The 5 Minute Lentil Soup

I wish I could tell you I've been busy with exciting adventures. Something hedonistic and scandalous would be fun too but sadly - no. I've been editing our book. You know the painful and slow process of replacing commas and shortening paragraphs. I took a stab at doing my taxes but moving to another state, changing jobs, paying off debts, a book advance and a mountain of receipts that need sorting have put our taxes in a whole other league. You know that one where you can't rely on google to handle the tough questions. Then there is the constant battle with the new website. This dreamy oasis of easy to access recipes and a working "As Seen On" page has continued to allude me. Sigh.

And then of course there was the TV sizzle (promo reel) we shot last week. Yes. We were asked to make a promo reel to be shopped around on The Food Network and Cooking Channel. Who knows maybe you'll be able to visit with us in the comfort of your home once a week. I'm trying really hard to not get my hopes up. I'm just flattered we were asked.

I'm also kinda freaking out because our Facebook page Vegan Foods = Joy has almost 10,000 fans! I know several of you have had a hard time finding us on Facebook because the page isn't called Meet The Shannons. But see the before there was ever a blog, there was a Facebook page and Facebook won't let us change the name. 

When you're busy with nonsense it's easy to just put on some Doctor Who and G.I.Joe cartoons and get down to work. I'm a pretty focused person and I can let other things drop off if not careful. And well I'll also be honest when I say that the internet has been seriously upsetting and disappointing me lately.  This isn't where I vent so I'll save it for the next time I have too much wine but I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who wishes that the world was kinder and that cruel people kept their opinions to themselves. 

Needless to say that even when I'm feeling a bit frustrated with the rudeness and ignorance of others and busy with the painful day to day of being a adult, I still eat. I'll admit that we ate a lot of lentils when we were in Greece and Turkey and you'd think I'd have enough of them but really I think that trip really just got me hooked. I've perfected a 5 Minute Lentil Soup that is so simple - well I feel weird calling it a recipe. It's just awesome.

So enough chatter... To the lentils!

Creole Spiced Butternut Squash & Sweet Potato Soup with Vegan Parmesan Croutons

This. Is. Creole Spiced Butternut Squash Soup!*
HAU HAU HAU! 

Let's make some.

Vegan Italian Sausage Chunky Minestrone & Easy Olive Oil Garlic Toast

I like these new purple plates but I'm not sure they look that great in photos.

Yesterday was a big day for the ol' Shannons. As many of you know, our kitchen in Norfolk was about the size of a bathtub. One of the selling points of our new place in Brooklyn was the bigger kitchen. There was room for a kitchen island to increase the counter space, and of course there was the coveted exposed brick. But even with all this upgrading, we were only half way to our dream kitchen. We needed something extra for all our pretty plates and schmancy wine glasses and all those random grains I like to experiment with and other random yumminess. That's why last weekend my handsome husband built me a Tardis!

Click on these photos to enlarge.

Now if you don't watch Doctor Who, you might not know what a Tardis is or what the hell I'm talking about. See, the infamous Tardis was created by the Time Lords to travel through time and space and is able to blend into it's surroundings using something called the 'chameleon circuit' while having the mystifying ability to be larger on the inside. Our new 'Tardis' not only matches all our kitchen gear but has pretty much doubled our cabinet space. This one addition to our kitchen is what I am calling a game changer and is pretty much one of the best things to ever happen to the Shannon kitchen since we starting making the vegan fried egg!

Check out how much it holds!

The only downside is that construction took up most of the kitchen Sunday but even without a kitchen... there is always the slow cooker. Minestrone is a thick soup that is as common on Italian dinner tables as pasta. It is also one of those soups that it is easy to take for granted because it is often already vegan but this one includes some vegan Italian sausage to make it a complete meal in a bowl. It's an easy dinner that pretty much makes itself. This soup is also kinda like The Doctor's Tardis ironically enough. It's full of way more vegetables and subtle savory flavors than you would think. We had ours with some Olive Oil Garlic Toast - a recipe I am sharing for those folks who love garlic bread but are trying to avoid the palm oil in most margarine. I actually think I might prefer the olive oil version but I'm a sucker for olives and olive oil and all things even a little related.

The downside to the slow cooker is pretty obvious. It's slow. This soup takes about a half hour to prep for and about 6 hours to make. So we should get started!

The Betty Crocker Project : Fettuccine with Wild Mushrooms & Artichoke Hearts

To me those Artichoke Hearts look like rose buds - I love this dish that much.

There are a few things that happen around here when Dan travels for work:

1. I watch a lot of TV. After last weekend, I can now add enjoying the first and second seasons of the BBC's Being Human to my life's accomplishments.
2. There's a sad moment around 8 pm when the cats realize that Dan won't be coming home that night, and they begin to follow me around the apartment. They won't take their eyes off me. At the end of the night I end up with both of them asleep on me. It's really sweet. I mean it's melt your heart sweet. But in the summer, completely unbearable.
3. I try to make something with mushrooms because I'm a pretty compassionate person and I know my dearest hates them. So although I love them... I save them for nights I am eating solo.

I had my eye on this dish for a long time. Whenever I flipped through Betty's Big Red, we'd give each other a little conspiratorial nod. That's why I was pretty heartbroken when the only fresh "wild mushroom" mix at our local grocery stores was basically some sliced Portabellas and White Buttons with just a few Cremini and Oyster mushrooms mixed in. But I got over it pretty quickly when I looked in our pantry and saw a can of artichoke hearts and garbanzo beans*. I admit I meddled again, but it was so worth it. Some of you might remember The Great Mushroom Showdown of 2010. This dish incorporates a lot of the same flavor I found in Betty's mushroom sauteing technique, and reminds me how much I love cooking with white wine.

I love this recipe - not as much as Dan - but I'll always think about my date with this recipe and smile.

The Betty Crocker Project : Pizza Soup

Since we started our little project we've seen quite a few impressive pizzas - An Extraordinary League of Pizzas if you will. Some were pretty old school like the Margherita Pizza, some were a little schamncy like the White Pizza and others were just about as American as a pizza gets like the Meat Lovers and Stuffed Crust Pizzas. But recipes like Pizza Dip are just pure Betty gold.

When I first saw Pizza Soup - I admit we wrote it off as one of the recipes we were dreading. We were biased and unfair. We never even read the recipe and there we were making jokes about how bowls of melted cheese shouldn't really be called "soup"... that being said I would eat bowls of our vegan Mac & Cheez sauce if I could - so I shouldn't talk.

Also - this soup isn't anything like what we thought. The truth is this soup is actually a really flavorful and unique vegetable soup with some melted Daiya and toast on top. It's delicious. It's really pretty and colorful with the bell peppers, mushrooms and basil. I mean let's face it - it's kinda impressive looking. I'd bet this silly named soup would get some "ohs and ahs" at any dinner party.  I just might test this theory.

We knew going into this - we'd love Pizza Burgers but it's good to know Betty's streak is still strong. We loved Pizza Soup and I don't care who knows!

The Betty Crocker Project : Vegan Risotto alla Milanese with Peas

I think we all get a little rose-colored glassy around this time of year. We tend to recall our favorite childhood memories of early Christmas morning surprises or piles of colorful cookies with a warm heart and hopes that this year will be just as memorable. For me this dish really took me back.

Back in the day when I was a little eater (so small I needed to be carried), my family used to go to out to an Italian restaurant that I can't recall the name of but can picture in my head perfectly... I think about that place a lot this time of year and about when Little Italy was actually full of Italians. I can remember my dad carrying me over snow drifts, I can remember white table cloths and wooden chairs hanging on the brick walls to be pulled down to turn a 4 top into a 5. I can recall drawing pictures on the small paned drafty - frosty windows as we waited to eat. I remember the inside being decorated with tacky red, orange and green Christmas lights, paper Santa decorations and tables packed in so tight that you couldn't put your coat on the back of your chair. You had to give it to the hostess. Sounds fancy but really it was just small but authentic. My parents always ordered me a bowl of Risotto alla Milanese and a ginger ale. I was pretty much the happiest kid ever.

Now the real Risotto alla Milanese has saffron, Parmesan cheese and veal marrow ( I know - so pointless and cruel) in it and if you ever watched Top Chef or any other cooking show - you know this dish is a basic dish that they are always saying every chef should know how to make. They are constantly calling folks out for making their Risotto wrong and I've seen many a talented chef hang their head in shame when called out for crunchy Risotto. We're hoping that this dish will provide you with easy to follow instructions on how to make Risotto correctly but also show that you can make a really great tasting compassionate replica of this classic Italian dish - that is so easy you can whip up a batch on a snowy afternoon or to serve as a side for a Holiday dinner with some thing like our Vegan Venison or the Citrus & Garlic Basted Holiday Roast.

Whatever your plans - I hope this dish is as memorable for you as it is too me! Buon Natale!

The Betty Crocker Project : Avocado & Smoked Sheese Salad with Toasted Walnut Dressing

So I've been watching all the Star Trek Movies. It's been a bit of a marathon - if you will - and pretty much an awesome 48 thus far. Here are just a few of my preliminary observations :

• Best Line : Please, Captain, Not in front of the Klingons - Mr. Spock in Star Trek V - The Final Frontier
• Best Klingon (guest star): Christopher Plummer as Gerenal Chang in Star Trek VI - The Undiscovered Country
• Best Vulcan (guest star): I have to give it to Kim Catrell's smug Valeris from Star Trek VI - The Undiscovered Country because Kristie Alley's Saavik in Wrath of Khan is just dreadful. Really just a terrible guest Vulcan for an otherwise great movie. 
• Best Villain :  DUH?! Ricardo Montalban giving the performance of a lifetime as one of the best space villains ever. Though I do give props to Eric Bana for his role as Nero in the latest Star Trek (the reboot). 
• Biggest Tear-Jerker : SPOILER ALERT - OK - I admit I got a little torn up when Spock says “Jim. Your name is…Jim” in Search for Spock. Oh Man...But I have to go with Voyage Home and when the crew of the Enterprise saves George and Gracie from whalers and brings them to a time when they will be safe. Getting a little worked up just thinking about it. Makes me wish Sea Shepherds had a Bird of Prey.

Oh and while I was trying to complete my mission to write this blog post - I found  a pretty amazing picture of Spock punching Wolverine in the face and had to share.

Another mission I have had lately is to try to eat a salad a day. There are a lot of cookies floating around this home of ours right now and other various deliciousness and although we are still having smoothies for breakfast and I have stopped drinking caffeine... well I still wanted some salad in my life. I do admit that this salad has heaps of avocado and sheese so it might not be the healthiest but it is still one of the best Betty Salads we've made since starting this project. I love this Toasted Walnut Dressing and can't wait to try it with some fresh bread or just some baby carrots. I am pretty much in love with it x1,000.  I love it like Captain Kirk loves women with big hair.

The Betty Crocker Project : Manicotti with a Kalamata Olive Pesto Tofu and Tofu Ricotta Filling

In my house at Christmas, manicotti might be as popular as Santa Claus. It's a fancy centerpiece dish that is that rare combination of being impressive and pretty simple. I know you may look at this recipe and think - that's a lot of stuff BUT it's the holidays - why not make something super fly? To me - that means OLIVES!

People who know me know I am a slave to olives. I love them all and try to work them in every meal. I like olives in my tofu scramble just as much as I love them in a salad, tossed with pasta or in a taco. Really is there anything an olive can't do? Maybe geometry. Olives seem bad at math.

I came up with this Kalamata Olive Pesto a few years ago to mix in with linguine and some broccoli but after trying it out in manicotti a few years after that - I can't imagine ever going back to the standard vegan tofu ricotta style ever again. I'd miss those olives but I know not everyone likes things as fancy pants as me so I included a standard no pesto tofu ricotta recipe too... because it's the season of giving and I love showing all the things you can do with Tofu!

The Betty Crocker Project : Vegan Margherita Pizza

 

This morning I woke up to a man outside my window saying "C'mon Annie! Let's make a little progress girl... Make me proud!" 

Now this man was talking to his beagle mix who apparently was taking her own sweet time doing her business but the words spoke to me none the less. I have a lot things that need doing right now and should really being focusing on this so called "progress" I keep hearing about. Until then... Let's talk pizza. I do hope this pizza makes my random neighbor proud. I know we loved making and eating this little pizza like Jacques Cousteau loved the open ocean* and Thomas Edison loved jerking Nikola Tesla around. I guess I only have one more thing to say today : 

That'll do Pizza - That'll do. 

The Betty Crocker Project : Shrimp Scampi

 

So I know what you're thinking. . . Wait. . . That's not Clams in White Sauce! And you would be correct. But sometimes you can't fight inspiration. This recipe is so fast and so good. . . it spoke to me and I was compelled to share.

Now we have talked before about the wide variety of Faux Seafood out there and even though these little guys aren't the cutest. . . they are my very favorite fake shrimp. They are bite sized, don't get mushy and have the right taste and texture to really make a nice dish. They only thing wrong with them. . . the name. 

They are called Shrimp Balls. OK now that we've gotten the cheap, childish and super fun giggles outta the way. . . Let's enjoy this culinary wish come true!