Whole Red Lentils with Toasted Spices

Whole Red Lentils with Toasted Spices, which I'm sharing today, is one of my favorite dishes.
For a number of reasons: the lentils taste great and cook easily, making them perfect for busy evenings when you have little time to throw together a meal that's both nourishing and delicious.
What's more, like all beans and lentils, they are packed with healthy protein and fiber. They also don't need to be pre-soaked, although I do soak them for a couple of hours when I have the time: it just reduces the cooking time further.
I also toast the garlic before grinding it with the rest of the spices which adds to the depth of flavor.
The lentils taste great with brown rice or chapati, but you can also just eat it by itself, like a soup. One thing is certain: you will be back for seconds.

Ingredients:

1 cup whole red lentils (masoor), cooked until tender.
1 tbsp canola or other vegetable oil
1 red onion, sliced
1 tsp sugar
4-5 cloves garlic, chopped into large pieces
1 tbsp coriander seeds
1 14-oz can of diced tomatoes or 2 tomatoes, diced
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
2 tbsp coriander leaves, chopped

In a skillet, toast the cumin and coriander seeds for 3-4 minutes until fragrant. Remove to the blender.
Then toast the garlic in the skillet until it starts getting brown spots. Also add to blender along with the tomatoes.
Blend until smooth.
Heat oil and add onions and sugar. Cook on a medium flame for about 10 minutes until onions turn brown.
Add the blended mixture of tomatoes and spices, chili powder, turmeric and salt, and cook until the mixture starts drying and turns a few shades darker.
Add the lentils and cook for another 10 minutes.
Garnish with coriander and serve hot.

A Vegan in Mexico

Fruit market in Tlaquepaque, Guadalajara

Recently, Desi and I traveled to beautiful and colorful Mexico. It was my first time traveling abroad as a vegan, and I was determined to stick with my animal-free diet at all costs. I googled eating vegan in Mexico, and printed out the names and addresses of any veg-friendly restaurants I could find. I even mugged up Spanish words that I thought would help convey to the wait staff at restaurants that I am a no-meat, no-eggs, no-dairy gal.
Still, friends who had been to Mexico shook their heads with concern and told me stories of how other vegetarian friends, even those who ate dairy and eggs, had trouble finding food.
I was a little worried, but not completely fazed. After all, aren't beans and rice staples in Mexico? And isn't it famed for its tortillas, tomato salsas and guacamole, all deliciously vegan?
And so we went to Mexico. I admit I did pack a box of vegan health bars just in case, because I simply could not see myself surviving on salads alone. While I was confident I wouldn't starve in Mexico City and Guadalajara- the two big cities on our itinerary- I was a little concerned about finding suitable food in the smaller towns we would travel to.
What a surprise, then, that I ate salad just twice during my entire 10-day trip, and it was not because it was the only option available to me. In fact, in the few instances when I couldn't find anything vegan among the entrees, I could still make a very delicious and satisfying meal by ordering a few side dishes.
Also, despite our 10-word Spanish vocabulary, we didn't find it terribly hard to convey to waiters when we wanted a dish made without cheese or meat. And when it could be done, they were always more than willing to accommodate us.
In Morelia, a small and quaint cathedral town, I ate mollettes for breakfast- crusty bread slathered with vegetarian beans (I asked them to hold the queso) and with tomato salsa. Also in Morelia, I ate a delicious veggie burger at -- surprise!-- a popular veggie restaurant called Govinda's (the decor was distinctly Indian although no one spoke a word of any Indian language there). In Chacala, a small beach town north of Puerto Vallarta, I enjoyed delicious Guacamole with tortilla chips, all with a gorgeous view of the sea.
I certainly didn't starve in Mexico - in fact, I ate really well all the time and supplemented my diet with a delicious array of veggies and fruits. Another great benefit was that despite the lack of consistent exercise, I didn't gain any weight - a first for me while traveling, and yet another reason for me to be really happy that I've chosen to go animal-free.

South Indian Coconut Rice

Whenever Desi and I would visit Madras, we almost always got swept up by relatives into a tour of various temples, including Sholingar and Thirupathi. Both Desi and I are not temple-goers, and my in-laws, I think, were hoping that those whirlwind tours, packed with as many deities as possible, would make up for all the blessings we'd lost in the preceding months by not praying.
The trips, however, were invariably fun and more like picnics, notwithstanding long waits outside each temple. Countless relatives, including Desi's parents, six siblings and their spouses and kids, would be packed into cars or vans along with boxes and boxes of tamarind rice, lemon rice and coconut rice to keep everyone well fed through the journey.
The coconut rice was my favorite. Perhaps because my own family hails from the beautiful Konkan coast where coconut and rice are staples of almost every meal. I often make coconut rice in my own kitchen here, when I want something much more indulgent than plain boiled rice but don't want to spend too much time cooking.
While the original recipe for coconut rice calls for fresh coconut, I have found that substituting with canned coconut milk results in a dish that not only tastes authentic, but also looks really pretty. While one would typically add the fresh coconut after cooking the rice, I cook the rice in the coconut milk, which helps infuse the flavor into every single grain.
I use a single 14-oz can of light coconut milk, but you could use regular coconut milk or half coconut milk and half water. Keep in mind that using regular coconut milk will impart a stronger coconut flavor to the rice.
I served the coconut rice, adapted from Lifco's How to Cook? cookbook by Vedavalli Venkatachary, with a vegan version of Dum Aloo, a spicy potato dish from Kashmir. It was the perfect marriage of foods from India's north and south!
The coconut rice would also go very well with my Peppery Cabbage Kootu.
Ingredients:

2 tbsp canola oil
2 cups basmati rice, washed and drained
1 14-oz can of light coconut milk plus 1 1/2 cups water
1 tbsp mustard seeds
1 tbsp chana dal (bengalgram dal)
1 tbsp udad dal (blackgram dal)
2-3 dry red chilies
1/4 cup cashew pieces
A pinch of asafetida (optional)
1 sprig curry leaves
Salt to taste

In a large saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, heat 1 tbsp oil.
Reduce the heat to medium and add rice. Stir for a couple of minutes until opaque.
Add salt, coconut milk and water and let it cook until most of the water is absorbed.
Cover the saucepan, turn the heat to low and let the rice cook for another 20 minutes.
Turn off and let it stand undisturbed while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
In another pan, heat the remaining oil and add mustard, chana dal, udad dal, cashew, red chilies, asafetida and curry leaves.
Stir until mustard seeds splutter and the dals and nuts begin to take on a golden hue.
Add to the rice and mix gently with a fork, taking care not to mash the rice.
If you have any fresh/frozen coconut shreds on hand, toast a couple of tablespoons lightly and add as a garnish.
Serve hot!

Banana Nut Bread

Desi, my hubby, has a sweet tooth. A very, very sweet tooth. Although he's usually careful about what he eats and pays close attention to what's healthy and what's not, all his good intentions simply evaporate when faced with a cookie or a cake or even a donut.
So one of the challenges I constantly face, as the primary cook of the household, is to make sweets that are healthy and nutritious without sacrificing even the tiniest bit on the taste factor.
One of the first cakes-- or "breads"-- that I ever made was a banana nut bread. It was in my pre-vegan days and I followed the recipe in the Joy of Cooking to the letter. It turned out great, and Desi was hooked.
Later, as a vegan, making a banana nut bread that was as good, but without the eggs and the butter the recipe called for, seemed a little daunting. However, substituting the eggs with a mixture of powdered flax seeds and water, and the butter with canola oil, as well as adding applesauce to the recipe, produced a moist, extremely flavorful bread that tastes as good as, if not better than, the original.
Flax seed powder is a great substitute for eggs in most recipes. Eggs usually serve as a binding agent in baked goods, and flax powder, when mixed with water, acquires a texture similar to that of beaten eggs and helps bring the ingredients together beautifully.
As I usually do with most baked goods that call for all-purpose flour, I used whole wheat pastry flour instead, further upping the nutrition value. I also used vegan sugar (Whole Foods has a great free-trade brand on its shelves) but you can also use regular or turbinado sugar. I add a tablespoon of molasses in my recipe because it gives the bread an even richer flavor and a great brown color, but you can leave it out if you don't want to use it or don't have any on hand.
I also toast the nuts lightly before I put them in the batter because I believe that extra step really enhances their flavor.

Ingredients
1 1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
5 1/3 tbsp canola oil
2/3 cup sugar
1 tbsp molasses (optional)
2 tbsp powdered flax seeds mixed well with 6 tbsp water
1/4 cup applesauce
2 very ripe bananas, mashed
3/4 cup pecans, lightly toasted, then chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and oil a 8 1/2-inch by 4 1/2-inch loaf pan.
Mix the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder in a bowl.
In a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, beat the oil and the sugar on high speed for about 2-3 minutes.
Beat in the flour until the mixture resembles brown sugar
Beat in the flax-water mixture and applesauce
Fold in the mashed bananas and chopped pecans.
Pour the batter into the loaf pan and spread evenly. Bake about 50-55 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
Cool on a rack for about 10 minutes and then unmold and let cool completely on a rack.

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Bananas for banana? Check out more banana-based goodies here on Holy Cow!, like my Banana Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting and my Banana Nut Muffins.

Spaghetti with Sundried Tomato Sauce and Mushroom "Meatballs"

Who doesn't love pasta? After all, there's so much to love. The slippery, satisfying bite of the noodle, the tangily tantalizing tomato, those heavenly herbs and their ethereal aromas...Simply made or put together with a bazillion ingredients, pasta is always a meal to look forward to.
Last night, I wanted to throw something together quickly so that we could teleconference with Desi's family which is scattered around the globe. After spending the day running errands and walking dogs, there was little time left to cook. In the end, pasta it was.
Luckily for me, it was one of those rare times when I had many pasta-friendly ingredients sitting around the pantry and in the refrigerator: an eggplant, some sun-dried tomatoes, capers and even some veggie mushroom "meatballs" that I found in the freezer section at Whole Foods. I also had some great whole-grain thin spaghetti on hand.
For those who haven't tried whole-grain pastas which are relatively new on the market, I have a request: please do. They taste great, take just minutes to cook, and are wonderfully healthy with much higher amounts of fiber and protein than their more "refined" counterparts that we've all been using for years and which do nothing for you other than fill you up with bad carbs.
I added some almond milk at the very end to the sauce. In addition to its healthy qualities, almond milk is delicious and enhances the creaminess of the eggplant sauce.
So here's my Saturday-night pasta recipe, Spaghetti with Sundried Tomato Pesto and Mushroom Meatballs. This one's a keeper.

Ingredients

1 large eggplant, halved
8-10 sundried tomatoes
5-6 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 medium tomatoes, diced, or 1 cup diced, canned tomatoes
1 tsp dried basil
4 artichoke hearts (optional)
1 tsp red chili flakes
Pepper and salt to taste
12 meatless meatballs
8-10 crimini mushrooms (can substitute with white button mushrooms)
1 cup almond milk
2-3 tbsp capers, drained
1 13.5 oz package of thin spaghetti or angel hair pasta

Coat the eggplant with 1 tsp of olive oil and place in a cookie sheet, cut side down, in a 350-degree oven. Bake about 20-25 minutes or until the eggplant is tender and a knife slides easily into the middle. Set aside to cool.
In a food processor, combine the sundried tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, basil, pepper, red chili flakes and artichoke hearts. Add the eggplant after peeling off the skin. Process until you have a fairly smooth paste.
In a saucepan, warm a little olive oil. Add mushrooms, meatballs and about 1/2 cup white wine. Cook until the mushrooms and the meatballs turn brown, about 5 minutes.
Add the sundried tomato paste and the tomatoes and cook for another 5 minutes or until heated through. Add almond milk and mix thoroughly.
Cook the pasta according to package directions. Add the pasta to the sauce and turn to coat. Serve hot, garnished with a few capers.
I didn't have any fresh herbs on hand, but some chopped fresh basil or fresh parsley would go wonderfully with this sauce.
Hope you enjoy it.

Precious Pubm

I've been meaning to blog about my beautiful calico cat, Pubm, whose picture graces the sidebar.
Pubm (her real name is Puddin') and her sister Pie came to us from the Washington Humane Society in April 2003. We had adopted two dogs from the shelter, and were back to pick up a dog we were going to foster, when Desi and I wandered into the kitty section of the shelter.
Anyone who has ever visited a shelter to pick out a dog or cat would understand just how difficult it is not to want to bring each and every one of them home. The adorable faces peer out eagerly at you across the bars of the runs, hopeful and appealing. The cats we saw were each beautiful, but the volunteer steered us toward a pair inside a crate, one black, the other orange-black-and-white.
The cats were six-year-old sisters, she said, and were dumped on a neighbor's porch by the new boyfriend of a woman who had had them since they were kittens. They had been at the shelter more than two weeks, and there was a good chance they would be put to sleep if they hadn't found a home by the weekend.
So Pubm and Pie came home with us, and promptly converted two very committed dog persons into devoted cat persons.
Pubm, initially, appeared to be the timid one, compared to Pie. She would hide under the tables or bed and refuse to emerge for hours. She did not seem to like to be held. And she appeared to panic each time the dogs were around.
But that changed slowly over the months. Naturally nosey as all cats are, Pubm, of course, couldn't bear to stay away from the "action." She learned how to integrate herself with the dogs, slowly shedding all fear of my gigantic German Shepherd Lucy and Chow mix Opie. While both dog breeds are known not to be among the friendliest to cats, and neither Lucy nor Opie was friendly initially, Pubm slowly but steadily learned how she could manipulate them so they did not bother her. A few hisses, a few bats of her little paw, and they learned she was not to be messed with.
Today, they are all a big family. Pubm seems to adore Opie, often following him around the house and into the back yard (she is an indoor cat, but we sometimes let her explore our tightly-fenced back yard). While the rest of us are in the den watching TV, Pubm and Opie will be curled up next to each other on the living-room couch, fast asleep.
She is extremely vocal as well, demanding, queen-like and in drawling tones, when she wants the doors to the basement or the backyard opened, or when she wants her food.
She delights us every day with her antics, and never tires of exploring the house and every one of its nooks and crannies. She grooms herself incessantly. And in the winter, she loves to curl up in our laps and will stay there for hours.
Pubm and Pie have been part of our family for four years now. However, there are millions of beautiful cats- even more in number than dogs- that are put to sleep in shelters each year because there are not enough people willing to give them homes. It is almost unbelievable that people still patronize pet shops and breeders (both of which should be put out of business, in my opinion) when there are so many wonderful animals in shelters across the country that would make great pets.
The situation is particularly bad for older cats because people often tend to fall in love with little kittens with their wide, soft eyes and abundant fur and want to bring them home. But older cats like Pubm and Pie adjust easily to new homes and are almost always already trained in using the kitty litter. Also, cats who are kept indoors suffer almost no major health problems, requiring just their annual shots and checkups.
Pubm and Pie were lucky to find a home before it was too late for them. But I often think we are the luckier ones for having found them.

Peppery Cabbage Kootu

My husband, Desi, was born and raised in Madras (or Chennai, although he insists on calling it Madras still) in a very traditional family. But when we got married, his parents and six siblings were more than welcoming to the new daughter-in-law even though she had short hair, didn't wear saris and didn't speak a word of Tamil.
What did rattle them, though, was that I didn't know how to cook any Tamilian food.
Tamilians love their food, and I mean their food. I still remember an attempt I made at trying to get my father-in-law to try out noodles. Even though he was trying to be a sport, I could not help but feel sorry for the man as he struggled with the strange food on his plate, probably wondering why anyone would want to eat this stuff! It was a little terrifying at the time, but today is one of my funniest memories of my wonderful father-in-law who has passed away since.
But getting back to Tamil food, since my husband and I lived far from Madras, in Bombay, there really was no way I could learn from my Tamil family members how to cook authentic recipes. One of my sisters-in-law , Lalitha manni, came to my rescue: she recommended a cookbook from the Lifco series named, quite simply, "How to Cook?."
The book, by Vedavalli Venkatachary, is very straightforward and unpretentious with no pictures and with directions that sometimes skip a step or two. It has become one of my favorite cookbooks over the years, and one I often run to when I feel in the mood for something simple but wholesome. The book even made the journey with us from India to the United States and now sits in my kitchen shelf here. It is a treasure trove of Tamil recipes for all occasions, ranging from the usual sambhars (kuzhambu) and rasams, to chutneys and side dishes and sweets like sarkarai pongal.
This recipe for Cabbage Kootu is adapted from one of Mrs. Venkatachary's recipes.
I have always loved cooking with cabbage, not just because it tastes great, but because of its wonderful versatility. In Indian cuisine, it can be cooked as a side dish, added to curries and even makes wonderful bhujias. It can be a great addition to my spicy pakora pancakes, which I blogged about earlier.
What's more, cabbage is a nutrition powerhouse, packed with fiber, vitamins, and even calcium. It belongs to the family of cruciferous vegetables, along with cauliflower, broccoli, brussels sprouts and kale, which are known to have anti-cancer properties.
I used a whole head of cabbage in this recipe because I can't have enough of it, but feel free to use a smaller amount, if you prefer. The black pepper gives the kootu a fragrance and taste that is beyond description-you'll just have to take my word for it. Or make it yourself!

Peppery Cabbage Kootu


Ingredients:

1 medium head of cabbage, finely shredded
1 cup split yellow peas (tuvar dal)
1 sprig curry leaves (optional)
2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
2 tbsp shredded coconut or 1/4 cup coconut milk
1 tbsp mustard seeds

For masala:
1 tbsp coriander seeds
1 tbsp blackgram dal (udad dal)
1 tbsp chana dal (Bengalgram dal)
2-3 red chilies (you can use more if you like your food really spicy)
1 tbsp black peppercorns

Pressure-cook the split yellow peas and cabbage with about 4 cups of water, a little salt and turmeric until soft. (You can cook it in a saucepan, but it would take much longer).
Fry masala ingredients in a teaspoon of canola or other vegetable oil. When the dals turn golden, remove to a blender and grind into a smooth paste along with coconut or coconut milk.
Add the masala ingredients to the cooked split peas.
Add the curry leaves, if using, and let it all simmer together about 10 minutes, until the flavors have blended together.
In a small vessel, heat about 1 tbsp of oil. Add 2 tsp mustard seeds. Let them sputter and then add them to the split peas.
Garnish with chopped coriander.
Serve hot with rice and papad.

Chickpea Hummus

This hummus recipe comes at the request of my wonderful friend, Rita.
Hummus is one of those superfoods that makes it quite easy to eat vegan, eat healthy, and eat delicious, all at the same time. Combined with pita bread it makes a perfect protein, and the chickpeas (garbanzo beans) have loads of fiber, iron, magnesium and all that good stuff.
I first tasted hummus at my friend Margo's house- she was born in Lebanon and makes a really great, authentic version that she serves with warm pita bread and lettuce leaves.
My own version is something I've arrived at over a period of experimenting with the tastes of my family and friends. Desi, for instance, doesn't like too much garlic in it, although I do. To those who do not like the strong taste of raw garlic, I'd advise cutting down the garlic to either one or even half a clove. Another way to incorporate the flavor of garlic without the sharpness is to roast it. Simply coat the garlic in a few drops of olive oil, wrap in tinfoil, and roast in the oven for 10-15 minutes. The roasted garlic is wonderfully sweet and mellow and adds a great deal of depth without the pungency.
I also experiment with a variety of beans while making hummus, and have used everything from black beans, which impart an earthily robust taste, to white beans and edamame.
One of the essential ingredients in hummus, which gives it that smooth, creamy flavor, is tahini, or sesame seed paste. While I rarely have tahini sitting around in my pantry, I almost always have sesame seeds which are an essential in Indian cooking. I toast a handful of sesame seeds to a pale golden-brown color on a skillet, and give them a whir in my coffee grinder which I use exclusively to grind spices. I then use this in place of the tahini with the same great results.
Hummus is one of the easiest and quickest recipes to make-- it takes almost no time to assemble once you have got the ingredients together, and if you used canned chickpeas there's no cooking involved either.
How great is that?

Chickpea Hummus

Ingredients:

1 cup dry chickpeas, soaked overnight and then cooked (I use the pressure cooker) until tender. Reserve the cooking liquid. (You can substitute with roughly 2 cups of canned chickpeas, rinsed)
2 tbsp tahini paste or sesame seed powder (read post above for instructions)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp chili powder like cayenne or paprika
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste

Put all ingredients, except the olive oil in a food processor. Give it a whir, adding some of the cooking liquid if the mixture is too dry. Process until the hummus is smooth and creamy. Add more water if it is too thick.
With the motor running, drizzle the olive oil into the hummus.
Remove to a bowl. Garnish with a few sprinkles of chili powder and olive oil. Serve with warm slivers of pita bread.

My dog Opie

Opie is magical.
He speaks to us as effectively and easily as any human being, but with his eyes and his paws and his gorgeous, plume-like tail that wags about 90 percent of the time. When it doesn't wag, Desi and I compete to see who can make it wag again, and usually it isn't a difficult job.
Opie was born happy. He was a very happy 4-month-old when he came to our home from the Washington Humane Society, despite the fact that he had been rejected at least twice: first by those who dumped him at the shelter, then by another family that adopted him and brought him back to the shelter within a week.
I have to give Desi credit here-- we were at the shelter looking for an older dog when he fell in love with this golden furball. When we were told he already had been adopted by another family, Desi was heartbroken and we returned home empty-handed. Funnily enough, I persuaded Desi to return to the shelter the next week and there was Opie, romping around with a little German Shepherd puppy. He had been brought back by his new family that had apparently found him to be too much of a handful. This time, with Desi grinning ear to ear, we brought him home.
Make no mistake-- Opie is no picnic. He chews on everything. And I mean everything. Almost every piece of furniture and most of our shoes have been nibbled by his curious teeth. Admitted he was always upfront about it: the first time we met him at the shelter, he chewed through my dog Lucy's leash in under two minutes.
He also loves to bark at anybody and everybody that walks outside our house. Dog, cat, human, squirrel: he calls out to everyone, tail wagging furiously.
He chases our cats, Pubm and Pie, and is always trying to get into their food and kitty litter.
He sleeps on our bed, unlike our other two dogs who stick with their doggie beds. What's more, he loves to change positions a hundred times each night, which means he pretty much takes up half the bed while Desi and I squeeze into the other half.
When we walk, he sits down where he feels like it, and refuses to budge, even when it's raining or snowing or just freezing cold.
But it is perhaps that stubborn, mischievous streak that makes Opie so special. He is a dog that knows his mind, and that's about all there is to it.
Besides, no one kisses like my Opie -when Desi or I get home from work he is so excited, he hops around and elbows Lucy and Freddie, my other two dogs, out to stand up against your knees. He then pulls your face down with his paw to launch wet, sloppy kisses all over it.
But if one of us is not back, his excitement soon gives way to long-faced anticipation and he haunts the front door, waiting for the other person to get back. It is only when everyone is around - mom, dad, Lucy, Freddie, Pubm and Pie, that he is truly happy.
Those are the times that he curls on the living room couch, content to do nothing more but close his eyes and dream. For just a few minutes, before he heads back to the window to sniff for more trouble.

Golden Winter Squash Soup

Lazy, comfortable Sunday evenings often put me into a soup mood. A creamy soup mood.
When I first became vegan, I stayed away from recipes that called for the addition of cream. But eventually, I started experimenting with coconut milk (Whole Foods has a great store-brand light coconut milk) and nut milks. The results were so good, they made me wonder why anyone uses cream in the first place when the options are so much more delicious, not to mention healthier!
Getting back to creamy soups, I made this one for the first time this past Saturday and it's already gone on my list of must-keep recipes. The best thing, apart from the taste, is that it is really simple to put together and uses seasonal acorn and butternut squash (you can substitute with most winter squashes or use just one type of squash). Using wine to caramelize the onions gives the soup a great depth of flavor despite the simple ingredient list.
I used almond milk for a delicious, creamy consistency, and garnished the end result with some caramelized onions and garlic.
I served this with some whole wheat bread croutons, made by slicing into small squares four whole wheat bread slices and then tossing them with pepper, salt and 1/2 tsp of dried basil. The croutons, spread on a cookie sheet, go into the oven for 5-7 minutes until lightly browned and crisp.
Heaven in a bowl.

Golden Winter Squash Soup


Ingredients:
1 butternut squash, cut into halves
1 acorn squash, cut into halves
1 onion, sliced thin
2-3 cloves garlic, sliced thin
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup white wine
1-2 cups almond milk
Salt and pepper for seasoning

Place the butternut and acorn squash halves on a baking sheet and bake in a 350-degree oven for about 30-40 minutes or until the squash can be easily pierced with a fork and is cooked through. The acorn squash might need more time than the butternut.
Remove from the oven and let stand while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
Heat the olive oil in a saucepan. Add onions and garlic and the white wine. Season with salt and pepper.
Cook on medium heat for about 10-15 minutes until the onions and garlic are soft and brown and caramelized. Reserve half the onion-garlic mixture and put the rest into a blender.
Peel off the skin from the squash when it's cool enough to handle. Cut into large chunks and toss into the blender along with the onion.
Add about a cup or more (adjust the consistency of the soup to your liking) almond milk and puree until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
Return the puree to the pan and warm through. If the soup is too thick, you can add some more almond milk or vegetable stock or plain water.
Ladle into bowls and top each bowl with some caramelized onions, garlic and croutons.
Enjoy!

No-Butter Almond Shortbread Cookies

I got around to baking cookies only this Saturday, a little over a week before Christmas, and I only managed to bake one kind before I ran out of flour. How's that for being unorganized?
The cookie, an almond shortbread, turned out great, however, so at least I had something to feel good about at the end of it all. Starting with a basic recipe, I veganized it with stuff I had on hand. I substituted the 16 tablespoons of butter that the recipe called for with 4 tbsp of zero-trans fat shortening (it has less saturated fat than butter and gives the cookies their yummy, crumbly texture), and 8 tbsp of canola oil which, of course, is heart-healthy.
Instead of the egg, I used two tablespoons of cornstarch mixed with two tablespoons of water to bind the ingredients. While I usually substitute eggs with flax seed powder in more robust sweets, cornstarch was perfect for these delicate cookies.
The end result was a fabulously crumbly, delicious cookie which didn't hurt any animals in its making.
Now, that's my kind of cookie.

Ingredients:
2 1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup (4 tbsp) zero-trans-fat vegetable shortening
1/2 cup (8 tbsp) canola oil
2/3 cup sugar
2 tbsp of cornstarch mixed well with 2 tbsp water
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 cup almonds, powdered fine in a food processor or spice grinder

In a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, beat the shortening, canola oil and sugar together until light and white and fluffy
Add the cornstarch-water mixture, baking powder, salt, almond extract and blend well until mixture is smooth.
Add flour and almond powder and mix. The dough will be a bit soft and sticky.
Roll into small balls, about 1-inch in diameter, and place on a greased cookie sheet, one inch apart. Press down slightly to form discs.
Bake in a 350-degree oven for about 10 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through the baking. Place the baking sheet on a rack and let the cookies cool completely before removing them gently with a ladle.
Enjoy!

Update: I baked these again for a cookie contest at work, this time as orange thumbprint cookies. When I put them on the cookie sheet, I made a thumbprint impression in the center of each cookie. Once baked, I filled each indentation with a dollop of orange marmalade.


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Cookies are one of the easiest treats to veganize. Look at my Vegan Substitutes page above for ideas on substituting eggs in cookies and other baked goods. And for another delicious, almondy cookie, try my vegan Amaretti Cookies.

Oozing-With-Health Pakora Pancakes

There are many days- too many in fact- when I have agonizing cravings for foods that are not so healthy. Like onion pakoras.
A traditional Indian classic that can often be found on many restaurant menus, onion pakoras are the Indian cousin of onion rings- only much, much more flavorful and satisfying, at least to my taste buds. In fact, biting into an onion pakora is a small event by itself-- the crunchy covering of chickpea flour flavored with spices is the perfect foil for the sweet and pungent but soft bits of onion and coriander.
But pakoras are deep-fried, and that, of course, has put it on the list of maybe-sometimes-but-not-often foods in my household.
Until I created this recipe that turns the pakoras into pancakes while at the same time taking the guilt out of this fabulous dish. I call them Oozing-With-Health-Not-Oil Pakora Pancakes.
Taking the deep-frying out of the equation leaves the recipe chock-full with ingredients that are both healthy and yummy, and spreading the batter into a pancake on a lightly oiled griddle gives that satisfying crunch without the calories.
You can make these even healthier by adding some finely chopped spinach or cabbage or even methi leaves to the batter.
I plan to make these over and over, and trust me, you will too once you have tasted them.

Pakora Pancakes


Ingredients:

2 onions, chopped fine almost into a mince
3 tbsp coriander leaves, chopped fine
1/2 cup chickpea flour (besan)
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp chili powder (use less if you don't want them too spicy)
1/2 tsp turmeric (optional)
Salt about 1/2 tsp or to taste
Oil as needed

Mix all ingredients with enough water to make a batter that's about the consistency of regular pancake batter.
Coat a cast-iron or nonstick griddle with about 1/2 tsp of oil. Heat until the oil is hot but not smoking.
With a quarter-cup measure, spread the batter on the griddle in a thin, round pancake, about 4-5 inches in diameter.
Let it cook without covering until the sides start drying up.
Lift a corner gently with a spatula. If it lifts easily, and the color is golden-brown, gently ease the pancake onto the spatula and flip over.
Let the other side cook about a minute until it too turns golden and crisp.
Serve hot. Yum.

Slavery, Again

Last night, I saw an incredible movie that got me really thinking about how easily most of us accept animal cruelty without questioning it, and the dangers of thinking that way.
The movie, Amazing Grace, tells the story of William Wilberforce, a British politician from the 18th and 19th centuries who worked all his life to abolish slavery in his country. Incidentally, he was also one of the founders of the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
There are some really moving scenes that describe how Africans were kidnapped from their homes and then sent halfway across the world, packed tight into ships where they were forced to live in their own filth, and usually without adequate food, for weeks. Those who got sick were simply cast off the ship and into the sea.
To those of us who fight animal cruelty, all this has an eerily familiar ring. Now, it is the turn of helpless animals to be enslaved and slaughtered even when they have never done anything to hurt us. We know about the billions of animals and birds raised for factory farms: hens who never get to flap a wing or see the sky before they are slaughtered; pigs who spend their short lives standing in crates where they cannot even turn around; cattle who are castrated and branded without any pain relief; calves who are separated from their mothers at birth and slaughtered.
And still, every day, I encounter smart, decent people who simply won't make that connection between the pain inflicted on sentient animals and the food on their plates.
I like to tell friends that 100 years from now, people will look back and say in surprise, "Can you imagine we ate animals back then?" But the truth is, 100 years is too late. Each day that goes by means millions more animals will suffer silently because most people choose to ignore the fact that behind every chicken nugget and T-bone steak lies an enormous tale of pain and suffering.
And how can food that comes from such misery be any good?

Leafy Lentils with Nutty Brown Rice Pilaf and Oven-roasted Sweet Potatoes

A friend, Navami, recently asked me to post some Indian vegan recipes that are quick and easy to make. One of the first dishes that jumped to my mind was an old standby that I cook very often, especially when I find a bunch of fresh methi (fenugreek) leaves, in the market.

Methi leaves, like the seeds, are prized in Indian cuisine not just for their unique, mildly bitter taste, but also for their numerous health benefits, including the ability to fight diabetes and cholesterol.

In this dish, the methi teams up with spinach and fresh coriander. The result is not just good for you, but also finger-licking good!

To go with the lentils I made a simple but delicious brown rice pilaf and some oven-roasted sweet potatoes (recipes follow).

The whole meal takes just about an hour to prepare- a little more if you are not a multitasker. Hope you enjoy it, dear friend, and here's to your good health!

Leafy Dal

Ingredients
1 bunch Methi leaves, minced
1 bunch Spinach leaves, minced
1 small bunch coriander leaves, minced
1 cup yellow split peas (tuvar dal)
2 green chilies, slit
2 medium tomatoes, diced, or 1 14-oz can of diced tomatoes
Salt to taste
6 large cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp canola oil

In a pressure cooker or a large saucepan with a tight lid, combine the leafy greens, coriander, split peas, chilies and tomatoes. Add about 3 cups of water and salt to taste. Cook until the lentils are mushy and the greens are tender.
Mash the lentils and greens with the back of a ladle until well-mixed.
Heat canola oil.
Add garlic and saute for a minute until it starts to brown and you get the aroma of garlic. Add to the lentils and warm through. Check seasoning and add more salt if needed.
Serve hot with brown rice pilaf(recipe follows)

Nutty Brown Rice Pilaf

1 tbsp canola oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 cup brown rice
2 1/2 cups water
1/2 tsp salt (optional)

In a large saucepan with an oven-safe handle and lid, heat canola oil. Add cumin seeds and let them sputter.
Add brown rice and toss until coated with oil and the rice starts to turn opaque.
Add water and salt, if using.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Once the rice-water mixture comes to a boil, transfer the pan to the oven. Let it cook, undisturbed, for about 50 minutes.
Remove from the oven and let stand another 10 minutes before serving. Fluff with a fork to separate grains.

Oven-roasted Sweet Potatoes

2 medium sweet potatoes, cubed into 1/2 inch dice
1 tbsp olive or canola oil
1 tsp chili powder (can use more or less depending on your taste)
1/2 tsp turmeric (optional)
Salt to taste

Toss the diced sweet potatoes in the chili powder, turmeric, salt and olive oil. Place in a hot 350-degree oven and let it cook until crisp, about 30-40 minutes.

Falling-in-Love-with-Tofu Parathas

Time was when I was afraid of tofu.
In the past, my experience with tofu was limited to the times I had it in restaurants, usually Thai or Chinese, where it was typically served up in deep-fried chunks smothered in a sauce.
After one dinner spent chewing endlessly, it seemed, on huge chunks of tofu, I swore I would never again eat this horrible, tasteless food as long as I lived.
Even years later, now a vegan, I resisted. Not least because of the widely-held assumption made by the meat-eating world that every vegan survives on tofu. I knew enough about balancing my meals with whole grains, beans, lentils, nuts and soy products (other than tofu) to feel almost duty-bound to thwart this annoying perception.
Then, one day, I decided to give tofu another chance.
Maybe it was the urge to experiment with new foods, now that I was no longer cooking the old meat standbys. Maybe it was difficult to pass up on its oft-touted, super-nutritious qualities. Anyway, I found myself coming home from the grocery store with a block of tofu.
This was during my paratha phase, when I was trying to stuff everything imaginable within the folds of a simple chapati dough, as an easy, effortless way to pump up the nutrition in our everyday meals while also making them more appealing to Desi who, although he will never admit is, is an extraordinarily finicky eater.
And thus was born the Falling-in-Love-with-Tofu Paratha. The title is self-explanatory. I have since gone on to adapt tofu in several Indian dishes. The blandness that first turned me off this wonder food is, I now find, what makes it extraordinarily versatile and easy to use in just about any dish.
In this paratha,you get all the health benefits of tofu (and it adds a silken texture to the paratha) but you don't even taste it-- instead you taste the vibrant flavors of the ginger and coriander.
Now that's a star!


Ingredients:

For the paratha:

2 cups durum atta flour (can substitute whole-wheat flour)
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp salt

Using water, knead the above ingredients into a smooth dough with hands or in a food processor/stand mixer. Set aside.

For the tofu stuffing:

1 block firm or extra-firm tofu, finely crumbled and drained thoroughly (make sure you remove every drop of liquid you possibly can or it will be hard to roll the parathas)
1/2 onion, minced
1-inch knob of ginger, grated
1/2 tsp chili powder
2 tbsp coriander leaves, chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric (optional)

Mix the stuffing ingredients together.
Divide the dough into lemon-sized balls.
Divide each ball into two pieces, then roll each piece into a disc about 4 inches wide. Flour the surface and the rolling pin so the dough does not stick.
Spread about 2 tbsp of the stuffing on one disc, leaving a 1-cm edge around the circumference.
Moisten the edge with water and place another disc on it, pressing the sides together to seal them.
Roll out into a paratha about 8 inches in diameter, turning it several times so it doesn't stick. (Don't panic if the paratha tears. Just patch it with your fingers, sprinkle some flour on it, and keep rolling).
Heat a griddle. Brush lightly with oil and when hot but not smoking, place the paratha in it. Turn when small bubbles start to form. Cook on both sides until golden brown, brushing lightly with a little oil.
Serve piping hot with mint chutney or simply with some spicy Indian pickle.

Hot Potato Soup with Scallions and Watercress

There is nothing better on a cold, snowy night than a hearty bowl of hot soup.
Yesterday, the Washington area was hit by a heavier-than-expected snowfall and by late evening everything looked picture-postcard perfect. Of course, it took me 45 minutes instead of 15 to drive home from work, but that's another story.
Desi spent an hour shoveling the snow off the sidewalk and driveway, while I went foraging in the fridge to find something quick and easy -- and comforting -- for dinner. Soup sounded perfect.
And what is more comforting than potato? Since turning vegan, my relationship with the spud has been transformed. I no longer worry about carbs and starch and all that good stuff because maintaining my weight is no longer an issue.
To punch up the nutrition factor in my otherwise humble soup, I grabbed two bunches of scallions and a half-bunch of watercress. Served with whole-wheat bread croutons tossed in olive oil, pepper and dried basil, it was the perfect dinner for a wintry night.

Hot Potato Soup with Scallions and Watercress

Ingredients:


3 medium potatoes, diced (I used Red Bliss but you could use any you have on hand)
2 bunches scallions, both green and white parts, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup watercress, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
3-4 cups vegetable stock or water
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a saucepan. Add scallions and saute for about five minutes on low heat.
Add garlic and saute for another minute
Add potatoes and vegetable stock.
Add salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil. Cover and let it simmer about 20 minutes until potatoes are very tender.
Puree the mixture with an immersion blender or by transferring to a regular blender (be very careful if doing the latter because the soup is very hot. Also just quickly pulse about 2-3 times and don't overprocess because the potatoes can get starchy and sticky, ruining the soup's texture. I like my soup a little chunky.)
Return to saucepan and heat through, adding watercress just before you turn off heat. Add more salt and pepper if required.
Enjoy.

Vegan Baklava

Although I've never had a particularly sweet tooth, there is one dessert that always makes me feel like I've died and gone to heaven. Baklava. This middle eastern treat combines so many luscious flavors and textures within a single bite. The crisp, flaky layers of perfectly baked filo pastry and the crunchy goodness of nuts, all steeped in the gunky, gooey goodness of a delicately flavored sugar syrup...it really is pure bliss!
But here's the sad truth: most baklava recipes call for a whole cup of butter and that, along with the sugar syrup, nuts (healthy but calorie-dense) and filo pastry, gives a whole new dimension to the term "guilty pleasure."
Well, one of the great benefits of thinking vegan is, you automatically think healthy. So out went the butter (and good riddance!). In its place, I used canola oil, which, apart from being one of the healthiest cooking fats (even healthier than olive oil, according to some researchers), also has the advantage of being very light and flavor-free, making it perfect for baking. I also ended up using just about 3/4 of a cup, which was an added bonus.
The end result couldn't have been better-- Desi declared it tasted no different from the buttered version, and what's more, I could enjoy a second and a third piece without feeling a tug at my waistline.
So here's my blissful Baklava recipe, all vegan and all good. Enjoy!


Vegan Baklava

Ingredients:

1 package filo pastry. Cut sheets in half to fit 9' X 12' baking dish.
3/4 cup canola oil
2 cups chopped walnuts or pecans or a mix (pistachios are great in this too)
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
1/2 tsp cardamom powder

For sugar syrup:

2 cups sugar (I used vegan sugar from Whole Foods, but you can use regular sugar or turbinado)
1 cup water
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp cloves, powdered
1/2 tsp cardamom powder

Mix the nuts with the sugar, cardamom and cinnamon.
Oil 9' X 12' glass baking dish.
Place a sheet of filo pastry at the bottom of the dish. Brush lightly with canola oil.
Place another sheet on top of the first one, brush with oil again. Continue layering and brushing with oil until you have gone through about one-third of the pastry sheets. Then spread half the nut mixture on the top sheet. (A package of filo pastry typically yields 40-46 9' X 12' sheets, so you will have around 13-15 sheets in each layer.)
Continue layering the next 15 sheets, sprinkling the top sheet again with remaining nuts.
Finish layering all the sheets and brush the top sheet thoroughly with oil.
With a sharp knife, cut the bakhlava into diamond-shaped pieces, taking care not to cut through the bottom-most layer.
Bake in a 350-degree oven for one hour until top turns lightly brown and edges are crisp. Leave on a rack to cool.

For syrup, bring the sugar, water, cardamom, cinnamon and lemon juice to a boil. Turn heat to low and simmer for another 20 minutes. Pour hot syrup over the cooled baklava.
Allow the baklava to cool thoroughly before cutting into individual pieces and serving.

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If you love Baklava, you are already primed to love Indian sweets which also tend to be nutty and very sweet. Check out some vegan versions of my Indian sweet recipes, like Almond Halwa and Carrot Halwa.