I’m on a lemon kick this week!

I’m also still on the Pinterest train. Finding yummy looking recipes to veganize has turned out to be kind of a fun little project on that site. Anyway, we had this for dinner last night and it was quite good. Also quick and easy. Two thumbs up on both counts!

Vegan Chick’n & Lemon Orzo
Recipe inspired by Cookinghealthyforme.com

Ingredients

2-3 Gardein Chick’n Scallopini pieces
Olive oil

1 1/2 cup uncooked whole wheat orzo pasta
1/2 cup vegan sour cream
1/4 cup vegan Parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbs olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
zest of one half lemon
1/2 pint grape tomatoes, cut in half
5-8 fresh basil leaves, chiffonade
2-3 lemon wedges

Directions

• Bring water for orzo to a boil and cook according to package directions
• Meanwhile, in a medium size bowl, mix together sour cream, Parmesan, garlic, olive oil, salt and lemon zest. Set aside
• Cook Gardein Chick’n breasts according to package directions while pasta finishes cooking
• When orzo is finished, drain and put back in the same pot it was cooked in. Add sour cream mixture, tomatoes and basil and mix to combine
• Place each piece of Chick’n over a bed of pasta, squeeze a lemon wedge over the entire dish and serve

Yield: Serves 2-3

You know that killer mac and cheese recipe I’ve been hinting at practically since I started this blog? Here she is.

Mac and cheese was one of the first things I tried to veganize after I made the switch. That inaugural experience was so disastrous, I may have actually cried thinking that I’d never again get to enjoy one of my favorite foods. Many, many, many recipes later, I still haven’t found the perfect stove top version of this dish, but as far as baked macaroni and cheese goes, I knew after the first bite of this recipe that victory was mine!

Interestingly enough, this recipe features absolutely no vegan cheese substitutes and zero nutritional yeast. Do a Google search and you’ll quickly find out how incredibly rare that is. Instead, the creamy, cheesy flavor and texture of this dish comes from a smooth blend of veggies, Earth Balance and cashews.

Honestly, this is the BEST. I’ve served it to non-veg friends and family I don’t know how many times and never has there ever been any trace of it left (my sister will actually lick the serving spoon clean – it’s that serious). That’s why it’s taken me so long to post. I can’t ever manage to get a picture of it before it disappears!

Vegan Macaroni & Cheese
Recipe courtesy of VegNews

Ingredients

4 quarts water
1 tbs sea salt
8 oz small, whole wheat pasta
2 slices of bread, torn into large pieces
1 tbs + 1/3 cup Earth Balance
2 tbs shallots, peeled and chopped
1 cup yellow potatoes, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup carrots, peeled and chopped
1/3 cup yellow onion, peeled and chopped
1 cup water
1/4 cup raw cashews
2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp garlic, minced
1/4 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tbs lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne
Paprika, to garnish

VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: After I made this a few times, I thought it could really benefit from just slightly more sauce. Now I make about one quarter more sauce and stir it in before baking, as usual. The ingredients list above does not reflect that because it makes for some weird measurements (1/16 tsp, etc.). If you decide to make a little more (and you should!), just eyeball it.

Directions

• In a large pot, bring the water and salt to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water. Set aside
• In a food processor, make breadcrumbs by pulverizing the bread and 1 tbs margarine to a medium-fine texture. Set aside
• Preheat oven to 350°F. In a saucepan, add shallots, potatoes, carrots, onion and water and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 15 min. or until vegetables are very soft
• In a blender or food processor, process the cashews, salt, garlic and 1/3 cup margarine, mustard, lemon juice, black pepper and cayenne. Add softened vegetables and cooking water 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 and sprinkle with prepared breadcrumbs and paprika.
• Bake for 30 min or until the cheese sauce is bubbling and the top has turned golden brown

Yield: Serves 6

This was one of the recipes I snatched off Ellen’s new vegan site here recently and it’s a winner!

This is a simple and light meal, but at the same time the smokey flavor gives it just enough extra oomph to make it memorable.

If you’re wondering where the hell you’re going to find smoked salt (as I did!), Trader Joe’s has it available in a handy grinder for a very reasonable price. TJ’s was fresh out when I was looking for it though, so I ended up getting mine at Whole Foods. It’s sort of tucked away there in a section of the store I never traipse through, on the other side of the cheese counter near the deli. If you can’t find it, just ask!

Vegan Orzo with Smokey Tomato Vinaigrette
Recipe courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis via Going Vegan with Ellen

Ingredients

1 lb orzo pasta
1 lb (2 dry pints) cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup packed fresh basil leaves
2 tbs apple cider vinegar
2 tbs extra-virgin olive oil
1 tbs agave nectar
1 tbs smoked salt flakes
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

• Place tomatoes in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until the tomatoes are tender and the skins are charred in spots, about 15 min. Set aside to cool
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 min. Drain and place in a large serving bowl or back in empty pot
• Place tomatoes, basil, vinegar, olive oil, agave and smoked salt in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Pour the vinaigrette over the pasta and toss until well coated
• Season with smoked salt and pepper, to taste

Yield: Serves 4-6

Here’s another stellar example of an easily veganized Italian classic that doesn’t skip a beat when it comes to taste. I got to thinking that since it is so easy to make a delicious vegan substitute for ricotta cheese, I needed to be making better use of it! Manicotti was an obvious choice.

I perused the web for recipes for a good long time before settling on this one from VegWeb. I originally intended to steam fresh spinach instead of using frozen, as instructed, but it turned out the spinach I had on hand had been in the fridge just a smidge too long. I didn’t have any in the freezer and I wasn’t about to go get some, so I left it out. You spinach-haters out there will be happy to know that it was still perfectly delicious without the green.

Best of all, this is completely do-able on a weekday night. Let me know what you think!

Vegan Manicotti
Recipe courtesy of VegWeb

Ingredients

1 lb firm tofu, drained
1 (10 oz) package frozen spinach, thawed and drained (optional)
2 cloves fresh garlic, chopped
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
3/4 tsp oregano
1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes
3 or 4 tbs olive oil, divided
1 (8 oz) package manicotti noodles
1 (24 oz) jar tomato sauce
Shredded vegan mozzarella, to taste (optional)

Directions

• Preheat oven to 375°F
• Put tofu, spinach, garlic, salt, pepper, oregano, yeast flakes and 2 tbs oil in a food processor and pulse until well mixed and smooth
• Pour tomato sauce into a large bowl. Fill jar with 3/4 cup water, put lid back on jar and shake well to further remove any remaining sauce. Add to sauce in bowl, mix well, adding in some olive oil. Ladle 1/2 sauce into a large rectangular baking pan
• Fill large zip lock bag with mixture. Snip about a dime sized hole in bottom corner and pipe mixture into (uncooked) manicotti shells, filling compactly
• Place stuffed manicotti into sauce. Top with remaining sauce and bake, covered 25 min.
• Remove cover and top with vegan mozzarella, if using. Bake another 15 min, until bubbly
• Let stand for a few minutes before serving

Yield: Serves 4

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Here’s a an appropriately green recipe to get you in the spirit!

This one is from Everyday with Rachael Ray and came to me courtesy of my sister-in-law, Mindy. Her husband is notoriously “selective” when it comes to food and she prefaced her email by saying that he’d helped himself to seconds and thirds when she made this, so I knew it would be good!

After a few small adjustments for taste and vegan ingredients, I too found myself standing over the stove after dinner, eating out of the saucepan. Don’t judge – you could be next.

Vegan Cashew-Pesto Pasta
Recipe Courtesy of Everyday with Rachael Ray

Ingredients

12 oz. medium whole wheat pasta (any medium pasta will do)
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 pints grape tomatoes, halved
Salt and pepper
2 cups baby spinach*
1/4 cup roasted or raw cashews
1/4 cup vegan parmesan, plus more for serving
1 clove garlic
Juice of 1/2 lemon

*You can also use flat-leaf parsley, arugula or any kind of spinach here.

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 375°. In a large pot of boiling water, cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain, return the pasta to the pot and toss with 2 tbs olive oil. Cover to keep warm.
• Meanwhile, on a baking sheet, toss the tomatoes with 2 tbs olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven until wrinkled, about 12-15 minutes.
• Using a food processor, finely chop the spinach, cashews, parmesan, garlic and lemon juice. With the machine on, slowly add the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil and process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
• Combine the pasta, tomatoes and pesto in the pot or a serving bowl. Serve with more parmesan.

Note: I skipped adding 2 tbs of olive oil to the cooked pasta and added just a little less than 1/2 cup to the pesto. Feel free to do your own thing.

Yield: Serves 4

This is just a simple, weeknight recipe that’s pretty easy to pull together in a hurry. Nothing too fancy here but it’s a quick, healthy meal.

Pasta, protein, pesto – voila!

Whole Wheat Pasta with White Beans & Pesto
Recipe inspired by Health.com

Ingredients

8 ounces small whole wheat pasta (any small pasta will work)
1 tsp olive oil
2 garlic gloves, minced
1 (15 oz.) can of Cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
3 plum tomatoes, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/3 cup prepared pesto
Vegan Parmesan cheese, to taste

Directions

• Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and butter/oil
• Meanwhile, heat olive oil and garlic in a large skillet over medium-high heat until garlic is fragrant. Add beans and tomatoes; reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes release their liquid, about 5 to 7 minutes
• Drain pasta and add to bean mixture. Add pesto; toss to combine
• Divide into 4 equal servings and top with Parmesan cheese

Yield: Serves 4