New Category For Vegan Recipes

Thanks to Ruth of the Perfect Blood Sugar blog for the excellent suggestion to have a category for recipes that are vegan, or easily modifiable to be vegan. I've gone back through the last 50 or so posts and added the vegan ones to that category, and I'll try and do the rest soon. Let me know if there are other categories you'd find useful.

Calabro - The Best Ricotta Cheese in America

Calabro Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese

Like most things in life, there is ricotta and there is ricotta. For long-baked dishes, it might not make that much difference. But take one bite of this Calabro's fresh cheese and you might think you never had ricotta before. It has the same clean milky sweetness that you find in great fresh mozzarella, and a fluffy, light texture.

I like it on toast, or with a drizzle of honey, or with a good piece of fruit. Just saying, gotta give props to these guys for keeping it real for 43 years. In Seattle I can reliably find the ricotta at Whole Foods, not sure what distribution looks like in the rest of the country. I only wish I knew where to find some of their other products.

Recipe: Atayef - Syrian Ricotta-Filled Dessert Pancakes

Atayef - Syrian Ricotta-Filled Dessert Pancakes

I took one look at the picture of these atayef in Poopa Dweck's spectacular cookbook, Aromas of Aleppo, The Legendary Cuisine of Syrian Jews and knew imediately that I had to make them. I served them at a recent Men Cook event for dessert, after a meal that also included her red lentil soup (shurbat addes) and spiced yogurt cheese (labneh).

[Welcome Ramadan visitors! I notice lots of you in the search logs today. I hope you enjoy your holiday and these atayef. Take a moment to share it with a Thumbs Up!]

If the picture of the atayef didn't get me, the description surely would have. First you make a thin pancake batter, then cook off small, crepe-thin circles, but only on one side. Then you fill the undercooked pancakes with ricotta cheese, seal them up, and deep fry them. Then you drench them in rose water-scented simple syrup, and dip the end in finely chopped pistachios. Over the top? I'd say.

The results were just as terrific as the description, and in spite of all the steps they aren't really difficult to do. Allowing for a few that burst or otherwise turn out ugly, the recipe will make about 40 two-bite desserts, and the average person will probably want three of them, so you can easily serve 12. If you don't need this many all at once, you might as well still make them and then freeze the rest before the deep frying step.

The syrup sub-recipe will also yield more than you need but will keep well in the fridge. You could use it to make interesting cocktails!

Shira (Rose Water Scented Syrup)
Vegetarian and vegan
Yields 2 cups (keeps well; could also use in cocktails)

• 3 c. white sugar
• 1 c. water
• 1 t. lemon juice
• 1/2 t. rose water or orange blossom water

1. Boil the sugar, water and lemon juice for about 15 minutes. To tell if it is thick enough, grab out a teaspoon (carefully!) and let it cool a bit, then see if it is close to the consistency of honey.
2. Allow to cool, then add the rose water or orange blossom water, and refrigerate. (The book has you add the rose water during the boiling, but I think it is better after).

Atayef - Syrian Ricotta-Filled Dessert Pancakes
Vegetarian
To make vegan substitute egg replacer in the pancake and silken tofu fin the filling, or do a filling of chopped walnuts and apples)
Yields about 40, enough for at least 12 people

• 2 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1 T. sugar
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1 c. fresh ricotta (I prefer Colabro brand)
• 1 c. cold shira syrup (above)
• 1 c. shelled pistachios, chopped fine in a food processor

1. Mix together the dry ingredients. Stir in the egg, then add water until you have a thin pancake batter, about like a crepe batter.
2. Heat a griddle or large frying pan to medium and grease lightly.
3. To make the pancakes, spread on 1 T. of batter and use the back of a spoon to quickly form it into a 3" circle. Cook until bubbles just appear on one side. Do not flip, just remove it from the heat and place in a single layer on a baking sheet or work surface. Your goal is only to make the crepe firm enough to be filled, you don't need it to be fully cooked. Do as many at a time as you can handle without overcooking. For me that was only about 4 at a time but they go quick.
4. Fill each pancake with 1 teaspoon of ricotta. Do not overfill! Fold in half and seal with your fingertips. You can freeze them in a single layer at this point until you are ready to use them.
5. For the final cooking, heat about 3/4 inch of oil in a smallish saucepan. Fry the atayef in small batches until deep golden brown, about 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon, douse with the shira syrup, and dip the tip in the pistachios. The shira should be very cold to prevent it from ruining the crispiness of the pancakes.
6. Serve immediately, while still hot, and experience joy!