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!

Pesach Same'ach! Let's Celebrate with Coffee & Wine Braised Beef-less Brisket with Vegetables & My Very Favorite Charoset Recipe

Using a new media editing program - so please excuse the crappy photography.

Passover starts tonight. I could write a whole book about why I love Passover. All my good memories and how it combines food and loved ones. I could try to describe the warm glow I get in my heart when I look out over a table of friends drinking Cherry Manischewitz mixed with Kosher Coke and how sad I am that we aren't going to be able to host our annual Secular Sedar this year. We have about 2 weeks left in Norfolk, VA - the city where I met my husband and found an unexpected home. It would have meant a lot to me to make it work but it just won't... BUT I can share with you some of my very favorite recipes and what I might have served if the world had spun a little differently.

Every year I make a 2 big pots of Matzah Ball Soup for our Sedar. You might have seen it on the Peta2 blog before. Even if you're not celebrating Moses freeing the slaves - you should make a pot because it's so good. I plan on making a big pot as soon as we move into our new place in Brooklyn just to make the place a bit more like home.

If you are one of the lucky ones sitting down to a sedar tonight, I hope you take a shot at that soup and if you need any suggestions for your compassionate sedar plate you can click here. Last year, I posted a Sweet Potato Kugel recipe that was an adaptation of a not so vegan Bubbie recipe that I personally love because let's face it - sweet potatoes are awesome. But this year, I'll also share 2 other recipes that are actually adaptions of recipes I found in Real Simple magazine. The charoset recipe below is one of those and is a bit more classy and special than just going with apple sauce. Plus if you have any leftover - it makes for a great breakfast.

You might remember awhile ago when I talked about how Italian gals are taught the importance of a good cutlet... I think if you're trying to find a Jewish equivalent it would be a brisket so tender it melts. Trying to make a vegan version of that can be a bit tricky because mock meat can melt pretty much on it's own. These beef-less brisket bites are very tender without getting spongy and end up having an extremely unique flavor that is not quite like a BBQ sauce or like a mole... but something different and really delicious.

Now I have to say that Gardien isn't Kosher or least certified so I can't tell you that this brisket meets all your Kosher for passover needs. In fact, as you probably have figured out from the fact my mom's Sicilian and I married a nice Irish boy... I'm not a stickler for keeping Kosher but I love my Jewish heritage nonetheless and have found a place for us.

On that note - Enjoy some beef-less brisket & Pesach out my friends! XO

The Betty Crocker Project : Winter Vegetable Stew

The first thing I said when I took a bite of this stew was "OH! These beans melt in your mouth like butter!"

Yeah I really said that. Sometimes I say weird things but that doesn't mean it wasn't completely true. This stew might be ugly. I mean might is being kind. This is some ugly soup. But just like our Inner Beauty Patty Melt, this soup has a great personality that makes up for it. It has so much rich, unique and a kinda diverse flavor. Oh and of course it has parsnips! I think this might be our first Betty recipe with parsnips. It's always fun to kinda mix it up a little but with those vegetables and going with seasonal produce is a great way to keep it fresh - literally.

I know right now we're all ready for summer but before we pull out the ice cream makers and plug in those AC units - we should take a second and remember in a lot of places right now - It is freezing! This stew is perfect with some sourdough bread and a mug of almond chai and of course to share with friends because this recipe makes a lot... like lunch for a week a lot.

This stew is also extremely easy to make. So we had time to update our Nerdery Page and start putting The Meet The Shannons Family Album together. Over the past year we've been getting a lot of photos from readers who have made a Meet The Shannons recipe. So we're putting together an album that will live on our Family Tree Page. We're launching on March 1st - So if you have a photo that you haven't sent in yet please email it soon with your name and tell use what you made to shannons@meettheshannons.net.

So here's your to do list :

1. Send in Photos
2. Explore Your Inner Nerd
3. Eat a lot of stew!

OK - Go! Chop - Chop!

The Betty Crocker Project : The Vegan Meat Lover's Pizza Casserole

We made ours into personal mini-casseroles.

It's St.Valentine's Day! A day when we're all suppose to show a little love. Everywhere you look - there is chocolate, candy and sugary invaders. Not that that's a bad thing but my Dan isn't really that into "sweets" so really any super powered chocolate heaven explosion would be more for me than for him and I think we've all dated that person. You know the one. The one who (perhaps innocently) enjoys your giving nature in a relationship a little too much and somewhere along the way the relationship becomes a one man or woman show. I think we should all agree this year that we shouldn't be those people or date them. Like a Valentine's Day Resolution. I mean Dan already took a week off work making me food and keeping you all updated with our culinary adventures. He took care of me when I was sick and even watched a lot of Star Trek. I mean a lot. Even after all that... there are still rumors of a present. GASP! I'm not sure what I did to deserve him. Maybe it is Karma from all those years of being vegan. Who knows? Let's not question it too much.

After Dan's crazy week in the kitchen I think he deserves a vegan vamped up version of Betty's Cheesy Pizza Casserole. Don't you? A clever combination of baked rigatoni, pizza flavors and mock meat... I know what my man likes.

The Betty Crocker Project : 16 Bean, Leek & Tofurky Kielbasa Soup

This batch was made with Tofurky Kielbasa but I think Field Roast's Apple & Sage Sausages would be perfect!

Someone needs to say it. SyFy Channel's Vampire & Werewolf movie marathon this weekend was a little too heavy on the werewolves and had a significant lack of vampires. That's not to say it wasn't still completely wonderful! I mean, who doesn't love a good monster movie? But sometimes a gal needs more dialogue during the big bad death scene than most werewolf movies allow...  and less icky spine and muzzle faces.

So what do us Shannons make for dinner when there's this level of distraction? Pretty much what you would expect. We pull out the slow cooker and return to debating which movie has better werewolves; taking into account origin stories, transformation scenes, and CGI cheating, of course. But if werewolves aren't your thing, you might find yourself instead wondering: can I even name 16 different types of beans? And where would I even find them?

Fear not! They sell bags of 15 bean soup in the dry bean or soup aisles in most grocery stores, and that last bean is green beans. So relax. Pull out your largest stew pot or slow cooker, and let's make some soup!

The Betty Crocker Project : Vegan Venison (Gardein) with Cranberry & Red Wine Sauce

When many people think of Venison, they think of deer meat; but the truth is the title "venison" is given to almost all "wild game on four legs". Venison can be caribou, or elk, or even moose, but is most commonly deer. Adorable, sweet, never-hurt-a-fly-unless-you-count-eating-the-flowers-out-of-your-yard deer. 

Now I know you're waiting for me to mention her name--and I did consider railing on her--but let's be honest. If there's one thing Sarah Palin's new TV show showed us, it's that she's a phony, not a "real" hunter. She's showing the needless torture and slaughter of animals as a fun way to bond with your kids and spend a weekend. I myself don't think that raising children who are indifferent to the suffering of others and lack any sense of mercy or compassion is good parenting. I mean, does the world need more sociopaths?

I also think that this recipe proves that you can make a proper, old-school, American Christmas classic like Venison with Cranberry Sauce without ever loading a gun, and that real Mama Bears go berry picking in the woods and leave the other critters be. Those are the family values I'd want to raise my kids with.

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 : Beef-Less Burgundy Stew with Herb Dumplings

As we head into the junk food-chocoholic-sweet tooth paradise known as Halloween - we thought it might be good to post a fall dish that has lots of flavor & vegetables to help with those candy and cupcake hangovers we're all going to have.

I have to admit my favorite part of this recipe is the Herb Dumplings because they are a lot like The Betty Crocker Project's Garlic Cheesy Biscuits (that are pretty much one of my very favorite recipes ever). Another thing I love is that this recipe only takes about an hour to make as compared to the 10 - no joke 10 hours the meaty version takes and has none of the fat you would find in the 2 pounds of beef the original recipes calls for. This is actually a pretty light stew and we tried to keep it as traditional as possible while staying in the spirit of Betty's original recipe. I know I'm bragging now - but I think we rocked this one.

Don't forget that Peta has a $1 off Gardein coupon on their Facebook Fan page right now! Just "like" and print! Easiest buck I ever saved - plus their Facebook page is a rockstar too.

The Betty Crocker Project : Borscht for Vegans who Don't Like Beets

Despite what one of the most popular TV characters/villains of our generation would have you believe... not everyone loves beets. I, in fact, kinda hate them. I hate their unusual texture, their weird indescribable flavor, and how they turn your teeth pink. Whenever I think about this, I have bad flashbacks of a friend from college who used to eat them straight for the jar. It still gives me a little shiver.

So when I saw this recipe in The Big Red, I made this face. But then I realized that most people hate beets. In fact, according to Men's Fitness, beets are one of the most hated foods. If you follow that link though, you may notice that Avocados are also listed,so I'm a bit suspicious about how accurate this list actually is.

But if you're looking for scientific proof, volunteer at any food bank or homeless shelter. People donate beets more than almost any other canned food, besides maybe yams. Also note how long those beets sit on the shelf and in cardboard boxes.

Then I looked at the recipe and realized that I could totally make something that tasted like all the good things about Borscht without making your teeth pink or being heavy on actual beets. There are still beets in there, and you can still taste them a little, but just the right amount to make you say "Whoa - I might not hate beets". In fact, speaking as a Reformed Semi-Pro Beet Hater and Grump-a-Saurus: this soup is just a truly great Fall Classic that I would eat everyday.

The Betty Crocker Project : Beef (Gardein) with Bordelaise Sauce & Roasted Rosemary Potatoes

Hurricane Earl is at Norfolk's doorstep. Trees are waving in the wind, and the birds and squirrels who are usually up at dawn are being being all crazy, hiding away in the courtyard of our apartment building waiting for it to pass. Right now as I type this, I have a huge Siamese cat on my lap looking for comfort and another, much smaller cat under my chair. But the funny thing is that while there are folks out there filling their freezers with 15 loaves of bread and OBX is being evacuated, there's another group out and about without even an umbrella.

The Shannons fall into the watching-the-G.I.Joe*-movie and playing-Xbox category. Obviously that means we should make a fancy French dinner to go along with our evening of high culture. I mean, what goes better with a movie that literally shows the Eiffel tower being eaten than some Vegan Bordelaise?

I get asked a lot why we aren't veganizing Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, since this project was inspired by the movie Julie and Julia. Especially since I freaking love French everything. The answer is simple.

Dan and I asked ourselves what we wanted to do with this project - what were our goals and what would help the animals the most. It was pretty clear. We wanted to prove that you can make anything vegan. We wanted to show people how to use vegan products and share little tricks we have learned to maximize the potential of these products. The choice was pretty clear after that: Betty Crocker.

We get to still make the fancy French stuff that made Julia swoon, but we also get to experiment with more American cuisine, like Cheeseburger pie. Betty is the undisputed champ at teaching America how to be creative with products and foods that you may never have thought were capable of such levels of awesome-ness. We just want to show vegans that they can do that too, and dispel the myth that we're stuck with veggie burgers or quinoa pilafs... not that those aren't pretty amazing sometimes too. We're just trying to show that going vegan doesn't mean sacrificing some of your favorite dishes... like, for example, a schmancy Bordelaise sauce.

This dinner was so easy and so good, I've fallen in love with it. When we make this again (and we will) we're planning on a side of steamed asparagus or green beans to go with it... maybe some vegan fondue too. Both vegetables would be very good with the Bordelaise. That's not to say the Rosemary Potatoes didn't compliment this dish perfectly. If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm a sucker for a good rosemary dish.

This may not seem like an obvious recipe to post for Labor Day Weekend, but with Earl making his way up the East Coast, many of us are going to be trapped inside playing Zombie games. This is a great Date Night dinner that you many already have the ingredients for already. Plus, what warms up a rainy night faster than a deep glass of red wine?

Bon Appetit...

The Betty Crocker Project : Chicken Parmigiana

You may already know that Eggplant Parmigiana is a pretty old-school Sicilian dish, and super easy to make vegan. You probably already know the original dish is more heavy on the vegetables, and not baked over pasta. Though, you could also point out that there's an area in Italy called Parma, and that they often bread their cutlets with Parmesan cheese there - so Sicilians should stop acting like they invented eating. Even though they did. Just kidding. A little.

The chicken version of this classic Sunday dinner dish is more of an international take. In places like London, New York, and Sydney, Chicken Parmesan was transformed into a popular pub sandwich, or served over pasta in sit down restaurants. I think most of us have come to expect some form of that version when we have vegan Chicken Parmigiana/Parmesan for dinner. So this take is my hybrid of the classic vegetable dish I grew up with, and Betty's more American version.

I love how it turned out. We've made Vegan Chicken Parmigiana a few times in the past, and what I love about it is that no matter how many nights you have leftovers, it always holds up. We never feel an obligation to eat our leftover Vegan Chicken Parmigiana--we look forward to it. (Ed. note: I'm looking forward to it right now.) We're even a little sad when we finally polish it off. Which isn't something you can say about every dish.

I'm also looking forward to having one of these cutlets with some of the extra Marinara sauce on some of that organic bread I've fallen in love with. I mean, who doesn't love a good sandwich?

OK. Enough chatter. Let's do this.

The Betty Crocker Project : Chicken Cacciatore

So, last night Dan walked in on something that was kinda awkward... one of those things that you eventually end up sharing with the one you love. And of course the 10,000 people who read this blog. (No joke. I checked the numbers; over 10,000 people read this blog last month.)

Back to my story. We had a very honest moment in our marriage last night. Dan walked in while I was watching New Moon. Yes. The second Twilight movie.

What? I like vampires and werewolves and movie monsters. Correction: I LOVE movie monsters! If you've ever watched the real classics--The Blob (seriously Steve McQueen can't do wrong), Dr.Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (the one from 1931 that won 2 much deserved Academy Awards), Godzilla vs. Mothra (the best of the series in my opinion)--you have to agree that monsters and melodrama go hand in hand. Yes, the relationship stuff was exhaustively annoying, but the Twilight movies have a really high production value and I like the soundtracks. Yes, they cost an obscene amount of money to make, and maybe I'm just waxing a little nostalgic because they're filmed in the Pacific Northwest and I get homesick for Seattle and Olympia pretty much once a week... But whatever. I admit, I like these movies. I don't love them. The books are another subject, and make me sad, because trees died to make them.

What's my point?

A very long time ago, one of my beautiful and wise Italian aunts gave me some advice: "One of the most important things a woman can know is how to make a good cutlet."

Now at the time I was thinking "Really? More important than say... how to use a computer... fix a flat tire... do your taxes?"

But last night, as Dan walked into the living room and half-smirked when he realized what was on the TV, I had to laugh, because all he said "How's the Twilight?" and then "Dinner was great!"
Whatever the magic of the good cutlet is apparently extends to vegan cutlets as well, and saved me from a good-natured teasing.

Thank you, vegan cutlet magic!

The Betty Crocker Project : Spaghetti Pie & Garlic Bread

I love Betty. I mean POWER BALLAD love Betty. This project has really become a huge positive part of our lives and I am really grateful to Betty. I love her so much that I feel a little guilty about this blog post. If this recipe wasn't printed in a book that was sold to millions, I would feel like I had betrayed her trust by telling you this.

This is Betty's Original Spaghetti Pie : Spaghetti with tomato paste pushed into a pie pan into like a crust and then you put in layers of ground beef, mozzarella cheese and a secret ingredient layer in the center : Cottage Cheese. I know. I know. Please don't tear her apart too much in the comments. We all do weird shit.

As many of you know, my mom is Sicilian and I grew up eating lots of baked pasta dishes. So my version of Spaghetti Pie is a little off the Betty map BUT really it is quite delicious, not too unhealthy and not the Crayola colored vision that the Betty recipe is.  I admit that this version of Spaghetti Pie kinda came kind of naturally to me - like that little part of you that knows the lyrics to songs you awkwardly slow danced to with someone you don't remember like a lifetime ago. I hope if you were expecting the other pie - you can find a place in your heart for this version which will rock your face* - in a good way. Just try it.

The Betty Crocker Project : Sauteed Mushrooms

Mushrooms are a bit of a taboo subject around here. Dan being staunchly Anti-Fungi and myself being Pro-Yummy Little Cap-Shaped Vehicles for Sauce and Salt. So I have to admit my vast knowledge of mushroom sauteing has gotten a bit rusty these past years. . . BUT I do know this . . . to quote the wise words of Mrs. Kerkovich : "Wine, Wine and more Wine" is key.

So imagine my surprise when Betty had no mention of wine at all in her Sauteed Mushrooms recipe! It lead me to look into this further. . . Apparently everything I ever knew about sauteing mushrooms was probably based on working class Italians choosing to cook with the wine they drank. See the Italian way to cook mushrooms should be done with white wine. . . not red. I guess this would explain why all these years whenever I made mushrooms for people - they would comment on how they had never had mushrooms like that before and follow with compliments - that I am now convinced is some food version of the Emperor 's New Clothes.

There was chatter on Facebook about how I should stay true to Betty and just use the margarine and others who pointed out that you can't drink margarine while you cook and what's fun about that? Leading me to face my own biased ideas about mushrooms and well - A GREAT MUSHROOM SHOWDOWN. 

In one corner ( the left one ) we had Betty and her classic recipe :

• 2 Tablespoons of Margarine
• 2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
• 2 Cloves of Garlic ( minced ) 
• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
• 1/4 Teaspoon Ground Pepper
• 6-8 Small to Medium Sized White Mushrooms ( wipe off the gross stuff - She says slice 'em - but I kept them whole )

Heat all the ingredients except the Mushrooms until the butter melts and then stir the Mushrooms. Cook for about 4-6 minutes.

In the other ( the right one ) a family tradition - perhaps a cover for highly functional alcoholics ( Just kidding Ma - Please don't call and yell at me )   :

• 6-8 Small to Medium Sized White Mushrooms ( make sure you wipe off any icky stuff )
• 2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil 
• 1/2 cup of Red Wine - Merlot is good but so is Burgundy ( maybe more ) 
• I Clove of Garlic ( minced )  

Heat the oil in a cast iron skillet on Medium heat - till it coats the bottom and throw in the Mushrooms and Wine. Once the Mushrooms begin to brown - well - they actually turn kinda purple - add the garlic. Stir the Mushrooms ever so often to keep them from cooking too much on one side. Eat them once they are soft and kinda spongy like. 

It went fast. . . 2 skillets on medium heat filling our kitchen with savory aromas . . . the whispering sizzle. . . and the result. . . A DRAW!

They both rocked. They both would be good on a burger or in pasta and were different and unique enough to not really compete with each other. It all really depends on preference  - Betty's was a little salty but that can be good too - just saying.