Hope's Edge: The Next Diet for a Small Planet (34 page)

2 tablespoons oil

1 onion, chopped

½ cup pignolia nuts, chopped cashews, or toasted sunflower seeds

1 scant tablespoon caraway seeds

½ cup raisins

One 15-ounce can tomato sauce

1 tablespoon lemon juice

3 cups cooked brown rice and soy grits (1¼ cups uncooked rice and ¼ cup uncooked grits, cooked together with ½ teaspoon salt)

1 cup yogurt

Steam cabbage leaves until limp and set aside. Heat oil and sauté onion until translucent. Add nuts, caraway seeds, and raisins and sauté 2 minutes. Combine tomato sauce and lemon juice. Combine rice with sautéed ingredients and add enough sauce to moisten.

Put about 3 tablespoons of filling on each leaf and roll up, securing with a toothpick if necessary. Put the rolls in a skillet and pour the remaining sauce over them. Cover and cook until cabbage is quite tender, about 15 minutes. Serve topped with yogurt.

Variation:
To give this dish an unusual flavor, add ½ teaspoon cinnamon to the stuffing mixture.

Complementary protein: soy + rice + seeds + nuts + milk product

Homemade Tofu Burgers

8 patties

A favorite dish of Bill and Akiko Shurtleff of the Soyfoods Center, Lafayette, California. They write: “You won’t believe the delicious flavor of these easy-to-make cholesterol-free meatless entrees. A favorite in Japan for over 400 years. Watch out, McDonald’s!” The “batter” can be kept in the refrigerator, so you can make fresh burgers as you want them. Great for breakfast, too.

30 ounces tofu

1/3 cup grated carrot

¼ cup minced leeks, scallions, or onions

2 tablespoons ground roasted sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, peanuts, or chopped nutmeats

Oil for frying

Cut tofu into thin slices and arrange between two layers of dishtowel. Let stand for 15 minutes, then put firm pieces in the middle of a dry dishtowel, gather the corners, twist to form a sack, and squeeze tofu firmly to drain off as much moisture as possible.

In a shallow bowl, combine tofu with carrot, leeks, and sesame seeds. Knead, as if kneading bread, for about 3 minutes. When dough is smooth and holds together well, moisten palms with oil and shape dough into patties, 3 to 3½ inches in diameter.

Pour oil into a wok (to a depth of 1½ inches) or skillet (to a depth of ¼ to ½ inch). Heat oil to 375°F. (If you don’t have a thermometer, test the temperature with a ½-inch ball of the dough; it should fry, sizzling vigorously, to golden brown in about 1 minute. The oil should be fragrant but never smoking.) Fry burgers until crisp and nicely browned, about 4 minutes on one side, 3 minutes on the other. Drain and serve hot, with a sprinkling of soy sauce, on a bun with lettuce, tomato, ketchup, mustard, dill pickle slices, alfalfa sprouts, or other burger trimmings.

Complementary protein: soy (tofu) + seeds + wheat (bun)

Creamed Celery Saute

4 servings

This is such a simple idea, but so good. The cottage cheese and yogurt give a delicious sour cream flavor. Serve with sliced tomatoes and hearty rye bread.

Margarine for sautéing

4 stalks celery with leaves, chopped

1 to 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 to 2 scallions, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1½ cups combined cottage cheese and yogurt (or all cottage cheese), blended smooth

Garnish: chopped fresh parsley

Heat margarine and sauté celery, parsley, scallions, and salt and pepper until celery is tender. Stir in lemon juice. Remove from heat, and add cottage cheese-yogurt blend just before serving. Serve over halved baked potatoes or your favorite pasta. Garnish with parsley.

Complementary protein: milk product + potato or wheat

4.
Pie-in-the-Sky Suppers

“Pat-in” supper pie crusts

*
Sesame—Whole Wheat “Pat-In” Crust

   
Parmesan Rice Crust

   
Quick Cornmeal Crust

*
One-Egg Tofu Quiche

   
Crusty Corn-Bean Pie

   
Garden Vegetable Pie

*
New recipe
.

I
F YOU ARE
like me, you hesitate to make pies very often because of the ordeal of making and rolling a pie crust. Here are three ideas for supper pies that do not require rolling out a crust. (And they do not rely on the nutritionally meager store-bought crusts, either!) The trick is simply patting the dough ingredients right into the pie plate. It is so simple, in fact, that you will probably wonder why you didn’t think of it before. So here are ideas for cheese, bean, and vegetable pies—each with infinite possibilities for delicious variation depending on what you have on hand and your own imagination.

Sesame-Whole Wheat “Pat-In” Pie Crust

1 pie crust

From Perri Sloane of Davis, California, who improved the original Easy Whole Wheat Crust in the 1975 edition.

1 cup whole wheat floor

¼ cup margarine, softened

¼ cup sesame seeds

1 tablespoon brown sugar (optional; for dessert pie)

2 tablespoons water

Mix together and pat into 9-inch pie plate. Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 10 minutes
before
filling.

Complementary protein: wheat + sesame

Parmesan Rice Crust (and Pie)

1 pie crust

1 egg

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Juice of ½ lemon Pepper to taste

2½ cups cooked brown rice (1¼ cups uncooked)

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley (optional)

2 tablespoons ground toasted sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat egg, mix with remaining ingredients, and pat into a 9-inch pie pan. Bake until it begins to get crusty, about 15 minutes.

Remove from oven, fill with your favorite sautéed vegetables, add a cream sauce if you wish, and sprinkle with more ground toasted sesame seeds. Return to the oven to heat through, another 10 to 15 minutes.

Complementary protein: rice + sesame seeds + milk product

Quick Cornmeal Crust

1 pie crust

2 cups yellow commeal

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons brewer’s yeast

3 tablespoons oil

½ to ¾ cup hot Seasoned Stock (or enough to make a stiff batter)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix and pat into an oiled deep 9-inch pie pan or cake dish. Bake for 10 minutes before filling. A spicy bean filling complements the protein in the cornmeal.

One-Egg Tofu Quiche

6 hearty servings

If you love quiche but would like to avoid some of the cholesterol and dairy fat, try Perri Sloane’s delicious alternative. Perri is from Davis, California, and is active in Food for All, a hunger action group.

Oil for sautéing

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, chopped

5 to 6 mushrooms, sliced

½ cup zucchini, spinach, or other green vegetable, chopped

1 teaspoon herbs (basil, rosemary, thyme, etc.)

12 ounces tofu

4 ounces grated Muenster or other cheese

One 13-ounce can low-fat evaporated milk

1 egg, beaten

Sesame-Whole Wheat “Pat-In” Pie Crust (
this page
)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat oil and sauté vegetables and herbs until tender. Squeeze tofu with a dry towel to drain off excess moisture and cut in small chunks. Combine tofu, cheese, milk, and egg with sautéed vegetables and pour into pie crust. Bake until browned, about 45 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.

Complementary protein: soy (tofu) + wheat + milk product

Crusty Corn-Bean Pie

4 to 6 servings

Oil for sautéing

1 onion, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

3 cups cooked kidney beans (1 cup uncooked, or use one 20-ounce can)

Pinch cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon soy sauce Quick Cornmeal Crust (
this page
)

1/3 cup or more grated sharp cheese

Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat oil and briefly sauté onion, carrot, and celery. Combine with beans, cayenne pepper, cumin, and soy sauce. Adjust seasoning to taste and turn into pie crust. Bake about 25 minutes, remove from oven and sprinkle with cheese, and bake 5 minutes more.

Complementary protein: beans + corn + milk product

Garden Vegetable Pie

6 servings

This is a beautiful dish that can be different every time, depending on what vegetables you have on hand.

2 tablespoons margarine or oil

¼ pound mushrooms, sliced

3 tablespoons whole wheat flour

1 cup low-fat milk

¼ pound grated cheese (optional)

1 teaspoon dry mustard (optional) Salt and pepper to taste

Parsley and other herbs (tarragon, thyme, rosemary, etc.) to taste

4 cups lightly steamed or sautéed (not mushy) vegetables—carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, etc.

Sesame-Whole Wheat “Pat-In” Crust or Parmesan Rice Crust (
this page
), baked for 10 minutes

Topping: 2 tablespoons ground toasted sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat margarine or oil and sauté mushrooms. Add flour and sauté, stirring, until browned. Gradually add milk and cook until sauce thickens. Add cheese, mustard, salt and pepper, and herbs. Put cooked vegetables in the pie crust and pour sauce over them. Bake just until vegetables are heated through and sauce bubbles. Sprinkle on topping.

Complementary protein: wheat + milk

5.
The Universal Favorite: The Sandwich

Tostadas

Middle Eastern Tacos

*
Tortillas Verdes

*
Terry’s Takeout Tofu

American Variations

Instant Pizza Miniatures

*
New recipe
.

I
T SEEMS THAT
every culture faced with the question “What’s for supper?” has come up with at least one similar answer: a round flatbread, be it corn or wheat, fried or baked, that can be filled in any number of delicious ways—or eaten plain as bread. In Mexico they call it the “tortilla,” in India the “chapati,” and in the Middle East the “pita.” In my house it’s known humbly as a filled sandwich. Since we are lucky enough to live in an area where we can get both tortillas and pita (even delicious whole wheat pita with sesame seeds!), we keep them on hand always for some of our favorite meals.

Here are filled sandwich recipes that are American takeoffs on traditional dishes. They make great buffet dinners because guests enjoy assembling their own.

In addition to sandwiches using tortillas or pita, I’ve included two other quick family favorites.

Tostadas

6 servings

This dinner makes a festive and delicious community meal.

Oil for frying

5 cups cooked or canned pinto beans (2 cups uncooked), cooked until quite soft

Salt to taste

1 dozen corn tortillas

Garnishes:

½ pound Monterey jack or cheddar cheese, grated

½ head lettuce, shredded

1 to 2 tomatoes, chopped

1 onion, finely chopped

1 can green chili sauce or taco sauce

1 cup yogurt (optional but good!)

In a deep, heavy skillet, heat enough oil to cover pan. Oil should be very hot but not smoking. Quickly add the beans, using a wooden spoon (some liquid is released this way). The oil should be hot enough to toast the beans.
(Refritos
means “well fried,” not “refried.”) Taste for salt.

Fry tortillas briefly in a little oil, or heat in the oven until crisp. To assemble, spread each tortilla with a sizable amount of beans, then add garnishes, sauce, and yogurt. Each person gets 2 tortillas.

   
Variation:
For an authentic homemade sauce, peel and seed 4 ripe tomatoes and seed 6 green chili peppers. Chop the tomatoes, chilies, and 1 onion and mix well with 1 clove minced garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, ⅛ teaspoon black pepper, and 1 teaspoon vinegar.

Complementary protein: beans + corn + cheese

Middle Eastern Tacos

10 tacos

Wonderfully tasty and satisfying! Of all the recipes that appeared in the 1971 edition, this is the one my family has eaten most often. The bean-sesame mix makes a great cracker spread, too. With precooked beans, the whole thing can be put together in no time. Increase any of the spices to taste.

3 cups well-cooked garbanzo beans (1 cup uncooked)

½ cup ground toasted sesame seeds or ¼ cup sesame butter

2 cloves garlic

2 tablespoons lemon juice

¾ teaspoon ground coriander

Salt to taste

½ teaspoon ground cumin

¼ to ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

10 pieces Middle Eastern flatbread (pita) or wheat tortillas

Garnishes:

shredded lettuce

chopped tomatoes

chopped cucumber

chopped onion

1½ cups yogurt or grated cheese

Purée together beans, sesame seeds, garlic, lemon juice, coriander, salt, cumin, and cayenne pepper, adding bean cooking liquid or water if necessary to make blending easy. Let stand at room temperature at least 30 minutes. Cut flatbread in half (to give 2 semicircles from each) and fill pockets with bean mixture. (If you like, heat filled pockets in oven before garnishing. If serving on wheat tortillas, fry until soft but not crisp.) Set out garnishes and let everyone assemble their own. Each portion should include yogurt or cheese topping to complete the protein complementarity.

Complementary protein: beans + sesame seeds + milk product + wheat

Tortillas Verdes

A delicious light meal created by Bill and Akiko Shurtleff of the Soyfoods Center in Lafayette, California.

Up to 1 tablespoon margarine (optional)

6 large (8-inch diameter) tortillas (preferably whole wheat)

1 ripe avocado, peeled and seeded

8 ounces tofu

2 tablespoons lemon juice

¼ cup oil

1 teaspoon dillseed

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon soy sauce

¼ cup water

2 cups combined chopped lettuce, chopped tomatoes, sprouts

Heat margarine in a skillet and fry tortillas for 15 seconds on one side and 30 seconds on the other, or steam tortillas in a steamer. In a blender, purée the avocado, tofu, lemon juice, oil, dillseed, salt, soy sauce, and water. Put an equal amount of salad vegetables on each tortilla, top with purée, and serve immediately.

The purée can also be used as a dip, or add beans to make tostadas.

Protein complementarity: soy (tofu) + wheat or corn

Terry’s Takeout Tofu

4 sandwiches

Writes Terry Gips of Princeton, New Jersey, about his recipe: “Fast food never had it so good. Look out, hamburger!”

1 tablespoon oil

1 to 2 medium onions, sliced into rings

1 cup sliced mushrooms (about 8 medium)

1 cup vegetables: sprouts, leafy greens, thinly sliced carrots, celery, shredded cabbage, etc.

1 tablespoon soy sauce

4 slices tofu,

½ inch thick and 4 inches long

¼ pound Swiss or Monterey jack cheese, cut into 4 slices

8 slices whole wheat bread or 4 pita breads

Heat oil in a large skillet and sauté onion rings for 2 minutes. Add mushrooms and vegetables and sauté briefly. Remove vegetables or push to one side and add soy sauce, tofu, and about 1 tablespoon water (to keep tofu from sticking). On each tofu slice put 1 slice of cheese. Turn heat down to low, cover skillet, and cook until cheese is melted, 3 to 5 minutes. Put tofu-cheese slices on bread or in pita and cover with vegetables. If you like, garnish with lettuce or additional sprouts.

Complementary protein: soy (tofu) + wheat

American Variations

For a meal that is simple and new each time, fill pitas or top wheat or corn tortillas with a variety of combinations, according to your taste. Here are some of the favorite filling ingredients at my house. Pick your favorites or try something new.

Bottom layer:

Bolinas Soyburgers

Homemade Tofu Burgers

Broiled Falafel Patties

Fried Spiced Tofu

beans, especially pinto or garbanzo, whole or pureed

Top layer:

chopped nuts

chopped red onion

sweet peas

shredded lettuce or cabbage

chopped spinach

chopped cucumber

sliced beets

chopped apple

shredded cheese

toasted sunflower seeds

ground toasted sesame seeds

tomatoes

Seasonings:

dill

celery seed

curry powder

chili powder

ground cumin

ground coriander

Dressing:

French dressing

yogurt

blue cheese dressing

Vinaigrette Dressing

These sandwiches are good cold, so you can put all the ingredients on the table and let everyone make their own. They are equally good hot—make them up and put them in the oven to heat through. Try the following hot sandwich recipe.

Instant Pizza Miniatures

What might have been only a melted cheese sandwich becomes a quick supper when you just don’t feel like cooking. Serve with a salad or soup.

English muffins or bread

Tomato paste

Mozzarella or other cheese, grated

Minced garlic (optional)

Garnishes (optional):

Parmesan cheese, grated

chopped scallions

chopped parsley

sliced green pepper

sliced mushrooms

Toast muffins, spread with tomato paste, and top with cheese and garlic. Toast under broiler until melted. Garnish and serve.

Complementary protein: milk product + wheat