Autumn Comfort Food

When the first real snow arrives and golden leaves blow down the street, all my best intentions to eat 100% raw are blown away, literally. But that doesn't have to mean fulfilling my desire for warm, savory, comfort foods will sabotage my resolve to eat a healthy, plant-based diet. It's time to dig out my favorite plant-strong books, The New Pantry Principle, Forks Over Knives, An Appetite for Reduction, Eat To Live, Vegan on the Cheap, The Mediterranean Vegan Kitchen, and on and on. Reading and collecting cookbooks is one of my obsessions.

One great cookbook, Vegan on the Cheap, has lots of ideas. Because most of its recipes contain wheat gluten, oatmeal, and bread crumbs, and I need to eat gluten-free, my use of it includes hefty modifications. Tomorrow, I'm trying a variation on her comfort roast, which I was inspired to make from a recipe at the Fat-Free Vegan Kitchen. BTW-I am not a vegan and don't identify myself as such. Why? I keep bees and eat honey. I wear leather, silk, and wool. I use horse manure on my garden whenever I get a chance. Although I love animals and don't want them treated cruelly, I am not an animal rights activist. Even though I care dearly about planet earth and I think the best way to save it is lack of consumerism, growing your own food, and eliminating animal products except in times of emergency, I am not an activist here either. I eat plants exclusively, because they make me feel energetic and alive, because I don't want to follow my family tradition of heart disease, diabetes, stroke, cancer, and so forth, and because I want to get to the point of 90% self-sufficiency in producing my own food.

Savory Loaf

Makes 8 small servings. Remember the salad is the main dish. To make this work, serve the mega-huge salad as a first course, when everyone is hungry. Then bring plates to the table with Savory loaf and peas with red peppers. Finally, bring out poached pears or baked apples. Everyone will chant go Mom, yeah Mom.....

 
1 small sweet potato
1 large onion, pureed
1 stalk celery, pureed
1 small carrot, grated
6 or 8 small shitaki or cremini mushrooms, minced
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 c.  cooked white beans
4 oz. ounces extra-firm tofu (I just happened to make a batch of tofu last night.)
1 T. Bragg's Liquid Aminos
1 T.  tomato paste
1 t. spicy brown mustard
1/2 t. mustard seed or powdered mustard
2 T.  fresh parsley, chopped
2 t. rubbed sage
1 t. dried thyme leaf
1 t. dried rosemary, crushed
1 t. dried summer savory, crushed
1/8 t. cayenne
1/8 t. lemon peel
1 t. smoked paprika
1 t. sweet paprika
2 T. nutritional yeast
1/4 c. finely chopped walnuts
1 c. cooked brown or red rice

Wash sweet potato, pierce it several times with a fork, bake for about 40 min. Allow to cool enough to handle and then peel and set aside.

Meanwhile, puree onion until smooth. Add celery to food processor and process until slightly chunky. Remove celery and onion to a skillet and add grated carrot and minced mushrooms. Cook veggies over lowest heat with 1/4 c. water until onion begins to turn golden. This takes some time, about 20-30 min, but is worth the addition of flavor to your food.

After the onions have gotten to the golden stage, add the beans, mashing them lightly with a slotted spoon or spatula.

Place peeled sweet potato into the food processor along with the tofu, Braggs, and all other seasonings, including nutritional yeast. Process until smooth. Stir together with walnuts, rice, and cooked vegetables.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375F. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper and spread the tofu mixture on top into a loaf about 2 1/2 inches high. Bake for 25 minutes or until the top is evenly browned. Cover with a large ovenproof bowl turned upside down on the baking sheet like a hard hat, and bake for 20-30 more minutes. The center should be firm. Continue to cook for 5 more minutes and remove from oven. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Serve with this fantastic gravy that I've seen all over the internet and tasted on several occasions. Mmmmm.

Fantastic Gravy 

1/2 onion, pureed
10 mushrooms, diced
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/4 c. fresh parsley, minced
2T. celery leaves, minced
1 c. veggie or onion broth
1/4 c. minced celery
1/4 t. thyme
1/4 t. sage
1/2 t. orange peel
dash cayenne
a tiny bit of honey
2 t. nutritional yeast
1/2 t. apple cider vinegar
1 t. light miso
1 T.  arrowroot
2 T.  plain soymilk ( I  just happened to make a new batch last night.)

In a saucepan, cook onion, celery, and mushrooms over the lowest heat with 2T. water until it begins to turn golden brown, about 20-30 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook, stirring, for another minute.

Add broth, herbs, nutritional yeast, stevia, vinegar, and miso. Whisk soy milk and arrowroot together until smooth. Stir into the broth, continuing to whisk for 15 minutes. Season with a few twists of pepper to taste and serve. Spinach, clover sprout, and sunflower green salad with marinated artichoke dressing and a big dish of peas with diced red peppers would be superb with this. Dessert this time of year is poached pears and baked apples.