Small Steps

An easy first step to including more vegetarian meals in your life is to serve the chicken or meat in "appetizer-sized" portions for your main course. This means you need to tame your appetite before you sit down at the table.  So while you are cooking, dip red bell pepper strips into some store-bought hummus or a yogurt-based dip.

Also try starting your meal with a soup to increase your satiety and satisfaction.  Consider a  soup with beef or chicken broth as the base but loaded with vegetables, beans, rice or barley. Now you are primed to savor a 3-4 oz portion of protein without feeling deprived.  Use the best quality meat or poultry you can afford and serve it with a pan sauce you create from the browned bits of meat and poultry that stick to the pan as you are cooking it.

To create a pan sauce, after you brown the meat on both sides in a saute pan, remove it and hold in the oven to finish cooking or keep it warm while you prepare the pan sauce.  Add some diced onion, celery, garlic or other aromatic vegetables.  As they sweat in the pan splash in some wine to loosen up the browned bits of meat in the pan. Allow the wine to almost evaporate.  Now pour in about a cup or more of  chicken or beef broth and allow it to boil to reduce and thicken it.  You can also add a slurry of 1 tsp corn starch dissolved in a little liquid to the boiling broth and it will thicken it to a sauce consistency.  Soak up the sauce with bread, rice, pasta or some other grain and you won't miss the other 4 + ounces of animal protein that you usually eat.

Enjoy A Little Flesh This Valentine's Day

Moist, pink, succulent ... I'm referring to salmon of course.  This Valentine's Day try it steamed in a Savoy cabbage leaf with a chive ribbon to tie it up.  Each little "present" of salmon is opened at the table to reveal the pretty contrast of pink and green.  Blanching the cabbage leaves and chives softens them so they can be folded around 2-3 oz portions of salmon and herbs before they are steamed.

Romance flows naturally when you prepare a fun, interactive meal with your partner.  The menu should engage all your senses--sight, sound, smell, taste and touch.  Start by steaming whole edamame, sprinkle with sea salt and eat them in the traditional Japanese manner by pulling the pod through your teeth to release the beans.  Stimulate your sense of smell by toasting some walnuts in the oven until fragrant.  They will make a wonderful sauce for pasta with good olive oil and Parmesan cheese.

Consider skipping the flowers this year and invest in a pasta-rolling machine instead. Using your hands to transform flour, eggs and salt into smooth and satiny dough will inspire even a mismatched couple.  As you roll out your pasta dough be adventurous.  How long can you make one strand of fettuccini?  The sound and sight of slurping long noodles will interrupt any dull moments of your meal.  Saute some arugula in olive oil and add the toasted walnuts.  Toss in the pasta that has been boiled in salted water for 2 -3 minutes until it is al dente.  Use a little of the pasta cooking water to help make a sauce.  Grate Parmesan cheese over the dish and enjoy.

For dessert, well, I'll leave that to your imagination.

The Seductive Aromas and Flavors of Food

Mid winter inspires me to put a prime rib in the oven, roast some root vegetables and open up a good bottle of cabernet sauvingnon.  The pleasures of this meal start the moment the aromas of the roasting meat and vegetables escape during a peak and poke into the oven . The meal is simple but the positive responses it elicits are staggering. Can a vegan meal even compete with the seductive power of meat?

Last weekend I roamed New York City seeking food inspiration.  Not just a divine meal by some other chef, but an experience that would exalt great vegetarian cooking in me. A meatless meal that could rival the enticing powers of a roasted prime rib of beef. The frigid temperatures put a damper on my wandering the streets looking for enlightenment. The whole weekend became focused on finding a winter coat on sale.  Oops, I got distracted.

My revelation occurred on the Metro North train back to Poughkeepsie Monday morning. I grabbed a Penzeys Spices catalog from the Grand Central Market since it always has great information about the origin, flavors and uses of unusual and common spices. Words of wisdom from one of my culinary students also simmered in my mind. "Vegan meals are about deriving flavors from a variety of ingredients to enhance the taste, texture, smell, visual appearance, and so on." Kachina's words reminded me that vegan cooking becomes seductive when we create layers of flavor by using spices, herbs, oils and quality ingredients. I can't rely on the  predictable spices that have been sitting in my kitchen for the past 5 years to create a spectacular meal any more than I would expect a prime rib buried in my freezer for a year or two to entice me. So, I'm off to www.penzeys.com for a little culinary temptation.

Culinary Student Converted!

Well, maybe not converted from being a carnivore, but Sebastian definately had a great recipe using tofu. PEANUT BUTTER MOUSSE--Blend equal amounts of silken tofu and creamy peanut butter until smooth. Sweeten with some honey if desired and enjoy.

I decided to try a variation on this mousse since chocolate makes everything even better. I used a spread called "Dark Chocolate Dreams" by "Peanut Butter & Co.".  I purchased it at my local Hannaford's grocery chain but you can check it out at www.ilovepeanutbutter.com or call 1-866-ILOVEPB.  Since this peanut butter is blended with rich dark chocolate I needed a little liquid to keep the tofu and peanut butter moving in the blender. If I hadn't consumed all the Grand Marnier during the holidays I would have put a tablespoon in the blender with the tofu and PB & C spread.  As I foraged through my pantry I found some coffee-flavored soy milk and almond extract. A little of each and the mousse was moving. I topped off each serving of mousse with some chopped, toasted hazelnuts.  My tofu-fearing husband ate the mousse and loved it. I did too.

Respectful Eating

"Respect for food is a respect for life, for who we are and what we do." -Thomas Keller, The French Laundry Cookbook

 On page 205 of The French Laundry Cookbook, Chef Keller describes an experience early in his career that helped him develop his respect for food. He describes the first time he killed a rabbit that was to be served in the small restaurant where he was working in the Hudson River Valley and the impact this had on his career.  After reading this page as a culinary student I saw the value in participating in ALL aspects of procuring food. So I caught a large-mouth bass from the pond on my farm and proceeded to kill, clean, prepare and serve that fish to my husband and nephews who were visiting. Each person got one glorious bite of fish and had to fill up on the vegetables and rice I served with the meal. 

For some people these kinds of experiences would convince them to adopt a vegan lifestyle.  For me, I give thanks and cherish each bite of the animal that gave it's life for my meal.  I serve much smaller portions of fish, chicken or meats and purchase them from farms committed to a humane way of raising and killing the animals.  This often requires me to purchase serveral whole chickens at a time or plan to purchase half a hog or a quarter of beef and store it in my freezer.   Since defrosting the meat takes time and some advance planning, chicken and meat is saved for special meals.  My quick-to-defrost, cooked beans have taken a more prominent role in my daily meals.

I'm A Carnivourous Vegan

I enhance my vegan meals by garnishing with meat, butter, cheese or sometimes sneaking in some chicken stock to make a sauce.  Ok, I confess, I almost always use beef stock or chicken stock when making my beans and grains. I also start with dried beans, soak them overnight in water and then cook a big pot of them the next day using the stock to which I've added some kosher salt.

Please don't try eating a whole pot of beans in one sitting.  It is digestive suicide and guaranteed to make you hate beans. As soon as the pot of beans is tender, not mushy, I drain them and spread them in a large roasting pan to cool.  Speed up the process by placing the pan in an ice bath and gently stir the beans.  Once the beans are cool put 1 cup portions in freezer bags and freeze for another meal.  Beans prepared this way have a much better flavor and texture than canned beans and you can use them in small amounts by adding to soups, stews and making into vegetable salads.

Try this with some black beans and next summer combine them with some fresh-off-the-cobb sweet corn, red onion and diced peppers. Season with chopped cilantro, fresh lime juice, a little salt and a little chopped, fresh, chilli pepper and you will join me in cilantro heaven.

Developing A Taste For Tofu

It's taken two attempts with my curried tofu but I finally hit on the best way to prepare it.  Start with extra firm tofu if you want it cubed. Keep the cubes small and the texture, which can be a little hard to get used to, blends right in with the dish. Microwave the tofu for 4 minutes to release the moisture in it. Now you are ready to saute it and add it to your curry sauce.  When I did not pre-microwave the tofu it released it's moisture in the saute pan and took much longer to lightly brown. By that time it was sticking to the bottom of the pan and I had to add more oil or let it burn.

The other way I prepare tofu for carnivore's is the classic spinach dip in the pumpernickel bread bowl.  Use soft silken tofu in place of the sour cream or for just a portion of the sour cream.  You can also reduce the amount of mayonnaise. I've served this to many carnivores and my reputation as a chef has stayed intact.