Ethiopian-style seitan and peppers entree on Meatless Monday

No one's saying you have to go meatless just because it's Monday -- but as incentive to join the growing movement, every week we're offering an animal-free recipe.

Seitan is a wheat protein with a meatier texture than some of its meat-replacement cousins (such as tofu); it's also absorbent, so you can infuse it with flavors that replicate meat, too. This spicy dish yields tender seitan chunks that are beef-like in texture and taste.

Although not gluten-free, it's an easy option for recent vegetarians who are missing meat; our unbelievably picky taster thought it came very close to the beef-and-peppers dishes you can get at Ethiopian restaurants.

You will need:

7 serrano peppers (this makes a very hot dish -- cut down on the serranos if you don't like it spicy)
Fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup red wine
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 pounds seitan (four packages of the Westsoy cubed version shown here)
2 red bell peppers
3/4 cups rice

First, pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees F, and start cooking that rice.

1. Crush the garlic cloves.

Peel the ginger and chop into small cubes; you should have about two tablespoons.