Tag: vegan

Make This Now: Creamy Things are the Best Things

Lauren1 Comment

Before we begin, I need to tell you some important things.

  1. My energy level is VERY low today.  I know it’s Friday and I should have weekend energy but I’m just TIRED.
  2. Joey surprised me with coffee from Little Owl this morning and I love that man so much.
  3. I saw baby radish sprouts in our garden this morning and I should have just skipped my workout because those teensy green leaves got me more amped than any running endorphins did.
  4. It’s my little sister’s birthday today!  Though I refuse to believe EITHER of us are over 24 🙂

Okay, back to the subject at hand.

I was making quick mental note of which recipes I wanted to share next in this “Make This Now” series and they all happened to have the word “creamy” in the title.  Is that a coincidence or do my tastebuds just gravitate towards that word and I’ve never noticed until now?  I’ll ponder that on my own later, but you should make and eat these creamy things (maybe even this weekend!) and be the happiest version of yourself.

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Dijon-Herb Crusted Salmon with Creamy Dill Sauce + Warm Buttered Radish and Edamame Salad

Spring is all about fresh herbs, spicy radishes and bright flavors so this meal IS spring.  If you’ve never sautéed radishes before, they get almost potato-like in flavor and texture and you’ll probably want to drizzle that dill sauce over everything from now on.  So good!

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Creamy Thai Sweet Potato Curry

Joey and I have three well-loved curry recipes in our arsenal but if this was a Goldilocks story, Creamy Thai Sweet Potato Curry is “just right!”  More of a challenge than our 5-Ingredient Coconut Curry but easier than our Ginger Cashew Chicken Curry and most importantly, it’s crazy flavorful.  I keep a jar of this homemade Easy Thai Yellow Curry Paste in the freezer just for this meal.  It’s very worth making!

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Creamy Carrot and Herb Linguine

I thought I’d sworn against zoodles for life but then I saw this recipe which was only PART-zoodle and still had actual pasta and now that I’ve tasted zoodles, I’ll admit they’re good.  Still not going to forego pasta entirely for spiralized vegetables, but recipes like this seem like a good compromise.  And the sauce on this one is drinkably good.  Shoutout to my fellow tarragon lovers who will love that licorice-y garnish on top.

P.S. Yes, I know the recipe calls for carrot noodles (carroodles? coodles?) but I can’t ever find those, so zoodles it is!

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Cashew Ice Cream

I kind of want to try every recipe in this post Cassie wrote about cashew cream, but I started with the cashew ice cream recipe and was majorly impressed.  I don’t have an actual reason to not just eat real deal ice cream (THANK GOD!), but I volunteered to bring Easter dessert for my half-GF/DF family because I like a challenge?  Have a thing for vegan recipes?  Just want everyone to be able to eat/enjoy dessert together, even if it means the gluten/dairy lovers have to conform?  Who knows!  I just know this ice cream was just slightly icy but otherwise SO CREAMY, SO RICH AND SO DELICIOUS.  I’d totally make it again!

P.S. Totally wanted to tell you to make these Creamy Mushroom and Kale Quesadillas, but I apparently already told you that.

Make This Now (+ Recipes)

Lauren8 Comments

I posted two pictures last week that got recipe or at least “tell me more” requests.  Ask and you shall receive!  Plus a few recently made things that maybe didn’t get recipe requests but deserve to be shared anyway.  Enjoy!

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Veggie Shepherd’s Pie (adapted from a Insta story I saw two weeks ago)

  • 4 sweet potatoes
  • 1 cup lentils, dry
  • 2T olive oil
  • 1 small onion
  • 2 large carrots
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 2 stalks celery
  • 1/2T fresh thyme
  • 8 oz. sliced baby bellas
  • 2T chopped sun-dried tomatoes in oil
  • 2T balsamic vinegar
  • ½ cup veggie broth
  • 1 can chickpeas
  • salt + pepper, to taste
  • 4 oz. goat cheese
  • cumin, to taste
  • garlic powder, to taste
  1. Preheat oven to 400°.
  2. Wash and prick sweet potatoes, then place in the oven to bake until soft, 50-60 minutes. Cut open and allow to cool.
  3. Meanwhile, cook lentils according to package directions. Strain and set aside.
  4. Chop onion, carrots, garlic, celery and thyme.
  5. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven, then add onion, carrots, garlic, celery and thyme. Sauté until tender, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.
  6. Add mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes and oil, and vinegar, then continue cooking, stirring occasionally, another 10 minutes.
  7. Add stock, lentils and chickpeas then turn up heat and simmer until liquid has evaporated and veggies are soft, about 10 minutes.
  8. Meanwhile, add sweet potato flesh (skins removed) to a food processor with salt, pepper and goat cheese. Puree until smooth.
  9. Season veggie mixture with salt, pepper, cumin and garlic powder to taste then spread sweet potato mixture over top and bake 15 minutes.

The veggie mixture is 100% GOOD, but that sweet potato-goat cheese purée is one of the best things I’ve eaten in my 27 years on this Earth.  PLEASE MAKE IT AND EAT IT AND ENJOY IT NOW.

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Pan-Seared Pork Tenderloin Medallions + Lime, Soy & Maple Drizzle

Joey freaked over this meal when I served it to him last Monday night and get this, THEY WERE LEFTOVERS of the dinner I cooked myself two days before.  So just imagine how good it is when you cook and eat it in the same night.  Also, please please please do not overcook the pork.  Pork can totally be pink and it SHOULD be.  So trust the timing detailed in the recipe.  That drizzle only takes a few minutes and it really takes this meal above and beyond.

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A California Caesar

I’ve eaten A LOT of vegan Caesars in this life so I’m going to go ahead and declare myself an expert on the matter.  This one right here is my favorite though, because the dressing always turns out perfect (none of that tasting and tweaking business), it involves avocado (it’s spring and we deserve to live our best avocado lives!) and my FAVORITE vegan Parmesan.  In addition to eating a lot of vegan Caesars I have also made A LOT of nut Parmesans and this one is undoubtedly the best.  I use cashews instead of Brazil nuts because Joey is convinced he’s allergic but you could go either way (or even use almonds!).  Sure, there’s a few components to make but it’s 100% worth it in the end.

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Golden Milk Coffee Creamer (recipe from a Faring Well video I saw on Nom)

First, I should probably tell  you about the health claims of Golden Milk but actually all I really know is that turmeric is supposed to help with inflammation and my interest in it has less to do with inflammation and more to do with how pretty it looks.  Help, I’m a hack!  But I’m here to tell you, even if you’re not in in for the health benefits, you can be in it for the luxurious taste.  Because it’s silky smooth and just barely sweet with a slight hint of spice.

  • 2 cups plain unsweetened almond milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
  • scant 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 crack black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup (or 2 teaspoons honey)
  1. Warm almond milk over medium heat, 2-3 minutes.
  2. Add remaining ingredients, increase heat slightly and simmer 5-10 minutes.
  3. Add to a blender with middle piece removed to release steam and blend 30 seconds to froth.
  4. Add to coffee or let cool completely and refrigerate.

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Crispy Baked Asian Salmon

I’ve loved this recipe since Kristen posted it all the way back in 2013!  Whoa!  It’s just the best combination of tender juicy salmon, an umami almond butter sauce and that crunch of toasty panko.  Help, it is 10 AM as I’m writing this and I am straight salivating over the thought of this salmon.

Well this post went ranged from vegan to cheesy to meaty so I think I almost covered all our bases.  I just needed to have a dessert recipe!  I’ll work on that for next time 🙂