Butternut Squash Lasanga

I had friends over for a Christmas dinner party on Saturday.  I was only planning a meal for 10-12 people, but I wanted to make sure everything could kind of be prepared ahead of time, so I didn't have a last minute freak out*.  I ended up making a spring mix salad with fennel, grapes, avocado, red onion, and sunflower seeds and a grapefruit/celery dressing, stuffed mushrooms, mashed potatoes, brussel sprouts with almonds, curried carrots and apples, and a butternut squash lasagna- for dessert I made a cranberry cake with coconut icing.  I tried to pick things that I've either prepared before, or things that would be hard to mess up.  The only risk I took was on the lasagna- and overall it turned out pretty great, with the exception of the noodles... I used rice lasagna noodles and I think If I do this again I'll switch it up with thinly sliced zucchini instead.  This would make a great main dish anytime of year.  The richness of the cashew "alfredo sauce" and the creamy butternut squash will satisfy and fill you up- while getting a dose of green iron from the spinach.  

Butternut Squash Lasagna

1 butternut squash peeled, seeded, and thinly sliced

1.5 cup of raw cashews

1.5 cup water

garlic

salt

the juice/zest from one lemon

1 cup nutritional yeast

spinach (fresh or frozen... a lot or a little... your choice!)

1 package lasagna noodles (or 5 ish zucchinis mandolined)

Blend/process cashews, water, nutritional yeast, garlic, salt, and lemon stuffs until a smooth, creamy sauce is made.  Layer noodles, squash, spinach and sauce in a 9x13 pan until ingredients are used, or the pan is filled.  Bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes.  Top with vegan parmesean or parsley!

*last minute freak out= I've been known to have them all of the time.  I like the last-minute-oh-crap adrenaline rush I get, but even though this method proved successful when writing research papers in college- its not the best process when food is involved.  Plan ahead, make lists, and if you're dying to try a new recipe for company, make it in advance, so you'll have a plan B if need be.  Also, the best asset in helping with last minute freak outs is an amazing friend/family member that can be your sous-chef/assistant.  For every great dinner party that I've had there has been a friend "behind the scenes" making me look great- whether it be icing my cakes, chopping veggies, stuffing mushrooms, helping catch up on dishes, or just making sure the ice is ready for drinks and the floor is swept.  Having a good friend do this for you is invaluable- thank them often and reward them with taste tests and food to take home.  My mom is usually my behind the scenes girl, but for this most recent party I have to thank Cote for making my last minute freak out a non-freak out.  

I hope everyone's holiday season is merry and bright!

Here are a few more photos from the dinner party...

Thanksgiving 2009

I can't believe all of the positive press this year about alternative offerings at the Thanksgiving table!  US Weekly featured Kimberly Snyder and her Raw Pecan Love Pie in their recent issue, the local paper today had a cover story about gluten-free side dishes, and even Martha Stewart had an episode about having a vegetarian Thanksgiving!

When alternative eating goes mainstream I get super excited.  We all have our reasons for veering from the Standard American Diet- and the more veg press (or even GF press) there is, the better chance that us who choose alternative diets wont feel so ostracized or alone.  

This year my Thanksgivings were great! and I think everyone left the table full and happy.  I could have easily served this meal in courses, but I think everything served family style is essential for holiday dinners.  I had two Thanksgivings at my house this year, most dishes were overlapped, but some things were different.

For starters on Thanksgiving #1, I served olive hummus on sliced cucumbers out in the living room.  I had sparkling water, blackberry sage iced tea, and an iced yerba mate for drink options (as well as coffee just in case).  When we said our thanks at the dinner table we had creamy turnip soup, fennel salad, basil green beans and tomatoes, cranberry apple dressing, shitake and millet casserole, and curried sweet potato fries.  After dinner we got comfy back in the living room for pecan pie and pumpkin ginger ice cream.

Saturday morning I visited the farmers' market (for you Louisville locals- the Bardstown Road market is year round) and picked up some turnips, potatoes, baby tomatoes, apples, onions, and sweet potatoes.   The creamy turnip soup is actually a modified version of the potato and root vegetable soup I posted a few weeks ago- I just added more turnips and cashews and switched the yukons for russets- although I prefer the yukons for a soup potato- the russets made the soup very gelatinous.  

The fennel salad was inspired by my Aunt Lynn.  When I saw fennel bulbs at the market I knew I had to include them for Thanksgiving because she'd been raving about how wonderful fennel was for months.  I then found a recipe in my Raw Food Real World book that paired fennel with grapefruit and avocado- and knowing her signature Christmas salad includes citrus and avocado- I made the match and added some pomegranate seeds, coriander, lemon, mint, and black pepper.  

I couldn't believe that local fresh tomatoes would still be for sale in Kentucky in late November, but they were perfect to toss with some blanched green beans and a great pairing for the (super easy) shitake and millet casserole.  Thanksgiving wouldn't be thanksgiving without cranberries and sweet potatoes, so I jazzed up the cranberries with apples, walnuts, and an orange and tossed the sweet potato fries with some cayenne, cumin, maple syrup and garam masala. 

For Thanksgiving #2, I skipped the appetizer, but for drinks fixed a rooibos and fennel iced tea and popped opened a bottle of sparkling apple cider.  The meal included the same shitake and millet casserole, cranberry apple dressing, and sweet potato fries from the first meal, but I served the green beans with almonds, made some redskin and cauliflower mashed potatoes, and garlicky kale.  The pecan pie and pumpkin ginger ice cream were served again for dessert.

I hope everyone's holiday was wonderful.  I am so thankful for my family and friends and for my comfy home.  

If you'd like to get a recipe of something I mentioned above, please comment!  

Potato and Root Vegetable Soup

The cold weather that fall brings makes me crave warm comfort foods.  Potatoes are my favorite feel-good food with warm soup coming in a close second on the favorite comfort food list.  So, here's a great potato soup recipe using potatoes and their other root veggie cousins- turnips and carrots.

Potato and Root Vegetable Soup

4 cups potatoes (I used yukon gold) chopped into 1 inch cubes

2 cups of carrots chopped 

4 medium sized turnips chopped

1 large onion chopped

1-2 cups of raw cashews

4 cups of veggie broth

In one pot boil potatoes, carrots, and turnips with veggie broth until tender.

In a skillet, toast cashews lightly and then add chopped onion until translucent.

When the root veggies are tender, drain veggie broth and reserve.  Add cashews and onions to the root veggies and with a hand blender puree while slowly incorporating the reserved veggie broth until you've reached the desired consistency.  Serve with plenty of cracked black pepper, fresh grated carrot, and maybe some nutritional yeast sprinkled on top.