Quick and Easy Creamy Potato Soup (Vegan & Gluten Free)

The last few days I've been fighting an awful cold, and I've had an appetite for nothing but soup.  Before I got sick I made some awesome detoxifying miso soup (recipe to come) that I've been eating off of for three days, but today I came home and wanted something hearty, creamy, and filling.

Enter: Quick and Easy Creamy Potato Soup

My husband says this is a 9/10... and he considers himself a non-vegan potato soup connoisseur.

I'll take it :-)

You need:
-3 med/large red skinned potatoes, chopped
-1 daikon root, peeled and chopped
-5 oz fresh cauliflower
-1/2 small white onion finely diced (you don't want huge chunks of onion in your soup!)
-1 tbsp Earth Balance vegan buttery spread
-1/2-1 cup almond milk
-3-4 tbsp nutritional yeast
-2 cups vegan veggie stock
-1 tsp Bell's Onion and Herb Poultry Seasoning (or other salt-free poultry seasoning)
-1 tsp garlic powder
-Kosher Sea Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper to taste

1.  In a large pot bring potatoes, daikon, and cauliflower to a boil in salted water.  Cook until everything is soft (about 20 minutes).
2.  Drain.  Separate out some potatoes (about 1 cup) into a bowl, set aside.  Add remaining vegetables to food processor with about 1/2-1 cup almond milk.  Blend until creamy.
3.  Return large pot to heat.  Melt vegan butter and sauté onions until brown.  Add potato mixture & cooked potatoes back to pot with veggie stock and remaining ingredients.  Heat through, stir, and enjoy!

Serve topped with green onions (pictured below), vegan bacon bits, or even some vegan cheddar cheese!

(Please excuse the crummy iPhone photos... I'm sick!  Gimme a break!)

Creamy Vegan Cauliflower Soup

Yesterday I was all like "I'm going to write a blog post about how discouraged I'm feeling this week."

Then I came home, got in the kitchen, and changed my mind.  (Who wants to read that crap anyway?)

Bad days/weeks/months/years are normal.  It's life.  It happens.  But it's okay.  Life goes on.  And times like these give us the best opportunity to focus, adjust, and DECIDE to be great.

So here I am.  And I made a freaking GREAT soup.

 (Excuse the quality of this iPhone photo... I was being lazy.)

This soup evolved from veggies I bought with the intention to cook all week long, but never did.

Here's what I used:

-1 tbsp olive oil
-3-4 cloves of garlic (doesn't need to be minced, but cut it up a little)
-1/2 large red onion chopped
-1 large russet potato, peeled and chopped
-About 1/2 head cauliflower (cut into pieces)
-2 large zucchini squash chunked

-2 veggie bouillon cubes (crumbled)

-1 1/2 tsp Bell's salt-free onion and herb seasoning 

-1/2 tsp coriander

-kosher sea salt (to taste)

-1 package soft tofu

Here's what I did:

1.  Large stock pot.  Oil, onion, garlic.  Boom.  Let that stuff get translucent. (8-10 mins on high-ish heat)

2.  Add the rest of the chopped veggies & potatoes, cook for a minute or two. (stir so the taters don't get stuck)

3.  Add all the seasonings and bouillon cubes.  Add water (don't totally submerge all the veggies, leave like 1/2-1 inch sticking out).  Bring to a boil.

4.  Reduce to simmer, cover, cook for like 30-40 minutes.  Make sure everything is mushy.

5.  Add the soft tofu.  Cook another 4-5 minutes (so the tofu is heated through).

6.  In a food processor, puree the cooked veggies & tofu in batches (unless you have a GIANT food processor that can do it all at once, but I don't think that exists).

7.  Return to pot, continue to simmer for an hour or so until you're ready to serve.  (FYI - I topped mine with a pinch of dry oregano.. yum!)

It's like creamy cheesy cauliflower soup, without any cream or cheese!  Definitely FTMS!

PS.  If you're feeling frisky you could top this with some vegan cheddar cheese or nutritional yeast.

Enjoy!!

Smooth and Creamy Guacamole (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

Guacamole is one of my favorite, favorite, favorite foods!  I especially love making it myself.  I've figured out a basic "formula" that can be tweaked and adjusted depending on what's in the fridge and what I'm craving:

Basic Guacamole:
-You need some avocados
-You need something for flavor (onion, garlic, spices, what have you)
-You need some acidity (lemon or lime juice usually works for me... I've considered playing with vinegar too)
-You need salt and pepper

Optional Additions:
-Beans
-Tomatoes
-Jalepenos
-Something awesome I haven't thought of yet

Just adjust according to your taste preferences and you can never go wrong with that formula!

The guacamole pictured above was my first experiment with two of my food loves:  Avocados and my Kitchenaid Food Processor.

Ingredients:
-2 ripe avocados
-1/4 of a large sweet Vidalia onion
-1/4 cup cooked black beans
-1 jalepeno pepper
-juice of 1/2 lemon
-juice of 1/2 lime
-Salt & Pepper to taste
-2 cloves garlic, peeled
-1 tomato

1.  Seperate the onion layers and place in food processor.  Cut the jalepeno in half and place in food processor (remove seeds and ribs for less spice).  Add the peeled garlic & process until finely chopped.
2.  Add beans and lemon/lime juice.  Pulse until chopped and combined.
3.  Add avocados and tomatoes.  Process until smooth.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with chips or veggies!  Some of my favorite chips are:
Xochitl blue corn chips
Trader Joe's Veggie & Flaxseed chips (pictured)

Better than Bacon and Eggs

A typical breakfast for me is either a yummy fruit smoothie, or some granola and almond milk... but every once in a while my body just wants a nice hearty breakfast!  

In transitioning my diet, a common breakfast of mine was egg whites and Morningstar Farm's Veggie Bacon.  However, this is not vegan, so I decided to test out this tempeh Fakin Bacon. It was yummy, crunchy, smokey, and delicious!  

Now for the egg whites... I initially gave up egg yolks because of the cholesterol, but then I did a little research and I don't really have a desire to eat eggs ever again unless I am the one raising the hen and controlling her living conditions.  

(You can find more info at EggIndustry.com.)

Now, back to my meal.  A great way to "fake" the flavor and texture of egg whites is to slice tofu and sauté the slices in a pan.  Just cook a couple minutes on each side season with whatever you'd put on your eggs (I used salt, pepper, and of course nutritional yeast for a cheesy flavor).

One thing that I think is missing from everyone's breakfast plate in America is some veggies!  We should be eating veggies at every meal... they're the best thing for us!  To incorporate veggies into my breakfast, I sauteed some Kale in a little grapeseed oil with red pepper flakes, and then cooked it down with a little vegetable stock.  Just season and top with your tofu slices and you've got a delicious, healthy, Better than Bacon and Eggs breakfast!

Summer Cookouts That Make Sense

Summer cookouts are a great way to enjoy time with family and friends, but I have to admit I get really anxious when I don't know if there will be food for me to eat.  I hate asking people to cook something extra on my behalf.  I would probably be a little put-off if I invited someone over for a vegan cook-out and they asked me to prepare them a steak!

One way I tackle this problem is by offering to bring a dish that just happens to be vegan (summer salads, dips, and taboulis are great options).  I also offer to bring vegan burgers for myself if I don't think there will be many options for me.

Thankfully I have enjoyed many vegan cook-outs this summer!  But, I felt it necessary to post about a cook-out that I actually brought nothing to, and had an amazing variety of vegan food to choose from.

-2 vegan Boca burgers topped with a thick tomato slice
-Sweet corn and basil salad with tomatoes and red onions (Absolutely amazing!)
-Cabbage and beets
-Avocado, black bean, and tomato salad (which actually had some cheese in it, but I picked it out once I realized)

Not pictured:
-Pickled beets
-Potato chips!!  (My favorite savory junk food... hey it was the Fourth of July, give me a break!)
-Watermelon slices for dessert - yum!