Cauliflower Mac & Cheese (GF & V)

Oh the joys of being able to have macaroni and cheese again. I cannot explain to you how much this recipe saved my life. Whoever discovered that cashews, eggplant, cauliflower, and nutritional yeast tastes like cheese is my hero.

If you are wondering whether "normal" people like this: Yes, my boyfriend liked this recipe and he has no known allergies. 

Its funny how people forget that people with food allergies have normal taste buds just like everyone else. It's actually not funny at all. It gets really old. I've only had allergies for 3 years, so I tasted "normal" things for the first 22 years of my life. 

Let's step away from this little rant before I write 5 paragraphs on it.... This macaroni and cheese actually has vegetables in it, meaning you can eat more of it! Its very thick and creamy. Everything you would want in a mac & cheese. You might want to add more liquid to make the cheese a bit more runny. It might seem like a lot of steps, but its actually quicker than you think.

Vegan Broccoli & Kale "Cheese" Soup

This soup may not sound delicious, but it is. I've already made it twice this year. I think this might be the only dish that I've made twice too, so it's a big deal.

Forget detox diets, this soup is a detox. You get an incredible amount of vegetables in a tiny little bowl. You aren't eating real cheese, so you have nothing to "feel bad" about. My boyfriend made some Broccoli Beer Cheese soup for us the week before, and this actually tasted just like it. I added a bit of gluten free beer to one of my batches because I had it at the house. So feel free to add that as well.

Vegan Broccoli & Kale Soup
Adapted from: Blissful Basil

Ingredients:
4 small heads broccoli, de-stemmed and chopped into 1-inch pieces (you should have approximately 8 cups of florets)
1 large leek, thoroughly cleaned, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced
1 head of lacinato kale, de-stemmed and chopped
2½ tablespoons olive oil
4 cups plain, unsweetened almond milk, divided
¾ cup hemp seeds
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 clove garlic
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon turmeric
1½ – 2 teaspoons large grain sea salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
Optional: dash of cayenne pepper & paprika

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and line a small baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Spread the broccoli florets and leeks over the large baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil.
4. Roast the broccoli and leeks in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until just starting to turn golden and brown.
5. While the broccoli starts to roast, spread the lacinato kale over small baking sheet. Drizzle with ½ tablespoon olive oil and massage oil into kale.
6. Roast the kale in the oven along with the broccoli for 5-7 minutes or until just barely turning golden.
7. While the veggies are roasting, add 3 cups almond milk, hemp seeds, nutritional yeast, garlic, paprika, turmeric, salt, and black pepper to a high-powered blender (I used an immersion blender). Blend for 1-2 minutes or until smooth.
8. Heat a dutch oven or large stock pot over medium-low heat. Add the almond milk soup base to the pot.
9. While the soup base starts to cook, add the broccoli, leeks, kale, and 1 cup almond milk to a very high-powered blender or food processor (again, I used an immersion blender) and process until as smooth as possible. This will take 10 minutes or so — patience is a soup-making virtue!
10. Pour the blended broccoli mixture into the pot and whisk into the almond milk mixture.
11. Add in a pinch of cayenne if desired, and simmer for 15 minutes.
12. You may need to use an immersion blender to get the soup as smooth as desired.
13. Serve and enjoy. (It's great with corn bread!)