Corn Fritters

The Corn Fritters recipe from Vegan Yum Yum has been begging me to make it since I got the book. With sweet summer corn in season, now seemed like a great time to try it. I'm glad I did. I really liked them.

The recipe was very simple and easy to make. While it called for frying these in 1-2 tablespoons of oil, I found that cooking spray and a nonstick pan worked just as well.

The taste was a mix of cornbread (thanks to the cornmeal), a touch of seasoning (thanks to Old Bay), and sweet, fresh corn. My omni husband really liked these too. I ate some plain and some with a small dollop of ketchup.

I had these with a salad of organic greens and the Sanctuary Dressing from Appetite for Reduction (a vegan ranch dressing) as a light and refreshing meal. I would definitely make these again as either a light meal or appetizer.

Here's the recipe.

Spicy Tomato Chickpea Soup

Tomato soup in winter sounds good. Spicy tomato soup sounds better. And spicy tomato soup made with pureed chickpeas? Awesome! This recipe from Vegan Yum Yum is a winner.

Spicy Tomato Chickpea Soup

• 2-3 tbsp olive oil (I omitted the oil and used vegetable broth)
• 1 sweet onion, diced
• 2-3 cloves garlic, crushed or minced
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 (15 oz) can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained (I used about 1.5 cups of chickpeas I cooked)
• 1 (28oz) can of diced tomatoes (or fresh plum tomatoes if in season)
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)
• 1 cup hot water
• black pepper to taste

1. Sautee the diced onion in a large pot until soft, about three minutes. Add the garlic, cumin, and red pepper flakes and stir another minute.

2. Add the chickpeas, mustard seeds, and turmeric, and saute until the chickpeas turn golden. Note that if using veg broth in place of oil, keep adding enough broth so things don't stick to the pan.

3. Add tomatoes and salt and simmer 10-15 minutes until the tomatoes are cooked through.

4. Add the nutritional yeast if using and the hot water. Either transfer the soup to a blender to puree, or use an immersion blender. This was my first chance to use the immersion blender I got for Christmas. It was exciting and messy at the same time. Bits of pureed chickpeas and tomatoes were everywhere by the time I was done.

But the finished soup was amazing. Hearty and hot, it's a perfect winter comfort food. Plus, it's nutritious, light, and filling.

I liked it so much, I'm thinking of giving out jars of soup for holiday gifts this year instead of my usual vegan cookies. Wouldn't these jars look cute with some festive ribbon?

Creamy Broccoli Dal & Sweet Potato Bake

This weekend I made two recipes from Vegan Yum Yum.

First I tried the Creamy Broccoli Dal (recipe below), which the book describes as a cross between cream of broccoli soup and red lentil dal. I had no idea how this would turn out, but it was amazing. It combines the best tastes of both soups--the comfort food goodness of creamy broccoli soup and the Indian spices of lentil dal. I loved it, as did my omnivore husband. Bonus: it was very quick and easy to make.

First I chopped up some broccoli in my food processor. The recipe calls for the whole stalk. Note to cut off two inches from the bottom and peel the rest of the stalk to remove the tough skin.

Next I sauteed chopped onion, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, and split red lentils in some olive oil.

I added the chopped broccoli and some water and let it cook for 20 minutes. Then I added soy milk and the spice mix and immediately devoured.

Creamy Broccoli Dal
from Vegan Yum Yum
Serves 2

• 1-2 tbsp vegetable oil (I used 1 and stirred often)
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp black mustard seeds
• 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup red lentils (Masoor Dal), rinsed and drained
• 2 cups whole broccoli stalks, peeled and finely chopped (I used one whole stalk including florets)
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 tsp salt 
• 1 cup unsweetened soy milk
• 1 tbsp soy sauce (or salt to taste)
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional, but I used it)

1. Heat the oil on medium-high to high in a pot. Add the cumin and mustard seeds, chopped onion, and lentils and saute, stirring often, until the seeds start to pop and the lentil color starts to lighten. You may need to add some cooking spray to prevent everything from sticking, or just stir constantly like I did.
2. Add the broccoli, water, and salt. Bring to a boil then cover and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the broccoli and lentils are tender and the soup is thick.
3. Add the soy milk, soy sauce, lemon juice, and spices. Turn down the heat so it doesn't boil, and let it cook for a few minutes until everything is warm and the flavors have meshed. Stir well and adjust the seasonings if needed (I added a bit more salt), and serve immediately. 

I also made the Creamy Sweet Potato Bake. This recipe calls for the Vegan Yum Yum Hurry Up Alfredo Sauce. I made this sauce last year in the Creamy Broccoli Mushroom Bake and wasn't happy about having to use margarine. So this time, I made the Happy Herbivore Instant Vegan Alfredo Sauce but adjusted the spices so they were similar to the Vegan Yum Yum version. It was delicious! Full of flavor and rich and creamy, this sauce would be great over steamed veggies or even, as the HH cookbook suggests, with crusty bread as an appetizer.

Once the alfredo is made, it's just a matter of cooking the veggies and pasta and then cooking everything in a casserole dish. The final dish was very good but...a.) The recipe called for cooking the sweet potatoes until tender but not falling apart. I under-cooked mine, thinking they would cook more in the oven. They didn't, so some of my potatoes were a little hard. b.) While delicious on its own, the alfredo sauce's taste gets a little lost in the final dish. Plus, it deconstructed a little in the baking process and balled into little tofu bits, making it look a little ricotta cheese like. Maybe the more fattening Vegan Yum Yum alfredo would hold up better in the oven. Despite these things though, it was a pretty decent winter casserole. I'd make it again with some tweaks.

Creamy Sweet Potato Bake
from Vegan Yum Yum
Makes a whole casserole dish--you'll have leftovers.

Alfredo Sauce
I combined the spices in the Vegan Yum Yum Alfredo and the basic recipe of the  Happy Herbivore Instant Vegan Alfredo.

• 12 ounces Mori-Nu tofu
• 1 cup unsweetened soy milk (or other non-dairy milk)
• 1/2 cup nutritional yeast 
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder 
• 1 tsp Hungarian paprika
• few dashes ground ginger
• 2 tbsp whole wheat flour (Note: I totally forgot to add the whole wheat flour. Maybe if I would have, it would have held up better) 

1. Puree all the sauce ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth and creamy.
2. Cook 2 cups ziti, penne, or fusilli pasta according to package directions. 
3. Steam 1 head of chopped kale. (The recipe called for cooking it in the pasta cooking water in the last minute, but since the kale would lose nutrients in the boiled water, I steamed it.) 
4. Chop up about 1.5 pounds of sweet potato (1 large potato or two small ones, or more if you want more potato) into bite-sized cubes and either microwave or boil them until very tender. Note that they won't become more tender in the oven.
5. Combine the cooked pasta, kale, sweet potato, and alfredo sauce in a big bowl. Pour into a casserole dish sprayed with cooking spray, top with some breadcrumbs if you want, and bake for 20 minutes, or until hot and bubbly. 

Creamy Tomato Barley Risotto

In my world of vegan eating, grains are the ho-hum part of my meals. Whole grains have a ton of health benefits (they lower the risk of chronic diseases, such as coronary heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, and also contribute to body weight management and gastrointestinal health), but I just don't get very excited about them. My go-to grains are oat bran and oatmeal, brown rice, and homemade whole-wheat bread (which is a stretch). Sometimes I decide to be super healthy and make quinoa, and sometimes I go crazy and have white rice.

In the spirit of needing to diversify my grain eating, I made the Creamy Tomato Barley Risotto from Vegan Yum Yum...and fell in love! If this is what whole-grain eating can be about, I'm totally in.


I've never had barley before and was so surprised by how chewy it was, I cooked it 10 minutes longer than the recipe called for. It was still chewy, but wonderfully so. The final dish was super creamy, tomato-y, and just plain yummy. This would be a great side dish to bring to a potluck, and omnivores will have no clue that the creaminess comes from soymilk and nutritional yeast instead of butter and milk.

Creamy Tomato Barley Risotto

• 1 cup pearl barley
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1.5 cups canned pureed/diced tomatoes (14.5-oz can), pureed a bit in a blender or mashed
• 1 cup soymilk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 3 tbsp miso, mixed with 3 tbsp water
• 1/4-1/2 tsp kosher salt, to taste

1. Put the barley olive oil, basil, and oregano in a cold medium-sized pot that has a lid. Turn the heat to medium-high and stir well until barley is coated with oil. 
2. Once the barley sizzles (about a minute), add the minced garlic and cook for another minute then add the tomatoes, milk, water, nutritional yeast, miso, and salt. Cover and reduce heat to low.
3. Cook, covered, for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, stir well, re-cover, and cook for another 15 minutes, or until it's as chewy as you like.The mixture should be creamy, but not soupy, and the barley should be very chewy and not mushy.

Creamy Broccoli Mushroom Bake

Yes, this Creamy Broccoli Mushroom Bake from Vegan Yum Yum is an ugly duckling recipe as promised, but it was good. I liked the technique of this casserole dish though: process broccoli and mushrooms, saute them with onions and olive oil, mix in an alfredo sauce and grains, top with breadcrumbs, and bake. I don't think I've ever processed my veggies like that before for a casserole.

It was very good, but not a winner in my book because

1. The alfredo sauce, while really good, called for two tablespoons of Earth Balance margarine. Two tablespoons! Maybe I'm too much of a Happy Herbivore-ian now, but I just don't think you need so much (or any) margarine for something to taste good. 
2. The alfredo recipe called for an optional two to four cloves of garlic. I love garlic so put in nearly four, and the final dish tasted overwhelmingly of garlic, I didn't mind it because I like garlic, but I'd have liked to taste the broc, shrooms, and sauce too. 
3. It was not filling at all. I eat protein, whole grains, and veggies at every meal to keep me satisfied. I had to pair this with a lentil soup or baked tofu or a chickpea salad to make a complete meal, and by that time the calorie count for this meal was, I'm guessing, way higher than I need.

Still, if you don't mind pairing this dish with a protein, love strong garlic flavor or choose to omit, and don't care about the bad margarine, it was pretty good. I'd be interested in making another version with a Happy Herbivore alfredo sauce and some chickpeas added to the mix.

Creamy Broccoli and Mushroom Bake from Vegan Yum Yum

• Alfredo sauce recipe is here (the recipe uses a slightly tweaked version)
• 1 cup cooked orzo (I used brown rice)
• 2 1/2 cups broccoli processed to a fine mixture
• 1 cup mushrooms processed to a fine mixture
• 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil (I used 1)
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup breadcrumbs (I used panko)
• salt & pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add the onions and saute until softened and beginning to brown. Add the processed broccoli, shrooms, and salt. Saute until the mixture cooks down slightly and the veggies are soft, 5 to 7 minutes. Turn off the heat.
2. Add the brown rice and alfredo sauce, and mix everything up.
3. Lightly oil a medium casserole dish, pour the mixture in, top with bread crumbs, and spray with cooking spray then the smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. 
4. Baked covered at 400F for 25 minutes; uncover and bake for 5 minutes more.

A Trio of Yum Yum Sandwiches

I have no idea why the author of Vegan Yum Yum would take down her website, stop posting on Twitter, and otherwise disappear from the vegan community. It's a shame, because her recipes are great! Last week I made three sandwiches from the book.

The first was the Pan-Seared Tomato and Rosemary Artichoke Sandwich.It was extremely messy but amazingly delicious. The messiness comes from a balsamic reduction (heat 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar on medium for about 5 minutes, until it reduces by half and becomes sweet and a little thick) drizzled over the sandwich. Sliced artichokes sauteed in olive oil with rosemary, pan-seared tomato slices, baby spinach, and some basil complete this sandwich. I very rarely eat white bread, so having this on white baguette bread was a huge treat for me. Two huge thumbs up for this sandwich!

The second was the Picnic Sandwich (sorry for the bad photo).The first step is making the spread, which is a puree of nuts (recipe called for pine nuts; I used walnuts) and sundried tomatoes in olive oil. Spread that on both sides of the sandwich, then top with zucchini slices sauteed with Italian herbs. Add baby spinach, and you've got another really awesome sandwich. She calls it a picnic sandwich because it can be wrapped up in plastic and sit for a few hours in a backpack and still taste good. This sandwich also gets two big thumbs up (the white baguette bread was awesome again).

The third was the Smoky Miso Tofu Sandwich.I first made a marinade from miso, lemon juice, sugar, soy sauce, nutritional yeast, and liquid smoke, brushed it on the tofu, and baked the slices for about 20 minutes.Next I made the Cashew Miso Mayo from Appetite for Reduction, which is a simple puree of cashews, miso, water, and apple cider vinegar. I spread the mayo on wheat bread, added the tofu slices, and topped it with baby spinach. This sandwich was just okay. I didn't love the tofu, and I usually always love tofu. And I think there were conflicting miso tastes between the tofu marinade and the mayo.

I'll definitely make the first two again. Until then, Lauren (Vegan Yum Yum author), please come back!