Sesame Soy Sauce
tahini
tamarind soy sauce
Whisk together until smooth and season to taste - adding more of either or a pinch of salt or sugar. This hardly seems like a recipe at all it is so simple, but to be honest, it is a cheating version of a sesame sauce. Add sesame seeds for some crunch, if desired.
Almond Herb Crackers
2 cups almond flour (ground almonds)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
pinch granulated (white) sugar
2 Tablespoons tahini paste
1/4 cup fresh chopped chives
1/4 cup olive oil
up to 2 Tablespoons water
Blend all ingredients together very well. Add more flour or water judging by your dough consistency. It should be like a thick cookie dough. Roll out very thin and cut into shapes. Bake at 350◦F for 15 minutes or so until browned and crisp.
This makes a good savory cracker or savory cookie base for appetizers. I will share my creation tomorrow.
The secret to the smooth body and texture of this recipe? Tofu - blended until smooth. This adds lots of protein and calcium to the dish, and is also a great alternative for those who love the idea or texture or nutrition that hummus provides, but cannot tolerate beans.
Mushroom Green Pepper Dip/Filling
cooking oil
1 package (8 ounces/250grams) white button mushrooms, finely chopped
1 large green bell pepper, finely diced
1 small or 1/2 large white onion, finely diced
1 package firm tofu, well drained and patted dry
1/4 cup tahini paste
1 Tablespoon prepared mustard
3 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 Tablespoon olive oil
salt, ground black pepper, garlic powder, and paprika, to taste
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, green pepper, and onion and cook, sweating the vegetables but not coloring them, until just softened but not mush. Remove from heat and cool. You may prefer to cook the vegetables one at a time in the pan, they won't take long.
Place remaining ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary, adding more mustard, vinegar, or oil as needed. Stir in the vegetables.
Now this can be used as a dip, spread or filling. I used it as a filling for Mushroom Green Pepper Pinwheel Bites, using yesterday's vegan pie dough recipe. I rolled it out as thinly as possible, spread thinly with this mixture (I did have some leftover), and rolled it up and sliced it, just like making cinnamon rolls. Then since the dough was very soft I popped them in the freezer for an hour to firm up, then baked them at 350◦F for half an hour until golden. I cut them in half to serve. This made about 25 whole pinwheels, or 50 halves. Makes a nice hors d'oeuvres that freezes well too.
There is hardly a recipe for these - just something tasty I recently came up with. Dates can be stuffed with a variety of yummy fillings, the most common being nuts and soft cheeses. Wrapping sweet dates in salty cured meats is also popular. I decided to stuff my dates with a little sweet relish, bound together with a bit of tahini paste. I blended these together using a handheld immersion blender, then thickened the mixture on the stovetop with a small amount of cornstarch. Then I added a good amount of ground black pepper. Theses flavors give an acidic bite to contrast with the sweet date. I like the bright green color from the relish as well, and the consistency of the filling was perfect.
I then sprinkled the dates with a few crushed red pepper flakes to add some color and extra heat.
The best dates to use for stuffed dates are those big, fresh, soft and sweet Medjool dates if you are able to get your hands on them. They usually have to be pitted, opening up a large cavity for a good amount of filling. These dates can even be cut in half for an open-faced stuffed date, or if you'd you would like smaller bites. I didn't have the Medjool dates, and I wanted tiny dates, so I used the common dates found at grocery stores.To prep in advance, these stuffed dates may even be frozen in a single layer.
Rosemary Tahini Crackers
2 Tablespoons tahini
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1-2 Tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon dry rosemary
1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
Blend all ingredients together well to form a dough that just comes together. Press mixture out as thinly as possible. Now it can either be cut into shapes, or simple baked as one large cracker and broken after baking.
Place on a baking sheet and bake at 400◦F for 8-10 minutes or so until crisp.
Deviled avocado is a concept I came up with while I had some avocado and was eating it with tahini and nutritional yeast, admiring the perfectly intact shell. I decided to create a concept of 'deviled' avocado - some of the same flavors of a deviled egg, and the same procedure, but a vegan alternative. No, it doesn't taste like deviled eggs, but it does taste good and is very nutritious.
Deviled Avocado
1 large, ripe avocado
2 Tablespoons tahini
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce
squeeze of lemon or lime juice
1-2 Tablespoons nut or soy milk
salt and pepper, to taste
paprika
nutritional yeast, if desired
small dates, halved or quartered
Cut the avocado in half, remove the pit, and scrape all of the flesh into a bowl, leaving the skin halves intact. Mash the flesh, and mash in the tahini, mustard, hot sauce, juice, milk, and salt and pepper. Use a blender or immersion blender if desired to get the mixture really smooth. You can scoop it into a piping bag fitted with a star tip if desired, or simply spoon the mixture back into the avocado halves. Sprinkle with paprika, and top with yeast and dates, if desired.
This dish was created through several evolving ideas. It began as a pizza with a crispy potato crust, evolved into an eggless quiche, came into a layered vegetable dish, and became what it is here. I don't really know if there is a name for this dish, but it is I suppose, a bit of a play on scalloped potatoes - but instead of being layered with onion and cheese, it is a healthier version layered with mushrooms and tahini.
Potato Mushroom Layer
3 medium potatoes, thinly sliced into rounds
8 cremini mushrooms (one 250 gram package), thinly sliced
2 Tablespoons tahini
salt and ground black pepper
Boil the potatoes in water in a small saucepan for about 20 minutes until tender, but not falling apart. Drain.
Lightly oil an eight inch round pan. Place one layer of potatoes on the bottom of the dish. Spread with tahini and season. Layer half of the mushrooms over top. Repeat layers. Bake at 425◦F for about 30 minutes. If mushrooms are drying out to fast, cover with foil.
