Day 25: Vegan Stuffed Onions with TVP and Tomato - April 11, 2013

We have made yemista (stuffed vegetables) many times.  We, in fact, put one of our favourite recipes on our blog last year  (see Great Lent Gourmet Day 38, March 27, 2012).  Usually, stuffed vegetables refers to tomatoes, zucchini, and peppers.  But, today, we stuffed an onion!  Since the onion is a primary ingredient in much of our cooking, we wanted to round out the flavours and add another dimension of texture to the onion.

So, we decided to include some TVP (textured vegetable protein) to replace the meat in the recipe.  Of course, if we were not fasting for Great Lent, we would make this with actual ground beef or ground pork.  Today, we have the perfect vegan substitute.

TVP is an interesting (usually soy-based and sometimes contains cotton-seed, wheat or oats) food in that it looks like ground meat, has the texture of ground meat, and can fill the gaps in a dish, just like ground meat.  The trick is to soak (reconstitute) the TVP before using it.  It will absorb any liquid in the recipe if it is not soaked and reconstituted before adding it to a dish.  Also, if you have a volume amount (e.g. 1 cup ground meat) in the recipe, you can more accurately make the substitution with the TVP.  There are several looks to TVP, simulating ground meat, chicken nuggets, and even tuna flakes.  It is readily available at many markets and through different brands, and is often a necessary addition to meals when protein needs to be added to a vegan diet.  Of course we know that lentils and nuts give us plenty of protein, but TVP can give us more!  And, if you have never tried TVP or a soy substitute for meat, and are at all worried about how much you will or will not like it, this is a great way to sample it, since it is combined with other lovely ingredients and flavours.

So, making stuffed onions takes a little time, but is an interesting dish with a beautiful presentation.  We wanted to make something different, and this was it for us.  We are often looking to find different ways to make traditional dishes.  Now, we can call this dish "onion yemista" or stuffed onions.

For this recipe, you will need the folowing:

2 large onions, peeled only
1/2 cup  fine-ground TVP (a substitute for 1/2 pound ground meat)
1/2 cup olive oil
1 medium tomato, chopped or diced
1/2 cup Wine (we used a dry red)
Salt and pepper to taste
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bay leaf

Start by peeling the onions.  This is a given if you are going to cook onions.  But, many times we cut the two ends of the onion, then peel off the skin (and often the first layer of onion, too).  This time, you want to make sure that you keep the core of the onion whole!  If the core is intact, then the onion will stay together when you boil it.  If you take out the core at the base, the onion layers will fall apart and then you won't be able to stuff them because they will be all over the pot.  So, cut off the top end and leave the core together.

Boil the onions whole.  Start them in cold water, and bring it all to a boil together.  Put the cut end up, so that the bubbles don't saturate the onion between each of the layers and make the onions too soft. Boil the onions for about 10 minutes until the outer layers are soft, but not squishy.  You want them firm enough to handle without the onions falling apart in your hands.  So, they should not be fully translucent, just soft.

Now, core the onions. Cut directly around the core piece and cut all the way through to the center of the onion, as if you are coring an apple.  Then, with your finger push that core up to the cut end and the center of the onion will pop out of the onion. ('pop out' like a cork popping out of a bottle).  You may find that you need a wider opening, and then you can cut out one more layer (or two) from the center of the onion.

Chop the center core of the onion (discarding the hard core piece from the bottom of the onion).  Cut somewhat fine, since these are going to become part of the stuffing -- the pieces have to fit into the center opening of the onion with the other ingredients.

Put a bit of oil in a frying pan.  Saute the chopped onion in the oil.  Cook it well without adding too much colour.  When the edges just start to tan, then add the other ingredients.  This should take about 5 minutes on medium-high heat.

Now add the other ingredients.  Add the garlic, tomatoes, bay leaf, salt, pepper, and the wine.  Mix everything together so that all the ingredients are well combined.  Let this cook together for about 15 minutes to allow some of the liquid to cook off and the mixture will become less watery.  You still want some liquid in the pan, though, so only reduce this to about half the original amount of liquid.

After cooking the filling, let it sit for a few minutes until it is not steaming hot.  Then, we can start to fill the onions.

Make sure there is some oil in the bottom of the baking dish.  Pour enough to coat the baking dish.  Now, set the onions in the dish with the cut side facing up.

Using a spoon, begin filling the cavity of the onion with stuffing.  Spoon enough stuffing to fill a mound over the top of the onion.  You may need to push down on the filling as you do this, which will allow you to get enough in there to match the size of the onion.  Then, once you reach the top of the onion, spoon a little more stuffing to make a small mound on top.  If some falls over the side of the onion, don't worry (see the next step).

Pour any remaining filling into the baking dish and surround the onions as evenly as you can.  Then, the remaining chopped tomatoes get sprinkled over the top of the stuffed onions and the extra filling in the dish.  It will look colourful and pretty.

Now, pour some oil over the top of the entire dish -- enough to make the whole dish shine.  The recipe calls for a couple of tablespoons of oil, but you can judge how much you need by pouring freely over the onions.

Put the onions into the oven and bake at 350° F (175º C) for 30 to 35 minutes.  You will see the onions turn to a golden brown on the outside, and the top mound of filling will start to get that nice, lightly charred look.  That's when you take the onions out of the  oven and they are ready to eat.  Serve one onion per person with some of the extra filling from the bottom of the baking dish for each onion.  Serve hot or warm.  They taste better hot than they do cold!

After we had eaten, we thought that we could even try to put some Panko bread crumbs on top for a little more finished or decorative look.  We also thought that if we made these as a side dish at a time that we are not fasting, and we used regular ground meat, we may even sprinkle some Parmesan Cheese on top because the flavours would work so well together.  Alas, we are fasting, so we are quite content with our TVP filling with no cheese.  They were wonderful as they were, and we look forward to another time to make these.

"The Universe is not rich enough to buy the vote of an honest man."

-St. Gregory the Great

Day 24: Vegan Greek Zucchini, Green Beans and Potatoes: Kolikithia, Fasolia me Patates - April 10, 2013

This dish, κολοκίθια, φασόλια με πατάτες, in English, is referred to as stewed zucchini, green beans, and potatoes.  It is a classic dish in Greek cuisine, and falls into that category of λαδερό φαγητό (oily food or oil-based food).  Ladero fagito (λαδερό φαγητό) is, by nature, made with oil (usually olive oil) and vegetables or meat.  There are some variations that will include a chicken broth (stock) or a meat flavouring, but typically, they are vegetarian foods.  We, of course, are honouring Great Lent with keeping most of our meals vegan (with the exception of the two fish days (March 25th - Day of the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary and Palm Sunday), and any non-bleeding seafood (e.g. shrimp, calamari, octopus)).

Vegetables, though, are the basis of many of our foods and they offer a huge variety in what one can make with them.  A good example of a vegetable with many cooking options is the zucchini.  Other versatile vegetables include long green beans, potatoes, and... well...tomatoes!

 Cooking vegetables together is a classic preparation.  Dishes like Briam, Xortarika sto fourno (χορταρικά στο φούρνο), arakas me aginares (αρακάς με αγγινάρες - peas with artichokes), or mushroom and onion stifatho (στιφάδο) are just to name a few.

Today's blog entry dish is perfect for a cool evening, a warm afternoon, or a Sunday family dinner.  It is, for some of us, a tasty, healthy comfort food.

Often, stewed vegetables lose their flavour because they have been cooked for so long.  They are inherently soft and may seem overcooked, but they are stewed in sauce and pick up the flavours of the seasonings used in the dish. Although the final product of this dish produces tender, gentle textures and flavours, we humbly believe that many of our readers will enjoy this dish.

For this recipe you will need the following:

2 TBSP oil
1 onion, sliced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced (using minced garlic from the jar is a good choice, too)
1 pound potatoes, peeled, cut in large cubes
2 TBSP tomato paste
a pinch or two of cinnamon
1  15 ounce (425 g) can of plum tomatoes
3-4 cups water
2 small zucchini, cut in large cubes
6 ounces (170 g) green beans (fresh or frozen - no strings)
1 TBSP red wine vinegar
salt to taste

Start by cutting the ingredients.  The onions should be sliced instead of diced (for appearance).  Cut the potatoes into chunks or large cubes, and the zucchini cut into thick half-moon slices.  You want to make sure that the pieces are roughly the same size -- the potatoes will take longer to cook than the zucchini, so the zucchini can be a bit smaller, but they should be cut into chunks.  Once everything is cut and ready, the rest of the steps will go rather quickly.  Keep the vegetables in separate piles until you put them in the pot.

Saute the garlic, the onions, the potatoes, and the tomato paste.  Mix them altogether, and let the mixture cook until you can smell the tomato paste cooking and the potatoes soften.  This will take about 10 minutes.  You want to keep mixing it so nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan.   If it does start to stick, add a little more oil to the pan.  It will get mixed into the dish through the recipe, and will help you achieve the "λαδερό" that you want.  And, be careful not to add any colour to the vegetables that is not tomato paste colouring (i.e., don't allow the vegetables to burn); you have to keep the veggies moving in the pan by gently stirring the mixture.

Now, we are going to add the tomatoes.  We used whole, peeled tomatoes from the can, and moved them one by one out of the can into the pan.  We added the tomatoes separately from the sauce (juice) in the can.  That gets added next.  We needed 15 ounces of tomatoes, and we had a 28 ounce can, so we used about half of the large can.  That is why you will see the big can and we take the tomatoes out one by one, so we could judge how much was "about half".  If we had the proper size can, we would have just dumped the entire can into the pot.

Back to the recipe.  Add the oregano, cinnamon, and salt, then add the zucchini.  Mix everything together well and get the zucchini coated fully with the tomato sauce.  Once all the ingredients are well combined, then add some water.  You want to put enough water that the top of the water level just touches the top of the contents of the pot.  We started with 3 cups, then added a little more -- but not quite 4 cups.  You will have to determine how much is needed to touch the top of the vegetables. We believe this amount will vary, depending on the shape and size of the pot being used.

Now, cover the pot and let it simmer or about 15 minutes.  The sauce will cook down a little, which is fine, but you will see that the oil starts to surface and the zucchini is getting cooked.  Check the potatoes at this point to see that they are done cooking through the centre.  If not, let it simmer for another 5 to 10 minutes until the potatoes are done.

Then, add the green beans.  You can use fresh or frozen beans for this recipe.  Get the beans mixed into the pot and then add the vinegar.  Now, adjust the salt and pepper seasoning to your liking.  Cover the pot one more time, and allow this to simmer just until the beans are hot in the centre.  That's when the dish is done cooking.

For us, we usually turn off the electric burner and allow the pot to sit there with a lid until we are ready to eat.  In our family we eat this dish hot off the stove or at room temperature.  No matter the serving temperature, one can enjoy a hint of the cinnamon mixed with  vinegar.  You also get the beautiful combination of tomato with the oil and the subtle flavours of the vegetables.  The joy of λαδερά φαγητά is that it all the elements meld together into one big pot of νόστιμο (yum)!

"Better is a morsel (of food) with enjoyment in peace than a house full of many good things and unrighteous sacrifices with quarrelling."

Book of Proverbs (Chapter 17: 1)

Day 23: Angela's Vegan Lenten Cupcakes - Ange & Co., Toronto, Canada - April 9, 2013

Every once in a while, there is a person who will surprise you with a generous gift, a loving gesture, or even a kind word.  Today, we had all of the above from one person.  Her name is Angela.  Now, what made Angela more sweet than usual is that she remembered one of our birthdays, and made special Lenten cupcakes as a surprise gift.  She knows that we are fasting from all animal products, and she took the extra step to give us a treat that met our needs.

Now, we have had Lenten cakes before.  In fact, we had thought about making one specifically for this blog.  But, Angela did it for us!  Actually, she has offered us the recipe, but we don't want to take any business secrets away from her, so we refused.  Instead, we are going to give her the credit and let you know that Angela can be found through her website.  She is willing to work with a variety of dietary restrictions, and we are thrilled to know this.

So, what was it about these cupcakes that made us want to share (share our opinions, not the cupcakes!)?  Well, first, they were so moist and tender.  The cake part was dense, flavourful, and moist.  The topping made us go "Wow!"  The top was a chocolate ganache.  We aren't sure how you get ganache to be vegan, since traditionally ganache is made with equal parts chocolate and cream, but Angela did it!  The ganache tasted very much like the traditional one, and was creamy and smooth.

But, then, to make the top even more notable -- she sprinkled gold flakes on top of the cupcakes.  Edible gold is so beautiful. We are blessed to have received these very tasty cupcakes as a gift.  In fact, we are blessed to know Angela and to sample her outstanding baked goods.

We may try to make a Lenten cake one day, but for now, it is easier and faster to just make the phone call and have a professional do the work!  A big thanks to Angela of http://www.angeandcompany.com  for the birthday treat, and for the accommodations to our dietary needs.

"A faithful friend is a strong shelter. And he who finds one, finds a treasure."

Wisdom of Sirach (Chapter 6: 14)