The Most Wonderfully-Wonderful Soup...

I am in food-love.

*heart* Chipotle Black Bean Soup

from Ripe From Around Here by jae steele *heart*

I was a little scared to add the chipotle peppers to the soup at first, but the peppers and the minced cilantro really made the soup for me.

For a drink--my cranberry syrup with seltzer. Sa-weet!

What a perfect winter supper.

Jes

Roasted Garlic Grilled Cheese Sandys

The Hubs made dinner without me...we were going to have grilled cheese sandwiches and soup when I got home from class tonight (EARLY, I might add, since we had a test). But NO, he had to go and eat a crummy little pizza by himself and then fall asleep.

But I still wanted grilled cheese (yay Daiya!), and had an idea to make it better...as if grilled cheese sandwiches could be made any better, right? What was I thinking??

Oh, my fellow Vegan MoFo'ers...I was thinking along the right lines with this one.

Roasted Garlic Grilled Cheese Sandys

serves 1...me!

1 bulb of garlic

1 tbsp olive oil (or grapeseed, whateva)

4 slices artisan bread

loads of Daiya, mozz AND cheddar types (this one's really at your discretion)

sprinkle of pepper, salt, oregano

Earth Balance for the bread

Preheat oven to 375 deg. Cut the top off your garlic bulb and soak in some oil. Load it up in a pan, top with foil, and pop in the oven for about half an hour until it's light brown and able to be poked with a fork. Mine took about 40 minutes. Let the garlic cool before handling!

Spread slightly-melted Earth Balance on your bread and throw it on a griddle (we have an awesome electric one from The Hubs' Mutti!). Brown the bread, flip it over, and spread on roasted garlic. Top with Daiya (alternatively, you can mix Vegenaise with some roasted garlic and then spread on the bread). Put slices together and cook until "cheese" is melted. I did one of both options:

Is it bad that I stood there, eating the small amount of leftover roasted garlic Vegenaise with tortilla chips while the sandys cooked? Probably. Do I care? Not in the slightest.

That is a cool glass of Silk Pumpkin Spice there...mmmmmm...spice...

This is super-awesome-spectacular if you are a garlic fan, or if you want to avoid kissing your husband who couldn't wait for you to eat dinner and fell asleep. Delightful!

Jes

Under the Weather, Up to My Eyeballs in Garlic

My crap-tastical day started off with a 4:00AM cough attack. I felt better as the day went along, and I feel pretty good now, but it totally ruined my sleep.

The rest of my day (the work part) was not an improvement. Half of the office is out, which is total BS, I was stuck doing Wwwwwaaaaayyyyy more than usual, had one tiny breakdown with 30 minutes to go in the day, and actually counted how many times I considered quiting then and there (I stopped when I reached the 20s). But I've been there for 3 1/2 years and can't leave until I finish my Master's degree (HOPEFULLY) in May. BANE OF MY MOFO EVER-LOVING EXISTENCE.

*breathe* Time for some food, kids.

I FINALLY got some Daiya in the mail yesterday from veganessentials (woot!). However, I went to the Food for Thought supermarket earlier in the day (hadn't been since Feb) and *surprise* found Daiya for only $0.20 more...whatever. GreenAcres Market across town STILL doesn't have Daiya (though I've actively suggested they stock it). Someone needs to do their research there.

So, I made a recipe I've been itching to make all week: Peg @ Learning Vegan's Ooey-Gooey Garlic Bread.

Food just looks prettier in the oven, no?

UhMahGah...it's soooooooooooooooooooooooo good! I added way more scallions, garlic, and garlic powder to the spread, but it was really mofo tasty. I did add too much crushed red pepper flakes to the pizza sauce (you know it's too much when it slowly burns the F out of your lips and won't wipe off), but easily remedied.

"Cheesy" goodness...is it wrong to eat the whole thing?

You guys have to try this. Surriously...

Here's to hoping my health improves substantially for Girls' Nite on Saturday!! I'm going to have to DVR "America's Cutest Cat" on Animal Planet Sat. 9/8c. I'm not a cat person, but I would watch that...

What is your go-to recipe or treatment when you are under the weather?

Jes

Me and Acorn Squash Down by the Schoolyard

Last night I had an evening rendezvous with a Mr. Acorn Squash, and he fulfilled my needs in three ways, let me tell you...

Remember my query about the acorn squash I needed to use or lose? Oh, I used it. And how!

First, I halved the squash, scooped out the seeds/stringy crap, and threw it in the oven at 400 degrees for 30 minutes until tender. Afterwards, I let it cool and then scooped out the flesh.

While the squash was in the oven, I cleaned the seeds, dried them off and tossed them with olive oil, paprika, garlic powder, a little cumin and a pinch of salt. They went onto a foil-lined cookie sheet and into a 350 degree oven after the squash was done. Cooking time was about 15-20 minutes. Once it gets to the 15-minute mark, you really have to watch them. I think I heard a few -POP- in the oven.

My intentions for Mr. Squash were pure, so I set about to bake something sweet. I adapted an omni recipe that I found on recipelink.com for Acorn Squash Bread. Here's what I came up with:

1 1/2 cups AP flour

1 cup turbinado sugar

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (it actually says 1/2 tsp. each of cinnamon AND nutmeg, but since I didn't have nutmeg, I used pumpkin pie spice for both)

1 cup cooked, mashed acorn squash

2 Ener-G "eggs"

1/4 cup Earthbalance "butter," melted

Combine the first seven ingredients and incorporate together in a bowl.

Combine squash, "eggs" and "butter" and mix together. Add the wet mix to the dry mix and stir until blended (or do all of this in a mixer...). Pour mixture into a greased and floured 9"x 5"x 3" loaf pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes or until your toothpick comes out clean.

Mixer in Action.

Me and My First Loaf Ever!

(That's The Hubs' Tuna Salad in the food processor, ick...)

Zombie Baker Cookie Cutter Approves.

I brought most of the bread to work this morning (it's a good breakfast bread), and the coworkers DEVOURED it.

Since the bread recipe only used one cup of mashed acorn squash, I was in a pickle as to what else I would make using the rest. So I made a pasta sauce!

I kind of winged it...Into the food processor went:

rest of mashed squash

1 clove garlic, torn apart

1/2 container (12oz?) Silken firm tofu

oregano

basil

pinch of S & P

Frank's Red Hot Sauce (I actually put a lot of this in, maybe like a tablespoon?)

about 1/8 cup melted Earthbalance (leftover from cake recipe--waste not, want not)

splash of soy sauce

Whir this all together until it's combined into creamy goodness in your food processor. The longer I kept it on, the creamier it got. Looked kind of like a buttery hollandaise sauce:

I plated the pasta and topped it with the scrumptious, spicy roasted acorn squash seeds. The Hubs doesn't eat squash at all and only eats tofu if it's fried to a crisp, but he tried this and was over the flippin' moon about the combo of the sauce with seeds.

So ended my affair with Mr. Acorn Squash. Perhaps we'll pick it up again soon, but I'm pretty squashed out after last night...

Jes

Capellini with Garlic & Olive Oil, Yum!

That's right. Two posts in one day...still going strong, and there's sooooo much more to do!

Ok, so Sunday I was a bit on the "I don't want to cook very much" wagon (i.e. see my "Easy Peasy Chili" and Biscuits post...). For lunch that day, I made another REALLY easy recipe, also from Beverly Lynn Bennett's awesome cookbook, Vegan Bites, which is great when you are the only one in the house eating totally vegan.

Her recipe was for "Spaghetti with Garlic and Olive Oil," but since I think Spag. takes too dang long to cook (and kids, I was FAMISHED.), I decided to use the box of capellini noodles hanging around my little pantry cabinet. Capellini are a version of angel hair pasta. The brand of capellini I buy is even thinner than the Barilla angel hair I used to get.

Yup, capellini = feeding Jes' face faster!

I cooked the capellini, and in another small pan I sautéed about 2 cloves of minced garlic in 1 TBSP olive oil (being careful not to burn it). I then added 3 sliced mushrooms to the oil, along with the recommended crushed red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Dried oregano also found its merry way in, too, and was joined by freshly-squeezed lemon juice as the very last ingredient.

This was followed by draining the pasta, tossing it with the oil sauce, plating, and topping with a shake of nooch.

Holy smokes, folks! This was so easy and yummy. Probably not the best for my waist line, but what the hay...

I ate this at about 3:30ish, and it put me in a coma-nap until 6:00pm! What a wonderful way to spend a Sunday. Screw Ambien and over-the-counter sleep meds. You should try this recipe!!

Do you have a recipe that brings on a blissful nap after you eat?

Jes

"Loaded Bowl"--No, not that bowl...sheesh.

I promise some wonderful foods for tomorrow's post. Today is an interesting recipe from Clean Eating from like either Sept or Oct. They call it the "Loaded Bowl;" I call it DELICIOUS.

It's so easy! Cook quinoa per usual. While this is cooking, toss sliced mushrooms, black beans, and halved cherry tomatoes intp a large bowl. Once the quinoa is cooked and slightly cooled, mix it with the veggies in the bowl.

Then comes the dressing...

I think it's like 1 part white vinegar to 2 parts olive oil with salt, pepper, and I think I added minced garlic. This can either be food processed/blended to it turns out "creamy" or you can whisk it in a small bowl. If you choose to whisk, make sure your garlic is minced and not diced. Unless you like bites of bitter, strong garlic, just sayin'...

Plate the quinoa/veg mixture and drizzle a little vinaigrette over the top. Layer on some diced avocado (my favorite part!!!!!).

Yum, bloody yum.

Enjoy your Sunday, MoFo'ers. Tomorrow dawns a new week of stomach growl-inducing recipes!

Jes

Peasant Supper Sundays 10/17

Heck yeah! Can't wait to start Vegan MOFO! I will be SO done with the wedding by then, you all have no clue (well, maybe you do if you've been married before, I guess).

Anyhoo, for Peasant Supper Sundays this past weekend 10/17 I made a variation on a recipe I found in Clean Eating from last month (Sept 2010 I think?). That magazine is pretty good for recipe inspiration, first time buying it.

Here's my version of their Hearty Lentil Soup:

3 cups green lentils (they used red--couldn't find red and was at the grocery store way too long to care)

1/2 cup brown rice

1 yellow onion, diced

2 cloves garlic

1 red bell pepper, diced

5 cups water (could use stock as well)

red pepper flakes (to taste)

cumin (1/4th tsp?)

S & P

whopping handful of kale

2 small potatoes, diced in large chunks (I had a purple and a red potato, added both)

Basically, I cooked the onions garlic, and bell pepper in a large pot in olive oil. Added the potato, lentils, kale, and rice, plus the 5 cups of water and seasoning, and had it on a low simmer for about 50-60 minutes. Yummy, full of vitamins, and so easy. Plus, for me, it made like 5 servings, which is great for a healthy lunch.

I did forget to rinse my kale (I know, I know!!! UGH!), so it was a little gritty, but only at the bottom of the soup. I actually got so excited when I cut into the purple potato (didn't know it was purple) that I literally squealed with glee and ran through the house to show Phil. I went to K-State (GO CATS!) so this was pretty squeeee-worthy for me.

Jes

Yowza!!

Since I had the night (well, most of it) to myself, I figured I'd crank The Smiths and whip up a recipe from the new issue of Vegetarian Times. I chose the pasta with roasted red pepper sauce. I didn't have really high hopes for this, but DAAANNNGGG! It's FANTASTIC. BEYOND fantastic.

It was just garlic, onion, carrot, and roasted red pepper all chopped and sautéed. Throw it in a blender and then toss in pasta, and WHAM!

It had this wonderfully-rich orange color. And it was the perfect recipe for a night at home with just Enu and I.

In other news...WEDDING DRAMA, AHHHHHHHH! *sick*

Jes