Tofu Pasta with Mushrooms

Saute a 12 - 16 ounce container of tofu with some olive oil, soy sauce, and Worcestershire sauce for about 1/2 hour.

Also, in a separate pan saute diced garlic, chopped onion, and mushrooms: 1 small onion, 4 cloves garlic, and 6 - 8 brown mushrooms.

Cook 1 package of hollow pasta: penne, macaroni or small rigatoni noodles. There are some great quinoa pastas if you want to go gluten free.

Heat and add 3 cups of prepared or homemade spaghetti sauce and 2 cups dices stewed tomatoes.

Serve with freshly grated Parmesan cheese, some crusty sourdough bread, and a nice Pinot Noir. Many people who would not identify themselves as tofu aficionados like this pasta dish. So go ahead and try it on your carnivorous friends.

The world is a book, and those who do not travel, read only a page.
St. Augustine

Spicy Turkey Pasta

Cook 1 package pasta and set aside. Use penne, or large or small macaroni - wheat or quinoa.

Saute diced onion, garlic and carrots (1 onion, 4 cloves garlic, 2 carrots)

Add 1 cup sliced mushrooms.

Chop 2 1/2 cups cooked turkey. If you like a spicy casserole dish, saute the turky for a few minutes with some chopped Pasillo or Poblano peppers. This depends on who's coming to dinner! If you want to keep it gringo friendly, leave out this step.

Heat and add prepared or home cooked spaghetti sauce and 2 cups diced stewed tomatoes.

Grate Parmesan cheese and add at serving time. This makes a great take along lunch dish.

Optimists must draw a line between being optimistic and delusional, and pessimists must draw a line between pessimistic and paranoid.
Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Pumpkin Creme Pie

Pumpkin Creme Pie

3 eggs (If they are small, use 4)
2 cups cooked pumpkin
1 cup full fat coconut milk or 8 ounces softened cream cheese
1 cup honey, maple syrup, or sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon almond extract or vanilla

Use a 9 inch glass pie dish. You can use a nut crust, a flour crust or leave out the crust altogether for a gluten free option. See Pie Crust Options

1. You can put all of the filling ingredients in a mixing bowl at once.
2. Use a hand mixer or an immersion blender to thoroughly blend the mixture. Use a medium speed. This filling is good if it has a little air mixed into it.
3. Bake at 325º for about 1 hour. To keep your pie from scorching, set the pie plate on a cookie sheet filled with water. It cooks a little more slowly this way, which is good for an egg mixture. It keeps the bottom of the crust from scorching as well.
4. Chill and serve with whipped cream or whipped coconut milk fat or an ice cream of your choosing.

The cold, hard truth will fall on stony ground, whereas your trashy rumor will flourish like a weed.
Sue Grafton in Yesterday