roasted garlic chickpea pizza

Last week I shared with you my Refrigerator Dough recipe. This week I'm using it to make a garlic-lover's pizza. I am a garlic lover and often times I hold back when writing recipes, but this one is full-on garlic and I make no excuses or apologize. #sorrynotsorry

Let me start by saying that if you haven't made this dough and have it handy in the fridge, you are missing out on easy meal times. The dough can be made into flatbreads, rolls, focaccia, pizza and even frybread. Check it out HERE (video) or HERE (printable) and whip up a batch; it lasts for up to 7 days!

This pizza boasts whole roasted garlic, a garlic sauce and garlic sauteed chickpeas and artichokes. It also has sun-dried tomatoes, kalamata olives and arugula, to round things out.

I roasted the garlic in the air-fryer and it was ready in about 8 minutes! And without any oil! I was thrilled.

The garlic sauce is a quick cashew-based aioli that is blended with some of the roasted garlic, before the remaining garlic gets thrown onto the pizza.

Like I've said before, the dough is ready when you need it and it is very easy to roll. If it is giving you any problems, just let it warm up for 15 minutes, while the oven is preheating.

A well-dressed pizza is always a welcome sight!

Bake it until it is golden brown and crisp. Top with arugula and more ailoli and you are all ready to enjoy a classy pizza night.

Roasted Garlic Chickpea Pizza 
Serves 4

Garlic Aioli Sauce:
1/3 cup raw cashew pieces
2/3 cup non-dairy unsweetened, plain milk (plus more as needed)
2 teaspoons nutritional yeast
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon vegan lactic acid (optional)
4 cloves roasted garlic**
Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Chickpea Topping:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups cooked chickpeas
1 (15-ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained
8 garlic cloves, sliced 

Pizza:
1/2 cup pizza sauce
1 pound Fridge Dough or other pizza dough
Vegan shredded cheese (optional)
Roasted garlic**
4 soft or oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped
12 kalamata olives, chopped
1/2 cup arugula

1. Sauce: Preheat the oven to 475-degrees F. Use a pizza stone if you have one. Remove the dough from the fridge to warm. Combine the cashews, milk and nutritional yeast in a small saucepan. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer and cook for 5 minutes.  Transfer to a small blender and add the lemon juice, lactic acid (if using), garlic and salt and pepper. Blend until very smooth, adding a few tablespoons of milk as needed. Taste and adjust seasoning and set aside.
2. Chickpea: Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chickpeas, artichokes and garlic. Cook until golden brown, about 8 minutes, but do not burn the garlic; stir often. Season with salt and black pepper. Set aside.
3. Pizza:  Combine the pizza sauce with 2 tablespoons of the garlic aioli. Divide the dough into 4 (or 2). Roll or spread the dough on a parchment paper, out to about 1/4-inch thick. Spread a thin layer of tomato-aioli sauce. Add cheese, if using. Top with the chickpeas, sun-tomatoes and olives. Bake for 6 minutes on a baking sheet or pizza stone. Remove the paper from under the pizza, using tongs or a spatula if needed. Continue to bake until golden brown, about 7 to 9 more minutes. 
4. To serve, cut into slices, top with arugula leaves and more sauce. 

** Roasted Garlic. Divide a garlic head into the cloves; do not peel. Air-fry for about 8 to 14 minutes at 330-degrees F. Check the garlic after 8 minutes; if it is soft it is ready. Do not burn. Alternatively, pan-fry the garlic with the paper on. Use a dry cast iron skillet and cook until soft, about 6 to 8 minutes, stirring often to avoid burning. Peel the garlic when cool. 


© 2016 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

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pantry + late summer burger salad

Yes, it is nearing that time of year in the Northern Hemisphere; it is almost the end of summer. I figured that it is a good time to make a Late Summer Burger Salad, using some of the produce that is still available.

The dressing is creamy and gingery to complement the Japanese togarashi seasoning. The mini burgers are packed with veggies and legumes and provide a ton of energy to fuel your day.

For the purpose of keeping this recipe within the confines of Pantry+, I've limited the salad ingredients to just romaine lettuce, but you should add anything that you have on hand: grated carrot, purple or green cabbage, napa cabbage, radishes, other types of lettuce - basically, go wild!

This recipe uses 5 pantry ingredients (get the Pantry+ list HERE) and 6 fresh ingredients.

Late Summer Burger Salad:

Equipment:
small blender [such as a Magic Bullet]
food processor
cast iron pan

Pantry ingredients:
Cashews
Rice wine vinegar
Chickpeas
Togarashi
Panko

Fresh ingredients:
Ginger
Summer squash
Green onions
Green peas
Lettuce

After preparing the dressing, you grate the squash using the food processor. Because the food processor will be used again, there is no reason not to use it multiple times in this recipe to make things go faster.

Cooking the squash down,

...it is processed again in the machine with the rest of the burger ingredients. After forming them into mini burgers, cook them in the same skillet or use an air-fryer.

Simple and easy! In just a few steps you will have a delicious salad to munch on as you ponder what wonderful produce you will be procuring in the coming months.

Late Summer Burger Salad (a Pantry+ recipe)

Makes 3 to 4 servings

Pantry list is HERE.

1 cup raw cashew pieces

7 to 8 tablespoons water

3 tablespoons seasoned rice wine vinegar, divided

1 (2-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

2 medium-large yellow squash

2 garlic cloves

1 cup cooked chickpeas

5 green onions, divided

1/2 cup green peas (thawed, if frozen)

1 to 2 teaspoons togarashi

3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

All-purpose flour, as needed

Oil for pan-frying, optional

6 cups lettuce, chopped

1. Add the cashews, water, 2 tablespoons vinegar, ginger and salt to a small blender. Blend well and set aside for 10 minutes to rehydrate. Blend again until smooth. Taste and add more salt if needed. Set aside. 

2. Grate the squash using a food processor. Add the squash to a large dry cast-iron pan and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until the moisture has reduced considerably. Add the garlic to the processor and pulse to chop. Add the chickpeas and 4 green onions and process until ground. Add the peas and pulse to break up. Add this mixture to the skillet and cook for 2 minutes to meld the flavors. Remove from the heat, add the panko and mix well. Set aside to rehydrate for 5 minutes.

3. Wipe the pan out, add a few teaspoons of oil and heat over medium heat. Form the squash mixture into 2 tablespoon patties (add a tablespoon of flour if the mixture isn’t holding together) and flatten the patties into 1/2-inch thickness. Cook the patties until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side.

4. Chop the remaining green onion and add it to a bowl. Add the lettuce and the remaining tablespoon of vinegar and toss. Divide the lettuce among four bowls, add 4 patties to each bowl and top with the ginger dressing. Serve. 

© 2016 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

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veganmofo - seasonal + spinach salad + giveaway

#vgnmf15 Day 22 is all about seasonal produce and making such seasonal offerings into a dish.

I offer up my Spinach Salad Bowl with Fennel, Quinoa and Warm Pecan Dressing.

The seasonal produce for this dish is spinach, fennel and oranges (and pecans. Pecans count, right?). It also happens to be another recipe from my new cookbook, Vegan Bowls (Amazon, B&N), and I got permission to share the recipe with you!

Speaking of which, Vegan Bowls is celebrating its FIRST WEEK ANNIVERSARY! I think that means party time - don't you?! Yup, that means a blog tour and giveaways!


Vegan Street  and Here September 25
It's Got Vegan In It  September 22
Veg Kitchen  September 23
Healthy Slow Cooking  September 24
Dianne's Vegan Kitchen  September 25
Chic Vegan  September 28
Global Vegan Kitchen  September 29  (giveaway - ends October 5)
Good Good Things  October 1
Kelli's Vegan Kitchen  October 2  (giveaway - ends October 11)
The Taste Space October 6  (giveaway - ends October 20)
Glue and Glitter  October 6
The Food Duo  October 7  (giveaway - ends October 29)
Vegan Eats and Treats  October 8 (giveaway - ends October 15)
Vegan Crunk October 8
Julie Hasson  October 9  (giveaway - ends October 15) 
Heather Nicholds  October 9 (giveaway - ends October 14)

Since I am sharing a salad bowl recipe with you, why not look at the Salad Chapter of Vegan Bowls? 

You can see the entire recipe list for Vegan Bowls HERE.

Let's start with a giveaway on this blog, since I am probably the most excited! The winner will be chosen next Monday night at midnight, September 28.  Enter below for your chance to win a copy! To be eligible to win you must be following this blog via email or RSS feed (link). Contest is open to US residents only. Good luck!

Spinach Salad Bowl with Warm Pecan Dressing
SERVES 4 
This is a spin on spinach salad with warm bacon dressing. This salad is filled with shaved fennel, perfectly cooked quinoa, and candied pecans. The warm orange-pecan dressing ties all the flavors together and delivers a delicious, filling salad. (Recipe from Vegan Bowls, copyright © 2015 by Zsu Dever. Used by permission from Vegan Heritage Press, LLC.)


QUINOA
1 cup quinoa, rinsed well
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

DRESSING
1 cup raw pecan pieces
5 tablespoons fresh orange juice, divided
2 teaspoons pure maple syrup, divided
3 tablespoons grapeseed oil
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon vegetable broth

SALAD
8 cups coarsely chopped fresh spinach (about 2 bunches, tough stems removed)
1 cup shaved fennel (about 1 small bulb) 

QUINOA: Combine the quinoa, broth, garlic, and salt in a small saucepan. Cover, bring to boil over high heat, reduce to medium- low heat, and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork before serving.

DRESSING: Toast the nuts in a small skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until golden, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer half of the nuts to a small blender. Add 2 tablespoons juice and 1 teaspoon maple syrup to the nuts in the skillet. Cook until the liquid evaporates, about 3 minutes. Transfer the glazed nuts to a parchment paper and set aside to cool. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of juice, 1 teaspoon maple syrup, oil, vinegar, and broth to the blender. Blend until smooth. Season with salt and black pepper. When ready to serve, warm the dressing in the small skillet and add about half of the warm dressing to a large bowl.

SALAD: Add the spinach and fennel and toss. To serve, divide the salad and quinoa among wide bowls and serve with the remaining dressing. Alternatively, toss the salad with the quinoa and serve with the remaining dressing.



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samosa burger + raita sauce

Day 8 of Burger Extravaganza: I present to you this samosa-inspired Indian burger with raita sauce. All the wonderful flavors and aromas you love in a samosa, not just in burger form, but healthier - no deep frying involved!

This burger is made of roasted cauliflower and potatoes, scallions and the herbs and spices you've come to love in Indian cooking - mustard seeds, coriander, cumin, curry leaves and cilantro. It is then topped with a cooling cucumber raita.

If you've never had the pleasure of cooking with curry leaves, please do yourself a wonderful favor and get to an Indian market as soon as possible. I've been known to grab a bag or two, not just for cooking, but just for the scent! It is ridiculously aromatic and so exotic. I've never smelled anything its like before and I'll sneak into the fridge to have a sniff. And if you cook with - omg, hold me back. So wonderful!

I've found that using vegan yogurt alone for a raita leaves something wanting - the texture and body of the raita is not quite right. To fix this problem, I add a few tablespoons of vegan sour cream which brings a little richness and tang that is otherwise missing.

Serve this up with some garlicked greens (recipe is in Everyday Vegan Eats, page 196) and you have an excellent meal.

If you need to get your hands on a copy of Everyday Vegan Eats (my cookbook), Vegan Heritage Press is giving one away. Giveaway ends September 14 - hurry!

You can make this recipe into 4 double-stacked burgers, or spread the love to others and make 8 single burgers. Either way, these will satisfy your craving for Indian food. At least for a little while. The craving is never actually truly satisfied.

SAMOSA BURGER WITH RAITA SAUCE PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

Samosa Burger with Raita Sauce

Makes 4 burgers

3 cups small cauliflower florets

1 pound waxy potatoes, chopped into ¼- inch dice

2 tablespoons vegetable broth

3 tablespoons neutral oil, divided

2 teaspoons mustard seeds

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

½ to 1 teaspoon red chili flakes

¼ teaspoon ground turmeric

4 curry leaves

¼ cup cashews

½ cup dry breadcrumbs

4 scallions, minced

¼ cup chopped cilantro

4 burger buns or ciabatta rolls or 8 focaccia slices, toasted

Raita Sauce, recipe below

1. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F. Combine the cauliflower, potatoes and vegetable broth in a large bowl. Season with salt and black pepper and transfer to a baking sheet. Bake until tender, about 30 minutes, stirring halfway through. Remove from heat and set aside.

2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Stir in the mustard, coriander, cumin, chili flakes, turmeric and curry leaves, if available. Stir and cook until the seeds pop, about 2 minutes. Remove and discard the curry leaves. Transfer to a small bowl or to the cooked potato mixture. Set aside.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in same medium skillet over medium heat. Add the cashews and stir and cook until golden, about 3 minutes. Remove and set aside. Stir in the breadcrumbs and cook until golden, about 2 minutes. Add to the potatoes.

4. Transfer the potatoes, cauliflower, spice mixture, cashews, breadcrumbs and scallions to a food processor. Pulse until combined but not pureed. Form the mixture into 8 burgers, about 2 ½ inches in diameter and ½-inch thick.

5. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the burger patties, in increments, adding more oil as needed, and cook until golden, about 2 minutes per side.

6. Make the burgers by topping a bottom bun with 2 burger patties and adding about 2 tablespoons raita. Add top of the bun and serve.

Raita Sauce

1 cup plain unsweetened plain yogurt

2 tablespoons vegan sour cream

2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

¼ cup shredded cucumber, squeezed of excess moisture

2 red radishes, shredded

1 teaspoon minced garlic

½ teaspoon dried thyme

Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

1. Combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl. Stir to mix well. Taste and adjust seasoning.

 

© 2014 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

spicy eggplant and zucchini

Eating out vegan can be a challenge at times, but should be no more difficult than asking a few pointed questions. Some establishments are more accommodating than others, nevertheless finding something to eat on any menu is always possible - even if that means ordering a green salad with oil and vinegar. Boring, but still possible.

Dining at P.F. Chang's, a chain casual Chinese-American restaurant, is more on the easy side because the personnel tend to be more educated regarding their menu and are more knowledgeable about items that are vegan or vegan-friendly.

Each ethnic restaurant comes with its own set of standard questions to ask in order to discover hidden animal ingredients. Asian restaurants tend to use fish sauce, oyster sauce, lobster or other shellfish sauce and egg in pasta or a specific dish. This is, of course, in addition to the usual meat and dairy.

P.F. Chang's has a vegetarian menu, so the work is done for you, but if you want to replace tofu in any meat-centered dish, it is wise to inquire in particular about the sauces.

All this is leading to one of our favorite dishes on the menu - Stir-fried Eggplant. My son loves this especially, but when we discovered that the eggplant is deep-fried, we were a little startled. In fact, that vegetarian dish, thanks to the frying, is one of their most calorie and fat laden menu item.

Ouch. Stir-fried, huh?

Making the eggplant at home is a better option and avoiding the deep frying is a must - but the eggplant has to be tender while at the same time not so tender that it completely falls apart.

Roasting the eggplant is a great way to go, but that is not a pleasant prospect in the middle of summer. Anything to keep the oven off! Because grilling uses minimal oil and still cooks the eggplant, I went in that direction. No secret about my love of my cast-iron grill pan.

And since my CSA is bursting with zucchini, that got into the mix, too. It is actually a welcome textural addition. I also added cashew nuts for crunch and because my youngest loves nuts in savory dishes - and I agree with her. Besides, cashews are a pretty standard fare in Indian and Asian recipes.

Use my method to cook brown rice, and this meal can be ready in about 30 minutes. The sauce is sweet and spicy, the eggplant is tender and this is another make-at-home dish that is better than the original.

SWEET AND SPICY EGGPLANT AND ZUCCHINI PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

Sweet and Spicy Eggplant and Zucchini

Serves 4

8 tablespoons (½ cup) vegetable broth, divided

1 tablespoon neutral oil, divided

Fresh ground black pepper

1 medium eggplant (about 1 pound), cut into 1-inch slices

2 medium zucchinis, cut into 1-inch slices

½ cup cashew pieces

1 tablespoon arrowroot starch or cornstarch

6 tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari

1 to 2 tablespoons sambal oelek

2 tablespoons brown rice vinegar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 celery ribs, cut into ¼-inch slices

8 garlic cloves, minced

1 (1-inch) piece ginger, grated

4 scallions, cut into 2-inch pieces

1. Heat a grill pan over medium heat. Combine 2 tablespoons broth, 1 teaspoon oil and plenty of black pepper in a large bowl. Toss the eggplant slices with the marinade and grill the slices until almost tender, about 4 minutes on each side. Turn the slices a quarter turn after 2 minutes to achieve a hashtag pattern. This will help the eggplant cook but not burn. Transfer the eggplant to a work surface and cut each slice into quarters. Set aside.

2. Toss the zucchini slices with the remaining marinade and grill until almost tender, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a work surface and cut into bite-size pieces. Set aside.

3. Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Stir in the cashews and cook until golden, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

4. Combine 2 tablespoons of broth with the cornstarch in a small bowl and set aside. Combine the remaining 4 tablespoons of broth, tamari, sambal oelek, vinegar and sugar in a small bowl and set aside.

5. Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon of oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir in the celery and cook 1 minute. Stir in the garlic, ginger and scallions and cook 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium and add the reserved eggplant, zucchini and tamari mixture. Stir, cover and cook until the eggplant is tender, about 3 to 5 minutes.

6. Stir in the cornstarch mixture and cook just until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the reserved cashews. Serve with cooked rice.

© 2014 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

I am linking to these recipe parties: Healthy Vegan Fridays, What I Ate Wednesday and Virtual Vegan Linky Potluck. 

 

     

food truck finale! chocolate hazelnut crepes

Christian, Danielle and Matthew

I'm "ending" the Month of Vegan Food with the Crepes Bonaparte food truck. This is a French-inspired truck, the brainchild of Christian Murcia, based out of Orange County, another one located in in2insight's backyard. This truck evolved from a business project at University of Southern California - incidentally one of the schools my son is interested in attending.

The truck features a prominent mustache on the front and is nick-named Gaston -- because it is a French gas-guzzler. Now, that is original! The team had true French crepe makers imported and they serve everything on crepes, sweet or savory. 

For my final food truck make-over, I decided on their signature dish - HazzelBerryAnna, hazelnut-chocolate butter, strawberries, bananas and whip cream. I totally zonked the berries, so they don't show up in my crepes, but the rest is acutely represented.

The food truck uses Nutella as the spread, but there are vegan options in health food stores now, and, whether they use hazelnuts or almonds, they are just as delicious. 

As an aside, if you enjoy nuts - hazel, almond, peanut, walnut, pecan, whatever! - don't miss Robin Robertson's new Nut Butter Universe cookbook. I tested for this book and I went totally nuts with amazement. No hazelnut-chocolate spread in the book, but the Too-Easy Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge will make you forget you ever even wanted it. 

Check it out and then check out my recipe for the crepes at the bottom of the post. 

I promise it'll show up eventually.

That's it for the wrap-up of MoFo 2013 from Zsu's Vegan Pantry. If you've been counting along, you will have realized that I failed miserably. I did not just miss the goal of 20 posts, but I missed it by more than half. 

Excuses I am full of'; let me count the ways: (1) we wound up moving this month, right on the heels of moving from Chicago in June. After making the transition from a small apartment to a bigger house, (2) our internet was unavailable for another week. Quickly on the trails of the move and lack of web-service, we found out (3) our neighbors were tenting their house, just a mere three feet from our new abode, for a termite infestation. This meant that the strong breezes of California would waft the toxic fumes over to our open windows. Californians have a distinct disdain for installing air-conditioning in homes, so the open window was not just essential, but for the three days of being tented also poisonous. So, we decided to get out of Dodge. 

As soon as we got back and settled, I was all set to continue with my outlined MoFo food tuck list - only to realize that there were (4) only three more days left in September! Oy vey! Three days, thirteen food trucks. Ahhh, no! Wasn't going to happen. 

So, you see, that as they say, is that. 

I will now go and catch-up on all the MoFo wonderfulness I've missed and find out if the missing GiGi has been located, yet. Hope so!  

Happy MoFo 2013 everyone!

Vegan HazelBerryAnna Crepes Printer-Friendly Recipe

IHOP make over

Moseying over to casual dining experiences, breakfast style this time, we are heading toward the uniquely named, but acronym-ly referred to IHOP - International House of Pancakes. When you crave pancakes, I suppose this is a great place to head to!  Oh! Except, it is off-limits to vegans, unless they are in the mood for a piece of dry toast.

 Maybe, grits.

Making this one over is such a pleasure because it still baffles me that eggs and dairy are used in making pancakes; I love to show that pancakes and eggs are not a match made in heaven. Not to mention that all of my kids are pancake fiends. 

I decided to remake their self-appointed healthy pancake, Harvest Grain 'N Nut and their special seasonal Pumpkin Pancake. The Harvest Grain has great flavor, although it is not solely made of whole grains, and the pumpkin one was a surprise hit for the family; just enough pumpkin flavor without crossing over into pumpkin pie land.

While maple syrup is a nice addition to pour on the pancakes, IHOP is very worried that syrup alone won't be enough to sweeten your breakfast. To ensure you receive your proper intake of sugar, they add ample amounts to the batter. What I'm saying is, go easy on the syrup. I added flax meal to the pancakes, not because I thought the pancakes needed anything to "bind" them (flour does that), but because it adds nutrition.

Both are easy enough to make, just keep the temperature of the pan on medium to medium-low to allow the inside of the pancake to cook through.

Cost Breakdown

Harvest Grain:

flour, oats, milk, baking powder: $1.25

nuts, flax, vinegar, oil: $1.50

milk, sugar, syrup: $1.50

Total to make 12 pancakes:

$4.25

Their cost per order: $6.00 

(Originally it is $8.30 per order with topping.)

Make Over Cost per Serving: $1.10

Pumpkin:  

flour, milk, baking powder: $1.25

pumpkin, vinegar: $.50

flax, sugar, spices, syrup: $1.50

Total to make 10 pancakes:

 $3.25

Their cost per order: $6.00 

Make Over Cost per Serving: $.82

Harvest Grain and Nut

Pumpkin

Pumpkin Pancake Recipe

GRAIN AND NUT PANCAKES PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE