Creamy Butternut Chickpea Millet + Cool News

So, I have something pretty cool to share. It's my vegan story! The beautiful Kristy over at Keepin' It Kind is so wonderful to have provided me with the opportunity to share my journey to vegandom. Is that a word? Vegandom. I think it should be. Well, it is now. If you've ever wanted to know more about my little story, now you can! So head on over and check it out. Plus, there's a few pics of me with some pretty sweet pups.  Just about every night I have a pretty intense internal battle about whether to make dessert for dinner or an actual, proper dinner. Last night it was a particularly harrowing spar. However, dinner won. It usually does, but only because I know if I don't make any dinner then I'll have to eat falafel chips and hummus for lunch the next day...which I totally did yesterday. I'm not complaining about such a delicious lunch, but really, it's more of a snack. Then, I'm so hungry by the end of the work day that I come home and binge on a downright shocking amount of Endangered Species chocolate. They have these new ones that are creme filled you guys! And VEGAN! Actually, now that I think about it...maybe I should just do this everyday. 

Completely unrelated to food or being vegan, Todd and I watched Frozen last night. New favorite movie! Well, I dunno. Could I demote Monsters, Inc.? I'm entirely not sure. But, we laughed throughout the entire thing and also Josh Gad is my favorite person to ever walk the Earth so ya' know, pretty much best movie ever. Plus it's all about snow and winter and that's kind of my jam...living in Alaska and all, ya' dig?

Okay, back to this dish.

You know how everyone loves chickpeas and buttersquash? Yes. And you know how everyone's getting on all up on the millet bandwagon? Yes. Well now combine those three luscious ingredients! Bam! Fluffy millet soaks in a warm, herbed butternut squash sauce dotted with protein-packed chickpeas. All ready to go in about 30 minutes. Now that's a dinner worth forgoing dessert for. 

Creamy Butternut Chickpea Millet

Serves 6

• Millet:
• 1 1/2 cups millet, dry
• 3 cups water
• pinch of salt
• Aromatics:
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 medium carrot, diced small
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced small
• 1/2 red bell pepper, diced small
• 1 whole dried bay leaf
• 1 Tbsp. fresh ginger, minced
• 1/2 Tbsp. whole cumin seeds
• 1/4 tsp. ground sage
• 1/4 tsp. ground pepper
• 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
• grating of nutmeg
• Sustenance:
• 32 oz. butternut squash soup
• 2 15 oz. cans of chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
• 1 Tbsp. nutritional yeast
• 1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar

Notes: Quinoa, rice, or couscous can be used in place of the millet if you wish. If you don't have whole cumin seeds, feel free to use about 1/2 tsp. of ground cumin. I used Pacifica brand of butternut squash soup. 

In a medium saucepan, toast the dry millet over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes, until fragrant. Stirring occasionally. Then, add the water and salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then cover partially and reduce to a simmer. Allow to simmer for 15 minutes, then stir and remove from heat. Keep covered and let sit until ready for use, at least 10 minutes. 

While the millet is cooking, in a large soup pot heat the oil over medium then add the aromatic ingredients. Saute for about 10 minutes, until the carrots are tender and the onions are browned. 

Meanwhile, in a blender combine 3/4 cup of the butternut squash soup, 3/4 cup of the chickpeas, as well as the nutritional yeast and the vinegar. Blend on high until smooth. Add this mixture to the sauteed vegetables as well as the remainder of the soup and chickpeas. Stir well to combine, and remove the bay leaf. 

This dish can be served two ways. Either place a scoop of the cooked millet into a shallow soup bowl and a ladle of sauce around it or, combine the millet and sauce and serve that way. Serve hot. 

Come jam with me. Don't deny yourself...

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/106878552" params="color=88d0ab&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=true" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /]

"He stares so politely I'm best behaving when he's walking with me, walking with me Oh, he likes taking photos in black and white They're upon his walls, on his walls"

German Word of The Day: Millet --> Hirse (pronounced: hillseh)

Good Deed of The Day: For real? Ugh. Sign this petition to tell UK labs to stop puppy and kitten experiments. Only takes 5 seconds, promise. 

Oh and also...

Dang that was a pretty involved post today. Lots of stuff going on, but guess what? It's pretty much Friday, peeps! 

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Restaurant Worthy Hot & Sour Soup

If you like hot and sour soup. This is the real deal. No restaurant necessary. 

I wouldn't joke about this. I take my restaurant-worthy dishes very seriously.

This soup made me dance on my little tippy toes around the kitchen. Seriously. I've never been a particularly fervent hot and sour soup fan though, I always went the egg drop soup route. I loved me some egg drop soup. Nevermore! This soup is the bees knees. 

So hot and sour! Well...kind of hot. I'm a bit of a wimp when it comes to spicy foods. Unless we're talking ginger or wasabi. I'm all about that type of spicy! When I get sushi, I dip the pickled ginger into the wasabi and eat it plain, okay? You're impressed. I know. Watch out, BA comin' though. 

Feel free to add as much ground fresh chili paste as you'd like to this soup. I stuck with 1/2 tsp. because, like I said, a bit of a wimp here. I've made my peace with it. I just have dainty taste buds, okay?

Restaurant Worthy Hot & Sour Soup

Serves 4-6

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 Tbsp. fresh ginger, peeled and minced
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced
• 8 oz. cubed seitan, chopped (or ground plant-based meat)
• 2 cups water
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 lb. firm tofu, cubed small
• 10 cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 2/3 cup rice vinegar
• 3 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. sesame oil
• 1 tsp. vegan sugar
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. ground fresh chili paste, to taste
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 2 handfuls of fresh spinach, torn (optional)

Notes: I added a bit of spinach, because that's how I roll but feel free to omit it if you like. 

In a large soup pot, heat the oil over medium-low. Add the garlic, ginger, green onions, and seitan. Saute for about 5 minutes, until fragrant and the seitan begins to brown.

(Do you like the repurpose of egg holder? It's a garlic holder now!) Add the water and the vegetable broth and bring to a simmer. Now, add the remaining ingredients, excluding the cornstarch and the spinach and stir well. 

In a small bowl, add about 1/2 cup of the soup broth. Whisk in the cornstarch until clump-free. Stir the mixture back into the soup to thicken it. 

Add the torn spinach and continue to simmer until the spinach has wilted and the soup has thickened slightly from the cornstarch. 

Remove from heat. Let the soup rest for a few minutes before serving.

Serve hot. 

Jammin' along to Josh Rouse – It's Good To Have You

"Coffee and a toast and a peppermint tea It's a little too cold to go outside  Wonder what would happen if you lived with me,  Oh oh, I got the feeling that it'd turn out nice Oh oh, it feels good to have you in my life."

German Word of The Day: Worthy --> Würdig (pronounced: ver-dich)

Good Deed of The Day: Sometimes I really hate our species. Sign this petition and help the Defenders of Wildlife tell the US Government to stop using your tax money to kill coyotes from planes. For real. I'm not onboard with that. 

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Avocado-Cilantro Cream Angel Hair

This is such a delightful spring dish. It also happens to be counting as my "green" today. If you follow me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram you know that my morning was pretttty shitttty. Needless to say, I completely forgot it was St. Patrick's Day and ran out of the house thankful to be on time for work (breastases aren't going to be mammogramin' themselves you know), let alone wearing green. Lucky for me (I'm part Irish), not a single person pinched me today. Whew! 

If you happen to be one of those poor souls who hates cilantro (I hear it's genetic...no, seriously) stay far, far away from this dish. Same goes if you strongly dislike avocados. However, I have yet to meet such a person and will totally notify you if I ever do. Who hates avocados?

This is one luxurious dish. Angel hair pasta bathes in a light and dreamy avocado-cilantro cream sauce. It's a bit sweet, with a hint of ginger and zesty lime. Barring any anger towards cilantro or avocado...you're going to love it. You'll also love that it's done in the time it takes to boil up some pasta! And that's something we can all be thankful for. 

Side Note: It's weird to me now that I used to make pasta sauces sans veggies. Like non-vegan, traditional mac & cheese and alfredo sauce. My vegan mac & cheese is made with sweet potato and my alfredo sauce with cashews and cauliflower. Then there's this delicious cream sauce with cilantro and avocado. Ponderous. How sad and boring (not to mention lacking some superfly nutrients) it must be for people to make traditional pasta sauces. They don't know what they're missing...and that makes my heart all glum. 

Avocado-Cilantro Cream Angel Hair

Serves 6

Notes: The pasta should be done at the same time, or just after the sauce. You don't want it to sit cooked. 

• 16 oz. angel hair pasta, dry
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 6 large garlic cloves, sliced
• 2 large ripe avocados, pitted
• 1 large bunch of cilantro (stems and all)
• 3 limes, juiced
• 1 small knob of fresh ginger, peeled and rough chopped
• 1/2 cup plain non-dairy milk
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 Tbsp. agave nectar or maple syrup
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for the pasta. When boiling, cook according to package which is usually about five minutes. Drain and return to pot. 

Meanwhile, heat the 1 tsp. of olive oil in a small saute pan. Add the garlic and saute for a few minutes, until browned and fragrant. Remove from heat. 

In a food processor, add the remaining ingredients including the sauteed garlic. Process until smooth and creamy. 

Add the sauce to the cooked and drained pasta, stir well to coat. 

Serve hot. 

Careful not to break your juicer! Todd doesn't know his own strength...

Oh dear. 

Listening to Yuna – Someone Who Can

Good Deed of The Day: Don't even get me started on the parents that buy little chicks and baby bunnies for their kids on Easter, let alone if they're dyed. I'm going to just stop right there. Sign this petition to help Julie Burge, the director of Burge Bird Rescue, stop the selling of baby chicks, ducks, and bunnies for Easter. It only takes 5 seconds. You'll find my signature there! 

German Word of The Day: Cream (with regards to food) --> Sahne (pronounced: Zahn-neh)  - Remember, I am not German...regardless of how much I might pretend. I am learning the language though! If you ever see that I am wrong *gasp* or just have something to add, please do! We're all learning together and I love the additions!Be Recipe Card

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