This recipe is adapted (barely) from one of my favourite new cookbooks Thug Kitchen. I love every recipe in this book and have been obsessively cooking and eating my way through it.

• 2 cups wild rice blend or brown rice
• 2 tsp safflower oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 tbsp fresh grated ginger
• 1/2 cup green chilies, diced. Can use canned or fresh
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 2 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp chipotle chili powder
• 1 ripe mango, in bite sized pieces
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• zest and juice of 1 lime
• fresh cilantro to top

Rinse the rice. In a medium pot heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until tender about 3 minutes. Stir in the ginger and cook for 30 seconds. Add the rice and cook for 2 minutes, keep stirring every so often. Add the coconut milk, broth, salt, and chili powder. Stir to combine. Bring to a simmer. Give another quick stir then cover and reduce heat to low (you want it to be at a low simmer) cook for 30-40 minutes or until most of the liquid has absorbed. When the rice has finished coking fold in the chillies, beans, mango, lime zest and juice. Let it all cook for another minute then serve topped with cilantro….and maybe a little sriracha.

Where’s the meat? If you are one of those people who don’t think dinner is complete without some meat, this dish would be great paired with chicken or a white fish such as tilapia, halibut, hake, haddock, sole, cod or flounder

I don’t cook with acorn squash all that often…I don’t know why, I just don’t. I guess I go through phases with my preferred squash but for the most part I am a butternut girl or Kabocha but I can never seem to get my hands on them. I had this acorn squash given to me and decided to try roasting it a little different from how I normally would (Sliced in half and seeded) I did it in thin slices because I wanted the soup to have more of that yummy roasted flavour. I was quite happy with how it turned out and so were my dinner guests.

Serves 6

• 1 acorn squash, cut in half, seeded and then cut into 1/2 inch slices
• 1 onion, skin removed and halved
• 2 potato, cut into 1/2 inch slices
• 1 head of garlic
• 2 tsp cumin
• heavy pinch of chipotle chili powder
• pinch of cinnamon
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1/2 cup whole milk or cream (leave this out if you want to keep this dish vegan)
• pepper to taste
• 1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• safflower oil

Preheat the oven to 400. Cut and slice the squash, potato and onion. Toss with safflower oil and lay on baking sheet. Take the garlic and remove the excess layers of skin. Chop about 1/4 inch off the top of the bulb. Drizzle the top with a little oil then wrap in foil and place on the baking sheet. Let everything bake for 30 minutes flipping half way (obviously you do not have to flip the wrapped garlic). Once cooked, remove from the oven and let cool for a minute. Peel off the skin from the squash. In a large pot over medium heat, add the spices and stir them around for about 1 minute. Add the broth, squash, potato, onion and the roasted cloves of garlic. Now using an immersion blender, pulse everything until smooth. Add the chickpeas and give a few more quick pulses with the blender, making sure to not fully blend all the chickpeas. Allow to simmer for a few minutes then stir in the cider vinegar and lemon juice. Remove from heat and add the cream. At this point do a final taste test and see if you think it needs a little more salt or pepper, if so sprinkle it in then serve topped with some fresh parsley. Enjoy!

Hello October! If you need me you can find me at the bottom of  the never-ending pots of delicious homemade soup that have taken over my kitchen! I know these pictures are a bit blurry but trust me this soup looks and tastes crazy good. Give it a try. You won’t be sorry. This particular soup has now been added to my list of favourites. Serves 6-8

• Safflower oil, for frying
• 5 pieces of naturally smoked bacon, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 cups green cabbage, chopped
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• pinch or two of chipotle chili powder ( more or less depending on how much heat you want in your soup )
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 1 stalk of celery, chopped
• 1 red skinned potato, chopped into bite sized pieces
• 1 can diced tomato
• 1 can white kidney beans
• 4 cups veg broth
• 1/3 cup mixture of parmesan and asiago
• salt and pepper to taste
• additional bacon and cheese to top ( optional )

Heat about 1 tbsp of oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook for a few minutes, letting it brown. Add a couple more tbsp of oil along with the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally until softened. Add the cabbage and cook for 5 minutes, continuing to stir occasionally. Add the spices, carrots, celery and potato. Cook for another 5 minutes. Add the tomato, beans and broth. Feel free to add a little salt and pepper if you like. Bring the soup to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer for 30-40 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the parmesan/asiago. Using an immersion blender, pulse until desired consistency. Spoon into bowls and top with a bacon bits and a sprinkle of parmesan. Enjoy!

I’m so excited about this soup! Not just because it’s delicious but because it marks the beginning of fall cooking in my home. Hello yummy homemade soups and stews and chili and pot pies and and and…..oh how I love cold weather cooking!!!

Serves 6-8

• 1 large cooking onion
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 4 cobs of corn, corn removed from cob
• 2 large red potato, chopped into small bite sized pieces
• 1 tbsp ginger, grated
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and diced
• 1 stalk of lemongrass, minced or grated
• 1 litre of low sodium veg broth
• 1 can of coconut milk
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1 lime, juiced
• safflower oil for frying
• salt and pepper to taste
• pickled jalapeño for topping
• avocado for topping

In a large pot over med-high heat, add the safflower oil. Let it heat for a minute then add the onions. Sauté for about 5 minutes, until tender and beginning to brown. Add the garlic, corn and potato. Cook stirring frequently for about 10 minutes or until the potato is tender. Add the ginger, jalapeño and lemongrass. Cook for 4-5 minutes. Add the broth. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes. Add the coconut milk and cilantro. Bring back to a boil then remove from heat. Using an immersion blender give the chowder a few good pulses. Add the lime juice and season with salt and pepper. Serve topped with pickled jalapeño and some diced avocado. Enjoy!

*Want to mix it up a bit? Try adding any of the following to your chowder-

• shredded chicken
• diced tomato, for topping
• swap out the potato for cauliflower
• sriracha instead of the pickled jalapeño

Recipe adapted from BEARD & BONNET

• 1 package GF rice noodles
• 8 cups sodium free vegetable broth
• 1/4 cup Tamari GF soy sauce
• 2  Tbsp grated or minced ginger
• 4 1/2 cups assorted veg, I used shredded carrot, cabbage, sugar snap peas, crimini mushrooms, thin strips of red pepper, broccoli flouretts, bean sprouts and baby bok choi
• 1/2 cup left over water from cooking the noodles

Garnish:

• fresh chopped cilantro
• sesame oil
• sesame seeds
• hard boiled egg
• sriracha hot sauce

In a med sized pot add the veg broth, soy sauce and ginger. Stir. Over med/high heat let the flavours come together. In a separate pot cook the noodles according to package ( do not over cook ). While the pasta is cooking add the veg to the broth, allow to cook for about 2 min. Once the pasta is finished cooking reserve 1/2 cup of the starchy water then drain the noodles and rinse with cold water. Set aside. Add the starchy water to the veg and broth let cook for another min then remove from heat.

To serve. Divide the noodles into bowls. Drizzle with a little sesame oil now ladle on the broth and veg. Top with a sliced hardboiled egg some sesame seeds, fresh cilantro and a couple dashes of hot sauce. Enjoy!!