For those of you who have never had Seitan before, this may seem like a very strange idea for a Holiday dinner. If you have an intolerance to gluten, stay away from this dish as seitan is made from Vital Wheat Gluten, which is the protein derived from wheat. If you don’t have an intolerance, try this out! Although it can be finicky to roll out, seitan is made easily from a combination of ingredients that you can customize to your taste. It is also an excellent source of protein and can stand in as the main entrée at any meal.
I thought about turning this into a ‘turducken’ with tofu, tempeh and seitan but ended up with the following recipe instead. Originally I thought that I was really clever in coming up with the idea to do so but I googled it and there are a couple of vegan versions out there. Who knows, maybe I’ll do that another day and give you a recipe! 😉
The glaze recipe that follows could really be used on a variety of food such as Tempeh or Tofu or maybe brushed onto vegetables as well.
I tried to make it look pretty but I don't think that it was possible. It tastes good though!
Seitan Roulade with Cranberry Persimmon Glaze
Adapted from here, here and here.
Cranberry Persimmon Glaze:
- 1/8 cup chopped onions
- 1 cup raw cranberries
- 1/2 cup vegetable broth
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
- 1/4 cup persimmon pulp
- 1/4 cup agave/other liquid sweetener
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
– Preheat oven to 400°F.
– In a baking dish, combine onions through ginger and roast until the cranberries begin to pop open and the juices thicken (about 30 minutes).
Before Blending
– Remove from oven and stir in persimmon pulp and liquid sweetener. Add soy sauce, to taste. Using an immersion blender, blend well. Set aside (Note: some of the tanginess from the balsamic vinegar subsides as it sits).
After Blending
Seitan:
- 1 cup vital wheat gluten
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon poultry spice
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 3/4 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/3 cup vegetable broth
- 1/3 cup almond milk
- 1 teaspoon oil
- 1/4 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- Stuffing of choice (for instance, the quinoa mushroom stuffing from yesterday’s post!).
- Additional 1/2 cup vegetable broth
– Reduce/Preheat oven to 350°F.
– Reserving the 1/2 cup vegetable broth, mix wet and dry ingredients separately, and then add the wet to the dry. You may not use all of the liquid so add it slowly until the seitan is holds together.
– Stretch the seitan into a rectangular shape (or as close to a rectangle as possible!) and spread a layer of the glaze onto it, leaving space near the edges. Then, add the stuffing of your choice and fold the seitan until you can seal the edges.
– Place the seitan into a baking dish (I used a cast-iron skillet) seam-side down. Pour the 1/2 cup reserved vegetable broth over it and baste with the glaze. Bake, uncovered, for 40-45 minutes, turning over halfway through. Continue basting throughout the cooking time so that the seitan doesn’t dry out (about every 10 minutes or so).
– Remove the seitan, baste again with glaze and serve.
Don’t get trampled at the grocery store if you run out to get last-minute ingredients (because I know you want to make this)!
Twin Taste 