crack the plates

The final weeks of 2011 were good ones for the meal delivery. I aimed to show my enthusiasm and gratitude for my loyal clientele by putting together some prettier-than-usual food. Serenbe Farms made this easier by providing a complimentary share of produce for the first delivery.

Note: authors’ names are included because I value giving credit. I didn’t go to culinary school; everything I know about cooking I learned from others (mostly their cookbooks). As a creative and competent cook I rarely follow a recipe to the letter, but the hard work of the individuals listed form the foundation of & inspiration for “my” variations.

Tuesday 6 December – primarily local, almost totally organic, & completely vegan

Mains

• pumpkin cream farfalle with double “peas” (chickpeas and petits pois), a variation on EA’s recipe
• red beans and seitan bourguignonne (Robin Robertson, variation)
• Serenbe sweet potato stew
• crimson cabbage borscht (Myra Kornfeld)
• sweet chili lime tofu over lime-scented collards and cardamom quinoa (VeganYumYum)

Sides

• shaved local fennel, organic satsuma, and pomegranate salad (Myra Kornfeld)
• maple-braised carrots with sea salt and maple sugar
• string beans and pickled onions in agave-lemon-dijon vinaigrette (Peter Berley)
• creamy kenyan curried cabbage with peas
• Hungarian cabbage with noodles (Robin Robertson)

Other

• roasted delicata squash chowder “three sisters”-style with organic corn and pintos
• sanctuary dressing, from Appetite for Reduction by Isa Moskowitz
• Cowboy Cookies, from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar by Isa & Terry

Serenbe sweet potato stew

seitan and red beans bourguignonne

sweet chili lime tofu with lime-scented collards and cardamom quinoa

fennel, satsuma, pomegranate salad dressed with five-year-aged balsamic

string beans with pickled onions

crimson cabbage borscht featuring local beets & their greens

cowboy cookies

Tuesday 13 December – locally-sourced vegetables, 85%+ organic ingredients, totally vegan

Mains

• seitan pot roast with local vegetables (Robin Robertson, variation)
• red thai tofu with bok choy
• shepherd’s pie with tofu
• ye’miser w’et – red lentils in a spicy gravy (Kittee Berns)
• tempeh & locally, hardwood-grown shiitake stew (Bryant Terry)

Sides

• roasted delicata squash
• nepalese green beans with coconut and mustard seeds (Bryanna Clark Grogan, World Vegan Feast)
• Christmas couscous: with dried cranberries and pepitas
• ethiopian cabbage, featuring handmade berbere and nitter kibbeh
• local beets with their greens in a five-year-aged balsamic reduction (Peter Berley)

Other

• chick’n noodle soup
• balsamic dressing
• chocolate chip cookies

locally log-grown shiitakes from organic Love is Love Farm; organic shallots, organic leeks

tempeh shiitake stew, a modification of Bryant Terry's recipe from Vegan Soul Kitchen

another view of this sumptuous stew.

ye-miser w'et: Kittee Berns' ethiopian lentils in a spicy red gravy. made with homemade nitter kibbeh (seasoned "butter") and berbere (wet spice mix)

red thai tofu with local bok choi

parting with these four bowls was slightly difficult, as the recipe was one of the best I've made all year.

prep for the beets: red onions, beets, beet greens; tarragon.

vegan pot roast, or, one of the most delicious things ever.

four sides: nepalese green beans, aged balsamic beets, nitter kibbeh cabbage, christmas couscous with pepitas "presents".

I’m looking forward to resuming cooking-for-my-friends again soon. Crack the Plates is a deeply fulfilling exercise, one that gives me purpose and the ability to work with some of the finest ingredients in Atlanta, in the service of truly delightful people. The last four months of 2011 were an experiment: a gamble on something new and wild and exciting. Pushing through made me a stronger, more creative cook and a more organized person. With this teaspoon of experience I welcome the challenges and joys of 2012.

Because I went to bed last night and woke up this morning with some severe stomach cramps, I decided to take today easy with light meals. No-chix noodle takes a little bit of effort, but I figured it was worth it to make my favorite soup on a day when I’m feeling so crummy. It always lifts my spirits and doesn’t cost all that much to make–especially considering what it yields. (And besides, I couldn’t very well go buy a can of Amy’s at nearly $3 a pop during NoMoCoFo, now could I?)

Ardent readers will re-call an earlier post devoted to this dish; tonight’s recipe probably wasn’t much different. Since I didn’t do the world’s best job explaining how I made it then, here’s a little guidance in the event you’d like to re-create it:

• Chop a bunch of onions, garlic, carrots and celery
• Sautee these vegetables in your cast-iron skillet with some organic herbs of choice (I pinch dried Frontier marjoram, basil, oregano, and thyme. Mostly marjoram and thyme.)
• Prepare a big pot of broth (about half-full to accomodate all the add-ins); put the burner on high to get it boiling
• Add the vegetables to the broth; bring to a boil; add a couple cups of frozen cooked chickpeas and a couple ounces of soba noodles, broken into small bits
• Meanwhile, have some large-chunk TVP reconstituting in broth in your microwave; it takes about 7 minutes in mine; check half-way to make sure there’s plenty of broth to do the job
• Once the TVP has cooled, chop it into bite-sized pieces; dump it into your hot skillet and season with tamari or Bragg’s and about a 1/3 cup nutritional yeast
• Dump seasoned TVP into pot, bring up to temperature
• Serve and enjoy!

Of course, I’m always up for questions if you do find you need help.

For dessert we mined a pomegranate for its bizarre corn-like jewels. Nate’s first time = adorable bewilderment.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, the proper way to eat a pomegranate is decadently, i.e., by the handful.