Meatless in the Mountains

My Aunt Lucia is coming to visit this week, so I made a big pot of Italian style lentil soup for us to eat while she’s here.  Lentil soup is easy, filling and versatile – I love curry lentil soup, but this one is actually my favorite.  Something about the oregano taste I just love… if you don’t like oregano (like my Mom!) you could try basil instead.  This makes a nice big pot of soup so it’s perfect to freeze as well.  Can’t wait to see Lulu!

2 1/4 cup dry lentils

1 TBS EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)

1/2 large yellow onion, finely diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp oregano

Sprinkle of salt

14-16 oz can diced tomatoes

14-16 oz can tomato sauce

32 oz (1 quart) veggie broth

8 cups water

Optional (but highly recommended) toppers: fresh oregano, garlic, bread, EVOO

First place the lentils in a large bowl & cover with (a lot) of water.  Let them sit like this for an hour, adding more water in case it absorbs it all.  In a large soup pot, add the EVOO, onions, garlic, dried oregano and sprinkle of salt.  Cook for a few minutes until the onion starts to soften.

Next add the cans of tomatoes, broth and water.  Bring to a boil and let it bubble for about 5-1o minutes.  Drain the lentils and add them to the soup.  Simmer the soup over medium heat for 1-2 hours.

Bowie the kitchen helper, working hard warming my feet <3

Before serving, toast your bread, and cut a garlic clove in half and scrape the garlic over the toast.  Cut the toast in crouton pieces and sprinkle on the soup.  Top the croutons with fresh (or dried) chopped oregano and a drizzle of olive oil.  Enjoy!

Avocado toast is like, soooo hot right now…  but are there any secrets to it?  Is it really just avocados on toast?  Yes, thankfully it is really that easy.  Everyone has their own way of making avocado toast, some like to smash it like guacamole and add some citrus and spices or hot sauce… I like to have mine for breakfast and to keep it as simple as possible.  But, of course, keeping it classy with my Nonna’s oh-so-pretty china plates and blue depression glass!  So here’s an easy vegan way to start your day.  Enjoy your weekend!!  It’s a sunny one here in the mountains…

Good Morning from Bowie!

2 slices of bread of your choice (I went with a whole wheat english muffin)

1/2 avocado, sliced

Earth Balance vegan butter

Salt & Pepper

Toast your bread, then slather on some earth balance.  Top with the avocado slices and sprinkle with salt and pepper. It’s so incredibly easy, yet so incredibly delicious!

The perfect breakfast!

It’s been very snowy in the mountains the past couple of days!

To celebrate, I’m sharing one of my all-time favorite vegan creations:  BLTA with sweet potato fries.  This sandwich rocks and tastes exactly like the real thing.  You can use any type of bread or lettuce and it will be delicious.

Handful of shiitake mushrooms

EVOO (Extra virgin olive oil)

Salt, Pepper, Smoked Paprika, Chili Powder

Sweet Potato

Bread

Veganaise (Vegan Mayo)

Avocado

Tomato

Fresh Greens of your choice

Heat the oven to 375.  Peel & slice the sweet potato into sticks.  Spread on a baking sheet and toss with EVOO, salt, pepper & chili powder.  Roast for 20-25 minutes, stirring around the pan often until they are cooked through and slightly crispy.

Chop the shiitake mushrooms and spread those on another baking sheet.  Toss with EVOO, salt, pepper & smoked paprika.  Roast for 15-20 minutes, checking on often and stirring around.  These should be dark red and crispy but not burnt – have to keep a close eye on these!

Slice your avocado and tomatoes and set aside.

When the shiitake bacon and sweet potato fries are ready, toast your bread.  Once the bread is toasted, spread with the veganaise and pile on your shiitake bacon, lettuce, avocado & tomato.  Slice the sandwich in half and enjoy in the vegan goodness you created.

YUM!

Bowie gettin some fresh tracks!

There’s a lot going on in the mountains this weekend.  The U.S. Snowboarding & Freeskiing Grand Prix is at Park City Mountain Resort.  Slopestyle was yesterday, halfpipe is today and tomorrow, along with concerts, parties, etc.  I managed to squeeze in some time last night to cook a nice meal before we run around town the rest of the weekend.  I made my Mom’s red sauce, and paired it with vegan meatballs (used these mushroom bites) and some pasta (used homemade pasta from the freezer).  I scaled back the recipe to just feed 2 people with a little leftover.  There were a couple small changes to the recipe which are noted below.  Hope you enjoy!  Here are some highlights from slopestyle yesterday:

Joss Christensen wins Freeskiing Slopestyle

Eric Willett wins Snowboarding Slopestyle

Back to the red sauce….

1 1/2 TBS EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

1/4 large yellow onion; finely diced

Sprinkle of salt (Mom doesn’t add this)

Sprinkle of pepper

1 heaping tsp Italian Seasoning (Mom uses fresh basil & parsley but I didn’t have any!)

Sprinkle of hot pepper flakes

3 cloves of garlic, minced

2 15 ounce cans tomato sauce (Mom uses large cans of crushed tomatoes)

1/2 small carrot, grated on the smallest grate*

*Note, the carrot is added for sweetness to balance the acidity of the tomatoes.  If acidity tends to bother you, you could also sprinkle in some sugar to help.

Heat a sauce pan on medium low with the EVOO, then cook the onions, garlic & spices for several minutes.  Next add the tomato sauce and carrots.

 Simmer your sauce on low for about an hour, then it’s ready to use.  Also, drinking red wine during this process is absolutely necessary… enjoy!

The mushroom bites worked perfectly as meatless meatballs!

The final product, topped with vegan parmesan & red pepper flakes.

“Mangia! Mangia” – My Nonna

It’s our wedding anniversary tonight so I’m not cooking! We’re going out on the town to celebrate the big 3-year mark.  I wanted to stick to my usual tues/wed posting so I’m pulling something from my recipe bank to share.  Yes, I have created hundreds of recipes that are on deck to post, so a lot is yet to come!! Today I’m sharing the recipe for pureed veggie baked pasta.  I was experimenting one day while sauteing some veggies and wondered what would happen if I pureed them and created a creamy, but creamless, sauce.  I like this because it required no grocery shopping – I just pulled veggies from my freezer for the bulk of the recipe.  My neighbor Stephanie came over to try and we both liked it a lot, hope you will too!

1 box gluten free rice pasta (or pasta of your choice)

EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)

1/4 large yellow onion, chopped

1 large garlic clove, chopped

Sprinkle of salt, pepper, Italian seasoning & thyme

1/2 cup frozen edamame

1 cup frozen cauliflower florets

1 cup frozen broccoli florets

Pinch of nutmeg

1/2 cup veggie broth (plus more)

Topping:

1/3 cup breadcrumbs of your choice

1/3 cup vegan mozzarella shredded cheese

1 TBS vegan parmesan

1 TBS nutritional yeast

Sprinkle of Italian seasoning

2 TBS EVOO

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and start to boil a pot of water.

In a medium sauté pan, drizzle some EVOO and heat on medium.  Add the onion, garlic, S&P, Italian seasoning and thyme.  Cook for a few minutes until onion starts to soften.  Next add the edamame, cauliflower, broccoli, more spices plus the nutmeg.  Cook a few more minutes then add the veggie broth.  Cook until veggies absorb most of the broth and start to soften a bit (5 minutes or so).

While the veggies soften, you can make your topping.  Simply mix all topping ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

When water starts to boil, drop in your pasta and cook according to box instructions.

Now back to the sauteed veggies.  Pour the mixture gently into a blender (or food processor) and puree the mixture until combined.  Add some more veggie broth if the mixture is not moving in the blender (but not too much!)  You want a thick consistency.

When the pasta is done, drain and pour pasta into a baking dish.  Pour the pureed veggie mixture on top and stir gently to coat.  Sprinkle on the topping, then bake for 10-15 minutes.

You could top with pine nuts.. truffle oil… hot sauce…   Hope you enjoy!

Love this man. Happy Anniversary to us!