October 24, 2009

Guacamole with lentils : Vegan's Steak Tartar

It was a surprise to me. Because I intended to have made a steak tartar for vegan, I hadn't thought that this dish was a guacamole until Mrs. P. called it "guacamole". How stupid of me! I got the idea for this dish from the recipe of a Japanese chef. The chef also called her dish "Steak Tartar for Vegetarian". So I had forgotten existence of "guacamole".
Yes, It is a variation on guacamole, of course. It has avocado and onion but it doesn't have any tomatoes, chili and lime juice. In compensation, it has a lot of lentils and mustard.
I dished up it as heart-shaped. Isn't it cute? When I cooked it for Mr. & Mrs. P. as Bento, I put it in the box as heart-shaped, also. When they opened the box it had already lost its shape. So we have been calling the dish "Broken Heart". It doesn't sound very happy.
I think it needs "a new name". Do you mind if I call it "Vegan's Steak Tartar."?

comment from Mrs. P.
This is intriguing! I close my eyes with every bite to savour it.

Ingredients
1 large size avocado sliced
1/4 medium size onion minced
1 cup of boiled lentils
3 - 5 tablespoons of prepared coarse ground mustard (my recommendation is a country Dijon.)
4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
3 tea spoons of white wine vinegar
salt and black pepper
some sprigs of fresh Thyme (if you need for decoration and flavor.)
some slices of your favorite bread toasted

directions
First of all, let's make a dressing. Put 2 pinches of salt and a bit of black pepper into your big bowl and add the olive oil, the mustard and mix well. Add the vinegar and blend well and leave it.
Put the avocado, the onion and the lentils on your chopping board, chop them well and mix until the avocado becomes smooth.
Put it into the bowl which has the dressing and mix.
Dish up in your style with the toast.





Squash became a pasta!?

It looks like a Tagliatelle but it has only vegetables. Both the look and texture are delightful.
You can add some boiled Tagliatelle, of course. It would be fun to have both the twisted pasta and the pasta-like squash.

comment from Mrs. P.
I love pasta and this is as satisfying as the 'real thing'!!

ingredients
1 yellow summer squash
1 green zucchini ( you can choose 2 yellow summer squashes or 2 green zucchinis)
10 cherry tomatoes cut in half
1 clove of garlic
a pinch of crushed red pepper
extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, black pepper

directions
Wash the squashes well and pat dry. Remove both ends. Using a peeler, make 1/2 inch-wide strips the length of the zucchini. Stop when you begin to reach the seeds.
Put 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the garlic in your frying pan. Bring the pan to low heat and fry the garlic very slowly. After the oil boils, add the red pepper and fry until the garlic becomes golden.
Turn up the heat to medium-high, add the tomatoes and fry, crushing them to get their juice. After the tomatoes become soft, add the squash and fry until the zucchini becomes soft.
Season with the salt and the black pepper.