Sweet Potato Flan November 26, 2007

This is a recipe to dissipate any myths that good desserts can only be made with eggs.  This is an egg-less flan full of flavor and smooth texture.

 I use the sweet potato with an orange-colored flesh, which are also called yams.  In Spanish, or at least in Puerto Rico, we call these “batata mameya”.  I included some pictures for reassurance.  These, I find, are tad less sweet than the white sweet potato. 

            

SWEET POTATO FLAN

1 medium sweet potato, baked - about 1 cup of baked flesh

1 carton evaporated milk

1 can condensed milk

1 pack of cream cheese - you can use 1/3 less fat version

2 tablespoons vanilla extract or vanilla powder

3 tablespoons cornstarch

strip of lemon rind or grated lemon zest

3/4 cup brown sugar - for caramel

1. Bake the sweet potato in a 400 degree oven for 30-45 minutes.  I encourage you to do this ahead of time.  Just cut the ends of the potato, pierce it with a fork all around and bake.
2. After baking, remove the flesh from the skin and mash it well with a fork.
3. Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees. 
4. Place brown sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Mix a bit of water and  carmelize about 10 -12 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, mix in a blender or food processor the baked sweet potato flesh, milks, cream cheese, vanilla and cornstarch.  You’ll also mix in the grated lemon zest, if using.  If using a piece of lemon rind, don’t put it in yet.  If you feel the blender is too full, just mix the milks first.  Take some out, blend the sweet potato with the remaining milks and then put it all together.  It will fit.
6. Drizzle the caramel in a glass dish and twirl making sure you cover the whole bottom of the dish with caramel.  Careful if using a metal baking dish… the caramel is hot and heats the metal FAST.
7. Pour flan mixture on top of the caramel.
8. Drop in the piece of lemon peel.
9. Place baking dish in a water bath. 
10. Bake in oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour.  You’ll know it’s done when the top is browned and a knife or wooden skewer comes out clean.
11. Take out of the water bath and chill in the refrigerator for about 2 hours.
12. When ready to serve… Release over a dish  so the caramel side is on top.

If you rather make a traditional vanilla flan, just omit the sweet potato and only use 2 1/2 tablespoons of cornstarch.

Vegetarian Options @ College and Beyond November 24, 2007

I discovered this new blog - Veg Blog and I was intrigued by one topic… what are the meal options in our former colleges.  It’s interesting,  because I am “lucky” that when I decided to go vegetarian, I did it in an environment that makes it easier for me… where I have the yoga center I attend to help educate me on recipes, etc.  And the “lucky” statement is a contradictory one… because maybe it would really been luckier if I had had discovered vegetarianism and a healthier lifestyle earlier in life, rather than later.

But what if I had been a vegetarian when I went to Northwestern?  Granted, back then, I would have laughed at anyone who would have told me that I would become vegetarian… that was just not in my realm of consideration back then.  However, I do remember we used to visit Norris Center to have stir fry and they did have tofu as part of the alternatives.  I may have even had it once.

Sparked by the Veg Blog Topic… I searched Northwestern University’s current  meal options.  I was kind of disappointed.  Even though, I’ve seen Evanston now has a Whole Foods, only one of the over 10 options to eat and dine for students sponsored by the university, only ONE mentions openly the have vegetarian options:

Foster- Walker

1927 Orrington Avenue (map, hours)
Phone: (847) 491-5086

Come watch the game on Foster-Walker’s big screen TV while enjoying your delicious meal. Foster-Walker’s West Dining Room offers a variety of made-to-order specialties like freshly tossed salads, grilled sandwiches, pastas, burritos, and stir-fry. The West Dining Room also provides soup, cereal and desserts. Vegetarian burger options are available. Halal items are also available upon request.

Attached to the west side of Foster Walker is the newly renovated C-Store. There you can find a variety of Smart Market salads, sandwiches and wraps, along with many bottled beverages, snacks, ice cream and toiletries. They also have a new section in the Foster Walker C-Store called nuGreen Market, which features organic and or natural products.

I would like to think, that vegetarian options are so prevalent across the campus, that they feel they don’t feel they need to particularly highlight them in the descriptions.

Here are my recommendations to those students (or some former students)  who want to follow a vegetarian lifestyle while still eating out:

1. Ask for something made to order.  Order a sandwich with a whole-wheat bread, or a salad without animal based ingredients.  I ask at Subway for sandwich artists to change their gloves, and cut my sandwich using a disposable knife.  At Ponte Fresco, a local salad place, I ask people to use new cutting boards.  Most places will accommodate, and if they don’t, they do not deserve your business.
2. Mix & Match.  Even though I am not a big fan of just eating side dishes, I have had great satisfying meals by mixing and matching the side dishes of several different entrees. 
3. Don’t be afraid to ask how entrees are prepared.  Never tell people upfront you’re asking because you’re vegetarian.  People have very different ways of defining what vegetarians eat or not.  Just ask how the dish is prepared.  Meat-eaters are usually very eager to mention the bacon, the ham, the chicken stock, etc. 

And if you’re college-bound, try to have a mini fridge and a George Foreman grill in your dorm or apartment so you can help yourself to healthy eating without the limitations of people who are not ready to embrace a more healthful, vegetarian lifestyle.  You’ll never go wrong by making your own meals…  believe me, it’s made a blogger out of me.

Arugula-Red Onion and Orange Salad November 24, 2007

This is a recipe I learned while I was at a cooking seminar this past April called the Conscious Gourmet.  This was a wonderful 5 day vegetarian cooking course in Jupiter, FL.  It was lead by Diane Carlson and I learned to work with new ingredients and new flavor combinations.

I chose this salad for my Thanksgiving menu because it has curry and that gave me a Autumn feel to it.  My apologies for forgetting to take a picture of this…  I will make it again a do a whole photo shoot for you.

ARUGULA-RED ONION AND ORANGE SALAD

1 cup fresh orange juice

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 tablespoon light sesame oil or canola oil

1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced crosswise

4 cups arugula leaves

2 navel oranges

1. Pour the orange juice into a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil and reduce, uncovered until you have 1/3 cup, about 15 minutes.

1. Combine the reduced juice in a small bowl with the garlic, salt and vinegar.  Whisk in the curry powder and oil.  Cut the top and bottom of the oranges.  Peel them with a knife, removing all the white pith exposing the flesh.  Cut segments of the orange following the line of each orange division.  or you can  just cut them crosswise, making discs of orange.
2. Heat 1″ of water in a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil and add onions. Blanch for 30 seconds.  Drain and plunge in cold water to stop the cooking. Drain again.
3. Place the arugula in a bowl along with the onions and orange segments.  Just before serving, toss with the dressing and serve.

My mom loved the salad.  Even though we normally do not mix vegetable salads with fruits, she admitted the orange helps cool off your palate from the heat of the curry dressing.  This is a very tasty salad. 

Try it and tell me your impressions.

Roasted Broccoli and Zucchini November 24, 2007

This was included to bring a punch of color in an otherwise, very orangy, beta-carotene laden menu. 

ROASTED BROCCOLI AND ZUCCHINI

1 zucchini, diced

1 head of broccoli

1 onion, sliced

olive oil

salt and pepper

1. Toss the veggies with olive oil, salt and pepper.
2. Roast in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes.

Super simple.  Super tasty.  Eat it fast… with time, the veggies get a bit soggy.

Hummus Sandwich November 19, 2007

This is my favorite sandwich right now by far…  It all started with a hummus sandwich I order at a bagel place near my work.  And you can add a few extras… and because I love grain mustard so much, I started ordering the hummus sandwich with grain mustard, and take it from me, it gives it a really nice kick.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

I make my own hummus, and the recipe will follow.  But just in case you want to try this and are strapped for time, just take some store-bought hummus, brighten the flavor with some squirts of lime juice and call it a day.

HUMMUS SANDWICH

1 can of chickpeas or garbanzo beans - I still have not been able to figure out how to make the garbanzo beans from scratch

1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese

juice of one lime

about 1/2 cup of olive oil - enough to make the mixture as creamy as possible

1 clove of garlic, minced

salt and pepper to taste

a dash of paprika

Whole -wheat bread - choose your favorite, pita, baguette, bagel, it will work with any

Whole-grain  mustard

Tomatoes

Lettuce or any other greens - optional

 For the hummus:

1. Rinse the garbanzo beans. 
2. Place garbanzo beans, cheese, garlic, lime juice salt, pepper, paprika and some of the olive oil in a food processor.
3. Pulse until the mixture is creamy.  If the mixture is not as creamy as it should be, keep adding olive oil in small increments until you reach a smooth texture.

The Parmesan replaces the tahini sauce… because I can’t bear to buy a huge jar of tahini just to make hummus.  I need to be more versatile with the limited refrigerator space I have.  And the lime juice gives it a nice kick… I does not taste like the typical Middle Eastern restaurant hummus, it tastes better!!! 

To assemble the sandwich:

1. Toast the bread
2. Smear hummus on one side and mustard on the other.
3. Add tomato and lettuce.

Enjoy…  I hope you like it as much as I do.

Cinnamon Vanilla Baked Plantains November 17, 2007

 

Cinnamon Vanilla Baked Plantains

4 ripe plantains**

cinnamon powder

vanilla powder

Liquid margarine

**If ripe plantains are not available, use IQF plantains.  King Crown is an excellent brand. 

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F. 
2. In a baking dish, smear some liquid margarine.
3. Cut the plantains in diagonal slices and arrange on the baking dish. Sprinkle with cinnamon and vanilla powder.
4. Drizzle some additional liquid margarine on top.
5. Bake in oven for 30-45 minutes, until plantains are done. (If using IQF plantains, you only need to bake until the plantains are defrosted completely, about 20 minutes)

I made these plantains together with my Eggplant Parmesan and Pasta with Marinated Tomatoes.  Look them up.

Cheese Rice Burritos with Roasted Tomatillo Salsa November 17, 2007

This is a recipe I have been meaning to make for a loooooong time.  It is an adaptation of two different recipes from the Food Network.  I had never had tomatillos before, but I always wondered how they tasted.  I was so surprised at the amount of flavor this salsa gives to this dish.

Before you say anything else… I know I need some help with the plating and the pictures - for them to have more appetite appeal… so for this one, forgive me and just use them as an educational guide for how the dish is prepared and assembled.  OK?  The flavors are there, I promise to practice my picture-taking techniques.

 Cheese Rice Burritos with Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

6 whole-wheat flour tortillas

1 1/2 cups julienned or shredded zucchini

1 medium diced onion

1 minced clove of garlic

1 cup cooked whole-grain rice

3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

3/4 cup sour cream

Salt and Pepper to taste

olive oil

1 tomato, thinly sliced

1 cup shredded lettuce

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa - recipe follows

1. Warm tortillas over a warm skillet
2. While tortillas are warming, heat a pot with some olive oil.  Add zucchini and onion and sautee until tender.  Season with salt and pepper.
3. 
4. Stir in rice, cheese, and cook for 1 few minutes.
5. Remove from heat and stir in sour cream.

Fill in warm tortillas with rice mixture.  Spoon a few table spoons of the Roasted Tomatillo Salsa.  Top with lettuce and tomato.  Roll up the burrito and serve with additional salsa and sour cream.

 

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

1 pound tomatillos, husked

1 yellow onion, peeled and quartered

4 garlic cloves

salt and pepper

olive oil

juice of 1 lemon

1. Pre-heat oven to 400degrees F.
2.  On a baking tray, place tomatillos, onion and garlic.  Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Roast in oven for 15-20 minutes.
3. Transfer the roasted vegetables and any juices from the bottom of the tray to a food processor.  Add the lemon juice and pulse the mixture until well combined, but still chunky.

As you can notice, I do not like spicy foods.  But you can add as much spice to this recipe as you’d like.  Add jalapenos to the tomatillo salsa and even mix in some chile sauce to the rice mixture… go crazy if you’d like.

I would also accompany this recipe with a nice chunky guacamole… recipe follows. 

Buen Provecho!!!!

Romaine Salad with Citrus Ceasar Dressing November 17, 2007

This is a great recipe for a very tasting dressing.  The dressing is an adaptation from a Bobby Flay recipe.  This yields a nice amount of dressing.  I choose to toss the salads individually and save any left-over dressing.  I make the croutons from scratch because I have not been able to find whole wheat croutons yet.

 

Romaine Salad with Citrus Ceasar Dressing

1 -2 Romaine lettuce hearts

Whole Wheat croutons - recipe follows

Citrus Ceasar Dressing:

1/4 cup of orange juice with the juice of 1/2 a lemon

4 cloves of roasted garlic

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon egg-free mayonnaise

1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup olive oil

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Place the orange/lemon juice mixture, garlic, mustard, mayo, vinegar, salt and pepper in a food processor.  Blend until smooth.  With the motor running, slowly add the olive oil and blend until emulsified.  Add the Parmesan and pulse a few times until incorporated.
2. Wash the Romaine lettuce and cut into slices.
3. Place in a mixing bowl, toss with dressing, croutons and additional Parmesan cheese.  Shaved or Shredded Parmesan looks really good here.

Whole-Wheat Croutons

1. Cut a whole wheat bagguette in squares.
2. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Toast in a 350 degree oven until crispy and golden, for about 15 min.
4. While still warm, toss with parsley flakes.

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese November 17, 2007

In the next few posts, I will share with you the Thanksgiving Menu I have chosen for this year.

For the main course, I will prepare a Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese.  This mac and cheese packs a lot of nutritional punch and color from the butternut squash in the cheese sauce.  You can substitute the squash for regular pumpkin.  I works just the same.

 

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

Steamed pumpkin or butternut squash - about 1 pound
1 pound whole-wheat elbow macaroni or other tubular pasta
2 cups 1 percent lowfat milk
4 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, grated (about 1 1/3 cups)
4 ounces Blend of melting cheeses - Mozzarella, Asiago, Fontina, etc.
1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Steam the butternut squash or pumpkin in a pot with just an inch of water.  Season with salt.  When it is cooked, puree in a food procesor.
3. Bring a large pot to a boil for the pasta.
4. Meanwhile, start building the cheese sauce.  In a pot under medium heat, mix together the milk, blend and melt the cheeses, mix the mustard, and pureed butternut squash.  Season with salt and pepper.  Make sure the pot is big enough to accomodate the sauce and the pasta when it’s cooked.
5. Add the macaroni to boling water seasoned with salt and cook until tender but firm.
6. Drain cooked pasta and transfer to the pot with the cheese sauce.  Mix well together.
7. Transfer to a buttered baking dish.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and some of the leftover Melting Cheese blend all over the top.
8.  Bake for 20 minutes, then broil for 3 minutes so the top is crisp and nicely browned.  Everything is already cooked, you’re just heating everything together and browining the cheese on top.

This recipe is delicious.  The mustard gives it a different and grown-up taste.   You can also roast the butternut squash, which gives it a more robust flavor.

 

I did this recipe a few weeks ago at our Yoga Center and my friend Kathleen reviewed it in her blog.

Hope you like it too.  Tell me all about it if you try it.

Eggplant Parmesan November 13, 2007

I love to invite friends over to dinner. This gives me the opportunity to try out new recipes. Conventional knowledge would tell you not to try new recipes on guests… experiment on your own first and then share with others. Well, you know what, I don’t agree.

This is an eggplant recipe that I created by mixing and matching elements of several other recipes I have seen and tasted and I even experimented something I had never tried before and actually turned out really good. I wanted to do Eggplant in my latest dinner party because my best friend Ana Yolanda is an eggplant FAN. I made enough so she would have left overs… a testament to the quality of the results and a shame for her, but her husband ate ALL of the leftovers.

Don’t worry Ana, I’ll make it again JUST FOR YOU!!!

EGGPLANT PARMESAN
serves about 8

3-4 medium eggplants**, unpeeled, sliced in about 1/2 inch-thick slices
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups of seasoned whole wheat breadcrumbs
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese plus more for sprinkling in between eggplant layers
Salt and Pepper
1/2 cup marinara sauce

fresh mozzarella cheese for the topping

**I learned that you should try to get as light an eggplant as you can find to ensure they have the least amount of seeds and minimize any bitterness

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 
2. Dunk the eggplant slices in the buttermilk for like half a minute. This will give the eggplant slices something sticky so the breadcrumbs stick.
3. Place breadcrumbs in a shallow dish.  Coat the eggplant slices with the breadcrumbs. Set aside for a few minutes to let the coating stick a bit.
4. Heat a very thin layer of olive oil in a skillet. (Note: you’ll need a good amount of oil, because the eggplants will soak it. But you need to add a little bit with each batch so the eggplants brown.  If not, they’ll just boil and become limp.)  Fry the eggplant slices in batches.  Set aside and drain on paper towels.
5. In a bowl, mix together the ricotta cheese, half-and-half, most of the Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper.
6. In a large glass pyrex, spoon a bit of sauce at the bottom, place a shingled layer of fried eggplants, smear the ricotta mixture all over, spoon a bit more marinara sauce, place a second layer of fried eggplants, spoon the last of the marinara sauce and top it all off with the remaining Parmesan cheese.  Finish off with the slices of fresh mozzarella cheese.
7. Place the pyrex in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, until the cheese on top is browned and sauce bubbly.
8. Let it rest for a little while because it can burn if you eat it right away. Serve warm.

Instead of marinara sauce, I made a marinated tomatoes sauce.  Simple, mix together all these ingredients and let the flavors marry while the eggplants are frying - Crushed Tomatoes (try for them to be in a jar and not a can - you know, less additives), Olive oil, salt, pepper, fresh basil and minced fresh garlic. 

I served this with spinach fetuchinni and sweet plantains.  I will share these recipes in following posts.  Oh, and with the roasted garlic breadsticks.   But you can mix and match as you’d like.

Buon Appetito. 

Madelyn’s Spinach Crepes November 11, 2007

Every Saturday, I take French classes at the Alliance Française in Condado.  Every Saturday, I wake up with a craving for french crepes.

Didier, a french crepe chef visits the Alliance every morning and fixes us with THE BEST crepes I have tasted.  I have indeed had crepes in Paris, but lets face it, it was 20 years ago, so I can’t really remember well.

 

Because I am such a fan of these crepes, I decided to create my own version.  I usually have a Spinach crepe with cheese, walnuts drizzled with honey.  This is my lunch every Saturday, however, Didier’s most popular recipes are the crepes filled with strawberries and Nutella drizzled with chocolate syrup and dusted with powdered sugar.  Here’e a few pictures, please wipe your drool…

                       

Here’s my humble attempt to replicating Didier’s recipe… I only include the recipe for the filling.  I used store-bought crepes from the refrigerated section of the supermarket.  But I will be trying a whole-wheat version of the crepe recipe and will include it shortly.

This is basically the mix of ingredients and flavors.  Adjust the quantities according to the amount of crepes you’re doing.  Something about my recipes, I go by eye and feel, and rarely remember exact quantities…  hope it’s not too much of a hassle for you.

 

 

Spinach Crepes

leeks - sliced finely
Green bell peppers - diced
Frozen Spinach
a bit of half and half
a bit of Cream of Mushroom Condensed Soup - you can omit this part if you’d like, but i thought it would help the mixture cream better
Chopped garlic
Season to taste with Salt, pepper
Sharp cheddar cheese slices or swiss cheese would work fine too
Chopped walnuts
Honey or agave nectar

For the Filling

1. Sautee the leeks or onions together with the bell pepper in olive oil until soft.
2. Add the garlic.
3. Add the frozen spinach right form the bag… no bother to defrost or to drain
4. When the mixture seems to be thoroughly cooked, add the half and half and the mushroom soup.
5. Season with salt and pepper and anything else you’d like filling is done

Putting it Together

1. Take the crepe and warm it up in a skillet, just like you would a tortilla.
2. Put a bit of the mixture in the center, place some cheese slices and walnuts.
3. fold edges inside, just like you would do to a burrito
4. flip the crepe on the other side so the folds are underneath… if you leave it in the original side, the crepe will soften and desintegrate leaving you with a hole and the mixture in the skillet.  Flipping the crepe will help seal the folds.  you can flip it again a bit to warm up both sides and to melt the cheese inside, but be careful not leaving it too long on the side with the filling more exposed.
5. move it on to a place and drizzle with a bit of honey or agave nectar.  it tastes delicious.  it’s a nice sweet coiunterpoint to the savory filling

Believe it or not, this is the recipe that got my fire started about writing a blog… a friend of mine, Kathleen writes a blog Kathleen’s Kitchen and she tried my recipe and liked it.

Hope you enjoy it too.

 

 

Dissapointing Local Restaurant Guide November 11, 2007

This past week the first Puerto Rican restaurant guide was launched.  It’s called SAL!  To give you an idea, it’s like the local attempt to a ZAGAT’s guide.  It’s  backed by all this big name local chefs and published by El Nuevo Día, the largest local newspaper.  I was very interested in it so I browsed thru a copy at my local Border’s store yesterday.

Very disappointing!!!! And I say this from the perspective of a Vegetarian looking to see what they had to offer for newly vegetarians or for vegetarians visiting Puerto Rico, using this guide as a resource on where to dine around the Island. 

 Why? Because the editorial staff did not have the back bone to sift thru the “phony” restaurants who dare to call themselves vegetarian, while serving on a daily basis animal-based entrees, such as chicken, cod, tuna, turkey, among others.  I know, because I have eaten or visited these so-called vegetarian restaurants, while feeling less than confident of what I am being served. 

And what bothers me the most, is that even in one restaurant entry, the editors even suggest that if you want to “commit sin” or steer-away from your vegetarian ways, “Try the chicken-whatever… it’s delicious.”  and in just that phrase, completely mocking the local vegetarian community and any other vegetarian reading the newly released guide.

For the first time, and maybe even fueled by this new-found voice I have thru this blog, wrote a letter to the editors of the newspaper and the restaurant guide letting them know my outrage.  I include a copy of my letter - bear with me, it’s in Spanish… but in essence I repeat the same thing i include here.

SAL! - Que Insulto a la Comunidad Vegetariana de Puerto Rico!!!!!!

From: Madelyn

Sent: Sunday, November 11, 2007 2:52:06 PM

To:  opinion@elnuevodia.com

Hola, soy Madelyn, y soy vegetariana.  Y como vegetariana viviendo en San Juan, me interesó mucho la noticia de la nueva guía de restaurantes SAL!, dada especialmente TODA la promoción que le estuvieron dando en el periódico.
 
Puedo entender que hayan restaurantes allá fuera que digan que son vegetarianos, me imagino que para sentirse hip y a la moda… porque vegetarianos no lo son.  Me refiero a restaurantes como Pure & Natural en Condado o Garden of Health en Hato Rey, entre otros, que dicen ser vegetarianos, pero en sus menús tienen diariamente alternativas no-vegetarianas como pollo, bacalao, atún, entre otros.  Para un vegetariano genuino, estos restaurantes son una farsa porque no se puede confiar en la confección de sus alimentos, si las personas que trabajan en el restaurante realmente te comunican con honestidad los ingredientes de los platos, porque en ese restaurante se cocina de todo.  El hecho que un restaurante tenga platos sin una proteina animal como eje central no hace el restaurante vegetariano.  Pregúntale a una persona que sea vegetariana por muchos años si comería en uno de esos restaurantes y con certeza diría un rotundo NO!!!!!!!   Que digan que son Orgánicos es una cosa, pero si se ofrecen platos con ingredientes animales, por definición NO SON VEGETARIANOS.
 
Pero lo que más me molesta de todo, es que aunque se que vivimos en una cultura carnívora y que el público en general no fomente el vegetarianismo, que una guía de restaurantes apoyada por tan estimados chefs locales, como la guía SAL!, NO RESPETEN que el vegetarianismo es un estilo de vida y de alimentación válida, en aumento en el resto del mundo y que sus seguidores se deben respetar, no tiene excusa.  El que haya una sección de restaurantes vegetarianos y que entre ellos hayan restaurantes que claramente NO SON VEGETARIANOS y que más allá, los editores de la guía sugieran en la descripción de uno de ellos que, “Y si quieres pecar, tienes que probar el Pollo whatever…” es un insulto a la comunidad vegetariana de Puerto Rico. 
 
Desgraciadamente, esta guía de restaurantes SAL! perdió todo tipo de credibilidad, porque no podemos confiar que sus editores tengan la integridad necesaria para evaluar los restaurantes por lo que son y no por lo que dicen ser. 
 
Que pena. 
 
Madelyn Rodríguez
San Juan, Puerto Rico
 

I urge you that if you feel the same way as I, to also email the editors of El Nuevo Día and voice your opinion.  Living in a culture that does not respect the vegetarian way of life is one thing - it’s cultural.  But having the restaurant community and an editorial staff fully mock our lifestyle choice adds insult to injury.  I expected much more from the local culinary community.

Roasted Garlic, Parmesan & Pepper Breadsticks November 8, 2007

This is a great recipe as an appetizer or as a snack.  I do them with store-bought dough from the supermarket.  Unfortunately in Puerto Rico, where I live I can’t find this dough in a whole-wheat version, but if you can find it I highly encourage it.  As soon as I learn how to make the whole-wheat dough from scratch, I will share it with you.

So here is the easy version:

1 tub of store-bought breadstick dough (whole-wheat prefereable)

6 roasted garlic cloves

shaved or grated parmesan cheese

freshly-cracked pepper

1. Pre-heat over according to manufacturer’s directions.  Usually, it’s about 350 degrees. 
2. Open the package of breadstick dough and lay open on a cutting board.
3. I cut the breadsticks in half so the breadsticks are not too long and can fit better on a cookie sheet.
4. Take the roasted garlic cloves and rub them all over the dough.  See below to make Rosted Garlic.
5. Crack fresh ground pepper on top of dough and sprinkle with parmesan.  Press pepper and cheese into the dough so its sticks.
6. Twist each breadstick dough and place in a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
7. Bake in oven according to manufacturer’s directions.

To make Roasted Garlic: 

1. Cut the top from a garlic head.
2. Place cut garlic head in a foil with a piece parchement paper - the parchment is for the garlic not to touch the foil paper
3. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle a bit of salt and pepper over garlic
4. Close the foil/parchment papers to create a pouch.  Before closing completely,  drizzle a bit of water to create some steam.
5. Roast in a 400 degree oven for about 40-50 minutes.  The smell will tell you when it’s done.

 

And even though this is a savory breadstick, even kids love them.  Here’s a picture of my niece eating one of the many she had a few nights ago.