Vegan Diet Kills?

Follow up to the op-ed piece written in the NY Times earlier this year regarding the news of the death of a 6 week old infant in Atlanta.

Apparently, the parents of the child fed him nothing but soy milk and apple juice. (No breast milk?) And he weighed 3.5 pounds at death!
I don't know the details, but I do know that a self-righteous, vegan turned carnivore decided that it was her duty to attack veganism in the NY Times, spurring a whole barrel full of fun for all! So, someone finally wrote a piece to counter it.

Picante - Berkeley, California

Picante
1328 6th St
Berkeley, CA 94710
Mon-Fri: 11:00am-10:00pm
Sat-Sun: 10:00am-10:00pm
Tel: (510) 525-3121
Fax: (510) 525-6876
http://picantecocina.citysearch.vista.com/
$-$$

Anytime we're in Berkeley, and craving a burrito, we hit Picante. And although they've got a few vegetarian items to offer, I repeatedly get the "Super" Picadillo de Legumbres - carrots, zucchini, & potatoes in red chile sauce (SUPER adds guacamole, cheese and cream, but I skip the cream). This burrito is huge! Enough so, that it is usually our only meal of the day. I especially love the house tomatillo salsa. But to really spice it up, we take our own Tapatio.

I've always been under the impression that the rice here is cooked with vegetable stock (as it says on the menu), but have read a few Yelp.com reviews that state otherwise. I'm going to check on this...


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Uva Trattoria - Napa, CA

Uva Trattoria
1040 Clinton Street
Napa, CA 94559
707.255.6646
http://www.uvatrattoria.com
$$-$$$

Tues-Thurs: 11:30am - 10pm
Fridays: 11:30am - Midnight
Saturday: 5:00pm - Midnight
Sunday: 4:00pm - 9pm

Closed on Monday


Vegetarian dishes on the menu:
Antipasti:
Olives (not on the menu - but these are the best!)

Zuppe e Insalate:
Insalata dell'Orto (vegan) - organic mixed greens, fennel, tomatoes, balsamic vinaigrette
Insalata di Spinaci - spinach, blue-cheese-balsamic vinaigrette, candied walnuts (fried)
Minestrone - vegetable soup with vegetable stock base (I practically live off of this stuff!)
*see my favorites below

Primi Piatti :
Capellini Pomodoro y Basilico (vegan) - angel hair pasta, tomatoes, basil, roasted garlic
Linguine con Melanzane - smoked mozzarella, tomatoes, eggplant
Lasagna Vegetariana - spinach, zucchini, mushrooms, marinara, parmesan
Ravioli d'Herbe - ricotta ravioli with brown butter, sage sauce
Gnocchi al Gorgonzola - house made potato dumpling-like pasta, with gorgonzola reduction sauce

Pizze:
Pizza Vegetariana - marinara, mozzarella, zucchini, eggplant, roasted bell peppers, arugula
Pizza Margherita - marinara, mozzarella, basil
Pizza Quattro Formaggi - blue cheese, goat cheese, mozzarella, Fontal, roasted red peppers

My Favorite Modifications:
I love the Insalata di Rucola e Prosciutto minus the Prosciutto. Arugula with a lemon vinaigrette and Grana Padana (a cow's milk cheese that is milder than Parmesan Reggiano). (vegan)
My favorite pizza is the creation of my fiance: zucchini, goat cheese, and arugula. But, properly ordered, it is: "The vegetarian pizza, no eggplant, no peppers, add goat cheese."

Uva makes all of the sauces for the pastas from scratch, so it's easy enough for the kitchen to make additions or subtractions from regular menu items. As far as I know, pesto is always available.


No meat, but...
Arancini (Chicken Stock in Risotto) - risotto balls with a bit of Teleme (cow's milk cheese) in the middle, fried and served with spicy marinara.
The special zuppa of the day is often made of vegetables, but usually has a chicken stock base. Ask your server if it's important to you.

Other perks:
-Live jazz Wednesday through Sunday nights. Check the website for schedule.
-Full bar.
-Corkage: $10.00 per 750-mL bottle. One bottle waived for every bottle purchased.

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Vik's - Berkeley, California

Vik's Chaat Corner
726 Allston Way
(between 4th St & 5th St)
Berkeley, CA 94710
(510) 644-4412
www.vikdistributors.com/chaat/chaatMenu.html
$

Hours:
Tuesday-Sunday 11:00am - 6:00pm

If you're in Berkeley, and you like Indian food, this place is a must!! Very traditional Indian chaat fare. Chaat is similar to the idea of Spanish tapas. Order a couple of dishes per person and eat a little bit of this and a little bit of that. Most everything on the menu is fried, but it's not greasy.
Their menu is mostly vegetarian and there are so many choices, that I'll just list my favorites...

Sev Puri
Crisp flat "chips" topped with potatoes, onions, mint chutney, tamarind chutney and garlic chutney.

Samosa Cholle
Two crusty pastries stuffed with green peas and spiced potatoes, covered with a spiced garbanzo, tamarind chutney.

Bhatura Cholle
Large puffed "flatbread" made of fermented white flour along with garbanzo curry, onions and mango pickle. (But if you're already getting the samosas, this is a lot of cholle.)

Mix Veg Pakoras
Crisp fritters of cabbage, spinach, cauliflower, potatoes and onion in chick pea batter served with mint and tamarind chutney.

If you're there on the weekend, try the Masala Dosa (Crepe made of rice and lentil flour stuffed with potatoes and served with coconut chutney and lentil soup.) which is huge, and better than the best dosas in Delhi.

Also served only on the weekends, the Dhokla (Steamed chickpea flour cake, mildy spiced and served with mint chutney.) is a favorite of my fiance, Todd. But get there early, because this is a popular dish that runs out quickly. Also, ask for extra mint chutney to flavor this deliciously spongy savory cake.

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Zuzu - Napa, California

Zuzu829 Main Street
(between 2nd and 3rd Streets)
Napa, CA 94559
707.224.8555
http://www.zuzunapa.com/
Reservations not accepted, however parties of 6 or more should call ahead for availability.
$$-$$$


Hours:
Monday- Thursday 11:30am-10:30pm
Friday 11:30am-midnight
Saturday 4:00pm-midnight
Sunday 4:00pm-10:30pm

Zuzu is a California-style Spanish tapas restaurant whose menu changes seasonally.

** Denotes my favorites.

Currently (June 2007), among the vegetarian options are:

Tapas Frias (cold tapas):
**-Seasoned and Toasted Almonds - spicy honey-roasted almonds
**-Dish of Mediteranean Olives
-Fresh Fava Bean Hummus with Homemade Lemon-Thyme Crackers
**-Shaved Artichoke-Portobello Salad with a Lemon-Truffle Vinaigrette with Sao Jorge (cheese)
-Romaine Hearts with Sweet Pepper Vinaigrette and Goat Cheese Croutons

Tapas Calientes (hot tapas):
-Tortilla Espanola: Russet Potatos and Sweet Onion, Egg Frittata (served with lemon aioli) (Yummy with Romesco sauce.)
-Rancho Gordo: "Indian Woman" (heirloom bean) Bean Fritters with Habanero Hot Sauce
**-Roasted Wild Mushroom Panini on Brioche with Pujol Nevat Cheese
**-Queso Frito; Pan Fried Manchego Cheese with Roasted Poblano Chiles
-Baby Carrots and Pea Shoots with Spring Onion, served with a Roasted Red Pepper Romesco Sauce

Modifications:
-Pan Roasted Asparagus (without ham) and Spring Garlic
-Piquillo Pepper Stuffed with Sardinian Couscous, Sweet Corn and Basil withput Peanut Mole (Mole has chicken stock in it)


Bar:
Beer and Wine

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Yummy Vegan Cookies

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Mix to combine in bowl:
2 cups pastry flour
1/2 cup oats
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 cups chopped pecans or almonds

In another bowl, whisk to combine:
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup oil
1 tsp vanilla
1 T water
1/2 tsp salt

Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients.

Add:
3/4 cup carob chips

Spoon onto baking sheet and flatten to shape.
Bake at 325 degrees F for 20-30 minutes.
Makes between 15 and 20 cookies.
We like to double the recipe so we have enough to last about a week.
(I'm a cookie monster when these are hiding in the cupboards:)

Veggie Tofu Scramble

Vegan or Vegetarian
(serves 4)

Prepare potatoes:

Potatoes may be cooked in advance, and are completely optional for this dish. (They taste great in burritos, too. So you may want to make extra!). If you made these in advance, just throw them in your toaster oven to reheat while you're making the rest of the dish.

6 small red potatoes
1 - 1 1/2 T canola oil
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp coriander
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/8 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp salt

Dice potatoes into 1/2" cubes (medium dice). Mix all ingredients in bowl. Put onto a baking sheet pan and bake at 350 degrees (F) for 45 minutes, or until soft to a fork. Let cool for 5-10 minutes. If bland, add more salt to taste.

Prepare tofu:

16 oz extra firm tofu or Super Firm (available through the Wildwood brand).

Rinse tofu. Crumble into colander. Set aside.
Get ready to scramble!

2 T canola oil
3 oz baby spinach (half of a 6 oz bag) or 1/2 bunch stemmed spinach (optional)
1 red bell pepper, medium diced
small red onion, medium diced
4-5 "sausage" links
1 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp chili powder or 1/8 tsp. cayenne
1/4 tsp salt (+/- to taste)

In skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add sausage links and brown (about 3-5 minutes). Remove them from the pan, cut them into 1" pieces and set aside.
Add onion and saute for about 3 minutes, until onions are translucent.
Add turmeric, chili powder, salt and tofu. Stir to blend spices into tofu.
Add the bell pepper and potatoes, cook for about 8 minutes, or until the peppers have softened. Stir to combine. Add spinach, turn off the heat. Stir around until spinach is wilted. Salt to taste.


Todd made these for breakfast and we ate them as is. We still had leftovers, so I made them into sandwiches a couple of days later. I reheated the scramble in a saucepan with a dash of water. I toasted the bread, then melted cheddar cheese on one slice and spread mustard on the other slice. Assemble, and voila! An egg and cheese sandwich, just (not quite) like dad used to make:)