Spaghetti Squash Mexicana with Tropical Avocado Salsa Fresca

This recipe I loved. But our lovely chefs at the Veganomicon may have led me astray (who knows, I'm not a good cook) by referring to this one as "mildly spicy". It was hot, not killer, but hot, which is too much for my wife and unpleasant overall for me. I already cut out the hot sauce and dampened down the chili powder during the first run: I think I'll go even easier on my next attempt.

Alright, I've started trying to take more pics along the way. Here's our boring looking spaghetti squash about to hit the heat:

I skipped boring pictures of chopped things, so here's the ingredients all aflame on the skiller for the bean mix:

And some shots of the final product as it gets plated. I served with another sliced avocado and some pinto beans.

Spaghetti Squash Mexicana with Tropical Avocado Salsa Fresca
Serves 4 with other sides
Time: about 1 hour and 15 minutes at least

Ingredients:
1 spaghetti squash, about 3 lbs

Salsa Fresca:
1 c. chopped tomato (about 2 tomatoes)
1 c. chopped pineapple, mango (about 3), or papaya (I went with mango this time to my great delight)
1 avocado
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
juice of a lime

Bean mixture:
1 T. vegetable oil
1 medium yellow onion, small dicing
2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped small [next time around, I think I'll try one]
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 t. coriander seeds, crushed (I was out for some reason, and fennel seeds seemed to make a fine sub)
1.5 t. chile powder [definitely going to cut this next time, maybe by 1/2 - 1/3]
1/2 t. ground cumin
1/4 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. salt
1/2 cup red cooking wine (pinot noir did fine)
1 c. (fresh or) frozen corn
1 can of black beans
2 t. hot sauce, or to taste [which was none for us!]

Steps:

1. First up, get that squash baking. Preheat oven to 375. Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Prick with a fork 5 or 6 times. Fill a baking dish with about an inch of water and place the squash cut side down in the dish. Bake for about 45 minutes.
2. Then, while that's happening, first prepare the salsa. Just toss all the ingredients together and refrigerate until serving.
3. Now for the bean mix. Preheat a large, heavy bottomed skillet over medium-high heat and saute the onions and jalapeno in oil for about 5 minutes.
4. Add garlic and coriander seeds, sauteing for about 2 more minutes.
5. Add remaining spices, salt, and the wine, raise the heat, and boil for about 2 more minutes, stirring frequently.
6. Lower heat and add the corn, beans, and hot sauce, if you're using it. Cook 5 to 7 more minutes.
7. At this point, it's a matter of timing. If the squash is ready, good for you. Otherwise, cover the bean mix and reheat if necessary: it should be hot when served.
8. On the other side, once the squash is ready, pull out, dump the water, and let cool for about 10 minutes or until you can handle it. Halve the squash again, making four quarters to serve. Add bean mix first, then top with salsa. Yum yum!

Jamaican Yuca Shepherd's Pie with Sweet Potato, Kidney Beans, and Plantains

This one was super yummy, although I must admit that I wasn't able to get Yuca at the co-op, so I just used more sweet potato as the crust: not exactly ideal, but it was the best root replacement around, and who doesn't love lots of sweet potato. We handled it with grace and aplomb.

Here's a shot of most of the finished product:

And then a couple more as it dwindles off the plate:

And here's the recipe, again, with all credit to the Veganomicon:

Chickpea Noodle Soup

Up next, just the most delicious vegan comfort food of all time: chickpea noodle soup (again, from the Veganomicon). It's the only way to cook when someone has a cold.

Here's another pretty good image that's totally not mine.

 

 

Alright, here we go:

Roasted Portobellos

Alright, so I grab a lot of our dinners off pinterest and other websites, but I do occasionally cook from a book, so here's going to be my place to detail those.

Up first: my favorite roasted Portobello mushrooms. I can come back with real pics later, but for now, this stolen photo from Google images seems fairly reflective of the truth!

This one is fairly simple but is freaking delicious and goes great with things you might suspect, like mashed cauliflower or some fresh asparagus or broccolini.

All credit due to the Veganomicon. Nothing original here.