2 Delicious Vegan Recipes

Now let me first start by saying that I am NOT a vegan and have always been a big skeptic of this diet since I am a true lover of all things dairy. However, I decided to branch out and "not knock it till I tried it." These recipes come to us from the cookbook, "Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker" by Robin Robertson. She did not come out and state that these recipes were vegan in the recipes. I only noticed they were vegan until after I had already made them!!

Vegetable Curry
1Tb Peanut Oil
2 large carrots sliced on a diagonal
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2Tb Curry powder
1tsp ground coriander
1/4tsp cayenne pepper
2 large yukon gold potatoes, diced
8oz of green beans, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 can chickpeas, drained
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk
salt

1.) heat oil over large pan over med heat. Add the carrots and onion, cover, and cook until softened, about 5 min. Add the garlic, curry powder, coriander, and cayenne, stir to coat.
2.) Transfer veggie mixture to the slow cooker. Add potatoes, green beans, chickpeas, tomatoes, and stock. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
3.) Just before serving stir in the peas and coconut milk. Season with salt.

I cooked this on high for 4 hours and it still came out great! So so sooo yummy!

Mac and "Cheese" Florentine

8oz elbow macaroni
1 10oz package of frozen chopped spinach, cooked or thawed according the package instructions
2Tb Olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1/2 cup unsalted raw cashews (I used regular ole cashew from costco that were salted)
1 3/4 cups water
1 can of white beans, drained and rinsed
1Tb miso paste (this is optional and I left it out b/c I couldn't find it)
2tsp fresh lemon juice
1/4tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
pinch of ground nutmeg
salt

1.) Cook macaroni in a large stock pot until al dente. Drain pasta and return to pot. Add the spinach and combine.
2.) Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium heat, add the onion, cover, and cook until soft (about 5 min).
3.) Grind the cashews to a powder in a blender or food processor. Add 1 cup of water and blend until smooth. Next, add the onion, beans, miso paste (if using), the remaining 3/4 cup water, lemon juice, dry mustard, cayenne, nutmeg, and salt. NOTE: If you are using the miso paste you will need less salt since miso paste is quite salty. Blend until smooth. Cover the pasta and spinach mixture.
4.) *This is where I think the recipe needs tweaking. It says to transfer the mixture to a lightly oiled slow cooker and cook on low for 3 hours. HOWEVER, when i did this only after 30 minutes the macaroni began to look like it was drying out. I can't imagine what it would have looked like after 3 hours!! Sheesh!! Sooooooo...I recommend you skip the slow cooker all together. Just transfer the mac-n-"cheese" to a large casserol dish, cover with tin foil, and warm in an over for about 30 min until it is heated through. That way it won't dry out and will maintain some of its creaminess.

This recipe really blew me away! I can't believe how tasty it is. While, I still love my regular dairy filled mac and cheese this is definitely a great alternative that I will most certainly make again!

Enjoy!

P.S. Thanks to my sister in law, Lauren, who didn't mind at all that I stole this cookbook from her apartment!

~Emily