Pumpkin Man-n-"Cheese"

I've had the past week off and truthfully spent a good amount of it relaxing on the couch, watching lots of cruddy daytime TV, but also lots of cooking shows! I came across this recipe from the Rachael Ray show, although I'm NOT a fan typically!, and thought this was an original recipe that I could easily manipulate for a rich vegan treat!

 After cussing out the grocery stores for not stocking pureed pumpkin yet, I sucked it up and made some of my own. (SO glad I did, so easy, and fresh!) Simply I cut a small pumpkin in half, removed the seeds and placed in the microwave on high for 10 minutes. Next I scrapped out the 'meat' of the pumpkin and put into the Vitamix, using the tamper to create a smooth consistency. Here's a picture of the fresh puree, so simple!

I boiled water and made the whole wheat pasta as indicated on the box to al dente. Next, I melted the "butter", and whisked in the flour.  Once combined, I added the beer and allowed to thicken, whisking throughout. Next I added the almond milk and maple syrup. At this time I also added all the spices. Once this cooked down and thickened up to a creamy consistency, I added the pureed pumpkin and the daiya cheddar cheese, whisking until all was combined. I tasted and added a bit more salt, then combined with the pasta. Per request of my boyfriend, I used a soy based Parmesan cheese as a topping before putting under the broiler for ~10 minutes. (you could also top with extra cheddar cheese, or make a crumb/cracker type crust)

 

The final product is creamy, cheesy, and the flavor incorporates so many fall flavors that I encourage you to try this recipe out!!

Pumpkin Mac-n-"Cheese"

1 lb short whole wheat pasta

4 tbsp butter (I used earth balance soy free variety)

3 tbsp flour (I used whole wheat flour)

1 c. amber beer (I used Blue Moon's Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale to bring out more pumpkin flavor)

2 tbsp maple syrup

1 2/3 c. almond milk

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp apple pie spice

salt and pepper to taste

2 c. fresh pumpkin puree

~2 c. daiya chedder "cheese"

Caramel Popcorn

I've had a recent obsession with popcorn, mainly with nutritional yeast sprinkled on top, but was craving something sweet and came up with this basic, quick, and tasty recipe!
I added the sugar, earth balance, and water into a saucepan and melted them together. Next, I covered and let boil for ~3 minutes, then added the vanilla. I let the mixture cool a bit so that the caramel had time to thicken a bit, and poured it over the popcorn while mixing for even coverage. After sneaking a few tastes, I put it in the refrigerator to cool and let the caramel harden a bit. Easy!

Caramel Popcorn
1 bag natural popcorn
1/2 c. turbinado
1/2 tbsp earth balance
4 tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla

Quick Chickpea Burgers

I have been playing around with the idea of a chickpea burger (the first attempt turned into hummus due to too much liquid and too much blending!!), and think I've come up with a good basic recipe that could be seasoned and spiced many different ways. (Off the top of my head, I REALLY want to make Curry Chickpea Burgers next time!).
I began by taking the chicpeas and mashing them with a potato masher until they were mashed, but not pulverized, with some good texture left. I then added some of the canned liquid to the mixture for some moisture. I added the spices, mixed, then folded in the red pepper and egg substitute (this really gave the good consistency and binding to form into patties with my hands). I put the patties into a frying pan with about 1 tsp of olive oil and cooked on low/medium heat until golden brown and warm throughout. I ate with a side of bar-b-que sauce and it was great! (The next day I used in a spinach salad; FANTASTIC!!) Here they are just finished cooking:

Basic Chickpea Burgers
2 14oz can low sodium chickpeas
~1/4 c. drained liquid
1 medium bell pepper
2 tsp chopped garlic
1 tsp Ener-G egg replacer
salt and pepper to taste
(any other seasonings you desire!)

"Cheesy" Roasted Tomato Sauce for pasta and Fudge Babies

I have been wanting to try almond cheese for a while now, and couldn't think of what recipe to try it out in first; upon reading a magazine that had macaroni and cheese recipes in it I suddenly had a craving for a play on mac n cheese. Together with the almond cheese and some fresh vegetables from the farmer's market, I came up with something quite flavorful!!
I bean by chopping up the tomatoes and putting them in a small oven safe dish with 1/2 of the olive oil, garlic salt, and Italian seasoning blend, and covering with tin foil.

I placed this in a 400 F oven for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, I chopped up the onion and caramelized them with the remaining olive oil and a dash of garlic salt. While that was cooking, in a small sauce pan I heated up the almond milk and put the almond cheese in it, using a whisk to even the texture as it melted. I let that sit on low heat, stirring occasionally.
Once the onions were caramelized, I added  the mushrooms and sauteed for an additional ~7 minutes. Meanwhile, I added the cornstarch to the cheese sauce to thicken it up. I removed the tomatoes from the oven and added to the cheese sauce, then added that to the sauteed mushrooms and onions. The smell that filled my kitchen at this point was heavenly =)

I made sure it was all combined, and ended up mixing in some fresh spinach pasta from the farmer's market. I sprinkled a dash of soy Parmesan cheese on top, and I have to admit I was quite happy with the results! Will definitely be making this again.

"Cheesy" Roasted Tomato Sauce
2 large tomatoes
1 large sweet onion
1 large package exotic mushrooms
1/2 c almond milk
1/2 block shredded almond cheese
2 tbsp olive oil
seasoning to taste
3/4 lb fresh spinach pasta

yield: ~6 full dinner size servings (depending on how hungry you are!)


Fudge Babies
On a mission of loosing a few extra pounds this month, I wanted to create a sweet treat for those late night cravings that didn't have any added sugar. I tried two different recipes, and the second definitely wins in flavor and sweetness. It's extremely simple: Place walnuts, dates, cocoa powder, and vanilla extract in the Vitamix, blend using the tamper until all is combined into a dough consistency. I took it out of the blender and hand kneaded the mixture to make it a little more even consistency (it's a very thick dough and some of the cocoa powder stuck the side of the blender). Next, I rolled into golf ball size treats, and put in the freezer to congeal. They taste of some rich dark chocolate that just couldn't be good for you, however the proof is in the ingredients- nothing but whole foods and good nutrition.

Fudge Babies
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 1/3 c dates
4 tbsp cocoa powder (Next time I might try using 3)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Mashed Cauliflower (yum yum YUM!)

I had been planning on making this for a few weeks and finally got around to trying it out, and boy am I glad I did!! It was simple, healthy, and surprisingly mashed potato like. I found that after it cooled a bit (about ten minutes) the texture was closer to mashed potatoes and a definite keeper of a recipe, especially considering the nutritional information.
I began by pulling apart the cauliflower and steaming it for ~13 minutes. Once cooked, I put the cauliflower in the Vitamix and added the garlic, almond milk, salt, and pepper. I blended on level 6/7 for about a minute using the tamper to combine all of the ingredients then put in a plastic container as I plan to use this for lunches this week (although I keep going back for a another 'taste', so time will tell how much I have left for lunches!

Mashed Cauliflower
1 med head cauliflower
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 c almond milk (unsweetened)
salt and pepper to taste

"Chicken" Peanut "Alfredo " & Vanilla Bean Cupcakes

For father's day I made a variation of the cupcake recipe found at http://shmooedfood.blogspot.com with some changes since I can't leave recipes alone. I began by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F, and then put the apple cider vinegar and almond milk in a pyrex measuring cup and let stand. Next I thoroughly combined all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. I then added to the liquid mixture: vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and the seeds from one large vanilla bean. I then combined the liquid and dry ingredients thoroughly and put into a muffin tin with liners, and cooked for 20 minutes (they were a little moist; depending on your oven you may want to cook for 25-30 minutes). I did some searching online and found that the homestyle version of Duncan Hines icing is vegan, and therefore would save me lots of time!! I gladly used it on top of the cooled cupcakes.
They were moist, flavorful, and surprisingly easy!

Vanilla Bean Cupcakes:
1 TB apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 c almond milk
2 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup turbinado sugar
1/2 c oil (I think substituting mashed banana for oil would be GREAT in this recipe!)
2 tsp mexican vanilla
1 large vanilla bean


Tonight for dinner I made a spin on chicken alfredo since I had been craving some pasta recently. I began by putting the tofu, garlic, almond milk, nutritional yeast, and peanut sauce in my Vitamix. I blended for roughly 30 seconds to make sure all was combined. I then poured the sauce into a saucepan and let heat on the stove.
Next I lightly sauteed some onions, and added the "chicken". Once the "chicken" was browned, I added some spinach and let sautee for about 5 minutes. Meanwhile I chopped up mushrooms and put them in the "alfredo" to cook. I then put the onion/spinach/"chicken" into the sauce and let simmer while I cooked Udon noodles. I cooked fewer noodles than I had sauce (a pet-peeve I have is old pasta...I prefer cooking new pasta and pouring the premade sauce over!), but spooned ~2 spoons of sauce on the noodles, combined and ate.
The peanut flavor is slight, but enough to add an interesting flavor. I will definitely be making this one again!

"Chicken" Peanut "Alfredo":
1 package silken tofu
3 tbsp peanut sauce
2 cloves chopped garlic
1 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional- more for me getting all of my amino acids than flavor)
1 medium vidalia onion
1 package Gardein chik'n strips
2 large handfuls spinach
Pasta/Noodles- how much depends on how much sauce you want/ how you prefer your leftovers.

Butternut Squash "Lasagna"

These past few months have thrown me for a whirlwind and I haven't had the time to post any of my creations. The dinner I made tonight was so delicious I had to return to share it! (And I will be updating much more frequently now that my schedule has changed, especially with the recipes I have been making throughout!)
This lasagna recipe I made is based on the one from http://www.veganlunchbox.com/ although I made a few slight changes.
I began by peeling and thinly slicing the squash ans setting it aside. I diced the onion and water sauteed until tender, then added the chopped kale and cooked for another 10 minutes until the kale was wilted. I foiled a 9x13 pan (greasing would work fine) and placed a layer of squash rounds on the bottom. I then spread all of the onion/kale mixture, the topped with a second layer of squash. I spread the diced tomatoes on top, sprinkled w italian seasoning and garlic salt,  and cooked for 60 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Once done, I spooned premade tomato sauce on top (lightly), and cooked for another 5 minutes.

The steam coming off this made it blurry, but trust it looked, smelled, and tested SO GOOD!


Butternut Squash Lasagna
2 small butternut squash
1 bunch kale
1 vidalia onion
1 28 oz can no salt added diced tomatoes
 1/4 c tomato sauce
seasoning to taste