Vegan Fajitas with Mushrooms and Roasted Sweet Potato

A little Mexican spice is a great way to brighten up a Monday evening!  Last night for dinner we had delicious Vegan Fajitas, or Burritos, or whatever you like to call them.

Here is what we put in them, first in pictures and then the recipe follows.

Mushrooms in Mexican Spice Mix and Roasted Sweet Potato Strips.

A smudge of Tomato Salsa and creamy Avocado.

Baby Spinach leaves and Rocket, topped with the mushrooms and sweet potato.

Rolled and ready to eat (I had two of these and dear husband had 3).

Ingredients:

Spice Mix:
1 teaspoon each of:
- Ground Chilli
- Smoked Paprika
- Salt (or powdered vegetable stock)
- Cornflour
- Castor Sugar
½ teaspoon each of:
- Ground Cumin
- Cayenne Pepper

Olive oil for cooking
1 large (or 2 small) sweet potatoes (That is Kumera for the Kiwis).
 4 large field mushrooms
1 small onion, sliced.
1 clove of garlic, crushed
Salad greens (baby spinach leaves and rocket works really well)
1 small avocado - mashed
Salsa (I used salsa from a jar last night to save time but if you are not as lazy as me you could make your own).
4-6 Tortillas (Wraps)

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180^oC.
2. Cut sweet potato into halves or thirds, and then into wedges.  Place in baking tray.  Drizzle generously with olive oil and toss.  Bake for 45+ minutes depending on how caramalized you like your roast veggies.
3. Combine all the spice mix ingredients in a plastic bag (eg freezer bag) and toss.  You can use more or less chilli and cayenne pepper depending on how hot you like your Mexican food.
4. Slice mushrooms into strips (not too thin).  Put in the bag with the spice mix and toss gently until all the strips are well coated.
5. When your sweet potatoes are nearly done, saute the onions in a little olive oil.  Add mushrooms and garlic and fry over a medium heat until the mushrooms are well done.
6.  Assemble the fajitas as show in the photos above and enjoy!!

Porcini Mushroom Stroganoff

I have been having a great time with my friend's vegan cookbooks.  I have tried quite a few recipes and most have been very successful.  One recipe was so divinely, deliciously, delectable that immediately after eating it I e-mailed the publisher for permission to print the recipe exactly from the book.  And, much to my surprise, I received a couple of lovely e-mails back and then this:

"We are pleased to grant this permission free of charge.  Please be sure to credit title, author, and publisher." 

Hooray!!  So here it is:

The recipe: Porcini Mushroom Stroganoff

The book: The Candle Cafe Cookbook

The authors: Joy Pierson and Bart Potenza with Barbara Scott-Goodman

The publisher: Clarkson Potter Publishers New York, 2003

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon unbleached flour
2 tablespoons soy margarine
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
2 ounces dried porcini mushrooms
1 pound button mushrooms
1/4 cup white wine
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup soy milk
Pinch of dried parsley
Pinch of dried dill
1 thyme sprig
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup chopped fresh chives
1 pound fettuccine

Method
1. In a large saucepan over medium heat, heat the oil.  Stir in the flour and cook for 4 minutes, stirring frequently.  Add the soy margarine, garlic, onion, salt and pepper and cook for an additional 4 minutes.
2. Add the porcini and button mushrooms, wine, tomato past, and soy milk.  Stir in the parsley, dill, thyme bay leaf and chives.  Bring to the boil, then simmer over low heat for 20 minutes.
3. Bring a large pot of water to the boil and cook the fettuccine according to package directions.  Drain.
4. Spoon the sauce over the fettuccine and serve at once.

The only intentional change I made was to use considerably less pepper than the 1 tablespoon called for in the recipe.

 

If you look at my pictures you may notice that I used button mushrooms and field mushrooms.  How did this come about?  Well, I quickly scribbled down 2 pounds porcine mushrooms and 1 pound button mushrooms on my shopping list and headed for the shops.  I had somehow managed to complete miss that the porcine mushrooms were supposed to be dried, and that the recipe called for 2 ounces, not 2 pounds!  

The Fruit and Veggie store that I usually go to was all out of fancy mushrooms.  And there were none to be had in the other Fruit and Veg store and 2 supermarkets that I went to.  So instead I bought 2 pounds of button mushrooms and 1 pound of field mushrooms.  The result was an amazingly delicious Stroganoff that delighted us.  I only realized my mistake when I made it again last weekend and was re-reading the recipe.  Well never mind because, fortunately my mistake didn't stuff it up.

The second time I made it I noticed a very slight after taste that I have detected if I overheat soy milk when I make Soy Hot Chocolate.   I think I had the pan too hot when I added the soy milk and so I will be carefully not to make that mistake next time.  Because, oh yes, there will definitely be a next time!

I am guessing that using the dried mushrooms would result in a less runny sauce and I am going to try making it the "official" way soon.  I will let you know how that turns out.

I have also found a Stroganoff recipie in Vegan with a Vengeance.  The recipe is quite different and includes Seitan and sounds a little more complicated.  I will get around to making that one day too, and it will be interesting to compare the results.