This year Izzy and I had the AWESOME privilage of having out siblings make the trek out here to San Diego for Thanksgiving. Izzy's brother Joey flew in from our hometown of WI and my sister Lindsay drove in from Tucson where she is going to nursing school.
Here is Lindsay, Me, Izzy, and Joey....please note the awesome artistic work of Izzy on the chalk board ;-) No turkeys were harmed in the making of this meal! (see the turkey giving a thumbs up?...ha!)
I did some pre-planning on the internet and complied a bunch of recipes from various sources. Most of them were modified based on tastes and the fact I like to go rouge a lot when cooking. The food was devoured, so I took that as a great sign ;-)
On the menu:
Mashed Potaoes
Mushroom Gravy
Sweet Potatoes
Green Beans
Tempe Meat Loaf
Cranberries
Mashed Potatoes: I used a recipe from my
Happy Herbivore book. I modified by using red potatoes. I also added 1/4c of nutritional yeast to make them creamy and some parsley flakes for a pop of color.
Cranberries:
4 cups of cranberries
1/4 cup 100% pure maple syrup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup of water
1/4 cup orange juice (I used simply orange)
*bring to boil, then reduce to simmer until all berries pop. about 10-15 min
Mushroom Gravy:
1/2 cup dried mushrooms, chopped into small pieces
1 1/4 cup vegetable broth
1 cup water
2 Tbs. flour
1 1/2 Tbs. margarine
1/4 nutritional yeast
*bring mushrooms, broth, and water to boil. then, reduce to simmer and whisk in flour, margarine, and nutr. yeast. Let is simmer until desired consistency.
Green & Yellow Beans:
16 oz of Geen & Yellow Beans
1 T Olive oil
6oz mixed nuts (browned in oven for 6min @ 350)
Salt & Pepper to taste
*Steam beans, then transfer to bowl and toss in oil, salt, pepper, and top with nuts.
Sweet Potatoes: (recipe from
this site)
4 lb sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
5 TB Earth Balance butter
2/3 C maple syrup
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
Pinch of ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)
Preheat oven to 375°F. Place potatoes in 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Combine butter, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and salt in small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to boil and stir until sugar dissolves. Pour this mixture over sweet potatoes and toss to coat. Cover dish well with foil.
Bake 50 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake until potatoes are tender and syrup thickens a bit (basting occasionally) about 20 minutes. Raise oven temperature to 500°F. Top sweet potatoes with pecans and bake until nuts begin to brown, about 3 minutes.
Country ‘Meatloaf’ (from Chef Chloe's article in the NYtimes)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
2 cups diced celery
8 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons dried thyme
2 teaspoons dried basil
2 teaspoons dried parsley
2 (8-ounce) packages tempeh
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup vegetable broth
1 cup cooked brown rice, warm
1/2 cup bread crumbs
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 10-by-5-by-3-inch loaf pan.
2. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a large
deep-sided skillet and sauté onion, carrots and celery until soft, about
15 minutes. If vegetables begin to stick, add a little bit of water to
the skillet. Stir in garlic, thyme, basil and parsley. Let cook a few
more minutes. Crumble the tempeh into the skillet and add soy sauce and
broth. Reduce heat to medium and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring
frequently. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.
3. Add warm brown rice and bread crumbs to the bowl
and mix thoroughly with a large spoon. The more you mix it and mash it,
the better it will hold together when you bake it. Season with salt and
pepper to taste.
4. Transfer the mixture into the prepared loaf pan
and pack it down very firmly using the back of a spoon. Cover the top of
the loaf pan with foil. Bake for 45 minutes, covered, then remove foil,
and bake for an additional 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest
for 5 minutes before unmolding. Run a knife around the edges of the
cooked loaf to loosen, then flip onto a serving plate to unmold. Slice
and serve.
Easy Veggie
Stuffing (from this site)
1
Tbs. olive oil
1 Tbs. toasted sesame oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 c. fresh mushrooms, chopped
1 cup celery and tops, chopped
3/4 lb. bread or cornbread cubes (or both)
1 ½ c. vegetable broth
½ tsp. each of sage, thyme, and savory
1 Tbs. fresh parsley, chopped
salt and pepper (to taste) |
 |
Sauté the
onion, mushrooms, and celery
in a large pan with olive oil
until softened; add some broth
if necessary to keep from sticking.
Remove from heat, add remaining ingredients, and mix well
(bread should be moist).
Grease a casserole dish with sesame oil, pack in the stuffing,
and brush with more oil.
Cover with foil and bake at 325-375 degrees for about
1 hour. |
Point being, with my new found use of spices I started amassing quite the collection. Then, living in San Diego where real estate square footage is at a premium...I was lacking cupboard space to contain them. 
SO, in my effort to keep whatever sanity I have left, and to keep my cursing to a minimum (you're welcome, mom) I have invested in these uber cute containers I found at Cost Plus World Market
