Gluten Free Broccoli Quiche

This gluten free, dairy free take on cheddar broccoli quiche is divine. The crust is from our cheese cracker recipe, and it pairs perfectly with the sweet onions and cheesy broccoli.

One of my favorite things about this quiche is how easy it is to switch out ingredients. Don’t have broccoli on hand? Add whatever roasted veggies you do have. Obsessed with pickles this week (why yes, yes I am)? Try adding some of the pickle juice into your cheese recipe for a fun variation on the cheddar flavor.

This meal goes great served with kombucha mimosas (we mix kombucha and orange juice together to create a low-alcohol mimosa). It also tastes amazing with freshly squeezed pomegranate juice.

Serves: 4-6

Time: 2 hrs (1 hr 15 active)

Ingredients

5 cups of bite sized broccoli florets (about 1.5 lbs or 2 small heads of broccoli)

Olive oil

1/2 onion

5 cloves garlic

3/4 cup cashew cheese

4 eggs

3/4 cup almond milk

1 1/2 tsp salt, divided

1/4 tsp pepper

pinch of red pepper flakes

For the pie crust:

1/2 cup almond flour

3 tbsp coconut flour

1/4 cup oats

3 tbsp cornmeal

1/4 tsp baking powder

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

1/2 tsp mustard powder

pinch of cayenne

3/4 tsp salt

3 tbsp of cold vegan butter, we like this one: Miyoko’s Vegan Butter

1 cup water

8-10 ice cubes

1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

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Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Put a cup of cold water, ice, and 1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar in a bowl together.

Put the oats and the cornmeal in a blender or food processor and blend until it becomes floury. Add all the dry ingredients including what you’ve just blended into a big bowl. Add the cold butter into the dry ingredients and cut the butter into the flour.

There are many ways to cut the butter into the flour. You can use knives, a pastry cutter, or your hand. We use our hands to quickly pinch the butter into the dry ingredients. You should have butter chunks about the size of a pea. Do not keep going until the butter feels sandy, this is too far. You need to do this step fairly quickly so that you don’t melt the butter with your hands.

Once you’ve cut the butter into the flour mixture, add the 3-5 tbsp of the water and vinegar mixture 1 tbsp at a time tossing with a fork in between each tablespoon. Eventually this will start to come together. When more than half of your mixture has come together you can start to smoosh with your hands to try and make a ball. Continue to add one tablespoon of water at a time until all the dough sticks together in a nice ball. You do need this to stay cool, however because this is gluten-free you don’t need to worry about ‘overworking’ the dough. You will have a decent amount of water left over, and that is okay.

Once this comes together, put your dough on a plate in the fridge and let rest for 20 minutes.

Cut broccoli into florets. Thinly slice the onions and finely mince the garlic. Spread the broccoli on cookie sheet and roast with olive oil and 1/2 tsp salt for 45 minutes or until starting to brown. Stir every 15 minutes.

Press the chilled pie crust into your pie pan as you would a graham cracker crust. Press it into the corners of the pan and up the sides until you have covered the inside of the pan with dough. Cook for 15 minutes so that the pie crust has been partially baked, and then remove.

Next, heat a frying pan with a bit of olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add the onions, and 1/2 tsp of salt, and cook stirring frequently until caramelized (this takes about 20 minutes). Mince the garlic and add to the onions. Cook for another 5 minutes.

Put eggs, milk, 1/2 tsp of salt and the pepper in a bowl and whisk until the yolks are fully broken up and you have one yellow color. Feel free to whisk for longer then you think necessary.

Add the roasted broccoli into the pie crust and spoon dollops of cashew cheese onto the broccoli and smooth around. Add caramelized onions and garlic. Next pour the egg mixture over all of it and the egg mixture should just cover the vegetables. Bake for about 45 minutes or until a knife goes in and comes out clean.

You can eat this fresh out of the oven, but we like it best if you let it cool for about 15 minutes. Slice and enjoy!

Last Chance Veggie Skillet

This last chance skillet is a great way to use up leftovers in your fridge in a delicious way that will leave you begging for more. The recipe is based on the leftovers we had in our fridge, so please use it as a template but add your own leftovers! The template is crumbly protein on the bottom (eg. beans, Beyond Beef crumbles, soybeans, crumbled tofu, etc.) followed by layered vegetables and then mashed potatoes on top. Below, we’ve listed exactly what we used, but feel free to swap out what you have on hand when you create this dish.

Serves: 10

Time: 1.5 hr (45 min active)

Ingredients

3 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced

1 head garlic, roasted

6 potatoes, peeled and cubed

3/4 cup cashew cheese

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

4 medium carrots, diced

1/4 of a red cabbage, sliced

1/2 large onion, diced

1/4 poblano pepper, minced

2 cups of cilantro-tomato black eyed peas (can sub Beyond Beef crumbles)

3/4 bag of frozen peas

1/2 bunch of mustard greens, stemmed and thinly sliced

1/2 bunch green onions, thinly sliced

8 tbsp olive oil, divided

salt

pepper

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Pre-heat oven to 375 F. Heat water up to a boil adding salt until the water is as salty as sea water. Add potatoes and boil until tender. Roast garlic and then mash into a paste. Caramelize the onions in one pan while frying the mushrooms in a second pan. Add salt to the onions and pepper to the mushrooms. Once the onions are almost done, add minced poblano. Next, cook the carrots and cabbage until tender. Salt and pepper these to taste.

Mash the potatoes with the roasted garlic garlic, 3 tbsp olive oil, cashew cheese, nutritional yeast, and salt and pepper to taste.

The cilantro-tomato black eye pea recipe comes from Vegetarian India. You can use any leftover beans or Beyond meat burgers broken into crumbles for this step. Heat up cilantro-tomato black eyed peas, or whatever protein you are using and flavor to taste. Next, fold in cooked mushrooms into the protein mixture.

Layer a large cast iron skillet with black eyed pea/mushroom mix, onions, then frozen peas, mustard greens, followed by carrots and cabbage. Finally top with mashed potatoes. Before putting this in the oven crosshatch the potatoes and then drizzle them with 1 tbsp olive oil and salt. This will allow the mashed potatoes to crisp as they cook.

Cook for 45 minutes or until the top of the potato is crispy. Serve with green onion garnish.

Eggplant Lasagna

Celebration of eggplant season continues with this delicious lasagna. Layers of delicious cheesiness, soft perfectly salted eggplant, and beautiful ribbons of chard make this a summer delight. This makes 8-10 servings making it perfect for a family dinner or just for one if you love lasagna. We also love to freeze the leftovers of this meal. What’s better when you have nothing left to eat than looking into your freezer and seeing some home-made lasagna all ready for you to bake?

Serves: 8-10

Time: 2hr 15min; 1.5 hours is inactive

Ingredients:

2 eggplants (1.5lb)

Salt

Olive oil

1 block of firm tofu, pressed

2 tbsp cornstarch

1 tsp veggie bouillon (We like Better than Bouillon)

1/2 cup hot water

1 bunch chard

26 oz jar tomato sauce (Feel free to use homemade or store-bought)

1 batch cashew cheese

1 box of lasagna noodles (gluten-free option)

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Cut eggplant into 3/4 inch cubes. Salt them generously and leave to drain in a strainer over the sink for at least half an hour.

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Wrap the eggplant in a kitchen towel and squeeze to remove any surface moisture and some of the salt. Toss the eggplant in olive oil on a cookie sheet and roast about 45 minutes, turning every 15 minutes. The eggplant should be soft but not disintegration.

Put a 4-6 quart pot of water on the stove to boil. Add salt generously, it should be similar to seawater.

Press the tofu between two layers of kitchen towel with a weight (like a cast iron pan) for about 10 minutes. Add 3 tbsp olive oil to a pan over medium heat. Crumble the tofu into the hot pan and scramble about 10 minutes until it is starting to color. Add 1/2 tsp salt and the cornstarch to the tofu and cook an additional 5 minutes until you get some crispy bits. Dissolve the bouillon in the hot water and add to the tofu. The water should boil immediately. Mix the tofu until the water has mostly boiled off, about 3 minutes.

Make cashew cheese if you have not already done so.

Boil the pasta in the salted water according to the instructions on the box.

Cut the chard into ribbons.

To layer the lasagna, start with tomato sauce on the bottom, then layer noodles, eggplant, cheese, chard, tomato sauce, noodles, tofu, cheese, chard, tomato sauce, and repeat until you have used all the ingredients. I like to end with a layer of tomato and cheese on top of the final layer of noodles. Bake in the preheated oven 45 minutes or as long as the box of noodles says.

If you plan to freeze, wait until it has cooled completely. Freeze within 24 hours of baking, good for about 5 days after thawing.

Alfredo Lasagna

We love alfredo pasta and we love lasagna, so we decided to put them together and use up some of the larger zucchinis we’ve had access to this summer!

Serves: 4-6

Time: 2 1/4 hrs (1 3/4 hrs active)

Ingredients

1 large head broccoli, cut in small florets

2 med zucchini, cut in half coins

3 cups chopped wild mushrooms

8 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

oil

1 box lasagna noodles, gluten-free option

4 large chard leaves, cut into ribbons

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

salt

For the sauce:

1 cup cashews soaked for at least 30 min

3 cups water, divided

1/2 lemon, juiced

1/2 tbsp garlic granules

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1 tsp salt

1/8 tsp red pepper flakes

1 small onion, sliced

2 tbsp white wine (optional)

5 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

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Put cashews in water to soak. Boil a pot of well salted water. If you aren’t sure how much salt to use, the water should taste similar to seawater. Once boiling, add pasta and cook to desired consistency (follow instructions on pasta package). Once pasta is done, strain and thoroughly cool down with cold water. Add a little bit of oil to keep the pasta from sticking.

While the pasta is cooking, cut your veggies. Cut mushrooms into small pieces. Cut broccoli into small florets and cut the stem into pieces the size of a penny. If you aren’t using a garlic press, mince the garlic. Cut the chard into ribbons and slice the onion.

Fry the mushrooms in oil at medium heat until you start to get browning. Set the cooked mushrooms aside and cook the broccoli the same way until some of the florets start to get browned. Then add 8 cloves of garlic, minced, or press the garlic straight into the broccoli and cook another couple minutes so the broccoli is browned and the garlic is fragrant but not burnt. Set aside. In the same pan, saute the zucchini until browned. Cook the zucchini long enough that most of its moisture has been removed, otherwise it will release the moisture while baking and make your lasagna soupy. Once this is browned, set aside.

Drain the soaked cashews. Add the cashews, 1 cup of water, lemon, garlic granules, nutritional yeast, salt, and red pepper flakes to a blender and blend until smooth. To test the consistency, put a small amount of sauce on your finger and rub your fingers together. If it is completely smooth then you are there! If it feels at all like there is some sandiness, keep blending.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Re-heat and add some oil to the pan you used to cook the vegetables. Saute the onion until it caramelizes and turns a beautiful brown color. You will need to stir less at the beginning, but as the onion starts to break down you will need to be stirring non-stop. When the onion is close to done add the garlic, and stir for another 2-3 minutes. If the onion starts to stick, de-glaze the pan with a bit of white wine (optional) or water. Add the cashew alfredo sauce to the pan and stir until slightly thickened. Add the remaining 2 cups of water to the blender and pulse briefly to clean out the blender and then add this to the sauce. Once the sauce is slightly thickened, turn off the heat.

Set aside 1/3 cup of alfredo sauce. To layer the lasagna, start with a bit of alfredo, then layer pasta, alfredo, broccoli and chard, pasta, alfredo, zucchini and mushrooms, and then repeat. End with a layer of noodles and cover with the reserved 1/3 cup of alfredo sauce. Sprinkle the remaining 2 tbsp nutritional yeast, swirl it into the top layer of sauce, and bake for 30 minutes, or until the top starts to crisp a bit.

Enjoy!

Sheep Lover's Pie

This sheep lover’s pie is our take on a more traditional ‘shepherd’s pie’. The layering of peppered mushrooms, sweet carrots and cabbage, edamame, and fresh swiss chard makes a savory sensation you won’t want to miss! Topped off with our famous garlicky potatoes we always get excited when we have leftovers to eat day after day.

We love this dish because it is easy to use up whatever is in your fridge or whatever your farm has in stock. Speaking of farms, now is a great time to remember we still need to support our local farmers if we want to continue to have access to delicious local food!

If you live in the Portland area consider buying online from The Side Yard Farm https://www.thesideyardpdx.com/. If you live in the Seattle area, Kirsop Farm https://www.kirsopfarm.com/ has an online shopping option. If you live in Roxbury, Connecticut, Riverbank Farm has an online option with a pick up at the garage: https://www.riverbankfarm.com/.

We are great believers in the value of small local farms and farmer’s markets. Right now, many small farms are struggling because a large part of their revenue comes from farmers markets. Social distancing, and in some places closure of markets, means that farms can use any help they can get. Shopping directly from local farms is one way to help, another is to give to local funds that offer grants to farms who have lost revenue. A great way to figure out how to help is to check out your local farmer’s market website.

On the subject of giving back, many of us will have seen, or will soon see, stimulus checks in our bank accounts. As white settlers we are keenly aware that, due to systematic oppression, the pandemic is having disproportionate impact on black, indigenous, and people of color. For example, stimulus checks are being distributed widely, independent of level of need. This means that those continuing to work and seeing less impact receive as much as or more than the most impacted.

For those who have lost jobs or were already in a precarious place, the stimulus checks are a great boon, but Anne’s family looked at their situation and decided that the additional income is not as essential to them as it is could be to others who are bearing the brunt of this global pandemic. They chose to give their stimulus check to local organizations supporting those who are most impacted by the pandemic. We offer this thought: do you need your stimulus check? If you don’t, please consider giving to organizations in your area that are supporting those who do.

If you want some ideas of organizations check out: https://www.sharemycheck.org/

Serves: 4

Time: 2 hours (1 hour active time)

Ingredients

4-6 red potatoes (1 1/3 lb), quartered with skin on

3 tbsp salt, divided

1 head garlic 

3/4 cup raw cashews and water to soak

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1 cup olive oil, divided

3 cups sliced cremini (1/2 lb), sliced

1/2 tsp pepper

1 medium onion (1 1/2 cups), chopped

2 medium carrots (1/3 lb), cubed

1/2 lb cabbage, chopped

1 cup frozen peas

1 cup frozen edamame

5 leaves of chard, de-stemmed and chopped

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Preheat the oven to 375 F. Cover the cashews with water and put them in the fridge until you make the mashed potatoes. Roast the garlic. You can do this a number of ways and our two favorite are to use a garlic roaster or a small cast iron pan. If you are using a garlic roaster chop the tops off the garlic, drizzle a bit of oil into the garlic cloves, put this into the garlic roaster and roast in the oven for about 45 minutes. To use a small cast iron pan, peel the garlic and place cloves in the cast iron pan with a small amount of olive oil. Roast this in the oven for about 20 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Either way, the garlic should look golden brown and be very soft. With the cast iron method, it is easier to burn the garlic so make sure to check on it.

Quarter and boil the potatoes in very salty water until tender. The water should taste about as salty as sea water so that the potatoes soak in the water and are perfectly salted when done. Don’t worry if these feels like a lot of salt; you will be draining the water. Drain the potatoes when they are fork tender.

Saute mushrooms in 1 tbsp olive oil until tender and starting to brown, about 20 minutes.  When they are soft, add the pepper. Layer the mushrooms on the bottom of a baking dish (we use an 8.5” casserole or a 12” cast iron pan).  Layer the peas on top of the mushrooms. It’s okay if they are still frozen.

Saute the onion and carrot about 10 minutes on medium high heat until the onions are translucent and the carrots are starting to brown, stirring regularly.  Add the cabbage and cook about 7 minutes longer, stirring regularly, until the cabbage has wilted and released some of its liquid.  

Drain the soaked cashews and add them to a blender (we like the Vitamix) with 1/2 cup water until smooth. You can test for smoothness by rubbing some between two fingers. If it feels at all gritty, keep blending. Mash the cooked potatoes with the roasted garlic, cashew cream, 1/4 cup olive oil, and nutritional yeast together. Taste and add salt if needed. There will be salt added to the top of the potatoes once the dish is fully assembled, so be careful not to over salt. Layer the onion cabbage mixture into the baking dish.  Salt this layer with 1 tsp of salt. De-stem the chard and chop or thinly slice. Add the edamame and chard before topping the whole dish with the garlicky potatoes.  Rough up the top of the potatoes with a fork and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and rough them up again. 

Bake about one hour until the top of the potatoes have some crispy, browned sections. Enjoy!