Pasta and Vegetables With Cream Sauce

Totally uninspiring picture, but really good pasta!!!

I don't often post recipes or ideas from other sources, mainly 'cause I'm lazy and rarely get around to trying them. But this recipe caught my eye. It comes from fellow blogger, Matt over at "My Veggie Kitchen".

Check out his blog, mostly all vegan and DELICIOUS!!

I was in the mood for a creamy psta sort of thing anyway, and have my own cashew-based Cream Sauce that, admittedly, I'm pretty fond of, (mainly because I know it by heart). But after seeing his drool-worthy pictures (which mine are not) I decided I needed try Matt's Pasta Primavera recipe.

And let me tell you , it was definitely a hit in our house. I did change up the vegetables a bit according to those I had. And I left out the miso, since one of my kids dislikes it a great deal, regardless of how I think I'm disguising it. But I'd recommend trying it with the miso if you have it.

Did I Mention Our New Panini Grill?

Yes indeed.

Our kitchen is home to a shiny, new panini sandwich grill and we couldn't be more excited!

Loads of thanks to our friend, Shaun.

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I think we were actually his tester Guinea-pigs, because after sampling only 37363536 amazing and tasty things we'd grilled, he went and bought himself one too!

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The grill was actually a Christmas present specifically for my Middle Sprout. She'd had it on her wish list for over a year. No Ipod, no cell phone requests like most 15-yr-olds; this girl is truly the kitchen appliance queen and loves cooking, experimenting and playing with food as much as I do. We're fortunate that she's willing to share all the grilled goodness with the rest of us family members.
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Now everything on our plates has those delicious toasty stripes. Even slabs of pineapple. (Without a doubt my FAVORITE!!)

Mr. Panini gets used frequently for quesadillas.

I've been having a lot of luck with vegan Tofutti slices; super-yummy with some cilantro, onions and tomatoes!

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Avocado slices are good too, but my kids aren't fans of green goo oozing from their quesadillas. How sad. More for me.

Slices of potato turn out great! These had a little olive oil, pepper, sea salt and rosemary. I don't remember how long they took, but it was a while; do them on med-low so they cook through before browning to a crisp.

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I didn't get a picture of the some of the tempeh - it was Shaun's favorite. Turned out pretty amazing too!! I simmered it in apple cider, let it marinate over night and grilled with a little soy sauce.

Grilled peanut-butter and sliced strawberries on thick whole-grain bread. Better than it looks!!

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So decadent, but certain nine-year-olds like it better than junk food, that's always a plus.

And it actually makes AWESOME panini-type sandwiches too - who knew? Currently, I'm really liking grilled eggplant and portabello mushrooms on sourdough, or a tempeh-rueben.

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If you've been considering yet another counter-hogging appliance, it's definitely a great multi-tasker. Lots of fun, super easy, get's dinner done FAST, hardly any clean-up, you don't need any oil for grilling most things.

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Even vegans can get plenty of use out of these babies as our pictures show... Have a great week!!!!

Happy President's Day Pancakes

In honor of George Washington and the cherry tree and President's Day and all that sort of thing. I don't make these often enough, because I never seem to have dried cherries and almonds in my cupboard at the same time, but they really are worth it. I love the flavors of almonds and cherries together!!

(Sorry for the horrid photo, some days just are NOT picture-taking days around here...)

You can make a cherry-syrup with canned, dark cherries if you want, My kids prefer a little powdered sugar. I don't always make heart-shaped pancakes, I have little luck with them (as you can see from my picture), but since it was a lazy, happy, sleep-in vacation day and just past Valentine's I decided to attempt some creativity and indulge my kids.

Cherry-Almond Pancakes

1/2 cup dried cherries

1/2 tsp almond extract

1/2 cup blended silken tofu

1 1/4 cups soy milk

1 Tbsp. melted margarine

2 cups all-purpose flour or whole wheat pastry flour or a mixture that you like

4 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup raw almonds, ground to a paste with 2 tablespoon sugar in food processor

Chop dried cherries coarsely. Pour enough hot (almost boiling) water over them to just cover. Add almond extract and stir well. Let sit 10 min. while mixing rest of ingredients.

Mix liquid ingredients (tofu, milk, margarine) in one bowl and the dry ingredients (flour, soda, salt, almonds) in another.

Gradually add liquids to dry until well mixed. Add more soymilk if batter is too thick, more flour if batter is too thin. Drain cherries very well (I actually squeeze them with my hand a bit) and add to pancake batter.

Heat griddle or large nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot; oil griddle.

Ladle batter by scant 1/4 cupfuls onto griddle, spreading to 4-inch rounds. Cook 2 1/2 minutes or until bubbles break surface of pancakes. Turn; cook 2 minutes or until golden brown. Place in oven to keep warm while cooking remaining pancakes

Red Devil's Food (or Red Velvet) Cupcakes

Hello, Happy Valentine's and a million "absent-blogger" excuses I'm not going to bore you with.

No long introductory story, here's the cupcakes we made for my daughter's school Valentine's party yesterday.

She really wanted Red Devil's Food cupcakes, but being without a recipe, I improvised. This is a regular vegan chocolate "buttermilk" cake recipe that I combined with my old (not-vegan) Red Devil's Food Cake recipe. Turned out pretty good!!

I suppose everyone made these for Valentine's, so we aren't real original, but they were festive and fun. Enjoy!

Red Devil's Food (or Red Velvet) Cupcakes

2-1/2 cups white flour

1 1/4 cups white sugar

1/4 cup magarine

1/4 cup oil

1 cup non-dairy milk

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

4 tablespoon cocoa powder unsweetened

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon vinegar

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

2 ounces red food coloring (or I've heard of people using beet juice but I've never tried it)

Preheat oven to 350.

In a cup pour the non-dairy milk and lemon juice.

Let sit for a while, this is like your "buttermilk".

Cream together the oil, margarine and sugar, then add applesauce.

In a small bowl mix together cocoa and food coloring until it's paste-like. Add it to the creamed mixture.

Mix the salt and flour together and add it to the batter alterately with the 'buttermilk' in a couple batches. Add vanilla extract.

Mix in baking soda and vinegar. Stir well.

Pour batter into greased or papered cupcake tins and bake for 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Frost when cool.

Frosting:

1 - 2 cups confectioner's (powdered) sugar

8 oz. vegan "cream cheese" (I use Tofutti brand)

1/4 C vegan margarine

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 non-dairy milk

Chopped nuts or sprinkles as desired

Mix cream cheese and softened margarine together. Add 1 cup sugar to start, and vanilla and milk.

Mixture will be very soft, add more powdered sugar as needed to make a spreadable consistancy. Spread on cooled cupcakes. Garnish with chopped nuts or sprinkles if you want.

Hope your Valentine's was fun, and spent with people you love.