Low Calorie Density « Low Fat Vegan Cooking

June 12, 2010

Curried Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Salad

Filed under: Gluten Free, Higher Calorie Density, Indian Cuisine, Low Calorie Density, Salads, Side Dishes — Tags: cauliflower, curry, low fat, salad, summer, vegan — admin @ 1:03 am

Curried Cauliflower and Sweet Potato with Currants and Red Onion

Curried Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Salad

This is another adaptation in my attempt to learn to present my cooking more attractively.

I really loved this salad, and as i always do, i made enough for the next day too. But overnight in the frig did not improve it. The onion “cooked” in the vinegar, a flavor i love in pressed salad, but it did not go at all with the curry spices. So that’s why i am saying serve it the day you make it. It needs to sit an hour or two for the curry to flavor the cauliflower, but that’s all.

The recipe called for currants. I thought i didn’t like them, and have been substituting raisins for any currants i come across in recipes for years, but i decided to try them again, just to be sure, and i loved them. The organic ones i tried were sweeter than raisins and didn’t have the annoying little seeds i remembered.

I also recommend the optional toasted pine nuts and sunflower seeds. They really add beauty and flavor to the salad. Sunflower seeds are another food i thought i didn’t like, except for in granola. I figured out this is because they are toasted – it makes all the difference.

Makes 4 servings

Preparation about 15 minutes

Serve within a few hours

The veggies:

1 head cauliflower, any color

1 small red onion

2 medium sweet potatoes

The dressing:

½ c. rice vinegar

2 T. vegan sugar

2 t. curry powder, hot or mild

½ t. salt (optional)

1/8 t. ground black pepper

The currants:

½ c. currants

The garnishes (optional):

½ c. toasted pine nuts

¼ c. toasted sunflower seeds

½ c. chopped cilantro

Early in the day, bake or microwave the sweet potatoes until quite soft and tender. Cool. Peel and chop into bite sized pieces.

Cut the cauliflower into florets, or half florets, if they are not bite sized. Steam the cauliflower in or over boiling water about 4 minutes, until just tender. Drain.

Meanwhile, mince the onion, and start the dressing:

Mix the ingredients for the dressing together in a small bowl.

Put the cauliflower, onion, sweet potatoes, and currants into a bowl or storage container. Pour the dressing over this and mix well but carefully so as not to damage the florets.

Refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Sprinkle with the pine nuts, sunflower seeds, and chopped cilantro, if using.

Adapted from Great Chefs Cook Vegan by Linda Long

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June 5, 2010

Gazpacho

Filed under: Gluten Free, Higher Calorie Density, Low Calorie Density, Soups, Spanish Cuisine — Tags: cold soup, gazpacho, low fat, soup, Soups, summer, tomato, vegan, vegetables, zucchini — admin @ 1:04 am

Gazpacho with Tomato, Cucumber, Zucchini, Celery, and Scallions

Gazpacho

Gazpacho is one of the few dishes from my childhood that is vegan, and the way my mother made it, low fat.

I think of it as soon as the days start to lengthen and warm up.

I have heard this called “salad in a soup,” and it certainly is raw veggies like a salad. I prefer them chopped, as i first had it, although many people prefer gazpacho completely pureed. Of course, you get more fiber if you don’t blend the whole thing, and the soup will fill you more for fewer calories.

You can use fresh tomatoes if they are in season, and blend them with herbs before you add the other vegetables, or you can use tomato juice. (Or both!) If you are doing this, it’s nice to put in some chopped celery, which doesn’t seem to fit in the soup with the other chopped vegetables, but adds a nice taste if pureed.

(Note: For the last decade, i have been sensitive to canned tomatoes. I get uncomfortable and sometimes have an itchy throat. Once i was making a large pan of tomato sauce and it splashed on my arms and left little red marks and heat, like chicken pox). I am fine with fresh tomatoes, so i thought it must be something in the canning process. I eventually thought to try organic canned tomatoes and got no reaction. I then learned that most tomatoes are peeled with lye, but not organic tomatoes, and i wondered if that could be it. I’ve had canned tomatoes in a dish made away from home a few times, and had the same reactions. Anyway, i would recommend organic tomato juice if you plan to use juice.)

I have lately decided that dry minced garlic gives a less strong, raw taste, which i don’t mind, but try to avoid if i’m going to be around other people. I use about ¼ t. dry minced garlic per clove of garlic called for in a recipe if it’s not going to be cooked.

Other vegetables can certainly be added, or subtracted, depending on your taste, and what you have on hand. You probably don’t want anything too crunchy or stringy unless you are going to puree it in a Vita Max type blender.

You will see that i include Italian herbs in the recipe, although the soup originated in Spain. (Would you know what i meant if i said Spanish herbs? I’d have to look it up.) There it was often made with stale cubes of bread, which you might want to try. (Personally, i don’t like soggy bread.)

Gazpacho

Makes about 4 servings

Preparation about 30 minutes

Can be made ahead

4 large tomatoes, pureed or 2 c. tomato juice

1 large cucumber

2 small zucchini

1 large red pepper

1 avocado (optional)

4 scallions

½ c. fresh minced Italian type herbs, such as basil, thyme, sage, marjoram, and/or oregano

2 T. red wine or balsamic vinegar

2 T. lemon juice

1 clove garlic, minced or pressed (or dry minced garlic)

5 – 25 drops Tabasco

Garnish: fresh herb leaves

Chop all the vegetables into small dice, about ¼ inch x ¼ inch. Mix with the rest of the ingredients and allow to marinate in the refrigerator 2 – 24 hours.

Garnish with a few fresh herb leaves.

Thanks Mom.

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Three Bean Salad

Filed under: American Cuisine, Gluten Free, Low Calorie Density, Salads — Tags: beans, low fat, salad, summer, three bean salad, vegan, vegetables, vinaigrette — admin @ 1:03 am

Three Bean Salad with Green, Garbanzo, and Kidney Beans and Grape Tomato and Cucumber

Three Bean Salad

This is more of a reminder than a recipe for something new to most of you. Three bean salad, which most of us Americans know from our childhood, is usually vegan, and can easily be low fat.

Three Bean Salad is something we can put together quickly, although it improves if it sits and marinates for a few hours or overnight. If you don’t just make it and eat it, be sure to stir it up every time you get a chance. Low fat salad dressings never stick as well as those with oil in them, but this can easily be remedied by a little stirring, and isn’t that worth missing a lot of calories? My old recipe called for ¾ c. olive oil – that’s 1440 more calories, or 2 T. per small serving (which is 120 calories). You can have almost a whole cup more salad for those calories and that will fill you up better and make you healthier.

I am in love with balsamic vinegar, and think it is perfect with Three Bean Salad, although any vinegar will do – red wine, apple cider, champagne, even raspberry, although that last would not be to everyone’s taste.

As the word salad is in the name of this recipe, i think it calls for salad vegetables, although you often see it served with just green beans as any kind of light low calorie vegetable in it, and not a lot of those!

A typical can of beans has about 1 ½ c. of beans in it. If you look at the label, it will tell you there is more, but they seem to be counting the bean juice, which many of us believe causes gas, and in any case is not going to be a part of this recipe. I like to cook my own beans, and not have the extra salt, but i usually use canned beans (which can be washed to get rid of some of the salt), so i can throw together a quick meal, with nuked (microwaved) potatoes or popcorn (spritzed with a little water so the salt or seasoning sticks) and some fruit.

Of course if you are not trying to stand out as a vegan, you can take this to many potlucks and picnics and eat a lot of it and a little bit of whatever else you can find that doesn’t make you ill… French bread? Green salad (you could bring your own fat free dressing)? Baked potatoes? Corn on the Cob?

Many recipes vary the beans with black beans, cannellini, white, and also wax beans mixed with the green beans. All of these are interesting and worth pursuing, but this is the classic recipe which you can’t go wrong with.

Three Bean Salad

Makes about 4 servings

Preparation about 15 minutes

Marinate 5 – 24 hours (refrigerate if time allows)

Freezing changes the texture of the beans in a way i don’t like

The Beans:

1 ½ c. garbanzo beans, drained

1 ½ c. kidney beans, drained

3 c. green beans, cooked and drained, or raw, chopped

½ – 1 onion, preferably red (about ¾ c.)

The Dressing:

½ c. vinegar, red wine, balsamic, or champagne

½ t. ground paprika

1 t. Dijon mustard

1 t. sugar (optional)

½ t. salt (optional and unnecessary if the beans are canned with salt)

2 T. water (optional for those who find full-strength vinegar too much)

The Salad Vegetables:

4 c. lettuces

1 c. tomatoes, chopped

1 c. cucumber, diced

Mix the beans and onion. Mix the dressing well to dissolve the sugar and add to the beans. Marinate 5 – 1440 minutes.

Serve over salad vegetables as above or of your choice.

Nutritional information – not guaranteed to be accurate:

Per Serving – 185 calories/9 g protein (19.4%)/1.5 g fat (7.2%)

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May 22, 2010

Japanese Stew

Filed under: Gluten Free, Japanese Cuisine, Low Calorie Density, Main Dishes — admin @ 1:05 am

Japanese Stew with Carrot, Daikon Radish, Burdock, Cauliflower, and Onion

Japanese Stew

One of my first vegetarian cookbooks was Tassajara Cooking by Edward Espe Brown. I read it a lot, and though i never made many of the recipes, it helped me to feel creative in the kitchen, to try things, and see what happens. When i came upon a copy after several years away from it, i burst into tears, thinking of those early years of cooking a then totally new cuisine. Yeah, well, i love cookbooks, but none ever made me do that before. So i still own a copy, and looking at it makes me smile.

This Japanese Stew seemed a little less wintery than my traditional Irish type stew with potatoes and hardy vegetables. Here also are root vegetables, but they are Japanese type vegetables, and seasoned with kombu and miso or tamari. This stew would be good of course on a cold day, but it would also be good on a summer evening with a cool breeze, especially after a day at the beach or sailing.

Miso is said to be very good for us, and you are only supposed to add it at the last moment, and never cook it, which would kill the good Lactobacillus acidophilus or whatever it is that makes people feel healthier, get over hangovers, and even heal from radiation poisoning. However, Mr. Brown puts it in the stew and bakes it. After hesitating several times, i decided that it would flavor the stew quite differently if it were baked with it, so i put it in. It did make a savory sauce, which was different than miso added at the last, but either way would be good, or you can add tamari.

Kombu is flat greenish brown seaweed that gives a salty seafood kind of taste to food. I cut mine up with a pair of kitchen shears into tiny pieces. The first time you cook with it, you might want to use a small piece to see if you like it. We Americans largely didn’t grow up with seaweed, and although i have liked it since my first bite, i find some of my friends find it too strange. But give it a try, especially if as a vegan you liked seafood but never thought to have it again. This is the flavor that satisfies that seafood desire for me.

You can also try wakame, hijiki, or dulse seaweed, or kelp powder.

The vegetables can vary, depending on what you can find. I like burdock, but i couldn’t find it when i made this. I also like daikon radish, but too much gives a strong cooked radish flavor. I also cut it up fairly small, and it gave just the right flavor to the stew. If you have to buy a big daikon, and don’t want to use it all in the stew, it’s good in salad or with a plate of relishes. Grated daikon salad with rice vinegar really sets off the taste of sushi or miso soup.

Makes 4 servings

Preparation about 45 minutes

Can be made ahead

Freezes well

4 inch piece of kombu

2 c. vegetable broth or water

1 large onion (about 1 ½ c. sliced)

4 carrots (about 2 ½ c. sliced)

4 inches medium daikon radish (about 3/4 c. sliced)

2 burdock roots

1 head cauliflower

1 bunch kale, any kind

2 T. or more miso or low sodium tamari

Cut up the kombu into small pieces and cook in the broth about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, get out a big casserole with a lid. Slice the onion, and peel and slice the carrot, daikon radish, and burdock. Put everything in the casserole as you finish slicing it.

Chop the cauliflower into pieces similar in size to the carrot and other roots. Remove the center stem from the kale, and chop. Add these to the casserole.

Stir the miso or tamari into the kombu broth. Pour over the vegetables and mix.

Bake 1 hour at 350°, or until the thickest pieces are tender. It’s tastier if you stir it several times, but the lid will help circulate the flavors. With the long cooking time and nothing that needs the full heat to seal in the flavors, you can turn on the oven when you put the stew in it.

There you have it – a simple, filling stew. Serve with bread or brown rice.

A nice dessert if it’s the right time of year is honeydew melon. Many Japanese people are nuts about melon. They sometimes sell for more money than a whole restaurant meal!

Adapted from Miso Stew in Tassajara Cooking by Edward Espe Brown

Nutritional information – not guaranteed to be accurate:

Per serving: 157 calories/7.8 g protein (19.8%)/1.5 g fat (8.4%)

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May 8, 2010

Black and White Bean Soup

Filed under: Gluten Free, Low Calorie Density, Soups — admin @ 1:04 am

Black Bean and Butter Bean Soup with Tomato Lemon and Herbs

Black and White Bean Soup

I wanted to try a soup recipe from my favorite cook, Lauren Ulm. I bought a can of butter beans for it, but when it came time to start cooking, i realized it was not enough. I generally spend a couple of hours cooking midday for lunch, breakfast the next day, lunch for my husband the next day, supper for Mellon, our dog, and starch and salad or raw veggies for my supper. Then breakfast and supper go pretty fast to just heat up and cut some fruit. So i need to make enough for at least two meals for myself (my husband doesn’t like most of my cooking so i just make him a plain vegetable). I also cook enough during the week to have some of the weekend cooking done, so i can work with my husband on our handmade, unfinished house in the mountains. Got all that? So i needed more beans. Hey, i thought, instead of just a white bean, how about a black and white bean soup? I got out a can of black beans and made the soup. Then i Googled black and white soup, and i guess it is no surprise that i was not the first to think of it. Anyway, here’s my version.

If you want, the soup is nice with some dense bread cut up and used as croutons, or toasted bread croutons. You don’t need oil, just toast the bread. Exquisite croutons would be from a Scarborough Fair or other herbed bread.

I prefer fresh herbs, which are easy to buy where we live. If you can’t find, or grow, fresh herbs, you can use dried herbs. Any of the savory Italian type herbs would be good in this soup. With fresh herbs, you don’t want to overcook them, but with dry herbs, you want them to release their good flavor, so put them in at the start of the soup.

Any kale is good. My favorite is dino kale. For this soup, i had red winter kale, so i used that.

Makes 4 small servings

Preparation about 45 minutes

Can be made ahead

Freezes well

2 c. vegetable broth or water

2 T. or less depending on salty seasoning used: bouillon, tamari, or Braggs liquid aminos

1 large onion (about 1 1/2c chopped)

2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

1 ½ c. white beans (cannellini, butter beans, navy beans, white beans, etc.) or 1 14 oz. can, drained

1 ½ c. black beans, or 1 14 oz. can, drained

1 bunch kale, chopped into bite sized pieces

¼ c. fresh or 1 T. dried thyme

¼ c. fresh or 1 T. dried sage

¼ c. fresh or 1 T. dried oregano

2 tomatoes, chopped

1 T. lemon juice

Cook the onions and garlic in the broth and salty seasoning about 5 minutes after the broth comes to a boil. Add the beans, kale, and herbs and cook about 5 minutes until kale in tender but bright green. Add the tomatoes and lemon juice, stir, cover, and turn the heat off. Let the soup sit about 5 minutes to soften the tomatoes.

Serve with whole wheat or gluten free bread croutons, toasted, if desired.

Adapted from Cannellini Bean Soup with Pan-Fried Croutons from the wonderful Lauren Ulm’s Vegan Yum Yum.

Nutritional information – not guaranteed to be accurate:

Per Serving – 259 calories/15.6 g protein (24.1%)/1 g fat (3.6%)

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May 1, 2010

Hummus Dressing

Filed under: Gluten Free, Low Calorie Density, Middle Eastern Cuisine, Salads — admin @ 1:03 am

Hummus Dressing on a Salad of Grated Zucchini, Carrot, and Jicama with Tomatoes

Hummus Dressing

This is for my friend Heidi who wanted a creamy dressing but maybe not with tofu… so beans! Any bean would be good in this, i think. I saw a black bean hummus recipe i want to try! But i would have made this with white beans if i had them.

The main difference between this dressing and regular hummus is that this has more vinegar and lemon. You could also use water if you didn’t want such a tart flavor, or if you want the dressing to be thinner.

I usually give the ingredients for 4 servings, but in this case, the recipe serves 6, because 2 cans of drained garbanzos is 3 cups, and i thought most of us would be using canned garbanzos. I actually went back and put another half cup on my salad after the photo, which gave me my full day’s serving of beans.

Makes 6 normal servings of about ½ c. or 3 large servings

Preparation about 15 minutes

Can be made ahead

Freezes well

3 c. drained garbanzo beans

½ c. lemon juice

½ c. red wine vinegar

2 t. ground cumin

1 t. ground paprika

½ c. finely chopped scallions (about 5 medium scallions)

1/8 t. or more ground black pepper

Put everything in a food processor or blender. You might have to add some water in the blender.

Serve on a salad and garnish, if desired, with chopped scallions and/or paprika.

Hope you enjoy it, Heidi!

As usual, i looked up what i was cooking on Google, and i found that everything in the meal was Middle Eastern, more or less!

Nutritional information – not guaranteed to be accurate:

Per Serving – 96 calories/ 7.5 g protein (31.3%)/1.3 g fat (12.2%)

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April 24, 2010

Ten Green Things Soup

Filed under: Gluten Free, Low Calorie Density, Soups — admin @ 1:04 am

Ten Greens Soup

Ten Green Things Soup

In my two low fat vegan discussion groups, i recently read a couple of different people talking about Green Soup. I had never had it, though i had read about it, and i decided to try my own version of it, and got several different green things to put in it. Then i Googled it and found the soup was pureed. I may have known that, but it is not what i had in mind for this soup. In my version, you can still see the different green things that make up the soup.

I include fresh marjoram, but in actual fact, i have never had it, as i cannot find it in the stores, but perhaps you have a garden… I used dried marjoram and the rest of the herbs fresh.

Makes about 8 c. total, or 4 -2 c. servings

Preparation about 60 minutes

Can be made ahead

Freezes well

4 c. vegetable broth

2 T. low sodium tamari or bouillon for 4 c. liquid

1 bunch kale, dino or red winter, about 3 c. chopped

1 bunch chard, about 2 c. chopped

2 stalks broccoli, about 2 c. chopped

2 medium zucchinis, about 1 c. chopped

4 stalks celery, about 1 c. chopped

1 onion

¼ c. fresh or 1 T. dried basil

¼ c. fresh or 1 T. dried marjoram

¼ c. fresh or 1 T. dried rosemary

¼ c. fresh or 1 T. dried thyme

½ c. scallions, thinly sliced

Have ready and warm (optional):

4 large potatoes, cooked and chopped, or

4 c. cooked brown rice or

3 c. cooked quinoa

Put the broth in a large pan with the onion, and cook about 10 minutes after the water comes to a boil (about 7 minutes on my stove), then turn off the burner until you are done chopping the vegetables, so the water doesn’t reduce any more.

Wash and chop all the vegetables and herbs. I put them in a large bowl as they were finished, to get them out of the way.

Put all the vegetables and herbs, except the scallions and a few sprigs of any fresh herbs, in the onion broth and cook about 7 minutes, until they are wilted, but not overcooked.

Add the starch of your choice, if any, and mix.

Serve garnished with the scallions and sprigs of fresh herbs. Zucchini Bread is good with this, and has green in it, too.

Nutritional information – not guaranteed to be accurate:

Per serving without starch – 107 calories/6.7 g protein (24.8%)/.9 g fat (7.5%)

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April 10, 2010

Potato Corn Chowder

Filed under: Low Calorie Density, Main Dishes, Mexican Cuisine, Soups — admin @ 1:04 am

Potato Corn Chowder with Red Pepper, Chilies, Broccoli, and Carrot

Potato Corn Chowder

A simple soup sometimes is more satisfying than a complex dinner, and this is the case with this Mexican influenced chowder. I made it without thinking that my husband would like it, but, as i usually do, i gave him a bite to taste, and he quite liked it, which surprised me, as he does not like plain boiled potatoes, let alone anything mixed up. But, Ah! The difference here is wonderful!

Makes 4 small servings

Preparation about 45 minutes

Can be made ahead

2 c. vegetable broth

1 onion

2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

2 c. potato, chopped

1 ½ c. fresh or frozen corn

¼ c. fresh or canned chilies, mild or hot

1 carrot

1 red pepper

1 stalk broccoli

¼ c. fresh basil

Chop onions, and cook them with the garlic and potatoes in the vegetable broth about 10 minutes, until the onions are tender and translucent.

Meanwhile, chop the rest of the veggies into bite sized pieces, and if necessary, cut the corn off the cob. Put the corn, chilies, carrots, peppers, and broccoli in with the onions, garlic, and potatoes and cook about 5 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and the potato is done.

Add the basil, and serve.

You might want to serve this with warm tortillas or no-fat corn chips.

Adapted from Chipotle Potato Corn Chowder from Vegan Yum Yum Cookbook by Lauren Ulm.

Nutritional information – not guaranteed to be accurate:

Per Serving – 195 calories/6.7 g protein (13.6%)/2.4 g fat (2.7%)

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March 27, 2010

Not Sizzling Rice Soup

Filed under: Chinese Cuisine, Gluten Free, Low Calorie Density, Soups — admin @ 1:05 am

: Not-Sizzling Rice Soup with Bok Choy, Mushrooms, Daikon Radish, and Scallions

Not Sizzling Rice Soup

Have you ever noticed that after the rice sizzles into Sizzling Rice Soup, it tastes pretty much like plain rice? But without the hearty goodness of brown rice, of course.

In going through the list of every Chinese dish we have ever had, i remembered the several times we had Sizzling Rice Soup, and wondered just what was in it, besides hot fried rice? Well, chicken broth, that’s ubiquitous in Chinese soups. But, i found from Googling several recipes, nothing much substantial. And what taste delight is the soggy rice a minute after it is in the soup? A little grease floats on the top of the bowl. So what, big deal! (Quote from Buckaroo Banzai).

Are the calories and health risk worth a little fancy presentation, often by a bored waiter?

I set out to make a good rice soup. It ended up fairly plain, nourishing but nothing to remember when you list your favorite dishes late at night… But, hey, a lot better than anything you get at a restaurant, and it has the goodness of brown rice.

So if you want a fast hot bowl of soup, that keeps well, and goes down easily, here it is.

From The China Study i know that in the countryside, many people eat a similar soup to mine, with rice and vegetables, and no added fat or meat. I often wonder just how much of any of the common dishes we get at a good Chinese restaurant in America would be familiar at all to the majority of people who live in China?

The other day we were eating at a busy Chinese Restaurant. Plate after plate went by, loaded with meat, and usually a few vegetables. Some plates had only a small garnish of vegetables, which from what i observed was not even eaten. Maybe people eat like this in the cities of China, but i think of all that meat as Americanized Chinese Food.

Not Sizzling Rice Soup

Makes 4 servings

Preparation about 35 minutes

Can be made ahead

Freezes well

4 cloves garlic

6 c. water or vegetable broth

2 packets Savory Delight Bouillon or bouillon for 2 c. liquid (optional)

1 T. low sodium tamari

24 white mushrooms

1/8 t. or more white pepper

4 t. sugar (optional)

8 inch piece of daikon radish

8 medium bok choy, or another choy

1 c. water chestnuts, preferable fresh

1 c. sliced bamboo shoots

4 c. cooked brown rice

8 scallions, sliced thinly

Bring the water to a boil in a large pot, while you slice the mushrooms. Add the mushrooms, garlic, tamari, white pepper, and optional sugar. Cook over medium heat at least 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, grate the daikon radish. Peel the water chestnuts, if fresh, or open a can or two of them and slice if necessary, and also slice the bamboo shoots, if you need to. Wash the choy carefully and slice thinly. The solid stem is edible, crunching something like celery.

Add the water chestnuts and bamboo shoots, and cook about 10 more minutes.

Add the choy and daikon and cook about 5 minutes.

Add the rice.

Garnish with sliced scallions.

You may want to add more rice if this is your only dish for the meal.

A salad of grated daikon radish and carrot with a little rice vinegar and sugar might go well with the soup.

This recipe was helpful.

Nutritional information – not guaranteed to be accurate:

Per serving – 338 calories/12.1 g protein 14.3%)/3.2 g fat (8.5%)

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March 17, 2010

Colcannon – Mashed Potatoes and Kale

Filed under: Gluten Free, Holidays, Irish Cuisine, Low Calorie Density, Main Dishes — admin @ 1:05 am

Colcannon - Irish Mashed Potatoes and Kale

Colcannon – Irish Mashed Potatoes and Kale

My mother celebrated all the traditional holidays, and some not so traditional, like Japanese Boys Day. When i left home, at first, i didn’t celebrate much of anything for a few years, but then i started celebrating in a small way, and on the major holidays i have at least a special meal. For years, my St. Patrick’s Day meal was a stew with Irish soda bread and apple pie (the true Irish love apple pie, or so i’m told). But this year, in the wonderful Vegan Yum Yum, i read about Colcannon for the first time, and i knew i had to try that. It’s a very simple dish that you could picture on many a country table, but it’s really delicious.

Colcannon

Makes 4 servings

Preparation about 45 minutes

Best served as soon as it’s done, but try reheating it in the oven

Potatoes do not freeze well – they get watery

6 large potatoes

1 large onion

4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

2 bunches kale

¼ c fresh or 1 T. dried thyme

1 packet vegan bouillon for 1 c. liquid or Braggs or ½ t. salt

¼ c. nutritional yeast

½ c. vegan milk

As Colcannon is best served as soon as it’s done, it’s best to get the rest of the meal ready before you start – a salad, fruit, the table set, etc. Or you could get everything ready to cook and then do the cooking at about 25 minutes before you plan to eat.

Wash and chop the potatoes, with or without the skins. Cook the potatoes in a pot with water just covering them about 15 minutes or until tender but not mushy. Drain well in a colander.

Chop the onion and cook it and the garlic in ½ c. water until just tender, about 7 minutes. The water should be mostly absorbed, but that’s fine – you don’t need much water to cook the kale, although you might need to add a little if there isn’t a couple of tablespoons.

Meanwhile wash the kale (i usually put it in a big pan or bowl, and swish it around in three changes of water – you do not want any grit in your greens!) Lay the kale leaves one at a time on a cutting board and cut out the center stems. I usually slice down the leaf on either side of the stem and remove it, then slice down each leaf half so you have four long leaves. I then set the leaves aside until i have three or four stacked up, and then i chop the stack up and put it into the pan. Repeat until all the leaves are chopped up, and then put them in the pan with the now cooked onions and garlic. Cook about 3 minutes until bright green and just tender.

Add the bouillon or other salty seasoning, the thyme, and the nutritional yeast, and stir them in. Add the potatoes and about ¼ c. vegan milk, stir, and then mash. You could heat the vegan milk if you want to keep the dish piping hot. I love my potato masher, which makes easy work of the mashing, but a fork will do in a pinch. Add more vegan milk until you have the potatoes more or less mashed. The mashing will help stir the ingredients together, too.

Serve as soon as you can.

Adapted from Colcannon by the very good cook Lauren Ulm.

Nutritional information – not guaranteed to be accurate:

Per serving – 461 calories/20.1 g protein (17.4%)/2.3 g fat (4.5%)

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