Open Faced Black Eyed Pea Steak Sandwiches with Herbed Hollandaise & Roasted Roots

For me, starting a food blog was all about the recipes and never really intended to be a journal of thoughts. Sometimes I find myself struggling to tell you just exactly why or how I came about creating the recipe I did. This is one of those times. There was no specific rhyme or reason, I just wanted beans and roasted vegetables and this was the result. I'd say take it or leave it, but I do hope you take it!
 
One Year Ago Today Tempeh Baked Beans, Broccoli Salad & Rosemary Cornbread 
Two Years Ago Today Mushroom & Potato Cabbage Rolls with Braised Green Beans


Hearty bean based steaks made from black eyed peas, fresh basil, carrots and onions served with rich and creamy herbed hollandaise sauce and simply roasted root vegetables on the side.

Black Eyed Pea Steaks
serves 4
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped
1 small yellow onion, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, smashed
5 fresh basil leaves, torn
1-15oz can black eyed beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup plain or gluten free breadcrumbs
2 tbl ketchup
1 tbl vegan worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
2-3 tbl extra virgin olive oil
4-1 1/2" slices french bread, toasted

Preheat the oven to 425.
Combine the carrot, celery, onion and garlic in a food processor and pulse until the vegetables are minced but not pureed. Add the garlic, basil, beans, breadcrumbs, ketchup, worcestershire and season with salt and pepper. Pulse a few times more until the beans have broken down and the mixture comes together.
Heat 2-3 tbl of olive oil in an oven-safe saute pan. Divide the mixture into 4 steaks/patties and saute until browned on both sides, about 10 minutes total.
Transfer the pan to the oven and continue cooking for 15-20 more minutes. Set each steak on a piece of toast and top with herbed hollandaise.

Herbed Hollandaise
2 tbl plus 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
3 garlic cloves, smashed
1/2 cup cilantro leaves & stems (about a small handful) (or sub parsley for all you cilantro haters!)
4 oz soft, silken tofu
salt and pepper

Saute the garlic in 1 tsp of olive oil until golden and fragrant. Transfer to a blender along with the remaining 2 tbl of olive oil, cilantro and tofu. Blend until completely smooth. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Roasted Roots
2 carrots, medium dice
2 parsnips, medium dice
1 cup brussels sprouts, halved
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil
2 tbl maple syrup
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

Preheat the oven to 425.
Toss the vegetables with the remaining ingredients and roast for 30-35 minutes until tender and caramelized.

Herb Spaetzle with Shallot Marmalade & Roasted Carrots

Spaetzle! I was extra excited to make this tonight because I have seen it being made so many times but was always oddly intimidated by the whole- pushing-through-the-colander-into the pot process. It was easy but took a tiny bit of elbow grease because the colander I was using is clearly not intended to make spaetzle with. If you have a flat grater, hold that over the pot and it works even better.


Tiny homemade pasta dumplings tossed with fresh herbs and just a hint of garlic. Served with roasted carrots and sweet shallot marmalade.

Herb Spaeztle
1 tsp ener-g egg replacer
1 tsp water
3 tbl melted earth balance vegan butter
1 1/4 cup water
1 1/2 cup ap flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp salt
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, grated
3 tbl chopped fresh parsley
3 tbl chopped fresh chives

First, set up your work space.
Get a bowl of ice water ready to the side to put the spaetzle in after they've cooked.
Prepare a large pot of salted water and bring to a boil.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg replacer and water for 1 minute until slightly frothy. Add the butter and water. Mix to combine. Add the flours and salt. The dough should be thinner than bread dough but much thicker than pancake batter. Add more water if necessary.
To form the spaetzle, hold a large holed colander over the simmering water and push the dough through the holes with a spatula. Do this in batches so you don't overcrowd the pot. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until the spaetzle floats to the surface, stirring gently to prevent sticking. Drain from the hot water and dump into the bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process.
Once all of the spaetzle has cooked, drain from the cold water and saute in olive oil and garlic for 3-4 minutes until they get some color and a slight toast. Toss with parsley, chives and season with lots of salt and pepper.

Shallot Marmalade
2 cups shallots, small dice
1/4 cup organic cane sugar
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tbl water
1/4 tsp salt

Combine the shallots, sugar, vinegar, water and 1/4 tsp salt. Bring to a simmer and cook over medium heat for 15-20 minutes until thickened and sweet. Season with salt to taste.

Roasted Carrots
5 carrots, halved vertically
1 tbl fresh thyme leaves
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil

Preheat the oven to 425. Toss the carrots with the remaining ingredients. Roast in a single layer for 15-20 minutes until tender and caramelized.

Lentil Sage Roast, Roasted Carrots, Black Pepper & Garlic Grits

This meal was perfect for our cold apartment tonight. Not only did it make the whole place smell wonderfully but it heated it up quite nice so we could enjoy it in a fire-place like setting. This is easily the worst thing about cooking so much in the summer, but in the fall and winter it just makes everything toasty and warm.

Lightly sauteed Lentil-Sage Field Roast with herb-roasted carrots, fresh spinach and grits speckled with plenty of black pepper and soft, sweet caramelized garlic.


Roasted Carrots
2 large carrots, thinly sliced
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil
1 tbl organic light brown sugar
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp sea salt

Preheat the oven to 450.
Toss the carrots with all of the ingredients and roast for 10-15 minutes until tender and slightly caramelized. Save any remaining roasting oil to drizzle lightly over the spinach salad.

Lentil Sage Roast & Spinach
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 quarter loaf Lentil-Sage Field Roast, thinly sliced
2 cups baby spinach leaves

Saute the field roast in oil and season with salt and pepper. Serve with carrots, grits and raw spinach drizzled with any remaining roasting oil from the carrots.

Black Pepper & Garlic Grits
1 head garlic, end trimmed
1 tbl extra virgin olive oil
1 sprig fresh rosemary, leaves removed
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
salt and pepper
2 cups vegetable broth or water1/2 cup quick grits (not instant)


Preheat the oven to 450. Drizzle the oil, herbs, salt and pepper on the cut side of the garlic head and place cut side down on a piece of foil. Wrap up into a pouch and roast for 1 hour or until golden brown and soft.
Bring the broth and 1 1/2 tsp black pepper to a boil in a small pot. Slowly stream in the grits while whisking and turn the heat to low. Cover and cook slowly for 10 minutes, whisking every couple minutes. If the liquid dries out too much, add a bit more to loosen the grits up.
When the garlic is cool enough to handle, squeeze out all of the cloves and oils into the grits and whisk to combine and break up the garlic.