Easy Cucumber Salad

Serves about 6

2 Large Cucumbers
1 Large Tomato
1 Bell Pepper (orange, red or yellow)
1 Bunch Green Onions
1/4 Cup Fresh Flat Leaf Italian Parsley
2 Tbsp. Fresh Mint Leaves
About 8 Kalamata Olives
1/4 Cup Roasted Garlic Seasoned Rice Wine Vinegar
Pepper to taste

Wash all vegetables and herbs. Peel and half cucumbers, use a spoon to scrape the seeds out of the halves. Cut the halves into four strips and dice. Dice the tomato and bell pepper. Cut green onions about half way up the green parts and discard leftover greens (great green material for composting). Finely chop parsley and mint. Dice up the Kalamata olives. They are quite salty and flavorful so use more or less to your taste. Pour the vinegar over the veggies and herbs and pepper if you wish. Allow to set in the refrigerator for at least an hour before serving.
Nakano makes a great line of seasoned rice wine vinegars.

Enchilada Casserole

Even though the winter has been quite mild there is still very little local fresh produce to be had. I am working hard to create winter comfort food recipes that are mostly vegan. My transition to becoming a 'herbivore' has been slow. Although I have cut out using dairy at home completely, I still eat out frequently and find myself consuming dairy at restaurants.
Last night I was inspired by another blog post to create my own version of a vegan enchilada casserole.

About 8 servings

Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Spray a 9x13" baking pan with cooking spray

Ingredients

About 12 corn tortillas
2 cans refried beans
1 can black beans
1 can chipotle or chili ready tomatoes
1 jar (16 oz.) chipotle enchilada sauce (divided into four parts)
1 sm. can sliced olives
1/2 Cup chopped onion
1 sm. can green chili peppers

Saute the onion in a small skillet or place them in a glass dish covered with plastic wrap and microwave them for a minute or two.
Open the cans of refried beans place them in a mixing bowl, open the can of tomatoes and drain the juice into the beans, stir the juice in well in order to thin them a little.
Pour some of the enchilada sauce in the bottom or your baking pan just to coat the bottom, then place four corn tortillas in the bottom of your baking pan overlapping them.
Start layering your ingredients, refried beans, onion, green chilies, black beans, tomatoes, cover with a bit of the enchilada sauce, then layer on four more tortillas, repeat your layering, finally place on four more tortillas cover with the rest of the enchilada sauce and black olives.
Bake for 20 minutes in the prehated oven, let stand for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting into 8 pieces and serving.

Serve with fresh guacamole and some salsa and you will never miss cheese in this dish!

Guacamole
2 Avocados
2 Cloves fresh garlic
1 lime
1/4 tsp. Kosher salt

Pit the avocados and mash the fruit in a small bowl, mince the garlic and make it into a paste by sprinkling the kosher salt and a bit of lime juice on the minced garlic and rub with the flat side of a knife. Add the mixture and the juice of the entire lime. Stir.
Cover tightly until ready to serve.

Vegan Shepard's Pie

Delicious and satisfying winter comfort food!
Could be served as a holiday meal or at a dinner party.

Serves 10

Ingredients

1 Head roasted garlic (*instructions below)

For the potato layer
8 medium potatoes
2 Tbsp. Earth Balance (or other vegan buttery spread, or leave it out completely for no added oil)
1/3 Cup soy or other unflavored non-dairy milk, or vegetable broth
4 cloves roasted garlic
salt and pepper to taste

Veg layer
1/4 Cup water
1/4 Cup red wine
1 parsnip peeled and cut in a small dice
2 carrots peeled and cut in a small dice
1 medium onion cut in small dice
2 stalks celery cut in a small dice
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup frozen corn
4 cloves roasted garlic
2 tsp. dried thyme

Sauce
1 Tbsp. tamari sauce
1 Cup vegetable broth
1/4 Cup red wine
3 Tbsp. flour

To make roasted garlic, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cut the off approx. 1/4 inch of the tip end of the bulb and peel off the outer layers of skin, leaving skins of individual cloves attached. Place in the middle of an 8x10" piece of foil and spray with a bit of cooking spray. Place in oven for 30 minutes. Open foil and allow to cool for 20 minutes before attempting to take the cloves out of their jackets.

Peel and dice the potatoes cover with lightly salted water, allow to come to a boil. Turn heat down and allow to simmer for approximately 20 minutes until potatoes are very soft (while waiting on potatoes start on veg mix below). Drain. Return to pan. Add Earth Balance, soy milk, 4 cloves of roasted garlic, mash potatoes until just barely lumpy with a potato masher, or use a hand mixer. Add salt and pepper to taste, stir.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees, and spray a 12x9" glass or ceramic baking dish with cooking spray.

While waiting on potatoes to cook through peel and dice parsnip and carrots and dice celery and onion, slice mushrooms, and if very large cut slices in halves or quarters. Line a skillet with 1/4 Cup red wine and one quarter Cup water. Once heated through add all vegetables except frozen peas and corn. Once onion is translucent and other veg are soft add four cloves roasted garlic and stir through. Reduce heat to low. Place frozen corn and peas in microwave and cook for two minutes (don't worry if they are not completely cooked through). Add peas and corn to skillet. Add dried thyme.

To make the sauce; in a small dish or measuring cup wisk together 1 Cup vegetable broth, 1/4 Cup red wine, 3 Tbsp. Tamari sauce and 3 Tbsp. flour.

Add sauce mixture to veg mixture. Turn up heat, bring to a boil and allow to thicken. Take off heat.

Spread veg mixture in bottom of greased baking dish. Layer potatoes on top. Cook in preheated 375 degree oven for 35 minutes. Remove from oven and allow 10 minutes to stand before serving.

Serve with vegan gravy if desired. The Happy Herbivore (link provided) is probably the best vegan gravy I have had.

Veg Chili

Feeds 8
It's great stored in the fridge and reheated

Ingredients

1 medium onion chopped
1 green or red pepper chopped (if you like things really spicy use a hotter pepper)
2 cans organic chili hot beans
1 can red beans or dark red kidney beans
2 cans tomatoes (spice things up using chili ready tomatoes or fire roasted tomatoes)
1 can tomato sauce
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp paprika
1 Tbsp. chili powder
pinch of red pepper flakes
1/3 bag of Quorn grounds Use TVP for veganizing
Ketchup(use the kind made with cane sugar, not corn syrup)

In a large non-stick dutch oven sweat out the onion and green pepper in water or a little red wine.
Pulverize the tomoatoes in a ninja, magic bullet, blender or food processor.
Add the tomato paste, tomato sauce and pulverized tomatoes to the veg.
Add spices and a couple of big squirts of ketchup * note my measurements are guidelines add more or less spice dependent upon your taste.
Cook the mixture for at least 15 minutes, longer to allow flavors to blend.
15 -20 minutes before cooking add the beans and the Quorn grounds and allow to heat through. If you use TSP you will need to rehydrate it before adding to the chili.

Final Harvest Vegetable Soup

Makes 10-12 servings
Is better reheated the second day!

In a large stock pot saute' the following in red or white wine:

1 large garlic bulb chopped finely
1 medium onion chopped
2 small leeks, white parts only, chopped
1 stalk celery chopped
1 large carrot chopped

Saute' until very soft and starting to caramelize, then add 1 large vegetable cube (vegetable bullion), 1 box of vegetable stock, two cups water, 1 tsp. each; salt, pepper, basil, oregano, parsley. If you prefer to use fresh herbs tie them up in cheesecloth and hang them in the pot. Bring the pot up to a boil and turn heat down to low, adding two cans petite diced tomatoes and two tablespoons tomato paste.

Meanwhile prepare whatever fresh vegetables you have. I used potatoes, green beans, green pepper and cabbage. At this point you may also add in barley and lentils, bring the pot up to a boil again, reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until vegetables are cooked through. About 20 minutes before serving you may also add in whatever frozen vegetables you like.

Apple Butter

Not exactly a vegetable but, it does take advantage of seasonal offerings!

Makes approximately 4 cups finished product. You may can the butter, store in the fridge for up to two weeks, or it also freezes well.

Ingredients
15 smallish apples
1/2 Cup Demerara sugar
1 Tbsp. pumpkin pie spice (or 1 tsp. cincinnamon, 1/4 tsp. allspice, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg and 1/4 tsp. cloves)
1/4 cup water

Core and quarter apples. Place all ingredients in a large stock pot and cook over medium heat for at least 45 minutes. Apples should start to break down and become soft, continue cooking past this point until liquid is almost all reduced and apples are a medium-dark brown.
Place in batches and run through food processor until the butter is of the desired consistency.
If you are going to use a food mill, potato masher or an immersion blender instead of a food processor you will need to peel your apples. If using a food processor there is no need to peel.

Vegetarian Enchiladas Verde

Now that you have made salsa Verde it's time to use it!

Serves 6

Ingredients

12 corn tortillas
2 cups salsa Verde
2 ears corn cut off the cob (or use frozen)
1 yellow onion chopped
2 cloves garlic smashed and chopped
1 can of beans of your choice, rinsed and drained
1 lb. grated queso fresco (or cheese of your choice)
1 tsp. cumin

Preheat oven to 350. Wrap 2 stacks of 6 corn tortillas each in foil. Place in preheated oven for 10 minutes to soften.
Saute' chopped onion and garlic in a non stick skillet sprayed with a bit of cooking spray until onion is translucent, add corn to heat through. Allow the onion to just start to caramelize. Add a tablespoon of water if necessary. Add beans. Using a masher or the rounded side of a spoon mash up some of the beans. Sprinkle with cumin and stir. Set aside.
Spray 13x9" glass or non stick pan with cooking spray. Ladle in one cup of the salsa Verde, spread over the bottom of the pan evenly.
Spoon a small amount of salsa Verde in each tortilla, then spoon in some of the bean/corn/onion mixture, sprinkle with a bit of cheese, roll and place seam side down in the baking pan. Repeat this until all of the tortillas are used up. Your pan should be full. Ladle on the rest of the salsa Verde and spread evenly over rolled enchiladas. Sprinkle on the remainder of the queso fresco.
Bake in 350 degree oven for about 25-30 minutes.