Vegan Goodness:
Today we ate:
- Breakfast: Blueberry and apple smoothies for Dad and LP followed by tofu scramble (made by Dad) for everyone.
- Lunch: Potato-leek soup and toast for Mom and LP and leftover lentil stew for dad.
- Mom munched on some chocolate chips for a snack and then we all enjoyed some chips and dip from our local farmer’s market. The marketing is a little wacky, but the dip is awesome!
- Dinner: Sushi (with tempeh, avocado and cucumber)
- Mom and Dad had some chocolate chip cookies for dessert
Money Matters:
Today we needed some more groceries so we spent the following:
- $33.09 at Trader Joe’s
- $33.54 at Penzys for spices (thyme, cumin, coriander and a couple others).
- $5.05 for Pom tomatoes at Stop and Shop
Monday Munchies: Recipe of the Week
When we first went vegan finding a good mac and cheese recipe was kind of like the vegan holy grail. I’ve been on the hunt for something that could compare to my non-vegan mac and cheese for years and on Sunday night I finally got to try this Veg News Vegan Mac n Cheese recipe. I have wanted to try this (and many other cheesy dishes) for a while, but we weren’t sure about the G-man and LP’s ability to handle cashews (since the G-man has some other nut allergies). Well, it has finally been decided that there are no cashew allergies, so bring on the vegan cheesy goodness! This recipe was my first foray into using cashews and it was a winner! The ingredients don’t seem like they will go anywhere exciting but, trust me, this was an amazing mac and cheese dish. The only adaptation I did was to use bread crumbs we had on hand rather than making my own. Otherwise, I followed it to a T and the whole family was very, very happy.
- 8 ounces macaroni
- 1/3 cups of whole wheat bread crumbs
- 2 tablespoons red onions, peeled and chopped
- 1 cup red or yellow potatoes, peeled and chopped
- 1/4 cup carrots, peeled and chopped
- 1/3 cup onion, peeled and chopped
- 1 cup water
- 1/3 cup vegan margarine (such as Earth Balance)
- 1/4 cup raw cashews
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
Directions:
- In a large pot, bring the water and salt to a boil. Add macaroni and cook until al dente. In a colander, drain pasta and rinse with cold water. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a saucepan, add shallots, potatoes, carrots, onion, and water, and bring to a boil. Cover the pan and simmer for 15 minutes, or until vegetables are very soft.
- In a blender, process the cashews, salt, garlic, 1/3 cup margarine, mustard, lemon juice, black pepper, and cayenne. Add softened vegetables and cooking water to the blender and process until perfectly smooth.
- In a large bowl, toss the cooked pasta and blended cheese sauce until completely coated. Spread mixture into a 9 x 12 casserole dish, sprinkle with breadcrumbs, and dust with paprika. Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese sauce is bubbling and the top has turned golden brown.
