CAFE HAVEN

Holiday Recipes New!

Here are some vegetarian / vegan recipes that make you less sluggish and more awake than your normal holiday foods. Serve them with lots of green salad & enjoy!

Salata de Vinete (Aubergine/Eggplant Salad) (vegan)

A Romanian siganature starter dish that is served on special occasions. Different countries nearby such as Greece and Turky have their own versions of aubergine salad.

3 large aubergines / eggplants
chopped onion, 1-2 tbs
Ex virgin olive oil, 3 tbs
sea salt to taste
bell peppers or other vegetables for garnish
*mayo or sour cream (optional, vegetarian option)

Grill aubergines until very tender. Direct fire such as BBQ grill or stove top is ideal. If not, bake in the oven on high heat.
Hold the stem and slash the aubergine with a knife lengthwise twice. The aubergine should be so soft that bitter brown juice starts dripping at this point. Let them drip in a colander for about 2 hours. Peel the skin.
Chop the aubergines very finely.

Authentic method: chop the aubergines on a wooden cutting board with a knife until it becomes very fine and sticky (it takes a while).
Easier way (but don't tell your grandma in Romania you did it): Pulse them in a food processor about 5-6 times (short pulse), making sure it's NOT puréed completely, but still have some caviar-like texture.

Add olive oil or other oil of your choice and chopped onion and mix well. Season with sea salt.
Garnish with sliced bell pepper. When it's for guest or a special meal, it's normally garnished in a pretty pattern. Serve with Bread.

* You can add some mayo or sour cream to this salad in the end. In this case, you may want to use less olive oil.

Meatlessloaf (vegetarian / vegan)

(1 pound cake pan)
1.5 cup cooked beans (kidney, butter bean, canellini, etc..)
1/2 medium onion, minced
1 stalk celery, minced
1 medium carrot, shredded
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup cooked brown rice (or any kinds of grain)
1 cup bread crumbs
4 tbs flax seed meal (or 1 egg for vegetarian option)
4 tbs tomato sauce (or tomato puree plus some dried tomatoes)
1 tsp dried herbs (oregano, basil, thyme or italian herb mix)
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tbs red wine (optional)
sea salt (to taste)
2 tbs pine nuts
some cooking oil

Purée or mash the beans with food processor or potato masher.
Cook garlic, onion, garlic, celery with some oil until tender.
In a bowl, mix everything. The mixture should look like real meatloaf mixture. Adjust the texture with the amount of bread crumbs you use.
Pour the mixture into a pound cake pan (use waxed paper as needed).
Bake in a 170°C/ 338°F oven for about 30 min or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Serve with your favorite gravy sauce or tomato sauce.

* The above pic (holiday yule log); I covered the meatlessloaf with mashed potato and decorated with some veggies.

Broccoli Tree (vegan)

Not really a recipe. Just a matter of arranging your usual broccoli differently to brighten up your holiday table.

1 broccoli
a couple of cherry tomatoes
some yellow bell pepper
sea salt
some olive oil
a clove of garlic (optional)

Cut about 5cm (2 inches) of stem off the broccoli. Cut it in half lengthwise. This will be the tree trunk. Separate the florettes. Steam or boil (with salt and a clove of garlic) the usual way. Be careful not to overcook. drizzle some olive oil if you like.
Cut the cherry tomatoes in half. Use a star shaped cookie-cutter to make a yellow bell pepper star.
(assembly) On a plate, arrange the cooked broccoli to form a tree and decorate with the tomato halves and the bell pepper star.

Back to Menu

Mashed Sweet Potato (vegetarian / vegan)

A side dish packed with antioxidant that tastes almost like dessert. In fact, you can spread it on a toast to make an instant 'sweet potato pie.' I also normally make extra and use the mash to make my sugar/dairy-free apple cake or chocolate cake.

steamed or roasted sweet potatoes, 2 cups
ginger, grated, 1-2 tbs
dash cinnamon and nutmeg
dash salt
butter or coconut milk, 1-2 tbs
lemon zest of 1/2 lemon (optional)

(for garnish -- optional)
walnut
raisin or currants

Purée everything except for garnish in a food processor or mash well with potato masher. You may not need nut milk if your steamed potato is very soft and mushy already.

*Great as side dish, or as I said above, try it on a toast or crackers / oat cakes, maybe drizzle some honey on it, to make an instant 'sweet potato pie.'
* You can also use pumpkins instead of sweet potatoes.

Holiday Yule Log (raw)

It's very easy and quick to make and much lighter on your stomach than your normal baked cakes. Perfect for a holiday dessert.

1/2 - 1 cup almond powder
1 handful walnuts, chopped
1 very ripe banana, mashed
1 medium apple, grated
1 cup dried fruits (apricot, figs, raisins, etc.), chopped
2 tbs raw nut butter or tahini
1 tbs cocoa powder (optional)
a pinch of salt
vanilla essence
raw chocolate mousse (you can find the recipe here)
some dessicated coconuts (optional)

Blend everything except for chocolate mousse and coconuts. The texture should be hard enough so that it's easy to shape. If too hard, add more fresh fruit. If too runny, add more almond powder.
Using a piece of wax paper, form the mixture into the shape of a log. Refridgerate for a couple of hours if you like (or you can finish this process days in advance and freeze it until you decorate it).
Unwrap the mixture onto a plate. Ice with chocolate mousse, then draw some lines using a fork to make it look like a tree trunk. Sprinkle with some dessicated coconut.

*Because it's raw, it doesn't keep too long. Once you put the choco mousse/frosting, it should be eaten within a day or so.

Winter Mulled Tea (alcohol free)

This was a hit among my guests who visited our place during the last holiday seasons.

In a medium pot, put 1 tsp dried hibiscus tea, a couple of dried rose hips (optional), a half of organic satsuma or tangerine (wash well, squeeze the juice into the pot and leave the peel in the pot too), peel of 1/2 medium apple, a piece of lemon peel, 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon or 1 cinnamon stick, a handful of dried berries or currants (raisins are ok too), a couple of sliced ginger, some mixed spice (the one you would use for fruit cakes, optional) and 3 dried cloves. (If you have prepred spice mix for mulled wine, all you need is some dried hibiscus and rose hips). Pour about 1.5 ltr boiling water and let it simmer on a very low heat for 15 min or so. Sweeten with honey if you prefer.

Serving suggestions;

Strain it and serve hot in a mug cup with a cinnamon stick.
Strain it and let it chill in the fridge, and serve in a wine glass. This looks like wine and is great to serve as soft drink for a holiday dinner.

**Adjust the amount of hibiscus to your taste as it can be very tart.

back to menu