Category: vegetarian

Slightly Homemade French Onion Dip

Slightly Homemade French Onion Dip - trust in kim

Sometimes there just isn’t enough time to do it all.  I have a lovely, time-consuming recipe for a French onion dip  made from scratch.  But this one is for when you need a little something to go with the veggies and you’re short on time.  I make my recipe with yogurt, but other people use sour cream and mayo, so feel free to use those if you wish.  I prefer it to be a little healthier, hence the yogurt, plus  think it tastes really good this way.

What you need:

  • plain yogurt (homemade recipe here) I use 3.5% fat
  • packaged dry onion soup mix
  • a little red onion
  • cheesecloth for straining (optional)

What you do:

  1. If you’re really in a hurry you can skip this first step; your dip will just be a bit more watery.  In this case it might be good to use a little sour cream or mayonnaise to mix with the yogurt. Here’s what you do: Place a sieve above a bowl and line the sieve with cheesecloth.  Put about 1 & 1/2 cups of yogurt into the cheesecloth.  Place in the fridge and drain the yogurt for an hour, or longer if you have time. You may need to remove some liquid from the bowl during the draining process.
  2. Finely chop some red onion (a few tablespoons).  Remove the yogurt from the cheesecloth and put it in a bowl; add some of the red onion, reserving a little for a garnish.
  3. Add some onion soup mix to taste, a little at a time.
  4. Garnish with some more red onion.
  5. Serve with veggies and/or chips.

Coconut Carrot Cake with Creamcheese White Chocolate Icing

coconut carrot cake - trust in kim

I can’t really believe I haven’t posted this one before.  I’ve been making it for years, and it is a favourite for many people.  The recipe comes from the Rebar Cookbook, which was put out by a great little vegetarian restaurant in Victoria, BC.  There is a bit of work involved in this cake, but just chopping and grating a few things, nothing too technical.  It also makes nice cupcakes or a 9 x 13 cake.

What you need:

  • 1 & 1/2 cups grated carrots
  • 3/4 cup (180 mL) crushed pineapple
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut
  • 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 cup chopped dates
  • 3 eggs
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup white sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 & 1/2 cups unbleached flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 & 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 & 1/2 teaspoons ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon allspice

What you need for the icing:

  • 9 oz ( 270 grams) cream cheese (firm block, not spreadable) room temperature – very important
  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 3 oz (90 grams) white chocolate
  • 3 cups icing sugar, sifted (could cut back to 2 & 1/2 cups)

What you do:

  1. Butter and flour two 8″ round cake pans.  I like to  cut out circles of parchment paper to fit into the bottom of the pans for easy removal.  Preheat the oven to 350F.
  2. Combine the grated carrot, pineapple, coconut, dates and chopped walnuts in a large bowl.
  3. In a mixing bowl beat the sugars with the eggs. Add the vanilla and beat on high-speed until the volume has tripled. With the beater on low-speed, pour the oil in slowly to blend it in.
  4.  Combine the remaining dry ingredients and gently stir them into the egg mixture. Fold in the carrot mixture. Divide the batter among the cake pans and smooth the tops.
  5. Bake for 30 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let the cakes sit in the pan for about 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edge and invert onto cooling racks.
  6. After the cakes have cooled, prepare the icing.  Begin by melting the white chocolate in a double boiler over medium heat and set aside to cool a little while you do the next part.
  7. Beat the room temperature cream cheese on high-speed until smooth and fluffy, then blend in the vanilla and butter.  Add the melted chocolate to the cream cheese mixture and mix on high until smooth and fluffy (I added the chocolate when it was too warm, and I couldn’t get to the fluffy stage.  I put it in the fridge for 10 minutes and that solved the problem). Slowly add the icing sugar, stopping to scrape down the sides now and then. Beat on high until the icing  is light and fluffy; about 3 minutes.
  8. Spread the bottom layer of the cake with one-third of the icing, smoothing it evenly to the edges. Chill for 10 minutes. Place the top cake layer on and frost the top and sides. I garnished it with white chocolate curls, but my next choice was to make a border of chopped walnuts around the edge.  Toasted coconut or a decorative piped border are other options.
  9. Store refrigerated where it will keep for up to 4 days.

carrot cake - trust in kim

Green Gazpacho

green gazpacho - trust in kim

This soup is awesome! I was a little hesitant at first, as I’m not a big fan of green bell peppers, but since I have loved red gazpacho so much I thought I should at least give this a try.  After all, Yotam Ottolenghi wrote in his lovely cookbook Plenty that this is by far his favourite cold soup, so it must be good.  It is now one of my top favourites too.  It has so much flavour, and it’s got lots of healthy ingredients.  I made one big change, though – the recipe serving six people called for one whole cup! of olive oil! I cut that down to 1/4 cup.  Still takes great, and I feel better knowing I’m not eating almost 3 tablespoons of oil per serving.

While there is no cooking, there’s a bit of chopping, and then blending, so it’s not as quick as I thought it would be.  But it is totally worth a little extra chopping.

What you need:

  • 2 celery stalks (including leaves)
  • 2 small green bell peppers
  • 6 mini cucumbers (1 & 1/4 lbs), peeled
  • 3 slices stale white bread with crusts removed
  • 1 fresh green chile (I used a jalapeno)
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 & 1/2 cups walnuts
  • 6 cups baby spinach
  • 1 cup basil leaves
  • 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
  • 4 tablespoons sherry vinegar (I used white balsamic vinegar)
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons Greek yogurt (I just used my plain yogurt)
  • about 2 cups cold water
  • 9 oz ice cubes
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • white pepper (I just used black)

What you do:

  1.  Lightly toast the walnuts in a dry frying pan or in the oven. Let them cool.
  2. Roughly chop the celery, bell peppers, cucumbers, bread, chile and garlic and place it in a blender. If you are using an immersion blender, as I did, just put the ingredients into a large bowl.  If you have the option to use a blender I recommend that, as it would be a bit easier to get the right consistency for all the vegetables.  Add the sugar, walnuts, spinach, basil, parsley, vinegar, oil, yogurt, most of the water, half of the ice cubes, salt, and some pepper.  Puree until smooth.  Add more water if you need, in order to get the right consistency.  Taste and adjust seasonings if you need to.
  3. Add the remaining ice and blend for just a second or two to break it up a little.
  4. Serve with homemade croutons or a few walnuts sprinkled on top.

This makes 6 very generous portions.  I cut the recipe in half, which would be a great option for a starter-sized portion.

 

My Favourite Breakfast – yogurt, granola and fruit

yogurt, fruit and granola - trust in kim

Most days I enjoy some version of this breakfast, depending on the fruits that are available.  This one has blueberries and papaya – can’t wait until there are fresh local fruits available!

I make my own granola so I can control the ingredients and limit the fat and sugar content, and because I think it tastes great.

What you need:

What you do:

  1. Choose a pretty bowl, if that matters to you, and put some fruit in it.
  2. Add some yogurt.
  3. Top with granola.
  4. Enjoy.

Best served with a cup of tea, in my opinion.

Peanut Butter Granola

peanut butter granola-trust in kim

What you need:

  • 3 cups rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup raw almonds, chopped
  • 1/3 cup pecans, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons honey, agave nectar or maple syrup
  • 1/4 cup natural peanut butter
  • dash of salt (if there was none in the peanut butter)

 

What you do:

1. Combine the oats, and chopped nuts in a large bowl.

2. Melt the peanut  butter and add the honey or other sweetener and salt to it.  Stir this liquid into the nut and oat mixture and make sure there are no clumps of peanut butter remaining.

3. Spread evenly onto a baking sheet, and bake at 350F for about 30 minutes in total. First set the timer for 10 minutes, then break it up a little. Stir it again after another 10 minutes, then check and stir every five minutes until it is golden brown. Let it cool completely before storing in an airtight jar.

I like to serve mine with yogurt and fruit, and sometimes just fruit and soy milk.

 

Arugula & Pine Nut Savoury Bread

arugula and pine nut bread - trust in kim

Here’s a really easy and delicious bread you can make as an appetizer or to pair up with a meal.  It uses eggs and baking powder for leavening, so no need to wait for it to rise. I brought a loaf to a party where we slathered our slices with a bit of butter, and the whole loaf went really quickly. With picnic season coming up I can see myself making this one a few times to eat al fresco.

I substituted spinach for the arugula, which was delicious, but I imagine the arugula would give it even more flavour. She uses self-raising flour, but I changed the recipe a little so I could use all-purpose flour.  This bread is light enough that you could use some whole wheat flour.

This recipe is from Yvette Van Boven’s book Home Made Summer.

What you need:

  • 100 grams washed and dried arugula or spinach
  • 1 & 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 & 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 tablespoons sour cream (I used 2% yogurt)
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 cup pine nuts

What you do:

  1. Preheat the oven to 325F and grease a 5-by-9 loaf pan with butter.
  2. Chop the arugula and set it aside.
  3. In a bowl whisk the baking powder, salt and pepper into the flour, then add the eggs, sour cream or yogurt, olive oil and mustard.  Mix on high for about a minute – this makes a very thick batter, but don’t worry, it will make a nice light loaf.
  4. Fold in the arugula and pine nuts, then pour the batter into the pan and press it into the corners.
  5. Bake for 40 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let the loaf cool for about 5 minutes, then remove it from the pan.
  6. Serve it either hot or at room temperature with a bit of butter.

spinach and pine nut bread - trust in kim

 

Vegetarian Mexican Soup Broth

Vegetarian Mexican Broth - trust in kim

This recipe is for the vegetarian version of a Mexican soup I made recently.  It’s got a little kick to it because of the guajillo pepper

What you need:

  • 1 small onion or half a big one
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 dried guajillo pepper
  • 1 carrot
  • 1 stalk celery
  • half a dozen peppercorns
  • cilantro stalks

What you do:

  1. Put everything in a pot and add about 4 cups of water.  Bring it to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for about half an hour.
  2. Strain the veggies out and use the broth to make a soup.

Roasted Butternut and Cauliflower Salad with Tahini Sauce

Roasted Butternut and Cauliflower Salad with Tahini Dressing - trust in kim

This roasted veggie salad is one of my newer favourites. The veggies caramelize and become even more delicious when they are roasted, but this salad is really just an excuse to use this tahini dressing.

You can easily make it into a full meal by adding some quinoa or another grain.  I’ve also made it with some sumac-spiced chicken on the side.

What you need:

  • 1 butternut squash
  • olive oil
  • 1 head cauliflower
  • salt and pepper
  • baby spinach

For the dressing:

  • 1/4 cup tahini
  • 1/3 cup of warm water
  • 1/2 clove garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • dash of hot sauce

What you do:

  1. Preheat the oven to 400F and get two baking pans ready.
  2. Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds.  Cut the stem off; if you wish you can peel it, but the peel is edible, as it turns softer when it is baked. Cut the squash into slices and toss them with a little olive oil.  Place on a baking sheet, salt and pepper lightly, then put into the oven.  It will need about 30 minutes to cook.
  3. Cut the cauliflower into florets and place on another baking sheet.  Throw it into the oven and set the timer for about 15 minutes.  At that time you can flip them over so the tops have a chance to brown up.  Flip the squash oven now too.
  4. When the vegetables have both browned up nicely they are ready to eat. If one looks done before the other you should pull it out of the oven.
  5. While the vegetables are in the oven you can make the tahini dressing.  Begin by putting the tahini in a bowl and add a little bit of water to mix until the tahini becomes liquid.  Then add more water until it is all combined.  Mix in the rest of the ingredients.
  6. Place the spinach on a large plate, (add your grains now if you are using them) and top it with the squash and cauliflower.  Drizzle with the tahini dressing.
  7. Enjoy!

Vegan “Cream” of Mushroom Soup #2

vegan cream of mushroom soup - trust in kim

The “cream” in this soup is pureed cashews; they add creaminess without dairy, but also a hint of sweetness.  And it doesn’t taste like soup with nuts in it.

This yummy soup is one I’ve made before, but this time I kept some of the mushroom slices whole instead of blending them all in.  I really like that little mushroomy bite, both for the texture and the flavour.  I also used some dried mixed wild mushrooms in this version.

What you need:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 pound cremini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
  • a few dried wild mushrooms (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 3 cups vegetable broth (I used chicken)
  • 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
  • salt to taste

For the Cashew Cream:

  • 1/2 cup raw cashews
  • 1/2 cup water

What you do:

  1. Soak the cashews in the half cup of water and set aside.
  2. Soak the dried mushrooms in about 1/4 cup boiling water.
  3. Heat the olive oil in a large pot on medium heat and add the chopped onions, sautéing them until they are slightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for a minute more, then add the mushrooms, soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce.  Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Set a small bowl of the fried mushrooms aside to mix in later.
  4. Add the broth and the dried mushrooms along with their soaking liquid if you’re using them.  Cook until the mushrooms are soft, about 10-15 minutes.
  5. In the meantime, puree the cashews until they combine with the water to make a smooth, thick liquid.
  6. When it is ready, blend the soup until there are no large chunks of mushroom.  Stir in the cashew cream.  The original recipe says to strain the soup now, but I liked it the way it was.
  7. Season with pepper, and possibly with salt.  Because it has soy sauce you may not need the salt.
  8. Reheat the soup and serve with some fried mushroom slices on top.

This works well as leftovers, and for freezing.

vegan cream of mushroom with cheese toasts - trust in kim

Green Couscous

green couscous - trust in kim

This scrumptious recipe comes from Yotam Ottolenghi’s Plenty – love this book!  I used the larger Israeli couscous, which is also called pearl couscous, but you can feel free to use the smaller version.  I really liked the texture of the larger couscous, which has a bite more similar to a small pasta. The recipe involves cooking the couscous, then coating it with a lovely green herb paste, then topping it with pistachios, green onions, fried onions, arugula or spinach, and a little green chile.

I enjoyed this salad alongside roasted cauliflower and squash with tahini sauce. I absolutely love this meal, and my leftovers at work were the envy of many. This would also make a great picnic salad, instead of a pasta salad.

What you need:

 

  • 1 cup Israeli couscous (or regular – just cook it according to the package directions)
  • just over 1 cup boiling water/ chicken broth/ vegetable broth
  • 1 small onion, thinly sliced (I like to use a sweet onion)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 cup unsalted pistachios, lightly toasted and chopped
  • 3 green onions, thinly sliced
  • 1 fresh green chile, finely sliced
  • 1 & 1/4 cups arugula or baby spinach

What you need for the herb paste:

  • 1/3 cup chopped parsley
  • 1 cup chopped cilantro
  • 2 tablespoons chopped tarragon
  • 2 tablespoons chopped dill
  • 2 tablespoons chopped mint
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil

What you do:

  1. Cook the couscous according to the package instructions.  I used homemade chicken broth to give it a little more flavour, but you can use water or veggie broth if you have it.
  2. Fry the onions in the olive oil over medium heat until they are golden and soft.  Mix in the salt and cumin, then set aside to cool
  3. Blend all the herb paste ingredients together.  You can use a food processor, but I used an immersion blender because that’s what I have in my tiny kitchen, and it worked well.  Add a bit more olive oil if you need; I left out 2 tablespoons of oil that the recipe called for.
  4. Mix the herb paste into the cooked and slightly cooled couscous, then mix in the pistachios, green onions, green chile and arugula or spinach.  I added the spinach to individual portions because I knew I would have leftovers, and I thought it would wilt over night if I mixed it in.
  5. Serve at room temperature.