Stuffed Pepper

One small pepper can hold it all: grains, protein, veggies. More specifically, the stuffing includes Israeli couscous, lentils, tomato, and shiitake mushrooms. It was a very yummy combination. The recipe comes from Vegan Cooking for One, and is one of the slightly complicated Sunday dinner recipes. There are several different steps including cooking the lentils and couscous, softening the pepper in some hot water, and cooking the veggie mixture and seasoning it, before everything can actually be assembled and baked. I think next time I'd add more veggies and less couscous/lentils so those flavors come through a little more.

Tempeh and Sweetcorn Roast with Tahini-Mushroom Sauce

Okay, I'll admit that I didn't know exactly what I was making when I started this recipe. It comes from Vegan Cooking for One by Leah Leneman and since she is a Brit, some of the terminology is different than what we use in the United States. Soya milk rather than soy milk, for example. Well, I now know that this roast means basically the vegan equivalent of meatloaf.

This is a Sunday Dinner recipe in the book, which lists recipes for 9 weeks using spring/summer produce and 9 using fall/winter produce. Sunday dinners are generally a little more complex than the weeknight recipes and this one did take awhile. First the tempeh must be sauteed, then the loaf made, then the loaf baked, the sauce made, and once the loaf is out of the oven, everything can be put together and dinner served.

The loaf had a really lovely flavor. Tempeh is a great protein for a meatloaf alternative because of its texture. The tahini mushroom sauce is very savory. I also sliced up some red pepper with the dish.

Marvelous Mushroom Risotto

This recipe comes from The Vegan Table, another book by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau. It's a beautiful cookbook, though the format is bizarre, set up by menus rather than an appetizer section, entrees, sides, etc. But that's nothing that post-it notes can't handle.

I love risotto. Love love love it. Sure it's a pain to make, stirring rice for a half hour straight. But it's pretty awesome when all of a sudden in all that stirring the rice becomes incredibly creamy. Risotto is a labor of love. The shiitake mushrooms and sun dried tomatoes make such a great combination. The dish is bursting with flavor and so rich. Give your wrist a work out and make more risotto.