Vegan pierogi casserole

Hey-hey-hey, my lovelies! I have a very special treat for you today. I've been dreaming of making this vegan pierogi casserole for a long time now. Pierogi are my love's number one food (along with cookies), so figuring out different versions how to eat them, is very much needed. His favorite way is to just pan-fry them, but he really loved this casserole too! 

I also devoured it, because it was delicious, packed with veggies and covered with a creamy cashew sauce. You can definitely use sunflower seeds to make the sauce, too. I'll be honest - the cashew sauce is better, but if you have a nut allergy or the cashews are too expensive, then you still can make this recipe. I used store-bought potato pierogi. They are also selling mushroom gyozas here, so they would fit too. Basically every filled vegan dumpling could go in here. If you have more time, I strongly recommend to try to make your own dumplings. Use this pot stickers recipe or this super simple basic pierogi recipe.

Vegan salmon soup

Bonjour from Monaco! We've been here for a few days now and I must say the weather is pretty crazy here. One night we had a rain storm with thunder and epic wind. The yachts were bouncing up and down in the port and everything seemed so different. I've been here for a few times and I've never seen the rain before. But against all odds, we decided to give in to our burger craving. I heard that the nearby sports bar Stars 'N' Bars had a vegan menu and we had to give it a taste. When we sat down on the second floor, they gave us modern digital tablet menus and we started browsing.

Creamy and tangy vegan Caesar salad (GF)

This salad made its debut at one of my private cooking workshops. It's about time to share it with you! I had to experiment with the dressing for quite a few times, until I got it just right. Now I'm really happy with the taste and texture. It's super creamy, tangy and rich. The dressing is just perfect poured on a juicy romaine lettuce and breaded chickpeas. These wonderful filling chickpeas are a great gluten free substitute for regular bread croutons. 

Easy and creamy vegan potato casserole

I've been making this creamy potato casserole for several times now. It's so weird that the last time I ate a classic potato casserole like this, was in my childhood. My grandma really knew how to make the best potato dish! The secret is to cut the potatoes as thinly as you can. That way this fabulous casserole will melt in your mouth. It's extra amazing during the winter season. 

Vegan Bolognese with almonds

Red foods are the best! I could never say no to this big bowl of luscious pasta. This time I made the vegan Bolognese sauce with almonds. I just crushed the almonds and mixed them into a juicy and garlicky tomato sauce. It came out so delicious! Crushed almonds make the tomato sauce pleasantly mild and filling. They also give a nice and slightly grainy texture. I mixed in some gluten-free tagliatelle and a fabulous dinner was born! The tagliatelle, by the way, was almost identical to a regular wheat pasta. I will tell you more in a bit!

Versatile vegan cooking cream

If you are familiar with my recipes, I'm sure you know my love for creamy dishes. I often have a couple of packs of vegan cooking cream at home. Usually it's made of soy or oats. But since I live in the country side, it's not always available for me. And after reading your many comments, I know it's not that available for you too. So I decided it was about time to write down a simple homemade vegan cream recipe. 

You only need some cashews or sunflower seeds and some water. You can use this delightfully silky and healthy cream where you would normally use regular light or heavy cream. So different delicious pastas and curries are now even easier to make. I know that some of my dear readers from the US have been craving to make this luscious lemony mushroom pasta, but only proper vegan cream was missing. There you go! No need to crave anymore, just roll up your sleeves and cook away. If you are allergic to nuts or just want a cheaper option, then sunflower seeds are the answer. But I must say that cream made with cashews is a bit better and smoother.

Vegan Chinese eggplant with spicy garlic sauce

I have this favorite Asian restaurant in Tartu, one of my favorite cities (and I'm not even a fan of the cities). But Tartu is great and I have many great memories there. Since my grandparents lived near Tartu, me and my family often visited them and we also stopped in the city to grab some delicious stuff to bring with us. And when I was a teenager, Tartu was my number one city to hang with the metal music scene and to go to concerts. Right now, I mostly visit my friends there or eat some delicious food. Until now, there wasn't many great places for vegans. But it has changed. There's Aparaat, my huge favorite and there's Hot Pot, that Asian restaurant I mentioned.

I usually always eat the same stuff at Hot Pot, but one time I was a rebel and ordered something I haven't tasted yet. It was the Hong Kong eggplant. And it was delicious! I was so impressed that I couldn't wait to try to make something similar at home. I fell in love with my version and it turned out really amazing. That's why I am so excited to share this recipe with you. If you are craving some really spicy and satisfying Chinese food with a rich taste, this is the real deal. The best part - it is not complicated at all. Happy cooking and let me know how you liked it! 

Vegan gluten free cake with coconut whip, baked apples and walnuts

The baked apples alone...they are the tastiest baked apples I've ever eaten! But when sugary and cinnamony apples are mixed into creamy coconut whip and topped with walnuts? And it's all on a gluten free cake that doesn't need any special and expensive ingredients? I don't know about you, but it sounds pretty fabulous. And it is!

This cake is so decadent, creamy and fruity but yet so easy to make. It just needs some time to set in the fridge, so it's best to make it an evening before. Just imagine a Sunday brunch with this luscious dessert. Or any breakfast, lunch or dinner of the week. It will be perfect all year round. I also think it would be great as an Easter dessert. Happy baking and let me know how you liked it!

Easy spaghetti marinara with cashew mozzarella

When me and my sisters were kids, we sure loved our spaghetti. Ketchup, of course, was our number one choice of sauce. We couldn't get enough of it. What kid doesn't love pasta with some tomato-ish stuff? I have also written about my big love for my grandma's macaroni, which were made with pan-fried onions and ketchup. I know, Italians would roll their eyes at the ketchup part, but we loved it.

But these days, when I'm making spaghetti, I serve it with this super easy homemade marinara sauce. It's sweet and sour and has a tiny bit of heat from the chili flakes. And of course, it contains lots of fresh garlic, dried herbs and pan-fried golden brown onions. To make it extra luscious, I added some cashew mozzarella. I adapted the recipe from the Vedged Out blog. I use this genius nut cheese almost everywhere. Pizzas, lasagnas, bruschettas, nachos and what not! The tapioca starch is the key here to make this cheese stretchy. I used tapioca granules, since the flour didn't work for me. I don't know why, but the granules made the cheese stretchy, while the flour just made it thick. Maybe you have different results!

Anyway, if you are searching for a quick and delicious family-pleasing pasta dinner, search no further. This recipe is definitely a crowd-pleaser and it's ready in 20 minutes!

Salad a day a.k.a the big raw salad special

I made myself a goal - each day I will prepare myself a bowl of raw salad as an addition to my regular meals. There is never too much fresh stuff and the extra vitamins come in handy, especially in the Fall and Winter season. Store-bought salads are mostly very dull and pretty expensive. I wanted my salad ingredients to be rather cheap and widely available. Then I have absolutely no excuses to not make a salad every day. Are you in for the challenge? I have made it super easy for you by creating five very simple salad recipes. All these recipes serve about 3-4 people.