Chickpea Cutlets - Isa Chandra Moskowitz

Remember when Valentines Day was all about decorating a shoe box and lugging it to school for the class party? Didn't you secretly dream of getting a Valentine card from that special someone - and then actually read the messages on the cards to see which friend chose which card especially for you? My Valentine went way over and above this year and sent me these beautiful tulips! If you look closely, you can see another bouquet on the piano in the background - 2 dozen!! They did not fit in one vase. I am blessed with love and showered with kindness, thoughtfulness, and appreciation.

So the least I could do in return was clean the kitchen, set the table, and make a nice dinner. I think I did pretty well by choosing Isa Chandra's Chickpea Cutlet, homemade mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes, roasted butternut squash. You can find the Chickpea Cutlet recipe all over the internet, so I won't reprint it here.

The texture of these cutlets is *almost* like meat....but not really. You're supposed to use a knife to cut them.... but you could just use the side of your fork. They are simply some crushed chickpeas and seasonings.....but there is also some of the mysterious wheat gluten thrown in. So, basically, it's a meatless meat for those of us who no longer eat meat, but still want to include a knife when setting the table and chew something toothsome. Try them - they're excellent! In fact, make a double batch.