Wolfgang Puck's best plant-based dishes

Wolfgang Puck, the iconic, Austrian-born chef, has been a recognizable name and face within, and outside of, the culinary realm for nearly 50 years. 

One of the original "celebrity chefs," Puck trained in France before moving to the United States in the 1970s and essentially taking over the Los Angeles restaurant scene in the ensuing years, making his Spago an internationally renowned restaurant. Since then, he opened restaurant after restaurant, became a food TV personality, released countless cookbooks, won various James Beard awards and Michelin stars, launched various charities and foundations — and the list goes on and on. 

Did you know, though, that Puck is also known for his plant-based fare, even catering last year's Oscars party with a fully plant-based menu? (He has catered the affair, held at Governors Ball, for 29 years, which will become 30 years this weekend.) The menu included items "Confit Golden Beet, Cashew Crème, Gastrique, Mint; Mushroom Potsticker 'Soup Dumpling'; Puri Pillow with Sumac Hummus; and English Pea Falafel and Pea Tendril," according to Anna Starostinetskaya at VegNews. 

While you may not be casually whipping those dishes up at home, Puck's other vegan and vegetarian fare is delicious, accessible and straight-forward. Welcome spring with these lovely options.

01 Chino Chopped Vegetable Salad

With an assertive, Dijon-spiked vinaigrette tying all of the disparate parts together, this salad combines an astonishing array of fresh produce, from artichokes and carrots to green beans, radicchio, corn and even avocado. You can mix and match depending on the season, of course, but Puck's original recipe is hard to beat. I also love the combination of dressed salad greens as a base topped with the dressed chopped salad. It's a superb textural blend and the flavors are outrageous. 

02 Vegetable Soup with Sweet Basil

As Puck himself puts it, "The simple soup my mother makes from the vegetables she grows in her own garden next to the house where I grew up in St. Viet, Carinthia, Austria, is very little different from the following traditional French recipe: just lots of good, fresh vegetables and some liquid to cook them in."

 

This is a very no-frills soup, as he writes, with a ton of fresh vegetables plus olive oil, water or stock, basil, salt and pepper  — that's it. The tomatoes, basil and garlic are blended before being added to the soup, which adds a distinctly tomato-forward flavor and color to the broth. Make sure you're using top tier produce here because there's quite literally nothing to "hide" behind.

 

Puck recommends serving either hot or cold, which would be an interesting dichotomy in flavor and texture, too.

03 Wild Mushroom Risotto

This is the epitome of a classic risotto, with onion, garlic, Arborio rice, wine, 2 types of stock and tons of mushrooms. Of course, Puck uses Parmesan, chicken stock and butter, but feel free to omit the cheese and butter and use all mushroom or vegetable stock instead of chicken to turn this entirely vegan.

 

The tomato isn't customary here, nor is the parsley, but they both make for a burst of flavor and color in an otherwise relatively bland-looking (but not tasting!) dish. 

04 Roasted Beet Napoleon

An aesthetic beauty and a classic Puck recipe, this savory napoleon is a surefire winner for a dinner party. Mixing beets, goat cheese, multiple dressings and toasted hazelnuts — the colors and flavors here will astound any eater, no matter if carnivore or vegetarian. The process is a bit involved, but trust us, it's so incredibly well worth it.

 

Also, don't be surprised if one (or both) of these dressings enter your daily repertoire; they're that good. 

05 My Grandma's Ravioli

This is a perfect recipe for a slow, leisurely weekend afternoon. With four (!) cheeses  —  farmer's cheese, goat, Parmesan and mascarpone  — plus fresh mint, chervil and an entire pound of potatoes, these uber-filling ravioli are totally vegetarian, incredibly flavorful and the perfect mix of a pierogi and a ravioli. If you haven't made fresh pasta before, do not fret; Puck outlines the process simply and directly.

 

Also, if you haven't made a browned butter sauce (or tried sauced pasta with toasted nuts) before, you're in for a real treat.

06 Rice Souffle with Pears and Raspberries

A Wolfgang Puck dessert is always a special occasion. 

 

While the idea of making meringue, poached pears, raspberry compote or a homemade souffle might seem intimidating at first, you'll be amazed at how simply this comes together.

 

This incorporation of sweetened rice into a souffle is like the best rice pudding you've ever had. I'm also a sucker for meringue, so this dessert is seriously top-notch. I also love the idea of bread crumbs in the souffle pan. Just be sure to set enough time aside to work on this! 

07 Melon Granita

Granita, arguably the single-best vegan dessert, is an exercise in simplicity. This particular recipe calls for sugar, lemon juice, melon or watermelon juice and melon-flavored liqueur, but of course, feel free to omit the liqueur if you'd prefer (this isn't cooked, so the liquor doesn't "cook off").

 

There's a purity to a dish like this. Frozen foods often have a neutralized flavor due to the intense temperatures; I like serving granita with a touch of salt on top, which accentuates the flavor even moreso.