Tuesday, June 6, 2017

Champagne Wishes And Beluga Lentil Caviar Dreams... A Great Inexpensive Vegan Hack.

   
   Every time I think of caviar I think of the 80's, that time of big hair, big shoulders, and Champagne Wishes Caviar Dreams, a show that we're still feeling the effects of nearly 30 years later.


That's the positive take on caviar....a more common one for some people, especially kids is this one....which I have seen up close and personal.



Now, who gives caviar to kids anyway? Even though a lot of adults like it it, it's pricey, and then there are the vegetarian vegan issues which is why I was interested in the idea of lentil caviar the minute I heard about it. If you are planning to throw a Summer Soiree and want to get all fancy pants but keep the cost down or don't eat meat, this hack is for you.
PS: it's super easy.

Beluga Lentil Caviar


Here's What You Need:
1/2 cup of beluga lentils (rinsed)
2 pieces of dried kombu seaweed cut into 2x2 inch squares
2 Cups water
1 Tbs sea salt
2 Tbs chopped capers
1 and 1/2 Tbs olive oil

Here's What To Do:
Rinse the black beluga lentils, put them into a small pot.


Add 2 cups of water...

...the seaweed...


...and the salt.


Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to barely simmering. Cover the pot, and cook the lentils until they are just tender. About 20 minutes. You want them to keep their shape.


Let them cool in their liquid.
If you're not using them right away they can keep in the fridge for 2 days in their cooking liquid.
When you are ready to use them, discard the seaweed, and drain the lentils.


Add the chopped capers and dress the lentil mixture with the olive oil.


Stir everything together well.
Now you are ready to break out the vegan / non vegan sour cream, and baked potato and go to town......BUT if you're throwing a party you might make some vegan blinis, or non vegan blinis or you can do what I did serving these to a gluten free crowd who didn't want blinis, so I made mini gluten free potato pancakes. I found a great recipe from chefsavvy.com and tweaked it a bit.

Gluten Free Mini Potato Pancakes


Here's What You Need:

2 Large russet potatoes peeled and shredded
1/4 cup shredded onion
2 whole eggs
1/4 cup gluten free flour
2 Tbs gluten free bread crumbs
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 Tbs olive oil

Here's What TO Do;

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Peel and shred the poatoes in a food processor.
Put the shredded potatoes in water for a few minutes to remove the excess starch and then pour them into a colander
Press the water out of them. Press hard, you want to get out as much moisture as you can so they crisp up well.
Add the onion to the colander and press the water out of that also
Mix the potato, onion, and eggs together in a large bowl
Add in the flour and breadcrumbs, mix this all together to combine but DO NOT overmix you want to keep stuff fluffy.
Fold in the salt, pepper, and Parmesan
line a baking sheet with parchment paper
Spread ! Tbs of olive oil over the paper with your bare hands
With your oiled hands shape the little potato pancakes and place them on the baking sheet.


Place them in the oven...


...and bake for about 20 -25 minutes or until they are golden, and crispy around the edges.


Dab them with the sour cream and add the lentil caviar.


Put it together and serve it up.


So there you have it....Champagne wishes, and "Caviar" dreams for mere pennies.
Coming up next , some refreshing Indian treats  for Summer. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori

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