Tempeh

There is a featured food, aka food of the day at every class at Bauman college. The class I sat in on last week before I began the program myself featured tempeh. Tempeh is a product that I have actually been very interested in learning more about. As the class began discussing the benefits and possible downsides to tempeh, I wondered if tempeh bypasses all the controversy of soy products because of the fermentation process it goes through. And yes, it does! Which is wonderful news. There really is so much controversy over soy products and personally I don't care for tofu or soymilk so I stay away. Tempeh is great though because of it's high protein and fiber content, plus certain brands contain whole grains or seeds like flax. Tempeh is excellent for vegans because it contains Vitamin B12, a vitamin that is readily found in animal products but lacking in the plant kingdom. If you are eating a vegan diet be sure that you are getting some B12 in your diet. Other sources besides tempeh include, Kombucha, nutritional yeast, miso and bee pollen. You could also take a vitamin B12 supplement, which I do from time to time.

Now, the only downside to tempeh is the blandness and sometimes odd texture that people can't handle. But with the right seasonings or a great recipe it's actually great! As I browsed old recipes I realized I've acutally cooked quite a bit with tempeh and really loved every recipe. So please check these out: Lasagna with Tempeh and Celeriac, Tempeh Tacos, Sweet Corn and Tempeh Soup.

Anyways, I was inspired by our discussion in class and went out straight away and bought some tempeh. When I went to make my typical salad for lunch I remembered I had bought the tempeh and decided to saute some and throw it on top. Unfortunately, this is where the story ends for you guys because I don't have my camera cord right now to upload the pictures. BUT, I would never leave you hanging like that so I have an old recipe to share with you and I promise to post about the salad as soon as I am back in Santa Barbara.
Lemon Pepper Tempeh

1 block of tempeh, cubed
1 large lemon, juiced
1 Tbsp (a drizzle to grease the pan) olive oil
5 Tbsp veggie broth
1 tsp agave syrup
1 tsp sea salt, optional-veggie broth adds salt
Mixture of fine black pepper and fresh ground black pepper, add A LOT of it!

Directions:
In a pan heat olive oil on high, add lemon juice and veggie broth to pan. When pan is sizzling, add in the cubed tempeh. Saute for a few minutes, uncovered. Add agave and a few dashes of fine black pepper. Continue sauteing and hen cover for a few minutes and toss the tempeh around in the steam. Apparantly it 'fluffs up' the tempeh. Add salt and a lot more pepper. The tempeh only needs to be heated so once it's browning and the liquids are pretty absorbed you're ready to go!

Quick Sweet Potato Mash

1 medium organic garnet yam
1/3 cup chopped parsley
1 tsp fresh thyme
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped white onion
1 tsp garlic powder
1 dash cayenne

Directions:
Cook sweet potato in the oven. Do it early, they take around 45 min. at 400 degrees. Mash all ingredients together by hand using fork. For thinner potatoes add a bit of olive oil and/or veggie broth.

Bianca and I actually made this dinner together way back when we lived at the Jesus Burger House our junior year at UCSB. It's not exactly WAY back but we have come a long way since then. We served the tempeh over steamed kale and she made those delicious mashed sweet potatoes to go with, it was the perfect combination. Recipe courtesy of Happy Healthy Life, a food blog with extensive recipes into the latest on vegan trends. I love this blog!

Writing up this post is making me want to make this again it was so delicious!

Hope you enjoy,
<3 Dani