Cat – His Bite, Her Bite

Nora: For something as heavy-sounding as lasagna, this soup was surprisingly light. The bright citrus notes in the broth kept it refreshing (can a hot soup be refreshing?) while the cashew cream and sausage gave the soup staying power. Pretty quick and easy, too!

Josh: This soup is just lovely! It is zesty by way of lemon and savory by way of the creamy cashew goodness. I expected this soup to be really comforting and satisfying, what I didn’t expect was how light it would be. The vegan sausage adds good flavor and saltiness that work really well with the rest of the soup, and on top of that it brings a strong protein content to this dish, making this soup into a Main dish rather than a side. But wait, there’s more good news! The soup is quick to make, with only some basic prep (chop some onions and garlic, slice up the sausage, blend the cashew cream) and a short cook time. We through it together on a work night and it was ready in no time!

Lemony Lasagna Soup

Adapted from: Rabbit and Wolves

Time: 10 minutes prep, 20 minutes cook

Serves: two for dinner and then two for lunch

Ingredients:
For the cashew cream:
-1c (4.5 oz) raw cashews (soaked overnight or simmered 10 minutes if you do not have a high-speed blender)
-1c veggie broth (we use Better than Boullion)
-1/2 tsp salt, several grinds of black pepper

For the soup:
-1 tbsp oil
-1 onion, chopped
-6 cloves garlic, minced
-4 links (approx. 14 oz) vegan Italian sausage, cut into half-moons (we like Tofurky)
-6 cups veggie broth
-juice of 1 lemon (about 3 tbsp if you’re using bottled)
-2 tsp Italian seasoning
-1/4c (4 tbsp) nutritional yeast
-8 lasagna sheets (about half a box– sorry)

Optional:
-8oz mushrooms, sliced
-small bunch of spinach

Directions:
1. If you are going to quick-soak the cashews, put them in a small saucepan and cover with water. Bring to boil and cook 5 minutes, then remove from heat and let sit for at least ten minutes. Drain before using. This will help the cashew cream blend more easily. If you have a powerful blender then you can choose to just run the blender a little longer (we do).
2. Prepare the cashew cream by putting all the ingredients in the blender and running on high 1-2 minutes or until very smooth and not gritty at all.
3. Heat the oil in a soup pot and add the onion and garlic, saute on medium for a few minutes until tender, translucent, and starting to brown.
4. Add sausage and mushrooms (if using). Cook another 2 minutes.
5. Pour in the veggie broth (or the water and then add the correct amount of Better than Boullion goop) and scrape any browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Add in the lemon juice, seasoning, nutritional yeast and cashew cream. Bring to a simmer.
6. Break the lasagna noodles into 1-2 inch bits. This will send shrapnel all over your kitchen (sorry). Add them to the soup and simmer 12 minutes (or according to package directions) until the noodles are al dente. Add salt and pepper to taste.
7. Remove from heat and stir in spinach (if using).

Even Easley lines up for a bowl of this soup!

Closing Arguments

Nora: A delicious soup that’s a breeze to make and would fit in any season.
Josh: This aint your grandma’s lasagna!

This looks like exactly the kind of meal we avoid, which is to say “bowls.” Have you noticed how almost all vegan recipes these days seem to be “bowls?” It is wild, and we are wildly unimpressed by bowl recipes. This one gets a pass because it is actually, surprisingly delicious. Brussel sprouts, vegan sausage, and best of all mashed potatoes.

The flavors in this go together just so damn well, but the magic is in that homemade dijon dressing. It really does the trick. Great meal, easy to prepare, and the leftovers hold up extremely well. Pro tip, you will need more dijon dressing, we made a batch for dinner and another for the leftovers. By the way I also ate some of the leftovers for breakfast and it was a good decision.

Dijon Brussel Sprouts Bowl

Makes: 4-5 servings

Inspired by: Budgetbytes

Omnivore Index: Everyone will know this is weird food, maybe even vegan food, but nobody will argue against how incredible it tastes

Ingredients

Mashed Potatoes
-2.5 lb russet potatoes
-1/2 tsp salt
-2 tbsp vegan butter
-1/2 cup nondairy milk

Dijon dressing
-6 tbsp oil
-6 tbsp (84g) vegan mayo
-6 tbsp (90g) dijon mustard
-6 tbsp red wine vinegar
-1/4 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp sugar
-1/4 tsp garlic powder
-freshly cracked black pepper

Brussel sprouts and sausage
-1 lb fresh brussel sprouts
-12-14 oz vegan sausage
-2 tbsp oil

Recipe

Brussel Sprouts and Sausage
-Clean brussel sprouts and slice in half
-Slice sausage into medallions
-Toss brussels and sausage with oil, put in baking dish, and bake at 425 F for 20-25 minutes, stirring halfway through

Mashed Potatoes
-Clean and cube the potatoes
-Boil on high with some salt 7-10 minutes
-Drain the potatoes
-Mash together with butter and milk
-I usually add a little garlic and onion powder as well

Dijon Dressing
-Combine all dressing ingredients by whisking together in a bowl

Layering
-Put mashed potatoes at the bottom of your bowls
-Scoop brussel sprouts and sausage mixture on top
-Drizzle dijon dressing over the bowl
-Smash

Notes

We use Earth Balance for butter
We use Silk Protein for milk
We use Just Mayo for mayonnaise
We use Torfuky Italian Sausage (if you’re avoiding processed foods you could use chickpeas instead, only because the critical point of this recipe is the dressing and not the filling. However we recommend using vegan sausage because the flavor is a major part of the whole)

Even the cats are all about this dinner.

Closing Arguments

N: But for real, the dijon dressing.