Photo by Flickr User Cristiano Betta

Sometime around mid-October every year, when the air turns a bit cold and the fall leaves and pumpkin decor is out full scale, the only things that sound worthy of my kitchen are savory, thick dishes and warm, peppery beverages. However, as many vegans out there can attest to, one can get quite tired of cooking vegan chili for the entire season of autumn. Luckily, with a boost in awareness of plant-based lifestyles comes an influx of innovative recipes just waiting to be practiced and subsequently devoured. In light of Vegan MoFo this month, here are some wonderful vegan autumnal combinations.

Professional triathlete Brendan Brazier‘s new book Thrive Foods definitely sets the bar high when it comes to healthy and highly nutritional recipes, and they are fun to experiment with, blatantly ignoring the same-old, same-old regimen, making for creative seasonal, cruelty-free nosh.

“If you make one recipe, make this one,” says Thrive. The dish to beat? Summer Squash Fettuccini with Lemon Pepper Cream. Those eschewing dairy don’t often get to enjoy the luxury of a “cream” anything, let alone getting to spice up a “pasta” dish which is all too often the go-to food when there is nothing else available. The “pasta” is made from strips of squash, created from a vegetable peeler. Any type of zucchini or squash can be substituted, depending on what’s in season. By soaking the “pasta” in salt, all the moisture is drawn out, softening the vegetable strips into “noodles” hardly discernible from the typical stuff, but with much more nutrients and a unique flavor. Extra flavor is added using leeks and coconut oil. The sauce is made with a cashew cream base–my new favorite base for any type of creamy or cheese-like mixture. It’s even good on bagels! You can flavor the cream with whatever is on hand, but for this dish, lemon zest and pepper were used. The combination was quite surprising when added to the squash. This savory treat did not disappoint–indeed, it’s the one to beat. But don’t take my word for it; buy the book to try it out!

The Suburban Vegan blog has featured an Apple Cider Martini recipe that might just do the trick when served with the above zesty, summer squash pasta dish:

• 6 fluid ounces of apple cider
• 1 – 1.5 fluid ounce of armagnac
• 1 – 1.5 fluid ounce of Grand Marnier
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 2 apple slices

Then all that’s left to do is mix the apple cider, armagnac, and Grand Marnier together with ice in a shaker and serve with an apple slice and cinnamon stick garnish.

If you’re looking for a side dish or appetizer to pair with your seasonally themed meal, try a nice light salad with raw walnuts or dried fruit and a peppery dressing, like VegKitchen‘s Pear and Toasted Walnut Salad with Cranberry Vinaigrette, or look into a soup to compliment your fall spread containing similar palate aesthetics.

Now bundle up, grab your favorite people and rustle up some seasonal grub. It will be winter before you know it, so enjoy the crisp air and matching food before the snow starts to fall.

You didn’t just think that beers were good for drinking and beer pong did you? Well if you did, you are in for a treat, and also to be proven wrong! Beer can be used for a lot of things, many, however, are unusual. Check it out!

Enrich Soil
Pour a few tablespoons of flat beer into your garden to cultivate the soil. The yeasty soil will help plants grow stronger and help things flourish.

Lighten Hair
Soak you hair in beer and then lay in the sun. It will pull out terrific highlights and let your hair get a buzz as well as yourself.

Polish Wood Furniture
Get a damp microfiber cloth and wet it with your flat beer, then rub gently into your furniture. It will give it a polish and bring back some color.

Stain Removal
Much like club soda, beer will take out the stains in cloth and carpet. Just make sure to rinse with water after will take out the smell.

Soothe Tired Feet
Want to give your feet a nice treatment? Give yourself a beer pedicure. The bubbles actually will make your feet feel soothed and calm.

Polish Gold Jewelry
Drop your rings and other trinkets into a dish of beer, and then remove to polish. It will give a beautiful gloss and shine to your things.

Batter Up
We’ve got a recipe for making beer batter fried zucchini spears that’s just waiting for some leftover beer.

Bath In Beer
Bathing in beer can help soften and soothe skin. Make sure to rinse or you may smell like a human ale

I started reading a site called Organic Authority and am becoming a big fan!  Writer/Organic Living expert Laura Klein inspires us with her passion for cooking with organic food.  This site is a great resource for delicious organic recipes and tips.

Any good cook knows the secret to amazing dishes is how you use your herbs.  I keep a stash of dried herbs in my pantry when I am in a pinch or need a stronger flavor.  But nothing beats the taste of fresh herbs grown locally or in your own garden like basil, dill, parsley, rosemary, mint…I could go on and on.  Growing your own herb garden is not expensive and quite easy to do!

Laura Klein’s article Be A Cook In the Know really demonstrates the versatility of using herbs in cooking.  She also clarifies HOW herbs can be used- the stronger woodsy herbs like sage & rosemary are ideal for marinating and infusing the flavors into the dish before or during cooking.  However- the delicious leafy herbs such as cilantro, basil and parsley are great for finishing the dish.  I learned so much about herbs by reading this article that I wanted to share it with you!  Kudos to Laura for sharing this helpful information with us!