De.li.cious Cafe – Chicago, IL

If only I were a coffee-nerd.  I think I’d feel right at home at De.li.cious Cafe up in North Center if I enjoyed coffee as much as Kevin Porter does.  Because, the dude loves coffee.  He has that glimmer in his eye when he describes the Chemex system they have.  I had to nod my head as if I knew what he was talking about.  I have a Senseo machine at home that I got for free.  I don’t love coffee as much as Kevin Porter.  But I’m okay with that.

Even if you don’t love coffee, there’s still plenty to like about the small cafe that took over the old Stubbs stomping grounds.  The menu is simple and affordable, and between Kevin and his wife Chelsea there’s enough friendliness to go around.

The sandwiches are something your mom would make, from the easy grilled cheese, to the artery clogging PB&J with bananas.  I personally went for the tofu eggless egg salad.  I have a history with tofu versions of egg salads.  I don’t like most of them.  But I have to say, Chelsea succeeded where places like Whole Foods failed.  It wasn’t over seasoned, and relied mostly on the texture of the salad to win you over.  Mission accomplished.  Achievement unlocked.  I’m a fan.

The desserts are awesome;  brought in from the soon-to-open Fritz Pastry (www.twitter.com/fritzpastry).  We know the propieters-in-waiting for Fritz, so we expected nothing less.  The chocolate cake was absolutely delicious, sweet but not overly so.  The best part?  Treats like cupcakes aren’t 4 dollars a pop.  They’re actually affordable at TWO DOLLARS.  You can get TWO cupcakes for the price of one couture treat.  Spend 4 dollars and you get an ENTIRE cake slice.  Who ever heard of affordable pastries in this crazy couture world?

I can’t wait to see how De.li.cious grows.  There’s already talk of coffee tastings, but I’m interested to see if the menu expands.  I’d love to see some vegetarian soups to go along with the sandwiches.  It would be a great little lunch combo for vegetarians.

And how was the coffee?  Let me just say that Katie, avowed coffee hater, quite enjoyed the sip of my latte.  So that should say something.

Eggless Egg Salad

Recipe – Vegetarian “Beef” Stew

It’s currently the perfect storm of dismay that leads to so much comfort food being made in our home.  Whether it’s watching the world’s economy crumble, or whether it’s battling the below-freezing temperatures, there’s never been a greater yearning for dishes involving home-cooked memories, cheese or bread.  That probably explains my constant craving for pizza.

But, this past week I had a craving for something I haven’t had since I went vegetarian over 10 years ago, my mother’s beef stew.  I knew that I wouldn’t get a straight recipe from her.  The last time I tried, I got the usual, “I just throw things together” response that you usually get asking your mom for a recipe.  But, I took the basics of what she gave me along with some online research to create my own “beef” stew that I actually take pride in for being my first attempt.

The seitan recipe comes from Chicago Diner’s cookbook.  I recommend halving the actual recipe, because a full batch produced over 5 pounds of seitan the one time I cooked it.

Vegetarian “Beef” Stew
makes 7 – 16 oz. bowls

Ingredients

• 1 pound cubed seitan (see recipe below)
• 1-2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup chopped red onion
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 1/2 cups chopped carrots
• 1 1/2-2 cups chopped potatoes
• 2 can (10 1/2 ounces) condensed tomato soup
• 2 can (14.5 ounces) stewed tomatoes with juice
• 3/4 cup water
• 2 cup noodles
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 1/2 cups grated Cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 cups frozen peas

Brown the seitan in a large stew pot in hot oil over medium heat until heated through.  Add all ingredients except cheese and peas.  Cover and cook until potatoes and carrots are tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring often. Stir the grated cheese into the stew until cheese is melted.  Add the peas cooking until tender.  Serve.

Basic Gluten Recipe (from The Chicago Diner Cookbook)

about 5 1/2 pounds of cooked gluten

Ingredients

• 4 cups vital wheat gluten flour
• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 3 Tbsp nutritional yeast
• 2 Tbsp onion powder
• 1 1/2 Tbsp garlic powder
• 1 1/2 Tbsp salt
• 2 Tbsp Italian spices
• 2 1/4 cups warm water
• 1/4 cup tamari

For the seitan, mix the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl, then add the water and tamari, kneading well to combine.  The mixture should look like dough.  Knead about 10 minutes more, or until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl.  Let the dough rest for 15 minutes.  Cut into 4 pieces.

Fill a large pot with 5 quarts of water.  Add 3-4 bay leaves, several pieces of carrot and celery, and 3 cloves of garlic to the water.  Add the gluten pieces to the pot and boil about 1 1/2 hours.  The gluten will triple in size.

When done, the dough will be firm, not sticky.  Drain the liquid, discarding the vegetables, and store the seitan covered with cold water and a splash of tamair in a large container in the refrigerator.  After the seitan cools, it is ready to be cubed for the recipe.