Sometimes the first impression is completely wrong. I admit it. I was wrong. When I first look at Super Naturally Easy: Wholesome, Real-Life Vegetarian Recipes by Heidi Swanson, from whom I received a review copy, I wasn’t sure I’d be very interested. The first few pages I glimpsed had some very simple ideas like a bean salad made with canned beans and a few other ingredients, and packaged root vegetable chips that are heated in the oven and tossed with oil, scallions, and lemon zest. Maybe that day I was in the mood for more of a challenge? Once I started reading the book, and I do read all my cookbooks, I kept coming across dish after dish I wanted to make. I think I tried more recipes from this book than any other before it was first mentioned here. The recipes are streamlined, the ingredient lists are mostly pretty short, and there are things I will make again and again for years to come. One I’ve made a few times and wish I always had on hand is the Puffed Rice Party Mix, made with unsweetened rice granola, raw peanuts, raw cashews, raw pepti, coconut flakes, crumbled nori, and spices like turmeric. It’s a delicious and nutritious snack mix. The turmeric will stain your fingers when you eat it, but it’s so addictive you won’t mind. Or you can use a spoon. One of the other first recipes I tried was the Lemon Garlic Pita Chips and this was about as easy as it gets with the pita being cut into wedges and tossed with olive oil, minced garlic and lemon zest before tossing in the oven roasted. These chips were then sharded to garnish the coconut and asparagus soup, which was thickened with potatoes and brightened with lemon. The Weeknight Pot Stickers are another dish that I will return to often. Dumpling wrappers were filled with the Lemony Carrot Salad from The Best Salads chapter and crumbled tofu. They were then fried and steamed and served with ponzu and chili oil. I suspect the som tum noodles will also become a regular part of my meal. As promised in the top note, they were sweet, sour, salty, and hot. Rice noodles were simmered in water with turmeric, then tossed with cherry tomatoes, grated carrots, cucumber, chopped kale, herbs, and a tangy lime and soy dressing. And there are sweets too. I made the sunflower brittle because I was curious to see a recipe for a brittle without refined sugar. It’s just maple syrup and it was fantastic. After all the recipes I have already tried and more that are marked, I will then read the Power Pantry chapter. You’ll find staples like sauces, dressings, pickles, broths and seasoned salt etc. Here you’ll find some nutritional powerhouses like the Omega Seed Spread and Purple Jasmine Rice, Seeds and Spices. In this chapter I found the recipe for blackout beans and rice and the recommendation to use it in the onigiri found in a previous chapter. I had never made onigiri before and couldn’t wait to try it.
To start, black rice, black beluga lentils and black sesame seeds were rinsed in a colander and then transferred to a bowl. Water was added and the mixture was placed in the refrigerator to soak overnight. The next day, the mixture was placed in a saucepan, coconut milk and salt added, and boiled until the liquid was absorbed and the rice and lentils were cooked through. After cooling sufficiently to handle, the mixture was formed into triangles. And that’s when I decided that I want to have an onigiri press because I’ll definitely be making this and other versions in the future. In the book, the triangles were grilled and glazed with a harissa tamari sauce. I went with gochujang instead of harissa, and I grilled for fear the triangles might break and fall through the grill. They were served with a spring onion garnish and more glaze.
I don’t know why I had never tried making onigiri before, but I’m so glad I finally did. Forming the rice triangles was fun and I look forward to trying different variations. The surfaces were slightly toasted from the final cooking, and the glaze added a touch of flavor. With so many dishes I will make again and again and more to try, this book will become a staple in my kitchen.
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