Isa Chandra Moskowitz - Vegan Brunch: Homestyle Recipes Worth Waking Up For--From Asparagus Omelets to Pumpkin Pancakes

Like crazy, I thank the following:

My photo assistants and stylists:

Terry Hope Romero, who was with me in spirit, even if in reality she was in Queens.

Josh Hooten, Michelle Schweggers, and Ruby Bird Hooten for coming over and eating bagels. Who else would have eaten the bagels?!

Chad Miller and Emiko Badillo, for constantly dissing brunch at every turn, making me that much more determined to prove myself. And for providing me with vital wheat gluten.

Mom, because I have to thank you in every book.

The Brown Klan: Mish, Aaron, Max and baby Norah for being adorable, the lot of you.

Jenny Brown at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary and Sarah Downs at Farm Sanctuary CA for doing such great work with such great animals and giving me more and more reasons to provide vegan alternatives to the standard American breakfast.

Katie, Christine, Jane, Georgia, and Wesley at Perseus for helping to make the book as beautiful as a berry muffin.

Brunch truly is about community and my testers proved that. This cookbook would not have been possible had they not given their feedback, let me know what worked and what didnt and even fixed my typos. I love you guys! I hope you know that whenever you are in town I will whip up some scramble for you.

Lisa pandacookie CoulsonThumbs up to muffins
Bahar bazu ZakerBrakes for beer battered tofu
Abby Tootsie WohlFrittata fatale
Carrie Lynn supercarrot MorseCherry sage sausages for the win
Paul ijustdiedinside GrossFights evil with butterscotch
Katie badmouth HubbardRuns game on tofu
Erica catsgalore JohnsonMaking tempeh bacon back in
Tami AsstroGirl NoyesTakes tempeh hostage
Thalia veganmd C. PalmerGives good omelet
Liz Bujack & Mike CrookerPrivate Benedict
Amanda esme SaccobESt tEstEr eVeRZ
Carla Queen V KellyQuiche for a day
Lucy superherogirl AllbaughDreams of fennel rissoto (but totally
innocently)
Allicia no Xs Cormier
Dayna SeitanSaidDance RozentalHeart of artichoke
Rose bike rides and high 5s HermalinFork this shiitake
Eryn seitanicverses HiscockAgave slave
John PlummerStuck in the barley malt
Jessica L. DeNotoSconed
Kristen Blackmore
Kim vit Carpenter (soon to be Lahn)The Esme of the brunch book
Fred phatty LahnPartner in cremini
Becca bex BennettYou gonna eat that?
Shanell Dawn Williams - Tempehstress
Julie FarsonMaple mama
Jessica BauerFlapjack of all trades
Megan sugarcookie DukeCoockoo for Cocoa Muffins
Molly The Veganatrix Tanzer
Liz EFCliz WymanAll praise the Pierogi!!
Evan rayray Maxwell William McgrawPeanut butter
Michele t-tat Thompson-BraytonGives a crepe
Zac Dan WattsBeer battered
Jeff jeff PressLinguist
Angela White
Amy Sims
Jane Ott

Makes 4 omelets

Theres something about an omelet that says, Its the weekend, dig in! Get ready for a day thats all your own! But what to expect from a tofu omelet? Not an exact replica of an egg omelet, but delicious nonetheless. Chickpea flour gives the tofu fluffiness and an egglike taste. Nutritional yeast adds color as well as delectable savory flavor. Turmeric goes the rest of the way for that sunshine yellow hue. And then black salt. If you havent tried it before, and you love the taste of eggs, you are in for a real treat. This Indian salt, also called kala namak, has a sulfuric taste that is reminiscent of egg yolks. I like to add some to the omelet batter and also sprinkle it on at the end for an even stronger taste. However, if you are averse to the taste of eggs, you may skip this and just use teaspoon of regular sea salt in the omelet.

2 garlic cloves (optional)
1 pound silken tofu, lightly
drained (not the vacuum
packed kind) or soft tofu (see
tip on page 14); Nasoya brand
is recommended
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons olive oil
teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon fine black salt, plus
extra for sprinkling (optional,
see note to the left)
cup chickpea flour
1 tablespoon arrowroot or
cornstarch

Chop up the garlic, if using, in a food processor. Add the tofu, nutritional yeast, olive oil, turmeric, and salt. Puree until smooth. Add the chickpea flour and arrowroot and puree again for about 10 seconds, until combined. Make sure to scrape down the sides so that everything is well incorporated.

Preheat a large, heavy-bottomed, nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Well-seasoned cast iron works great or use a regular nonstick skillet. Lightly grease the pan with either cooking spray or a very thin layer of oil. (The less oil the better for the nice brown speckles were going for.) Also, make sure that you use a large skillet, as you need room to spread out the omelet and to get your spatula under there to flip. Dont use an 8-inch omelet pan or anything like that. Here youll need at least 12 inches (tee hee).

In -cup increments, pour the omelet batter into the skillet. Use the back of a spoon or a rubber spatula to spread the batter out into about 6-inch circles. (Its okay if it isnt a perfect circle.) Be gentleif there are any rips or holes, that is fine, just gently fill them in as you spread the batter.

Let the batter cook for about 3 to 5 minutes before flipping. The top of the omelet should dry and become a matte yellow when its ready to be flipped. If you try and it seems like it might fall apart, give it a little more time. When the omelet is ready to be flipped, the underside should be flecked light to dark brown. Flip the omelet and cook for about a minute on the other side. Keep warm on a plate covered with tinfoil as you make the remaining omelets.

Fill omelet with the filling of your choice (page 15), then fold it. Once the omelet has been filled, sprinkle with a little extra black salt, since some of its flavor disappears when cooked.

Its hard for me to imagine produce that wouldnt find its calling stuffed into an omelet. When it comes to omelet fillings, think fresh and you cant go wrong. Look deep within yourself that morning and find your spirit vegetable. If that doesnt do it for you, hit up your farmers market and go with whats in season. Each of these fillings makes enough for four omelets. Mix and match them to your hearts content and come up with scrumptious fillings of your own.