Fried Green Tomatoes

I wish I came in contact with these sooner. Before this, my only encounter with fried green tomatoes was the book my grandma gave my mom on her 40th birthday [[coincidentally it's about being middle aged and lesbianism -- so that was weird]]. It turns out, it's actually something delicious they make in the south. And from what I can tell, one of the easiest things you could veganize from the south. They aren't very vegan friendly down there [[lots of shrimp and andouille sausage]], so it was neat how easy it was to make them.

They aren't terribly low calorie or low fat or low carb, but that's to be expected with anything fried... and personally, I don't care about calories or all that. They are really high in fiber and protein and loaded with vitamins [[from the cornmeal and green tomato and chickpea flour]], which I do care about. And pretty freaking awesome in moderation. Like a fun appetizer? I'm reaching.


[[Fried Green Tomatoes]]
I thought it was funny that you're supposed to dip these in ketchup [[because it's a tomato?]]. We also had some Organicville ranch from the Clintonville Community Market.

one large green tomato [[I found them at Kroger]]
2-3 tbs chickpea flour mixed with 2-3 tbs water
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 tsp chipotle powder, or an any chili powder
a little salt and pepper
1-2 tbs vegetable oil for frying

-- Traditionally, I think you're suppose to cut these 1 inch thick. I cut mine into about 1/2 inch slices. Andrew thought they should be thinner. I guess it just depends on your preference in fried to substance ratio. I found slicing them into 1/2 inch slices to be pretty perfect.
-- Make a slurry with the chickpea flour and water. This you have to eye ball. Make sure it's slighty runny. You don't want it to be a thick goop, but you don't want it too watery. Aim for slightly thinner than cake batter. Set that aside in a shallow bowl.
-- Mix cornmeal and spices in a shallow bowl and set aside next to the slurry so you have a little batter station.
-- Heat oil on medium to high heat in a wide pan. Dip your tomato slices in the slurry first, allowing all excess to drip off. Then firmly press eat side in the cornmeal mixture. Make sure it's completely coated, but brush off any excessive clumps. Those will just fall off in the oil and burn.
-- Cook each side in the heated oil about 2 minutes until crispy.
-- Serve with ketchup or vegan ranch.