Recipe Test Kitchen Fusion: Vegan Banh Mi

As you know, I recently conducted recipe testing for two highly anticipated cookbooks: one round was sammies from The Cinnamon Snail and the other Ethiopian food from Kittee Bee Berns.  The testing required a considerable investment of time and effort, but the return in skill, knowledge, and inspiration was astounding.

 

One recipe I was particularly enamored with was Kittee's awaze tofu recipe; I made it so many times that I didn't always have stews or injera on hand for accompaniment.

a tower of tofu!

So when I spied a banh mi on Epicurious Vegan's instagram I had an epiphany.  Hint: it involved a baguette.

I immediately grabbed some carrots and jalapenos...

it's the carrots she's after

and got to pickling via The Cinnamon Snail method.

 

 

I grabbed some Vegenaise and excitedly assembled an awaze tofu banh mi.

 

I'd had an uncharacteristically big lunch the day I planned the amazing fusion sammie for dinner, so when I realized how exquisite it was I found myself wishing I was hungrier just so I could eat more.

 
I had enough for plenty of sandwiches, but regardless of my adulations I can't get VM to eat tofu (it's all in her head).

Timberly is kind enough to sub avocado in her sammies from the Snail, but I didn't think avo would work in this instance.

89 likes tofu so much she carries some around in her beard.

And then I considered cauliflower.  

How I had not already made the association when we are both so enthralled by the illustrious cauliflower banh mi from Sprig and Vine, I can't tell you.  But, I got to work immediately.

I cut a medium head into small florets and included the stems chopped into smaller cubes (That's for GS/VCC!).

looks like popcorn!

Then I tossed the florets in the marinade and other ingredients used in the awaze tofu.

 

I roasted the cauliflower for 40 minutes in a 400 degree oven on a lightly oiled pan, stirring every ten minutes.  Warning: the sauce may burn onto the pan a little, so when you open the oven there may be a considerable amount of smoke expelled.  I'm not saying this will definitely set off the smoke detector, but it could. 

cauliflower for days

I assembled the cooked cauliflower with the same pickled carrots & jalapeno and Vegenaise- this time also adding arugula.

I dare not venture to guess how the Sprig & Vine cauliflower banh mi is prepared, but this was equally decadent.  I really impressed myself.

It was so good that I did it all again for dinner guests, this time with home-made bread!

 

Much more pickling:

 

A bored-with-it-all pooch:

 

And a build-your-own sammie presentation (with string bean accompaniment):

ugly (but delicious) bread

  

It was another delicious success:

I sincerely hope you're all waiting for these cookbooks with as much anticipation as I am.

It will definitely be worth the wait.

Cooking For Non-Vegans

Now that I am (just about) settled in my new home, it's time to entertain.  I tested the waters with a few (vegan) friends and then decided to invite the co-workers who have been so patient, supportive, and helpful during the past year of my whining renovation.  The invitation was essentially for a tour and what I described as a "light meal".  At that point I wasn't yet sure what the menu would be, but I wanted to be sure they realized it wasn't going to be steak.

The pressure was on; I didn't want to make any vegan cliches, so- no hummus, chips & salsa, or tofu.  I also didn't want to serve anything unusual or dishes that would be deemed too convoluted to duplicate.  I also wanted to be able to prepare it ahead of time so that I could actually enjoy my company rather than spend the evening in the kitchen- all this in an effort to impart both the accessablity of healthy and delicious vegan food, as well as the ease with which you can eat compassionately.  With all of these rules in the back of my mind and the input and encouragement of many vegan friends, I settled on the following menu.

Freshly baked sun-dried tomato bread,

using Jim Lahey's My Bread recipe for basic bread and adding as many sun-dried tomatoes as I felt like cutting (I did not rehydrate them).  Note to self: guests are really impressed by homemade bread.

To accompany, Christine Waltermyer's lentil walnut pate.  You can find the original on her website (preferred), but there is a slightly different version in her cookbook, The Natural Vegan Kitchen.  This is my variation; you need only whir it all up in the bullet:

2 cans cooked lentils
1 bunch fresh parsley (florets only!)
4 cloves garlic
1/2 small red onion, roughly chopped
1 1/2 cup toasted walnuts
2 tbsp white miso
2 tsp Bragg's liquid aminos
4 tsp lime juice
2 tbsp agave
6 tbsp filtered water

I'll admit this pate gives my bullet a run for its money, but don't be tempted to add too much liquid or it will wind up runny.

always reserve some parsley for garnish

Of course, a raw kale salad with dijon dressing: my take on Sacred Chow's dijon marinated kale.

6 tbsp dijon mustard
6 tbsp evoo
5 tbsp apple cider vinegar
4 tbsp water
3 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp paprika

Simply whir it up in the bullet and massage into torn, de-stemmed, firm, curly kale leaves.

And, a chilled tri-color quinoa salad with toasted cashews, currants, chick peas, and diced red onion (next time I'd add more raw veggies for added crunch and color).  I deferred to my Horizons New Vegan Cuisine cookbook for a cumin-lime dressing.

I was incredibly nervous that the group of omnis wouldn't like anything, but their reaction was positive from the start.  They weren't frightened by the presentation of unfamiliar foods (kale and quinoa were new to some) and each took healthy helpings of each dish.  They seemed to be enjoying their meal while they independently asked questions about nutrition and ingredients.  I wasn't entirely sure if they were being polite or if they were really interested.  And then, just when I was about to clear the table, one of my guests decided she was going for seconds...and all of the others followed suit!  By the time they were done noshing they all asked for recipes.  I would call that a raging success, no?

I'm not as much of an activist as some, but a little education accompanying a pleasant introduction to vegan food goes a long way. 

My wall of truth doesn't hurt either.

Daiya-fied Vegan Stromboli

I don't know why, but I've had it my head that I should make a stromboli.  It seemed easy enough in my mind; I had visions of preparing a regular pizza and then simply rolling it up into a neat, precise boli.  The first part was true enough; I used my now standard My Bread pizza dough recipe* and carefully layered my accoutrements:

• homemade tomato basil sauce
• diced tomato-basil sausage
• Daiya (lots- don't be shy)
• sauteed onions and peppers

Then I rolled.  The boli kind of stretched as I did, so there was no time or extra hands to slow down enough for fancy folding.  Luckily, it wasn't necessary; the ends inexplicably self-sealed into neatly rounded pockets.  However, the actual bulk of the boli grew so much during the manipulation that I had to simultaneously roll and slide so that the extra long boli would be contained fit diagonally on the sheet pan.  No harm, no foul.  I did poke a couple of little holes along the top for venting, and sprayed it with olive oil before popping it in the oven.

It would seem that my frantic fingertip tracks in the oil tell the tale.

Thirty minutes in, the boli was already looking and smelling impressive.  I decided to let it cook for an extra 15 minutes and the 45 minute cook time was perfect.  Once cooked, I removed it from the oven, vented it a few more times, and let it stand for about five minutes before slicing. 

I'm not sure why, but the interior view looked more like I had just folded the dough over top; there was none of the dough/topping swirl that most stromboli boast.  However, the taste was phenomenal.

The only thing I'd do differently would be to separate the dough in order to make 2 smaller, tightly rolled and overall more controllable stromboli- instead of one unwieldy monster.  But as far as taste is concerned: no complaints.

the end

*Please keep in mind that one batch of this recipe is intended for 2 extremely thin crust pizzas, but I prefer to make 1 thicker pie: resulting in a crust somewhere between a regular New York pie and a Sicilian.  I used the same 1 batch for my monstrously sized stromboli.

My Ugliest Bread Yet

Dr. Cow cheese is so delicious that you can eat it plain, but I prefer it accompanied.  Since I've been on kind of a roll with fresh bread lately, instead of the crackers that usually do a disservice to the swanky cheese, I decided to go all out and make fresh baguettes to go with my gourmet wheels.

I chose the My Bread recipe for stecca, but omitted the possibly sog-inducing brush of olive oil and sprinkle of salt step.  I don't like mushy bread and the idea of my hard-earned loaves soggifying like an old, hot pretzel made me cringe.  So, despite my previous missteps, I made the alteration and it proved wise: as I wound up with a beautiful, browned crust.

It wasn't all fun and games, though.  While the directions call for quartering the dough after the second rise, they don't mention that doing so will create a sticky mess that will render your tea towel unsalvageable.  Needless to say, it wasn't very easy to, further, "stretch into long tubes"; so I knew immediately that this was going to be some unattractive bread.

Yet I half expected them to magically settle into perfect loaves while cooking.  They didn't.  However, they did manage to cook perfectly, despite the unfortunate visual.

And once it was all sliced up you'd never know the intact loaves hadn't been pretty.

Next time I'll try to make two larger loaves.  Halved, these are begging to be made into garlic bread.

Everything Bread

Sesame?  Poppy?  The beauty of an everything bagel is that you don't have to choose.  So, why not translate that indecision to a fresh loaf of bread? 

Using a cup of my favorite seed mixture* I did just that. 

Ingredients: sesame seed, spices (black pepper, caraway seed, coriander seed, fennel seed, red pepper), dehydrated onion, dehydrated garlic, flax seed, quinoa, poppy seed, sea salt.

The results were really great; I liked having the seeds throughout rather than on the crust; it was like a secret that lurked within.  And they weren't at all overwhelming, although I actually like an overwhelming abundance of seeds.

*The seeds also make a superb topping for your cream cheese if you're stuck with a plain bagel.

Day-long Bread, Take Two: Walnut Cinnamon Raisin

After the wholly frustrating somewhat disappointing result of my inaugural loaf of bread, I decided to next attempt a My Bread recipe as stated; this time: Walnut Bread (p. 66).

Excited, anxious, and a bit nervous;  I had the best of intentions.  Yet, ultimately, I still couldn't leave well enough alone.  The recipe called for 1/2 cup each of walnuts and raisins...that didn't seem like nearly enough, so I just about doubled it* and was on my way.

Prepared for the 18 hour rise:

Note: This was the first opportunity I had to use an awesome new gadget that found its way into my kitchen via my Amazon recommendations.  I like unusual utensils I'm not even sure why I bought it (it certainly wasn't mentioned in the book), but the Danish dough whisk is great!  Instead of alternately attacking mixing the sticky dough with your hands, a wooden spoon, and a spatula-- all you need is this.  It takes the place of all three: neatly mixing the ingredients whilst simultaneously scraping the sides of the bowl.  And, unlike your fingers and other utensils, the dough doesn't stick to it like glue.  This is what it looked like after the efficient mix: requiring a simple rinse and toss into the dishwasher.

The dough, 3/4 of a day later:

Time for the second rise:

After the second rise it never looks any different to me.  I suppose it's possible that it's slightly more spread out, but I don't see that any considerable, additional rising has taken place.

I managed not to burn myself on the pot this time, and into the oven it went.  Halfway through and looking good.

The raisins on the outside of the loaf were a little well done, but other than that it was fine.

No, better than fine: really great, in fact.  Cross section:

*The doubled walnuts and raisins were the perfect amount.  Next time I will definitely add extra cinnamon as well!