Butternut Hummus with Feta & Pomegranates

A healthy fall or winter appetizer - great for Thanksgiving, the holidays, or just for snacking! Vegetarian, vegan and gluten free.

I hope you need a last-minute Thanksgiving appetizer because this butternut squash hummus dip is so insanely good! While I was making it, I couldn’t stop eating it. Now that the leftovers are in the fridge, I can’t walk by the kitchen without grabbing a cracker for a quick swipe. It’s easy to make, especially if you’re roasting butternut squash for another recipe – just roast an extra cup of cubed squash and swirl this hummus together in no time. It’s thick, creamy, tangy, and nicely spiced from the cumin, coriander, and a bit of cayenne. Now the important part…

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Apple Crumble Pie

Shhh! This apple crumble pie recipe is vegan, but you'd never guess it from the sweet apple filling and rich, cinnamon-spiced crumble topping.

This apple crumble pie recipe was the first pie that Jack and I made together. Even though we spent countless Thanksgivings together in Austin, we never baked pie. We’d either stay home and skip it, opting for a simple crumble or crisp instead, or we’d be head to a Friendsgiving, where someone else would supply the pie that year. But this year, we finally decided to take on the challenge! As Jack says, I have a “soft spot for soft apples,” so we knew that apple pie would be our pick. I also can’t get enough of baked fruit under…

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Roasted Beets

Learn how to roast beets perfectly every time! My recipe is easy to make, and the roasted beets are always tender and flavorful. A delicious side dish!

This roasted beets recipe is one of my go-to side dishes in the fall and winter. It’s delicious—the beets come out perfectly tender with a concentrated sweet and earthy flavor. It’s also really easy to make. Just wrap the beets in foil with a drizzle of olive oil, and roast until soft! The roasted beets are wonderful on their own, seasoned simply with salt and pepper, or dressed up more with citrus juice, herbs, or balsamic vinegar. Serve them with any weeknight dinner, or add them to a holiday meal. These oven roasted beets keep well for days in the…

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Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

Stumped for healthy dinner ideas? Make stuffed sweet potatoes! These 4 stuffed sweet potato recipes are all easy, cozy, delicious, and fun!

For so many years, I didn’t think I liked sweet potatoes. It turns out, I LOVE sweet potatoes and I don’t like marshmallows (which is how they were always served to me growing up). These days, stuffed sweet potatoes are one of my go-to dinner solutions, especially for chilly nights when I’d rather stay inside than head out to dinner. They’re cozy, filling, and easy to make. Plus, the sweet potato acts as a canvas for whatever you’re craving. In the mood for Mexican? Stuff yours with black beans and cumin-spiced cabbage. Craving Greek food? Fill it with quinoa tabbouleh!…

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Butternut Squash Casserole

This butternut squash casserole is a fresher take on classic bread stuffing. Roasted squash, leeks, and pearl onions fill it with texture and flavor.

This butternut squash casserole recipe is a veggie-fied version of my favorite Thanksgiving food: stuffing! I’d be excited to devour any plate of stuffing in the fall, but this butternut squash casserole is my favorite version yet. Creamy cubes of squash, purple onions, and dried cranberries add gorgeous color and delicious flavor to this classic autumn dish. I encourage you to make this butternut squash casserole for Thanksgiving, but if you’re anything like me, it might end up in your regular recipe rotation too. After a few rounds of testing and taking these photos, I’ve made it 5 times this…

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Parsnip Puree

This parsnip puree is like the fluffiest mashed potatoes you can imagine. Thanks to the parsnips and roasted garlic, it's rich, nutty, and delicious.

This year, this parsnip puree is taking the place of the mashed potatoes at our Thanksgiving dinner. You might be thinking, “What?! That’s crazy!” You’re not alone. That’s what Jack thought too. He’s a big mashed potato purist. Last year’s cauliflower mashed potatoes were a stretch for him, so parsnip puree sans potatoes seemed pretty nuts. Well, good news! Both of us couldn’t stop eating the puree by the spoonful before it made it to the table. It’s rich and nutty, with an amazing light and fluffy texture. Mashed-potato-purist approved! Jack loved this recipe, and I think you will too.…

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Vegan Broccoli Soup

You'd never guess that this creamy vegan broccoli soup is totally dairy-free! It's made of a rich, savory blend of potatoes, veggies, and herbs.

Drumroll, please! This vegan broccoli soup recipe is super creamy, comforting, and brimming with cheesy flavor. I started working on it after I posted a photo of this gorgeous pile of broccoli on Instagram with a call out for broccoli recipe requests. Overwhelmingly, people asked for a healthy/vegan broccoli cheese soup. Jack loves cheesy broccoli soup (and most cheesy things, to be honest), so we were both excited to take on the challenge. I’m happy to report that the results do not disappoint! This vegan broccoli soup recipe is not to be confused with cream of broccoli soup. I have…

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Garlic Herb Mushroom Pasta

Making this flavorful mushroom pasta is a breeze - sauté mushrooms with a splash of wine & toss them with pasta, garlic, herbs & a little cashew cream.

This mushroom pasta was inspired by our recent trip to Parma, Italy. Mushrooms were in season in the area, and every restaurant we went to seemed to have a mushroom special. In addition to multiple mushroom pasta recipes, we tried mushroom soup, grilled mushrooms, and more. Jack and I happen to love mushrooms, so I was itching to make this mushroom-lovers spaghetti once we got home. Mushroom Pasta Recipe Ingredients This recipe, obviously, starts with the mushrooms. I used sliced cremini mushrooms, but by all means, mix in other varieties such as chanterelle mushrooms or oyster mushrooms if you want to get…

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Pumpkin Tortilla Soup

This pumpkin tortilla soup is a hearty vegetarian spin on a classic. Perfect for fall, this soup is also vegan and gluten-free.

We’re halfway through October and I suppose I’m behind on pumpkin season :). I haven’t made pumpkin bread, I haven’t made pumpkin cookies, in fact, I haven’t even opened a can of pumpkin yet which is blasphemy in the blogosphere. This year, I wanted to think a little outside-the-box for my pumpkin recipes, so I’m going to start with the actual vegetable rather than canned pumpkin (so I guess I’m thinking outside-the-can?). When I was brainstorming ideas of what to make with fresh pumpkin, the winner was one of my favorites – tortilla soup. While it’s traditionally made with chicken,…

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Creamy Vegan Pasta

This creamy vegan pasta is coated in a luscious sauce that's entirely dairy-free! It's a tangy blend of white beans, lemon juice & nutritional yeast.

This creamy vegan pasta is my favorite recipe to make when I’m craving comfort food but don’t have hours to spend in the kitchen. From start to finish, it takes just over 20 minutes to make, so it’s the perfect weeknight meal. All you need to do is boil the pasta, blend up the sauce, sauté onion and broccoli, and toss it all together. Then, you can sit down to devour warm bowls of noodles and veggies coated with this super creamy vegan pasta sauce. While this sauce looks like a rich cream or cheese sauce, it’s actually a tangy,…

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Dark Chocolate Olive Oil Cake

This olive oil cake is the perfect treat for dark chocolate lovers. It's not too sweet, deeply chocolatey, and delicious with a dollop of cardamom cream.

We sold our house yesterday. In case you haven’t heard, Jack and I are moving(!?), and lately I’ve been feeling a really mixed bag of emotions about it. We left Austin a few weeks ago and are spending the summer temporarily in Chicago (living with my parents – so glamorous!) until we find a new place to call home. We’re excited for a new adventure, but of course, it’s always sad leaving homes and friends (and kitchens! aahh, what am I doing!) behind. Don’t worry, the blog isn’t going anywhere – I have tons of new recipes and other special projects in the…

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A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.