Vegan Pastelón

Yesssss. Pastelón. This was a favorite dish in my home on special occasions. If it was a birthday, shower, someone leaving home (or coming back), a major holiday or other cause to celebrate...pastelón was present.

Just a few weekends ago I attended my cousin's 50th and there was faithful pastelón, right next to the arroz con gandules. I watched as person after person placed a big chunk of it on top of their rice, as drool formed in the sides of their mouths and water collected in mine. Yet my choice to be vegan transcends pastelóny goodness and I passed on this my favorite dish.

Albeit when the idea came to me for this blog, it was the first dish that came to mind. What makes this puerto rican lasagna so good is the sweetness of the plantains mixed with the saltiness of the beef and cheese. I knew that Daiya vegan mozzarella cheese would be perfect, but couldn't decide what to use instead of beef. It was a toss between soy-based vegetarian beef substitutes, black beans or mushrooms. In the end, I decided to go with basic black beans - and it was perfect!

So without further ado, here is my vegan pastelón recipe. My dinner guests (and hubby) raved - but more importantly, it passed the true taste test and lived up to MY expectations. Enjoy!

Pastelón

4 plantains
3 cans black beans
1 onion, minced
1 tbsp sazón
8 green pimento stuffed olives, quartered
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup tomato sauce
2 cups vegan mozzarella cheese (I used 1 bag of Daiya Cheese)
sea salt to taste

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Cut plantains in half and boil in a large pot until soft and bright yellow (about 45 minutes).



While plantains are boiling, place beans in a colander and rinse well, smooshing a little with your hands as go to create texture. Combine beans, onion, olives, and sazón in a heated large skillet at medium-high heat with 2 Tbs of olive oil.



Mix well until heated through and onions are soft. Add in tomato sauce and sea salt to taste, set aside.



CAREFULLY peel plantains (they're super hot) and place in a bowl to be mashed.




In a baking safe pan, start with a layer of plantains, then beans, then cheese. Repeat.





Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Eat up! Serves approx 8.


PS: I did end up with leftover bean mixture, but I just refrigerated it and used it for other recipes like black bean quesadillas. Mmmm...

Spanish Rice and Beans

It's pretty funny to me that rice and beans are categorized as a side dish. It makes you picture those healthy plates divided in thirds where the rice only takes up like the palm of your hand. Riiight. Not in my house.

Growing up Puerto Rican means rice takes up the entire plate, and anything else you're eating gets thrown on top. Come on, you know I'm telling the truth. We love us some rice and beans!

This recipe came out soooo good that my guest said it tasted just like his grandma used to make. Wow - there is no better compliment than that! You'd never know that I used healthy brown rice instead of the usual white rice. Yummy yummy yummy AND good for you; mission accomplished!

Spanish Rice and Beans
2 cups brown basmati rice
4 to 5 cups of water or veggie broth
½ cup sofrito
1 can of pinto beans
2 tablespoons pimento stuffed green olives
1 tbsp of sazon
1 can tomato paste
3 tablespoons of oil
Salt & pepper to taste

In a medium size pot add the oil, tomato paste, olives, sofrito and sazon. Cook over medium heat for 4 minutes.

Add all other ingredients, and enough water to cover the rice 1" above the rice line. Start with 1 teaspoon of salt stir and keep adding and mixing well until you are satisfied with the taste. Bring to a boil and cook over high heat until most of the water is absorbed. Once the water has been absorbed, stir gently from bottom to top - once or twice only, cover and turn the heat down to low. Cook for 30 minutes or until the rice is tender.

Not the best photo, but everyone was eating it so fast I almost forgot to grab a shot of it. Here it is featured with a little side salad and some pastelon (recipe for that coming tomorrow). Enjoy!

Sazón!

Continuing with the Puerto Rican seasonings before I get to the GOOD STUFF, let's talk about Sazón. I personally don't know anyone in my family who does not use the stuff. It is the staple of all staples. We use it in rice, beans, meat, smoothies (just kidding). Open the cupboard of any puerto rican household and you will find that little orange and yellow box of Sazón packets.

The problem with my homeboy Sazón is the ingredients in the most common brand. Anyone who wants to transition to a healthier lifestyle should read the label on this bad boy. You thought Chinese food was laden with MSG...turns out puerto rican food with all the Sazón is just as big of a culprit. Boo.

Why put all the chemicals into your food when you can get the same great taste from something that's easy to make yourself - fresh! Store it in an airtight container and it will keep for 3 months.

Sazón
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground annatto seeds
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp sea salt

Mix all of the ingredients together and store the sazón in an airtight container. That's it! In recipes, use about 1 1/2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon for each packet of sazón called for.

Annatto seeds are what give the subtle orange hue to many dishes. Here are the seeds before and after being ground up. Use a coffee bean grinder to get them to a powder consistency. You can also substitute with paprika.

Sofrito

So I had guests come over yesterday for dinner - latin guests at that. I knew it was the perfect opportunity to start trying these veganized Puerto Rican dishes. What better to kick off my new adventure than with my all-time favorite - Pastelón! Literally my mouth waters every time I think about it, but the traditional Puerto Rican lasagna is made with ground beef and shredded mozzarella cheese. Well let me tell you, I came up with a vegan version and it was SLAMMIN'! Stay tuned this week for that recipe!

I need to start with some of the seasonings I had to use because it was not as easy as going to the grocery store and picking up some Goya. Unfortunately upon reading their ingredients I found that they were laden with MSG, artificial colors and artifical chemical flavorings. Not cool. So today I'll give you the basis to many Puerto Rican dishes, made fresh at home with none of the icky chemical additives.


Sofrito

1 large bunch of cilantro, chopped
1 red pepper
1 orange pepper
1 yellow pepper
1 large red onion
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon oregano
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Mix all ingredients in a food processor or blender.

Storage:
Keep what you will use in a small air tight jar or container. Freeze in ice cube trays what you won't use immediately. Once frozen, take it out of the ice cube trays and store it in plastic freeze bags until needed. Traditionally used to season rice, beans and other amazing dishes. Step 1 done - Yay!

So here I am...

I can't front, I'm well aware that the phrase "Puerto Rican Vegan" is a full on oxymoron. Yet I can't help but think about all the family members I've seen succumb to heart disease, cancer of every sort, high cholesterol, fatty liver, obesity, diabetes, and the list goes on - simply from enjoying the cultural foods we've been raised on. There is no reason for this to continue. Hence the reason for this blog.

I admit, I'm not 100% tied to my cultural way of eating. For me it was a love/hate relationship. Growing up it embarrassed me to eat arroz con pollo when my friends were eating lasagna. I stuck my nose up at the loving homemade meals and opted for Mickey D's or pizza...the American way. I was, afterall, born and raised on Long Island where fast food reigns and diners are a 24hr sport.

It wasn't until experiencing college dorm life that I really came to appreciate all those meals made with love from the hands of the woman who loved me more than anything. Coming home meant REAL FOOD, and I embraced it with joy. Pastelon, pasteles, empanadas, abichuelas guisadas con papas y arroz blanco, arroz con gandules y bistec, pollo asado, pastelillos de guava, alcapurrias, bacalaitos, guanimes con bacalao, mofongo, sopa de leche, tembleque, budin, ponche...Ah, just saying those words makes me all warm inside.

Fast forward several years where I am now a wife and mother, wanting both to raise my family with culture and healthy habits, we find ourselves here. My reasons for becoming vegan range from health to ethical, but really it all comes down to enjoying this life without imposing harm on myself or other individuals.

My goal with this blog is to take you on this journey with me. I plan on recreating my favorite dishes using plant-based foods, while keeping all the flavor and feel of the original recipes. Lofty goal? Perhaps, but it's worth it (see paragraph 1).

So thanks for reading. I hope I can fulfill my own expectations with this. Welcome to Puerto Rican Vegan.

xoxo