Christmas break is over! 7 recipes cooked

Here they are with my ratings: Cauliflower Marranca pg 78 V++
Texas caviar salsa pg 202 V++
Gratin of Young Artichokes pg96 V-
Wild Mushroom Spread pg 9 V+++
Chickpea Roasted Pepper and Rosemary Spread pg 3 V+
Holiday delight punch pg 4 V++
Gazpacho with mashed Avocado pg 36 V++

These recipes were all great for the most part except the Gratin of artichoke. This might have been good but the artichokes I used must have been to old so it was like chewing on sharp fish bones or chicken bones. As a vegan, if you miss that sort of bone picking then I recommend it. I will definitely try this one again with artichoke hearts or baby artichokes which are extremely hard to find!

You have to try the mushroom spread. It is awesome. I would recommend spreading it on the bagette rounds and serving it warm. Delicious!

Merry Christmas! Dec 24th

Sorry for my lapse, but it was the only way I could get ready for our big family Christmas. Something had to give. We are cooking up many of Bill's appetizers for our Christmas eve celebration. We'll let you know how they are received and, hopefully, in time for your New Year's eve party

Recipe 214 Taco soup V+

For the further report on the Lentil Walnut spread, Sam ate 1/2 of it for lunch! He loves it. I had some in warm pita bread and that was great too.

Tonight's recipe was Taco Soup pg57. I rated it V+ but I think it may be one of those recipes that needs to sit overnight. So I will let you know if the rating goes up tomorrow. Definitely a good hearty soup, easy to make and very tasty.

Recipe 213 Lentil Walnut Spread V++

Tonight, I made Lentil Walnut Spread pg 5. I think this is a very versatile spread. It is similar to a pate'. It's good on crackers and it also might be great in a sandwich or finger roll. We'll try that tomorrow and let you know.........

Recipe 211 & 212 Great dessert bar

Tonight we had the Split Pea Soup V+ (pg 54) for dinner and Date Pecan Squares V++ (pg 176) for dessert. Both were very good. The soup is very hearty and very much like the pea soup you might be used to. I cooked it a little longer than recommended in an attempt to get the peas a little mushier but I guess you would have to cook it for hours to get that consistency. So I ran 1/2 the pot of soup through the blender to give it a creamier consistency. I also added a couple of potatoes which I think helped (being Irish I believe potatoes help everything).

The Date Pecan Squares were scrumptious. It is hard to imagine that such a super healthy dessert could taste so good. I used walnuts, as I was out of pecans and they were wonderful. I served them to company tonight and I will make them for company at Christmas and New Years Eve. In fact, I think I will go have one or two right now...........

Recipes 208,209 & 210 Vegan Antipasto V+++

Sorry, I haven't been able to blog for the past few days. It gets pretty hectic running two businesses and a church and taking care of my 98 year old Mom and a teenager!!!!

With life as busy as it is, it is all the more important to eat well and to eat together at the dinner table. I am so glad to be cooking all from scratch with fresh ingredients. I had really slipped into the "prefab meal syndrome". Quick and easy was the name of the game! It takes some time adjustment to get back to real cooking, but it is so worth it.

Three more recipes cooked: Marinara Sauce pg 192 V+, Green Herb dressing pg 190 V+ but the crowning glory is Vegan Antipasto V+++. This is a meal in itself. It would be great for holiday parties, as it looks as beautiful as it tastes. It serves 8.

Tomorrow,its split pea soup...............without salt pork ???????????

The midnight blogger rides again or cooks again as the case may be

Two more recipes cooked and both rate V++. Bill's Summer Pasta Sauce pg 200 poured over whole wheat Spaghetti was fantastic. It is simple to make and most of the ingredients you will have on hand. I used salt free canned tomatoes, as the last of our garden tomatoes were eaten in BLTs for lunch (I use Fakin' Bakin, great stuff). This would be a great company dish as it serves 8.

I also made Maple vinaigrette pg 191 and served it over spinach, mini orange slices, chopped red onion and pecans. Wwhat a great salad!

Along side I served warmed Italian bread split in halves and covered with Earth Balance and fresh rosemary. Very good! So glad I ran out of the crushed garlic I was going to use or I might never have discovered this.

Good night. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!