Khoreshteh Fesenjoon with Tofu (Walnut and Pomegranate Stew)

Fesenjoon is one of the best loved Persian dishes and absolutely my favorite of all Persian khoresht (stews served over rice). Persian families like to serve this savory combination of sweet and tart during the winter months, especially for the Shab-e-Yalda celebration of the winter equinox. On this special night, Persians gather to celebrate the longest night of the year by eating anar (pomegranate) and ajeel (mixed nuts and dried fruits). The celebration traces its roots to the Zoroastrian faith that commemorated the victory of light/the Sun over the evils of darkness. The Romans later adopted this Persian tradition into a festival honoring the god of Saturn. With the spread of Christianity in the Roman Empire, the Romans adopted Dec. 25 to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ to coincide with the Roman tradition celebrating the winter equinox.

Alas, the anthropological history of food helps us trace much of our known culture today. I invite you to try something new and expose your taste buds to something unique and really tasty.

Next up: How to make PERFECT basmati rice with a bonus tahdig tutorial.

P.S. To my surprise, theppk.com had this recipe posted already. Since I am not one to measure, I am posting the PPK version as a real recipe to follow.

Ingredients:
1 large onion, chopped
3/4 cup pomegranate concentrate
Optional: 1/4 cup water, cane sugar to taste
1/2 cup ground walnuts
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 lb. extra firm tofu


Directions:
Heat 1 tbsp of the olive oil in the first skillet along with half of the chopped onions over medium heat. Add the 1/2 c. of walnuts ground very fine. (My grandmother uses a food processor to grind the walnuts, but you can grind them with a heavy object as well. They should be ground almost to a paste consistency). Cook over medium heat until the onions are soft. There should be a very distinct, walnut-y smell, but make sure it doesn’t start to burn.

Add the pomegranate concentrate, cane sugar and the optional 1/4 cup of water if it seems a little overwhelmingly pomegranate-y. But remember it should be very tart as the flavors will mellow out with the walnuts!

Simmer the sauce over low heat for about 10 minutes, letting it get nice and thick. The color of the sauce should be a very deep earth brown and almost purple.

In skillet #2, heat another tbsp of olive oil with the remaining onions. Drain extra liquid out of the tofu and crumble it into the skillet in chunks (tofu scramble-style). Let cook, stirring frequently until the water has cooked out of the tofu and it begins to brown. Stir the tofu mixture into the first skillet.

Serve over basmati rice.

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.