Soup and Pumpkin Scones

Tonight was a case of when bad things happen to good meal. Somehow the salt got left out of the pizza dough, making the yeast go wild and ruining the whole batch. So, we had to whip up something at the last minute. Fortunately, Vegan Mom had made a vegetable soup for lunch. We fired a few meatless meatballs in for variety and baked these pumpkin scones.

INGREDIENTS:

- 2 cups all purpose flour

- 1 tbsp baking powder

- 3/4 tsp salt

- 1/2 tsp allspice

- 1/4 tsp each cinnamon and nutmeg

- 3/4 cup pumpkin (canned, or cooked fresh)

- 1/2 cup soy milk

- 3 tbsp oil

- 1 tbsp maple syrup

METHOD:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

1. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and spices in a large bowl.

2. Whisk pumpkin, soy milk, oil, and maple syrup in a separate bowl. Add to flour mixture and mix gently until moist. Add a little more liquid if need be.

3. Place large spoonfuls of dough on a non-stick baking sheet.

4. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes until browned.

TIPS FOR SOUP: Vegetable soup is easy to make and is a great way to cram in a variety of veggies. Saute onions and celery as a base, then add whatever suits your fancy. We like potatoes, corn, green beans, peas, eggplant, carrots, chickpeas, cannelini beans, tomatoes (plus some spaghetti sauce for flavour), and pasta (the kids like alphabets).

Pumpkin Soup and Scones

Today was one of those miserable fall days where the damp cold makes you shiver and huddle around a steaming cup of tea. In other words, it was the perfect day for pumpkin soup and scones. This is my grandma's recipe (well, she never used soymilk) so that means there is no real recipe. Measuring cups and teaspoons are just not her style (which means her baking leaves something to be desired). This soup, however, is awesome.

INGREDIENTS:

- one pie pumpkin

- non-hydrogenated margarine

- soymilk

- sugar

- salt

The amounts here are up to you, depending on what kind of soup you want. It can be thin or thich, sweeter or saltier. I like a thicker and sweeter soup.

METHOD:

1. Peel pumpkin. Cut in half and scoop out seeds. Chop up pumpkin into small pieces.

2. Boil pumpkin in water in a large soup pot until tender (about 25 mins).

3. Drain off water, add a lump of margarine, and mash pumpkin (or blend with a hand mixer).

4. Put back on heat. Thin with soymilk until desired consistency is reached. Season with salt and sugar to taste. Heat until steaming, but not boiling.

Let There Be Pumpkins!

We took a trip to the pumpkin patch on the weekend and loaded up with lots of orangey goodness. Here is Son #3 checking out the huge pile of pumpkins at the farm, scoping out the best one. So, while I figure out what to do with this year's batch, let's not forget about these great recipes from past years. First, start off your day with Hearty Autumn Muffins. For lunch, try my personal favourite: Pumpkin Soup. And, of course, what is soup without scones (or Rustic Pumpkin Bread)? For dinner, try Fresh Pumpkin Pasta with Sage Alfredo Sauce, or a stew with Savoury Pumpkin Biscuit Topping. If you have more time on your hands, the Roasted Pumpkin and Walnut Manicotti is superb. End it all with Chocolate Pumpkin Pudding Cake, or Pumpkin Spice Sweet Rolls.

Maple Roasted Tofu and Veggies

Well, winter has come to the north in full force. Freezing cold, snow, parkas, touques, and big clumpy boots. It makes me want to roast things in the oven, if for no other reason than it heats the house up a few more degrees.

INGREDIENTS

- 2 yukon gold potatoes, diced

- 2 large red potatoes, diced

- 1 yellow onion, cut into eighths

- 1 red onion, cut into eighths

- 1 small rutabaga, peeled and diced

- 3 carrots, cut into chunks

- 4 cloves of garlic, cut into chunks

- 1 cup cooked chickpeas

- 1 pkg firm tofu, pressed and diced

- 2 tbsp oil

- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

- 1/2 cup maple syrup

- 2 tbsp water

- 1 tsp dried sage

- 1 tsp dried thyme

- salt and pepper

METHOD

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

1. Place all veggies in a large bowl. Mix oil, vinegar, syrup, water, and spices in a small bowl. Pour over veggies and toss well. Place on a stoneware baking sheet. Put tofu on veggies and gently toss to coat in sauce.

2. Roast veggies in oven for 60-70 mins, stirring veggies after 30, 45, and 60 mins to keep the sauce from burning. Toss in an extra bit of maple syrup before you serve if you want an extra bit of sweetness.

I served this dish up with pumpkin scones.