January Cleanse: Plant Based No Fat Eggplant Caponata

The cleanse continues but to keep hubby engaged and participating, I'm having to make a lot more different foods.  I, myself, could eat the same stew for days and days or last year, I ate brown rice and steamed Kale for a week quite happily.  Yeah, not hubbo.  This is a uber easy dish and very tasty.  You'll be surprised to find that there is no fat it it.

No Fat Eggplant Caponata

1 large Eggplant, cut into 1 inch cubes
2 cups French sliced Onions (halved and sliced) (2 medium Onions or 4-5 ping pong sized ones, which I have a big bag of for some reason)
1 medium/small Red Bell Pepper, diced
1 large can Italian Tomatoes
1 rib Celery, diced
2 T Capers, rinsed
1/2 c Green Olives, rinsed, pitted and halved
3 large Cloves Garlic, chopped
1 T dried Oregano
1 sprig fresh Rosemary (if you have it)
1 pinch Saffron (if you have it)
1 T dried Parsley
1/2 c chopped Fresh Parsley
Juice of 1 Lemon
1/2 t Himalayan or other low Sodium Salt

In a large ceramic dutch oven over medium heat, add the Onions, Dried Parsley, Oregano, Rosemary, Saffron and Celery until soft.  You may want/need to add 1 T of Water.  Once the Onions has started to wilt add the Eggplant.  Stir often.  It may stick, but that's okay.  Once you add the liquid later, it will come off the pot and add nice flavour.      Let heat through for a 5-10 minutes.

Add the Garlic and the Bell Pepper.  Heat through and add a T of water if desired.

Add the Tomatoes.  What I do is pour the tin in and then GENTLY squish each tomato into smithereens.  You can use diced if you want to avoid this step.  Swish a quarter of the tin with Water and add to the pot.  Add the Capers and Olives.

Let stew 10 minutes and add the juice of the Lemon.  If you require more brightness or acid, add another half Lemon.

Add the Fresh Parsley and let stew for half an hour or more.

Serve with crusty bread or with Brown Rice.

Slow Cooker VEGAN Butternut Squash Leek and Lentil Stew

I spent a week in Vegas this past week for the CES show, Consumer Electronics Show.  The biggest Consumer tech show.  While the gadgets and the trends were amazing.  The Vegan choices are very lacking.  I was even willing to just go Vegan during that week and forego all the other things like sugar, oil and salt free.  I only found a few.  But a huge tip, all Wynn restaurants in all Wynn hotels offer both a VEGETARIAN and VEGAN menu.  That's right, I didn't say option.  I said MENU.  We went to the Costa di Mare and I had basically conceded that there are only so many salads and Starbucks Cold pressed Celery and Kale juices I can take.  I will eat what I want because I'm in one of the nicest seafood restaurants in town.  But I had heard of the rumour of Steve Wynn's dedication to offering something for all his clients, and after I had already chosen in my head the Scallop and the Spider Crab Ravioli I thought I'd check and asked our waiter, do you have a Vegan option?  He brought over a whole menu.  I had the Warm Chickpea cake and the Vegan Ravioli with Chanterelle.  Quite possibly the best Ravioli I've had in ages.  I was worried. Vegan Rav can taste like play dough.

But now, back on track.  I made a stew with the Leeks I bought like 2 weeks ago.  I had premixed a Ras Al Hanout, so please look at the Spice Mix from my Moroccan Stew and multiply it by using Tablespoons instead of Teaspoons and keep in a container and shake vigourously.  I cut back on the Cinnamon though.  I found that if I had added a Butternut Squash or Carrot, the natural Sugars made the Cinnamon stand out too much.  I'll post a recipe for my Ras Al Hanout soon.  Sorry.

Slow Cooker Vegan Butternut Squash Leek and Lentil Stew

1 large Butternut Squash, diced, approximatley 4 cups
1 medium Onion, Sliced
2 large Leeks, sliced until the light green part, soaked in water and rinsed 2 or 3 times to wash away grit and sand
4 cloves Garlic
2 inches of Fresh Ginger, minced, (I wouldn't mind julienne, matchsticks, but hubbo doesn't like chunks of it)
1 lb or 2 1/4 c Red Lentils, rinsed and drained
2 T pulverized Wild Mushrooms or Porcini Powder (you can use just 1 but I like the early flavour)
2 T Ras Al Hangout mix (Recipe to come.  OR check out the Spice mix in my previous Moroccan stew and double it)
1 T Curry Powder
2 l Vegetable Broth
Fresh Ground Pepper
1/2 t Salt (optional) actually, if you were doing a non cleanse diet you should probably put like 1 1/2 t salt.
1/2 t Red Chili Flakes (optional)

2 cups Kale leaves (no stems) washed and chopped into bitesized pieces. (optional)

Layer in ingredients as you chop.  I like to try to intersperse the aromatics.  And pour in the Broth until just at level.  You might need less.  Don't use more than the level of the Slow Cooker allows.

Cook in Slow Cooker on HIGH for 6 hours.  If you're around when the cooker is about done, put in the Kale if it fits, for the last 15 minutes.  If there is no room wilt it in the Microwave and serve in bowl.... or  leave it out.

Lentil and Butternut Squash Stew Vegan - Forks Over Knives Inspired

Every January for a few years now, hubbo and I go Vegan but I've pushed it to follow the Forks Over Knives lifestyle of cutting out added Salt, Oils/Fats and Sugar.  The movie has changed the lives of everyone I can convince, gently, to watch.  If it weren't for hubbo, the reluctant but willing participant, I'd take it further and cut out all processed foods but I've left Whole Grain Pastas and Sugarfree breads on the table.  As it is, we are a little unprepared today because we had out of town family.  Luckily we have a salad mix and some avocados kicking around.

I bought a Crockpot just for this month and a milder version of the cleanse for September, thinking it would help me get meals on the table faster.  Well, I should have thought ahead and not used it on days I'm actually home.  I keep watching the darn thing.  I think I'll keep it ready for days I won't be home and set it in the morning.

The following is a play on a recipe I saw on the Forks Over Knives recipe website last year when the site was a bit easier to navigate.  I love the movie.  It's not preachy.... well for all but 9 minutes of the morality of meat eating.  It appeals heavily to two geeky engineers.  The science is obvious.  I just wish we could find the will to do it all year.  Too bad Daiya cheese, the only vegan cheese widely available is HORRIBLE.  Not just, not good or not good enough.  Its taste and texture is offensive.  Blech.  And I'm also not a fan of food that tries to be other food.  When I do vegan, I eat vegetables and grains.

You can substitute the Butternut Squash with Cauliflower.  That was delicious.  But I had half a very large Butternut Squash from Christmas dinner in the fridge.   The spice mix might seem daunting but you can play with it.  It has a Moroccan theme (ras el hanout) to it and like curries, there are thousands of renditions.  I keep a larger batch handy for this month :D


Lentil and Butternut Squash Stew - Vegan


2 c Lentils (your favourite, when I use Cauliflower, Red Lentils taste best), checked for rocks and rinsed (in a fine seive, they'll run through bigger ones. Might sound like stupid advice but they ran throw my rice washer at the lip end)
2 Medium Onions (tennis ball sized), diced
2 Medium Carrots, halved and sliced,
1/2 large Butternut Squash peeled, chopped into small bite sized pieces,
1 inch fresh Ginger, minced fine
3 large cloves of Garlic, minced
1 tetra pack Organic, ZERO sodium, Vegetable Stock
1 cube ZERO sodium/salt Organic Veggie cube
(this is to make a total of 6 cups or 1.5 litres of Veggie stock)
1 large can of diced Tomatoes, or large that you squish with your hands.
3 Birds Eye Chilis, (optional if you want to give to the kids).

2 t ground Cumin
3/4 t ground Cinnamon
1 t ground Paprika
1.5 t ground Coriander
1/2 t ground Cayenne
1 t ground Tumeric
1/2 t Black Mustard seed (not traditional but I had some I wanted to use)
1/4 t Fennel Seed
1/4 t ground Sage (add some fresh if you have leftover from Christmas dinner)

1/2 T Porcini powder (optional but adds umami) (buy ground or just pulse some dried Porcini in a food mill until the size of course coffee)

Black Pepper
Chopped fresh Cilantro or Parsley

Bring to Boil and simmer until the Lentils are tender and the Squash cooked.  Or cook on high in a Crockpot for 5 hours.

Take a Potato Masher and mash slightly, like 10 times.  Hubbo found a vegetarian chile recipe that requires this and it gives a nice round body to it.

Serve as is or over Brown Rice.

the Vegan Experiment - the Forks Over Knives trial

Really, it wasn't so much an exact Forks Over Knives diet but a vegan trial.  I watched Forks Over Knives on Netflix last fall.  I watch a lot of these food related documentaries.  Some are better than others for various reasons.  I find some are too preachy or too factually skewed.  This one was different.  It wasn't trying to turn you off by showing baby pigs being castrated by hand or filming visits to an abattoir.  It was independent studies showing how animal products are factually tied to cancer and heart disease as well as other vascular issues.  Of particular interest was the startling proof was the link between L-Casein, found in dairy, and cancer.   In any case, you have to watch it to believe and I convinced my mid-western american brother in law just to watch it.  Just watch it.  I am actually surprised he did even watch it.  I was speaking to my sister on the weekend and he was shouting in the background, I watched it!  I'm practically a vegetarian now.

The actual lifestyle is a bit extreme for me.  It requires you cut out all fats, including Olive oil.  It's a Whole Foods Plant Based diet.  Eat food as close to their original state as possible.  I understand why and the proof.  That our bodies are designed, primaly to need the calories to survive. The dense calories found in high fat foods, fool our bodies into thinking we're still hungry.  The recipes require you sauté in a dry pan or with broth.  No Olive oil.  Anyhoo, since heart disease nor weight gain wasn't my primary concern, I decided to try just Vegan.  Why?  Because I found the documentary compelling as well, I decided that there are various things in our life we can't completely control, our genes, pollution, drunk drivers, ... this, this I can control.

As opposed to popular belief, you cannot be nutrionally deprived by a vegan diet as long as you eat balanced i.e. nothing but one type of food.  You also do not need to combine on a single plate to get the full protein profile.

For the month of January, I gave up all animal products.  But unlike a vegan diet or the Forks Over Knives and associated Engine 2 recipes, I don't really care for the labour and effort behind making 'fake' food.  i.e. using Nutritional Yeast to simulate cheese or Blending raw Cashews to simulate cream or bechemel.  I just ate a lot of vegetables, grains and legumes.  It was fairly easy except for my family.... namely my mom who lives for food.  If you follow regularly, you'll know she makes her own soy sauce and chill paste.  She's hard core.  We went over for lunch and she had made some dumplings but she'd used egg to seal them so I didn't want to eat it.  She flipped out and told me to 'grow up' . It reminded me of when I first went vegetarian back in high school and she'd hide meat in my food.

I think the hardest part was that there doesn't always seem to be a central 'hearty' part of a plate.  You can eat a lot and your body will tell you when you've had enough.  With a Whole Food Plant Based diet, a true one, without concentrated fats, you can't really have too many calories.  So when I felt like a 'hearty' part of a plate, I marinated a piece of Tofu and grilled or fried it.  Actually, though eating small meals more frequently is better for your metabolism.  I did the month with ease.  I could have kept going but decided for ease of everyday living, I would eat this way on my own and go back to Ovo Lacto vegetarian with my family.

I made a lot of salads. Too keep it interesting, I tried to mix and match.  I kept two large containers in the fridge so I always had access.  Here is my basic formula:

Vegan Salad Formula

Include each of the following groupings but at the same time, add as much of any vegetable you want!

One Grain

• Cous Cous (1:1 Grain to Cold Water, let stand half an hour)
• Quinoa (1:1.5 Boil vigourously, let cool)
• Farro 
• Bulgar Wheat
• Wild Rice
• Brown Rice
• Barley
• Whole Wheat Orzo

One Texture (Chew or Crunch)

• Pine nuts
• Sliced Almonds
• Dried Cranberries
• Sunflower Seeds
• Pumpkin Seeds
• Pistachios, chopped

One Herb (fresh, chopped)

• Parsley (lots, entire bunch)
• Cilantro (lots, entire bunch)
• Dill (don't over do)

One Legume

• Garbanzo beans
• Lentils
• Cannellini beans
• Black beans
• Romano beans
• Canned or Fresh Corn (yes, yes, not a legume)

2 Vegetables, diced

• Red bell Pepper
• Zucchini
• Cucumber
• Cooked Beets
• Shredded Kale
• Blanched Green Beans
• Shredded Carrot

1 Aromatic

• minced Red Onion
• minced Celery

One Umami (rounded flavour, optional)

• minced Black Olives
• crumbled, firm Tofu
• mushrooms, raw or cooked
• if not giving up Dairy, this is where Feta can come in

Dressing

• Lemon juice and zest
• Lime juice and zest
• White Balsamic Vinegar

AND

• Salt, pepper
• Olive Oil or Sesame Oil (optional on the oil if you're going full on Forks Over Knives)

Mix and let stand.  Yummo!!






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