time for a revision

One of my go-to and very comprehensive cookbooks, not surprisingly, is the Vegetarian Times Complete Cookbook.  The edition I have was published in 2005 and it is high time they revisited the book and made some additions - namely, Bulgur with Leeks and Swiss Chard which originally appeared in the Oct. 2006 issue of VT magazine.

It really could have been a bit more attractive but there was very little that would have made it taste better.  I have never actually cooked the stems of chard - ordinarily, I cut the leafy bits off of either side and discard the stems (per almost all recipe instructions).  So, it was with some degree of trepidation that I chopped up the center stem of the chard and added it to the pot to saute a while with the leeks.  They actually cook up quite nicely, with a toothsome bite without the crunch I find so irritating in celery.  I substituted one link of Tofurkey Kielbasa for the mushrooms.  In retrospect, I probably could have added two links, but I didn't want to overwhelm the inherent veg-centeredness of this dish by going too heavy on the meat analog.  I was worried that all of the broth would not be absorbed, but it ended up creating a creamy texture akin to what you could imagine a bulgur risotto tasting like.

Continuing my theme of preparing the more veggie-heavy meals earlier in the week (to be absolutely certain all perishables are used before they get gross), tonight I made Mixed Vegetable Masala from the Nov. 2008 issue of VT magazine.

It's pretty and it smelled good (and pungent!), but it really isn't any different from my other curry recipes.  I had high hopes for the sauce, but I have to say, it was nothing special.  I thought it would be a little more flavorful, a little more intense - it involved fire-roasted tomatoes, ginger, garlic, and my food processor.  In the end, it made more of a mess than an impression.