Ingredients
Directions
Roast and steam the poblano peppers: Heat the oven to broil. Place the peppers on a baking sheet and broil for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, flip and broil on the other side for another 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and place in a bowl or a large pot. Cover the bowl or pot with a lid to steam the peppers while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
Make the Cashew Cream Cheese: Place the cashews, water, apple cider vinegar, and optional salt in a blender and blend until smooth. Leave in the blender to continue making the Walnut Sauce.
To the Cashew Cream Cheese, add the walnuts, milk, cinnamon, and nutmeg, and blend until smooth. Set aside.
Prepare the filling: Heat a large stovetop pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions, garlic, tomatoes, and shredded tempeh, cooking until fragrant, about 2–3 minutes.
Stir in the tomato paste, water, dried pineapple, apple, pear, plantain, cinnamon, cloves, and optional salt and pepper.
Simmer, covered, for approximately 20 minutes, or until the fruit has softened. Remove from heat and set aside.
Peel the peppers: Remove the lid from the peppers. The skin should be loosened. With clean hands, peel the skin off. Note that you probably won’t be able to get all of the skin off, and that’s okay. Do the best you can.
Open and deseed the peppers: With a paring knife, slit the peppers down the center, vertically, to open them, being careful not to rip them. Gently pull down on the lower stem inside the pepper to remove the seeds. Discard or compost the seeds.
Stuff the peppers: Divide the filling between the four peppers.
Drizzle the desired amount of walnut sauce over top of the peppers.
Garnish with pomegranate seeds and parsley.
Chef's Notes
Substitutions
In place of tempeh try tofu or green or brown lentils.
In place of cashews try silken tofu or plant-based yogurt. Note that you may want to start with half the water called for in the ingredient list and add 1–2 tablespoons of water at a time as needed to create a sauce-like consistency.
In place of dried pineapple try raisins.
In place of pear try peaches.
How to Shred Tempeh
You can shred tempeh one of two ways: Either chop it finely with your chef’s knife, or use a medium-shred grater to shred it.
Prep Ahead
Prepare the Walnut Sauce and Cashew Cream Cheese ahead of time.
Skinning the Walnuts
Traditionally, the walnut skins are removed, since the skin can add a bit of bitterness to the creamy sauce. If you prefer to skip this step, that is okay! Just know that the walnuts may impart a bit of bitter flavor. To skin the walnuts, boil 2 cups of water, pour it over the nuts, and soak for 30 minutes. Drain. Then, remove the skins with a paring knife. Proceed to Step 2 in the directions.
Storage
Store your Vegan Chiles en Nogada in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Ingredients
Directions
Roast and steam the poblano peppers: Heat the oven to broil. Place the peppers on a baking sheet and broil for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, flip and broil on the other side for another 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and place in a bowl or a large pot. Cover the bowl or pot with a lid to steam the peppers while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
Make the Cashew Cream Cheese: Place the cashews, water, apple cider vinegar, and optional salt in a blender and blend until smooth. Leave in the blender to continue making the Walnut Sauce.
To the Cashew Cream Cheese, add the walnuts, milk, cinnamon, and nutmeg, and blend until smooth. Set aside.
Prepare the filling: Heat a large stovetop pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions, garlic, tomatoes, and shredded tempeh, cooking until fragrant, about 2–3 minutes.
Stir in the tomato paste, water, dried pineapple, apple, pear, plantain, cinnamon, cloves, and optional salt and pepper.
Simmer, covered, for approximately 20 minutes, or until the fruit has softened. Remove from heat and set aside.
Peel the peppers: Remove the lid from the peppers. The skin should be loosened. With clean hands, peel the skin off. Note that you probably won’t be able to get all of the skin off, and that’s okay. Do the best you can.
Open and deseed the peppers: With a paring knife, slit the peppers down the center, vertically, to open them, being careful not to rip them. Gently pull down on the lower stem inside the pepper to remove the seeds. Discard or compost the seeds.
Stuff the peppers: Divide the filling between the four peppers.
Drizzle the desired amount of walnut sauce over top of the peppers.
Garnish with pomegranate seeds and parsley.
