Monday, February 25, 2013

Dinner Recipe Rut

This post is inspired by a friend who posted on Facebook last night that she was in a dinner rut and needed some recipe ideas. Well, the Tempeh Shepherdess Pie that I made for dinner last night is a GREAT recipe rut buster, not to mention a healthy and hearty vegan and gluten-free meal that tastes like the wonderful home-cooked meals that a lot of us had as children. 

Here is my adapted version of the recipe, original recipe can be found in the Veganomicon cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. Their recipe is a little more time-intensive, my version is the shortcut (although still not a quick meal by any means!). 

2 packages of tempeh, crumbled or cubed (make sure it's the 'normal' kind, not the 5-grain, which has gluten)
Veggies!! - I used a red onion, white onion, 5 carrots, 2 zucchini, and about a half pound of spinach. I was also going to add peas, but I forgot. Edamame would be pretty tasty too
A few tablespoons of coconut oil 
4-5 cloves of roasted garlic 
One 15 oz. can of white beans (cannellini or navy beans are ideal) - optional

2-3 lbs of potatoes and/or squash 

2 cups of vegetable stock
1/4 cup cornstarch

~1/4 cup of tamari or Bragg's Liquid Aminos (I prefer Bragg's - it imparts a GREAT smokiness to any dish)
Basil
Thyme
Pepper
Coriander

Preheat the oven to 375F.

Chop up the potatoes and/or squash and throw those all in a pot. Fill with enough water to cover everything, add a few pinches of salt, and bring to a boil. Once the water is boiling, turn the heat down to a medium-high and boil for about 20 minutes. 

Next, chop up all of your veggies and tempeh and throw them together in a large saute pot or pan with the coconut oil. I put the tempeh, onions, and carrots in the pot at the same time, but reserved the zucchini until later so that it didn't get too mushy. 

Also at this time, whisk ~1/4 cup of cornstarch into 2 cups of vegetable stock and set aside. It's okay if it's a little lumpy. 

As your veggies are cooking, be sure to break up the tempeh into smaller pieces so that it cooks thoroughly. I LOVE the taste of tempeh, but it can taste slightly bitter to some people, so you don't want your tempeh chunks to be too large. Once your carrots and onions start to soften, add whatever spices you want - I like basil, thyme (a little heavy on the thyme for that really "country cooking" feel!), and a bit of coriander. You can also add any other softer veggies at this time, like the zucchinis. 

Once the zucchinis start to soften, add about 1/4 cup of tamari or Bragg's Liquid Aminos. Bragg's imparts a wonderful smokiness to dishes, but can be a bit overwhelming if you don't like too much smokiness. A tamari/Bragg's combo might be the way to go the first time you make the dish, and then you can adjust the next time. Give the veggies a few stirs, and then add your vegetable stock/cornstarch mixture and turn the heat up to high. Once boiling, turn the heat down to medium-high and let boil for a few minutes, stirring constantly. Once the liquid starts to thicken, remove from heat. At this time, gently stir in your white beans, if using. 

By this time, your potatoes and squash should be done boiling, so drain those and then return to the pot for some mashing. I like to add some Earth Balance and soy milk during mashing, and for an extra special treat, if you're using butternut squash, add some maple syrup! It'll bring out an incredibly yummy sweetness in the butternut squash that is a great balance to the earthiness of the tempeh and veggie mixture. 

I typically prefer really smooth mashed potatoes, but because these will be the topping for your shepherd's pie, it's kind of nice to leave them a little lumpy. Otherwise, the whole dish can sometimes get a little too gooey and mushy and all have the same texture. 

Dump your tempeh/veggie mixture into a 9x13 inch casserole dish. Next, top with your mashed potato/mashed squash and spread it around so that it completely covers your tempeh and veggies. You can use a spatula, but I find that using your hands works the best! 

Bake at 375 for 20 minutes. If you want it to be a little extra crispy (and extra delicious!) on top, then put it under the broiler for 5-10 minutes. Just keep a close eye on it so it doesn't burn those yummy potatoes! 

Let sit for about 5 minutes before serving, or else it'll be way too runny and difficult to serve. 



VARIATIONS

I actually made my mashed potatoes and mashed butternut squash separately, and then just alternated between a dollop of potatoes and a dollop of squash for a cool, checkerboard-topped pie. That way, I could put some yummy maple syrup in the squash, but not make my potatoes weird and sweet. But, that all depends on how many dishes you want to have at the end.

I'm pretty convinced that any veggie would work in this dish. Have fun with it! 

You could also put ground beef in there instead of tempeh if your family isn't vegan. Or, leave out the tempeh and put an extra can of beans for a cheap family dinner. 


The possibilities are endless. I bet a sweet potato topping would be pretty tasty too! Let me know if you come up with any good variations - I'd love to hear about them!

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