Soups

Looking for some hearty soup ideas to see you through these last few chilly evenings?

I've recently posted a couple of recipes for some asian soups (miso and asian noodle), but a great way to add thickness and heartiness to your soup stocks is to simply infuse them with lots of veggies!

I have been experimenting behind the scenes with a couple of different ideas, and although I haven't put together a post just yet, I'll start with these photos and suggestions to offer some inspiration!

If you're looking for a recipe to follow, I would recommend this carrot bisque from Vegan with a Vengeance:

This was one of the first straight vegetable soups I'd ever tried making. I have to admit that many years ago I was a bit doubtful about the idea of a bisque without dairy, but the coconut milk that this recipe calls for adds just the right amount of richness, while the rest of the soup's complex flavors mask any trace of actual coconut flavor. 

If you're looking for something even heartier, look no further than Veganomicon's Baked Potato Soup.

With lots of kale, and potatoes prepared three different ways, this soup is truly a whole meal unto itself.

As for my own experiments, I've been dabbling with all kinds of variations.

Earlier in the winter I made a broccoli soup with a bit of jalapeño cashew cheese infused into it! It may sound like a bizarre combination, but a spicy broccoli-cheese soup (with a little daiya cheddar) was actually quite delicious. I'll try to post the recipe for this soon (unfortunately my notes were lost, and I haven't had the chance to re-make it).



I also made some orange carrot ginger soup (following a recipe that came with my Vitamix). It was an intriguing combination, but I tried substituting clementines for the orange and this wasn't such a success...the flavor wasn't quite as strong as the orange. Also, after about a day or so the soup developed a very acrid flavor, not so great. Here's a picture anyhow; I have to say it did have a really great thick and almost frothy texture, and I'd like to experiment with it some more:



Adding a little bit of fruit to your soup (like citrus or apples) can provide a nice subtle contrast to the rest of your flavors.

More on soups to come...and soon enough I'll delve into some lighter, "summer" ideas...

Miso Soup with Udon Noodles

When I was in college one of my favorite things to prepare was udon noodle soup (usually the instant kind), with some tofu, enoki mushrooms, and an egg thrown in. The instant packets available at the supermarket typically contain fish, and aside from that are filled with all kinds of things that aren't altogether too healthy. These days I like to make my udon soup from scratch. For a little added flavor and substance in my broth, I just add a little miso.

Miso Soup with Udon Noodles
What You'll Need:
8 cups water
6 tbsp white miso
1 bunch baby bok choi (or pak choi), sliced thinly (you can include both stalks and leaves)
4 scallions, sliced thinly
1 14 oz. package firm or extra-firm tofu
20 oz. udon noodles, prepared according to package directions
1 tbsp sesame oil
Asian hot sauce (like Sriracha, optional)
white or black pepper, to taste

What You'll Need to Do:
Put your water in a large pot and bring to a boil, then reduce to a low simmer. Add in the miso, stirring until it is well dissolved (be sure not to boil the miso!). Add in the bok choi and scallions, and allow them to simmer and soften for approximately 10-15 minutes. While the vegetables simmer, chop your tofu into 1/2-inch cubes. After the bok choi stalks are sufficiently soft, add in you tofu and noodles, and stir in the sesame oil. Season to taste with pepper, and hot sauce, if desired.

My Thoughts:
This is a great, super-simple soup base, and you can throw anything in that you like! I used extra-firm tofu because that's what I had on hand, but it's especially good with firm silken tofu. You can also use red or brown miso for a stronger flavor (white miso is the most mild). I'd also recommend trying this soup with seaweed (just simmer it in the water first thing, for about 5 minutes, before adding the rest of the ingredients) and enoki mushrooms.

Dinner featuring "Green Cheese"

Looking for a nice dinner idea for next weekend? My suggestion here is a bit involved, but all of the recipes are actuality quite straightforward. The cheese and bruschetta can be prepared in advance, and the gnocchi recipe I went with was very simple!

St. Patrick's Day is just around the corner, so I thought I'd try a green twist on some cashew cheese!


This is an adaptation of the recipe from the Fork & Beans blog, which has some really terrific gluten, egg, and dairy-free recipes.

I followed the recipe on the site, leaving out the sun-dried tomatoes, and adding some pesto and spinach for color (I used about four leaves of each, but you could add a bit more for an even deeper green color). I lined the bottom of a ramekin with plastic wrap, then added some of the pine nut pesto, as well as chopped rosemary and thyme (this layer became the top once released from the ramekin). I added a bit more pine nut pesto towards the bottom, and topped with a thin layer of cheese. I found that the original pesto recipe called for too much salt; I would have used just 1/4 tsp rather than 1 tsp. Otherwise, it was perfect!

Although the green cheese was my "St. Patrick's Day dish..." I actually used it to accompany an Italian meal. It was a great appetizer! It went along perfectly with some bread and bruschetta (I can try to post a recipe for this sometime in the future--but it was just two tomatoes, half an onion, some basil, garlic, salt and pepper!).

For the main course I made gnocchi, along with some garlic spinach.

If you're looking for a gnocchi recipe, you can try VeganYumYum. She has a particularly good recipe for a thyme vinaigrette and lemon cashew cream. Although I made the cream and vinaigrette, I actually tried the gnocchi recipe from the Candle 79 Cookbook this time around. The recipe was fantastic: quite quick and very easy to follow. It really just involves baking your potatoes, mashing them, throwing in some flour, oil, and salt, and then shaping. Then you just put them in some boiling water for a few minutes and you're good to go!

The gnocchi were delicious--light and (like all good gnocchi) pillowy.

And for dessert? I tried the tea-poached pears with chocolate sauce from Veganomicon. This recipe was also very easy (pretty much just soak 'em in tea and sugar!)--next time I'd love to serve them with some ice cream!

Creamy White Pasta with Crispy "Ham"

Although it's somewhat rare for me, I do occasionally find myself craving a creamy white pasta sauce. There are several different avenues to go down if you're in the mood for a rich vegan pasta with white sauce. I tend to find that sauces with a nut base are the most satisfying (and protein-filled!). I decided the other night to use a cashew cream sauce. Sound crazy? I promise that once you infuse it with some sautéed onions and garlic (and a few other ingredients), you'll be pleasantly surprised with this rich, flavorful sauce!


Creamy White Pasta with Crispy Fried "Ham"
What You'll Need:
2/3 cup raw cashews (soaked for 2 hours*)
olive oil for frying (about 2 tbsp)
4 slices of vegan sliced deli ham, cut into 1/2" squares (optional**)
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic
1 cup unflavored almond milk
1 tbsp + 1tsp lemon juice (from about 1/2 lemon)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)***
several leaves basil (optional)
nutritional yeast and toasted walnuts (for topping, optional)
1 lb of your favorite pasta (I like fusilli for this recipe)

What You'll Need to Do:
Prepare pasta until just al dente (then drain, and place back in the pot). Meanwhile, prepare your sauce!

First place about 1 tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan, and add in your chopped ham. Fry over medium-low heat until just starting to crisp up, about 3 minutes. Remove ham from the pan, and add the onion into the oiled pan, raising the heat to medium-high. Add a bit more oil if needed. Sautée the onions and garlic until the onions soften and just begin to turn golden, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool down.

Put your cashews and almond milk into the blender and blend until relatively smooth. Add the onions and blend until no chunks remain (if the onions are still warm you may need to stop and release the steam while blending so that your lid doesn't pop off!). Add lemon juice, salt, pepper, nutritional yeast, and about 1/2 tbsp of the ham. Blend. Give the sauce a taste and add a bit more salt and pepper, if needed. Add about 5 leaves of basil, and pulse a few times to chop it up a bit and disperse it into the sauce.

Add the sauce to your drained pasta and heat until warm. Top with chopped basil, a dash of nutritional yeast, and toasted walnuts, or any combination of the three!


Tips and Tricks
*I recently invested in a Vita-Mix blender. When I say invested, I mean invested. These incredibly powerful blenders are also incredibly expensive! If, however, you're a very dedicated cook (particularly one who likes to turn whole nuts, vegetables or fruits into liquid form), it may be worth the money. The few people I know who have them can't stop singing their praises. They come highly recommended in practically every vegan cookbook I've come across, and I have to say I have not been disappointed. If you have a high-powered blender like this (the Vitamix has 2hp!), you don't need to soak nuts, or worry about blending hot things, it's literally made for this type of thing. If, however, you do not have a high-powered blender there are plenty of ways to do (most) everything you can with a high-powered blender. When processing nuts, for instance, just soak them in water (in a non-plastic container) for a short while before blending. About 2 hours should be more than enough, but with cashews, even 20 minutes can do the trick.

**I was craving a pasta dish from my childhood when this recipe came to mind. That original dish had ham in it, and I love the way the saltiness of the ham plays off of the smooth, mild taste of the white sauce. I also like to throw a bit of ham into the sauce itself for a little more depth of flavor.  Not everybody likes these processed vegetarian deli meats, however. If you want an alternative, you could easily use tempeh bacon instead. If you're looking for a deli meat substitute, though, I do recommend the Lightlife and Tofurky brands (I love the hickory smoked Tofurky deli slices!). For this recipe I used Lightlife vegetarian ham.

***What is nutritional yeast? Just what it sounds like...yeast (often infused with a B-vitamin complex)! It is usually sold in flake (or powder) form, and can be found in the bulk food section of most natural food stores. It has a cheesy taste to it, and is great on top of (or in) pizza or pasta sauce. You can add it to sauce in much higher quantities to really impart a cheesiness. In this recipe it adds just a little extra flavor, but is barely detectable, and can be omitted if you don't have any on hand. I hope to write more about it in the future, as it really makes a great addition to any vegan diet, but in the meantime, you can read more about it here.

Bon appétit!

Roasted Asparagus, Pine Nut, and Farfalle Pasta

VegNews recently posted a recipe for a Quick Asparagus Pasta. The relatively short grocery list (and especially the pine nuts!), instantly caught my eye.

I ended up making a few changes to amp up the flavors a bit. I added a few dashes of sage and a little bit of Italian vinegar at the end.

I made one particular change that I thought made quite a difference: instead of steaming the asparagus, I roasted it! Does that take the easy out of things? I don't think so.

Never roasted asparagus? Now you've got an excuse to try!

Easy Roasted Asparagus
What You'll Need:
1 bunch asparagus (about 1 lb)
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp ground pepper
(if you're using this as a side dish, I'd add a few tbsp of some freshly chopped herbs, like thyme or rosemary)

Preheat the oven to 450F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Chop your asparagus however you'd like it (mine were in 1/4 inch pieces for the pasta, but you could do wholes spears for a side dish), being sure to trim off the tough end of the asparagus (the bottom 1 1/2 inches or so), and arrange on the sheet. Sprinkle the vinegar over the asparagus along with the spices, and toss to coat. Roast the asparagus for about 10 minutes, rotating the spears about half way through. Cook them until tender (but be careful not to overcook!).

Teeny Tasty Party Bites

Looking for some food to serve at your next get together? Or something easy to make as a little snack?

Let's take a look at my Super Bowl line up for some ideas! These are all very basic recipes, basically on homage to game-day food...certainly not the healthiest meal I've ever put together. But if you're looking for some fast, easy, tasty things to throw together for a fun night, you might want to try some of these out!


The menu (from lower left, clockwise):
barbecue (apricot) meatballs
(veggie) pups in a blanket
tortilla chips
buffalo-style tofu
chocolate sandwich cookies

In the bowls (from front to back):
jalapeño queso dip
carrot sticks
vegan blue cheese dressing (for the tofu)

To break it down a bit more:
You can get my simple barbecue apricot meatball recipe here.

The pups in a blanket were just adapted from the good ol' Pillsbury crescent roll (yes, they're vegan!) carton, which suggests adding hot dogs and cheese and cooking at 350F (if using a dark, nonstick pan). Cut some veggie dogs in half along their length (so that they're thin), and then cut those slices so that they're about the length of the largest width of the crescent triangles. Place the veggie dogs on the shortest side of each triangle, and some cheddar cheese onto the roll (I recommend Daiya), if desired. Then just roll them up! Bake for 12-15 minutes, until golden brown. Serve warm.

The tortilla chips went great with the jalapeño queso dip, another recipe from VegNews (I used the Daiya cheddar cheese instead of mozarella). It was very good!

And...my favorite part of the evening was my buffalo-style tofu. SO good. You can get the recipe here.

The sandwich cookies speak for themselves, but I should say there is some debate over whether or not Oreos are vegan.* If you want to be safe, you can check out Newman-O's which are most definitely vegan. They're also a bit healthier, although I'll admit the taste is not quite the same as your classic Oreo.

*First of all, I should say that PETA lists these cookies as vegan. While none of the ingredients are animal-derived, it depends on how you feel about sugar processing. Most commercial sugars are filtered with activated carbon, which is often derived from animal bone char. This part of the process is so far removed from the final product that it is deemed kosher parve (meaning that according to Jewish dietary law, it contains no meat or dairy by-products). Many vegans, however, prefer to avoid any sugar that may have been processed with bone char. Vegan table sugars are available at some health food stores.    

Barbecue (apricot) meatballs

This recipe is simple and straightforward, but these make the perfect little party bites, especially for a game night. If you're looking for something fast and yummy (and not so sophisticated), that is pretty much foolproof, this is the recipe for you!

Easy Barbecue Apricot Meatballs
What You'll Need:
3/4 cup barbecue sauce (I recommend Annie's, or making your own!)
1/2 cup apricot preserves
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup beer (or more water)
About 20 vegan meatballs (if you're not preparing your own, I'd try Nate's Meatless Meatballs)

What You'll Need to Do:
Add barbecue sauce, apricot preserves, water, and beer (if using) to a large pot. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low, and simmer for about 20 minutes. Add the meatballs, stirring until they're well coated. Raise the heat slightly, simmering until heated through (about 5 minutes).

Tips and Tricks:
Nate's meatless meatballs are frozen, so heating them through takes a full five minutes. If you've made your meatballs yourself and they're not frozen, you might need to lessen the time--just pop one in your mouth as you go to make sure they're heated through.

A good barbecue sauce makes all the difference here. You want something that has a bit of a spicy, peppery kick to it, because the sweetness of the apricot will balance that out nicely. I'll try to post one of my favorite barbecue sauce recipes sometime soon. I like to make barbecue sauce myself because it makes a big difference in terms of flavor, is a great way to save some money (particularly if you enjoy the more expensive, organic sauces), and sometimes it can be hard to find vegan barbecue sauce at the grocery store.

If you're looking to make your own meatballs, I recommend trying this recipe, from Kathy Patalsky. It looks great, but I'll admit I haven't tried it yet. I'm generally not a big meatball person, so I've never actually made my own..although it's on my list of things I'd like to try!