Gingery Coconut Stew with Brussels and Rutabaga

In all seriousness, I've been slacking on my daily dinners. School has started up again and I'm back to 15 hour days. I decided I had to find a recipe that was easy to throw together but didn't compromise the flavors of the dish. I came across this stew, which had some of my favorite ingredients in it: Brussels, coconut milk, lime, and ginger. It's a mild dish that definitely didn't lack any flavor and got the stamp of approval from the family.

1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 pound Brussels sprouts, quartered
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 heaping tablespoons minced ginger, fresh is always better
3/4 pound rutabaga, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes- use turnips if rutabaga is unavailable
1 cup carrots, sliced
4 cups vegetable broth
1 15 oz can light coconut milk
1 15 oz can BPA-free chickpeas
Juice of one lime
Zest of 1/2 lime
Salt to taste
Cilantro, for garnish
Jasmine rice, for serving

In a large stock pot over medium best sauté the onion in the oil, along with a pinch of coarse salt, until slightly browned. Push the onions to the edges of the pot, creating a well in the middle, and place the Brussels in the well. If you can get a nice sear on them that would be ideal. Stir the Brussels every now and then. Once they have a decent sear add the ginger, garlic, and red pepper flakes to the pot, sautéing for a minute until ingredients become fragrant. 

Add in the rutabaga, carrots, and vegetable broth- cover and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and add the chickpeas and lime zest. Cook with lid ajar until rutabaga is tender, about five minutes.

Stir in the coconut milk and lime juice, and taste for salt. Heat through and serve over rice with cilantro for garnish.

Recipe from Post Punk Kitchen

Yard House Mac and Cheese: Vegan Style

I've never been to Yard House but apparently their Mac and Cheese is on point. My friend Anna veganized their recipe and passed it on to me. It is so damn good. Seriously. Delicious. My brother insists I make it as a side dish for Thanksgiving, and although that won't be happening I will be making this again as a quick and easy dinner.

1 lb elbow/shell pasta
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup flour (or chickpea flour if you're GF)
3 cups plant-based milk (I used the carton coconut milk because I had it on hand, but almond or soy would work as well)
8 ounces Pepper Jack Daiya wedge or shreds
8 ounces Cheddar Daiya wedge or shreds
1 cup bread (preferably day old sourdough/bakery breads)
2 boxes Crimini mushrooms
Salt and Pepper
Pinch of Cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder
Optional: Bacon Bits (yes, they're vegan! Crazy, huh?)
Optional: Truffle Oil

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Cook the pasta until slightly under done, then drain and set aside.

Cut the cheeze wedges into little cubes, set aside. Take the bread and place it in a food processor and blend until crumbly, set aside.

In a large sauce pain melt the butter over medium heat, once melted whisk in flour and cook for 1-2 minutes. Whisk in milk, bring to a boil and remove from heat- add the cheddar and jack handfuls at a time along with salt, cayenne, and black pepper to taste. Once all the cheese is melted pour the pasta into the sauce. It's going to look like an absurd amount of sauce, but it works out perfectly, have some faith.

Lightly spray a casserole dish with nonstick spray, pour the cheesy pasta and all of the sauce into the casserole dish. Toss your bread crumbles with the garlic powder and layer it on top of the pasta and bake for 20 minutes.

While your pasta is baking, quarter the mushrooms and saute them for just a couple minutes, so they still have a nice bite to them but have lost much of their water weight. When the pasta comes out of the oven serve it with a scoop of the mushrooms, optional bacon bits, and a drizzle of truffle oil.

*I made this again with 6 oz daiya mozzarella shreds, 2 oz daiya cheddar shreds, and 8 ounces daiya pepper jack shreds and it was so insanely good. Almost like a more 'sophisticated' mac, but that's just my opinion!

Savory Holiday Tart

My friend Erica recommended this recipe to me, in fact she swore by it. I took a look at the recipe and quickly decided I'd give it a go, mainly because the ingredients were common and it looked super easy- I didn't expect it to blow me away though. I was blown away. This tart was so delicious, ridiculously flavorful, and light- almost fluffy. This is definitely going to be the GF main dish this Thanksgiving.

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup onion, diced
3/4 cup celery, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 14-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed (reserving 1/4 cup)
3/4 cup raw walnuts
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 teaspoons tamari, soy sauce, or Bragg's Liquid Aminos
1 1/4 cups frozen chopped spinach
3 1/2 tablespoons dried cranberries
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
1 9-inch prepared pie shell, thawed (I used a GF one)
1/2 tablespoon olive oil

Served with some homemade cranberry sauce and gravy (gravy not shown)

 Precook the pie crust according to package directions.

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a saute pan and add the onion, celery, garlic, salt, and pepper, and cook for 9 minutes until onions soften and begin to caramelize. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a food processor add chickpeas (except reserved 1/4 cup), walnuts, lemon juice, and 2 teaspoons of the tamari/soy sauce/liquid aminos, and pulse to lightly chop. Remove half of chopped mixture from food processor and transfer to a large bowl. Transfer the sauteed onion mixture into the food processor with the remaining chickpea mixture and puree until smooth.

Transfer purée to bowl with lightly chopped chickpea and walnut mixture. Add spinach, cranberries, parsley, thyme, and 1/4 cup of reserved chickpeas. Stir to combine and transfer to prepared pie shell, spreading evenly. Mix together the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil with the remaining 1 teaspoon of tamari/soy sauce/aminos, then carefully brush the top of the tart with the mixture. Put a crust-protector, or tin foil around the crust, and bake for 45 minutes. Allow to cool slightly before you cut it. Serve with cranberry sauce and gravy.

Recipe by Dreena Burton