Robin Robertson

I only seem to crave tomato soup when tomatoes are out of season, probably because when tomatoes are at their peak, I prefer to enjoy them raw or only slightly cooked in order to savor their wonderful flavor.  Now that soup season is here — and tomato season is gone — I rely on dependable canned San Marzano tomatoes to make my creamy tomato soup.

This soup is extremely easy to make: Just finely chop an onion, a carrot, a rib of celery, and three garlic cloves and saute them in a pot (in a little oil or water — your choice) until softened.  Stir in 2 (28-ounce) cans of whole or diced tomatoes and their juice (the fire-roasted kind add extra flavor).  Muir Glen is a good brand, although I can’t find it in my local supermarket, so I always get whatever brand of San Marzano tomatoes I can find and they always have a good flavor. Stir in a little vegetable base (I use Better than Bouillon brand) and salt and pepper, a little dried basil and simmer until the vegetables are soft.

For creaminess, you can go several different ways: add about 1 cup of chopped russet potato when you add the onions and other veggies; or: add about 3/4 cup of cooked brown rice when you add the tomatoes; or: add about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of your choice of cashew cream or vegan cream cheese during the next step:

When the vegetables are soft, transfer the soup, in batches if needed, to a high-speed blender or food processor and process until smooth and creamy.  If using cashew cream or vegan cream cheese, add it now and blend it in with the soup.

Transfer the soup back to the pot and taste and adjust the seasonings if needed.  If it tastes too tart, add a pinch or two of sugar to balance the flavor.  Add more salt and pepper to taste.  If the soup is too thick, stir in some plain unsweetened almond milk or vegetable broth.  If the soup is too thin, add additional pureed vegetables or other thickener.  As with most soups, this one tastes better the next day, or at least after allowed to sit for a couple hours and then reheated.

I like this soup for how easy it is to make, and also for the bright tomato flavor afforded by the canned tomatoes.  I served it with fresh tomato crostini and the out-of-season fresh tomato paled in comparison to the bright flavor of the soup.

It occurred to me that I get seasonally obsessed with certain ingredients.  Take apples, for example.  Despite being available year round, I generally don’t give them a second glance until fall.  Once the cool weather of autumn descends, it’s like a switch turns on and suddenly I can’t seem to make enough apple recipes.

Apples are so versatile.  In addition to eating out of hand, they’re great in salads, sandwiches, and sautes.  I also love to make apple bread, apple cake, apple fritters,  baked apples, applesauce, apple crisp and apple butter.  Here’s a tester photo (taken by Sabrina Butkera) of the apple butter from Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker:

But my favorite way to enjoy apples is in desserts, like apple pie:

and this apple pie-crisp combo:

One of the easiest and tastiest apple desserts I make is the Apple Pie Parfaits from Quick-Fix Vegan.  Shown in the top photo which was taken by the incredibly talented “Mojo” of Vegan Cookbooks Illustrated.  Honestly, when I make this dessert, it never looks this gorgeous!  But it always tastes great.  I hope you enjoy it too.  Here’s the recipe:

Apple Pie Parfaits
Serves 4
Try these apple parfaits for the flavor of apple pie without all the work. Not only is this an easy and quick dessert, it’s also very pretty when served in clear dessert glasses.  If you don’t have actual parfait glasses, wine glasses work well. This recipe is from Quick-Fix Vegan by Robin Robertson © 2011.

2 teaspoons vegan butter
2 Granny Smith or other baking apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
1/4 cup granola
1 cup silken tofu
1/3 cup almond butter
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Heat the vegan butter in a skillet over medium heat.  Add the apples, lemon juice, brown sugar, and 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon and cook, stirring, until the apples are softened, about 8 minutes.  Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate to cool while you continue with the recipe.
In a separate bowl, combine the walnuts and granola and set aside.
In a blender or food processor, combine the tofu, almond butter, maple syrup, vanilla, and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.  Blend until smooth and creamy.
Spoon a small amount of the walnut mixture into the bottom of 4 parfait glasses or other dessert glasses.  Top with a spoonful of the apple mixture, followed by a spoonful of the tofu mixture.  Repeat with the layering until the glasses are full, ending with a sprinkling of the walnut mixture.  Serve at once or refrigerate and serve chilled.

 Note: Some apple varieties release a lot of juice when cooked, so be sure to drain off any excess liquid before spooning the cooked apples into the glasses.

I’m so thrilled that my new book, Fresh From the Vegan Slow Cooker has been chosen as the #2 best new cookbook for 2012 by LA Weekly.

To celebrate this honor, I’m sharing one of my favorite recipes from the book. I chose one that shows just how versatile slow cookers can be.  Everyone knows that slow cookers are fantastic for cooking beans, stews, soups, and chili, but they’re also surprisingly good for cooking things that you normally associate with oven-baking such as breads, cakes, and casseroles.  A delicious example is this recipe for Lasagna Primavera (tester photo by Melissa Chapman).

Making lasagna in a slow cooker may sound unconventional, but it tastes great and is convenient to make. This one is loaded with lots of fresh vegetables and protein-rich tofu, so it makes a great one-dish meal.  Here’s the recipe:

Lasagna Primavera
You will need to break the lasagna noodles to conform to the shape of the slow cooker. For best results, use a large oval slow cooker. Note: Use regular lasagna noodles in this recipe, not the “no-boil” kind which may contain eggs. This recipe is from my new book, Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker © 2012 by Robin Robertson.
Slow Cooker Size: 5 to 6 quart
Cook Time: 4 hours on Low

8 ounces lasagna noodles (about 8 noodles)
2 teaspoons olive oil or 1/4 cup water
1 small yellow onion, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup chopped broccoli florets or zucchini
1 medium carrot, shredded
8 ounces white mushrooms, chopped
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound soft or medium tofu, drained
1 pound firm tofu, drained
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
2 teaspoons dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/3 cup vegan Parmesan cheese (purchased or homemade), plus more for sprinkling
1 (24-ounce) jar marinara sauce or your favorite tomato sauce for pasta
1 cup shredded vegan mozzarella cheese (optional)

Break the noodles in half and place them in a large baking dish. Pour on enough boiling water co cover and set aside while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
For the best flavor, heat the oil or water in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes.  Add the garlic, broccoli, carrot, and mushrooms, and cook 1 minute longer.  Alternatively, omit the oil and combine the ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl, cover, and microwave for 4 minutes. Drain off any liquid.  Stir in the spinach and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Set aside.
Crumble all of the tofu into a large bowl. Add the nutritional yeast, parsley, basil, oregano, vegan Parmesan, and salt and pepper to taste.  Mix well, then taste to make sure the mixture has enough salt and plenty of pepper.
Lightly oil the insert of a slow cooker or spray it with cooking spray.  Drain the noodles. Spread a thin layer of marinara sauce into the bottom of the slow cooker. Arrange a layer of the noodle pieces over the sauce, overlapping slightly, as needed. Top the noodles with about one-third of the tofu mixture, followed by one-third of the vegetable mixture, and another layer of noodles. Spread a thin layer of marinara sauce over the noodles and sprinkle with vegan Parmesan. Repeat the layering until the ingredients are used up, ending with a layer of marinara sauce. Sprinkle with vegan Parmesan. Cover and cook on Low for 3 1/2 hours.
Scatter the vegan mozzarella (if using) all over the top of the lasagna. Cover and cook for 30 minutes longer (whether or not you add the mozzarella).
Remove the lid, turn off the cooker, and let the lasagna stand for about 15 minutes before serving.

Serves 6

A big “thank you” and a small request:  Many thanks to all of you who have sent me messages and e-mails about how much you’re enjoying Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker. I appreciate it very much!  I’d love it if you could share some of those kind words by posting a brief review on Amazon (and elsewhere) to let people know about the book.  It would be a huge help!  (Thank you!)

P.S. Here’s my photo of the lasagna (before digging in!):

In yesterday’s post, I talked about the bean soup I made over the weekend.  I didn’t post a recipe because, well, there wasn’t one!  As I had mentioned, this was one of those “add a little bit of everything” soups — the ones that often turn out better than one you might have planned.

Due to a number of e-mails, comments, and other virtual arm-twisting that requested the recipe for this soup, I wrote one down and am happy to present it here.  Like most bean soups, the flavor improves every day.  It thickens after it cools, so you should add more liquid (water, broth, or even tomato juice) as you heat up leftovers.  For a spicy tang, add some hot sauce when ready to serve.

Hope you enjoy this as much as we do!

Million Bean Soup

Okay, maybe more like 15 types of beans, but it sure tastes like a million – especially with the added flavor boost from fire-roasted tomatoes, marinara sauce, and liquid smoke.  Use a combination of whatever dried beans you have on hand or use a bag of mixed dried beans labeled for “15-bean soup.”

1 large yellow onion, chopped

2 celery ribs, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 pound assorted dried beans, picked over, rinsed, and soaked overnight

6 cups water

1 tablespoon vegetable soup base (Better than Bouillon brand)

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon dried basil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced fire-roasted tomatoes, undrained

1 cup marinara sauce

2 cups frozen chopped spinach, thawed

2 cups cooked brown rice

1/2 to 1 teaspoon liquid smoke (to taste)

Hot pepper sauce, to serve (optional)

In a large (6-quart) slow cooker, combine the onion, celery, carrots, and garlic.  Drain the soaked beans and add them to the slow cooker, along with the water, vegetable base, soy sauce, basil, and a little salt and pepper.  Cover, and cook on Low for 8 hours, or on High for 4 hours. Uncover and stir in the tomatoes, marinara sauce, spinach, rice, and liquid smoke.  Taste and adjust seasonings, adding more salt and pepper or vegetable base, if needed. Add a little more water if needed.  Cover and let cook another 30 minutes. Serve hot with hot pepper sauce, if using.

Serves 6

Back when I was a restaurant chef, I had to make 20 gallons each of three kinds of soup every day. Two of the soups were standard fixtures on the menu, but one was a “soup of the day” which was something different every day.  I was thinking about those days of making massive quantities of soup yesterday when I made this bean soup in my slow cooker.  This five-quart batch of soup will be our “soup of the week!”

 This was a toss a little bit of everything in the pot “zillion bean” soup, with tomatoes, brown rice, and spinach added near the end of cooking time. For added richness, I also stirred in about a cup of leftover marinara sauce.  What a great flavor punch it adds to the soup!  With all that goodness in one pot, my lunch menu is taken care of for several days.

Now on to the giveaway winner….

First I’d like to thank everyone who entered the giveaway to win a copy of The Blooming Platter Cookbook by Betsy DiJulio.  It’s a very creative book with lots of great ideas for using fresh produce throughout the seasons, so if you don’t have it, you should check it out.

It seems like a good number of the entries listed apples or pumpkins as their favorite fall ingredient, including our Giveaway Winner:  Lucky #13 (chosen via Random.org random number generator): Kelly C. who picked both pumpkin AND apples as her favorite ingredients!  Congratulations, Kelly.  Please e-mail me with your mailing address and I’ll get a copy of The Blooming Platter Cookbook in the mail to you.

Everyone else:  stay tuned…there are more giveaways on the horizon!