Pasta turned Soup

I needed to make something for dinner. I thought pasta with red sauce sounded good, but, of course, I didn't have any red sauce on hand. I did have some veggies and tomato sauce. I could make a sauce from scratch. Without a recipe. Right?

Turns out, nope.

It turned out way too thin, so I improvised. Instead of serving it like a regular pasta, I served it like a soup. It was delicious!

Veggie Pasta Soup

Ingredients

• 1 T olive oil
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 1/4 medium red onion, chopped
• 1 medium carrot, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 (8oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 (8oz) can water
• 1 (15.5oz) can black beans
• seasoned salt
• dried oregano
• dried basil
• crushed red pepper
• 6 oz elbow macaroni

Directions

1. Heat oil in large skillet. Add celery, onion, and carrots. Saute until slightly soft. Add garlic and saute for another minute or so.
2. Add tomato sauce, water, black beans and seasonings (to taste).
3. Meanwhile cook macaroni according to package directions.
4. Combine sauce and pasta and simmer for at least an additional 10 minutes to allow the flavors to combine.

Easy Pineapple-Coconut Cake

Yesterday, we were invited to dinner with some friends. I offered to bring dessert. Unfortunately, I got wrapped up in a little blog clean-up and waited until the last minute to find a recipe. Fortunately, I found this recipe over at allrecipes.com.

All ingredients on hand? Check!

Easy to put together? Check!

Relatively short baking time? Check!

PERFECT!

Easy Pineapple-Coconut Cake

Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30-35 min
Yield: 1 9-inch round cake

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cups sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 (20oz)can crushed pineapple
• 1/4 cup flaked coconut
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• cream cheese frosting

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9-inch round cake pan.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, sugar and baking powder. Add egg and mix until well blended. Fold in the pineapple, coconut and walnuts. Pour into the prepared pan.
3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until center springs back when lightly touched or an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
4. Spread cake with frosting, once cool.

Fluffy French Toast

I wanted something different for breakfast this morning. Actually, I was out of cereal and didn't feel like eggs. How about french toast? Yeah. That sounds good! Besides, I had some hamburger buns in the cupboard that were nearing the end of their lives, so this would be perfect. I hit to the Internet and found a recipe to try. I modified it ever-so-slightly and was very pleased with the result. 

Fluffy French Toast

Yield: 2 servings (2 slices per serving)

Ingredients

• 1 T + 1 tsp flour
• 1/3 cup coconut milk
• 3/8 pinch salt
• 1 egg
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp sugar
• cinnamon
• 4 thick slices bread (I used hamburger buns.)

Directions

1. Measure flour into a bowl. Slowly whisk in the milk. Whisk in the salt, eggs, vanilla extract, and sugar until smooth.
2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium heat.
3. Soak bread slices in mixture until saturated. Sprinkle with cinnamon, to taste. Place bread on hot pan, cinnamon side down. While cooking first side, sprinkle top with more cinnamon. Flip once bottom is golden brown, and cook second side until golden brown. Repeat for all 4 slices of bread.
4. Serve hot with syrup or toppings of your choice. 

Original recipe can be found on Allrecipes.com. Fluffy French Toast by Bonnie.

Cheezee Sauce

Want to be vegan, but can't give up cheese? Here is a great recipe for when you need a cheese sauce substitute. We had this on top of Salsa Rice and Red Beans and it was TASTY!! It's even Jeff approved. Now, it's not exactly like cheese, but it's very good. Go ahead. Give it a try.

Cheezee Sauce

Yield: 1 1/4 cups

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast*
• 1 1/2 T cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp + 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup plain coconut milk
• 1 1/2 tsp olive oil
• 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp yellow mustard

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the yeast, cornstarch, salt, and garlic powder. Whisk in the water and coconut milk, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring, until the sauce thickens, about 1-2 minutes.
2. Remove from the heat and stir in the oil, lemon juice, vinegar, and mustard. The sauce is now ready to use. if not using right away, refrigerate the sauce in a container with a tight-fitting lid, where it will keep for several days.

Recipe Credit: Cheezee Sauce. Vegan on the Cheap. Robin Robertson. pg. 36

*Nutritional yeast is not the same as the yeast used in baking bread. It can be found at most natural food stores I think in the bulk section.

WIAW #3

Ok. Seriously. I have not to start eating better and healthier and MORE. I do recall that last week was a pretty bad day. Today, too. BUT Tomorrow is another day, right? A fresh start...

Watermelon
Three Bean Loaf with melted cheese
Peanut M&Ms not the whole bag, thank goodness!
Sandwich Creme Cookies more than I should've had.

What did you eat today (or last week)?

Head over to Peas and Crayons where I'm sure you'll find far more inspiring eats.

Salsa Rice and Red Beans

Another Vegan score for dinner tonight!! This was very tasty, and bonus - Jeff really liked it! Of course, he did add some Frank's Red Hot sauce to it, but he adds that to everything. I no longer take any offense. :-) Seriously, though, this was super easy to make. You won't be disappointed. The original recipe said it yields 4 servings, but I think it yields closer to 6.

Salsa Rice and Red Beans

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1 T Olive oil
• 1 med yellow onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 cup long-grain white rice
• 2 cups water
• Salt, to taste
• 2 (15.5-oz) cans dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (28-oz) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 (4-oz) can diced green chiles, drained
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 cup Cheezee Sauce, optional (recipe coming soon)
• 1 large ripe tomato, diced

Directions

1. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, cover, and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds longer. Stir in the rice and water. Add salt to taste, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender, 35 to 45 minutes.
2. Stir in the beans, tomatoes, chiles, chili powder, oregano, cumin, and pepper. Simmer to heat through and blend the flavors, about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary.
3. Serve hot, topped with the diced tomato and drizzled with the cheezee sauce, if using.

Recipe Credit: Salsa Rice and Red Beans. Vegan on the Cheap. Robin Robertson. pg 132.

Three-Bean Loaf

Once again, I did not have the right size pans or bowls to make this, and, of course, I didn't adjust the recipe quantity. In the midst of preparing this, I had to put it on hold, run to Wal-Mart, and buy large pans and bowls. Oops! BUT now I should be all set for future recipes. Yay!

I thought this was quite tasty! Jeff didn't care for it nearly as much, so I doubt I'll be making it with any frequency. The thing with a bean loaf is to remember that it is NOT meat and will not likely have the same consistency or flavor. If you're expecting meat, you might be disappointed. If you're expecting flavorful beans in a different form, then you might be pleasantly surprised.

This was actually taken the next day, after I'd warmed up a slice in a fry pan.

Three-Bean Loaf

Ingredients

• 1 T Olive oil
• 1 med yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 celery rib, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (15.5oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15.5oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15.5oz) can dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 2 T soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 cup dry bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1/2 cup wheat gluten flour (vital wheat gluten)
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 2 T yellow mustard
• 1 T brown sugar
• 2 tsp apple cider vinegar

Directions

1. 1. Preheat the oven to 375F. Lightly oil a 9-inch loaf pan. Set aside.
2. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Cover and cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. Place the three varieties of beans in a large bowl. Mash well, leaving some texture. Add the onion-carrot mixture, then stir in 1/4 cup of the ketchup, soy sauce, salt, and pepper. Add the bread crumbs, oats, flour, and parsley. Mix until well combined. Spread the mixture evenly in the prepared pan and smooth the top.
4. In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/4 cup ketchup with the mustard, sugar, and vinegar. Mix well. Spread the topping mixture over the loaf. Bake until firm, 50 to 60 minutes. If the top begins to brown too much, cover loosely with foil. Remove from the oven and set aside on a wire rack for 10 minutes before slicing.

Recipe Credit: Three-Bean Loaf. Vegan on the Cheap. Robin Robertson. pg 155.