Monthly Archives: October 2011
Chili Garlic Pumpkin Hummus
Around my circle of friends and family, it’s no secret that I am a complete junkie for some chili garlic sauce. I put it on everything. Anything. Sometimes I eat it straight from a teeny tiny spoon. I have absolutely no shame when it comes to this addictive condiment.
Whatever I put chili garlic sauce on only becomes that much better. It’s sort of like salt… except spicy, and garlicky. Two of my favorite tastes. Works in this example too. Pumpkin, during Autumn months, pretty much makes everything–including hummus–better. So, it only makes sense that adding a little chili garlic sauce would have to make that already better hummus, even better. Ya know?
Plus, it’s orange, so serving with purple cauliflower makes for a show stopping Halloween party tray addition.
The key to making this dip’s texture smooth and creamy and not so much like pumpkin pie filling is to blend it in your food processor (or blender if you prefer) for a long time. At least 5 minutes, and I’d shoot for 7 to be safe. Also, be sure to start with just a little water and add as needed, since some varieties of canned pumpkin seem to have more liquid than others.
xgfx survey!
While I completely fubbed up with my last freeloading friday post (pathetic that I can’t even freeload in style, eh?), I’m taking advantage of this Tuesday evening by posting this awesome xgfx (vegan & gluten free) survey that my pal Jessy came up with.
Isnt it rad? You should fill it out too, either on a comment here or as a post on your own blog! Sharing is fun.
Sweet Potato Cauliflower Soup
Yes, it’s another orange soup. There may be more this month, so fair warning! But this one is a pretty awesome recipe, if I do say so myself.
This soup has a pleasant depth and is slightly sweet from the addition of those pretty orange potatoes and roasted cauliflower. The sweetness is delicately enhanced with a light sprinkle of garam masala. And, the chunky veggies and thick and creamy broth make it good choice for lunch or a light dinner.
Sweet Potato Cauliflower Soup
yield: 6 to 8 servings
- 1 large head cauliflower (the one I used was at least 7″ in diameter
- olive oil for drizzling
- Few dashes garam masala (optional)
- 3 medium to large sized peeled sweet potatoes, cut into 1″ pieces
- 1 sweet onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic
- 7 cups filtered water
First, preheat your oven to 400 °F and cut up your cauliflower into bite sized pieces. Sprinkle cauliflower lightly with garam masala. Place cauliflower onto ungreased cookie sheet and lightly drizzle with olive oil. Place in oven and let roast until golden brown on the tops and tender, but not mushy, about 20-30 minutes. There’s no need to flip ‘em. Just remove from oven and let cool while you cook the rest of the soup.
In large stockpot, bring sweet potato, onion, garlic and water to a boil. Salt (abt 3/4 tsp) and stir. Reduce heat and allow to remain at a constant simmer until sweet potatoes are tender. Add in cooked cauliflower and divide soup into 2 parts.
Let soup cool and then blend one part soup in blender until very smooth. Combine with second part soup and stir. Salt to taste and warm up over stovetop if needed.
Super Soft Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies
These lovelies are somewhere in between cookies and cakes… and some may say they even have a little muffin action going on! Not overly pumpkiny, these soft and scrumptious cookies are a perfect snack with hot chocolate on a brisk autumn night.
Way too Much to Do Wednesday Wrap-up!
some cool birds i shot while at the jersey shore ♥
Apple Nachos!
I have no clue where I originally saw this idea years ago–but in today’s blogging world, apple nachos have become just about as ubiquitous as raw ballz…
But, there may still be a few folks remaining who aren’t tuned into all the apple nacho hoopla.
If you’ve never tried them, give ‘em a whirl! They are ridiculously easy and taste much more awesome than they sound. Plus, my kids LOVE them as a midday snack. And did I mention how silly easy these are to toss together? Almost as easy as raw ballz. ;)
Roasted Red Pepper, Garlic, and Butternut Squash Soup
Do not underestimate the simplicity of this soup. Three ingredients I had waiting to be used in my kitchen, blended with vegetable broth became the ultimate autumnal soup.
- 1 red pepper, roasted (about 1 1/4 cup sliced) *
- 1 butternut squash, roasted **
- 1 entire head garlic, roasted *
- 3 cups (or more) vegetable broth
Blend all ingredients in blender until very smooth. Salt to taste if desired. I used salted broth so I didn’t need to add any.
Garnish with cashew cream and fresh thyme.
*For an easy tute on how to roast red peppers and garlic, see here.
**To roast a squash: preheat oven to 350 °F. Slice squash in half, remove seeds, rub insides with a touch of salt and/or minced garlic, place face down in a baking pan with about 1/4 cup water and allow to bake about 40 minutes, or until knife easily pokes through skin.
Freeloading Friday #1
Hey gang!
I’ve decided to give myself a break for Friday posts this MoFo, and do a little something I like to call “Freeloading Friday”. Each Friday of this month, I will be taking a little summin’ from the Vegan MoFo blogosphere to give me a boost for my own Friday posts. In return, the people I took from will get, well… not much. Hence the freeloading part.
Ranger Cookies
One of my favorite things to do at night is make a batch of cookies from whatever the hell I have in my pantry. Usually I go for a basic cookie of sorts, like a variation of sugar cookie, Italian wedding cake, or peanut butter… but every once in a while I get a hankerin’ for something over the top. Last night I wanted a cookie with a little bit of everything thrown in. Enter the Ranger Cookie.
It’s been years since I’ve indulged in a delicious Ranger Cookie, but I remember that these guys normally have oats in them (and apparently flaked cereal, but my memory must have confused that with nuts yesterday. But isn’t that what good improvisation is all about? Surprises?). For me, oats are out. I’m one of those extra lucky celiacs who also is affected in very bad ways by oats, gluten-free or not. But, honestly, there are so many great things jam packed in these cookies, I’m not sure where the oats would even fit in!
Luckily, I made these early enough in the evening to remember to write down what I ended up putting in them. It goes a little like this:
Bhindi Masala
Tonight’s Dinner. It’s also my favorite dish to order at pretty much any Indian restaurant I end up at. I love the variations I’ve had of this dish, which simply translates to spiced okra. Although, I’m admitting right now, this doesn’t taste exactly like authentic Indian cuisine–because, ya know, I’m much better at Polish/German/Irish/American cooking.
But! It’s delicious, and pretty spicy in a mild kinda way. Feel free to add more chili powder to jazz it up. Before attempting to make my own Bhindi Masala, I learned some important tips from Manjula about okra cooking that I never knew the hundred other times I’ve made it. First, after you rinse your okra, be sure to pat them very dry, lest your okra get slimy while cooking. Also, you don’t have to cut your okra into cute little ferris wheels to make this dish. Hers looked pretty kickin’ with the pods cut lengthwise.
Cinnamon Swirl Pumpkin Bread
Let the pumpkin mayhem begin on MV.
I admit, I created this recipe purely because of a selfish craving I was having for something sticky sweet and pumpkiny. I was going to try and pass it off as a treat my kids would enjoy for breakfast, but I became pretty possessive over it once it came out of the oven. The kids still got some, but I ended up having more than my fair share. :\
I’m not usually one to fall head over heels for a simple quick loaf, but the spicy cinnamon trail that runs through this sweet pumpkin bread is enough to make my heart sing a different tune.
It’s even more delectable with a slather of your favorite vegan cream cheese on top!
It’s a MoFo’in kinda Monday…
Happy Monday, Friends! Today is my very first day posting for veganMoFo 5!
This year is my third year in, and I’ll be posting each weekday in October… starting today! I don’t know about you all, but I am psyched! And since it’s MoFo time and I’ve noticed a nice influx of new readers (hi, new readers!) I went ahead and updated my “about page”. Have a looksy if you’re curious about why I write this blog. ♥
I’m really looking forward to this month, because a whole slew of amazingly dedicated bloggers will be posting their hearts out almost every single day. Talk about inspiration! It’s definitely one of my favorite times of the year. You guys, I hit up Wegman’s HARD this weekend in preparation for this big event. A grocery store so glamorous, it would make me seriously consider moving a wee bit outside of Philly. Okay maybe it’s not quite that glamorous (have I mentioned how much I adore living in Philly?! So many bicycles, so many shops, so many hellos, so much good FOOD!), but it is definitely worth the 20 mile drive to get there.
This MoFo I’m doing the same thing I do every year: posting lotsa recipes, and I’ll be highlighting a few of my favorite author’s cookbooks, and maybe some other random funstuff strewn about. And you can absolutely count on tons of pumpkin showing up around here. I love October MoFos!
Also, my macadamia coconut blondies were posted on One Green Planet today… worth a gander if you’ve got a bit of a sweet tooth.
See you all tomorrow!