STL VegGirl Vines & Veggies

It has been a long time since I have attended a STL VegGirl  event, but a five-course wine paired dinner party is right up my alley. This was also a great excuse to see an old friend, Caryn Dugan, and make a new wine friend, who orchestrated all the wine pairings, Wanda Cole-Nicholson.

I love to see the creativity that comes from Caryn, and I learned about a new vegetable, Celeriac, also known as Celery Root, which was used to make the "steak" main course for the evening. While not attempting to mimic the texture of a steak, and definitely not the same flavors, it was sturdy enough to hold the mushroom sauce on top. 

Celeriac Steak Diane

The coolest looking "new creation" was the appetizer course: vegan caviar made from jellied vinegars and agar. The mixture of vinegar flavors were heated, then dropped into cold oil to create the spheres, looking exactly like roe.

Vegan Caviar over crème fraiche

Then we moved to a salad course, followed by a vegetable and miso infused soup, which had to be one of the best veggie soups I have ever had.

Crisp Mint & Spring Greens Salad

Hearty Spring Vegetable and Bean Soup with a Miso Infusion

We finished the night with a Carrot Cake Cookie topped with Vanilla Frosting.

Carrot Cake Cookie with Vanilla Frosting

Unfortunately, I missed a picture of the wine lineup, probably because I stayed after to help finish off some of the bottles! 

I have included Sommelier Wanda's contact information below as I hope to take more classes from her in the future.

Resources:

STL Veg Girl = http://www.stlveggirl.com/

Center for Plant-Based Living = https://www.cpbl-stl.com/

Wanda Cole-Nicholson = https://www.vinbev.net/

Vegan Dinner - Noche Verde

I was really excited to attend another STLVegGirl vegan dinner since I had enjoyed the first one so much last year. This year’s vegan dinner was hosted by Modesto, a Spanish-style tapas restaurant, which led the name of the event: Noche Verde!

Menu

I am a little embarrassed to admit that I have never been to Modesto, but it is a beautiful restaurant on the Hill. If nothing else, I really do hope to go back so I can try their regular menu. And after the vegan experience, I can definitely say the chef is quite talented.

While waiting to be seated, we took a spot at the bar and received our first “green item” of the night, a “green fairy” cocktail if you will. (That’s what I named it!) A splash of midori gave it the green hue and it was mixed with cava and their own sweet and sour mix. Quite refreshing!

All the wines were provided by Pinnacle Imports and for the most part, the wines did their best to let the food shine through. Since there were five wines poured with each course, I only had a few sips of the wines.

The first course caught me off guard because it was a White Gazpacho with grapes. I have not had gazpacho all that many times and I’ve only seen it with a tomato base! Even though it had more of a cream base, actually almond milk, the gazpacho actually had a sweet taste to it. So creative!

White Gazpacho with Grapes

The “Sobrasda and Chevre” taco, the second course, was one of my favorite courses since I couldn’t tell for a second that it wasn’t real meat on the taco. Sobrasda is actually a pork sausage. Again, the crispy potato slices were very creative although I would have been fine without the crunch.

Sobrasada, "Chevre", and Crispy Potato Taco

Similarly with the third course, the “meatballs” had a fantastic texture and I loved the tangy red pepper-based Romesco sauce. A Spanish twist on the typical tomato-based sauce I am used to!

"Meatballs" with Romesco and Fried Leeks

Yet, the star of the evening easily was the Paella with Asparagus and Crispy Shiitake Mushrooms. I am fine without the fake proteins and I really love it when the vegetables get a chance to shine. The paella was so thick and creamy and the shiitake mushrooms gave a little kick with each bite. I really wanted seconds of this course, but was way too full at this point. (Yes, you really do get full at a vegan dinner!)

Paella with Asparagus and Crispy Shiitake Mushrooms

The last course, was a typical Spanish dessert, coconut flan, but this was not typical in the least. Instead of a spongy cake, this flan had more of a gelatin consistency. That’s because instead of any dairy products, MOFU tofu was used instead! How clever!

Coconut Flan featuring MOFU tofu

Resources:

STLVegGirl = http://www.stlveggirl.com/

Modesto = http://www.modestotapas.com/

Photos by Abby Israel and Patience Scanlon

STLVegGirl Vegetarian Party

Since Patience and her friends have so many special diets among them, which includes a couple of vegetarians and some gluten-free folks, I figured that the best way to make everyone happy was to throw a STLVegGirl Vegetarian Party.

While I love dining out, I now understand how hard it can be to “find something you can eat” when you venture out to a new restaurant. While STLVegGirl (aka Caryn Dugan) doesn’t regularly focus on gluten-free, she had no problem coming up with ways to work around wheat items in her menu as well. What was really satisfying was to hear our friends say they were full by the end of the night. Sure beats trying to put side dishes together to make a meal!

I decided to start with STLVegGirl’s world-famous hummus, which uses tahini paste and tamari as the secret ingredients, and instead of using pita chips, STLVegGirl was thoughtful enough to purchase a bag of gluten-free chips instead. This way my guests had something to snack on as Caryn worked on the next course, Zucchini Sliders with Herbed Mayo.

I had seen STLVegGirl create these sliders on a local morning show and I wanted to try them for myself. The sliders usually get their thickness from bread crumbs, but since we were going gluten-free, STLVegGirl brought gluten-free bread and we made our own. (We also skipped out on the mini-rolls to make a sandwich.) My other favorite ingredient was the 21 Salute seasoning (found at Trader Joe’s) that was mixed tino the Veganese, that replaced regular mayo.

Next up was the “dinner” course and STLVegGirl started us off with a Crunchy Kale Tahini Salad. The tahini paste and tamari showed up again in the dressing for the salad, but my favorite salad ingredient was the “feta cheese” made from firm tofu. My other favorite cheese substitute that was used is nutrional yeast, which gives foods a cheesy nutty flavor. I have used it in the past to mix in with pasta sauce.

We finished the night with Italian Tempeh Meatballs, which could also be made into a meatloaf if you prefer. The “meat” was actually tempeh, a fermented soybean cake, and was chopped up into chunks. All your usual meatball seasonings and marinara sauce can be added like usual. Again, to avoid the bread (for a meatball sandwich), we just used toothpicks and forks.

If you wish to throw your own vegetarian party, or are interested in classes or a personal chef, all of STLVegGirl’s contact information can be found on her website listed below. STLVegGirl can be found on Facebook and Twitter as well!

Resources:

STLVegGirl = http://www.stlveggirl.com

The Root and The Vine

Two of my favorite foodies, STLwinegirl (Angela Ortmann) and STLVegGirl (Caryn Dugan), got together to host the first vegan wine dinner in 12 years, with Mosaic’s Chef Ben Lester preparing all the courses. While I am not a vegetarian, much less a vegan, I have enjoyed taking several STLVegGirl classes since the emphasis is on healthy eating, which is something I strongly believe in regardless if you do it through a plant-based diet or not.

Rarely do you find “gourmet” vegetarian or vegan-based dishes while dining out either, so this was a very special occasion for those who do follow a restricted diet. In addition, the dinner raised over $1,800 for Food Outreach from ticket sales.

Before the dinner got started, we waited to be seated while enjoying a “vegan cocktail”, which included carrot, ginger, and cilantro. The drink definitely had a strong carrot flavor to it but without the thick, V-8 taste. Very refreshing with the ginger! (And at $5 each, all proceeds went to Food Outreach as well.)

This was probably one of the longest dinners I have been to since we started with an Amuse Bouche of Tofu Misozuke Stuff Squash Blossoms as well as STLVegGirl’s very own hummus that she makes herself. The table was quite crowded with plates and glasses at this point and I managed to finish off the hummus all by myself! Of course these starters were well paired with a sparkling Tomassi Prosecco from Italy.

Roasted Butternut Squash Salad

What really filled me up was the official first course, a Roasted Butternut Squash Soup that was actually sweet instead of the usual heavy, vegetable flavor. The sweetness continued with the Roasted Butternut Squash Salad, but I mostly tasted the apple chips and apple vinaigrette. The baked kale and candied pumpkin seed “granola” gave the salad additional crunch. They would have made tasty snacks by themselves! This was paired with a Chaumette Chardonel Reserve, from Missouri. The white wine had just enough body to handle the sweetness of the soup and salad.

Farro "Risotto" Milanese

The meal got heavier from there because next was a Farro “Risotto” Milanese made of local organic mushroom, salsify, cashew cream, and fennel pollen. The heavy "cream" and mushroom risotto was perfect for a rainy, fall night and the Siduri Pinot Noir, from Willamette Valley Oregon, was an even match with the course to help cut through the cream. I still had a little bit of wine left, which I really wanted to finish off, but unfortunately, the restaurant must have run out of wine glasses because I didn’t finish in time to get the next wine.

Carrot & Coconut Vadouvan Curry Caramelized Mofu Tofu

The Spanish Juan Gil Monastrell probably was a full-bodied wine because you would have needed a strong flavor with the Carrot & Coconut Vadouvan Curry Caramelized Mofu Tofu. That’s right, locally grown tofu created by Daniel Brewer and his Mofu Soy Beanery. I usually pass on curry while at Indian restaurants because I’m nervous about the amount of heat, but I really enjoyed the strong coconut flavor. The curry included cauliflower “cous cous”, pearl onions, heirloom carrots and tomatoes, and pee wee potatoes, in addition to the cubes of tofu. I have to admit…the tofu did well to soak up the curry but I just wish it wasn’t in those odd cubes.

Butternut Squash Soup

As much as I loved the butternut squash soup and the mushroom “risotto”, the highlight of the evening was STLVegGirl’s Dark Chocolate Mousse made with avocado. The dessert also came with a beet sorbet, which I’m still not sure if I liked it or not. It was definitely a refreshing flavor to help tame down the richness and creaminess of the chocolate, so they went well together in the same bite. But really, the chocolate was not overly rich like usual since the avocado tamed down the flavor. But for those vegans who enjoy their chocolate, this is a recipe you must get. This was also my favorite pairing of the nigh tsince the “Novy “Oley” Late Harvest Viognier, from California, was actually not overly sweet. This was actually quaffable by itself for sweet wine lovers like myself.

Overall, an amazing and creative meal for a good cause and I hope there will be another one in the near future…perhaps with another restaurant?

Resources:

STLVegGirl = http://www.stlveggirl.com

STLwinegirl = http://www.stlwinegirl.com

Mofu Soy Beanery = http://www.mofusoy.com/

Mosaic Tapas Restaurant Des Peres = http://mosaictapas.com/page.cfm/mosaic-tapas-des-peres/