Recipe: Kale + Edamame Dumplings (Vegan)

Dumplings intimidate me. They seem so delicate and precise, I've always imagined them to be painstaking to make. When I consider that I've been making pierogi with my aunt and cousins for years, this fear seems rather silly. Pierogi are nothing more than Polish potato dumplings.

I have conquered my fear. Surprise! Making dumplings can be way easy. The recipe I followed, from Em at This Rawsome Vegan Life, creates a simple, almost-pureed dumpling filling made of lightly steamed kale and edamame with a touch of tahini, lemon, and garlic. I used my Vitamix and ended up with a thick bright green filling that was easy to scoop and shape in the dumpling skins.

I recently purchased this bamboo steamer for my kitchen and I couldn't be more pleased with how gently and efficiently it steams my vegetables. And now it steams my dumplings, too!

The use of store-bought dumpling skins is a time and effort saver in this recipe. If you're feeling ambitious, you can certainly make your own wrappers using any basic dough recipe you like.

The only part of Em's recipe I took liberty with was the dipping sauce, replacing her simple dipping sauce with my favorite basic soy ginger sauce.

These are so good. I want to make them again. Like now.

Kale Edamame Dumplings
Adapted, slightly, from This Rawsome Vegan Life
Vegan

Ingredients
Filling

• 3 cups kale, roughly chopped and lightly steamed
• 1 cup edamame beans, steamed
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 tbsp tahini
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 green onions, sliced
• Salt & pepper, to taste
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• Black sesame seeds (optional)

Dipping Sauce

• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1-inch knob ginger, peeled and grated
• 1/2 teaspoon maple syrup
• Sriracha, to taste
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced

About 20 dumpling skins (I used Nasoya won ton wraps, which I found next to the tofu in Whole Foods. If you live near an Asian grocery market or a specialty store, there is likely a wider selection of dumpling wraps to choose from.

Instructions

1. Make the filling. Blend all filling ingredients together in a food processor or blender until you get a chunky paste. Taste and adjust seasonings accordingly. 
2. Assemble the dumplings. Place a rounded tablespoon of filling onto each dumpling skin. Using your fingers with a few drops of water, moisten the edge of the skin halfway around. Fold over and pinch edges. If you have round dumpling skins, you'll have a half moon shape and you can create small folds along the edge. If you have square dumpling skins, as I did, you can fold into a triangle and bend the bottom corners toward one another to make a cute little purse.
3. Steam the dumplings until they're somewhat translucent (3-5 minutes). Garnish with some sesame seeds.
4. To make the dipping sauce, put all the sauce ingredients in a jar with a lid and shake it. 

Prize Winning Sweet Potato and Two Bean Chili with Hominy

In the hours leading up to the New England Revolution's 2-1 win over The New York Red Bulls this past Saturday, I stuffed my belly full of chili and cornbread in the parking lot of Gillette Stadium. Why? For the second annual Midnight Riders chili cook-off, of course! The afternoon was delightfully fun, thanks partly to the spirited camaraderie of my fellow Midnight Riders and partly to the much longed for spring afternoon weather. We cooked, we ate, we raised funds and food for the Greater Boston Food Bank.

Here are some scenes from the afternoon:

You probably know I'm not one to shy from a little friendly competition. I entered the cook-off with a title to defend!

This year's contest featured fifteen chilies cooked by my fellow tailgating enthusiasts. Every single chili looked and smelled fantastic. I can't tell you how most of them tasted, though, because vegetarianism limited me to sampling a total of three (one being my own). Yes, this also means I was one of only three people competing in the vegetarian category. Minor detail!

Competitors! Or: "Two veggie chilies, one grill"

I took home a medal and a repeat victory in the vegetarian category for a Sweet Potato and Two Bean Chili with Hominy.

The biggest shortcoming of most vegetarian chili recipes is a noticeable flatness in flavor and texture. When you pour a few cans of beans and tomatoes, maybe some chopped veggies, and some chili powder into a pot, the result may taste decent. Rarely does it taste interesting or complex. Since I was unwilling to use faux meat to beef up my chili (pun definitely intended), I would to find texture and depth elsewhere. I combed through every cookbook I own and every food blog I know in search of a winning vegetarian chili recipe. The moment I stumbled across the recipe for Sweet Potato and Two Bean Chili with Hominy on Serious Eats, I knew I had my solution. Chili Paste. The recipe included instructions for making my own chili paste using a mix of good quality dried chilies--some smoky, some hot, some sweet, some fruity--that were rehydrated in a mix of orange juice and raisins and then blended into a paste. This extra step, though a little time consuming, helped achieve the complexity I sought. Pluse, you can never go wrong with sweet potato in the mix. I am well aware there are camps of chili purists who staunchly argue that I CANNOT call it chili if it A) doesn't include meat and/or B) it contains beans. Welp, it may not be traditional, but my vegetarian version was cooked slowly in a pot and seasoned with chili peppers and spices, so I'm calling it chili.

dried ancho, chipotle, arbol & negro chilies, rehydrated

chilies blended into a paste with an immersion blender

chili paste layered into aromatic vegetables

Hominy was surprisingly reminiscent of Honey Smacks cereal

Since I followed the recipe exactly as written (though I elected to omit the optional vegemite), I won't reproduce it here. Follow the link above to see the recipe in its entirety. I can promise you won't be disappointed if you make this. After all, it's prize-winning chili!

The rest of the evening was no disappointment either, thanks to a Revs victory.

Pacific Island Veggie Sliders

It's been a hard winter, and I've been dreaming of escape to the tropics of Hawaii. When it came time to plan for last week's Revs tailgate, I surrendered to my hankering for pineapples, coconuts, and summer burgers with some pacific island-ish veggie sliders.

It took me a really long time to figure out how to make a decent veggie burger patty. I've tried dozens of recipes and found them all to have nearly the same frustrating flaw: mushy textured patties that fall apart when cooked. This challenge was magnified when I decided I'd prefer to omit egg (a common ingredient used to bind together veggie patties) in favor of making a vegan burger.

Discovering Angela Liddon's Moroccan Yam Veggie Burgers was a game changer. After following (and loving) the recipe exactly as-is a few times, I began experimenting by using the original recipe as a base, but substituting the spices, the type of beans, and/or the filler veggies. This recipe base works well for a few reasons:

1. Flax meal in place of egg binds the ingredients together.
2. Using the right amount of dry starch (ground rolled oats) helps the burgers to be sticky, but not gooey.
3. Excess moisture is limited. It's easy to forget about all the excess water that comes along with loading vegetables into your patty. This recipe base doesn't use too many wet, watery vegetables.
4. Baking the burgers first ensures they'll hold up well on the grill or in the pan. 

I went all-in on my tropical theme by topping my burgers with pineapple salsa and a quick slaw and serving them on King's Hawaiian sweet rolls. If you can find these rolls in your local grocery store, it's worth the extra effort! 

Pacific Island Veggie Sliders 
adapted from Moroccan Yam Chickpea Veggie Burgers at Oh She Glows

Ingredients
1.5 cups sweet potato, peeled and grated
3 garlic cloves
1 small knob fresh ginger
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons flax meal mixed with 3 tablespoons water
3/4 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2-3/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt or pink himalayan salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
3 tablespoons barbecue sauce*
4 tablespoons Trader Joe's Soyaki**

*I used some leftover homemade barbecue sauce I had in my fridge - really any plain or sweet barbecue sauce you have will do the trick.
**I cut corners by using this pre-made soy sauce with ginger, garlic, pineapple, and sesame seeds. You could substitute any similar sauce or make your own.

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Peel sweet potato and grate using a cheese grater OR the grating attachment on a food processor (this is a huge time saver!) until you have about 1 1/2 lightly packed cups. Place in a large mixing bowl.
3. Remove grater attachment from food processor and replace with regular "S" blade. Add cilantro, garlic, and ginger and process until finely minced.
4. Add drained chickpeas to food processor and run until finely chopped, but leave some texture. Scoop this mixture into the mixing bowl with the sweet potato.
5. Grind the oats to a flour using the food processor. Stir this into the mixing bowl along with the flax mixture. 
6. Stir in the sesame oil, chili powder, salt, pepper, barbecue sauce, soyaki sauce (or whichever soy sauce variation you're using) until thoroughly mixed. Adjust seasonings to taste. 
7. Using your hands, shape mixture into 12 small slider-size patties. Place patties on baking sheet and bake for 12 minutes. Flip and bake another 10-15 minutes, until golden and firm. Cool on the tray.

This recipe is vegan and can be made gluten free if you use a gluten free tamari or teriyaki sauce in place of the Soyaki, gluten free rolled oats, and an alternative bun of your choosing. I served my burgers with a quick coleslaw, pineapple salsa (both recipes below), and a slice of avocado on King's Hawaiian sweet rolls.

Quick Sort-of-Hawaiian Slaw

Ingredients

4 cups shredded green cabbage

2 green onions, thinly sliced
1 handful cilantro, chopped (also optional)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon grated ginger
2 tablespoons canola mayonnaise
1 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
a few dashes of hot sauce, to taste
salt & pepper, to taste

Preparation
Whisk together garlic, ginger, canola mayo, tamari, rice vinegar, sesame seeds, and hot sauce in a medium bowl. Add in cabbage, cilantro and scallions and toss until well coated. Cover and refrigerate until you're ready to serve.

Pineapple Salsa
Ingredients
2 cups fresh pineapple, diced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup red onion, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
zest and juice of 1 lime
1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt

Preparation
Stir all ingredients in a medium bowl. Cover and refrigerate until you're ready to serve.

Assemble your burgers as you please.
A side of Polynesian pineapple seitan skewers seemed just right.

Tofu Scramble Breakfast Burritos

The early season New England Revolution home games at Gillette Stadium are often scheduled to kickoff in the afternoon instead of the evening. Presumably, this is in effort to maximize the possibility that the game will be played in temperatures suitable for humans to stand around outside for prolonged periods. In Saturday's case, the three o'clock kickoff did little to help the fact that the wind was whipping wet, sideways snow in my hair and eyeballs.

On the plus side, an early kickoff meant that tailgating would start at noon. This seemed like obvious encouragement to serve tailgate brunch. Given the discomfort associated with cold, wet hands and cold, wet ingredients, I didn't want to spend much time actually doing prep work at the tailgate. So I opted for tofu scramble breakfast burritos, which could be prepared entirely ahead of time and quickly heated in tinfoil on the grill. Chris is not a huge "tofu scramble" fan and prefers a good old-fashioned egg scramble, but I happen to really enjoy the taste and texture of a tofu scramble. There are many, many variations of tofu scrambles out there. Here's a recipe for my version of breakfast burritos.

Tofu Scramble Breakfast Burritos
Makes 4 burritos

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 10 ounces cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 a zucchini, diced
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 block firm tofu, drained and pressed
• 4 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
• Salt & pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup refried beans
• 1/2 avocado, sliced
• 2 cups spinach or other leafy green
• optional toppings: cilantro, salsa, chopped green onions, hot sauce

Preparation

1. Drain water from tofu. Wrap in a few layers of paper towel and place between two plates. Weigh down top plate with some cookbooks or a heavy skillet to press out excess water for at least 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute onion until translucent, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant (1 minute). Add cumin, turmeric, and smoked paprika, stirring to combine. Lower heat slightly and add mushrooms, jalapeno, bell pepper, zucchini. Saute for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
3. Using your hands, crumble in tofu. Add nutritional yeast, salt and pepper and stir gently to combine. Saute for an additional 5 minutes, or until heated through. 
4. Spread a spoonful of refried beans, a few slices of avocado and a handful of spinach on a tortilla. Top with about 3/4 cup tofu and veggie mixture and top with your favorite burrito toppings. Carefully fold up tortilla.
5. If you're not eating it right away (as in, perhaps you are taking your burrito to eat at a tailgate later), wrap the burrito in tinfoil and refrigerate. When you're ready to go, you can toss it on the grill to heat up quickly. 

After stuffing my burritos, I had a considerable amount of leftover tofu veggie filling. If you use larger tortillas you may be able to squeeze in some more filling to each burrito...though you should know that the extra filling was delicious eaten straight out of the skillet with a fork and a splash of hot sauce. I served my burritos with grilled sweet potato wedges, which I parboiled for two minutes at home before tossing with some cumin, chili powder, paprika, oregano and garlic powder and packing in a glass container. I was able to drop the wedges directly on the hot grill to get some nice crispy grill marks before serving.

We wolfed down our burritos with numb fingers and then hunkered in the car with the heat blasting in attempt to regain sensation before trudging in to the stadium. In what appeared to be an attempt at a cruel joke, the Beach Boys Kokomo was drifting over the PA system as we found our way to our seats. And then: Miracle of miracles! Chris called in a favor, and our ticket rep/hero Kyle showed up with club level tickets. 

Meaning I got to watch the game from inside a heated room, standing behind a glass wall. I didn't even care that popcorn-smeared, unattended children were crawling around my feet, treating the club like some sort of McDonald's Play Place.

And the Revs finally won, by a score of 2-1. Please ignore the sad emptiness of the stadium.

DIY Miso Ginger Veggie Pot Noodles

Last Saturday, the New England Revolution played their MLS home opener against the Montreal Impact. Technically, it is now Spring. This is what a Saturday morning "Spring" run looked like in Boston:

Yup. As of March 21st, we've piled up 110.3 inches of snow in Boston this winter, with absolutely no sign of Spring in sight. 

Needless to say, a warm, belly-filling meal was a must for our first shivery afternoon of the 2015 season in the parking lot of Gillette Stadium. I've been eyeing DIY Pot Noodles since a friend gifted me Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's River Cottage Veg over a year ago. If you're in the market for a vegetarian cookbook, it's a great one.

The concept of instant pot noodles is so simple, I can't believe I haven't tried it before: Pile up your soup ingredients in a jar, omitting any liquid. When you're ready to serve, pour boiling water into the jar, seal it for three minutes, and Ta-Da! Hot fresh soup! In the case of the wayward tailgater, all this took was boiling a tea kettle filled with water on my grill. All the convenience of instant Cup Noodles, except with infinitely better ingredients and flavor. 

Note: I recommend using very thin, quick-cooking noodles. I went with Annie Chun's Maifun Brown Rice Noodles. They were fully cooked after resting in the hot water for only 3 minutes. 

This recipe is based on a variation from the River Cottage Veg recipe created by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt at Serious Eats. I followed the recipe almost exactly, making only two additions. I added a block of lite firm tofu (pressed and diced) to make the soup more filling and was considerably more generous with my vegetable portions than suggested. Because I love spinach. 

On to the recipe!

DIY Miso Ginger Veggie Pot Noodles

Recipe by adapted, slightly, from J. Kenji Lopez-Alt at Serious Eats

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 2 tsp fresh ginger, grated
• 8 tsp miso paste
• 8 tsp vegetable base, such as Better Than Bouillon
• 4 Tbsp tahini
• 2 tsp sesame seeds, toasted
• 4 tsp soy sauce
• 2 cups shredded carrots
• 4 oz shitake mushroom caps, thinly sliced
• 3 cups roughly torn fresh baby spinach leaves
• 1 14 oz block firm tofu
• 4 oz quick cooking rice noodles (see note in original post)
• 1 cup fresh green onions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup pickled ginger (optional)

Cooking Directions

1. Drain tofu. Wrap it in a few layers of paper towel and place between two plates. Lay 1 or 2 heavy cookbooks on top of plates to press liquid from tofu for at least 15 minutes. (Alternatively, if you own a tofu press, go ahead and use that.) Dice the tofu.
2. Divide grated ginger, miso paste, vegetable base, tahini, sesame seeds, soy sauce, carrots, mushrooms, spinach, tofu and noodles evenly between 4 resealable glass jars. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
3. Divide green onions and pickled ginger between 4 small zipper-lock bags and seal bags, squeezing out all of the air. Tuck a bag into the top of each jar and seal lids. Refrigerate for up to 4 days.
4. When you're ready to serve your pot noodles, remove green onion/ginger packet and add boiling water the jar until noodles are fully covered. Seal the jar and let sit 2-3 minutes. Open jar, stir in scallions and ginger, and serve.

Let me know if you decide to try the recipe or discover any delicious variations. Here's to hoping this weekend I don't need to keep hand warmers in my pockets during the Revs match!

Renny's Grilled Portobello Mushroom Caps: Revs 0, Crew 0

Two weeks ago I phoned in to The Rebel Alliance Podcast to talk food and Revs with Josh (@MrJNelson) and Renny (@RKSwan). If you're interested in hearing my lovely voice, click HERE and listen to the podcast.

During our chat, the topic of excellent grilled vegetarian dishes came up. Renny mentioned a method for grilling portobello mushroom caps stuffed with pesto that made my mouth water. So much that I set out to make them for the Revs home match vs the Columbus Crew.

They were delicious and easy to prepare. I served mine with grilled radishes, coleslaw, and macaroni salad. No formal recipe is included in this post, but don't despair! After chatting on #TRAP, I sent Josh and Renny some interview questions of my own. If you read on, you'll find Renny's own instructions for grilled stuffed portobello mushroom caps.

Six Questions with Josh and Renny of The Rebel Alliance Podcast:

Tell me about your podcast. How did you get started? What do you talk about?

Renny: We met on a rec league team, watched lots of USMNT, MLS, and Revs games.  When our team watched the Revs lose in MLS Cup twice it was open season on MLS jokes and questions for the Revs fan.  Josh followed both Dallas and Houston somewhat and our conversations about soccer inevitably bounced between USMNT and the Revs.  We went to the first two weeks of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and the conversations got longer and longer.  After last season's collapse there was so much to discuss, what would grow out of that pile of compost?  I knew we could occasionally get interviews with other writers for Total-MLS.com - it is fun to talk smack with fans from other teams. So far it has been an awesome experience meeting other MLS fans and getting more voices from Revs fans talking about the teams.

Who would be your dream guest on #TRAP?

Renny: Evan Whitney or anyone else who was involved in the early Revs fanzine "Pictures of Chairman Mao," or POCM as it was referred to in the BigSoccer.com message boards.

Josh: Supa Shalrie, and if I could swing it, I would also like to talk to former Revs player (and native Texan) Clint Dempsey. 

When was your first Revs game? Do you remember who won?

Renny: I was in Foxoboro Stadium to see Darren Sawatzky's hair and the exciting Shoot-Out victory over DC United on April 27th, 1996.

Josh: My first exposure to the Revs was unfortunately watching them lose to Houston in the 2006 (and 2007) MLS cup while hanging with Renny at a pub. The first time I saw the Revs live was last season versus the Dynamo.

Tailgating for Revs games is kind of a big deal for us. You're in Texas - Do you keep any pre-game rituals from afar?

Renny: Current pre-game rituals include wearing something with a  New England reference: Five Island's Lobster Co. Or Sterling Fair t-shirts or a Revs t-shirt or jersey.  Nothing else has reached 'ritual' status, yet, though I do subject my wife to quite a bit of background and what-to-watch-for updates all day on Saturdays.  (Josh adds that we alternate watching the games at each other's houses and our wives have grown accustomed to startling yells at the tv)

Can you share your favorite tailgating recipe? (hint, hint, the portobello caps we talked about...)

Josh: Caramelized onions are good on everything.  Simply slice some white onions and put them, along with 2-3 tablespoons of butter and 1/2 teaspoon of sugar, in an aluminum foil pouch. Close it up and put it on the grill for 30 minutes or more. 

Renny: I like to make portobello caps with pesto and cheese.  Marinate the mushroom caps in balsamic vinegar (or a balsamic vinaigrette) ahead of time.  I cook them over a low heat on the grill, face up for a couple minutes, then down for a couple minutes, and then up again.  This is when to spoon into the cap a healthy dollop of pesto and then cover it with a slice of nice cheese - creamy harvarti or a good provolone.  Serve on a bun.

What beer pairing do you recommend with said recipe?

Renny: How about three beer recommendations?  Beer of choice is from Shiner, the Shiner Bock, the Shiner Light or anything else they make.  Sam Adams is always good, too.  The best Massachusetts beer I've recently discovered is Clown Shoes Brewery.  I certainly haven't sampled all of their brews, but I have like each one I've tried.

Josh: I really like IPAs and the IPA from local brewery 512 is really good. If I was going to pick a new England beer to go alongside some grilling, I was in Boston last November and couldn't get enough of the Harpoon winter seasonal, winter warmer.  I know it is summer, but that beer was amaze balls.

Want to hear more from Renny and Josh? Check out their website: www.therebelalliancepodcast.libsyn.com and follow them on Twitter: @RKSwan and @MrJNelson.

By the way, my apologies for the long delay in posting about this two-weeks-old podcast...I was a little busy doing this:

I'm looking forward to making something super from our farm share for this Saturday's matchup against Seattle Sounders.

Before I go: Shameless plug! The Midnight Riders are running a super bus trip from Boston to Gillette Stadium for the 7/8 game vs. Red Bull NY. I'll be grilling up food to share...anyone who rides the bus can come find me for some free grub. And if that's not enough reason for you to join us, 7/8 is also Diego Fagundez Bobblehead Night! Come join us! Find out more and buy your bus ticket here.