Happy Monday! I had a really fun, summery weekend . . . now back to real life!

Sometimes when I have a difficult time deciding what to cook I think back to the non vegan foods I used to love to eat, and then Veganize them! I used to love chicken salad, and this oil free chickpea salad tastes just like it! So good! I have been on a serious soup and sandwich kick so I decided to make a Broccoli soup to go with it (and I got to use my pink immersion blender which is so fun!) I might be crazy for eating hot soup in the summer but I love soup too much to save just for the fall and winter!

Ingredients – Chickpea Salad

-1 Cup dried chickpeas, soaked in water for 8 hours then rinsed & drained — or 2 Cups canned chickpeas boiled in hot water for 10 minutes, drained & rinsed

-1 ripe avocado

-1/2 small onion, peeled & chopped

-2 ribs celery, cut into 2″ chunks

-Salt & pepper to taste

-Dash of paprika

-Optional toppings: tomato, pickle, lettuce, sprouts, Vegan mayonnaise, organic yellow mustard

Directions:

-In a food processor, pulse all ingredients a few times until all the chickpeas have broken down a bit but still have some texture & celery is finely chopped

-Season with pepper to taste & layer on top toasted bread with the toppings of your choice

Ingredients – Cream of Broccoli Soup

Ingredients – Sesame Seasoning

-1/4 Cup sesame seeds

-1/4 teaspoon salt

-1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast

Ingredients – Soup

-1 medium potato, chopped into cubes

-2 Cups frozen white pearl onions — or 1/2 of 1 onion, diced —

-1 Cup frozen sweet corn

-6 cups frozen broccoli florets

-3 Cups water

-2 Cups almond, rice, or soy milk

-1.5 teaspoons dried basil

-1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon

-1 teaspoon salt

-1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

-Toast sesame seeds in a small skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly until seeds begin to pop & brown slightly, about 5 minutes. Make sure not to burn the seeds!

-Add toasted seeds, 1/4 teaspoon salt, & 1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast to food processor & grind into a fine powder

-Set aside to ass to soup at the end of cooking

-Add potato, onion, corn, broccoli, & 3 Cups of water to pot — the water will not cover the vegetables, that’s ok! —

-Cover & cook on medium heat until vegetables are soft, but not mushy, about 20 minutes

-Remove from heat & add milk, basil, tarragon, salt & pepper, & the sesame seasoning you prepare earlier

-Blend 1 -2 minutes with an immersion blender until soup reaches desired consistency . . . I like some broccoli chunks in there ! —If you do not have an immersion blender, carefully ladle 1/3 of the soup into blender/food processor & mix until smooth. Pour mixture into a warm holding pot & repeat until all of the soup is blended —

          

*If you prefer to slow cook your soup, you can do so with this recipe on low for 6 – 8 hours

XOXO