Pumpkin creamed pasta

I so love this dish. It is very creamy and tasty. I only added some fresh basil and garden peas to the recipe. It only takes minutes. Go here for the original and for added recipes!:  http://delishknowledge.com/pumpkin-fettuccini/    Great with ziti too.

• 1 lb. fettuccine pasta/ I used Gluten free regular rice noodles by Tinkyada
• 1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water for at least 1 hour
• 2 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 cup non-dairy milk, I used soy milk
• 1 tsp. dried sage
• ¼ tsp. fresh ground nutmeg
• ½ cup canned pumpkin
• (I added some fresh basil and frozen Baby garden peas after mixing the sauce into the noodles.

1. Bring a lot pot of salted water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook until the way you like them
2. In a high powered blender or food processor, combine the cashews, lemon juice, non-dairy milk and blend until smooth, about 3 minutes.
3. Add in the dried sage, fresh ground nutmeg and canned pumpkin. Blend for another minute, until combined.
4. JUST before serving, add the sauce to the noodles. Then add fresh basil and frozen garden peas if desired---I use the baby peas and they thaw out as you mix them into the noodles.

There is this other recipe here below that I have not tried, but I want to put it here encase I would like to:

INGREDIENTS says for 4

• 1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked in water overnight then drained
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 sprigs of fresh sage
• 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 4 servings pasta of choice

Coconut Chana Saag

 This was excellent and my hubby who does not usually go for curry dishes went back for seconds! I did use the full fat coconut milk ;-)  I got the idea from\ Isa does it cookbook. I did change a few things--but her cookbook is great. Check your library and then buy a copy! I left out a few of her spices so check her book for the original.

1 teaspoon of coconut oil
1 medium yellow onion chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced or sliced
2 tab of fresh minced ginger (not sure how much I used)
1-2 tab of mild curry powder (I used a bit over 1)
1/2 tspsalt and black pepper (you can add more at end)
1/4 tsp garam masala
1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
1    24 ounce can of diced tomatoes
1     15 ounce can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained (you can use more if you like)
8    ounces of Kale (can sub spinach but need more, or collards but they take more time)
14   ounces of coconut milk
(2 tab of fresh lime juice--I didn't have any and it turned out great)

basmati rice --serve the curry over some rice

Preheat 4 qt or larger pot---cook onion in oil for 5-7 minutes--light browned.  Add garlic and ginger--till fragrant about 30 secs.  Add the curry, salt, pepper, garam masala, cumin and toss to coat onions--cook a couple minutes.

Add the tomatoes, and chickpeas.  Mix well, cover and simmer about 5 minutes. Add the Kale and cook it until desired texture----it depends on the Kale.  Some kinds of Kale cook quicker--I had a tougher kind and it took at least 15 minutes and maybe 20.  Remove from heat and add coconut milk.  Stir well and let sit for ten minutes to let the flavors blend and get cool enough to eat!  Serve over rice.

Dilly Stew with added dumplings

 ...















If you are making the dumplings you need a tight fitting lid.

Dilly Stew

Coconut oil --        1 Tablespoon (optional)

Mushrooms--        8 ounces fresh sliced

Onion         ----       1 medium , sliced

salt             --           1/2 tsp or to taste

garlic         --            3 cloves sliced

Vegetable broth  -39 ounces if no added dumplings (I like My Essentials at Food Lion) or ADD 2-3 CUPS MORE if  having dumplings

Celery                      2 stalks sliced

Small honey gold   1 and 1/2 pound or a bit more of honey gold potatoes/ these are really small ones/ slice in half

    Potatoes

Carrots                   1 cup or a bit more/ sliced (1/2 moon style is nice)

Dill (fresh)              2 tab fresh 

Sweet Paprika       1/2 teaspoon

Black Pepper         several pinches or grinds

Northern Beans     1 can drained and rinsed (or you could use navy beans)

flour or cornstarch or instant potato to thicken

Dumplings:

1 and 1/2 cups flour                                                                  

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt                                                              

1 tablespoon dried rosemary, finely chopped                          

3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk                                       
 2 Tab Olive oil   

For GLUTEN FREE DUMPLINGS

1 and 1/2 cups GF Bisquick Mix
1 Tab crushed dry rosemary
2/3 cup unsweetened plain almond milk
2 tab oil
1 egg (can use a sub if you are vegan)
                                                                 

Directions:

Prepare the stew

Using oil or a bit of water saute onions and mushrooms for 5-7 minutes until tender .  Add the garlic and celery and cook another 3 minutes.  Add the potatoes and carrots and all of the soup ingredients EXCEPT for the beans.  If using Instant Potatoes to thicken add some during this cooking time Cook covered for 30 minutes or  until the vegetables are tender. Thicken with more instant potatoes OR you can mix some  roux using 1/4 cup flour and a bit of broth or oil and then add it to thicken, cooking for a few minutes more until thickened.(If using cornstarch try using about 1/2 the amount ).  Once thickened add the beans.

Dumplings:

Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl.  Mix in the rosemary.  Make a well in the center and add the milk and olive oil.  Use a wooden spoon to mix together until a wet dough forms.

NOTE-if doing GF sub GF Bisquick for the flour, powder and salt. Use the amounts above where it says Gluten free ones.

Once stew is ready , after mixing in the beans,  plop spoonfuls of dough on stew.  Make about 14 dumplings. Cover the pot TIGHTLY and cook for about 14 minutes.  The dumplings should be nice and firm.  Use your ladle to dunk them into the stew to coat them when they are done.

Ladel the stew into bowls and top with the dumplings---you can garnish with seasonings (ie dill)

Idea adapted from Isa does it  cookbook.

Butternut Squash and Bean Soup

Only changes to the original recipe is that I added cumin and a tab of peanut butter--recipe is found   https://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2009nl/jan/recipes.htm  The cumin and peanut butter add some nice flavor to this dish!

Butternut Squash and Bean Soup

At this time of year I usually have 1 or 2 butternut squash in my pantry to add to a wide variety of winter soups.  It cooks quite quickly when chopped and adds a delicious flavor to soups. 

Preparation Time:  15 minutes
Cooking Time:  30 minutes
Servings:  4-6

1 onion, chopped
5 cups water
4 cups peeled and chopped butternut squash
2  15 ounce cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1  14.5 ounce can chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon  basil
4 cups chopped fresh spinach
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

ME--sprinkled some cumin into the soup and added 1 Tab Peanut Butter

Place the onion in a large pot with 2 tablespoons of the water.  Cook, stirring frequently until onion softens.  Add the remaining water, the squash, beans, tomatoes, soy sauce and basil.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes until squash is tender.  Add the spinach and cook about 5 minutes longer 

sweet potato lentil soup for the crock pot

http://pinchofyum.com/crockpot-sweet-potato-lentils  The link is where I found this--it is quite tasty. I am placing it here to note changes for myself--

INGREDIENTS

• 3 large sweet potatoes, diced (about 6 cups)
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 1 onion, minced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoon each ground coriander, garam masala, and chili powder NOTE: me-use only 1/2 tsp chili
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1½ cups uncooked red lentils (masoor dal)
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 cup water  Eowyn adds some fresh spinach at end

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place the sweet potatoes, vegetable broth, onion, garlic, and spices in a crockpot. Cook on high for 3 hours, until vegetables are soft.
2. Add the lentils and stir once. Replace the lid and cook on high for an additional 1½ hours.
3. Stir in the coconut milk and as much water as needed to get the right consistency.

Sweet Potato Apple Bake / individual size

 such a good simple dish!!! Woweee!  and  This made 6 little dishes


Ingredients:

1 very large sweet potato (it was huge)
2 tart apples
salt
pam spray (or whatever)
cinnamon
honey

Preheat oven to 400. Place greased little pyrex dishes on a cookie sheet. Spray with pam.  Thinly slice the potato and the apples and just alternate them in the bake safe dishes.  Sprinkle with salt and cinnamon. Spray with pam.  Bake for about 35 minutes or until tender. Remove from oven and drizzle honey over each one. Let cool a bit and serve! NOTE: be very careful not to over cook or under cook!

Mediterranean Sweet Potatoes

 Such a tasty way to have sweet potatoes:  and  Here is the link:HTTP://MINIMALISTBAKER.COM/MEDITERRANEAN-BAKED-SWEET-POTATOES/

Note--next time I might try it without the smoked paprika , but it was good that way too. Also it took my Sweet potatoes much longer to cook.  More like 45 minutes or longer.  If the potatoes are larger than small ones, add the chickpeas a bit later!

Pumpkin and black bean curry

A quick and tasty dish.  I altered the original recipe since I need milder spices and don't like garbanzo beans with the black beans.I also can't handle quinoa--some GF people have problems with it and I do!  The original recipe is  http://juliasalbum.com/2013/11/vegetarian-pumpkin-curry/

• Pam spray for pan
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup pumpkin puree (from the can or homemade)
• 1 cup canned tomatoes (I used the diced kind)
• 1 cup  water
• 1/4 cup coconut milk (can omit)
• 1 can black beans (15 oz, 425 g), rinsed and drained
• spices--I just used a bit of all- spice, cumin, curry, coriander, and chili powder in PLACE OF THE PASTE . I just did a light sprinkling of all-spice, coriander, and chili powder and a bit more of the cumin and curry powder--(the recipe, however called for 1 or 2 tablespoons red curry paste (use less or more of the paste, depending on how spicy it is, and then add more, to taste)
• 2 or 3 tablespoons honey (or, use agave nectar or maple syrup for vegan version--can omit)
• salt and pepper
• 2 cups cooked rice (she used quinoa)

Instructions

1. In a large pot or skillet, cook chopped onion and minced garlic using a bit of pam spray in the pan OR  olive oil for about 5 minutes on medium heat until soft.
2. Add pumpkin, canned tomatoes (chop them up into smaller chunks if you didn't use diced ones), water, coconut milk (if using), black beans,  ( rinsed and drained). Add  my seasonings to taste OR do the other way with curry paste[ if using the paste use 1 tablespoon of red curry paste, stir everything well, and season with salt and pepper. Taste your curry, season with more salt if needed. Add another tablespoon of red curry paste, if desired. (Note: various brands of red curry paste have different degrees of spiciness. Be careful not to add too much of red curry paste if it is of a spicier variety).]
3. I didn't use the honey or sweetner . The article states :I find it important that you start adding honey only after you’ve seasoned the curry with salt, because we’re using honey here not to really sweeten the curry but to balance the flavors. Add 1 tablespoon of honey (after seasoning with salt), taste your curry. Add another tablespoon (or 2) of honey if it suits your taste.
4. Bring to boil, make sure to stir all ingredients well together to combine flavors and spices. Reduce to simmer and cook for 5 to 15 minutes on very low simmer (since I don't like a lot of  heat I did it 5 min)
5. Serve with quinoa (me RICE), garnished with chopped green onion. Ps would be good with a sprinkling of peanuts

Ps a way to use the left over pumpkin --here is a recipe that uses a 1/2 can http://delishknowledge.com/pumpkin-fettuccini/

Black bean veggie burger

 These are very yummy and easy to make and I love them left over for lunches. It makes 6 nice sized burgers. The original recipe is found here:
http://talkhealthytome.com/new-york-times-veggie-burger/  .   Because I have to be GF I use gf oats. This was from Engine 2 website the blog said. Go to the link for the original.

New York Times Veggie (Vegetarian Burgers)
INGREDIENTS
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can tomatoes (with zesty mild chilies, drained--ME--I just used a bit of picante sauce mild with the can of tomatoes ) MAKE sure to DRAIN the can of tomatoes.( sometimes I add extra to make patties more moist after mixing.)
1 garlic clove, minced or pressed, or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 green onions, chopped 
1 cup chopped carrots (I used cooked ones or raw)
1 cup parsley or cilantro (I used ½ cup loosely packed cilantro)
2 cups quick rolled oats (Or you can use whole ones--but check directions as the cooking time is larger)
8 whole grain buns [or GF ones!]
Fresh veggie toppings and healthy condiments

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 450º. Process the first seven ingredients using an immersion or a regular blender or food processor. Remove contents into a large bowl and stir in the oats. If too dry add a bit more tomato stuff. 

Form into patties (*I made patties flat so they would cook more evenly), place on a sprayed baking sheet or parchment lined baking pan, and bake for 8 minutes (**if you did not use Quick Oats, bake for 16 minutes). Turn oven up to broil and cook for 2-3 more minutes, until the tops are nicely browned. Sometimes  I will broil both sides briefly as it makes them stand up better as in avoiding a mushy burger 😃 .   

Toast the buns and pile on your favorite toppings.
Variation:
Sauté the burgers on medium heat in a sprayed nonstick skillet for 5 minutes on each side, until both sides are browned.