Sonia Cabano - Luscious Vegetarian

Published in 2012 by Struik Lifestyle

(an imprint of Random House Struik (Pty) Ltd)
Company Reg. No 1966/003153/07
Wembley Square, Solan Road, Cape Town 8001 South Africa
PO Box 1144 Cape Town 8000 South Africa

www.randomstruik.co.za

Copyright in published edition: Random House Struik (Pty) Ltd 2012
Copyright in text: Sonia Cabano and Jade de Waal 2012
Copyright in photographs: Random House Struik (Pty) Ltd 2012

ISBN 978-177007-961-8 (Print)
ISBN 978-143230-142-2 (e-Pub)
ISBN 978-143230-143-9 (Pdf)

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, digital, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers and the copyright owner(s).

Publisher: Linda de Villiers
Managing editor: Cecilia Barfield
Design manager: Beverley Dodd
Editors: Browen Leak and Anja Grobler
Designer: Helen Henn
Photographer: Sean Calitz
Stylist: Brita du Plessis
Stylist assistant: Yvette Pascoe
Indexer: Anja Grobler

Reproduction by Resolution
Printing and binding by Times Offset (M) SDN BHD

There are many reasons to adopt a plant-based diet, be they economic, medical or ethical. Far from being dull and boring, a plant-based diet offers a rich variety of ingredients which are both nutritious and delicious with which to nourish our bodies and pleasure our senses.

Nutritionally related diseases like diabetes, cancer and heart disease have become global epidemics. Our bodies are baulking at our poor diets and lifestyles by becoming sick and dysfunctional from ever-younger ages. And with food contamination and even global food scarcity looming on the horizon, the natural vegetarian option is becoming increasingly more attractive if you want to become a more conscientious, ethical consumer. Vegetarianism gently eases you into a more harmonious relationship with yourself and your environment, freeing up your bodys detoxification organs and promoting a sense of abundant wellbeing.

More than ever, we need to start making dietary choices that support a sustainable lifestyle that harms neither our bodies nor the environment. High-density animal farming has a devastating impact on the environment, and the animals are often subjected to cruel and inhumane treatment in order to provide us with food. You wouldnt want to cram steroids, antibiotics and hormones into your body from your bathroom cabinet, so why would you want to ingest it via the food you eat? Animals transported and slaughtered in abattoirs under stress, release huge amounts of the stress hormones cortisol and adrenalin, which are directly absorbed into your body when you eat the meat, thus placing massive strain on your own organs too.

We wrote this book out of love love for food and cooking, love for the environment, and love for natural wellbeing. We hope that Luscious Vegetarian can assist and entice you to explore and experiment with recipes that will create a healthier, more ethically sound lifestyle. Recipes have been very carefully chosen for universal appeal, to satisfy the requirements of everyone from young professionals, singletons and athletes, to the health-conscious, hedonists and bustling families alike.

There are many vegetarian cookbooks available to the South African consumer, most of which are imported and therefore not truly reflective of the South African lifestyle. Many also rely on ingredients that may be awkward for local consumers to source. Alternatively, many vegetarian cookbooks propose a lifestyle change or adaptation so daunting that it may seem off-putting to all but the most fervently committed vegetarians.

With this book, we set out to demonstrate that vegetarian cooking need not be synonymous with a dull and spartan dietary regime, but can instead be a celebration of natures luscious bounty available all year round. Using mostly local, seasonal and, where possible, organic ingredients, the recipes cover the full range from easy, quick everyday dishes, light bites and simple snacks, to rejuvenation and detoxification with pure foods, to hedonistic feasts for celebrations and deeply satisfying soul food, as well as marvellous bakes and sweet treats.

Many people think of vegetarian food as bland, heavy stodge. I never seem to feel full is another complaint. In fact, plant food correctly prepared and served is beautiful, colourful and extremely tasty.

Getting enough protein shouldnt be a problem provided you make ample use of pulses, grains, nuts, cheese and eggs or soy products. To ensure your happiness at the table, try to think first about how you compose a plate and a meal include contrasting textures such as crunchy, juicy and smooth or slippery, and serve hot and cold, bland and spicy, and moist and dry foods together.

Low-GI foods such as beans and whole grains keep blood-sugar levels stable for longer, which means no sudden awkward hunger pangs. But do make sure you dont overdo it with refined starches, sugars and saturated fats, since that will play havoc with your blood-sugar levels, energy and weight. Moderation is still the best advice!

Its not necessary to buy a shelf full of vitamins and supplements. We find that a few tablespoons of unsulphured blackstrap molasses daily provides healthy amounts of potassium, iron and magnesium, and regular vitamin B complex injections will help keep you nourished.

Whipping up tasty treats in a hurry poses no problem at all if youve got a cupboard decently stocked with the basics, and make liberal use of leftovers. Start by doing a little planning ahead for the weeks meals. When cooking rice, grains, beans, pasta or potatoes, for example, cook twice the usual amount and chill what is not used. This way youll always have a handy staple around which to plan a meal. (Just make sure food is thoroughly cool before you refrigerate it; refrigerating warm food is a breeding ground for harmful bacteria such as salmonella which causes food poisoning.)

Rice short- and long-grain brown, white basmati, brown basmati, Thai fragrant, risotto, glutinous (for congee), jasmine, brown and wild mix, red, black rice

Grains dehusked millet, barley, buckwheat (kasha), quinoa, couscous, bulgur wheat, polenta, whole wheat (stampkoring), oats, maize kernels (dried, frozen or canned), rye

Pasta and Asian noodles

Breads, etc. bread rolls, loaf bread, frozen pastry, wraps, tortillas, frozen pancakes, tacos, waffles, English muffins, pitas, croissants, readymade pizza bases, bagels; bread freezes very well for a couple of weeks

Pulses dried: red, yellow, brown and Puy lentils; canned: small and large white kidney, red kidney, cannellini, butter and borlotti beans, samp and beans, brown lentils, chickpeas, three-bean mix, baked beans in tomato sauce

Eggs free-range chicken, quail, duck, goose

Non-animal rennet, soft white and hard yellow cheeses and dairy milk, yoghurt, cream, crme frache, mascarpone, paneer, ricotta, labneh, goats milk cheese, sheeps milk cheese, vegetarian Parmesan and pecorino; ask your deli or supermarket to source stock for you