The Moosewood Cookbooks

What? You don’t know about the Moosewood Cookbooks? What a shame!

I think there are over a dozen of them now. The three that I have are The New Moosewood Cookbook, copyright 2000; Moosewood Restaurant Cooking for Health, copyright 2009; and Moosewood Restaurant New Classics, copyright 2001.

The Moosewood Restaurant, an all-vegetarian establishment in Ithaca, NY, is the inspiration for these cookbooks. Check out their website here.

Not too many years ago, the common belief was that vegetarians were weird people. I must admit, I was once of that mindset. Not anymore. For health reasons and for honest to goodness great taste, vegetarian cuisine has come a long way. While I will never be totally vegetarian, I do incorporate a lot of these recipes in my everyday cooking.

Where do I begin in choosing recipes to share with you here? There are just so many great recipes in these books. Even as I sit here typing, I can’t decide which ones to include. I think I will go with recipes geared toward encouraging non-vegetarians to try it.

This first recipe, from The New Moosewood Cookbook, is a pasta and marinated artichoke hearts dish. It is quick to put together and really delicious.

For every 2 people:

½ lb. pasta
1 6 oz. jar marinated artichoke hearts
parmesan
black pepper

While the pasta cooks, drain the artichoke marinade into a serving bowl.
Cut the hearts into bite-sized pieces and add to the bowl.
Add the drained, cooked pasta to the bowl, and toss. Serve immediately, passing the parmesan and a pepper mill.


This next recipe is from the New Classics cookbook. This book has a variety of recipes for strudels in the Showstoppers chapter. I was intrigued by these and chose this Kale and Red Pepper Strudel. It makes a very good, eye-catching dish that won’t disappoint you.


Serves 6
Preparation time: one hour
Baking time: 45 minutes
Cooling time: 15 minutes

Filling:

1 ½ cups chopped onions
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic cloves, minced
4 to 5 cups rinsed, stemmed, and chopped kale
½ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cups diced red bell peppers
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
1 12 oz. cake of firm tofu
1 cup Neufchatel, at room temperature
1 cup grated sharp Cheddar
1 tablespoon flour
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Filo:

½ to 2/3 lb. filo dough
3 to 4 tablespoons oil or melted butter
Note: how much filo dough you use depends on the size of your baking dish. A good rule of thumb is to spread 8 layers on the bottom, followed by 8 more on top. The more layers you use (within reason!) the more puffed and beautiful the dish will be.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a 10 x 14 inch baking dish.

Cook the onions in the oil on low heat for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, kale, and salt.. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes, until the kale wilts, adding 1 to 2 tablespoons of water to prevent sticking, if needed. Stir in the bell peppers and rosemary. Cover and cook on low heat until the vegetables are tender, about ten minutes.

While the vegetables cook, combine the tofu, Neufchatel, grated cheese, flour, and parsley in a food processor. Process until smooth and creamy. When the vegetables are ready, drain them if any liquid remains, and stir in the tofu-cheese mixture. Add black pepper to taste and set aside.

Lay the filo dough on a dry surface and cover with a clean, lightly dampened towel. Place a pastry brush and a bowl of the oil or melted butter within easy reach. Arrange two sheets of filo pastry in the prepared baking dish, allowing the excess to drape over the sides. Lightly brush the top sheet with oil or butter. Repeat three more times for a total of 8 sheets.

Spread the filling evenly over the filo in the baking tray. Fold all four sides of the filo up over the filling to make a border and brush with oil or butter. Top with the remaining filo, two sheets at a time, brushing each layer with oil or butter. Tuck under the edges to fit the baking dish.

Bake until golden and puffy, about 45 minutes. Let sit for 15 minutes before serving.

Important: Unoiled filo becomes brittle once exposed to the air, so work quickly or keep a damp towel on the not-yet-used filo while you work.

If you don’t want to deal with the filo – and I admit, it is tedious to work with! – you could make this into a pie and use pie pastry.