Why I'm No Longer Afraid of Seitan and Collard Greens

Why I'm not afraid of Seitan and Collards anymore

Until last summer when I bought Collard Greens for the first time at the Woodstock Farmer's market, I had never cooked them before. I used to notice them, sassily fanning themselves out amidst the other greens in the produce case but they looked tough to me, forbidding and foriegn. I had only ever eaten them at a Soul Food restaurant owned by a guy I dated back in the late seventies. They had been prepared with some pork product and while they tasted great, it was not a recipe I would want to duplicate.

According to the website, The World's Healthiest Foods, 
"Like kale, cauliflower and broccoli, collards are descendents of the wild cabbage, a plant thought to have been consumed as food since prehistoric times and to have originated in Asia Minor. From there it spread into Europe, being introduced by groups of Celtic wanderers around 600 B.C. Collards have been cultivated since the times of the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations. While collards may have been introduced into the United States before, the first mention of collard greens dates back to the late 17th century. Collards are an integral food in traditional southern American cuisine."

Until I looked into Bryant Terry's lovely "Vegan Soul Kitchen" cookbook, I didn't have a clue about how a vegan would cook them.
He recommends cutting them in a "chiffonade" style by removing the large stems, stacking then rolling the leaves into a tight cylinder, then slicing crosswise with a sharp knofe cutting the leaves into thin strips. While his recipe calls for boiling the greens, I recommend steaming both for the flavor and texture as well as the increased nutritional value. 
Collards, like kale and other crucifors retain much more of their nutritional value if steamed. Some say that steaming is even more beneficial that eating these leafy greens raw. 

 "Based on a very small number of studies looking specifically at collard greens, and a larger number of studies looking at cruciferous vegetables as a group (and including collard greens on the list of vegetables studied), cancer prevention appears to be a standout area for collard greens with respect to their health benefits.By providing us with such a great array of antioxidant nutrients, collard greens help lower our cancer risk by helping us avoid chronic and unwanted oxidative stress." Collard greens provide cardiovascular support due to their cholesterol lowering ability. The fiber content of collard greens—over 5 grams in every cup also makes this cruciferous vegetable a natural choice for digestive system support. They also provide high levels of Vitamin K, A, C, folate, manganese and calcium.

How did this deliciously sweet, incredibly nutritious and easy to make leafy green escape my frying pan all these years? Silly me!
When I made Bryant Terry's "Citrus Collards with Raisins Redux" , I fell in love with collards. I will post his recipe below.

The next time I saw collards at the local produce market at $1.99 for a huge bunch, I scoffed them up. I adapted Terry's recipe, omitting the orange juice and adding, what many a vegan considers "the other white meat",  Seitan.

I had never cooked with Seitan before. I would say that this was my virgin voyage with Seitan, but I would never consort with something so damn ugly. That's right, superficial me has avoided this wheat gluten product in great measure, because it looks , frankly like a horrible mess.

At 48 grams of protein, 2 grams of fat and 160 calories per 4 oz serving, Seitan is high in protein and low in calories and fat. And thanks, in part to my friend Linda's encouragement (she at one time had a very bad Tofurky jones) and Seitan cooking demo, I decided to attempt to wrestle the glutinous mass into something edible.

As I bravely grabbed a pair of tongs hanging off the side of a large vat of  the messy stuff, and attempted to fish one of the freaky shapes out of the murky water,  I was repulsed and shared this with one of the health food store worker guys as he sorted vegetables. "Yeah, he said, "looks like monkey brains". 
Somehow, about a pound of the stuff wound up in the plastic bag that  I wished wasn't see through. 

Once home and sitting on the kitchen counter, it instantly became an object of my teenaged daughter's revulsion. "What the h--l is that ?" , she demanded.  "Monkey brains", I snickered. 

Handling the stuff was no great treat to the tactile senses either. It was cold, slimy and soft. Eeewwww! I diced it up as quickly as possible and threw it in the pan in an effort to dispense with it ASAP. 

The recipe that follows was very quick and easy  came out great. Chopping the Seitan rather small helped to get it crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. It also nicely absorbed the other flavors in the pan.

Pan Seared Seitan and Collard Greens

16 oz Seitan, diced in 1/2" cubes
1 large bunch Collards, cut in chiffonade style
2 shallots, minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup raisins
1 Tbs Mirin
1/2-1 Tbs Tamari 
1/2 cup water

Sauté shallots and garlic for 3-5 min getting them soft.
Add Seitan and sauté another 3-5 min getting it a little brown.
Add collards, stir in Mirin and Tamari
Sauté a minute then add water, stir an cover
Let steam a few minutes then uncover and stir 
until greens are tender about 5 minutes more
Do not overcook greens. Remove from heat when
Greens are bright green color.

And here is Bryant Terry's Recipe:

More notes from a (Pot) Lucky Gal

On December 29th I turned 60. Probably in response to my persistent whining about this weird phenomenon, my family and friends  made it a wonderful  celebration.

A few dear women friends made a pot luck dinner in my honor at my friend Carrie's lovely and cozy abode. We gathered in front of the huge stone fireplace glowing with a roaring fire, to talk, drink, eat and laugh. (Now that I think of it, the book "Eat Pray Love" probably would have turned out much less corny if it had been called, "Eat Pray Laugh", instead of its (ahem) best selling title.)

No matter how you slice it, 60 is a big freakin number. It doesn't sound at all like the youthful lighthearted frolic that may describe a twenty something. And "60" certainly doesn't evoke the image of someone in the prime of life. It sounds kind of old, achy, creaky, just like I feel some days. "Sixty"  clashes terribly with my eternally cool and terminally adolescent self image. It's no comfort at all that Mick Jagger, Joni Mitchell, Bob  Dylan, are nearing 70!

And it occurred to me that all of us "children of the sixties" are now a part of one "genarian" group or other. We've all heard of septagenerian, octogenarian. I am now apparantly a "Sexagenerian"!  I love the prefix! Makes it sound like the sixties are gonna be a fun ride, N'est pas? Voulez vous couche avec moi?

So what to do? Shed my jeggings in favor of "mom jeans"? Trade in my hanky pankys for those 3 in a pack, oversized "cottonelle" briefs in pastel shades?  Will I wake up one morning to find that the least practical of my shoes have been replaced by a collection of Merrill clogs, Naturalizers and  White New Balance walkers? Will I find, upon glancing in the mirror, that my hair has been carefully shorn, coifed, and swept up and away from my face in a futile attempt to conteract the downward pull of gravity that supposedly plagues "the older woman" with long hair?

The answer to all of these questions is No, No No and NOOOOO....I will  don my hanky pankys, shop in stores with names like "Dig", wear cool high heeled shoes that may be hard to walk in, wear my hair long and wild, do yoga  every day and stalk up hills as fast as I can.  Most importantly, I will continue  to surround myself with great friends who are strong, creative, passionate, inspired and inspiring. And I will be as creative as possible, transforming my passion, angst, fear and joie de vivre into beautiful stuff, whether that is food or writing, or writing about food, or other creative endeavors, yet to be discovered.

As often happens at pot luck dinners, the elements of this dinner went together perfectly. This array of delicious dishes provides a perfect example of how a totally Vegan dinner can be completely satisfying and nutritious. I don't think anyone eating this luscious food would feel that they were missing something due to a lack of meat or cheese. I will list the menu here and post the recipes soon.

Whole wheat pasta W/Harissa, Kale and Pine Nuts
Root Vegetable Enchilada Wedge with Cashew Cream Sauce
Piquant Red Cabbage Salad
Green Salad

Chocolte Fudge Rose Cupcakes w/Chocolate Icing Lots of Wine :) (or not)

Thank you, all my dear, sweet friends and family. I love and treasure you. R

Simplicity at Home, Loving my Family With Tempeh

Now that the holidays are behind us (and this may literally be so, ie: stuck to our behinds, in the form of excess adipose tissue) it's time to get back to reality, to work, to school, to the serious business of life and to follow through on those resolutions to eat better, exercise more, spend less money and floss every night.

I went to a number of parties and we even hosted our own party over these last weeks of the holiday season and I enjoyed so much good food, drink and company, that I feel downright guilty about all the good times I have had. I can't wait to get back to the rigors of every day life...going to bed at 9PM, waking up at 5 AM, writing, going to work, an yes, making breakfast, lunch and dinner for my family.

Have I shared how much I love cooking for my family? Sometimes I don't even realize how much I love it but each day a chunk of my life is given over to the process of planning, buying and preparing food for my beloved husband and daughter. It's not a religious experience or anything. In fact it is quite ordinary, though far from mundane because they deserve so much more than mundane and I do my best to make each meal healthy, pleasing and tasty. And as often as possible, we sit together to enjoy a meal together. Cooking for my family is my daily expression of gratitude to them for putting up with me and all my quirks,farts and character blemishes. They love me anyway. They are my back bone. My home sweet home. My safe harbor. My light. My heart.

I would do anything for them but what I do for them mostly, is cook. It felt really good to cook dinner for them tonight after all the party food I've been making. I'll share what I made because it's one of our favorite simple meals.
Cornmeal Crusted Tempeh Triangles
Broccoli Rabe, sauteed in Olive Oli and Garlic
White Basmati Rice
Green Salad

I used to think that I didn't like Tempeh because of that gamey taste it can have if it isn't well prepared. Then I came across this recipe for Cornmeal Crusted Tempeh in the Candle Cafe Cookbook which included instructions on how to pre bake it as part of the preparation. While some cooks boil it, I prefer to bake it because the gamey taste disappears into the flavors of the marinade. The marinade can be altered according to the recipe it is being prepped for but I have found the marinade below to be flexible, lending itself to a variety of recipes.

Cornmeal Crusted Tempeh
2 pkgs tempeh
3-4 ginger slices
2 Tbs chopped garlic
1/2 cup tamari
1/4 cup water
3 Tbs Maple Syrup
1/3 c Mirin
1/4 c Rice Vinegar
1/2 c Cornmeal
1 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
1 tsp Chile Powder
1/2 tsp salt 4 Tbs Veg or Olive Oil
Pre heat oven to 350.
Combine garlic, ginger, maple syrup, water tamari
Cut each block of tempeh into 3 sections and place them into baking dish
Pour marinade over the Tempeh
Cover baking dish with foil and bake 45 minutes
Meanwhile, combine Mirin and rice vinegar in shallow bowl
Combine Cornmeal, red peppe flakes, chile powder and salt in shallow dish
When the tempeh is done and cool enough to handle, cut each section into triangles and slice each triangle in half crosswise making the tiangles thinner.
Heat the oil over medium heat in large (preferable Cast Iron) Skillet
Dredge each triangle in the mirin mix and then coat with cornmeal mix, carefully placing each triangle in the hot oil. (You may have to do this in a few batches)
Fry over medium heat, making sure the Tempeh triangles do not get scorched in the hot oil.
Keep dredging and frying ,and placing each triangle on paper towels to drain off excess oil.
I serve these Tempeh triangles with sliced avocado and it is also great in sandwiches, with tomato, avocado, letuce and veganaise on toast...a "TLT"!

Broccoli Rabe with Garlic and Olive Oil

1 large bunch Broccoli Rabe
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp Red Pepper flakes (optional)
2 Tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil

I always par boil Broccoli Rabe. Par boiling removes that extra bitter taste and produces a sweet quality that contrasts with its strong green flavor. Broccoli Rabe is one of my favorite vegetables yet I am often disappointed when I order it in a restaurant because it usually has that super bitter taste that this delightful green can have when its been sauteed without the parboiling step. So! After rinsing,trimming and cutting the Rabe very coursely into large pieces, place in boiling water for 2-3 minutes. Drain and rinse immediately in cold water. Heat the oil over low heat, add the garlic and red pepper flakes, if using, and add the Rabe. Saute for 5 minutes, allowing the garlic to cook and the Rabe to absorb the flavors in pan.