Why Tempeh = Cotton Candy Sangria

Who knew I'd love soy so much? 

Google is great. You probably already knew that but let me tell you why:

"Vegan restaurant nyc cotton candy sangria" 

That's what I searched for, and my first hit (thankfully!) was  Sacred Chow the great vegan restaurant in NYC where I first tasted tempeh. My quick-witted, wonderfully hilarious, life-saver friend from my previous life* Swati took me there for brunch one weekend before I took the plunge back to school. I got some tasty vegan waffles, which were great, but one bite of her dish and I was smitten. Savory yet sweet, whatever it was she got, I wanted more of it. The problem was that weeks later, once relocated, I could not for the life of me remember what her dish was called. All I could remember was that Swati, who always envelops herself in the sweet scent of cotton candy, loves Sacred Chow's cotton candy sangria. The rest is Google history.

Tempeh's great because it has a TON of protein (a frequent must for 'Chefski), it's vegetarian, and unlike tofu, it's a got an earthy, whole-grain taste to it (at least the kind I get). Best of all, this is a one-pot/pan meal, all the better for clean up.

Here's to Swati: hugs, emoticons, and Barnum and Bailey's. Twice.

* my previous life as a full-time working woman in the business world.

Indonesian Curried Tempeh

Adapted from this recipe I googled.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

250 g Tempeh (1 package of the stuff you kind find at Whole Foods)

1 bell pepper (any color) sliced

1 large sweet potato, diced

1 clove of garlic, minced

1/4 cup light coconut milk

1 chopped onion (I love the red ones)

1 Tablespoon curry powder

2 Tablespoons Tamari or Soy Sauce

Variations I like: A bag of frozen veggies, a splash of pomegranate molasses

Directions

1. Even though I listed the ingredients above in their chopped stages, I really do think step 1 is the slicing and dicing. I do all of this in one go.

2. Heat the oil in a large casserole or other stove-ready pan. Add the garlic and onion and toss around until fragrant. Or, as a Hungarian friend once told me "until the onions look like glass."

3. Add the tempeh, sweet potato, and bell pepper to the mix. If you're using frozen veggies, hold off 5-ish minutes so the rest of your food is a little cooked. All in all, this phase should last about 10 minutes.

4. Add coconut milk, curry powder, tamari sauce and/or pomegranate molasses and cook for an additional 10 minutes, tossing around the mix to coat everything well with your sauces.

5. Enjoy alone, with rice, or as a side to anything you like :)