…but, what do you eat???

By Justina L. Walls

The Angelica Home Kitchen by Leslie McEachern (2003, Ten Speed Press) is an unusual book. It contains a story of the Angelica Kitchen, the now famous organic vegan restaurant in New York City that began in 1976. It also contains a glossary of ingredients, basics, a list of suggested readings, periodicals, and mail order resources. And of course, recipes. Wonderful, scrumptious recipes! All this is encased in a "lay-flat" binding (we cooks thank you!) So what is unusual about this book?

McEachern is a devotee of sustainable agriculture and small family farms and is committed to ecological agriculture and cultural responsibility. Because of this, she committed to buying from, and supporting, these types of farms very soon after she became the owner of Angelica Kitchen. Much of the early part of her book is a manifesto for her beliefs, and includes vignettes of the people and farms from whom she buys her produce. The profiles of the farmers are a wonderful addition to this book, and give one pause to reflect upon who is behind the food that each of us buys and eats on a daily basis. If we don’t already buy from a local farmer’s market, this format encourages us to consider doing so. It is important to her to serve food at a fair price, not charging more just because she could get away with it. She clearly "walks her talk" in the products that she buys for and serves in her restaurant.

Given the history of this famous restaurant, it was startling to read that she has no objection to eating animal products, and in fact, eats some herself. She does not address why the restaurant remains vegan, even though she herself eats some "animal protein". Perhaps the reason is historical, clientele, economic – the answer to this question is not revealed. Whatever the reason, we vegetarians are grateful that animal products have not been introduced into this legendary vegetarian restaurant.

Recipe development was done with Chef Peter Berley (of The Modern Vegetarian Kitchen, reviewed previously in this column). Chef Berley was the executive chef at Angelica Kitchen for seven years, ending his tenure there in 1999. The recipes reflect his creativity and skill as a chef. He stressed the importance of freshly ground spices, a feature that adds to the distinctive taste of the fresh, organic food. Even though the recipes easily stand on their own, they actually offer more than initially meets the eye, as most are accompanied by suggestions of variations and additional ways to use them, making this a truly useful book. A few have been chosen for inclusion in this column that will help you make good use of your summer’s harvest. We encourage you to see this lovely book yourself for additional recipes and ideas.

Basil-walnut pesto – p. 117 – 4 cups

Serving suggestion: use in a cold pasta salad with sliced fresh tomatoes, as a sandwich spread, on mashed potatoes, or on hot pasta. May also substitute toasted almonds or pumpkin seeds for the walnuts.

1 ½ c. walnuts
2 c. firmly packed fresh basil leaves
2 c. firmly packed fresh parsley
2 cloves garlic, halved lengthwise
3 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice, strained
½ c. extra virgin olive oil
1 ¼ c. olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spread walnuts on a cookie sheet and toast in the oven for 8 minutes. Remove the walnuts to a strainer and allow to cool.

Wash basil and parsley leaves. Spin dry.

Rub the walnuts against the side of the strainer and shake to remove as much bitter skin as possible. Place the walnuts in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse to a coarse meal.

Add the basil, parsley, garlic, and lemon juice and process until smooth. With the motor running, add the oils in a thin steady stream. Season with salt and pepper to taste and pulse to combine.

No-mato sauce – p. 206 – 8 cups

The writer tells us that this is not really a substitute for tomato sauce (it is much more orange), but is unique in its own way. She suggests using is as a layer for lasagnas, as a sauce for seitan wheatballs, with whole grains, or thinned with water or stock for soup.

4 c. chopped onions

¼ c. olive oil

4 c. peeled, chopped carrots

2 c. peeled chopped beets

2 T. minced garlic

1 quart water

3 T. finely chopped fresh herbs such as thyme, tarragon, sage, basil, or rosemary

2 T. red wine vinegar

2 t. sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Place the onions and olive oil in a heavy 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Sauté for 7 to 8 minutes. Add the carrots, beets and garlic to the pan. Lower the heat, cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Raise the heat, add 1 quart water, and the herbs. Bring to a boil, lower heat, stir in the vinegar, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Puree until smooth.

Oven-roasted onions and carrots – p. 168 - 1 ½ cups

The restaurant uses this mixture for their marinated tofu sandwich, and also suggests it as a side dish, or serving it over a grain topped with gravy or a bean sauce as a main course. Depending on the season, suggested substitutions include replacing half the steamed carrots with raw zucchini slices, or cauliflower.

1 quart (approx. 1 lb.) onions, sliced into 1/3 inch thick rings

3 c. carrots (3/4 lb.) cut on the diagonal into slices ¼ inch thick and 2 inches long

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 T. olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 F. Steam the onions and carrots for 3 minutes in a 2 quart saucepan, fitted with a steamer basket and tight-fitting lid. Toss the onions, carrots, and pepper together in a bowl. Spread the vegetable on an oiled cookie sheet and roast for 15 to 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Allow the vegetables to cool at room temperature.

Editor’s Note Re: July/August 2003 Vegetarian Living:

Because of space considerations, several recipes were cut from last month’s "…but what do you eat???" column. However, in the race to get to the printer’s on time, the following recipe was inadvertently cut. This gravy is too good to miss, so we include it for you here. Enjoy!

Grit Yeast Gravy – p. 7 (The Grit) - yields 4 cups

1 c. (2 sticks) vegan margarine

¾ c. whole-wheat flour

¾ c. flaked nutritional yeast

2 c. regular (not reduced fat) soymilk

½ c. soy sauce

1 ¾ c. hot water

2 T. vegan Worcestershire sauce

In a large, heavy-bottom saucepan over medium heat, melt margarine completely. Stir in flour and yeast until blended and continue to heat roux until mixture begins to bubble. Use only enough heat to maintain vigorous bubbling, whisking constantly for 4 minutes. This is the time required to cook the flour to smoothness, and vigorous whisking is important to avoid burning.