Squash is one of my favorite fall foods, and I love to pair its deep, sweet flavors with some of my favorite spicier oolongs, such as Rou Gui, Oriental Beauty, or a nice, malty, peppery black like Yunnan Goldtips.
Below are a couple of my favorite vegan recipes for pairing with these teas in the fall. Hope you enjoy them!
Pumpkin-Rye Bread with Sherry Plumped Raisins
Ingredients:
3 tbs ground flaxseed
1/2 cup water
1/2-1 cup brown or turbinado sugar
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup canola oil
2 cups fresh pumpkin puree
1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1-1/2 cups dark rye
1 tsp each cinnamon, fresh nutmeg, and ground ginger
dash of cloves & white pepper
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup dark raisins, plumped in hot sherry (we used Pedro Ximenez)
Sprinkles of oats and turbinado sugar for garnish
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Mix together the flaxseed and water until thickened.
Combine the flax mixture in a large bowl with sugar, applesauce, oil, and pumpkin.
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, spices, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Fold in the drained raisins. Lightly grease loaf pans. Divide into two regular 8-inch loaf pans or four mini loaf pans. If you’d like, sprinkle on some oats or turbinado to decorate the loaves. Bake the large loaves for about 55 minutes and the smaller loaves for about 40 minutes. Let sit for 20 minutes before removing from the pan.
Warm Rutabaga + Buttercup Squash Kamut Salad
Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups kamut, cooked
3-4 large shallots, diced finely
2 garlic cloves, diced finely or pressed
1 cup diced rutabaga
1 cup diced buttercup squash (also known as kabocha)
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 tsp garam masala, or to taste
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp fresh ground coriander
salt and black pepper to taste
Cook the kamut and set aside. Lightly saute the shallots, rutabaga, squash, raisins, and spices in olive oil until the veggies are slightly soft (rutabaga is better if it still is crisp-tender). Add garlic and continue to saute 1 minute. Set aside to cool slightly. Gently stir the kamut and veggie mixture together. Add dressing (see below) and season to taste.
*Note: This salad is also good with shredded radicchio and walnut oil. Experiment!
Dressing
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1-2 tbs maple syrup
1-1/2 tsp dijon mustard
1/2 tsp garam masala, toasted
1 tsp fresh ground coriander, toasted
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup olive oil
Whisk everything except olive oil together. Slowly drizzle in olive oil while whisking. Season and adjust taste.
Tea and fall foods are a real natural combination. I think the spicy Oolongs should hold up well to the flavors of these dishes. I look forward to trying these healthy, vegan delights.
thanks, Michelle! I hope you get a chance to try them. It’s finally starting to feel like Fall around here, so I’ll be making these again soon!
So Tracy, will we see these in your shop in the near future on the menu? Loved the opportunity earlier this month to come to your Oolong tea tasting and while I pretty much already had those teas you offered that evening (purchased from you of course :) ) the best part was getting together with people of a like mind, tea lovers who want to spread the word about great full leaf teas and how to prepare them. I loved the gong fu demonstration and I’m sure that a great time was had by all. I’m very fortunate that you offer this to your customers and you aren’t over 100 miles away (like you once were when I was a bit further away from Cincinnati). As always, peace and blessings to you all and keep drinking the good stuff, those teas that you like!Fr. Patrick