VEGANISM

I have written before about the philosophy of veganism, which is followed either for religious or ideological purposes.




Here are several recipes for vegan dishes which are the latest culinary trend. 

                                            VEGAN BROCCOLI SOUP

This is a lovely, creamy soup.

1 kg (2 lb) broccoli, divided into florets, stalks also reserved

900 ml (6 cups) tasty vegetable broth

1 bouquet garni (1 bay leaf +3 sprigs of parsley)

1 medium-sized onion, peeled and chopped

2 tbsp mild-tasting olive oil

2 tbsp plain flour

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

A pinch of grated nutmeg

125 ml (½ cup) coconut milk

Boil the reserved broccoli stalks and the herb bouquet in the broth until soft.  Remove the stalks and set aside.   Add the broccoli florets to the broth simmer for 10-15 minutes remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.  Discard the bouquet and keep the soup hot.

In another saucepan stew the onion in olive oil until soft.  Sprinkle with flour and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly.  Slowly, pour in about 1½ cup of hot broth into the roux and keep on stirring until the sauce bubbles and thickens.  Return the broccoli to the large saucepan and reserve a few florets for garnish.

Add the sauce to the broccoli, sprinkle with nutmeg and simmer for 5 minutes.  Then blend the soup until smooth and creamy.  Sieve the soup back into the saucepan.  Taste and add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.  Serve piping hot garnished with the reserved florets.

  

                                                    FAVA PATTIES

400 g (13,3 oz) fava beans or yellow split peas

Salt

1 cup of fresh coriander leaves or parsley chopped

¼ tsp Cayenne pepper or less

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

½ tsp saffron diluted in

2 tbsp hot water

Dried breadcrumbs

Corn oil for frying

Place the fava beans or the yellow split peas in a saucepan with 1½ litre (6 cups) water and a tsp salt.   Bring to the boil and skim the scum from the surface.  Add the fava bean and the turmeric, lower the heat to medium and cook, covered, for 35-40 minutes until soft but not falling apart. 

Strain the fava beans through a fine sieve and reserve the liquid and allow the fava to drain thoroughly.

Blend the fava in a food processor, and when cold, add the baking soda, saffron, coriander and the eggs, one at a time.  Also add some dried breadcrumbs, if necessary,  so that the mixture is thick enough to keep its shape.   Place in a bowl, cover with cling film and refrigerate for 3 hours at least.

With a tablespoon take equal amounts of the fava mixture and shape patties with a hole in the middle so that they can fry easier.

Deep fry them, in batches, in corn oil, over medium heat, for 5 minutes on each side.  Remove them carefully and place on a tin, lined with baking parchment.   Continue the same procedure, covering each layer with extra sheets of parchment.

Serve the fava patties with a green salad or, as they do in Iran with quince preserve (kythonopasto)!

   

                AUBERGINES, COURGETTES AND PEPPES IN TOMATO ASPIC

This is a summer dish when vegetables and herbs are at their very best.

3 aubergines, the long variety

3 tbsp olive oil

4-5 medium-sized courgettes

2 sage sprigs

Salt and pepper to taste

2-3 pickled red Florina peppers, from a jar

500 ml (2 cups) fresh tomato juice

15 g (½ oz) powdered gelatine

1 large clove garlic, bruised

1 tbsp fresh basil, chopped

2 tbsp chopped parsley

1 tbsp tarragon vinegar

1 tbsp honey or more

Salt to taste

A few drops tobacco sauce

Parsley for garnish

Line a 25 cm (10 inches) loaf tin with cling film and brush it with olive oil.  Slice 2 of the aubergines, thinly, lengthwise and sprinkle with salt.   After five minutes, rinse, dry and sauté in olive oil and 2-3 spoons of water and set aside to drain on kitchen paper.

Peel the remaining aubergine and cut it into cubes, follow the same procedure as above and reserve.  Slice the courgettes, lengthwise, and simmer in salted water with the sage until tender. Dry on kitchen paper and site aside.  Also, prepare the Florina peppers, cut into quarters, pat dry and reserve.

Simmer the tomato juice, gently, for 15 minutes with the garlic, tobacco, vinegar, honey and salt.  Discard the garlic, and taste for seasoning and adjust.  Soften the gelatine in a little iced water and add into the hot tomato juice and stir well until dissolved.   Pour a little into the loaf tin, garnish with parsley leaves and refrigerate until set.

Line the loaf tin with the aubergine slices, leaving about 5 cm (2 inches) hanging over the sides.   Pour a little tomato juice over and refrigerate and let it set.  Add the courgettes, sprinkle with 1/3 of the herbs, cover with tomato juice, refrigerate and let it set once more.  Continue the same procedure with layers of Florina peppers and cubed aubergines, sprinkled with herbs and covered with tomato juice.  Cover with the overhanging aubergine slices and cling film and chill for at least 6 hours.

Overturn of a serving dish, on a bed of crisp lettuce leaves sprinkle with parsley and drizzle, with a little olive oil.   Serve with crispy, warm brown bread and a glass of white wine.

                                  BROCCOLI RISOTTO WITH MUSHROOMS 

It is difficult to give the exact amount of liquid used for a perfect risotto.   Some rice varieties need 1:5 (1 part rice – 5 parts liquid), others less or even more liquid.

¾ kg (1½ lb) broccoli florets, boiled, drained and patted dry on kitchen paper, water reserved

500 g (1 lb) white mushrooms, whipped and cut into chunks

1-2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

2-3 tbsp margarine

6-7 saffron stamens soaked in

250 ml (1 cup) good quality, warm white wine

450 g (15 oz) risotto rice

1 litre (4 cups) hot vegetable stock

500 ml (2 cups) broccoli water

½ cup parsley, chopped

1 tsp fresh marjoram, finely chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 small white truffle, scrubbed with a brush and patted dry

Sauté the mushrooms in 1 ½ tbsp margarine for about 7 minutes and sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper.   Add the broccoli and cook for 5 minutes more, then remove the vegetables and keep hot.

In the same saucepan add the remaining margarine, onion and garlic and cook gently until the onion softens.   Add the rice and cook stirring until transparent and pour in the warm wine with the saffron and stir constantly until absorbed.   Add the vegetable stock and the broccoli water, a cup at a time, stirring the rice until the liquid is absorbed, before adding the next cup.   When the rice is almost done add the vegetables and the herbs and mix gently together.  Finally, remove the saucepan for the fire and shave a little white truffle over.

Serve immediately with a glass of the same white wine used for cooking, iced this time!

                                               EGGLESS MAYONNAISE

This sauce tastes like real mayonnaise.

187.5 ml (¾ cups) water

2 ¼ tbsp cornflour diluted in a little water

1 tsp salt

½ tsp white pepper

1 ¼ tsp mustard

2-3 tbsp lemon juice

Pinch of sugar

250 ml (1 cup) sunflower oil

1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling over

Place the first four ingredients in a saucepan and simmer gently, stirring, until a thick sauce is obtained.  Remove the sauce from the stove and cool.  Then blend the sauce with the mustard, lemon juice and sugar until well combined.  Remove the sauce from the blender and stir in the oil by the spoonful.  Taste and add more lemon juice, salt and pepper if necessary.  Place in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil and serve.

 APPLE AND ONION CHUTNEY

                        

Golden Delicious

This is the very first chutney I made.   One could alternately use pears or quince to prepare this delicious, spicy, chunky chutney.

1 kg (2 lb) apples peeled, cored and cut into cubes (try Golden  Delicious)

500 g (1 lb) onions, peeled and finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp grated ginger

500 g (1 lb) sugar

250 ml (1 cup) good quality vinegar

Salt to taste

¼ tsp Cayenne pepper or more, if preferred

1 cinnamon stick

Place all the ingredients together in a large saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring until the sugar melts.    Lower the heat and simmer very, very gently stirring occasionally, until the apple mixture thickens and reaches the consistency of jam.   Remove the cinnamon stick, ladle the chutney into prepared, sterilized jars and seal.




                                                  APPLE SPOON SWEET

                                           

Firiki spoon sweet

“Firikia” are small, sweet green apples with a delicate aroma.  You could stuff each apple with a toasted almond if you wish.

1 kg (2 lb) firikia or any other small apples

2 lemons, the juice

1 kg (2 lbs) sugar

600 ml (2½ cups) water

Cloves (one for each apple)

1 cinnamon stick

Wash, peel and core the apples and cover with water and the juice of a lemon to prevent discolouring.

Meanwhile prepare the syrup.   Boil the water and sugar with 1 tbsp of lemon juice and the cinnamon stick, for 5-10 minutes.  Drain the apples, pierce the top of each with a clove, and place them in the hot syrup and simmer gently until they are tender.  Remove the saucepan from the fire and set aside for 24 hours.

The next day, discard the cinnamon stick and simmer the spoon sweet until the syrup thickens. Taste, and add little more lemon juice, if necessary.  

Cool the apples, before placing them in prepared jars.

                                                      SPICED APPLES

If you have hard, unripe firikia or any other small apples, try preparing this gourmet delicacy.

1 kg (2 lb) firikia apples, peeled, cored and rubbed with lemon juice

Cloves

500 g (1 lb) sugar

500 ml (2 cups) white vinegar

A large pinch of salt

1 rind of ½ a lemon

2 tsp allspice berries

A small piece bruised ginger

A stick of cinnamon

(all tied up in piece of cheesecloth or sterilized gauze) 

Stud each apple with a clove.   Place the sugar, vinegar and salt in a saucepan, add the spice pouch, simmer and stir until the sugar dissolves.   Add the apples and simmer very gently, turning them over once, until they are tender enough to be pierced by a wooden skewer;  this might take from 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Remove the apples with a slotted spoon and pack into sterilized jars.  Discard the spice pouch and simmer the cooking liquid until turns into syrup.  Cover the apples with the vinegar syrup and seal the lids.  Serve with meat, poultry or cheese.  Bon appétit!