Viva Vegan!: 200 Authentic and Fabulous Recipes for Latin Food Lovers (15 page)

2. While the “ceviche” is chilling, prepare your
tostones
. Just before serving, peel and remove the seed from the avocado. Finely dice and thoroughly fold into the ceviche, making sure it’s covered with the dressing. Mound the ceviche into serving cups and serve immediately with the hot
tostones
, or fill the
tostone
cups if you happen to have a special
tostonera
for making the cups.

•
Makes 20 to 22 appetizer-size stuffed

•
potatoes

•
Time: About 1 hour, including boiling and

•
baking, not including assembly

•
Gluten Free, Soy Free

 

2 pounds small new potatoes, each about 2 inches long or slightly smaller

 

1 pound cremini mushrooms
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 small yellow onion, diced
¼ cup walnuts, ground in a food
processor into fine crumbs
1 teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon smoked sweet or
hot paprika
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup dark raisins
½ cup black or green olives, chopped
2 tablespoons dry bread crumbs
A few twists freshly ground black pepper

 

1. Boil the potatoes until tender but not mushy, 14 to 16 minutes. Drain, rinse with cold water, and set aside until cool enough to handle. While the potatoes are cooking and cooling, prepare the filling.

2. Use a paper towel or a clean dishcloth to remove any dirt or debris from the mushrooms and trim and discard any tough stems. Use a food processor to finely chop the mushrooms; you may find it easier to cut them in half or quarters for easy chopping in the food processor. The chopped mushrooms will look dark and moist; to avoid pureed mushrooms, do not overchop.

3. In a large skillet over medium heat, fry the garlic in the peanut oil until it starts to sizzle, about 30 seconds. Add the onion and fry until translucent and soft, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms, ground walnuts, oregano, cumin, paprika, salt, and pepper, and fry the mixture. Stir constantly until the mushrooms have reduced in bulk and are dark and soft, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in the raisins, chopped olives, bread crumbs, and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Continue to stir-fry the mixture until most of the mushroom liquid has evaporated but the mixture is still moist. Taste the filling and adjust the salt and pepper, if desired. Remove the pan from the heat and let the filling cool enough to be handled.

4. Preheat the oven to 375°F and lightly oil a large metal baking tray. Carefully slice off the top third of each potato lengthwise; you may want to first see which side each potato can rest on without rolling around (much) and slice it from the opposite side to fill. Use a ½teaspoon measuring spoon or a melon baller to remove as much of the potato interior as possible; leave a thin ⅜ inch or so of potato near the skin. Save the scooped potato for mashed potatoes or use in
llapingachos
(page 57).

5. Using the measuring spoon or your fingers, scoop as much of the filling as possible into the potato shells, mounding the filling on top and using your palm to shape it. Place the stuffed potatoes on the prepared baking tray and, if desired, spray or brush with a little extra olive oil. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the potato is tender and the filling is hot. Serve immediately.

•
Makes 4 ears of corn

•
Time: About 35 minutes, mostly inactive while roasting the corn

 

4 whole ears corn, preferably completely
covered with their husk
½ cup Cashew Crema (page 51), or
⅓ cup vegan mayonnaise
Coarse salt, such as kosher or sea salt
Your favorite ground dried Mexican chile,
such as ancho or chipotle, or any chile
powder blend
Finely crumbled dried Mexican oregano
2 limes, cut in half
Peanut or vegetable oil, if pan-grilling
corn

 

1. For oven-roasted corn: This method is best done with fresh summer corn from the farmers’ market. Your corn should have plenty of green fresh husk tightly wrapped around it. Preheat the oven to 350°F and place the whole ears of corn, husks and all, onto a center rack and roast for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and using oven mitts, peel back the hot husks and the corn silk. Add the toppings (see step 2) and eat immediately.

For stovetop-grilled corn: Also great for fresh farm-stand corn, this method works for corn with the husks removed or even thawed frozen corn on the cob. Preheat a cast-iron grill pan (the kind with raised grill lines on the bottom) or a regular cast-iron pan over medium-high heat. Remove any husk and silk, lightly oil the corn, and place on the hot pan. Grill the corn for 12 to 14 minutes, using tongs to rotate it occasionally. When the corn is golden or even a little charred, if you desire, remove from the pan, add the toppings, and serve.

 

For an outside grill: Once a year I get outside near a grill and when I do, I grill corn on the cob like this. Peel back the husks but leave them attached to the stem. Remove the silk, push the husks back around the corn, and soak the entire ears in cold water for 30 minutes. Throw on a hot grill and grill, turning occasionally, for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the kernels are tender.

 

2. To top the cooked corn, whisk the vegan mayonnaise (if using) until smooth. If the mayo is very thick, try adding a few tablespoons of lime juice to thin it out enough to easily spread. Divide the mayonnaise or Cashew Crema among the ears of corn and slather it on top. (If you’re not the slathering type, put the mayo in an old condiment squeeze bottle and squeeze as desired on top of the corn.) Then sprinkle the corn with a little salt, a generous amount of chile powder, and a pinch of Mexican oregano. Take a lime half and squeeze as much juice as possible all over that corn. Eat right away!

 

Tip: Just Roasted Corn

 

R
oasting corn on the cob using any of these methods makes kernels deliciously ready to be used in burritos, tacos, or salads. Use a corn zipper (see Kitchen Tools, page 26) or a thin, sharp knife to remove the kernels from cooled cobs.

 

 

•
Makes 10 to 12 appetizer-size “sandwiches”

•
Time: About 30 minutes, not including making the seitan or salsa

 

4 green plantains
Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
1 recipe Latin Shredded Seitan,
prepared in the “Venezuelan” style
(page 106)
1 recipe Spicy Salsa Golf (page 53)
2 cups finely shredded romaine or other
crisp lettuce
1 ripe avocado, peeled, seeded, and sliced
very thinly
1 large ripe red tomato, seeded, sliced in
half, then sliced very thinly

 

1. Peel and prepare green plantains for frying like
tostones
(page 118),
except
slice them thinly (about ½ inch) and make sure to slice them on a 45-degree angle to make long slices, about 2 inches in length. Before the second frying step, place a warm
tostone
between two sheets of brown or waxed paper and use a rolling pin to gently and evenly press the plantains flatter. Take care not to pulverize the slices, though, then fry again as directed and drain.