If you feel like you want a meal that’s warming, satisfying, and something that reminds you of being a kid again (but plant-based and healthy duh!) then these dishes are for you.
NOT YOUR BASIC MAC AND CHEESE
Who doesn’t love a good freaking mac and cheese recipe?!! And the best part about this is it’s vegan. I feel like everyone grew up on mac and cheese. It’s such a staple comfort food, and I think what feels really good about this one is that it’s a pretty clean version considering what’s out there. It’s loaded with veg, so creamy, and so filling. It’s so delish; you’re gonna love it.
INGREDIENTS
- 1.5 boxes of Jovial brown rice elbow pasta
- 1.5 cups chopped broccoli
- 2 cups chopped spinach
- 1/2 cup Miyoko’s butter
- 8 tbsp almond flour
- 4 cups oat milk
- 1 cup vegetable stock
- 3 Tbsp dijon mustard
- 1 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 bag Daiya cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup grated Follow Your Heart Mozzarella cheese
- Avocado oil spray (to spray pan with before baking)
- 1 tsp Garlic powder
- 1 tsp Ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp Himalayan pink salt (or to taste)
- Breadcrumbs (to sprinkle on top; we also eyed this and didn’t exactly measure)
PROCESS
- Place butter in a non-stick pan and let it melt.
- Once the butter is melted, add in 3 tbsp. of flour and whisk vigorously with butter.
- Pour in oat milk and vegetable stock.
- Pour in cheddar cheese.
- Add in the rest of the flour.
- Continue whisking everything in until it thickens and it all comes together.
- Remove from heat and add in dijon mustard, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
- Cook your macaroni according to the box.
- Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
- Simmer about a cup of water in a pan and let broccoli soften in that until bright green.
- Chop spinach into fine pieces.
- Combine cooked macaroni, cooked broccoli, spinach, and sauce together in the same pot.
- Spray 9×13 pan with avocado oil so that the mac and cheese doesn’t stick to the pan.
- Sprinkle (closer to pour) breadcrumbs on top
- Bake for 20 minutes until the topping is golden brown and crispy. (We had to broil the top for about 5 minutes to crispen it)
Tips for when we make it next time:
- Cook pasta for a little less than the box says because keep in mind, it’s going in the oven and will cook a little more in there. Ours was a little softer than we like.
- Instead of boiling broccoli, just coat a pan with water and let it soften that way. So much easier!
- Avocado oil is the best option to spray the pan with due to its high smoke point.
- We added in salt, but honestly would add in more. I know we like things salty, but it just really made the flavors come alive when we added in more!
GLUTEN FREE VEGAN LASAGNA IN UNDER 45 MINUTES
I wanted to make a vegan lasagna and when I googled some recipes everything I saw was so complicated and had a ton of steps. I love to cook, but when I see that something takes over an hour I immediately lose interest. The most important thing for me in sharing recipes is to make everything as accessible as possible in the least amount of time. Recipes don’t have to be difficult to be delicious, keep it short and simple. My motto.
INGREDIENTS (ALL ORGANIC)
- Jovial gluten free brown rice pasta lasagna
- Zucchini
- Mushrooms
- Organico Bello Spicy Marinara
- Spinach
- Follow your heart Vegan cheese
- Olive Oil
- Sea salt
- Nutritional yeast
- Basil
PROCESS
- Boil Jovial lasagna in large pot for 10 minutes with sea salt in water to keep noodles from sticking together
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- While the noodles are boiling, slice zucchini and cut mushrooms
- Lightly sauté zucchini and mushrooms in a pan on medium heat with olive oil
- Add a layer of marinara sauce to baking pan
- Drain noodles in strainer
- Add three to four (depending on baking pan size) lasagna noodles to the baking pan (noodles do expand, so if there is a little space between noodles, don’t worry)
- Add another layer of marinara sauce
- Add zucchini and mushrooms
- Add a layer of vegan cheese
- Add spinach
- Place another layer of lasagna noodles
- Add another layer of marinara sauce
- Add zucchini and mushrooms
- Add a layer of vegan cheese
- Add spinach
- Place the top layer of lasagna noodles
- Top with marinara sauce, nutritional yeast, basil and sprinkle sea salt
- Cook on 375 degrees for 35 minutes
VEGAN PASTA ALLA “VODKA SAUCE”
We’ve been whipping up this Vegan Pasta alla Vodka recipe on repeeeeat. It’s tricky to find a vegan vodka sauce, so we got a little creative in the kitchen with this one and made our own.
First, we tried mixing equal parts of Rao’s and the signature MWH pesto sauce (linked HERE). That was definitely tasty, but very bloating. You know we don’t mind unbuttoning our jeans for a good meal, but we felt it could be done better sans bloat.
We then discovered that combining the Rao’s and Kite Hill Ricotta gave it a next level creaminess and fills you right up with no bloat. Try throwing in different veggies each time: maybe kale, mushrooms or broccoli. Any way it’s done – it’s been a hit! Who’s ready to make this a weekly staple like we have!?
INGREDIENTS (ALL ORGANIC)
- 3 tbs. of Kite Hill Ricotta
- 2 cups of your favorite Marinara sauce (for this we used Rao’s linked HERE)
- 3 cups whole grain pasta (linked HERE)
- 1 cup cremini mushrooms
- 1 handful of kale
PROCESS
- Chop mushrooms and kale
- Sauté mushrooms with marinara sauce
- Add in pre-cooked pasta to pan
- Pour in your favorite marinara sauce
- Add in ricotta and stir together until sauces creamily combine
- Enjoy!
By: Katelyn Hissong
