Mushroom "Risoniotto"

From River Cottage Veg (Love this book!), this is the mushroom "risoniotto" which is a delicious mushroom sauce tossed with orzo pasta. I tweaked it a bit by added onion, zucchini and using red wine instead of white. Also switched out the cream for almond milk. Delicous! Recipe to be found here.

Orzo with White Beans and Greens

This is a very simple yet delicious recipe for orzo, a tiny rice shaped pasta. I sauteed a combination of mustard, turnip and collard greens in olive oil with garlic, white beans, grape tomatoes, fresh dill and olives. Then I tossed with cooked orzo, added more olive oil and lemon juice and topped with bread crumbs. Recipe adapted from The Olive and The Caper Cookbook.

VeganMoFo: Orzo and Veggie Soup

I'm sorry guys, I've been so lazy! I was hoping that when MoFo came around, I'd be making these elaborate menus, cooking them early in the mornings before work and taking lovely shots of them in the natural light of day. It seems that weekends are my only time to get into it. I've been so wiped out every day from work that all I want to do is come home, throw a bunch of stuff in a pot and call it dinner. That's pretty much what I did tonight. Luckily this soup was absolutely delicious. I'll share the recipe with you. It's quick and easy, perfect for a weeknight meal.

Orzo and Veggie Soup

3 TB olive oil
1 tsp. oregano
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, chopped
1 rib celery, sliced
1 14oz. can diced tomatoes or whole (just chop them up first)
1 TB tomato paste
4 cups water
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp. sugar
1 cup mixed frozen vegetables (I used a mix of carrots, green bean, lima beans, corn and peas)
1/2 cup orzo

Heat olive oil in a soup pot over medium high. Saute garlic, onion, celery and oregano until soft. Add diced tomatoes (with juice), tomato paste, water, salt and pepper, sugar and frozen vegetables. Bring to a boil, add orzo then reduce heat to medium. Simmer until pasta is tender about 10 minutes..

Soup and Sandwich.

This reminds me of a meal you'd get at a 24 hour coffee shop. My soup is Greek Manestra, a tomato and orzo soup flavored with olive oil, garlic, and oregano. My sandwich is so basic, it's Tofurky slices, a slice of Tofutti american vegan cheese, Vegenaise and lettuce on white bread. Not the most wholesome sandwich but there you go. Everything was very satisfactory, especially the soup. I sprinkled a bit of "parmezano sprinkles" for a bit of cheesy-ness.

Soup recipe from "The Olive and The Caper" cookbook. Not a vegetarian cookbook but it has a wonderful array of veggie mezes, soups and dishes. Highly recommended. And not just for the recipes, there is also a wealth of information about Greek culture and cooking.