VeggieTalk

Even something as ordinary as dried fruit looks so enticing when it’s displayed in Paris. No, I did not slip off to Paris for the weekend. I took this photo at Le Grand Epicerie, a food paradise in the Montparnasse district of Paris on one of my last trips (these photos bring back such pleasant memories … ).

I just made one of my sons’ favorite dried fruit concoctions, and as fresh seasonal fruit dwindles down to apples, pears, Asian pears, and bananas for the winter, and this got me thinking about upping our intake of dried fruits.

Can anyone explain to me why dried fruits so high in iron? Why do nutrients become so concentrated once fruits are dessicated? If Meanwhile, I do know that dried fruits are an excellent source of the aforementioned iron, as well as calcium and potassium. Generally, they are high in vitamins A and C, too. And finally, they add a lovely twist to baked goods, pilafs, and even salads. Before any kind of road trip, long or short, I always make a quick mix of nuts and dried fruits.

The following recipe for faux “truffles” has long been a much-loved snack around here, mainly for the boys, but my husband and I like them too, in smaller measure. They’re almost like raw candies, made with dried fruit, chocolate chips, nut butter, and ground flaxseeds and/or wheat germ. They taste wonderful, but are not as photogenic as the above display of dried fruit!

This recipe is adapted from The Vegetarian Family Cookbook. Like all simple recipes, it is open to interpretation and adaptation. I just LOVED all of the wonderful ideas for varying hummus in the previous posts, so if you have any great ways to use dried fruits, please share!

Chocolate-Nut Butter “Truffles”

Makes about 16

• 1/3 cup natural peanut butter, cashew butter, or almond butter
• 1/3 cup dried fruit (raisins, apricots, or dates)
• 2 tablespoons wheat germ or ground flaxseed
• 1/3 cup grain-sweetened nondairy chocolate chips
• Pinch of cinnamon, optional

Combine all the ingredients in a food processor. If desired, add 2 tablespoons ground flaxseeds. Process until completely combined (some chocolate chips are stubborn about breaking up completely; it’s OK for these to be chunky).

Shape into small balls, not more than one inch in diameter, and refrigerate for 30 minutes or so, until firmed up, then serve.

This past weekend, I took my older son Adam on a trip to look at colleges in Amherst, MA. The Amherst-Northampton area is home to the 5 College Consortium (consisting of U Mass, Amherst, Hampshire, Smith, and Mt. Holyoke—a kind of paradise for us northeastern liberal types) and is in general, a very cool, progressive area.

Two of my good “food buddies” live in the area. Leslie Cerier, a vegetarian caterer, cooking instructor, and the author of several books, most recently Going Wild in the Kitchen, put us up for the night. Pictured above, a tofu chocolate mousse pie with teff crust, which she made for dessert in this pretty pie plate that I really liked. Of course, I really liked the pie, too—the crust is prebaked (you can use any favorite crust) and filled with chocolate mousse made of 1 pound pureed silken tofu and 1 3/4 cups melted vegan chocolate chips. What could be simpler? By the way, Going Wild in the Kitchen is a really lovely vegetarian cookbook, filled with innovative recipes. It has not gotten the recognition it deserves. It’s a fun book to use, warm and friendly, and most of all, the recipes are easy to make yet quite delicious. I love her blueberry cornbread!

After a brief visit to Amherst College, which did not excite Adam very much (too preppy and traditional for him), we met my friend Reed Mangels and her family for a picnic lunch on the grounds of a school where her 11-year-old daughter was playing soccer. Reed is the nutrition advisor to the Vegetarian Resource Group, a lecturer at U Mass, and a writer specializing in vegetarian nutrition (she also wrote a great foreword for my Vegetarian Family Cookbook), among other accomplishments. She laid out an tasty spread, highlighted by these “tea rolls” pictured above. Sorry about the funky photo; a menacing shadow fell across the rolls just as I took the shot! These are unusual rice rolls filled delectably with pad Thai; curried rice and tofu; lettuce, carrot, and bean-thread noodles; and a few others I can’t describe. Wow, were these tasty! I’ve really never had anything like them, as they were not quite like rice paper rolls; a little less delicate, a bit more substantial, and altogether a smashing treat. They were from a place called Fresh Side on Amity Street in Amherst.

If Adam ends up in Amherst (he especially loved Hampshire College), it would be comforting for me, with these two friends nearby. Ironically, Leslie’s daughter is looking at colleges in my area. So I told her that if she ends up here, we can be Guest Moms for each other’s college kids.

OK, this is my last post on the Israel-Europe trip, then it’s back to the present moment, a place in which I spend very little time. Amsterdam is host to a number of Indonesian restaurants (Indonesia was once a Dutch colony), and we were informed that a rijkstaffel (“rice table”) meal would be a memorable experience. For rijkstaffel, one pays a set price for the number of people; a big bowl of rice is served with lots of little dishes. We dined at Long Pura, Rozengracht 46-48. The boys were especially keen on the golden sautéed tofu on skewers with a thick, really rich peanut sauce (we had to get seconds on that one—see the dish at center, top with the magenta orchid).

Once home, I just had to make that one. I tried to faithfully reproduce the flavors of the sauce, though I’m sure that the following recipe is not authentic. But if it tastes good, and it’s easy and quick, that’s what matters to me. I cut extra-firm tofu into triangles, blotted very well, then sautéed it in a very small amount of oil (no need for too many added calories, as I’m sure the peanut sauce has plenty!). Once the tofu was cool enough to handle, I threaded it onto skewers, and on each plate, I placed one skewer of tofu on a small bed of cooked bean-thread noodles, and piled on the sauce. It got raves from the family and brought us briefly back to Amsterdam!

This sauce can be used to top sautéed tofu or tempeh, and it’s also good with noodles.

Rich Peanut Sauce

Makes about 2 cups

Look for Thai chili paste in the international food section in supermarkets and natural foods stores. I use the Thai kitchen brand.

• 1 cup crunchy natural peanut butter
• 3 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 2 1/2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1/4 cup natural granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon Thai red chili paste

Combine all the ingredients in the container of a food processor with 1/2 cup water. Process until smoothly combined.

Transfer to a small saucepan and heat until at a gentle simmer. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring frequently Add a bit more water if too thick.

Serve warm or at room temperature over tofu, tempeh, or Asian noodle dishes.

I don’t go anywhere without a list of veg restaurants; it’s kind of a security blanket. But there are so many places these days where such a list is unnecessary due to the proliferation of international eateries—and this is certainly true for Amsterdam. My sons and I sampled Thai, Japanese, Indonesian, and Etheopean while there, and none of these meals disappointed.

Still, it’s always a delight to find an all-vegetarian place to eat; I like to support that kind of business. Boelhoed (which means “bowler hat”—a phrase that truly has nothing to do with the restaurant) is a place the Dutch would surely describe as “gezellig,” or cozy, a term that can be used to describe much about all of Amsterdam. Walking in, I felt as if I were in Ann Arbor or Ithaca—you know, that funky, colorful college-town kind of atmosphere.

The servings were plentiful and the flavors hearty; the organic wine was nice; the service friendly (and as I mentioned, everyone seems to speak English very well); the cat adorable; and there are always a number of vegan desserts (we had one big meal there, but stopped three times for dessert for the boys). I won’t go into too much detail, as I hope to write a piece about Boelhoed for VegNews.

Boelhoed is located at Prinsengracht 62, near the Jordaan district. No credit cards accepted. Beware, a meal there can be pretty pricey (about 20 USD per person, not including beverages or desserts). Other well-known veg restaurants are Green Planet at Spuistraat 122, and Golden Temple at Ultrechtsestraat 122. I’m sure there are many others that are veg, organic, or veg-friendly. I can’t wait to go back! Now we know how to get around, where to shop for food (the markets, of course) and more places to eat.

In my previous post I took a break from my travel memories (already starting to feel like distant memories) to report on tonight’s dinner, but I do want to complete the posts on my European journey. Both yesterday and today, my son Evan asked when we could go back to Amsterdam. When, indeed? I’d go back in a heartbeat, but now I’ve got Prague and Venice on my “to-do” list.

While on the train from Amsterdam to Paris, I was chatting with a couple who recommended I check out the organic farm market in the Jordaan district; and luckily the market was a short couple of blocks from our hotel. Our first morning, I was able to stock up on a few things for our hotel room—fruits (both fresh and dried), breads, and snacks for our daily outings.

It seems to me that one might actually do most of the weekly shopping at a market like this. Aside from lots of great-tasting organic produce, there were oils, condiments, soy products, juices, breads, and cheeses. What was lovely is that I saw many people bring their own cloth shopping bags; and shopping this way reduced the reliance on packaged foods. Then, once the shopping is done, the groceries are attached to one’s bicycle. Such a green city! Bikes are the main transport, followed by electric trams. Even many of the tour boats on the canals run on some sort of green fuel.

In my last newsletter, I pondered the question of where Amsterdamers shop, since with all our walking and biking, we saw very few food shops. One reader responded, letting me know that the city’s residents indeed do a lot of shopping at the markets, and sending me this link. I’m not sure of the name of the particular market I visited (maybe nieuwmarkt), but it was on Prinsegracht, going toward central station, and is there on Saturdays from 9 am to 4 or 5 pm. It may be there other days of the week. Everyone speaks English extremely well, so if you visit, you’ll have no problem getting help asking for what you’d like at the market.

Here is an adorable vegetarian restaurant tucked into a narrow street not far from the Notre Dame cathedral on the left bank in Paris. Though it is not my favorite, my sons and I ate here twice, due to the convenience of its location and proximity to our hotel. It’s cozy and comfortable, and the food is quite serviceable. The service is friendly and it’s a lot of fun to sit outdoors and eat at 9:00 pm when things are busy and lively.

The way I would describe the food is homey and filling, the kind of meal you’d get if you had a kind old vegan grandmother. Their main focus, as in most of the other veg eateries, are assiettes, large platters with assorted goodies arranged on them. Their Assiette Seitan comes with a nicely done “schnitzel” of seitan; we were all in the mood for that the first time we dined there. The second time Evan and I ordered an assiette with polenta, which normally comes with cheese, but they topped it with a tangy tomato sauce for us. Adam had the Macro assiette, which featured little rounds of crisp tempeh. My friend Wendy and I ate here on an earlier trip, so I can at least say that the food is consistent.

The cooked vegetable side dishes that come with these platters are a bit overcooked, and for dessert one night we had the absolute worst vegan apple tart ever. Still, I can’t help but feel fondness for this little eatery; the vibes are good, the experience is fun, and the people who work there are nice.

If you look closely at the photo, you’ll see me in the center, with kind of a lavender top. With his back to the viewer is my son, Adam. Evan was taking the shot. Le Grenier de Notre Dame is at 18, Rue de la Bucherie in the 5th arrondissement.

I do want to recommend one more place that we stumbled upon for our last meal in Paris: Phyto-Bar & Restaurant Bio at 47, Blvd. Saint-Germain in the 5th Arrondissement. Their specialty is freshly made organic juice mixtures and wines; they don’t offer an extensive selection of food but what they did offer was very good, and the ambiance was lovely. Once again, the focus was on beautifully presented assiettes. Next to the restaurant is a little organic produce market and health food store. Sigh. I would love to spend about a month living in this neighborhood. I just love the Latin Quarter!

On July 9, my two teenage sons and I flew from Tel Aviv to Paris (hubby flew home to NY the day before; business beckoned). One of the sheer delights of eating in Paris are “assiettes.” These are platters filled with numerous small dishes; these are prominently featured in many of the veg eateries as well as in cafés and bistros (I’m a compulsive menu reader, so I know!). We discovered a tiny macrobiotic restaurant/health food store in the St. Germain district called Guenmai. I remember seeing it on my lists of veg eateries, but if we hadn’t happened upon it, I would have never found it. Should you find yourself in Paris, it’s at 6, rue Cardinale, phone # 01-43-26-03-24. The servive is extremely friendly, though very little English is spoken.

The nice thing about assiettes is that you get to sample many flavors in the same meal; the portions of each item are modest, but overall, it is quite enough food. Somehow I find this style of eating so satisfying—I have been increasingly been making assiette-style meals at home, making pretty plates of 5, 6, or 7 items. Everyone in my family likes this kind of meal, which incorporates freshly made dishes as well as leftovers. I certainly don’t have time to make 7 dishes for the same meal; of course, simple items like raw veggies are included in the count.

The point, though, is that each dish is quite simple and shines by virtue of the freshness and quality of its ingredients. Here is what was on Guenmai’s assiette that day: quinoa with tiny bits of green beans; brown rice; a savory pastry filled with onions and pine nuts; tiny lentils with tomatoes and parsely, a grated salad of carrots and turnips, plus slivered cucumbers, in a cilantro dressing; the most deliciously sweet cooked carrots; and a melange of broccoli, cauliflower, and red and yellow peppers. With the assiettes we had rice flour spring rolls and freshly made juices. For an early lunch it was absurdly expensive, but that’s the price of traveling with two vegan teens. My sons always need lots and lots of beverages, and I think those alone set us back 25 euros!

One of the most fun things about traveling is finding food inspiration and ideas. I’m most drawn to simple preparations that have creative twists. In Israel, I loved the myriad varieties of salads, served morning, noon, and night. I could spend a month in Israel just studying the salads.

And by the way, yes, I am very upset and concerned about what is going on there now. We left shortly before the conflict with Lebanon broke out. This is not a political blog so I am not going to offer my opinion here. It’s a tremendously difficult situation and suffice it to say that I hope with all my heart that it can be resolved soon.

Our last lunch before heading to the airport was at a lovely little cafe in the suburbs of Tel Aviv. The top photo shows a salad I ordered, with a mixture of sweet and white potatos on a bed of greens. The potatoes were dressed in a sweet chili sauce—a very creative twist. I’m pretty sure that this kind of sauce is fairly easily found in the Asian section of supermarkets. However, I really wanted to make this salad today for company, and so I used what I had, which was Bragg’s vinaigrette.

The bottom photo shows my copycat version of the salad. I made two additions: a diced avocado for the greens salad, and a topping of pumpkin seeds. It was so easy to make, yet such a pleasing presentation! This is definitely a keeper. After this post, I’ll be covering the Paris and Amsterdam portions of our trip; stay tuned!

Mixed Green Salad with Sweet and White Potatoes

6 or more servings

• 1 large sweet potato
• 4 medium white potatoes, preferably Yukon Gold or red skinned
• 1/2 cup vinaigrette, homemade or store bought, plus more for serving

• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

• One 4-ounce bag mixed baby greens

• 1 cup (1/2 pint) cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

• 1 small avocado, peeled and diced

• Toasted pumpkln seeds for topping

Microwave the sweet potato and white potatoes separately until done but still nice and firm. Plunge into a bowl of cold water when done.

When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, peel and cut into dice. Combine in a mixing bowl with vinaigrette; season to taste with salt and pepper.

Line a large serving platter with the greens. Mound the potato mixture in the center.

Scatter the tomatoes and avocado around the perimeter of the salad. Top the potato mixture with a sprinkling of pumpkin seeds. Serve at once; pass around additional vinaigrette as desired.

… on a hot summer morning. OK, it wasn’t as hot as it has been of late, but it was still a bit mad to run such a hot oven. And of course, I didn’t absolutely have to, but for some reason, I went to bed the night before thinking that I really wanted to make pita from scratch to go with my family’s usual Sunday brunch. Where I live, you can’t get decent pita bread. Pita needs to be consumed shortly after it emerges from the oven.

The first meal we had (outside of our relatives’ homes) in Israel was lunch at a hummus place in a run-down section of Tel Aviv. Yes, there are places that strictly specialize in hummus (as my mother would have said, “From this, you make a living?”) This simple meal was heavenly. This is hummus with foul, another dip made from fava beans that a specialty of several Arab cuisines. In this traditional presentation, hummus (chickpea and tahini puree) sits at the bottom of a shallow bowl, then the foul goes on top of it, surrounded by a pool of good olive oil, and topped with herbs and spices. I must learn how to make this, or at least, where to buy it ready made.

On the side are served wedges of raw onion, falafel balls, some sort of lemony dressing, and of course, pita breads fresh from the oven. It was running across this photo the other day that put the notion of making pita into my head. I tinkered with a basic pita recipe to come up with the following. I simply could not believe it, 11 of the 12 pitas came out with pockets, just like they are supposed to! Next time, I may up the quantity of flour to 3 1/2 cups, and with it, the other ingredients, to make slightly larger and denser pitas. But for a first attempt, I was pretty pleased.

Actually, I think this was my second attempt. I seem to recall making pitas with my sister-in-law when I was 17; we put the pitas right on the rack of the oven, as we did not have baking sheets. I may also try that next time.

By the time we left Israel, my family and I were thoroughly sick of pita, hummus, falafel, cucumber and tomato salads, etc. But just a little more than a week later, when we saw a falafel place in Amsterdam, we made a dash for it. There is something about that stuff that is just a bit addictive!

Pita Bread

Makes 12

• 1 1/4 cup lukewarm water (about 110 degrees F)
• 1 package active dry yeast
• 2 teaspoons natural granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat bread flour
• 1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour, plus more for kneading

In a large bowl, combine the water with the yeast and sugar. Let stand for 10 minutes or more, until the yeast is completely dissolved.

Stir in the salt, then the flour, a little at a time, with a wooden spoon. Once all the flour has been added, mix with your hands until all of it is evenly moistened.

Turn the dough out onto a well floured board. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes, adding flour as needed until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. Shape each one into a ball and roll out into a 5- to 6-inch round. Repeat with the remaining dough. Place the rounds on two large nonstick baking sheets.

Cover with a clean tea towel and let the dough rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

About 15 minutes before baking, preheat the oen to 475 degrees. Bake the pitas for 8 to 11 minutes, or until puffed out and just beginning to turn golden.

Remove from the oven; gently transfer to a rack to cool (make sure to use oen mitts!). Serve warm.

Our favorite meal (outside of our relatives’ homes) was at Taste of Life, or Taim Hakaim (60 Ben-Yehuda, Tel. 08-655-9360). This unique establishment is owned and operated by the community of African Hebrew Israelites, whose headquarters in Israel is in Dimona. This same group is affiliated with the Soul Vegetarian Café chain of restaurants. Soul Vegetarian manufactures organic, vegan, kosher foods and have restaurants in Washington D.C., Atlanta, Charleston, Ghana, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Despite enjoying the delicious Mediterranean-style meals we’d grown used to, this vegan-style comfort food was most welcome. Our sons are conscious of eating slowly and savoring meals, but they couldn’t help but practically inhale their food.

Here is Evan’s meal of seitan with gravy, a creamy potato casserole, and a ragout of veggies, plus a typical Israeli-style salad with tofu “feta.” Adam had something similar with a broccoli and mushroom dish instead of the ragout; my husband feasted on a melt-in-your-mouth eggplant parmesan. I was getting over a stomach upset I had picked up by eating at a kibbutz, so I had to take it a bit easy; the creamy potato casserole really hit the spot. If vegan desserts are available the boys can always find more room, so they tried some oatmeal-raisin and carob cookies.

The second photo is of a delightful young lady who works at the café. Not only was the food wonderful, but the people who cook and serve are warm and conversational. We also had interesting chats with some of the other diners eating at adjacent outdoor tables, who were up from the community in Dimona. Many are originally from the U.S. and seemed to enjoy meeting our family of vegans. Visiting Dimona would be a fantastic food field trip, but our time with my large family was so precious. Besides, it was getting HOT, and Dimona, which is located in the Negev dessert in the south, is even hotter than Tel Aviv. Next time, for sure! And I’ll write some sort of article about it. The community manufactures many of the products used in the café—creamy soy cheeses, “sausage,” “salami,” burgers, and the like. They are supposedly the largest manufacturer of tofu in Israel. The superb seitan is made right in the Tel Aviv café.

I absolutely loved the gravy that was served on the seitan, and the chef had no problem sharing the simple recipe with me. Actually, she gave me the list of ingredients and I decided to figure out the quantities; she probably needs to make much larger amounts. Next time, maybe she’ll give me a tutorial on how to make this amazing seitan—it’s a lot better than my homemade version.

Here is my version of the gravy. I made it last night to top a “mixed grill” of tofu and seitan:

Great Gravy

Makes about 1 1/4 cups

• 1 cup water
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

Combine the water and soy sauce in a small saucepan and heat.

Combine the cornstarch with just enough water to dissolve in a cup or small container. When the water adn soy suace mixture is at a steady simmer, slowly whisk in the cornstarch, stirring constantly until the liquid is thickened.

Remove from the heat and whisk in the basil and yeast. Use at once over seitan, tofu, or mashed potates.