Christmas chestnut tartlets

I don’t know about you, but this year seems to have gone by so quickly! Christmas is nearly upon us once again. By now, most people have the decorations up, the presents bought (or maybe not!) and know who’s cooking that amazing festive feast on Christmas Day.I usually cook up a flavour-packed nut roast as my plant based alternative to turkey (see http://foodiesensitive.blogspot.com.au/2012/12/planning-christmas-dinner.html for a good basic recipe). Some may say it’s not the same, but a special feast is what you make of it, not necessarily what tradition dictates! If you so desire, there are some tasty meat-alternatives out there such as the Vegusto rustic roast (made with wheat protein) or Tofurky (wheat and soy protein), but they’re not my kind if thing, even before I went gluten free. Eating plant based and wholefood is about packing in real food, not processed products infused with a variety of chemicals.

This year though, I wanted to create something slightly different, something sumptuous and packed with Christmas flavours. And what's more Christmassy than chestnuts and cranberries? So I put together this gorgeous little tartlet for my December supper club, and have to say am rather pleased with the results. 

Chestnuts are an underrated nut! Lower in fat and higher in starches than most nuts, they are popular with those who believe that low fat, high carb is the way to lose shedloads of weight (remember Rosemary Conley's Hip and Thigh diet??). Although this approach is no longer de rigueur and despite their low fat content, they're still good sources of mono-unsaturated fatty acids, but also fibre, manganese and vitamins B and C. 

Cranberries are well known for being good for bladder health, and dried can be as good as fresh, although some of the vitamin C is lost. The problem is that sugar is often added to make them more palatable, but a small amount is fine. Just try not to nibble the rest of the packet whilst you're cooking!

The filling is also gluten free, so as long as you use gluten free pastry as well, then you've got a fully free from dish (unless someone has a nut allergy!). I'm currently experimenting with gluten free flours - with this dish, I've found a pastry made with brown rice flour works the best, but that's another blog post!

So why not give this a go? It does take a little time, but can be made in advance then reheated when you're ready, giving you more time to open presents and drink bubbles! Merry Christmas!

Chestnuts, cranberry and mushroom Christmas tartlets (makes 6)

1 portion shortcrust pastry (homemade, Just-rol, gluten free)

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 large red onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

260g chestnuts (I used 1 ½ packs of Merchant Gourmet whole chestnuts)

3 medium carrots, grated

2 teaspoons thyme

1 pack parsley, stems separated from leaves and finely chopped

3 tablespoons dried cranberries

200g chestnut mushrooms, finely chopped

tamari

salt and pepper

2 tablespoons dairy free cream cheese or non-dairy cream

To make the filling Heat the olive oil in a pan and sauté the onion and thyme until the onion is soft (if it starts to stick, add a little water. Add the garlic and cook for a minute. Add the carrot and chopped stems of the parsley, mix well and cook for another minute. Stir in the chestnuts and mushrooms and cook until the fluid from the mushrooms has evaporated. Add the cranberries, a few dashes of tamari and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the cranberries then add the cream cheese/non dairy cream and chopped parsley leaves and cook for another few minutes until it all comes together. Taste and add additional seasoning and tamari as needed. 

Pre-heat the oven to 180ºC. Roll out your pastry of choice to about 1/2 cm. Place a tartlet tin on to the pastry and cut around it with a 1 ½ cm extra rim. Remove the tartlet tin and carefully pick up the cutout piece and flip it over into the tin. Press the pastry into fit, pinching any breaks together and trim the edges. Brush with some dairy free milk or a chickpea flour wash (mix a tablespoon of chickpea flour with some water to get a milk-like consistency). Repeat the process until all the pastry is used (should be enough for 6).  Place the tartlet tins on a baking sheet and place in the oven for 6 minutes.

Remove the pastry from the oven then fill with the mixture. Put the tartlets back into the oven and bake for another 10 minutes or so until the pastry feels firm and the top of the tartlets starts to brown slightly. Remove from the oven, leave to cool slightly so you can remove the tartlets from the tin without burning yourself and serve with all the Christmas veg. This works well with onion gravy with some redcurrant jelly stirred in, although I used homemade rosemary jelly - yum!

Dinner for all

Going plant based can be challenging at times, especially if you are being entertained and your hosts don't know what to cook for you or you are doing the entertaining and your guests are not ones for a full-on veg dining experience. I had this problem recently, and spent some time wracking my brain about what to do. The starter was easy - tasty spring salad; the dessert a no-brainer - raw banoffee pie, as no-one can argue with that. But what to do for the mains?

Finally, I remembered a delicious Leon spicy coconut fish recipe I used to love in my pre-plant days. Each portion is individually wrapped in tin foil then covered with a gorgeous sauce consisting of coconut cream, garlic and ginger. As the sauce is the same for all, the solution was simple - one parcel was chicken based, three fish and two tofu. And as each person has their own parcel, the flavours can be altered according to taste, as the chillis and spring onions are sprinkled over the top. So you end up cooking three different dishes, without having to cook three different dishes - inspired!
Tofu is a great plant based protein and contains good amounts of iron and calcium as well as other vitamins and minerals. As it's made from soya, tofu contains phyto-oestrogens that mimic the actions of oestrogen produced in the body. Because of this, it's been link with reducing breast cancer as well as helping ladies of a certain age deal with the unpleasant effects of the menopause.
Unfortunately, soya products have become unpopular in some circles, mainly due to the fact that most soya in the US is now genetically modified. I always check where my tofu has come from, and if I can't find out, buy organic.
Many people don't like tofu as by itself as it's pretty bland and unpalatable. But it absorbs flavour brilliantly, so if cooked in the right way, it's a great plant based product to work with.
This recipe uses extra firm tofu. It still needs to be drained of any packaging fluid, then pressed for a while to remove more fluid to stop it falling apart when cooked. To press, place a few sheets of kitchen roll on a plate, pop your tofu block on top, place some more kitchen roll on top, then put another plate with a weight on the top (like a tin of beans) and leave in the fridge for an hour or so. Water is pressed out and you'll end up with tofu with a firmer texture.
This dish is great served with sticky red rice and steamed pak choi or spring greens. And it doesn't take ages to prepare or cook, leaving you more time to enjoy your entertaining.
Spicy coconut tofu (or fish or chicken!) Serves 6
150ml tin coconut cream or the thick cream off a tin of coconut milk
1 small clove garlic chopped

4 spring onions, 2 finely diced, 2 chopped obliquely
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 limes
15g fresh grated ginger
1 red chilli finely sliced
fresh coriander
10 lime leaves
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seed oil
salt
100g extra firm tofu per person (so if
feeding 6 you'll need 600g (see below)
* if you are serving this with chicken it will need cooking for 25 minutes, the fish for 15; they both need to go in the oven before the tofu.
Pre-heat the oven to 200oC.
Place the coconut cream, garlic, finely chopped spring onion, turmeric, zest of the limes, ginger, fresh coriander, a couple of crumbled lime leaves and salt together in a bowl and mix well so everything is combined.
Tear off a piece of tin foil about 30cm square and spray a little olive oil in the centre, wiping around with a piece of kitchen roll. Pop 2 lime leaves on the middle of the foil, then place the tofu on top. Spoon over 1/6th of the coconut mixture, then sprinkle some of the sliced spring onion and chilli according to diner's taste. Drizzle a dash of sesame seed oil over the top, then close the foil up, sealing each edge firmly to create a parcel. Place on a baking tray and repeat the step.
When you're ready, pop the parcels in the oven and bake for about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave to rest until you're ready to serve. At the last minute, open up the foil and squeeze in a shot of lime juice straight away. Slide onto your plate with the rice and greens, and delight your tastebuds with the sumptuous flavours!
NB: I sliced each 100g portion into two thick slices just because it looked better, but it also absorbed more flavour so is definitely worth doing.