January 12: Vegan recipes

I've been known to eat meat when I know it comes from a local farm where the animal was given free rein to act on all its natural instincts, but because of the environmental, economic and karmic consequences of factory farms, I've been leaning towards a vegan diet lately. It's not something I've had to put effort into, it's just what my body is asking for. Until about a month ago, I couldn't eat enough cheese. Now I'm even using Earth Balance buttery spread instead of butter. Still, despite the quotes I wrote on the recipe cards for this swap, I'm not militant about it. (Not like I am about fur, which to my surprise causes me to yell at people on the street and in elevators. My advice to anti-fur citizens: stay away from the Kimmel Center during an event unless you're packing rotten tomatoes.)

I sent recipes for making seitan, chocolate cupcakes with orange frosting, and my favorite, African ground nut stew, from the Vegetarian Meat and Potatoes cookbook, which has lots of super meals. Here's the stew:

1 T olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 or 2 chiles, seeded and chopped
1.5 t peeled & grated fresh ginger
.5 t brown sugar
.75 t cinnamon
.25 t cumin
1.5 pounds winter squash, seeded, peeled and cut into bite-size chunks
1.5 c water
.25 c creamy natural peanut butter
salt & pepper
1.5 c cooked black-eyed peas (or 1 15-oz can, drained & rinsed)
.5 c chopped roasted peanuts

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, cover, and cook, stirring a few times, untiil softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, chiles, ginger, brown sugar, cinnamon, and cumin and cook for 1 minute. Add the squash and stir to coat with the spices. Add 1.25 cups of the water and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low.

2. Put the peanut butter in a small bowl and slowly add the remaining .25 cup water, stirring until smooth.

3. Stir the peanut butter mixture into the stew, cover, and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes. About 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time, add the black-eyed peas and peanuts and simmer until heated through. Before serving, taste to adjust the seasonings.

Serves 6.