Horizons in Philadelphia and Food Network Friday News!

Recently, we made a quick trip to Philadelphia. The reason we went is because Jim had a work meeting there, but the highlight was definitely dinner at Horizons.

If you haven't been there, it's a small restaurant with what looks like a lot of wait staff. I mean that in the best possible way. We tend not to be high-maintenance customers, but there's no question we would have been well attended if we were. Jim's water glass was kept full, which doesn't happen often in restaurants. We placed our order, and were served delicious foccacia with a garlic oil on the side. Because the restaurant isn't brightly lit, these pictures aren't either.




For appetizers, I ordered the Moroccan Tempeh Tacos with a garbanzo crust, harissa glaze, and a most unusual grilled green onion slaw. I liked them a lot but I liked Jim's Jamaican BBQ Seitan with jicama slaw (soooo good!) and smoked chipotle dip even more. Their seitan is unlike any I've ever had. I've tried to explain it to a few people as being somewhat softer and almost shredded, but nothing I say really does it justice.

Moroccan Chickpea Crusted Tempeh Tacos

Jamaican BBQ Seitan

Jim ordered the Pacific Rim Tofu for dinner. It came with a really flavorful gochujang glaze(?) on what appeared to be a really large slab of unmarinated tofu. The idea of that tofu was suprising at first, but after a taste, it was clear that any more flavor would have been overdone. It was nicely paired with an edamame potato puree, japanese eggplant and pea leaf salad, along with a smoked miso broth. All the tastes worked wonderfully together.

Pacific Rim Tofu

But the real star of the show was the Grilled Seitan that I ordered. Somtimes, you just order right. Of course, it helps that I probably would have loved anything on the menu and was still reeling from the idea of actually having choices. But after that BBQ Seitan, I knew what I was getting. To start with, the 'grill' on the seitan was the best 'grill' I've had in at least 30 years! I'm guessing they use an extremely hot grill. It came with yukon gold mashed potatoes (way better than I make), grilled spinach, horseradish sauce, and red pepper tapenade. The spinach seemed to be seasoned with garlic, and was perfect with a bite of all the other components.

Grilled Seitan

Our server, Bobby, was very friendly and let us know that several of the same techniques appear in the new Horizons cookbook. They cook seasonally, so while the ingredients shift, some of the ideas remain the same. We left the restaurant without the book because I figured I could order it at amazon using vegan.com as my launch page, but regrettably, also without dessert. After that amazing dinner, we just couldn't do it. We almost got dessert to go, but we weren't sure if we were going to be going straight back to our hotel and with weather in the 90's, we didn't take the risk.

Horizons is the finest vegan dining I've experienced and I can't wait to go back again. But in the meantime, it's time to get this blog jumping again!

First up: After a summer hiatus, it's time to get started on Food Nightwork Fridays again. One of my wonderful testers chose a recipe for this week and I'll post it below. If you'd like to play along, we'd love to have you. The concept is simple: all you need to do is veganize the recipe however you'd like. If you have a blog and happen to blog about it (blogging date is Friday, Sept. 4), please post a comment to this blog linking to yours on that date. If you don't have a blog, but still want to take part, just email me with your recipe and I'll be happy to post it here. The more the merrier, so let's band together and show the Food Network how delicious being vegan is. We're going to try to do this every other Friday, so stay tuned for details if you'd like to join at any time. I'm going to try to post the recipes the Wednesday the week before posting Friday.

This week's recipe was chosen by Amy, and is originally from Rachel Ray. Here it is:

Outside-In Pizza Panini
"This has all of your pizza toppings, but inside! I love pepperoni on mine, my brother Manny likes black olives on his. There's no right or wrong here, so get creative!"

* 1 large, store-bought focaccia, round or square
* 1 jar roasted red peppers
* 1 large ball fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced
* A couple pinches dried oregano
* About 10 sprigs fresh basil
* 1 small bag sliced pepperoni
* 1 cup sliced black olives
* 10 slices provolone
* 2 to 3 plum tomatoes, sliced
* Salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 1 small white or red onion, sliced

Preheat a panini grill or a heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat.

Cut the foccacia into 4 equal sections, then split each section in half so it opens up like a sandwich. Stuff the foccacia with any combination of your favorite pizza toppings.

Place panini in sandwich press. If using a pan on the stovetop, place another heavy skillet or a brick wrapped in foil on top of the sandwiches to press them down. Press until cheese is melted and bread is crisp on both sides, about 2-3 minutes on each side.


More news: Get ready for another book contest, coming later this week!

Looks like I'm wrapping up the summer with my longest post of the season!

Happy Almost September!