Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook (55 page)

Read Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook Online

Authors: Isa Chandra Moskowitz,Terry Hope Romero

Tags: #food.cookbooks

 
Serves 6 to 8
TIME:
1 hour 30 minutes
 
 
Holidays a pain in the butt? Just imagine perfectly roasted chestnuts in a rich, savory medley of tender butternut squash, white beans, and caramelized onions in this stuffinglike casserole—little bit like the best parts of a holiday meal all rolled up into one. It’s only natural to want to serve this with simply roasted Brussels sprouts (page 31) and Holiday Cranberry Sauce (213). Enjoy this special casserole in those early fall months when the holidays seem so far away and all you crave are the fixins’ of Thanksgiving dinner.
P.S. We’ll admit that peeling a pound of chestnuts could have you longing for a drive around the mall parking lot. So if you’d rather not channel all your jolly, festive anxiety into peeling these little bastards, you can also grab prepeeled or even jarred chestnuts for this recipe.
 
➣
This dish is best made with fresh chestnuts when they are in prime season, between October and January. After that, the freshness of most nuts in stores is often dubious; all too often we’ve purchased a pound and found out after peeling them that many a chestnut to be nasty, moldy, and shriveled. Instead, look for prepeeled, frozen, or jarred chestnuts available during the fall/winter months in many gourmet, natural, or specialty shops. Plus, they easily cut the prep time in half, giving you more time to procrastinate gift buying!
Casserole:
1 pound onions, peeled and sliced thinly
⅓ cup olive oil
1 pound chestnuts, fresh in the shell or frozen/jarred
and prepeeled
2 pounds butternut squash (1 medium-size squash),
peeled and cut into ½ -inch cubes
1 (15-ounce) can white beans, such as cannellini or
navy, drained and rinsed, or a (10-ounce) package
of prepared baby lima beans
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1½ teaspoons ground coriander
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1½ teaspoons salt, or to taste
Freshly cracked pepper
½ cup vegetable broth
 
Crumb topping:
½ cup dry white bread crumbs
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ teaspoon dried rubbed sage
Pinch of ground cayenne
½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
Freshly cracked pepper
 
PREHEAT THE oven to 375°F.
 
Prepare the casserole:
 
Place the onions and olive oil in a 9 × 13-inch baking dish, tossing to coat the onions with oil. Bake for about 30 minutes, stirring 3 or 4 times with a wooden spatula, until the onions are browned and sizzling. Remove from the oven and set aside.
While the onions are roasting, prepare the whole, unpeeled chestnuts according to the directions for the Chestnut-Lentil Pâté (page 63). If using prepeeled chestnuts, skip this step and thaw if frozen, drain if jarred. Coarsely chop the peeled chestnuts and add to the pan with roasted onions.
Add the diced butternut squash, white beans, thyme, coriander, nutmeg, salt, pepper, and broth to the baking pan, stirring so that the chestnuts, squash, and beans are well coated. Tightly cover the baking pan with aluminum foil and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the squash and chestnuts are tender.
 
 
Prepare the crumbs:
 
Toss together the bread crumbs, oil and sage in a bowl. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Remove the foil from the baking pan, top with the crumb mixture, and bake for another 15 minutes, until the top is lightly browned.
ASPARAGUS QUICHE WITH TOMATOES AND TARRAGON
 
SERVES 6 TO 8
1 HOUR 30 MINUTES, PLUS COOLING TIME
 
 
Real men are vegan, and they
do
eat vegan quiche. We really wanted to make a vegan quiche that didn’t include tofu or nutritional yeast because every vegan cookbook in the world has one of those. So instead we created a blend of beans and walnuts, making this quiche tender and creamy with a crispy crumb top. It’s a pleasure to sink your fork into during brunch, lunch, or dinner. Serve with a Caesar Salad (page 81) on the side.
1 recipe Basic Single Pastry Crust (page 262)
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound asparagus, rough ends discarded
2 shallots, skins removed, chopped coarsely
3 cloves garlic
1 cup walnuts
1½ cups cooked navy beans, or 1 (15-ounce) can,
drained and rinsed
¼ cup loosely packed fresh tarragon, plus
2 tablespoons finely chopped
2 tablespoons cornstarch
¾ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Several pinches of freshly ground black pepper
⅓ cup plain whole wheat bread crumbs
4 slices beefsteak or Holland tomato, or any really big
tomato
 
PREHEAT A large skillet over medium-high heat. Cut the tips off four pieces of the asparagus and set aside for garnish. Slice the rest into ½-inch lengths.
Sauté the asparagus (except for the reserved tips) in a tablespoon of the olive oil for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally.
While the asparagus is cooking, place the walnuts, the ¼ cup of tarragon, and the nutmeg, salt, and pepper in a food processor. Pulse into crumbs, so that no whole walnuts are left.
Remove the asparagus from the pan and transfer to a shallow bowl to cool a bit. Sauté the shallots in another tablespoon of the olive oil for about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for 3 more minutes, being careful not to burn it. Transfer the shallots and garlic to the asparagus and let cool for a few more minutes.
When the vegetables have stopped steaming, add them to the food processor. Pulse a few times and scrape down the sides. Add the beans and puree until relatively smooth, although the walnuts will still be grainy. Add the cornstarch (sift first, if very clumpy) and pulse until thoroughly combined. Transfer the mixture to a bowl (use the bowl the veggies were cooling in, to cut down on dish duties), cover, and refrigerate for about 45 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Roll out the pastry dough to fit an 8-inch glass pie plate. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes.
Remove the baked crust from the oven. Spoon the asparagus filling into the crust and smooth out evenly. Sprinkle the top with half the bread crumbs and drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Then, place the tomato slices on top of the bread crumbs with an asparagus tip between each tomato. Sprinkle on the remaining bread crumbs, some freshly ground black pepper, a few pinches of salt, and the chopped tarragon. Drizzle again with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil.
Bake for 45 minutes. Let cool for about 20 minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.
EGGPLANT ROLLATINI WITH SPINACH AND TOASTED PINE NUTS
 
MAKES 12 ROLLATINI, SERVES 4 TO 6
TIME:
1 HOUR 30 MINUTES
 
 
In Brooklyn, people’s worth is directly proportional to their ability to make an eggplant rollatini. If they can’t perform, they are taken care of. While we’re not going to kill you if you don’t make this, we will be severely disappointed. This dish is so good it wins over nonvegans every time!
There are lots of little steps here but they are all pretty simple and this meal is worth it. It’s not a weeknight dinner, more for company and special occasions when you want to be at the top of your vegan game. Since this can be a heavy meal if you are frying it, it’s great to serve with steamed broccoli doused with the leftover marinara sauce. But if you wanna be real Brooklyn (and you do), make a double batch of sauce and serve with spaghetti. Two rollatini per person should get the job done.
 
➣
Note that you aren’t going to use all the eggplant. Since the skin can’t be used here, you’ll need to slice off two sides. Plus, there will likely be slices that are sacrificed because it is a little difficult to get them relatively uniformly thin. Save the scraps and use them in a soup or stew, or grill them and make a salad a day or two later.
 
➣
Which brings us to the best way to evenly slice eggplant: First, use a large chef ’s knife to cut off the top and bottom. Stand up the eggplant on the cutting board. Next, slice off one side (that slice won’t be used, since it has a lot of skin). Then, still holding the eggplant upright, begin to slice off ⅛-inch-thick pieces, going as slowly as you need to.

Other books

Embrace the Night by Amanda Ashley
Hammerhead Resurrection by Jason Andrew Bond
Allie's War Season One by JC Andrijeski
Paris Crush by Melody James
One Night With Her by Lauren Blakely
The Pathfinder Project by Todd M. Stockert
Cat Magic by Whitley Strieber
Dixie Divas by Brown, Virginia
Arms of an Angel by Linda Boulanger