Simple Ratatouille

It's hard to believe we haven't even been in our new apartment for a week! Just today a week ago Brett and I were driving up from Florida and stayed the night at my parents house. It was such a blessing to get part of a day with them before jumping into life in New York City. We packed a lot into that short day too. We napped, loaded up more furniture into our Uhaul and had a mini birthday celebration for my niece and sister-in-law at my brother's house. Gosh, I love my family!

My parents were so generous to us too. They too are preparing to move so they gave Brett and me a futon, coffee table, side table and a kitchen aid mixer! They also sent us out the door with beautiful squash and zucchini from their garden. 

Ever since watching the movie Ratatouille I've wanted to try making ratatouille. It always intimidated me though. So many colors and layers and I figured if it's made up of mostly vegetables, there has to be some intense process to make it taste so good. Wrong.

Ratatouille isn't hard at all and it's so fun to wow people with how pretty it looks when you pull it out of the oven. Since my parents gave us squash and zucchini before we left--and since I already had a jar of tomato paste, olive oil and homemade vegan parmesan in my kitchen--all I had to pick up at the store was an onion, eggplant, red pepper and garlic. Then I just had to thinly slice the veggies, layer them over some tomato paste and seasoning, and drizzle olive oil on top. Done and Done. 

Ratatouille

(Serves 4)

Ingredients:

• 1 can tomato past (6 oz.)
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 3/4 cups water
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 eggplant
• 1 zucchini
• 1 yellow squash
• 1 red bell pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme (or two pinches dried thyme)
• Optional: Vegan Parmesan Cheese for garnish

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Prepare your vegetables by thinly slicing them in circular disks
3. Spread the tomato past on the bottom of a 10x10-inch baking dish, or a dish similar in size.
4. Sprinkle on the onion, garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Add the water and stir well to combine.
5. Arrange alternating slices of the vegetables in the pan by starting on the outside and working your way towards the center until you fill the entire dish. 
6. Drizzle the top with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sprinkle with thyme and more salt and pepper.
7. Cover the vegetables by cutting out a piece of parchment paper to fit inside the baking dish. Bake for 35-45 minutes until all your vegetables are tender.
8. Garnish with Vegan Parmesan Cheese and serve warm!

 Notes: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for a couple days.

Sorry for the poor lighting in these pictures!

Eat Consciously,

Faith

Vegetable Vegan Lasagna

One of the main reasons I started this blog was to keep track of vegan recipes I've tried or created and to share with others the ones I think are pretty delicious. So far, most of the recipes I've shared are other people's creations or recipes that I've tweaked a little. 

I hoped that as I continued to try out different recipes and do more research on vegan cooking that I would eventually get to the point where I could create my own vegan recipes...ones that are actually edible. While I'm not quite there yet, I CAN tell that my cooking has improved since I started writing this blog, and that's exciting! I've even created a couple of my own recipes that Brett and I would actually eat again. Score.

Going vegan forced me to try cooking with new ingredients. Even more so it forced me to use well known ingredients in new ways. Who knew cashew could be soaked and then blended with liquid to make a creamy sauce? Or that you could use dried fruit to naturally sweeten baked goods? Or that you could get your daily protein from plants? I know a lot of people know these things, but I had no clue.

I've loved the journey so far and lately have been even more encouraged as I've tried stepped out of my "cooking-comfort-zone" and experimented a lot more. This Vegetable Vegan Lasagna is an example of such experimenting, and I must say it turned out pretty delicious. 

I had searched vegan lasagnas, but didn't quite find what I was looking for. So I decided to combine a lot of ideas from different recipes to make my own. This lasagna is really easy and the "ricotta" filling made from tofu, lemon juice and nutritional yeast tastes almost like the real thing. At least in my opinion. Brett loved it too and we both at the whole pan in a couple days. 

Another great thing about this lasagna is that it is really light. You can eat two, whole pieces and still have room for some other sides. 

Unfortunately I have yet to get a nice camera and the lighting in our house isn't good, so these pictures don't do the taste of this lasagna justice. I hope you try it out though and let me know what you think!

Vegetable Vegan Lasagna

(Serves 4-5)

 Ingredients:

· 12 oz. whole wheat lasagna noodles (you’ll only use 9)

· Favorite jar of pasta sauce

· 1/4 cup chopped basil leaves

Filling:

· 1 lb. firm tofu

· 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast

· 2 teaspoon lemon juice

· 1 teaspoon lemon zest

· 1/4 cup chopped parsley

· 1 teaspoon kosher salt (or more to taste)

· 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper (or more to taste)

Vegetables:

· 1/2 cup chopped onion

· 2 teaspoons minced garlic

· 1 medium zucchini squash, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces

· 1 medium yellow squash, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces

· 4 oz. mushrooms, chopped

· 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or more to taste)

Directions:

1. Start by bringing a large pot of water to a boil and preheating your oven to 350 degrees.

2. Once the water boils, cook your lasagna noodles according to the directions on the package, 3-4 at a time. While they cook, start on the vegetables and “ricotta” filling.

3. Heat a large skillet to medium heat and spray with non-stick cooking spray.

4. Sautee the onions and the garlic until the onions are soft. Then add in the rest of the vegetable ingredients and saute until they are cooked through but still a little crisp.

5. As your vegetables cook, make the filling.

6. Place all of the filling ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth. You can add more salt, pepper or nutritional yeast to your taste.

7. One you have all three elements prepped you can assemble the lasagna.

8. Using a 9 x 13 inch pan, spread about 1/4 of your pasta sauce on the bottom. Then lay three cooked, pasta noodles across the bottom to cover the whole pan. (If your noodles are short, you may need to cook one or two extra to cover the short ends.) Then spread half of the filling over the noodles and top with half of the cooked vegetables. Repeat again: sauce, noodles, filling, vegetables.

9. Finish the lasagna off with another layer of noodles and some pasta sauce.

10. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for about 15-20 minutes. Then remove the foil and bake for another 10 minutes or until heated through.

11. Cut into large pieces and dig in!

Note: You can easily double this recipe and just make a thicker lasagna which will serve about 8-10 people. When I make this recipe, I usually cut the lasagna into 9 pieces and people can eat two pieces each since it's so light. 

Blend all of the filling ingredients together to make your "ricotta" filling.

Choose your favorite jar of marinara sauce or make your own!

Start layering: sauce, noodles, filling and then veggies.

Finish with some more sauce on top!

Eat Consciously,

     Faith

Acorn Squash "Alfredo" Sauce with Penne Pasta

This weekend one of my husband's friends who was a groomsmen in our wedding came to visit. It was the first time we've ever had anyone from out of town stay over in our little apartment and it was a blast. We took him to see downtown Orlando and spent two days at Cocoa Beach using a free night stay at the Ron Jon Resort that Brett and I scored for for sitting through a 90 minute tour a few weeks ago. What a relaxing weekend.

But I gotta say that I always get nervous cooking new vegan meals for guests, because I still feel like I'm still in the experimental, "what-the-heck-am-I-doing" phase of vegan cooking. Saturday night we ended up eating here at the house which meant I had to try out a new recipe. And praises, this Acorn "Alfredo" Pasta turned out great! I'm so thankful for people who have already created amazing recipes that I can start out with until I can create my own vegan concoctions.

Acorn Squash "Alfredo" Sauce with Penne Pasta
(Serves 7)

Adapted from lunchboxbrunch.com

1 box whole wheat penne pasta (13.25 oz)
1 medium acorn squash
1 cup fresh, chopped parsley
3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk (or any plain, plant based milk)
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons dijon mustard
2-3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 heaping tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons total of basil, oregano and thyme (I used two teaspoons of each)
1 tablespoon agave nectar
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and pepper
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Cut your acorn squash in half horizontally, scoop out the seeds,

and place the halves cut sides down into a baking dish filled with one inch of water. Roast the squash in the oven for about 60-75 minutes.

When your squash has only about 10 minutes to go, boil water in a large sauce pan and start cooking your pasta. Also saute your mushrooms in a skillet for about 5 minutes until soft. Set the mushrooms aside.

Once your squash is roasted, scoop out all of the soft flesh and place it in a food processor with the remaining ingredients except the mushrooms. Blend until you get a smooth sauce and there aren't any large parsley flakes.

Strain your pasta and then place it back in the sauce pan with the acorn squash puree and mushrooms. Mix well and serve!

(Nutrition Facts: Cals: 320; Fat: 4 g; Carbs: 58 g; Fiber: 11 g; Sugar 4.5 g; Protein: 15 g)

Eat Consciously,

     Faith