From groundnut stew to vegan cake

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Here are three Moosewood classics, including chef Dave Dietrich's favourite - groundnut stew, from Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant (1990, Simon and Schuster).

West African Groundnut Stew

Serves 6

 

 

2 cups (500 mL) chopped onions

2 tablespoons (30 mL) peanut or vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) cayenne or other ground dried chilies

1 teaspoon (5 mL) pressed garlic

2 cups (500 mL) chopped cabbage

3 cups (750 mL) cubed sweet potatoes (1-inch/2.5 cm cubes)

3 cups (750 mL) tomato juice

1 cup (250 mL) apple or apricot juice

1 teaspoon (5 mL) salt

1 teaspoon (5 mL) grated fresh gingerroot

1 tablespoon (15 mL) chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

2 chopped tomatoes

1 1/2-2 cups (375-500 mL) chopped okra

1/2 cup (125 mL) natural peanut butter

Sauté the onions in the oil for about 10 minutes. Stir in the cayenne and garlic, and sauté for a couple more minutes. Add the cabbage and sweet potatoes, and sauté, covered, for a few minutes. Mix in the juices, salt, ginger, cilantro and tomatoes. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are tender. Add the okra and simmer for five minutes more. Stir in the peanut butter, place the pan on a heat diffuser, and simmer gently until ready to serve. Add more juice or water if the stew is too thick.

Approximate nutritional content per serving:

Calories..................................300

Protein.....................................9 g

Fat..........................................16 g

Carbohydrates........................36 g

Dietary fibre............................6 g

Sodium...........................640 mg

 

No one would ever suspect that this dark, elegant, scrumptious cake is both egg-less and dairy-less. It's economical and low-cholesterol, and what's more it goes into the oven in six minutes with no mixing bowl to clean because the batter is mixed directly in the baking pan.

You may be surprised to see vinegar in the ingredient list, but it's not a mistake. The combination of vinegar and baking soda helps the cake rise. When cool, cut and serve the cake directly from the pan using a small metal spatula or pie server; it cannot be easily turned out onto a serving plate.

However, if you have time for a 12-minute cake, you can mix the batter in a bowl, line the bottom of the cake pan with parchment paper, and generously oil the sides of the pan and dust with flour. Then the cake can be removed from the pan with no trouble at all, for a more elegant presentation or for a layer cake.

 

 

For the chocolate glaze, use a good-quality chocolate, like Callebaut or Valrhona. Or try it with your favourite icing or a dusting of confectioner's sugar or topped with whipped cream, ice cream or sliced fruit.

The recipe is in Moosewood Restaurant Book of Desserts (1997, Clarkson N. Potter).

For the cake:

1 1/2 cups (375 mL) unbleached white flour

1/3 cup (75 mL) unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon (5 mL) baking soda

1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) salt

1 cup (250 mL) sugar

1/2 cup (125 mL) vegetable oil

1 cup (250 mL) cold water or coffee

2 teaspoons (10 mL) pure vanilla extract

2 tablespoons (30 mL) cider vinegar

For the glaze:

1/2 pound (250 g) semi-sweet chocolate

3/4 cup (175 mL) hot water

1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) pure vanilla extract

Cake: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 C). Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, and sugar directly into the cake pan (9-inch round or 8-inch square/1.5 L round or 2 L square). In a 2-cup measure, measure and mix together the oil, cold water or coffee, and vanilla. Pour the liquid ingredients into the baking pan and mix the batter with a fork or a small whisk.

When the batter is smooth, add the vinegar and stir quickly. There will be pale swirls in the batter as the baking soda and vinegar react. Stir just until the vinegar is evenly distributed throughout the batter.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes and set aside to cool.

Glaze: Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or microwave oven, or reset the oven to 300 F (150 C) and melt the chocolate in the oven for about 15 minutes in a small ovenproof bowl or heavy skillet. Stir the hot water and vanilla into the melted chocolate until smooth.

Spoon the glaze over the cooled cake. Refrigerate the glazed cake for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Approximate nutritional content per serving (including glaze):

Calories...................................455

Protein.....................................5 g

Fat.........................................26 g

Carbohydrates........................59 g

Dietary fibre.............................3 g

Sodium.............................280 mg

Peter H

 

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