story and photos by Jeremie Serrano
Satisfying everyone at your holiday table can be complicated, and you’re probably wondering where to even begin! Let me help!
I am a vegan recipe curator and content creator. I’ve been vegan for about a year now and have been trained by master cooks (my grandma and mother LOL).
On my blog LaComidadeJeremie.com, Instagram and YouTube accounts (@lacomidadejeremie), I share my delicious recipes (with a Puerto Rican twist) and my travels. I try vegan restaurants across the globe, and bring awareness to social justice issues that I stand for. I want everyone to know that vegan cooking and eating shouldn’t be difficult.
As vegans and vegetarians, we enjoy recreating healthier, cleaner, and more delicious ‘veganized’ versions of the dishes our omnivore friends love to eat!
So put on your apron, preheat the oven, and let’s get cooking! With my help, no one will go ‘hangry’ this holiday season! To get you started, here are two of my more simple recipes; both can be served as main dishes.
BAKED MAC & CHEEZE
Ingredients:
1 (12 oz.) pkg macaroni noodles
2 Cups of non-dairy milk, unsweetened 2-3 tbsps of butter, melted
2 1⁄2 Cups Follow Your Heart cheddar shreds 1 Cup Follow Your Heart mozzarella shreds 1 (8 oz.) pkg Kite Hill plain cream cheeze
1 tbsp of garlic powder
1 tbsp of onion powder
1 tsp of salt & pepper
1⁄4 Cup flour
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 C). Lightly grease a shallow baking dish.
In a medium or large pot of salted water, lightly boil the macaroni for 5-7 minutes until noodles are half-cooked.
Drain the noodles and set aside. In the same pot, melt Earth Balance butter, whisk in flour and slowly add in non-dairy milk until a ‘roux’ forms.
Stir in your seasonings, cream cheeze & cheeze shreds (leave some cheeze shreds for topping of dish). Then stir in your macaroni noodles.
Pour noodles in greased baking dish and cook covered with aluminum foil for 25-30 minutes. Then remove foil and bake for 5-8 minutes until top of macaroni & cheeze is golden brown.
Allow to cool a bit and serve warm. Enjoy!
NO-FUSS LASAGNA
Ingredients:
1 pkg of ‘no-boil’ lasagna
1 pkg of Trader Joe’s beef-less ground beef
1 pkg of vegan cream cheeze
2 1⁄2 Cups Follow Your Heart cheddar shreds
1 jar marinara sauce
1⁄2 an onion, diced
1 block of extra firm tofu (used in place of ricotta), mashed
2 tbsps of garlic powder 2 tbsps of onion powder 1⁄2 tsp of salt & pepper
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 C).
In a large pan or skillet, cook beef-less ground beef until brown. Add onions; saute until onions are transparent. Stir in seasonings and 1⁄2 package of cream cheeze.
In a medium size bowl, mash block of tofu and season with salt & pepper.
In a baking dish spread a thin layer of marinara sauce. Layer with uncooked lasagna noodles, cheeze shreds, beef, tomato sauce, and tofu ricotta. Layer until you are left with a layer of noodles on top. Top with some leftover marinara sauce. Cover baking dish with aluminum foil.
Bake in preheated oven for 30-40 minutes. Uncover, and top with remaining cheeze shreds. Bake for an additional 10 minutes until cheeze shreds brown on top. Remove from oven, and let stand 10 to 15 minutes before serving.
