The Coolhaus Ice Cream Book | Natasha Case & Freya Estreller | Talks at Google | Summary and Q&A

TL;DR

Martha Rose Shulman discusses the importance of vegetarian main dishes and shares her recipes for a seasoned wilted greens frittata and a mushroom ragout.

Key Insights

• 🧫 Vegetarian main dishes have not received enough attention in the culinary world, leading Martha Rose Shulman to create a book focused on these dishes.
• 💚 Building blocks, like seasoned wilted greens or a mushroom ragout, can be used in various dishes and templates, making vegetarian cooking more accessible.
• 😃 Vegetarian dishes can be customized to dietary preferences, such as making big bowls completely vegan or adding animal protein if desired.
• 💦 Blanching greens in boiling water and then squeezing out the water helps improve the texture and prevent excess moisture in dishes.
• 🍄 Mushroom broth, made by soaking dried porcini mushrooms, can serve as a flavorful base for vegetarian dishes that would traditionally use meat broth.
• 🌾 Mixing different grains, like quinoa and rice, adds variety, texture, and nutritional value to dishes.
• 🤗 Preparing ingredients in advance and having them on hand can make vegetarian cooking more convenient and time-efficient.

Transcript

[APPLAUSE] MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN: Hi, everybody. I don't know if you're familiar with my work. I write the "Recipes for Health" column as well on newyorktimes.com. And I have been writing vegetarian cookbooks for a long time. But I've always felt that attention hasn't really been paid enough to the vegetarian main dish. And so, with this book, I've c... Read More

Questions & Answers

Q: What inspired Martha Rose Shulman to create a book focused on vegetarian main dishes?

Martha Rose Shulman felt that vegetarian main dishes haven't received enough attention compared to meat-based dishes, so she wanted to create a language and templates for vegetarian main dishes.

Q: How can wilted greens be prepared quickly and efficiently?

Martha Rose Shulman recommends blanching the greens in boiling water for a short time and then squeezing out the excess water to prevent the final dish from becoming watery.

Q: Can the vegetable dishes be prepared in advance?

Yes, Martha Rose Shulman suggests blanching greens right after buying them from the market and storing them in the refrigerator for later use.

Q: What are some protein options for the vegetarian dishes?

Martha Rose Shulman suggests using high-protein grains like quinoa in the big bowl dish and using eggs in frittatas. She mentions that eggs are a complete protein and a versatile ingredient.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Martha Rose Shulman introduces her new book, which focuses on vegetarian main dishes, categorized into different types like frittatas and big bowls.

• She explains how to make a basic building block of seasoned wilted greens, which can be used in various dishes like frittatas, quiches, and tacos.

• She also demonstrates how to make a mushroom ragout, which can be used as a base for multiple dishes like risotto and big bowls.