Your Vegan Mom

Oh good land do I love birthdays and radical in-laws. Seriously, did I marry into a thoughtful family, or what?

New Southern Kitchen

I’m not from the South. Nobody passed me down a biscuit recipe. The only fried chicken I ever had came in a bucket from KFC, once, to take on a picnic to the seaside lagoon in Redondo Beach. It was kind of greasy. Growing up there was cioppino and mostacolli aplenty, but no gumbo or grits. So thankfully, I have found an adoptive grandmother in the form of Damon Lee Fowler. His New Southern Kitchen has become just the reference that I was looking for. I was skeptical at first. The moment that I came across the curry powder in his spiced pecans I set him aside for more traditional dowagers like those Junior League ladies and their many spiral bound collections of recipes. I love those. But when I needed a great biscuit recipe it was Damon Lee Fowler that delivered. This particular recipe was so well written - helpfully detailed, yet enjoyably idiosyncratic - that it forced me to reconsider the book. This time when I flipped through the pages it was his straightforward, honest treatment of the best seasonal ingredients that caught my attention rather than the occasional little dip into the realm of fusion cuisine. I found a perfect balance between traditional recipes and more modern treatments of old ingredients indigenous to the South. This cookbook is not remotely vegan, nor is it even particularly vegan-friendly. Fowler occasionally gives a recipe using olive oil where traditionally butter or lard would have been used, but it's rare, and chances are the recipe calls for some other animal-derived ingredient anyway. Thus far, that has only been a challenge and not an actual obstruction from enjoying the recipes. Even though he insisted that lard be used in the southern breakfast biscuits, they were wonderful with vegetable shortening, and that buttermilk fried chicken recipe... that’s dinner tonight, with a few modifications. Here’s the plan: Start with: 4 seitan cutlets (Your favorite recipe - I’ll post the one that I’ve been using later this week. The chicken recipe from Nonna’s Italian Kitchen would work well here, as would her breast of tofu recipe if you want to go a slightly different direction.) Mix together: 1 c. buttermilk (1 Tbsp. lemon juice + enough soy milk to make 1 cup. Stir. Let sit until thickened, about 5 min.) 3 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled a few shakes louisiana hot sauce In a paper sack, shake up the following: 1 1/2 c. flour 1 tsp. black pepper 1/4 tsp. cayenne 2 tsp. salt Marinate seitan in buttermilk mixture for about 30 minutes to an hour. Over medium-high, heat enough oil (DLF recommends peanut, I’m using canola because we have it and the boy’s not allowed to have nuts yet) in your cast iron skillet to come half way up cutlet. Remove cutlets from buttermilk, place in paper sack, shake to coat with seasoned flour. Fry in hot oil until golden brown on both sides. Remove to cooling rack placed over cookie sheet to drain. I'll keep you posted on how it turns out.

Natchitoches, LA

About an hour south of here, the Cane River Green Market opened for the season in April. On the gloomy day that we visited it was all onions and greens, but I can only imagine what they have now. All of a sudden, spring is coming on so quickly. Oh, and that's nack-uh-tish to those of you that aren't blessed with a mama-in-law from these parts.

Happy Mother's Day Y'all!

Here's a basic vanilla pudding recipe to help you celebrate:

1/4 c. cornstarch
6 Tbsp. raw sugar
pinch of salt

2 Tbsp. firm silken tofu
2 Tbsp. canola oil

2 1/2 c. soy milk

1 tsp. vanilla

Blend together the tofu, oil, and about a quarter cup of the soy milk until smooth. I used an immersion blender in a glass measuring cup. Set aside. In a medium sauce pan, whisk together the cornstarch, sugar, and salt. Gradually whisk in the remaining milk to the corn starch mixture. Stir in the tofu mixture. Heat over medium, stirring frequently. Let boil one minute while continuing to stir. Remove from heat. Add vanilla. Pour into small bowls or cups to chill for at least 2 hours. Makes 4 servings.

Even tough guys like pudding. I've made this now at least 4 times. So I know it works reliably, for me anyway. Poured over sweet ripe bananas in a pre-made graham cracker crust, you've got an incredibly simple and soothing dessert.

Johnny's Pizza House

My mom is in town from L.A. this week. As we debated where to go for my birthday lunch last Friday, she was saying something along the lines of "Straw Hat Pizza and Chuck E. Cheese! Those were the only places we went to when you guys were little." Which is funny because that is exactly the opposite of how I remember it. I'm sure the truth lies somewhere in the middle and our opposing memories are pretty easy to understand when you visit the neighborhood pizza joint as an adult. That place is awful.

As we approached Johnny's Pizza House, a small child was quickly scaling the pole out front, no doubt high on corn syrup and bleached flour. Entering the restaurant, the first thing I noticed was a preteen dressed as some kind of slightly thread-bare giant stuffed animal strutting her stuff and working the tables. Somehow undaunted, I made my way to the counter and placed our order for a medium bell pepper and onion pizza, no cheese. I was impressed, both by the counter guy's nonplussed acceptance of my order and the fact that it actually came without cheese.

The pizza was fine, not bad even. The crust was not too thick, kind of pleasantly puffy with a crisp exterior. The sauce was slightly over seasoned, but not terribly so, a bit on the sweet and pasty side, but not bad. The peppers and onions worked - as my only non-canned vegetable option, they provided a bit of crunchy freshness to contrast with that pillowy dough and sweet sauce.

I certainly wouldn't go out of my way to eat here, but in the company of the sticky-fingered, tends-to-wail set - which I generally am - I could see (shudder) coming back. Desmond was so in awe of all the running around that he mostly just sat and chilled, which was a fabulous novelty. And as I scooped my little dining companion out of the booth and did my best to clean up the smattering of cracker crumbs left behind on the seat, the floor, the table, I realized just how well we fit in here. It seems that, for at least the next decade or so, this is my kind of place.

Thanks for all you've put up with Mom.