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Bonnee Klein Gilligan is a foodie who loves eating, cooking, and going to new and different restaurants in the Sedona-Verde Valley.

Bonnee's Food Corner: Hip

Great places to eat and buy food in the Sedona-Verde Valley...and new recipes

The Restaurant… a new Vegan wonderland in Cottonwood

Hip – a Vegetarian Joint
468 South Main Street
Cottonwood, AZ 86326
Phone: (928) 649-1695
Email: rgenstil@gmail.com

Hip is a small, friendly, unassuming, vegan joint with absolutely fresh, delicious food.

I arrived around 1:00pm and the place was buzzing. Every table was full with what looked like very happily munching folks. I sauntered up to the counter, picked up a menu and perused. After some waffling back and forth (everything sounded great), I decided upon the Indonesian Wrap with peanut coconut dipping sauce and a salad with ginger miso dressing. Miraculously, just after I placed my order a table opened up. My lunch arrived quickly. The wrap…. gently sweet and peppery, chewy and crunchy, bits of intense mint… all dipped in creamy, peanutty goodness with a slight after burn. Gooooood!!! My tongue delighted in the tastes, my eyes in the colors, and my body in the freshness.

For desert - a slice of raw coconut spirulina (a green superfood) pie with almond crust. Dark green pie (?)… oh my… sweet, creamy, lightly tart, crunchy and doubtlessly delicious.

Lunch prices range from $4.95 to $10.95. I heartedly recommend the Indonesian Wrap and spirulina coconut raw pie…oh yeah!

Hours: Open for Lunch, Monday-Friday 11am – 3:30pm.

Recipe… a tofu delight good enough for company

Tofu Provencal

A fast, easy, delightful recipe recommended by Dr. Weil www.drweil.com. (Serves 4)

12 oz. Extra-firm tofu, cut into ¼” slices (I use pressed Mori-nu organic tofu)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, chopped
1 ¼ cup vegetable broth (savory but not too salty)
14 oz. can diced tomatoes and juice
1/3 cup dry white or red wine
1/3 cup fresh basil, julienne or chopped
3 tablespoons chopped Greek Kalamata Olives
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Brown tofu slices on both sides in the oil. Add garlic and onion. Cook a couple of minutes, stirring often. Add the broth, tomatoes and wine. Cook on high until it cooks down to the consistency of a sauce. Add basil and olives. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve immediately over rice (I like brown Jasmine) or with buttered crusty bread for dipping and a salad with balsamic vinaigrette.

A Great Find… an organic food and wine fest May 3, 2008

If you are looking for something fun to do on a weekend, the Sustainable Arizona Local Wine and Food Festival is happening Saturday May 03, 2008, 11:00am - 5:00pm at: Alcantara Vinyards on the Verde River. The festival features locally grown chemical free foods by K&B Farms and other local producers, wines from Alcantara and other local wineries and wonderful music by William Eaton and Friends. Plus exhibits of sustainable living systems and permaculture. Open to the public. Alcantara Vinyards, 7500 E Alcantara Way, Verde Valley, AZ (two miles off Highway 260 at Mile Marker 211 (Thousand Trails Road). Phone: 928 649 8463, Website: http://www.alcantaravineyard.com/ email: barb.predmore@comspeed.net and event email: jneville@SustainableArizona.org

Check out past editions of Bonnee's Food Corner!

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