Caprese Salad in a Jar

Click HERE to order our new cookbook, The Chubby Vegetarian: 100 Inspired Vegetable Recipes for the Modern Table (Susan Schadt Press, November 2016)

Check out our cookbook, The Southern Vegetarian: 100 Down-Home Recipes for the Modern Table (Thomas Nelson, 2013), on Amazon or at your local bookstore.





I brought home the ingredients for caprese salad; of course, we just couldn't leave well enough alone. This salad-in-jars recipe is basic, but the results are pretty and fun; may the ridiculous appeal of serving all sorts of food in jars live on this summer for many salads to come.

Caprese Salad in a Jar

2 cups of arugula
1/2 cup green basil (leaves only)
1/2 cup purple basil (leaves only)
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
mini bocconcini

For the dressing:
2 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
a drop of honey
Maldon salt
cracked black pepper

One ingredient at a time, layer first the arugula then the 2 basils, tomatoes, and bocconcini in 4 jars. Set open jars in the fridge to chill. Next, whisk all ingredients of the dressing together. When you're ready to serve the salads, take the jars out of the fridge, drizzle the dressing on top of the salads, close the lids, and tell whoever's eating with you to shake it up to mix everything together and then enjoy it straight from the jar immediately!

For more crazy caprese ideas, check out our caprese tart.

Vegetarian Carbonara with Smoked Sun-Dried Tomatoes

This is not just another pasta. This vegetarian-ized version of the classic Italian dish is truly no compromise. The smoked sun-dried tomatoes -- I found some recently at The Fresh Market for about $4 a pouch -- add an amazing savory quality to this rich dish. It's great because most of the ingredients used to make it are usually in your fridge and pantry already.


If done right, the eggs in this dish should be creamy and coat the warm pasta. Worst case scenario, you'll have scrambled eggs and pasta, which is still pretty delicious. Fear not! Just follow these easy instructions, and you're very likely to get it right.




Vegetarian Carbonara with Smoked Sun-Dried Tomatoes

3 eggs
1/4 cup cream or whole milk (in a small glass)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1/4 cup shallots (minced)
2 smoked sun-dried tomatoes (minced)
1/2 cup white wine
2 roma tomatoes (peeled, diced)
sea salt and cracked black pepper
a pinch of cane sugar
a dash of champagne vinegar
2 servings of dry spaghetti
pecorino romano cheese 


Place eggs and glass of milk in a bowl of hot water; this will raise the temperature of both and is key to getting the creamy consistency associated with carbonara. Place a large pot of salted water on to boil for the pasta. 


In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, sauté shallots and sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil until shallots start to just brown. Add the wine and reduce until most of the moisture has evaporated. Add the romas, salt, pepper, sugar, and vinegar to the pan and stir. 


In a mixing bowl, beat eggs and cream together. Set mixture aside for just a few minutes; it's about to be added to the pasta.


Cook pasta according to package instructions. Place cooked pasta directly into the pan with the tomato mixture, and immediately add the egg mixture. Turn the heat off of the pan but keep it on the stove. Mix for about 4 minutes until sauce sticks to the noodles and is thick and creamy. Garnish with grated pecorino romano. Serve immediately.

The Chubby Vegetarian Collaborative Brunch at Restaurant Iris

Carpaccio, piquillo, soubise, umami, chimichurri, tzaziki, tortilla de papa, banh mi, sririacha, tandoori, migas, flamenkütchen -- honestly, I had no idea that my menu would be so difficult to read. Save for the flamenkütchen, this is all stuff I make on a regular basis. Needles to say, I learned a lot about myself and the way I cook by putting together this brunch menu. I learned that, though I think of myself as a Southerner, I do have a world view of food. I love grits as much as the next guy, but I also love upma, panelle, poutine, dosas, injera, and kimchi. The Iris brunch menu that Kelly and I came up with was a true refection of my cooking style, and, oddly enough, a total surprise to me.

I learned something else through this experience of planning and executing a menu for 100 people, something that everyone pretty much grasps on a certain level: the restaurant business is difficult. It's made up of long hours and tons of repetitive labor. You cannot, however, lose sight of the artful dish that you hope will end up on the plate. Kelly English, chef and owner of Restaurant Iris, gave me a speech in the Iris kitchen on Sunday morning that went a little something like this:

"There will come a time when the panic will set in, and you will feel as if there is no way we can get all this stuff done. Just remember, if we work hard, we will get it done. You'll look at the clock and the panic will get worse. At about 9 a.m., the culinary professionals will arrive. When they do, everything will fall into place. Now get over there and make biscuits for 100 people."

I worked hard. I made the biscuits, pimento cheese, pickled carrots, pickled peppers, peeled the lotus, smoked the sun-dried tomatoes, made the spice rub for the shiitake bacon, and roasted peppers for the vegan migas. I thought I was on fire until I looked at Kelly's prep list. That guy is fast and accurate in the kitchen. I was in awe.

It came time for service, and we were ready -- just like I was promised. Once the first customers rolled in, my palms began to sweat. We had 97 people on the books. It had been sold out for over a month, so I felt like there was a lot to live up to that day. Luckily, we had my good friend Michael Hughes behind the bar mixing up some signature cocktails: The Hive, The Peach Julep, and Basil & Bubbles. He was able put everyone in a relaxed mood. I'm always so thankful for Michael.

The first round of orders began to make their way out of the kitchen, and they looked beautiful. I (seriously!) almost cried. It was emotional for me to see my food served in such a fine restaurant prepared by an incredible chef and his crew. The hand pies, squash blossoms, beet salad, and the stuffed peppers all looked so amazing to me.

Service was a blur of smiles and food and laughter. I loved visiting the tables and talking with people about the food they just ate or were about to eat. The kitchen continued to turn out dish after dish of wonderful food. Everyone in the dining room really seemed to have a good time. I'm a sucker for compliments, and there were a few thrown around.

Two weeks later, I'm still very grateful for the incredible opportunity.

If you ever wondered what it takes to be a Food & Wine magazine best new chef like Kelly English, I can tell you. iIn addition to a wealth of talent, it takes waking up early and staying up late. It takes dedication. It takes joy in hard work as well the willingness to work extra-hard to realize one's dreams. This is true inside and outside of the kitchen.

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
--------------------------
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.

Melonade

This is whimsical and silly and it takes a little time to make, but what could be better on a really hot day than a glass of melonade? My respect for anyone who can scoop out perfect spheres of melon has grown this week after I purchased a melon baller for the first time and thought it would make for quick and flawless work right there on the spot. It turns out that melonade tastes like nothing I've had before and is quite refreshing, so the work really is worth it.

Melonade:

1 cantaloupe

1 honeydew

1 small watermelon

1/3 cup light agave

juice from one lime

juice from 4 lemons

1 cup of water

1 pinch of salt

Wash the melons and cut them in half. First, remove any seeds. Next, use a melon baller to scoop out nice round spheres of melon; the flesh from the top of the half will be the firmest and easiest to scoop, but you sort of have to dig into it and then twist. Place the melon balls in the freezer.

Cut the rest of the flesh from the melons so that you have about a cup of each. Place this pulp in the food processor and blend until smooth. Use a mesh strainer to strain the melon juice into a bowl; use a silicone spatula to press out all of the juice. To the strained melon, add the juice from the lime and lemons and the agave. Whisk this together and then add salt and water before whisking again. Place semi-frozen melon balls in pitcher and add juice and ice. Stir and serve over ice.

Vegetarian Poutine (Baked Fries + Truffled Gravy + Curds)

Poutine is the Loch Ness Monster of dishes around our house: we have heard of it, we knew about it, but we had never witnessed it for ourselves. Our friend Katelyn from Canada would wow us with stories about this mythical dish. We'd plan to make it (I'll bring the gravy, and you bring the fries!) but it just never happened...until this week.

My wife said the magic word, poutine, three times, and the dish magically appeared on our table this weekend. What is poutine, you ask? It's three simple ingredients thrust together to make something that is far greater than the sum of its parts: french fries, gravy of some sort, and cheese curds. That doesn't sound like something I would make! Well, it isn't, but we all have to be a little bad sometimes. Besides, I made this as healthy as possible: the fries are baked with only two tablespoons of oil, and the gravy has only one tablespoon of butter. Now that I have witnessed it firsthand, I can tell you without a doubt that we will be making this one again.

Vegetarian Poutine: Crispy Baked Fries, Truffled Gravy, 1/2 cup Cheese Curds

Crispy Baked Fries

2 medium baking potatoes

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper

2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons canola oil

(The cornstarch in this recipe makes for a crispy crust even though these fries are baked and not -- gasp! -- deep fried.)

First, cut potatoes into 1/8 inch sticks; be sure keep the skin on them, though. Toss potatoes with the salt, pepper, cornstarch, and flour. Next, toss them in the oil. Immediately arrange them in a single layer on a baking pan fitted with a cooling rack; this technique allows airflow all around the potato, which yields a crispier french fry. Place into a 515 degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until brown. Remove and serve immediately.

Truffled Gravy

1 tablespoon truffle butter

1 teaspoon all-purpose flour

1 cup whole milk

3 tablespoons shiitake mushroom paté

2 dashes of hot sauce

Melt butter in a frying pan over medium heat and add the four. Whisk until mixture turns a pale brown. Whisk in the remaining ingredients, raise the heat, and stir until thick. Set aside.

To assemble: throw a handful of hot fries down onto a plate, top with a generous helping of gravy, and then pile on the cheese curds. It's good...really good.

Vegetarian Bánh Mí Sandwich

I'll admit it...the description of this sandwich sounds horrible: pickled carrots and radish, paté, cilantro, sriracha mayo. It kinda seems like the cook got confused somewhere along the way, but really, the original bánh mí is one of the world's oldest fusion cuisines. The sandwich in question came about after the French colonized Vietnam in the late 1800's. Along with a healthy dose of oppression, the French brought along baguette and paté, so the Vietnamese took that and added the pickles, hot sauce, and other traditional condiments. The result is the exact opposite of horrible; in fact, it is one of my favorite foods on the planet. It's rich, crunchy, sweet, sour, hot, and salty -- it has it all!

Pickled Carrots and Daikon (Do Chua):

1 medium daikon radish

2 medium carrots

2 cups rice wine vinegar

1 cups water

1/2 cup sugar

1/8 cup salt

Shred both the radish and carrot with a julienne peeler and place into a container. Add remaining ingredients, stir to dissolve salt and sugar, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before using. They are best if they are left for 24 hours and will keep up to a month.

Mushroom Paté:

10 ounces mushrooms (shiitake or cremini)

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 shallot (sliced)

1 tablespoon Braggs or soy sauce

black pepper

In a pan over medium-high heat, allow the oil to come up to temperature. Once the oil starts to shimmer, sauté slices of mushrooms until they begin to brown. Next, add the shallot and the Braggs. Allow this to cook for a few seconds more while constantly moving the mixture around in the pan. Place the contents of the pan into a food processor, add plenty of black pepper, and blend until almost smooth.

Sriracha mayo: Mix 3 parts mayo (or vegan mayo) with one part sriacha. (You may use less sriacha if you are a total sissy.)

Vegetarian Bánh Mí Sandwiches:

6 eggs (or 1 block of tofu or tempeh)

1 long crispy baguette (or 6 small baguette buns)

mushroom paté

sriracha mayo

1 seedless cucumber (thinly sliced)

pickled carrots and daikon

3 green onions (sliced)

handful of cilantro leaves

lime

salt & pepper

Fry eggs over hard in a bit of olive oil, season with salt and pepper, cover, and set aside. If you are using tofu or tempeh, pan-fry thin slices in a bit of olive oil. Warm bread in a 350 degree oven until the outside becomes crispy. Slice baguette along one side but leave the other side intact, like a hinge. Spread the top with sriracha mayo and the bottom with mushroom paté. Begin to layer in your ingredients starting with your protein, cucumbers, pickled carrots and daikon, onions, and cilantro. Right before taking a bite, squeeze a lime onto the sandwich filling.

Pine Nut-Stuffed Medjool Dates

Of course I am always looking for things to do with pine nuts. These stuffed dates look like oblong little birds' nests and hit all the right sweet, crunchy, spicy, creamy, and herbal notes. I only buy a few of these dates at a time so that we can savor them and do something special like this with them.

Pine Nut-Stuffed Dates

5 Medjool dates

1/8 cup pine nuts

olive oil

Maldon salt

cracked black pepper

cayenne

thyme

manchego cheese

Cut dates in half lengthwise and open them up so they're flatter. Toast pine nuts in an olive-oil coated pan on medium heat; stir often so that they brown but don't burn. Add salt and pepper to them and stuff them in the dates. Add a silver of manchego and a couple of small thyme leaves. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with a tiny bit of cayenne. You may warm them in a 325 degree oven for minutes or two in order to melt the cheese or have them as is.

Ginger + Chocolate Mini Ice Cream Sandwiches

This is a super-fast dessert that is perfect for a hot summer day because you can eat this tiny ice cream sandwich before it melts all over your hands. The ginger adds a some heat, which makes these sandwiches just a bit grown-up -- but not too much.

Ginger-Chocolate Filling

1/3 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons chocolate sauce (Ah!laska is good.)

1 tablespoon cane sugar

1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger

Back to Nature Madagascar vanilla wafers

Whip cream until slightly stiff and add the rest of the ingredients. Mix to incorporate. Apply about 1 tablespoon of filling to the flat side of a vanilla wafer and then top with another wafer. Repeat until you run out of filling. Stick then in the freezer to harden for about an hour before serving. Makes about a dozen mini ice cream sandwiches.

Grilled Corn + Chimichurri

It is one of my favorite times of the year: the moment when fresh corn starts to come into season. When it does, I like nothing better than to peel back the silks and throw a few ears onto the grill. I did just that for lunch today, albeit with a little twist. I brushed the corn with a simple chimichurri right as it was just about ready to be taken off the fire. This mildly spicy, herbal dressing seemed to be the perfect complement to the sweet, roasted flavor of the yellow corn.

Chimichurri

2 cups flat-leaf parsley (loosely packed)

1 tsp. sherry vinegar

zest of one lime

1 clove of garlic

1 jalapeno (seeds removed)

pinch of sea salt

cracked black pepper

pinch of cane sugar

1/4 cup olive oil

Whir up everything from parsley to sugar in the food processor. Keep it running and add olive oil so it emulsifies.

Peel corn and throw it on a hot fire for just a few minutes per side or until some of the kernels start to caramelize. Brush dressing over grilled ears of corn before removing them from the grill. As an extra treat, grate a little manchego cheese over each warm ear of corn.

Here are a few more suggestions to help with your Memorial Day grilling plans:

Sweet Potato + Black Bean Torta

Smoky Grilled Quesadillas

Almond + Eggplant Baba-ghanoush

Grilled Pizza

Mexican Grilled Corn

Stuffed Portobello Mushroom

Jackalope Jr.

Baked Lemongrass Tofu + Coconut Jasmine Rice

This dish gets its fragrant kick from a mixture of fresh herbs that you may have in your garden this time of year. The lemongrass, which can be found at your neighborhood health food store or Asian market, adds a floral note while the garlic and soy sauce add depth. This particular mixture would make even your shoe taste delicious. Luckily, we have a better plan for it than that.

Don't be deterred by the length of this recipe; it's really quite simple when you break it down. Make the spice mixture, toss it with the tofu, bake, sauté onions, add coconut milk, and it's done. It's healthier than the deep-fried stuff you get when you go out -- and you also know exactly what's in this.

Baked Lemongrass Tofu + Coconut Jasmine Rice

1 can of light coconut milk

water

1 cup jasmine rice

2 fat stalks of lemongrass

1 1/2 inch piece of ginger

3 cloves of garlic

tsp. of sugar

1/4 cup mint

1/4 cup basil

zest from 1 lime

1 tablespoon sambal (or sriracha)

1/4 cup of canola oil

2 blocks firm tofu (cut into bite-sized cubed, patted dry)

1 onion (sliced into 1/2 moons)

Braggs (or soy sauce)

1 head of butter lettuce (torn)

1 large tomato (sliced)

1 cucumber (thinly sliced)

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. On the stovetop, bring one cup of the coconut milk and one cup of water to a boil in a medium pot. Add the jasmine rice and cover. Reduce heat to low to allow the rice to simmer. It will take about 20 minutes for the rice to cook through and absorb all of the liquid.

Now comes the fun part: smack the stalks of lemongrass on the countertop to soften them and then split them open. Pull out the pliable inside part and place it in a food processor. The rest of the stalk goes into the compost pile. Add the ginger, garlic, sugar, mint, basil, zest, and, sambal to the food processor and crank it up. You want these ingredients very finely chopped.

In a large bowl, toss the lemongrass mixture together with the canola oil and tofu and throw in a pinch of salt. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the tofu to a silpat-lined baking sheet and arrange the cubes into a single layer. Reserve the lemongrass/oil mixture that's at the bottom on the bowl. Bake tofu 20-30 minutes or until the edges start to brown. Don't let the garlic burn! Keep a close eye on it.

While that is cooking in the oven, sauté the onion in a large frying pan over medium using the reserved lemongrass/oil mixture. Once the onion is soft and translucent, remove pan from the heat. Add a tablespoon of Braggs or soy sauce to the onions. Once the tofu is done, remove it from the oven and toss it into the pan with the onions along with the remaining coconut milk. Mix and heat through. Serve over butter lettuce with sliced cucumbers and tomatoes and coconut rice.

Marinated Roasted Red Pepper Pasta + Seared Artichoke Hearts

These marinated roasted red peppers are not only good as the star of a cheese plate, they can also be a wonderful addition to any sandwich and pretty killer atop polenta, but I like them best blended and tossed with warm pasta for a comforting and simple weeknight meal.

This slightly sweet, smoky red pepper sauce is a nice change of pace from the usual what-are-we-gonna-have-for-dinner spaghetti with tomato sauce. The pan-seared artichoke hearts with their meaty texture sends this one out of the park.

Marinated Roasted Red Pepper Pasta + Seared Artichoke Hearts

2 tablespoons olive oil

medium onion (diced)

1/4 cup white wine

3 roma tomatoes (peeled, chopped)

marinated roasted red peppers

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 servings fettuccine pasta

8-10 seared artichoke hearts

parmesan cheese, parsley (garnish)

In a saucepan over medium-high heat, sauté onion until translucent; this should take about 5 minutes. Deglaze the pan with wine and allow most of the liquid to evaporate. Add the tomatoes, the marinated roasted red peppers (but not the marinating liquid), the red pepper flakes, and the tomato paste. Simmer for 10 minutes. Using an immersion blender, blend the sauce until smooth. Toss cooked pasta in the sauce until it's coated. Top with seared artichoke hearts, parsley, and parmesan cheese.

Nannie's Pound Cake

We rarely made this when I was growing up because Nannie always made it for us. Lately, she makes pronouncements about the very one everyone's busy eating. "This is my last pound cake," she says. Sometimes the reason is because the cake is heavy and she has to have help getting it into the oven. Sometimes it's because the price of cream cheese has gotten too high. I suspect that she loves it when we protest and beg her to keep making it for us, so there hasn't been a last one yet.

Maybe she floats that idea just to make us so happy when we have the next amazing piece. For me, this will happen in early June at my next visit. Looking forward to this time is what's getting me through the craziness that sums up May every year.

When I visit, I know it is going to be on top of the fridge in a tall cake carrier, and I know I will have progressively bigger slivers of it along with my mom and my sister as the trip unspools. I know Nannie will wrap up a couple of pieces for my dad, who will be sure to say, 'Oh, my goodness!' when I bring it to him. And even though I eventually hounded Nannie out of all her secret pound cake tips, such as setting every ingredient out for an hour so that they're all room temperature and putting the cake into a cold oven then heating it, not to mention the direct order not to halve the recipe (which, oops, I do anyway, and I do tweak the recipe just a little but not overly much), I always know my own attempt will never measure up to the pound cake she makes.

People, she sells this cake to everyone in town, and she ups the prices because she's mildly annoyed that the orders keep coming in and she sort of tired of everyone talking about it, and people in Columbia, Mississippi still fall all over themselves to buy it. It is the first thing gone from the table at the church suppers I've attended with her. I love dessert, and in all honesty, this stands as the best dessert I have ever had.

Make one. You'll see. Once I texted my family that I had it in the oven, they flipped. The desire to eat five pieces in a row was mentioned. This is a serious cake.

Nannie's Pound Cake

1 stick of butter

4 ounces neufchatel cheese

1/4 cup non-hydrogenated shortening

3 eggs

1 1/2 cups cane sugar

1 1/2 cups AP flour (sifted)

1 teaspoon vanilla paste

1 teaspoon coconut extract

First, measure and set out all ingredients on the counter. Wait an hour. Now you can begin! Beat butter, neufchatel cheese, and shortening well. Add eggs and beat well. Add sugar and flour. Add vanilla and coconut. Pour into buttered loaf pan or small bundt pan. Put the cake in the oven and then heat it to 325 degrees. Bake cake for 1 1/2 hours or until golden brown.

Lemon Glaze

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tbsp. butter

3-5 teaspoons of milk

1/2 teaspoon of lemon extract

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla paste

Whisk all the ingredients together; just add the 3 tsp. milk and then increase the amount if needed so that you get a thick-enough-to-pour consistency in the end. Pour this glaze over warm cake -- set the cake on a rack so it doesn't get soggy -- and let it set an hour or two before serving.

*You can also check out another classic: Nannie's Blueberry Pie.

Vegan Migas Tacos + Poblano & Tomatillo Salsa

A recent Mother's Day brunch at Brother Juniper's reminded me of how good scrambled tofu could be. They have a few versions of this vegan classic that are all served with chopped mushrooms, peppers, and onions. The deliciousness of my breakfast made the wait totally worthwhile.

At home, I decided to make my favorite egg dish, migas tacos, vegan. I did this by subbing a simple scrambled tofu for the scrambled eggs. If you're not familiar with migas, it typically made with eggs scrambled with tortilla chips. It's not an easy dish to find around Memphis, but The Happy Mexican serves a proper version of it on their lunch menu. You should try it some time.

I pulled out all the stops for my version of migas tacos using fire-roasted poblanos, tomatillos, tomatoes, green onions, and, of course, corn tortilla chips. There is so much good stuff going on in this dish...it's so spicy, crunchy, and rich, you just have to love it.

Vegan Migas

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

Poblano and Tomatillo Salsa*

Scrambled Tofu**

2 cups corn chips

flour tortillas, avocado, hot sauce, and cilantro

In a large frying pan over medium heat, heat olive oil to temperature. Mix the scrambled tofu mixture with the vegetables from the salsa, but leave out the liquid part of the salsa. Scramble tofu and salsa mixture for a few minutes until warmed through. Add the chips and stir to incorporate. Serve immediately on flour tortillas with sliced avocado, hot sauce, and cilantro. This also goes really nicely with a side of rice and black beans.

Poblano and Tomatillo Salsa*:

1 poblano pepper (fire-roasted, peeled, seeded)

2 roma tomatoes (peeled)

2 small tomatillos (peeled)

2 green onions (sliced)

1 jalapeno (seeds removed, minced)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon white vinegar

Dice the peppers, tomatoes, and tomatillos. Add in the sliced onion, minced jalapeno, salt, sugar, and vinegar. Taste it and adjust seasoning if needed.

Scrambled Tofu**:

1 block extra-firm tofu (crumbled)

1/4 teaspoon turmeric

1/4 teaspoon black salt

2 tablespoons vegan mayo

pinch of sugar (to balance the bitterness of the turmeric)

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Blackberry-Lemon Frozen Cheesecake Pops

Love blackberries; hate those pesky seeds. I can deal with them if I must, but I would rather just have the flavor of blackberries without the hard-to-chew roughage. Pickiness comes in to play with cheesecake, too. I like vegan cheesecake, and I like it very plain. But with these pops, all of my silly preferences flew out the window. The marbled effect makes them look more painstaking than they actually are, and it takes no time at all to cook a bunch of the blackberry syrup in order to have extra on hand for adding to lemonade.

Blackberry-Lemon Frozen Cheesecake Pops

Blackberry Syrup

1 pint blackberries

juice of one lemon

1/3 cup cane sugar

Simmer berries along with lemon juice and sugar. Stir often to break them down. When they are broken and syrupy, let them cool. Run it all through a food mill or a fine mesh strainer to catch the seeds. Set aside.

Lemon-Cheesecake Base

1 4-ounce container of Greek yogurt

1 tbsp. neufchatel cheese

1/4 cup milk

2 tbsp. whipping cream

1/4 cup honey

zest from one lemon

1/4 cup cane sugar

pinch of sea salt

small bamboo skewers (optional)

Whisk all ingredients together well. As soon as that's completed, tilt the bowl and spoon in a couple of spoonfuls of blackberry syrup; pour it into the molds while helping it to marble by swirling your spoon around a little bit. (Mine set up in a $1 silicone mold found here. They're honestly better for this kind of thing rather than for ice.) Freeze for 1-2 hours. You can eat the cheesecake bites like bon-bons or pierce them with bamboo skewers for pops.

Fried Green Tomato Po' Boy

This sandwich takes me back to the first time I walked into a sandwich shop in New Orleans and asked if they could make me a vegetarian po' boy. The lady behind the counter told me that the original po' boy was made with french fries, lettuce, and tomato, and they'd be happy to make this historic sandwich for me. I walked in to the same shop the next day and they had added the french fry po' boy to the menu.

Now I'll admit, I get New Orleans wrong all the time. I mean, I know where it is on a map. I love that city, and I know what the food should taste like, but I often miss the mark flavor-wise when I make Big Easy cuisine in my own kitchen.

Not this time, though! This fried green tomato po' boy is just perfect. The dredge has a hint of nutmeg, and the N'awlins sauce puts it over the top...way over the top. This one should be on the menu, too!

Fried Green Tomatoes:

4-5 medium green tomatoes (sliced into 1/2-inch slices)

fried green tomato batter*

fried green tomato dredge**

canola oil

Pour 2 inches of canola oil into a soup pot. Heat oil to medium-high. Dip each green tomato slice into the batter and allow excess to drip off. Sprinkle dredge over tomato allowing excess to go back into the bowl. Fry in batches for 5-6 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

Fried Green Tomato Batter*

1 egg

1 cup all-purpose flour

about 1 cup of water (to make it as thick as pancake batter)

Whisk these ingredients until smooth and set aside.

Fried Green Tomato Dredge**

1/2 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup cornmeal

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sweet paprika

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Mix all ingredients together. The cornstarch adds crunch, and the cornmeal adds texture. It's the perfect dredge.

N'awlins Sauce

2 tbsp. vegan mayo

1 tbsp. mustard

1/2 tsp. vegetarian Worchestershire

dash of hot sauce

Mix until well incorporated.

To assemble the sandwich, slice a crusty french loaf in half. Pull the bread out of the top half creating a channel for the ingredients. Spread some creamy goat cheese with chives (4 ounces of goat cheese mixed with 1/4 cup chives) on the bottom and some Naw'lins sauce on the top. Layer in fresh lettuce or spinach, sliced red tomato, and 3 or four fried green tomatoes. Then...crunch! So good.

Zucchini and Red Pepper Flower

My mother-in-law came over today for an early Mother's Day / farmers' market lunch, and in the midst of present-opening, Cleveland shuffling, and dog-walking, we also managed to have a great, sprawling meal. For the main, we made this tortilla, and due to a permanent request, also included a "big salad" like the one Elaine Bennis liked. Dessert was another version of strawberry shortcake sliders with orange zest and lemon thyme.

The real treat, though, came at the beginning with these roasted red peppers and zucchini ribbons fashioned into a flower. (The ladies loved it.) This was great with Cucina baguette and soft goat cheese with chives from Bonnie Blue. This was a fun Mother's Day menu, and we hope you also get to cook for someone you love this weekend!

Zucchini and Red Pepper Flower

2 red pepper

2 zucchini

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar

2 cloves of garlic

Maldon salt

cracked black pepper

cane sugar

First, roast the red peppers (see technique here). Peel and seed them. Slice them into 8-inch strips. Put them in a container with the olive oil, garlic, vinegar, pepper, a pinch of salt, and a pinch of sugar. Set this aside.

Next, use your vegetable peeler to break down the zucchini into thin strips. (Leave the skin on for this.) In a lightly oiled pan over medium heat, sear them off for 10 seconds apiece on one side only. Sprinkle the strips with salt and pepper. Allow them to cool. To make the shape, fold each strip in half and loosely roll one end to the other.

For the flower, place zucchini around the edge of a small, flat-bottomed ramekin. Pile the peppers in the middle. Put some bread and cheese on the board with this and you've got it done.

Smoked Shiitake Bacon over Sweet Potato Grits

I just love a meal like this: three simple, flavorful components that really complement one another all stacked up on the plate. The parts of this recipe could easily be broken up and used in many creative ways. For instance, I often use the shiitake bacon to make a stellar version of a pimento cheese BLT. The grits are great for breakfast topped with a poached egg and buttered toast, and the greens are a good respite from a typical cold salad any day.

Everything you see here is from the farmer's market. As you can see, Memphis in the springtime is a wonderful place to be. The variety of produce that is available is astounding: mushrooms, onions, sweet potatoes, grits, cheese, eggs -- all provided by local farmers who we know on a first-name basis. It's unbelievable!

Smoked Shiitake Bacon

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

2 cups shiitake mushrooms (sliced)

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon smoked salt

Place a large frying pan over high heat. Once the pan is heated through, add the oil. Once the oil starts to smoke, add the mushrooms in one layer. (Do not crowd the pan; if you don't have a large frying pan, do this in two batches.) Allow mushrooms to cook for two minutes or until nicely browned on one side. Flip the mushrooms and add the brown sugar, black pepper, and smoked salt. Toss mixture to coat mushrooms. Remove mushrooms from the pan immediately as the sugar will easily burn.

Sweet Potato Grits

3 cups milk

1 cup grits

1 cup sweet potato (finely grated)

1 shallot (finely diced)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon champagne vinegar

2 eggs (beaten)

olive oil

Bring milk to a boil. Add the next seven ingredients and work out any lumps with a whisk. Reduce heat to low, cover, and allow to cook for 20 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Temper the eggs into the grits. Brush olive oil into the cups of a silicone muffin tin. Pour grits 3/4 of the way into each muffin cup. Bake for 20 minutes or until set. Allow to cool for ten minutes.

White-Wine Braised Swiss Chard

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small shallot (finely diced)

3 sprigs thyme (leaves pulled from the stem)

zest from 1 lemon

1/2 cup white wine

1 teaspoon sugar

2 bunches swiss chard (tough stems trimmed, roughly chopped)

sea salt and cracked black pepper

Sauté shallot in olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Once the shallot begins to brown, add the thyme, zest, wine, and sugar. Turn the heat up and reduce mixture by about 1/3. Turn the heat to low. Just before serving, toss the chard into the braising liquid and cover it with a lid. Leave covered for 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

To serve, place one sweet potato grits cake on the plate, top with about 1/4 cup of greens and then a handful of the shiitake bacon. Drizzle some of the braising liquid over the top. I also love to finish this dish off with a bit of smoked feta cheese.

The Chubby Vegetarian Brunch at Iris

Kelly English, Food & Wine best new chef and chef/owner of Restaurant Iris, asked me, The Chubby Vegetarian, to collaborate with him on a brunch menu. Needless to say, I am thrilled about this awesome opportunity. It'll be a part of a series of Sunday brunches hosted by Kelly; he invites chefs into his kitchen at Iris to create a one-off brunch menu. He has had some fantastic people join him in the kitchen such as Jennifer Chandler, author of Simply Salads and Simply Suppers, and Jonathan Magallanes of Las Tortugas.

You may have noticed that we are featuring more than a few brunch-y looking dishes on the blog lately -- it's because we're preparing for the big day. In addition to all of this awesomeness, Michael Hughes will be on hand mixing up some tasty cocktails, and a portion of the proceeds from brunch will go to support the Memphis Farmer's Market.

I know you all want to know what we will be serving. Well, I can't say exactly what the menu will be, but it is sure to be exciting. I hope to see you there!

The Chubby Vegetarian Sunday Brunch, June 12, 2011

For reservations, call Restaurant Iris at 901.590.2828.

Pistachio-Chai Muffins

This is a good recipe from Cooking Light, and it puts forth the neat idea of using chai tea in something baked. (This sweet tea tart has also been on my mind lately. Let's just start putting tea in everything!)

Make these pistachio-chai muffins on impulse (like us) on a weekday morning for a top-notch distraction. Obviously, baking at 6:30 a.m. is so much more productive and rewarding than, say, finally ironing clothes, getting a jumpstart on to-do's, or otherwise sensibly and logically preparing for a crazy-busy day. Or you could just try them this weekend for a way less hectic experience.

We're wondering...do you have an interesting go-to muffin recipe to recommend? Or a surprising use for tea in a recipe?

Edgy Burger

This article in the New York Times got me to thinking about a story I wrote for Edible Memphis some time ago. So, I thought I'd share.

My aunt eyeballed the burger that was set in front of her. Inspecting and scrutinizing it, she poked at the patty with her finger, and then she peeled back the bun to get an even closer look.

“It’s a veggie!” she proclaimed. She took a resigned bite of the sandwich. Even before this catastrophe, she had been dismayed by the fact that there were veggie burgers present at our family get-together, and her concern that she may have been given one by mistake grew. “I can see the vegetables,” she cried before her second bite. I sat down beside her and attempted to point out the visual differences between her beef patty and my veggie patty, but she wouldn’t hear of it. It was a veggie, and that was that.

Right then, I realized that veggie burgers had a real image problem.

They do come by their bad reputation honestly. For the most part, people are familiar with the myriad of dry, tasteless, hockey pucks found in the grocery store freezer case, but that’s not all there is. With nearly any food, fresher is better, and lucky for us, Memphis is home to many fresh, inventive examples of not only how veggie burgers are done, but also how they are done right.

My first stop was to see Balewa Bayete, a vegan for thirty-two years; he assembles a burger behind his own counter inside of Sean’s Deli on Union Avenue. Balewa’s Vegan Gourmet offers two stellar choices: Original Live Burger and Shiitake Burger. Both burgers are filling, spicy and delicious. He admits that the veggie burger is a great first step for those who are looking for a better way to eat.

“It is not a medicine burger,” he remarks, “but it is food that nourishes the body.”

His own recipes takes fresh to a whole new level. His burgers, made with organic beets, mushrooms, flax seeds, oat bran and spices, are not cooked, but dehydrated to preserve the nutritional value of the fresh ingredients. While he has been making different versions of this sandwich for fifteen years, he stopped using soy as an ingredient some time ago. Most of the frozen-box burgers use soy to replicate the texture and flavor of meat burgers. “It doesn’t need to taste like meat,” he says.

He’s right. The best veggie burgers in Memphis make little attempt to replicate the true flavor of meat, but offer something new for the palate. There is a certain freedom in disassociating the veggie burger from its meaty brethren.

Patrick Reilly recently created a house-made veggie burger to add to the already veggie-friendly menu at The Majestic Grille. The inspiration came to him while visiting friend and fellow chef, Tom Hughes, in Florida over Superbowl weekend. Tom features a veggie burger on the menu at his restaurant, Graffiti Junktion. His creation uses polenta as a base. Patrick liked the concept but decided to make it regional by using Delta Grind grits, as well as a little oatmeal, as the starting point for his burger. He flavors it with chopped mushrooms, onions, garlic, spinach, and then he adds pinto beans to the mixture for a bit of protein. The grits and oatmeal provide a nice chewy texture while the beans add a bit of richness. The grits hold the burger together so well that there is no need for an egg binder, so Patrick’s veggie patty is vegan as well. The presentation is the same as a traditional meat burger: toasted bun, lettuce, tomato, mustard and a nice helping of Majestic’s wonderful Parmesan shoestring fries.

In addition to the sandwiches I have already mentioned, there are many more veggie burgers to try. Houston’s makes their veggie burger in-house by using roasted beets, brown rice and jalapenos. It’s grilled over a hardwood flame and glazed with sweet soy sauce. The beets give it a peculiar purple color and it is always a stellar choice. Janice Blanchett also makes an oat burger that is out of this world. It’s the same oat burger I got as a kid from Squash Blossom and as a young man from Square Foods. Now she makes them for Otherlands. Last but not least, Huey’s puts on a pretty good show in the veggie burger category. Though the patty itself is bought from a distributor, they manage to make it their own with a combo of seasonings and atmosphere. In a town famous for barbecue, it is amazing how many healthy, flavorful alternatives are available.

With all of this in mind, I decided to take what my chef friends taught me and try to make my very own fresh veggie burger patties at home. Just to be super-trendy, I thought I’d make sliders instead of regular-sized burgers. Of course, my aim is to make a veggie burger even my doubtful Aunt could love.

-Reprinted from the Spring '09 Edible Memphis. Pick up a new copy of the magazine to read a story about our dining room table and to see a photo essay about kitchen radios.

Spicy & Smoky Lentil Taco 'Meat'

Warm weather puts me in the mood for hot and spicy Mexican food. Give me some migas, chiliquiles, guacamole, torta, stuffed chilies, whatever, as long as it's spicy and comes with something nice and cold to drink.

I thought I was brilliant coming up with lentil taco meat, but like Mr. Shakespeare said, "There is nothing new under the sun." There are a million similar recipes out there, but I think this one is one of the simplest and probably among the tastiest due to a double infusion of smoke from the chipotle powder and smoked sun-dried tomatoes.

This is a very versatile recipe. You could use this like I did in a taco, or it'd be great in a burrito, or even as a stuffing for tamales. The texture of the lentils matches what most of us think of when we think of taco meat, so there's no need to buy that expensive and fattening fake meat. In short, this is a must-try, so give it a shot.

Tacos with Spicy & Smoky Lentil Taco 'Meat' + Simple Salsa

(serves 4)

12 small corn or flour tortillas or taco shells (warmed)

lentil taco meat*

1 cup shredded smoked cheddar

2 cups finely shredded cabbage

1/2 cup chopped green onion

2 avocados (peeled and sliced)

1/4 cup sour cream

lime wedges

simple salsa**

This is best served family-style with all of the ingredients on the table. That way, each person can concoct their own taco to their own specifications. Personally, I like it all -- especially with a little drizzle of Valentina Black.

Spicy & Smoky Lentil Taco Meat*

1 onion (diced)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ancho chili powder

1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1 cup dry lentils (both brown and green)

1 1/2 cups water (or so)

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1/4 cup smoked sun dried tomatoes (finely chopped)

In a saucepan oner medium heat, sauté onion in the olive oil. Once the onion is translucent, add cumin, salt, and chili powders and allow to cook for about a minute more. Add the remaining ingredients and bring it all up to a boil. Reduce mixture to a simmer, cover, and allow to cook for 30-45 minutes or until all liquid has been absorbed. (You want the lentils to be tender, but not falling apart.)

Simple Salsa**

2 medium tomatoes

1 jalapeno pepper

2 cloves of garlic

lime zest

sea salt and cracked pepper to taste

In a cast-iron skillet over high heat, blacken the skin of the tomatoes and pepper on all sides while getting some caramel color on the outside of the garlic cloves. Throw all ingredients into a food processor and pulse 5-10 times or until ingredients are well incorporated, but not liquid.

Salt-and-Pepper Chocolate Easter Rabbits

So it's finally here: Happy Easter, everyone!

I kept scoping out chocolate rabbits during the past few weeks; I suppose I was trying to find the most perfect one. During the old days in Jackson, Mississippi and Germantown, Tennessee, I always dreamt of a chocolate rabbit so big it would loom over my childhood self; I wanted it to sport a sugar eye the size of a fist. A hollow milk chocolate rabbit was the centerpiece of every basket I ever received; however, TCV and his brothers always vied for a solid chocolate rabbit -- just because it meant more chocolate. Smart.

I couldn't stop thinking about the ideal one, so I decided to make my own this year. I plunged myself into the mysterious, craft-y world of molded chocolate, a world I never knew existed. In town, I could find molding trays for pirates, flowers, decorative swirls, lollipops, even crosses, but there were no rabbits available with the old-fashioned lines and details I pictured. I had to find them here. I had to procure some blocks of Callebaut chocolate -- no disks of pastel-colored chocolate allowed. And I had to learn quickly. These bunnies, unlike the ones I ate as I child, are rather small and are not hollow, but the flavors are, well, bigger than the plain milk chocolate kind I remember.

White Chocolate Rabbits + Sea Salt, Pink Peppercorns, Cracked Tellicherry Pepper, and Toasted Almonds

and

70% Dark Chocolate Rabbits + Smoked Salt, Cracked Tellicherry Pepper, Brown Sugar, and Pecans

1 cup Callebaut 70% bitter dark chocolate

1/3 cup chopped pecans

1 tablespoon light brown sugar

1/8 teaspoon hickory-smoked salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

scant pinch of Maldon sea salt

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler. Fold in the remaining ingredients. Spoon mixture into bunny mold and use a chopstick to push the chocolate into all of the corners. Shake and tamp the mold to dislodge any air bubbles. Place in the freezer for 30 minutes. Carefully dislodge onto a plate and store in the fridge.