Pumpkin pie probably takes part in just about every American household for our upcoming day of Thanksgiving. Next to my grandmother’s apple pie, it has always been one of my favorites. But, in the traditional version of this holiday dessert, pumpkin, a seemingly nutritious food is combined with a good deal of fat and cholesterol with the use of evaporated milk and eggs. By replacing the milk and eggs with silken tofu it’s possible to reduce the overall fat count by 27 grams or a little over 3 grams per serving. Three grams may not seem significant, but during a season where we are surrounded by so many high fat high calorie foods every little bit helps.

For those of you who are beginning to turn away because you can’t imagine eating tofu especially in a dessert, please try it at least once. I have served this pie on several occasions to groups of people who are not the least bit health conscious. This pie has received raves every time, and I guarantee no one had any idea it was made with tofu!

If you do brag about your success in serving a vegan pumpkin pie to unsuspecting guests, just remember it is still a dessert. If you haven’t tried making your pie crust with Spectrum’s non-hydrogenated shortening I highly recommend it. I have had some people provide me with feedback after switching to Spectrum, and I would love to hear yours as well.

Vegan Pumpkin Pie

• 1 - 9″ pie crust, blind baked and cooled
• 1 - 15 oz. can pure pumpkin puree
• 1 - 12.3 oz package extra firm silken tofu (I prefer Mori-Nu brand)
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 2 t. cornstarch
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 t. ground ginger
• 1/4 t. ground cloves
• 1/8 t. ground nutmeg (preferably freshly ground)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Combine all pie filling ingredients in a food processor or blender and process until smooth. Pour into prepared pie shell.

Bake at 425 degrees F for 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F and bake an additional 40-50 minutes or until the pumpkin custard is set.

Remove from oven and allow to cool before serving. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Note: If your crust begins to get overly brown, cover outer edge with foil or use a pie crust shield which can be purchased in most grocery and hardware stores.

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In the warmer months of the year my favorite dinner to fall back on when I’m short on time is hummus with all the accoutrements - toasted flat bread, olives, artichoke hearts, veggie sticks, etc. It’s so satisfying, light, healthy and easy. As the end of summer draws near and eggplant is in steady supply I begin to shift my hummus meals to baba ghanouj meals. The wonderfully earthy flavors of grilled or roasted eggplant combine with tahini and lemon juice to perfectly bridge the gap from warm days to cool nights.

My method includes smoking the eggplant, but you can easily grill or roast the eggplant instead. I personally love the flavor imparted by a nice slow smoke over hot coals. If you want to smoke the eggplant over a gas grill, you can place soaked wood chips in an aluminum foil packet. Poke some holes in the packet and place it over the lava rocks, stone or ceramic briquettes in your grill.

Baba Ghanouj

• mesquite chips, soaked 1 hour
• 6 small eggplant
• 1 large clove garlic
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1/4 c. tahihi
• water, as needed

Prepare the eggplant: If smoking over coals, prepare charcoal. If smoking over a gas grill, heat to medium - medium-high heat. If roasting, heat oven to 350 degrees F. If smoking, place soaked mesquite chips over heat source just prior to placing eggplant on grill. Slice eggplant in half lengthwise and place on prepared grill or in pre-heated oven and cook for approximately 30-40 minutes or until the eggplant is completely tender. At this point, you can continue with the recipe or store cooked eggplant and resume the next day.

Prepare the dip: Place the garlic in the dry clean bowl of a food processor and mince. Scoop eggplant from the skin and add to food processor. Add lemon juice and tahini. Process until smooth. If the mixture is too thick add a bit of water to achieve desired thickness. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt if necessary.

Serve room temperature with toasted pita, olives and veggie sticks. The day I made this baba, I had purchased some baby bell peppers at the farmers’ market and decided to turn them into an appetizer presentation.

Yield: about 2 cups of dip

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Last weekend, Jamie of Wayward Seed Farm generously introduced me to ground cherries. She let me taste one right there at their North Market stand while I was picking up my weekly box of produce. I was so intrigued, I just had to take some home. After using the fruit to make a sauce I decided I needed more to tweak the recipe and share it with all of you.

Ground cherries are relatives of tomatillos and are a good source of potassium. Upon first taste it reminded me of a sweet almost pineapple flavored tomato.

This sauce would be good on any mild fish, chicken, pork or duck. For non meat eaters it can be a nice sauce for a mildly seasoned seitan or a simple seared tofu.

Here, I served the sauce as an accompaniment to seared sea scallops garnished with Cyprus black lava sea salt.

Ground Cherry Sauce

• 2 pints ground cherries
• 6 T. white wine
• 3 T. sugar
• 4 t. szechuan peppercorns*
• 1 cinnamon stick
• pinch salt**

Remove husks from ground cherries and rinse. Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil then reduce to a simmer, cover and cook covered about 3 minutes or until fruit is soft. Crush the fruit with the back of a wooden spoon and bring temperature up to medium to medium high. You want the mixture to be at a vigorous simmer. Cook about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until the sauce thickens a bit. I like the consistency of a thin syrup, but cook longer if you’d like it to be more of a glaze. When the sauce is sufficiently thick, pass it through a fine mesh sieve to separate the skins and peppercorns from the sauce. Serve as desired.

Yield: about 1/2 cup

Notes:

*Szechaun peppercorns are available at Penzey’s Spices. Penzey’s sells by mail order and at their retail outlets across the country.

**Use salt very sparingly in this recipe. Just the slightest bit too much can easily throw the slightly sweet, tangy, peppery flavors off balance even before it begins to taste too salty.

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Upon opening my weekly produce box this past Saturday I was very excited to see our first leeks of the season. We’ve been getting potatoes for a few weeks now so my first thought was to make vichyssoise, a simple leek and potato soup (usually with a heavy dose of cream added). I have to admit, it’s been awhile since I last made vichyssoise. It is a very rich soup and we don’t get into eating a whole lot of heavy cream in our household. I wasn’t sure how satisfying it would be if I left out that cream, but in an effort to lighten things up, I gave it a go. I must tell you, we did not miss the heavy cream one bit. As easy as it is to whip up a batch of this I will not let so much time pass before making it again.

As for the nutritional value of the two main ingredients of vichyssoise, I give them both a thumbs up.

Leeks are a good source of manganese and have many of the same health benefits associated with garlic and onions.

Potatoes have often been vilified and eschewed by many people for all kinds of reasons. In the spirit of eating a balanced diet, I think we can make room on the plate for potatoes and recognize the many benefits they do provide. Including the skin, potatoes are a very good source of vitamin C, fiber (almost 12% of the RDA in one medium potato!), vitamin B6, copper and potassium. Research published within the last year indicates potatoes have some health benefits that would give broccoli and brussels sprouts a run for their money.

Leek & Potato Soup

• 4 small leeks, white part only
• 2 T. olive oil
• 4-5 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
• 2 1/2 - 3 quarts chicken or vegetable stock
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• fresh snipped chives, optional garnish
• crispy potato skins, optional garnish (directions below)

Thoroughly clean leeks and slice. Add olive oil to a medium sized pot and heat over medium heat. Add sliced leeks and cook until translucent. Do not allow leeks to brown.

Add diced potatoes and about 2 1/2 quarts of stock to the leeks. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cook until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. (While the soup cooks, prepare the optional potato skin garnish.) When potatoes are tender puree soup in a blender or with an immersion blender. Addas much additional stock as is necessary if the soup is too thick. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve hot or cold garnished with potato skins and fresh snipped chives.

Crispy Potato Skins

Method:  Fill a medium sized bowl with boiling water. Peel scrubbed potatoes letting the peels fall directly into the hot water. (This will remove some of the starch from the potato peelings resulting in a crispy product.) Rinse the peels in cold water and wring out the excess water using a tea towel. Place the peels back into the bowl and toss with a small amount of olive oil and salt. Heat a skillet to medium-high, add the potato skins and cook until crispy stirring often enough to avoid burning.

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When I was growing up, a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast was not exactly something I would get excited about. Somehow, many years later it is something I look forward to especially when I have some beautiful fresh local blueberries. I’m sure most if not all of us have heard how good oatmeal is for the heart and how great blueberries are for our eyes and gastrointestinal health, but these things always bear repeating right?

If you’ve not yet become a fan of oatmeal or have a hard time getting your children to love it, try throwing some sweet fresh blueberries on top and you might change your mind.

Rolled oats are quick and easy to make. Steel cut oats are just as easy, but take about twice as long to cook. When making oatmeal at my house, I don’t follow a “recipe” if you will - just some basic proportions.

• 1 part oats
• 2 parts water