Chickpea Cutlets in Red Wine Roux w/ Roasted Potatoes

I was really in the mood for some seitan tonight, but not just plain seitan -- something a little different. I came across a couple recipes in Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero that sounded spectacular so I went at it!

I started by making the Chickpea Cutlets -- cutlets made of wheat gluten and chickpeas!

Ingredients for Chickpea Cutlets

• 1 cup cooked chickpeas
• 2T olive oil
• 1/2 cup vital wheat gluten
• 1/2 cup plain whole wheat bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup vegetable broth or water
• 2T soy sauce
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed or grated 
• 1/2 tsp lemon zest
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp Hungarian paprika
• 1/4 tsp dried rubbed sage
• Olive oil

So, first the chickpeas. I decided to try my hand at cooking chickpeas in my Fagor pressure cooker for the first time. Chickpeas are a long-term bean, which means that they must be soaked. I put two cups of dried chickpeas in a large bowl and covered them with 3x more water than chickpeas. They will expand as they soak so be sure to cover them with enough water! I soaked them for 12 hours, then put them in the pressure cooker with plenty of water. I added some kombu, a dry sea vegetable, which is a natural flavor enhancer and a tenderizer.  Then, I just turned the stove on high, waited for the pressure to rise, then lowered it to medium-low and cooked for 30 minutes. Voila, perfectly fresh chickpeas!

Then, I took 1 cup of the chickpeas and mashed them up with the oil until no whole chickpeas remained. I added the rest of the ingredients and knead it all together for 4 minutes until strings of gluten formed.

Then, I preheated my oven to 375-degrees. Meanwhile, I divided the cutlets into four pieces. To form each cutlet, I knead each piece in my hand for a few minutes, then I stretched each one out until it was about 6 x 4 inches -- a rectangular cutlet.

Then, I used my pastry brush to brush each one lightly with oil and I placed it on my non-stick baking sheet.  I baked them for 20 minutes, then flipped them and baked for another 8 minutes.


Ingredients for Roasted Potatoes

• Small potatoes
• Fresh rosemary
• Sea salt
• Ground pepper
• Olive oil

While they were baking, I also decided to make some roasted potatoes. I cut the potatoes in half and placed them into a large glass bowl. Then, I lightly coated them with olive oil and tossed them with chopped fresh rosemary, sea salt, and ground pepper to taste. I put them in with the cutlets even though they really should roast at 425-degrees, but this got them started. You can raise the temperature once you take the cutlets out.

Lastly, I made the red wine roux, a sauce for the cutlets.

Ingredients for Red Wine Roux

• 1 1/4 cups boiling water
• 1 vegetable bouillon cube
• 2T nonhydrogenated vegan margarine
• 3T all-purpose flour
• 3 large shallots
• 1/4 cup finely minced celery
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 3/4 cup dry red wine
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp dried marjoram
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
• 2T minced fresh chives

This sauce is a bit labor and time intensive, but it will be worth it in the end. I started by dissolving the bouillon cube in the boiling water. Easy enough.  I kept the broth on warm as I prepared the rest. Next, I melted the margarine in a separate saucepan and stirred the flour in with a wooden spoon. I stirred it constantly over a medium-low heat until it turned golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes.

Then I stirred in the minced shallots and garlic and continue to cook while stirring for another 5 minutes. It began to resemble a course paste. Then, I stirred in the celery and cooked for another 4 minutes until the celery softened.

Next, I poured in the hot veggie bouillon and stirred it with a wire whisk to create a thick sauce. The, I added the bay leaf, marjoram, thyme, and rosemary. While stirring constantly, I brought it to a boil, then lowered the heat and simmered for 2 minutes.

Next, I gradually poured in the wine, while continuing to stir with the whisk and brought it to a boil again. I lowered the heat once more and simmered for 5 minutes until it slightly reduced and thickened.  I removed it from the heat and stirred in the fresh chives.

All the while, I had been watching and flipping my cutlets. When I took them out, I put the potatoes back in cook them for a total of 55 minutes.  In the end everything came out wonderfully! The chickpea cutlets with the red wine roux were scrumptious and the potatoes were a good compliment!