Creamy Cold Pasta Salad (dairy free!)

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This creamy cold pasta salad filled with veggies and a healthy dressing is so perfect for your next summer BBQ! 

One of my favorite things to eat when I was younger was this cold pasta salad that my mom used to make. I loved taking it to the beach in the summer or having it at BBQ as a side dish with a hot dog. Hot dogs over hamburgers; always. It was so simple to make, creamy, and tasted even better the longer it would sit in the fridge and marinate in the homemade dressing. When Sir Kensingston's sent me their new Fabanaise Vegan Mayo, I knew exactly what I wanted to re-create! 

I feel like there are always two types of people when it comes to mayo- you either love it or you hate it. Personally, I am somewhere in the middle. I hate when dishes, such as pasta salads or lobster rolls are drowning in mayo but really don't mind a thin spread of it with some avocado, turkey, and tomato on a sandwich! The thing that I love about this mayo is that it is egg-less and made with ingredients that we can actually pronounce!  Sir Kensingston's made their mayo from drained chickpeas, added things like lemon, spices, and vinegar and sunflower oil and boom- a new mayo was born. It tastes just like the real deal- but better- and healthier- so that is a plus! I used their regular vegan mayo for this dressing but they also have a chipotle flavor that tastes just as amazing! Which I am thinking would be really good with some tacos....

For this recipe I also used my favorite pasta, Banza, which is also made from chickpeas. So if you are totally chickpea'd out from the mayo, feel free to use your favorite macaroni pasta! I love using shells or elbow pasta for these types of dishes and prefer to cook the pasta a little al dente. I find that if I over cook the pasta it tends to fall apart after it has been marinating in the dressing in the fridge after a few days. I chose to add some greens in the pasta salad such as spinach, green beans, and zucchini, but you can really dress it up to your preference or leave them out all together! I just think it gives the dish a nice balance- little pasta and a little bit of greens- makes it into a meal if you wanted it! 

The dressing is very simple as well. I used the mayo and added in a few simple ingredients such as sea salt, pepper, mustard, lemon etc. and it created a sweet and tangy flavor. It was actually light, refreshing, and didn't take away from the pasta or the veggies! The whole dish can be ready in less than 15 minutes and even be made ahead of time before you head off to a summer get together or is perfect for Sunday night meal prep! 

Hope you enjoy!

Main Meals/Side Dishes
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 8 minutes
Total time: less than 15 minutes! 

Ingredients:

1 box of pasta (I used Banza chickpea pasta, 3 cups)
*Shells, elbow, or bow-tie work best
1/4 cup spinach
1 medium sized zucchini, quartered
2 long carrots, diced
1/2 cup string beans, halved

Dressing:

1/2 cup Fabanaise vegan mayo
1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
juice of half of a lemon
1 tbsp. sweet & tangy mustard seeds *
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
sea salt + pepper to taste

*You can also use regular mustard and if you do I would add a pinch of coconut sugar or maple syrup to the dressing

Directions:

1. Cook the pasta according to directions. Do not over cook the pasta or it will break apart once you add the dressing. You want it to be a little al dente.

2. While the pasta is cooking, bring 3 cups of water to a rapid boil in a small pot over high heat. Add the the string beans and diced zucchini to the pot and cook for roughly 4-5 minutes. I prefer mine to be a little on the crunchy side; you want to essentially blanch the green beans and lightly steam the zucchini. Drain & set aside.

3. While the pasta + vegetables are cooking, prepare the dressing. Whisk all over the dressing ingredients together. Taste test & adjust according to your preference. It will be on the creamier side.

4. Drain the pasta and allow to cool for a few minutes.

5. In a large bowl, add the pasta, the spinach, raw carrots, zucchini, string beans and the dressing. Mix well until incorporated. Add more seasoning if needed.

The pasta salad will keep in the fridge for up to a week! Serve cold.

 

Crispy Hazelnut Parsnip Fritters

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These parsnip fritters were not planned and the idea of making them into fritters wasn’t even on the radar. I first attempted to make a parsnip noodle dish and had this grand plan in my head- the photo- the ingredients- the list of spices I wanted to use- the sauce- all planned out, but the minute I placed the parsnip on the sprializer it just would NOT budge.  Before you judge me, I can guarantee you that I know how to use one, but have you ever really noticed how oddly shaped parsnips are? At least the ones that I have always bought tend to be a little thicker on the top and then extremely thin towards the bottom. This made it super awkward on my spiral machine. I probably should have stuck it out because I gave up after the first one, but I was hungry! I will re-visit the parsnip noodle dish I had in mind at some point soon, but in the mean time I had to figure out what I was going to do with about 2 dozen parsnips.

My zucchini fritters that I posted a few months back were such a hit amongst you all, including myself, that I figured I could use the same spices that I originally had in mind, and make fritters! At first, I wasn’t sure how the taste would be, the ratio of eggs to flour, if the parsnips would need to release any water, but I thought I would just wing and give it a shot! I tend to do that a lot with cooking-  just wing it. I find that you have more of a leeway with you are cooking with throwing things together and getting things right the first or second time versus baking. Baking is such a science.

Parsnips have quickly become one of my favorite vegetables to eat and I feel they are definitely underused! Simply roasting them in the oven with olive oil, little sea salt, and ground pepper until crispy is one my favorite ways! Parsnips have a slightly sweet flavor so I wanted to use contrasting spices to balance it out.  For this, I was going for more of a nutty & savory flavor versus something on the sweet side. Honestly, you can really use any spice you would like. Once you have the amount of parsnips (i.e total cups you are using), eggs, flour & baking powder, the rest is at your command! That is the one thing I love about making fritters. Each time you make them you can use different spice element or even add in a few other veggies (corn, sweet potatoes, or a chopped apple).

For this recipe I used about 7 -9 parsnips. I purchased the ones in the bag from Whole Foods and after grating is was about 3 cups.  Mine varied in size greatly.  Once you start mixing everything together in your large mixing bowl you will be able to tell if you need to add more liquid to help bind everything together.  I do have to admit that I LOVE the parsnip fritters 100 times more than the zucchini ones! For a few reasons: One, there is hardly any water to drain from the parsnips so you don’t have to wait to make them! Therefore, they aren’t soggy at all! They are more dense in their size and hold together better! They also seemed to last longer – I almost preferred eating them cold the next day with my lunches!

After grated the parsnips, which can be a workout itself, mixing the ingredients together, I decided to fry the parsnips in a little bit of coconut oil on each side for about 2-3 minutes and then placed them in the oven to finish baking. I am such a texture freak and love a little crunch so I had to fry them! You obviously do not have to do this and you can bake them or you can solely fry them for a little longer on each side without baking them in the oven! It’s your call.  Frying the parsnip fritters gave them crispy edges and coating and finishing them off in the oven allowed them to firm up a bit and become a little dense. (Which I prefer!)

 

I love pairing the fritters along side with a salad, as an appetizer, or with a lightly fried egg on top for breakfast! 

 

 

 

 

Appetizer/Main Meal/Side
Yields: 12
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

7-9 parsnips grated (3 or so cups)*
¾ cups almond flour or hazelnut flour
1 tsp. of baking powder
3 cloves garlic, minced & finely chopped
3 tsp. pink Himalayan salt
2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. coriander
1 tsp. sesame seeds
3 tbsp. chopped hazelnuts
1 tsp. fennel
2 eggs, lightly beaten
coconut oil or olive oil for frying

*For the spices & nuts: fennel, sesame seeds, hazelnuts, thyme, cumin, coriander, ground pepper; I tend to not measure. I often taste test before I add the eggs and see if I need to add anymore of either of the spices. Therefore start off with a less amount and add as you go! I added more hazelnuts (close to 1/4 cup) because I wanted more of a crunch to the mixture and a strong flavor, but do as you please!

Directions:

1.     Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2.     Wash, dry, and peel the skin off of the parsnips

3.     Grate the parsnips and set aside

4.     In a large mixing bowl add the almond flour or the hazelnut flour, baking powder, minced garlic, salt, pepper, and all remaining spices. Lightly mix.

5.     Add the minced garlic, the lightly beaten egg, and the grated parsnips. Mix until well combined.

*If you find that your mixture seems dry you can add liquid at this point. As in it doesn’t seem to be binding together, mix it again, and if that isn’t working (it should) you could add 1 tbsp. of olive oil or coconut oil to the mix. I would first test it out with frying 1 fritter.  Mine was fine, so I did not test this part out.

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 6.     In a non-stick skillet heat 2 tbsp. of olive oil or coconut oil over medium high heat.

 7.     Scoop a spoonful of the mixture out (roughly ¼ cup) and form it into patties. I did not completely flatten them here, but left them on the thicker side.

8.   Place the mixture on the skillet and flatten here, slightly with the back of the spatula.

9. Cook the fritters over medium –high heat roughly 2-3 minutes on each side.  The edges will become golden and crispy. You may need to add more olive oil in between batches. Be careful they do not burn

10. Place the finished fritters on the baking sheet that was covered with parchment paper. Once all the fritters have been fried and moved to the baking sheet, put pan in the oven. 

11. The amount you continue to bake them in the oven depends on how crispy you like them.  I left the fritters in the oven for 15 minutes.

12. Serve warm.

To re-heat you can place them back in the oven under the broiler on high for a few minutes!

 

  

 

Roasted Baby Parsnips with Sherry-Maple Glaze and Chanterelles

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A few months ago I had the opportunity to review an upcoming vegan cookbook, CROSSROADS: Extraordinary Recipes from the Restaurant that is Reinventing Vegan Cuisine by Tal Ronnen. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Tal Ronnen, he is one of the co-founders of Kite Hill and is the chef at Crossroads Kitchen in LA.  Yes, Kite Hill, as in those delicious dairy free yogurts and cream cheese spreads you have recently seen flying off the shelves at your nearest Whole Foods! When I first discovered how delicious the Kite Hill products were, I couldn’t stop myself from buying Whole Foods out. I literally filled my shopping cart to the brim with all their products. I was utterly impressed with the flavor of each and the minimal ingredients that were used without the taste being sacrificed.

So, when I was approached via email about reviewing the cookbook, I knew this was an offer I couldn’t pass up! After all, Tal Ronnen catered Ellen DeGeneres and Portia De Rossi’s wedding and prepared Oprah Winfrey’s 21 day vegan cleanse, so the food just had to be delicious, right? I figured it wasn’t going to be a cookbook filled with the normal everyday bland vegan- plant based fare, such as the typical cauliflower steak, seitan tacos, or boring salad that leaves you wanting more and still hungry.

I was blown away by the simplicity of the dishes. The recipes are easy to follow and accessible for everyone but do take some time commitment. For me, that’s enjoyment, the end result of the hard work you have put in the kitchen. I think he tries to break away from categorizing his food as vegan and just prepares great food-plain and simple- creating food that is in season, locally grown, satisfying and good for you. It is not so much about labeling food, he is just out to create tasty food and it just happens that his style is plant-based.

I had such a difficult time choosing which recipes I wanted to test out first- dessert, breakfast, salads- the options were endless and all to my liking! For example, there were so many different flatbreads to choose from; sweet potato latkes with spiked applesauce, grilled garden vegetable lasagna with puttanesca sauce, pumpkin parfaits, cannoli with kalamata olives (what!?) and a dark chocolate rice pudding with sugared pine nuts and raspberries; the list goes on!

I ended up first tackling the sweet potato latkes with the spiked applesauce and it was delicious! I probably eat way too many sweet potatoes than the average person and will soon start to develop that orange glow, but I had a few on hand and knew this would be the perfect appetizer. Plus, I was curious about the spiked applesauce as well! I thought this was one of the easier recipes to follow along in the cookbook and they came out perfect! Crispy on the edges and soft in the middle. The spiked applesauce paired perfectly with the sweet potatoes as well and I would have never thought of mixing the two together!

Excerpted from Crossroads by Tal Ronnen with Scot Jones (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2015. Photographs by Lisa Romerein

Excerpted from Crossroads by Tal Ronnen with Scot Jones (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2015. Photographs by Lisa Romerein

The next recipe I tried out was the “Roasted Baby Parsnips with Sherry Maple Glaze and Chanterelles.”  (Pictured above) I am always searching for new side dishes to pair with my mains for the week and have recently been on parsnip craze so I wanted to take my usual go-to of simply roasting the root vegetable up a notch with the sherry maple glaze! After roasting the root vegetable in oven they became slightly charred and a little crispy as well as a little salty- I have a weakness for salt! After whisking together the ingredients for the sauce and pouring it over the warm vegetables, I allowed it to sit for a few minutes over the stove- to let it marinate. It was the perfect combination of sweet, savory, and crispy; completely satisfying! I honestly could have eaten the dish alone and forgot the main component of the meal I was pairing the parsnips with; they were that addicting! For the full recipe you can click the title of the recipe above! 

As someone who is unable to eat dairy and always having to constantly modify every recipe I follow from a cookbook, it is one less thing I have to think about while following the ingredients here. It is as if this cookbook was made for me! I was really impressed with the cookbook and could stare at the photos hours on end. It isn’t the type of cookbook that you can pull off the shelf and hope to prepare a dish in under 15 minutes, but it is one where you can impress your friends or family and find inspiration for your next meal or dinner party.

Here is my photo of this dish below. I tweaked mine a bit and added a few rainbow carrots that I had on hand and finished off the sides with a few fresh chopped mint leaves. 

All in all, I think that this cookbook is worth it- whether you are a vegan, vegetarian, love meat, or just need a little kick in your kitchen creativity. You don’t have to feel overwhelmed with the list of ingredients or the level of difficulty of the recipes because you think you are an inadequate cook; if anything you can find inspiration and put your own spin and creativity on the dishes you create!

If you are interested in purchasing the book you can find it here!

Hope you all enjoy it as much as I do!