Holiday Delights

My holiday table | Photo via Kelsey Erin Photography

Holiday food is the bombdiggity!!! It's warming and delicious and perfect and fabulous. Being vegan, I've had to make some considerable changes to the classics, but I assure you they are tasty and just as satisfying. I find inspiration everywhere! I love reading vegan and non-vegan cookbooks and blogs. I love turning a recipe into a veggie delight! It brings me such joy! Such joy!! And when it tastes so freaking good,  I'm so happy I wanna run into the streets screaming good tidings and kiss a good looking stranger right in the face. Here are 3 recipes, one created from my mind hole, one exactly as it was written, and one adapted to my plant based lifestyle! All of them are magical holiday dishes!! Enjoy!

Green Beans with Shallots and Almonds Serves 4 as a side

1 pound trimmed green beans

1/4 cup sliced almonds

4-5 large shallots sliced into rings

a sprinkle or 2 of whole wheat pastry flour (any will work)

1 tablespoon olive oil for the beans and 1/2 cup or so sunflower oil to fry the shallots

a splash of veggie stock (I like to add some stock to help the beans steam)

salt and pepper

So this is super easy. I've made it twice already and I'm sharing the more naughty version. After light dredging the shallots in flour, I shallow fried them in a frying pan until golden and crispy! Once out of the pan lay them on paper towels and sprinkle with salt. YUM! You might need to make more because you WILL eat them as they cook up. Then start the green beans, get a tablespoon of oil heating in the pan. Toss in the green beans with the oil and add a pinch of salt and a few turns of the pepper mill. Toss in a splash, roughly a tablespoon, of stock and put on the lid. Check every 2-3 minutes, you want them to be soft, but still have a bit of a crunch! You definitely want them to keep their brilliant color!! Once they hit the sweet spot toss in the almonds, shallots, and another pinch of salt. Sauté for a min or so and serve!! Soooooo good!!! If you want to make the healthy version, omit the oil and sauté beans with only veggie stock and instead of frying your shallots place them on a cookie sheet in a 450 degree oven for 10-15 minutes!! Fat free masterpiece! 

"Christina Hendricks's Rub All Over Your Body Stuffing" Sorta...

Serves two thousand people

day old cornbread (I use this whole recipe minus the green chilies)

day old biscuits (I use this whole recipe from The Kind Diet, but switch the oil for apple sauce)

1 cup celery, finely chopped

1 large onion, finely chopped

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

2 teaspoons salt

4-6 cups veggie stock

1 tablespoon dried sage

1 teaspoon parsley flakes

1/2 cup melted Earth Balance (I use the sticks for this)

optional: Field Roast's Smoked Apple Sage "sausage" crumbled

This is so easy. I make the biscuits and cornbread the day before and try not to eat them. I actually like to chop my veggies and measure out my herbs too. Then the day of I just crumble up the biscuits and cornbread and dump everything else into a huge baking dish! Preheat the oven to 350. I pour over the earth balance and start with 4 cups of veggie stock. Bake for an hour, adding stock if it begins to dry out.

This was a hit. Creamed Kale is where it's at!!! I found this recipe at Food to Glow and holy bananas!! MIND. BLOWN. I can't even believe how delicious this dish tasted. So simple. I can't wait to make it again!!! Can a person be in love with Kale? Like truly, deeply in love?? Because I am. I definitely am. Check out the recipe here and make the vegan version, DUH. Enjoy these delicious recipes!!!!!!!

Delish 3 Bean Chili

Fall is here!!!! Sort of... In Southern California it's pretty much spring/summer all year long until magically it's winter for 3 months then bam back to 75 and sunny. Don't get me wrong, I love it, but sometimes you just want to see the leaves change color and wear a pair of boots in October without your feet sweating all nasty up in there. For near perfect weather year round I suppose there has to be a trade off. Well, it's October and that means Halloween which in turn means CHILI!!!! A Lanza family tradition!! I don't know when this started, but when I think of Halloween I think of Sandy's[my mom] chili. Now my version has slightly changed over the years, first to turkey, then to meatless grounds, and now to all beans all the time. Now in the past I've just used the meatless grounds and the meat eaters have been none the wiser, but this all bean version has so much flavor no one is going to miss the meat! This meal is warm, spicy, and the perfect compliment to a cool fall day! 3 Bean Chili - Serves an Army

1 onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup chili powder

2 tablespoons cumin

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (adjust for personal taste, I like more!!)

1 bay leaf

1 15 oz can each of red kidney beans, black beans, and pinto beans, all strained and rinsed

2 15 oz cans of fire roasted tomatoes with chilies

3 tablespoons + 1 cup of veggie stock

Add 3 tablespoons of veggie stock to a large ceramic pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until soft, adding more veggie stock if necessary. Mix in all of the spices and cook for 1 minute, then add tomatoes, beans, veggie stock. Mix well. Bring to a slow boil then reduce the heat to low and cover. Cook for at least 30 minutes, but depending on your timeline for an hour or two. Stirring every so often. You can also do this in a slow cooker, I would sauté the onions in garlic before adding all the ingredients into the crockpot and cook on high for 3-4 hours or slow for 5-6.

Enjoy with diced white onions, avocado, corn chips, green onions, etc etc. The list is endless. I'm a onions and avocado girl myself.

Delectable Corn Muffins - Makes 12 muffins

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup diced green chilies

1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce

1 1/4 cup unsweetened plain almond milk

1 1/2 cup of cornmeal

1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Mix all dry and all wet ingredients. Then gently fold the wet into the dry, be sure not to over stir. Pour  batter into a non-stick muffin tin and bake for 30-35 mins. Boom. Done.

This recipe is adapted from Alicia Silverstone's book The Kind Diet. I've been doing a no-oil/low oil diet for about a year now, so I look for any opportunity to cut oil.  This cornbread is super easy and just by switching out the oil for unsweetened applesauce you kick the fat in it's big ass. I also add some green chilies for some FIRE... 'cause I love FIRE... I don't know what I'm talking about.  I ate 5 of these because they are guilt free... I was feeling sad, missing The Captain, watching a Twilight marathon... Anywho, they are amazing!!! Let me know if you try making either recipe! Happy Fall!