Addictive Vegan Ranch Dressing from Dishing Up the Dirt

A friend gifted me a copy of Dishing Up the Dirt: Simple Recipes for Cooking Through the Seasons by Andrea Bemis in those hazy halcyon days before COVID. It's a pretty book, full of robust, veggie-forward recipes inspired by her life on Tumbleweed Farm, the small farm she and her husband, Taylor started and run in Oregon.

I admit to being a little skeptical about this so-called "hippie ranch dressing" made from cashews until I made a batch to serve with a plate of crudites and hearty bread for an outdoor get-together we hosted that first COVID. But it was love at first bite—everyone who tried it was hooked.

Made with raw cashews, fresh herbs, garlic, lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper it's simple, good for you and extremly tasty. It's also vegan but is clearly not for those with nut allergies. This dressing/dip is delicious on/with everything—salad, crudites, grain bowls, roasted vegetables, bread, crackers, and more.

The only change I've made to Andrea's recipe is the addition of cilantro. However, if you or someone you feed have the gene that make cilantro taste disgustingly like soap, feel free to skip it.

I hope you enjoy it.

-Eve

-- print recipe --

Vegan "Hippie Ranch Dressing" adapted slightly from Andrea at Dishing Up the Dirt

Ingredients

• 1 cup raw cashews, soaked in warm water for 30 minutes
• 2½ Tbsps fresh lemon juice
• 2 Tbsps extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2½ Tbsps minced dill
• 2½ Tbsps minced parsley
• 2½ Tbsps minced cilantro
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Drain the soaked cashews and rinse them under cold water. Place the drained cashews with ½ cup water, lemon juice, oil, garlic, dill, cilantro, and parsley into a food processor or powerful blender (my little mini food processor is perfect for this and a lot easier to clean than my Cuisinart)
2. Blend until smooth and creamy; this may take up to 2 minutes.
3. Scrape down the sides and add extra water, a little at a time, until you reach a smooth and creamy consistency and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add more water to thin if necessary.

You might also like:

Chimichurri: Addictively Herby Argentian Staple Sauce

Tzatziki: Greek Yogurt, Cucumber & Onion Sauce

Gingery Miso Peanut Sauce

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Pumpkin Bread with Chocolate Chips - Moist, Spiced, and Scrumptious

This bread is delicious. It's moist and spiced and studded with decadent little chocolate chips that make short days and long nights easier to bear. 

Although this is technically a pumpkin bread, you can use other winter squash in place of the pumpkin. I used a butternut squash that I cut in half, de-seeded and roasted in a pan, cut-side down in about a quarter inch of water for about an hour at 350 degrees, then let it cool, scooped out the flesh and mashed it. I appreciated that it's both a bit easier to deal with than a pumpkin (they're also not typically for sale in my neck of the woods after October) and also because it has sweeter flesh.

This recipe is lightly adapted from the one by Sally's Baking Addiction. I admit to being a bit skeptical about the inclusion of orange juice but decided to follow Sally's instructions and was glad I did as it makes the flavor richer and the bread moister. 

The chocolate chips are optional, of course. You could also either add or substitute a half cup of chopped walnuts to your loaf if you like. Enjoy!

-- print recipe --

Pumpkin Bread with Chocolate Chips

Lightly adapted from the great recipe in Sally's Baking Addiction - makes one loaf

Ingredients

Dry ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsps ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 3/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 1 tsp baking soda

Wet ingredients

• 2 large organic, pasture-raised eggs, ideally at room temperature but don't sweat it if you forget to take them out to warm up
• 1/4 cup cane sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups pureed pumpkin or butternut squash
• 1/2 cup neutral oil like canola oil or you can use melted coconut oil
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1/2 tsp orange zest
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips or chunks of your choice

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and generously grease a 9"x5" loaf pan (I favor glass - do NOT use nonstick, they're coated with toxic chemicals) with butter and set aside.
2. Combine your dry ingredients in a large bowl, whisking the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, and salt until combined then set aside.
3. Prepare your wet ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs and the white and brown sugars together until combined then whisk in the pureed squash, oil, orange juice and zest.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently mix together using a large wooden spoon or a spatula until mostly consistent then fold in the (optional) chocolate chips, if you're using them.
5. Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake on a lower rack for an hour to an hour and 5 minutes. If the top starts to get too brown, you can loosely cover it with aluminum foil.
6. After an hour, test for doneness by inserting a clean, dry skewer, toothpick or knife into the top of the loaf - it should come out clean with only a few small crumbs clinging to it. Continue cooking longer, if needed. Then allow the bread to cool in its pan on a wire rack before removing it and serving.

This bread store well at room temp for several days or well covered in the fridge for about a week. It also freezes well for months if you want to make a double batch and save one to enjoy later.

You might also like:

Spiced Butternut Squash Waffles

Winter Squash & Pear Soup with Sage

Maple Pecan Scones

3 Sustainable (Plastic-Free) Christmas Tree Traditions

Every year, Americans throw away between 10 and 15 million Christmas trees.🌲Many, if not most, of these trees end up in landfills where they slowly rot over years, releasing methane, a greenhouse gas that's 25% more potent than carbon dioxide at speeding climate change. 🗑️🔥🌎Not so merry...😭

If you celebrate Christmas, I've got three more sustainable and plastic-free options for your consideration below.