Root Lovers' Winter Salad

Sunday, November 19, 2017 - Dinner
Root Lovers' Winter Salad (with Creamy Apple Cider Viniagrette dressing)
Recipe from Run Fast. Eat Slow. by Shalane Flanagan and Elyse Kopecky



The recipe said the salad could be made with any combination of root vegetables, mixed with chickpeas and roasted. I followed the authors' recommendation and used carrots, gold beets, parsnips, and rutabaga. I've never made parsnips or rutabaga before. I will definitely make parsnips again. The rutabaga was good, but maybe not worth the trouble of scraping off the wax casing. All the vegetables tasted great, and they went well with the arugula and the creamy apple cider vinaigrette dressing. The dressing was quick and easy to make, and the leftovers were great on spinach salads.

I saved the leftover vegetables (separate from the greens) to reheat for lunches through the week. They would be fine on their own, but I mixed them with arugula to make more of the salad. I can't wait to try this recipe again and experiment with other combinations of vegetables!

Orzo Pilaf with Roasted Red Peppers and Peas

Sunday, February 12, 2017 - Lunch
Orzo Pilaf with Roasted Red Peppers and Peas (Recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau)

This pilaf was tasty and filling, and the mild flavor makes for a good winter meal or side dish.  It was fast and easy to make, and I have plenty of leftovers for lunch for the week.

"Honey" Mustard Salad Dressing

Saturday, January 21, 2017 - Lunch
"Honey" Mustard Salad Dressing  (Recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau)

This salad dressing was quick, easy, and delicious. It took about two minutes to get all the ingredients and mix them together, then I poured it on my salad. It tastes good, and I know what's in it. The recipe uses agave instead of honey, since it's a vegan recipe, and it tastes the same, maybe a just little richer. One recipe made enough dressing to last me a couple weeks. I will make this again in the future. I included the optional olive oil this time, and it was good, so next time I'll try it without the oil to see which way I prefer.  

Peanut Butter Smoothie

Monday, November 21, 2016 - Lunch
Peanut Butter Smoothie (Recipe from Mayim's Vegan Table by Mayim Bialik)

This smoothie was pretty good. It was my second attempt at this recipe, this time without the optional spinach (see earlier post). It was much better this way. The only change I might make, if I were to try it again, would be to add a little extra almond milk to thin the consistency; it was a little thick, but still tasty and filling.

Pumpkin Curry

Sunday, October 23, 2016 - Dinner
Pumpkin Curry  (Recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau)

This pumpkin curry was delicious, and perfect for a cool fall day.  I made it a little spicier than the recipe suggested, and it was nice and hot with a hint of sweetness.  The only thing that made it a little weird was the texture of the coconut - at first, I thought that the lentils were undercooked, but it was just pieces of coconut.  Perhaps next time I could blend the coconut before adding it to the curry sauce.  This curry dish was tasty and satisfying, and it made 10 servings, so I have plenty of leftovers for lunches!  

Pasta with Tomatoes and Artichokes

Sunday, September 4, 2016 - Dinner
Crowd-pleasing Pasta with Tomatoes and Artichokes (Recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau)

This sauce was flavorful and easy to make, and the recipe made so much food that I'll have plenty of leftovers for lunches this week!

African Sweet Potato and Peanut Stew

Saturday, September 3, 2016 - Dinner
African Sweet Potato and Peanut Stew (Recipe from The Vegan Table by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau)

I've been wanting to make this recipe for a while, so as soon as my local farm had fresh sweet potatoes, I jumped at the chance to cook up this stew.  I was not disappointed.  The stew smelled delicious while it was cooking, and it tasted fantastic.

It reminded me a little of the Saffron-spiked Moroccan Stew, but while that was sweet and spicy, this one was a hearty stew with a strong peanut flavor and a hint of sweetness.

I served the stew over couscous, per the cookbook's recommendation, and added some texture and made this meal even more filling and satisfying.