November is Vegan Month and what better way to celebrate than to make a vegan recipe, or two! On Thanksgiving, I found out that my bacon-loving cousin had gone vegan and boy, was that a shocker. I tried different vegan dishes that I had not tasted before and was genuinely in love. So, these recipes I’ll be sharing today are dedicated to all you vegan lovers!

When I studied abroad I loved eating curry but I’ve never made curry before. This recipe has chickpeas so I know it won’t disappoint!

Indian Chickpea Coconut Curry

Ingredients Needed:

1 tablespoon of Kelapo Coconut Oil

1 yellow onion (finely chopped)

3 garlic cloves (minced)

1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger

1 tablespoon of curry powder

1 can of crushed tomatoes (15 oz.)

1 can of coconut milk (14 oz.)

1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed (15 oz.)

4 cups of chopped packed fresh spinach

What you want to start with is the Kelapo Coconut Oil. Heat it up in a large pan on medium heat and then add the onions. Sauté them for about 4 minutes. On the same pan, add the ginger, curry powder, and garlic for about 1 minute or until you can smell all the flavors. Next, add the crushed tomatoes and coconut milk while increasing the heat to high until it is brought to a boiling point. Then you’ll want to reduce the heat to low and cover the pan with a lid. Let it sit like that for about 10 minutes. You can add salt and pepper depending on preference. Finally, add the chickpeas and spinach then begin to stir. Cook everything for about 3 minutes or until spinach is wilted. Curry in now complete!

I’ll usually eat curry with white rice, but you can always find different things to eat curry with like cabbage, Indian spiced greens, sag aloo or Indian oven chips. All vegan friendly!

Now for our fall vegan dessert! Quick and no baking necessary!

Raw Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake

Ingredients needed

2 cups of almonds

1 cup of dates

2 cups of raw cashews

2 cups of fresh grated pumpkin

½ cup of Kelapo Coconut Oil

3 tablespoons of lemon juice

½ cup of raw agave

1 teaspoon of vanilla

4 teaspoons of dried cinnamon

1 teaspoon of dried nutmeg

1 tablespoon of fresh ginger

Begin by placing the cashews in a bowl and soaking them in water for an hour and then drain. With a food processor, blend the almonds and dates until chopped. Add a tablespoon of water if you feel like the almonds and dates aren’t finely chopped. Press the mixture you’ve just created into a spring-form pan. Rinse the food processor so you can add the other ingredients. Add them in and blend away until creamy! Then, in the same pan as before, pour the mixture. Make sure the surface is very smooth. Cover the pie with aluminum foil and let it sit in the freezer for at least four hours. The coconut oil will harden which will allow the cheesecake to harden. Once the four hours have passed, put the cheesecake in the fridge for an extra hour before serving.

Hope everyone is enjoying vegan month as much as I am!

-Gabriella