We! We! Mon Sewer!

RECIPE POST:  Some people would assert that Vegetarian French cuisine has as much in common with “real” French cuisine as the title of this blog does with the language. I would strongly disagree. While a vegetarian meal is missing the fois gras, the butter and the cream, those are not the only elements in true French dining. Pop into any fine restaurant or brasserie and you will find the menu populated with complex flavors and vegetables galore. Granted, the vegetables are often relegated to the side of the plate but it doesn’t take a tremendous amount of time or effort to turn them into center of the plate stars.

We’ve been eating a lot of ethnic food lately. Mainly, Indian, North African and Mexican. All delicious and easy to find scores of vegetarian recipes from which to chose. To tell the truth though, my taste buds are a wee bit burnt out on cumin right now and so I pulled out some of my very favorite french recipes from my former omnivore life and put on my thinking cap.

The results were pretty tasty and if you compare the fat and cholesterol against their “haute cuisine” cousins, well, there is no comparison. Lightly seasoned, the flavors of the vegetables shone through and even my committed carnivore of a husband went back for seconds. Thirds. And finally finished up with just a few bites standing at the kitchen counter.

Here are the recipes. Its enough food to feed 8 hungry people. Add a salad and people will waddle away from the table. Try converting some of your own recipes. Or send them to me and for a HUGE fee, I'll see what I can do for you!  French Vegetarian Cooking is bien? Oui! Oui! Monsieur!

Walnut Pate
Looks exactly like chicken liver pate. Next time I make it I’m going to switch out the brandy for Calvados and serve it in on apple slices.  Its can either be dressed up into an elegant canape or served slathered on chunks of bread at a picnic. 

4 Tb Olive Oil, divided
1 - 8oz Block 3 Grain Tempeh, chopped
1 Large White Onion, sliced
1 – 8oz container button mushrooms (you don’t need to spend the money on fancier ones) thinly sliced.
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup celery, diced
½ c walnut pieces
2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoons Brandy
Splash of Vegan Worcestershire Sauce (and by splash I mean maybe 1/8 of a teaspoon)
Salt and pepper to taste

In a medium skillet heat the olive oil and add the onions. Stir to coat and then let sauté over a medium high heat until they start to caramelize. Stir, and let sit again. Keep doing this until the onions are nicely caramelized. Remove from the pan. Add the remaining olive oil and the mushrooms. Stir to coat and then leave them alone to brown. Don’t overcrowd the pan or they won’t brown. Stir occasionally and then leave them alone. You may need to do this in two batches. When the mushrooms are brown add all the ingredients except the Worcestershire to the pan and gently sauté until most of the liquid is absorbed. Let cool and put in a food processor. Process until the mixture is smoothish (again think chicken liver) Add the Worcestershire. Process again. Chill in the fridge for a couple of hours and THEN adjust the seasoning. It takes more salt than you might think but wait until the flavors meld before you add more. Serve with crackers, pita, crudités. I also think it would be good to add some chopped granny smith apple to the mix, maybe at the last processing so that you got little bits every now and then. NOTE: When caramelizing onions or browning mushrooms the secret is to leave them alone. The magic doesn’t come from you stirring them. It comes from being in continuous contact with the hot pan!  I can't tell you how much I Liked this.

Tarragon Scented Vichyssoise

2 TB Olive Oil
2 Large White Onions, chopped
1 Tablespoon dried Tarragon (or less for those of you who are having a conniption fit and I don't use fresh because it doesn't hold well for leftovers and tends to tint the soup.)
5 Russet Potatoes, peeled, cubed
5 cups Vegetable Stock
3 cups unsweetened soy milk
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add the onions and sauté until translucent. Don’t brown. Add the Tarragon. Continue to sauté until the onions are tender. Add the potatoes and the vegetable stock and simmer until potatoes are fork tender. Let cool. Puree in batches in a food processor adding the soy milk as you go. Let chill completely, salt and pepper to taste. Just like with the pate I think its best to let the dish get cold and then decide how much seasoning its going to take. NOTE: You could switch out some of the stock for white wine if you wanted.  DON'T waste your money buying cans or boxes of stock.  For a vegetables stock throw a couple of onions, some garlic, celery, carrots in a pot with a bay leaf, salt, pepper and maybe a little thyme, cover with water simmer for an hour and strain.  I make this in a 10 qt stock pot and it makes 4 6 cup freezer bags full of stock and it cost virtually nothing.  Seriously?  Why pay 3 - 4 dollars for a box of flavored water when you can easily and cheaply make it at home.  You don't even have to go to the store for the ingredients.  Just start saving your vegetable scrapings in the freezer until you have enough.  To make chicken stock, just throw the bones from your chicken into the pot and strain through cheese cloth.  Beef stock is a little more complicated but if you own a big stock pot you can make gallons of stock for pennies.

Herb Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and Asparagus
1 Bunch of Asparagus, trimmed, cut into 2 inch pieces
1 Pint Cherry Tomatoes, halved
Olive Oil
1 Tb Dried Chervil
Salt and Pepper

Toss the vegetables in the oil, chervil, salt and pepper. Put in an oven safe casserole dish and roast at 350 for 30 minutes. (You can cook this the last 30 minutes the tart is cooking.)

Caramelized Onion Red Pepper Tart
1 Pie Crust (read the labels, often times they sneak lard into the mix!)
2 TB olive oil
3 Large White Onions, finely sliced
1 Large Red Pepper, seeded and pithed. Cubed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 block Extra firm Tofu, drained
¾ c unsweetened soy milk
¼ tea nutmeg
¼ tea sugar
¼ tea salt plus to taste
Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350. Blind bake the pie crust for 10 minutes. Let cool.

In a skillet over medium high heat, add the olive oil and onions, stir to coat then leave alone to caramelize. As they start to brown stir them, leave them alone again. Repeat until they are nicely browned. Add the garlic and the red pepper, salt and pepper to taste. Sauté until the peppers are tender. In a food processor, blend the remaining ingredients until smooth. Check seasoning. Put the Onion/Pepper mix in the pie crust. Pour the “cream” sauce over the top and bake for 45 minutes or until top is beginning to lightly brown.  NOTE:  DO NOT FREAK OUT OVER THE TOFU.  First, I generally loathe the stuff but blended like this and seasoned it not only doesn't have that creepy tofu texture, it also tastes completely different and when its cooked on top of the tart, its like a set custard so don't hate!

Let me know when you try these!  Hope you like them.