It had been a while since I’d made anything new from Viva Vegan, and so this week I decided it was time to crack it open and jot down a grocery list.  It’s easy to fall back on those much-loved favorites again and again, like Latin Baked Tofu, and not know what gems I’m overlooking.

First I made the mixed mushroom ceviche.  The mushroom selection at the grocery store was less than inspired right now, and so it was less “mixed” and more “sliced cremini.”  Mushrooms and onion slices were marinated in lemon juice, minced chiles, and cilantro until the ‘shrooms were juicy and “cooked.”  They were good at three hours, but even better the next day for lunch with diced avocado.  They are served with a corn and sweet potato garnish, which consisted of fresh corn lightly cooked and sprinkled with lime juice and sweet potato that’s boiled, cut into slices, and also dotted with lime juice.

I shucked the corn straight off the cob, making it taste like a mouthful of summer.  The boiled sweet potatoes were a little plain. I know the temperature is rising and no one wants to turn on the oven, but next time I’ll make baked sweet potato fries instead.  A crisp crunch would be nice to balance the cool ceviche.  The idea is to have a bite of ceviche, a bite of corn, a slice of tomato, and then a bite of sweet potato.  It was fun having some nibbles and reminded me of a Latin spin on my husband and my Greek mezze nights with stuffed grape leaves, hummus, baba ganoush, and tabouli.

Next on the list were the Chorizo seitan sausages.  I’ve made the white and red seitan from the book and had been meaning to hit the chorizo for a while.  I did the chipotle variation, and it gave a smoky richness to its flavor profile.  I’d read online before making the dish that others advised baking the seitan for 45 minutes instead of 35 to get better firmness.  I followed their direction and went for a full 45 minutes, and after the sausages had a chance to cool, they had a good density to them.  They’re still softer than the white seitan, but pleasingly so.  I also reduced the oil to one tablespoon instead of three for the entire batch of 6 sausages, and it all turned out hunky dory.  This may be my favorite of the Viva Vegan sausages so far, because they are so spicy and flavorful on their own.

I used the sausages in the Taquitos with Chorizo and Potatoes.  It had been a million years (approximately) since I’d had taquitos, and these were beyond delicious.  Highly recommended.  There are several steps involved – making the chorizo, boiling the potatoes, combining all of the filling, warming the corn tortillas in the pan until they’re pliable, filling and rolling them, and then shallow frying them first seam side down and then on their backs.  I made the full recipe with the idea in mind that we’d have them for lunches later in the week.  (They would probably freeze well, but these puppies aren’t going to last that long.)  I remember loving flautas (made with flour tortillas instead of corn) even more back in the day, and so I’m going to try that next time I’m in the mood for something fried and decadent.

These taquitos would be fun for a party (premade and then kept warm in the oven) if you’re generous and willing to share, but I wouldn’t blame you if you aren’t.  They’re that good.  The amount of filling that I had would have been perfect for 14 corn tortillas but there were only 12 in the bag.  I’m going to send those tortilla makers a strongly worded email.  Scoundrels. 

Finally, after all of these months and months of cooking from this book I at last made my way to the drinks section.  When it comes to beverages with spicy Latin fare, I’m always happy with Mexican beer with lime or a nice Spanish red like Tempranillo.  But the Michelada, an iced Mexican beer spiked with lime juice, hot sauce, and a dash of vegetarian Worcestershire sauce caught my eye.  The rim of the glass is topped with coarse salt and chile powder, similar to a salted margarita, and then the drink is garnished with a wedge of lime.  The drink was reminiscent of a Bloody Mary in the way that there was a hot and spicy aftertaste in the throat.  I really enjoyed the salt along the rim, and I may do that again sometime with a beer and lime but without the other additions.  In general, this isn’t a drink I’d need to have often.  It reminds me of vegan eggnog or sangria in that it’s a fun once-a-year drink, but after about half a glass I’m ready for my usual.

Since I still have 4 sausages left, next on the list is Kale-Potato Soup with Sizzling Chorizo.  I’ve only heard great things about the dish, and so I’m eager to try it.  I’ll let you know how it goes!