recipes - Vegan & Vegetarian Cooking by Leslie Durso

Archive for recipes – Page 3

Vegan Stuffed Shells

By Leslie · Comments (0) · January 18th, 2016

I’ve been at my sister’s house today cooking with her for a friend of hers that just had a baby. Her Moms group is so sweet. When someone has a baby, they all cook a meal and deliver it on a different day so the new Mom and family don’t have to worry about it the first few weeks. This new Mom happens to be a vegan so my sister called in the reinforcements… aka me I gave her a list of options we could make and she wanted to do these stuffed shells. My carnivore sister hated to admit how much she liked them (she went back for seconds!). I hope you enjoy my recipe as much as we do!

Vegan Stuffed Shells

Serves 4-6

1 lb. box of large pasta shells

1 lb. (1 package) firm tofu, drained

14 oz. fresh spinach, sautéed, cooled, and chopped

4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1/2 cup chopped raw cashews

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1/8 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1/8 cup non dairy, unsweetened milk (I use almond, but whatever you have)

1/8 tsp. sea salt

1/8 tsp. fresh cracked black pepper

tomato sauce

3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup diced onion

1/4 tsp. sea salt

3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 tsp. dried oregano

2 15oz. cans of crushed tomatoes (my favorite brand is Bianco DiNapoli)

2 tbsp. tomato paste

6 fresh basil leaves, chopped

In a medium sauce pot, add the oil, onions and sea salt. Turn the heat to medium and sauté until the onions are glossy and soft around the edges. Add in the garlic, dried oregano and stir to toss. Then add both cans of the crushed tomatoes. Stir and reduce heat to a slow simmer. Add in the tomato paste and stir. Cover while you make the pasta.

Boil the pasta shells in salted water until they are 3/4 done cooking. (they will cook more in the oven) strain and rinse in cold water.

While the pasta is cooking, in a large mixing bowl crumble the tofu up with your hands into a ricotta type texture. Mix in the spinach, garlic, chopped cashews, nutritional yeast, parsley, oil, milk, salt, and pepper.

To assemble, ladle a couple spoonfuls of sauce in the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish and spread evenly. Stuff each pasta shell with about 1 tbsp. tofu mixture, placing each one in the dish. Top each one with a dollop of sauce.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes and the sauce is bubbling. Top with some fresh chopped basil and serve warm.

Enjoy!

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Categories : featured, Pasta, recipes

Vegan Tomato Soup

By Leslie · Comments (2) · January 5th, 2016

Well, it’s raining in Los Angeles so that means my ceiling is leaking and there are buckets and pots all over my apartment. Time to stay positive and make a big pot of my favorite soup with the one pot that is not catching drops I love me some tomato soup! I thought I’d share my recipe with you. It’s simple, straight forward and easy! Wherever you are, stay warm and cozy with a bowl of this soup and a big blanket!

Vegan Tomato Soup

Serves 4

1 lb. Roma tomatoes

3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, diced

5 cloves of garlic, chopped

1/2 dry white wine

3 cups vegetable broth

4 oz. tomato paste

salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large sauce pot of water to boil. Score the tomatoes making an X on the bottom of them. (just pierce the skin) Prepare an ice bath by filling a mixing bowl with ice cubes and enough cold water to cover them. Drop the scored tomatoes into the boiling water. Count to 20 and remove the tomatoes with a pair of tongs and place them in the ice bath. Wait 20 seconds. Peel the tomatoes. The skins should fall off easily.

In a large sauce pot on medium heat, sauté the diced onion in the olive oil. Add the garlic and at 1/2 tsp. sea salt stir to coat. When the onions are soft, add the wine and broth. Stir. Gently add in the peeled tomatoes. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook until you can break up the tomatoes with a wooden spoon, about 15 minutes. Break the tomatoes up a bit and return the lid and continue to simmer for about 15 minutes. Using an immersion blender (stick blender) blend the soup until smooth. You can also do this using a regular blender, just blend and transfer back to the pot and turn heat to medium low. Add in the tomato paste and stir until it dissolves. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm. As a garnish I always like to do a little olive oil drizzle and some sea salt on top and some fresh herbs.

Comments (2)

Categories : featured, recipes

Butternut Squash and Cranberry Soup

By Leslie · Comments (1) · November 24th, 2015

Photo by Jackie Sobon (Vegan Yack Attack)

Maybe it sounds odd, but this combo is one of my favs! This soup just screams Fall! I hope you enjoy!

Butternut Squash and Cranberry Soup

Serves 6

1 large butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and diced (should be about 5-6 cups diced)

6 sprigs of thyme

6 garlic cloves

1 medium onion, diced

5-6 cups of vegetable broth

1/4 cup dried cranberries

a dash of cayenne pepper

1 tsp. cumin

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees

Toss the diced squash, thyme sprigs, and garlic in a couple tablespoons of olive oil and salt and pepper. Pour out on a foil lined cookie sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes until fork tender. Carefully remove the thyme sticks and discard. Reserve about 1/2 cup butternut squash for garnish if you like.

In a large soup pot, sauté the onion in a couple tablespoons of olive oil. When soft, add in the roasted butternut squash and garlic. Pour enough vegetable broth over the squash to just cover it. Add in the cranberries, cayenne, and cumin. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for about 15 minutes.

Working in batches, transfer the soup to your blender and blend until smooth. Return to the pot and add more broth if it’s too thick. Season to taste.

Serve warm with the reserved diced butternut squash, some extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, and scallions, or nothing

Enjoy!

Comments (1)

Categories : featured, recipes

Spinach Mushroom Roll

By Leslie · Comments (7) · November 12th, 2015

Don’t you just love cooking in the Fall? I do! This recipe started when I was making vegan spanakopita and had leftover spinach. It’s the perfect vegan Thanksgiving main dish or a great one to bring as a side to share with friends.

Spinach Mushroom Roll

serves 6-8

1 lb. fresh spinach or 12oz. frozen

1/2 lb. fresh swiss chard

1 cup chopped scallions

1/2 cup chopped fresh dill

1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

4 cloves garlic, chopped

6 oz. firm tofu, drained well and crumbled

1 tbsp. lemon juice

3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

8oz. mushrooms, sliced

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

Steam the spinach and chard until just wilted. Let cool and squeeze to remove all of the excess water. Place in larger mixing bowl and stir in scallions, dill, mint, garlic, tofu, lemon juice, 1 tbsp. olive oil, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Set aside.

Sauté the sliced mushrooms in olive oil in a frying pan on medium heat till soft. (You don’t want to cook these all the way, they will continue to cook in the oven) Remove from the heat, let cool, and strain.

Preheat your oven to 400F

On a clean, floured surface, roll your puff pastry dough until you have a rectangle about 10 in by 14 in. Transfer to a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

If using store bought dough it should have been folded in thirds leaving the crease for you to measure. If you made your own dough, using a knife, gently score into thirds.

Spoon the spinach mixture into the center third of the dough, patting it down with the back of the spoon. Top with the mushrooms.

Cut angled strips down each side of the pastry, about 1 inch wide. Cut the top and bottom two pieces and use to fill in any holes or make decorations.

Starting at the top, bring the right strip over to touch the left side, Bring the top left strip over to touch the right, continue this technique until you reach the bottom of your roll. Use the cut off pieces to cover any gaps.

Brush with olive oil and bake for about 40 minutes or until golden brown.

Serve warm.

PRINTER FRIENDLY RECIPE

Check out this fun video Lynn Chen did to show you how to make this dish!

Comments (7)

Categories : featured, recipes

Roasted Butternut Squash Wild Rice Pilaf

By Leslie · Comments (0) · October 29th, 2015

Last night it was my turn to host book club so I made a few salads and my Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins because I have to make then when other people are around or I end up in a muffin coma. I put together a rice pilaf from what I had on hand and the girls thought it post worthy so here is the recipe This dish would be perfect for a Fall dinner or Thanksgiving. You could serve it as is or stuffed in a squash or with a cauliflower steak. (that recipe is coming soon!)

Roasted Butternut Squash Wild Rice Pilaf

Serves 6-8

1 1/4 cup wild rice

2 cups water or vegetable broth

1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

big pinch of sea salt

1 cup diced butternut squash

4 sprigs of thyme

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2-3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup golden raisins

5-7 leaves of fresh mint, torn into pieces

1/4 cup toasted almonds (optional)

Bring the rice, water, olive oil, and salt to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer about twenty minutes. Toss the diced butternut squash with the sprigs of thyme, garlic and olive oil. Spread on a foil lined cookie sheet and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes or until fork tender. Remove the sprigs of thyme and discard.

When the rice is al dente, remove from the heat and mix in the dried cranberries and raisins and let sit 5 minutes.

In a large bowl, toss the rice mixture with the butternut squash, mint, and optional nuts. Serve warm or room temp.

Comments (0)

Categories : featured, recipes, Thanksgiving, Vegan

Tomato Quinoa Risotto

By Leslie · Comments (2) · October 26th, 2015

Who says risotto has to be made with rice? Well, apologies to my Italian Grandmother, but I thought I’d give quinoa risotto a try and you know what, it’s pretty delicious! It’s also a great way to finish off the last of the gardens beautiful tomatoes.

Tomato Quinoa Risotto

Serves 4

1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced

a pinch of sea salt

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup quinoa

2 cups water (or water and white wine equal parts)

1 cup chopped tomato

1 tbsp. chopped parsley

salt and pepper to taste

2 tbsp. toasted pine nuts

Sauté the olive oil, onion, and salt in a medium pot until the onion begins to soften, about 4 minutes. Add in the garlic and quinoa. Mix together and add the liquid and chopped tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and let simmer 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix in the toasted pine nuts and top with the chopped parsley. Serve warm.

Comments (2)

Categories : featured, recipes

Vegan Toll House Cookies

By Leslie · Comments (7) · August 22nd, 2015

I, like most kids in America, grew up on Toll House cookies. I was always so excited to bake with my mom and that would mean pulling out the bag of toll house chocolate chips and make the recipe on the back of the package. Since going vegan and now pretty much gluten free, I now make my peanut butter chocolate chip recipe all the time, but today I decided to retackle the toll house recipe. It’s not healthy, but here it is:

Vegan Toll House Cookies

Makes 3 dozen cookies

2 1/2 cup flour (if making gluten free, I like Hodgson Mills or Glutino mix)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup (2 sticks) vegan butter, room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 flax eggs (2 tbsp. ground flax seeds mixed with 6 tbsp. water, let sit 5 minutes)

2 cups chocolate chips or chunks

1 cup chopped nuts (optional. I like walnuts and pecans)

Heat your oven to 375 degrees

Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl.

In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugars with a hand mixer. Mix in the vanilla extract and flax eggs.

Gradually beat the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Fold in the chocolate chips and nuts.

Drop rounded tablespoons of dough on to a cookie sheet and bake for 9 minutes.

Cool on baking racks and enjoy!!!

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Comments (7)

Categories : Desserts: Cookies, featured, recipes, Vegan

Homemade Grilled Pizza!

By Leslie · Comments (3) · August 3rd, 2015

It’s Summer and there is no better time to fire up that grill!! One of my favorite things to grill is pizza! So tasty and yummy! Give it a try if you haven’t! Below you can find my recipe for pizza dough and tomato sauce. If you want to cheat you can just buy prepared pizza dough (trader joe’s and whole foods carry it) and you can use jarred or canned tomato sauce. Of course, homemade is always my favorite way to go 😉

Check out this fun video me and Lynn Chen from The Actor’s Diet filmed grilling pizza last weekend!

Pizza Crust:

2 1/4 teaspoons yeast (1 packet)

2 cups warm water

3 Tbsp. olive oil

2 Tbsp. maple syrup

1/2 tsp. salt

1 3/4 cups bread flour

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

Tomato Sauce:

1 can of whole tomatoes

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tsp. dried oregano

Dough:

Place 1 packet of yeast with the 2 cups of warm water in a bowl. Let sit for 5 minutes; do not stir. The yeast will bubble when ready. Add olive oil, maple syrup, and salt.

Combine the flours in the bowl of a stand mixer. With the dough hook on, and the mixer on low, slowly add the liquid. Run until the dough ball forms. If it’s too wet, add flour a teaspoon at a time. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and knead into a smooth ball.

Cover the dough with a light coating of olive oil and place in a bowl covered by a clean towel. Let rise about an hour or more or until dough doubles in size.

Tomato Sauce:

Place 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a large frying pan with lid and add in the can of tomatoes and chopped garlic. Cook, covered for 15 minutes on medium. Using the back of a spoon, break up tomatoes and cook another 15-20 minutes.

Assembly:

Halve the pizza dough and with your hands form a round circle. Coat with olive oil. Place dough directly on a hot bbq. As soon as it starts to bubble, flip over. Quickly spoon desired amount of tomato sauce on the dough and spread out evenly. Close the lid of the bbq and let cook until dough is cooked, about 3-5 minutes. After pizza is cooked, top with a pinch of dried oregano and fresh basil. Enjoy immediately!

Comments (3)

Categories : featured, Pizza, recipes, Videos

Refreshing San Cosma Smoothie

By Leslie · Comments (0) · July 30th, 2015

If you’ve been following on social media, I just got back from the Nature Cure Retreat in Ravello, Italy. One of my favorite towns on the Amalfi Coast and home to the beautiful Villa San Cosma. Situated on the side of the mountain, they have unbelievable views and a spectacular garden, producing some of the tastiest produce I’ve ever eaten! Here’s the recipe for a refreshing smoothie I made on a particularly hot day with ingredients straight from the garden! Please email me if you would like more information on Nature Cure Retreat 2016.

Refreshing San Cosma Smoothie

1 apple, deseeded

2 kiwis, peeled

1 large pear

1/2 cucumber

the juice of 1/2 lemon

a handful of fresh mint

pinch of sea salt

2 cups of ice

Blend in a high powered blender and enjoy!

Comments (0)

Categories : featured, recipes, Smoothies

Roasted Beet Hummus

By Leslie · Comments (0) · July 2nd, 2015

What better way to celebrate the 4th of July than with some red, white & blue?? You are going to love my beet hummus! It’s creamy, rich, full of flavor and perfect anytime of year!

Roasted Beet Hummus

makes 3 cups (plenty for a party)

2 red beets

2 cloves garlic

2 cans of garbanzo beans, drained

2 tbsp. tahini

1/4 cup olive oil

the juice of 2 lemons

1-2 tsp. sea salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Coat the beets with olive oil and sprinkle a pinch of salt on them. Wrap individually in foil and place on a cookie sheet. Cook for 35-45 minutes or until fork tender. Let cool and easily peel the skins off and cut into large cubes.

Place 2 peeled pieces of garlic and cubed beets in a food processor and puree until smooth, scraping the edges when necessary. Add the garbanzo beans, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, and salt. Puree until smooth.

To go with the red, white, and blue theme, I toasted unsweetened coconut and sprinkled it over the hummus and serves it with blue corn chips.

Comments (0)

Categories : featured, recipes, Vegan

Archive for recipes – Page 3

Vegan Stuffed Shells

Vegan Stuffed Shells

Vegan Tomato Soup

Vegan Tomato Soup

Butternut Squash and Cranberry Soup

Spinach Mushroom Roll

Spinach Mushroom Roll

Roasted Butternut Squash Wild Rice Pilaf

Roasted Butternut Squash Wild Rice Pilaf

Tomato Quinoa Risotto

Tomato Quinoa Risotto

Homemade Grilled Pizza!

Refreshing San Cosma Smoothie

Refreshing San Cosma Smoothie

Roasted Beet Hummus

Roasted Beet Hummus

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