Pumpkin Polenta with Caramelized Peaches and Butternut Squash

 

Hello beautiful people,

Thanksgiving in Canada is just a short week away. I’m already excited for all the delicious food, the family, the ambiance of festivities… If you’re hosting, Thanksgiving can require quite a bit of cooking. I find that a little preparation and cooking a few days ahead goes a long way. It’s your best bet to not stressing out on the day of and to actually enjoy some of the celebrations. I love spending time in the kitchen, but when my entire family is over, I want to spend time with them, not in my kitchen, and enjoy some of the delicious food and great conversations.

So here’s a few tips I’ve gathered over the years of hosting (and this applies to any gathering or party or festivity you are hosting and that is more labour intensive than a potluck – although potlucks can be labour intensive…but that’s for another post!):

  1. Write down you’re entire menu, down to the very last bite of food. A cute little tradition we have in our family is that my dad will have my menu printed out on decorative cards and placed on each person’s plate. It makes for a nice little souvenir of the celebration and serves as a great memory card for me, the day of!
  2. Make sure there’s something for everyone on your menu. If someone you invited has a food allergy, intolerance or is on a special diet, don’t make them feel left out, have something on your menu they can enjoy. For example, in my family, a few people are gluten-free. So I make sure there’s a few dishes for them to enjoy. They are always very thankful for the kind gesture and everyone else get to enjoy the dishes as well…
  3. Also, make sure your menu contains items that can be prepared ahead of time and that freeze well. See item 6.
  4. Once your menu is written down, prepare the non-food related chores like decorating the house and setting the table. You can even go over your music playlist to make sure you have all your favourite tunes are lined up.
  5. As you write down your menu, write your grocery list. You don’t want to waste time going back and forth to the store because you keep forgetting something. Leave only the items that need to be “same day” fresh for last minute purchases like french baguette.
  6. Start cooking the freezable items on your menu, a few of days ahead. I always make a soup on Thanksgiving. Mainly because everyone in my family loves soup but also because it’s such a nice warming way to start a big meal. And it just feels very Fall-ish. And it’s easy to freeze. I also make my dessert a few days ahead like the crust to my pumpkin pie or my carrot cake. All that’s left for me to do on the big day is either fill my crust or ice my cake.
  7. Don’t stress out! Hosting a big gathering can be stressful but remember why you’re hosting and the reason for the celebration. And if everything is not perfect, that’s ok, nothing ever is!

For the longest time, in our family, Thanksgiving has been a brunch celebration. I can’t even remember the last time we had a Thanksgiving dinner, per se. But I’m perfectly fine with that even though it cuts my kitchen time quite a bit, the day of. I love the fact that everyone gathers early in the day so we can enjoy the entire day together.

This creamy Pumpkin Polenta with Caramelized Peaches and Butternut Squash is exactly the type of dish I’ll be making for Thanksgiving. It’s gluten free so it’ll please many members of my family, but it’s also creamy without being heavy and the caramelized peaches and butternut squash give it just the right amount of sweetness and decadence.

Hope you enjoy this dish and let me know some of your tips and tricks for hosting a big event by leaving me a comment!

xx

Pumpkin Polenta with Caramelized Peaches and Butternut Squash
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 4 portions
This creamy polenta will make everyone at the table happy, from the gluten free adepts to the picky toddlers. If you want to make your polenta a little less rich, skip the coconut milk and simply add more water. It won’t change much of the texture but it will save a few calories.
Ingredients
  • 1 Cup peaches, diced
  • 1 Cup butternut squash, diced (I saved time by purchasing pre-cut frozen butternut squash)
  • 1 Tbs coconut sugar
  • 1 Tbs vegan butter
  • 2 1/2 Cups water
  • 2 Cups lite coconut milk
  • 1 Cup medium cornmeal / polenta
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/4 ginger
  • 1/4 all spice
Instructions
  1. In a mixing bowl, add the peaches, butternut squash and coconut sugar.
  2. Stir with a wooden spoon to coat evenly. Set aside.
  3. In a saucepan, add water, coconut milk and spices and set over high heat.
  4. Sprinkle the cornmeal and whisk at the same time. This will prevent clumping.
  5. When the mixture starts to boil, continue whisking and reduce to medium-low heat.
  6. The polenta will start thickening. Keep stirring frequently to prevent burning at the bottom of the saucepan and the polenta from clumping.
  7. Cook the polenta approximately 30 minutes to get a nice creamy texture.
  8. While the polenta is cooking, add your butter to a saucepan and set on high heat.
  9. Once the butter is melted, add the peaches and butternut squash mixture. Stir then allow the fruity mixture to caramelize, stirring only occasionally but keeping a close eye on it so it doesn’t burn, about 5 minutes.
  10. Once your polenta is nice and creamy, pour into a serving dish and top with the caramelized peaches and butternut squash.

 

 

 

 

 

Pumpkin brownies

 

Hello beautiful people,

Let’s talk about compassion… Compassion is a word you hear a lot of in the vegan community.  The entire premise of the vegan lifestyle is based on compassion for animals. To not cause additional suffering to helpless creatures, to defend the defenceless and to speak up for those who have no voice. Mercy, empathy, solicitude.

In Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra (text outlining the principles of yoga written about two centuries after Jesus Christ) a similar rule is presented to yoga practitioners. In the second part of the book called yamas, Patanjali presents the ethical principles by which someone should live in order to create a peaceful and fulfilled life. The first yama is ahimsa which stands for non-violence. Non-violence to others, including animals, but also non-violence towards ourself. And this is the type of compassion, or non-violence, I want to talk about with you today.

I’ve been practising yoga for many years and my main reason for adopting a vegan lifestyle is the application of ahimsa, to cause no violence to those around me.

I won’t lie. Its kind of a big deal for me to say that I’m a vegan and that I don’t cause additional, unnecessary harm to animals. But that’s just the thing, my application of the rule of ahimsa has always been limited to animals. Up until recently, I never really asked myself if I had compassion for me. And when I asked myself that question, I didn’t like the answer.

No, I can’t say I have true and honest compassion for myself. I’ll actually take it a step further and say that I actually have selective compassion. I choose who I have compassion for. Animals: absolutely. Children: always. Other adults: hmmmm, it depends. Me: sometimes.

And it was only when I stopped to ask myself that question, that I realized my actual lack of compassion. And this is where these brownies come in. I’ve been working on these brownies for quite some time. I never seemed to get the recipe quite right. They were either too dense or too sweet. Too fudgey or too crumbly. I would get mad and frustrated at myself for not being able to solve the perfect pumpkin brownie enigma. I had no compassion for myself. I didn’t take into consideration that maybe I had so much on my plate that I couldn’t focus on crating a stellar recipe or that I might be tired after taking care of a baby all day (and often all night – our son, at 13 months, just started sleeping his full nights!). All I saw was my failure to succeed at something so simple as… a brownie.

You might think this is a silly example and that there are far more important things in life to accomplish then nailing a brownie recipe. And you are absolutely right! But if I can’t show myself a little compassion for something as silly as a brownie recipe, where else am I not showing up for myself and who else am I not showing up for?

The thing with compassion is that if you don’t start by having some for yourself, it is very hard to give it to others. Like love. If you don’t truly love yourself, how can you love someone else. Ever try pouring a glass of water for someone out of an empty jug? Not much will happen there. Same thing with love. Same thing with compassion.

So I took a good look at how I treat myself on a daily basis. There is a lot of negative self talk here folks. See, I’m a perfectionist. And I always believed that a little negative self talk produces good results or at least achieves goals. Funny thing is, I actually know just how false that is! I know it’s false! I just hadn’t realized to what extent I was doing it… the crazy things we do!

I also realized how hard I am on others. It all comes back to the jug people: empty jug can’t fill up someone else’s glass!

So I took the resolution (why wait for January 1st!) that I was going to implement more compassion for myself, and for others, on a daily basis. And let me tell you, just by taking that decision, I not only feel so much better but I nailed this brownie recipe! You might think linking the two: compassion and brownies, is far fetched but let me tell you, it really isn’t…

I’ll detail the steps I took to implement more compassion into my life in my next blog post but for now, I give you, my pumpkin brownies.

I made these gluten free so I could share them with friends and family, a lot of which are either celiac or on a wheat elimination protocol to better their health.

Leave a comment and let me know if you’ve enjoyed these.

xx

Pumpkin brownies
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 12 portions
I’m a fan of cakey brownies and not really the fudgey kind so these brownies are chocolatey and just cakey enough. I had run out of vegan chocolate chips when I made these so I used a bar of semi-sweet vegan chocolate and made little shavings from a 2 ounce square.
Ingredients
  • 1 Cup gluten-free flower (I used Bob’s Red Mill GF Baking flour and it worked amazing)
  • 1/2 coconut sugar
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 3/4 Cup pumpkin puree
  • 1/4 Cup maple syrup
  • 1/4 Cup unsweetened almond milk (or any other milk alternative you enjoy)
  • 2 Tbs. coconut oil, melted + extra for greasing the pan
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/2 Cup vegan semi-sweet chocolate chips (see Recipe summary for alternative)
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven at 350 degrees.
  2. Coat an 8X8 inch square pan with some extra coconut oil or use parchment paper.
  3. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and nutmeg. Stir with a whisk to combine.
  4. In another mixing bowl, add the pumpkin puree, maple syrup, milk, melted coconut oil and vanilla extract. Stir to make sure everything is well combined.
  5. Add the pumpkin mixture to the flour mixture. Mix with a wooden spoon.
  6. You may notice that the mixture is dry. Just keep stirring gently, it’ll all eventually combine well.
  7. Add the chocolate chips and mix only to combine. You don’t want to over stir.
  8. Pour the brownie mixture in the pan and cook for 25 minutes.
  9. Remove from oven and allow to cool at least 15 minutes before serving.

 

 

Quick & Easy hearty pumpkin soup

 

 

Hello beautiful people,

I’m just gonna come out and say it: I love Fall! I love everything about Fall. From the crisp cool air in the morning, the colourful leafs, the soft and warm sweaters… I love it all. But what I especially love, is the food. Fall recipes tend to be heartier, filled with root vegetables that are cooked slowly to release their best flavour and fruits that taste like the last few rays of sunshine and cool breeze. I’m getting romantic on you guys here! But honestly, there is nothing I love more then sitting down at the dinner table to a warm bowl of stewed vegetables blended with different spices and finish off with a luxurious apple crumble topped with coconut ice cream. Now you tell me, doesn’t that sound divinely good?

I find root vegetable and Fall fruits also lend themselves so perfectly well to different herbs spices. Herbs and spices for me, are the essence of cooking. They are actually the heart and soul of my cooking. When people see a fruit or a vegetable they like, they usually think of the dish they’ll prepare with it. Like apples for example. When seeing an apple, you’ll think, apple pie, sautéed apples and arugula salad or bean stew with apples. I will think cinnamon and nutmeg that would go well in an apple pie, rosemary and thyme that would compliment the warm apples and arugula, sage and caraway seeds to elevate a bean stew with apples. I see the produce and I let my love of herbs and spices dictate what recipe I’m going to create.

Herbs and spices are also nutrition power houses.They contain an amazing amount of phytonutrients that our bodies need to thrive. Phytonutrients  are compounds found in plants that protect the plant from environmental threats and keep it healthy. When you eat plants, including herbs and spices, those phytonutrients fight to keep you healthy. Although not essential to your health, many believe herbs and spices, due to their phytonutrient density, can cure many diseases that still plague our country today.  In many cultures, herbs and spices are still used to this day as medicine to cure ailments ranging from headaches and soar throats to labor pain and inflammatory diseases. If science is your thing and you wanna read more about the power of herbs and spices, you can start by the following articles here and here.

Why am I telling you all this? Because if you follow my blog, you’ll notice that I use a lot of spices, many of which have incredible benefits to your health, including the ones in this soup. Especially the ones in this soup as 3 of them are in the top 10 healthiest and most beneficial herbs and spices. And those 3 are turmeric, fenugreek seeds and ginger. Here is a little explanation as to why each of these spices are beneficial for you:

Turmeric: according to Joe Leech, MS, over at Healthline, turmeric contains curcumin which is a remarkably  powerful antioxidant, that helps to fight oxidative damage and boosts the body’s own antioxidant enzymes. Curcumin is also strongly anti-inflammatory, to the point where it matches the effectiveness of some anti-inflammatory drugs.

Fenugreek: according to Dr. Axe, fenugreek can help with numerous digestive problems and cholesterol levels. It can also improve you athletic performance, increase milk flow in breastfeeding moms, increase libido in men, combat diabetes and reduce inflammation in the body due to fenugreek’s antimicrobial, antioxidant, antidiabetic and antitumorigenic properties.

Ginger: according to the people over at The World’s Healthiest Foods, ginger has a long tradition of being very effective in alleviating symptoms of gastrointestinal distress. Modern scientific research has revealed that ginger possesses numerous therapeutic properties including antioxidant effects, an ability to inhibit the formation of inflammatory compounds, and direct anti-inflammatory effects.

So not only is this soup very healthy for you, it’s also super quick and easy to put together. I created this with the busy moms and dads in mind. Those who, just like my husband and I, work hard all day but still want to feed their family nutritious and delicious foods. This soup is hearty enough on it’s own to make a meal but is so good when served with some warm bread to dunk it in.

I hope you enjoy this soup and let me know what you served it with!

xx

Quick & Easy hearty pumpkin soup
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 4-6 portions
This soup makes for a hearty dinner of 4 portions or 6 smaller portions. You can serve it with some wholegrain bread and a dollop of vegan sour cream. You can also jazz it up a bit with some chopped cilantro or green onions as garnish. I made this soup with organic canned ingredients as I wanted to make it a quick and easy recipe that would take no time at all to put together. However, if you do have the time, you can totally soak and cook the small red kidney beans instead of the canned variety and use freshly cooked and puréed pumpkin. For the coconut milk, use the one in a can, not in a milk carton.
Ingredients
  • 1/2 onion, diced
  • 1 large red bell pepper, largely diced
  • 1 tsp palm oil
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tsp fenugreek seeds
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg, (freshly ground if possible)
  • 2 Cups pumpkin puree
  • 2 Cups coconut milk (if you want a rich creamy taste, use full fat. If you want less calories, use lite)
  • 1 1/2 Cup small red kidney beans, canned
  • 1 Cup vegetable broth (you can use 1 cup of water with 1 cube of vegetable broth)
  • Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. In a pan, on medium high heat, melt the palm oil.
  2. Add the onions and red bell peppers. Cook for 3 mins or until translucent.
  3. Add all the spices and coat the onion mixture. Cook for another 2 minutes. Stir frequently to prevent the spices from burning.
  4. Remove the pan from heat.
  5. In a blender or food processor, add all the ingredients.
  6. Blend until the soup has a creamy texture. Our family likes texture in soups so I blend it for 3 minutes and thats enough for us.
  7. Return the soup to a pot to warm up.
  8. Enjoy!