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.

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.

Chickpea Ketchup Curry and Homemade Roti.

Chickpea ketchup curry from River Cottage Veg cookbook. Easy and satisfying.

Homemade roti! Here's a good recipe using whole wheat flour. I used white flour for mine.

Indian food and cake.

I made a delicious indian feast today: Mixed lentil dal curry (split masoor dal, moong dal and split urad dal) and Aloo Palak (potatoes in spinach gravy). So good with rice and buttered bread!

For dessert I used 2 cups Bisquick mix with two mashed bananas, two tablespoons sugar, 1 cup almond milk and vanilla. Before I stuck it in the oven, I sprinkled a mixture of Earth Balance, cinnamon, brown sugar and Bisquick to make a topping.

It's really good. Kind of a cross between a pancake and a muffin in taste. Not too sweet because of the small amount of sugar. Perfect for tea! *Edited to add: I guess this is more like "coffee cake"? It's really good the next day even after refrigerating it. I had to keep it away from ants!

Sushi and Tempura craving.

Filled with carrot, cucumber, green onion, green bean and avocado. Yummmmmm....

Topped with spicy mayo (vegenaise, sriricha, sesame oil and rice vinegar)

For dinner, I was craving tempura veg so I made it. I followed the tempura batter recipe in River Cottage Veg Cookbook.

Amazing Sandwich.

I have Mary McCartney's book FOOD to thank for this taste combination in a sandwich: hummus, avocado, lemon juice, chili jam (or sweet chili sauce if you can't find chili jam) and salad greens (spinach in this case) on seeded bread. Amazing flavor!

Once a year lasagna!

I only make this once a year and I have no idea why! It's so delicious! This one has almond-tofu ricotta, spinach, peppers, mushrooms, onions, Follow Your Heart vegan cheese and tomato herb sauce.

I have to say that Follow your Heart cheese is better than Daiya for something like this. It melts without getting goopy like Daiya and it's milder in taste which works.

Recipe:

2 TB olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 tsp. chopped garlic
1 container cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 red pepper, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 bag of baby spinach
1 jar of marinara sauce (Whole Foods tomato herb)
1 recipe of almond tofu ricotta (see recipe below)
12 lasagna noodles
1 bag of Vegan Follow Your Heart mozzarella cheese

Cook pasta as per directions. Add a little oil to the boiling water so pasta doesn't stick together. When finished cooking, drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, saute onion, garlic, peppers and mushrooms in olive oil in a pot. Season with salt and pepper. Add spinach and saute briefly until it wilts just a little bit. (Another option is to add the spinach raw while you are layering the lasagna.)
Coat a lasagna pan with some red sauce. Layer 4 noodles, half of the ricotta, then one half of the veggies, a little cheese and a little sauce, continue layering the same way until you end up with noodles. Pour the remaining sauce over and top it with the cheese. Cover with foil and bake at 350F for 1 hour.

Almond Tofu ricotta (adapted from the cashew ricotta from Veganomicon):
1/2 cup slivered almonds
2 TB olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 container of firm tofu, drained
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp italian herb blend (or just dried basil)
Blend all ingredients in a blender or food processor until creamy.