comfort food Archives - Page 2 of 2

Tetrazzini

March 28, 2011 by epicureanvegan

Holy mackerel, Andy! (as my father used to say) This is another winner from The Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook. It’s cheezy, tasty and creamy comfort food that I guarantee you’ll love. Not only that, it’s simple to make. The recipe also gives you ideas to add more protein such as 1-3/4 C chickpeas, 1/2 lb smoked or seasoned cubed tofu, cubed tempeh, or seitan. I went with a couple of sliced Tofurky hot dogs—Field Roast sausages would also be a great option. The recipe makes enough to feed a crowd of 6-8, so it’s great for get togethers. I highly recommend making the Parmezano Sprinkles for this, too—they add the perfect topping.

INGREDIENTS:
1 lb spaghetti, broken in half
2 Tbs olive oil
4 C thinly sliced mushrooms
1 red bell pepper, finely diced
1 C flour
4 C nondairy milk (I used almond milk)
1/2 C nutritional yeast flakes
1 Tbs onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 C frozen peas, thawed (I left these out since I didn’t have any)
1/2 to a cup of Parmezano Sprinkles

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350. Cook the spaghetti according to package instructions. Drain and transfer to a large bowl. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the oil and saute the mushrooms and bell pepper until tender.

Combine the flour, 2 cups of the milk, nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, and salt in a blender. Blend until smooth, then pour over the mushroom mixture. Add the remaining 2 cups of milk. The recipe says to remove from heat, but I just turned it to low. This is when I added the Tofurky hot dogs, too. Constantly stir it as it will begin to thicken and bubble within a couple of minutes.

Combine it with the spaghetti.

Pour it into a lightly greased 4-quart baking dish, top with the Parmezano Sprinkles, and bake for 35 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Tetrazzini

Holy mackerel, Andy! (as my father used to say) This is another winner from The Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook. It's cheezy, tasty and creamy comfort food that I guarantee you'll love. Not only that, it's simple to make. The recipe also gives you ideas to add more protein such as 1-3/4 C chickpeas, ½ lb smoked or seasoned cubed tofu, cubed tempeh, or seitan. I went with a couple of sliced Tofurky hot dogs---Field Roast sausages would also be a great option. The recipe makes enough to feed a crowd of 6-8, so it's great for get togethers. I highly recommend making the Parmezano Sprinkles for this, too---they add the perfect topping.

Author: Epicurean Vegan

Ingredients

1 lb spaghetti, broken in half
2 Tbs olive oil
4 C thinly sliced mushrooms
1 red bell pepper, finely diced
1 C flour
4 C nondairy milk (I used almond milk)
½ C nutritional yeast flakes
1 Tbs onion powder
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp salt
1 C frozen peas, thawed (I left these out since I didn't have any)
½ to a cup of Parmezano Sprinkles

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Cook the spaghetti according to package instructions. Drain and transfer to a large bowl. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the oil and saute the mushrooms and bell pepper until tender.
Combine the flour, 2 cups of the milk, nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, and salt in a blender. Blend until smooth, then pour over the mushroom mixture. Add the remaining 2 cups of milk. The recipe says to remove from heat, but I just turned it to low. This is when I added the Tofurky hot dogs, too. Constantly stir it as it will begin to thicken and bubble within a couple of minutes.
Combine it with the spaghetti.
Pour it into a lightly greased 4-quart baking dish, top with the Parmezano Sprinkles, and bake for 35 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Vegan Shepards Pie

February 22, 2011 by epicureanvegan

This is actually easier to make than you would think. You can nuke 2 large potatoes, or use frozen ones (thawed, of course). I used edamame for some added protein, but feel free to use peas if your prefer. Easier, healthier, comfort food.

INGREDIENTS:
1 bag Boca Crumbles
1 small onion, diced
1-1/2 C cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 C edamame, thawed if frozen
1 C vegetable broth
2 C mashed potatoes
1/4 C almond milk
2 tsp dried chives
1 tsp dried parsley
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt and pepper
1/2 C vegan mozzarella, shredded
Vegan margarine

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350. In a large skillet heat the vegetable broth and add the onions and Boca crumbles. Cover and let simmer over a low-medium heat, season with salt and pepper; stirring occasionally. After about 10 minutes, add the mushrooms and edamame. Cover again for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, add the potatoes, milk, mozzarella, chives, parsley, and garlic in a mixer and cream until slightly smooth.

Lightly grease a 9×13″ baking dish with a little vegan margarine. Pour the Boca mixture into the bottom of the pan and spread out evenly. Next, layer on the mashed potato mixture and spread evenly over the top.

Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Enjoy!

Vegan Shepards Pie

Author: Epicurean Vegan

Ingredients

1 bag Boca Crumbles
1 small onion, diced
1-1/2 C cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 C edamame, thawed if frozen
1 C vegetable broth
2 C mashed potatoes
¼ C almond milk
2 tsp dried chives
1 tsp dried parsley
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt and pepper
½ C vegan mozzarella, shredded
Vegan margarine

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. In a large skillet heat the vegetable broth and add the onions and Boca crumbles. Cover and let simmer over a low-medium heat, season with salt and pepper; stirring occasionally. After about 10 minutes, add the mushrooms and edamame. Cover again for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, add the potatoes, milk, mozzarella, chives, parsley, and garlic in a mixer and cream until slightly smooth.
Lightly grease a 9x13" baking dish with a little vegan margarine. Pour the Boca mixture into the bottom of the pan and spread out evenly. Next, layer on the mashed potato mixture and spread evenly over the top.
Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Enjoy!

Potato and Corn Chowder

January 31, 2011 by epicureanvegan

I told you I was going to make soup. Considering it’s quite cold here in Colorado, soup just hits the spot. I used frozen diced potatoes which made it very easy to prepare. I served this soup with the chive-flecked spud muffins which were an ideal accompaniment.

INGREDIENTS:
1 C onion, diced
1 C celery, sliced thin
5 cloves garlic, minced
1-1/2 tsp Garlic and Wine seasoning or a Mrs. Dash-type seasoning
2 lbs russet potatoes, diced (I used frozen ones)
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 C corn kernels
14-oz coconut milk
4 C vegetable broth
1/2 C nutritional yeast
1-2 Tbs olive oil
Optional ingredients: shredded vegan cheddar, Tofutti sour cream, fresh chopped chives

DIRECTIONS:
In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil and saute the onions and celery for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute another 3 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk together the nutritional yeast and vegetable broth. In the soup pot, whisk in the coconut milk, then the broth mixture. Add the Garlic & Wine seasoning and rosemary. Bring to a boil for about 10 minutes. Add the potatoes and corn and simmer 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Potato and Corn Chowder

Considering it's quite cold here in Colorado, soup just hits the spot. I used frozen diced potatoes which made it very easy to prepare. I served this soup with the chive-flecked spud muffins which were an ideal accompaniment.

Author: Epicurean Vegan

Ingredients

1 C onion, diced
1 C celery, sliced thin
5 cloves garlic, minced
1-1/2 tsp Garlic and Wine seasoning or a Mrs. Dash-type seasoning
2 lbs russet potatoes, diced (I used frozen ones)
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 C corn kernels
14-oz coconut milk
4 C vegetable broth
½ C nutritional yeast
1-2 Tbs olive oil
Optional ingredients: shredded vegan cheddar, Tofutti sour cream, fresh chopped chives

Directions

In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil and saute the onions and celery for about 5 minutes.
Add the garlic and saute another 3 minutes.
In a large bowl, whisk together the nutritional yeast and vegetable broth.
In the soup pot, whisk in the coconut milk, then the broth mixture. Add the Garlic & Wine seasoning and rosemary. Bring to a boil for about 10 minutes.
Add the potatoes and corn and simmer 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Creamy Veggie Bake (Made possible by Green Buffalo Food Co.)

December 13, 2010 by epicureanvegan

When one door closes, another one opens. In this case, when one CSA ends, another comes! We had our last week of our CSA this last Monday, and luckily, I met another food delivery company in my area, at an event for our Writers Association. Green Buffalo Food Company delivers organic, locally-grown/raised food right to your door. I was very enticed by the fact that they don’t require a contract–just weekly or bi-weekly delivery and we can tell them what we don’t want in our delivery. I have 3 butternut squashes on my counter, so I can wait on getting more. Oh, and fruit! It includes fruit!

We received our first delivery today and let me tell you . . .I get excited over home-delivered organic vegetables! Christmas came early.

Isn’t it a gorgeous box of produce?! (potatoes are in the bag). Organic is of course wonderful, but it isn’t always the prettiest—or the very large, so I was very impressed with what we got. And everything is packed so carefully and sweetly (which is fitting because Ali and Ryan, who own GBF, are incredibly lovely people). (sorry, that’s a lot of adverbs). I was giddy with vegan excitement as I perused through the box, wondering what to make for dinner. I had to refrain from using everything—reminding myself that it needed to last the week. I opted for a vegetable bake that didn’t use up everything and certainly didn’t disappoint.

INGREDIENTS:
1 Tbs olive oil
2 tsp garlic
1 large zucchini, sliced, then quartered
2 C mushrooms, quartered
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1-8oz pkg. tempeh, cubed (small)
2 small broccoli heads, florets only
1/2 C almond milk
1 pkg Silken tofu
1/2 C nutritional yeast
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 C vegan cheddar (I used a combo of cheddar and mozzarella)
1/2 C bread crumbs

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 375. In a large skillet heat olive oil and garlic. Add the zucchini, broccoli, bell pepper, onion, and tempeh. Saute on medium heat until they just barely begin to soften. Add mushroom and saute another 5 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the tofu, nutritional yeast, almond milk, garlic salt, and pepper in a food processor. You can also just whisk it in a bowl; stir in the cheese.

Lightly grease a 9×13″ baking dish and layer half of the sauce on bottom. Add the vegetable mixture, then top with the rest of the sauce. Stir around to combine everything.

Cover and bake 40 minutes. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs on top and bake another 10 minutes.

Let sit for about 5-8 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Potato-Spinach Bake and Pesto Pizzas

October 17, 2010 by epicureanvegan

I stared at a bag of small red potatoes, wondering what I should make with them before they go bad (and before getting more tomorrow from our CSA). It’s hard not to think of comfort food when making something with potatoes, so I threw together an easy casserole using stuff just sitting around in the fridge and pantry. I was going to make just regular garlic toast with some pesto butter, but the Sixth Grader had the idea to make little pesto pizzas and they were amazing!

INGREDIENTS:
Olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
4-5 C red and/or russet potatoes, diced
5 C fresh spinach, chopped
8-10 mushrooms, quartered
1-1/4 C Tofutti sour cream
1 C vegan cheddar, divided
1/4 C almond milk (or other nondairy milk)
1-1.8 oz pkg. leek soup mix
2 Field Roast Italian Sausage links, diced (optional)
Pesto/tomato pizzas:
2 round flat breads, each cut into fourths
1/4 C pesto
1/3 C Earth Balance margarine
1 /2 large tomato, thinly sliced
3/4 C vegan mozzarella, shredded
Olive oil
Garlic salt

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350. Heat olive oil and garlic in a large skillet. Add potatoes and cook until somewhat soft, about 10-15 minutes. In the meantime, combine the sour cream, 1/2 a cup of the cheddar, milk, and the leek soup mix. If using, add the Field Roast to the skillet and cook just a few minutes.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the potato mix, spinach, mushrooms, and sour cream mixture. Pour into a 9×13″ baking dish, cover, and bake for 40 minutes.

Add the rest of the cheese and bake uncovered until cheese melts, about 2-3 minutes.

To make the pesto pizzas, preheat broiler on high. Combine pesto and butter in a small bowl.

Brush flat bread with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic salt. Spread about a tablespoon of pesto onto flat bread pieces, then some cheese and a tomato slice.

Place under the broiler about 3 minutes, or until they begin to brown. Enjoy!

Spinach and Pesto Lasagna

August 13, 2010 by epicureanvegan

Oh, man. Have you ever made it to vegan food nirvana? Well, this lasagna will take you there. Of course, you’ll have to come back, but you can always go back for seconds. It looked so good as I assembled it, I wanted to eat it right then and there. I used my previous pesto recipe as well as my “ricotta” cheese recipe that I use for the stuffed shells and vegetable lasagna. To make things easier, I made those earlier in the day. I also decided to use regular lasagna noodles instead of the no-boil variety, and I was a little weary, but not only were they easy to use, we preferred them over the no-boil ones. I just cooked them very al dente since they will continue to cook later in the oven.

INGREDIENTS:
Sauce:
3 Tbs Earth Balance Margarine
2 shallots, minced
1/4 C all purpose flour
2-1/2 C almond milk
1/2 C white wine
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbs vegan Parmesan cheese
2 portobellos, diced
“Ricotta Cheese”:
1-14oz pkg extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
1/3 C nutritional yeast
1 C fresh basil leaves
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 Tbs lemon juice
1/2 to 3/4 C vegan mozzarella, shredded
Pesto:
2-1/2 C fresh basil leaves
1/2 C parsley
1 C pine nuts
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/8 C lemon juice
1/3 C olive oil
3 Tbs vegan Parmesan cheese
The rest:
2-1/2 C vegan mozzarella, shredded
4-5 C baby spinach
12 lasagna noodles

DIRECTIONS:
I recommend making the “ricotta” mixture and pesto earlier. To make pesto, combine the basil leaves, parsley, garlic, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and olive oil in a food processor. Process until smooth. Add the pine nuts and Parmesan cheese and process until well combine and smooth. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To make the tofu mixture, combine all ingredients except the mozzarella cheese in a food processor. Process until smooth and then transfer to a bowl. Stir in the cheese and again, store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Preheat oven to 350.

Boil the noodles until al dente–don’t have to cook them like regular pasta. While these are boiling, start the sauce: In a large saucepan, melt the margarine over medium to high heat. Add the shallots and saute for a couple of minutes. Whisk in the flour and white wine. Add the almond milk and lower heat; cook until it begins to thicken, stirring often. Add salt, portobellos, and Parmesan cheese.

Spread a ladle full of sauce on the bottom of a 9×13″ baking dish. Make sure you rinse the noodles with water to keep them separated—you may have to do this a few times throughout the process. Layer 3 noodles on the bottom of the pan, on top of the sauce. Next, add about 2-3 tablespoons of the tofu mixture onto each noodle. Do the same with the pesto. Then add a later of spinach, then sprinkle on some cheese.

Top with 3 more noodles and then another 1-2 ladles of sauce on top. Repeat layers 2 more times and then top with remaining 3 noodles, the rest of the sauce, and the cheese.

Cover with foil and bake for 40-45 minutes. For the last 5-7 minutes of baking, you can remove the foil and continue baking in order to melt the cheese on top. Let sit a couple of minutes before slicing up. Next stop: vegan food nirvana.

Enjoy!

Creamy Macaroni and Cashew Cheese

May 23, 2010 by epicureanvegan

You’re probably thinking. . .how many non-dairy mac and cheese recipes can there possibly be? Turns out, quite a few, but as most of us know, they’re not all that tasty. This one, however, from The Vegan Table, is the first cashew cheese sauce I’ve tried (but close to the Hurry Up Alfredo) and I really, really, love it. I ate way too much of it, too. 🙂 I’ve made some minor alternations such as less oil and milk. By the way, if you need to omit the miso because of a soy intolerance, you can use a chickpea (garbanzo) miso or a barley miso. Another alternative is to use tahini mixed with a bit of salt.

INGREDIENTS:
1-1/4 C raw cashews
1/2 C nutritional yeast
2 tsp onion powder
1 to 2 tsp salt, to taste
1 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp white pepper
3-1/2 C nondairy milk (I use 3 cups)
3 Tbs cornstarch
1/2 C canola oil (I use about a 1/4 cup and will often use olive oil instead)
1/4 C light (yellow or white) miso
2 Tbs lemon juice
12-16oz macaroni, cooked (I used about 16 ounces of both small shells and rotini)
I added 1-1/2 tsp of truffle oil, but it’s optional (I recommend it)!

DIRECTIONS:
Place cashews in a large-sized bowl of the food processor and finely grind–just don’t let the cashews turn to a paste. Add nutritional yeast, onion powder, salt, garlic powder, and white pepper. Pulse three more times to blend in spices.

In a heavy saucepan, combine milk, cornstarch and oil(s). Bring to a simmer over high heat. Decrease heat to low-medium, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes, or until cornstarch dissolves.

With the food processor running, gradually add milk/oil mixture to cashew/nutritional yeast mixture. Blend for 2 minutes or until smooth and creamy. Next blend in miso and lemon juice.

Combine cashew cheese with macaroni noodles and serve. You may also bake it: Preheat oven to 325 and place macaroni mixture in a 8 or 9″ square baking dish (I recommend a 9″x13″ one). Cover and bake 20 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with 1/2 C herbed bread crumbs. Continue baking, uncovered, for 15-25 minutes until topping is golden brown. (I’m going to do this with the leftovers)! Enjoy!

Recipe source: The Vegan Table

UPDATE: I baked the leftovers and it was good, but I think I like it better unbaked.

Creamy Macaroni and Cashew Cheese

This recipe, from The Vegan Table, is the first cashew cheese sauce I've tried and I really, really, love it. I ate way too much of it, too. 🙂 I've made some minor alternations such as less oil and milk. By the way, if you need to omit the miso because of a soy intolerance, you can use a chickpea (garbanzo) miso or a barley miso. Another alternative is to use tahini mixed with a bit of salt.

Author: Epicurean Vegan

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

1-1/4 C raw cashews
½ C nutritional yeast
2 tsp onion powder
1 to 2 tsp salt, to taste
1 tsp garlic powder
⅛ tsp white pepper
3-1/2 C nondairy milk (I use 3 cups)
3 Tbs cornstarch
½ C canola oil (I use about a ¼ cup and will often use olive oil instead)
¼ C light (yellow or white) miso
2 Tbs lemon juice
12-16oz macaroni, cooked (I used about 16 ounces of both small shells and rotini)
I added 1-1/2 tsp of truffle oil, but it's optional (I recommend it)!

Directions

Place cashews in a large-sized bowl of the food processor and finely grind--just don't let the cashews turn to a paste. Add nutritional yeast, onion powder, salt, garlic powder, and white pepper. Pulse three more times to blend in spices.
In a heavy saucepan, combine milk, cornstarch and oil(s). Bring to a simmer over high heat. Decrease heat to low-medium, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes, or until cornstarch dissolves.
With the food processor running, gradually add milk/oil mixture to cashew/nutritional yeast mixture. Blend for 2 minutes or until smooth and creamy. Next blend in miso and lemon juice.
Combine cashew cheese with macaroni noodles and serve.
You may also bake it (I prefer this unbaked) Preheat oven to 325 and place macaroni mixture in a 8 or 9" square baking dish (I recommend a 9"x13" one). Cover and bake 20 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with ½ C herbed bread crumbs. Continue baking, uncovered, for 15-25 minutes until topping is golden brown. (I'm going to do this with the leftovers)! Enjoy!
Recipe from The Vegan Table

Hurry Up Alfredo

January 21, 2010 by epicureanvegan

This comes from Lauren Ulm’s cookbook, Vegan Yum Yum and is by far the best non-dairy “cheese” sauce I’ve tasted yet! The only thing I changed was adding 1/2 C Tofutti sour cream which made this sauce perfectly creamy!

INGREDIENTS:
3-4 C small pasta
Sauce:
1 C soy milk
1/3 rounded raw, unsalted cashews
1/4 C nutritional yeast
3 Tbs tamari (or soy sauce)
2 Tbs Earth Balance (or Smart Balance) margarine
1 Tbs tahini
1 Tbs lemon juice
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp paprika
1 pinch nutmeg
1 pinch salt
Black pepper, to taste
2-4 garlic cloves
I added 1/2C Tofutti Sour Cream and used SMOKED paprika and WOW! It was so creamy and flavorful!

DIRECTIONS:
Bring a pot of water to a boil and add noodles. Cook until tender, but not mushy. Meanwhile, to make sauce, mix all sauce ingredients in a food processor or blender until smooth. When noodles are finished, drain and return to pot. Add as much sauce as you’d like and heat and stir. (What I did is transfer the sauce to a small saucepan and heat–this is also when I added the Tofutti sour cream. Then I just ladled the sauce on a serving of pasta). Top with Rice Parmesan and enjoy!

Note: for leftovers, I don’t recommend microwaving them. Keep sauce separate from pasta leftovers and reheat sauce in a pan over the stove and nuke the noodles. Sauce gets too dried out otherwise.

Recipe source: Vegan Yum Yum

Tetrazzini

Vegan Shepards Pie

Potato and Corn Chowder

Creamy Veggie Bake (Made possible by Green Buffalo Food Co.)

Potato-Spinach Bake and Pesto Pizzas

Spinach and Pesto Lasagna

Creamy Macaroni and Cashew Cheese

Recipe source: The Vegan Table

Hurry Up Alfredo

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