When I was in university, I briefly flirted with vegetarianism. It was actually a fairly simple transition for me. I’ve always been more of a carb and cheese person than a meat person. But whenever any holiday approached, I would get lax in my resolve. I would bend the rules to allow a hunk of glazed ham here and a slice of prime rib there. I wasn’t proud of it but in my defense the vegetarian options on most holiday tables, well, suck. It’s not your host or hostess’s fault, by the way. For pretty much all of human history, feasts have been organized with roasted meats at the center. But making something festive and vegetarian-friendly doesn’t have to be a herculean effort and this Pinto Pot Pie proves that.
These Blistered Jalapeño White Bean Enchiladas were almost mac and cheese. Yes, when I first envisioned a cheesy, jalapeño-flecked cream sauce, I thought it was destined for a pot of tubular pasta. But when I got to the other side of the holidays, I found myself pasta-ed out. I do find it interesting that I was still game for cheese, in spite of inhaling quite a bit of it during the month of December. Clearly, when it comes to cheese consumption, I was built to persevere. But pasta and I needed a hiatus, so enchiladas it was. I have no doubt pasta and I will be reunited shortly.
Before we go any farther, I should tell you there is no meat in these “meatballs”. Yes, I know. Two vegetarian recipes in a row. No, I haven’t converted to a meat-free lifestyle. I’m still rocking the four veggie nights a week while hatching a Christmas plan that will likely include a porterhouse. I wrote extensively about my food philosophy in my last post, so I won’t get into it again today. But what I will do is tell you how freakin’ excellent this Spaghetti with Lentil Meatballs truly is. Yes, really. Yes, I know the name sounds like a sad vegan food joke from a 90s sitcom. But in spite of its descriptive name, this dish is not severely lacking in joy. Quite the opposite. I think it’s quite exuberant and I made a video to prove it to you.
No, your eyes do not deceive you, this is another Vietnamese cuisine appreciation post. I can’t stop waxing poetic about its wonderful sense of balance. The marriage of raw and charred, herbaceous and sour, sweet and salty. I just love it so much, I can’t believe I lived my first 25 years without it. But I did, so I will kick these Lemongrass Shrimp Vermicelli Bowls (bún tôm nướng) off with my usual disclaimer. This is not an authentic recipe, this is merely the recipe I have concocted over the past five years of making vermicelli salads or bún in my own home with only YouTube and Google to guide me. All this is to say I am not an expert, just a fangirl.
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