Veggie Tamales
From Tamales 101
6 cups fresh prepared masa
2 cups Veggie Sauce
12 very large dried corn husks, soaked, washed, and drained, plus more for ties.
1 green bell pepper, seeded and cut in ¼-inch strips
1 red or yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into ¼-inch strips
1 small zucchini, cut into 5 by ¼-inch strips
2 small carrots, peeled and cut into 5 by ¼-inch strips
½ large russet potato, peeled and cut into ¼-inch strips
1 (7-ounce) can Ortega chiles, or 2 fresh green Poblanos or Anaheim chiles, roasted
1 large parsnip, peeled (optional) and cut into 5 by ¼-inch strips
12 green beans and/or snow peas, stemmed and halved
2 large fresh shiitake mushrooms cut into 12 slices
½ bunch cilantro, or 24 sprigs, stems included
½ pound of Daiya cheese or soy grated (2 cups)
Have your masa and sauce prepared.
To assemble the tamales, spread 1/3 to ½ cup of masa very evenly across the top half of the husk near the flat end. One on top of the other place one strip of green bell pepper, one strip of yellow or red pepper, one strip of zucchini, two strips of carrot, one to two strips of potato, one strip of green chile, one to two strips of parsnip, one green bean or snow pea or both, one slice of shiitake, and two springs of cilantro. Top with 1 tablespoon of cheese and 2 heaping tablespoons of sauce. Wrap using the foldover method and tie twice to hold this large tamale together. Repeat for the remaining tamales. Steam the tamales for 1 hour or until corn husk peels away from tamale without sticking to the corn husk. This recipe makes 12-16 tamales.