Crock-Pot Mac & Cheese Florentine

This was originally a vegan recipe with no cheese (despite the title) but being that it's silly to have mac and cheese minus the cheese I have, of course, since altered the recipe to fit my style and tastes.  The guy has admitted, since I've perfected the recipe, that he likes this one almost better than the baked traditional version made with loads of cheese, milk and butter.  I find this to be much more tummy friendly and I can do the prep work, stick it in the crock-pot and only four hours later dinner is served.  The only problem is that this is not a recipe that can be used if when one wants to throw it together before their eight hour work day and have it ready when they get home.  It's more of a weekend meal or a week night where a quick stop home allows one to start it, run off to all the extra curricular activities and come home to a warm meal.  However one feels they can best work it, this is a really yummy meal that is really easy and is a great alternative for vegans as it's easy to subtract the cheese and can also be easily converted to a gluten-free dish as well.  I also love that it's a full meal, with a protein, starch and green vegetable, though a little salad goes really well on the side too.

So here is the recipe, though please see below for the usual tips and suggestions.  

So this photo was taken the time I used spinach.  Peas are yummier.....

 Crock-pot Mac, Cheese & Peas
Makes enough to serve two and have enough left over for lunch or dinner a couple days after.
Crock-pot Size: 4 quart or larger
Cooking Time: 3-4 hours
Low setting

Ingredients:
8 ounces elbow macaroni (or smaller noodle rice pasta for a gluten free version)
10 ounces give or take of frozen or fresh, sweet peas
2 T olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 c. cashews (unsalted and raw preferred but whatever you've got or can find will work
1 3/4 c. soy milk (or water, rice or regular milk if you don't have soy milk)
1 1/2 c. slow cooked or one 15.5-ounce can of white beans (I usually use chickpeas)
1 T miso paste (optional)
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp chili powder
 1/4 tsp garlic powder
1-2 c. Shredded sharp cheddar cheese (or whatever you've got)
salt
 1-2 pieces of artisan or homemade bread cut into small cubes


1. cook the pasta in a pot of boiling water.  Cook al dente as it will cook further in the pot and you don't want it to turn to mush.  Drain and place in crock. 
2.  Cook peas by steaming (preferred method) or by boiling for 3 minutes once water is boiling.  Remove from heat, drain and add to pasta.  
3.  Heat 1 T oil in a medium skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and cook until softened and set aside.
4.  Using a food processor, grind the cashews to a powder in a blender or food processor.  Add 1 cup of the liquid (milk/water) and blend until smooth.  Add the onions, beans, miso, remaining liquid (3/4 c.), lemon juice and spices.  (Only add salt if not using miso, you can always add salt but the miso is quite high in sodium as it is).  Blend until smooth.  Adjust seasonings to taste.  Pour sauce over macaroni and peas and mix well.  Stir in 1-1.5 c. shredded cheese. 
5.  Cover crock and cook on low for 3-4 hours.
6.  Just before serving time, in a small bowl, pour 1 T melted butter (or oil) over bread cubes.  Sprinkle with garlic powder and mix well with wooden spoon.  Heat skillet over medium heat and add bread cubes, stirring until lightly toasted and smelling of garlic.  Remove from heat. 
7.  Put finished casserole in bowls and sprinkle with any remaining shredded cheese and croutons. 

Tips and suggestions: To make this dish vegan, leave out the cheese and stick to oil rather than butter.  When it comes to gluten free, leave out the crouton topping and be sure to find a good gluten free pasta substitute.  Tinkyada Brown Rice Fusilli Pasta is really great for this and won't get all mushy and sticky.  Tastes pretty darn good too! 
You can buy Tinkyada here. 
This recipe is really easy to do even if you don't have all the specific ingredients, you can adapt it to what you have in your kitchen and change it to your liking. 
Please let me know what you think!  

     

Crockpot Week

So this week has, unintentionally become the week of the crock-pot in my house.  This past weekend we had the tastiest baked beans that have ever come out of my kitchen with veggie burgers on homemade honey oat buns and something else that I've forgotten at the moment...oh right, baked cajun potato wedges.  Last night we had Mushroom and Green Bean Stroganoff and tonight we're having Potpie with a biscuit crust (recipe can be found below).

Until about a year and a half ago, I think I maybe used the crock-pot twice.  I had been talking about my lack of crock-pot knowledge and how I would really like to use it more often but don't know how to go about using while still depriving it of fleshy stews.  So for my birthday last year a foodie friend of my gave me the book Fresh From The Vegetarian Slow Cooker by Robin Robertson.  Since then I've been utilizing the lovely contraption at least once a month and like this week, sometimes much more.

I think the reason I don't use it more is because I'm, most of the time, a last minute cook.  I wait until 3 or 4 hours before dinner to think about what we're going to have, sometime having to run to the store before the meal is able to be made or on most occasions, the boy calls on his way home from work to ask if we need anything for the nights meal.  So this plan ahead, cook all day so I don't have to concept that I love, has been hard for me to grasp.  The most difficult being the dried beans.  I have really had to work to think far enough in advance to look through the cookbook and decide on a recipe in case I may need to spend the day before soaking beans, the night before cooking beans then the day of the meal, cooking the actual recipe.  I love the idea of spending a dollar or two on a bag of beans (or better yet, buying them in bulk from the co-op) but have the hardest time with "I want it now" syndrome.  I want three bean chili tonight not two days from now. 

So I suppose, spending some quality time with my crock pot is a lesson in patience and planning ahead.  Two virtues that I am glad for the practice to work on but also two virtues that the rest of the country really needs to look at a little closer as well.  Maybe Crock-pot week should be a national holiday, like earth day or grandparents day.  As far as my yearly calender goes, it's official January 11-16th is Crock-pot week and I will enjoy every evening that my crock-pot is cooking and I'm not, relaxing and taking a breather from the past two months of craziness and enjoying some quality time with the boy. 

Here's to Crock-pot week! (and if we're giving toasts, to local beer)!!

Crockpot Potpie

Tweeted: January 13, 2010

Origin: Fresh From The Vegetarian Slow Cooker by Robin Robertson

Slow-Fashioned Potpie with Biscuit Crust

serves 4

slow cooker size: 3.5-4 quart
cook time: 6 hours

Potpie

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 med size yellow onion, chopped

1 lg carrot, chopped

2 Tbsp. ap flour

1 lg ap potato, peeled and diced

3 cups slow cooked or two 15.5 ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup frozen peas

3/4 cup vegetable stock

1 Tbsp tamari or other soy sauce

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp dried savory

salt and pepper

1. Heat oil in med skillet over med heat.  Add onion and carrot, cover, and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.

2.  Transfer the onion and carrot to a lightly oiled slow cooker. Stir in flour.  Add potato, chickpeas, and peas, stir in the stock, tamari, thyme, and savory, and season with salt and pepper.  Cover and cook on low for 5 hours.

Biscuit Crust

1 cup ap flour

2 tsp baking powder 

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 T olive oil

1/2 cup milk or soy milk

1.  About 1 hour before you're ready to serve, make the crust: in a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Quickly stir in the milk and the oil until just blended.

2.  Spoon the biscuit topping over the surface of the simmering vegetables.  Turn the heat setting to high, cover, and cook until the crust is cooked through, about 1 hour longer.  For a drier crust, cook with cover off.  Serve the potpie within 10 to 15 minutes after the crust is finished cooking for best taste results.

Suggestions and notes:  I added about 1/4-1/2 cup of frozen green beans to the potpie.  I also used about 1/4 of whole wheat flour and 3/4 cup all purpose for the crust to give it a heartier flavor.  Didn't have savory so just used a little extra pepper but can replace it with marjoram or sage.