Vegan Mac & Cheese

Vegan Mac & Cheese

Check out this creamy, cheesy Mac recipe. This recipe can be nut free if you decide to use a vegan cheese without nuts. Many vegan Mac & cheese recipes call for nutritional yeast, potatoes (for cream) and carrots (for color). This is simple and utilizes locally made vegan cheese!

This recipe has been adapted from the Crowded Kitchen recipe.

Ingredients

• Macaroni pasta: gluten free or regular macaroni both work fine.

• Vegan Butter

• Gluten free all purpose flour: or regular all purpose flour if you're not gluten free.

• Vegan milk: Opt for plain, unsweetened plant-based milk. (Be sure to check the ingredient label as some unsweetened nut milks still contain vanilla flavoring!) We prefer oat milk in this recipe for its neutral flavor.

• Salt

• Pepper (optional)

• Vegan cheese: we use shredded vegan cheddar cheese in this recipe. You can use a mix of cheddar and mozzarella, or one or the other. We've tried this recipe with a few different store-bought options and they've all worked well!

  • A few of our favorite brands for shredded vegan cheese that actually melts: VioLife, Daiya, and Follow Your Heart. *Note: some vegan cheeses contain nuts so be sure to read the label if you have an allergy.

  • You can use local brands such as cashew-based Cultured Kindness, which offers otions like Gouda or Havarti. These come in soft rounds, so its best to cut them into smaller pieces and mix in slowly.

Instructions

1. Get your macaroni cooking in salted water. We use 1 teaspoon of salt for every 4 cups of water. Cook until al dente.

2. Meanwhile, start the cheese sauce by melting the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Once it's melted, add in the gluten free flour and whisk well until it forms a smooth paste.

3. Slowly pour in the milk, whisking while you add it, until no lumps remain. Let simmer for a few minutes to thicken, stirring occasionally so the bottom doesn't burn.

4. Whisk in the salt, pepper and vegan cheese. Vegan cheese takes a bit longer to melt and fully incorporate, so be patient and keep stirring! After a few minutes of whisking over medium-low heat, you'll have a super smooth, creamy, velvety cheese sauce.

5. Add in the cooked macaroni and stir well until fully coated.

Fall Harvest Salad

Fall Squash & Arugula Salad

By Mars Rubietta, Produce Keeper

This recipe was created to honour the wonderful produce we have in season in the fall, as well as be easy and adjustable to your needs. The following makes enough for two people to have a pretty hardy side salad. If you're making this as the main for one, I would make the entire recipe and consider adding lentils for extra protein.

If you find yourself thinking, "I don't have delicata, but I have butternut squash.." or, "the only nuts I have are everything seasoned from Trader Joe's...) go for it! Let your intuition guide you in this journey. These are guidelines that work well, and will make a delicious salad whether you follow them to a T or not.

Ingredients

• Arrugula

• 1/2 cup raw pecans or walnuts

• 3/4 pound delicata squash

• 2 tsp olive oil

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 1/4 tsp ground pepper

• 1/2 tsp dried thyme

• 1/2 pear (I used starkrimson)

• 1/4 cup crumbly cheese (I used violife feta)

  
  

  Dressing

  • 3 Tbs olive oil

  • 1 Tbs lemon juice

  • 1 clove garlic, minced

  • 1/2 tsp honey

  • 1/2 tsp dijon mustard

  • 1/4 tsp salt

  • 1/8 tsp ground pepper

Method

1.  Preheat oven to 350℉. Spread pecans on a sheet pan, and toast for 5-7 minutes, checking and stirring every two minutes. They will take on a slightly golden color and smell fragrant. Take them out, then raise oven temperature to 425℉. If your nuts are already roasted, skip that step.

2.  Prepare the squash: cut in half lengthwise & scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Cut the halves into half-moon 1/2 inch slices. Add to a medium bowl, and toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, and thyme. 

3. Arrange onto sheet pan lined with parchment paper so that the pieces are not touching. Roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes, flipping halfway through with the fork. 

4.  While the squash is roasting, prepare the dressing by combining all ingredients in a jar and shaking vigorously, or in a small bowl whisking until well combined. Taste and adjust with salt or lemon juice to your liking. Slice the pear and crumble your cheese.

5.  Plate all your ingredients to your heart's desire. Optionally, enjoy while contemplating our gratitude for the warm weather over the summer; this transitional period; all the people that worked very hard to get this food to your plate; and/or how you felt while making this, and how you feel eating it.

Vegan Tempeh & Avocado Ruebens

Vegan Tempeh & Avocado Ruebens

Thanks to Dani Adelman, Member-Owner, for sharing this recipe.

Because we published Dani’s recipe, Dani will receive a $25 gift card to the Co-op. You can win a gift card by sharing your recipe, too. If we publish it, we will give you a gift card! Submit recipes to marketing@peoples.coop

This recipe is mostly my husband's creation, with inspiration from others. It's evolved quite a bit over the years. We love to pair this with a fresh butter lettuce salad with oil, balsamic and vegan brazil nut parmesan. It's also great with a side of roasted potatoes. I used quite a few People's Co-op ingredients, including most of the bulk spices and others.

Ingredients

Serves: 4

Sandwiches and fixin’s

8 slices of Ezekiel bread (or your favorite)

Sauerkraut (preferably homemade!)

Pickled onions (preferably homemade!)

Vegan butter 

Tempeh 

8 oz tempeh (preferably in bulk from People’s Co-op!)

1/2 cup veggie broth  

1/2 tsp garlic powder or 1 garlic clove, grated  

1 tsp liquid smoke

1 tsp smoked paprika 

1 tsp onion powder 

1 tsp caraway seeds (optional)

2 tsp tamari, shoyu or soy sauce 

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar 

1 Tbsp vegan worcestershire 

Sauce

3/4 tsp coriander 

1 1/4 tsp hot sauce and/or 1/2-1 tsp apple cider vinegar or lemon

3 Tbsp Ketchup

3 Tbsp Vegenaise 

Avocado Spread 

1 large avocado 

1/2 tsp garlic salt (use less to start and adjust to your taste)

1-2 Tbsp Nutritional yeast (use less to start and adjust to your taste)

Squeeze of lemon 

Directions

Mix all tempeh ingredients except the tempeh in a liquid measuring cup or bowl. 

Cut the tempeh in half vertically so you have 2 rectangular pieces. Then cut the rectangular pieces in half through the middle so you end up with 4 thinner pieces. Cut remaining pieces into whatever shapes you’d like (triangles or squares) — you should have about 8 total pieces. 

Put the tempeh pieces into a shallow container and add the marinade. Make sure all the tempeh gets coated. Let it sit for 30 min. 

In the meantime, mix all sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. Set aside in the fridge. 

Then, make your avocado spread. Mash avocado in a bowl. Add garlic salt, nutritional yeast and lemon and mix it up. Set aside in the fridge. 

When the tempeh is ready, heat a large pan on medium heat. Add 1 Tbsp oil. Once hot, add the tempeh (reserve the marinade for later!) and cook until browning — about 3-5 min. Flip and cook the same on the other side. Add more oil if necessary. Toward the end of the cooking, add the reserved marinade and cook until it’s all been absorbed. 

Remove tempeh from pan and set on a paper towel lined plate. Wipe out your pan as best you can.

Now it’s time to assemble the Reubens! 

Lightly butter both sides of all 8 slices of bread. Place 4 slices on the skillet and cook for 3-4 minutes, until browned. Flip and add 1/2 of your sauce to the cooked side of all 4 slices. Add sauerkraut and pickled onions to two of the slices and top with two pieces of tempeh each. Add 1/2 of the avocado spread to the other two slices of bread and let it finish browning. 

Flip the avocado slices onto the tempeh/sauerkraut slices to form your sandwiches and cook another couple minutes on each side until everything is nice and brown. Really press it down to get it cooking and held together.

Repeat this process if making 4 sandwiches.

Cut sandwiches in half and enjoy!

No-Bake Chocolate Avocado Fudge

No-Bake Chocolate Avocado Fudge

Thanks to Alice Ma, Member-Owner, for sharing this recipe.

Because we published Alice’s recipe, Alice will receive a $25 gift card to the Co-op. You can win a gift card by sharing your recipe, too. If we publish it, we will give you a gift card! Submit recipes to marketing@peoples.coop

I created this recipe when I first started moving towards a vegan lifestyle in 2015. I wasn't familiar with how vegan desserts were made, and this was a super easy first try! This recipe holds an extra place in my heart because it helped me make a lot of friends when I first moved to Moscow, Idaho. I started a plant-based, budget-friendly cooking class series with the Moscow Food Co-op and this was part of the dessert class.It was by far, the most impressive recipe of the whole class series and having people love my food and give me such great feedback on a class I totally made up made me feel like such a part of the community that was new and foreign to me. I taught that same class for three years until the pandemic put a stop to it, but I also slowly became more involved with the Moscow Food Co-op through this class and ended up being President of the Board of Directors. In a way, this recipe launched my friendships and love for my Co-op. Now, eight years later, I have uprooted my life again to move to Portland. I am glad to see we have more than one Co-op here and love the atmosphere of People's.

Recipe

Serves 20-25

This recipe is no-bake, so it's great for hot weather when you want sweets but don't want to turn on the oven!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup nut or seed butter, melted slightly to make blending easier
• 1/2 cup mashed avocado (1/2 of a large avocado or one whole small one)
• 1 cup cocoa or carob powder
• 1/2 cup maple syrup, agave, or brown rice syrup
• 2 tsp vanilla or peppermint extract
• Optional: 3/4 cup chopped nuts

Directions:

Combine all ingredients except nuts in a mixing bowl or food processor and mix
until smooth. Fold in chopped nuts. Spread mixture evenly in a baking dish or pan lined with
parchment paper. Freeze for approximately one hour, or until firm. Slice into 20-25 squares.

Corn Summer Salad

Corn Summer Salad

Thanks to Selene Jones, Member-Owner, for sharing this recipe.

Because we published Selene’s recipe, selene will receive a $25 gift card to the Co-op. You can win a gift card by sharing your recipe, too. If we publish it, we will give you a gift card! submit recipes to marketing@peoples.coop

Growing up, summer was always my favorite time of year. Summer meant no school, days spent in the public pool, sleepaway camp, and all my favorite fruits and veggies. I still love summer, except work doesn’t stop, I haven’t found an adult sleepaway camp, and I can’t spend every second at the pool. One thing that hasn’t changed is my excitement for all my favorite seasonal fruits and veggies finally being available at the farmers’ markets. 

Fresh corn is one of my absolute favorite summer foods. Whether grilled, steamed, or raw, I can’t get enough corn in the summer. When I was in high school, my mom’s best friend brought over this corn summer salad for one of our summer BBQs, and my mind was blown. It had fresh corn, tomatoes, another one of my favorite fruits, basil, and a drizzle of olive oil. It was the perfect side dish for any summer meal. My mom’s friend gave us the recipe, and together, my mom and I made it almost every week all summer. 

When I think about corn salad, I think about community and how a simple dish can unite us. Last year I moved to a small house in South Tabor, to a quiet neighborhood where I didn’t know any of my neighbors. Slowly over the last couple of months, as the days got longer and hotter, I started to meet and connect with the little community on my block. Last weekend we had a block party, and I knew exactly what I wanted to bring. The corn salad was a hit and reminded me how food can play an essential part in bringing us together. 

There have been some tweaks to the recipe over the years, but the heart of it has stayed the same; corn and tomatoes with some olive oil and basil! I hope you share and enjoy this dish with your family and friends. It is perfect as a side for those summer potlucks and BBQs. Mix it with fresh spring mix to make it a more traditional salad. Or grill the corn before taking it off the cob to give it a smoky flavor. You can do so much with this recipe, so make it your own. 

Ingredients:

• 4 Large ears of fresh corn (shucked and sliced off the cob) 

• 1 basket of cherry tomatoes (halved)  

• 1 shallot (diced) (can substitute ½  red onion)

• 8-10 leaves of basil (roughly chopped) 

• 2 tablespoons olive oil 

• ½ teaspoon of salt 

• 1 lime or ½ lemon juice 

• Fresh pepper to taste 

• (Optional) Fresh mozzarella balls cut into bite-sized pieces 

• (Optional) One whole avocado (cut into small cubes) 

Recipe:

Shuck the corn and cut the corn off the cob into a bowl. Add the halved cherry tomatoes, diced shallot, roughly chopped basil leaves, olive oil, lime juice, salt, and pepper. Give everything a good mix. If you are adding mozzarella or avocado, throw those in the bowl and mix again. Serve and enjoy!

Romano Bean Salad

Romano Bean Salad

adapted from Cooking Light

Ingredients

2 quarts water

2/3 lb Romano beans, trimmed & cut into 1/2-inch pieces

2 tsp kosher salt

1 garlic clove

2.5 Tbsp chopped, fresh flat-leaf parsley

4 tsp capers

2 tsp olive oil

3/4 tsp lemon zest

1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Cayenne (optional)

Instructions

Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add beans, 2 teaspoons of salt, and garlic: cook for 8 minutes or until tender.

Drain and plunge beans into ice water. Drain again.

Place beans in a medium bowl. Finely chop garlic. Add garlic, parsley, and all remaining ingredients to the beans and combine. Season with salt to taste, and a light dust of cayenne if you want to add a little kick.

Blueberry Shrub & Drinking Vinegar

Blueberry Shrub

by Eleanor Escafi, Board President

Ingredients:

12 ounces organic blueberries

1-1.5 cups organic white sugar

1 cup vinegar (I like apple cider vinegar but you can use red wine vinegar, whine wine vinegar, white balsamic vinegar, or unseasoned rice vinegar)

Instructions:

1. Gently mash berries into a medium bowl with a fork.

2. Transfer to a 1-quart glass jar with a lid, add sugar, and stir to combine. 

3. Seal jar and let fruit mixture sit at room temperature for one day. Shake every so often. 

4. Stain through a sieve or colander and eat or discard fruit pulp (I love it over vanilla ice cream)

5. Add vinegar to the blueberry syrup and stir to combine. Taste, and add more vinegar or sugar to preference. 

6. Add to a clean jar, and cover with a lid. Allow flavors to meld over one week. 

7. Serve 2 tablespoons over ice and top with club soda! 

Grandma Lois’s Very Best Vegan Blueberry Muffins

Thanks to Paul Cole, Member-Owner, for sharing this recipe.

Because we published Paul’s recipe, Paul will receive a $25 gift card to the Co-op. You can win a gift card by sharing your recipe, too. If we publish it, we will give you a gift card! submit recipes to marketing@peoples.coop

Grandma Lois’s Very Best Vegan Blueberry Muffins

Note from Paul:

This recipe never fails to impress. It tastes like yummy angel food cake!

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1.5 teaspoons baking soda

0.5 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon lemon zest.75 cups white sugar

1 cup non-dairy milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1.5 cups fresh blueberries

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400F.

2. Grease a muffin tin.

3. Combine flour, baking soda, salt, and zest in a bowl

4. In another bowl, mix the sugar, milk, oil, extract, and vinegar.

5. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and stir until barely mixed — don’t over stir!

6. Fold in the blueberries with a rubber spatula (be gentle so they don’t pop!).

7. Fill the muffin tins a bit more than halfway full with the batter. Sprinkle a few extra blueberries on top if you like.

8. Bake for 15 minutes at 400F, then rotate the tin 180 degrees and lower the temperature to 375F and bake for another 8 minutes — or until a cake tester comes out clean.

9. Let cool on a wire rack, then EAT!

Radish, Pea and Asparagus Salad with Mint & Feta

I love this simple and quick recipe and think of this as my late spring/summer-time Greek salad. chunks of crunchy vegetables, spring onions, fresh herbs and feta, red wine vinegar and olive oil.

Serves 4

Variations:

Mix and match your vegetables

Delicious herbs that you can add to suit your taste are fresh oregano, parsley, tarragon, chervil, chives or any combo.

Substitute 1/3 cup toasted seeds or nuts for the feta.

Ingredients

1 bunch radishes, washed, trimmed and cut into chunks

2-3 Japanese salad turnips (Hakurei turnips), washed, trimmed and cut into chunks

1 spring onion or about 1/4 cup any onion you have, chopped

4-5 asparagus spears, washed and thinly sliced on the diagonal

1 cup snap peas, strings removed and cut into thirds

Handful of mint leaves, chopped (see variations)

A little fresh or dried thyme

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons olive oil

2-3 ounces feta, crumbled (see variations)

 

Directions

Put all the ingredients, except the feta, in a bowl. Toss well, taste and adjust seasoning

with vinegar and/or salt or oil. Gently toss in feta and serve.

Become a scrappy, creative cook who can make something delicious and nutritious with what’s on hand. The Recipe, Tips & Inspiration you Need to Eat Well Every Day!

Get 50% off a Subscription to the Seasonal Recipe Collection

What to do with the vegetables in the fridge? Short on time but still want healthful meals? And how to be well-stocked so that cooking is more fun and frankly, realistic. People’s is partnering with Cook With What You Have, a subscription-based, online seasonal recipe collection created by People's Member-Owner Katherine Deumling. Katherine empowers you to cook freely and build creativity and confidence with every dish. Cook With What You Have is providing a discounted subscription to the Recipe Collection for People’s Members/Owners & Customers for $29/year, or $2.99/month (50% off retail). Use discount code PEOPLES to subscribe at https://www.cookwithwhatyouhave.com/get-started/

Tagged: snacks, simple, Parties, vegetarian

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Spring Quinoa Salad w/ Herbs, Scallions & Lemony Vinaigrette

This is a very adaptable salad (template). Substitute vegetables and herbs as you wish just be sure to chop everything quite small. This is a good dinner salad on a warm night especially if you add cooked beans, cheese and/or toasted seeds or nuts or other proteins.

This makes a lot of salad so feel free halve the recipe. I load mine up with herbs, especially mint, parsley, cilantro, chives and thyme. The more the better!

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 cups quinoa

One bunch radishes, trimmed and chopped

3-4 carrots, scrubbed and thinly sliced or diced

2 cups bok choi stems, cut into small dice

2 cups mizuna or arugula or young mustard greens, fairly finely chopped

4 green onions (scallions) or 1 shallot or 1/2 a small onion, finely diced

1 1/2 cups chopped fresh herbs (parsley, mint, basil, dill, sorrel, cilantro in any combination)

Salt

Dressing

1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard

1 garlic scape or stalk of green garlic or 2 cloves garlic, minced

Grated zest of a lemon

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 cup olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Rinse the quinoa in a fine meshed sieve under cold, running water for a minute. Quinoa has a natural coating (saponin) which is a bit bitter and the rinsing removes it. Put the rinsed quinoa in a pan and add 2 ¼ cups water and ½ teaspoon salt. Bring it to a boil then cover and turn down to a simmer. Cook, for about 15 minutes until the quinoa is tender and all the water has been absorbed. Put in a large serving bowl and let cool while you prepare the vegetables.

In a small bowl whisk mustard, garlic, zest and vinegar until smooth. Slowly add oil while whisking until the mixture is smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. This dressing needs to be salty and tart. The quinoa will absorb a lot. You’ll be surprised how much vinegar and salt you need especially if you don’t serve it right away.

Add the vegetables and herbs to the cooked and cooled quinoa and drizzle on most of the dressing and mix well and taste and adjust with more dressing and/or salt and pepper as needed.

Become a scrappy, creative cook who can make something delicious and nutritious with what’s on hand. The Recipe, Tips & Inspiration you Need to Eat Well Every Day!

Get 50% off a Subscription to the Seasonal Recipe Collection

What to do with the vegetables in the fridge? Short on time but still want healthful meals? And how to be well-stocked so that cooking is more fun and frankly, realistic. People’s is partnering with Cook With What You Have, a subscription-based, online seasonal recipe collection created by People's Member-Owner Katherine Deumling. Katherine empowers you to cook freely and build creativity and confidence with every dish. Cook With What You Have is providing a discounted subscription to the Recipe Collection for People’s Members/Owners & Customers for $29/year, or $2.99/month (50% off retail).  Use discount code PEOPLES to subscribe at https://www.cookwithwhatyouhave.com/get-started/

Pumpkin Seed Butter Cookies

This recipe was chosen by our Bulk Co-Buyer, Zahra Salim. Zahra has been working on introducing new bulk products and revitalizing pre-pandemic offerings, including our alternative nut butter section! All of these ingredients can be found in our bulk section. Enjoy!

“These chocolate dipped pumpkin seed butter cookies are a delicious, allergy-friendly treat. They’re soft, chewy, and decadent yet nutritious. These cookies are nut-free, gluten-free, vegan, and grain-free. They’re kid-approved and perfect for school snacks.” - Jennifer Bell

Author: Jennifer Bell

Prep Time: 45 minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes

Total Time: 57 minutes

Servings: 12

Check out the full recipe article with step by step photos here.

Equipment

• Sheet pan

• Parchment paper

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup pumpkin seed butter (with no added sugar or salt)

• 1/2 cup maple syrup

• 1/2 cup coconut flour

• 1/2 cup dairy-free dark chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate

• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

• 1 teaspoon vinegar or lemon juice

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/8 teaspoon salt

• Optional topping: pumpkin seeds for sprinkling on top of the cookies

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

• Add the pumpkin seed butter, maple syrup, coconut flour, vanilla extract, vinegar or lemon juice, baking soda, and salt to a large mixing bowl and use your hands to mix well until a dough is formed.

• Use your hands to roll the dough into 12 evenly sized balls and place them on a parchment paper lined sheet pan.

• Use your fingers to press the cookie dough balls into flatter circles.

• Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 12 minutes or until they look solid and slightly golden around the edges.

• When then cookies are finished baking, allow them to cool to room temperature.

• While the cookies are cooling, melt the dairy-free dark chocolate chips (or chopped dark chocolate), either in the microwave or on the stove. To melt it in the microwave, add the chocolate to a microwave safe bowl, then cook on high power for 20 seconds, stir, and repeat until it’s melted. To melt it on the stove, add the chocolate to a pot on the stove set to low heat and stir constantly until melted.

• Once the chocolate is melted and the cookies have cooled to room temperature, dip the cookies in chocolate so that half of each cookie is submerged in chocolate and the other half is not, then place them on a platter (or two dinner sized plates) lined with parchment paper (you can reuse the parchment paper that you baked the cookies on).

• Sprinkle a few pumpkin seeds on the chocolate dipped sides of the cookies, then place the cookies in the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes to allow the chocolate to harden before serving.

Notes

• To make this recipe even quicker and easier, skip the step of dipping the baked cookies in melted chocolate. You can mix the chocolate into the raw cookie dough instead.

• Store these pumpkin seed butter cookies in an airtight container for up to three days or freeze them for up to six months.