Black Bean and Vegetable Soup

We've had a cold snap where I live, and nothing warms better than soup. In fact, for a period of about one week, I think I made a different soup every night!

Black Bean and Vegetable Soup

One onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 c. dry red wine
28 oz. can diced tomatoes
4 c. vegetable stock
One green bell pepper, chopped
2-3 stalks of celery, sliced
One bag of frozen sliced okra
2 t. grated fresh ginger
1 t. oregano
1 t. thyme
1 t. paprika
1 t. cumin
1/4 t. black pepper
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
One zucchini, peeled and chopped
One can black beans, drained
1 T. soy sauce

Saute onion and garlic in the wine. Add remaining ingredients, except for the zucchini and black beans, simmer for about 15 minutes. Add zucchini and beans and continue simmering for an additional 10 minutes. Add soy sauce and serve over brown rice. Enjoy!

Chili Cheeseburgers and Frito Pie

When I was a kid, my mom used to take me to Orange Julius where I would get a chili cheeseburger. I was so sad when they quit making it, but the memories remained fond. As a vegan, I wanted to recreate this somehow, but the chili was the problem.

My husband used to make these fantastic enchiladas for us, and wanted to continue to make them after we became vegan. The problem was finding chili that would work well.

In high school, I would occasionally get Frito pie at lunch. I remember the lunch ladies slitting open a bag of Fritos, pouring on the chili and sprinkling on the cheese. Wanted to recreate that, but again, the problem was the chili.

But no more!

I live in Texas, and the chili often used for things like Frito pie and my husband's enchiladas was a staple in everyone's pantry: Wolf Brand Chili. I tried, tried, tried to find a copycat recipe for it for me to veganize. No luck. Frustrating!

So, I wriggled and jiggled a chili recipe, and voila! Success! I won't try to convince anyone it is an accurate replica of Wolf Brand, but it works excellently on my chili cheeseburgers, hubby's enchiladas, and Frito pie! Warning: it is spicy! But in and on the above dishes, not so much.

Kerry's Wolf Brand Knockoff

1 bag crumbles or other vegan ground beef (I'm partial to Gimme Lean Beef)
8 oz can tomato sauce
16 oz. water
1 veggie bouillon cube
1 T. onion powder
2 t. garlic powder
1 T. paprika
1/2 t. cayenne
1 t. white pepper
1 T. chili powder (look for dark chili powder as opposed to regular chili powder)
1/2 t. salt
2 t. cumin

Bring all to a boil and then simmer.

For the chili cheeseburgers:

Vegan burger patties, like Boca Original Vegan
Hamburger buns
Sliced vegan cheese

Cook the patties. Place patty on a bun and top first with a slice of cheese, then a spoonful of chili. Enjoy!

Frito Pie

Fritos
Shredded vegan cheese
Chopped green onions

In a bowl, layer Fritos, chili, cheese and onions. Enjoy!

Dips and Savories

I have a fondness for delectable finger foods. Especially at Yule. Christmas Eve. New Year's Eve. Any day that ends in y. We refer to them as fun food. Sometimes we buy up a bunch of several different prepackaged kinds, but after awhile they become boring. Making my own ups the fun ante and the plus side is I get to experiment with new recipes.

Tiny Taco Tarts

30 individual frozen mini phyllo shells, thawed
1/4 c. vegan mayonnaise
6 T. vegan sour cream
1/2 packet of taco seasoning mix
1 T. lime juice
Toppings of choice (we used cilantro)

Bake the phyllo shells at 375 for 10 minutes. Let cool. Mix the remaining ingredients (except for toppings) and spoon into the cooled shells. Top with chosen toppings and serve.

These were very tasty, but don't use too much of the mixture in the shells, or you'll taste more mayonnaise than anything else. Use a smaller amount and the mix of creamy ingredients with phyllo crunch is perfect.

Black Bean Dip

Half a red onion, cut in quarters
1 c. cilantro leaves
2 cand black beans, rinsed and drained
4 t. olive oil
1 t. salt
1/2 t. chili powder
1/8 t. ground red pepper
1/2 c. orange juice

Add onion and cilantro to a food processor and whirl until finely chopped. Add remaining ingredients except for orange juice and whirl again until well mixed. Place in a bowl, add orange juice and mix well. Serve with tortilla chips.

I would have liked the beans to be more mashed than they were, so would whirl it all a little longer. This, however, did not stop it from being devoured. Also, more than half an onion overwhelms all other flavors. Add more if you like that.

Cilantro Pesto

2 c. cilantro
2 T. walnuts
1 T. lime juice
2 t. soy sauce
1 t. sesame oil
1 t. sugar
1/2 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
2 T. water

Combine everything in a food processor and whirl until well mixed. Serve with raw veggies. We used cucumber and celery.

I initially left out the sugar, but discovered it really was needed to tone down the tartness. While it went well with the raw veggies, I found out the next day it went even better over pasta.

I woke up the next day really expecting leftovers. I should have known better serving these to a house full of twenty somethings. Everything was gone but for just over a tablespoon of the cilantro pesto.

National Buffet Day

Today could potentially destroy your newly laid resolutions. Or not.

National Buffet Day is a day to enjoy as much food in as much variety as possible. There are variations on this plan: go to your favorite buffet restaurant, throw a potluck for friends, or in my house, it isn't Buffet Day as much as it is Leftover Day.

A side, albeit tiny, benefit of going to a buffet restaurant is you can claim the walking back and forth from buffet to table counts as exercise.

Due to the number of leftovers currently taking up fridge space in my house as far back as Christmas, I'm staying home, setting out all the leftovers and letting each family member pick and choose. The important thing is I have fewer to no leftovers left. Sounds like a plan to me!

One amusing note to this day is I discovered the Japanese word for buffet is viking. Since both my husband and I can boast Viking heritage (mine Norwegian, his Danish), I'm going to mention this to my kids. I am already imagining the good cheer and sloshing of beverages making toasts.

Mein Skol,
Dein Skol,
Alle Vakkera Flikka Skol.

Translation:
My health,
your health,
all beautiful ladies' health.

Heilsa! And Happy New Year!