I adore Paris. When I need to assuage my longing for this lovely city, I serve my family assiettes (referring to a generous platter of a number of components) like those typically served in the city’s vegetarian restaurants. The menus of these restaurants are not as extensive or innovative as those in the United States or Britain, but they do offer delicious, fresh food prepared with French flair. Seitan is a common offering. This one is an amalgam of seitan dishes I enjoyed at Le Potager du Marais, near the Georges Pompidou Center, and Les Cinq Saveurs D’Ananda in the Latin Quarter. For tips on creating Parisian-style assiettes, see the box preceding the recipe.

　　

Ingredients

4 servings

　　1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

　　2 medium onions, halved and thinly sliced

　　1 pound seitan, cut into bite-size pieces

　　8 to 10 ounces cremini or baby bella mushrooms, sliced

　　1/4 cup dry white or red wine

　　2 tablespoons unbleached white flour

　　1/2 cup rice milk, plus more if needed

　　1/2 cup plain Silk creamer

　　2 teaspoons sweet paprika

　　Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

　　

Step 1

Heat the oil in a wide skillet. Add the onions and sauté over medium heat until translucent. Add the seitan and mushrooms, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are golden brown and the seitan is browned here and there. Pour in the wine and stir.

　　

Step 2

Place the flour in a small bowl. Use some of the rice milk to dissolve the flour into a smooth paste. Add the remaining rice milk, dissolved flour, and Silk creamer to the skillet and stir together. Stir in the paprika and cook over low heat for 5 minutes longer.

　　

Step 3

If the sauce becomes too thick, thin with a little additional rice milk. Season with salt and pepper and serve at once.

　　

Menu Suggestions

Step 4

To extend the Parisian theme, serve with Salade Janine (page 187) as a first course, then follow with the seitan dish and an easy side dish of broccoli, asparagus, or Brussels sprouts. See suggestions under My Favorite Simple Vegetable Side Dishes (page 203).

　　

Step 5

This dish also pairs well with cooked grains of your choice (see Easy Ways to Dress Up Grains, page 95), potatoes, or sweet potatoes. A combination of sweet and white potatoes, sautéed in olive oil, is good with this. Complete the meal with a simple salad of greens and tomatoes.

　　

nutrition information

Step 6

Calories: 313

　　

Step 7

Total Fat: 11g

　　

Step 8

Protein: 33g

　　

Step 9

Carbohydrates: 20g

　　

Step 10

Fiber: 4g

　　

Step 11

Sodium: 615mg

　　Reprinted with permission from Vegan Express: Featuring 160 Recipes for Quick, Delicious, and Healthy Meals by Nava Atlas. Copyright © 2008 by Nava Atlas. Excerpted by permission of Broadway, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.Nava Atlas is the author of nine cookbooks, including The Vegetarian Family Cookbook, The Vegetarian 5-Ingredient Gourmet, and Vegetarian Soups for All Seasons. She lives in the Hudson Valley region of New York with her husband and two teenage sons (all vegans).