...And a Happy New Year

  We here at Eat Well and Prosper wish you a happy, healthy, prosperous new year!

 

Merry Christmas from Wine of the Week

Wishing you lots of wine and good cheer this Christmas!

(The above wine is from Sort This Out, and recommended for use in their mulled wine.  Click here to read all about it.)

Bubble Up Pizza Casserole

I stumbled upon this recipe and met it with a unique mixture of disgust and desire. Made it vegetarian and took out the store-bought biscuits, plus a few other changes along the way.


Stephanie's Bubble Up Pizza Casserole

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Tofurkey Meatless Italian Sausage, chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 c sliced mushrooms (I would have used more, but that's all I had. But they were shiitake! Mmm)
• 1/2 tsp dried Italian seasoning
• 1 jar Trader Joe’s Fat Free Pizza Sauce (I used almost the entire jar)
• 1 pizza dough (I'd planned on using homemade, but didn't have any on hand, so I grabbed a pre-made one from Trader Joe's)
• 1 c Finely Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

INSTRUCTIONS
1.  Preheat oven to 375 and grease a 9×13 dish. 
2.  Heat a splash of oil in a large frying pan.  Add sausage and brown, then remove/set sausage aside.
3.  Add vegetables (and another splash of oil) to pan and cook until soft, approximately 5-7 minutes. Add spices, spaghetti sauce, and sausage. Mix well and remove from heat.
4.  Coat the bottom of your pan with pizza dough.
5.  Spread half of the sauce mixture over the biscuits. Sprinkle with half of the cheese. Repeat layers.
6. Bake for 23-28 minutes or until golden brown. Cut into squares and ENJOY!

Christmas cookies

Diet? What diet?

I spent an afternoon in the kitchen watching Christmas flicks and making a mess. I whipped up double batches of chocolate chip cookies, snickerdoodles, pretzels, Oreo bark, and whiskey balls (not pictured).


Snickerdoodles w/ chips
Using the snickerdoodle recipe from this post, I whipped up a double batch of cookies AND added cinnamon chips to really intrigue the tongue with cinnamon flavor.

Pretzelsticks
I made these quite awhile ago for 4th of July and I decided to give them a Christmasy twist. This time I dipped in both melted dark chocolate AND white chocolate chips and topped with red and green sprinkles.

Oreo bark
So easy to make. On a greased cookie sheet, pour melted white chocolate to cover. Then top with crumbled Oreos. Place in the fridge for about 10 minutes, until the chocolate hardens. With a spatula or fork, lift up the chocolate and break into large pieces.

Wine of the Week - Bella Cavalli 2008 Pinot Grigio

There's a lot of green on the nose of this wine, mostly celery and grass.  An interesting start.

On the tongue, this wine starts out wanting to be sweet, but quickly hits you with a lot of sourness.  This gives way to a tart aftertaste.  I also noted some tannins, which is rare -- almost non-existent -- on white wines.  But you'll find it here.

Not for everyone, but a good wine if it fits your personal taste.

13.8% alcohol

Thanksgiving potatoes part 2

I saw this recipe for holiday spiced sweet potatoes months ago and new I had to try it for thanksgiving. Here it is, with my adjustments.

5 lbs sweet potatoes
4 Tbsp margarine
6 Tbsp soy milk
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp cardamom
1 tsp nutmeg
sprinkle of ground ginger

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Poke sweet potatoes all over with a fork. Wrap in aluminum foil and roast until fork tender all the way through, about 45-60 minutes. Remove potatoes from the oven and allow to cool before peeling. (The skin should just peel right off with a knife or even your fingers.)

2. Place warm potatoes in a bowl with margarine, soy milk, syrup, salt, vanilla, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg and ginger. Mash until desired consistency. (I like these on the smoother side. If you do, too, use as hand blender.) Serve warm!

(I totally stole that picture from the website, because the potatoes got gobbled up before I could get a photo!)

Wild Mushroom & 3 Bean Stew

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, diced
• 2 cups diced potatoes
• 6-8 cups vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 package (25 grams) dried, wild mushrooms
• 1 can petite diced tomatoes
• 1 can butter beans*
• 1 can red beans*
• 1 can kidney beans*
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 Tbsp basil
• 1 Tbsp herbs de provance
• 1 tsp tarragon
• 1 tsp dried ginger
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp paprika
• salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a stock pot, saute garlic and onion in olive oil over medium heat.
2. Pour broth over the mixture, then add the potatoes.
3. Add remaining ingredients, rinsing and draining beans first.
4. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until potatoes are soft.
5. Remove bay leaves and serve hot!

*Feel free to use your favorite beans if these don't tickle your fancy.

Squash - Pear Au Gratin

Based on another scrumptious winter recipe from my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, but altered to my liking.



Ingredients
1 Butternut squash
1 large red onion, sliced
1 medium pear, thinly sliced
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
Butter
4 tbsp bread crumbs
2 tbsp walnuts, chopped
2 tbsp parmesan cheese


1. Use the neck of the butternut squash. Peel and slice thinly.
2. Cook onion slices in 1 tbsp butter for 5-10 minutes.
3. Fill bottom of 8x8 baking dish with squash slices. Arrange pear slices on top, then another layer of squash.
4. Cover with cooked onions and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, covered.
5. Combine bread crumbs, bacon, walnuts, cheese, a 3 tbsp melted butter in a bowl. Sprinkle mixture over onions and bake for another 15 minutes, uncovered.

Wine of the Week - STO 2008 Suited Merlot

Another great entry from Sort This Out, one of the most consistently reliable wine makers I've ever encountered.  Especially if you like your wines bold, which I do.

The overwhelming cherry scent on the nose carries over into the taste.  Deceptively flat and watery at first, a second wave of flavors come in to liven things up.  You'll taste cinnamon and other spices, as well as a nice smokiness.

13.5% alcohol

Thanksgiving potatoes part 1

This year, I was in charge of potatoes. My mom never made mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving, but I always think they're the perfect preparation, so I went to town. I followed the basic mashed potatoes recipe in Veganomicon and added a hell of a lot of roasted garlic, plus some chopped chives (both of which are suggestions in the book).

Ingredients:

4 pounds yukon gold potatoes

5 T margarine

1/2 cup unsweetened soy milk

2 t salt (I used 3, but found it to be a bit salty)

a sprinklin' of black pepper

1/2 - 1 clove of roasted garlic (depending on how crazy you are)

a handful of chopped chives

Directions:

Cut potatoes into 1-inch chunks (I peeled them, but it's a personal choice), put in a pot with cold/cool water. Boil for 15-20 minutes, until soft enough to mash. Drain the potatoes, reserving some of the water in case you need it. Put the potatoes back in the pot, add margarine, garlic and chives. Mash well. Add the rest of the ingredients and mash again until everything looks and tastes delicious.

Winter Enchiladas

I'm always looking for new ideas to use seasonal vegetables. I realized I hadn't made enchiladas in awhile, and then Bam! It hit me. A seasonal enchilada recipe:



Ingredients
2 large sweet potatoes, chopped
1/4 acorn squash, chopped
1/2 Anaheim pepper, diced
1 cup Frozen corn
Corn tortillas
Cranberry salsa (I love Trader Joe's cranberry & mango salsa)
Pepitas

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and dump in potatoes and squash. Boil until soft.
2. Drain and mash with a fork. Add pepper and corn.
3. Spread a few tablespoons of the salsa along the bottom of a cassarole dish.
4. Heat a small pan. Warm the tortillas on each side for about 30 seconds. Lay a tortilla on top of the salsa in the dish. Fill with a few spoonfuls of the potato mix. Roll up.
5. After all tortillas are rolled, top with a few more spoonfuls of salsa and sprinkle with pepitas.
6. Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees for about 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake for 10 minutes more.

A sweet alternative to your regular enchilada!

Soup Mix Review: Southern Sweet Potato

Since the last soup mix I tried from World Market went so well, I gave the Sweet Potato mix a chance. This was a great mixture of sweet and savory. Again, it was quite easy to make and much better tasting than most canned soups. Definitely recommend this if you enjoy sweet potatoes!

Wine of the Week - Bella Cavalli 2008 Syrah

This wine starts out with scents of strawberry, honey and cinnamon... which don't necessarily sound like they go together, but I assure you it's a great smell.  The taste is overall fruitiness, very bright and cheerful.  This is a smooth, enjoyable drinking experience.
14.2% alcohol

My first curry

I'd been craving a coconut milk-based curry for months. Couldn't find a recipe that spoke to me. Then we replaced our broken slow cooker and I opened up my trusty Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker and there it was. While it doesn't taste as authentic as something you'd get at a restaurant, it totally does the trick. We ate it with brown rice.

Ingredients:
1 T peanut oil
2 carrots, chopped
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 T curry powder
1 t ground coriander
1/4 t cayenne
2 yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced
8 oz green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces (I used frozen)
1 1/2 cups garbanzo beans
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, drained (oops, I didn't drain mine!)
2 c veg stock
1/2 c frozen green peas, thawed
1/2 c canned unsweetened coconut milk
salt

Directions:
1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add carrots and onion, cover and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, curry powder, coriander and cayenne, stirring to coat.

2. Transfer the vegetable mixture to your slow cooker. Add potatoes, green beans, chickpeas, tomatoes and stock, cover, and cook on low for 6-8 hours. (I cooked for 8.5 hours because I was started with frozen green beans and garbanzos and that's how long it was until dinner time)

3. Just before serving, stir in peas and coconut milk and season with salt.