Haleem Bademjoon with Vegan Kashk (Lentils and Eggplant with Vegan Whey)

Simple ingredients, incredible taste! This is one of my favorite Persian dishes and is very easy to veganize.

1 Cup Lentils
2 Cups Water
3 Cloves Garlic, peeled + 1 large clove garlic, chopped
2 Large Eggplants, peeled and sliced into rounds
Vegetable Oil as needed
1 Onion, diced
1 Large Shallot, chopped (optional)
1 Tablespoon Dried Mint
1 Pinch Saffron + 1 Tablespoon Hot Water
1/3 Cup Vegan Sour Cream
1.5 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
Salt and Pepper

Slice peeled eggplants into thin rounds (about 1/4 inch thick). Salt eggplant rounds and place in strainer to release the water. Do this as much as in advance as possible, up to one day or at least 20 minutes.

Dry eggplant well by squeezing water out of them with paper towels. Sauté on medium heat with vegetable oil until eggplant is soft and has brownish color.

Combine lentils, water, and three cloves of garlic in a large pot. Put on medium heat to cook until lentils are tender and easily mashed. When fully cooked, mash lentils and garlic into a paste (adding hot water to soften as necessary).

Sauté and caramelize diced onions until they are soft and achieve deep brown color. Set aside.

Sauté garlic, shallots (optional), and mint (add at the last minute) until soft and brown.

Combine eggplant with lentils and mix/mash well. Add half of the sautéed onion mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Mix vegan sour cream with lemon juice to make vegan "kashk". Serve lentils and eggplant mixture with "kashk", rest of the sautéed onions, and garlic/mint mixture. Mix saffron with water to add on top of the kashk for color.

Serve warm or cold with pita bread.

Easy and Tasty Vegan Haricot Verts

One other non-Persian dish I made a while ago. Accompanies brown rice well and perfect for the thanksgiving season.

***
1 small container vegan portobello mushroom soup (available at whole foods)
Three handfuls panko flakes
1 bag frozen haricot verts (thawed) or fancy green beans
10 shitake mushrooms
1 handful sliced raw almonds
Black pepper, garlic powder

***

Slice the shitake mushrooms in thin strips. Mix the box of soup, bag of haricot verts, sliced shitake mushrooms, two handfuls of panko flakes, black pepper, and garlic powder. Top with sliced almonds and last handful of panko flakes. Bake at 375, covered with aluminum foil, until the soup reduces (about 20-30 minutes). Remove foil for the last 5 minutes and broil on high to give almonds color. Enjoy!

A Blog For Vegan Persian Food...

But first Veganize IT! Mac 'n Cheese. I spent a lot of time hunting down this recipe so it is fitting for the inaugural day of the blog to post it. No worries, the blog will be dedicated to all things Persian and Middle Eastern, but for now people, bring on the vegan goodness of mac n' cheese. Pictures to follow when I actually make it this weekend! Recipe is courtesy of VegNews.

Baked Macaroni & Cheese

Serves 6

4 quarts water
1 tablespoon sea salt
8 ounces macaroni
4 slices of bread, torn into large pieces, or breadcrumbs or Panko flakes
2 tablespoons + 1/3 cup non-hydrogenated margarine
2 tablespoons shallots, peeled and chopped
1 cup red or yellow potatoes, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup carrots, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup onion, peeled and chopped
1 cup water
1/4 cup raw cashews (I like to add more to make it extra creamy)
2 teaspoons sea salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon paprika

1. In a large pot, bring the water and salt to a boil. Add macaroni and cook until al dente. In a colander, drain pasta and rinse with cold water. Set aside.

2. In a food processor, make breadcrumbs
by pulverizing the bread and 2 tablespoons
margarine to a medium-fine texture. Set aside. You can use breadcrumbs or Panko flakes and mix with vegan margarine.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a saucepan,
add shallots, potatoes, carrots, onion, and
water, and bring to a boil. Cover the pan and
simmer for 15 minutes, or until vegetables are
very soft.

4. In a blender, process the cashews, salt,
garlic, cup margarine, mustard, lemon juice,
black pepper, and cayenne. Add softened
vegetables and cooking water to the blender
and process until perfectly smooth.

5. In a large bowl, toss the cooked pasta and
blended cheese sauce until completely coated.
Spread mixture into a 9 x 12 casserole dish,
sprinkle with prepared breadcrumbs, and
dust with paprika. Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese sauce is bubbling and the top has turned golden brown.