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Arepas, Venezuelan corn tortillas

makes 6 arepas

From Viva Vegan!, my vegan latin american opus comes a guide to making arepas, the native corn-based “tortilla” of Venezuela and Colombia. While made from corn, arepas differ greatly from Mexican tortillas in that they can only be made from masarepa flour, a special pre-cooked, finely textured cornmeal and nothing else will do (including Mexican masa harina flour). Look for a corn meal product labeled “masarepa” or “for arepas” and made in Venezuela or Colombia when in doubt; it’s made from corn kernels that have been cooked, dried and pounded into a very fine meal. Once mixed with warm water it instantly plumps up into a dense and fluffy dough.

So what is an arepa exactly? It’s a dense, firm, plump little cake (far thicker than tortillas) with a crunchy and chewy crust and a soft and tender interior. The best arepas have a few nice dark char marks on them; cooking first in a cast iron pan then briefly baking in the oven creates good results. Arepas are ideal for splitting almost open, like pita bread, and stuffing full of tasty ingredients for sandwiches.

2 cups white or yellow Venezuelan/Colombian “masarepa” pre-cooked fine cornmeal

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/4 cups of warm water

small amount of vegetable oil (use a high smoking point oil like refined canola) for grilling

1. Preheat a cast iron griddle or other thick-bottom skillet over medium high heat. Lightly brush with vegetable oil. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and have ready a baking sheet. Griddle is ready to use when a drop of water dropped onto it’s surface sizzle loudly. In a large bowl combine masa harina flour and salt. Form a well in the center of the flour and pour in the warm water. Use your hand to mix the water into the flour to form a soft mass, then knead with your fingers, eliminating any hard lumps and creating a moist dough. Dough should have the consistency of soft mashed potatoes. If dough seems much too stiff dribble in a little extra water.

2. Separate dough into six equally sized portions and roll into balls. Place a ball in your palm and with gentle yet firm patting motions begin pressing down and out your arepa. Use your palms to occasionally press the disc flat just a little, then use the pads of your fingers to shape and press outwards the edges of your arepa. Do a little of this motion all at once AND incrementally turn the arepa in your palms a little bit at a time to work on the edges and shape into a disc about 3 1/2 to 4 inches wide by 1 1/4 inches thick.

3. Gently place 2 to 3 arepas into preheated, oiled griddle, leaving enough room so that they can be easily flipped. Place remaining shapely new arepas onto a cutting board and cover with either a damp, clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap while the other arepas cook.

Cook each arepa for about 8-10 minutes on each side to form a crust, flipping just once. Some dark, browned spots are ideal. If desired try cooking arepas on a well-greased preheated grill pan, grilling each side for about 10-12 minutes or until nice browned grill marks are created. In theory you can serve arepas like this, but for the crunchy crust place on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake them in the preheated oven for for 14-16 minutes, flipping half way through. Arepas are ready when they have a firm crust and sound almost hollow when tapped underneath.

Serve arepas immedeately or keep warm by loosely wrapping in foil. To fill an arepa slice horizontally about 3/4 of the way to form a “pocket”, perhaps removing a little of the doughy interior if you really want to pack it in. Arepas should be eaten hot as they tend to toughen up when they get cool. Reheat arepas by grilling again, or warming in the microwave for 30 seconds and then slapping on the grill if you want the interior very hot and the crust re-crisped.

A world of vegan Thanksgivings

By Terry Hope Romero

On November 19, 2012

In News

I’m hesitant to suggest entire menus for Thanksgiving. They’re everywhere this time of year in magazine spreads and websites, promising to make this year’s feast special. But really, practically everyone I know who cooks on that day takes a patchwork approach toward menu planning: it’s a hodge-podge childhood favorites (from lasagna to spinach pie) and American tradition merged with contemporary trends (chipotle tequila cranberry sauce anyone?), not to mention catering to an assortment of dietary needs from gluten-free to sugar free to my favorite, vegan.

The most traditional Thanksgiving meal I’ve eaten wasn’t with family in the U.S., but in Paris with friends old and new, a few days before I presented a cooking demonstration at Vegan Paris Day in 2010. On a candle-lit boat docked on the Seine, we savored a dinner by The Gentle Gourmet vegan B&B (I believe currently transitioning to a full service restaurant). It was a comforting plate of nostalgia I never thought I had: seitan mushroom roast (drove in from Germany that morning), herbed cubed bread stuffing, stewed fruit compote and sage gravy followed by pumpkin cheesecake. All the Thanksgivings I’ve ever eaten (pre and post vegan) featured black beans, vegetarian sushi, empanadas, arepas, pierogi in addition to the usual suspects. I love that I had to travel to France to finally get a taste of real Americana, vegan-style.

So in the spirit of whatever traditions fill your holiday table, here are a few suggestions from the pages of Vegan Eats World. These are recipes that feel right at home for any meal from the 22nd of November until January 1st, and well into the new year. I surprise myself sometimes by how many recipes I cranks out inspired by fall flavors; apparently this is my favorite food season of the year. Browse through the index for the page numbers for these beauties:

Bisteeya
This show stopper entree is a huge Moroccan savory pie wrapped in filo dough; mine is stuffed with chickpeas and cauliflower brimming with aromatic spices. I plan on baking up this beauty for Xmas myself. It’s best served warm and let guests carving out big warm chunks for themselves. It’s really a meal on its own, simply served with a kale or carrot salad dressed with lots of lemon and olive oil.

Seitan, Almond and Sesame Tagine
The rich and mellow Moroccan spices reminded so many of my recipe testers of fall. I love this hearty seitan dish loaded with dried fruits, almonds and toasted sesame seeds. Traditionally paired with couscous, it could saddle up beautifully next to a mellow whole wheat bread stuffing.

Rhubarb cranberry chutney
I originally made my first batch two springs ago upon finding a few stalks of rhubarb in my CSA box. Much to my delight another CSA member confessed to me that her Indian mom did exactly the same thing, “it’s sour, so of course she made chutney”. If you can find frozen rhubarb, this red zesty chutney will also make great sandwiches with that leftover nut roast.

Pumpkin Kibbe
This veggie spin on a Middle Eastern favorite is holiday ready! This rich and hearty pumpkin casserole with bulgur wheat and a rich walnut filling is a beautiful centerpiece that serves 6 really hungry folks, or 8 with lots of sides.

Sweet Autumn Toasted Pita and Kale Salad
Sometimes that holiday table looks so brown. Or beige. Lighten things up with a mound of fluffy emerald green kale salad dotted with roasted sweet potatoes and rubyl-like pomegranate arils!

Roasted Pumpkin Salad with Dukka
Dukka is a nutty, aromatic Egyptian spice dip. Typically served just with bread and oil, it’s sometimes sprinkled on mashed cooked veggies, like this dish featuring roasted mashed squash.

Pumpkin churros
Pumpkin pumpkin everywhere! These pretty Latin-style doughnuts are just that. Maybe not so much for the big dinner event, but perhaps a light brunch the next morning.

Tenacious Tart Tatin
Of course you’ve been eating nothing but pumpkin for months now, so sometimes it’s too easy to forget our other autumn dessert darling, pumpkins. Try this rustic French spin on pie, tart with a rich olive oil shortbread crust smothered with deeply caramelized apples.

But of course, if it’s traditional pumpkin pie you crave, you can’t go wrong with our tribute to the best recipe vegan pumpkin pie recipe ever from Vegan Pie in the Sky on The PPK blog right now.

Venezuelan-style tofu sofrito scramble

By Terry Hope Romero

On October 10, 2011

In Cookbook Testing

Recipe Index

Venezuelan-style tofu sofrito scramble

makes 6 generously stuffed arepas

This tofu scramble get’s it’s golden hue and sweet flavors from a very traditional Venezuelan array of vegetables and seasonings. I’ve actually pumped up the savory and spicy factor by including chile peppers and garlic, but the addition of annatto makes this entirely authentic in that vegan latino way.

Make the filling first, then prep the garnishes, and then only then make the arepas. These thick corn cakes need to be eaten hot; as they cool they’ll transform from crisp to rubbery, which is no fun unless you’re in need of a replacement tire on your granny cart.

1 pound soft tofu, drained

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon annatto seeds

2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

1 medium sized red onion, peeled and diced

1 red or yellow bell pepper, cored and diced

1 small green chile pepper, minced (optional!)

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 cup finely diced red ripe tomatoes

1/3 cup vegetable broth

1 tablespoon lemon juice

3/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons nutritional yeast

6 hot, freshly made arepas (keep warm in an oven, wrapped in foil until ready to serve)

Arepa sandwich fixins’ such as: avocado and thin tomato slices and cilantro sprigs

1. Fry annatto seeds with olive oil in a large, deep skillet heat olive oil over low heat, add for 2 minutes; the oil will turn a dark reddish orange. Turn off heat, remove the seeds from the pan and discard: you can either strain the oil and seeds from the pan and return the oil to the pan, or just use a spoon to scoop out the seeds, tipping the edge next to the side of the pan to drain out any oil.

2. Turn the heat to medium high and add garlic, onion, bell pepper and chile pepper (if using) and fry, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula until vegetables are very tender and soft, about 10 to 12 minutes. Crumble the tofu into the pan and sprinkle with oregano, cumin, tomatoes, vegetable broth, lemon juice, and salt. Increase heat and bring liquid to a lively simmer, then reduce heat to medium. Cook the tofu, stirring occasionally for 18-22 minutes or until the liquid has been absorbed but the tofu appears just a little moist; scrambled tofu should never be wet or soggy! Fold in nutritional yeast, taste and add more salt or lemon juice if desired. Turn off heat, cover and keep warm.

2. To assemble an arepa, use a thin, sharp knife and carefully slice a hot arepa in half 3/4 of the way through, leaving a small portion connected to help everything hold together during eating. If desired spread a little bit of vegan margarine inside, stuff in as much of the scrambled tofu and cram in some of the extras: avocado, cilantro, etc and eat immediately.

Variation:

You can of course skip the arepas entirely and serve with any favorite brunchy potato offering, or go cross cultural and serve with Lemon Garlic Roasted Potatoes.

VEW: Recipe Index

By Terry Hope Romero

On July 13, 2011

In Cookbook Testing

-Go here anytime you’re looking for a recipe to test

-I’ll try and keep this as updates as possibly, at least updated weekly. FYI, the final book will not be organized in these sections!

-Bookmark this post and refresh frequently when viewing

-To view only testing recipes, search for “Cookbook Testing” in Categories in the lower right hand of any page.

Update 4/20/12

Not too much to say right now, just a few things:

-If you tested something a while ago and never got around to posting your results and still want to, don’t be shy and go ahead! Even if the recipe is marked complete, it’s okay to share your feedback.

-As previously mentioned, now is a good time to take stock of what you did test.

-I may have a “recipe request II” post opening up soon for any of those last minute requests/ideas!

Update 3/20/12

Testing complete for previous batch of recipes. Final wave of recipes will pop up between now and mid-April. Not too many, but a few.

For now, you may want to take note of how many recipes you’ve tested. DO NOT send me this number now. I will be sending out another post soon asking for your details in late April/mid-May.

Update 1/24/12:

Second round of recipe testing will beging trickling in this week. Look out for an email with more details. I’m also cleaning up these updates. Please do not test recipes marked TESTING COMPLETE.

Update 10/29/11:

The Recipe Request Post: want me to make a recipe you don’t see? Tell me about it!

NEW RECIPES

Brown Basmati Biryani with Chickpeas and Cashews TESTING COMPLETE

Mostly Mediterranean Eggplant Parmigiana TESTING COMPLETE

Singapore Stir Fried Veggie Noodles TESTING COMPLETE

Sweet Potato Ramen Noodle Soup in Silky Sesame Broth TESTING COMPLETE

Baharat 7 Spice blend TESTING COMPLETE

Crusty Persian-style Rice with Saffron and Pistachios TESTING COMPLETE

Sweet & Savory Jackfruit Carnitas Tacos TESTING COMPLETE

It’s Easy Being Green Curry TESTING COMPLETE

Red Curry with Pumpkin & Potatoes TESTING COMPLETE