Cooking with Mollie #4: Sesame Leeks and Cabbage

Do not turn away. I know it's cabbage, but man, this dish is good. It's one of those simple things that will leave you wondering "Why didn't I think of that?"

How simple is it? You don't even need a recipe, really, though you definitely should buy Mollie Katzen's book, "The Vegetable Dishes I Can't Live Without."

No, she isn't paying me to say that. I'm just hoping for a dinner invite when I get done with this. Yeah. We saw how well that worked out for Julie in the Julie Julia movie. (If you didn't see the movie, there is some indication that Mrs. Child was NOT pleased at Julie's blogging efforts about Mastering the Art of French Cooking.)

Back to how simple the recipe is: You slice some leeks and wash them. Coupla leeks if you can get the big fat ones like I get from the organic farm, probably 4 or 5 if you can only find small ones. You chop some cabbage, 4 cups more or less.

Saute the leeks with some oil in a deep pan for about 10 minutes, then throw the cabbage in, cover, voila.

Saute, stirring occasionally, until everything begins to stick to the bottom of the pan, so you'll have some lovely browned bits mixed in.

Salt. Pepper. A drizzle of dark sesame oil. A sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds. You're done!

Except I wasn't done. I cooked up some noodles from a yaki soba package (throw the nasty seasoning away) and sauteed tofu chunks to mix with the cabbage for a nice hot lunch.

I thought of a great alternative to this recipe, too - instead of a drizzle of sesame oil, use roasted walnut oil and chopped walnuts. This would be especially good if you could swap out the cabbage for the delicate crinkly Savoy cabbage. Savoy cabbage season lasts about 3 weeks around here, so I'll have to try that next year. I can't wait.

Bon appetit.

A New Project: Cooking with Mollie Katzen - Leek Chips

As a food blogger (even a VERY occasional one), you have to love the Julie Julia movie and consider what it would take to cook your way through Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

For me, it was a no-brainer - as a vegetarian, I'm not willing to dive into calf liver and poached fish, no matter how much it would improve my cooking technique. Still, the idea simmered in the back of my brain...cooking my way throught a whole cookbook...but what book?

Recently my friend Brenda gave me The Book. I let it sit on the shelf for a while, not realizing it was The Book, but then I started flipping through it and realizing I wanted to make Every Single Recipe.

Here it is: Mollie Katzen's "The Vegetable Dishes I Can't Live Without."



It is just about 100 recipes, all vegetarian, mostly vegan. I have tried four so far, and they have all been excellent. I'm inspired again, which is a welcome change from the rut I have been in for so long.

My favorite of the bunch is Leek Chips, which are just leeks cut into rounds, washed well (pesky sand is a particular problem with leeks), tossed with olive oil and baked in a slow oven.
The recipe is online here.
They go from this:


to this:


I think may have overcooked them slightly, but they were still good. I ate them ALL. They're a great substitute to calm my craving for onion rings or canned French Fried Onions, both of which are calorie bombs.

They do have some...digestive effects, so Beano is a must here. My mouth tasted like onions all day, but it was so worth it. Thanks, Mollie.