Hearty Vegetarian Beet Borscht with Lentils, Quinoa and Fresh Dill

Pretty much anytime I serve up a hearty bowl of borscht, I am again convinced it is one of the healthiest and most comforting soups to be enjoyed during the winter months. However, I enjoy it so much that I would never refuse a bowl, no matter the time of year.

I've prepared borscht on many occasions, but this recent vegetarian version of the Eastern European classic might just be a new favorite. The mighty beet is necessarily present, along with other earthy vegetables and some lentils and nutty quinoa to fill everything out. Dill was also a must for it's slightly sweet and bitter flavor, and included are also beet greens wilted in because I was fortunate to get a healthy bunch on top of the beets. To keep the theme vegan, I served up each bowl with a healthy dollop of cashew cream rather than sour cream. It's truly a meal in itself, but do serve with some chunks of crusty bread to fill things out even more if desired.

Savory Corn Fritters {Vegan}

Paring down the cookbook shelves has its advantages. As much as it pains me to let go of books, cookbooks or otherwise, so often the experience is one of renewal and discovery. I looked through books that I hadn't opened for a while, salvaged some recipes from those marked for the donation pile, and managed to make room for the ones that I truly cherish. My brain was buzzing with inspiration. I was discovering recipes I had nearly forgotten about, others just waiting to be enjoyed again, and new ideas to try.

These savoury pancakes I rediscovered in one of the first vegetarian cookbooks that ever occupied a space on my shelf. I have adapted the recipe over the years to make it my own, but as corn appears only occasionally on the menu, these moist, almost melt-in-your-mouth fritters hadn't been served up for a quite a long time. Usually they were paired with a zesty and chunky black bean and feta salsa. The corn kernels in these fritters provides a bit of a crunch, along with the grainy cornmeal, with some underlying tanginess from the sun-dried tomatoes and some heat from spices and hot chilies. Serve these up for dinner or enjoy for brunch.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Teff Cookies

Teff is one of the smallest and oldest known grains on the planet, and it sure is one of the mightiest. Native to Ethiopia, teff is used in a wide variety of ways, enjoyable just cooked up as is into a porridge, shaped into savory cakes, incorporated into soups, or ground into a flour and made into spongy injera breads to be served up with a variety of legume and vegetable dishes — or, as in this case, as a feature of sweeter creations. Teff is also an excellent source of dietary fiber, iron, calcium and protein.