Mushroom-Wild Rice Cottage Pie

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Commonly known as Shepherd’s Pie, this twist on a cottage pie includes rich mushroom and flavourful, nutty wild rice. Add tempeh, kidney beans, or crumbled tofu after the rice cooks, if desired.

ST - cottage pie - preparing

Mushroom-Wild Rice Cottage Pie

For the potatoes:
Salted water, to cook potatoes
6 to 8 medium yellow-flesh potatoes, peeled and chopped
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons finely chopped chives
1/2 cup mushroom broth (below)

For the filling:
1 .5oz/14g package dried porcini mushrooms
5 cups boiling water
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 red onion, peeled and chopped
1 1/2 pounds (680g) cremini mushrooms, chopped
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
3 celery stalks, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 turnips (not rutabaga), peeled and finely chopped
2 large carrots, peeled and finely chopped
2 tablespoons dried thyme leaves
2 teaspoons ground sage
1 cup wild rice
3 tablespoons roasted cashew butter
2 tablespoons tomato paste

For the potatoes, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the potatoes. Cook until tender, about 20 to 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, put the dried mushrooms in a large bowl. Cover with boiling water and let stand 30 minutes.

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven. Add the onion, mushrooms, celery, carrots, and turnips. Cook until softened, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme and sage, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes longer.

Strain the mushroom liquid into the pot with the vegetables, reserving 1/2 cup. Rinse the mushrooms and finely chop, adding them to the pot. Add the rice. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and let cook 40 minutes. Stir in cashew butter and tomato paste. Let cook an additional 10 minutes, until thickened.

Meanwhile, drain the potatoes. Add the olive oil and reserved broth. Mash well. Stir in the chives and season with salt and pepper to taste. Preheat the oven to 375F.

Once the mixture on the stove top is finished, carefully pour it into a 9×13 casserole dish. Spread with the potatoes. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, until the potatoes start to brown and become crispy. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

ST - cottage pie - finished

Roasted Pumpkin and Tomato Soup

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When tomatoes are edging out of season and pumpkins are making their way in, take advantage of the crossover while you can. Roasting the ingredients before putting it in the pot brings out the most flavor, with a caramelized undertone of the sweet vegetables. It also can be made in advance—and tastes better as the flavors meld—making it an easy dish to add to the dinner table.

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Roasted Pumpkin and Tomato Soup

1 medium sugar/pie pumpkin (about 3 pounds)
Olive oil
1 tablespoon dried thyme
2 teaspoons dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Sea or Himalayan salt to taste
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1 pound/454 grams tomatoes, quartered
2 small yellow onions, peeled and quartered
1 red pepper, preferably poblano, seeded and quartered
4 to 5 cups (960mL to 1.2L) water or low-sodium vegetable broth

Preheat the oven to 425F.

Cut the pumpkin in half, then half again, to create four wedges. Scrape out the seeds. Put the wedges on a lined baking sheet and brush with olive oil, then sprinkle with some of the thyme, rosemary, oregano, salt, and pepper. Bake for 25 minutes.

Put the tomatoes, onion, and pepper in a small baking dish. Toss with olive oil, the remaining herbs, and salt and pepper. (If you have too many herbs, just save them to add to the soup). Roast for another 15 to 20 minutes, until all the vegetables are releasing juices, browned on the edges, and very fragrant. Remove from the oven.

Scrape the vegetables and herbs into a large pot, making sure you get all the juices. Add the water or broth, along with any herbs that didn’t make it on the vegetables. Bring to a boil then lower to a simmer, cover, and let cook about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool approximately 10 minutes.

Using an immersion blender, blend until smooth or let cool to room temperature and blend it in batches in a food processor or blender, adding water or broth if needed. Reheat before serving, seasoning with additional herbs, salt, and pepper to taste.

Tip: For a creamier version, add a few heaping tablespoons of cashew butter in the mix before blending. I like using roasted cashew butter to add to the underlying smokiness of the roasted vegetables in the soup.

Maple Apple Buckwheat Breakfast Casserole

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This breakfast casserole highlights the simplicity of basic ingredients. Definitely opt for a good quality maple syrup (dark preferred) and baking apples–my favourite are Mutsu.

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Maple-Apple Buckwheat Breakfast Casserole

2 cups Bob’s Red Mill Creamy Buckwheat (a pantry favourite–does it a devoted post?)
1 1/2 cups raisins
2 sweet tart apples, chopped into small pieces
1/2 cup pure maple syrup, plus more for serving (I like the dark stuff)
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, plus a bit more
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon fine sea or Himalayan salt
2 cups unsweetened plain or vanilla nondairy milk (such as So Delicious or Almond Breeze)
1/2 cup toasted pecans or walnuts, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).

In a 8-cup capacity casserole dish (an 8-inch square glass one will work great), layer a third of the buckwheat. Top with half of the raisins, half of the apples, and another 1/3 of the buckwheat. Follow with the rest of the apples, the maple syrup, then half of the cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. You can eyeball these amounts. It doesn’t have to be half exactly.

Pour half of the nondairy milk over the layers. Add the rest of the raisins, buckwheat, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Top with pecans, and sprinkle with additional cinnamon. Top with the remaining nondairy milk.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until the apples are tender. Let cool to room temperature, and serve with additional maple syrup.