Vegan Caprese Sandwiches with Garlic Cashew Cheese

Photos by Lindsey Johnson. I’m not 100% vegan, but I find that the more plant-based my diet is, the better I feel. I also get a geeky kick out of veganizing recipes, so I’ve opted to go in that direction with my blogging.

Vegan Caprese Sandwiches with Garlic Cashew Cheese Recipe
Photos by Lindsey Johnson. I’m not 100% vegan, but I find that the more plant-based my diet is, the better I feel. I also get a geeky kick out of veganizing recipes, so I’ve opted to go in that direction with my blogging.

Vegan Lentil Mushroom Burgers

As I mentioned last week, things have been a little hectic around here lately with the additional work I’m doing for my book. Luckily, my cookbook is for a very specific type of cooking, so while there are some recipes I come up with for the …

Lentil Mushroom Burger Recipe
As I mentioned last week, things have been a little hectic around here lately with the additional work I’m doing for my book. Luckily, my cookbook is for a very specific type of cooking, so while there are some recipes I come up with for the book that I really want to post on my blog too, there are a lot of recipes I come up with for the blog that wouldn’t be a good fit with the book. But even still, I spend a lot of time trying to think up new recipe ideas.

Easy Homemade Meat Sauce

Easy Homemade Meat Sauce is a hearty addition to any pasta. Top with some grated parmesan and serve alongside garlic bread and a salad for the best spaghetti dinner. Of all the meals I make, this Easy Homemade Meat Sauce is definitely my husband’s absolute favorite. Even though he’s someone that is not a fan […]

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Easy Homemade Meat Sauce is a hearty addition to any pasta. Top with some grated parmesan and serve alongside garlic bread and a salad for the best spaghetti dinner.

Spaghetti and homemade meat sauce portioned onto two gray plates on a marble surface, topped with parmesan cheese next to a green salad

Of all the meals I make, this Easy Homemade Meat Sauce is definitely my husband’s absolute favorite. Even though he’s someone that is not a fan of leftovers, he’ll happily consume this sauce over pasta for days on end with zero complaints.

In fact, he says it just gets better after day one.

I’ve even caught him warming it up and eating it with a crusty loaf of bread – no pasta in sight!

Whether you’re serving this sauce over simple spaghetti, using it to make lasagna or manicotti, you simply can’t go wrong!

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Vegetarian Thai Veggie Burgers

I’ve lived in a vegetarian household for over seven years now, and it’s fair to say I’ve made my share of veggie burger recipes. Some have been insanely good, some meh, and some downright disgusting. Two qualities are necessary for a …

I’ve lived in a vegetarian household for over seven years now, and it’s fair to say I’ve made my share of veggie burger recipes. Some have been insanely good, some meh, and some downright disgusting. Two qualities are necessary for a good veggie burger: the right texture and, of course, incredible flavor. If you achieve only one of these, your burger will probably fall into the “meh” category—you don’t like it and you don’t hate it, but you probably won’t ever make it again. And if you’re missing both flavor and texture, forget it. Then you have the veggie burgers that have it all, like these sturdy Thai veggie burgers—made all the better because they’re piled high with Thai pickles and finished off with a generous smear of curried cashew cream. They’re a little bit involved, so they’re not your everyday kind of veggie burger, but they’re perfect for a Saturday evening when you’ve got time on your hands and you want to make a dinner that will impress. The secret to perfect veggie burgers Inspired by a Thai Turkey Burgers recipe from Epicurious, these veggie burgers are packed with flavor thanks to Thai spices, toppings, and sauces. And the texture is just right—nice and firm so that they hold up to being topped, sauced, […]

Smoked Cheddar Mac & Cheese with Baked BBQ Tofu

Two years in a row, I have made my husband Noodles & Company mac & cheese rip-offs for his birthday. Last year, I did Truffle Mac, and this year, I did a vegetarian version of their BBQ Pork Mac & Cheese recipe. I don’t really know ho…

Two years in a row, I have made my husband Noodles & Company mac & cheese rip-offs for his birthday. Last year, I did Truffle Mac, and this year, I did a vegetarian version of their BBQ Pork Mac & Cheese recipe. I don’t really know how this became a thing for us, but I guess it has. I don’t think anyone can beat us when it comes to nonsensical traditions to mark important occasions, which is okay with us, because mac & cheese is far superior to sappy greeting cards anyway. This item isn’t always on the Noodles & Company menu, but when it was, Chris and I were both intrigued. We wondered if they could sub out the pork for tofu, but neither of us wanted to be that person, so we didn’t ask. For months, I promised him I would try to make a meatless version at home. When tackling this recipe myself, I knew that I couldn’t just use any kind of tofu—it had to be baked! The last thing you want in your mac & cheese are soft cubes of tofu. Baked tofu has a firm, chewy texture because baking in the oven dries it […]

Sweet Potato Bibimbap

Photos by Rikki Snyder Bibimbap! Have you heard of it? You will love it! What exactly is bibimbap? It’s a traditional Korean dish which translates to “mixed rice” (bibi = mixed, bap = rice). A variety of sautéed, raw, and pickled vegetables are served …

Photos by Rikki Snyder Bibimbap! Have you heard of it? You will love it! What exactly is bibimbap? It’s a traditional Korean dish which translates to “mixed rice” (bibi = mixed, bap = rice). A variety of sautéed, raw, and pickled vegetables are served on top of white rice with a raw or over-easy egg and sliced meat. I took the Make it Meatless approach to this bibimbap by substituting roasted sweet potato slices for the meat. Sweet potatoes for meat? Does that sound like a strange substitution? I assure you, it simply works! The sweet potatoes are filling, flavorful, and add life to the meal. One of my favorite parts about this dish is how much variety goes into the bowl. You can pick and choose your favorite vegetables, and create a combination of raw and cooked vegetables with a tasty sauce. I went with sautéed shiitake mushrooms and sweet potatoes, which I served with raw shredded carrot, eggs, pickled cucumbers (I used store-bought, but I’ve linked to a recipe in the ingredient list if you can’t find them!), kimchi, and a gingery chili garlic sauce drizzled over everything. These bowls are so flavorful and satisfying that it took only […]

Pesto Quinoa & White Bean Cakes with Roasted Tomatoes

Now that I have basil growing in the garden again, I’m on a quest to use up my frozen pesto because I’ll be able to make it fresh whenever I want to. If making a big batch of pesto and freezing it for fall and winter marks the end of summer…

Now that I have basil growing in the garden again, I’m on a quest to use up my frozen pesto because I’ll be able to make it fresh whenever I want to. If making a big batch of pesto and freezing it for fall and winter marks the end of summer for me, then frantically trying to use up that pesto is a sure sign of spring. It happens every year, like clockwork. It’s a good thing this recipe took a few tries to get right—I think I used half of my pesto supply perfecting it. The first time I made it, I only used cannelini beans. It was not good. I’ve realized that I only like cannelini beans as a component of a dish, not as the main ingredient. White bean cakes with just white beans, pesto, panko, and egg were definitely meh. So then I used half the beans and more ingredients each subsequent trial. Cheese! Why not? A zucchini? Of course! And then quinoa. Sometimes less is more, but sometimes more is more. And this is a more is more recipe. But even with more, it’s still not a lot. If you make this, don’t skip the […]

Recipe | Cauliflower Hummus Burgers with Mint Tzatziki

I finally made some veggie burgers for the blog. But they’re not burger-y burgers. They’re hummus burgers. I wanted something with the flavors of hummus, in burger form. And because I like a little texture in my burgers, I didn’t want…

I finally made some veggie burgers for the blog. But they’re not burger-y burgers. They’re hummus burgers. I wanted something with the flavors of hummus, in burger form. And because I like a little texture in my burgers, I didn’t want to use actual hummus. So instead, I smashed some chickpeas and cauliflower together with tahini, lemon juice, garlic and olive oil. The first time I made this, I did it without the cauliflower and it just didn’t work out. The burgers needed a little more moisture, so I thought I’d experiment by adding steamed cauliflower the next time around. The cauliflower doesn’t take away from the hummus flavor, but it makes the burgers less crumbly and adds some veggie goodness to the patties. Chobani sent me some samples of their Greek yogurt (thanks, Chobani!), so I figured the appropriate topping for hummus burgers was tzatziki. Traditionally, dill is used in tzatziki sauce, but since my dill is pretty pathetic right now, I used mint instead. I’m not big on yogurt unless it’s in something and I feel the same way about tzatziki—it’s great on these burgers, but a little too much for me on its own. (But I guess […]

Recipe | Pesto-Roasted Veggie Sandwiches

I never need an excuse to go to our local French bakery. I might go there to get something for a meal, but I won’t leave without a tarte tatin or eclair. The bakery is owned and operated by a French family, so the food and the accents really make…

I never need an excuse to go to our local French bakery. I might go there to get something for a meal, but I won’t leave without a tarte tatin or eclair. The bakery is owned and operated by a French family, so the food and the accents really make you feel like you’re in Paris and not Wisconsin. (Oh, how I wish I was in Paris and not Wisconsin.) Anyway! In seeking new and different ways to use pesto, I wanted to do something sandwichy. Yes, it’s a word! Sandwichy! I bought a crusty loaf of sourdough bread from aforementioned bakery, and then yellow squash, zucchini, and portabella mushrooms from the grocery store. I had pesto, Parmesan cheese, and an onion on hand. Because roasting is pretty much my default way of preparing vegetables, I thought I’d marinate the veggies in a pesto and olive oil mixture and then throw them in the oven until they got all caramelized and delicious. If you prefer grilling your vegetables, that would work too, of course—I mean, basically the idea is to cook the vegetables before putting them on the sandwich, you know? These sandwiches are bound to become a weekend staple […]

Recipe | Drunken Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

I’m not sure why I love cooking with beer so much when I don’t like to drink beer at all. Escandalo! A food blogger that doesn’t like beer! Yes, it’s true; I’m just not a fan. I do like Guinness and I love me some lambic (…

I’m not sure why I love cooking with beer so much when I don’t like to drink beer at all. Escandalo! A food blogger that doesn’t like beer! Yes, it’s true; I’m just not a fan. I do like Guinness and I love me some lambic (my Chocolate Lambic Cupcakes are probably one of my favorite recipes on this blog), but other than that, beer is just yucky to me. And of course, when you don’t like beer, people never just take it at face value. No, they assume you’re judgy about drinking or that you’re uncool or super religious. Can’t a person just not like beer? Is it really that strange? C’mon, you know it tastes kind of foul. You know it does! Cooking with beer is another story, though. And that bitter flavor that keeps me from drinking beer is the very reason I love to cook with it—I like that slight bitter note that it lends to dishes. It adds interest and depth without adding a lot of calories. Case in point? These Drunken Grilled Cheese Sandwiches. After making Drunken Franks with Field Roast Frankfurters last week, I became a little bit obsessed with the idea of […]