Eggplant Cannelloni with Mushrooms & Leeks

Cannelloni, ravioli, manicotti, tortellini…what do these foods have in common besides ending with the letter “i”? Well, it is probably safe to say that they are all loved by many for their cheese-stuffed, pasta goodness. One of my favorite reasons for blogging on here is to discover healthier, less toxic versions of this kind of stuff. With that said, I am loving this cannelloni creation that has been evolving in my kitchen. It delivers a rich, comfort food experience without any of the bad stuff. And, it is great the next day, even cold! I know this because I left it sitting on the stove one cold winter night, and the next morning it was devoured before I could wrap it and put it into the refrigerator! The sunflower seeds give this dish enough clean protein to replace any meat or dairy version, and the mushrooms don’t need any nutrition hype to make their healthy introduction. In other words, this would make a great entree whenever you have that urge for a comfort food whatever…ending in “i”!

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Roasted Zucchini with “Creamy” Mushroom Stuffing

I think at least a few of my friends are scratching their heads at my new obsession with vegan cooking. Here is the truth; it isn’t exactly the vegan I am obsessed about, but more just having an in-depth go at figuring out how much essential nutrition I can get from a vegan meal; the kind of nutrition that one would normally think can only be obtained from an animal. And then there is another fascination that comes with vegan cooking- to see where you can find the essential “comfort” ingredients. That brings me to my current dating spree with nuts, especially the rich, oily ones.  I am about a recipe away from being convinced that nuts take the healthy lead in providing the comfort essentials we all love and our tastebuds count on. Move over butter, cheese, and cream, because I just made an entree that takes the “comfort” of creamy mushroom ravioli filling, and turns it on its gluten free, dairy free, vegan ear. Read More