Veganized Aunt Ritas Hotdish
6 oz. dry macaroni, cooked by package directions
1 can condensed tomato soup
prepared nutritional yeast sauce***
12 oz. frozen burger-style crumbles (Morningstar Farms or Boca work well)
pinch of marjoram
pinch of thyme
salt and pepper to taste ***nutritional yeast sauce***:
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
2 cups water
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
1. Prepare nutritional yeast sauce by whisking all ingredients in a saucepan until thickened to the consistency of a thinner gravy.
2. Brown soy protein crumbles in a little oil in a large skillet.
3. Add can of tomato soup and mix well.
4. Add entire amount of nutritional yeast sauce and mix well.
5. Add cooked noodles, mix and allow to simmer at a very low temperature for about 30 to 40 minutes, stirring often to avoid burning or sticking.
SO HOW'D IT GO?
i made this with a tube of gimme lean - beef style. instead of the thyme & marjoram i added about 3/4 tsp of cumin to the cheesey sauce and i didnt add the cooked elbow noodles until the very end just before serving because i didnt want them to get overcooked while sitting in sauce. the result was exactly like a vegan hamburger helpers cheeseburger macaroni, so if you used to like that stuff you'd be into this!
Overal,l this recipe was pretty good. There are a few things we want to tweak the next time we make it (like we'd like the sauce to be a little thinner), but we'll be making it again!
It's not exactly like Hamburger Helper, it's better! Yummy stuff, my husband scarfed it down and has declared it one of his favorites. ;D
I think the cheese sauce would be great with soy milk instead of water, it would make it creamier. I also added a bit of Louisiana Hot Sauce.
Thanks, Aunt Rita! Good stuff. This is the first time I've added nutritional yeast to a recipe (besides stir-fried tofu or popcorn) and I have to say that I like it. Not sure if I'd take it to a carnivorous potluck, though.
I added the marjoram and thyme while I was browning the meat crumbles (The Boca crumbles I bought say "vegan" on the box). I threw in a dash of crushed red pepper and some oregano and onions, too.
There wasn't any condensed tomato soup at the local, healthy market so I bought regular tomato soup and only added 1 and 1/4 cup water to the nutritional yeast sauce. Also, I already had the spirally pasta, so I used that instead of macaroni.
And finally, I added broccoli when everything was simmering together. I usually prepare one dish to eat for several days, so I need some veggies in the mix!