Cous Cous with Peanut Sauce

It's the new Mac and cheese! At least it might be at my house, since my kids loved it and don't really care for mac and cheese (weird I know). I got this recipe from The Vegan Spoonful (click the link to see a picture). I made a few slight alterations such as using regular milk instead of soy, and also halved the recipe (it was plenty for us plus leftovers), but otherwise my version is almost the same.

Peanut Sauce:

1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
1 large or 2 small cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup creamy natural peanut butter
1 and 1/2 cups vegetable broth (or hot water with bouillon)
1/2 tsp chili powder
salt to taste
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 cup milk

Saute onions and garlic in olive oil for about 5 minutes, or until tender. Stir in peanut butter and allow it to melt a little. Add vegetable broth and whisk until smoothly incorporated. Add spices and simmer on medium-low heat, covered, for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Mix in milk and simmer for an additional 5 minutes.

Cous Cous

1 cup dry cous cous
1 T olive oil
1 t vegetable bullion powder (I used chicken)
1/4 t paprika
1 cup boiling water

Stir olive oil, bouillon powder, and paprika into dry cous cous until thoroughly mixed. You can do this right in your serving bowl. Stir in boiling water and cover for 5 minutes. Remove lid and fluff with a fork. Serve peanut sauce over hot cous cous. Enjoy!

Greek Rice Pilaf

This is the rice we made with our Greek Christmas dinner. It's a great side dish with meat or fish. It does kind of have an interesting/different taste, but to me it's a good kind of different.

1 1/2 cups rice (uncooked)
1-2 T olive oil
1/2 cup onion, minced
1 small stalk celery, chopped
1/2 t salt
1/2 cup sunflower seeds or pine nuts
black pepper to taste
2 T lemon juice
1/4 cup fresh minced parsley (or used dried and cut amount way down)
1 T dried mint

Cook rice in rice maker or on stove top. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add onion, celery, and salt, and saute until tender, 5-8 minutes. Add the pine nuts, pepper, and garlic, and saute another 5 minutes. Mix in the rice, lemon juice, and herbs.

Vegetarian Penne

This pasta has the best flavor! I devoured it. It's pretty filling even w/out meat, but would also be good with sauted diced chicken mixed in. You could also experiment w/different veggies. Yum!

half of a 16 oz. bag of pasta (penne, spirals, etc.)
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
1 small yellow summer squash, sliced
1 small zucchini, sliced
1/2 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 t minced garlic
3 T butter
2 t flour
1 t salt
1/2 t dried parsley
1/2 t dried thyme
1/4 t pepper
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (this is what makes it taste so good!)

Cook pasta according to package. Meanwhile in a large skillet, saute the onion, squash, zucchini, mushrooms and garlic in butter until tender.

In a bowl, whisk the flour, seasonings, and cream until smooth; add to the skillet. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until thickened. Drain pasta and add to the vegetable mixture. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until heated through. I usually end up adding in a little more cream so that it's not too dry.

Twice Baked Potatoes

*Bake potatoes @ 400 degrees for 2 hours*
*Take them out and let them cool*
*Cut the in half and scoop out the centers*
*Put that into the mixer*
*Add a cup of milk, 1/2 cube of butter, & salt to taste*
--------Potatoes should be fluffy and thin---------
*Scoop back into potato skins (fill them full)*
*Sprinkle shredded cheese over the top*
*Bake again until cheese melts*

Sorry, kind of strange way to write the instructions but
I didn't know how else to explain it!

Company Potatoes

2 pounds frozen hash brown potatoes or o’brien potatoes, thawed
¼ cup chopped onions
2 cans cream of potato soup
1 pint sour cream
10 ozs. Medium-sharp cheddar cheese, grated
½ cup fresh Parmesan cheese

Mix potatoes, onions, soup, sour cream and grated cheese. Place in a greased 9 x 13 casserole dish and sprinkle Parmesan cheese over top. Bake uncovered at 350 for 50-55 minutes.(by Becky)