Cheesy broccoli rice casserole.


Kicking that neon-casserole-with-mushroom-soup-shit-from-your-childhood into the ground. The cheesy sauce is made up of a few things.. cashews, nutritional yeast, salt and some yams. Not bad.


This recipe is a wee bit involved, but to be frank (Okay.. Can I still be Garth?) it's not so tough. You'll want to cook your rice, boil up things for your sauce, as you saute the vegetables. The rice and sauce prep don't heaps need your attention.

Step One:
Preheat your oven to 350F. Stick that oven rack on the highest position. Throw 1 cup basmati rice in your rice cooker. Let your rice cooker do the work with 2 cups water added to it.

Step Two:
Boil up a pot of water. Add in 1/2 cup raw cashews + 1/2 cup chopped raw yams. Boil for about ten minutes.

Step Three: Saute the following..
  • 1 cup broccoli, chopped
  • 1/2 zucchini, chopped
  • 1/2 onion, chopped
  • 6 mushrooms, chopped
  • 1/3 cup finely chopped / matchstick carrots



Step Four:
Drain cashews and yam. In a wee blender, blend these up with 1 1/2 cups almond milk, 1/2 to 3/4 tsp salt1/3 cup nutritional yeast. Add pepper if desired.


Step Five:
Either layer your casserole (vegetables, sauce, rice, sauce, x2) or mix everything together and place in your casserole dish that ought to be ~8x12". Add in some FYH shreds too!

Step Six:
Melt 1 tbsp butter and stir in 1/2 cup panko. Spread on top of casserole.

Step Seven:
Bake on the top rack for 20 minutes on the nose.

 



Baked fusilli.



I don't remember heaps about Pizza Hut in the mid '90s. Primarily Treatza Pizza during the lunch buffet, free POGS on the table, getting TMNT I and II on VHS on two totally separate, blissful occasions...and that baked pasta on the edge of the buffet table. Crunchy on top, cheesy everywhere else, and knowing one bite can and would completely obliterate my wee lactose-intolerant digestive system. At the time, not really worth it, but the POGS were, sure as sugar.


Ingredients I
2 cups dry fusilli
5 cloves garlic
Water, for pasta
Pinch of salt

Ingredients II
1 small zucchini, sliced
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
6 mushrooms, chopped
1/2 yellow onion, sliced
1 roma tomato, chopped
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper 

Ingredients III
12oz (1 1/2 cups) crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup non dairy cheese - I used a blend of FYH mozzarella and cheddar

Ingredients IV
2 tbsp butter, melted
1/3 cup panko
2 tbsp nutritional yeast

Optional: flat leaf parsley

Preheat oven to 415F.

Oil up the inside of your dish, which ought to be about 8x12".

In a pot, boil water with salt for your pasta. Once boiling, drop in your garlic and pasta. Bake for ~7 minutes, or until 3/4 way cooked through.

Saute all of Ingredients II while the pasta is boiling.

Once your pasta is al-dente, drain and place in the frying pan with Ingredients III

Stir together and pour into your baking dish.

Top with more cheese if you fancy.

Mix up Ingredients IV and dollop onto your dish. It'll look a little mushy at first, but it crisps up real dandy in the oven.

Bake for 30 minutes on the button, and let cool for 10 minutes or so before serving. Top with parsley if using.





Chickpea appreciation post: Chickpea salad & mocha PB cookies



Mocha peanut butter cookies. Chickpea salad sandwiches. These two recipes have very little in common.. minus splitting a can of chickpeas between the two. If the thought of that gives you gut rot, eat glass and/or read into the "methods" involved in chicken farming. These two recipes will use up one $1 can of chickpeas - juice and all. Making both these recipes? Scoop that chickpea liquid out once you crack the can open. The chickpea liquid act as a protein-rich liquid that helps bind the dough. 

Mocha Peanut Butter Cookies
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup chickpea-juice (yep, that opaque juice you typically rinse from your chickpeas)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup super strong coffee (I used KRAKUS from Bulk Barn, to make it caffeine-free)
1/4 tsp salt
2-3 tbsp flour / alternative 
1/2 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut
Vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F on the middle rack.

Starting with the PB and baking soda, flour & sugar, mix for a few minutes on medium speed. Add in the remaining ingredients. 

Bake for 11 minutes, let sit for five before transferring to a wire cooling rack.




Chickpea salad sandwiches
1 cup Chickpeas, rinsed over
~3 tbsp vegan mayo
1/2-1 tsp. old bay seasoning
1 scallion, sliced

Pumpernickel bread
Non dairy butter
Fresh spinach

To prep the sandwiches, place the chickpeas on a plate and start mashing them. I used to mash them in a bowl but they didn't spread out nicely, and would fly all over the place trying to mash them with my fork. Add the mayo, old bay, and mix up. Stir in the scallion.

Butter your bread like a good Mennonite and place some spinach atop the pumpernickel, and top with chickpea mixture.

I didn't need to add salt because the old bay took care of that nonsense.