iEat Green - Robert Lee – Rescuing Leftover Cuisine - 07.26.18

Robert Lee is the co-founder of Rescuing Leftover Cuisine, Inc., a non profit food rescue organization, operating in 16 cities and headquartered in New York City. Rescuing Leftover Cuisine provides solutions to prevent excess wholesome cuisine from being wasted by providing services such as food waste consulting, excess food delivery, co-branding services, and tax credit assistance. Robert is a Gates Millennium Scholar who graduated cum laude from New York University. Coming from a humble background, he is committed to doing all he can to help those in need. While at NYU, Robert worked on a club called, Two Birds One Stone, which delivered leftover dining hall food to homeless shelters. Over the four years that Robert was a part of this organization, he learned best practices of operations in delivering food, fostered relationships within the industry, and honed volunteer management skills. During Robert’s three years as president, he helped the organization receive the NYU Green Grant Award for the best green initiative on campus and led volunteers to deliver over 12,000 pounds of food. After graduating, Robert worked at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. before continuing his passion of helping the hungry and reducing food waste.

 

Vegan Vegetable Frittata

4-6 servings
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp ground flax seed
2 Tbsp water
8 oz firm tofu
1 cup coconut milk
Juice from 1 can of chickpeas
¼ tsp turmeric
1/8 tsp paprika
8 oz vegan cheese (optional)
1 lb chopped frozen organic spinach
¾ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground white pepper
3 Tbsp freshly chopped parsley
1 Tbsp freshly chopped dill
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion (about 1 cup)
1 large potato or 2 small potatoes
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp white wine
1 tsp dried oregano
1 cup cherry tomatoes
¼ bunch of broccoli (about 2 cups of florets)
6 mushrooms

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. In a small bowl mix ground flax seed and water, set aside.
3. Chop onions, and cube potatoes into quarter-inch cubes.
4. On medium heat in 12 inch cast iron pan, sauté onions and potatoes in olive oil, until potatoes
are soft. As needed, add 2 Tbsp of water at a time, to deglaze pan and prevent potatoes from
sticking. (I usually add 2 Tbsp three times, for a total of 6 Tbsp of water). Keep scraping the
bottom of pan periodically as needed. This will take approximately 10 minutes.

5. While the onions and potatoes are cooking, run frozen spinach under hot water until
defrosted. Drain and then squeeze out extra water. Set a side.
6. Drain tofu and press between a towel to remove excess water. Crumble tofu into food
processor and pour in coconut milk. Pulse until mixture is fully pureed. Scrape down sides and
bottom of food processor and pulse again. Pour pureed mixture into large mixing bowl.
7. Next, using a blender, nutribullet, stand up mixer, or immersion blender, beat the juice from 1
can of chickpeas, also known as aquafaba, until thick and frothy.
8. Fold the frothed aquafaba into the tofu and coconut milk puree. Then, fold in the ground flax
seed mixture, ½ tsp salt, pepper, 2 Tbsp chopped parsley, dill, turmeric, and paprika into
mixture. Once thoroughly mixed, set aside.
9. Cut broccoli into small florets. Then cut mushrooms into thin slices. Add broccoli, mushrooms,
minced garlic, and white wine into pan. Let cook for 5 minutes.
10. Cut cherry tomatoes in half and add into pan along with spinach. ¼ tsp salt, and oregano.
Continue cooking and keep scraping the bottom of pan as needed for a few more minutes or
until all liquid is evaporated.
11. Pour tofu mixture into pan so as to cover vegetables. Smooth out with spatula so everything
is evenly covered and then put into oven.
12. Bake in oven for about 20-25 minutes, until it is starting to set, and puff up.
13. If adding vegan cheese, remove from oven now and sprinkle on top. Return to oven, and
continue cooking for 10 more minutes, until cheese melts and frittata is firm and has golden
edges.
14. Remove from oven. The pan will be very hot. Serve with oven mitt over handle.
15. Cut into wedges and serve. Garnish with 1 Tbsp chopped parsley.