comfort food

The more raw food I eat, the less I want cooked food. It just sits in my tummy feeling all heavy, bloated, and tired. It seems dead to me. The other day I was staring at the steamed vegetables in my bowl. I thought about how dull and lifeless they looked and I suddenly lost my interest to eat.

There are days such as this one though, when coming in from the cold, that I crave something warm and comforting. I wonder if there is such a thing as a raw comfort food? So far I haven't found it, so instead I decided to whip up a classic vegan casserole and share the recipe with you. (now that I've caused you to become depressed and lose your appetite)

The original recipe comes from "The vegan family cookbook" but I have modified it a bit to suit my sulfite-free diet. (deleted soy, onions, and potato chips & added almond milk, nutritional yeast and almonds) Feel free to add or delete whatever you like though. :) Oh, and unless you're feeding a family of four like me, you might want to reduce the recipe in half because it makes a lot!

Vegan Vegetable Noodle Casserole

8 oz. curly noodles (the egg-less kind)
3 ribs celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
1/4 cup light olive oil
1/3 cup flour
2 cups unsweetened almond or rice milk (I prefer almond, because it is thicker and creamier, but use whatever you have)
2 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes (I buy it in bulk at Whole Foods, adds a "cheesy" flavor)
salt to taste
1/2 cup slivered almonds

1) boil water and cook noodles according to directions, drain
2) place pasta in 9 x 13 baking dish
3) in saucepan, saute celery and carrots until tender
4) on reduced heat, add flour and saute for 2 min
5) add milk of choice, broth, and nutritional yeast flakes.
increase to med/high heat and saute until thickened, stirring frequently.
6) add salt to taste
7) combine sauce & pasta in baking dish
8) sprinkle a little more nutritional yeast and almond slivers on top

* you can also add vegan shredded cheese (which sadly contains soy, so I cannot partake in that yummy indulgence) and bake at 400' for 10 min

Serve alongside a beautiful green vegetable, some crusty homemade bread, and Enjoy! :)