Vegan Sausages, Red Peppers, Potatoes & Onions

Delicious right out of the oven with the sausages:

Before roasting without the sausages:

This is soo delicious and easy!  I can't wait to eat the leftovers tonight! :)

You'll need:
vegan sausages (I used Field Roast smoked apple sage sausages)
red potatoes, (or any kind you like) chopped in large pieces
red peppers, sliced thin (red is my preference, but any variety of peppers you prefer)
onions, sliced in half moons
extra virgin olive oil
garlic powder
sea salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Take the potatoes, onions, & peppers and toss with the olive oil in a large pan.  Sprinkle on garlic powder and sea salt and roast until nice and golden; stirring frequently.  In a separate dish bake the vegan sausages until lightly browned.  Slice the sausages and mix into the potato/onion/pepper mixture and add extra olive oil/salt if necessary.  The sausages would have broken up if I cooked everything together so that's why I cooked them separately.  Enjoy!

Millet & Butternut Squash Soup

I know you must be thinking I'm crazy to be making soup when it's been close to 100 degrees!!  (maybe I am! LOL)   But, I've been craving comfort foods and this creamy soup hit the spot.  The recipe is from Christina Pirello's book "Glow".

You'll need:
1 cup butternut squash, diced (I used organic, frozen squash)
1/2 cup millet, rinsed well
6 cups water
2 stalks celery, diced
1 onion, diced
2 to 3 tsp. white miso
2 cloves garlic, minced *I added this in
1 vegan bouillon cube *I added this in (I used Rapunzel brand no salt added)
sea salt, if needed
extra virgin olive oil

Saute' the onion, celery and garlic in olive oil until soft. 
Add in the millet, butternut squash, water and boullion to the pot and stir gently. 
Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and cook uncovered for 35 minutes or until the millet is soft. 
Take out a little of the broth and mix in the miso until well combined and add back into the pot. 
Cook an additional 5 minutes.  Enjoy!

Potato & Chick Pea Salad

It's been soo incredibly hot and humid in New York lately so I really wanted a cool salad for lunch.  I normally make a chick pea salad with just chick peas, red onion, red wine vinegar and a little olive oil... but, I had some red potatoes that I wanted to use and I thought it would be a great addition.  I also threw in some capers (which I love!) and made a vinaigrette with extra virgin olive oil, fresh garlic that I finely minced, white wine vinegar and dijon mustard.  It came out great.

You can really put anything you desire in this salad; next time I'm thinking about putting some steamed haricot vert or asparagus in as well!  :)

Super Quick Tofu-Veggie LoMein

Ingredients:

1 (16 ounce) package extra firm tofu
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 (3 ounce) packages Oriental flavored ramen noodles
1 (16 ounce) package frozen stir-fry vegetables
1 1/2 cups water
1 tablespoon soy sauce, or to taste

Directions

Press tofu between paper towels to remove some of the water; cut in to bite size cubes. Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add tofu, and fry until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent burning.

Meanwhile bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add noodles from ramen packages, reserving the seasoning envelopes. Boil for about 2 minutes, just until the noodles break apart. Drain.

Add the stir-fry vegetables to the pan with the tofu, and season with the ramen noodle seasoning packet. Cook, stirring occasionally until vegetables are tender, but not mushy. Add noodles, and stir to blend. Season with soy sauce to taste.

Tofu & Mushroom Stroganoff

1 (16 ounce) package uncooked noodles

2 (12 ounce) packages extra-firm tofu, drained and cut into medium-sized pieces

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 onions, sliced thin

1/2 cup vegan sour cream

12 ounces mushrooms, sliced

1 teaspoon garlic, minced

2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce (more to taste)

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Place noodles in the pot, cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until al dente, and drain.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat, and saute the tofu 5 minutes on each side, until lightly browned. Set aside. Place the onions in the skillet, and cook until tender and caramelized. Mix in mushrooms, garlic, and soy sauce, and cook until heated through.

Stir the sour cream into the skillet. Return tofu to skillet, and continue cooking just until heated through. Serve over the cooked noodles.

Creamy Leek Sauce AKA Fettucine Alfredo

This is a recipe by Christina Pirello for Fettucine Alfredo, but I think it should be called a Creamy Leek Sauce over Fettucine!  ;)  It's absolutely delicious!

What You'll Need:

extra virgin olive oil

4-5 shallots, minced

sea salt

3 leeks, split lengthwise, rinsed well, 1-inch slices

3-4 tablespoons mirin or white wine

1⁄2 cup soy milk, plain

several leaves fresh basil, shredded (I left out)

1⁄2 cup walnut pieces

1 pound udon noodles (or fettucine)

several sprigs fresh basil, for garnish

Instructions:

Heat a small amount of oil in a skillet. Saute shallots, with a pinch of
salt, for 1-2 minutes. Add leeks, a pinch of salt and saute 1-2 minutes.

Add mirin, cover and cook over low heat until leeks are browned on the edges and quite limp, about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.

While the leeks cook, bring a pot of water to a boil and cook udon al dente, 8-10 minutes.

Drain and rinse--Japanese noodles are coated with salt and require rinsing for the best flavor.

Heat a dry skillet and pan toast walnuts until just fragrant. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

When the leeks are ready, add soy milk, fresh basil and season lightly with salt.

Simmer, uncovered for about 5 minutes, until the rice milk reduces a bit.

To serve, simply toss cooked noodles with cooked leek sauce and toasted walnut pieces.

Transfer to a serving platter and serve garnished with fresh basil sprigs.

Makes 4-6 servings.

Creamed Swiss Chard

Paired with roasted broccoli & butternut squash - yum!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 tablespoons whole wheat flour

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/4 cups plain non-dairy milk

2 pounds Swiss chard, washed, stemmed and cut crosswise into strips
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon vegan parm. or nutritional yeast, optional

Directions

In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Whisk in the flour to make a smooth paste. Continue whisking and add the garlic; cook for 30 seconds longer. Whisk in the non-dairy milk and cook until the mixture thickens slightly.

Add the chard and stir to coat well. Cover and cook just until tender, about 2 minutes. Season with the salt and pepper. Sprinkle with the vegan parm./nutritional yeast and serve hot.

Lacey's Blueberry Coconut Pie

This pie was absolutely delicious and will definitely become the dessert I make/bring for most get-togethers!  It got rave reviews - thanks Lacey!  Check out her fabulous blog! http://kuntrageous.blogspot.com/2009/10/blueberry-coconut-pievegan-mofo-10.html

I made this for a BBQ on Memorial Day and everyone loved it!  I wish I had some leftovers now! ;)

Ingredients:


2 cups coconut milk

1 cup almond, soy, or hemp milk (do not use coconut or rice milks)

6 tablespoons sugar

5 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 t vanilla

1/4 t coconut extract (optional)

1/2 c frozen blueberries

1/4 c unsweetened shredded coconut

Shake your coconut milk well before you start to make sure the fat and the water that have separated in the can are well combined before you start.

Pour one cup of coconut milk, cornstarch, sugar and extracts into a pan over low heat. Stir constantly until the mixture begins to thicken.Add remaining milks and continue stiring until mixture becomes very thick and hard to stir.

Pour into pie crust and sprinkle the top with frozen blueberries and shredded coconut. The heat will cause juices from the blueberries to spread through the coconut mixture. Chill for at least 6 hours or until completely firm.

Vanilla Cupcakes from VCTOTW

These were good, but they were more muffin-life, IMO.  The birthday boy LOVED them (he's 5) and had 3 of them at his party and then another one at home!  LOL   That's a win in my book!  

Golden Vanilla Cupcakes

From the book Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero

Ingredients

1 cup soy milk

1 tsp. apple cider vinegar

1¼ cups all-purpose flour

2 Tbsp. cornstarch

¾ tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. salt (increase salt to ½ teaspoon if you're using oil instead of margarine) **(I used oil and did NOT add extra salt and would advise NOT to)

½ cup non-hydrogenated margarine, softened, or ⅓ cup canola oil

¾ cup sugar

2 tsp. vanilla extract

¼ tsp. almond extract, caramel extract, or more vanilla extract

Steps

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners.

Whisk the soy milk and vinegar in a measuring cup and set aside for a few minutes to get good and curdled.

If using margarine: Sift the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl and mix.

In a separate large bowl, use a handheld mixer at medium speed to cream the margarine and sugar for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy. (Don't beat past 2 minutes.) Beat in the vanilla and other extract, if using, then alternate beating in the soy milk mixture and dry ingredients, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl a few times.

If using oil: Beat together the soy milk mixture, oil, sugar, vanilla, and other extracts, if using, in a large bowl. Sift in the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and mix until no large lumps remain.

Fill cupcake liners two-thirds of the way and bake for 20 to 22 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack, and let cool completely before frosting.