Vegan zucchini pancakes
This is a recipe adapted from The Joy of Cooking, found on www.sugoodsweets.com. I honestly thought we’d be eating leftovers for days, but they were so good, everyone kept eating them, and we had none left. If you are strictly vegan, you could substitute maple syrup, ajave nectar or golden syrup for the honey
Whisk together in a large bowl:1 cup whole-wheat flour
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cornmeal, preferably stone ground
1/4 cup old-fashioned or quick-cooking rolled oats
2 Tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (optional)
pinch of freshly grated or ground nutmeg or allspice.
Whisk together in another bowl:1 3/4 cups + 1 Tbsp plain soy milk
3 Tbsp oil
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup ground flax seeds, 1 packed cup grated zucchini.
Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and gently whisk them together, mixing just until combined. Spoon 1/4 cup batter onto a heated (medium heat or 350 F), greased griddle for each pancake, nudging the batter into rounds. Cook until the top of each pancake is speckled with bubbles and some bubbles have popped, then turn and cook until the underside is lightly browned. Serve immediately or keep warm in a 200 F oven while you finish cooking the rest. Serve with pure maple syrup or honey.
Makes about 24 4-inch pancakes.
Sheila Lukins’ Luscious Lobster Rolls.
Sheila Lukins recently died of brain cancer at 66. She was one of the woman behind the Silver Palate cookbook, and an extraordinary chef. Her last book, Ten, is a must-have for any serious cook, and these rolls were sublime. My heart goes out to her family.
For the dressing:
½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup sour cream
1 tablespoon drained tiny capers
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped sweet pickles
1 to 2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon or 1 to 2 teaspoons dried
dash of Tabasco sauce
freshly ground pepper to taste
For the lobster rolls:
1 lb cooked fresh lobster meat cut into ½ inch pieces
1 cup diced celery
2 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
6 top split hot dog rolls
Prepare the dressing by combining well in a bowl. Set aside.
In another bowl combine lobster, celery and scallions. Fold dressing into lobster until well coated.
Toast the hot dog rolls. Fill with about 1/3 cup lobster salad, plus a little extra.
I lined the rolls with Boston lettuce – added a touch of green and looked wonderful in the red baskets.
Mushroom Pecan Burgers
Last night , at around five o’clock, as the children were sitting down to chicken, I realized I had nothing for dinner. A quick scour round the pantry produced a huge Costco jar of dried mushrooms, and, given that I had recently found a mushroom pecan burger I was desperate to try, I decided to give it a go.
I had no pecans so used walnuts instead, and instead of Hoisin sauce used a teriyaki that was in the fridge. Nevertheless, they were amazing. I had tried a different mushroom burger recipe recently, but this, found on epicurious.com, was so much better. I urge you to try.
1 1/2 pounds (685 g) cremini mushrooms
1/2 cup (30 g) fresh parsley
2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil, divided
2 large-size yellow onions, finely chopped
3 large-size garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 to 2 cups (165 to 220 g) bread crumbs or cracker meal
3 tablespoons (45 g) tahini
2 tablespoons (30 g) hoisin sauce
3/4 cup (85 g) toasted pecans or walnuts, chopped
3 tablespoons (45 ml) tamari soy sauce
1 teaspoon (2 g) dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
salt and ground pepper, to taste
Method
In a food processor, mince mushrooms and parsley. Remove and set aside.
In a sauté pan over medium heat, warm 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil and cook onions and garlic for 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer onion mixture to a large-size bowl, and combine with minced mushrooms and parsley, bread crumbs, tahini, hoisin sauce, chopped nuts, tamari, oregano, sage, salt, and pepper.
Place mixture in refrigerator for at least half an hour. Mixture will be soft, but you should be able to form patties. Add additional bread crumbs or tahini, if needed.
Create patties using your hands. In a sauté pan, warm remaining 1 tablespoon (15 ml) oil, and fry patties over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes on each side, until lightly browned and crispy. Be careful to keep patties intact.
