Happy Friday! Bean with 'Bacon' Soup and Stuffed Mushrooms- Oh My!

Happy Friday everyone! I have been meaning to blog all week, but I never seemed to find the time.  I did make some amazingly yummy recipes this week, so I wanted to share a few of them with you.  Let me know what think after you try them.

Bean with 'Bacon' Soup- So delicious and super easy!

You will need:

4 carrots finely diced
6 15 oz cans  Organic Great Northern White Beans ( half drained )- you can use dry beans, soak them etc.
64oz Organic Veggie Broth
8oz Organic Tomato Paste
1 Tbsp Liquid Smoke
Salt
Pepper
Garlic
Herbs Provence
Large Soup Pot


1. Place Carrots and Garlic in pot with a little olive oil.  Saute until slightly softened.

2. Add in the rest of the ingredients. Bring to boil for about 5 minutes, then simmer for at least 30 minutes.

Enjoy!



Vegan Stuffed Baby Portobello Mushroom Caps (Sorry I did not capture a picture to share)

You will Need:

6 Mushroom Caps
1 Zuccini
1 Carrot
1/2 Bell Pepper
1 1/2 cups Cashew Cream
1/4 cups Nutritional Yeast
Garlic
Salt
Pepper
Herbs Provence
Olive oil
Baking Sheet

1. Prep mushrooms- Clean, remove stems, and take a spoon and remove gills. Drizzle tops with Olive Oil, and place top side down on baking sheet

2. Mix remaining ingredients in a bowl. Season to taste

3. Spoon mixture into mushroom caps evenly.

4. Place in a 400 preheated oven. Bake for 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

Recipe - Potato & Leek Soup

I made this incredibly easy and super delicious soup the other night. It was based on every recipe for Potato & Leek Soup out there. There are really only a few ingredients so I trusted my gut and made it!

Sadly, I didn't take a picture but it looked an awful lot like this soup seen on the Always Order Dessert blog.

This completely Vegan and Gluten-free recipe is sure to warm the hearts of your carnivorous and herbivorous friends alike.

Potato & Leek Soup

1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes - About 3 fist sized ones

2 large leeks 

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 tablespoon Better than Bouillon Vegetarian Base (make it a heaping one)

4 cups warm water

Salt and Pepper to taste

Peel and cube your potatoes. Just chop them to a size that will make them soften up quickly. Boil until they are tender and then drain. Slice up your leeks (white and light green parts) and wash*. In the same pot add the oil and warm it up - so medium heat. Add the leeks and cook until nice and tender. While they are cooking add your bouillon to your warm water. You can use vegetable broth instead, but I love this bouillon.  When you leeks are ready, add water/bouillon mix and potatoes. Bring everything to a boil and then turn the heat down to medium. Like a rapid simmer. When you can see that the potatoes has started to absorb some of the bouillon, turn the heat off. Take your immersion blender and blend in all until smooth. Add Salt and Pepper to taste. Then turn heat back on and bring to a simmer.

Serve with something yummy like Full Sail Amber Ale. You can even put it in a bread bowl if you can eat bread.

*To wash leeks - Slice them up and then put them in a large bowl of water. While submersed, separate all the little rings. Then swish all the little rings around in the water. I basically just use my hand as a big spoon. Then drain the rings in a colander and rinse under water. It seems like a lot of work, but you aren't trying to make you leeks win a beauty contest so you don't have to be ginger and it is worth it. Dirt can get way down into the leeks.

Curried Butternut Squash Soup

I didn't like squash until this year and this recipe is what turned me on. It is a vegan spin-off of this  - Ellie Krieger's Curried Butternut Squash Soup

Pictured with chili powder instead of chili flakes because I ran out, apparently.

Vegan Curried Butternut Squash Soup


1 large yellow onion - chopped
2 large cloves of garlic - minced
2 containers of Pacific Vegetable Broth (8 cups total)
1.5 of the big bags of pre-cubed Butternut Squash from Trader Joes or one big (like 3lb) squash peeled, seeded and diced
1 tbs curry powder
1 tbs canola oil
salt to taste

Heat the oil in a pan over med-low, add onions and garlic, cook until soft, not brown. Add broth, squash, and curry. Bring to a boil and then simmer until squash is soft. Take off heat and use an immersion blender to blend until smooth. I normally return it to the burner to make sure it is nice and hot. Want thinner soup? Use less squash.

Add salt to taste and garnish with a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes.