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Cashew Pesto
Source: Online google search
Appliances Needed: Magic Bullet or a Food Processor

I use this in conjunction with the savory meat roll, a knock-off version of Blue Moon Cafe's.

Taki's Level of Difficulty for the Average College Student: heart

3/4 cup cashews
Lots of basil leaves. (Like one small package at the grocery store)
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
several tablespoons extra virgin olive oil.

Blend it all up. Add more oil for a smoother texture.

I have a soft spot for pumpkin. Sounds like a tasty autumn soup. O:

I posted this on the thread and got directed over to here.



Vegetarian Chili

Appliances needed
stove
medium to large sauce pot


Ingredients
1 can stewed tomatoes diced
1 can kidney beans
1 red onion
1 tbs dried garlic
2 tbs cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder or 1/2 teaspoon cayan pepper.
about 1 tbs oil perferable olive but any will do.

Chop onion. Heat pot with olive oil and medium high heat. Throw in onion, and garlic. Toss in both cans (I mean the contents of the cans not the actual cans ^_^) Add cumin and chili powder and turn down heat to low. Let simmer all day if you want too. or if you want it to be quick keep the heat high and let it come to a boil.

It's really tasty with some sour creme and cheese on top.

Tofu Tacos

Difficulty Level stressed

Utensils Required
Stove Top
frying pan
knife
spatula
measuring cup

Ingredients
1 brick of tofu chopped or crumbled
1 packet of taco seasoning
oil (I use olive oil but you can use any cooking oil)
water
taco shells
extras ie lettuce, olives, tomato, what ever you fell like

Directions
Chop up your tofu while your pan, with just enough oil to coat, heats up on medium high heat. Add your tofu and fry until golden brown. Follow the directions on the packet adding seasoning and water to tofu and cook until the water is cooked off.
Add your tofu to your taco shells and add your extras. ENJOY!

Vegetarian Pasta with Tomatoes and Onions

Aplliances
- a wok pan or something similar
- a medium sized pan
- (optional) small skillet
- stove

Ingredients (serves 2)
- pasta for two (any shape is fine)
- 4 tomatoes
- 2 medium onions
- 1 or 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 jar of green pesto
- a bit of feta or mozzarella cheese
- pine nuts (optional)
- salt and pepper for seasoning

Directions
Slice your tomatoes and onions. If desired, you can also dice them to make the pieces smaller.
Use the wok pan and a bit of oil (preferably olive oil) to shortly fry the onions. Once they begin to turn transparent (transluscent?), add the tomatoes and garlic and cover with a lid (if you can).

In the mean time, boil your pasta. They way I like to go about this, is the boil water using a water heater, pour that into the pan, add some salt or olive oil and the pasta and cook until done. My pasta prefernce is al dente, which also suits this dish nicely.

Slice and dice your cheese, so that it may be added once the dish is done. If you wish to add pine nuts, this is also the time to prepare them. Heat up your skillet on a good, high fire using a little bit of oil for your skillet. If you have a good quality pan, you can leave out the oil. Once your skillet is hot, turn off the heat and add the nuts. Stir constantly until they turn a nice brown colour. It is really important you turn off the heat, because otherwise the nuts may go from perfectly golden brown one second, to black and burnt the next.

Once the tomatoes, onions and garlic are cooked, add salt and pepper to your taste. If the mixture still has a lot of cooking fluids, leave of the lid for the fluids to evaporate. Turn of the heat when done.

When your pasta is done (I usually try a small piece, but throwing some up against the wall to see if it sticks - if it sticks, it's done - may also work), pour off the water and mix in the jar of pesto with the pasta. If you want (and this is slightly easier), you can also add the pesto to the tomato and onion mix instead of to the pasta.
Mix the pesto and pasta until it's in about equal proportions to each other.

Serve with the tomato and onion mix, and sprinkle with feta/mozzarella cheese and pine nuts.

Bon appetit!

The catering company I work for serves this avocado bread with rich black coffees for breakfast, or as a sweet side to cool down the burn of high spice Latin American foods.

INGREDIENTS:
* 1-1/3 cups all-purpose flour
* 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
* 1/4 cup butter, softened
* 3/4 cup and 3 tablespoons white sugar
* 1-1/2 eggs
* 3/4 cup mashed ripe avocado
* 1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons buttermilk
* 1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons chopped pecans
* 1/4 cup raisins
* 1-1/2 teaspoons grated orange zest


DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9x5 inch loaf pans. Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and allspice. Set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, cream together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then mix in the mashed avocado. Stir in the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk until just mixed. Fold in the chopped pecans, raisins and orange zest and pour it into the pan.

3. Bake for 1 hour in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Allow loaves to cool in pan for at least 20 minutes before removing.

You think that's good...check out...

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

INGREDIENTS:
* 2 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate
* 3 eggs
* 2 cups white sugar
* 1 cup vegetable oil
* 2 cups grated zucchini
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips


DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans. In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave chocolate until melted. Stir occasionally until chocolate is smooth.

2. In a large bowl, combine eggs, sugar, oil, grated zucchini, vanilla and chocolate; beat well. Stir in the flour baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Fold in the chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared loaf pans.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a loaf comes out clean.


It is SO easy. Seriously, you can practically make it in your sleep. Which is nice when you work at a catering company and have to be in at 5 am...