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Fall Pumpkin Macaroni and Cheese Recipe

Despite all the glitz and glamour we currently see in the stores this time of year, it’s still Fall. And, the holiday season is not quite here. For at least the next twenty-five days anyway!

Which means there’s still plenty of time to enjoy seasonal takes on classic dishes, including creamy, delicious macaroni and cheese. Just with a vegan twist on this holiday classic, for Pumpkin Mac and Cheese.

Made with organic garlic, pan-fried mushrooms, Go Veggie Parmesan Topping, Daiya Cheddar Cheese, Gluten-Free Bob’s Red Mill Flour, and organic pumpkin puree, this super healthy, gluten-free, low-fat Pumpkin Mac and Cheese dish is one you’ll come back to time and time again!

This recipe is also super easy to make. As you can use organic canned pumpkin puree. Which makes not only a light, creamy, cheese sauce but a super quick weeknight meal too! Be sure to check out below on how to make my favorite Fall Pumpkin Macaroni and Cheese. You’ll be glad you did!

You can also check out my other healthy recipes on the blog too! Many perfect for holiday noshing at home this holiday season! Now, I want to ask, do you have a favorite macaroni and cheese recipe? I’d love to hear about it below!

Fall Pumpkin Macaroni and Cheese Recipe

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Yield: 3 cups

Serving Size: 6 servings

Calories per serving: 51

Fat per serving: 2.7g

Fall Pumpkin Macaroni and Cheese Recipe

A delicious, creamy, vegan, gluten-free fall-inspired dish that will make the perfect side dish for your fall meals at home.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups pureed pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
  • 2 tablespoons Earth Balance spread
  • 1 cup soy or almond milk
  • 1 cup Daiya cheese shreds
  • 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
  • 2 cups organic pasta of choice; I use macaroni

Instructions

  1. Combine all sauce ingredients in a medium pot and bring to a complete boil.
  2. Lower the heat, and stir until well combined.
  3. Boil, drain, and cool pasta; add to sauce and stir.
  4. Please note, this sauce will thickens as it cools and will be much thicker the next day.

Notes

Weight Watchers Points Plus: 1 point per 1/2 cup sauce (calculated with Silk almond milk and Daiya cheddar)

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Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

There are so many things that I love about this time of year. From the falling leaves to the holidays and festivals, life is good in the Fall. One of my more favorite things this time of year? Crockpot Apple Chai Cider.

This warm, spicy, soothing drink is always a favorite for family get-togethers, and even for fun, family movie night deep in the Fall. What I love about this recipe is that it’s super easy to make, stores well, reheats like a dream, and encompasses my two favorite drinks, cider, and Chai tea.

The best part? It can be prepped in under fifteen minutes!

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

Now if your looking for a fun, frugal way to get an early start to the fall season here’s how to make Crockpot Apple Chai Cider:

I start by gathering my ingredients, including whole organic apples. I generally use a blend of the gala, granny smith, and Macintosh apple varieties. I also gather my other supplies including apple cider, ground cinnamon, apple cider vinegar, chia seeds, and Himalayan pink salt.

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

I always start by peeling, coring, and seeding my apples. This is easily done with an apple peeler. I like to use my cores to make apple cider vinegar.

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

Take the cored sections and place them in a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle each apple, including all of the inner rings, with a generous amount of the cinnamon and sugar blend. Then set aside.

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

Then need to fresh-brew 3 cups of organic chai tea. This is my favorite brand to use, but feel free to use whatever you have on-hand at home. To save time, I use my Keurig to brew three batches into my measuring cup and steep for 10 minutes. Then the cider is ready to spice!

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

I like to soup up my blend by adding my own chai spices to the cider, including cardamom, fresh ginger, whole cinnamon sticks, whole black peppercorns, and clove. Adding 3 cups chai tea, 1 teaspoon chia seeds, dried orange slices, and ground spices to the bottom of your crockpot. Stir gently to combine.

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

Finally, add your apple slices and top with 1/2 gallon apple cider and 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar. Let your cider meld together for 5-minutes.  Then set your slow cooker to high for 1 hour and then turn down to low and cook for 3-4 hours. Adding more cider to cooker if liquids reduce too quickly.

Tip: When turning your slow cooker down to low is a great time to test your blend for sweetness and spice. Add more to your cider accordingly. 

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

When your drink is done, serve warm and garnish with star anise or a cinnamon stick. This drink is always a favorite for family get-togethers, and even for fun, family movie night deep in the Fall. While for everyday use this awesome cider gets placed in a mug.

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

Now be sure to not throw out your apples! Simply remove your star anise and whole cinnamon sticks and then add additional apple cider back into your crockpot and purree your blend with an emulsion blender to create some of the best apple butter you’ve ever had!

It freezes well and makes for awesome, frugal holiday gift and hostess gift offering too! Also be sure to check out my other holiday recipes here!

So, friends, tell me, do you have any tips, tricks, hacks, or suggestions for homemade apple cider drinks, I’d love to hear about it below!

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 5 hours

Total Time: 5 hours, 15 minutes

Yield: 8 1-cup servings

Serving Size: 8 ounces

Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

A delicious fall-inspired cider recipe. Great for cold days at home and perfect for celebrating the bountiful harvest of apples during National Apple Month each fall!

Ingredients

  • 5 organic apples; cored, spiralized, and seeded
  • 3 cups fresh brewed chai tea
  • 1/2 gallon apple cider; apple juice can be substituted
  • 3 cinnamon sticks
  • 1 teaspoon ground clove
  • 3 dried orange slices
  • 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
  • 1/4 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
  • 5 whole peppercorns
  • 1/2 cup organic caster sugar
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon organic apple cider vinegar
  • 3 star anise pieces
  • 1 teaspoon chia seeds

Instructions

  1. Prepare your apples, set aside
  2. Create a mixture of sugar and ground cinnamon. Sprinkle over your apples on a baking sheet. Set aside.
  3. Add remaining spices to your crockpot, apple cider vinegar, and half of your cider to your crockpot. Stir to combine.
  4. Add your apples to your crockpot. Top with remaining cider.
  5. Cook on high for 1 hour then reduce heat to low for 3-4 hours.
  6. Serve warm with cinnamon stick and star anise garnish.
  7. Enjoy!
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Crock-Pot Apple Chai Cider

Apple Walnut Overnight Oats

Apple Walnut Overnight Oats

Apples. There are fewer things that get me out of bed quicker each morning than knowing I have a bowl of my favorite fall-flavored overnight oats waiting on me. Especially when they are made with September’s finest crop, the humble apple. And my favorite kind? DIY Apple Pie Walnut Overnight Chia Seed Pudding. The perfect fall breakfast option at home.

A recipe that’s quick, easy and delish- perfect for your period cravings at home! This chia seed pudding can be made portable in a mason jar rather than a bowl and can be conveniently made before bed. Then just give it a stir in the morning and you’re good to go, ya’ll!

Apple Walnut Overnight Oats

I love chia puddings because they keep me feeling full, satisfied, and nourished. I’m sure you know by now that chia seeds are magical little nutrient-packed powerhouses of goodness packed with fiber, protein, and minerals. This recipe also features a fall-ready apple jam that’s out of this world yummy. Perfect for that time of the month!

7 Ways to Make Your Period More Zero-Waste at Home

Did I also mention that chia seeds are packed with anti-aging antioxidants? Yup, this pudding can help you look and feel good too!

I love using chia seeds because they are:

  • packed with antioxidants for anti-aging benefits (more antioxidants than flaxseeds)
  • rich in omega’s
  • lots of soluble fiber to keep you feeling fuller longer
  • provide sustainable energy and balance blood sugar levels
  • an easily digested form of plant protein
    rich in calcium, iron and vitamin C

7 Ways to Make Your Period More Zero-Waste at Home

It’s also fall, which means we are entering the full swings of apple season in my neck of the woods. So, of course, this chia seed pudding is packed full of apple pie flavor. I for one can’t seem to get enough apples lately. They’re my favorite period-friendly snack of all time!

In this recipe, you’ll be infusing all that chia goodness with almond milk, cinnamon, and vanilla. Topped off with a delicious apple jam and the crunchy goodness of pecans and walnuts! It’s apple pie, just reimaged in a fun, frugal, and super satisfying too! You’ll want to make this super simple apple pie yumminess, sweetened with 100% pure apple juice and stevia the next time Aunt Flow comes to town this fall!

I start this recipe by washing, peeling, and coring my apples. The scraps from the apples can be used to make DIY Apple Cider Vinegar, dehydrated to make pet treats, or composted!

7 Ways to Make Your Period More Zero-Waste at Home

Much like other chia seed jam recipes, you’ll cook down the fruit along with chia seeds and any desired spices. I sweetened this recipe with 100% apple juice and stevia to give it a little extra fall apple kick. It tasted amazing. I opted to use my pressure cooker, on a 10-minute setting, but feel free to use your stove top instead. I made a fairly small batch the first time I made it, but it disappeared quickly! And by disappeared quickly I mean that I ate the whole batch in less than 12 hours. Can you blame me? I was on my period, after all!

After cooking the apples down the apples and cooling them for about 20 minutes, they will be nice and soft and the jam base will have thickened up nicely thanks to those awesome little chia seeds. to finish the jam, I took a silicone spatula and mashed half of the apple mixture to get a nice, thick consistency. You can mash all of it if you want, but I liked leaving lots of apple chunks for texture. That’s my jam!

7 Ways to Make Your Period More Zero-Waste at Home

Make the chia seed overnight oats was just as easy! Just whisk together to combine the oats, chia seeds, almond milk, vanilla, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Place in the fridge overnight to thicken. The oats are ready when all the liquid has been absorbed and the oats are soft. You can adjust your overnight oats as well. You can thin it out with more milk as needed.

7 Ways to Make Your Period More Zero-Waste at Home

To assemble my DIY Apple Pie Pecan Overnight Chia Seed Pudding, simply layer the vegan overnight oats with the apple pie jam, a few spoonfuls to each per layer. Add your chopped pecans and walnuts on top of each layer, if desired. Garnish with a cinnamon stick, and you’re ready! This recipe will be your new period-ready go-to! Give it a try, it’s pretty awesome!

Friends, that’s my favorite overnight oats recipe. I hope you’ll give this recipe a try and enjoy this sweet, nutritious deliciousness for yourself this fall. Now I have to ask, what’s your favorite oats recipe this fall? I’d love to hear about it below!

Overnight Apple Walnut Oats

Overnight Apple Walnut Oats

Ingredients

  • 1 cup unsweetened vanilla soy milk
  • 1/4 cup chia seeds
  • 4 golden delicious apples, chopped, peeled & cored
  • 1 teaspoon pure maple syrup
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup apple cider or apple juice
  • 1 dash lemon juice
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt; divided between apples and oats
  • 1 tablespoon crushed walnuts
  • A pinch of nutmeg

Instructions

  1. To make the oats, add the soy milk, chia seeds, maple syrup, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a mason jar. Stir it until smooth and combined, making sure the chia seeds aren't clumping.
  2. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
  3. To make the apples: Add your salt, apples, and cider to a pressure cooker or crock pot. Cook on pressure setting for 10 minutes or 4-6 hours on high in the slow cooker. Cool completely overnight.
  4. To assemble in the morning, add layers of your apples and overnight oats to a pint mason jar. Top with walnuts and garnish with a cinnamon stick. Lasts us to one week in the fridge. Enjoy!
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Apple Walnut Overnight Oats

 

Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

If you’ve been around my blog for any amount of time then you already know my family loves popcorn! But what you may not know is that growing up I was a huge fan of Doritos. But now that I am plant-based, and actively working towards getting my family fully onboard with this transition as well, it’s not been something I’ve purchased for the home.

There’s also the fact that as an aspiring whole food plant-based foodie, GMO corn and the chemical concoction on top of the crispy chips are not welcome in our home either. After all, who really thinks yummy when you hear that your tortilla chips are dowsed with monosodium glutamate, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Red 40, disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate? Me either.

For the past few months, I’ve been scouring the web looking for a ready-made recipe, but nothing really seemed to check off all the boxes for me. Because I was looking for a recipe that was dairy free, gluten free, vegan, and perfect for football season, a.k.a., date-nights-in for housewives everywhere come the fall. Which is why it occurred to me to try and combine my love for Dorito® chips, with what else, Popcorn!

So I’ve taken my hand to make my own. So if you’re like me, and trying to avoid both GMOs and grocery store checkout lines, here’s my recipe for Doritos-inspired popcorn:

Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

To begin, I put together my spice blend. This consisted of nutritional yeast, garlic powder, Adobo seasoning, organic cumin, paprika, organic chili powder, cayenne pepper, and kosher salt.

Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

My favorite ingredient in this mix? Nutritional Yeast. With a naturally cheesy flavored non-candida-feeding yeast, packed with high levels of natural b12 is what totally takes this recipe from super to spectacular. This ancient Egyptian superfood is popular with vegan and plant-based folks the world over due to its dairy-free taste. Our family’s favorite brand? Bob’s Red Mill nutritional yeast.

Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

Now to drag out our trusty popper. Here’s the brand we use. Then just air pop as directed.

Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

You’ll then need to grind your seasonings. I love using a spice mill but a mortar and pestle works too!

Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

Next, drizzle your coconut oil over your popcorn. Keep in mind the oil is used to give the seasoning something to adhere to and is not required for air popping kernels. But you could omit if you choose. Especially for those with Whole Food Plant-Based diets at home.

Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

Toss to coat your popped kernels. Making sure to get the yummy seasoning on the bottle of the bowl redistributed throughout your popcorn!

Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

Finally, sprinkle with your seasoning and toss again to combine. And that’s it! I made a whole bunch of batches of this perfectly palatable popcorn this past weekend and it was a big hit. I hope you’ll try this recipe out at home and love this Dorito Popcorn as much as we do!

Also be sure to check out my other fall-inspired recipes and pin them for easy reference this season too!

Now, friends, I want to ask, what is your favorite way to eat popcorn? Let me know your favorite brand or recipe below! I can’t wait to hear your favorites this season!

Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 2 minutes

Total Time: 7 minutes

Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

A simple-to-make, delicious, dairy-free, gluten-free, vegan snack treat! This Doritos-like popcorn will be your new favorite popcorn treat this season!

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup unpopped organic popcorn kernels
  • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 2 Tablespoons organic coconut oil
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon Adobo seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoons kosher salt

Instructions

  1. Prepare popcorn; we used air popper.
  2. Combine all spices and salt in a small bowl. Set aside
  3. Blend seasonings in a spice grinder into a fine powder. Set aside.
  4. Sprinkle coconut oil over popcorn.
  5. Then sprinkle seasoning over popcorn and toss to coat.
  6. Enjoy!
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Nacho Cheese Doritos Popcorn

Homemade Vegan Mole Sauce Recipe

For the past week, I have been in the mood for all things pepper. Call it a last ditch effort to hold steadfast to the foods of Fall or needing to spice up my every changing vegan diet at home, peppers have just seemingly been on my mind.

And with Cinco de Mayo right around the corner, I couldn’t think of a better time to share with you one my favorite recipes, homemade mole sauce.

A recipe that I have adopted from a family friend and former part-time childhood caretaker, Ms. Katie. This recipe was her grandmother’s recipe for Chicken Mole, brought with her to the United States from the Puebla state in Mexico after she naturalized as a citizen in the 1960’s.

I remember loving the smells coming from Ms. Katie’s kitchen as a child. Especially the roasting of chiles for her grandmother’s mole sauce. This recipe, a vegan version of this time-honored classic. It is a sauce of memories. For Celebrations. Of dreamers. This is my homage to her.

Friends, I want to keep things on the level with you. This recipe is amazing but its also very time intensive.

Between shopping for all the ingredients, prepping the ingredients, and cooking everything, this Homemade Mole Sauce sauce will no doubt take more than an afternoon to make. There are no shortcuts. There are no hacks or copycat techniques to amend the process.  You cannot rush this dish, so be sure to time block your afternoon accordingly.

The time it takes to make this recipe, for me, are well worth the efforts. The flavor of this mole is deep, rich, fragrant, and decadent. This is the ultimate low-and-slow simmered dish.

Keep in mind, this recipe is ingredient heavy. With close to twenty ingredients in this dish, it requires its own dedicated shopping trip to pull together. All ingredients that are needed and cannot be substituted. For the following recipe, I will be grouping ingredients by steps to make it easier for you to pull together.

While it took me a day to make, the sauce ended up being beyond delicious. The perfect mix of savory and sweet. If you’ve ever had a desire to make a vegan version of it, here’s the ultimate recipe for you!

Step 1: Making Stock

The base of mole sauce is traditionally chicken stock. For my recipe, of course, I will be using frozen homemade vegetable stock. To prepare my stock, I added it to a stock pot, added fresh herbs from my garden, and brought it to temp for 2 hours on low heat. The finished stock should have a dark color and had rich great flavor.

Step 2: Drying Your Peppers

The savory factor in this dish comes from a variety of dried peppers. Specifically ancho and pasilla peppers.

You will need to roast your peppers on a baking sheet for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees until fragrant. Then add them to a bowl with about 2 cups of boiling water to reconstitute for 30 minutes.

Once the peppers are reconstituted, remove the stems and seed each pepper. Then add the seeded peppers and steeping liquid to a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside for later.

Step 3: Prepare Your Spices

Mole sauce contains several amazing spices. The key is to toast the spices in a dry pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until fragrant. This brings out their flavors and will greatly improve your final product. After toasting your spices, grind them in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle. Set aside.

Step 4: Prepare Your Vegetables

The body of the mole sauce comes from vegetables. To make your base, rough chop all the vegetables and add them to a baking sheet. Bake them at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Once the veggies are roasted, add them to your blender along with 2 cups of vegetable stock and blend until smooth. Strain the blend to remove any seeds. Then, add the blended vegetables to a large stockpot. This is the base of your mole sauce.

Step 5: Prepare Your Fruits, Nuts, and Starches

This recipe features different kinds of nuts. While almonds and peanuts are commonly used, they can be substituted for pecans or walnuts. Like with your spices, you will need to toast your nuts in a pan on low heat for 2-3 minutes in 2 tablespoons cup of vegetable-based spread until fragrant.

Once your nuts are lightly browned, add your raisins to the pan also and cook 1-2 minutes until soft. Then, add your toasted fruits and nuts, along with 1 cup of vegetable stock to your blender. Blend until smooth. Add this mixture to your stock pot along with your vegetable base. Add your toasted, ground spices at this time as well.

You will also need to cook a plantain in an additional 3 tablespoons of vegetable-based spread on medium heat for 3-5 minutes until browned.

Lastly, you will need to fry several tortillas until lightly browned in your leftover vegetable spread. Once browned, add them with an additional cup of vegetable stock to your blender. Blend until smooth. Add this mixture to your stockpot.

Step 6: Chocolate

Finally, finally, you will get to use the star ingredient in this dish, Mexican chocolate.

You will need to be specific when purchasing your chocolate. You will need Mexican chocolate and not common milk chocolate or dark chocolate. This chocolate is hard and very sweet. Its what is needed in this dish. You can find it at any Mexican market or online as well.

To prepare your chocolate, simply cut into cubes and add to your stockpot.

Step 7: Simmering

At this point, all of your prepared ingredients should be in your stockpot ready for simmering. Start your simmer by adding 2-3 cups of additional vegetable stock to your preferred thickness.

Simmer on low heat for 2 hours, stirring every 10 minutes to avoid sticking. If your mole gets too thick, add additional vegetable stock accordingly.

When the sauce is done simmering, season it well with salt to taste. From start to finish, this recipe will take no less than 9 hours to complete.

How to serve your sauce:

I like to add air fryer fried tofu or Gardein chicken-less strips to my mole and serve over rice. But this sauce would be delicious on anything. I have served it in the past with black beans, over enchiladas, or as a layer in a 7-layer dip. It’s pretty hard to beat this sauce. It’s that good!

With that said, this is my vegan version of Ms. Katie’s grandmother’s mole sauce recipe. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I have over the years. Now I want to ask, has anyone else tried to make mole before? If you have any tips to make it easier, leave a comment below!

Vegan Mole Sauce

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 8 hours

Total Time: 9 hours

Yield: 6 Cups sauce

Serving Size: 1/2 cup

Serve warm over rice with air fried tofu, Gardein chicken-less strips, and enjoy!

Ingredients

  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 2 medium onions
  • 3 small tomatoes
  • 8 black peppercorns
  • 1 stick cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
  • 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
  • 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
  • 6 dried ancho peppers
  • 3 dried pasilla peppers
  • 2 cups hot water
  • 2 tablespoons almonds
  • 1/4 cup peanuts
  • 1/4 cup pecans
  • 1/4 cup raisins
  • 6 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 plantain
  • 4 corn tortillas
  • 3 ounces Mexican Chocolate
  • 1/4 cup vegetable spread
  • 1 package no-chicken chicken stock cubes
  • 10 cups filtered water
  • 2 stalks celery
  • 2 carrots, chopped
  • 10 black peppercorns
  • 2 dried ancho peppers

Instructions

  1. Step 1: Making Stock
  2. Use your stock vegetables to create a stock. Cook for 1 hour. Add chicken-less bullion cubes. Cook for an additional hour. The finished stock should have a dark color and had rich great flavor.
  3. Step 2: Drying Your Peppers
  4. Roast your ancho and pasilla peppers on a baking sheet for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees until fragrant. Then add them to a bowl with about 2 cups of boiling water to reconstitute for 30 minutes. Once the peppers are reconstituted, remove the stems and seed each pepper. Then add the seeded peppers and steeping liquid to a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside for later.
  5. Step 3: Prepare Your Spices
  6. Toast the spices in a dry pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until fragrant. After toasting your spices, grind them in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle. Set aside. 
  7. Step 4: Prepare Your Vegetables
  8. Rough chop all the vegetables and add them to a baking sheet. Bake them at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. Once the veggies are roasted, add them to your blender along with 1.5 cups of vegetable stock and blend until smooth. Strain the blend to remove any seeds. Then, add the blended vegetables to a large stockpot.
  9. Step 5: Prepare Your Fruits, Nuts, and Starches
  10. Toast your nuts in a pan on low heat for 2-3 minutes in 2 tablespoons cup of vegetable-based spread until fragrant. Once your nuts are lightly browned, add your raisins to the pan also and cook 1-2 minutes until soft. Then, add your toasted fruits and nuts, along with 1 cup of vegetable stock to your blender. Blend until smooth. Add this mixture to your stock pot along with your vegetable base. Add your toasted, ground spices at this time as well. You will also need to cook a plantain in an additional 3 tablespoons of vegetable-based spread on medium heat for 3-5 minutes until browned. Then fry several tortillas until lightly browned in your leftover vegetable spread. Once browned, add them with an additional cup of vegetable stock to your blender. Blend until smooth. Add this mixture to your stockpot. 
  11. Step 6: Chocolate
  12. Cut your chocolate into cubes and add to your stockpot. 
  13. Step 7: Simmering
  14. Add 3 cups of additional vegetable stock to your mole. Simmer on low heat for 2 hours, stirring every 10 minutes to avoid sticking. If your mole gets too thick, add additional vegetable stock accordingly.  When the sauce is done simmering, season it well with salt to taste.
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Easy Instant Pot Vegan Etouffee

If you’re anything like me, you love a god Mardi Gras parade. The sights, the sounds, and, the great Cajun and Creole cuisine. With one hitch- few Cajun or Creole recipes are plant-based in nature. Especially my favorite Creole comfort food, Etouffee.

A dish that’s full of down-home flavor and if you could pack the flavor of the crescent city into one dish, this would be the one.

If you’ve never heard of etouffée before, its traditional Creole dish from New Orleans that consists of seafood, typically crawfish, that’s smothered in a rich, spicy gravy thickened with butter-based roux. Which makes it anything from vegan-friendly.

While I am not an étouffée neophyte, I am a newbie when it comes to turning this family favorite dish into a plant-based classic. but as this was one of my favorite things to eat as a non-vegan, I knew I needed to have my hand in this recipe too! It is so good.

Étouffée is steeped in Cajun tradition. And my kidney bean version of étouffée is so yummy that it’s unthinkable for me to ever miss this beloved dish again. This buttery, spicy, tangy stew is just like a vegan trip down the bayou. Perfect on a cold, dreary winter day at home!

And a today is Mardi Gras, and I’m all about living that Laissez les bon temps rouler life, I’m sharing with you today my favorite 1-hour Mardi Gras-ready Red Beans Etoufee recipe.

This recipe is super quick to throw together with a pressure cooker or instapot. I’ve used both my Pressure Cooker XL and Instapot and both worked very well!

In terms of flavor, omitting the sausage or crawfish makes little change in this recipe. You’ll get great flavors in this Cajun dish from the spices. And if you like your stews extra thick like me, be sure to smash some of the cooked beans to thicken up your stew. This etouffee recipe can be served over brown rice, quinoa or sorghum for a change of pace.

I love this dish served chili-style. My husband? He’s fancy. He likes his etouffee served around an island of rice. Either way, it’s awesome!

If you are a lover of all things in a bowl, you’ll love this étouffée. It is gorgeous in color and also affordable to make. As it will surely yield an extra day’s worth of leftovers that get better with each passing day.

If you’d like to see how to make this recipe live, check out my video below for details!

I hope you will give this recipe a try, you won’t be sorry!

Now I want to ask, do you have any favorite Creole or Cajun dishes you love to make at home? I’d love to hear about them below!

Pressure Cooker Vegan Etoufee

Prep Time: 20 hours, 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour, 20 minutes

Yield: 8

Serving Size: 1 cup

Calories per serving: 154.5 (excluding rice)

Fat per serving: 4.2 g

Pressure Cooker Vegan Etoufee

This New Orleans classic is made fun and fabulous by adding a vegan twist. You'll love this 1-hour dinner tonight!

Ingredients

  • 1 cup minced onion
  • 2 cups minced bell pepper
  • 2 teaspoons fresh minced garlic
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 cup dried kidney beans, soaked for 8–12 hours and drained
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
  • 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
  • 2 teaspoons dried marjoram
  • 1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
  • 1 (14.5-oz) can crushed organic tomatoes
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • Cooked rice of your choice
  • Hot sauce

Instructions

  1. For the sauté, use the sauté setting in your instapot over normal, or medium heat.
  2. Add the onion and sauté until transparent.
  3. Then add the bell pepper and garlic. Sauté until the bell peppers softened.
  4. Add to the pressure cooker, the water, beans, bay leaves, thyme, smoked paprika, marjoram and cayenne. Stir to combine.
  5. Put the lid on and make sure the steam release handle is set to sealing, or closed; change to the manual setting and set the timer for 15 minutes.
  6. Carefully manually release the pressure.
  7. Remove the bay leaves and compost.
  8. Cook your rice. Set aside.
  9. Before serving, mix in the crushed tomatoes, oregano, and liquid smoke.
  10. Add salt, pepper, and hot sauce to taste.
  11. Cook the stew for an additional 3 minutes on high pressure, then release the pressure naturally.
  12. Serve over steamed rice.

Notes

When soaking the beans, save the soaking water. As the aquafaba can be used in your dish or as plant food for houseplants.

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DIY Pumpkin Pie Spice Recipe

DIY Pumpkin Pie Spice Recipe

There are few things more nostalgic for me than drinking pumpkin spice lattes each Fall. Just the abbreviation PSL brings to mind crunchy leaves, crisp mornings, and all things yummy for me! While some may say that pumpkin pie spice has an odd after-taste, for me its just not that way and my love for this spice goes way back. And I’m not alone. 

The origins of this spicy blend date back to northern Mongolia where it is said that Persian merchants added the sweeter cinnamon spice and cloves to the otherwise unpalatable pumpkin spice, in an attempt to entice Asian merchants to buy their spice tiffins to flavor their teas. 

Pumpkin spice also makes its way to new world culinary circles in 1796, Amelia Simmons, the author of America’ first cookbook, includes a recipe for pompkin pudding, a pie filled with stewed pumpkin, nutmeg, and ginger.

It was this same recipe later reformulated by McCormick seasonings, who mass marketed the first packaged tin of Pumpkin Pie Spice in 1954, which included cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove, but not actually any pumpkin nor ginger. Move ahead to 2004 and we find the inclusion of Pumpkin Spice in Starbucks famed fall lattes and America’s obsession with this spicy legend was born! 

DIY Pumpkin Pie Spice Recipe

It’s no surprise that many like myself have such a nostalgic link to all things pumpkin in the fall. But with all good things comes some bad. Like the price of this amazing spice. Did you know that the average 2-ounce tin of pumpkin pie spice will run you close to $5.00? And that making your own will only set you back $0.15 per use? Which is why I’m over the moon to be sharing with you my DIY Organic Pumpkin Pie Spice blends with you today!

Consider making this spice and using it to not only make awesome pumpkin pies, but all pumpkin rolls, pumpkin pie lattes, chia seed puddings, in alfredo, smoothies, and so much more!

This recipe is super simple to put together and can be stored simply in a mason jar for up to two years. And another reason to try this blend? By just omitting this blends ginger spice, you’ll have on your hands another national favorite spice blend, the oh so nostalgic Apple Pie Spice! A spice that can be used in a myriad of upcoming holiday beverages, desserts, and breakfasts too!

It’s just that good! And here’s how to make my favorite pumpkin pie spice this season:

[yumprint-recipe id=’4′] So friends, that how easy it is to make your own Organic Pumpkin Pie Spice blend this season. I hope you will try it and let me know what you think! And if you have any tips for using this spicy blend this season, I’d love to hear about that below too!  DIY Pumpkin Pie Spice Recipe