Using Dried Fruit - The Vegetarian Resource Group

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Foodservice UpdateHealthy Tips and Recipes for Institutions from The Vegetarian Resource GroupQuick-and-Easy, Lower Budget VeganItems to Serve in Institutional SettingsBy Chef Nancy Berkoff, RD, EdDACCORDING TO LT. SHEILA LEJEUNE, MS, RD,food service director of Lafayette Parish CorrectionalCenter in Louisiana, her departmentserves at least 1,000 inmates per meal for approximately$2 a day. Lt. LeJeune has been with the facility for morethan 24 years, having been hired after a federal inmatewho did not receive requested diabetic meals won a1982 lawsuit against the Lafayette Sheriff’s Department.In addition to the diabetic meals, Lt. LeJeune attemptsto offer nutritionally complete meals for inmates whofollow special dietary patterns. Since time and budgetare limited, many menu items are prepared so they fulfillthe requirements of several different dietary patterns.LeJeune’s focus is to try to keep food costs lowwhile running a safe and sanitary food facility andoffering high-quality meals. With 10 food service personneland 20 inmates assisting, the department servesapproximately a million meals each year. Of these mealsabout 160,000 are special diets, including diabetic,low-salt, bland, modified consistency, pregnancy, renal,and vegetarian.Menus are planned so inmates receive approximately3,000 calories per day. Inmate employees can havedouble portions if desired, plus additional food itemsand coffee. There is also a canteen where inmates canpurchase additional foods.VEGETARIAN IN A MINUTEWe know that institutional meal preparation and servingtime is short and budgets limited. Vegetarian menuitems can still be easy to prepare and to serve, and theymay be acceptable to the general population as well asthe vegetarian population. Here are some suggestionsfor fast, lower-budget vegan menu items.ENTRÉESThree-Bean Tamale Pie: Alternate three types ofcooked beans with salsa, top with prepared vegan cornbreadmix, and bake. If cornbread is usually preparedwith dairy and/or eggs, substitute seasoned mashedpotatoes. (The seasoning could include dried parsley,ground black or white pepper, and garlic powder.)Chili Sauté: Add chopped bell peppers, onions,and garlic to three- or four-bean chili, and sauté orbake. Serve over steamed rice, vegetarian cornbread,or mashed potatoes.Veggie Shepherd’s Pie: Top vegetable stew—a mixture of carrots, celery, onions, and mushroomsor mixed vegetables combined with cooked beans—with prepared mashed potatoes and bake.Pasta Bake: Combine cooked pasta with tomatosauce, chopped tomatoes, and diced mushrooms.Season with ground basil and oregano and bake.Lentil Stew: Combine cooked lentils with cooked,quartered steamed potatoes; cooked carrot slices; dicedcelery; and chopped tomatoes. Season with pepper anddill, and simmer until ready to serve.Veggie-Size: Serve veggie burgers topped with vegetarianchili and chopped veggies. Serve on a hamburgerbun or toasted bread.Burrito Wrap: Fill a large tortilla with mashed beans,sliced chilies, chopped tomatoes or salsa, and slicedonions. Heat in the oven or microwave and serve hot.26 Issue Three 2008 VEGETARIAN JOURNAL
SIDE DISHESGarlic Mashed Potatoes: Prepare mashed potatomix with hot water and vegan margarine, which containsno dairy ingredients. Add granulated garlic.Herbed Potatoes: Coat small, cooked potatoes withvegetable oil spray. Toss with dried herbs, and bakeuntil crisp.Refried Beans: Mash cooked pinto or black beanswith sautéed onions and bell peppers. Steam or baketo heat.O’Brien Potatoes: Add diced peppers, choppedonions, and cut corn to hash browns. Bake to heat.Rice Pilaf: Sauté cooked rice in a small amount ofvegetable oil or steam in vegetable broth or water. (Youcan use water that has been drained from cooked vegetables.)Garnish with cooked peas, carrots, mushrooms,and chopped nuts.DESSERTSPeach or Cherry Cobbler: Top frozen or cannedpie filling with strips of vegan pie crust, chopped nuts,and raisins, and bake.Baked Apple: Stuff cored apples with raisins andground cinnamon. Sweeten with orange juice concentrate,and bake.Apple Bread Pudding: Combine shredded rolls andbread with apple pie filling, and bake. (Use applesaucefor additional moisture.)Fruit Compote: Stew dried fruit (such as raisins,apricots, prunes, and apples) with peeled, sliced applesand pears. Season with cinnamon, mace, and lemonzest. Serve hot or chilled.THINK VERSATILITYVegetarian ingredients are versatile and adapt easilyto different dishes. Canned or cooked lentils can bemashed with stewed eggplant or zucchini, fresh tomatoes,onions, and garlic and then used as a sandwichfilling. Tomato salsa can be a salad dressing, the flavoringfor soup, and an ingredient in casseroles. Orangeor apple juice concentrate can flavor a salad dressingor marinade, replace sugar in baking recipes, or add‘zip’ to a sweet-and-sour sauce. Cooked black beanscan be tossed in salads, simmered in soups, baked intobreads, or smashed into spreads, or they can stand ontheir own, garnished with sliced onions.THINK EFFICIENCYDevelop time-saving production techniques for preparingvegetarian and non-vegetarian menu items. Forexample, preparing steamed vegetables with nonhydrogenatedvegan margarine rather than butter or usingvegetable stock or base rather than meat stock meansmaking only one batch for everyone. Purchase cannedvegetarian refried beans (for the same price as the nonvegetarianvariety), canned fruit packed in juice orwater, and frozen fruit processed without sugar.Sysco food service, a national purveyor, carries theMoonrose line of vegetarian products. Many of theseitems are helpful for vegetarian quantity feeding, includingsoy pasta and several veggie meats that can be usedfor vegan meatballs, ‘steaks,’ and chops.DRESS UP THAT GREEN SALADGreen salads are cool, crisp, and receptive tochange. Build a basic salad with head and leaflettuce and red and green cabbage. Then, addingredients to create fast vegetarian entrées orside dishes.As an entrée, add:• Cold black, white, kidney, or red beans• Cold lentils tossed with mushrooms andtomatoes• Smoked, barbecued, baked, or grilled tofu• Sliced veggie deli meats• Bean and salsa combinations• Hummus and olive combinations• Grilled eggplant• Grilled or marinated mushrooms• Cold vegetarian ravioli or tortellini• Chopped walnuts or peanutsAs a side dish, add:• Green and wax beans• Cut corn• Shredded carrots, beets, zucchini, and/orcrookneck squash• Chopped onions, radishes, tomatoes, garlic,and/or olives• Chopped pickled vegetables• Sliced marinated or fresh mushrooms• Chopped nuts, such as walnuts, peanuts, orcashews, or pumpkin and sesame seedsVEGETARIAN JOURNAL Issue Three 2008 27
Page 1 and 2: VOLUME XXVII, NO 3Fast Sandwich Spr
Page 3: MANAGING EDITOR: Debra WassermanSEN
Page 6 and 7: Dried FruitTreasures to Savor All Y
Page 9 and 10: APPLE-CARROT-CELERYSALAD WITH DRIED
Page 11 and 12: An Update on RennetBy Jeanne Yacoub
Page 13 and 14: no cheese made with microbially-der
Page 15 and 16: • Road’s End Organics Cheddar S
Page 17 and 18: NUTRITIONAL CONTENT OF VEGANCHEESE
Page 19 and 20: NUTRITIONAL CONTENT OF VEGANCHEESE
Page 21 and 22: whole grain cold cereal; thinly sli
Page 23 and 24: When you eat out, do you ALWAYS ord
Page 25: link between childhood dairy intake
Page 29 and 30: BAKED ONIONS(Makes 50 portions)Fift
Page 31 and 32: THE ASIANVEGANKITCHENBy Hema Parekh
Page 33 and 34: VRG CatalogBooksMeatless Meals for
Page 35 and 36: IDON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU, BUT WHEN I

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