Thanks so much to everyone who came out this week! Your donations really helped. We were able to make ~$350 to donate to relief work in Haiti (through Partners in Health).

Missed it? You can still help out by donating here: www.standwithhaiti.org

Here are the recipes (thanks to Anny & Michelle)!

CHICKPEA AND LEEK SOUP
Yield: 6

• 12 ounces chickpeas, soaked overnight in water
• 1 medium potato, peeled
• 2 leek, finely, sliced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, finely, sliced
• salt
• freshly ground pepper
• 850 millilitres chicken or vegetable stock
• extra virgin olive oil
• 25mL soy milk

1. Rinse the soaked chickpeas, cover with water, and cook with the potato until tender.
2. Remove the outer skin of the leeks, slice lengthways from the root up, wash carefully and slice finely.
3. Warm a thick-bottomed pan, and add the tablespoon of oil. Add the leeks and garlic to the pan, and sweat gently with a good pinch of salt until tender and sweet.
4. Add the drained chickpeas and potato and cook for 1 minute. Add about two-thirds of the stock, the soy milk and simmer for 15 minutes.
5. Purée half the soup in a food processor and leave the other half chunky this gives a lovely smooth comforting feel but also keeps a bit of texture.
6. Now add enough of the remaining stock to achieve the consistency you like. Check for seasoning.

ROOT VEGETABLE SHEPHERD'S PIE
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Time: 1 hr total, 45 mins active

• 2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cut into large dice
• 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into large dice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 10 ounces cremini mushrooms, cleaned, stemmed, and quartered
• 1/2 medium yellow onion, medium dice
• 2 medium carrots, medium dice
• 1/2 medium celery root, medium dice
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 cups mushroom broth
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup frozen peas

1. Heat the broiler to low and arrange a rack in the upper third of the oven. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil; set aside.
2. Place russet and sweet potatoes in a large pot of heavily salted water and bring to a boil over high heat. Simmer until just tender when pierced with a knife, about 5 minutes. Drain, then return potatoes to the pot. Mash coarsely; add salt, and pepper; and stir until just combined. Set aside.
3. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat until shimmering. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring rarely, until browned, about 6 minutes. Add onion, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion just begins to soften, about 3 minutes.
4. Add carrots, celery root, tomato paste, and thyme and stir to coat vegetables. Add mushroom broth and soy sauce and stir until incorporated. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally, and cook until vegetables are just tender when pierced with a knife, about 10 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, combine water and flour in a small bowl and stir until smooth. When vegetables are ready, add flour mixture, stir to combine, bring to a boil, and cook until sauce has thickened, about 1 minute. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir in frozen peas.
6. Transfer mixture to a 7-by-11-inch baking dish (or a 3-quart baking dish) and spread reserved mashed potato mixture over top. Place on the prepared baking sheet and broil until the top starts to brown, about 5 minutes. Let cool 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

VANILLA CUPCAKES
Yield: 12 cupcakes

• 1 cup soy milk
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 2 ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons corn starch
• ¾ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit degrees and grease the muffin pan with some oil.
2. Whisk together the soy milk and vinegar in a large bowl, and set aside for a few minutes to curdle. Add the sugar, oil, and vanilla extract to the soy milk mixture and beat till foamy. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, corn starch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add in two batches to wet ingredients and beat till no large lumps remain.
3. Pour into pan, filling three-quarters of the way. Bake 20 to 22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to cooling rack and let cool completely before frosting.

VEGAN BUTTERCREAM ICING

• ½ cup nonhydrogenated shortening
• ½ cup nonhydrogenated margarine
• 3 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• ¼ cup plain soy milk

1. Beat the shortening and margarine together until well combined and fluffy.
2. Add the sugar and beat for about 3 more minutes.
3. Add the vanilla and soy milk; beat for another 5 to 7 minutes until fluffy.

Thanks as always to Jono for the photos (and also to Laura for hand modeling)

--Giovannayam.