Vegetarian Tom Yum Soup (Oil Free and Vegan)

Anyone who reads this blog knows that we are very susceptible to the power of suggestion. We hear a dish mentioned, and we just absolutely must make it. At the I Love Memphis blog, the Tom Yum soup at Shanghai was mentioned as one of the 10 best things this year. (View the complete list HERE.) 

Anytime I eat Thai food, I always longingly stare at the Tom Yum on the menu. It always contains shrimp stock and chicken stock -- it's just how that soup is made. So, I decided to take matters into my own hands and come up with a great vegetarian version of this classic soup. 

Kombu is the key here. It's a sea vegetable, and it has the highest amount of umami of any vegetable. The part of the shrimp, a classic component of this soup, is being played by king oyster mushrooms which, as you can tell by their name, have a very 
seafood-like texture and flavor. These elements paired with the fragrant punch of the broth, the spiciness of the sambal, and the acidity of the lime make for one great bowl of soup.


Vegetarian Tom Yum Soup

2 stalks  lemongrass
1 quart low-sodium vegetable broth (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
3 lime leaves
1/2 inch sliced ginger
1/2 ounce kombu (about 3 small sheets, rinsed)
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon (or more)  sambal
2 tablespoons vegetarian fish sauce (or soy sauce)
4 cloves crushed garlic
1 cup tomato wedges
1 red pepper (sliced)
1 cup full-fat coconut milk  (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
1 1/2 cups sliced and quartered king oyster mushrooms
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1 lime (quartered)

Trim the ends off of the lemongrass and peel away the first two layers. With the back of your knife or a frying pan, beat the lemongrass until it splinters. Cut into 4 pieces and set aside. In a large saucepan, bring the broth to a boil with the lemongrass, lime leaves, ginger, kombu, brown sugar, fish sauce (or soy sauce), and garlic. Cover and reduce the heat to a simmer; allow this mixture to cook for 20 to 25 minutes. Strain out the solids leaving only a fragrant broth. Return the broth to the saucepan over medium heat. Add the tomato, red pepper, and coconut milk. Allow the tomato and pepper to warm through. Just before serving, stir in the king oyster mushrooms. (They're easy to overcook and become rubbery of they sit in the hot broth for too long.) Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with cilantro and a squeeze of lime. (Serves 4 as a starter and 2 for dinner.)

Triple Tomato Soup + Toasted White Cheddar Crouton

Why let French onion soup have all the fun? So many soups are good served with that same crunchy, gooey crouton up on top. Here, boring old tomato soup gets a serious upgrade. The deep flavor of this soup comes from three tomato sources: the smokiness of roasted Roma tomatoes, the complexity of sun-dried tomatoes, and the sweetness of tomato paste. 


One of my favorite meals as a kid was grilled cheese and tomato soup. I'd dunk the grilled cheese into the soup, but I'd save the last bit of the sandwich to mop up the bowl. This is like a grown-up grilled cheese and tomato soup with the 'dunk' built right in. This is one dish we'll be making again soon. It was that surprising and good!


Triple Tomato Soup + Toasted White Cheddar Crouton
(Serves two as a meal or four as a starter)

5 large Roma tomatoes (peeled)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoon butter (divided)
1 sweet onion (thinly sliced, about 2 cups)
2 tablespoon brandy
1 tablespoon vegetarian Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes (sliced into 1/4-inch strips)
2 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup water
3 cups vegetable broth
1 teaspoon fresh thyme (4 sprigs)
4 slices whole-grain bread
1 cup shredded white cheddar


Turn broiler on high. Slice peeled tomatoes lengthwise and place face-down on a rimmed baking sheet. Brush each tomato with the olive oil and place under the broiler until the tomatoes start to blacken. (This should take eight to ten minutes; keep your eye on them.) Once they are done, set the baking sheet aside and allow the tomatoes to cool.


In a Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat one tablespoon of butter over medium-low heat. Once butter has melted, add the sliced onion. Allow the onion to sweat down and start to brown. This should take about 15 minutes. Add the brandy and the Worcestershire sauce to the pot and raise the heat to medium. Allow most of the liquid to evaporate, and then add the sun-dried tomatoes, tomato paste, water, broth, and the roasted Roma tomatoes. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce to low. Allow soup to simmer for at least twenty minutes. Add fresh thyme just before serving.

To serve, slather toasted bread with melted butter. Turn your oven broiler on medium. Divide soup between two bowls, float slices of bread on top of the soup, and cover toast with the white cheddar. Place bowls under the broiler for two to three minutes or until cheese is bubbling. Serve immediately.

Vegetarian Matzo Ball Soup

This dish has been in rotation in our house for probably 15 years or so. It has survived every culinary trend -- and my own crazy proclamations about what we should or shouldn't be eating. I can remember making this in our first apartment where we ate mostly pasta, stir fry, grilled cheese, and, of course, matzo ball soup.

What gives? Why does this dish have such staying power? It's hearty, delicious, and so simple to make. It's one of the few things (maybe the only thing?) that I make from a box mix. One of the only things I do to dress this up is to use extra virgin olive oil in  place of the run-of-the-mill vegetable oil that the instructions call for. It really makes the matzo balls rich and delicious. We also cook the vegetable component separate from the matzo balls, so they retain some of their sturdiness and don't turn to mush during the 30 minutes that the matzo balls cook. 

The cold weather is setting in here in the South, so it's officially soup season. Try this one out. We think you'll like it.

Vegetarian Matzo Ball Soup

1 package matzo ball mix (like Streit's)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
2 large eggs (beaten)
1 quart good-quailty vegetable broth (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
2 bay leaves
4 sprigs thyme
1 tablespoon unsalted butter (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
2 ribs celery (diced)
1 large carrot (diced)
1 large shallot (finely diced)
1/2 cup white wine (like pinot grigio)
2 tablespoons chopped parsley or fresh dill
kosher salt and cracked black pepper (to taste)

Make the matzo ball mix according to the package instructions, which call for vegetable oil (use olive oil here) and 2 large eggs. Set mixture aside in the fridge for 15 to 20 minutes. 

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the broth, bay leaves, and thyme to a boil. Remove the matzo mix from the fridge. Using a 1 tablespoon-size ice cream scoop, drop the mix into the boiling broth one at a time. Lower the heat to a simmer. Secure the lid and simmer for 30 minutes. Do not lift the lid during the cooking time; this is one of the secrets to making fluffy matzo balls.

In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, melt the butter and add the diced celery, carrots, and shallots. Once they start to caramelize, deglaze the pan with the white wine and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated. Set aside until ready to serve.

To serve, place 3 to 4 matzo balls into a bowl, ladle on enough broth to almost cover the matzo balls about halfway, add 1/4 of the vegetable mixture into the bowl, and garnish with chopped parsley, salt, and cracked black pepper.

Saffron Egg Drop Soup

How did I get here, you may ask? How does one arrive at a Chinese/Spanish fusion soup? Okay, I'll tell you. I began by thinking about egg drop soup and how my family and I would go out to lunch after church every Sunday. Most weeks, we'd end up at Nam King on Summer Avenue in East Memphis. It was here that my dad would order something like deep fried chicken feet just to watch us all squirm; I would always order egg drop soup.

I was fascinated by the texture of the egg, and I loved the crunchy fried noodles that came on the side. The thing I remember most is the color of the broth: such a deep yellow it almost seemed like a cartoon drawing of what the soup should look like.

With this recipe, I wanted to recreate the color, and I did that by using saffron threads in the broth. This way, I felt like I had committed to a Spanish flavor profile replacing the crunch of the fried noodles with the crunch of diced vegetables.

The result was pretty amazing. This hearty soup is a must-try recipe for anyone who is looking for a little adventure. I think you'll love it.

Saffron Broth:

5 cloves garlic (crushed)

2 ribs of celery (roughly chopped)

1 red onion (roughly chopped)

2 carrots (roughly chopped)

1 Not-Chick'n bouillon cube

1 cup white wine

lemon zest

orange zest

6 cups water

1/4 teaspoon saffron threads

sherry vinegar

olive oil

salt & pepper

Over medium-high heat, pour 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil into a soup pot or dutch oven and add the vegetables. Next, add the bouillon cube and stir. Once the vegetables start to turn golden in color, add the white wine to deglaze the pot. Allow the mixture to cook until most of the wine has evaporated, and then add the zest, water, saffron, and about a teaspoon of sherry vinegar. Secure the lid and reduce heat to a simmer for 30-45 minutes. Strain the vegetables out of the broth. Return the broth to medium heat to reduce by about 20 percent. Add black pepper and salt as needed.

Saffron Egg Drop Soup:

red pepper

purple onion

green tomato

fresh parsley (or cilantro)

sherry vinegar

saffron broth

3 eggs (beaten)

manchego cheese

olive oil

salt & pepper

Finely dice equal amounts of the pepper, onion, and tomato and place into a mixing bowl. Finely chop parsley and add it to the mixture along with a pinch of salt, a tablespoon of olive oil, and a splash of sherry vinegar. Set this mixture aside; it is the garnish for the soup.

Bring the broth to a rolling boil. Add beaten eggs to the boiling broth -- one small spoonful at a time -- until all the beaten eggs are used. (This 'splintering' is really cool to watch!) To serve, spoon egg and broth mixture into a bowl, top with a spoonful of vegetable mixture, then grate a bit of the manchego on top.

Vegetarian Christmas Cooking: 20-Minute Tamales, Sea Salt Granola, TCV BBQ Dry Rub, and Hickory Smoked Hot Sauce

Surprise, surprise: we're not that skilled at finding the 'perfect gifts' for everyone. Each year at the height of holiday shopping craziness, it quickly becomes clear that we just need to rely on what we enjoy doing and get to cooking a lot of our gifts. It's rainy and gray here in Memphis this Christmas Eve, and we're going to be in the kitchen for a while today, so here's what we're making!

On Thursday, we were on a late-night hunt for corn husks, and with a little help from the awesome and super-enthusiastic produce guy at the Mendenhall Kroger (our third stop) in East Memphis, we found them on a low shelf and snagged them along with mushrooms, masa, and onions so we could make our 20-minute Tamales. 

Oh, and Curb Market in Midtown has the best dried peppers, Sparkling River Hickory-Smoked Poblanos, and they unbelievable in tamales, soups, grits, beans -- in anything, really. We bought a bunch for us and some for a few other pepper-obsessed folks we know. 

Versions of our Sea Salt Granola made their way into both of our cookbooks, The Chubby Vegetarian and The Southern Vegetarian. The funny thing is that while we have it as an extra on top of a salad and also a pear dessert in the books, we usually just have it right out of the container as breakfast with yogurt, berries, and honey or a quick snack by itself. (Our cousins gave us a big jar of sorghum this year, and we were thrilled since lately, we often sub it in for brown rice syrup in our granola recipes.)

This week, we also made kind of a Stone Soup-style vegetable-and-pasta soup for friends with kids and included a baguette, parmesan, and our favorite chocolate-covered peanuts so they could have dinner taken care of one night. We need to work on a recipe for vegetable soup for y'all in January when everyone's trying to eat vegetables and be all healthy, but in the meantime, here are a ton of favorite TCV soups we really like. We'll be working on a new white bean soup recipe for Christmas Day along with our usual cornbread. 

For a family party in Mississippi last weekend, we gave everyone TCV BBQ Dry Rub, and we made our Hickory Smoked Hot Sauce for those who've been hinting that they needed another bottle of it. We're excited to work on getting these seasonings available for purchase in 2017, and we'll keep you posted on the process as we figure it all out. 

Y'all, we hope you have a beautiful holiday with the people you love! Please let us know in the comments what you'll be cooking. 

Curried Cauliflower Soup

My mother-in-law makes a delicious cauliflower soup every year at Christmastime. The problem is that she will only make it once a year. She always makes me my own special batch with vegetable stock rather than the chicken stock the recipe demands. I have tried to convince her that she could just make the whole batch with vegetable stock since there is no other meat in the soup, but she is a stick-to-the-recipe kind of gal, so I get a pot all to myself. I never understood how curried cauliflower soup became a part of the family tradition, but somehow it did. Here is my version with red curry paste and basil oil that is sure to make an appearance on your table this holiday season.

Curried Cauliflower Soup:

1 head cauliflower (broken into florets, stems chopped)

1/2 white onion (diced)

1 shallot (minced)

1 tablespoon red curry paste

pinch of lemon zest

1 Not Chick'n cube

3/4 cup white wine

1 can light coconut milk

splash of rice wine vinegar

pinch of sugar

olive oil

Garnish:

basil oil

garlic chives

jasmine rice

thinly sliced hot peppers

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Toss cauliflower in a few tablespoons of olive oil and spread onto a baking sheet; roast until the tips of the cauliflower are golden brown (10-15 minutes). In a soup pot over medium heat, sweat onion, shallot, curry paste, lemon zest, and bouillon in a few tablespoons of olive oil until onion is soft. Raise the heat to medium-high and add the wine. Cook until the wine is reduced by half.

Add all of the stems and half of the florets of the cauliflower to the pot along with the coconut milk and sugar. Using an immersion blender, blend soup until smooth. Ladle soup into a bowl, top with a scoop of jasmine rice, a few of the roasted cauliflower florets, a drizzle of basil oil, and garlic chives.

Spicy Tomato and Cashew Bisque

We did a little informal focus group on our Facebook page about the types of recipes y'all would like to see included in our (!) next book. We heard you loud and clear. Luckily, what you want is pretty much exactly how we're cooking now. Among the repeated themes were the call for simple, creative meals made from whole foods. Many of you wanted more dairy-free recipes that are still hearty and delicious.

This soup is one of those things that we'd just whip up and never put out there because it seems simple, but I think there are some solid ideas here that are worth talking about. This is a great, simple tomato soup recipe made with fresh carrots, onions, and celery. The creaminess of the soup comes from cashews, not dairy. It's delicious and wholesome, and it packs a good bit of protein. So, enjoy -- and keep an eye out for new, creative, and healthy recipes from The Chubby Vegetarian!

Spicy Tomato and Cashew Bisque

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion (diced)
2 carrots (diced)
2 celery (diced)
3 cloves crushed garlic
1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 28 ounce can fire roasted tomatoes
3-4 cups vegetable broth
1 heaping cup roasted cashews
Kosher salt and cracked black pepper (to taste)
Sriracha and chives (to garnish)

In a large soup pot or dutch oven over medium-hight heat, add the olive oil and the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring often until vegetables have softened and are staring to brown, about 8 minutes. Add the corriander and crushed red pepper and cook for another minute. Add the tomatoes, broth, and cashews. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until vegetables are soft. Using an immersion blender, blend soup until smooth; this may take a few minutes. Alternately, use a food processor, but be careful --blending hot soup can be dangerous. 

Taste and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve soup garnished with Sriracha (if you want a little more heat) and chopped chives. (Makes 4 servings.)

Roasted Red Pepper Soup + Sambal and Cinnamon

At lunch on Friday, I saw a friend eating a bowl of thin, bright, gorgeous red pepper soup, and it looked so perfectly spicy, so very fall, that I swore I was going to make something like it this weekend. It helped that peppers are still at the markets -- actually, I was surprised by the amount of produce still going strong right now -- so we picked up a dozen red peppers from Whitton Farms for this, a Moroccan spin on red pepper soup.

Roasted Red Pepper Soup + Sambal and Cinnamon

12 small roasted red peppers

1 white onion

6 cl0ves of garlic

1/2 cup of white wine (We used chenin blanc.)

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tbsp. sambal

1 peeled tomato

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. garbanzo bean flour

1 capful of vinegar

squeeze of honey

1 vegetable bouillon cube

sea salt and crushed black pepper

Roast the peppers right on the grill and wait until the skin blackens. Take them inside to cool and then peel off all the char under running water and pull out the stems and seeds. For the soup, chop thin slices of onion and sauté them (in a soup pot on medium-high) in olive oil until they're soft and starting to turn brown. Add the garlic, white wine, cinnamon, and sambal. Reduce until thick and syrupy. Chop the peeled tomato and add it to the mix.

Now push everything in the pan to the side and add a tbsp. of olive oil and garbanzo bean flour to the middle. Toast it up like a roux. Add vinegar and honey, salt and pepper, and all the prepared peppers. Add 2 cups of water and the bouillon to the mix. Carefully blend the soup with an immersion blender. Taste it to check the seasoning before it's set to serve. (Yesterday we added local goat feta on top, some julienned peppers and English cucumber, and a slice of Sherri's honey whole wheat bread with sunflower seeds. A grilled cheese sandwich might be pretty great with it, too.) This is a versatile recipe. We served the leftovers as a roasted red pepper dip along side some rosemary and white bean hummus.

French Onion Grilled Cheese

French onion soup has ruined more than one article of clothing since its invention. You can't wait to dig in, and as soon as you press the spoon into the gooey cheese, the hot broth jumps out. I specifically remember a white shirt from U.S. Male that I got for 8th grade graduation that got the french onion treatment at Harry T.'s in Destin, Florida. (Why was I eating French onion soup at the beach during the summer? I really don't know, to tell you the truth.)

Well, put your bibs away! We have invented a safer, cuter french onion grilled cheese. It's a mix of the soup you remember and the grilled cheese you always loved.

French Onion Grilled Cheese

4 large white or yellow onions (thinly sliced, about 7 cups)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter (divided)
1 cup red wine
1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon vegetarian worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon sherry vinegar
5 sprigs fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoon soy sauce
1 quart vegetable broth (like Whole Foods 365 Brand)
8 ounces gruyere (shredded)
8 slices bread

In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, layer in the onions and 2 tablespoons of the butter. Cover and set the heat to low for about 20 minutes. Remove the cover and raise the heat to medium. Continue to cook and occasionally stir until the onions are deeply browned, which will take another 20 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the red wine; make sure to scrape up any bits that are stuck to the bottom. Increase the heat and reduce the wine by half. Now add the pepper, worcestershire, vinegar, thyme, granulated garlic, bay leaves, soy sauce and vegetable broth to the pot. Stir to incorporate, bring to a simmer, cover, and reduce the heat. Allow mixture to cook for 20 to 30 minutes so the flavors can meld.

Strain the soup through a fine mesh sieve and fish out the bay leaves and thyme stems. Return the broth to the soup pot in order to keep it warm.

Assemble the grilled cheese sandwiches by adding 1/3 cup of grated gruyere and 1/3 cup of the onion mixture each to 4 slices of bread. Top with remaining bread slices. Add the remaining tablespoon on butter to a large frying pan and melt the butter over medium heat. Grill the sandwiches for about 3 minutes per side or until bread is golden brown and the cheese has meted. Serve grilled cheese with a cup of warm broth for dipping. (Makes 4 servings.)

Vegetable & Rice Noodle Soup in a Ginger & Garlic Broth

This hearty noodle soup is a staple in my house. It is as fast as making grilled cheese, but it is packed with good-for-you vegetables. TCV has no problem putting away an entire bowl full of this aromatic soup at lunch or dinner. You will need:

2 cups of water

a handful of rice noodles

2 cloves of garlic

1 thumb-sized piece of ginger

1 rib of celery (sliced on the bias)

1 carrot (halved lengthwise & sliced)

5 small mushrooms (halved & sliced)

chives

cilantro

1 tablespoon of sesame oil

soy sauce or braggs

1 cube of no-salt-added vegetable bullion

3 ounces of seitan

In a pan over high heat, dissolve the bullion into the water, then grate in the ginger and garlic using a microplane. Add a few dashes of braggs and give it a taste. Adjust the seasoning to your liking.  Add the vegetables and the seitan, and then allow to cook for a few minutes until the carrots begin to become tender. At this point add the oil and the noodles. The noodles will generally cook in two to three minutes, but check the package instructions to make sure. Dump the soup into a big bowl and garnish with chopped cilantro and chives. I like to start eating this dish with chop sticks and end by slurping the broth right out of the bowl. Feel free to add any vegetables to this soup that you have lying around. I make it a little different every time.Broccoli, kale, spinach, or edamame would all make terrific additions to this dish. 

Vegetarian Frogmore Stew

I'm from Mississippi. I was raised in Memphis. I feel like understand a good deal about our Southern foodways. I really do have some blind spots, though! The Carolinas in particular remain a culinary enigma to me. I get grits, and fried green tomatoes, and greens, and pimento cheese. I didn't, however, understand how it differed until I sat down with my buddy Ryan Trimm, a terrific chef and owner of Sweetgrass, a Carolina Low Country restaurant here in Memphis.

He explained Frogmore Stew to me, which incidentally doesn't have frogs in it, nor is it really a stew. The version he serves at Sweetgrass is a stew, but it's not typically a stew. Can you see why I would be confused about such cuisine? So, if those are the things that it's not, then what is it? Well, it's basically a shrimp boil with sausage, and the broth is loaded up with Old Bay seasoning. Think of it as a soup that you can eat with your hands. Sounds fun, right?


Traditionally, it's served with cocktail sauce, garlic butter, and rolls. This really is a dish meant to feed a crowd. When it's ready, all of the goodies are picked up out of the flavorful broth and dumped onto a table that has been lined with newspaper. Once it's cool enough to touch, just grab what you like and start dipping the corn into the butter or potatoes into the cocktail sauce. It's all very lively and festive.


So, what's in a vegetarian version of this mythical dish? I chose to throw in some fresh artichoke hearts and stems, which are fun to eat and work well here. I also threw in some  vegetarian sausage, which you don't see me use much, but  it works great for this application.


Vegetarian Frogmore Stew
(serves 4)


1 quart vegetable stock
1 quart water
12 ounces beer (such as Sierra Nevada Pale Ale)
1 lemon
1 1/2 tablespoons Old Bay (more for garnish)
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
10 cloves garlic (smashed, divided)
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
salt (to taste)
4 cups red-skin new potatoes (cut in half)
4 ears yellow corn (shucked, cut into quarters)
1 pound vegetarian sausage (such as Field Roast Smoked Apple Sage, cut into quarters)
4 artichokes (trimmed*)
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup organic cocktail sauce
1/4 cup chopped parsley



In a large stock pot over high heat, pour in the stock, water, and beer. Next, cut the lemon in half, squeeze the juice into the pot, then drop the squeezed lemon into the pot as well. This is a rustic dish. Add the Old Bay seasoning, crushed red pepper, 8 cloves of garlic, liquid smoke, black pepper, and sugar. Check for seasoning and adjust the salt to your taste. It may not need any depending on how salty the vegetable stock was to start. Bring that whole mixture up to a boil. Carefully add the potatoes and cook for about 8 minutes. Add the corn, sausage, and artichokes to the mixture. Cook uncovered for another 10 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Fish a variety of the components out of the broth and into a bowl. Add just a 1/2 cup of the broth for the steam and aroma.


While the stew cools enough to eat, place butter in a microwave-safe dish along with the two reserved garlic cloves. Microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute until the butter is just melted. Serve your Vegetarian Fromgmore Stew garnished with a light sprinkling of Old Bay and a pinch of fresh parsley with garlic butter and cocktail sauce on the side. No need for a fork -- just use your hands.


*For the artichokes: Cut off and discard the top 2/3 of the bulb leaving the whole stem and the bottom 1/3 of the bulb intact. (There is very little meat in the top portion of the vegetable.) Using a spoon, scoop out the choke, the fibrous center part of the vegetable. Using a vegetable peeler, peel the stem to reveal the tender and edible inside part of the stem. Finally, cut a 1/2 inch off the tip of the stem, stand the artichoke up on the bulb-side, and cut into quarters by running your knife through the stem, heart, and remaining leaves. This leaves you with a few leaves to pull off and scrape out when you are eating the stew, but most importantly, it leaves the heart and stem, the most delicious parts.

Vegetarian Dinner at Mayuri

The Chubby Vegetarian/ Mayuri Dinner

To Start: Papadums and Mixed Vegetable Pakora (fritters)

Served with a selection of coconut, tomato and tamarind, and mint chutneys

First Course: Masala Dosa (A South Indian Specialty)
Fermented rice crepe stuffed with curried potatoes and peas served with sambar, a vegetable soup, for dipping. No knife and fork needed; just eat it with your hands.

Second Course: Dahi Vada (A North Indian Specialty)
A savory lentil doughnut floating in cool spiced yogurt...like nothing else you have ever had.

Third Course: Trio of Vegetarian Curries
Vegetable Koorma, a favorite of The Chubby Vegetarian, contains cauliflower, peas, potatoes, and carrots that are presented in a rich coconut gravy. The vegetables and sauce are cooked slowly at a low temperature to keep the yogurt smooth. Use the starchiness of the rice and the naan bread to control the heat level.

Saag Paneer features cubes of chewy housemade cheese called paneer that do not melt when heated served in heaps of curry made with puréed spinach leaves. The result is beautiful mix of textures and spices.

Mushroom Masala is our favorite masala dish. The warmth of the cloves, cinnamon, and peppercorns plays incredibly well with the meatiness of the mushrooms.

Dessert: Rice Kheer, a mild and sweet concoction of milk, vermicelli noodles, nuts, spices, and dried fruit is the perfect thing to  soothe the spice.

(Plus the best iced tea and garlic naan, traditional bread cooked in the tandoori oven, provided with each meal.)

Vegetarian Chicken + Dumplings

Our grandmothers made chicken and dumplings all the time like it was nothing. One would appreciate a little begging before she got out the flour and the milk; the other shrugged and made just dumplings after 3 of the grandkids went vegetarian at the same time. We love our sweet grandmothers, and we got a huge part of our love of cooking from them. This is a dish that really brought us back.

Vegetarian "Chicken" Stock:

olive oil

1 onion

1 Not Chick'n bouillon cube

8-10 cups water

1/2 bunch parsley

2 carrots

3 ribs celery

1 red pepper

10 cloves garlic

4 sprigs thyme

1 tablespoon white miso paste

In a food processor, pulse the carrots, celery, pepper, and garlic until evenly chopped. (This helps extract more flavor from the vegetables.) Over medium heat in a large soup pot or dutch oven, brown the diced onion in a few tablespoons of olive oil. Add the bouillon cube and stir. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer for 30-45 minutes. Strain and set aside.

Vegetarian Chicken + Dumplings

Chicken:

1 package chicken-style seitan (torn into bite-sized bits)

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

black pepper

pinch of garlic powder

6 cups vegetarian "chicken" stock

In a large soup pot or dutch oven, melt two tablespoons of butter over medium high heat. Toss the seitan with the flour, and then sear the seitan in the butter until crispy. Turn once and brown the other side. Add a pinch of garlic powder and black pepper. Pour stock over the seitan and reduce heat to low.

Parsley + Olive Oil Dumplings:

2 tablespoons baking powder

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/8 cup minced flat leaf parsley

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup milk

In a medium mixing bowl, mix dry ingredients and then the wet ingredients; stir just enough to mix because if you stir too much, the dumplings will become tough. Bring the six cups of stock and chicken up to a slow boil. Drop dumpling batter into stock one spoonful at a time. You should have 10-12 dumplings. Place lid on soup pot and reduce the heat to simmer for 15 minutes without disturbing the pot.

This is the garnish for the dumplings: dice a carrot, celery rib, and 1/8 cup of parsley, and then mix diced vegetables with a drizzle of olive oil, a splash of champagne vinegar, a pinch of sugar, and a pinch of salt. Mix to incorporate. To serve, spoon 2-3 dumplings and a few pieces of seitan along with some broth into a soup bowl and garnish with the fresh vegetable mixture.

Kimchi and Zucchini Noodle Soup (Vegan, Paleo, Gluten-free)

So much time is spent in the kitchen over the Thanksgiving holiday that when it's all over, we tend to stay away from the stove, and pots, and pans, and all of the piled-up dishes. But you can't go out to eat for every meal, so this time of the year in between holidays calls for a few warm, comforting, and most of all, simple dishes that can be heated and assembled in no time at all.

This spicy, three-ingredient soup is just the thing.

With so few ingredients, make sure you are using really
good-quality stuff. Store-bought kimchi, like Sunja's, works great here, but if you're not totally tired of cooking, try tackling the task of making your own. Same goes for the vegetable stock, use a good store-bought kind or make your own and infuse it with any flavor that you'd like.

It's as simple as heating the stock and adding the kimchi and zucchini "noodles." You'll be eating lunch in no time, and then you'll start to wonder what other three-ingredient meals might materialize this month…

Kimchi and Zucchini Noodle Soup (Vegan, Paleo, Gluten-free)

1 cup vegetable stock
1 1/2 cups kimchi (include the brine)
1 medium zucchini (cut into thin strips using a julienne peeler)

In a medium pan over medium-high heat, bring the stock to a simmer. Stir in the kimchi and the zucchini. Cook until warmed through. Divide between two bowls. (Makes 2 servings.)          

*If you're buying kimchi at the store, read the labels and seek out the vegetarian kind. Some more traditional recipes contain fish, fish sauce, or even oysters. So if you don't want any fermented oysters, look for the veg version -- Whole Foods usually has it.

Oil-Free & Vegan Minestrone

As I mentioned on the Facebook page, one half of TCV (the half that is about to run 26.2 miles in under 4 hours, my goal come December) is on a diet. I'm trying to shed a few pounds before my St. Jude Childen's Research Hospital race coming up here in Memphis. Not lugging a lot of extra weight makes for a much more pleasant marathon experience --  especially when you've run 20 miles and you still have 6.2 more to go. Coincidentally, some members of my family decided that since we want to lose a little weight before the holidays, we would make things interesting. About two weeks ago, the guys each put in $100, and the winner of pounds and percentage of weight lost will split the pot. Talk about all kinds of motivation! I hope I'm not giving away too many of my secrets, but here goes...

I've changed up a few things in my diet that have a a dramatic and immediate effect. We're talking a loss of about 15 pounds in 10 days. I'm actually surprised by how quickly the pounds have come off, so I thought I'd share what I've been doing. 

I've cut out carbs for the most part. I'll still have a little rice, but no white potatoes, bread, or anything like that. I'm off cheese for now, but I do still eat lowfat Greek yogurt because it's such a good source of protein. Last but not least, I've been cooking without oil and butter. I didn't think it was possible, but I've found a few ways that work.

In addition to beans and rice, I've been eating soft-boiled eggs for protien. I've also been eating lots of vegetables and salads. I've ingested an inordinate amount of cabbage in the form of kimchi, and have eaten scores of sweet potatoes, cauliflower, and portobello mushrooms. 

This particular minestrone soup is great because it contains so many vegetables, and it's really flavorful and filling. If you have it over a little rice, it will give you a complete protein, which is important when training for a race. This recipe makes a big batch; that's good because I'm pretty hungry after all that running. I've been having it for lunch almost every day. This is my second batch. It will keep in the fridge up to a week. 

Oil-Free and Vegan Minestrone

2 cups tomato wedges (about 2 large or 4 medium tomatoes)
12 cloves garlic
1 1/2 cup thinly sliced celery (about 3 ribs)
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced carrot (about 3 medium)
1 1/2 cups diced white onion (about 1 large)
1 1/2 cups wine (like Pinot Grigio)
2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes (less of you don't like spicy stuff)
Juice of 1 lemon
2 cups sliced zucchini (about 2 medium)
2 drained 13.4 ounce boxes cannellini beans (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
1 tablespoons capers (rinsed)
1/2 cup slices sun-dried tomatoes
1 1/2 - 2 cups vegetable stock (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Kosher salt and cracked black pepper (to taste)
Pinch of cane sugar (optional)
3 cups prepared rice or pasta (to serve)
Freshly grated parmesan cheese (optional, to garnish)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread the garlic and tomatoes in a single layer on a parchment-lined, rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until garlic cloves are nicely browned. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Once cool, mince the roasted garlic, and set aside until ready to add to the soup.

Heat a large frying pan with high sides over high heat. Add the celery, carrot, and onion to the dry pan and spread the vegetables out in a single layer. Once they start to caramelize (about 2 minutes), stir them up and again arrange them in a single layer. You will notice that the pan is starting to show a layer of brown on the surface; this is a good thing! Add the wine, and using a wooden spoon, scrape up all of the brown bits from the pan. Reduce until the wine is thick and syrupy. Add the Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, lemon juice, zucchini, beans, capers, sun-dried tomatoes, 1 1/2 cups of the vegetable stock, tomato paste, minced garlic, and roasted tomatoes. Stir to incorporate. Reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes or until vegetables are at a desired tenderness. Use remaining stock to think the soup if needed.

Serve over rice or even pasta (if you are into that sort of thing) and garnish with parmesan if you'd like. (Makes 6 servings.)

Vegetarian Mulligatawny: Indian-Inspired Vegetable Stew

Different versions of this spicy, rich Indian stew have been bouncing back and forth between us and our friend Michael from Midtown Stomp. I talk about him a lot here because he's a great friend and really talented with flavors of all kinds. He even has a really cool recipe for Oyster Mushroom Rockefeller in our upcoming cookbook. It was his innovation to add dried cherries instead of boring old raisins and also a dash of cinnamon to the mulligatawny. These additions really upped the ante.

To take it one step further, we've added a simple-but-hugely-flavorful homemade curry paste that easily comes together in the work bowl of your food processor. I stumbled upon this method while developing our Gumbo recipe and thought it would work well here -- and it did! I ate this stew for dinner one night, lunch the next day, and then had it with a poached egg on top for breakfast the following morning. That's how seriously good it is.

Veg mulligatawny goes great with our homemade Whole Wheat Naan. You can serve it on top of rice or eat it just how it is. Your call. 

Vegetarian Mulligatawny: Indian-Inspired Vegetable Stew

1 medium onion (roughly chopped)
1 2-inch piece fresh ginger
8 cloves garlic (peeled)
1 medium tomato (cored)
2 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon sambal
1 tablespoon cane sugar (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
1/2 cup lentils
3 cups vegetable broth (more if needed, like Whole Foods 365 brand)
1 tablespoon soy sauce (we like Bragg's)
1/2 cup chopped dried cherries
1 medium Russet potato (peeled and diced)
1 medium green pepper (peeled and diced)
1 medium head of cauliflower (broken into florets)
4-5 medium carrots (diced)
1 can coconut milk (like Whole Foods 365 brand)
Kosher salt and cracked black pepper (to taste)
1 cup salted whole cashews (to garnish)
1/2 cup cilantro leaves (to garnish)

Into a food processor place the onion, ginger, garlic, tomato, curry powder, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, sambal, sugar, and vinegar. Blend until a loose paste forms and all ingredients are throughly blended. 

In a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, melt the butter and add the curry paste. Cook, stirring frequently, until most of the moisture has evaporated and the paste becomes very thick. Add the lentils, broth, and soy sauce. Stir, cover, and allow mixture to cook for 10 minutes to soften the lentils. Add the cherries, potato, pepper, cauliflower, carrots, and coconut milk. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until vegetables are tender. Serve garnished with cashews and cilantro leaves and add a side of naan. (Makes about 3 1/2 quarts or about 6 servings.)

Champagne & Mushroom Soup in a Roasted Garlic Broth

We made this soul-warming soup for my mother-in-law's birthday tonight. I had originally suggested french onion, but she said that she is not a fan. I can understand, that is a lot of onions. So I put my thinking cap on and decided that I would use the same technique, but use exotic mushrooms instead of onions. I went to the new Whole Foods Market and picked up cremini, shittake, chanterelle, and hen of the woods mushrooms. They even had a few mushrooms that I have never tasted, but I decided that those were for another day. Gather these ingredients and follow me into the kitchen:

2 small heads of garlic (wrapped in foil and roasted in the oven)

5-6 cups of mixed mushrooms (washed and sliced)

3 tablespoons butter

1 loaf of crusty sourdough bread (cut into rounds)

1/2 onion (roughly chopped)

2 vegetable bullion cubes (no salt added)

2 cups champagne

2 cups water

2 cups of gruyere cheese (shredded)

salt, pepper, and fresh parsley for garnish

The mushrooms, onions, and butter go into a soup pot and cook covered on low for about 45 minutes. The mushrooms will become soft and delicious. Add the champagne and reduce until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add water, bullion, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cook on low for another 20 minutes. Ladle into a bowl, place crouton on top and smother in cheese. Place under the broiler until cheese is bubbling and brown. Wait. We would not want you to burn your mouth. ok now eat. For dessert you should make cute little blackberry and raspberry tarts like my wife did. 

Vegan Crunk Guest Post: Curried Red Lentil Stew

You have to meet my friend Bianca Phillips. She runs an all-things-vegan blog brimming with personality called Vegan Crunk, and she is the author of a cookbook aptly titled Cookin' Crunk: Eatin' Vegan in the Dirty South, which is due out at the beginning of next year. The book, like the blog, will take traditionally meat-heavy Southern American recipes and veganize them. I can't wait to get my hands on a copy.

Knowing how much I love vegetables, Bianca created this red lentil recipe just for The Chubby Vegetarian. It's delicious. For dinner the other night, I made her red lentil stew and some upma, Indian spiced cream of wheat, by taking instant cream of wheat and adding a pinch of coriander and a few cardamom pods. I served the stew over the upma with cilantro and lemon slices.

Here's Bianca...

Can you believe I'd never tried red lentils until last year? I've always had a fondness for brown lentils, served Indian-style with lots of curry powder and cumin. But I guess I'd just assumed red lentils would be the same, so why try them? How wrong I was! I first had them in a red lentil stew by vegan cookbook author Sarah Kramer, and the recipe was uber-delicious. I love how red lentils break down and get all mushy, instantly making your soup into a stew. I also love how quickly they cook. You can throw those suckers in a pot of boiling water and have dinner on the table in 30 minutes -- try that with some other bean. Yep, only lentils cook so quickly.

This recipe also feature two of my favorite veggies: spinach and mushrooms. I throw them in just about any stew, and this one is no exception. Even though it's way too hot for stew by some people's standards, don't hesitate to make this anyway. Just sit in front of the AC while you're eating it.

Curried Red Lentil Stew with Mushrooms and Spinach
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1 tbsp. canola oil
1 small onion (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
10 ounces button mushrooms (sliced)
2 tsp. curry powder
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. cumin
3 cups vegetable broth (I used 3 cups water and 1 tablespoon red miso)
1 1/2 cups dry red lentils
1 10-ounce package frozen spinach, thawed and water squeezed out (I used fresh spinach that I blanched)
1 tomato, chopped

(I added a teaspoon of vinegar. -TCV)

Heat the oil in a large soup pot on medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and mushrooms and saute for 5 to 7 more minutes or until mushrooms begin to cook down and release their juices. Stir in the curry powder, salt, and cumin, and sauté for one more minute.

Add the vegetable broth, lentils, and spinach. Bring to a boil over high heat. Lower heat and cover. Simmer for about 20 minutes or until lentils are tender. Stir in the tomato and simmer for another 5 minutes.

Vegan Peanut Chili with Charred Corn and Avocado Salsa

This chili gets depth from a multitude of sources: smoky chipotle chili powder, soy sauce, and espresso. The texture, which so many vegetarian chilis lack, comes from chopped peanuts. This also adds a nice touch of protein to the dish. I got the idea for this chili while Andrew Adams and I were brainstorming ideas for the Farmer Mixer. I wanted to do a kim chi dumpling, and he thought it'd be cool to use peanuts as the protein like they do in a soup at The Brushmark. It was a perfect marriage.

The Charred Corn and Avocado Salsa is the perfect thing to cool you down as you chow on this spicy chili. Try it on its own for a quick appetizer at a party, or add fresh, chopped jalapeño to give the salsa a little kick.


Peanut Chili

1 cup dry pinto beans (soaked overnight in 3 cups water)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 cups diced onion
5 cloves minced garlic
1 teaspoon ancho chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup white wine or beer
1 1/2 cups diced  green peppers
1 tablespoon soy sauce (like Bragg's)
1/4 cup espresso (or strong coffee)
1 tablespoon vegetarian Worcestershire sauce
1 cup chopped roasted unsalted peanuts
2 cups chopped tomatoes
3 cups vegetable stock (like Imagine No-Chicken)
4 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon white vinegar
2 teaspoons light brown sugar
prepared white or brown rice (to serve)
Charred Corn and Avocado Salsa (to garnish)

In a Dutch oven or heavy soup pot over medium-high heat add the olive oil, onion, and garlic. Cook for five minutes or until onion is translucent. Add the ancho chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, and chipotle chili powder. Stir to incorporate the spices then deglaze the pot with the wine or beer. Allow the mixture to reduce until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add the green peppers, soy sauce, espresso, worcestershire, peanuts, tomatoes, vegetable stock, tomato paste, vinegar, brown sugar, and pinto beans to the mix. Stir and bring up to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and allow chili to cook for an hour and a half or until beans are tender. To serve add 1/2 cup of rice to a bowl followed by a ladleful of the Peanut Chili. Top with 1/2 cup Charred corn and Avocado Salsa.


Charred Corn and Avocado Salsa

2 ears corn
2 cups diced avocado (about 2 medium)
juice from 1 lime
2 tablespoons minced cilantro
2 green onions (thinly sliced)
1 teaspoon olive oil
sea salt and cracked black pepper (to taste)


Over a high flame on your outdoor grill car the ears of con until lightly blackened. This will take four minutes per side. Cut the corn away from the cob using a sharp knife and plenty of caution. In a medium bowl combine the corn, avocado, lime juice, cilantro, green onion, olive oil. Add sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste. Set aside until ready to serve.