Christmas Cookies

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR

I highly reccomend ordering this back issue of "Veggie Life" magazine. It's the Winter 2005-2006 edition and it has awesome Christmas cookie recipes and other holiday vegan treats. I used confectioners powder sugar for the mix which makes the cookie more crumbly melt-in-your mouth than granulated sugar which makes a more crunchy cookie. (http://www.veggielife.com/)

Thanksgiving Dinner

(Stuffing/Dressing, Jelly Cranberry, Sauteed Mushrooms with Spinach, Cashew Loaf, Mean Green Beans, Mashed Potatoes, Mushroom Gravy not shown)

Mean Green Beans:

Whole Fresh Green Beans (cut off stems). Make about 5 cups
3 TB Sesame Seeds
4 Bulbs Shallots
Salt to taste

Toast Sesame Seeds in frying pan until toasty light brown. Set Aside. Slice shallots thinly. Caramelize in canola/vegetable oil. I stir fried the green beans with the shallots (before they caramelized). But you can also steam the beans separately to keep crisp. Toss all ingredients together and serve.

Sautéed Wild Mushrooms with Spinach:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/

I used this recipe I found online at www.FoodNetwork.com

2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 cup minced shallots
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups mixed wild mushrooms (any combination of shiitake, porcini, chanterelle, oyster, Portobello, and cremini)
3 tablespoons dry sherry wine
1 1/2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 (10-ounce) bags fresh spinach

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic and sauté 1 minute. Add mushrooms and cook 3 to 5 minutes, until mushrooms are tender. Add sherry and soy sauce and bring to a simmer. Add spinach (add spinach in batches if necessary), and simmer 1 to 2 minutes, until spinach wilts, turning frequently.

Cashew Loaf:

I adapted this recipe online at www.vegcooking.com. For original recipe, visit www.vegcookking.com and look for “Cashew Nut Roast with Herb Stuffing”. I made a few changes. (I used store-bought stuffing instead of making from scratch. Added thyme and sage. I also threw in layers of eggplant, which was used in a different cashew loaf recipe from Vegetarian Times magazine.

2 TB oil
½ onion
5 garlic cloves

3 cups raw cashews

1 ½ cups bread
1 cup vegetable stock
½ tsp nutmeg
4 sprigs fresh thyme (scrape off the leafy part. Throw away the stick)
1 TB sage
Salt/Black Pepper to taste
½ Sliced Eggplant
Stuffing (I used about 1 cup store-bought stuffing. For stuffing recipe visit www.vegcooking.com)

Directions: Cook onion and garlic in oil until tender. Chops cashews (If you don’t have a coffee grinder, you can place the cashews in a sandwich bag and “roller pin” the heck out of them until crushed. Cut up bread. Toss all ingredients together in bowl. Slice eggplant thinly and fry in 1 tsp oil, dash with salt/pepper, turn slices over until tender and light brown. Layer half the cash mix in small loaf pan. Layer half of the eggplants over cashews. Layer 1 cup stuffing. Layer more cashew mix. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until top has browned. Top remaining eggplant. Cool few minutes before serving. (OPTIONAL: diced cherry tomatoes for color) Can be served with mushroom gravy.

Zucchini & Squash Soup

AFTER
BEFORE

Ingredients:

1 Green Zucchini

2 Yellow Squash

1/2 small Red Onion

5 Garlic Cloves

5 Cups Water

1 Vegan Vegetable Bouillon Cube

2 sprig of fresh Thyme

1 large sprig of fresh Dill

Dash of Salt & Black Pepper to taste



Chop all ingredients. In canola oil, caramelize the red onion. Add water, veggie bouillon cube, garlic, thyme, dill, zucchini, squash. Boil until veggies are tender. Use hand blender (shown in picture) to mush zucchini & squash. Make sure your pot is deep enough to prevent splatter. Blending the veggies gives the soup a creamy texture. Dash of salt & black pepper to taste.

Easy Stroganoff

Ingredients:

2 TB Dry Onion Soup Mix

2 TB Dry Mushroom Sauce

2 Cups Water

1 Cup Sliced Mushrooms

1 cup veggie “beef” crumbles (I like Boca brand) -or- seitan

1 Cup Peas

2 TB Tofutti Sour Cream (heaping tablespoon)

½ Cup White Wine

1 TB Arrowroot (to thicken)

Black Pepper to taste

Farfalle or Bow Tie Noodles

Directions: Boil noodles. In a separate pot, mix dry onion soup, dry mushroom sauce, water in pot. Add veggie beef crumbles, mushrooms and simmer 7 minutes. Stir in peas, sour cream, white wine and bring to boil. In a separate bowl, stir arrowroot and ½ cup water, then add to stroganoff and stir for one minute. Turn off heat to let sauce thicken. Dash of black pepper to taste.

Meatless Loaf

This lentil loaf was made with a little help from a "Make a Magical Loaf" program created by the Vegan Lunchbox lady. Click link bellow to design your own meatless loaf. I used cooked lentils for protein, oatmeal as a binder, frozen peas & carrots, onions, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, ground walnuts, cumin, salt. It was very good. I baked until the outer layer was crispy, and the loaf held firmly. Drizzled the top with ketchup.

http://www.veganlunchbox.com/loaf_studio.html

http://veganlunchbox.blogspot.com/

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Had an office Halloween party. Cake, candy treats, and kitty litter were served. That's right, I said kitty litter. It wasn't too bad. A bitter flavor, slightly nutty aftertaste. Ok...so it wasn't really kitty litter. Grapenuts cereal were mixed with flour, creating a surprising grayish look. Then Tootsie Rolls were rolled into p** shaped piles. Sadly, I can't take credit for this, but it's still a brilliant idea.

Yellow Curry Chickpeas

Ingredients:
1/2 tsp Turmeric

1/2 tsp ground Cumin

2 large Garlic cloves

1/2 Onion

1 cup Light Coconut Milk

1/2 cup Water

15 oz can Chickpeas

2 medium Potatoes (...or 2 1/2 cups cauliflower)

2 cups peas

1/4 cup chopped Spinach

Salt to taste

Directions: Chop onion, garlic & potatoes, then saute in vegetable/canola oil until tender. Add turmeric, cumin, salt, chickpeas, spinach, peas. Stir 1 minute. Add coconut milk and water. Stir and let simmer for 15 minutes. Serve with rice. Increase the ingredients if you prefer extra “sauce” to pour over rice.

Birthday Cakes

ABOVE: My awesome co-workers got me a Vegan "Carrot Cake" from Whole Foods. It was splendiferous. Thanks guys :)


BELOW: More Birthday Sugar!!! Cupcakes from Sticky Fingers Bakery, the best vegan bakery in DC. Chocolate, Vanilla, Coconut, Almond Creme. Passed the lips and through the gums, look out hips, here it comes. Thanks B.