Sweet Potato, Brown Rice, and Shiitake Soup

Sweet Potato, Brown Rice, and Shiitake Soup

Serves 3 – 4

Takes about 45 minutes

I thought up the idea for this soup and was craving it before I had even actually made it. It turned out to be just as good as I had hoped. I eat rice with soup but I don’t often cook the rice into my soup. It adds a nice chewiness.

Ingredients:

¾ cup brown basmati rice

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

5 cups vegetable broth (a boullion cube works fine)

1 ½ tbsp tomato paste

3 small sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

7 oz shitake mushrooms, diced

6 – 8 green onions, finely sliced

1 tsp thyme

1 tbsp nutritional yeast

½ tsp turmeric powder

Salt to taste (depends on saltiness of your vegetable broth)

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot. When hot, add in the garlic and ginger.  Saute until the garlic starts to lightly brown, about a minute or two. Add rice, vegetable broth, and tomato paste to the pot. Stir so that there are no lumps of tomato paste. Bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover pot, and simmer for 25 minutes.

2. Add in the sweet potatoes and raise heat so that soup starts to bubble again. Cook on medium heat for 8 minutes.

3. Add shitake mushrooms. When soup starts to bubble again, cook for another 5 minutes.

4. Stir in the green onions, thyme, nutritional yeast, and turmeric. Cook briefly for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and serve hot.

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Sweet Potato Pecan Pie

Sweet Potato Pecan Pie

Makes 1 9-inch Pie

Takes about 1 hour, 30 minutes (not including roasting sweet potatoes)

I was a little tired of the traditional pumpkin pie one Thanksgiving so I made this instead and it was met with unanimous enthusiasm.  The taste is very similar to pumpkin but the pie is a brighter orange and just a little different tasting.  The maple syrup and candied pecans make it heaven.

Ingredients:

Crust:

¾ cup white whole wheat flour

1 tbsp sugar

½ tsp salt

¼ cup coconut oil, at a temperature where it is solid

3 tbsp cold water

Filling:

3 medium-sized sweet potatoes, well roasted

3 tbsp cornstarch

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp each cloves, allspice, nutmeg, ground ginger

½ cup maple syrup

2 tbsp olive oil

¾ cup soymilk

3 tbsp xylitol or sugar

Candied topping:

1 tbsp shortening, margarine, or coconut oil

1 cup chopped pecans

2 tbsp sugar

1. To make the crust, combine together the flour, sugar, and salt.  Add the coconut oil in pieces.  Use a fork or your fingers to work the oil into the flour until you end up with crumbles.  Add the water and work it into a dry, flaky dough.

2. Sprinkle flour on a clean surface.  Gently press the dough flat and then use a rolling pin to roll it into a coarse circle (you want it to be about 11 inches in diameter or so).  Be gentle because the dough will break easily.

3. Transfer the crust to the pie pan and fit it to the right size.  Use scissors to cut off any extra that hangs over the sides of the pan.  Crimp the edges of the crust by pinching.  Cover the crust with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and place in the refrigerator until ready to use (you can leave it for several hours if you want or use it right away.  If you want to save it for longer, freeze it and then thaw in the refrigerator right before you want to cook it).

4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

5. Remove the skins from the sweet potatoes and place the flesh in the blender.  Add in all the rest of the filling ingredients and blend until smooth.  Pour the filling into the pie crust.

6. To make the topping, in a pan on the stove, melt the shortening or margarine.  Add the pecans and sugar and cook on medium heat, stirring constantly until sugar caramelizes.  Disperse the pecans over the top of the pie.

7. Cover the pie with aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes.  Remove the foil and then bake for another 15 minutes.  Allow pie to cool before eating.  It is best if it is allowed to chill for several hours or overnight in the refrigerator.