I miss you Buster.

A week ago today, my family and I took Buster on his last car ride to the vet and in a small exam room we said goodbye and "I Love You" for perhaps the millionth time to our dear baby. I never talked about it much on my blog, but Buster had been sick for quite some time. The cancer had pretty much spread throughout his body in the past few months and in the past two or three weeks, we had been noticing a decline. The last days of his life, he was definitely not his bouncy and energetic self and we could see that he was just tired of it all. It was then we made the decision to not let him suffer any longer. He still had his dignity in the end. We love him and miss him so much. The photo above was taken on his last day. Still the most beautiful dog I've ever seen!

Rest in Peace Buster Brown. 2001-2012.

PS. It's because of you Buster that I'm vegan.

Mushroom Risotto

Made mushroom risotto tonight and it was FAB! Thanks to my cousin Wendy for helping me stir (and stir, and stir and stir....). I used the recipe here. I veganized it of course and changed a few things around. My substitutions:
Veggie broth instead of chicken broth
4-5 TB of olive oil instead of 3
Cremini mushrooms, 1 carton (instead of white mushrooms/portobello combo)
1 small onion, chopped instead of shallots
red wine instead of white
2 TB Earth Balance margarine instead of butter

The risotto was so creamy and rich. I served it with a spinach/arugula salad with cranberries, walnuts and poppyseed dressing.

Chinese "Chicken" Salad.

Made with romaine, red/yellow bell pepper, celery, carrots, red onion, cilantro, chow mein noodles and Gardein chipotle lime crispy fingers!

Tossed with creamy sesame dressing.

Tonight's dinner.

Came home from work today and threw some mushrooms, onions and red bell peppers on the grill and served it atop couscous with a side of crinkle cut fries and leftover quiche from the weekend. Yum.

Puff Pastry Quiche

Got the recipe here but I used a whole 14oz package of firm tofu and added a bit of garlic powder and about 2 TB of chickpea flour in the filling. You can't tell but there are mushrooms in there too. Came out very tasty!

Baked Pasta with Veggies and Sausage.

This was a "use what you got" recipe where I wanted to use what was in my fridge and pantry. I loosely based this off of the pastitsio recipe from The Olive and The Caper cookbook. Mine has no dairy and no eggs. It's damn good too. It's layered with veggies, vegan sausage, tomato sauce and topped with a creamy vegan bechamel sauce. It is TASTY.

Recipe:

4 TB olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large zucchini, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
a small 1/2 head of broccoli, chopped, stems and all
2 Tofurky tomato and basil flavor veggie sausages, chopped
1 tsp oregano
1 jar Trader Joe's Tomato Basil Marinara
1 lb. macaroni, penne or ziti pasta
1/2 cup to 1 cup Daiya vegan cheese

For bechamel sauce:
3 TB Earth Balance margarine or other non dairy margarine
3 TB white flour
1 1/2 cups plain almond milk
1/4 tsp. salt
pinch of nutmeg

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. I cooked mine for about 10 minutes.
2. While pasta is cooking, saute the veggies in olive oil over medium heat until veggies are almost tender. Add oregano, sausage and continue cooking until veggies are tender. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350 F.
3. Make the bechamel sauce: Heat the margarine in a pot until melted over medium high heat. Add flour and start whisking until it gets smooth and creamy. Slowly add the almond milk and keep whisking. Keep on medium heat and whisk until thick and creamy about 12 minutes. Whisk in salt and nutmeg.
4. While you are making the bechamel sauce, the pasta will be done. Drain the pasta in a colander. Pour a bit of olive oil into the empty pasta pot and then add the drained pasta back in along with the cooked veggies/sausage. Stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Spread about 1/2 cup of tomato sauce along the bottom of a large greased baking dish. Pour a third of pasta mixture over it and then add more marinara on top. Repeat with a couple more pasta layers and marinara sauce. At the end, whisk the bechamel sauce again and then pour over the top of the pasta. Sprinkle with Daiya cheese and cover with foil. Bake for 30 minutes with foil on top. After 30 minutes, remove foil and bake uncovered for 15 to 20 more minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for at least 15 minutes prior to serving.

Mashed Potato Stuffed Mushrooms

I made mashed potatoes, added sauteed onion and stuffed them into portobello mushrooms, then I added a dollop of Wayfare smoked hickory cheddar vegan cheese spread and vegan bacon bits. Baked them in the oven for 15-20 minutes and 350 F. Really yummy.