Note from Kare: Brandy from Nutmeg Nanny is back with a tasty and adaptable recipe that, frankly, makes a terrific dinner in and of itself. But if you want to give it the appetizer treatment, I don’t think anyone will complain! I adore these crispy baked vegetable egg rolls – no deep frying in sight. Take it away, Brandy!

I’m a serious egg roll lover. I’m not even exaggerating when I say that.

Sometimes when we order Chinese food, I think to myself: “Would it make me too much of a pig if I just ordered three egg rolls and nothing else?” I have yet to give into my desire to just feast on egg rolls but I’m really only one bad day away from probably letting it happen.

However, one thing I love about egg rolls is how easy they are to make. Seriously, it’s not that difficult – especially when they’re baked instead of deep-fried. (Bonus: they’re healthier that way too!)

Homemade egg rolls are great because you get to throw in all the vegetables (and meat) of your choosing. For this recipe I did a mix of cabbage, carrot, bean sprouts and shiitake mushrooms. I also made a version with added chicken because I’m all about the protein addition.

However, I did have two issues when making this recipe. Problem 1: I had to drive around to all the grocery stores in the area before I found egg roll wrappers. Even then, all I found was spring roll wrappers. Which in the end are similar enough, but they are a bit thinner – so that means they come out a bit crispier. Problem 2: I’m the worst egg roll wrapper EVER! I’m not really sure why I’m so bad at this but I just can’t get them all to be the perfect size. In the end it’s really not a big deal since it’s just my family eating them BUT I guess if I were looking to win a gold medal for a egg roll wrapping I would not win. I’m not even sure I would place.

Oh and back to problem number 1, guess where I finally found the wrappers – the Asian market. Duh. Why didn’t I just go there in the first place? I’ll never know. However, most large grocery store chains do in fact carry egg roll wrappers. Mine were just all out on the day I needed them. Apparently everyone wants to make egg rolls. Which makes sense they are in fact delicious.

As far as dipping goes you can really make up any sauce that you like with egg rolls but I opted to make a peanut butter based sauce. I think the savory peanut lime flavor goes perfectly with all the vegetables stuffed into these babies. PLUS it’s just another excuse to eat peanut butter, which is always a plus in my book.

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The post Crispy Baked Vegetable Egg Rolls (with Chicken Option) appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

I have to be honest here. I felt a tad deflated when I was asked to review a brand new cookbook called “Vegan Vegetarian Omnivore: Dinner for Everyone At the Table.”

“That’s the cookbook I wanted to write someday!” I thought. But instead, an accomplished, James Beard award-winning cookbook author had written it – someone who has written cookbooks that I really like, to boot. Grr! Think The Vegetarian Epicure and Love Soup. Thankfully, my jealousy turned to excitement pretty quickly, because the truth was, I was pretty excited to crack open Anna Thomas’ latest.

As it turns out, Vegan Vegetarian Omnivore – with loads of vegan base recipes and options for taking them in both vegetarian and meaty directions – is indeed perfect for Kitchen Treaty readers. But I find it to be more of a special occasion cookbook – a bit different than my more everyday point of view. And I love that, because even if you don’t live in a mixed-diet family, almost everyone encounters dietary differences when it comes to holidays and parties.

Vegan Vegetarian Omnivore is the kind of cookbook you’ll enjoy reading cover to cover, then whipping out whenever you want to seriously impress guests – even better when a plethora of dietary preferences and requirements are presenting themselves at the table.

It’s packed with ambitious but doable holiday menus and recipes (with options, of course). The menus and recipes are interspersed with set-the-mood stories that transport you to, say, a golden California evening, lounging on a tree-covered patio and sipping rosé with Anna herself. (And you feel quite welcomed, thank you, regardless of your dietary preferences.)

Each dish is both familiar and different, often with one or two special ingredients you might not use in everyday cooking. For me, I like how it bumps me a bit out of my comfort zone and challenges me to try new things. I need that now and then!

This Spinach & Herb Risotto with Oyster Mushrooms has two ingredients I’d never tried – and I’m now in love with both. Oyster mushrooms – so (for lack of a better word) meaty! And mirin – Japanese sweet rice wine. Holy moly. Glazed oyster mushrooms, cooked with a splash of mirin until golden. Such flavor.

This risotto recipe made me believe that a vegan risotto can be just as good as risotto served up with tons of Parmesan. The parm is truly not necessary, as it turns out, although in the spirit of the cookbook (and Kitchen Treaty too!) it is an option. So is chicken. My guy enjoyed his with warmed cooked chicken and a sprinkle of shaved cheese. And I rewarded myself by sneaking a few extra glorious mushrooms into my own serving.

If you’re looking for more flexibility and interesting choices for serving yourself, your family, and your guests – particularly on special occasions – consider adding both this recipe and the book to your arsenal.

One gripe I do have about the cookbook is the lack of prep and cook times. I need that! But if you read through the recipe thoroughly before starting, you should get a good feel for about how long it should take. (And I did add my own prep/cook times to the recipe I’m sharing below).

Vegan Vegetarian Omnivore: Dinner for Everyone at the Table is available now on Amazon.

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The post Spinach & Herb Risotto with Oyster Mushrooms appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Orrrr … yeah. Maybe I’ll just make vegetarian pho from scratch at home now and then, and that’ll be plenty good enough.

So surely you have had (and love) pho, right? Giant bowls of comforting rice noodles swimming in a steamy, aromatic broth (think savory joining up with cloves, star anise, and cinnamon). Traditionally, pho is made with beef – but when us vegetarians get lucky, a pho restaurant will serve a gorgeous vegetarian broth punctuated with tofu, mushrooms, maybe even some broccoli, carrots, or bok choy.

But at its core, pho is noodles and broth. And then the sky is the limit. And when you make vegetarian pho from scratch, you can customize it how you like it, from the broth to what you put into your soup to what you top it with.

Oh, the toppings! Glorious, glorious pho toppings.

Most of the aforementioned punny restaurants around here put a big plate of Thai basil, bean sprouts, lime wedges, and jalapeno slices in front of you, along with some Hoisin sauce and Sriracha. Plop in a pepper for heat, pile with sprouts, tear up a whole bunch of basil and pile it on, squirt on some sauces, squeeze a little lime over the whole glorious mess … it’s all to your liking. That’s the beauty of pho.

So here’s the scoop on making it at home. I’ll be honest – I thought it would be pretty simple to do, but making vegetarian pho from scratch actually is a little time-consuming. The broth, of course, takes the longest to make, though most of that is cooking time. I like to double the recipe and freeze what’s left for (easier) homemade pho down the road.

Once the broth-makin’ is out of the way, you just cook the rice noodles and get all of the remaining soup ingredients and the toppings ready. I use dry noodles – just a quick two-minute-long dunk into boiling water and they’re ready.

For my meat-eating guy, I have the butcher at my local grocery store thinly slice some top round. The noodles go into the bowl, followed by a few slices of the raw beef, and then you pour the boiling broth over the top – it cooks the beef instantly.

Meanwhile, my vegetarian version gets a few sliced mushrooms and maybe a few cubes of tofu. And then we top.

Pho really is fun to make at home, and when you start with a (still-delicious!) meatless broth, you can customize individual bowls for carnivores and vegetarians alike.

Vegetarian Vietnamese soup pho the win!

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Vegetarian Pho from Scratch (with Optional Beef for the Meat-Eaters)

Homemade vegetarian pho from scratch. Rice noodles – and whatever else you like – swim in a delicious, aromatic broth. Plus, pho is perfect for customizing to individual tastes. Freeze any leftover broth for easy homemade pho later on.

Prep Time 45 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 55 minutes minutes

Author Kare

Ingredients

Broth:

• 12 cups water
• 3 medium sweet onions peeled and quartered
• 4 medium carrots cut into 3-inch chunks
• 1 medium bulb garlic top cut off and halved
• 1/2 cup dried shiitake or porcini mushrooms
• 1 stalk lemongrass halved and smashed lightly
• 2 thumb-size pieces of fresh ginger sliced
• 3 star anise
• 1 teaspoon whole cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
• 1 6- inch cinnamon stick
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• Kosher salt and/or a few dashes of soy sauce to taste

For the soup:

Banh Pho flat rice noodles (1 to 2 ounces per serving), plus any of the following:

• Cubed extra-firm tofu or crispy air fryer tofu*
• Sliced mushrooms
• Broccoli florets
• Sliced carrots
• Chopped baby bok choy
• Very thinly sliced top round steak about 1/8 pound per serving

Toppings:

• Fresh Thai basil
• Bean sprouts
• Fresh jalapeno slices
• Fresh lime wedges
• Hoisin sauce be sure to find a vegetarian version
• Sriracha sauce

Instructions

Make the broth:

• Add all ingredients to a large stock pot and stir. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes.
• Remove from heat and let cool until safe to handle. Place a colander over a large bowl and pour broth into colander. Discard solids. Strain one more time to remove all the bits and pieces: Place a fine-mesh sieve over the stock pot and pour the both back into the pot, through the sieve. Taste, adding salt if desired. Return to the stove and bring to a boil.

Cook the noodles:

• Either follow package directions, or, if no clear directions, bring a pot of water to boiling. Turn off heat. Add noodles to water and stir gently until softened, about 1 – 2 minutes. Strain noodles and rinse under cold water to prevent sticking.
• Assemble your soup!
• Add noodles to a large bowl. Top with vegetables, tofu, and/or beef, as desired. Carefully pour boiling-hot broth over the veggies/tofu/beef, taking care to dunk the beef under the broth so all of the beef cooks in the hot broth. The veggies will blanch in the broth, too, so they should be tender enough by the time you’re ready to eat.
• Serve with assorted toppings.

Notes

*Find Crispy Air Fryer Tofu recipe here

The post Vegetarian Pho appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Oh. It’s been right there, all along? If only I’d opened my eyes? Well, I guess I have to admit that sounds about right. I spend my time being blissfully oblivious a little more often than I should.

But thankfully, I’m oblivious-no-more when it comes to skillet lasagna. Only blissful.

I first tuned in to the whole awesome skillet lasagna thing when I saw Jessica’s springtime veggie skillet lasagna a few weeks ago. How could I spot one of those photos and not stop in my tracks, letting my consciousness flood with pure skillet lasagna awareness?

I quickly became a woman obsessed with the concept. Really, a skillet lasagna is a lasagna made with one pan (a skillet, of course), using uncooked noodles. You still do some layering, but the process is much quicker.

Some cover and cook their skillet lasagnas right on the stovetop, but I prefer to place the skillet in the oven to ensure lots of perfect cheesy meltiness and a few crispy-crunchy bits here and there.

You start by sauteeing your veggies, then you add your sauce and heat it through. Then you remove all but a small amount of the sauce and the layering begins. Raw, broken-up lasagna noodles, dollops of ricotta, sauce, mozzarella, repeat, repeat. Place it in the oven for about 30 minutes and, viola! Skillet lasagna.

This one starts with a little onion and garlic, then you saute a handful of button mushrooms and some hunks of zucchini, throwing in a little baby spinach at the last minute. Before you know it, you’re spooning out perfectly melty layers of pasta, veggie-filled sauce, ricotta, and oozy mozzarella. Comfort food, weeknight style.

So far I’ve only made it with red sauce, but endless variations and possibilities are floating through my finally-now-fully-aware mind. I can promise you there are more skillet lasagna recipes on the horizon … I’m officially now a bit of a woman obsessed.

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Easy Cheesy Veggie Skillet Lasagna Recipe

Veggie-filled sauce layered perfectly with lasagna noodles, ricotta, and gooey mozzarella cheese. It’s perfect vegetarian comfort food, made easily in a single skillet.

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 4 -6 servings

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup diced onion about 1/2 medium onion
• 2 medium cloves garlic diced
• 1 cup sliced button mushrooms
• 1 cup diced zucchini about 1 small
• 1 cup baby spinach leaves
• 3 cups Italian tomato sauce or other tomato-based pasta sauce of your choice
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 8 ounces lasagna noodles about 1/2 pound, broken into 3 – 4 inch pieces
• 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese about 12 ounces
• 15 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese whole milk ricotta works fine too
• 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Equipment needed:

• 12- inch or larger cast-iron skillet or other oven-proof skillet

Instructions

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Place a 12-inch or larger cast-iron skillet on the stovetop over medium heat. Heat olive oil and add onions, stirring frequently, until they begin to soften. Add the garlic, sauteeing for another minute. Add the zucchini and mushrooms and saute for 3 – 4 minutes until the zucchini is tender and the mushrooms soften.
• Pour Italian tomato sauce over veggies and combine, stirring over medium heat until warmed through. Stir in baby spinach leaves and cook for an additional minute. Taste sauce and add a little salt and pepper if desired.
• Remove pan from heat.
• Remove all but 1 cup of the sauce from the pan. Spread the remaining sauce evenly in the bottom of the pan and cover with a layer of noodles. No need to place them perfectly evenly, just place them here and there in a single layer until most of the sauce is covered by the pasta.
• Spoon the ricotta, about 5 or 6 mounds and about 1/3 of ricotta, onto the noodles. Add 1/3 of the remaining sauce, spreading evenly with the back of a spoon, and then sprinkle 1/3 of the mozzarella. Add another layer of noodles. Repeat with another layer – ricotta, sauce, mozzarella, and noodles, then spoon the remaining sauce on the top, add the ricotta, sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella cheese, and top with the Parmesan cheese.
• Place the skillet in the oven and bake for about 30 minutes, until the cheese is bubbly and the pasta is cooked through.
• Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 5 minutes, then serve.

The post Easy Cheesy Veggie Skillet Lasagna Recipe appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Yep. Pizza nachos. Where oh where have you been all my life, friend?!

It might be another one for the so-wrong-so-right files health-wise, but certainly it’s worth the splurge. And it fits right in with our mixed-diet household. Just cook up individual portions that have been customized to perfection with only the toppings you want, and none you don’t.

Mine are loaded with veggies – green peppers, mushrooms, onions – and lots of black olives. My resident carnivore, of course, goes for the meat. Not just pepperoni and not just sausage, but both. So pretty much a combination pizza assembled atop of a pile of tortilla chips.

I first spotted the idea on the wonderful comfort food blog, The Comfort of Cooking. They were inspired by Two Peas and Their Pod, who posted the recipe on Tasty Kitchen, who got the recipe from Dax Phillips of The Simple Comfort Food Blog. A blog chain of pizza nacho goodness.

Their versions include a divine-sounding garlic cream sauce, but I went for a more straightforward version made with classic pizza sauce. There was a bit of soggy chip syndrome where too much pizza sauce sat, so just be sure to distribute it well or, if you’re really averse to the occasional soggy chip, just drizzle the pizza sauce right on top before cooking.

Cheesy, pizza-y comfort food to the max.

So wrong. So right. Nachos and pizza, together forever.

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Combination Pizza Nachos with Optional Pepperoni and Sausage

You love pizza. You love nachos. You KNOW you’ll love pizza nachos. How could you not? Tortilla chips smothered in pizza sauce, classic combination pizza toppings, and gobs of ooey gooey cheese. Who needs crust?

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Author Kare

Ingredients

• Ingredients
• Approx. 3 cups tortilla chips
• 2/3 cup pizza sauce here’s our very favorite recipe for homemade pizza sauce
• 1 small green pepper seeded and diced
• 1/2 small red onion diced
• 3 – 4 white button mushrooms sliced
• 1/4 cup black olives sliced
• 1 cup 4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup 2 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup 1 ounce shredded Parmesan cheese (optional)

If adding optional pepperoni or sausage – per serving:

• 1/4 pound Italian sausage browned and drained
• 6 – 8 thin slices pepperoni cut into quarters

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Lay tortilla chips in a single layer, as much as possible, on two oven-proof plates or baking sheets.
• Using a spoon, evenly distribute the pizza sauce over the chips. If you prefer nachos without any semi-soggy bits, I recommend drizzling the sauce over the cheese instead.
• Evenly sprinkle the toppings – green pepper, red onion, mushrooms, olives, and meat, if using – over the top of each. Divide the cheeses between the two plates, sprinkling it over the top.
• Bake for about 8 – 10 minutes, until cheese is melted and nachos are heated through.
• Allow to cool for a couple of minutes, then serve, taking care to avoid touching the hot plates (or better yet, transfer to a cool plate to serve).

The post Combination Pizza Nachos with Optional Pepperoni and Sausage appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Most baked ziti recipes call for ground beef or crumbled sausage, but you know what? I’m going to argue that it’s just not needed. Superfluous, even.

When you start with a great Italian tomato sauce, layer it with al dente pasta and four different cheeses – melty  provolone and mozzarella along with creamy gorgonzola and salty parmesan – then add sour cream and mushrooms, well … you have baked vegetarian ziti perfection right there.

This recipe is, however, super-easy to adapt for meat eaters, if you really insist. Use a pasta sauce that already includes meat, or cook up two separate versions, layering some browned ground beef or sausage in the middle of one of them for the carnivores.

Oh, and obviously you can leave the mushrooms out too, if you’re not too into them. Still perfectly delicious. I promise.

However you slice – well, really, scoop – it, it’ll make you feel all warm and fuzzy just like comfort food is supposed to.

The perfect freezer recipe

This recipe freezes beautifully. You can make it up to the point of baking, freeze, thaw, then follow directions to bake. I also like to scoop individual leftover servings into Ziploc bags and freeze. Then I just pull it out, stick the frozen block on a plate, and microwave it on high for about three minutes. Instant lunch, and it tastes like it just came out of the oven. Gotta love it.

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Vegetarian Baked Ziti

This baked ziti boasts four different cheeses, making it comfort food at its very finest. Mozzarella, parmesan, provolone, and creamy Gorgonzola team up with rich Italian tomato sauce, tangy sour cream, sauteed mushrooms, and perfectly al dente pasta. When a pan of this is bubbling in the oven, you know life is about to get really, really good.

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 6 servings

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound dry rigatoni or penne pasta
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup white button mushrooms sliced
• 2 cups tomato-based pasta sauce my go-to for this recipe is my beloved Italian Tomato Sauce
• 3 ounces provolone cheese sliced
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup Gorgonzola cheese crumbled
• 4 ounces mozzarella cheese shredded (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add a generous pinch of salt, then add pasta. Cook until barely al dente, about 8 minutes, or about 2/3 of the time recommended on the pasta package directions. Drain.
• In a large skillet over medium heat, saute the mushrooms in olive oil until softened, about 6-7 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and bring to a boil. Turn the heat to low and simmer about 15 minutes.
• In an 8″ x 8″ dish, layer half the cooked pasta, then half the tomato sauce. Cover with the provolone slices. Add the sour cream in spoonfuls, then carefully spread into a thin layer. Top with the Gorgonzola cheese. Add the remaining pasta, then the mozzarella cheese. Spread the rest of the pasta sauce over the top, and finally top with the Parmesan cheese.
• Cook for 30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly.

The post Vegetarian Baked Ziti appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

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I’m going to tell you a little vegetarian secret. Chicken broth is the absolute bane of the vegetarian’s existence. Chicken broth and anchovies. Man, it’s like butternut squash soup and pasta puttanesca and traditional Thanksgiving stuffing are their Trojan horse. The dishes look vegetarian, but nuh uh – gotcha!

I get that these vegetarian-unfriendly ingredients add flavor to a dish. But luckily for us non-meat-seeking missiles, so does a flavorful homemade vegetable broth. And a little Parmesan Reggiano. And fresh-picked herbs. And just having really really good ingredients to begin with.

Often when I serve a big holiday meal at my place, I keep stealth meat out of the sides, and leave the meat to the, you know, actual meat dish. That way, vegetarians (okay, me) get plenty to choose from, and the carnivores are content, too.

For Thanksgiving this year, we brined our turkey in peppercorns, sage, brown sugar, and salt, then my guy deep-fried it to a perfect golden brown. While our guests oohed and ahhed over my guy’s triumph, I don’t think they missed that the stuffing didn’t have chicken broth.

Or maybe they were just polite.

Well, I think it’s delicious – and I’d be willing to bet you will, too.

More Stuffing Recipes

• Vegan Buttery Herb Stuffing
• Cornbread Stuffing
• Wild Rice & Quinoa Gluten-Free Stuffing
• Crock Pot Sourdough Herb Stuffing

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Vegetarian Caramelized Onion & Chanterelle Mushroom Stuffing

This simple vegetarian stuffing recipe is made special with a handful of sourdough bread thrown into the mix, caramelized onions, and delicately-delicious chanterelle mushrooms.

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 10 -12

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 12 cups french bread cut into 3/4 inch cubes
• 4 cups sourdough bread cut into 3/4 inch cubes
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter plus more for buttering baking pan
• 2 large onions cut in half and sliced thinly (about 5-6 cups raw)
• 1 teaspoon salt + more to taste
• A few grinds of black pepper
• 1 1/2 cups about 1/3 pound chopped chanterelle mushrooms
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 cup chopped parsley
• 2 teaspoons fresh chopped thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
• 2 teaspoons fresh chopped sage or 1 teaspoon dried
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 egg

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and butter a 9×13 inch baking pan.
• Spread bread cubes on two rimmed cookie sheets and bake for about 10-12 minutes, stirring once, until they begin to turn golden brown and are fairly dry and crisp. Remove from oven and set aside.
• In a large saute pan over medium heat, melt butter.
• Add onions, 1 teaspoon salt and a couple grounds of fresh ground pepper. Cook on medium-low for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and well-browned (caramelized).
• Increase heat to medium and add the celery and mushrooms to the pan. Stirring frequently, saute until tender, about four minutes.
• Add sage, thyme, and parsley, and stir for another minute.
• Add a cup of the broth, gently stirring until much of the bits of onion have come off of bottom of the pan.
• Set aside and let onion and broth mixture cool to room temperature.
• In a large bowl, beat the egg.
• Stir in the onion/broth mixture and the rest of the broth.
• Add the bread, and toss to coat evenly.
• Pour into the prepared baking pan and press the top gently.
• Bake uncovered for 40 – 50 minutes or until browned and crisp on top.

The post Vegetarian Caramelized Onion & Chanterelle Mushroom Stuffing appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.