has been tremendous and the early sales have been through the roof!  To thank you all for your support for my work, I want to share one of my favorite recipes from One-Dish Vegan with you.

If you’ve been following my blog, you know I’m a fiend for Thai food and that I also adore mac and cheese.  So it should come as no surprise that I’ve combined the two to make a delicious Thai-inspired noodle casserole that I call “Mac and Thai.”  The flavor actually reminds me of Pad Thai, so I almost called it Pad Thai Pie.  I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do and if you already have a copy of One-Dish Vegan, I do hope you love it (and will take a few minutes to write a nice little review on Amazon… please, and thank you!)

Mac And Thai

Instead of the white beans, you may substitute 1 1/2 cups crumbled firm tofu, if you like. Use rice noodles to make this gluten-free. Lightly steamed small broccoli florets may be substituted for the asparagus, if desired.  This recipe is from One-Dish Vegan by Robin Robertson.

Ingredients:

·         1 1/2 cups cooked white beans or 1 (15.5-ounce) can white beans, rinsed and drained

·         1/4 cup plain unsweetened almond milk or other nondairy milk

·         2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

·         5 scallions, minced

·         2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice

·         1 teaspoon rice vinegar

·         1 teaspoon peanut butter

·         1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

·         Salt

·         3 cups cooked linguine or soaked rice noodles (6 to 8 ounces before cooking)

·         1 tablespoon vegetable oil or 1/4 cup water

·         1/2 cup chopped red onion

·         6 ounces asparagus, trimmed and cut into1-inch pieces

·         2 garlic cloves, minced

·         1 small carrot, peeled and shredded

·         1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

·         1 cup thinly sliced white mushrooms

·         2 tablespoons wheat-free tamari or vegan oyster sauce

·         1 tablespoon natural sugar

·         1 teaspoon Asian chili paste (optional)

·         2 tablespoons water

·         6 grape tomatoes, halved lengthwise

·         3 tablespoons crushed unsalted roasted peanuts

·         2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro or Thai basil

·         Lime wedges, for serving

 Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly oil a 9- to 10-inch pie plate or quiche pan.

2. In a high-speed blender or food processor, combine the beans, almond milk, nutritional yeast, half of the scallions, the lime juice, vinegar, peanut butter, garlic powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Puree until smooth, then transfer to a large bowl. Add the noodles and mix well to combine. Set aside.

3. Heat the oil or water in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 4 minutes to soften. Add the asparagus, garlic, carrot, bell pepper, mushrooms, and remaining scallions. Stir in the tamari, sugar, chili paste (if using), and water. Cover and cook for 3 minutes. Remove the lid and continue cooking until the liquid has mostly evaporated. Transfer the vegetables to the bowl with the noodle mixture and mix well to combine. Taste and adjust the seasonings if needed.

Recipe © 2013 by Robin Robertson and used by permission of The Harvard Common Press

 

Follow the Nut Butter Universe Blog Tour

Thanks to the great response to my cookbook,  Nut Butter Universe, we’re having a SECOND Blog Tour this week!  So if you missed the first one (or even if you didn’t) there will be lots of opportunities to try sample recipes, win a copy of the book, and learn more about the universe of nut butters.

This week’s blog tour gets off to an amazing start with a post on Save the Kales that features the recipe for Linguine with Thai Pesto and a photo of the cutest puppy dog!

Here’s the entire schedule for the week:

Monday, Sept 16 – Save the Kales

Tuesday, Sept 17 – Cadry’s Kitchen

Wednesday, Sept 18 – From A to Vegan

Thursday, Sept 19 – The Vegan Chickpea

Friday, Sept 20 – The Little Foxes

Please stop by and visit the sites on the tour!  And if you haven’t gotten your copy of Nut Butter Universe, here’s a thrifty idea:  When you buy both Nut Butter Universe and my newest book, One-Dish Vegan together on Amazon, you get FREE SHIPPING!  (If you already have one or the other, you can give one as a gift!)  Pretty good idea, huh?

Thanks to you all for your support of my work.  It means the world to me!

One-Dish Vegan Is Here!

I’m very excited that my latest book, One-Dish Vegan, is now available on Amazon and wherever books are sold.  And as you can tell by the photo, Gary is thrilled about it, too!   One-Dish Vegan, contains 150 recipes that range from easy weeknight comfort food dishes to delicious meals that are special enough for company.

One-dish meals are some of my favorite ways to cook and serve food.  From soups and stews, to casseroles and main-dish salads, I like the idea of preparing something that includes all the components of the meal in one.  Many of these “one-dish” recipes are also “one-pot” recipes, making them especially easy to cook and serve.  Other recipes may take more than one pot to prepare, but the components are combined to be served as one-dish meals.  

 A complete revision of an earlier title, One-Dish Vegetarian Meals, the recipes have been updated and revised, and are now 100% vegan with icons for gluten-free and soy-free recipes, as well as the option to make many of the recipes oil-free. Many of the recipes were first published in my earlier books: The Vegetarian Chili Cookbook; Pasta for all Seasons; and Rice & Spice. In addition, One-Dish Vegan also contains many all-new recipes, such as Mac and Thai, Jamaican-Style Coconut Rice Bowl, and one of my favorites, Banh Mizza – a banh mi inspired pizza.

To celebrate the publication of One-Dish Vegan, I’d like to give you a brief tour of the book.  Here are the chapter titles with several recipes titles listed from each chapter, along with a few tester photos of some of the recipes:

SOUPS THAT MAKE A MEAL:

Chickpea Noodle Soup 
Caribbean Greens Soup
Mushroom and Quinoa Soup
Indonesian Noodle Soup with Tofu
My Thai Soup with Asparagus
Senegalese-Style Red Lentil Soup
Black Bean Soup with Kale and Sweet Potatoes
Lentil and Butternut Soup
Korean Hotpot

 

STOVETOP SIMMERS AND STEWS:

Black Bean Two-Tomato Stew with Quinoa
Japanese Vegetable Curry
Risotto Primavera
Indian-Spiced Risotto
Arroz Con Tempeh
Nigerian Black-Eyed Peas and Greens
Risotto with Artichokes and Mushrooms
French Lentils with Sweet Potatoes and Chard

 

CHILI TODAY:

Garlic Lover’s Chili
Orange-Scented Chipotle Chili
Flaming Firehouse Chili
Blazing Bulgur Chili
Devil’s Food Chili
Texas Too-Hot Chili w/Cilantro Sour Cream
Beer Chaser Chili
Tequila Sundown Chili 

 

SAUTÉS AND STIR-FRIES:

Jamaican-Style Coconut Rice Bowl
Seitan and Asparagus with Tahini-Orange Sauce 
Black Beans & Quinoa with Shredded Vegetables
Thai Peanut Bowl with Tofu and Asparagus
Seitan-Mushroom Saute with Brandy Sauce
Tofu and Cauliflower Picatta Bowl
Lemony Quinoa with Spinach and Chickpeas
Szechwan Tempeh and Green Beans

PASTA PLUS:

Ziti with Arugula and Artichoke Pesto
One-Pot Cheesy Mac
Linguine with Red Lentil Sauce
Penne and Broccoli with Creamy Chickpea Sauce
Spinach Alfredo Linguine
Hoisin Tempeh Noodles
Sesame Soba with Tofu and Broccoli
Creamy Noodle Curry

 

OVEN TO TABLE:

Artichoke Spaghetti Pie
Frittata Puttanesca
Mac and Thai
Italian Deli Pizza
Cremini Butternut Lasagna
Spinach and Quinoa Tart
Chickpea Vegetable Pot Pie 
Southwestern Mac and Queso

 

MAIN-DISH SALADS:

Greek Gyros Salad
Antipasto Potato Salad
Smoky Chickpea Salad with Mango and Avocado
Quinoa and White Bean Salad with Watercress
Spicy Soba Salad with Cucumber and Edamame
Chilled Pasta Niçoise
Lime Vermicelli with Edamame and Green Papaya

 

If you enjoy the ease and convenience of preparing one-dish meals, then I hope you’ll love the recipes in One-Dish Vegan as much as I do!

 

 

I’m in Cosmo!

On a list of things I never expected to hear myself say, “I’m in Cosmo” has to be near the top of the list.  But it’s true!  Well, not ME exactly, more like some of my sandwiches from Nut Butter Universe, but hey, I’ll take it!

I didn’t even know Cosmopolitan magazine covered any food topics, but low and behold, they contacted me awhile back about featuring a few Nut Butter Universe sandwiches on their “Hot & Healthy Food Buzz” page, and there you have it:  right on page 228 of the September issue!  (You can see my name across from the bottom slice of bread (above the yellow arrow).

Pretty cool, huh?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anniversary in Asheville

To celebrate our anniversary last week, we decided to take a few days away from our crazy-busy schedules to drive down to Asheville, NC.  If the 25th anniversary is silver, and the 40th is ruby, then surely the 42nd must be okra fries and corgies — at least for us!  The okra fries were a highlight of our “eyes are bigger than our stomachs” lunch at Chai Pani (more on that later), and the two adorable corgies are the wonderful “greeters” at the gorgeous 1898 White Gate In where we stayed. (They kindly provided us with vegan breakfasts.)

Asheville is a vegan food lover’s paradise — a surprising oasis of fun, food, and culture in western North Carolina, with breathtaking mountain views and lots of things to do and see.  We love visiting this gem of a city and it’s a lovely and very scenic drive to get there.  Now about the food….

Our first stop was dinner at Plant.  All the great things I’ve heard about this place are true.  The food at this all-vegan restaurant is top-notch in terms of freshness, flavor, presentation, and creativity.  We began with the Blistered Shishito peppers, served with vegan cream cheese, shiitake bacon, and focaccia. So good….

Our other appetizer was a selection of of vegan cheeses with fruit, rosemary amber, olives, and black garlic oil, and house made bread. Extremely yummy!

As much as we like ordering different dishes so we can try more things, Jon and I both had the same entree, because neither one of us could resist the Hazelnut Crusted Seitan served with whipped cauliflower, grilled rapini and romesco, pickled onions, and shiitake bacon.  Wow.  Just wow.

Even though we were stuffed, we HAD to order dessert! Who could resist the Cherrybomb Cheesecake with cocoa crust, cherry syrup, and toasted almond-chocolate ice cream?  Not me, obviously!

After dinner, we had a chance to chat with Jason, the chef, who is super-nice.  If you get to Asheville, you must have dinner at Plant!

There are lots of  other vegan and vegetarian restaurants in Asheville that we enjoy going to every time we’re there — we even had to skip a few this trip, for lack of time.  We always hit Chai Pani for lunch for the aforementioned okra fries (!) and a selection of the delicious chaat on their menu.  This trip we enjoyed the bheli puri, dahi sev papdi (ask them to hold the yogurt — and bring your own vegan yogurt, if you can), and the samosa and chickpeas — again, hold the yogurt.   We also had to stop by Laughing Seed for their insanely delicious Banh mi sandwich served with a side of their signature jalapeno and onion fries. OMG.

We did manage to stop for tapas at Zambra.  It was the only non-veg restaurant of our entire stay, but they had a nice selection of vegan choices including chickpeas with garlic, lemon, and spinach, sauteed mushrooms with sweet potato wontons, spicy potatoes, and (surprisingly!) this crispy tofu served with harissa and hummus:

It was definitely an anniversary to remember!  Especially the okra fries and corgies!  Can’t wait to see what’s in store for #43!

 

 

 

Fruit Sushi

I had originally planned to make dessert spring rolls, filling softened rice paper wrappers with strips of ripe mango, sweetened cellophane noodles, and mint leaves.  But then, while rummaging in my pantry for the rice paper and noodles, I found some colored soy paper sushi wrappers (soy wrappers) that I had leftover from the last time I made sushi.

I also had some extra cooked jasmine rice on hand, so it seemed like the universe was telling me to make sushi instead of spring rolls.  Who was I to argue?  I decided to use only the papers colored with sesame and turmeric (leaving the ones colored with spinach and paprika for savory fillings).

In an effort to duplicate the flavors of the sensational Thai dessert, Mango Sticky Rice, I flavored the rice with coconut milk powder and confectioner’s sugar to sweeten it a bit, and cut strips of mango, along with a few cherries, just for an accent color.

Here’s a plate of maki — it’s kind of creepy how much the cherries look like pieces of tuna, isn’t it?

I also made several nigiri sushi, topped with pieces of mango and cherry:

This makes a really fun dessert, especially after an Asian meal.  I served them with a coconut yogurt sauce. You really do need the soy wrappers though — dessert is no place for nori!

Next time, I’ll definitely make dessert spring rolls — if dessert sushi was this good, I can only imagine how great dessert spring rolls will be.  Stay tuned.

Corn Contest and Tomato Taste

Corn and tomatoes are the quintessential summer vegetables.  These days, it’s possible to get fair produce of many kinds almost all year round,  but not so when it comes to these two summer favorites.  So we like to feast on them when they’re in season.

We usually go to at least two different farm stands for our produce. This weekend we got several different types of tomatoes — not just for the beautiful colors, but also because we wanted to do a taste test to compare the different varieties.  Margaret was given the taste of choosing which tomatoes would go into the salad and I think she did an excellent job.

Here’s the tomato salad at serving time, sprinkled with salad and fresh basil and drizzled with just a bit of olive oil.  Pure heaven.  All the tomatoes were quite good.  We expected to like the red one the best, but it turned out the blackish-maroon one had the most flavor!

Now about the corn:  we bought two kinds of corn — one from each of the farm stands we frequent:  one group was grown in Virginia and the other group was grown in Pennsylvania.   Being from Pennsylvania originally, I always thought the best corn came from there so it didn’t surprise me that the Pennsylvania corn was far superior in both flavor and size.  What did surprise me was how drastically different they were.  The ears of Virginia corn (on the right) were smaller in size and almost tasteless.  The larger ears of Pennsylvania corn were so sweet and delicious they didn’t need anything on them.  No salt. No Earth Balance.  Nothing.  In fact, the Pennsylvania corn was so good, we went out the next day and bought some more! Sorry Virginia, Pennsylvania corn has you beat by a mile.  No contest.

So how about you?  Where do you get really, really good corn?