August 8, 2014August 14, 2014 by betsy

Vegan Red Zinfandel Pasta with Golden Grape Tomatoes

Yield: 4 modest servings (will need a substantial side dish or side salad to make a full meal)

This easy recipe yields pasta that looks like those made from doughs “dyed” with various vegetable dyes (or animal, like squid ink–ick!). But, instead, taking Giada de Laurentiis’s lead, prepared pasta is cooked in red wine and turns this beautiful color. Clever, no? Giada also adds a little bit of tomato paste to hers, which you can certainly do. It will deepen the color for sure. But I really wasn’t after that rich cooked tomato flavor, so I left it out and my husband and I both loved it.

She serves hers with herbs and goat cheese. If I had had an of my Homemade Vegan Ricotta Cheese, I would have stirred little pieces of that into it, but we ate that right up! So, I had some beautiful yellow-orange grape tomatoes from the farmer’s market that I thought looked striking in contrast with the pasta. And it tasted delicious too.

Feel free to add whatever cooked vegetable you choose (though tomatoes are best added fresh). You can hardly go wrong unless the color is too close to the pasta color and doesn’t show up.

8 ounces whole wheat pasta (I like a thin vermicelli–not the Asian rice variety–but spaghetti is nice too, just adjust cooking time)

Sea salt

2 tablespoon olive oil

1/4 cup finely diced red onion or shallot, red if available (about a medium shallot)

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups of dry red wine, like a Zinfandel or whatever you have on hand

16 golden grape tomatoes, halved

1/4 cup finely chopped basil

Garnish: sprigs of basil and optional nutritional yeast

Bring a large (4 quart) pot of well-salted water to boil over medium-high. Add pasta and simmer pasta for about half it’s cooking time (about 4 minutes for whole wheat vermicelli); lower heat if necessary. Meanwhile, in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high, heat olive oil. Add onion and garlic and sauté, stirring continually, until softened and fragrant, about a minute or two. Add red wine, and bring to a simmer; adjust heat if necessary. Drain pasta and add to skillet with red wine mixture, or scoop pasta directly into mixture using a slotted spoon. Cook pasta for its remaining time or a minute or so longer, stirring occasionally. When almost all of wine has cooked off, add tomatoes and basil, and gently toss until all of the moisture has simmered away. Serve immediately dusted with nutrition yeast if desired (but not enough to hid the beautiful color), and a sprig of basil.

August 6, 2014August 14, 2014 by betsy

Vegan Lasagna with Creamy Swiss Chard Filling, Walnut Pesto, and Fresh Roma Tomato Sauce

Yield: 6 servings

In this lovely summer lasagna–a guest recipe I was asked to create for Tofutti Brands, Inc.–a fluffy and creamy Swiss Chard Filling finds its perfect counterpoints in rich Walnut Pesto; zippy, pleasantly acidic, lightly cooked Fresh Roma Tomato Sauce; and a crunchy topping.

Creamy Swiss Chard Filling (recipe follows)

sea salt

1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons olive oil

6 dried lasagna noodles

1/2 pound (about 3 large) fresh Roma tomatoes, unpeeled, stem end removed, and halved

3 tablespoons loosely packed fresh basil leaves

1 cup walnut pieces

1 large garlic clove, halved

1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast

Make Creamy Swiss Chard Filling in food processor, transfer mixture to a medium bowl, set aside, and rinse out bowl of food processor.

Noodles: Fill a large pot (4-quart) 3/4 full with water, add a tablespoon each of sea salt and olive oil, and bring to a gentle boil. Add lasagna noodles, partially cover, and simmer 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente, lowering heat if necessary. Drain and arrange noodles in a single layer on a baking sheet, covered with a kitchen towel to prevent drying out.

Fresh Roma Tomato Sauce: Place Roma tomatoes in food processor with basil and a pinch of sea salt and process until smooth. Transfer to a medium (2-quart) saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until sauce thickens and most of watery moisture has evaporated; lower heat if necessary to prevent scorching and sticking on the bottom. Remove from heat.

Walnut Pesto: Rinse and dry bowl of food processor and add the nuts, garlic clove, and about a 1/2 teaspoon sea salt. Pulse until finely chopped and, then, with motor running, drizzle in 1/4 cup of olive oil to make a thick paste. Set aside.

Topping: Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large cast iron skillet, add bread crumbs and toast, stirring occasionally, until crumbs begin to turn golden brown, lowering heat if necessary. Add nutritional yeast and continue toasting and stirring for another minute or until crumbs are golden and yeast is fragrant. Remove from heat.

Assembly: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Oil the bottom and sides of two 5 x 9″ metal or ceramic loaf pans. Trim all of the lasagna noodles to fit the length of the pans and then cut the trimmings in half. Line each of the pans with 2 overlapped lasagna noodles, spread each with 1/4 of the Creamy Swiss Chard Filling, and cover the surface of each with small dollops of 1/4 of the walnut pesto. Top each with a single lasagna noodle and 1/2 of the noodle trimmings tucked along the sides if desired (or you may discard these). Repeat layers, ending with a final single lasagna noodle. Spoon half of the Fresh Roma Tomato Sauce over each, sprinkle with half of the bread crumbs, and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes, slice with a sharp serrated knife, and serve.

Note: if you are watching your calories, this lasagna is equally as successful and delicious without the last lasagna noodle layer Simply spoon the tomato sauce over the second and final Walnut Pesto layer, top with crumbs, and bake as directed. In this case, you will need only 6 lasagna noodles.

Creamy Swiss Chard Filling:

1/2 pound stemmed Swiss chard leaves

14 ounces extra firm tofu, drained

8 ounces Tofutti Better than Cream Cheese

Juice and zest of 1/2 large lemon

2 large cloves garlic

2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves

1/2 teaspoon Bragg Liquid Aminos

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/8 teaspoon turbinado sugar (or any granulated sugar)

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper to taste

Finely chop Swiss chard in the bowl of a food processor. Transfer chard to a medium bowl, set aside, and rinse out bowl of food processor. Place all remaining ingredients in the food processor bowl and process until smooth, scraping down sides as necessary. Transfer to bowl with Swiss Chard and fold together until completely combined.

August 4, 2014August 2, 2014 by betsy

Vegan Crispy Mustard-Roasted New Potatoes

Yield: 4 servings as a side dish

This recipe is based on one of Ina Garten’s, the Barefoot Contessa, as seen on the Food Network. My main changes are the addition of fresh minced mild chili pepper, which is optional, and garlic.

I had seen the introduction to one of her shows recently, where she mentioned these potatoes, but I didn’t watch it. So, when our farmer’s market had beautiful new potatoes that they call “creamers” this week, I bagged some planning to make the recipe, as I knew I could find it online. And I did.

But I didn’t write it down; I just created it from memory, adding a couple of ingredients. They are just delicious and quite beautiful…something about those mustard seeds.

3/4 pound golf ball size new potatoes (quartered; halved if potatoes are smaller)
1 medium onion, halved, and sliced into 1/4-inch thick slices
1/4 cup olive oil
2-3 tablespoons stone ground mustard
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Optional: 2 teaspoons finely diced mild red chili pepper, seeds and membranes removed
1 large clove garlic, minced

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Oil a large roasting pan and place potatoes and onions in a single layer in the pan. In a small cup, whisk together olive oil, stone ground mustard, sea salt, and pepper. Drizzle over potatoes and onions, and toss well to completely coat; I like to use my hands for this task. Roast for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Sprinkle chili and garlic over potatoes, stir to distribute, and roast 20 more minutes, stirring after 10, or until potatoes are very crispy and brown and some of the onions are charred. Serve immediately.

August 1, 2014 by betsy

Vegan Thai Coconut Milk and Vegetable Soup

Yield: 4 servings

This soup is as delicious as it is nutritious and lovely. Thicker than most Thai restaurant soups (due to the starch in the squash), it is very filling, yet still light.

It was inspired by my love of all things Thai, but also by an over-zealous trip to the farmer’s market this week considering I am leaving town on Sunday. In a little bit of a panic about not wasting food, I created this soup brimming over with vegetables like red bell pepper, fresh chili pepper, pattypan squash, grape tomatoes and Swiss Chard.

I had purchased 2 bunches of the chard–what was I thinking–so I created a really tasty Swissh Chard and Pumpkin Seed Pesto out of the remainder, which will freeze nicely.

I used the vegetables I had on hand, but feel free to substitute other veggies, keeping flavor, texture and color contrast in mind. In addition to the onion and bell pepper, you will want about 4 cups of vegetables. Precokl firmer vegetables like squash and carrots, and simply heat softer ones like tomatoes and mushrooms.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 large red bell pepper, stemmed and seeded, thinly sliced
1 1-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and very thinly sliced
1 large cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons minced red or green mild chili pepper
Sea salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1-15 ounce can coconut milk or lite coconut milk
2 cups water
2 regular or 1 large vegetable bouillon cube (enough for 2 cups of water)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 pounds pattypan squash (unpeeled and unseeded weight), baked, roasted or grilled until tender, peeled, and cut into wedges [you may substitute eggplant, zucchini and/or yellow squash]; approximately 2 cups cooked chunks
1 cup (approximately) red or gold grape tomatoes, halved
1 cup finely chopped Swiss chard (I use a food processor for this task)
1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems, rough chopped
Zest of 1 large lime
1/4 cup basil leaves, preferably Thai basil
4 teaspoons vegan fish sauce (sold a “vegetarian” in Asian markets) or rice wine vinegar
Garnish: 1/4 cup chopped roasted and lightly salted cashews and peanuts and sprigs of basil or cilantro

In a large (4-quart) saucepan, heat olive oil over medium-high. Add onion, bell pepper, ginger, garlic, chili pepper, and a pinch of sea salt, and freshly ground black pepper, and sauté, stirring frequently, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add coconut milk, water, bouillon cube, and soy sauce, and heat until barely simmering. Add squash, tomatoes, and Swiss chard, and return to a gently simmer. Avoid boiling. Stir in cilantro, lime zest, and basil leaves and heat through. Serve in large bowls with 1 teaspoon of vegan fish sauce or rice wine vinegar stirred into each. Garnish with chopped nuts and a sprig of basil or cilantro.