Tau Hu Chung: Vietnamese Vegetarian Pate Recipe

Tàu hũ chưng is one of the many vegetarian equivalents you can find to Vietnamese meat dishes. As I mentioned last week, Tết is coming soon (January 23rd), and you're supposed to eat vegetarian for the days just before and after the Asian New Year. Usually, I would make mắm chưng thịt (Vietnamese-style meatloaf). This dish is similar, using ingredients such as mushrooms, bean thread noodles and cilantro, but paired with mashed tofu.

The mixture is first steamed, then baked for a few minutes in the oven so the top is slightly golden and dried out. It's almost like a tofu pâté that can be enjoyed with rice and a bowl of canh (soup) on the side.

Mache Pesto Risotto Recipe (+Giveaway)

Remember when I said I always have pesto prepared in advance and stored in the freezer? This recipe doesn't require a lot of effort if you already have pesto on hand. Today I made risotto with my favorite pesto recipe, made with mâche leaves. In case you’re not familiar, mâche, or lamb's ear lettuce, is a small-leaved, brightly-colored green. It has a mild but very distinct flavor.

First, I cooked Carnaroli rice with vegetable stock until tender. Once the rice absorbed all the liquid, I added the mache pesto, caramelized onions and Parmesan shavings. This simple recipe makes a quick and easy comfort food fix in less than 40 minutes.



Today's giveaway is an assortment of all four varieties of HK Anderson pretzels. They are crisper than any brand of pretzels I've ever had. HK Anderson have been making these crunchy treats since 1888. I really like the thin-shelled ones filled with peanut butter. Being French, I didn't grow up with peanut butter and this is one of the few ways I enjoy them. For a chance to win, just enter on the 25 Days of Giveaways page.

Make sure you're a fan of PhamFatale Facebook fan page and HK Anderson pretzels or follow @Phamfatalecom and tweet about this giveaway. To make it easy, you can just copy and paste this tweet if you’d like: "Pretzels #Giveaway from @Phamfatalecom and @hkpretzel: http://bit.ly/sp4V7y".

Oven Roasted Tomato Risotto Recipe

The summer weather in the Bay Area hasn't been so great this year, and on top of that, an infestation of gophers in our garden forced us to grow fewer tomatoes in small planters this year. Not only are there fewer varieties, but because of the lack of heat the plants have not been all that prolific. I gathered a couple of handfuls of the few ripe cherry tomatoes I could find and I was determined to do something special with them.

To start, I slowly roasted them in the oven. I could have stopped there and just served them in a salad, but I opted to make my husband's favorite comfort food: risotto. Risotto is extraordinarily versatile (I've developed multiple variations) and perfect for any occasion. For this version, I used Carnaroli rice, which holds its shape better than Arborio rice. For a bit more texture, I mixed in melon-seed macaroni (similar rice-shaped pasta). The combination has a creamy mouthfeel, so no heavy cream is necessary. I colored the dish with sharp yellow Cheddar cheese and served it to all the vegetarians in the house. I think it ended up being a perfect send off for the fruits of our labor.

Broccoli Puree (Mashed Broccoli)

Mashed potatoes are my guilty pleasure. I've flavored them in the past with garlic, pesto, plaintains, olives and purple sweet potatoes, just to name a few. This time, I used broccoli. It complements the flavor and gives a beautiful color to the purée.

My favorite way to make this dish is to simply mash them using a potato masher, then add milk, cream and lots of butter. It might not be the healthiest approach, but it's certainly the most delicious for creamy mashed potatoes! 

Lentil Pasta Soup Recipe

My father-in-law, like my husband Lulu, is a vegetarian. One of his favorite meals is kali dal. Because of this, we often have leftover cooked black lentils. As usual, we still had some left last night, so I decided that this time it would not go to waste.

Lentils are packed with protein, so today I created a complete meal by adding pastina pasta and a few vegetables. For more contrast in color, you could add some greens such as spinach. I stuck to carrots, celery and leeks. The result is a delicious, spicy lentil pasta soup.