MiLa Makes Vegetarian

I went vegan for a while…

…For about four weeks to be specific. That was just long enough for something to change. Beez and I were watching Oprah about a month or so ago. It was the episode with Michael Pollan talking about his documentary, Food Inc., but Alicia Silverstone also made a cameo pushing her new book, The Kind Diet.

I don’t know if I’ve ever admitted this publicly, but I’m sort of an Amazon.com addict. I’ve got an Android phone and an iPod touch, and both of them have an Amazon app. With it, I can literally find a product in a matter of seconds, and buy it with one click. That’s how I first got my hands on Alicia’s book.

I need to give you a little background.

I sort of needed to go vegan starting late last year. First, there was Halloween and the candy; Thanksgiving and the turkey and pies; Christmas at home with everything covered in gravy; then Christmas in Paris with everything covered in duck fat, chocolate and wine…and gravy; then the Saints won the Super Bowl (and every game leading up) which meant lots of BBQ, chips and beer; then Mardi Gras and all those effing king cakes, plus more beer; but it was when those damn Girl Scout cookies arrived that enough was enough. I had to draw a line in the pecan sandies (sorry, I couldn’t resist).

Now, don’t get me wrong. I love Girl Scout cookies. I can destroy a box of Thin Mints. Those tubes of crunchy, minty, chocolaty discs don’t stand a chance against this gut. But, like I said, enough was enough.

You see how Alicia’s giddy, giggly sales-pitch struck a cord with me? The Kind Diet arrived, and I consumed it. That’s an accomplishment in and of itself. You don’t need to look any further than this blog to see how easily I can be distracted.

By the time I had finished the preachy part of her book (the first half), I was converted. We threw out all the animal protein, and started building vegan menus. We already shop at Whole Foods exclusively, so going vegan wasn’t that hard for us. I could see, however, how veganism, no matter how flirty Alicia may be, is a challenge.

I’m planning to blog more about the veganism later, but suffice it to say that the pendulum has swung back to just left of the middle where we’re eating vegan (about 75% this week), but not entirely.

Here’s where the MiLa post begins.

An opportunity for Beez and I to attend a vegetarian dinner at MiLa (the name a play on the married chef team’s home states, Mississippi and Louisiana) floated our way, and we took it. We’ve eaten at MiLa twice before, and I actually blogged about it on Serious Eats back in 2007.

I’ve always had a great experience at MiLa. I love the low-lit atmosphere, and hip decor. The first time Beez and I went, we were seated in a little booth for two in the back (what I consider to be the perfect table). This time, they sat us in the same place. Good for them.

I was intrigued by what the night might bring. MiLa, like a lot of my favorite places in New Orleans, means meat. Tons of meat, all over the menu, but this meal was vegetarian.

Let’s dive into the menu

Cucumber and Ryals Goat Cheese Cannelloni, Market Tomato Condiment, Olive Petals

NV Gruet Winery Sparkling Brut Rose’, New Mexico

The first course was a play on traditional, tubular pasta cannelloni. There was an oblong, ladyfinger log of mild goat cheese wrapped in paper thin strips of cucumber. A bit of frisee salad with salty, purpley-brown olive petals finished the plate.

As creative as this preparation was, I wished there would have been a protein included in the dish. The goat cheese was also a little too mild, but the textures and flavors were nice. The plate was meticulously crafted, so all-in-all, good first course.

Feliciana Greenhouse Lettuce Soup, Poached Farm Egg, Black Truffle Puree

2008 Ferraton Pere et Fils Cotes du Rhone

If you put lettuce soup on a menu, you have got to deliver. After all, lettuce isn’t like truffles or oysters or apples. There’s not a lot of flavor there. Unfortunately, the soup lived up to the lettuce, and was a little bland.

A sprinkle of salt would have lifted my portion. The poached egg, however, was cooked perfectly; nice and runny. It took me four spoonfuls to discover what I think was meant to be the Black Truffle Puree under the soup. Beez mentioned it wasn’t truffle season, so it really didn’t seem to belong there any way.

Once again, I would have liked some protein on the plate. Something like a crunchy, crusty quinoa cake floating in the soup, supporting the egg would have been yummy. I’ve had black pepper dusted tuna at MiLa before, so what a treat it would have been to pepper-dust the egg. Alas, this course was just fair.

Ravioli of Taylor’s Happy Oaks Farm Greens, Mississippi Shiitakes, Beet Dijon Jus

2003 Domaine Ligneres “La Baronne,” Languedoc

Three big green pasta pillows stared blankly up at us from our course three plates. The lighting was dim, yet the deep purple beet dijon jus was very visible. I sliced into the ravioli, and took a bite. Lots of greens inside. My buds couldn’t find the shiitakes, but I’m certain they were in there.

By plate three, I was still really hungry. I actually asked for another round of bread after they cleared the third course which is something I never do. My belly was full of veggies, cheese and an egg, but it needed something more substantial to feel full. As far as the ravioli, again it was perfectly prepared, but for me, personally, I’d have liked a bit more. A bit more substance. A bit more flavor.

I keep bringing up protein. I’m harping on it because I think vegetarianism/veganism gets a bad rep. When I first told my friends I was going vegan, they laughed, they joked, they looked at me like I was insane. They all got really concerned about my health, but I was convinced that I was smart enough not to kill myself eating, wait for it, whole, clean, organic veggies, fruits and whole grains.

Focus, Blake, focus. Protein. There’s plenty of hearty, filling protein that’s not animal based. Quinoa, beans, rice, bulgar wheat, lentils, nuts, seitan, tofu. See. It’s all there. Thanks, Jesus.

Louisiana Strawberry and Vanilla Mousse Trifle, Ginger Poundcake

2002 Chateau La Rame Sainte-Croix-Du-Mont, France

Last course, fourth course, a beefy portion of strawberry vanilla mousse trifle with ginger poundcake. Forget protein, here’s where the Rushings had been planning to fill us up all night. This was good. SO YUMMY! I loved the spicy poundcake, and the succulent strawberries. Superb.

Chef Slade stopped by right at the end, and told us they planned to do more veggie dinners in the future. I think he may have even mentioned they might become a regular occurrence (every Wednesday night?). That’s exciting because even though this experience wasn’t what I’ve come to expect from MiLa, I look forward to seeing how they evolve.