Great Gluten-Free Vegan Eats

6 cremini or mushrooms, chopped
1 Vidalia onion, diced
1 yellow zucchini, unpeeled, diced
2 jalapeño chiles, stemmed, seeded, and minced (leave the seeds in if you like a lot of heat)
1 yellow bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and diced
1 tablespoon (3 g) total minced fresh rosemary, sage, and oregano
4 cloves garlic, minced
2½ tablespoons (38 ml) olive oil, divided
Salt to taste
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon white chili powder
4 cubes (4 teaspoons or 8 g) chicken flavored vegetable bouillon
6 cups (1.4 L) water
1 cup (100 g) textured vegetable protein (TVP)
2 cans (15 ounces, or 420 g each) Great
Northern beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (15 ounces, or 420 g) white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons (30 ml) lime juice
3 tablespoons (24 g) cornstarch mixed with 6 tablespoons (90 ml) cold water
Small pinch of saffron threads, soaked in 3 tablespoons (45 ml) boiling water and allowed to rest for 2 to 3 hours

In a large stockpot, sauté the mushrooms, onion, zucchini, jalapeños, bell pepper, chopped herbs, and garlic in 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of the olive oil over medium-high heat until soft, about 13 minutes, stirring often to prevent sticking. Season lightly with salt, and then stir in the cumin and white chili powder as the vegetables are cooking.

In a pot, bring the bouillon cubes and water to a boil, whisking to make sure the bouillon is dissolved. Place the TVP in a bowl, add 1 cup (235 ml) of the boiling broth, and cover for 5 minutes, or until fluffy.

Once the veggies are soft, add the remaining 5 cups (1.2 L) broth and bring to a simmer over low heat.
In a small skillet over medium-high heat, sauté the rehydrated TVP in the remaining ½ tablespoon (8 ml) olive oil just until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Stir the cooked TVP into the veggies and broth.

Purée 1 can of Great Northern beans in a food processor until smooth. Stir the puréed beans into the veggies and broth until well incorporated. Stir in the remaining 2 cans of beans, lime juice, and cornstarch mixture. Cook for an additional 10 minutes over medium-high heat until thickened, stirring occasionally.
Add salt to taste.

Crush the saffron threads with the back of a spoon and add to the chili. Let cook an additional minute or so before serving.

Nutritional Analysis
Per serving: 534 calories; 5 g fat; 35 g protein; 90 g carbohydrate; 31 g dietary fiber; 0 mg cholesterol.

--------

GLUTEN-FREE PIZZA CRACKERS

Love the taste of pizza but not really into the doughy gluten-derived crust? Make these gluten-free pizza crackers from Great Gluten-Free Vegan Eats (Fair Winds Press, June 2012) by Allyson Kramer, founder of the blog ManifestVegan.com. Kramer launched her vegan blog in 2009 and found out shortly thereafter that she has celiac disease. Since then, she has been crafting gluten-free vegan recipes and is a respected authority on vegan and gluten-free cuisine.

Pizza Crackers

Recipe from Great Gluten-Free Vegan Eats by Allyson Kramer.

Yields about 70 crackers

Ingredients:

2 cups (260 g) chickpea flour
1/2 cup (65 g) sorghum flour, plus more for rolling
1/2 cup (65 g) potato starch
1/2 cup (65 g) nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 to 3 teaspoons ground pizza seasoning, plus more for sprinkling
1/ 3 cup (80 ml) olive oil
1/4 cup (60 g) tomato paste
3/4 cup (180 ml) cold water
Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C, or gas mark 4).
In a large bowl, combine the chickpea flour, sorghum flour, potato starch, nutritional yeast, xanthan gum, salt, and pizza seasoning until well mixed.
Using a large spoon, stir in the olive oil, tomato paste, and cold water. Mix until very well combined. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead just until the dough is uniform in texture and color.
Add a little more flour to your rolling surface and pat out the dough to about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick. Sprinkle the top with a touch more sorghum flour and flip over.
With a lightly floured rolling pin, roll out the dough until it is about 1/8-inch (3 mm) thick. Use a circular cookie cutter or a pizza wheel to cut out 1-1/2-inch (3.8 cm) shapes of dough. Sprinkle with additional pizza seasoning.
Use a flat metal spatula to scoop up the shapes and place on an ungreased baking sheet, spacing them about 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart.
Bake for about 30 minutes, flipping once halfway through the cooking time. The crackers will have a reddish hue (from the tomato paste) but should be slightly puffy and golden brown on both sides when they are done. Depending on the size of your baking sheets and oven, you may need to make 2 or 3 batches of crackers.
Let cool completely. Stored in an airtight container, these will keep for up to 1 week.