Dining In: Amy and Justin’s Healthy Hundred

Editor's note: Typically, we feature a snack-sized restaurant review alongside our full dining coverage. This month, as a home-based alternative, we're showcasing a new cookbook, Low-Carb Vegetarian Cooking, by two of our favorite local cookbook authors, Justin Fox Burks and Amy Lawrence. Fun sidebar: Justin also shot this month's cover photo. 

When I meet Memphis cookbook authors Amy Lawrence and Justin Fox Burks at their Downtown photography studio on South Front Street, Sunday brunch is under way. Both Lawrence and Burks are experienced cooks, known for the Chubby Vegetarian cookbook and their blog of the same name. Their excellence shines through in the dishes we share: sausage-spiced portobellos, warm asparagus and egg salad, cheddar-thyme biscuits and apricot jam, and for dessert, matcha chia pudding parfait with a dollop of yogurt atop deep purple berry compote.

While the apricot jam is thick and sweet — the meal’s only concession to traditional fare — the rest of the food is made with recipes from the authors’ recently published Low-Carb Vegetarian Cookbook. The book is the couple’s third collaboration and represents their changing personal and environmental concerns.

“Our hook used to be, here are vegetarian recipes that still taste really good,” Lawrence says. “But now that we are older, we want recipes that taste great, but that also help people eat more sensibly and feel better.”

To that end, most of the cookbook’s 100 recipes can be made in 10 steps or fewer using readily available ingredients. The book offers low-carb eating and cooking tips as well and during our brunch together, I learn how the authors make desserts (monk fruit sweetener is key), cook zucchini noodles (spiralize them, toss with a little olive oil, and cook in the oven for about 20 minutes), and what to do with coconut oil (add it to curries, muffins, and cookies). Here’s more of what they had to say:

If you were to suggest two or three recipes from the book to someone who is hesitant about low-carb cooking, what would you say to entice them?

Burks: One of my favorite recipes is the larb in lettuce wraps. We make it with eggplant and serve it with a peanut sauce. You’ve got that meaty flavor of the shiitake mushrooms and the eggplant, plus spicy jalapeños and lemongrass. They are like little tacos.

Lawrence: I like the cauliflower cheese grits, and the bibimbap pictured on the book’s cover. The vegan cheeseburger salad is pretty darn good, too. We were inspired by the burger salad at Huey’s.

Speaking of cauliflower, when I make anything with puréed cauliflower, it turns into a watery mess.

Burks: You are right. There’s a lot of water in vegetables, and that’s why a sheet pan is your best friend. With a sheet pan, the moisture in the vegetable can evaporate, so you get a better texture. If there’s one takeaway we’ve learned: Concentrate the flavor in the vegetable, and you’ll enjoy it more.

I noticed a number of nods in the cookbook to well-known Memphis chefs.

Lawrence: We had so many people help us and contribute. Terrance Whitley at Inspire Community Café told me all his secrets for making chia pudding.

Burks: Ryan Trimm [Sweet Grass, 3rd & Court] has a recipe in the book. Kelly English [Restaurant Iris, The Second Line] gave us the chimichurri recipe for the grilled cauliflower steak, Andrew Adams at Acre helped us with yakitori sauce for our king oyster mushroom scallops, and we modified just slightly two recipes from Ben Smith of Tsunami: the warm red cabbage salad and the hoisin-glazed tofu steak with vegetables.

I was also intrigued by the one-skillet taco recipe with refried pumpkin, the green lasagna, and jackfruit nachos.

Burks: You picked recipes that are things every American household puts on their table or orders to-go every week. We definitely wanted to give people recipes that they can put on their table easily and that are familiar to them. If people can make even a few tweaks to how they eat, they are going to be better off.

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All recipes appear in the Low-Carb Vegetarian Cookbook by Amy Lawrence and Justin Fox Burks, published by Rockridge Press (2020) and available through local retailers, such as Novel and Burke's. 

Matcha Chia Pudding Parfait

Serves 4

Prep Time: 30 minutes plus 8 hours or overnight / Cook Time: 20 minutes

Chia is a powerhouse of a seed with tons of fiber and protein. We can’t think of a better way to start the day! Make this dish ahead of time and stash it in the fridge for a healthy breakfast or snack on the go.

• 2/3 cup chia seeds
• 1 can light coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon green matcha powder
• 1 tablespoon monk fruit sweetener
• 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
• 2/3 cup strawberries
• 2/3 cup blueberries
• 1/4 cup water
• Juice from one lemon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Yogurt topping

• 1-1/2 cups Greek yogurt
• 2 teaspoons monk fruit sweetener
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Place chia seeds and coconut milk, matcha powder, monk fruit sweetener, and salt in a Mason jar.

2. Shake jar until ingredients are well combined.

3. Place the jar of chia pudding in the fridge to rest overnight.

4. Make a berry compote by combining strawberries, blueberries, water, lemon juice, and salt in a saucepan.

5. Cook compote for 20 minutes on medium heat, stirring every few minutes.

6. Let compote cool and store in a container in the refrigerator.

7. Mix yogurt, monk fruit sweetener, and vanilla; store in a container in the refrigerator.

8. Once the chia pudding has rested overnight, you are ready to assemble the dish: in clear glass bowls or cups, layer in pudding, compote, and yogurt.

Tip: The unique texture of chia pudding can be a hard sell for people who have never tried it before—the trick to making it irresistible is to combine it with other flavors that folks already know and love.

Sausage Spiced Portobellos

Serves 3-6

Prep Time: 5 minutes / Cook Time: 10 minutes

Why take the time to break down mushrooms for sausage when they’re already sausage-shaped? Start by adding the right herbs and spices to highlight the already meaty mushroom texture, and you’ll soon have an excellent accompaniment for your eggs or your tofu scramble.

• 6 medium portobello mushroom caps
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon rubbed sage
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon ground clove
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 1 tablespoon Bragg Liquid Aminos
• 1 teaspoon maple syrup

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

2. Remove the stems from the portobello mushroom caps and reserve them for another use.

3. Into a large bowl, place the portobello mushroom caps, sesame oil, sage, red pepper flakes, clove, nutmeg, pepper, Bragg Liquid Aminos, and maple syrup and toss to coat.

4. Onto a large, parchment-lined baking sheet place the mushrooms gill-side-up.

5. Place the mushrooms into the oven for 30 minutes.

6. Remove and serve warm anywhere you’d serve sausage patties. Chop them up in casseroles or scrambles for a plant-based sausage experience.

Tip: These patties may be made ahead of time and kept in the fridge for three days or in the freezer for six months.

Cheddar Thyme Biscuits

Serves 6

Prep Time: 10 minutes / Cook Time: 10-15 minutes

You don’t have to miss out on biscuits just because you’d like to consume fewer carbs! Here, almond flour works its magic to create soft, supple, and flavorful biscuits you may like even better than the traditional kind.

• 2 cups almond flour
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup 2% Greek yogurt
• 1 cup cheddar

1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

2. Whisk baking powder, almond flour, and salt in a large bowl.

3. Add the cold butter into the dry mixture.

4. In a small bowl, combine the egg and yogurt.

5. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add the egg mixture.

6. Fold the mixture into the dry ingredients until just combined.

7. Fold in the cheddar.

8. Using a medium ice cream scoop, scoop up a 1/4-cup portion of dough and place it onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.

9. Repeat, spacing at least an inch apart, until all dough has been used. 

10. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until browned.

Tip: Feel free to switch out the cheddar and thyme for some of your other favorite flavors. Try Swiss cheese and nutmeg; goat cheese and green onions; or mozzarella and basil.

Warm Asparagus and Egg Salad

Serves 4-6

Prep Time: 25 minutes / Cook Time: 15 minutes

Warm salads are a welcome addition to a weekend brunch or lunch buffet, and this wonderful asparagus and egg salad is simple but oh-so-pretty and colorful. Blanching the asparagus keeps it crisp and bright green, and the dressing couldn’t be easier to make.

• 2 hardboiled eggs, sliced
• 1 bunch asparagus, ends trimmed and discarded
• 1 Roma tomato, cut into small dice
• 1 tablespoon minced shallot
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Juice of one lemon
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper

1. Place a large pot of salted water on to boil. It should be about as salty as sea water.

2. Blanch asparagus for three minutes. Drain.

3. Place asparagus on serving platter, arrange slices of hardboiled egg over the top, and garnish with diced tomatoes and minced shallot.

3. Drizzle the the dish with olive oil and lemon juice and season with sea salt and cracked black pepper.

Tip: Cook eggs and asparagus in the same pot of water to save a step.

Tip: If you have one available in your kitchen, use an egg slicer to create perfect and precise slices for this dish.

Eggplant Larb Lettuce Wraps

Serves 4-6

Prep Time: 20 minutes / Cook time: 20 minutes

Larb is often described as an Asian meat salad, but you can make it using just about any vegetable, meat substitute, or block of tofu. We make eggplant the star of this recipe because of its meaty texture and its ability to soak up all the flavors of the dish. Any way you make make it, it’s going to be super flavorful and fun to eat.

Spicy Peanut Sauce (recipe follows)

• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 stalk lemongrass, tough outer part removed
• Zest of one medium lime
• 1 medium jalapeño, stem removed
• 1-1/2 inch piece fresh ginger
• 1 medium eggplant, trimmed and cubed
• 1 8-ounce can sliced water chestnuts, drained
• 1 8-ounce package mushrooms
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce, like tamari or Bragg
• 1 head iceberg lettuce

1. Make Spicy Peanut Sauce according to the recipe and set aside until ready to serve.

2. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

3. Into the work bowl of your food processor, add the garlic, lemongrass, lime zest, jalapeño, and ginger and process until very finely chopped.

4. To the work bowl of the food processor, add half of the cubed eggplant and pulse 4 times or until the eggplant is broken down into black-eyed-pea-sized pieces.

5. Onto a large parchment-lined baking sheet, scrape the contents of the food processor.

6. Repeat the process with the remaining eggplant.

7. To the work bowl of the food processor, add water chestnuts and mushrooms and pulse 4 times or until broken down into black-eyed-pea-sized pieces; add this to the eggplant mixture.

8. Mix in the soy sauce, spread out into a single layer, and place into the oven for 20 minutes.

9. Serve warm, allowing everyone to spoon the mixture into the lettuce leaves and top it with the Spicy Peanut Sauce.

Tip: Since these wraps are fun to put together, this is the perfect dish to put out on a buffet so that people may serve themselves.

Spicy Peanut Sauce

Makes about 2/3 cup; Serves 4-6

Prep time: 5 minutes

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Soy-Free, Vegan

This sauce makes anything and everything taste amazing! We use it as an all-purpose dipping sauce, a stir-fry sauce, and as a fiery accompaniment to spring rolls and cucumber noodles. Feel free to double the recipe—you’ll want to use this on everything!

• 2 tablespoons peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons Bragg Liquid Aminos
• 2 tablespoons sriracha
• Water

1. Using a blender or food processor, blend the peanut butter, rice vinegar, sesame oil, Bragg Liquid Aminos, and sriracha until smooth.

2. Add one tablespoon of water at a time to get a pourable but still thick consistency.  

Tip: If you prefer or if dietary requirements call for it, you may certainly substitute cashew butter or sunflower butter for the peanut butter in this recipe.

Tip: Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to two weeks or in the freezer for up to six months.