Sweet Pumpkin Soup

4 cups vegetable broth

2 1/2 cups pumpkin puree

1 cup coconut milk

2 carrots, chopped

2 summer squash, chopped

1 yellow onion, chopped

2/3 cup brown sugar

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp black pepper

• Cook onions in oil in a saucepan for 7 minutes
• Add summer squash, carrots, pumpkin, veggie broth, salt, pepper and nutmeg and bring to a boil
• Reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes
• Add brown sugar and cook for an additional 10 minutes
• Remove from heat and blend in batches in a blender until smooth and creamy
• Return to heat and stir in coconut milk
• Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes

 

Apple & Arugula Quesadillas

What to do with my leftover apples from apple-picking, what to do…

I exhausted any and all breakfast dishes and desserts I could possibly think of that incorporated apples. Lunch and dinner options? Not so much.

Apples brown so quickly and I’ve found that it’s harder to mix them into salads or meals that used them raw. So quesadillas seemed like  unique way to use up the fruit, since they’ve worked so beautifully before in apple pizza. The basis of these quesadillas are similar (expect that they’re vegan of course) and were every bit as delicious as the pizza.

2 large whole wheat burrito wraps

2 cups fresh arugula

2 cups chopped apples

1 red onion, sliced

1 cup shredded vegan cheese of your choice

1/4 cup white wine

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees
• Saute  the onions in the oil over medium heat for 5 minutes
• Add apples, white wine, salt and pepper and cook for 5 more minutes, then remove from heat
• On one half of each burrito wrap, place half of arugula
• On the other side, place half of vegan cheese, and top with half of apple/onion mix
• Fold burritos over and cook at 425 degrees for 5 minutes on each side

Mashed Potato & Gravy Shepard’s Pie

This one will be used for Thanksgiving for sure! Warm, hearty and a traditional meal, this Shepard’s Pie will please anyone at your holiday table.

4 or 5 Yukon Gold potatoes, boiled

1 1/2 cups chickpea gravy

1/2 cup coconut milk

3/4 cup frozen peas

1 onion, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1 8 oz. package organic tempeh, crumbled

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp olive oil, divided

1 cayenne pepper, minced

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp dried thyme

1/4 tsp black pepper

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Cook cayenne pepper and onion in 1 tbsp oil over medium heat in a saucepan for 7 minutes
• Add peas, carrots, tempeh, gravy, salt, thyme and pepper and cook for 2 more minutes
• Mash potatoes with coconut milk and garlic until creamy
• Spread 1 tbsp oil on the bottom of a casserole dish
• Spread vegetable/tempeh mix over the bottom of the pan
• Spread mashed potatoes over the tempeh mix
• Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes

Apple Walnut Crisp

I’m at a loss for apple recipes.

I can’t seem to come up with anything creative for the 12 lbs. of apples I picked up last weekend. So apple crisp seems like the only logical thing to make with all this fruit.

The walnuts give the topping of the crumble an extra crunch, that I absolutely loved. I may or may not have eaten all the topping off of most the dish when it came out of the oven. OK, OK I did. It was me. I couldn’t help it!

And if you live in the Boston area, you MUST eat this apple crisp with FoMu’s Apple Cider Donut vegan ice cream. It is easily one of the greatest things I have ever eaten. Not exaggerating!

FILLING

7 or 8 apples, peeled and sliced

1/3 cup organic brown sugar

1/3 cup organic raw sugar

1/2 cup organic orange juice

1 tbsp arrowroot powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp sea salt

TOPPING

1 cup organic rolled oats

1 cup organic whole wheat flour

1 cup organic brown sugar

1 cup raw walnuts, chopped

1/3 cup olive or coconut oil

3 tbsp almond milk

1 tsp pure vanilla

1 tsp ground cinnamon

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Dissolve arrowroot powder in orange juice
• Toss together apples, sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt
• Pour into casserole dish and pour orange juice over it
• For the topping, mix together oats, flour, sugar, walnuts and cinnamon
• Add in oil, almond milk and vanilla and then mix together until it forms a crumbly consistency
• Pour crumbles ontop of apple slices
• Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes

 

 

BBQ Cauliflower Wings

These are awesome!!

Not one for many cauliflower dishes, this faux “wings” absolutely have me hooked. The way they cook in the oven give it such a great texture and fall apart similarly to the way chicken may fall off the bone (gross reference, but very accurate). The BBQ sauce is adaptable and feel free to use whatever kind suits your palette. They were a cinch to make and I love this dish so much because it’s a full meal on its own, and who doesn’t love saying they ate an entire head of cauliflower for dinner?

1 head cauliflower, broken into florets

1 cup organic BBQ sauce (we used Annie’s Naturals)

1 cup almond milk

1 cup organic all-purpose flour

1 tbsp chipotle hot sauce (optional)

1 tbsp arrowroot powder (or whatever starch you’ve got)

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

*Dip into raw vegan mayo-it doubles as sour cream too!

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees
• Whisk almond milk and flour together
• Dredge cauliflower pieces into flour mixture, sprinkle with arrowroot powder and place in a shallow glass baking dish
• Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes
• Meanwhile, mix together the BBQ sauce, hot sauce, olive oil, salt and pepper
• Once cooked, toss cauliflower with BBQ mix and bake for an additional 5 to 8 minutes

Cinnamon Acorn Squash Soup

And the soup fetish rages on.

Is there any vegetable that CAN’T be turned into a delicious soup? I’ve found yet to find a veggie that I couldn’t roast or boil and puree into a sweet or savory, creamy bisque. And fall seems to be the perfect time to keep churning out the soup recipes.

I was recently given what I THOUGHT was a pumpkin (thanks Tracy!), only to slice open the sucker and discover it was, in fact, an acorn squash. Since I already severed the gourd, my pumpkin pie and pumpkin oatmeal was put on hold and without much planning, decided that the only way I could quickly serve this squash was in a soup of course.

I was overwhelmingly surprised at how awesome it came out, since I literally threw in any fall-ish item into the pot, crossing my fingers for success. Freshly picked apples + homegrown acorn squash + cinnamon = HEAVEN.

4 cups vegetable broth

1 large acorn squash, halved and seeded

1 large apple (green is better), peeled and chopped

1 red onion, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

1 cup coconut milk

3 tbsp olive oil

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 cup chopped pecans for garnish

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Place acorn halves, face up, on a baking sheet. Season with olive oil, salt and pepper to taste
• Roast at 400 degrees for 1 hour
• Remove skin off squash and cube
• In a large saucepan, cook olive oil and onion over medium heat for 5 minutes
• Add squash, carrots, apples, salt and black pepper and cook for 3-5 more minutes, stirring continuously
• Add cinnamon and nutmeg and cook for another minute
• Add vegetable broth and bring to a boil
• Simmer on low/medium heat for 15-20 minutes
• Stir in coconut milk, then puree in batches in a blender until creamy

Crispy Smashed Rosemary Potatoes

Is there anything better than a good roasted potato?

I love, love, LOVE any potato recipe that doesn’t require frying. These baked crushed red potato recipe is unreal and I ate 10 out of the 12 potatoes in just one sitting. And I’m not ashamed to admit it. Topped with some chickpea gravy or vegan cheddar and you’ve got yourself an insanely delicious dish that any carnivore would be happy to eat. Plus, smooshing potatoes is fun!

12 red potatoes, boiled

2 tbsp olive oil

Rosemary, salt and black pepper to taste (I used ALOT of each!)

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees
• Using the bottom of a cup or bowl, smash the boiled potatoes onto a greased baking sheet while they’re still hot
• Drizzle the olive oil over the tops of the potatoes and sprinkle with salt, rosemary and black pepper
• Bake at 450 degrees for 25 minutes

Apple-Picking & Apple Burritos!

Now that September is coming to an end, I can FINALLY fully embrace fall.

I snickered when Shipyard Pumpkin was out before my pool closed. I groaned in disgust when all things Halloween and autumn started popping in local stores.

But now’s the right time. The weather is fully cooling off, I’ve bought myself some fabulous new boots, broken out the sweaters and of course, gone pumpkin and apple-picking.

Apple-picking is somewhat of a tradition (OK, it’s only our second year) among the girls at work and we returned to the orchards this past weekend. Arikka and I were ambitious with our apple recipes and we each brought home a whopping 12.2 pounds of apple, to which we paid a mere $15. It’s always a fun experience and picking the apples is just as fun as eating them.

One of my co-workers, Peter, actually came up with the idea for these apple burritos when he’d had one too many beers at Red Sox game. It turned out to be brilliant though and these burritos are perfect for breakfast or dessert. How awesome is it when a drunk idea actually turns out to be a sober success?!

4 whole wheat tortilla/burrito wraps

2 apples of your choice, peeled and sliced

1/3 cup raw sugar

1/2 cup orange juice

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 tbsp maple syrup

1 tbsp cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tbsp water

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp sea salt

• In a saucepan, cook apples in orange juice, lemon juice, sugar and sea salt over medium heat for 2 minutes
• Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer and cook, partially covered for 5 more minutes
• Add cinnamon and nutmeg and cook on medium heat for a few more minutes, stirring continuously
• Add cornstarch and water and pecans and stir together for another minute, so that most of the liquids are gone and the mixture is sticky
• Remove from heat, add maple syrup and pecans and stir until combined
• Wrap up into burritos and serve!

(cool tree at the orchards at Tougas Farm)

 

 

Tempeh & Corn Chili

File this one under “food that looks so much like real meat it’s creepy”.

I an enamored this this chili. It’s hearty and spicy, and the mix of corn, beans, tempeh and veggie gives it such a wonderful texture. So many flavors in one little bite!

The end result of the crumbled tempeh resembles ground hamburger meat, which is something I generally don’y enjoy. But once in awhile, I don’t mind the faux-meats, and in this dish it’s especially delicious. This stew really wouldn’t be the same without it.

3 cups diced tomatoes

2 cups fresh or frozen corn

2 green bell peppers, chopped

1 yellow onion, chopped

1 cup cooked black beans

1 cup vegetable broth

1 8 oz. package tempeh, crumbled or diced

1 cayenne pepper minced

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp chipotle hot sauce

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp black pepper

• Saute onion, peppers and cayenne pepper in olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat for minutes
• Add tempeh, salt, paprika and black pepper and cook for 5 more minutes, stirring
• Add corn and black beans and cook for 2 more minutes
• Add tomatoes, veggie broth and hot sauce and bring to a boil
• Reduce heat to meat/low, cover, and cook for 45 minutes

Chickpea Gravy

Gravy. Yet another dish I HATED even during my pre-vegetarian life.

It always smelled funny and looked like dirty water to me. I skipped over any gravy at the Thanksgiving table and just didn’t want any brown mess tampering with my delicious potatoes.

That being said, I had read some recipes for chickpea gravy that sounded scrumptious. I was also prepping to make some smashed potatoes (stay tuned for that recipe) and figured this might be the prime time to give vegan gravy a go.

And I’m SO thrilled that I did. The aroma, creamy consistency and savory spices made for a melt-watering sauce. It was actually really easy to make and barley to 15 minutes to whip together. A must try!

4 cups vegetable broth

1/3 cup chickpea flour

1/3 cup cooked chickpeas

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp dry mustard

1/4 tsp black pepper

• In a frying pan over medium heat, cook olive oil and garlic for 2 minutes
• Add chickpea flour, salt, paprika, dry mustard and black pepper and cook for 2 more minutes, stirring
• Add chickpeas and 1 cup veggie broth and continue stirring over medium heat for 3 minutes
• Add another cup veggie broth and cook for 3 more minutes
• Repeat until broth is gone
• Once gravy is absorbed and creamy, pour into blender and pulse until chickpeas are blended