Creamy Sweet Potato and Swiss Chard Casserole

Because I love being right!!!

Hey, so remember last week when I speculated that Swiss chard would be tasty paired with sweet potatoes?  Holy happy taste buds, was I right!!!  By baking the chard in a casserole, the bitterness of the chard mellowed right out, and paired with the sweet potatoes, you get a hearty, slightly earthy, slightly sweet dish.  And it's simply magical!

The sauce I made for this is based on the cashew sauce I've used before, with a few variations.  I actually think I could have used less sauce (I may have gotten a little carried away).  But hey, I'm a saucy gal.  I don't mind mopping up the excess goodness with toast.  This casserole would also be excellent served over rice or quinoa (check the update below!).

I kept the ingredients pretty simple, although I had considered adding in a few extras.  If you have a large enough casserole dish (of course I couldn't find mine...), feel free to add in beans (garbanzo or white beans would be lovely), corn, zucchini, or anything else you see fit.

So, two Swiss chard posts in a row isn't a bad thing, right?  I hope not, because we're going to have a repeat again next week.  Not another chard recipe, but another sweet potato recipe.  I have a dessert idea [which, I admit, are few and far between] that I'm hoping to get to tomorrow.  Stay tuned for more sweetness!

*UPDATE:  This casserole is fantastic with rice, and much more filling than just some saucy veggies.  I would suggest mixing in 2 cups cooked brown (or your preferred) rice to the veggie mix before pouring on the sauce, and cook at the same temp for the same amount of time.  Delish!

Ingredients:
Sauce:
3/4 cups cashews, soaked*
3 cups vegetable broth
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
4 Tbsp cornstarch
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp rubbed sage

1 large sweet onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 large sweet potatoes, peeled; cut lengthwise and sliced into 1/4 inch half moons
1 bunch Swiss or rainbow chard; stems removed, trimmed, and cut into 1/4 inch pieces; leaves chopped
2 cups cooked rice, optional (but delicious!)
Salt and pepper

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350.  Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

*To soak the cashews:  Place nuts in a microwave safe bowl and cover with water.  Microwave for two minutes.  Set aside while you get the rest of the sauce ingredients together.

In a high speed blender, combine the veg broth, nutritional yeast, cornstarch, olive oil, and sage.  Drain the cashews and add those as well.  Blend on high until cashews are well blended.  Set aside.

In a large skillet pan, saute onion, garlic, and chard stems with 2 tablespoons of water for about 5 minutes on medium high heat.  Add the potatoes and continue to cook, partially covered, for another 5-6 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

When the potatoes are starting to soften, remove the pan from heat.  Arrange veggies in baking dish, stirring in the chard leaves (and rice, if using).  Pulse your sauce in the blender, (in case the ingredients have started to separate), and pour evenly over the veggies.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and bake for 35-40 minutes, until sauce is bubbly and has set (meaning it's not runny in the middle).  Remove from oven and let sit for 5-7 minutes.  Serve hot with rice, quinoa, or bread.

Farmer's Market Soup

Because it's totally appropriate to make soup on a 96 degree day!

I went home last weekend for a visit.  Actually, I've gone home the last four or so weekends, but this was the first time I was able to head down to the farmer's market while there.  Sure, there's a market here in Kalamazoo, but the one in Muskegon is bigger, near the lake, and holds with it much nostalgia of going to the flea market with my mom as a kid, and doing my "grocery shopping" with a certain boy every Saturday during the last summer I lived there.

As expected, the market was everything I hoped for and more!  My first stop was at the Laughing Tree Bakery's booth for a vegan Treehugger cookie (an absolute must!).  Then I roamed around for about an hour, walking up and down the rows about three times, admiring all the beautiful produce while eating my cookie and drinking coffee.  [How magical is that???  I half expected to see unicorns prancing by!]  I ended up spending more money than I had expected to, but hey!  What better things to splurge on than fresh produce???  I brought home with me corn on the cob, green beans, red-skinned potatoes, an onion, garlic, and some absolutely beautiful swiss chard.

I hadn't a clue what I was going to make with all these goodies, but I didn't care.  I knew I'd come up with something.

Well, between the heat and the 1 1/2 hour drive back to my apartment, my chard got pretty wilty.  And since I've been so busy with work and school, my dreams of making a fancy, complicated sort of dish were shot down and I was forced to make a one-pot meal.  Actually, these veggies blended together quite deliciously in the soup I made.  The chard had more of a bitter flavor than I remembered, but my favorite bites of soup were when the sweet corn and chard were together.  I bet swiss chard and sweet potatoes would be a lovely combination.  Hmmm....

So yeah, it was stupidly hot on the day I decided to make this, but this soup kicks butt.  The creaminess comes from the potatoes blended with milk and veggie broth, so it's hearty without being high in fat.  And I was able to use all of my veggies before they went bad!  OK, so the yield was enough to feed a small army.  Maybe you should cut the recipe in half?  I'll leave that up to you.

Ingredients:
2 lbs red skinned potatoes, quartered (or cut smaller if they're large potatoes)
1 large sweet onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch Swiss chard, stems removed, trimmed, and chopped into 1/4 inch pieces; leaves cut into ribbons
1/2 lb green beans, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 ear of corn, cut from the cob (or 1 cup of corn)
3 cups vegetable broth
2 cups non-dairy milk
1/4 cup nutritional yeast, optional
1-2 cups water, if needed
2 tsp dill
2 tsp poultry seasoning
1 tsp thyme
Salt and pepper

Directions:
In a large soup pot, cover potatoes with water and bring to a boil.  Oh yeah, toss some salt into that potato water, would you?  After about 5-7 minutes, remove about half of the potatoes and set aside for a bit.  Continue cooking the rest of the potatoes in the water until very soft, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat a large skillet on medium heat and add onion, garlic, and chard stems.  Saute for about 5-6 minutes until onions are starting to get soft.  Add the green beans, corn, and reserved potatoes, and cook for another 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cover with a lid and continue to cook for another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, checking that the potatoes don't get too mushy.

When the potatoes in the pot are soft, drain the water and return the potatoes to the pot.  We want to blend the potatoes with the broth and milk and nutritional yeast, if using.  If you have an immersion blender, you can do this right in the pot.  If not, you can use a blender or food processor for this step.  If the potato-broth-milk mixture seems too thick, add water, one cup at a time, until the soup has reached your desired consistency.

OK, your potato broth should be in the soup pot now.  Take the skillet off the stove, and dump those veggies into the potato mixture.  Add the dill, poultry seasoning, and thyme, and stir to combine.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Stir in the chard leaves and cook the soup for 5-8 minutes, until leaves are soft and everything has heated through.

Yield: So. Much. Soup.
    I don't know, maybe 10 servings?  Perhaps you could invite some friends over.  Or freeze half of it.

Vacation Party Food Part 2: Super Low-Key Bachelorette Party

Because... life.  It happens.

After recovering from the black lung I developed in Texas, I spent the following week working a ton to make up for the fact that I had just taken a week off.  Plus, I was with my family for the holiday weekend (yay!!!) and I started school yesterday.  These are all of my excuses for not writing this blog post last week.  Take it or leave it, friends.

OK, so let's rewind back to that time I was in Texas.  So, I didn't get a lot of pictures.  In fact, I didn't do a lot of sight seeing.  That is to say, I didn't actually do any sight seeing.  [Unless you count sleeping in a different room of the apartment every night I was there.]  But I'm not complaining, honest!  I was just happy to be with the Officer and her family.  And I was able to be helpful, making place cards for the reception, making cocktails coffee for the bride-to-be in the morning, playing personal assistant to the lovely couple while they had pre-wedding photos taken at the historical museum.  Also, I helped the Officer shop for wedding shoes and got to see this outside the mall:

                                                                         Texas$

Anyhow, Thursday before the wedding, the Officer's sister threw a bachelorette party at the apartment. It was insisted (by the bride) that the party be kept low-key and involve watching corny 80's movies.  So, while the group watched Dirty Dancing and ogled over the ever-so-handsome Patrick Swayze, I kept myself busy in the kitchen making party food (of course, stopping occasionally to admire the... dancing).

I wanted finger foods, and most of what I prepared was, except for the stuffed zucchini boats which is the only recipe I'm going to share (or not).  The party food also included chickpea sandwiches, tortilla roll-ups, chips and hummus, chocolate, fruit, and Oreo's.  Because classy girls eat Oreo's for dessert at fancy parties.  Trust me, I know these things.

But, the zucchini boats were the star, by far.  I made a sort of sausage and peppers filling and baked it into zucchini halves with a little Daiya cheese on top.  I didn't actually write this recipe down, as I was multitasking [drinking, giggling, and snacking on chocolate-covered almonds definitely counts as multitasking], so how about if I just tell you what I put in it, and I'll promise to make it again?

 So, I took 5 medium zucchini, cut them in half the "hamburger" way, and then in half again the "hot dog" way.  (Still following?  Good.)  I scooped out most of the inside flesh to make room for filling.  I actually chopped up the zucchini insides and added them to the rest of the stuffing, because I hate wasting food.  I sauteed some Italian-style vegan sausages, onion, and bell pepper, added some tomato sauce and salt and pepper.  There may have been some oregano tossed in, but I honestly can't remember.  After all the filling ingredients were heated through, I stuffed the zucchini halves, sprinkled with some vegan pepper jack cheese, and baked them for I don't remember how long.  And they were awesome.

Speaking of awesome, the Officer has already been married for a week and a half now!!!  Congrats again, my friend.  I'm so happy I was able to be a part of this oh-so magical time of your life.  :)

Vacation Party Food Part 1: Wine Tasting and Finger Food

Because there's too much to say in just one blog post!

Vacation is over and I couldn't be happier.  Don't get me wrong- I absolutely loved spending the last week with my family, the Officer and her family, and friends, old and new.  However, somewhere between Michigan and Texas, I contracted the black plague, or some similar form of illness, and so spent the entire past week feeling pretty miserable.  Wouldn't you know, the day I had to fly out of Texas was the first day I started feeling better.

Anyhow, let's start at the beginning.  Last Sunday, my sister hosted a wine tasting party at her house.  I had volunteered to help make party food because, well, that's what I do.  Mary put together some delicious-looking cheese and cracker plates, caprese-style nibbles, meatballs (both animal and vegan versions), as well as a trio of dips: olive tapenade, roasted red pepper spread, and hummus.  No lie, this was a pretty impressive spread.

My contribution to this smorgasbord was a platter of delightful little tea sandwiches.  I must admit, they were amazing and delicious and adorable!

I'll share the recipe in a sec, but first, I must confess that not everything I create is gold. I had also attempted a phyllo-strawberry-chocolate dessert which ended in disaster and probably ruined Mary's cookie sheet.  Sorry, sister!

In my first attempt, I rolled the strawberries in phyllo to create "cigars."  They fell apart when I tried to take them out of the pan.  In my second attempt, I made little rectangular "packages" out of the dough.  But still, the juice from the strawberries oozed out the corners and made a sticky mess.  On top of that, I used way too much chocolate [only I could screw up a chocolate recipe!] so that, while the desserts were still edible, they were entirely too sweet for me.

Umm, yeah.  So!  Moving on...

The tea sandwiches were super easy to put together, but impressive.  I would consider these an excellent party food option for any occasion.

A couple of notes:  I used store-bought garlic hummus, but decided that it needed even more garlic, so I stirred in some chopped garlic.  This step is optional, of course, and I will note that in the recipe.  Also, feel free to use any veggies you like.  Cucumber and tomato are more traditional, but zucchini, bell pepper, or summer squash would be just as lovely.  And lastly, white bread makes these sammies authentic, but if you prefer a hearty, whole grain bread, change it up as you see fit.  I won't judge.

Ingredients:
1 loaf good quality white bread (or bread of choice, up to you)
1 ripe avocado
2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp dill
1/2 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper
8 oz tub garlic hummus (you won't use all of it, but I don't know that it comes in a smaller size)
1/2 tsp chopped garlic, optional
3-4 Roma tomatoes, cut into 1/4 inch slices
1 medium cucumber, cut into 1/4 inch slices

Directions:
In a small mixing bowl, scoop out the avocado flesh  and mash with a fork until only small lumps remain.  Stir in lemon juice, dill, and garlic, and mix well.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  If desired, stir chopped garlic into tub of hummus.

To assemble the sandwiches:  Take out 2 slices of bread.  Spread avocado mixture on one slice and hummus on other slice.  Arrange 4 slices each of the tomato and cucumber on one slice of bread.  Top with remaining slice of bread.  Cut sandwich in half twice, creating 4 squares.  Stick each quarter with a toothpick to keep sandwiches from falling apart.  Repeat with remaining ingredients.

Stay tuned for yet another blog post this week!  Vacation Party Food Part 2: Wedding Funness in Texas!

The Officer's Gettin' Hitched!!!

Yee- haw!

OK, yeah, so I don't have a recipe to share this week.  That's because I only cooked once, and it wasn't anything spectacular [while red cabbage is delicious and healthy, it makes soup turn a funny, rather un-photogenic color].  Also, I've been busy packing for my vacation!  I'll be spending the next week in San Antonio with the Officer, helping with prep for the wedding and offering my bridesmaid services for the ceremony.

So no recipe this week, however, I may have several next week!  Before flying off to Texas, I'll be spending a couple of days with my sister.  She's hosting a wine tasting party on Sunday, and I'll be helping with the party food.  Also, the Officer and I are planning a "girl's night" next week, and I know I'll be trying out some new recipes on her.  I mean, just look at all the deliciousness we whipped up the last time I stayed with her:

                                                                So much awesome.

So stay tuned for a couple new recipes, maybe some photos of Texas, and complete ridiculousness as always next week.

In the meantime,  Look out Texas, here I come!!!

                                          An Officer and A Vegan.  Aren't we cute?!

Gluten-Free Popeye Pasta

Because you can't go wrong with cartoon-inspired dinner recipes!

The "Healthy Recipe" contest ends in a couple of days, and I wanted to get just one last entry in before it closed.  Now, before any of you accuse me of selling out to the gluten-free trend, I had a reason for making this dish GF.  Umm, my reason was that, besides the pasta, all of my ingredients were already gluten-free, so why not?  Actually, since it's free of gluten, dairy, and eggs, this is a very allergy-friendly dish!

I liked the idea of making a Popeye-inspired pasta dish, using spinach and olive oil as main ingredients.  For being as simple as it is, this recipe was surprisingly flavorful and super easy to make.  I used GF pasta made from corn and veggies, like spinach and red bell pepper.  As with the last pasta recipe, if you're not following a GF diet, use whatever pasta you'd like.  And if you are GF, but can't find veggie pasta, use brown rice, quinoa, or other GF noodles.

It should be noted that, seeing as the sauce is made almost entirely from olive oil, this entree is certainly not fat-free, and not even low-fat.  But it is packed with nutrients like iron, potassium, calcium, lots of vitamins, and antioxidants, thanks to the spinach.  I used frozen spinach because it was cheaper and easier to give a specific measurement, but fresh baby spinach would be lovely as well.  Just add it as directed in the recipe, but only cook until the leaves are just wilted.

Ingredients:
 1 lb gluten-free pasta
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
juice from 1 lemon (just under 1/4 cup)
10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed and excess water pressed out
1/4 cup sliced black olives
Salt and pepper

Directions:
 In a large pot, bring water to boil and cook pasta according to directions on package.
In a large skillet, saute onion, garlic, and pepper on medium heat for 2 minutes.  Add olive oil and simmer for 5 minutes.  Stir in lemon juice, spinach, and olives, and cook for 5 minutes more.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
When pasta has finished cooking, drain and return to pot.  Add the veggies and sauce to the pasta.  Stir to combine, add more salt and pepper as needed, and drizzle with extra olive oil, if desired.

Super Sloppy Joes

Because I only cooked once this week.  It is what it is.

I made these sloppy sammies Tuesday, not intending to put them on the blog, because it was more of a "just throw a bunch of stuff together" kind of dish than a well-planned recipe idea.  I had a half a package of mushrooms that needed to be used like, now, some leftover frozen onion and pepper from the goulash a couple of weeks ago, bread (have I mentioned that I work in a bread store?  I always have bread) and randomly, for whatever reason, a can of sloppy joe sauce.  I'm thinking maybe I bought it for a recipe contest a while back...?  Regardless, sloppy joes were destined to be made.

I've made lentil sloppy joes in the past, using brown lentils and a sauce from scratch.  But, in true AO&AV style, I used red lentils, because that's what I had on-hand, and a pre-made sauce because, well, I had some.  And also because it was convenient.

These were deliciously sloppy and done in about 20 minutes.  I've included the recipe below, but bear in mind that I didn't intend to share this recipe with y'all, so I just kind of made up some of the measurements.  Use them as a guideline rather than a hard rule.

Ingredients:
1 cup red lentils
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup diced green pepper
4 oz mushrooms, diced
15 oz can sloppy joe sauce
2 Tbsp sweet pickle relish
1/2 tsp cumin
1/8-1/4 tsp chipotle chile powder
Salt and pepper

Directions:
In a medium-sized sauce pan, combine lentils with 2 cups of water and bring to a boil.  Turn the heat down a smidge to get a rolling boil, and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occassionally. 
*Keep in mind that red lentils become soft and mushy the longer you cook them.  The trick here is to almost undercook the lentils so that they still keep their shape.  Basically, once the majority of the water is absorbed, you can remove the lentils from the heat.
So, while that's happening...
In a separate medium-ish pan, saute onion and pepper for about 5 minutes over medium heat.  Add mushrooms and cook for another 3-5 minutes.  Add lentils and sauce, and stir to mix well.  Add in the relish, cumin, and chile powder and stir to combine.  Allow to simmer for about 5 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.