Tomato Pie = Love

It's amazing when a fruit or vegetable dish feels like a naughty indulgence. That is the case with this tomato pie. It's the yummy nummiest perfect time of year tomato dishes of ALL kinds and I am a lover of all things solanum lycopersicum. Although the summer tomato is a perfect snack, or meal, all on it's own, I like to kick it up a notch sometimes. Jeff says he waits all year for all of the forces combining to create the perfect pie. Yesterday, all of those forces combined (basically, the best tomatoes I had seen all year). The result.....

 

 

Tomato Pie

1 1/2 - 2 lbs heirloom tomatoes (a variety of colors looks really pretty)

1-2 tsp salt

1 deep dish pie crust

1/4 C veganaise (or mayo if you aren't vegan)

3/4 C Daiya mozzarella style shred (or mozzarella if you aren't vegan)

1/2 C Go Veggie parmesan style topping (or parmesan if you aren't vegan)

1 tsp thyme

1 Tbsp chopped parsley

1 Tbsp chopped chives + more for sprinkling

1 Tbsp chopped basil

1 Tbsp olive oil

Pepper to taste

 

Thaw the crust (or make your own if you're good at that).Thinly slice the tomatoes, place in colander, and sprinkle with salt. Toss a couple times and let sit 30 minutes. Preheat the over to 400 degrees. Mix the remainder of the ingredients except for olive oil and pepper in a medium bowl. Spread the filling in the pie crust, arrange tomatoes over the filling, drizzle olive oil over the tomatoes, add a few turns of the pepper mill across the top, and bake 40 minutes. Add additional chives and parmesan shavings if you like before serving.

 

Enjoy! We sure did.

 

I'm only sad I didn't bake two because that pie didn't survive the night.Truly the tang in some of the heirlooms, the sweetness in some of the heirlooms, the saltiness of the cheeses, and the richness of the herbs combined to make my favorite meal of the summer.

 

I Think I've Figured It Out. It's Going To Have To Be Vegan (Mostly)

I think I've figured out why I've been having so much trouble keeping up with the "nutritarian thing" as my friend calls it. It's the pickles. I HAVE to have the pickles. And Earth Balance. I NEED to be able to sauté mushrooms sometimes. Or squash, or Brussels sprouts. And I WANT flax bread. I don't take my capitalization lightly here folks, so it's going to have to lean toward vegan (mostly) instead of fully nutritarian.

 

Also, I Facebooked my Doc before making this declaration and he said "Okay, okay, I get it. These things should not massively negatively impact your thyroid and liver." He of course followed it up with the obligatory, "Be reasonable about how much sodium, wheat and oil." And my favorite "Is flax bread even bread?" So I buy mostly kosher pickles because they are lower in sodium or make a quick refrigerator pickle at home with cukes, vinegar, Dr. Braggs liquid aminos or shoyu, and garlic.

 

But sometimes a recipe comes along that begs to break the rules and one is powerless to say no. Vegan artichoke tapenade is just such a recipe. As always, I did modify the recipe ever so slightly to my taste.

 

Artichoke Tapenade

7 green olives (I used the garlic stuffed kind)

1 clove garlic (2 if you don't have garlic stuffed olives)

1 Tbsp chopped parsley

2 tsp capers, drained

1/2 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp Dr. Bragg's liquid aminos

1/2 tsp ground pepper

1 can artichoke hearts in water, chopped

 

Pulse everything except the artichokes in a food processor. Stir in chopped hearts. EAT!

 

Yesterday I ate it with some crackers and today I mixed it with arugula, spinach, and kale. I loved it both ways and am sad that I'm out. But, it's almost the weekend and I have plenty more of all of the ingredients at home so I will be making more. It's briny, tart, a little creamy, and absolutely delicious!

 

 

Today for lunch, I paired the salad with a side of roasted pattypan squash (one of my favorite things!) and mushroom/garlic sauté. I'm not posting a picture here because it's damn hard to get a pretty picture of mushroom sauté. I am however a happy, healthy, camper.

 

Bon appetite...........you know since tapenade is French and artichokes are fancy according to the customer who came into my office while I was eating lunch.

 

P.S. The "mostly" vegan reference in the title is my disclaimer that sometimes pepperoni pizza will be eaten. And sometimes duck or turkey. And even more frequently, but still only sometimes, CHEESE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Soup For Breakfast Is My Fav! Also, Kudos To The People Who Stage Food For Photographs

For as long as I can remember I have liked odd things for breakfast; cold chicken, raw potato wedges, brie, hamburger patties with melted cheese, cold pizza, you get the idea. In recent years, soup has been my absolute favorite, and I have it most days of the week. Yes, even when it's hot. When I started my nutritarian (mostly) journey, I originally thought it would be impossible to keep up my breakfast love affair since most of my favorites were sky high in sodium, had meat in them, and/or used dairy as a base.

 

This is a good place to say that really I thought everything would be far more difficult than it has been. As geeky as I am about planning anyway, changing the way that I eat has not been that bad. My poor eating habits were really just that, habits and habits can be broken. I'm not successful 100% of the time but I am improving and I adore not feeling overly full at every meal and having my ass dragging about 3 in the afternoon every day! So, now I make my own soup and it's even more delicious than the overly processed, what's-really-in-this-anyway, supermarket choices from before.

 

Back to the soup. It didn't take digging that deep into Pinterest, other nutritarian and vegan blogs, recipe books, and my own mind to discover lots of ideas. This is one of the best soups I have ever had, hands down. It was inspired by some ideas I found on Pinterest and I filled in the blanks with my own personal had-to-haves. 

 

I went to graduate school in Boston and clam chowder is practically the house wine in many restaurants there. I adore clam chowder but started thinking: is it the actual clams which are usually tiny chunks anyway, or the heartiness of the soup that I love so much? I think the answer is in this bowl. I didn't miss the clams a bit, or the cream, or the oyster crackers!

 

Vegan, Nutritarian (mostly) New England Style Chowder

New England Style Chowder

1 Tbsp water (you can use olive oil if you prefer)

1 small coarsely chopped onion

1-2 carrots, halved lengthwise and sliced to your preference

1-2 tsp Dr. Bragg's liquid aminos

Black pepper to taste

6-8 ounces mixed mushrooms, sliced to your preference

1 celery stalk, thickly sliced

1 medium potato, cut to 1 inch cubes

2 sheets finely chopped nori (roll to make easier to slice)

1 1/2 C vegetable stock

1 1/2 C  cashew cream (see below)

1 Tbsp tomato paste

1 Tbsp lemon juice

Lemon wedges for serving (optional)

 

Set a large, deep pot over medium heat. Heat the water and add the onion and carrots with about 1 tsp of Dr. Bragg's liquid aminos. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes, until the carrots begin to soften. Add the mushrooms, celery, and another Tbsp of water if you need or if pan is too dry. Cook another 3-4 minutes, or until the mushrooms begin to soften. Add the potatoes, another tsp of Dr. Bragg's liquid aminos and black pepper, nori, and stock. Bring to a boil, then lower heat. Simmer, covered for 10 to 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. Stir in the cashew cream, tomato paste, and lemon juice and heat gently for about 7 minutes, until thickened. If the mixture too thick for your taste, add water 2 tablespoons at a time until it is the consistency you like. Serve with lemon.

You should end up with 4 servings.

 

Cashew Cream (You can use this to thicken anything!!!!)

1/2 C cashews, presoaked for at least an hour

1 C vegetable stock

2 teaspoons arrowroot or cornstarch

 

Drain cashews. Combine cashews, stock, and arrowroot for 2-5 minutes until smooth.

 

I like my chowder thick so I didn't add any additional water to thin the consistency but it won't harm the final product if you do. Nori gives the soup the most deliciously oceany flavor. What a great tip from Veganomicon. I can't wait to use it in a million other dishes! Cashew cream is going to be a new staple for me. The vegetable broth and arrowroot temper it enough that it doesn't taste like cashew soup when you add it in. I had previously tried ground cashews to add bulk to soups that needed a creamy consistency but without add-ins it just tasted like cashews. Another great tip. Thanks Pinterest!

 

I realize the picture I took doesn't do the soup justice. I am working on my food photography I swear. The taste will make up for the look I promise!!! I've eaten it all week for breakfast and intend to make another batch this weekend! Now to find a rustic, gnarly vegan bread to eat with it. Stay tuned.

Kimchi Fried Rice

I was dying for a good fried rice dish last week so I started checking out some recipes online for inspiration. It turns out there are a drillion recipes for fried rice, a kazillion (slightly less than a drillion) for vegan fried rice, and a bunch for kimchi fried rice (most vegetarian, a few vegan) but none of them had just the combo I was looking for. I wanted fried rice, with kimchi, TONS of flavor, and other veggies that was delicious, vegan, and nutritarian. I started experimenting and voila, I very nearly met every one of my original wants!

 

Kimchi Fried Rice

2 Tbsp Earth Balance coconut spread
2 cloves minced garlic
5 chopped green onions

½ C sliced mushrooms

2 Tbsp chopped cilantro
½ C Wildbrine* Thai kimchi

1 Tbsp kimchi juice

¼ C grape or cherry tomatoes
2 C cooked brown rice
1 Tbsp Dr. Bragg’s liquid aminos
1/4 tsp sesame oil
Black pepper to taste

Chili garlic sauce to taste, optional (I like Huy Fong but it’s only certified vegetarian not vegan FYI)

In wok or deep skillet, melt coconut spread. Sauté the garlic, green onion, mushrooms and cilantro 5-7 minutes. Add the kimchi, kimchi juice, tomatoes and do a few quick stirs before adding the rice. Stir to combine well and let cook another 2-3 minutes until the tomatoes begin to soften. Add the liquid aminos, sesame oil, black pepper, and chili garlic sauce. Stir a few times to blend with the rice.

* I specifically use Wildbrine products because they are delicious, naturally fermented, and vegan. You can use a different kind if you like. I like the Thai version for this dish but they also have Korean and Japanese Miso and Horseradish versions.

Vegan Kimchi Fried Rice

Ok, so the Earth balance, kimchi, sesame oil, and Huy Fong chili sauce aren't completely nutritarian. Some things are totally worth bending the rules for. It was delicious, satisfying for a Chinese food lover, and hit every note I wanted it to from the briny tang of the kimchi, to the crunch of the onions, to the spice of the chili garlic sauce, to the umami of the mushrooms.

This recipe was intended to serve one but it's a lot of food. As it turns out, it's also so delicious, you may end up powering through it anyway. I mean, you might. You could I guess. I'm not saying I know from experience or anything.........

Enjoy!