Ooh-La-La Lasagna...

Tonight I made Chloe Coscarelli's "Ooh-La-La Lasagna" from her Chloe's Kitchen cookbook.  All I have to say is Ooh-La-La was right.  I loved it.  We had guests who said it was good as well.  I will be honest, I was a bit concerned making a no cheese lasagna just sounds wrong.  She has you make a "Garden Ricotta" that is very good and I forgot all about the missing cheese.  My other concern was I am not a fan of cooked spinach and this has a lot of spinach in it...I really liked it.  I kind of forgot about what I was eating and devoured it.  The best part is that usually after eating lasagna you have a pasta hangover and are Thanksgiving dinner full and uncomfortable.  This was very good and no pasta hangover.  I am completely satisfied without feeling over full.  This is a dish you can make for company or just a family meal.  I will make this again.

Chocolate Mousse with Raspberry Sauce...

Yesterday I made Chocolate Mousse with Raspberry Sauce from a recipe from Chloe Coscarelli's new cookbook Chloe's Vegan Desserts (go buy this cookbook it is fabulous).  We had guests for dinner and it was unanimous that these tasted great.  They are so pretty and simple to make but be sure you give yourself enough time to let different parts set up.

This is going to be one of my go to desserts for the holidays.

Fettuccine Alfredo...

Tonight I made Fettuccine Alfredo from a recipe I found in Chloe's Kitchen cookbook.  It was really good.  I am still amazed that the only ingredients I used were fettuccine noodles, olive oil, onion, garlic, cashews, water, lemon juice, salt, pepper and fresh parsley (for garnish).  And all that can make a vegan cream sauce.  It looks right, it tastes right, I am a believer.

Jalapeño Cornbread Poppers with Whipped Maple Butter...

Tonight I make Jalapeño Cornbread Poppers with Whipped Maple Butter from a recipe I found in Chloe's Kitchen cookbook.

They are easy and quick to make (about 10 minutes, if that).

They are fun and yummy.  They will make a great game day snack or quick appetizer.  I used mild jalapeños so they would be too spicy for Paisley but they are "zero stars" as Paisley would say so next time I will use hot jalapeños.

Artichoke-Walnut Pesto Crostini & Penne alla Vodka...

Tonight was a complete meal from Chloe's Kitchen cookbook.  And let me begin by saying I have a new favorite vegan meal!

The Artichoke-Walnut Pesto Crostini could have been a meal all by itself.  They are just simply addicting.  They are so quick and easy to make (about 10 minutes).  Tons of flavors or as Stephen likes to say "a party in his mouth".

The Penne alla Vodka was supposed to be served with Chloe's "Best Garlic Bread In The World" but I really wanted to try the Artichoke-Walnut Pesto Crostini so I chose to try that one instead.

Again, this was easy and fairly quick (about 40 minutes) but a lot of that time is waiting and stirring occasionally so it didn't feel like 40 minutes.  This is restaurant quality vodka sauce, I was really surprised how good it came out.

This entire meal is definitely one you will want to make for your guests.  Give them a try and let me know what you think of each of them.

Chloe's "Best-Ever Baked Macaroni & Cheese" (not so much)...

Today for lunch I tried Chloe's Kitchen cookbook recipe for 

"Best-Ever Baked Macaroni and Cheese".  I am sad to say none of us liked it.  We ended up throwing it away.

Hey, they can't all be winners.

Cheesy Broccoli Soup in Sourdough Bread Bowls...

Today I pulled out a cookbook I recently purchased called Chloe's Kitchen by Chloe Coscarelli.  I found a recipe for Cheesy Broccoli Soup in Sourdough Bread Bowls and gave it a try.  The recipe was easy and quick (about 40 minutes).  All three of us liked it and I will be making it again.  I love the sourdough bread bowl and will use that with other soups.  I've had it before at restaurants but never remember to do it at home and if you have the cookbook you will learn the trick so the soup doesn't leak out.

Chloe also has a great website with lots of vegan recipes so be sure to check out chefchloe.com too. 

Creamy Potato Soup...

Today I made Creamy Potato Soup in my slow cooker.  I topped it with a little cheddar cheese, Tofutti sour cream and fresh cracked pepper.

I used my cookbook The Vegan Slow Cooker by Kathy Hester.  Below is a recipe that is close but not exactly the same as the cookbook recipe I used today.  The recipe below is from Kathy Hester's website called healthyslowcooking.com.

Slow Cooker Cream-less Potato Soup - 4 servings

This recipe can easily be multiplied.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 6 – 8 hours

• 4 Russet Potatoes (you can use waxy ones, but the soup texture will be a little different) 
• 2 cups veggie broth (or 2 cups of water with 1 Tb Better Than Bouillon No chicken base) *make sure the broth/base you are using is gluten-free if you are allergic 
• 1 clove garlic, minced 
• 1 spring fresh rosemary, whole (remove stem before serving) 
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk (or unsweetened soy or rice milk) 
• pepper 

The night before: Peel the potatoes and cut into medium-sized cubes. Mince the garlic.

In the morning: Throw everything but the almond milk into your slow cooker and cook for 6 – 8 hours on low. If the potatoes aren’t covered by the broth add more.

Taste to see if you need to adjust seasonings. You may need to add a little salt if your bouillon/broth is not salted. Add almond milk and purée with an immersion blender. You can also use a blender, but make sure not to fill it all the way or you’ll have a hot mess on your hands!

Serve topped with fresh herbs.

Tortilla Soup...

Today I made Tortilla Soup from a cookbook called The Vegan Slow Cooker by Kathy Hester.  I edited her recipe by not adding cilantro (because I don't like cilantro in anything) and I did not add the chicken-flavored seitan.  Below is Kathy's recipe without the seitan but the rest is the same (my notes are in red).  I added a little cheddar cheese and Tofutti sour cream on top of the soup and served it with a lime wedge.  I ended up adding a splash of my favorite hot salsa to my bowl of soup to give it a little bit of spicy heat but that is up to you.

Slow Cooker Meatless Tortilla Soup

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 8 hours

• 1 Tb olive oil 
• 1 medium onions, minced 
• 1 clove garlic, minced 
• 28 oz. organic tomatoes (diced, crushed, or whole) 
• 1/4 cup tomato paste 
• 4 cups filtered water 
• 1 tsp pepper 
• 1/2 lime, juiced 
• 1 Tb cilantro, chopped - **I did not add this 
• 1 tsp cumin 
• 1/2 tsp chili powder 
• 1/2 avocado, chopped 
• 1/4 cup tequila - **I used Petron Silver (my favorite tequila) 

The night before: Chop onions and mince the garlic. How easy is that for prep work? Optional: Saute in olive oil then store in fridge until tomorrow.

In the morning: Add everything but the avocado and tequila. Cook on low for 6 – 8 hours. About a half hour or so before serving, stir in lime juice, tequila, and adjust . Puree with an immersion blender.

Chop avocado and toss with extra lime juice and a little chili powder.

Serve topped with fresh cilantro (or no cilantro in my case), avocado, and strips of *baked tortilla strips or *crushed chips.

Give this a try and let me know what you think.

Are you still eating eggs?...

As you know, since becoming vegan I have only insisted that two items do not come into our home:

1. Eggs of any kind.
2. Fowl (chicken, turkey, duck, etc.)

If you are still eating eggs, please watch this video from NutritionFacts.org called "Eggs vs. Cigarettes".