Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies, YUM!!!!

I hosted a cookie exchange one weekend before the holidays and these cookies were a hit! If you're a pumpkin lover like me, these cookies are for you!

Ingredients
2 cups flour
1 1/3 cups rolled oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1 2/3 cups sugar
2/3 cup canola oil
2 tablespoons molasses
1 cup canned pumpkin, or cooked pureed pumpkin
1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup walnuts, finely chopped
1/2 cup raisins

Mix together 2 cups flour, 1 1/3 cups rolled oats, 1 tsp baking soda, 3/4 tsp salt, 1 tsp cinnamon, and 1/2 tsp nutmeg.

In a separate bowl, mix together 1 2/3 cups sugar, 2/3 cup oil, 2 Tbsp molasses, 1 cup canned pumpkin, and 1 tsp vanilla. Combine well.

 Add dry ingredients to wet, folding to combine. Fold in walnuts and raisins.

The final product should look like this!

Preheat oven to 350. Spray 3 baking sheets with cooking spray.

Drop by tablespoons onto greased cookie sheets, about an inch apart.

Flatten the cookies with a spatula or with your fingers to form into cookie shape.

Pop the sheets in the over and bake for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool. 

Enjoy!!!

Black Bean and Portabella Stew

This Black Bean and Portabella stew is thick, hearty, warming, and delicious in the winter months! The dish was derived from a recipe for Brazilian Feijao in Terry Hope Romero's Viva Vegan book.

You will need the following ingredients:

1 cup textured vegetable protein
2 cups boiling water

1/4 cup olive oil
5 cloves garlic
1 large yellow onion
1/3 cup red wine or heavy beer
3 portabella mushrooms
2 bay leaves
1 tsp liquid smoke
1 Tbsp dried thyme
1 1/2 Tbsp cumin
1 Tbsp crushed red pepper

3 cans black beans
3 cups vegetable stock
1 bag of frozen (12 oz) pea and carrot mix
Salt and pepper to taste

First boil 2 cups of water. Pour over 1 cup of textured vegetable protein (TVP) and let sit for 15-20 minutes. The TVP will soak up most of the liquid.

Next, finely chop 1 large yellow onion and 5 cloves of garlic.

Slice 3 large portabella mushrooms into 1/2 inch strips.

Now, put 1/4 cup of olive oil into a large soup pot. Add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds or until the garlic becomes fragrant.

Then add the onion and saute for 8-10 minutes until the onion is soft and slightly browned.

While the onion is cooking, measure out 1/3 cup beer or red wine, 1 tsp liquid smoke, 1 Tbsp thyme, 1 1/2 Tbsp cumin, 1 Tbsp red pepper flakes, and 2 bay leaves.

Next, drain the excess water from the textured vegetable protein.

Once the onion is browned, deglaze the pan with the 1/3 cup beer or wine. Cook for a minute, then add all the spices, portabella mushrooms, and TVP. Add a splash of vegetable stock. Cook for 10 minutes.

While the mixture cooks, add the contents of one can of black beans to a food processor. Add a splash of vegetable stock and blend until smooth.

Add the black bean puree to the mixture in the pot. This will thicken the soup. Add the remaining cans of black beans and the remaining vegetable stock.

Add the entire package of frozen pea and carrot mix. Season with salt and pepper. Mix well and let simmer for 45 minutes to an hour.

While the soup is cooking, you can make a pot of rice and roughly chop fresh cilantro. Put some rice in a bowl, add a couple ladles of soup, and top with cilantro. Delicious, and even better the next day!

Vegan Kitchen Essentials

Things that I always have in my kitchen for two reasons: (1) I always use them in recipes and (2) if I don't have time to cook, I can make a quick and easy meal!

1. Tofu
   Tofu is one of the most versatile ingredients. Saute with veggies and soy sauce for a quick stir fry, use to whip up a quick 15 minute soup, use to make vegan breakfast tacos. The possibilities are endless!
2. Almond milk
   I buy the unsweetened. It has fewer calories and works well in coffee, soups, and smoothies.
3. Nutritional yeast
   It shows up in so many recipes. See my blog on nutritional yeast.
4. Frozen vegetables
   Good for a quick soup or stir fry.
5. Variety of fresh veggies
   Need I say more?
6. Canned beans
   I keep a variety on hand, such as chickpeas, kidney beans, and black beans. Toss on salads, use in chili, make hummus, or toss in with pasta and sauce.
7. Canned tomatoes
   Use to make a sauce for vegan pizza or spaghetti squash. Combine with beans, spices, some veggies, and TVP and you'll have chili!
8. Vegetable stock or bouillon
   A great base for soups and risottos. Use instead of water when cooking rice to add flavor.
   
9. Herbs and spices
   I keep a variety of spices and spice blends on hand. I most frequently use basil, garlic powder, curry paste, herbes de provence, among many, many others!
   
10. Kashi and Amy's frozen vegan meals
    I love to cook, but when I don't have time, or I don't have any leftovers for lunch, I bring one of these to work for lunch and they're delicious!

Vegan Breakfast Tacos

Living in Texas, I was introduced to, and now love, breakfast tacos. Here's a super quick and easy way to make delicious vegan breakfast tacos. My boyfriend didn't even realize they were made with tofu and Soyrizo rather than eggs and chorizo!

This quick and easy dish takes about 15 minutes to prepare and makes 8-10 tacos. It keeps well, so you can refrigerate the leftovers and eat for breakfast the next day!


What you will need:
1 12 oz package of firm tofu
1/2 package (6 oz) of Soyrizo, available at most grocery stores
2 Tbsp turmeric
2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1/4-1/2 cup vegan cheese
10 corn tortillas
Salt and pepper to taste
Salsa
Any other veggies you want to toss in (optional)

Put half a package, or 6 oz, of Soyrizo in a skillet and cook for about 5 minutes, or until it browns.

Meanwhile, use a pastry blender or a fork to break the tofu into small pieces.

Remove the Soyrizo from the pan when browned.

At this time, if you wish to add onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, or any other vegetable to your tacos, now is the time to saute them! You can mix them in with the eggs, or use them to top off your taco.

Add the tofu to the skillet, plus 2 tablespoons turmeric and 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast. Season with salt and pepper.

Mix well and cook for about 3 minutes.

Add the Soyrizo to the eggs, mix well, and cook for a few minutes.

Add the vegan cheese, mix well, and cook until the cheese melts.

While the cheese is melting, warm the corn tortillas by laying them on top of a gas burner and brown each side using metal tongs to flip them.

If you don't have a gas stove, you can wrap the tortillas in damp paper towels and warm them in the microwave for about 20 seconds.

Once the tortillas are warm, fill the tortillas with the tofu mixture, top with any other veggies, and finish off with salsa. Two tacos make a great, filling breakfast!

Stuffed Eggplant

Such a hearty main course! I brought this dish to Thanksgiving dinner at a friend's house and everyone loved it- vegans and carnivores alike! The recipe was derived (and modified slightly) from What's Cooking Vegetarian by Jenny Stacey.

This dish takes about an hour and 15 minutes to prepare and uses the following ingredients:

3 medium size eggplants
1 cup bulgur wheat
1 1/4 cups water
2 celery stalks
4 scallions
1 carrot
1 cup mushrooms (I like to use cremini)
1/2 cup leeks
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
4 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp pine nuts
4 Tbsp raisins or dates
2 Tbsp turmeric
4 Tbsp chili powder
2 Tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper

Cut 3 eggplants in half.

With a paring knife, cut out the flesh of the eggplant, trying not to pierce the shell. Take a spoon and scrape out the remaining flesh. It's ok if it's messy, you'll be chopping the flesh later anyway!

After you remove the flesh from all 6 eggplant halves, put the eggplant flesh in a colander and sprinkle with salt. This process, known as "degorging," removes the moisture from the eggplant and removes the bitter flavor that eggplants tend to have.

Now, put 1 1/4 cups of water in the microwave for 1 minute to boil. 

Put 1 cup of bulgur wheat in a boil and pour the boiling water on top. Stir and let it rest for at least 20 minutes to absorb the water.

Chop the celery, scallions, mushrooms, leeks, garlic, and cilantro.

Shred the carrot.

Measure out the pine nuts and raisins.

Here's a tip for cleaning leeks! Given the various layers of a leek, they tend to hold and hide a lot of dirt. First, chop the leek like this, all the way down to the end.

Then put the leek pieces in a bowl, fill with water, and agitate. Allow them to soak for a few minutes, then strain and rinse.

Now back to the recipe!
Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a skillet.

Toss the veggies, garlic, raisins, and pine nuts into the skillet (minus the cilantro). 

Add 2 tablespoons of turmeric and 4 tablespoons of chili powder.

Stir and cook for about 5 minutes, until the ingredients become a little soft.

 

Rinse the eggplant, pat it dry with paper towels, and chop it up.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

Add the eggplant to the skillet. 

Drain any excess water from the bulgur wheat and add it to the skillet. Add the cilantro

Allow this mixture to cook for about 5 minutes.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

If you're like me and you like dishes a little spicy, add more chili powder to taste.

Now you have 2 options. You can:

1. Rinse the eggplant shells. Stuff the shells with the mixture. Put the shells in a broiling pan, add some water to the bottom, and bake for 30 minutes on 350 degrees.

(I was in a hurry to finish this meal and forgot to take a pic! So I took this pic from the recipe book)

Or you can:
2. Put the mixture only in a pan and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Remove from the oven and enjoy! Serve with a mixed green salad or parboil fresh green beans then saute with olive oil, garlic, and sea salt. Yum!

15 Minute Vegan Soup- quick weeknight dinner!

It was Tuesday night, I had no dinner plans, I ran 4 miles with the dog, and I was hungry! I whipped up this quick 15 minute soup, which was delicious and satisfying!

This soup contains ingredients that I always make sure to have on hand, in the event that I need to make a quick, last minute meal!

The culprits: 
8 cups of water
3 tablespoons Miso paste
1 vegetable bouillon cubes
1/2 cup of Bulgur wheat
1/2 container of firm tofu, chopped into small pieces
1-2 cups Frozen veggies (For soup, I like the pea, carrot, corn, green bean, lima bean mix)
2 tablespoons of your favorite herb blend 
1 dash of crushed red pepper
Throw in any other ingredients you have laying around!


The quick and easy steps:

• Put 8 cups of water in a pan
• Add 3 tablespoons of miso paste and 2 vegetable bouillon cubes
• Toss in the bulgur wheat
• Bring to a boil, stir frequently so the miso and bouillon mix well with the water
• Toss in a couple tablespoons of your favorite dried herb blend. I like to use herbes de provence or catanzaro herb blend from the Savory Spice Shop in Austin. If you want to make it a little spicy, toss in some crushed red pepper
• Turn heat down to a simmer
• Add the tofu and frozen veggies.
• Simmer for a few minutes, and it's done!

If your soup needs more flavor, add salt and pepper, or add a few dashes of soy sauce and/or fish sauce. If you like your soup a little thicker, add half a cup of textured vegetable protein.

Quick and easy dinner in 15 minutes! Plus, I always have leftovers for lunch the next day. Enjoy!

What the heck is nutritional yeast?

When I started eating vegan, I noticed that nutritional yeast was a key ingredient in many vegan recipes. I wondered, why? What is nutritional yeast anyway? Here's what I learned...it's definitely a vegan household staple!

What is it? 
Nutritional yeast is a form of cultured yeast that is mixed with sugarcane and beet molasses. Umm, ok....it's like yeast but deactivated (so it won't make your bread rise).


Why use it?
Nutritional yeast is yellow and flaky with a nutty cheese flavor. It's often added to vegan dishes to create a cheesy flavor. I used it in my vegan lasagna (see last post). It can also be used in eggs, mashed potatoes, or sprinkled on pasta, soup, and popcorn as a Parmesan cheese substitute.

What are the benefits?
Other than flavor, nutritional yeast is, in fact, nutritional! It is a complex protein and a source of B vitamins. It's low fat, low sodium, sugar free, dairy free, and gluten free.


Sounds yummy, where do I buy it?
Many health food stores carry nutritional yeast. I purchased mine in the bulk section of The Natural Grocer....it was a couple dollars for about a cup!

Vegan Lasagna - Tested and Approved!

Here's a step-by-step guide to making a great vegan lasagna! The recipe was taken from and modified slightly- Vegetarian Times' Ultimate Vegan Lasagna in the February 1, 2009 edition, p 54.

Here are the ingredients you need (in cooking order):

• Olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic
• 3 large onions
• Bunch of spinach (or 10 oz bag of baby spinach, if you don't feel like cleaning it)
• 2 12oz packages of firm tofu
• 1 8oz package of vegan cream cheese (I used the tofutti brand)
• 2/3 cup dried basil
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast (purchase at your favorite organic food store)
• 1 12oz jar roasted red peppers
• 1 28oz can fire roasted tomatoes
• 12oz vegan sausage crumbles (optional)
• 1 package no-boil lasagna noodles (make sure it's egg free...I used a gluten free rice noodle)
•  12oz vegan mozzarella cheese (try Daiya brand)

Let's get cooking!

Start by chopping 6 cloves of garlic. 

TIP: Smash garlic cloves by placing the blunt side of the knife on top of each clove and pound the side of the knife with your fist for easy peel removal.

Dice the 3 large onions. 

Heat 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet and saute onions and garlic for approximately 8 minutes until golden in color.

When the onion/garlic mixture is complete, set half of the mixture aside for the tomato sauce. 

Once you remove half of the onion/garlic mixture, add the spinach to the remaining onion/garlic mixture and cook for 2-3 minutes until the spinach is wilted.

Remove the spinach mixture from the stove. 

Combine the spinach mixture plus 2 packages of tofu, 1 8oz package of vegan cream cheese, 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast, and 1/3 cup of dried basil and puree in a blender or food processor. 

My blender was not large enough to accommodate all the ingredients, so I divided each ingredient into two and pureed two separate mixtures, combining them in a bowl in the end. The consistency of the mixture looked like this.

Now for the sauce! Clean out your blender or food processor and add the 12oz jar of roasted red peppers. Puree until smooth.

Add the leftover onion/garlic mixture, red pepper puree, the 28oz can of fire roasted tomatoes, and 1/3 cup of dried basil to a skillet. 

Combine, season with salt and pepper, and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the sauce thickens. If needed, you can add some extra nutritional yeast to thicken the sauce. At this time, you should preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

At this time, if you wish, you can saute the vegan sausage crumbles and add to the sauce.  

Now it's time to assemble the final product! Grab a 13 x 9 inch baking pan. Spread a layer of sauce in the bottom of the pan (using about half the sauce). Add a layer of the no-boil egg free lasagna noodles. Spread about half of the spinach mixture on top and add a layer of vegan mozzarella.

 Add a second layer of sauce, lasagna noodles, spinach mixture, and cheese. Then pop it in the oven!

Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes, or until the cheese on top slightly browns.

Cut a piece and enjoy! Mmmm, delicious!