I have been craving pot pie since the beginning of quarantine, and while I have this vegan pot pie with potato crust I also wanted a more “traditional” pot pie crust. My mom made an absolutely delicious one for a main vegetarian course over thanksgiving (with mushrooms as the main filling) – I am taking her crust recipe and combining it with a more traditional filling.

I adapted from this recipe, lightening it up by using only a crust on top (and in turn cutting down baking time as well). I didn’t take a great pic this time around because it was the first time making it and I expected there to be several tweaks — however, it was essentially perfect and now one of our favorite comfort food dishes so I couldn’t wait to share! In fact, it has already been making its rounds amongst my friends — with a minor mishap of my bestie accidentally using vanilla almond milk instead of unsweetened almond milk so a friendly reminder to DOUBLE check your milk so you do not end up with in inedible dish…

Otherwise, the recipe is pretty foolproof. I am sure we will be making it again soon, and in turn there will be updated (more beautiful) pics here soon. In the meantime, I hope your vegan pot pie is as ugly delicious as ours!

This cauliflower bolognese is the perfect transition to cooler weather – it’s still packed with all the veggies that I am craving as summer winds down and also satisfies that warm, cozy feeling that is so needed right now. I was inspired by a classic bolognese, which makes for an easy one pot recipe along with this cauliflower bolognese. I married the two here, and I always think lasagna is so fun but you could also choose to add in a box of your favorite shape pasta. 

For the cauliflower bolognese, the cauliflower is essential but you can mix in and out many veggies you have on hand. Eggplant would be a great sub for the mushrooms, and you can always stir in some greens at the end. You can always add in ground beef as well, but I find this lighter for weeknights and just as satisfying. I’ve found it to be equally a “clean out the fridge” recipe and a Sunday night recipe to have on hand for dinner and a few lunches. 

I made this one-pot recipe in my large new GreenPan, which browns the mushrooms and veggies nicely at the beginning but also makes for extremely easy cleanup (I can also throw it in the dishwasher). The dish is rather large, a perfect family sized meal – you can always scale it down or freeze half. 

I hope you enjoy this transition to fall recipe, that is quickly becoming an easy staple in my weekly routine!

This recipe was also born pre-quarantine but luckily I fell in love with it; it is the perfect thing to make on repeat. It started when my friend Irina texted a picture of her dinner to our group chat, and, having arrived home only moments ago, I realized I had everything I needed in my kitchen for pantry pesto and a delicious easy zucchini pasta. 

First things first: pantry pesto. If there are a few recipes to get under your belt in terms of cooking, I would say one of them is making a pesto. Pestos and sauces are so versatile they bring a ho-hum meal to a delicious, cravable occasion. You can start by picking an herb or a green (or even a veggie) you have in the fridge and pairing it with a nut or seed you think it would go well with in the pantry. Some of my favorites are basil and pepitas, kale and sunflower seeds, and spinach and pistachio. 

Here is my basic formula for pantry pesto recipe:

• ¼ cup nuts or seeds
• 2 cloves fresh garlic (optional) 
• 1 cup herbs or greens 
• ½ cup olive oil 
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice (or acid)
• Pinch of sea salt (to taste) 

This is really where a pantry pasta begins – but you can pump it up with a few other items you may have on hand: 

• Pecorino or nutritional yeast, added to pesto or sprinkled on top 
• Green olives, chopped and added to finished pasta
• Anchovies, added to pesto and pasta sauces
• GF breadcrumbs, toasted and finished on top 
• White beans or chickpeas, tossed in with a brothy pasta 
• Canned tomatoes, simmered down into a sauce with pesto stirred in
• Frozen peas, boiled with the pasta in the last minutes of cooking
• Pan-fried veggies, tossed with pasta and sauce or pesto 

Back to this #pantrypasta, I opted to make my super seed pesto because I had all the ingredients on hand (although I was short on basil, so I ended up using half arugula). Taste your pesto – adjust it and add a little more lemon or salt as needed. It should be salty and delicious. I also absolutely love adding in pan-fried zucchini for a well-rounded pantry meal. 

Hope this brings a little bit of comfort to your meals this week and helps you cook with what you’ve got! And, for a little more inspo, here are a few other pantry recipes I’ve made, or planning to make over the course of the next few weeks: Linguine with Green Olive Sauce and Zesty Breadcrumbs, Bucatini with Butter Roasted Tomato Sauce, and Pasta e Ceci (Italian Pasta and Chickpea Stew). 

Now for the recipe!

This pantry recipe was born when I had a jar of lemony-caper dressing sitting in my fridge. I realized it would make the perfect compliment to chickpeas to make a chickpea ‘tuna’ – bright and briny. Bonus is I could make a big double batch and use it on salads and veggies all week. It was as easy as mashing some chickpeas, adding some onions and celery and lunch is ready in 5.

I didn’t know that in a couple months we would be in the midst of a pandemic, and that I’d feeding myself 3 meals a day off of pantry staples (I am trying to keep any grocery shopping to max once every 2 weeks). This is one of the recipes I am feeling very thankful for since I can pull it together quickly with pantry staples and it is truly delicious (it’s the little wins). You can certainly substitute / add for what you have on hand, just as you would in a regular tuna salad. I prefer olive oil over a mayo base, but you do you. I hope you are able to find some joy, comfort, and a sense of normalcy in the little things, even if it’s making a bowl of chickpea ‘tuna’ for yourself or your family and keeping your bellies happy and well fed. Lots of love!

I wrote this sheetpan cauli schwarma recipe pre-pandemic but as we hunker down into our second week, and our stoves are on more than ever I find that this is an easy, hearty recipe that can easily be adapted to what you have in your fridge. Use this method and add any nearly veggie to the sheet pan, spices from the pantry, and the greens you have left to your bowls. The herbed tahini is a good place to use up any herbs that are on their last leg, or if you don’t have any herbs skip them and opt for a simple tahini with olive oil, lemon, tahini, salt and pepper. 

I hope you are able to find some comfort and nourishment in home cooked meals right now, while life is anything but business as usual. Check back weekly as I continue to post recipes that are helping me get through it all. Please stay inside and stay safe!