This is the ULTIMATE comfort food. The only modification I made was changing the cubed carrots to shredded… the cubed have a harder time cooking. Don’t let the huge list of steps scare you, it’s best if you have help, but honestly, it’s not that bad.
From Veganomicon.
Serves 6
INGREDIENTS:
2 Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch dice
3 cups vegetable broth
3 Tablespoons cornstarch
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 leeks, washed well and sliced thinly (about 2 cups)
1 small onion, cut into medium-size dice
1 1/2 cups shredded carrots
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 heaping Tbsp chopped fresh thyme, plus extra for garnish (or 1 tsp dried)
Several pinches of freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup frozen peas
1 (15 oz) can navy beans, drained and rinsed (Or Great Northern)
3/4 cup plain soy milk
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup non-hydrogenated vegan shortening
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat the oven to 425F. Place the potatoes in a small pot and cover with water. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, let cook for about 10 minutes, until the potatoes are just tender enough to be pierced with a fork. Drain immediately so they do not overcook. While they are boiling, you can prep the rest of the veggies and start preparing the biscuits – the potatoes should definitely be done by the time you are.
2. Now, prepare everything for the biscuits. You’re not going to make them yet, but it’s good to have everything ready when it comes time to top the stew. Add the vinegar to the soy milk in a measuring cup and set aside to curdle. Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium-sized bowl.
3. Now leave that alone and start the stew. Mix the cornstarch into the vegetable stock until dissolved.
4. Preheat an oven-safe skillet, preferably cast iron, over medium heat. Saute in the oil the leeks, onions, and carrots until very soft and just beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Keep the heat moderate so that they don’t burn.
5. Add the garlic, thyme, freshly ground black pepper and salt, and cook for 1 more minute. Add the cooked potatoes and frozen peas, then pour in the vegetable stock mixture. Raise the heat just a bit; it will take a few minutes but the liquid will start simmering. Once it does, lower the heat again. Let it simmer for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, but no longer than that. If you need more time for the biscuits, then turn off the heat under the stew.
6. Back to the biscuits: Add the shortening to the flour in small slivers and work it into the dough with a fork or with your fingers until large crumbs form. You don’t want to cream it in; there should be clumps. Drizzle in the soy milk and mix with a fork until everything is moistened (some dry parts are okay).
7. Wash and dry your hands, then lightly flour them and get them dirty again. Gently knead the dough about ten times right in the bowl, just so that it is holding together and not very sticky. If it seems sticky, as in sticking to your fingers, then gently work in a little more flour. Set that aside and check on your stew. The stew should be simmering and slightly thickened. Mix in the beans. Now, let’s add the biscuits. Pull off chunks of dough that are about slightly larger than golf balls. Gently roll them into balls and flatten a bit; they do not have to be perfectly round. Add them to the top of the stew, placed an inch or so apart.
8. Transfer to the preheated oven. If you are worried about spillover, place it on a rimmed baking sheet, but we’ve never had that problem. Bake for about 15 minutes. The biscuits should be just slightly browned and firm to the touch.
9. Remove from the oven and use a large serving spoon to place some of the stew and a biscuit in each shallow, individual bowl. Sprinkle with a little chopped, fresh thyme.
This is one of my favorite meals. Healthy, low in calories, low in fat, and the fiber in the lentils will keep you full. The lentils are loaded with molybdenum, folate, fiber, tryptophan, manganese, iron, protein, phosphorus, copper, B1, and potassium.
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup lentils
1 small onion, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 cup quick-cooking oat
1/2 cup grated regular or soy cheese (cheddar, jack, or mozzarella)
1 egg, beaten (or Ener-G egg replacement)
4 oz spaghetti sauce (or tomato sauce) and BBQ sauce (50/50 mix)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Ketchup
DIRECTIONS:
1. Add salt to water and boil in a saucepan.
2. Add lentils and simmer covered 25-30 minutes, until lentils are soft and most of the water is evaporated.
3. Meanwhile, saute celery and onion in small pan until softened (I use a non-stick pan and no oil).
4. Remove lentils from fire. Drain and partially mash lentils. Scrape into mixing bowl and allow to cool slightly.
5. Stir in onion, celery, oats and cheese until mixed. Add egg, tomato/BBQ sauce, garlic, basil, parsley, seasoning salt and pepper. Mix well.
6. Spoon into loaf pan that has been generously sprayed with Pam (non-stick cooking spray) or well-greased. Smooth top with back of spoon. Top with ketchup.
7. Bake at 350 degrees for 30- 45 minutes until top of loaf is dry, firm and golden brown. Cool in pan on rack for about 10 minutes. Serve with ketchup or gravy.
This recipe comes from the June 2008 issue of Vegetarian Times. To make this a complete meal, you can toss the finished Mac and Cheese with some cooked, chopped broccoli or even mix in some frozen spinach (when the sauce is cooking). The garlic is a little strong, so if you're not a huge fan, cut the amount. Also, I recommend using extra pasta because it makes a lot of sauce. Serves 4.
Per Serving: 364 Calories, 15g Protein, 9g Total Fat (1.5 Sat), 534mg Sodium, 3g Fiber, 6g Sugar.
INGREDIENTS:
2 1/2 cups plain soy milk
2 1/2 Tbs. white rice flour
1 1/2 Tbs. large flake nutritional yeast
1 1/2 tsp. low-sodium soy sauce
1 Tbs. granulated garlic
1 Tbs. granulated onion
2 Tbs. vegan margarine, melted
1 tsp. yellow mustard
1 8-oz pkg. rotelli (corkscrew) pasta
I found this recipe in Vegetarian Times Magazine. I omitted the bell peppers. The recipe says that the okra is optional, but I can't imagine a gumbo without it! I minimized my chopping by buying pre-chopped onion and frozen chopped okra. I know the recipe calls for a lot of oil, but you need it to make a roux.
Serves 8. (Per Serving) Calories: 216, Fat: 14.5g, Protein: 3g, Fiber: 6g, Sugars: 8g. (Does not include rice)
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup flour
1 small onion, chopped (1 cup)
1 small green bell pepper, chopped (1 cup)
3 stalks celery, chopped (1 cup)
1 28-oz. can diced tomatoes
2 cups fresh or frozen green beans
3 carrots, sliced (2 cups)
1 parsnip, diced (1 cup)
1 cup fresh or frozen sliced okra
1 Tbs. ground cumin
1 Tbs. paprika
1 Tbs. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
Rice of choice (Cook as directed on box/bag, time it with the gumbo)
DIRECTIONS:
1. Stir together oil and flour in Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot until smooth. Cook over high heat 10 minutes, or until roux turns a dark caramel color, stirring constantly.
2. Add onion, bell pepper, and celery, and cook 5 minutes, or until vegetables are softened. Stir in all remaining ingredients and 4 cups water. Season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook 40 minutes, or until carrots are tender. Serve over rice.
I got this recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World and just had to post it! These cupcakes are SPECTACULAR. The recipe recommends filling them, but I decided to skip that step and just frost them. Go easy with the frosting, it doesn't need that much. You can even cut this frosting recipe in half. Top with chopped peanuts or chocolate chips. I used a pastry bag to make the frosting extra fancy.
CUPCAKES:
1/2 cup mashed over ripe banana
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
2/3 cup rice or soy milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line your pan with paper liners.
2. Throw your mashed banana in a blender or or just smash it into oblivious with a fork. Just try to get the lumps out.
3. Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar into a large bowl, mix well.
4. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the oil, soy or rice milk, vanilla, almond and mashed banana. Stir or fold the wet ingredients into the dry, but don’t over mix or you’ll get tough cupcakes. Small lumps are fine. Fill liners 2/3 full. Bake 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.
FROSTING:
1/4 cup margarine, softened
2 Tbs. shortening
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1 1/3 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup confectioners sugar, sifted
1-2 Tbs soy milk
With an electric mixer, cream together margarine and shortening until smooth. Add peanut butter and vanilla, beat until very smooth. Beat in sugar, mixture will be very stiff. Dribble in soy milk a little at a time, beating continuously until frosting is pale and fluffy.
These two recipes are pretty simple, the Casserole comes from Rachael Ray (not a huge fan, but this recipe is great) and the salad is from Veganomicon. I got lazy when making the croutons and used garlic salt in place of roasted garlic... worked perfectly too, less mess. I made the dressing the night before, so all I had to do was make the croutons and open the pre-cut romaine lettuce bag.
Veganomicon Caesar Salad:
FOR THE CROUTONS:
1/4 cup olive oil
4 cloves roasted garlic
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 medium loaf French or Italian bread (little less than 1 lb.), stale and torn or sliced into bite sized pieces
¼ teaspoon salt
CAESAR DRESSING:
1/3 cup blanched, slivered or sliced almonds
3-4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
3/4 lb. silken tofu (fresh, not vacuum packed is best)
1⁄4 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 heaping tablespoon capers
4 teaspoons caper brine
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder
salt to taste
FOR THE SALAD:
1 large head Romaine lettuce, chopped
Freshly cracked black pepper
Handful or two of spinach and arugula, torn into bite-sized pieces (optional)
DIRECTIONS:
1. Prepare the dressing: In a food processor or blender, pulse the sliced almonds till crumbly. Empty ground almonds into an air tight container that you’ll be using to store the finished dressing in. Place garlic, tofu and oil in food processor or blender and blend until creamy. Add lemon juice, capers, caper brine, sugar, dry mustard powder and pulse until blended. Adjust lemon juice and salt to taste. Pour into container with the ground almonds and whisk to combine. Cover and allow dressing to chill in the refrigerator for a minimum 30 minutes, optimally 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
2. While dressing is chilling prepare croutons. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl combine olive oil, roasted garlic and lemon juice. With a fork or immersion blender mash or blend the roasted garlic till creamy. Add torn bread and toss to coat each piece with the garlic/oil mixture. Spread onto a rimmed baking sheet, sprinkle with salt if desired and bake for 12 to 14 minutes until golden brown. Toss the croutons twice during baking. Remove from oven and cool croutons on baking sheet.
3. To assemble salad, pour 2-3 cups for each individual serving (depending if it's a side or entree) of lettuce/greens--and if using--vegetables, tempeh, etc. into a large bowl. Ladle on about 1/3 cup dressing (or more or less to taste), and use kitchen tongs to toss greens and coat with dressing. Add warm croutons, toss again and transfer to serving plate. Sprinkle with a little freshly cracked pepper. If not serving right away, warm croutons in 300 degree oven for 5-8 minutes before adding to the salad.
Calabacitas Casserole with Polenta
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups corn kernels, defrosted
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1 green chili pepper or 2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped
2 small to medium zucchini, diced
1 small to medium yellow squash
1 large yellow skinned onion, chopped
1 (14-ounce) can stewed tomatoes, diced if desired (with juice)
2 teaspoons dark chili powder
Salt and pepper
1 (16-ounce) tubes prepared polenta
2 cups of Monterey Jack Cheese (optional)
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, corn, garlic and chilies. Saute 3 minutes, add zucchini and yellow squash and onions, season with salt and pepper, chili powder; cook 7 to 8 minutes.
3. Add stewed tomatoes and heat through. Transfer to baking dish. Cut 1 tube of polenta in 1/2-inch slices lengthwise or into “coins.” Top vegetables with polenta and cheese. Place in hot oven to warm polenta, 8 to 10 minutes.
