vegan version fusion

Today I discovered a glimmer of courage I had not previously observed in my mother - she fed my father tofu! I didn't believe she'd do it and she proved me wrong and I just wish I could have been there to see the faces my "if it's not meat, it's not food" father made. She called me last week to ask if she could find tofu in a "normal" grocery store and where to find garam masala and I so didn't believe she would really feed my meat-and-potatoes father the Punjabi Peppers & Tofu but she did! Well done, mom.

Last night I made my Pomegranate Saute on Cinnamon Bulghur again. I guess it's a good thing when you like your own recipes enough to reprise them? It didn't look any different from the first time, so if you want to see what it looks like or get the recipe, look here. I did substitute pineapple juice for the apple juice in the recipe because I have better things to do with my time than chase down a small-serving bottle of apple juice. It didn't really taste any different, though I did need to add a little bit of salt to counteract the sweetness.

Tonight, however, I went out on a limb... it creaked a little, but it didn't break and I'm not sure I'll push my luck with this one, though I like the idea enough to try to modify it further in the future (I dare you to say that 5 times fast - further in the future...). I made Fusion Enchiladas from Clean Eating Magazine. I made a couple of substitutions and omissions, since the recipe in the magazine may contain quality ingredients, but one of them used to run around on 4 legs and we're not down with that. Anyway, I'm not going to give you the recipe, but I'll let you know about some of the fun bits of making it.

Okay, okay...I'll give you the recipe. By the way, if you aren't into magazines but still want to learn about the tenets of clean eating, Tosca Reno has published The Eat Clean Diet as a cookbook full of other helpful tidbits.

Fusion Enchiladas from Clean Eating, Sept/Oct 2009
"REFRIED" EDAMAME (pronounced eh-dah-MAH-may)
1/2 small onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, smashed (I pressed 4)
1 cup frozen shelled edamame beans
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder
2 tsp fresh lime juice (I just squeezed a whole lime)
sea salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

"BEEF" FILLING
1 1/2 tsp olive oil, divided
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp ground cumin
8 oz sirloin beef, thinly sliced*
1 cup corn kernels
1 medium red bell pepper, finely diced
2 cups baby spinach (I just used a whole 5 oz bag)
1 1/2 cups all-natural, low-sodium tomato sauce, divided (I used a 14.5 oz can of tomato sauce - I wouldn't do that again - not enough sauce and not enough flavor)
Sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
8 small whole wheat flour tortillas (about 6-8" in diameter) (I used 6 medium sized)
1/2 cup low-fat mozzarella cheese, shredded (omitted)

*I used Amy's All American veggie burgers. I cooked 3 burgers for 2 minutes in the microwave (sacrilege) then cut them into strips to saute in step three. It really didn't go as I had planned and in the future, I will either use seitan like I thought I would originally or I will use a different veggie patty - these just didn't hold together very well.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Prepare "refried" edamame: Bring 2 cups water to a boil over high heat. Add onion, garlic, and edamame, bring back to a boil and cook for 4 minutes. Drain onion-bean mixture, reserving 1/4 cup cooking liquid. Pour bean mixture and reserved liquid into a food processor and add cumin, chili powder and lime juice. Puree until almost smooth and season with salt and pepper. Scrape into a bowl and set aside.
Prepare "beef" filling: In a small bowl, combine 1/2 tsp oil, garlic and cumin. Add beef and mix well to season.
In a nonstick saute pan, heat remaining 1 tsp oil over medium-high heat. Add beef and saute for about 1 minute, until lightly browned. Add corn, red pepper, and spinach, and mix well to combine. Add 1/4 cup tomato sauce and cook for 1-2 minutes, until heated through. Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat.
Spread 1/2 cup tomato sauce over the bottom of a 9x13" baking dish and set aside.
Spread tortillas out in a single layer on a flat work surface. Scoop 2-3 Tbsp edamame filling and spread in the center of each tortilla. Top with 2-3 tbsp "beef" mixture and roll tightly. Place enchiladas seam-side down on top of tomato sauce in baking dish. Cover with remaining tomato sauce, top with cheese (if using) and place dish in oven. Bake enchiladas until hot throughout and cheese is melted, about 8 minutes.