Mac & Cheeze Pleaze!

I've been searching a yummy mac and cheese recipe since becoming plant-based.  I have tired a few and they are okay, but I was looking for something a little more.  


Last year in my non plant-based days I made a smoked four-cheese risotto that was amazingly delicious.  I missed that, I can remember how yummy that tasted.  I was reading a cooking magazine the other day and it had a recipe for a risotto made with pasta, ditalini to be exact.  Ditalini are the small little tube pasta.  I think this would work with any small pastas.  


The smoky and cheesy flavor hits the nail on the head of what I had the night a year ago.  


Smoky Mac & Cheeze, risotto style


2 1/2 cups vegetable broth
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1 cup ditalini pasta
1 cup beer (I like a brown or amber ale)
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp liquid smoke
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
dash of black pepper
1/3 cup nutritional yeast (see below to find out what the heck this is)


In a small sauce pan heat up vegetable broth.


In a larger sauce pan, spray some cooking spray and add garlic cloves and onions.  Cook for a few minutes until onions start to become translucent.  Add in pasta and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring often.  Add in beer.  Continue to stir until most of the beer is absorbed by the pasta.  Continue to add a little of the broth (about 1/4 cup) to the pasta and when it is absorbed, add more until the pasta is cooked and has a creamy consistency.  


Add in the remaining ingredients (onion powder, paprika, turmeric, liquid smoke, garlic powder, salt, pepper, & nutritional yeast).  Mix throughly and serve.  I like to add some greens to mine (broccoli, peas, spinach, it all works!).

What the heck is nutritional yeast anyway?


According to wikipedia, nutritional yeast is a deactivated yeast which has a slightly nutty, cheesy flavor to it.  It is a source of many nutrients including protein and vitamin b-12.  It can be found in health food stores and on the internet.  


It might be referenced as "nooch" in vegan/vegetarian conversation.

Don't Be Alfredo Of It...

Apologies for the cheesy title...couldn't help it and it's been a long day.

Now who doesn't love Italian food....for me it is the ultimate comfort food.  Since going plant-based I have veganized some of my favorite Italian food, Pasta Primavera, Lasagna but I have yet to tackle my favorite of all the Italian foods...Fettucini Alfredo.  

Ever since I can recall Fettucini Alfredo has been my favorite.  Who can resist the buttery, creamy, cheesy goodness?  Well...me...for the past 10 years.  Blame it on a decade of watching calories but I haven't touched the stuff since I became legal to drink.  Now that I am plant-based I definitely can't have it...or can I?

I was surfing around one of my favorite blogs (happyherbivore.com), seriously check it out she is a genius with fat free and low fat vegan recipes and has awesome cookbooks.  The baking she can do with applesauce is impressive (60 calorie/0.7 gram of fat chocolate chip cookies umm...yes please!).  Back to the point, I noticed that she had a recipe for Instant Vegan Alfredo.  Be warned omnivores, some of the ingredients are a little scary...I mean I was a little afraid to make this.  Silken Tofu, Nutritional Yeast?? Seriously?  I have dabbled with nutritional yeast (nooch if you want to be a cool vegan) but never gone this far with it.  

Well I got over my initial fear, bought some silken tofu and nooch the other day and decided to make it for dinner tonight.  It came together in a jiffy (15 minutes total).  In addition to the posted recipe; I add 3 cloves of garlic (why not), a little extra salt & pepper, and about 1/2 teaspoon of oregano.  Also just at the end of the pasta cooking I threw in some frozen peas (maybe about a cup) and frozen broccoli (probably a cup as well).  

This TOTALLY hit the spot.  I mean if you are a connoisseur of Alfredo sauce then yes, you will think this tastes nothing like it.  But if, like me you have taken a vacation from Alfredo for any length of time then this satisfies that need completely.  I didn't even have time to take a picture with my legitimate camera I was eating it so quickly, trying to figure out how many more minutes I would have to spend on the elliptical tonight to justify eating the whole pot!  As an added validation of it's tastiness, even Dan thought it was good and he is tofu's toughest critic!

I keep thinking of other veggies you can add to make this a different meal every time.  Maybe some sun-dried tomatoes and basil.  Perhaps some asparagus...the options are completely endless.  I would also make sure to serve this immediately.  Although it still tastes good after it's sat for a while, it definitely does not look as appetizing.  Probably going to have this in my lunch tomorrow so I'll let you know how it reheats.

So what I learned this evening is that although I usually will try anything once, don't be scared to try something in very uncharted territory, it may surprise you. 

What's something you were nervous to try but it turned out to be one of your favs?

It Isn't Easy Being Green..Well At Least Plant Based.

Okay, I lied in the title.  It IS easy to be plant-based.  Since moving to this type of diet back in November I haven't had many cravings for meat or dairy.  That all changed on February 8th.  What happened on that day you may ask...the first of my Facebook friends posted a picture of a Shamrock Shake and it just snowballed from there.  One picture a day popping up on my news feed, taunting me. I have a weakness for the minty goodness and used to wait all year to get one.  

Every since February 8th I have been thinking about making a non-dairy version of the treat.  Finally, on this the first day of the month of March I did just that.  Seriously it tasted just like it, no fancy whipped cream and cherry they do now (when did that start), but just the divine mint ice cream flavor I love.  

Vegan Shamrock Shake (makes 2 servings)

1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk (I used unsweetened vanilla almond milk)

1 cup non-dairy vanilla ice cream (I used soy ice cream here)

1/2 tsp peppermint extract (adjust as desired)

6 spinach leaves (don't worry, just for the green color, you won't even taste it, unless you are weird and want to use Green #4 or whatever they put in green food coloring)

- In your blender add milk and spinach and blend until spinach is completely integrated and milk is sufficiently green.

- Add in ice cream and peppermint extract until smooth, adding additional milk as needed to reach desired consistency.  I like mine on the thicker side and eat it with a spoon. 

Viola! With about 200 calories and 10 grams of fat per serving it is not an everynight kind of snack, but once a year won't kill ya!  And considering a Shamrock Shake from that place that sells them has twice the number of calories and 30% more fat it is at least slightly better for you AND it has spinach!

Why Make It When You Can Fake It?

During a recent jaunt to my local Trader Joe's I spotted some Wasabi Roasted Seaweed Snacks.  At 99 cents a pack I promptly procured 15 packages of them.  At 60 calories (for the entire pack!) they make a great snack at work, although the little green flakes sometimes stick to your desk, your shirt, even your face.  All is worth it to me.  They have a kick of wasabi which I find delicious but if spice isn't your thing no fear, they make them just regular as well.  

So now to the point of my post.  One thing I loved before I became plant-based was sushi.  It is something I still find myself missing from time to time.  We frequently go out to a local restaurant that is mostly chinese food but they have a sushi bar.  I started to try some of their vegetarian options and they really were good.  Our favorite is the avocado roll, but I love avocados so much I would eat them on everything!  This past Valentine's Day I made us our own sushi, cooked the rice, rolled the nori, etc.  While good it certainly took forever and we gobbled it up in minutes!  I mean at least it looked pretty.

Then I had an idea one night while munching on my favorite snack (see above); what if I used this to make a deconstructed avocado roll?  

And that's just what I did.  My little sister gave me these tasting spoons for x-mas (thanks Jeri!) this year, but this works just as well on a regular spoon.  Here's what you need:

Deconstructed Veggie Sushi Rolls

Trader Joe's Seaweed Snack (wasabi or regular depending on taste)

Cooked Rice (I used brown rice here but most rices will be fine)

Diced Avocado or other veggies (try cucumber, mango - not a veggie but still yummy, cooked mushrooms)

Soy Sauce

Sesame Seeds

So start with your spoons.

Add a little soy sauce.

Add a spoonful of rice.

Sprinkle on some sesame seeds.

Add your avocado or other veggies.

Tear the seaweed into little bite size pieces and enjoy!

This totally works as a lunch or appetizer (or if you are a Top Chef fan an amuse bouche) if you are making some stir-fry.  It can also fill you up all by itself.  Delicious and no rolling necessary...straight to your mouth in less than 5 minutes!

Leftover Makeover

I have a confession to make….I hate leftovers.  I force myself to eat them only to not end up throwing tons of food away but if I could go through life without having to eat another leftover I would be okay.  I tend to make extra food for convenience and not because I can’t wait to heat up a Tupperware of pasta and veggies that have been sitting around for 3 days.  But when you can make a whole new meal out of your leftovers, it is like a used car...new to you.

This week is a short week around our house as we are heading out to Southern California on Thursday for a 4-day visit.  While looking forward to that trip, I looked into my fridge to see that we had a lot of work to do in the eating department Monday-Wednesday if we didn’t want everything to spoil. 

Saturday I made some veggie fajitas for a dinner at my parent’s house.  Came home that night with some leftover veggies, corn tortillas, Spanish rice and some chipotle cashew sour cheese.  So I figured why not mix them all together in what I am calling my Super Mexican Veggie Lasagna. 

I also made these black bean brownies to go with...don't taste like black beans at all!  So yummy and gluten free and vegan! (http://happyherbivore.com/recipe/vegan-blackbean-brownies/)

Super Mexican Veggie Lasagna (serves 2-3)

3 corn tortillas

1 15 oz can fire roasted tomatoes – drained and slightly mushed (or quickly pureed in food processor)

1 recipe sautéed veggies (see below)

½ cup Spanish Rice (see below)

4 tbsp recipe Chipotle Cashew Sour Cream (see below)

3/4 cup chedder style vegan cheese (I used Daiya)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In 8 inch round cake pan, spray to avoid sticking.  Add a small layer of the tomatoes (about ¼ cup).  Place one corn tortilla on top and cut another one to fill in the space if needed.  Spread with 2 tbsp Cashew sour cream, add ¼ cup of rice, add ½ of the veggies, ½ cup of tomatoes, and top with 1/4 cup cheese.  Repeat this step one more time using the remaining ingredients.

Bake in over 15-20 minutes until bubbly and cheese is melted.  Cut into quarters, serve with shredded lettuce, fresh tomatoes, guacamole, chopped green onions and remaining chipotle sour cream.  Also goes well with your favorite margarita!

Veggies

1 red onion - chopped

1 bell pepper - chopped

1 portabella mushroom - chopped

½ zucchini – chopped

Juice of 1 lime

1 tsp cumin

1 clove garlic

¼ tsp chili powder

Salt and pepper to taste

In a non-stick pan, sauté garlic and veggies together until they begin to soften.  Add in lime juice, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper.  Continue cooking until all incorporated and vegetables are soft but not mushy.  

Spanish Rice

This is a recipe my mom has been making for years…little did she know she was doing something vegan.  The original recipe calls for white rice but I used brown rice instead and it worked out perfectly.

1 yellow onion – chopped thin

½ green pepper – chopped thin

1 ½ cups instant brown rice

1 ½ cups water

1 15oz can tomato sauce

¼ tsp chili powder

Salt and Pepper to taste

In a large sauté pan, add the onions and peppers (use non-stock cooking spray, water, or veggie broth to keep them from sticking).  Once they are translucent, add the remaining ingredients, stir and cover.  Simmer for 20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed by the rice.  Add additional salt and pepper as desired.

Chipotle Cashew Sour Cream (adapted from The Vegan Table by Colleen Partrick-Goudreau)

1 ½ cup raw cashews

¼ cup lemon juice

½ cup water

1 clove garlic

Salt to taste

1 chipotle pepper

In a container, soak cashews in water for 1-3 hours to soften them.  Add to a food processor with lemon juice, and garlic and puree until mixture becomes smooth.  Add small additional amounts of water to mixture to get to desired texture.  I made mine to the texture of cream cheese almost.   Add chipotle pepper and pulse food processor until incorporated.  Salt and pepper to taste. 

Makes a good topping for all things Mexican, as a dip for some low-fat tortilla chips, or a spread on a veggie burger or portabella mushroom sandwich!

Mushrooms + Red Wine = Delicious

Growing up my parents had a statue of W.C. Fields.  I thought it was just a weird home decor they had at the time (although I am pretty sure Babs and Big Al still have it up in the attic).  However as of late my mantra has been a quote from W.C. Fields..."I cook with wine, sometimes I even add it to the food".  This post is dedicated to that little statue that will forever be in my head when I think of my parent's living room.    

I set out one night to make the Creamy Mushroom Fettuccini from Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s book Appetite for Reduction (it is a must have for sure, I haven’t made one thing out of it that isn’t delicious the baked onion rings are amazing?!?!).  

Well I was making a few tweaks to the recipe, using up some fresh herbs that were going to start going bad, some shallots I had laying around when I got to the step to add some white wine.  So I galloped (yep pretty sure that happened) over to the wine fridge to find that WHAT?!?! I am out of white wine?  How is this possible?  Well in a moment of necessity I used some red wine I had on hand and low and behold this dish was born.  I have made it several times since and even though I now have a well stocked wine fridge with white wine I keep going back to the red.  I know this isn’t the traditional Marsala wine sauce with Marsala Wine, but I am not that traditional lately.

I set out this evening to have some chickpea cutlets on top and although they were okay, they weren't great...more perfecting is needed.  Maybe next time...until then you get the sauce and pasta, your welcome :).

These can easily be made gluten free by using a gluten free past.  The mushroom soup I use here can be found at Whole Foods, it is the Imagine brand and is really quite good(it was on sale last week so I stocked up so be ready for some more recipes starring this awesome soup).  I even used it on Thanksgiving for vegan green bean casserole and the family barely noticed the difference, but with fried onions on top who would?!

Salud!

Mushroom Marsala with Whole Wheat Fettuccini (4 servings)

Essential Equipment

Stock Pot

Large Sauce Pan

1 tbsp vegetable broth

2 shallots - finely chopped

2 cloves garlic - minced

3 cups sliced white mushrooms (cremini or baby bella would work here as well)

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

1 tsp rosemary

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

½ cup dry red wine (better take a sip or a couple sips first to make sure it is just right)

2 tbsp cornstarch

2 cups portabella mushroom soup

8 oz whole wheat fettuccini

Green onions or scallions for garnish

In a large pot, boil water for pasta.  Add a tablespoon of salt to the water and add pasta.  Cook per the instructions on the package.  (this is not included in the photo video).  Drain and place to the side until sauce is complete.

In the meantime, in a large sauce pan on medium heat add vegetable broth, add garlic and shallots.  Cook until shallots are browning, stirring often to not burn the garlic. 

Add mushrooms to the pan and stir.  Add additional broth if need to prevent sticking.  Once mushrooms start to cook down add in the salt, pepper, rosemary and balsamic vinegar.  

Once mushrooms have cooked, add red wine to deglaze the pan.  Cook until wine reduces by half.  

Add cornstarch and stir into mushroom/wine mixture.  Add in mushroom soup and cook until sauce darkens and thickens (about 5-7 minutes).  

Place pasta on plate, top with sauce and green onions.  

Can be refrigerated for up to 4 days (still good reheated for lunch or dinner another day)

Getting Back To Chicago Roots - Deep Dish Style

I am trying a new concept here.  I spend countless amounts of time scouring the internet for recipes and always see the end result, but how in the world did they get from a list of ingredients to that masterpiece perfectly plated and photographed.  Do you ever get half-way in the recipe and just pray this is how it is supposed to look at that point?

Well fear not! With my trusty camera and a steady tri-pod (unless you or your sous-chef (Bella) bump it) I have created almost a time-lapsed video of the cooking From Pan to Plate and then to gone in my house at least.  It's still in it's infancy so can only get better with time!  Also starting off with a list of essential equipment to help you get organized and get cooking.  I left off cutting board, knive, and other utensils assuming that if you are cooking you have something to stir with, spatula, paint stirrer…something.

Growing up in Chicago you get to be protective of your pizza.  It can spark arguments as much as putting ketchup on a hot dog (don’t do it if you know what’s good for you, better yet don’t eat hot dogs as this site doesn’t quite advocate that) or Cubs vs. Sox (Sox).  Anyway, the debate continues; deep dish or thin crust, Lou Malnati’s or Giordano’s.  But whatever your favorite most agree that it is just plain delicious. 

Now when you eat a plant-based diet, pizza is probably not the first thing to cross your mind for a meal, but alas it is possible.  I channeled my inner Chicagoan and made something that albeit doesn’t taste exactly like the cheesy goodness that is deep dish, it will still satisfy those cravings you have for pizza.  Whole wheat crust, tons of veggies (feel free to toss in your favs as eggplant, zucchini, etc will work just as well), sauce, non-dairy cheese if that’s your thing, all come together harmoniously to create a sinful treat that well isn’t really all that sinful.  No saturated fat, no cholesterol, no oil but one thing it is not is no taste.

I made this recipe as deep dish pizza cups, but for those who are thin crust lovers, you can easily make this as a flat pizza, just follow the directions and instead of putting the crust in individual cups, just roll it out onto a pizza stone.  I made these once as individual calzones, while tasting just as good kind of a pain, so the cups or pizza is the way to go here. 

Enjoy!

Deep Dish Pizza Cups – Serves 4-5

Essential Equipment:

Large sauté pan

Measuring Cup/Spoons

Cupcake tin

Rolling pin (or soup can, whatever works)

Ingredients:

1 pre-made whole wheat pizza dough

3 tbsp flour for pizza dough

2 cloves garlic

1 yellow onion, chopped

2 bell peppers chopped

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1 cup spinach

½ fresh basil

½ cup chopped tomatoes

½ cup pizza sauce of your choice

non-dairy cheese (optional)  - I use Daiya Mozzarella

4 oz Soy Italian sausage crumbles (optional)-cooked and crumbled

Spinach-Basil Pesto, recipe follows (optional)

2 tsp oregano

¼ tsp red chili flakes (optional)

½ tsp salt

½ tsp black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

-       Spray a small amount of non-stick cooking spray onto your cupcake tin.

-       Divide the dough into 16 equal pieces (cut in half, then half again, then half again, then half again)

-       On a floured surface, roll each piece into a tin circle with a diameter wide enough to fit completely in your cupcake tin.

-       Line each tin with pizza dough and place in the over for 8 minutes.   

While waiting on the dough, start the veggies:

- In a large sauté pan add a small spray of non-stick cooking spray, garlic and onions.  Cook until onions are translucent. 

- Add peppers and mushrooms and cook until they begin to become tender

- Stir in the spices

- Add spinach, basil, tomatoes and cooked sausage (if using).  Continue to cook until spinach is wilted and tomatoes start to become soft.

Time to put it all together!

-       If using pesto, place a small amount in each dough-cup (basically enough to cover the bottom in thin layer, I would say like a teaspoon).

-       Fill the dough-cup with the veggie mixture to the top, pretty much a heaping spoonful. 

-       Add a spoonful of tomato sauce on top

-       Add non-dairy cheese if using

Place pizza cups back in the over for 8 minutes.  Plate and enjoy!!!

-        

Spinach Basil Pesto

Essential Equipment

Food Processor, Blender or Mini-Chop

2 Cloves Garlic

Salt

Baby Spinach

Basil

Vegetable Broth

Juice of ½ lemon

Okay so I admittedly never measure ingredients for this.  I literally make this weekly and have on hand to toss with pasta or spread on a veggie burger or portabella sandwich.  No oil, no nuts = virtually fat free and insanely delicious.  You won’t even miss it, I promise.  

-       In a food processor or similar equipment, mince the garlic cloves, add handful of baby spinach and fresh basil leaves and chop.  Mixture with be quite dry and might not get anywhere with the processor.  Add small amounts of veggie broth until your processor starts blending it all together.  Add salt to taste.  At this point I will normally taste the pesto and determine to add any additional basil, salt, etc. 

-       The other day I threw a tablespoon of nutritional yeast in just b/c I had it on hand.  This is really a do what you want kind of pesto.  

Desperate Times Lead To Delicious Treasures

One of my favorite things lately has been these baked blue corn tortilla chips from Trader Joe's.  I have been eating them with salsa, guacamole, hummus, you name I dipped these in it.  Well on a trip there yesterday they were out of them.  How will I ever survive a week without them?   Well as I pondered this in my kitchen staring into the fridge something caught my eye, a pack of corn tortillas I had purchased last week and remained unused.  Queue the lightbulb above my head.  

I set out to make a baked corn tortilla chips with as little or no oil as I could.  Well turns out you need none.  These turned out crispy and yummy.  Just wish I had made a double batch, soon as Dan found them they were gone....guess they were pretty good as he is a self proclaimed tortilla chip expert.  Just ask him about his life long quest to find the best nachos. 

Low Fat Baked Chili Lime Tortilla Chips

12 corn tortillas

2 limes

salt to taste (about 5 grinds of the salt grinder)

chili powder to taste (optional)

non-stick cooking spray

Pre heat over to 400 degrees

Cut tortillas into 8 triangular pieces (or whatever shapes you may fancy)

Place on a cookie sheet and lightly spray with non-stick spray (I had to do mine in 2 batches).  Take 1 lime each batch and juice over the tortillas, add salt and chili powder and mix all together.  

Place in the over for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown and crispy, shaking the pan and turning the pieces once in a while.  

Place on a cooling rack to cool and if they are still around enjoy with your favorite salsa or the super easy crowd pleasing guacamole recipe below!

This is my go-to guacamole recipe.  I bring this to parties or just make at home to be selfish and enjoy all by myself :)  It is always a crowd pleaser.

Guacamole

3 ripe avocados (should have a little give when you gently squeeze it)

1 lime

1 clove garlic - minced

1 tomato - finely diced

1/2 cup onion (red, yellow, green whatever you like) - finely chopped

1 tsp salt

pinch of cayenne pepper

Cut avocados in half, remove the pit and set aside one pit to add to the guac later.  Scoop out the avocado from it's skin and place in a bowl.  Squeeze the lime juice into the bowl and add the garlic.  Mash until smooth with just a little bit of chunk in there.  Stir in tomatoes, onions, salt & cayenne.  Add the pit back in to keep the guacamole green longer (I don't know how it works but it certainly does).