Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie

After seeing the Skillet Gardener's Pie on Fat Free Vegan Kitchen I just couldn't resist trying it. My husband and I often make veggie pot pies so I figured this would be a nice break from the pie crust and a chance to make some mashed potatoes. The recipe was pretty straight forward and worked well. It is also a recipe that you can play around with a bit and still have a good result.

I wanted to stick close to the recipe since this was my first time making it. I did however leave out the mushrooms and added a zucchini. I also used lentils instead of the kidney beans. 

The recipe called for leaving the vegetable mixture in the skillet and placing the mashed potatoes on top of it. To make it easier to store (I knew we would have a lot of leftovers) I transferred the vegetable mixture to a different pan and then coated it with the mashed potatoes. I also broiled that for a few minutes to get the top of the potatoes a little crispy and brown.  The result was a hearty and filling dinner!

Carrot Zucchini Muffins

My breakfast routine is pretty redundant and doesn't vary much. It's sad. Yesterday I decided I would make some muffins. But I wasn't in the mood for muffins that would make me feel like I'm eating dessert. I wanted something not too sweet. I found a recipe on the Whole Foods website for Carrot Apple Muffins and used that as a starting base. I changed the recipe by making it vegan and adding zucchinis. They came out moist and definitely not too sweet!

Ingredients

1/2 cup shredded carrot

1/2 cup shredded zucchini

2 tablespoons flaxseed meal + 6 tablespoons water (mixed)

1/4 cup soy milk

1/4 cup soy yogurt

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup applesauce

1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup raw sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease or line a muffin pan. Combine the carrots, zucchini, flaxseed mixture, soymilk, yogurt, vanilla, and applesauce. In a separate bowl mix the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add half of the wet mixture into the flour mixture and mix well. Stir in the other half of the wet mixture until well blended. Spoon the batter into the muffin pan and bake for about 20 minutes.

Sushi Salad

I've never made sushi but have always wanted to try to. And then I saw this recipe for sushi salad on Fat Free Vegan Kitchen and thought I can put off the actually sushi for awhile. This was such an easy and creative recipe! 

Seasoned rice vinegar gives the rice salad the sushi flavor. I used edamame and carrots (both steamed for about 10 minutes), red peppers, cucumbers, almonds, and sesame seeds like the recipe suggested. Instead of making the prepared mushrooms I substituted zucchini that was prepared the same way. I would have used mushrooms if it weren't for the fact that my husband doesn't like them. Boo! Regardless, this was very easy to make and pretty much fool proof. And it tasted pretty darn good.

Vegan S'mores Cupcakes

I finally caved in and bought the book Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World. And boy am I glad I did, if only for the S'mores cupcakes I just made! I'm not going to post the recipe (since it's in the book) but pictures I do have.

So basically there is the graham cracker cupcake:

Then I chose to cover that in the Rich Chocolate Ganache Topping. The recipe recommended sprinkling the frosting with chocolate shavings or drizzling the frosting with chocolate. I however wanted more chocolate. After all, real s'mores have pieces of chocolate bars in them!

On top of that I put a spoonful of the Vegan Fluffy Buttercream Frosting, or "the marshmallow":

Finally, I sprinkled graham cracker crumbs on top:

 My husband said they looked like they were toasted marshmallows. I think I'm in love with a cupcake.

Arugula Walnut Pesto

Most people think of basil and pine nuts when they think of pesto sauce. And there's nothing wrong your pesto being made up of basil and pine nuts . I like it quite a bit. But sometimes you need a change. Or the pine nuts are just too expensive and the basil doesn't look so hot. I've played around with different pestos and I find that arugula is a pretty good substitute for basil and toasted walnuts are a good compliment to replace the pine nuts. Not to mention the omega-3s in the walnuts and the multiple vitamins in arugula.

Ingredients

5 ounces of arugula (about 4 or 5 cups)

1/2 cup crushed toasted walnuts

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 large cloves of garlic

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons lemon juice

pepper to taste

Directions

Combine the walnuts, salt, garlic, olive oil, and lemon juice in a food processor until smooth. Add the arugula about a cup at a time, scraping down the sides as necessary. Add pepper to taste.

I tossed about three servings of whole wheat linguini with some of the pesto and there is still about half of it left. As for the rest...I'm thinking it might taste good smothered on some bread, on a wrap with sauteed vegetables, or maybe just some spinach pasta.