Sultry Sweet Potato and Chipotle Chili

This is a pretty cheap, healthy, warming chili that uses the classic flavour combination of chipotles and sweet potatoes and then adds a healthy dose of seductive depth from cocoa and cinnamon. This is a true pantry dish, you can keep the ingredients on hand and whip it up when you have a crowd coming over or when you need a special meal. You'll only need up to a third cup of chipotles in adobo altogether, depending on your heat tolerance. The remainder freezes well squished flat in a baggie, then you can break off however much you need the next time you want to spice up your rice or beans. If the chipotles are too hot, but you want some more smoky goodness, add some smoked paprika or natural smoke flavour. Be sure to use fair trade cocoa, preferably dutch-processed (darker in colour and flavour). You can substitute a couple of cups of cooked quinoa or even brown rice for the veggie ground round, just add some more veggie stock to balance the flavours. If you happen to live with someone who is afraid of vegetables (like I do), you can puree all ingredients up to the addition of bay leaves after cooking them, then return them to the pot and continue with the recipe.

Cans:
1 large can diced tomatoes (28 oz. preferably no salt added)
1 small can Mexican stewed tomatoes (19 oz.,or 1 small can regular tomatoes plus 1 tbsp chili powder)
2 small cans pinto beans (14 oz.)
2 small cans black beans (14 oz.)
1 small can green chilies (7.6 oz., look in the Mexican section of your grocer)
1 tbsp from small can chipotles (7.6 oz. Start with a tablespoon, and slowly go up from there, checking for heat as you go. Chop carefully with gloved hands.)
1 can corn (or about a cup and a third of frozen corn- add the juice from the can if you're a big fan of corn)
oil for cooking

Veggies:
1 medium sweet potato, cubed into bites, about three cups
2 large carrots, diced, about two cups
1 large yellow onion, diced, about two cups
1/2 a head of garlic, minced
1/2 bell pepper, whichever kind you like, finely diced, about a cup
stems from 1 bunch of cilantro, about 1/3-1/2 cup, washed well and minced

Flavour flavour:
1 veggie bullion cube (I use fake beef kind, more if substituting grains for soy, or to taste)
1 tbsp Ancho chili powder (or some other dark chili powder, not chili flakes)
2 bay leaves
1/4-1/2 cup fair-trade cocoa
2 tsp cinnamon

Soy:
2 packages veggie ground round, beef style (or substitute 2 cups of a cooked whole grain)

Garnish (optional, but awesome):
chopped cilantro leaves, chopped green onion, lime wedges, soy plain yogurt or sour cream, soy cheese

Saute the onions and carrots in a bit of oil with a pinch of salt over medium heat in your largest pot. When the vegetables are translucent, add the cilantro stems and the garlic, cooking for about a minute. Toss in the tomatoes, chipotles, bullion, chili powder, bay leaves and all the beans. Bring to a boil and add the sweet potatoes. Reduce to a simmer and cook until the sweet potatoes are cooked through and the liquid has reduced a bit, about 20 mins. Add the cocoa, cinnamon, ground round, bell pepper, corn, green chilies and adjust for flavour. This is where you may decide it needs more heat (chipotles or Ancho chili powder), smokiness (chipotles or smoked paprika, salt (bullion), or depth (bullion, cocoa, blackstrap molasses might do it). By starting with a conservative amount of spices, you can build it up slowly and hopefully avoid the risk of going overboard. Be careful not to add too much cinnamon--as tasty as it is, it's supposed to play a supporting role in this dish, and can easily overpower the subtle flavours of the chilies and cocoa. Simmer for about 30 minutes, then serve it up and allow people to garnish their own bowl. We served this with plain, steamed collards, cut into ribbons, and Jackie's tasty corn bread with margarine and agave nectar for dessert. Heavenly.

Sausage-stuffed pasta shells with walnut-rosemary breading in Alfredo sauce

I was planning to make homemade ravioli for new years this year, but upon extensive review I found out that it was easy to mess up and rather time consuming. So, borrowing from the idea behind Vegan Dad's sausage stuffed ravioli, and using the Alfredo sauce he cites from the PPK forum, I came up with this. Jackie was impressed with how smoothly and quickly it all went-there was very little clean up. The only catch is you need a food processor for this one. Trust me, it's the best investment a lazy vegan can make to her kitchen.

Pasta Filling
4 Tofurky Italian style sausages (other kinds of seitan/tofu blend sausages might work too)
1 small head garlic
1 tbsp fennel seeds (smashed in a mortar and pestle to release their fragrance)
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped (or half of that if dried)
1/4 cup fresh italian parsley, chopped
1 onion
1 rib celery
1/2 cup walnuts
oil for cooking

Roast the garlic by wrapping the whole, unpeeled head in tinfoil and heating in a 400 degree oven for 30-45 minutes. Meanwhile, in a food processor, chop the onion and celery finely and heat in a large, oiled skillet over medium heat. Break the sausages up into large chunks into the processor and process until crumbly. Add to pan with onions and celery. Process walnuts until crumbly and add to the pan. Things should be starting to brown by now, adjust heat if necessary. If you have some white wine on hand, now would be the time to add a splash (though be sure to let it evaporate completely). Add the roasted garlic (cloves squished out of the skin, about 3 tbsp all together), fennel, rosemary and parsley and remove from heat. While that's cooling, boil 25 large pasta shells until slightly firm but still edible aka al dente (mine are called conchiglioni) and make the breading.

Breading
1/4 cup vegan margerine
1 1/4 cups panko bread crumbs (use another kind if you must, but try it with panko at some point, it really makes all the difference)
1 tbsp fresh chopped rosemary
1/4 cup processed walnuts
2 cloves minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste

Warm the margerine over medium low heat with the garlic. When fragrant (30 second or so) add the remaining ingredients and toss together. Continute to stir until breadcrumbs are toasted and set aside.

Oil a 9 inch square pan, including the sides. Stuff pasta shells with sausage filling and pack them tightly into the pan. Spoon breading over the filling and press down lightly. Bake, covered, in a 350 degree oven about 15 minutes to get everything warm again while you whizz together the Alfredo sauce.

I served these by spooning a crescent of sauce on the plate, placing five shells on top of it, and topping with another drizzle across the top. We had raw baby spinach with spicy marinated eggplant, olives and sun-dried tomatoes, and simple steamed green beans as well. It was delish.