Monthly Archives: November 2010

Cooking Squash, it’s a hard life

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Spaghetti SquashSpaghetti Squash

Winter is the time for hard squash, and Spaghetti Squash is fun to cook. It’s called spaghetti because when you cook it and then scoop the guts, it looks like spaghetti.

This particular squash is very hard and difficult to cut open, but will reward you with taste and flavor.

It is usually 10 to 12 inches long, and approximately 20 inches in diameter.

Be careful when cutting it open. Use a long and sharp knife. I’ve watched banquet cooks open these babies up, and it is nothing less then a miracle. They process several cases at a time, with hardly any blood shed.

So cut that squash open, scoop out the seeds, but not the edible guts. Place on a roasting pan in a 375 degree oven, and cook for an hour to an hour and a half, or until the squash flesh is soft.

Take it out and cool the squash. I utilize my freezer if I want to do a fast cooling down. If you aren’t pressed for time, into the refrigerator it goes.

After it’s cooled, remove the flesh and prepare it in any number of ways. Here’s a recipe for Sauteed Spaghetti Squash. Or, you can bake it like a Casserole. Serve with an entree like Tofu Cutlets or Portabella Mushroom Steak.

Butternut SquashButternut Squash

This is probably one of the more perplexing squashes. How do I even peel this thing? That’s what I first thought when starting out as a banquet cook. Eventually I figured it out.
Cut the long part of the squash from the base. Using a sharp knife, very carefully peel the outer skin. Place the long part vertically on your cutting board and using a downward motion, peel the skin.

Same thing with the base. Place it upside down on your cutting board, and starting from the top, skin that puppy. Then scoop out the guts. From there, you can cube these vitamin packed goodies, and then steam them. After they are steamed, toss them in some margarine, and “sweet” spices, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, cardamom. Serve with any number of entrees. Eat em like snacks. Just be careful on that final saute that you don’t over-cook them. Or you can make a winter soup that will warm the body and spirit.

Butternut squash is packed with beta carotene, fiber, potassium and magnesium, it is also an excellent source of vitamins A and C.

Acorn Squash

Acorn squashThese little jewels are much easier to handle. Cut them in half, scoop out the seeds, place in a roasting pan, stick them in a 375 degree oven for an hour or two (depending on how well you like your squash cooked). Cool off using the method mentioned in Spaghetti Squash. Clean out the flesh, and puree, adding the “sweet” spices, or the savory. Again, use coconut milk to add flavor.

 

 

These squash, and pumpkin make excellent soups for the winter, especially when combined with “warming” spices. Watch for the base soup recipe I’ll be posting later this month.

I encourage you to experiment. There are many more varieties of squash, try them and see which ones you like. The ones listed here are just a few of my favorites.

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Holiday Cooking with Celebrities

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It’s the holiday season, and this vegan chef does not normally celebrate Thanksgiving or Christmas. There’s politics behind why, and let it just rest there. I cook for a living which means I’m knee deep in roasting turkeys and hams, sweet potatoes and lots and lots of veggies. Our Chef has a southwest themed part of the menu that looks very enticing.

On this blog you aren’t going to find holiday vegan recipes, but you can check out the list of vegan blogs on my links and see who is cooking the goods.
I was very excited the other day when I turned on “Ellen”. She introduced her chef, Roberto Martin, who showed us how to make “tofurkey”, that includes vital wheat gluten and thyme. It looks delicious. You can find the recipes on Ellen Degeneres’ website.
Have a great Holiday Season, and cook your little hearts out!

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Winter or Summer? Choose Your Squash

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Winter SquashHave you ever faced the produce section in the grocery store and wondered about all that squash? The different varieties, how to cook them, what they even are?

And what about that pumpkin you carved a few weeks ago for Halloween? Was that actually edible?

Zucchini and yellow squash come in abundance, and I cook with them all the time. It’s a great addition to soups, as a side dish, just sauteed in a little oil and salt, or hollowed out and the insides mixed up with other ingredients to make a baked squash entree.

But what about winter squash? There are many more varieties. The cooking method remains the same. Bust them open– carefully! — with a very sharp knife. Clean out all the seeds, chunk them up and then roast or bake them in an oven. You can then transform the squash into soups, purees, pies, and other delicious dishes for meals. Continue reading →

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Vegan Chef in the Culinary Industry

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But my knives are just as sharp.

My friends like that I cook vegan. They have lots of questions. It is one of the reasons I started this blog. There’s a new buzz word I’ve heard “plant-based diet.” The phrase has two very unappealing words to me. Plant, and diet.

I’ll stick with vegan. I’m a Vegan Chef in an industry that cooks with meat, lots and lots of meat. The last few weeks as I’ve been working on the Tofu Bacon, I’ve taken heat. In hindsight, maybe I shouldn’t tell my co-workers what I’m working on at home. But then they miss the opportunity to learn. My fellow culinarians ask me “What’s the point?” And it isn’t even a question. It is a statement meant to dismiss the topic of a meatless diet.

Other chefs see me eating meat. “What?” Ok. I said, I’m a vegan chef. I didn’t say I was vegan. My partner is vegan. She is dairy free, meat free, and gluten free. Which is why I started cooking 100% vegan at home in the first place. (still looking for that vegan gluten free person). We were vegetarian for a while, and that I can do. Lots of butter and cheese and you have flavor, right? Eliminate the butter and cheese, and I had to come up with alternatives. I’ve spent five years working on this.

Still, my co-workers don’t understand. No chicken stock? No pork fat? No Bacon? No prosciutto wrapped shrimp or Mile high roast beef sandwiches?

No, and no. Not at home. Next question they ask, “Where’s the protein? Hmm, legumes, lots of beans, lentils, dahl. Grains: barley, quinoa, millet. Rice, lots of rice. It is a valid question. But when the right combination of food comes together to make a meal,  balance and harmony is achieved, and happy diners ensue.

Neither my partner nor I have had any ill benefits from eating this way. And we will continue. And I will continue my quest for that perfect vegan meal. The one makes your whole body, mind, and soul sing.

And I’ll take heat from the other Chefs. They’ll berate me, dismiss me, and think I’m some kind of subversive in their midst. I’ll still get their respect by swinging burgers and steaks, pizzas, salads, and vegetable sautes on the line or in the banquet kitchen. And I’ll keep their respect just by showing up to work every day. Even though I am a Vegan Chef at home.

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Taking Stock

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A good soup or sauce, and even some dressings have a solid stock base to them. I like to cook beans in a vegetable stock because it adds a certain depth of flavor. Yes, you can make the stock in the pan when making the soup, but sometimes time constraints demand that a prepared stock is used.

Here’s my most basic vegetable stock. Feel free to embellish in any way you want. Let me know the results.

Tools: A good stock pot

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Vegetable Stock

Ingredients

  • 2-4 tbsp Sunflower or Safflower oil
  • 2 stalks Celery, medium dice
  • 3-4 Carrots, medium dice
  • 2 Yellow onions, medium dice
  • Sachet of herbs (Bouquet Garni)
  • 1 tsp Thyme
  • 1 tsp Oregano
  • 1 tsp Basil
  • 1 tsp Marjoram
  • 1 tsp Chervil
  • 4 quarts Water
  • 1-2 tbsp Salt

Process

Dice up all the vegetables, and prepare the Sachet.

Heat up your pot and add the oil, get that heated up, then add all the vegetables. Stir and let cook on a medium low heat until the vegetables soften (onions will start to look translucent).

Add the water and bring the stock up to a boil. Once boiling, drop the heat down to a simmer, add salt. Cook for about an hour and a half to 2 hours. Remove from heat, strain out the vegetables, and cool down (see: cooling procedures). Place in appropriate containers, and freeze if not used right away.

Notes

Tip: Use an ice tray to freeze cubes of vegetable stock for when you only want to add just a little bit.

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Accidental gardening in compost

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I compost. I don’t like throwing all that good food waste into the landfill. And even though I don’t have a reason to compost, I have this fantasy of being able to grow the food that I prepare and eat on a regular basis. It’s not practical with the job I have, but at least the thought is there. And composting is fun.

I have friends who garden, and when I work up enough compost, I can give it to them so that their gardens can become big and beautiful.

But not this year. I went out to the compost at the end of September and had some little squash-like plants growing. I decided to let them mature, and see what they would become.

Now, I have five or so cucumber plants growing in the compost. They are big enough that I’m going to have to move the compost spot. Fortunately I have another place for it. I am hoping that I will get some cucumbers before the weather turns cold enough to freeze the plants. I have to fashion some plastic covering and stakes so that they still get the sun while being protected from the frost. I cant wait.

No matter what happens, I still have the pleasure of viewing beautiful orange cucumber flowers when they open up in the mornings. It’s a great way to start the day.

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Beware the heat! Tomatillo Sauce

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Tomatillos & JalapenosSometimes I like to add a bit of heat to my dishes. If I’m making Sonoran Quinoa cakes, or Tofu Chili Tacos, this is a sauce I like to have ready on the side. It’s great with rice and beans, or mock chicken fajitas, and other delicious dishes you can think of. Just remember, it comes out hot, hot, hot!

Tools:

Sauce pan, blender.

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Beware the heat! Tomatillo Sauce

Ingredients

  • 8-10 tomatillos, husked
  • 4-5 jalapenos
  • 1/2 yellow onion, rough chopped
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic
  • 1/2 bunch Cilantro, stems removed & cleaned
  • 1 tbsp Lime juice
  • Salt

Process

In a pot of boiling water place tomatillos, jalapenos, onions and garlic. Cover and boil on a low-medium heat until jalapenos are tender.

Drain and reserve liquid. Place all the ingredients in the blender with some of the reserved liquid. Puree until the sauce is smooth.

Heat up a saute pan and add the Tomatillo Sauce. Cook the sauce for 10 to 12 minutes, or until it turns a deeper green. This will intensify the heat of the chilis and the lime juice. If the sauce thickens too much, add a bit more liquid to thin it out.

Remove from heat and cool down. Pour into an airtight bottle and refrigerate.

Serve on tofu, seitan, or tempeh. Goes great with fish as well.

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Curry has an Amazing History

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Curry: a tale of cooks & conquerorsCurry: A tale of cooks & conquerors by Lizzie Collingham is my current quest to further culinary knowledge. I’ve read a fourth of the book and learned more history then I was taught in high school about other countries. But I grew up in the West, in America, and here it is about cowboys and cows, not curries, vegetables, and Persian overlords.

This is not a recipe book, it is one person’s view of how curries evolved in India through the influence of other cultures. And it is an academic, not popular, view.

Hopefully after this, I’ll find some light reading. Here’s a review of the book.

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Recipe Wednesday: Lime Cilantro Dressing

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Marinades can make all the difference in the way food tastes. A good Vinaigrette adds the necessary acids to balance flavors of vegetables and fruits.  Mastering this aspect of cooking can help a cook go a long way in being dearly loved by friends and family, for the food of course.

This is one of my standard dressings in the refrigerator, in case I need to flavor tofu, or spike a salad. You can’t go wrong with limes and cilantro.

Tools: A blender, a bowl, a citrus juicer (if your hands can’t squeeze the limes), a clean bottle, a funnel.

Lime Juicer

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Recipe Wednesday: Lime Cilantro Dressing

Ingredients

  • 6-7 limes, juiced
  • 1 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
  • 2-3 cloves garlic
  • 3 tbsp Apple cider vinegar
  • 3/4 cup Olive oil
  • S & P to taste

Process

Put all ingredients except olive oil into the blender and blend on high speed. Slowly add in the olive oil in a steady, thin stream so that the dressing emulsifies. Add salt & pepper to taste. Pour into bottle using the funnel. Use to marinade tofu, and pour onto salads.

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