On Monday some old friends from Portland, OR came over to Denman Island for a quick visit and a picnic. ?We took a driving tour around the island, stopped at one of the more interesting beaches, and then landed at Fillongley Park, with it’s lovely long beach and view of the snow-capped coastal mountains on the mainland, and walk through the old-growth forest to the lovely meadow that was once a homestead.
I brought a picnic lunch to share (our guests brought a watermelon for dessert– perfect!) and we set everything out on one of the picnic tables near the beach. ?I made a vegan traditional-style potato salad (recipe from my first book “The Almost No-Fat Cookbook” and made with my Tofu Mayonnaise):
and my Mulri-Grain Inari Sushi (I’ll post the recipe soon!)
along with some of my “B of T” (Breast of Tofu or Crispy Marinated Tofu), with Thai Sweet Chile Sauce and lemon wedges.?
For the veggie dish, since we have an abundance of kale in the garden,?I made this lovely salad, which everyone really enjoyed (recipe below):
Printable Copy
MASSAGED KALE SALAD WITH RED CABBAGE, APPLES, PECANS AND POMEGRANATE MOLASSES DRESSING, À LA NAVA ATLASServes 6
This is a riff on a recipe in Nava Atlas’ wonderful book “Wild About Greens”, BTW. ?I can’t claim it as my recipe– I just substituted apples for the pears and used my own homemade salad dressing!
10 ounces of kale (weigh after stripping from the stems), washed and spun dry1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 tablespoon olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice1 1/2 cups thinly-sliced red cabbage2 medium apples (tart-sweet), washed and thinly sliced1/2 cup chopped toasted pecansabout 1/2 cup of Pomegranate Molasses Salad dressing (recipe below), or more to taste
Slice the kale into thin ribbons and place in a large bowl. ?Sprinkle with the salt, olive oil and lemon juice. ?Rub the mixture through the kale with your fingers. ?Keep rubbing the kale until it softens and darkens. Add the other ingredients, including the salad dressing and toss well. Serve immediately or refrigerate until serving time.
BRYANNA’S POMEGRANATE MOLASSES SALAD DRESSING?#2Yield: about 3/4 cup
Mix together all of the following ingredients:
1/2 cup?vegetarian broth
?or water2 tablespoons?pomegranate molasses2 tablespoons olive oil1 tablespoon red wine vinegar1 tablespoon brown sugar1/2 teaspoon salt1 clove garlic, crushed
Enjoy!
The kitchen journal of a vegan food writer…For the 21st
century we need to learn to cook for ourselves again,
and learning to cook vegan can be a bit intimidating.
I’d like to help with that, from my kitchen to yours.
Bryanna Clark Grogan, author of 8 published vegan cookbooks and The Vegan Feast quarterly cooking newsletter. Moderator of the beginners’ vegetarian forum on vegsource.com.