Ingredients

* 1 1/2 tbsp Nama Shoyu/Braggs Liquid Aminos
* 1 1/2 tbsp Ume Plum Vinegar (if you have it) or Apple Cider Vinegar *
* 1 tbsp Agave Nectar
* 2 tsp Sesame Oil
* 1/4 tsp Grated Ginger
* 1 pinch Asafoetida or 1 clove Garlic **

* 1 zucchini – chopped
* 1 carrot – chopped
* 1/2 head broccoli – chopped
* 1 bellpepper – chopped
* 1 cup pealed and chopped sunchokes ***
* 1 cup peanuts

* 1/4 head iceberg lettuce

Directions

Lets see how short I can make this (just to show you how simple this really is):

Put chopped vegetables, except lettuce, and peanuts into a bowl.  Mix in the rest of the ingredients.  Let sit and marinate for 15-20 minutes.  Serve over lettuce as pictured.  Eat it and enjoy!

Notes

* Ume Plum Vinegar can be hard to find raw, and its very expensive.  So if you don’t mind normal ume plum vinegar, use it, otherwise ACV works just fine.
** Asafoetida is a powdered spice available in most Indian grocery stores.  It is used as a replacement for garlic, because garlic (along with onion) is considered to be rajsaic.
*** Sunchokes are a native American vegetable that for some reason haven’t really caught on in their home country.  I usually find mine at Trader Joes.

–Rishi

As the first order of business for this post, I would like to announce the opening of the Roshi’s Online Store.  As our very first product, we will be selling incense sticks (known as agarbathies in India) which I brought back from India this summer.  The incense sticks are hand made by the Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry, India.  The Aurobindo Ashram is well known for its support of cottage industries (industries made by hand, in a home and not a factory), like production of incense sticks, textiles, artwork, etc.  I brought back a bunch of these incense sticks for myself because they smelled so wonderful and they are made with all natural ingredients. For more information on the incense, you can visit the Auroshikha website.  Then head over to our store to pick up a batch.

Chaat it up Pizza

So I actually started this recipe with something completely different in mind, which ended up not working out like I wanted it too (I would of had to use a dehydrator to get it just right, and you all know how Ro and I dislike waiting for food).  After playing around with what I had made, I thought I would go for more of a fusion feel on this one.  The idea of pizza popped into my head, and so the chaat it up pizza was born.  I actually wasn’t sure if it would taste good until I took a bite, and wow! what a bite. 

For those of you who are unfamiliar with chaat (literally meaning to lick or to taste), this should be a good introduction.  Chaat is style of Indian snack food, mostly found in the north of India, and consists of all of my favorite Indian dishes.  Chaat usually consists of a variety of cracker like snacks, topped yogurt, tamarind chutney, yogurt, and basically every spice known to man.  The result is an explosion of flavors you probably didn’t know was possible and a stomach that will likely be angry with you for submitting it to such a concoction.  Luckily, this dish should give you all of those wonderful flavors without the resulting gas problems.  Hope you all enjoy it!

Ingredients

Crust:
* You’re favorite raw cracker/bread (should be hardy enough to hold all of toppings – I use Wheat-Free crusts from Mauk Family Farm’s)

1st layer:
* 3 handfuls cashew
* 2 medium tomatoes

2nd layer:
* 2 carrots
* 2 zucchini
* 4 sticks broccoli
* 1 medium tomato 
* 1 teaspoon coriander powder
* 1 teaspoon cumin powder
* 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
* 1 1/2 tablespoon Nama Shoyu/Braggs Liquid Aminos/Soy Sauce
* 2 handfuls walnut pieces

3rd layer:
* sliced tomato
* chaat masala (I prefer MDH’s Chunky Chaat Masala – available at your local Indian grocery store)

Directions

1st layer:
In a food processor, put all of your cashews and just 1/2 of a tomato.  Keep adding more tomato until the juices from the tomato makes the mixture mildly smooth and sauce like.  If you have any tomato leftover, you can use it for the 2nd layer. That’s it for step 1.

2nd layer:
Grate carrots, zucchini, broccoli, and tomato into a large mixing bowl.  Then add coriander, cumin, turmeric, Nama Shoyu, and walnuts pieces.  Let the mixture sit for a bit so all the juices have time to mix together.

Assembly:
Take one slice of crust, and spread tomato-cashew mixture on top as the 1st layer.  Then, top with the vegetable mixture for layer 2.  Place thinly sliced tomatoes on top of the vegetable mixture, and, finally, dust the top of the pizza with chaat masala.  Chaat masala has a very strong taste, so first add a little to see how much you’d like to add.  I personally love spiced up food so I like to add a bit more than a dusting, but it’s up to you.  After that, all you gotta do is take a bite and enjoy it!

–Rishi

(click for more views and to enlarge)

Ingredients

Orange Glaze:
3 oz fresh squeezed Orange Juice
1 tablespoon agave nectar
1/2 tsp cinammon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup cashews
1 small piece ginger

Filling:
2 carrots, grated
1 tomato, finely diced
4-5 mushrooms, finely diced
1 cup spinach, finely diced
1 cup cashews
1 cup walnuts
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1 sprig, mint leaves
1 1/2 tablespoon Braggs Liquid Aminos

Wrap:
1 head of cabbage

Directions

Take all the ingredients for the glaze and just throw them into the food processor.  Let it run for a few minutes until the mixture gets real smooth.  That’s it for the glaze.

For the filling, take the carrots, mushrooms, spinach, and tomatoes and put them in a large bowl.  Next, put the nuts, cumin, coriander, and Liquid Aminos into the food processor, and just pulse it a few times or until you see spices are evenly distributed through the nuts.  Take the nut mixture and put it into the large bowl with the vegetables.  Mix everything together.   Grab your head of cabbage, and cut it in half.  Then peel off one leaf at a time, fill it with the veggie mix, and top with the orange glaze and a few sprigs of mint.  I told you it would be simple!

(click for more views and to enlarge)

Ingredients:

* Mustardaise (click for recipe)
* 1/2 of one onion
* 1 tomato
* 1 avocado
* 5 button mushrooms
* 1 leaf lettuce (whatever kind your favorite is)
* salt
* pepper
* 1 slice of raw cheese (non-vegans only)
* 2 pieces of your favorite raw crust

Directions:

The directions for this one are extraordinarily simple.  Mash up the avocados with a bit of salt and pepper.  Slice everything else up like you would for a sandwich.  Put a nice thick layer of my Mustardaise on both of the crusts, and sprinkle some salt and pepper on one side.  For a little extra kick, sprinkle on some red chili pepper too.  Finally, layer everything else on and you are done!  Enjoy it!

Ingredients

* 2 cups cashews
* 4 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
* 2 tbsp Braggs Liquid Aminos
* 4 tbsp Olive Oil
* 1/2  tsp Turmeric powder
* 1 tbsp Black Mustard Seeds

Directions

Put the cashews, vinegar, liquid aminos, and olive oil into the food processor.  Once the cashews have visibly ground up a bit, add water slowly until the mixture becomes thick and creamy.  The longer you let the food processor go, the more smooth it will become.  Add the turmeric and mustard seeds, and let the processor go until the yellow color is even.  Finished!