November 12, 2009July 21, 2010 by betsy

Vegan Lemon-Artichoke Tarte

Yield: 4 large or 9 small servings

This is an ultra-quick and tasty vegan appetizer or side dish that was inspired by that non-vegan hot artichoke dip beloved of so many. Tofu provides the creamy base and controls the calorie count while nutritional yeast imparts a cheesy flavor and lemon juice a bit of brightness. This spread has many uses such as a filling for this simple tarte which makes good use of prepared puff pastry sheets–what a happy day it was when I discovered that Pepperidge Farm’s puff pastry is vegan! But try the spread also as a filling for stuffed baked mushrooms or stuffed baked peppers. See my recipe for the latter. Just search “Vegan Baked Stuffed Bell Peppers with Lemon-Artichoke Filling” on this blog.

1 sheet of Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry (remove from box and bag and thaw for about 40 minutes, covered, on the counter top)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, cut into small-medium dice
3-4 large cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
Coarse sea or kosher salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 box Silken firm tofu
juice of one-half to a whole small-medium lemon (start with one-half)

2-4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 can artichoke hearts, drained (or 8 frozen-thawed or fresh artichoke hearts)
1/2-1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves to taste
a pinch of paprika or more to taste

Garnish: thyme leaves removed from the stems, paprika and lemon slices

Make crust: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Oil a baking sheet or line it with Silpat. Carefully unfold the pastry onto the baking sheet. With a knife, gently score a line about one-half inch from the edge of the crust all the way around, making sure not to cut all the way through the dough. Using a fork, generously but gently prick inside the scored line. Place baking sheet on the center rack of your oven and bake for approximately 20 minutes (check after 15) until golden brown and very puffed. After crust has baked, remove from oven, reduce temperature to 350 degrees, and use the back of a spoon to gently crush down the puffed area inside the scored lines leaving a raised half-inch rim all the way around.

While crust bakes, make filling: In a large cast iron skillet over medium-high, heat olive oil to shimmering. Add onion and saute, stirring frequently, until softened. Add garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper and continue sauteing and stirring until mixture is golden brown. I like to add just a little water to speed up the process and remove caramelized bits from the bottom of the pan. Place tofu in the bowl of food processor fitted with a metal blade and process with lemon juice and nutritional yeast until smooth. Add remaining filling ingredients and pulse until artichokes are chopped and all ingredients are well combined. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.

Fill crust: Spread crust with filling; it will make a thin layer. Bake for about 10 minutes or until heated through. Slide tarts onto platters and cut into as few as 4 or as many as 9 squares each. Garnish with a sprinkling of thyme leaves and paprika plus lemon slices.

Note: If not using crust immediately, remove from oven to a wire rack to cool. Wrap and store at room temperature. Keeps for quite a long time. If starting recipe with a pre-baked crust, heat filled shell in oven for 20 minutes instead of 10.

October 10, 2009July 21, 2010 by betsy

Veganized Pissaladiere Nicoise a la Julia Child (Vegan Onion and Olive Tart)

Yield: approximately 8 main dish servings or 16-18 appetizer servings or (easily halved)

You’ll love this simple savory tart, another menu item from the “Happy Birthday, Julia Child” dinner party on August 15 (see August 16 post).

Her version starts with a rich pate brisee tart crust and, while it would have been easy to veganize, popping vegan puff pastry dough out of a Pepperidge Farm box was easier still. A poorly trained chimp could turn it into a beautiful tart shell, complete with a raised rim, following my so-easy-its-almost-embarrassing method.

Child’s original filling is made of meltingly sweet caramelized onions (with the barest hint of cloves) dotted with oil-cured black olives and anchovy fillets. Other than the obvious decision to omit the anchovies–which weren’t missed a bit, as they always reminded me of bait–I decided to slice, rather than dice, the onion. It saved hands-on time and looked really lovely.

I also dispensed with the herb bouquet of fresh parsley, dried thyme and bay leaf, as I didn’t have cheesecloth or bay leaf. But I did stir parsley and thyme into the filling and I can’t imagine that the end result was in any way inferior to the original. We devoured it, er, I mean we savored it slowly with our French wine.

Bon Appetit!

1 box Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry Sheets (remove both sheets from box and bag and thaw for about 40 minutes, covered, on the counter top)
4-6 tablespoons olive oil
approximately 3 1/2 pounds of white or yellow onions (about 3 1/2 large onions), quartered and sliced about 1/4 inch thick
3-4 large cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
Coarse sea or kosher salt to taste
6-8 fresh parsley sprigs, minced (you can use a little dried to taste in a pinch)
1/4-1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
a couple of pinches of ground cloves (about a scant 1/4 teaspoon–the cloves should be a VERY subtle background note, not pronounced at all)
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
approximately 25-30 oil-cured black olives, pitted, and sliced in half
Optional: 1 additional tablespoon of olive oil
Optional garnish: thyme or rosemary sprigs

Make filling: heat oil to shimmering in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add onions, garlic and 1 teaspoon of salt. Saute, stirring fairly frequently, for about 50 minutes or until rich golden-brown and incredibly sweet (you really do cook them that long). Stir in parsley and thyme and saute for another 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in parsley, thyme, cloves, pepper and more salt to taste. Cool slightly.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Oil two baking sheets or line them with Silpats. Carefully unfold one sheet of pastry on each of the baking sheets. With a knife, gently score a line about one-half inch from the edge of the crusts all the way around, making sure not to cut all the way through the dough. Using a fork, generously but gently prick inside the scored line. Place baking sheets on separate racks, one shelf below and one above the center so that the crust on the bottom has plenty of room to rise. Bake crusts for approximately 20 minutes (check after 15) until golden brown and very puffed, rotating sheets after 10 minutes.

Remove crusts from oven, reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees, and use the back of a spoon to gently crush down the puffed area inside the scored lines leaving a raised half-inch rim all the way around. Divide onions evenly between crusts, spreading to inside edge of rims, and scatter olives over the tops. Drizzle with the last tablespoon of oil if desired. Bake just until heated through, about 10 minutes, rotating pans if one seems to be baking too quickly. Remove pans to wire racks to cool slightly. Slide pissaladieres onto platters and cut into 4 or 9 squares each.

If not using crusts immediately, remove from oven to wire racks to cool. When ready to use–best if within two-three hours–precede with recipe beginning with crushing down the puffed areas and baking for about 15 minutes at 350 degrees.

Source: Adapted from Julia Child’s Pissaladiere Nicoise as published in Bon Appetit, August 2009

October 10, 2009January 30, 2012 by betsy

Vegan White Bean, Caramelized Onion and Pesto Tart

For this recipe and some 170+ more,
I invite you to purchase my first cookbook:

The Blooming Platter:
A Harvest of Seasonal Vegan Recipes

Vegan Heritage Press
Spring 2011

March 29, 2009July 21, 2010 by betsy

Vegan Tomato Tart(s)

Yield: 4-4” tarts or 1-8” tart

This recipe was inspired last summer by the heirloom tomatoes at our local farmer’s market. I fell hopelessly in love with the nearly black-skinned ones. They tasted like more savory cousins of red plums, but still very sweet.

Some people may wonder why not just eat the tomatoes raw, and I do that too. However, in this tart, they become more of a complete meal. Yet the thickness of the slices and the short cooking time sets the topping while allowing the tomatoes to remain virtually uncooked.

Crust

1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar or raw sugar
½ cup canola oil
2 tablespoons unsweetened soy milk
(or, for less calories, 6 tablespoons oil and 4 tablespoons soy milk—works great, but the crust might be just a tiny bit less crispy)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix together all ingredients with a fork in a medium bowl. Press into the bottom and against sides of an 8” tart pan with a removable bottom. Or divide into 4 equal parts and do the same with 4-4” tart pans with removable bottoms. Try to keep the bottom and sides of the crust a similar thickness. Use a drinking glass to assist with the pressing if desired (as the glass allows you to compress the bottom and sides simultaneously). Bake 10-12 minutes. Cool approximately 3 minutes.

Filling

Enough ¼-inch thick tomato slices, preferably heirloom, to make two layers of tomato in shell(s)
12 ounces (1 ½ cups) Silken firm tofu or lite tofu
1 bunch fresh basil or dill OR 2 generous tablespoons dairy free pesto
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes (optional but recommended, especially if not using pesto)
1-2 teaspoons lemon juice
Additional salt and pepper to taste
Optional topping: vegan Parmesan or a sprinkling of nutritional yeast
Optional garnish: fresh basil leaves or dill sprigs

Layer slices of tomato into each crust. Combine tofu with next five ingredients in a food processor and blend well. Spoon mixture on top of tomato layer(s) and spread gently almost to the edges. Sprinkle with optional topping if desired and bake 15 minutes or until topping is almost set. Remove tart pan(s) to a rack until they are cool enough to handle and then push the bottom disk up through the ring, set ring aside, and gently slide the tart off of the disk onto the serving plate. Garnish, if desired, with basil leaves or dill sprigs.