Chef Leander

Prepare Ingredients

• Toast the hazelnuts OPTIONAL. Heat a small skillet. Lightly toast the hazelnuts until just fragrant. Don't over cook, they will continue to cook when you take them off the heat.

  Whether heated or raw, rough chop the hazelnuts and set aside.
• Dice the sweet potato into 1/2 inch cubes. In the same hot covered skillet, sauté 1 cup of sweet potato cubes in a TBSP of olive oil until tender and slightly brown. Set aside to cool.
• Prepare the kale. Remove the tough center vein from the kale. Slice the kale thinly, turn 1/4 turn, and slice again to create small "confetti".
• Put the kale, cooled sweet potatoes, chopped hazelnuts in a large mixing bowl. Add ¼ cup dressing and toss to distribute. Add more to taste.
• Arrange the salad on a serving dish. Sprinkle the pomegranate seeds on the salad.

  Serve cold. Or, make the evening before, cover with plastic wrap and serve the next day.

Blender Method (recommended for larger quantities)

• Remove the outer skin from the shallot. Rough chop the shallot and put it in the blender container.
• Add the vinegar, lemon yogurt*, agave syrup and olive oil to the blender.
• Blend on low speed for 15 seconds, then increase to high speed for an additional 45 seconds.
• Pour into a storage bottle or serving container and keep in the refrigerator.

Salad Bowl Method (by hand)

• Moisten a kitchen towel and spread it out on the counter. Put your large salad bowl on the towel. This will keep your bowl from "skating" around the counter as you whisk your dressing.and put on the counter.
• Peel the shallot and mince it finely. Add to the mixing bowl. Add the vinegar, yogurt*, and agave syrup. Give it a good whisk.
• To mix this dressing, add a small trickle of the olive oil. Whisk until the mixture starts to cloud up a bit. Continue whisking while trickling in the remainder of the oil. As you continue to whisk, the oil and vinegar will thicken up.
• Add your salad ingredients to the bowl, tossing to distribute the dressing on the salad.
• Add garnish and serve.

Marinade the fennel--One hour before assembly, or the day before:

• Slice the fennel bulb thinly with a knife or a mandolin. Dice ½ red onion.
• Put the fennel and the onion in a large mixing bowl. Add 1 tsp of the sherry vinegar and a pinch of salt and stir together well. Let marinade for an hour or overnight.

On the day you serve it

• Segment the cara cara oranges. Cut the cooked beet in ¾ inch cubes. Rough chop the olives. Rough chop the pecans (see note).Add these ingredients to the large bowl.
• Toss gently until well mixed.
• Rest a small bowl on a damp cloth on your counter. Add the sherry vinegar to the bowl and begin to whisk. As you are whisking, slowly drizzle the olive oi into the bowl while you continue to whisk. Pour this dressing over the salad and toss gently.
• Serve on individual plates. Garnish with the delicate fronds that came with the fennel bulb. Beautiful!!!
• If you prefer to have a salad with more bite, try adding tajin or a few red pepper flakes to your finished salad.

• Bring water to boil in a covered saucepan. When the water is hot, stir in the salt and quinoa. Continue heating until the water comes back to a boil.
• Reduce the heat and simmer the quinoa for 20 minutes or until the quinoa has absorbed all the water.
• While the quinoa is cooking, zest the lemon and then juice the lemon.
• When the is fully cooked, add the lemon zest, the fresh thyme leaves, the garam masala, and the sliced almonds. Also add 1/2 the lemon juice.
• Stir well and taste for flavor. Add more lemon juice or salt to taste as needed.

Prepare almonds and butter

Microwave method

• Lightly toast the almonds in a small stainless skillet until they are slightly browned and fragrant. Put the toasted almonds in a small microwavable storage dish. Add butter, cut in to 4 pieces. Cover and store in the refrigerator until needed.

Cook the broccoli

• Place the broccoli and ¼ cup water in a microwave safe cereal bowl. Cover with a mis-matched lid to allow steam to easily escape. See Notes.
• Cook the broccoli for 60 seconds. Drain the excess water off. The butter should be melted by now.
• To serve family style, pour the melted butter on the broccoli, top with the almonds and serve immediately.

  For individual servings, divide the broccoli onto individual plates. Divide the almonds over the broccoli and drizzle with the butter.
• Serve immediately.

Cook pasta

• Bring water to a rolling boil in a sauce pot. DO NOT add oil to the water. When it begins to boil, add the salt to the water and stir until dissolved.
• Add the orzo pasta and stir well until the water returns to a boil. Stir frequently! Cook the pasta al dente, about 5 minutes
• Using the scoop colander, drain the pasta. Put the cooked pasta in a large mixing bowl. Add 1 TBSP olive oil and mix well to separate the grains of pasta.
• You are welcome to make this a day or two early. Cover well to keep the pasta moist in the refrigerator.

Add to the mixing bowl:

• Fresh thyme leaves from the stem.

  Rough chop the Italian parsley.

  Cut the basil leaves. If you want to be fancy, you can cut them into strips...called chiffonade. Or just a rough chop is fine too. See Notes below.

  Green peas.

Turn the oven on

• Turn the oven or toaster oven to 325℉ (165℃) to warm the sliced bread

Finish adding ingredients

• Add the Kalamata olives.
• Chop the sun-dried tomatoes and add to the bowl.
• Chop the red pepper, red onion and garlic and add to the bowl.
• Add 25 grinds of black pepper and stir the salad well. Add 1/3 cup of the Classic Balsamic Dressing (4 TBSP or 85 g). Stir until well incorporated. Adjust seasonings to taste.
• Put the bread in the oven to warm. Put the broccoli in the microwave and turn it on.

Plate the meal

• On your serving plates make a ring of fresh spinach leaves. Add 1 cup of the orzo salad to the center of the plate. Sprinkle 2 TBSP of Feta Cheese (if using) over the salad. Add three cherry tomatoes and a TBSP of pine nuts.
• Plate the broccoli on small side plates.
• Serve the bread in a basket with a ramekin of Walnut-Almond pesto, if using.

• Place all ingredients in the work bowl of your blender. Start the blender on low speed and immediately increase to high. Blend for 20 seconds until the dressing emulsifies.
• Pour the dressing into a serving vessel, or store in a reusable dressing bottle. Make a double recipe if you would like to have this dressing available in your refrigerator for other uses.
• This recipe makes about 1/2 cup of finished dressing.

Mashed Potatoes

• Wash potatoes well and cut into 1" cubes. Leave the skin on for a more rustic texture.
• Bring 2 cups vegetable broth to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. Add potatoes and salt. Add extra water if needed to cover the potatoes. Add a loose lid to the pot and cook until the potatoes are fork tender.
• Remove potatoes from the heat. RESERVE THE LIQUID as you drain the potatoes and let them cool for 10 minutes..
• Cut up the butter. Add the butter, salt, and pepper to the potatoes and mash until fluffy. Put in the refrigerator to cool overnight (see NOTE). If the potatoes are not moist enough, add some of the reserved stock.

  OPTIONAL: For an easy presentation, shape the potatoes into 4 equal size balls. Place on a small cookie tray and smash into a "pancake". Cover lightly and let freeze.

Lentil Carrot Stew

• Set your Instant Pot to "Sauté" and bring it up to temperature. Add 2 TBSP of avocado oil. Sauté the minced shallots and the diced carrots. Cook until tender and fragrant.
• Add the mushrooms. Cook until the mushrooms release their moisture and the moisture evaporates. The mushrooms will start to brown.
• Push the mushrooms and shallots to the side of the pot. Add the tomato paste to the center. Cook the tomato paste until it is fragrant and begins to brown lightly. Use several tablespoons of the broth to help scrape up the bits of caramelized tomato paste off the bottom of the pot.
• Add Chef Leander's Amazing Vegan Vegetable Stock to the Instant Pot. Add the lentils, coconut aminos, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
• Seal the Instant Pot and set on multigrain for 20 minutes. Seal the pot and let cook.
• When the Instant Pot has finished cooking, carefully turn the steam release valve and let the pot depressurize. Carefully open the depressurized pot and stir in the frozen peas. Stir well so the hot stew will heat the frozen peas evenly

Serving Options

• If your potatoes are cold, heat them in a skillet. If your potatoes are in frozen disks, cook like pancakes: let hem heat and brown on one side, then flip and brown the other side.

  For an informal serving, place hot mashed potatoes in the bottom of a "cereal" bowl. Add 1/4 of the cheese and and top with 1/4 of the lentil stew.

  For a more formal presentation, reverse the stacking order. Stew in the bowl, cheese in the middle, toasted mashed potties on the top.

  Garnish with chopped parsley.