Uttappam and Red Lentil Sambar

When I lived in Virginia Beach, we used to frequent a wonderful Indian restaurant that featured Southern Indian cooking. The menu was filled with a wide variety of idlis, dosas, and uttappams paired with a luscious vegetable sambar and a sublime coconut chutney. The menu also had a number of fragrant vegetable dishes including an addictively delicious fiery hot cauliflower appetizer that I still dream about. Although it was not a vegan restaurant, Peter, the owner, was vegan, so he was happy to prepare a vegan version of virtually everything on the menu. His kindness didn’t end there, for when I asked him to share some of his delicious recipes with me, he generously obliged, and I’ve included my variations of a few of his recipes in 1000 Vegan Recipes.

One of my favorites is uttappam, a savory Southern Indian pancake that was described on Peter’s menu as “Indian pizza.” As a nod to Peter’s playful menu description, I call my recipe Indian-style Pizza, although there’s really no similarity between them, except to say that both pizza and uttappam are round and delicious.

I developed the recipe from my scribbled notes, and, although it may not be 100% authentic, it’s a very close representation of the original, and it tastes great. It’s made with semolina flour, called sooji, available in Indian markets and gourmet grocers. But if you can’t find sooji, you can use half regular all-purpose flour and half chickpea flour, which will still taste good, but with a slightly different texture. And, of course, you can spice it up with more hot chile or ground coriander, if you like. I prefer a more moderately spiced uttappam, since I like to liberally douse it with a spicy vegetable sambar (or dal) and coconut chutney. For my most recent uttappam craving, however, I served it with a dollop of Pear and Apple Chutney (from 1000 Vegan Recipes), since that’s what I had on hand. (In the photo, the colors almost blend in -- the chutney is in the upper right corner and it was delicious.) Now if only I had some of that spicy cauliflower….

BOOK GIVEAWAY ALERT: Alisa, over at One Frugal Foodie, is giving a way a copy of 1000 Vegan Recipes — hurry over there (after you’re done reading this post, of course!) for your chance to win. The contest closes midnight tonight.

Here’s the recipe for my Indian-Style Pizza from 1000 Vegan Recipes, followed by the recipe for Anshu’s Red Lentil Sambar, from Vegan Fire and Spice.

Indian-Style Pizza
This recipe makes two “personal pan”-size uttappam, enough for a main-dish for two or appetizers for four or more. Recipe is from 1000 Vegan Recipes by Robin Robertson © Wiley & Sons.

1 cup vegan plain yogurt
1 cup semolina flour (sooji)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons water
1 medium carrot, grated
1 hot or mild green chile, seeded and finely minced
1/3 cup minced onion
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup finely chopped unsalted cashews
3/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons canola oil

1. Place the yogurt in a medium bowl and warm it in the microwave for 30 seconds. Stir in the flour and mix well to combine.
2. In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch with the 2 tablespoons of water. Blend well, then stir it into the flour mixture, adding the remaining 1/3 cup of water to form a thick batter.
3. Stir in the carrot, chile, onion, the 1/4 cup of cilantro, cashews, coriander, and salt, blending well. Set aside for 20 minutes at room temperature. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.
4. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Pour half of the batter into the skillet. Cover and cook until the bottom is lightly browned and the batter is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Be careful not to burn.
5. Carefully slide the uttappam onto a baking sheet or heatproof platter and keep warm in the oven while you cook the second one with the remaining batter.
6. Invert each uttappam onto a dinner plate, sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon cilantro, and serve.

Anshu’s Red Lentil Sambar
This recipe is from Vegan Fire & Spice by Robin Robertson © Vegan Heritage Press. It’s based on a recipe shared with me by my friend Sangeeta’s aunt. Note: Sambar powder is available in Indian markets and online. Serve this flavorful sambar with uttappam or over freshly cooked basmati rice.

1 cup red lentils
3 1/2 cups water
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1 onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 hot green chiles, seeded and minced
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
2 teaspoons sambar powder
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1 cup finely chopped carrots
1 cup finely chopped cauliflower
1 cup green beans, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 cup finely chopped eggplant
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Combine the lentils and water in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, cover, and simmer until soft, 30 minutes. Set aside, do not drain.
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the mustard seeds. When they begin to pop, add the onion, garlic, chiles, and ginger and cook until softened, 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and cook 2 minutes. Stir in the sambar powder, coriander, cayenne, cumin, salt, and curry powder. Add the carrots, cauliflower, green beans, and eggplant. Cover and cook for 5 minutes to soften. Add the vegetable mixture to the reserved lentils, cover, and simmer until the vegetables are soft, 20 minutes. Add the lemon juice and cilantro and cook 5 minutes longer. (Note: For a “soupier” sambar, you can add more water or a little vegetable broth.)

Tri-Color Rotini with Pesto Bianco

Can you love a recipe too much? When it’s this yummy pesto bianco, I’d have to say no way! For me, it was love at first bite when I first sampled a “white pesto” in Italy. I developed my own version as soon as I got home. Since then, however, I’ve made the recipe more times than I can count, changing it each time and loving it just as much with each variation.

I’ll begin at the beginning. When I first had it as a primi piatti, the “pesto” consisted of artichokes, garlic, olive oil, pine nuts, and salt, all ground to a paste (that’s where the “pesto” comes in), but with not a leaf of basil in sight (hence the “bianco” or white). The flavor is garlicky like a pesto but with a more sublime, wonderful flavor from the artichokes. I include some soy milk to give it a bit of creaminess and use a combination of pine nuts and cashews (instead of all pine nuts). My original version uses cooked frozen artichoke hearts, but I have since made it with canned artichokes and it tasted fine, so use whatever kind you have on hand. By the way, if you want more of an artichoke flavor to come through, you can add a few extra when you're making the pesto.

I always sprinkle the finished dish with fresh parsley to add color, but you don’t need to stop there. As you can see in the photo, this time I’ve also added pitted kalamata olives and chopped roasted red bell pepper. Other good additions are green peas, pieces of roasted asparagus, or even some chopped artichoke hearts. For a more rustic flavor, you can use walnuts in the pesto instead of cashews and pine nuts. And of course, adding extra garlic is always a good idea.

For a more elegant-looking effect, I’ve also made the pesto in the Vitamix (instead of the food processor) and added a little extra liquid to transform it from a coarse pesto into a smooth and creamy sauce that looks like an Alfredo sauce but packs much more flavor than one.

This is one of those fun recipes that you can play around with to get just the way you like it and so far I’ve liked it every way I’ve tried it. This recipe (and a few others) are featured on Amazon linked from the 1,000 Vegan Recipes page. If you try it, let me know what you think.

Vegetable Treasures

Since the shopping choices are limited where I live, whenever we travel to DC as we did this past weekend, we always include a stop for groceries in Centreville, Virginia on the drive home, where we visit the Trader Joe’s and a huge Asian market across the street.

I like to think I know my way around a produce department, but every time I go to the Asian market, I find something new and interesting. This time it was tindora, tiny finger-sized squash that look like miniature cucumbers. I also got some gorgeous Swiss chard, kabocha squash, baby bok choy, Thai chiles, and tiny purple eggplants. Oh yes, and a quince.

Half the fun of shopping for these treasures is discovering interesting ways to cook them. I asked an Indian man scooping tindora into a bag how he prepares them and he explained how his little girl enjoys them. I noticed a woman examining a quince with great care. She told me that she likes to use quince in a stroganoff-type recipe, and now I’m obsessed with trying it that way. Not present in the photo are some oyster mushrooms, beets, and arugula that I also brought home.

I decided to cook up the chard first and sautéed it with lots of garlic, onion, chiles, and some sliced vegan sausage. I tossed it with a grain blend I picked up at Trader Joe’s that included Israeli couscous, orzo, red quinoa, and baby chickpeas, which I cooked in vegetable broth. The combination was wonderful, very homey and comforting, but with lots of great flavors and textures. I plan to use the leftovers to stuff that kabocha squash, and I’m still trying to decide how to enjoy those adorable tindora, so stay tuned.

In the meantime....

Go to Vegan.com for not just one but five chances to win a copy of 1,000 Vegan Recipes. And while you’re there, be sure to check out my Thanksgiving recipes.

What’s Cooking for Thanksgiving?

Is it just me, or is this year really flying by at record speed? I can’t believe Thanksgiving is only three weeks away. If you’re not sure what to make for Thanksgiving dinner, I’ve got some ideas to tell you about.

I already know what I’m making, and you can read all about it (and see a photo) at Vegan.com where I share my menu and recipes for the entire meal. Many of the recipes this year are from 1,000 Vegan Recipes, including Seitan en Croute with Madeira Sauce and Rum-Spiked Sweet Potatoes with Pomegranate Pecans).

For even more holiday dinner options, consider ordering a copy of A Bountiful Vegan Thanksgiving, an e-book compiled by Nava Atlas. It’s filled with holiday recipes contributed by several cookbook authors and bloggers. It includes my recipe for Thyme-Scented Sweet Potatoes with Black Olives and Garlic. Nava is donating profits from this e-book to charities concerned with global women's issues and world hunger.

Wait, there’s more... The editors at VegNews Magazine have just published their Holiday Cookie Collection. This little e-book is filled with all the flavors of the holiday season, from gingerbread and Chocolate-Orange Macaroons, to Pecan Pie Truffles and Candy Cane Whoopie Pies. (The e-book also includes my recipe for White Chocolate Oatmeal Spice Cookies.)

With all these options available, there’s no excuse for not making a great vegan Thanksgiving feast at your house and goodies throughout the holiday season.

Why Is This Cat Smiling?

He’s happy because his “mom” won a 2009 VegNews Veggie Award! Gary was so excited about the news, he even took a break from playing in his cat tunnel to read all about it.

I’m truly honored to receive this special recognition for my work. It came as a total surprise, with the news being delivered to me by a phone call from VegNews publisher, Joe Connolly, himself. Talk about making my day!

Be sure to see the complete list of 2009 Veggie Award winners in the November+December issue of VegNews Magazine.


Photo Op: If you want to see some yummy-looking photos from 1000 Vegan Recipes, go to Vegan Appetite and check out the 10/26 post. Tami was a tester for this book and has posted several photos of the recipes she made from it. Thanks, Tami!

“Hollan-dazed”

I might as well face it, I’m addicted to the Hollandaze Sauce from 1,000 Vegan Recipes. So far I’ve used this sublime, creamy, decadent, delicious, lemony sauce on baked potatoes, roasted asparagus, roasted cauliflower, Soy-tan Dream Cutlets, and my current brunch favorite, Burritos Benedict. As seen in the photo, I’ve also used it to top Cashew-Chickpea Medallions. This silky sauce is best made in a high-speed blender for the ultimate in creamy smoothness. It’s very easy to make and a great way to dress up a meal.

As I do with everything I cook, I always taste what I’m making as I prepare it, to be sure of the balance of flavors. The danger with tasting this sauce as you make it, is that you’ll want to keep on tasting it until there’s barely enough left to serve for dinner.

Hollandaze Sauce
This recipe is from my new book, 1,000 Vegan Recipes, published by John Wiley & Sons.

3/4 cup unsalted raw cashews
3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1/2 cup hot water
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon turmeric
Pinch ground cayenne
3 tablespoons vegan margarine

In a high-speed blender, process the cashews to a fine powder. Add the nutritional yeast, water, lemon juice, mustard, salt, turmeric, and cayenne and blend until smooth.
In a small saucepan, melt the margarine over medium heat and add to the cashew mixture. Blend until smooth. Serve as is or return the sauce to the same saucepan and heat, stirring, over low heat.

Pan-Seared Seitan with Artichokes and Olives

I dream of Soy-tan Dream Cutlets. Well, okay, maybe I don’t actually dream about them, but I sure like to make them for dinner. In fact, they’re among my favorite recipes in 1,000 Vegan Recipes. Made by combining vital wheat gluten and extra-firm tofu with seasonings, the resulting cutlets are more tender than regular seitan and firmer than tofu. Quick and easy to make, these cutlets can then be used in a variety of recipes that feature seitan, tempeh, or extra-firm tofu, such as sautés and stir-fries. I like to cook up a batch and keep them on hand for those nights when I want to get a great meal on the table — fast.

The other night, I used them instead of regular seitan to make the Pan-Seared Seitan with Artichokes and Olives from 1,000 Vegan Recipes. I grabbed some cutlets from my stash in the refrigerator, pan-seared them, and then kept them warm in the oven while I made the topping, a quick sauté of garlic, diced tomatoes, and sliced artichoke hearts, with black olives and capers. (The recipe is below.) In the book, I suggest an optional topping of vegan feta, but I didn’t have any on hand, and the dish was delicious without it.

Since I had pan-searing on the brain, I also seared some sliced zucchini along with a few halved artichoke hearts and grape tomatoes to serve with the cutlets.

In other news…

Book Giveaway: A copy of 1,000 Vegan Recipes is being given away on the blog at vegcooking.com. The deadline to enter the contest is November 4th and the winner will be chosen at random.

New Blog Alert: I just found out about a new blog called “Cooking from 1,000 Vegan Recipes: six vegans, one book, one blog.” Tune in as these six bloggers cook their way through 1,000 Vegan Recipes — it’s kind of like “Julie and Julia” — only better cuz it’s vegan! Check it out.


Pan-Seared Seitan with Artichokes and Olives
This recipe is adapted from 1,000 Vegan Recipes. The original recipe calls for regular seitan, but this time I used Soy-tan Dream Cutlets (also from the book) instead. You could substitute tempeh or extra-firm tofu, if you prefer. Add a few shakes of red pepper flakes if you want a little heat.

2 tablespoons olive oil
4 Soy-tan Dream Cutlets (or regular seitan cutlets)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 (14.5-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes, drained
1 1/2 cups canned or frozen (cooked) artichoke hearts, cut into ¼-inch slices
1/3 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and halved
1 tablespoon capers
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 250°F. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium heat. Add the cutlets and brown on both sides, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a heatproof platter and keep warm in the oven.
2. In same skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, artichoke hearts, olives, capers, and parsley. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and cook until hot, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
3. Arrange the cutlets on plates and top with the vegetable mixture. Serve hot.

Autumn Vegetable Fritters

Last night’s dinner was a wealth of autumn vegetables: buttercup squash, sweet potatoes, Savoy cabbage, carrots, and onion, all cut into large chunks and roasted together until crisply browned around the edges and tender-sweet inside. I made more than we could reasonably eat at one meal, so for today’s lunch I decided to use the leftover vegetables to make fritters.

They’re so quick and easy to make. Just chop up the cooked vegetables and place them in a bowl. Sprinkle them with all-purpose flour (about 1/3 cup) and season with salt and pepper to taste. I didn’t add any additional herbs or spices because the cooked vegetables were already seasoned, and I wanted their flavors to come though without other influences.

After shaping the vegetable mixture into patties, fry them in a little oil until browned on both sides. That’s all there is to it. I served them with a lightening-quick applesauce I made by shredding a few apples with a box grater and combining them in a saucepan with a little sugar, cinnamon, and a splash of lemon juice. I cooked the applesauce for no more than five minutes, just long enough to warm through and allow the flavors to combine.

The applesauce tasted great with the fritters which were delicious and so gorgeous—the colors of the different vegetables in the fritters reminded me of the vivid autumn leaves gracing the trees this time of year.

More 1,000 Vegan Recipes Sightings:

• On 10/9, 1,000 Vegan Recipes was a staff pick on VegNews Magazine’s This Just In.
• On 10/7, the book was also recommended by Erik Marcus on Vegan.com.
• Also on 10/7, Jenn, of Vegan Dance If You Want To, did a post about one of my favorite recipes in the book, the Soy-tan Dream Cutlets. Made with both tofu and wheat gluten, these tender and tasty cutlets can be used in your favorite seitan or savory tofu recipes.