The Best Thing to Ever Happen to a Vegan: Chickpea Cutlets & Roasted Veggies

This dish turned me vegan…literally.

After months of wanting to me the switch to vegan, I finally made the decision to really devote myself to it.  After working insane hours at work, missing yoga, and have a crazy eating schedule, I felt completely BLAH about my body, which hadn’t happened in years.  My fix for this?  Be vegan.  Cutting out the temptations for comforting cheese and sneaking chocolate from the office candy jar seemed like the perfect way to transition into a life without meat AND dairy.  I’m committing absolutely to a month (Jim maybe a week) to see how it goes.  Having a goal makes this seem more attainable, and I really have no doubt that I can do it for the long haul.  Having always been lactose intolerant , and not adhereing to it since I love cheese so much, I really am anxious to see if I can see a difference in how I look and feel.  Plus, Daiya is really starting to grow on me.

And this dish.  These cutlets.  I was absolutely ecstatic as I tossed them into the frying pan because they looked SO much like chicken and have the same texture, yet taste WAY better.  You would have thought I won a million bucks the way I was jumping up and down in excitement over this dish.  Way back when, Jim and I had a biweekly habit of raoasting a whole chciken with tons of veggies and when I enjoyed meat, it was heaven.  This dish brought us back to that and I’m excited to use it more often and reincoporate it in place of fabulous chicken dishes we used to make.

Chickpea cutlets are seriously a thing of miracles.

FOR THE CUTLETS

2 cups cooked chickpeas

1 cup vital wheat gluten floour (you NEED this. If you dont have it, go out and find it!)

1 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs

1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for frying

1/2 cup vegetable broth

1 tbsp tahini

5 cloves garlic, minced

Zest of 1/2 a lemon

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp dried thyme

1/4 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp black pepper

FOR THE ROAST

1 butternut squash, cubed

2 VERY large sweet potatoes ( we had massive ones from the winter farmer’s market, but use 3 if you’ve got small ones), cubed

6 Yukon gold potatoes, cubed (about 3 cups)

3 carrots, sliced any way you want

1 large yellow onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

3 tbsp olive oil

3 tbsp white wine

3/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp dried thyme

1/4 tsp dried rosemary

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees
• Toss together vegetables for roast then pour oil and white wine over them and stir again
• Add garlic, salt, pepper, thyme and rosemary and mix again
• Transfer into 2 13 X 9 casserole dishes, and cover with foil
• Cook at 375 degrees for 45 minutes
• Meanwhile, for the cutlets, mash together olive oil and chickpeas, until it reaches a thick, creamy consistency
• Stir in the rest of the ingredients and mix (and knead) together until everything is absobred
• Heat a thin layer of oil onto a frying pan over medium heat
• Mold chickpea mix into cutlets, making sure they’re no more than 1/4 inch thick
• Add cutlets into oil and cook on medium heat for 6 minutes on each side, or until crispy and golden brown
• After the veggies have cooked for 45 minutes, remove foil, turn heat to 425 and cook for 20 more minutes
• Serve roasted vegetables over chickpea cutlets