The Big Easy...and Big Fears

Friends, I'm heading down to New Orleans for a few days. My job has been gracious enough to send me to a sweet training that will be immensely useful in my work with my students.

While I'm super excited about this training, my joy has been eclipsed by a bigger issue: I'm flat-out terrified of flying. I'm panicky about even being in an airport, let alone taking off.

And as anxious as I am about flying, I'm perhaps equally as scared of the whole transferring-to-a-connecting-flight situation. What if the first plane is running late and I miss my connecting flight? What if I get pulled over by a security guard for a pat-down? WHAT IF MY TOOTHPASTE TUBE IS TOO BIG?!

If you haven't noticed, your happy-go-lucky, food-lovin' Hungry Spoon disappeared momentarily. She's been replaced with a beady-eyed ball of nerves.

And speaking of food, my co-workers told me it's probably not a good idea to pack a jar of almond butter in my carry-on.

Someone. Send. Help.

But enough about me and my irrational flight-fear ramblings. You came for food, and I'm here to deliver.

Remember that carrot dip I raved about earlier this week? Today I'd like to share its dinner partner: Falafel Patties. These guys pack a punch of powerful flavor--they're heavy on lemon and garlic, which made me a happy lady. We topped our Falafel patties with caramelized onions, carrot dip, and a little spinach. Adam went sandwich style with his, and I took the bun-less option.

So friends, I'll leave you with this Falafel Fun until I return from The Big Easy. I'll be back in town by Wednesday evening...assuming I don't collapse in the airport and catatonically rock back and forth in the fetal position until security has me committed.

This should be interesting :)

Baked Falafel Patties

(adapted from a recipe in Veggie Burgers Every Which Way)

The lemon and garlic really shine in this awesome baked take on Falafel. As noted above, we served ours with caramelized onions and curried carrot dip. Make it as a sandwich, or crumble on top of a lunch salad!

Ingredients:

• 1 can (15 oz.) chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 large onion, diced
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Juice of 1/2 of a lemon
• 1 TBSP ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. ground red pepper
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees and coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.

2) Combine all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until combined. If the mixture is too dry to form patties, you can add a little water until they come together (not too much though! They'll fall apart in the oven if they are too liquidy)

3) Shape into 6 patties and bake for 15 - 20 minutes, flipping halfway through. Serve with curried carrot dip and caramelized onions (as a sandwich or in a salad).

Thinking Outside the Pizza Box

Tonight we we went outside the proverbial pizza box to create a one-of-a-kind pie.

Apple + Blue Cheese + Caramelized Onions + Apple Cider Vinaigrette + Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

I'd been craving a pizza of this sort for about a month. I loved Ina's Roasted Pears so much, and I'm a huge fan of Apple Quesadillas, so a pizza variation on these meals seemed like the next logical step.

This pizza exceeded my expectations, friends. Blue cheese and apples were clearly cousins in another life, and caramelized onions make everything better, right? Not only did this dinner wake up my taste buds and put a smile on my face, but it definitely has a "sophisticated" feel to it. I'm already dreaming up ways it could be converted into a smaller, bite-sized appetizer or finger food at a party.

We served our pizza with spinach salad on the side. And possibly a chocolate muffin for dessert (Just because I don't eat them for breakfast doesn't mean I won't indulge later in the day. Nothing is off-limits after 5pm, friends. And yes, I know that defies everything Dr. Oz ever taught us.).

What's your most creative pizza creation?

Whole Wheat Pizza with Apples, Blue Cheese, and Caramelized Onions

Pizza Dough Ingredients:

(dough recipe from my trusty ol' Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook)

• 1 - 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 - 1/4 to 1 - 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 - 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 cup warm water
• 2 TBSP olive oil

Pizza Topping Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 large apple, sliced
• Blue cheese to taste
• 1 recipe of Apple Cider Vinaigrette

Directions to Prepare the Pizza Dough:

1) In a large mixing bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, yeast, and salt. Add warm water and oil and beat with an electric mixer for about 3 minutes. Using a wooden spoon, stir in as much of the whole wheat flour as you can.

2) Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead in as much of remaining flour as is needed to make a moderately stiff dough that's smooth and elastic (knead for about 6 - 8 minutes). Divide dough in half and place one half in the freezer for later. Place the other half in a bowl, cover, and allow it to rise in a warm place for about an hour.

3) Preheat oven to 425 degrees and coat a pizza pan with cooking spray. Roll out pizza dough onto a floured surface. Place on pizza pan and prick with a fork several times. Bake for 8 minutes.

4) Meanwhile, heat a dash of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook until nicely browned (about 8 - 10 minutes). Also, prepare the cider vinaigrette.

5) After the crust has baked, remove from the oven and top with onion, sliced apples, and blue cheese. Drizzle vinaigrette over the top. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 8 - 10 minutes, or until the crust is nicely browned.

Pumpkin in January

When I think of pumpkin, I think of any of the following: Fall, October, muffins, bread, pie, and Thanksgiving.

When someone says "pumpkin," I would not typically think of pasta. Or the month of January. It just seems inappropriate.

Until now.

Tonight's dish defies everything you thought you knew about pumpkin. We're talking pumpkin meets whole wheat pasta, caramelized onions, toasted walnuts, Asiago cheese...and a savory crumb topping.

It's kind of like macaroni and cheese with a mega-hit of beta carotene and vitamin A, right? This baby is good, it's filling, and it was clearly designed to be eaten on a cold January day.

The recipe is actually a creative hybrid: I combined my friend Lisa's recipe for Pumpkin-Cheese Ravioli with Veganomicon's Pumpkin and Caramelized Onion Manicotti. If you're a major cheese fanatic, feel free to pump up the cheese factor as you see fit. And the crumb topping? Simply blissful, friends. Simply blissful.

Pumpkin-Asiago Penne with Walnut Crumb Topping

(a hybrid recipe, adapted from the minds of Lisa S. and Veganomicon)

I simply couldn't go vegan with this one--I love Asiago too much, and I think the salty sharp-ness of the cheese added a scrumptious flavor. However, you can vegan-ize the recipe by using a homemade, dairy-less ricotta (a quick online search will point you in the right direction) and eliminating the cheese.

Pasta Ingredients:

• 3/4 pound whole wheat pasta
• 2 large onions, thinly sliced
• 2 TBSP olive oil
• 2 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1 (15 oz) can of pumpkin puree
• 1 TBSP brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 1 cup shredded Asiago cheese
• 1/4 cup veggie broth
• Freshly ground black pepper

Crumb Topping Ingredients:

• 2 - 1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup Earth Balance (or real butter)
• 2 tsp. Savory seasoning or poultry seasoning
• 1 tsp. dried Oregano
• 1/2 tsp. dried Paprika
• Salt n' Pepper

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees and prepare pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

2) While the pasta is cooking, cook the onions. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute the onions until nicely browned--about 10 - 15 minutes.

3) In a large bowl combine the ricotta, pumpkin puree, brown sugar, nutmeg, salt, Asiago, veggie broth, and pepper. Stir in the caramelized onions and pasta. Pour into 9 x 13 inch baking pan.

4) To prepare the crumb topping, melt the Earth Balance/butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the remaining ingredients and cook/toast for 3 - 5 minutes, until the mixture is thoroughly combined and well-coated. Sprinkle evenly over the penne pasta.

5) Bake for 30 minutes, or until top is lightly browned. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

It's a Bird! It's a Plane! It's Chickpea Critters!

If a non-fried, vegetarian mock-up of "fried chicken" exists, I swear that I've found it.

This recipe is edible proof that there truly is a non-meat counterpart to those Texas Roadhouse fried chicken critters.

And the vege-head version is so much better. Promise.

After spending a few fabulous days with Adam's family in Buffalo, NY, my stomach was ready for some down-home vegan cooking when we returned. I was lucky enough to score Veganomicon (otherwise known as "the greatest cookbook in the universe") as an early birthday present from Adam's parents.

It goes without saying that I spent the better part of our 6 hour drive home drooling over the 256 cookbook pages and feverishly stuffing the volume with toilet paper "bookmarks" for all the recipes I want to try ASAP.

Among my must-try recipes were "Chickpea Cutlets" (which I now refer to as "Chickpea Critter Patties," given their semblance to those baskets of Texas Roadhouse fried meatiness). We had all of the ingredients on hand (yay for simplicity!), and they were super-fast to make (prep to fork-in-mouth time was under 30 minutes).

We topped our Chickpea Critters with a basic caramelized onion "gravy," and served cucumber salad on the side. With six years and counting of vegetarianism under my belt, I say with great confidence that this dish easily made its way onto my Top 10 Vege-Head Dinners...of all-time.

And for those of you who inquired about our trip, I must say that not only was the fellowship and family-time sensational, but the food was mighty good as well. I found plenty of vegetarian eats, and there was no shortage of of sweet endings either...I have no shame in admitting that I ate exactly 2 - 1/2 pieces of wedding cake. You only live once, right?

Now go make yourself some Chickpea Critter Patties. You can thank me later :)

Chickpea Critter Patties

(recipe adapted from Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook)

This recipe must have been designed to convert swear-by-meat carnivores into vegans. The use of savory and thyme really brings out those traditional flavors historically associate with meat. Only this time, it's chickpeas, baby!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 - 2 TBSP olive oil
• 1/2 cup vital wheat gluten
• 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 TBSP soy sauce
• 3 large cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1/4 tsp. savory seasoning
• sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper
• Olive oil
• Caramelized onion topping (recipe below)

Directions:

1) In a large bowl, thoroughly mash the chickpeas with the olive oil until no whole chickpeas remain. Add the remaining ingredients and mix with your hands for a few minutes, until the strings of gluten start to appear (sounds yummy, doesn't it?!)

2) Divide the dough into four pieces. Flatten each piece and shape into rectangles.

3) Heat a little olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Place your Chickpea Critters on the skillet and cook for approximately 4 - 5 minutes until lightly browned on the bottom; flip and cook for 4 - 5 minutes on the opposite side, until lightly browned. Served with caramelized onion topping. And swear that you'll never go back to eating meat again.

Caramelized Onion Topping Ingredients:

• 2 large onions, sliced
• a dash of olive oil
• a dash of red wine vinegar (about 1 TBSP)
• a drizzle of Dijon mustard (about 1 tsp.)
• a quick drizzle of pure maple syrup

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion slices and cook slowly until lightly browned and softened, about 9 - 10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and stir until combined. Serve on top of Chickpea Critter Patties.