Mock chopped liver/gluten-free crackers

One (just one) of the reasons I started this blog was to have a place to share recipes with my kids. They sometimes ask me how to make a particular dish they remember from when they lived at home. This is especially true around holidays, but it can pop up anytime. My son recently sent me an e-mail asking if I had my recipe for mock chopped liver on the blog. He wanted to take it to a potluck, but no, I didn't, and I couldn't remember where it was. I was going to a potluck, too and decided to add this to the things I was already bringing, so I searched the internet for recipes. It sometimes seems that every recipe ever created already exits there. (I swear, even when I go into the kitchen and think I'm making something up, the next thing I know someone posts a similar recipe before I've even posted mine, or I google what I've just made and 10,000 similar things pop up. It's uncanny and unnerving.) I was sure the exact paté I used to make from string beans and walnuts would be there, but I couldn't find just what I was looking for. Instead, I found one that used mushrooms and celery, and decided to use that for my base. I've tweaked the recipe a bit (click here for the original) and the result was the one of the best mock chopped livers I've ever tasted. The weird thing about this recipe is that for people who have grown up vegetarian as my kids have, the original chopped liver is something they've never actually tasted. This should just be called "paté." But it does have a flavor that is so like the original, it's hard to ignore. Call it what you will, it tastes great, and serves a large crowd.

Mock chopped liver (Real mushroom pate)

• 3 large onions, chopped
• 4 stalks celery, chopped
• 8 ounces fresh mushrooms, chopped
• 1 cup raw cashews
• 1 cup walnuts
• oil or oil spray for cooking
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 scant teaspoon salt
• fresh ground pepper (lots)

1. Sauté the onions in a large wok until they start to brown. Either add a little oil to the wok or spray it with oil, and spray occasionally to keep the veggies from burning.
   
2. Add the celery and cook until soft.
3. Add the mushrooms and cook another 5 minutes. The onions will be very brown, but not burned.
   
4. Add the cashews and walnuts and cook 3-4 minutes.
5. Put everything in a food processor. Add the salt and pepper. Process several minutes until the mixture is very creamy.
6. Add the olive oil and lemon juice and process just until mixed.
7. Place in a bowl and refrigerate for several hours. Check the seasonings.
8. Serve with crackers or as a dip.

FYI: The crackers in the photo are Mary's Gone Crackers which are a staple at our house. This line of crackers is gluten free, and although I don't avoid gluten, I'm addicted to all varieties of Mary's Gone Crackers.

p.s. Uh oh. I just discovered I have another version of this on the blog already, but this newer one is better and more like its namesake. (In a good way, of course!)

The best tofu cream cheese

We were supposed to go to a solstice party tonight and my husband made a big pot of chili to take along, but the weather is so nasty and we've turned into such wimps, that we've decided to stay home and watch a movie instead. I'm really disappointed about this but the thought of driving on slippery, snowy roads just doesn't appeal. By early yesterday morning we had nearly a foot of snow and stayed home from work as the schools were all closed the roads were pretty bad. I wasn't feeling that great so the day at home was welcome, but it's snowing again and we're supposed to get four to five more inches tonight. We are on track to break last year's snow record of 101 inches. In fact, we're way ahead. At least we've got that pot of chili on the stove.

We've been going to quite a few parties lately where we had to bring a dish along. It started me thinking about the good old tofu cream cheese that I used to tote to every event. I haven't made it in years, but I dug up the recipe since it's party season, and this was a dish that everyone, vegans and omnivores, all seemed to like. It never failed that at least one person (usually more) at every event would ask who made it and request the salty-tangy recipe. There were times when I was hesitant to say the word "tofu," if you know what I mean. And the ingredients are not the most common, everyday sort.

I learned to make it during the years when we were macrobiotic, and I really don't know where the recipe came from. Maybe I got it at a cooking class or lecture. I've looked for similar recipes on the Internet but haven't seen anything quite like this one.

There is one part in the recipe where you are supposed to press the tofu for 30 minutes. At first I used to do this in my pickle press, but when pinched for time I used extra firm tofu and skipped it. I think the texture is slightly better when the tofu is pressed but it's not that big a difference. Today the tofu I used seemed more watery than usual so I squeezed it between the layers of a thick waffle-weave kitchen towel. If you want to press it you can wrap it between layers of paper-or non-linty cotton towels, place it on a plate, and put something heavy on top.

The most important thing is to buy extra-firm water-packed tofu. It just doesn't work to use the pasteurized tofu in the box. (like Mori-nu) My favorite is Whitewave organic vacuum packed extra-firm tofu.



Tofu Cream cheese

• one pound extra-firm water-packed or vacuum-packed tofu (NOT Mori-nu)
• 1-1/2 level tablespoons umeboshi paste
• three tablespoons tahini (three VERY LEVEL tablespoons. Don't be generous.)
• three or four green onions, white and green parts

1. Place the tofu in a pot and cover with water. Bring the water to a boil and simmer the tofu for two or three minutes.
2. Drain then press the tofu for 30 minutes. Or just drain it. (see story above)
3. Place the tofu, umeboshi and tahini in a food processor and process until creamy and smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
4. Finely slice the green onions and add to the processor. Pulse a few times to distribute them evenly but don't purée the onions.
5. Place in a bowl and sprinkle with paprika or a garnish of your choice.
6. Chill in refrigerator for at least one hour.
7. Serve as a spread for crackers or bagels or stuff into celery or cherry tomatoes.

This is a spread and is quite stiff. It has a consistency similar to cream cheese, but can be thinned to use as a dip.

Mushroom and walnut paté

My husband and I attended a "vegetarian side dish" cooking class recently. The food was vegan and very tasty but had too much salt and oil for me. After years of eating healthy and delicious vegan cooking, my taste buds have become more sensitive, and when I sampled these foods all I could taste on the first bite was salt and oil. I think that most people would have found them delicious, but for me they were much too intense. I may season foods more heavily when cooking for company, but personally, I prefer to taste the foods themselves rather than the seasonings. One of the things we made in class was a walnut paté. The recipe only had 1 teaspoon of salt, which doesn't seem excessive, but it also had 3/4 cup of vegetable broth from a box. That stuff tends to be really salty unless you get the salt-free kind or make your own. And the recipe had 1/2 cup of oil in addition to the walnuts. So, using the teacher's recipe for inspiration, I've revised it to suit my taste, and if you make it, I hope you'll do the same and suit your own preferences.

I started by substituting mushrooms for half of the walnuts, and altering seasonings as well as ingredient proportions.

Walnut and mushroom paté
1 cup walnuts
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups chopped mushrooms
1 large onion, chopped
2–3 large cloves garlic, minced
2 slices whole grain bread, cut in 1/2 inch cubes
1 to 2 level teaspoons white miso
1 tablespoon brown rice vinegar
1 teaspoon natural sugar (sucanot, rapidura)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne (more if you want it hotter)
1 teaspoon dried rosemary (rubbed between hands to release oils)
1/4 cup fresh parsley, minced
1/4 cup finely chopped green onions (optional)
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

-Toast the walnuts in a 325˚ oven for 10 minutes or until starting to brown.
-Grind walnuts in a food processor.
-In a wok or large skillet, sauté onions and mushrooms in the olive oil until onions are translucent. Add garlic and sauté another minute. Add bread cubes and rosemary and mix together. Turn off heat.
-Place the miso in a glass measuring cup. Add the sugar, cayenne and vinegar. Stir until the miso is dissolved.
-Add sautéed veggies and miso mixture to food processor and purée until smooth.
-Taste for additional salt and pepper. When all seasonings are whizzed in, add the parsley and pulse a few times to distribute evenly. If you are using green onion, add with the parsley.

Place in a bowl and sprinkle generously with paprika and minced parsley or green onions. (These patés always look too beige or grey and need a little help to look as good as they taste.) Serve as a dip with veggies or chips, or a spread with crackers or bread.

note: I just had a sandwich of paté piled with salad greens and a spritz of lime on whole wheat toast and it was delicious.