Lemongrass + Chervil Vegan Chicken Fettuccini Alfredo & Crispy Broccoli Rabe

It's raining in Los Angeles, which means most of the people in town are acting like the Apocalypse has unleashed tyranny upon our fair city. People drive like a sheet of ice covers the roads, call in sick from work and generally panic about their hair and make-up like as if they may actually melt. 

I personally love when it rain. I love waking up to the sound of it hitting the roof, I love puddle jumping, and I most certainly still know how to drive like a maniac even though the roads are slightly slick. As a bonus, rain cleanses the smoke-like air quality of filthy LA. Calm down, people. It's just fucking rain.

Enough about the weather. I want to thank you all for responding to my hopefully blossoming "open a restaurant" scheme. I've never had so many comments on one post before in my entire blog-life. This week, I'm putting another request out there: 

I want your suggestions for the Most-Impossible-To-Veganize Dishes. My end goal is to convert them for our consumption. I ask one favor, though: Do NOT ask me to veganize fois gras. I just simple won't go there, home-slice. It can be anything else. Go ahead and smack me with the tough stuff. I can take it, and I'll like it. 

Now, on to this week's recipe. 

One of my favorite childhood indulgences was Alfredo sauce. As anyone who's been reading here for a while knows, I'm typically a red sauce fanatic. I've also centered many posts entirely around my love of tomatoes. The lovely blend of ingredients that composes a great Alfredo really gets me going. 

This recipe came about when a friend hyped my culinary skills to a vegan friend, then I'm suddenly inviting them both over for dinner. I asked my friend to find out, "what she misses eating, and would love to have." Friend asked, and "Fettuccini Alfredo with Vegan Chicken" was what's for dinner. I had to retort, "Fine...but I'm making it fancy." Duh. 

Anyway, I'm rambling like an idiot today. Drive safe, Angelenos. And for fuck's sake: jump in a damn puddle.

 

Lemongrass + Chervil Vegan Chicken Fettuccini Alfredo & Crispy Broccoli Rabe

• 1 large bunch of Broccoli Rabe (about 1 lb)
• 1/8 cup Olive Oil
• 3 cloves Garlic, chopped
• 1 lb Fettucini Noodles
• 1 batch of Vegan Chicken Breast, sliced
• Olive Oil, enough for grilling "Chicken"
• 5 TBSP Vegan Butter
• 1 1/2 cups Dr Cows Aged Cashew Cheese, grated (or any hard Soy Parmesan)
• 1 1/2 cup Vegan Heavy Cream
• 1/4 cup Plain Soy Creamer
• 1 stalk Lemongrass, tough outer leaves removed, pounded and thinly sliced
• 2 TBSP Fresh Lemon Juice
• 1/4 cup Fresh Chervil, minced
• Salt and Fresh Cracked Black Pepper, to taste

Prepare a large bowl of ice cold water (an ice bath), then set aside. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, then cook the Broccoli Rabe for 1 minute until tender. Drain quickly then transfer the Broccoli Rabe to the ice bath. Drain well, then set aside. 

Heat the 1/8 cup of Olive Oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chopped garlic cloves and saute for 1 minute until fragrant. Add the Broccoli Rabe plus a touch of salt and pepper, then toss well to coat in the oil. Cook until the Broccoli Rabe is tender and crispy, about 4-5 minutes, then set aside. 

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, and cook fettucini noodles until just al Dente. Drain well, toss with a touch of Olive Oil, then set aside. 

Carefully heat the Olive Oil on a grill pan or in a large skillet, then grill/sauté the slices of vegan chicken until golden brown and crisping slightly. Set aside. 

Melt the vegan butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add the grated Dr Cow cheese, soy cream and Vegan Heavy Cream, lemongrass and lemon juice, then bring to a boil while stirring frequently. Reduce the heat to low, add in the Chervil, and simmer for two minutes, stirring constantly, or until the sauce has thickened slightly. Salt and Pepper, to taste. Toss the noodles with the Alfredo sauce, the serve topped with grilled "Chicken" and Broccoli Rabe.