Black Rice Risotto Stuffed Zucchini Squash

Here’s a recipe I worked on and wrote up a few months ago (July, gulp!). I’ve been meaning to post it for a while now but for some reason, I put it on the back burner. I’m currently working on a bunch of seasonal recipes for October which reminded me that summer squash is nearly out of season! Yikes. If this is something you’d like to try, get your hands on some summer squash before it’s all gone. If it is, stuffed eggplant sounds lovely.

Around the time of making this, I was informed that risotto is only risotto if you use Arborio or “risotto” rice. Okay, I get it. It’s cool. But “Black Rice Risotto-like Stuffed Zucchini Squash” doesn’t really roll off the tongue, you know? And besides, the idea is to have a “creamy” rice stuffing and that’s what this recipe is all about. Risotto is a bit time consuming, although well worth the wait. If you’ve never made it before, be sure to read the instructions carefully before getting started.

I made this for my mother and she couldn’t stop raving about it. Aww, mothers. It’s just as savory as it is presentational. It’s also a good way to use up some of that leftover cashew cream you have lying around from some other recipe. What I love most about this recipe though is how easily the squash is to cut through and how well the seasoned rice and natural flavor of the squash go together.

Sun-dried Tomato & Lemon Mayo-free Potato Salad

Normally, I would make potato salad with Vegenaise or Mindful Mayo, but I decided to make this one mayo-free for two reasons: first, I have a friend who really hates mayo (vegan and not) and for whom I wanted to provide a simple, delicious, light, mayo-free recipe and secondly, I didn’t want to rely on a processed product to make a great vegan dish. The result is a really savory, beautiful, summery potato salad that can be eaten as a stand alone meal or served as a side dish at your next vegan barbecue.

It so happens that the friend for whom this was intended hates potato salad — even the mayo-free kind. Shucks. Sorry, Jessie! Well, I guess this doesn’t change anything except that she won’t be eating it. That doesn’t stop anyone else, though!

I love this recipe for it’s freshness and ease. By the time I was done chopping the veggies, the potatoes were done. And I love how much all the flavors stood out, but especially the lemon and tomato. I enjoyed this for lunch for several days and it was very filling. Next time, I will remember to share it with others around me and not just eat it all myself!

Pasta with Garlic Olive Oil and White Wine Mushrooms

I’ve been having a really nostalgic weekend. It seems, that even my dreams are just old memories. So, it’s stranger still when I’m in the grocery store, having no clue what to make for dinner, and I end up with a basket full of foods to make a meal that I once shared with someone five years ago when I hated (and was terrible at) cooking. Back then, someone else always cooked, and I always just ate. Sure, it sounds lovely, but it really isn’t that great. I like to have a say in what goes into my food.

I wasn’t vegan then, but this dish was and it’s just as good now as it was in the old days. I don’t remember all the specific ingredients quite that well, just the ones that stood out and that it was based off a Rachel Ray dish. So, I decided to update it for the present time, adding my own touch, perhaps to signify the coming on of years, the maturity that time bestows with age. It’s only too funny that the person who once made this for me, who I hadn’t seen in a year, called me while I was in the process of cooking this. The world works in mysterious ways, my friends.

This dish is sure to please the garlic lover in anyone. It’s pretty straight forward, there are no fancy spices — just salt, pepper, and oregano. And the combination of fresh herbs and white wine with garlic is just divine. Also, this one’s totally gluten free! But of course, you can use any kind of pasta you want. I just really enjoyed making something a little lighter in content and the green of the spinach pasta was a good combination for the other bright colors of this meal. Oh, and it may look like a lot of work, but this actually only took about 30 minutes. Enjoy!

“Beef” and Barley Stuffed Peppers

I have a confession to make: I’ve never had a stuffed pepper before. Ever. I know, I know, it’s practically crazy, but it’s very, very true. That being said, I took matters into my own hands two weeks ago and figured out the basics. First you take a pepper, then you stuff it, then you bake it, then you eat it. Simple enough. I think the hardest part was figuring out what I wanted to stuff it with. Rice was too conventional and polenta was too mushy. Barley seemed like the right choice. And heck, why not through in some soy crumbles and Daiya for the “beefy/cheesy” effect?

This was delicious. In fact, it was probably my favorite of my own recipes so far, besides my lasagna. I basically love anything you can cook in an oven, obviously. My only regret was that I only made two; one for me, one for mom. These peppers were really big though, even for organic ones. The good thing is that there was plenty of beef and barley stuffing left over so, I ate some of that. If you’re serving more than two people, you will have enough stuffing for about 4 large peppers.

Trust me, you’re going to want to make this.

Vegan American Chop Suey

I’ve recently been told that my food is “fancy.” I’m not sure if I’m to take this as a compliment or as a comment on having “complicated” or “involved” recipes. Or maybe the people who say this just eat veggie dogs and Amy’s frozen dinners, I don’t know. I’ve certainly never thought that the recipes I’ve posted are at all fancy or involved, otherwise I probably wouldn’t be making them. I just don’t have that kind of time…or know-how! I just like to cook. And I like to take pictures that aptly depict the wonderful taste of the food. Sometimes that involves a wine glass in the background, I guess.

In any case, here’s a very un-fancy dish. I promised myself I wouldn’t post “basic” recipes because I feel like most people who want this kind of food can easily find it elsewhere by doing an internet search. I also want to try to avoid using prepackaged vegan meat substitutes because some people can’t find them easily and they’re not exactly typical of a healthy vegan diet and can be misleading to non-vegans. Nonetheless, here’s a satisfying quickie for all you busy moms, hungry students, and just plain ol’ lazy bones like me: American Chop Suey.