Creamy cheesy vegan butternut pasta bake

So my best friend is getting married in like 36 hours...out of town. Naturally i'm a little stressed... making sure I have everything I need, speech written etc... Normally I don't post my "idonthaveanythinginthehousesoimjustgonnathrowsomethingtogether" recipes on my blog, but this one turned out so good and was so easy, it would be a sin not to share! now the butternut squash soup is a brand I see often in most stores and is vegan, I just happen to keep some in my house at all times because of it's yum factor, I've included a pic of the brand I used. Also, I eyeballed the ingredients as I was preparing this since I was in a hurry so I guessed on the exact measurements, you can add more to taste as underestimated to prevent overdosing on a particular ingredient.


1 package elbow style pasta (I prefer DeBoles artichoke)
1 box vegan creamy butternut squash soup
1/4 cup earth balance
1/2 cup tofutti sour cream
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1/2 cup Daiya cheddar style cheese shreds
2 tsp paprika
2tsp sage
sea salt and pepper to taste
bread crumbs

preheat oven to 350

prepare pasta as directed
meanwhile pour soup into large pan and bring to simmer on med heat
add butter, sour cream, nutritional yeast and stir well. Add cheese and stir until melted. Add spices and let simmer about 5-10 minutes. Pour soup mix over pasta, top with breadcrumbs and bake about 10 minutes... YUM!!!

Lasagna

So I LOVE lasagna, like we're BFF's....I thought I would never be satisfied with a vegan variation but I played around with it until even my dad didn't know he was eating a veganized lasagna! It's the sauce that makes this dish, it's a vegan play on my moms homemade sauce she used to make...just a little betterand much more compassionate :)

Ingredients:

1 package DeBoles artichoke flour Lasagna noodles cooked and drained

Cheese Filling
1 package firm tofu, drained
1 tbs garlic powder
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregeno
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp parsley
1 tbsp olive oil
pepper to taste
1 package Daiya Mozzarella style shreds (minus one small handful for topping)
1/2 container vegan galaxy nutritional foods vegan grated topping (keep other half for topping)

directions for cheese filling:
crumble tofu and add spices and oil, mix with daiya and vegan grated topping place in bowl to the side

Sauce
1 large can tomato sauce
2 small fresh Roma tomatoes, diced
1 small can tomato paste
1 small can crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
5 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 tsp each of thyme, sage, sugar, cayenne pepper (if you like a little spice)
1 tbsp oregeno, basil and parsley
1 c diced celery
1 small diced onion
1 c green pepper, diced
1 package gimmie lean ground "sausage"

directions for sauce:
in a large saucepan, saute onion, celery, garlic pepper and sausage for about 5 minutes
meanwhile in large pot, combine tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste olive oil and fresh tomatoes, bring to a simmer. add sauteed veggies and sausage, stir. add spices, i always eyeball the spices so you can adjust the measurements to your taste preference, allow sauce to simmer about 15 minutes

in a lasagna pan, assemble layers. I like to start with a layer of sauce on the bottom so my noodles don't burn or stick, then alternate with a layer (or double layer) of noodles sauce, then cheese filling, i always finish with a noodle layer, topped with sauce and i sprinkle a the handful of daiya and the remainder of the vegan grated topping.

bake at 400 for 30 minutes and enjoy

some variations include using this for a stuffed shells or manicotti also, sometimes when I'm not feeling like a salad appetizer, i will add a package of thawed spinach to the cheese mixture to get all my greens

****update, i made this today and added some carrots to the sauce...yum!



http://www.daiyafoods.com/

Vegan pecos pasta

yum yum yum, so i started craving this tex mex dish I used to eat pre-vegan...and decided to veganize it! the result was an even tastier, and of course sympathetic version of what I used to eat...enjoy!









Ingredients:

1lb elbow style pasta (I used DeBoles artichoke flour pasta)
1tbs olive oil
3 cloves minced garlic

1 c bell peppers, (i use red orange and green for a more colorful dish)

1/2 onion diced

1 can vegan chili (I prefer Amy's organic)
1 can corn drained
cayenne pepper, salt and black pepper to taste
daiya cheese to top

prepare pasta according to box
meanwhile, in nonstick pan, heat oil and saute onions, garlic and peppers for 3 minutes
add chili, corn and spices, reduce heat and let simmer 10 minutes
drain pasta and add sauce to noodles, combine together and serve topped with daiya cheese (i like to use the cheddar and mozz shreds together to mix it up a little)

other variations: you can also opt to use a can of tomato sauce and your chili seasoning of choice if you are making a large batch or like a saucier dish, when i prepare it this way i usually add black beans and diced green chilis

http://www.daiyafoods.com/