St. Patty's Day deliciousness.

This year I made The Happy Pear's lentil and root veg stew again along with the kale colcannon mash. Very delicious and super healthy! For dessert I made a healthy banana, blueberry, peanut butter, cocoa, cashew milk smoothie.

Lentil Stew & Mash.

Lovely lovely lentil stew. This happens to be Ina Garten's lentil and sausage soup, veganized and instead of sausages I used cut up pieces of Field Roast. It's a really good recipe. You must try it. I was originally going to accompany it with colcannon but I realized while boiling up the potatoes that my kale had gone bad. So I ended up throwing some spinach in the mashed potato along with the soymilk, margarine and green onions. Delicious!

Lentil Stew.

Made Moroccan lentil stew last night and it was delicious as usual. I love lentils!

Eggplant Bean Stew Burgers!

I had a brainwave at work while eating leftover stew for lunch (pictured above). It had such great flavors of cumin and fennel that I thought it would taste good mashed up as a burger. As soon as I got home, I got to work.

I had about 3 cups of stew leftover which had gotten nice and thick in the fridge overnight. I put it into a big bowl and mashed it up real well. Then I added about 1/2 cup of ground almonds and sunflower seeds that I whizzed up real quick in the blender. Then about 2 cups of whole wheat bread crumbs, a handful of oats and some spices (chipotle chili powder, mesquite and more cumin, salt, pepper). I shaped them into patties and baked in a 375 F oven for 30 minutes, flipping halfway.

I served them with a topping of harissa mayo (just Vegenaise mixed with harissa, which is a Moroccan chili sauce), grilled onions and mushrooms. YUMMY!

Aubergine Fennel and Bean Stew, Kale Salad.

This is the Aubergine (eggplant) Fennel Bean Stew from The Happy Pear cookbook. I adapted mine a bit. Used kidney beans instead of black beans and I had no pumpkin so I used yellow potatoes instead, otherwise the recipe flavors were the same. I love when eggplants get all silky in a stew like this! I loved the fennel, cumin and cardamom flavors.

Served with whole wheat pita.

Mmm.

More kale salad in a tahini based dressing with chickpeas.

Buckwheat pancakes & Tomato Cashew Potato Stew.

Got this recipe from The Happy Pear over at facebook. Mini buckwheat pancakes with bananas, maple syrup and cinnamon. Pretty tasty.

A deliciously creamy stew with cashews, tomatoes, yellow potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, leeks, mushrooms, carrots and parsnips! To make it creamy, I blended the cashews with a little water and also blended some of the soup. Recipe below. I made it up and never measure anything so you might have to fiddle a little bit with it!

Tomato Cashew Potato Stew
2 TB olive oil
1 leek, sliced
½ large onion chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
herbs: thyme, oregano, basil (about 2 tsps fresh)
1 parsnip, sliced into bite size chunks
1 carrot, sliced
1 large sweet potato, cut into bite size chunks, about 2 cups
2 or 3 yellow potatoes skin on, cut into bite size chunks, 2 cups
1 portobello mushroom, chopped
1 cup green beans, cut into pieces
1 can stewed tomatoes
2 cups veggie broth
1 cup cashews that have been soaked in hot water for a half hour
1 TB soy sauce
pinch of cumin
salt and pepper to taste
pinch of cayenne

Heat olive oil in a soup pot over medium high heat. Saute leeks, onions for a few minutes. Add garlic and herbs. Continue to cook a few minutes more. Add parsnip and carrots and cook until everything gets a little tender. Add sweet potatoes, yellow potatoes, portobello, green beans, stewed tomatoes with juice and veggie broth. It should all cover the potatoes. Bring to a boil and then lower heat to simmer for 15-20 minutes until potatoes are tender. Meanwhile, drain cashews and blend with about 1/2 water in a blender. It will blend easily and look like milk. If too thick, add a little more water. Add this to the stew. Stir and simmer for about 5 more minutes. Season with soy sauce, salt, pepper, cumin and cayenne. You may leave the soup as is or you can ladle some of the potatoes and liquid portion of the soup into a blender, blend til smooth and pour back into pot. Simmer for another 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally so the potatoes don't stick to the bottom of the pot.

Irish Lentil & Root Veg Stew and Kale Colcannon Mash.

Happy St. Paddy's day all! I saw a video on youtube yesterday of The Happy Pear, who are twin brothers who cook and also own a veggie cafe and grocer. They are so fun to watch. I loved the simplicity of the recipe and the fact that it is a vegan recipe made it all the better. Whipped it up tonight and really enjoyed it. The flavors are really good and it's definitely a comforting dish. It's also super healthy and full of delicious ingredients!

Here's the video!

Vegetable Hotchpotch & Date Cakes!

This is the preparation for Linda McCartney's Vegetable Hotchpotch which is from her book "Linda's Kitchen". Gardein steak chunks, onions, potatoes, herbs, white beans and vegetables all layered and then covered with veggie stock.

Ready to go in the oven for an hour. I drizzled some olive oil on top to add some fat!

Out of the oven. This was so delicious. I had some in a bowl with some white rice added and it was so rich and deep in flavor.

Date cakes!

And a heart shaped one to spread the love.

Topped with Coco Whip. Much too good!

Moroccan Lentil Stew & Bisquick Apple Cake

I love lentils, especially in a warm and comforting stew like this Moroccan lentil stew with eggplant and a variety of vegetables flavored with spices: cumin, curry powder, ras el hanout and cayenne.

I got this recipe from sexy Vegan Mama.

Vegan Beef Stew

Got this recipe idea over here. It uses seitan but instead I used rehydrated soy chunks. I didn't bake my stew in the oven, I just cooked it in a dutch oven on the stove for several hours on very low heat with a lid on it. I added a little more liquid to mine as well. Also other additions: green beans, celery, portobello mushrooms and marmite. I'm not big on eating soy chunks all the time but today I really wanted something meaty and comforting.

Bubbling over the stove.

I wanted to serve the stew on top of noodles that were like egg noodles. I found these at Vons and they are vegan and have no eggs yay!

So hearty and filling.

These are the deluxe cocoa brownies from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar. I liked them but they were a little too cakey for my liking. It is mostly my fault, my oven is wonky. I'm a fan of dessert so these will keep me happy for the weekend.

Ok, bear with me...

I know I haven't posted a lot in the past weeks so I apologize in advance that the photo you are going to see in this post is of the poorest quality. I just had my house fumigated you see, and after moving back in tonight after work, I was desperate for a warm and quick meal. I rooted through all my double bagged pantry goods and came up with red lentils, spices, vermicelli noodles, an onion and garlic. This is what I made, which is my take on a middle eastern lentil and noodles soup. Try it, it's so comforting and delicious! I was in such a hurry to eat, I forgot to take a photo of my bowl, so you'll see a pic of the leftovers at the end of this post.

Lentils and Noodles

1/2 cup red lentils, rinsed
4 cups water
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1 tsp. cumin (I couldn't find my cumin so I used garam masala, which is an indian mixed spice blend of cumin, cinnamon, cardamom and cloves. Hey at least there's cumin in it!)
1 tsp yellow curry powder
1/3 cup vermicelli noodles, broken up
1/2 onion, chopped
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste.

Place lentils, water and garlic in a pot and bring to a boil. Lower heat and let simmer until lentils get soft. In the meantime, saute the chopped onion in olive oil until nice and browned. Add the cooked onions, tomatoes, spices and noodles to the lentils and simmer on medium low until noodles are done. Stir as you go so nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot. Season with salt and pepper. The soup will thicken up as it sits. You can eat this on it's own or on top of rice with a squeeze of lemon.


Picture of my leftovers that had been sitting for a while.

Moroccan Lentil Stew and Homemade Harissa

I love to throw stuff in a pot and call it dinner. This is what happened tonight after a long day at work. I've made this before using this recipe, but this time I took some liberties and used red instead of brown lentils, and added other veggies like corn and zucchini. On top there is a blob of North African style chili paste, also known as "harissa". I love to eat this stew on top of rice. Lentils and rice. You can't go wrong.


I must have been anticipating a Moroccan/North African flavor because I made the harissa over the weekend. I used New Mexico and Japones dried chilies, LOTS of garlic, mint, coriander, caraway, cumin and olive oil. It is SO FREAKING GOOD.

Cowboy Chili.

I finally got around to watching 'Brokeback Mountain' last night and aside from the fact that it made me weep, it put me in the mood for a hearty cowboy style chili. Got this recipe from Country Living website and veganized it by using tvp soy chunks instead of beef. It used corn masa mixed with water to thicken it in the end as well as pureed chiles that have been soaking which gives the chili an amazing red color. I'll post the recipe here with my substitutions.

Vegan Cowboy Chili

1 TB olive oil (plus a little more for later)
1 cup tvp chunks (plus boiling water to rehydrate)
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
14 oz. veggie broth or water
1 TB chili powder
1 tsp. cumin
2 cans beans (any kind), drained and rinsed
1 14.5oz can diced tomatoes
2 dried ancho chiles or any dried chiles you prefer
1 TB masa harina de maiz
1 cup water
1/2 tsp salt
1 TB cider vinegar
1/4 tsp sugar


Directions
1. Rehydrate tvp chunks: Put tvp in a bowl and pour boiling water to cover. Let sit for a little while. You will know that they are hydrated when you squeeze a piece between your fingers. It will be soft. If it's still firm, let soak longer. Drain water and setr tvp aside.
2. Rehydrate ancho chiles: Place them in a bowl and pour boiling water over them about a cup.
2. Heat olive oil in a large dutch oven. Saute onions on medium high until translucent about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 more minute. Add tvp chunks after they have been drained. Add a splash of olive oil and stir around to coat.
3. Add vegetable broth, chili powder, cumin, beans and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30-40 minutes or longer.
4. Puree the chiles: Remove and discard stems. Place softened chiles and the soaking liquid in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth -- 2 to 3 minutes.
5. In a small bowl, whisk the masa and water together. Stir masa mixture into the chili. Add ancho chili mixture, salt and vinegar and sugar. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Season with more salt and pepper if desired.

Soeur Leila's Red Lentil Stew

This may not look like much but believe me when I say that is the most flavorful combination of comfort food ingredients: red lentils, noodles and crispy pita croutons. I've made this once before about a month ago and I was so impressed with it. Today was the perfect day for it as we just got a bit of rain outside. I got the recipe from a food memoir called "Memories of a Lost Egypt". You can find the recipe posted online here. Substitute water for the chicken broth and use a couple of quartered fresh tomatoes instead of canned. And do make the pita croutons. They are the perfect crispy accompaniment to the thick, luscious velvety stew. A squeeze of lemon prior to serving is nice as well.

Red Lentil Stew adapted from "Memories of a Lost Egypt"

2 cups red Lentils
4 cups water plus 2 TB extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, quartered
2 tomatoes, quartered
1 large carrot, cut into 1" pieces
2 small zucchini, cut into chunks
1 teaspoon cumin
1/3 pound vermicelli or angel hair, broken. I used fine cut vermicelli like this.
Salt And Pepper to taste
1 large onion, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
Croutons:
Olive oil
Pita bread cut into pieces

Method:
Combine lentils, water, 2 TB olive oil, onion, tomatoes, carrot, and zucchini in a soup pot. Bring to a boil then lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until lentils are very soft. Puree entire mixture in a blender or food processor. Return to pot and add cumin, pasta, salt and pepper. Simmer for 10 minutes. In another pan, saute chopped onion in 2 TB. olive oil until well browned. Add to stew along with the parsley and simmer for 5 minutes.
To make the croutons, heat some olive oil in a pan and fry pita bread pieces until browned. Drain on paper towel.

Cake Balls! and Red Lentil Stew

What?!?! Yes sir, I made cake balls! I've seen these things before at the post punk kitchen forum and I knew that they were going to be made one day. When I made Marc's birthday cake a few weekends ago, I had messed up the first cake. It came out overdone on the outside and fell apart when I plopped it out of the cake tin. It was still perfectly good though so I kept the pieces in the freezer for cake balls later.


I felt like a candy maker rolling smooshy cake mixture into little balls and then dipping them in chocolate. I added colorful sprinkles to entice you even more.


These little guys are dense and very rich. I had one so far and I was totally satisfied! I will be sharing them with my co-workers tomorrow. If you want to make these, follow this recipe as a guideline. It says to use a whole can of cake frosting but that was a little scary for me. I used almost half a can which worked just fine.


This was my lunch today. I've been wanting middle eastern food and was flipping through a food memoir I read a while back called "Memories of a Lost Egypt" by Colette Rossant. There is a recipe for Soeur Leila's Red Lentil Stew which sounded real good. Pureed red lentils and vegetables simmered with vermicelli noodles and sauteed onions. I added spinach for some color. I served it with olive oil-fried pieces of pita bread. The stew was thick and velvety and was so good with the fried bread and a squeeze of lemon. This one's a keeper! Recipe here. (Replace the chicken broth for veggie broth or water. Also instead of a can of tomatoes, just use 1 tomato, quartered.)

VeganMoFo: Navajo Stew and Dumplings

I have been so lazy for MoFo it's not even funny! There were a few dishes I opted out of blogging about because they were disgusting (the blandest rice casserole on the planet) and a few that I felt were too ordinary (beans on toast?). So today I was determined to make something new that I have never tried before. I veganized a navajo stew recipe from a southwest indian cookbook and instead of using mutton or whatever it was, I added extra vegetables and black beans. I also gave it a kick with chipotle chili powder. This stew is very rich and flavorful and the cornmeal dumplings were a nice touch. It is also good on top of plain rice.

Moroccan Black Bean Stew

You can tell it's fall by looking at my dinner. This is the Moroccan Black Bean Stew recipe from The Vegan Family cookbook. It was so simple to throw together. I added 2 TB of tomato paste and some cumin (which I love!) and I decreased the sugar to 1 tsp. Came out just perfect. Looking back I should have added ras al hanout as well which is a Moroccan spice blend. Next time! This was very warming and tasty served on a bed of rice with a dollop of harissa (North African chili paste) on top. This will also go well with couscous or quinoa.

Fricot n Dumplings

Been feeling under the weather since yesterday and thought soup might be a good cure. I made my vegan fricot recipe without the tofu and added dumplings instead. Dumpling recipe here.

Chunky Veggie Soup 'n Spelt Dumplings

I had some produce to use up so I made this easy and comforting soup! The dumplings were an afterthought and I'm glad I made them. Extra comfort food-iness!

2 TB Earth Balance margarine
1/2 tsp. Vegemite (optional)
2 onions, cut into chunks
3 large carrots, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tomato, cut into chunks
2 ribs of celery, sliced
3 small yellow potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 small broccoli crown, seperated into florets
4 -1" slices of firm or extra firm tofu
water or veggie broth
1 TB olive oil
1 tsp white miso
1 TB summer savory
1/2 tsp poultry seasoning
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 TB soy sauce
2 TB cornstarch mixed with 2 TB water
salt and pepper to taste

For Dumplings:
1 cup flour (all purpose or white spelt)
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/3 cup plain rice, almond or soy milk

Heat margarine in a soup pot. Add Vegemite and stir around to let it dissolve with the margarine. Saute onions and garlic briefly then add all veggies and water to cover. Bring to a boil and add olive oil, miso, dried herbs/spices, soy sauce and cornstarch mixture. Lower heat and let simmer until veggies are tender.

Meanwhile saute slices of tofu in olive oil with salt and pepper until browned on both sides. Cut into cubes and set aside.

Prepare dumpling dough:
Mix flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Add rice milk and stir until dough forms. Add a little more rice milk if too dry.

When veggies are tender add tofu and bring soup back to a boil. Season with salt and black pepper. Add balls of dough by the teaspoon on top of the boiling broth. Cover and let boil for 5 minutes. Dough will double in size.

Moroccan Lentil Stew (again!)

I made Moroccan Lentil Stew again and served it on top of rice for a change. It is so comforting and so good! I added a tsp. or so of ras el hanout to make it more Moroccan, haha! That's a blob of fiery homemade harissa on top. I can't wait to have leftovers tomorrow! Recipe here.

I'm going to repost this recipe here in case you have trouble with the link. Recipe taken from americanheart.org

Moroccan Lentil Stew
Ingredients

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup chopped Spanish or other mild onion
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons curry powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne (optional)
28-ounce can no-salt-added crushed tomatoes, undrained
8 ounces red potatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks
1 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
1/2 cup lentils, sorted for stones or shriveled lentils and rinsed
1 medium carrot, chopped
Low-sodium vegetable broth or water (as needed)
1/2 cup frozen green peas, thawed
1/4 cup fresh parsley, snipped or chopped
Cooking Instructions

Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Pour the oil into the pan and swirl to coat the bottom. Cook the onion for 3 to 4 minutes, or until translucent, stirring frequently.

Increase the heat to medium-high. Stir in the cumin, curry powder, and cayenne; cook for 30 seconds to release flavor. Stir in the tomatoes, potatoes, broth, lentils, and carrots. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the lentils are tender, stirring occasionally and adding more broth or water if needed to keep from sticking. Stir in the peas; simmer for 1 minute. Remove from the heat. Stir in the parsley.

Cook's Tip
If lentils have been stored for an extended time, they may take up to 1 hour of cooking time to become tender.

Nutrition Analysis (per serving)
255Calories
3.0 gTotal Fat
0.5 gSaturated Fat
0.0 gTrans Fat
0.5 gPolyunsaturated Fat
2.0 gMonounsaturated Fat
0 mgCholesterol
88 mgSodium
46 gCarbohydrates
12 gFiber
12 gSugar
13 gProtein
Dietary Exchanges
2 starch, 3 vegetable, 1 very lean meat