I am so happy to introduce Fran Costigan, “the Diva of Dairy-Free Desserts,” as a judge for Veggie Conquest #3!

Fran is a nationally recognized pastry chef and instructor, cookbook author and consultant.

Her second cookbook, “More Great Good Dairy-free Desserts”, has  recipes from cookies to cakes to pies to sauces to confections, plus conversion charts and tips on getting started and organizing your kitchen.

Photo by Ryan James

DJ Lil Ray is a fresh transplant from Atlanta. She is a master on the turntables and a music goddess. She is also a bike mechanic, an activist and, oh yeah, a vegan! Her first gig in NYC will be Veggie Conquest #3. We are so excited to welcome her to NYC and thrilled she will be providing VC3 with tunes! Check out her website!

Mattie Hagedorn is the man we have to thank for Veganbaking.net, where you can upload and share your own baking recipes, compare notes, get ideas for good eats and share knowledge!

Mattie became vegan 11 years ago. He began his baking obsession a year later, after an uncontrollable craving of something, anything, involving chocolate and coconut. Mattie started a bakery, Enchanted Oven Baking Co., which sold organic vegan cookies to stores in the San Francisco Bay Area until 2005. Then Mattie moved to Brooklyn and started Veganbaking.net!

Mattie is also an IT consultant. He enjoys cycling, home brewing and traveling.

This recipe was created and cooked by Steven Carpenter for Challenge #2! He won first place and tasters’ choice! Thanks so much, Steven, for sharing this amazing recipe!!

Sara and Sarma Photography

Smoked chili buttercup squash-stuffed zucchini blossoms with pumpkin seed crema

(makes about 20 blossoms)

INGREDIENTS

20 large, very fresh zucchini blossoms, gently rinsed and dried.
10 extra blossoms can be used for garnish if you want to get fancy.

For the squash filling:
1 buttercup squash
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 plum tomatoes
1/2 of one red bell pepper
1 jalapeño
1 clove of garlic minced
1 tablespoon cilantro
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 dried ancho chili
1 dried New Mexico chili

For the wet batter:
1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds (soaked at least 6 hours in 1 cup water)
3/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon agave nectar
vanilla

For the dry batter:
2 cups white all purpose flour
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried chili flakes
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Canola or safflower oil for frying

For the crema:
1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds (soaked at least 6 hours in 1 cup water)
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon ground chipotle chili
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon agave nectar
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
a pinch of mustard powder
a pinch of black pepper
a dash of Mexican hot sauce (I use Valentina brand)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to broil.
2. Broil the whole tomatoes, 1/2 bell pepper (laid flat with skin side up), and jalapeño.  Turn tomatoes and jalapeño frequently, and remove when skin blisters and begins to blacken. Remove red bell pepper when skin has completely blackened.  Set aside to cool.
3. Lower oven to 400º.
4. Cut the buttercup squash in half, brush cut ends with olive oil, and place cut end down on a baking sheet.
5. Roast squash in oven for 40 minutes.
6. While squash is roasting heat a skillet over a high flame.  When hot, toast the ancho and New Mexico chili by pressing the chilies onto the skillet for about 15 seconds per side, they should make a popping sound.  Place in a bowl of cold water and let stand for 30-60 minutes.
7. To prepare the wet batter and crema, drain and rinse the soaking pumpkin seeds.
8. To make the wet batter, combine 1/4 cup of pumpkin seeds, 3/4 cup water, 1/2 teaspoon agave nectar, and a couple drops of vanilla.  Blend into a smooth liquid. Set aside.
9. To make the crema, combine 1/2 cup of the soaked pumpkin seeds, 1/2 cup water, 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon ground chipotle chili, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon agave nectar, 1 teaspoon fine sea salt, a pinch of mustard powder, a pinch of black pepper, and a dash of Mexican hot sauce in a blender or food processor and blend until very smooth and creamy.  Place in a zip lock bag and set aside in refrigerator.
10. Remove squash from oven and let cool.
11. While squash is cooling, remove the skin from the tomatoes, red pepper, and the skin and seeds from the jalapeño.  Chop the tomatoes, red bell pepper, and 1/2 of the jalapeño (or more to taste).  Place chopped vegetables in a blender or food processor and add the clove of minced garlic, 1 tablespoon cilantro, 1/2 teaspoon coriander, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1 teaspoon cumin.  Blend until smooth.  Set aside.
12. Remove the flesh of the squash.
13. Add 1/2 of the squash and 1/2 of the spiced roasted vegetables to a food processor.  Blend until very smooth and place in a large mixing bowl.  Repeat with the other 1/2 of the squash and vegetables.
14. Remove the seeds from the the ancho and New Mexico chili.  Place the chilies in a blender  or food processor and blend into a smooth paste.
15. Add 1 small teaspoon of the chili paste at a time to the squash mixture, tasting after each teaspoon, until desired heat is reached (you will have extra chili paste).  Then add the squash mixture to a large zip lock bag (you can use a pastry bag if you have one).
16. To make the dry batter, combine the 2 cups white all purpose flour, 1 tablespoon dried oregano, 1 tablespoon dried thyme, 1/2 teaspoon dried chili flakes, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper to a large mixing bowl.  Mix until spices are evenly distributed.
17. Cut a small hole in one corner of the squash mixture bag and squeeze 1-3 tablespoons of the squash mixture into each zucchini blossom (depending on the size of the blossom), pinching/twisting the ends closed.
18. In a large wok or pan, heat about 1-1/2 inches of canola or safflower oil to 350-375º.  (You can also pan fry the blossoms in 1/4-1/2 inch of oil in a skillet.
19. Lay out the squash blossoms, wet batter, and dry batter on the counter.  Heat the oven to 200º and place a cooling rack in the oven.
20. Roll the blossoms in the dry batter, shake off excess flour, dip in the wet batter, shake off any excess, then roll again in the dry batter.
21. Gently place as many blossoms as will fit in your wok or pan (leaving at least 1/2 inch between each blossom), and fry for 4-5 minutes, turning after about 3 minutes, until golden brown and crispy.
22. Use tongs to gently transfer the fried blossoms to the cooling rack in the oven.
23. Once all the blossoms have been fried, remove from oven, top each with a few zig-zags of the crema, and serve immediately. (For a nice presentation place one of two of the fries blossoms on top of a fresh blossom.)

Thanks again to our capacity crowd on Saturday night! Big thanks to our volunteers, sponsors, and especially the amazingly talented amateur chefs! They made amazing food!! You can check out the really cool video and write-up that vegansaurus.com did about VC#2. They interviewed all the chefs about their dishes.

And thanks to Sara and Sarma Photography for taking pictures! Music (mix tape) provided by DJ lil Ray!

The crowd at VC#2

From left, Veggie Conquest founder and organizer Jessica Mahady, emcee Joshua Katcher, and judges Deborah Gavito, Amy Lynn Herman and Michael Parrish DuDell.

Joshua Katcher with chef Lloyd Hicks.

And the winners are …

First Place and Taster Choice!
Steven Carpenter
Smoked Chili Buttercup Squash Filled Zucchini Blossoms

Second Place:
Cathy Resler
Squash Stuffed Mushrooms

Third Place:
Lloyd Hicks
Squash Chips With Watermelon Salsa

Honorable Mention:
Casey Shively
Butter-Nutty Squash Dip

Our second course included delicious food made by our volunteers, and Sweet & Sara provided us all with yummy vegan marshmallows, smores, and Rocky Road Bark!

Sweet and Sara’s Marshmallows

Sweet and Sara’s Rocky Road Bark

A shout-out to our sponsors for this event:

We can’t wait for Challenge #3!! Check back soon or sign up for our email alerts (over on the right side) to learn when our next Veggie Conquest will take place. Date will be announced soon!

(source)

Squash

All chefs will make an appetizer featuring squash!

This is the one time of year that we have both summer and winter squash available! There are so many kinds of squash and so many parts of a squash that can be used … so be creative, chefs!

If you are attending the event, check your inbox for details!

See you Saturday!!

We are so happy to announce our third and final judge for Challenge #2, Michael Parrish DuDell!

Michael Parrish DuDell is the senior editor for Ecorazzi.com, the co-founder and editor-in-chief of VEGdaily.com and a contributor for the Huffington Post and Crazy Sexy Life. Michael is starting Project: Green Hero, a multimedia website showcasing the work of local green individuals, groups and businesses throughout the world, and he plans a 50-state Green Hero Tour in 2010.

Michael joins Amy Lynn Herman and Deborah Gavito to complete our panel of judges for Challenge #2!

New York has Deborah Gavito to thank for Counter, the wonderful and classy vegetarian bistro and organic bar, in the East Village. Counter is an independently owned, sole proprietorship serving vegetarian and vegan cuisine since 2002.

Deborah got her start in New York City seventeen years ago with $300 in her pocket, bartering for kitchen space and a borrowed car to lug around her 50-pound bags of flour. The result was Body & Soul, the vegan baked goods stand at the Union Square Greenmarket. The success of Body & Soul, which continues to be a staple at the Greenmarket, eventually generated the capital to open Counter.

This fall Deborah is relaunching Counter. The new team behind the launch is General Manager Joseph Lennon, from Restaurant Florent; Chef Whitney Aycock; Mixologist Penny Bittone; and Elena Balletta, one of the very best vegan pasty chefs anywhere. Counter has enhanced its Earth-friendly vibe with Chef Aycock’s new small plates menu featuring local, sustainable and organic vegetables that mesh perfectly with Counter’s first class organic bar featuring: 300 organic and biodynamic wines, and every organic beer and spirit available.

We are very excited to have Deborah join our wonderful panel of  judges for Challenge# 2!

Amy Lynn Herman founded a secret vegan bakery in Bloomington, Indiana, called The Bake Easy. Every couple of weeks, 40-70 people gather to socialize and enjoy everything from buckeyes to cupcakes and desserts from around the world. Informed by Facebook, flyers and word of mouth, people come far and wide to try Amy’s famous treats.

One time, she turned her entire house into a fort using 30 pounds of table cloth that she borrowed from work. People entered the house standing and had to crawl their way to the kitchen! The desire for vegan cupcakes is fierce, she can attest.*

Some Bake Easy treats: Watermelon-jalapeno popsicles, avocado bubble tea, cherry-plum vanilla pie, lavender-rosewater cupcakes with coconut frosting, ginger cupcakes with peach amaretto coconut frosting, Mexican hot chocolate cupcakes with horchata frosting, Earl Grey cupcakes with orange frosting, raspberry cupcakes with mint frosting,  lemon bars with coconut cashew crust, orange-carrot cupcakes with date and marzipan frosting, and the Midwest staple Buckeyes as big as golf balls.

Any Lynn is in Ghana working on organic certification for a shea butter company. She is passing though NYC for a short time, and we are so excited that she will be a judge for Challenge #2!

* We promise that the food at Veggie Conquest will be easily accessible.

Thanks to the sellout crowd of tasters and a very special thanks to all the chefs for making such wonderful food! A big thank you to our judges and especially our volunteers. We had a wonderful time and are looking forward to the next one!

Our wonderful sponsors for this event:

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Here is are the winners and what they made:

First place, Julie Tran: Baked Apple & Seitan Phyllo Purse.
See Julie’s recipe here.

Second place, Michelle Barton: Pink Lady Linguine

Third place, Jessica Gunter: Curried Apple Stew with Couscous

Tasters’ choice, Jennifer Lynskey: Rustic Apple, Zucchini, Eggplant Ravioli.
See Jennifer’s recipe here.

Be sure to read our judge Kathy Patalsky’s great writeup about the event on her blog…

Hope you will all join us next month, on Sept. 26! Tickets will be on sale this week!!

And now, a few pictures from the event …

Apple, the secret ingredient!

(photo by HHL)

Judges’ Table

(photo by HHL)

(photo by HHL)

Cookie from Gone Pie!!

(photo by HHL)

Judges Kathy Patalsky, Joshua Katcher and Brian Preston-Campbell, and Jessica

(photo by HHL)