Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie

I'm not doing a very good job of updating my blog (and reading blogs) right now! School, work and life are definitely keeping me busy. Oh and I got engaged so now add wedding planning into the mix! =)

I don't think I've ever had regular shepherd's pie - things with ground beef never appealed to me when I used to eat meat. And as a vegetarian, the fake veggie ground round version of shepherd's pie never sounded too great either. Then I came across this recipe for shepherd's pie in my beloved The New Enchanted Broccoli Forest. It has no ground round/fake meat products and instead (as the recipe says) is "a vegetable hash on the bottom, and garlicky mashed potatoes on top". What's not to love about that? I was expecting it to keep together better (bind better) but it all kind of mooshed around. Which was fine and delicious. This shepherd's pie is like mashed potatoes with lots of vegetables and a sort of vegetable gravy. I don't imagine it's very authentic but it was good and that is, of course, the important thing!

Here's Abby playing with one of her new toys. Sadly she's already broken the string! She really loved this one.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Frijoles, Etc. Casserole
Chayote and Corn Enchiladas
Fresh Pear and Curry Pasta
Artichoke Rotini Pasta

Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie
Adapted from The New Enchanted Broccoli Forest

Mashed potato topping (Make this first):
2 large potatoes
1 tbsp butter (or oil)
1/2 cup milk
3 large cloves garlic, minced
salt & pepper, to taste
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley

Vegetable Hash:
1 tbsp oil
1 1/2 cups minced onions
4 large cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
fresh black pepper to taste
1 stalk celery, finely minced
1 lb mushrooms, chopped
1 lb zucchini, diced
1 medium bell pepper, minced
2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 cup peas (fresh or frozen)
3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese (leave out to make vegan)
cayenne to taste
paprika

Make the mashed potato topping:

Peel or scrub the potatoes, and cut them into 1 inch chunks. Cook in plenty of boiling water until soft. Drain and transfer to a medium-large bowl. Add butter, garlic, and milk, and mash well. Add salt and black pepper to taste, and stir in the parsley. Set aside.

Make the vegetable hash (and assembly):

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Have ready a 2 quart casserole or its equivalent (ex. a 9x13 baking pan).

2. Heat the oil in a large, deep skillet or a Dutch oven. Add the onion, and saute over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until it begins to soften.

3. Add garlic, salt, pepper, celery, mushrooms, zucchini, and bell pepper. Stir until well combined, cover, and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the herbs, stir, and cover again. Cook for about 5 more minutes, or until the zucchini is perfectly tender. Remove from heat.

4. Stir in the peas and cheese. Add cayenne to taste. Transfer this mixture to the casserole or baking pan, and spread it out.

5. Spoon and./or spread the mashed potatoes over the vegetables. Dust generously with paprika.

6. Bake uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes, or until lightly browned on top and bubbly around the edges.

Swiss Rarebit

I have discovered a new cookbook love, The New Enchanted Broccoli Forest. I now see that my life was incomplete without it! I took it out of the library, after reading Ricki talk about it and I was hooked and had to buy it. Vegetable-flecked bread? Curried sweet potato pie with coconut crust? Savory apple casserole? I could go on and on. I think I'm seriously going to make every single recipe in this cookbook. I own a lot of vegetarian cookbooks, and it is so incredibly rare that you come across a gem like this. Every recipe sounds so good, uses ingredients that aren't hard to get, and there's so much variety. This cookbook was originally published in 1982 and I guess I'm surprised at how innovative and interesting the recipes are. I think I assume that after all these years people would've come up with more interesting stuff, but that's definitely not true. This book is where it's at. I just can't believe I've gone this long without having it! I'm sure many of you already have it but for me it's an exciting new discovery (as I'm sure you can tell). I've already made 4 or 5 things from it and this is just the beginning. I don't think it can replace Rebar as my favourite vegetarian (and all around cookbook) but it might come out as a tie.

Today I'm sharing with you this delicious Swiss rarebit, which wasn't the first thing I made from this cookbook but seemed like a good thing to share right now while we're all looking for warm comforting meals. I've always wanted to make rarebit and now I want to try out other versions like with mustard and beer. This rarebit is made with Swiss cheese, mushrooms, white wine, tarragon and green onions - a wonderful combination. It makes enough to top 4 thick slices of pumpernickel (which I made using a recipe from this cookbook and it was awesome - to be posted soon), and we made the mistake of each eating two for our meal. It was super tasty and basically like a cheese/wine/mushroom fondue on toast (who can say no to that), but if you eat two slices like we did, you will feel really gross afterwards. Next time I'll just eat one piece with a big salad.

Wow I'm feeling quite verbose tonight. You'd think I'd be inspired to finish my essay right now when I'm in a mood like this, but no.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Feta and Ricotta Cheese Pie
Cauliflower Gratin
Cheddar Ale Dip

Swiss Rarebit
Adapted from The New Enchanted Broccoli Forest

The only thing I changed was to use half the amount of oil (and using oil not butter).

Serves 4

1 tbsp olive oil
3/4 lb mushrooms, sliced
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp unbleached white flour
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
1/2 tsp dried tarragon
5 medium sized green onions, minced
up to 1 cup grated Swiss cheese (1/4 lb)
thick slices of toasted pumpernickel
freshly grated nutmeg & ground black pepper, to taste

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet or medium-large saucepan. Add the mushrooms and salt, and cook for about 10 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently.

2. Gradually sprinkle in the flour, stirring constantly. Cook and stir for about 1 minute, then stir in the wine and tarragon. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.

3. Shortly before serving, stir in the green onions and cheese. Keep cooking over low heat, stirring, until the cheese is completely melted.

4. To serve, place 4 generous slices of pumpernickel toast on 4 separate plates or in shallow soup bowls. Spoon the rarebit over the top, grind on some fresh nutmeg and black pepper, and it's ready to eat.

Curried Mushrooms and Peas

I mentioned a while ago that in an an effort to cook more Indian food, I picked up a few Indian cookbooks: 5 Spices, 50 Dishes, 660 Curries, and Indian in 6. Well I am finally getting to posting about some of the dishes I've made! Not everything has been great and some of it has definitely been my fault such as when I burned some spices because the pan was too hot. Oops. But I'm stumbling along on my journey to delicious home cooked Indian food. (Remember the chana masala/spicy Indian chickpeas I made from Lisa? Those are a favourite.) So right now what I have to share with you is curried mushrooms and peas. I love mushrooms, love peas, love curry - perfect for me. This dish was good but I'd up the spice level next time - probably double it.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Mushroom Pecan Burger
Hungarian Mushroom Soup
Walnut and Mushroom Nut Roast
Sweet Potato Badi

Curried Mushrooms and Peas
Adapted from 5 Spices, 50 Dishes

As I mentioned in my post, I'd double the spices next time (though maybe not the turmeric). I've written the recipe with the original amount of spice though because I'm not sure exactly how it will be with double.

1 pound white or brown button mushrooms, sliced
1 tbsp oil
1 small onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
1 tsp finely grated ginger (about 2 inch piece)
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4 cup chopped tomato (about 1 small)
1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
1 1/4 cups shelled peas (I used frozen)
1 cup water
1/2 tsp salt

Heat the oil in a large pan, and saute the onion until dark brown. Add the ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander, turmeric and cayenne, and stir constantly over medium heat until the mixture turns golden brown. This will happen quickly, so be careful it doesn't burn. Add the tomato and cilantro and saute another minute.

Add the peas and mushrooms to the spice mixture, mix well, add the water and salt, and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to a simmer, cover the pan, and cook until the mushrooms are tender, about 10 minutes. (Ashley note: Next time I'll uncover it and let it simmer for a bit to reduce the amount of liquid.) Serve hot.

More Salads! Including Portobello Salad with Mustard Dressing

Are you guys getting sick of all the salad? I promise I'll post about some delicious baked good next time.

I've admired this salad in Veganomicon ever since I got the cookbook but for some reason never made it. As soon as I decided to take part in Leng's salad challenge I knew this was something I'd have to make! Marinated roasted portobellos, avocado, red onion, chickpeas, a mustard dressing - what more can I ask for? The grain portion of my salad was some tortilla "chips" that I made by cutting a tortilla up and toasting it. This was my favourite salad out of the last 6 salads. The roasted portobellos were really good and I loved the marinade so will use it with other vegetables or tofu. However I do not enjoy how expensive portobellos are.

Friday's salad was the least delicious salad of the week and also included ruining one of our pots when we were steaming the beets. Hopefully we can salvage it. Anyway the salad included beets, red onion, homemade garlic oregano basil parmesan breadcrumbs (didn't use enough oil this time to get things to stick to the bread), grated carrot, tofu marinated in the leftover portobello marinade, olives, red leaf lettuce, and the rest of the mustard dressing from the day before.

Today's salad was delicious crunchy romaine lettuce, beets, chickpeas, grated Gouda cheese, whole wheat pasta, and Caesar dressing. I love having the gouda in there.

I find it hard to come up with salads that incorporate grains. I think I prefer eating something on the side like bread or a savoury muffin or something. And I think I'm getting stuck trying to come up with yummy salad combinations. Any suggestions?

Portobello Salad with Mustard Dressing
Adapted from Veganomicon

Serves 4

Dressing
1/4 cup smooth mustard (Ashley note: I used some balsamic fig mustard I had but next time I'll go for dijon.)
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tbsp pure maple syrup

Salad
8 cups mixed greens
1 avocado, peeled, halved, pitted and cubed
1 small red onion, sliced into very thin half moons
15 ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 recipe Roasted Portobellos (recipe follows)

Preparing the dressing: Whisk all the ingredients together in a small bowl.

Toss all the salad ingredients together, except the portobellos. Add the dressing. Divide up the salad and place the sliced warm portobellos on top of each salad.

Roasted Portobellos
Adapted from Veganomicon

1/2 cup wine
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large or up to 4 small portobello caps

Clean the portobello caps. Combine all ingredients for the marinade in a glass pie plate or small casserole. Place the mushrooms upside down in the marinade and spoon a lot of the marinade into each cap to form a small pool. Preheat the oven to 400F and marinated for about 20 minutes.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil, use tongs to flip the caps over, and cook, uncovered, for another 10 minutes. Let it cool a bit and then slice the mushrooms very thinly on the diagonal to make nice meaty slices.

Mushroom Pecan Burger

I just started my summer job yesterday, and after a month off from work and school, it's taking some time to get back into things. I have to get organized with optimizing my time so and I have to figure out how to stop feeling so tired once I leave work.

One of my least favourite home cooked meals is burgers. I really don't like most commercial veggie burgers (though I have recently discovered the Sol Cuisine ones and those are good, and there are some sun dried tomato basil ones that are good too). But I think the real reason that I don't like home cooked burgers is because I have no idea how to create a good burger - like I don't know what condiments to add and in what combination to make it delicious.Whatever I put on there (usually trying to be healthy) it never turns out awesome.

BUT when it comes to homemade veggie burgers like this mushroom pecan burger, there's no way I'd turn it down. I liked eating this burger patty on salad and just on the side of whatever else (like with rice and vegetables). I think I only ate it burger style once, and even then it was good because the patty is just so flavourful and delicious. The patties don't stick together incredibly well but I don't mind because the taste is so awesome.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Mushroom Crescents
Hungarian Mushroom Soup
Pasta with Portobello Mushrooms in Mustard Wine Sauce
Walnut and Mushroom Nut Roast

Mushroom Pecan Burger
Adapted from Rebar: Modern Food Cookbook

Yields 10 to 12 burgers

1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 red onion, diced
1 tsp salt
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp red chile flakes
6 cups sliced button mushrooms
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice
1 1/2 cups grated carrot (about 2 carrots)
1 cup pecans, roasted and finely ground
2 pieces whole wheat bread, toasted and torn into small pieces
1/2 tsp cracked pepper
2 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce

1. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat and saute onion. Turn up the heat and add the garlic, mushrooms, salt, thyme and chile flakes. Stir and saute until the mushrooms have released their juices and the pan begins to dry out. Deglaze the pan with balsamic vinegar. Let the liquid evaporate, turn the mushrooms out into a large bowl and let cool.

2. In a food processor, blend the torn bread until you have bread crumbs. Add the brown rice, grated carrot and mushrooms to the food processor. (You made need to do this in 2 batches if your food processor isn't big enough.) Pulse the mixture until well combined but still coarse in texture. Return to the bowl and add all of the remaining ingredients. Mix thoroughly and season to taste. Refrigerate for 1 hour, or overnight. Shape into patties and either saute until golden brown on both sides, or bake at 375F for 10 minutes on each side.

Onion and Mushroom Frittata

There's nothing new or earth shattering about this frittata but it was good and we all need meals that are easy, filling and healthy. This was the first recipe I tried from The Complete Italian Vegetarian Cookbook, which I've owned for probably a year. When I've flipped through it before nothing has really called out to me but I thought I'd pick a few recipes and see how they were, so we'll see how that goes. If anyone has any recommendations from this cookbook let me know! You can easily use this recipe as a base to make whatever kind of frittata you want. Experiment with herbs, spices, cheese and different vegetables.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Walnut Mushroom Nut Roast
Squash & Aged White Cheddar Tart with Sage and Roasted Garlic Custard
Curried Tofu Salad
Lemon Miso Tofu

Onion and Mushroom Frittata
Adapted from The Complete Italian Vegetarian Cookbook

The recipe calls for 2 tbsp parsley but I used only a little parsley and mostly basil. I'd try less oil next time, maybe 1 tbsp. This serves 4 if you eat something else with it (like a salad or some kind of vegetable) but if you want to eat just this then I'd say it serves 2, maybe 3. Also, it says to add the salt and pepper after the mushrooms finish sauteeing but I'd save the salt and add it to the finished frittata, so you can use less and taste it more.

2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, cut into 1/2 inch dice
1/2 pound wild, cremini or white button mushrooms, wiped, clean, stems trimmed, thinly sliced
salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 large eggs
3 tbsp Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp minced fresh parsley & basil

1. Heat the oil in a 10 inch nonstick skillet with an ovenproof handle. Swirl the oil to coat the bottom of the pan evenly. Add the onion and saute over medium heat until translucent, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the mushrooms and saute until they turn golden brown and the liquid has evaporated, about 8 minutes. Add pepper (and salt if you want) to taste.

3. Preheat the broiler. Use a fork to lightly beat the eggs, cheese and parsley/basil in a medium bowl. Add the egg mixture to the pan and stir gently with a fork to incorporate into the vegetables. Cook over medium-low heat, occasionally sliding a spatula around the edges of the pan to loosen the frittata as it sets. Continue cooking until the frittata is set, except for the top, about 8 minutes.

4. Place the pan directly under the broiler and cook just until the top is golden brown and set, 1 to 2 minutes. Do not let the frittata burn.

5. Invert the frittata onto a large platter. Cut it into wedges and serve. The frittata may also be cooled to room temperature and then cut and served.

Hungarian Mushroom Soup

I saw Lisa post about this Hungarian mushroom soup quite a while ago and always had it in the back of my mind to try it. It's an easy soup to make, yummy and something a little different (at least for me). This is one of those warm, comforting soups. (And I love sour cream in soup!)

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Mushroom Crescents
Curried Sweet Potato Soup
Pasta with Portobello Mushrooms in Mustard Wine Sauce
Middle Eastern Chickpea Soup

Hungarian Mushroom Soup
Adapted from Cathy T (AllRecipes) found on Lisa's Kitchen

My adaptations were to use 1 tbsp of butter and 1 tbsp of oil (instead of 4 tbsp butter), vegetable broth instead of chicken broth, 1 tsp of dill instead of 2, and 1/2 tsp salt instead of 1 tsp. I'd also recommend sauteeing the mushrooms longer than 5 minutes - I'd sautee them maybe 10 minutes until most of the water was released.

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon oil
2 cups chopped onions
1 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 teaspoon dried dill weed
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 cups vegetable broth

1 cup milk
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
ground black pepper to taste
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup sour cream

1. Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Saute the onions in the butter for 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and saute for 5 more minutes. Stir in the dill, paprika, soy sauce and broth. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes.

2. In a separate small bowl, whisk the milk and flour together. Pour this into the soup and stir well to blend. Cover and simmer for 15 more minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Finally, stir in the salt, ground black pepper, lemon juice, parsley and sour cream. Mix together and allow to heat through over

Mushroom Crescents

While I really love baking, I don't often bake savoury things - and I really should more often. At least I can eat the savoury things as part of a meal, plus savoury baked goods are often delicious. Like these mushroom crescents. And delicious doesn't begin to describe them. Unshareable would be a better description (and I'm sure that isn't actually a word) as it will be hard to part with even one of these yummy little things.

The mushroom/onion/herb filling is extremely addictive. It's yummy as the filling in these little pastries, and it's yummy just eaten with a spoon. The pastry is really easy to make and easy to work with, which was great for me because usually I hate rolling out dough. And the pastry was super tasty and slightly flakey and really good. Combine the filling and the dough, incredibly yummy as I've already said.

I know I'll be making these again, and I'll be making the filling again for other purposes and trying other fillings as well. So far the ones I want to try are brie & pears, roasted garlic & feta, and caramelized onions and aged cheddar. Let me know if you have any other suggestions! Sadly I forgot to take a picture of the inside of the crescents.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Pasta with Portobello Mushrooms in Wine Sauce
Portobello Fettuccine with Spinach Pesto, Roasted Peppers and Romano Cheese
French Barley Salad
Caramelized Onion, Sage and Cheddar Muffins

Mushroom Crescents
Adapted from The Complete Canadian Living Baking Book

Makes about 40 pieces.

Filling
2 tbsp butter
1 small onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 tsp dried thyme
3/4 tsp dried sage
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups finely chopped portobello mushrooms
1 1/2 cups finely chopped button mushrooms
1/3 cup white wine

Pastry
4 oz (125 g) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup butter, softened
1 cup all purpose flour
1 egg, beaten

In large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat; fry onion, garlic, thyme, sage, pepper and salt, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened, about 3 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high. Add portobello and button mushrooms; fry, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 10 minutes. Stir in wine, scraping up brown bits from bottom of pan. Cook until liquid is evaporated, about 5 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.

Pastry
In large bowl, beat cream cheese with butter until fluffy. Stir in flour until dough begins to form; knead in bowl until smooth. Divide dough in half; flatten into 2 discs. Wrap; refrigerate until firm, at least 30 minutes or up to 2 days.

On lightly floured surface, roll out each disc into 10 inch (25 cm) circle. With 2 1/2 inch (6 cm) round cookie cutter, cut out circles, rerolling scraps. Working with 6 circles at a time, brush edges lightly with egg. Place 1 tsp (5 mL) of the filling in centre of each; fold dough over filling, pinching edges to seal. Place, 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart, on baking sheet. (Can be frozen at this point.) Brush tops with remaining egg.

Bake in centre of 400F oven until light golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Pasta with Portobello Mushrooms in Mustard Wine Sauce

I know I know, this doesn't look like the most exciting dish ever but it really was! Well the part that was really special was the wine mustard sauce - yum yum. I love mustard and I love wine in sauces so this was the perfect combination. I would use the sauce again and try out different vegetables.

This post is quick & brief because things have been really busy this week. We found an apartment! Hopefully. We have a week to check things out and then make our final decision. I'm impressed with myself that I had already prepared the photo and typed up the recipe for this days ago!

Other pasta dishes I've made:
Audrey's Deluxe Mac & Cheese
Santa Fe Pasta Salad
Portabello Fettuccine with Spinach Pesto, Roasted Peppers & Romano Cheese
Spinach Walnut Pesto with Smoked Tofu & Whole Wheat Rotini

Pasta with Portobello Mushrooms in Mustard Wine Sauce
Adapted from Vegetarian Times Complete Cookbook

2 1/2 cups small dried pasta shapes
2 tsp oil
8 oz portobello mushrooms, stemmed and thinly sliced (about 2 mushrooms)
1/2 tsp salt*
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 cup vegetable stock
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

Cook pasta according to pasta directions. Drain and set aside.

Set the wok (or frying pan) over high heat, and add 1 tsp of oil. Add the mushrooms and 1/4 tsp of salt, and stir-fry until tender, for about 2 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, and set aside.

Return the wok to high heat, and add the remaining 1 tsp of oil. Add the garlic and onion, and stir-fry for 1 1/2 minutes. Add the remaining 1/4 tsp of salt and crushed red pepper, and stir-fry for 1 1/2 minutes. Add the vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, and cook for 2 minutes, scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the wok. Add to the bowl with the mushrooms.

Return the wok to high heat. Add the wine and mustard, and stir with a wire whisk to blend. Bring to a boil, add the reserved pasta and mushroom mixture and cook, stirring for 2 minutes (or everything is heated through). Toss in the pine nuts and serve.

*I always reduce the amount of salt so you may want to add more.

Portabello Fettuccine with Spinach Pesto, Roasted Peppers & Romano Cheese

My exams are finally over! I'm free for the summer to bake lots of yummy things and balance them out with many other healthy things. And to have the freedom to read food blogs again! Thank you everyone who wished me luck with my finals. :)

This recipe has a lot of parts to it and might seem a bit complicated, but it's not too bad and it's definitely worth it! To quote what I wrote on the page for this recipe in the cookbook, "sosososoSO good!! perfect. make all the time! yum etc!! truly spectacular". As you can see, I really fell in love with this pasta dish and I plan to make it many more times. Though it's not the healthiest, at least it involves a variety of vegetables! I tried to organize the recipe as best I could (because it comes from several pages in the cookbook) but if it's confusing, let me know.

Portabello Fettuccine with Spinach Pesto, Roasted Peppers & Romano Cheese
Adapted from Rebar: Modern Food Cookbook

Serves 2-3

1/2 lb whole wheat fettuccine
2 portabello mushrooms, marinated and roasted (Recipe below)
2 red or yellow bell peppers, roasted and peeled
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 onion, julienned
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup fresh basil*
1 recipe spinach pesto (Recipe below)
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
2 tbsp pine nuts, toasted

Preheat oven to 400F. Put the marinated mushrooms in an oven safe dish. Slice the bell peppers in half and seed them. Place them cut-side down on a baking sheet. Roast the mushrooms and peppers (separately) for about 15 minutes (long enough for the skin to blister on the peppers). Remove the mushrooms and peppers from the oven. Transfer peppers to a bowl and cover with a plate or lid for 10 minutes - this makes it easier to peel off the skin (though you can leave the skin on if you want). Peel the skin off.

Heat a large pot of boiling water to cook the pasta. Slice portabello mushrooms and roasted peppers into long, thin strips and set aside.

Heat olive oil in skillet and saute the onion until translucent. Add the mushrooms, peppers, and cherry tomato halves, toss to heat through and keep warm over low heat. Meanwhile, cook the fettuccine.

Strain the pasta and toss with enough pesto to liberally coat the noodles. Add the vegetables and basil and toss to combine. Divide among 2 pasta bowls, sprinkle with Romano cheese and toasted pine nuts.

*I used the same amount of freeze dried, though fresh is best. If you want to use dried, maybe do a couple of tablespoons.

Marinated Portabello Mushrooms

2 portabello mushrooms
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 tsp red chile flakes
1 garlic clove, minced
1/8 cup white wine
1/8 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp lemon zest

Clean mushrooms and lay gill-side up in a shallow pan. Whisk together the marinade ingredients, pour over the mushrooms, cover and marinated in the refrigerator up to 4 hours.

Spinach Pesto

1 cup spinach, packed (or use a frozen package of spinach, thawed with the water squeezed out as I did)
1/4 cup pine nuts
1/4 cup grated Romano cheese
4 cloves roasted garlic
1 clove fresh garlic
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp chile flakes
1/4 tsp cracked pepper
1/4 cup olive oil

Pulse all ingredients, except oil, to form a coarse paste. Add oil and pulse to blend. Keep refrigerated if not using right away.

Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

Alright time for something a little healthier than apple pie-cake, chocolate oatmeal coconut cookies and earl grey white chocolate muffins (though I promise there are many more baked goods to come). The cookbook How It All Vegan! never fails to disappoint me. The recipes are always simple, made with ingredients you probably already have at home, often healthy, and of course so delicious. That goes for their other cookbook The Garden of Vegan too, and I'm sure for La Dolce Vegan but I don't have that one yet.

A while ago I saw these beautiful roasted goat cheese-stuffed squash on use real butter. (Go check out her blog - the photos are amazing!) I had stuffed squash on the brain and I was happy to come across this recipe for stuffed spaghetti squash in How It All Vegan.

The filling was incredibly tasty, even though I added 1 cup of onion instead of 1 whole onion (not sure what was going on there). Next time I'd add more lentils to make it more of a substantial and filling meal, instead of just a side dish. And perhaps just make a bit more stuffing to balance out all the squash.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Squash & Aged White Cheddar Tart with Sage and Roasted Garlic Custard
Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili
Sweet Potato Badi
Pasta with Tofu Red Pepper Sauce

Stuffed Spaghetti Squash
slightly adapted from How It All Vegan!

1 medium or large spaghetti squash, halved and cored
1 medium onion, chopped
6 mushrooms, chopped
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp cumin
1 cup cooked or canned lentils*
1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350F. Cut the squash lengthwise in half and scoop out the seeds, but leave the meat. Lay squash face up on cookie sheet. Set aside. In a medium saucepan, saute the onions and mushrooms in oil on medium-high heat until onions are translucent. Add the salt, pepper, cumin, lentils and bread crumbs and cook for 3 minutes more. Spoon the stuffing into each half of the squash and bake in oven for 30 minutes** or until squash can be pierced easily with a fork. Note: If your squash won't lay flat on your cookie sheet, you can cut a bit off the bottom.

*I used red split lentils. 3/4 cup of dry red split lentils made 1 cup of cooked lentils.
**Mine took 50-60 minutes.

Mushroom Stroganoff

I know the colours of this dish look kind of blah but it was really tasty! My mom always made beef stroganoff when I was growing up and while I'm sure it was really good beef stroganoff, I hated it. Now I wouldn't eat it because I don't eat meat, but the idea still never appealed to me. Then one day for some reason it did when I flipped by it in The Clueless Vegetarian.

The mushroom stroganoff saucy part was so so very yummy. The bad part about the sauce is that the flavour is very subtle. Actually I think it's the white wine in the sauce that I really like and I don't think there's a way to really make that stronger (well I could replace some of the vegetable stock with wine). The recipe suggests you add seitan but I have still not seen seitan anywhere, so I added tofu (more tofu than the sauce could handle). Which I don't think I'd do again because the tofu was just plain and took away from the dish. This was quite different from my mom's very creamy and saucy stroganoff. I will definitely be making it again.

You might also like:
Panko Crusted Tofu Cutlets with Lemon Caper Sauce
Balkan Roasted Vegetable Salad
Roasted Vegetable Pasticcio

Mushroom Stroganoff
adapted from The Clueless Vegetarian

Makes 2-3 servings.

2 tsp oil
8 oz seitan or tofu, sliced (optional)
1 lb mushrooms, sliced or chopped
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup white wine
1 tbsp flour
1 cup vegetable broth
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tsp dried parsley
salt & pepper to taste

Heat 1 tsp of the oil in a large frying pan, add the seitan (or tofu) slices, and fry over medium heat, turning the slices over as they become slightly crispy and golden. Remove from the pan, leaving as much of the oil behind as possible, and set aside.

Add the remaining 1 tsp of oil to the frying pa. Dump in the mushrooms and onion and cook, stirring, over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until the mushrooms have released all their liquid and it has evaporated. Add the wine and cook until it is slightly reduced - about 3 minutes.

Sprinkle the flour over the mushrooms, stir, then pour in the broth and bring the mixture to a boil. Return the seitan/tofu slices to the pan, lower the heat and let simmer for a couple of minutes. Add the sour cream and parsley, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Heat through and serve with buttered egg noodles, plain cooked rice or pasta.

Balkan Roasted Vegetable Salad

I'm currently loving the interesting and different salads in Moosewood Restaurant Daily Special, and their Balkan Roasted Vegetable Salad is no exception. I wasn't sure what the marinade would taste like and I was a bit wary of the fennel seeds, but wow I cannot believe how good it smelled as the vegetables were roasting with the marinade. What a wonderful combination of flavours!

The original recipe called for double the amount of vegetables (which is why there's 1/2 an onion and 1/2 a cucumber in my version), but I halved it because I wanted to add barley to make it a more substantial meal. Feel free to double the veggies and omit the barley if that's what you'd prefer. I also added the walnuts and sunflower seeds for some delicious nutrition. I ate the salad at room temperature the first time and it was good, but when I had it the next day after it had time to sit in the fridge and the flavours had mingled, it was so much more delicious. I really loved the combination of roasted veggies with raw cucumber and tomato, plus the marinade was so good.

Balkan Roasted Vegetable Salad
(adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Daily Special)

1/2 cup raw barley (pearl or pot)
2 cups water

Marinade
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil*
1 to 1/2 teaspoons ground fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Vegetables
1 sweet potato, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 red pepper, seeded and cut into bite sized pieces
1/2 of an onion, chopped
1 cup mushrooms, trimmed and halved (quartered or cut into 8 if large)
1 tomato
1/2 a cucumber

1/2 cup grated feta
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
1/4 cup sunflower seeds

Preheat the oven to 500F.

Place the barley and water in a saucepan, cover, and bring to a simmer. Cook on low heat until most of the water has been absorbed and the barley is soft, about 40 minutes. When the barley is tender, drain it in a colander.

While the barley is cooking, combine the marinade ingredients by whirling briefly in a blender or food processor, or by whisking them in a bowl. Set aside. On a large baking pan with raised sides, spread out the sweet potato, red pepper, onions, and mushrooms and drizzle with about 1/2 of the marinade. Right on the baking tray, toss the vegetables with the marinade until evenly coated. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until tender and slightly browned.

While the vegetables roast, dice the tomatoes and cucumber.** Place them in a serving bowl. Add the drained barley. Drizzle with the remaining marinade and toss well. With a slotted spatula, transfer the roasted vegetables to the bowl and toss well.

Serve immediately, or at room temperature, or chilled. Top each portion with feta.

*I used freeze dried basil and I can't remember how much I put.
**The recipe suggests you peel and seed the cucumber, but I like eating the whole cucumber plus I don't want to throw good cucumber away! It's up to you what you want to do though.

French Barley Salad

I was flipping through Moosewood Restaurant Daily Special and came across this recipe for French barley salad. It had lemon and dill (I really should use dill more often) in the dressing so I thought alright that sounds like it could be good. And oh man was it good. This has fast become one of my favourite recipes that I've come across in any cookbook. Actually this cookbook could possibly be one of my new favourites, but I haven't made enough from it yet to be sure. The tofu and beet salad was a good start as my first recipe tried from Daily Special though so I think this cookbook has great potential!

I love this salad because it has so much good stuff in it and is so very tasty. The next time I make it, I'd like to try and cut back a bit on the oil though. I love that it uses barley, which I haven't had in so long but now that I'm reminded of its delicious existence, will be eating more often. There's a good vairety of veggies in here too with green beans, red peppers, carrots and mushrooms. The mushrooms are marinated in the dressing and turn out so yummy. And there are walnuts (rich in omega-3s! And they have other wonderful health benefits that I can't remember right now because I'm tired and would have to go find the magazine I read it in - alright fine I'm going to find the magazine now. Omega-3s help protect against depression, heart disease and Alzheimer's. They also have something in them that helps "inhibit the absorption of cholesterol".) The only downside to this salad is that it's best eaten the day it's made, unless you keep the green beans and walnuts separate. But then the marinated mushrooms start to become incredibly mushy as the days go on.

In conclusion, this is a wonderful salad that I highly suggest you all try. I know I'll be making it many times in the future. It's substantial enough to eat for a meal by itself, but it also makes a great side dish salad.

French Barley Salad
(Adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Daily Special)

1/2 cup raw barley*
2 cups water

Dressing
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 1.5 lemons)
1/4 cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard**
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill (1 1/2 tsp dried or 2 tsp freeze dried)
1 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 cup halved or quartered mushrooms***
1 cup peeled and diced carrots
1 cup cut green beans, trimmed and halved
1 cup thinly sliced red or yellow bell peppers
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
2/3 cup coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted

Using a strainer, rinse the barley and drain. In a small heavy skillet on low heat, roast the barley until fragrant and beginning to brown. Place the barley and water in a small saucepan, cover, and bring to a simmer. Cook on low heat until most of the water has been absorbed and the barley is soft, about 40 minutes.

While the barley cooks, whisk together all of the dressing ingredients. In a separated bowl, pour half of the dressing over th emushrooms and set aside. Blanch the carrots in boiling water for baout 1 minute. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a large serving bowl. Blanch the green beans for 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool. Stir the bell peppers and parsley and marinated mushrooms into the bowl of carrots.

When the barley is tender, drain it in a colander. Add the drained barley and the remaining dressing to the serving bowl and mix well. Allow the sald to sit for at least 30 minutes before serving. Just before serving, gently toss the green beans and walnuts into the salad.

*The recipe calls for pearl barley but I used pot and it was fine. I would also try using a different grain/seed, such as amaranth, quinoa, millet, etc.
**I plan to add more mustard next time since I love Dijon mustard, and the taste isn't even noticeable in the dressing in this amount.
***The mushrooms I used were big, about 1 oz each, so I cut them into 8.

Notes: To make the recipe healthier, try using less oil. Also, toast the walnuts in a dry skillet or oven instead of in a skillet with butter. This recipe doubles very well.