Planning

Hello friends,

My last post I was having a little fun with where we are going in the spring...to SPAIN! I am really excited and a little nervous. Going to the grocery store with children can be challenging at times, let alone taking them across seas! Well I am sure I will have my work cut out for me.

I have spent a few nights trying to find accommodations, and have had great success using www.airbnb.com. Have you tried this way of traveling? If so what were your experiences using this site? I find that regular hotels will not be able to accommodate my family and our needs.

The toughest part about traveling is eating...you never know where to go or what you are going to get.  I will do most of our cooking, picking up supplies at the local markets and grocery stores. I am also looking into taking a cooking class over there. I think it would be fun, and interesting. TAPAS STYLE!

Anyhow my time is pretty consumed with the planning of our trip at the moment. Here are a few of the things I have been making this week. I totally forgot to post my Valentines dinner, it was yummy! We have also been eating more pasta then usual...

I hope everyone had a great weekend!

Thai red lentil soup

spinach & mushroom lasagna

dinner!

raw chocolate tart

walnut & mushroom ravioli

Pumpkin love and lasagna!

pumpkin lasagna

My favorite time of year...Autumn. The crisp air, fall colours, my birthday and Halloween! I picked up a pumpkin at the end of the elderly couples driveway the other day with hopes to make a soup or something? Then I was surfing for pumpkin ideas and I came across a pumpkin lasagna. It sounded like a great way to prepare it. So I thought I would give it a whirl...

The sauce is a basic tomato sauce but instead of oregano I used sage, it smells like thanksgiving dinner.

sliced pumpkin, sprinkled with sea salt and freshly ground pepper, drizzled with olive oil and roasted

 layers of pumpkin & fresh cilantro

pour some tomato sauce on top

layer of tofu ricotta

Roasted pumpkin

1/2 small pumpkin-peeled, cored and sliced
sea salt
freshly ground pepper
olive oil

spread pumpkin in a layer on a greased baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and season.
bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until soft.

Tofu ricotta

1 pkg soft tofu
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
sea salt
freshly ground pepper

Mix everything in a bowl until it resembles ricotta.

I like pumpkin seeds so I kept mine and toasted them in the oven with the roasting pumpkin. Grind them up and sprinkled them on top of the lasagna. There is so many recipes with pumpkin, and they make great lanterns too!

 our pumpkin

Knock someone's socks off : Lasagna

Some may say that lasagna has to have four cheeses, some say it has to have only one. The main point is "lasagna is a cheesy, scrumptious dish".

That is, until you make it with no cheese. I have tried several different versions towards making the perfect vegan lasagna. But this one takes the cake, or should I say the noodles!

A simple lasagna with big taste. I roasted eggplant and zucchini and used those vegetables as a layer.  I made a tofu "cheese" as part of the filling.  I also used my basic tomato sauce.

For the "cheese" topping I used a product by Earth Island- Vegan Gourmet ( the same company that makes vegenaise) I can get two meals usually out of one block....

Tofu cheese

1 block of firm tofu
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1 tsp oregano
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup water

Put everything in a food processor and blend until desired consistency.