vegetarian bigos

Bigos is an Eastern European stew made of cabbage and various meats.  Its alternate name is hunter's stew.  Shall we call the vegetarian version forager's stew?  Houby (mushroom) hunter's stew?

Ingredients:
1 lb. tempeh, diced
3 medium russet potatoes
1/2 head red cabbage, chopped
1 medium onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
3/4 oz. dried porcini mushrooms, rehydrated in warm water for 20 minutes
3 1/2 oz. gourmet mushroom mix
8 oz. white mushrooms, sliced
10-15 prunes, diced
2 c. sauerkraut, drained
2 c. water + 2 cubes Not-Beef bouillon
1 c. red wine
1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 T. tomato paste
2 T. molasses
1 T. marjoram (or oregano)
2 t. black pepper, ground
2 t. caraway, ground
1 t. dijon mustard
1/2 t. paprika
1/8 t. nutmeg
2 cloves garlic, minced
dash of liquid smoke

Saute the tempeh until browned.  Bake or boil the potato and then dice. Saute the cabbage, onion, and carrots and set aside.  Saute the mushrooms until they begin to release liquid.  Put everything in a large pot and cook on medium for 20 minutes or more.

wegetarianski in krakow, poland

We've mostly eaten and leisurely wandered our way through this vacation.  In Krakow my favorite places to eat were Cafe Młynek, Glonojad, Momo, and Massolit.  Massolit is bookstore with a small cafe menu that includes garlic bagels, quiche, and espresso.  Perfect for breakfast.  Momo offers delicious vegetarian food that tends towards Indian rather than Polish, but honestly, that can be a welcome change of pace.  Cafe Młynek and Glonojad have thoughtfully diverse menus that include interesting vegetarian Polish dishes some of which you can see below. 



@ Cafe Młynek in Krakow
sauerkraut and mushroom bigos (hunter's stew)


 
@ Cafe Młynek in Krakow
cranberry filled pierogi



@ Glonojad in Krakow
spinach nalesniki (crepe), fried smoked cheese with buckwheat groats, a sampler of salads including green bean, carrot, beet, and maybe kohlrabe, and lentil filled pierogi (not shown in this picture)



@ Glonojad in Krakow
potato pancake with Hungarian ragout

wegeterianski in warsaw, poland

What? Eric and I are in Poland!?

Mostly we came all the way out here to spend time with a friend who lives in Ukraine, but since we were already flying to Eastern Europe, I wanted to take the opportunity to explore Poland and my Polish heritage. Somehow I managed being born 100% Polish American. A mix of great grandparents and great great grandparents came over to the States. Unfortunately the language and most of the cultural connection has been lost on my generation. But hey, here I am now!

Obviously (considering I have a food blog), I love food and I connect to places and people via food. In a country that has classic meat-centric dishes, being vegetarian (wegetarianski) could feel sort of limiting. Thankfully large cities like Warsaw and Krakow are progressive enough to have vegetarian Polish restaurants! Note to self: just do a little advanced research on where to eat and things are gonna to be alright, even superb (and you won't be stuck eating at tourist traps)!



@ Miedzy Nami in Warsaw
brie and sundried tomato sandwich
cold beet yogurt soup

@Green Way in Warsaw

soy cutlet in brown lentil gravy served on buckwheat groats

tvp (texturized vegetable protein) goulash served on barley

@Biosfeera in Warsaw
potato-vegetable cakes covered with a chanterelle mushroom sauce

eric's super vegan stuffing

Stuffing is one of my faves. I think this stuffing came out really good. The secret? frying the bread cubes in margarine. Also, I used two types of bread--one a cranberry walnut bread--for added interest and texture.

Ingredients:
10 c. bread cubes (4 c. cranberry walnut, 6 c. sourdough/white)
at least a cup of margarine
a few stalks celery
1 carrot
1 small onion
1 apple (granny smith) (diced into small pieces)
1/2 c. dried cranberries
1 c. walnuts
2 t. sage
2 t. thyme
1 t. salt
black pepper
2 T. apple cider vinegar
2 c. veg. broth
1 T. vegetarian mushroom oyster sauce
sugar (for candying walnuts)

First, make your bread cubes. Then melt 1/2 c. or so of the margarine and fry the bread cubes until they are crispy and golden (you may have to do this in two batches).

Second, cook the celery, onion, and carrot in margarine until soft. Add the sage, thyme, salt, and pepper, followed by the fried bread cubes, cranberries, and apple (diced into small pieces). Mix well.

Break the walnuts into pieces and toast them in a little bit of oil, adding sugar so they get caramelized. Add half of them to the bread cube mixture, and save the other half to sprinkle on top.

Heat up the vegetable broth and add the apple cider vinegar and mushroom sauce, mixing until dissolves. Pour this over the bread cube mixture and mix until the broth has been soaked up by the bread cubes. Transfer to a baking container. I used two loaf pans, which kept the whole thing from drying out too much, yet allowed the top to get nice and crispy. A casserole dish would work fine also.

Sprinkle the rest of the candied walnuts on top and bake for 15-30 min at 425°F.

chocobean chili

Like Eric said in the previous post, we had a vegetarian chili cook-off for my birthday.  It was by far my best birthday ever!  Why?  Because my friends are awesome!  We had 10 delicious entries with a whole lot of variety in style.  This chocobean chili was my contribution. 

inspired by this recipe
Serves: 15

Ingredients:
6 c. cooked black beans (2 3/4 c. dry)
---
3 red onions, diced
2 large yams, cubed
4 red bell peppers, diced
1 head of garlic, minced
olive oil
2 T. salt
---
2 (28 oz.) cans of crushed or diced tomatoes
2 c. red wine
3/4 c. chili powder
1/2 c. sugar
1 (7 oz.) can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, minced
2 T. ground cumin
2 T. oregano
1 T. paprika
3 oz. bakers chocolate, shaved

Cook the beans.  Toss the second batch of ingredients (red onion - salt) into a large pot.  Cook over medium heat with a cover on for about 15 minutes.  Add the beans and the third batch of ingredients.  Reduce to a simmer for a minimum of 45 minutes.

pad thai

We had some green onions in the fridge that were verging on old so I made pad thai for dinner. The only thing I really have to say about pad thai is that I find it difficult to put my chopsticks down when I'm full. It's just so good! Beware.

Ingredients:
7 oz. rice noodles
2 T. unrefined peanut oil

1 c. hot water
1/4 c. tamarind pulp
1/4 c. sugar
2 T. soy sauce
2 T. lime juice
red pepper flakes to taste

1/2 lb tofu, diced
1/2 lb asparagus (optional), chopped
1 T. unrefined peanut oil
5 green onions, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 egg
2 c. bean sprouts
1/2 c. peanuts, chopped

Boil water in a pot. Remove from heat and add the rice noodles. Let sit for 10 minutes. Drain and coat in peanut oil.

Heat water and soak tamarind pulp for 10 minutes. Strain tamarind liquid over the finished rice noodles. Stir in sugar, soy sauce, lime juice, and pepper flakes.

Sautee the tofu and asparagus. When the tofu is golden, add the green onions and garlic and cook for a minutes. Crack an egg and scramble. Add everything to the rice noodles. Also toss in the bean sprouts and half of the peanuts. Mix everything together. Use the remaining peanuts to garnish individual servings. If you can get your hands on some cilantro, garnish with that as well.

eggplant lasagna

If you ever need to cook for lots of people with diets ranging from open to selective, try this lasagna. Even people picky about eating only familiar "American" food should find some comfort in this dish, even though it is vegetarian. Use whatever veggies are in season or available (eggplant, steamed kale, brocoli, mushrooms). We chose eggplant because it just debuted at the farmer's market, but beware that there are people with eggplant allergies. For your vegans or those with lactose sensitivity you can used crumbled tofu or mashed white beans in place of ricotta cheese. To cater to the soy-phobics, I used mashed white beans. For the gluten-free people, I used gluten-free rice lasagna noodles instead of standard lasagna noodles. Yes, I know, that is a lot of substitutions, but it still tastes damned good!

Serving Size: 6

Ingredients:
6 oven-ready, gluten-free rice lasagna noodles

Roasted Eggplant Ingredients:
4 c. eggplants, diced
1/2 c. water
1 T. olive oil
1/2 t. basil
1/2 t. oregano
1/2 t. salt

Pasta Sauce Ingredients:
2 c. chunky tomato sauce
1 c. onion, diced
3 cloves garlic
1 T. honey (or sugar for the super strict vegans)
1 T. olive oil
1 t. basil
1 t. oregano
1/2 t. salt

Mashed White Bean Ingredients:
1 c. white beans, cooked
2 T. lemon juice
1 T. olive oil
1 t. oregano
1 t. salt

In a 9x9 baking dish, mix the eggplant ingredients. Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes. Stir half way through. When it's done, remove the eggplant from the 9x9 baking dish so you can use it again.

Meanwhile, get the pasta sauce started by sauteing onions in olive oil, basil, oregano, and salt. When the onions are translucent, add the garlic and let it cook another minute. Then add the chunky tomato sauce and honey. Let it simmer.

Mash the cooked white beans with lemon juice, olive oil, oregano and salt.

Layer the pasta, pasta sauce, eggplants and mashed white beans in the 9x9 baking dish. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 60 minutes.