Vegan Shepherd's Pie (Tasty)

Vegan Shepherd's Pie

Source: Tasty @ Facebook. 

Serves: 6

Ingredients:
- 4 russet potatoes
- 3 carrots
- 3 celery stalks
- 1/2 yellow onion
- 2 cups chopped mushrooms (one package)
- 1 Tbsp. flour
- 1 tsp fresh thyme
- 1 tsp fresh sage
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 cups veggie broth
- 1/3 cup red wine
- salt
- pepper
- soy milk (or rice milk)
- vegan butter

Directions:

Peel, chop, and boil the potatoes for 10-15 minutes until soft.

Meanwhile, chop the carrots, celery, and onion, sauté in vegan butter or oil for a few minutes. Add the mushrooms, and cook until the edges begin to darken. add the garlic, and season with salt and pepper. Add the tomato paste, flour, thyme, and sage. Slowly add the veggie broth and wine, stirring continuously. Let simmer for a few minutes to thicken.

Mash the potatoes and add the soy milk and vegan butter. Add more if needed until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Lay the veggie filling into a baking dish, the spread the mashed potatoes over top. At this time you can get creative with designs and patterns for the top. The rougher the surface, the crispier it will turn out.

Spray the surface with cooking oil. Broil for 10-15 minutes, or until the top is crispy.

Enjoy!

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Vegan Shepherd's Pie - French Lentil

Vegan Shepherd's Pie - French Lentil

Source: Plantz St.

Ingredients

BOTTOM LAYER

• 1 cup French or green lentils 
• 5 cups low-sodium vegetable broth or water 
• 4 carrots, diced 
• 1 yellow onion, diced 
• 10 crimini mushrooms, diced 
• 1 cup broccoli, diced 
• ½ cup rolled oats (optional) 
• 1 tablespoon poultry seasoning 
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary 
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme 
• 1 teaspoon garlic granules 
• ½ teaspoon black pepper 
• 1 cup frozen green peas, thawed 

TOP LAYER

• 8 medium Yukon Gold potatoes 
• ½ cup cup water 
• ½ cup unsweetened, non-dairy milk 
• ½ teaspoon black pepper 
• ½ cup cashews (optional) 

Instructions

1. In a large pot with the lid on, bring 1 to 2 inches of water to a boil. While the water heats, chop potatoes. Add a steam basket to the pot and fill it with potatoes. Steam potatoes for about 20 minutes. They should be soft and will split nicely using a fork. Turn off heat and set aside.
2. In another pan, heat lentils and water over med-high heat. Once it reaches a boil, reduce heat to a simmer. Let lentils cook until they are tender, about 30 to 40 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Note, it is fully cooked before it goes in the oven so baking the pie is an optional step. Baking reduces some of the moisture so that when the pieces are cut and served, they hold together better.
4. While the starches are cooking, heat carrots and onions in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Keep the pan covered and stir frequently. If the veggies start to stick to pan, add a little water. Once onions are translucent, add mushrooms and broccoli. Continue to cook until the veggies are tender. Add peas and turn off the heat.
5. After the lentils have been cooking for about 20 minutes, stir in herbs, garlic, and black pepper. Add rolled oats, stirring often so the oats do not clump together. Lentils will become thick and creamy. Add vegetable broth or water as needed, keeping the lentils moist at this point so they don’t become to dry in the oven.
6. Stir veggies into lentils and mix well. Pour lentil-veggie mix into a 9×13 inch casserole pan.
7. Transfer potatoes to a large bowl. Add water, non-dairy milk, and black pepper. Mash potatoes until they are creamy. Layer mashed potatoes over lentils. If using cashews, grind them in a spice grinder and sprinkle powder over potato layer.
8. Bake for 15 minutes. Then let the casserole site for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

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20 Minute Vegan Alfredo (The Vegan 8)

20 Minute Vegan Alfredo

Source: The Vegan 8.

Paige's Recipe Notes: Delish. Use mirin for less tart taste. Add a tablespoon honey or maple syrup. 

Serves 1/4 cup sauce (not pasta).

Ingredients

For the Pasta

• 14 oz bag of gluten-free brown rice fettucini pasta (or your preferred pasta)
• 1/2 tablespoon fine sea salt

Alfredo Sauce

• 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth (480 mL, I really recommend low versus the regular)
• 1/4 cup raw cashew butter or 3/4 cup raw cashews (roasted is too strong, with no added ingredients. I get mine from Whole Foods or make my own, another nut butter will not work)
• 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar (10 mL)
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (16 g, add more if you like, but I found this to be perfect. I also use Dr. Fuhrman's which is a bit less salty)
• 2 tablespoons brown rice flour (20 g, really is magical in this)
• 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 3/4-1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• optional: 1/2 teaspoon dried Italian herbs blend (not necessary but does add a nice flavor)
• optional: any veggies you may want to add

Note: Please note I have ONLY tested this recipe (3 times in fact) exactly as written, so I don't know about subs. If you can't find cashew butter, then you can make your own. I do it often. Just add 2 cups RAW, unsalted cashews to a food processor and process for about 10 minutes or so. You will need to scrape the sides down a few times during. Process until completely silky smooth, do not stop until it becomes almost pour-able like almond butter. Then just use 1/4 cup for the recipe as listed.

Instructions

1. Follow each step closely. To have this ready to eat in 20 minutes, you will first need to start your pasta before the sauce. Add 12 cups of very hot water to a large pot and put the lid on (it will come to a boil faster). Turn to high heat and let it come to a boil. Mine took about 10 minutes before it was boiling (yours may be faster). Once it's boiling add the pasta and salt and quickly stir it around to loosen it up. The salt is important because it flavors the pasta and you won't end up with bland pasta. Keep on high heat and cook for 9 minutes or until al dente. Mine took exactly 9 minutes. Yours may vary depending on the pasta you use.
2. While you are waiting on your water to come to a boil, this is when you will add all of your "alfredo sauce" ingredients (including the dried Italian herbs if using) to a blender. Blend until very smooth and there is no lumps from the cashew butter or rice flour. It will be very runny, don't worry about that, it will thicken up a lot when cooking. You will notice that it tastes fairly salty straight out of the blender, this is necessary for it to stand out in the end result with the pasta (and any veggies you may add).
3. Check your water to see if boiling yet.
4. Add the sauce to a large sauce pan and whisk well from the bottom to make sure there are no lumps from the rice flour. Turn to high heat. Once it starts bubbling all over, immediately turn to medium heat and whisk continually while letting it cook 3-5 minutes until thickened. You want to continually whisk around the bottom and sides, so the flour doesn't clump. Don't walk away from it. I cooked mine about 4 minutes. I have a gas stovetop and this is how quick it was, yours may vary. You don't want to cook it too long because it will thicken up considerably as it cools off, because of the rice flour. The longer you cook it, the thicker it will become. You are basically just wanting it to thicken up to a light creamy consistency and then remove from the heat. If for some reason you slightly overcooked it and it gets too thick, just add a tiny amount of broth to thin it back out. Voila. Add any veggies if you like. I literally just threw in some peas and carrots from the freezer and let them cook a minute in the sauce. Your sauce should be done before your pasta, so just cover with a lid to keep warm.
5. Once your pasta is done, drain and rinse with water to stop the cooking. Brown rice pasta can stick really badly, so I rinse really well and serve immediately. I don't like to add it directly to the sauce or it thickens it up too much. I add to a plate, then add the sauce and garnish with extra dried Italian herbs or red pepper flakes or anything else you like. If you used low-sodium broth and 3/4 tsp salt, it should not need any extra. Mine was perfect, but taste and add more if necessary as some broths vary. For reheating leftovers, heat over low and add a little broth to thin back out if necessary.

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