holiday sandwich

I'm a sucker for complete meal type of sandwiches, as demonstrated by my Thanksgiving Burger, a recipe from 2014. Since the holidays are around the corner, what better way to start the celebration than with this easy to make Holiday Sandwich:

It might look a bit much, but it really is easy to put together. The patty is made of mushrooms and chickpeas as the base. It doesn't include any binding, but it stays together relatively well. It dries out and because the acorn squash is very moist, together, they work in harmony.

A few spices and dark miso help to keep this burger from falafel-ville. It is decidedly not a falafel.

You process all the ingredients in a food processor, form into patties and bake them with the acorn squash. The timing is about the same and because you don't peel the squash, the process is easy.

There is nothing more on the squash than salt and pepper because the flavor is in the patties.

This sandwich needs some crunch, so I tossed thin onion slices with cornstarch/arrowroot and air-fried it until crisp. I did add a few sprays of oil to help it brown, but it is nothing like deep frying them.

The sauce. It is so simple and so delicious! It is Cranberry Aioli and it is the bomb. Just mix together cranberry sauce and vegan mayonnaise or vegan yogurt and liberally add to the sandwich. It is tangy and sweet but creamy and rich. Don't skip it.

And because no holiday is complete without something green, this sandwich features steamed kale. A crusty bread or roll and you are in business, my friend.

Photo by Caitlin Galer-Unti from The Vegan Word.com

Speaking of holidays, gift-giving season is almost here and it is time to start planning. Caitlin from The Vegan Word has amassed an amazingly thorough list of vegan gift ideas. I truly am impressed! Take a look for yourself.

Holiday Sandwich
Makes 4 servings

Patties:
1 3/4 cups or 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained
3 ounces of trimmed shiitake mushrooms (trimmed of stems)
1 tablespoon dark miso
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1/2 teaspoon onion granules
1/2 teaspoon garlic granules
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon sage

Onions:
1 medium onion, sliced very thin
2 tablespoons arrowroot or cornstarch
Oil spray, as needed

Sauce:
1/4 cup cranberry sauce
1/4 cup vegan mayonnaise or plain nondairy yogurt

Other:
Sea salt and black pepper
1 medium acorn squash, cut into 4 sections
1 bunch kale, tough stems removed and finely chopped
4 crusty rolls, split


1. Patties: Preheat the oven to 350-degrees F. Combine the chickpeas, mushrooms, miso, yeast, onion, garlic, thyme and sage in a food processor. Process until finely ground. Divide the mixture into 4 portions and form into patties about the size of your rolls. Transfer to a parchment or silicone mat lined baking sheet. Add the squash quarters to the pan and season with salt and black pepper. Bake for 20 minutes. Flip the patties and the squash and bake for another 20 minutes. If the squash is tender remove it from the pan. Continue to bake the patties for another 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown and hold together fairly well. 
2. Onions: Combine the onion, starch and spray with oil. Transfer to the basket of an air-fryer and cook until semi-crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes. Shake the basket after every 5 minutes and make sure not to burn. The onions will become crispy after they sit for a minute off the heat.
3. Sauce: Combine the cranberry sauce and mayo. Mix well. Set aside. 
4. Steam the kale until very tender and toast the rolls. Season the kale with salt and pepper.
5. Assemble the sandwich by spreading the bottom and top with the aioli. Add kale, a patty. Scoop out the squash from the shells and add one to the sandwich. Top with onions and serve. 


© 2016 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

red pepper pesto with grilled eggplant

Last night I wanted to make something fresh, and different with very little prep time. I had some leftover refried black beans from a cookbook review and I wanted to make good use of it.

I was toying with the idea of using up some of the jarred red peppers I had in the fridge, without having to resort to freezing them, as I will normally do after I open a jar. Because I was a little remiss in doing that with this jar a few weeks ago, I was worried it was going to spoil. So with that introduction, this sauce/dish was born: Grilled Eggplant with Red Pepper Pesto.

I am a huge proponent of grilling vegetables because you can get away with using little or no oil, and grilling eggplant is one of my favorite ways of tackling this fruit/vegetable. Slice 2 pounds of eggplant into 1/2-inch rounds or planks. Use a grill pan and grill the eggplant for 2 minutes. Cover your pan to trap the smoke (therefore smoking your eggplant in the process, too) and after 2 minutes move each slice about 45-degrees. Grill for 2 more minutes, flip and repeat.

A few reasons to cook it this way (grilling covered and moving the eggplant 45-degrees), and neither are that it makes the eggplant look pretty.

1. It cooks the eggplant through. Tough eggplant is great for jerky, but not for this recipe.
2. It prevents the eggplant from burning, which would make the burnt parts bitter.

Then use the eggplant as you desire.

I chose to smother my eggplant with this deliciously delightful Red Pepper Pesto. The pesto consists of jarred peppers, nutritional yeast, toasted pistachios, garlic, oregano and salt and pepper. And, to make it creamy and tangy without adding oil, I added a few tablespoons of yogurt. Which made it perfect! Buzz the whole thing in a food processor and it is ready.

I just layered my eggplant,

with refried black beans (or not, your choice), and added some pesto, then repeated until I had no more eggplant left.

I added the rest of the pesto to the top and baked the whole thing until hot. I topped it with some parsley and fresh bread crumbs, but you totally don't have to.

If you are making the bread crumbs, blend 2 or 3 slices of whole grain bread and toast it in a skillet until dry, about 3 to 4 minutes, stirring constantly. You can add a few tablespoons of oil, if you want, but I didn't find it necessary. Mix in a few tablespoons of parsley for added flavor, nutrition and color, and serve.

Red Pepper Pesto
Makes about 1 1/2 cups


4 jarred, roasted red peppers
1/2 cup toasted pistachios
3 tablespoons unsweetened, plain nondairy yogurt (use almond or soy. Coconut might add coconut flavor)
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
4 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon dried oregano or 2 tablespoons fresh oregano
Sea salt and black pepper


1. Add the peppers, pistachios, yogurt, yeast, garlic, oregano and salt and pepper, to taste, to a food processor. Process until it is as smooth as you like it. I like some small bits of pistachio still evident. If you like a very smooth pesto, add all the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. 
2. Taste and adjust seasoning.
3. Serve as a dip, on pasta or over grilled eggplant. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.  



© 2016 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.